Schalke have moved to reject reports of a €37 million buyout clause in winger Leroy Sane's contract amid reported interest from Manchester City, Barcelona and Real Madrid.
Sane, 20, has been linked with a host of Europe's top clubs since making his first big impression on the first team by scoring against Real in the Champions League last March.
On Tuesday morning, German tabloid Bild reported that Schalke paid their youth product to remove a €1.5m release clause in his contract when the Germany international extended his deal until 2019 last summer.
However, the club were reportedly forced to include a €37m release clause, which is due to kick in at the end of the season, in exchange for the winger's signature.
Schalke, however, were quick to label the report as false on their official Twitter account.
Horst #Heldt hierzu: Weder in diesem Winter noch im Sommer greift eine Ausstiegsklausel bei Leroy #Sané. #S04 https://t.co/nbTvpPhkCH
- FC Schalke 04 (@s04) January 12, 2016
The club quoted sporting executive Horst Heldt, who will leave the club in the summer, as of saying: "Neither this winter nor in the summer will a release clause kick in."
In its report, Bild suggested that Sane has already made the decision to leave the Royal Blues in the summer, with Barcelona being his preferred destination.
However, the club reportedly has not received a concrete offer for Sane, with Bild claiming in early January that City are ready to bid €55m.
Schalke have said they "have decided not to sell Leroy," and the player's agent, Jurgen Milewski, has also ruled out a January switch.