Real Madrid have denied claims linking them with a move for Enzo Fernandez, casting doubt on the credibility of suggestions of Arsenal interest in those same reports.
On Thursday, Gianluigi Longari reported that Manchester City and Arsenal were joining Real Madrid in the race for Chelsea’s Enzo Fernandez, gathering information on the midfielder.
Longari had previously claimed that Fernandez had a verbal agreement with Real Madrid for a five-year contract, with direct contact expected soon.
But the entire story has been thrown into doubt by Real Madrid themselves, with the La Liga club releasing an official statement on Friday morning.
Real Madrid wrote on their club website: “In light of the reports and statements that have appeared in recent days regarding an alleged interest from Real Madrid CF in the player Enzo Fernández, the club wishes to state that it has not made any effort, either direct or indirect, to sign the aforementioned player and, likewise, has no intention of undertaking such an operation.
“Real Madrid wishes to express its utmost respect for Enzo Fernández, a great footballer whose career and quality are widely known, as well as for Chelsea FC, a club with which it maintains an excellent institutional relationship.
“Precisely because of the respect that an entity like Chelsea FC deserves and because of the principles of institutional loyalty that have always governed the actions of Real Madrid, the club considers it necessary to categorically deny speculations that are unfounded and do not correspond to reality.
“Real Madrid regrets that, despite the clarity of the facts and the lack of any action on the part of the club, information continues to be disseminated that does not correspond to reality and that only contributes to generating confusion among fans and unnecessarily harming the entities and people involved.”
Whilst the statement seemingly ends the story of Fernandez’s potential move to Real Madrid, it also makes the links with Arsenal significantly less credible.
Longari was insistent that Real Madrid were in the race and that they’d made some form of contact with Fernandez’s camp. If that wasn’t true, then Longari’s claims of Arsenal interest are also less likely to be accurate, particularly as he was the primary source linking the two.
Though the Gunners are definitely in for a midfielder this summer, Fernandez’s name has almost never been mentioned by any other source rounding up Arsenal’s summer shortlist. For now, the link can probably be ignored.
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