Real Madrid have confirmed that they submitted a €150 million offer to Atlético Madrid for Argentina forward Julián Álvarez. Atlético rejected the proposal and referred Real Madrid to the player’s release clause.

In an official statement, Real Madrid announced that its board of directors had approved a formal offer for Álvarez.

“Real Madrid C.F. announces that, following today’s Board of Directors meeting, it has submitted an offer of €150 million to Club Atlético de Madrid for the federative rights of player Julián Álvarez.”

Atlético Madrid responded with a statement of its own.

“After studying and evaluating it, Club Atlético de Madrid has thanked Real Madrid for the offer made, within the framework of the good relations between both clubs, and has rejected it, referring to the player’s release clause.”

Atlético’s position has been consistent for months. The club does not intend to negotiate a transfer below Álvarez’s release clause, which is reported to be more than €500 million.

Although the official statements were formal, Atlético later responded on social media with a post titled “Official clarification regarding our neighbors’ official statement.”

In the post, Atlético said it had not studied or evaluated any offer for Álvarez and disputed Real Madrid’s suggestion that the club had expressed gratitude for the proposal. The post ended with a joke aimed at Real Madrid and Barcelona.

The situation leaves Real Madrid with a decision to make if they wish to continue pursuing the Argentine striker. Any future offer would likely need to be significantly higher to open negotiations.

For now, Álvarez remains focused on Argentina’s World Cup campaign while discussions take place between the clubs and his representatives.