Chelsea have been told by Lyon's president they won't be signing £30million target Malo Gusto this month.
Jean-Michel Aulas went public with his assertion the 19-year-old right-back will be remaining at the Ligue 1 club until at least the summer.
It represents a blow to Chelsea owner Todd Boehly's ambitions to splash even more cash before deadline day on Tuesday - having already shelled out £238million.
Lyon had made clear they wanted Gusto to stay with them on loan until the end of the season but the tone of Aulas' comments suggest a deal of any kind will have to wait.
However, the Ligue 1 club have form for announcing player sales won't be happening before going through with a deal.
Chelsea's deals for Michael Essien in 2005 and Florent Malouda in 2007 went through after Lyon denied talks were taking place.
Similar statement preceded the sales of Karim Benzema to Real Madrid in 2009, Hugo Lloris to Tottenham in 2012, Alexandre Lacazette to Arsenal in 2017 and Memphis Depay to Barcelona in 2020 - among others.
Gusto has attracted interest following a breakthrough season at Lyon.
Having made his debut for Les Gones at just 17, Gusto has already racked up an impressive 54 appearances at 19, making six assists in the process.
There are still 18 months left on Gusto's contract at the French side, and the Blues may face competition from Premier League rivals Manchester United.
It came as Lyon made an enquiry to take Tottenham's Djed Spence on loan.