Arsenal admire Julian Alvarez but a summer transfer deal remains highly unlikely, as the Argentina star has made clear his desire to join Barcelona. According to sources involved in secret talks with Barcelona sporting director Deco at the Torre Melina hotel in late May, Arsenal have already pushed hard to sign Alvarez this summer but were politely told by the player's representatives that he is desperate to join the Catalan club.
Alvarez has now publicly spelled out his desire to leave Atletico Madrid, where he has a contract until 2030. Speaking after Argentina's 2-0 World Cup win over Austria at the AT&T Stadium, where Lionel Messi scored twice, Alvarez said: “This isn’t the time to talk about this, but I can’t hide either; I try to be an honest person. I spoke with the people at Atlético Madrid, and I think the best thing for everyone is a transfer. I want to fulfil my dream.”
Barcelona's Pursuit and Atletico's Stance
Barcelona have already had one proposal, worth £86.4 million, rebuffed by Atletico. That sparked a series of ugly statements from the Madrid club, who insisted they would not sell the player to their rivals. Ideally, if Atletico were to offload Alvarez, they would favour doing business with a non-Spanish side, but Alvarez is not keen on a return to England, where he won two Premier League titles and numerous other trophies with Manchester City.
PSG would also be ready to make a big financial commitment to sign Alvarez should he signal his willingness to move to France, but that is currently viewed as unlikely.
Alvarez's Frustration at Atletico
Arsenal were also interested in signing Alvarez when he departed Manchester City, but he is keen to remain in Spain having failed to win a trophy in either of his first two seasons with Atletico. His relationship with boss Diego Simeone is said to have deteriorated, and he is believed to be frustrated by the way he was treated after putting his body on the line in the Champions League semi-final against the Gunners. Alvarez rolled his ankle during the first leg and required an injection to play in the return fixture at the Emirates. Because of that issue, he was not deemed fit enough to start Argentina's World Cup opener against Algeria in Kansas City.
Arsenal's Only Chance
Arsenal's only chance of landing Alvarez now is if Barcelona cannot agree on a deal and the situation becomes so untenable that Alvarez wants out of Atletico at all costs. The speculation included a monstrous £129 million rejected transfer bid from Real Madrid earlier in the summer.
