Atletico reject Real Madrid's €150m Alvarez bid and fire back online

Real Madrid have had a €150m bid for Julian Alvarez rejected by Atletico Madrid, and the city rivals responded by mocking them on social media. Atletico said they would not consider any offer for the striker, who is tied to the club until 2030 and has a release clause of €500m.

Real’s offer would have been a club-record transfer, but Atletico made clear they were not interested in negotiating. In a pointed post, they accused Madrid of making them “laugh even more than Barcelona” and suggested they should stop “stealing” players from Atletico’s academy. The club also said they did not need to thank Real for anything and made clear the bid would go nowhere.

The exchange follows a similar clash with Barcelona, who were also linked with Alvarez earlier in the spring. Atletico had already accused Barcelona of spreading “fake news” and running a smear campaign over their pursuit of the Argentina forward. They even mocked the Catalan club with parody posts showing several of their stars in Atletico shirts.

The story also ties into a promise made by Real president Florentino Perez, who said before his re-election that he would pursue a major “galactico” signing. He had said the club would make an offer for a top player worth around €150m, though he made clear it was not Erling Haaland, Michael Olise or Jeremy Doku. He also said the player would not come from the Premier League.

Perez’s comments had fuelled speculation over which star Real might target, but the Alvarez bid is the first concrete move to emerge. The transfer would have been the biggest in Real Madrid’s history, underlining how seriously the club view the Argentina striker.

Perez’s re-election is also expected to lead to other changes at the club, including the return of Jose Mourinho as manager. Interim coach Alvaro Arbeloa is set to depart, while the signings of Ibrahima Konate and Denzel Dumfries are also expected to be confirmed.