Real Madrid have quashed reports they will attempt to sign Michael Olise this summer, claiming in a new statement that they have not had contact with the player or his camp.
Olise enjoyed a stellar campaign for Bayern Munich, tallying 53 goal contributions in 52 appearances, and perhaps unsurprisingly has found himself at the centre of widespread transfer speculation.
This only intensified during Real Madrid’s presidential elections, during which the incumbent Florentino Perez promised to send a bid of at least €150m (£130m) for a Galactico talent if he were reinstated.
Reports suggested that player would be Olise, though a club statement released after Perez won the election claimed it was in fact Julian Alvarez of arch-rivals Atletico Madrid.
Their interest in Olise reportedly remained, though, and Real have now moved to nip speculation in the bud. A statement released on Saturday afternoon said there has been no contact between club and player, and also lauded the ‘collaborative relationship’ shared by the two clubs.
It read: “In response to reports in various media outlets regarding an alleged interest from our club in Bayern Munich player Michael Olise, Real Madrid CF wishes to state that it has not had any direct or indirect contact with the aforementioned player, his representatives, or anyone in his entourage.
“Real Madrid also wishes to highlight the excellent institutional relationship it maintains with Bayern Munich, with whom it shares a long history of mutual respect, collaboration and admiration, and regrets the spread of speculation that does not correspond to reality.”
The statement continued: “Both clubs have always maintained a relationship based on trust and mutual respect, which is reflected, among other aspects, in the shared conviction that any potential interest in a player belonging to the other club must be dealt with first between the entities themselves, in accordance with the principles of institutional loyalty that have historically governed the relations between Bayern Munich and Real Madrid.”
Olise is presently in the United States, representing France at the World Cup.
Since Real’s interest in the player was first reported, Bayern Munich have remained adamant Olise is not for sale.
Club president Herbert Hainer said: "Michael Olise is a player of FC Bayern München, and he is under a long-term contract. We are not a selling club.
“If Florentino Pérez wants to send us a bid - which has not happened so far - he can save himself the trouble."
