Real Madrid forward Rodrygo has strongly denied transfer rumors linking him with a move to the Premier League with a clear message: “Stop making things up.”

Rodrygo’s position in the Madrid squad experienced a setback after Kylian Mbappe’s summer arrival. The Brazilian forward has received a similar number of opportunities to play – being just one match shy of last season’s 51 appearances – yet his role in the team has notably diminished.

As the Brazilian pointedly noted earlier this season: “I’m just filling spaces. Is someone missing there? Put Rodrygo in.”

Initially, reports from Spain suggested that Rodrygo had come to terms with the idea of his future being elsewhere, with some outlets even going so far as to claim that the forward was “refusing to play” for the rest of the season.

Multiple Premier League clubs have been alerted to the possibility this reported unrest presents, according to AS. Manchester City, Arsenal and Liverpool are billed as the three teams with the most concrete interest in the versatile forward, while Manchester United and Chelsea are said to be kept abreast of proceedings.

Rodrygo, by contrast, took a rather different stance. “Thank you for all your messages and concerns,” he wrote in a social media post which appeared to show him recovering in a hyperbaric chamber. “I’ll be back soon.”

“Stop making things up,” he added.

It remains to be seen what role Rodrygo will have in the absence of Carlo Ancelotti. The Italian manager has confirmed his imminent appointment at the helm of the Brazil men’s national team – where he will have the chance to link up with Rodrygo – ahead of Xabi Alonso’s expected Real Madrid arrival.

The departing Bayer Leverkusen boss is said to be targeting his current side’s talismanic playmaker Florian Wirtz, who would theoretically knock Rodrygo even further down the pecking order in the Spanish capital.