A Sport.ro source reported that for a potential summer departure of Matei Ilie, CFR Cluj will not allow the central defender to leave for under two million euros. This amount is at least double an offer received from Russia in the winter. Discussions and figures may change depending on CFR Cluj winning the Superliga or qualifying for European competitions.

The transfer of Matei Ilie was stopped at the last moment by a decision from owner Neluțu Varga, who decided to keep the defender. According to Sport.ro, CFR Cluj was completely decided to sell Ilie in winter, and the refusal to let him go was surprising even for the club's management.

Neluțu Varga confirmed interest from Krylya Sovetov Samara for Matei Ilie and stated that an offer of 900,000 euros was received. Varga said the offer was refused because the amount is too low for the club's demands. He added that Matei Ilie will remain at CFR Cluj at least until the summer and that this is his decision.

Bogdan Mara, the sporting director of CFR Cluj, stated that his team has received offers for 23-year-old Romanian defender Matei Ilie. The former Romania U21 international has 12 caps and 2 goals for the youth side. He joined CFR Cluj on 05/09/2023 and is under contract until 30/06/2027. In the current 25/26 SuperLiga season, Ilie has made 19 appearances, scoring 2 goals and providing 3 assists. According to Transfermarkt, he has a market value of €1.70m. FCSB and Dinamo Bucureşti have been previously linked with the player.