Koke Rights Reportedly Sold by Atletico Madrid in Contract Leak

Atletico Madrid allegedly sold 30 per cent of star player Koke's rights to a company in the Republic of Ireland in 2013, it was revealed by Football Leaks. 

According to AS (h/t Football Espana), the rights were sold to Quality Football Ireland for €3 million (£2.4 million via Wednesday's exchange rate on XE.com).

Los Rojiblancos still held the remaining 70 per cent of the midfielder's rights, and when the midfielder signed a new deal in 2014 the company "had the right to maintain their share of his contract or receive compensation for their percentage, with all rights returning to Atleti," but it is unknown which they opted for.

According to Miguel Serrano of Ok Diario (Metro's Mark Brus), he has a £63 million release clause.

Agence France-Presse's Kieran Canning was surprised at how little the club sold his rights for:

If the company pursued the first option—to retain their rights—then the deal could pose some potential problems to both Atletico and any prospective suitors hoping to prise him away from the Vicente Calderon.

Premier League duo Manchester United and Chelsea have been linked with a move for the playmaker in the past, per Italian outlet Calciomercato (h/t Metro's Will Giles), while Barcelona and Manchester City were recently named among those reportedly monitoring him by Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo (h/t Claudio Colla of TransferMarketWeb).

Paul White/Associated Press

The involvement of a third party would make negotiations even more complex, as they would also have to be included in any talks and would hold a significant amount of sway in forming any deal struck.

As for Los Rojiblancos, they would stand to miss out on 30 per cent of the transfer fee—just under £20 million if his release clause is met, hindering their ability to reinvest that money back into the squad and afford a replacement of similar quality.

La Liga writer Andrew Gaffney explained the further difficulties Atletico may face as a result of the deal:

The issue may be academic if Koke remains with Atletico, with whom he has played since 2000.

Last summer, manager Diego Simeone spoke to Radio Marca (h/t Football Espana), and the 24-year-old was the first name mentioned when discussing players who would not be for sale: "Untransferable? Koke, [Diego] Godin and not many more. ... Koke has the ability, the vision between the lines, not to mention his part in the attack. He can play in the centre, or where he always has, according to the variations."

The creative and versatile midfielder is a key cog in Atleti's machine and one of their most exceptional youth graduates in years, so the club will be reticent to sell him at any price.

His side trail Barcelona by six points in La Liga with seven games remaining, and they need to overturn a 2-1 defeat to the Blaugrana in order to progress to the final four of the UEFA Champions League.