Real Madrid Dismiss Rodri and Olise Rumors as Mourinho Prioritizes Exits

Real Madrid have drawn a firm line under two of the summer’s loudest rumours. Rodri will not be coming. Michael Olise will not be coming. Not now, not in this window.

Inside the club, the decision is described as clear-cut. According to The Athletic, Madrid sources insist Rodri is not on their agenda, despite the Manchester City midfielder’s outstanding form for Spain and his award as best player at the 2026 World Cup.

That stance slices straight across recent noise in Spain. Reports, most prominently from Marca, have painted a very different picture: a Rodri who is keen to wear the white shirt, and senior figures at the Bernabéu lobbying Florentino Pérez to at least test whether a deal could be built.

On paper, the links made sense. Rodri knows La Liga, knows Madrid, knows the pressure. His time at Atlético and his evolution into one of the game’s most complete midfielders made him an obvious name whenever Real’s long-term engine room was discussed.

Inside the club, though, the message is blunt. He is not in their plans for this window. No active pursuit. No quiet manoeuvring in the background. Just a closed file.

Olise sits in exactly the same category. The Bayern Munich winger has been floated repeatedly as a potential wide option for José Mourinho, but Madrid sources again stress there are no negotiations and no change of position.

The club had already gone public once, issuing an official statement to deny they were in talks for Olise. The latest briefings only harden that line: bringing the France winger to the Bernabéu this summer is not viewed as realistic or even on the current agenda.

The contrast is striking. Outside the gates, a swirl of names, hypotheticals and dream line-ups. Inside, a far more restrained summer.

Mourinho’s Project

This is Mourinho’s project now, and he has been clear about what he wants: a defender and an extra midfielder to round out his squad. He sees gaps. He sees a long season. He wants more tools.

The hierarchy see something else. From their vantage point, the heavy lifting in this window is already done. The squad, as they view it, is broadly built. The next phase is not about chasing marquee arrivals but about trimming, selling, and creating room — financially and in the dressing room — before anyone new walks through the door.

So the market moves on without Rodri in white. Without Olise in white.

Madrid, for now, are betting that the team they have — plus a few targeted tweaks once the departures are sorted — is enough to carry Mourinho’s new era where the club expects to be: back on top, without the headline signing many assumed was inevitable.