Borussia Dortmund defender Sokratis Papastathopoulos has told kicker that forward Ousmane Dembele "can't just do whatever he wants."
Dembele, 20, a target for Barcelona, went on strike last week and was suspended by Dortmund after missing training without permission.
At around the same time, BVB confirmed they had turned down a bid -- thought to be in the region of €100m -- from the Catalan club.
According to reports in Germany, Dortmund have yet to receive a second, improved offer for Dembele, but on Wednesday Barcelona general manager Pep Segura said the club were nearing a deal.
Kicker also reported that there had been no contact between the clubs for nine days and said the player was believed to have flown abroad while the saga continues.
Papastathopoulos said Dembele was "a good lad who gets incredible things done on the pitch," but warned: "He needs to understand that no player is bigger than the team.
"Everyone needs to understand that he has to work for the team and fall in line. That also applies for Ousmane.
"He just can't do whatever he wants, and he should take Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang as an example."
Gabon international Aubameyang had also hoped to leave Dortmund this summer, but a lack of the right offer has kept him at the Westfalenstadion.
On Saturday, the striker scored a hat trick in the 4-0 DFB Pokal win over Rielasingen-Arlen.
"Auba could also imagine leaving the club, but is professional and gives it his all in every training and every match," Sokratis said.
"He scored three in the cup, but Ousmane wasn't there. He did himself no favours by going on strike. He should not forget that he has a long-term contract at Dortmund.
"It's hard to tell [if there's a way back]. He first of all needs to call in again and attend training. We'll see after that.
"Ousmane has given us a lot. He's a player who can make the difference. We need those players, but we also need players who don't exclude themselves and want to be part of the family.
"It appears Ousmane does not want that."