Real Madrid president Florentino Perez makes €150M bid promise following Erling Haaland controversy | OneFootball

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has promised to submit a €150 million bid for a top player from a UEFA Champions League club next week.

The announcement from Perez arrives in the context of one of the most turbulent weeks in Real Madrid‘s recent off-field history, with the presidential election on June 7 having turned the Spanish capital into a theatre of transfer declarations and counter-claims.

Challenger Enrique Riquelme ignited the controversy earlier this week by publicly claiming that Haaland “has a release clause and wants to join Real Madrid” – an assertion swiftly and firmly denied by Haaland’s agent Rafaela Pimenta and his father Alfie Haaland, who described the claim as “entertaining, but not true”.

Manchester City have since threatened legal action against Riquelme over the remarks, with the club taking a dim view of what they regarded as an irresponsible and inaccurate public statement about a player under contract at the Etihad Stadium till 2034.

Romano: Perez to send €150M bid – not a Premier League player

As relayed by transfer insider Fabrizio Romano, Perez has confirmed he will personally authorise a €150 million bid for a top player from a UEFA Champions League club on Tuesday next week – and has been explicit that the target is not Haaland, Jeremy Doku or any other player currently competing in the Premier League.

The clarification is a deliberate one, arriving at a moment when Real Madrid’s transfer intentions have been muddied by the noise of Riquelme’s election campaign.

By ruling out Premier League targets entirely, Perez is both distancing himself from his challenger’s claims and signalling that his own plans are focused elsewhere – on a player from the continent’s elite club competition.

What does this mean for Manchester City?

Perez’s explicit ruling out of Haaland and Doku will be welcomed at the Etihad Stadium, where the club had already moved to protect their legal position following Riquelme’s unsubstantiated claims.

The distinction between the two candidates’ approaches is stark: Riquelme making bold public pledges about specific City players, Perez directing his focus towards a non-Premier League target and drawing a clear line under the speculation.

The situation with Rodri, however, remains considerably less settled. It was reported earlier this week that the Ballon d’Or winner is seeking a better contract offer from City than what has currently been tabled, with his future set to be addressed after the FIFA World Cup.

Perez’s clarification covers Premier League players but Rodri plays in the Premier League – and his name has not been removed from the frame by anyone on the Madrid side with anything approaching the same conviction.