Atletico Madrid reject €25m offer for midfielder from Premier League | OneFootball

Atletico Madrid are in theory set for a quiet end to the transfer window, despite Los Rojiblancos and Diego Simeone being keen to bring in a midfielder, and willing to lose Thomas Lemar. However if one of their major stars were to depart, that would certainly change matters.

According to Marca, Atletico have received a €25m offer for starting midfielder Rodrigo de Paul. The World Cup-winner has had an up and down spell at Atletico, but is arguably playing his best football this season for Los Rojiblancos, and West Ham United were seeking to take advantage of the fact that he has just 18 months left on his deal in the Spanish capital.

Rodrigo de Paul. Image via Esto es Atleti.

However Atletico, who spent €36m on de Paul originally from Udinese 2.5 years ago, have rejected West Ham’s offer. They have no intention of selling de Paul during the winter transfer market. The Madrid-based paper do say there is a debate on his future scheduled for this summer though.

Approaching the final year of his deal next season, Atletico are faced with the choice of either renewing his deal or putting him up for sale this summer. Los Colchoneros were leaning towards a sale, but his form in recent months has made the club rethink their stance, and a contract offer is now in their minds. They believe there are few options like de Paul on the market with the vision of play and leadership he has.

For his part, de Paul is keen to remain at Atletico, but it is not beyond the realm of possibility that a lucrative offer from the Premier League or Saudi Arabia could make him rethink that stance.

De Paul will be 31 years old before the end of the season, and it remains to be seen what length of contract they are willing to offer the Argentina international. Already Atletico will be keen to move on Thomas Lemar, and have Koke Resurreccion in reserve to alternate with Pablo Barrios and Conor Gallagher. It is thought that Atletico are also in the market for a more defensive midfielder either now or down the line too.