Borussia Dortmund sporting director Michael Zorc believes Jurgen Klopp could become the next Bayern Munich boss, telling Sport Bild ahead of Der Klassiker: "It's factually conceivable."
Former BVB boss Klopp, who has previously said he would open to the Bayern job, has been strongly touted as a successor to Pep Guardiola, whose three-year contract at the Allianz Arena is due to expire at the end of the season.
Klopp has also been linked with Liverpool in recent times but, while Sport Bild reports that the German is set to tour England this week and visit several clubs, the tabloid believes he would prefer the Bayern job.
Dortmund CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke said last month that Klopp would be a "100 percent suitable" replacement for Guardiola, and Zorc acknowledged that it was possible that the 48-year-old could take charge of their Bundesliga rivals.
Speaking ahead of Dortmund's game at Bayern on Sunday -- the first Klassiker without Klopp since the 2008 DFB Pokal final -- Zorc said: "It would be an unusual sight, but in the end also not a matter of our concern."
Dortmund won two Bundesliga titles and a DFB Pokal during Klopp's seven-year reign and, after a dip in form last season, they have enjoyed a revival following the appointment of Thomas Tuchel this summer.
BVB won their first 11 games in all competitions this season and, while they have since been held to back-to-back draws in the Bundesliga, they remain second in the table, four points behind Bayern.
Mario Gotze, a key player in Klopp's Dortmund team before his 2013 move to the Allianz Arena, said his former club's impressive start was no surprise.
"BVB, already before Thomas Tuchel came in, had a great team," Gotze said. "They never lacked quality, and the way they are playing football right now is a hint that they might compete for the title until the very end."
He added: "To me, those games are still very emotional."
Dortmund first face a Europa League trip to PAOK Saloniki, but Dortmund have left Shinji Kagawa, Mats Hummels, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Sokratis Papastathopoulos and Ilkay Gundogan behind for the trip to Greece as Tuchel looks to preserve his key players for Der Klassiker.
Meanwhile, Kevin Grosskreutz has warned Dortmund and their fans not to destroy the club's identity as he questioned the cost of tickets at the Westfalenstadion.
The midfielder, who left Dortmund this summer and is currently training with Galatasaray ahead of a January move, wrote on Instagram: "It's a wicked club, but don't destroy it and become just like other clubs. By now, actually you don't need to complain about other clubs."
He clarified his comment in Bild on Wednesday, saying: "Now that I am no longer a BVB player, I have a critical distance. Borussia has always been a workers' club, and should stay that way and not be as aloof as other clubs. It starts with the ticket prices."
Dortmund-born Grosskreutz, a popular figure among BVB fans, made a bitter exit this summer and Watzke told local paper Ruhr Nachrichten that the 27-year-old appeared to be trying to get back at the club.
"It contains nearly all the elements of putting the boot in," he said.