Real Madrid chairman Florentino Perez has said that he does not believe the club are negotiating with Manchester United over the transfer of Alvaro Morata.
The Reds were reported by Diario Gol to be on the verge of securing the 24-year-old striker’s signature, with the move said to be completed by Thursday evening.
Spanish magazine Don Balon claimed that Real had come to an agreement with United over a £62million transfer fee, with club chairman Florentino Perez looking to reinvest the money in a move for Monaco’s Kylian Mbappe.
However it appears that the reports are wide of the mark, with Perez himself offering a conflicting account of the transfer deal.
He told Spanish Radio station El Primer Palo, as translated by the Mirror: “I have read that we have reached an agreement for I don’t know how many million Euros, but it is not true.
“I believe we are not negotiating with Manchester United, which does not mean that there are not people around him who are talking, which is normal.”
Morata has established himself as one of the brightest young strikers in Europe, having earned 21 caps for Spain, scoring nine goals.
A graduate of the Real Madrid academy, Morata left the club in 2014 to join Italian giants Juventus.
He rejoined the Spanish side just last summer for a fee of £25million, going on to score 20 goals and provide six assists in 43 appearances across all competitions last season.
However, he has reportedly informed the club he wishes to depart once again due to a lack of playing time in the starting XI, with experienced French striker Karim Benzema often preferred by manager and fellow Frenchman Zinedine Zidane.
Manchester United are looking to replace talismanic forward Zlatan Ibrahimovic after he suffered a serious knee injury which saw the club choose not to extend his one-year contract.
They currently have youngsters Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial as their recognised senior strikers, while England star Wayne Rooney may be restored to his former position by Jose Mourinho.