Arsenal and Barcelona have reached an agreement for the transfer of Gabriel Jesus, a deal that could impact the future of Julian Alvarez. The Gunners are set to sell the Brazilian striker to the La Liga champions for £8.57million plus add-ons.
Jesus frozen out at Arsenal
Jesus, like Alvarez, had been training apart from the first team squad and was frozen out by Mikel Arteta, who preferred Kai Havertz and Viktor Gyokeres up front. The 29-year-old has failed to feature in matchday squads under Arteta this season.
The north London club's £20m valuation and Jesus' wage demands had proved a stumbling block, yet it appears the Gunners have now softened their stance on the fee they had been seeking.
Atletico refuse to deal with Barcelona
Barcelona wanted to sign Alvarez but now appear to have changed their stance after Atletico insisted that they would not conduct business with their direct rivals under any circumstances.
"The members of Atletico Madrid's Board of Directors have unanimously expressed their full support for the club's decision not to negotiate the transfer of Julian Alvarez to FC Barcelona," Atletico said in a statement.
"The members of the Board of Directors are aware that: Atletico Madrid is open to negotiations that are part of the transfer market, but always in an ethical and professional manner and with respect between clubs.
"We fully support the position previously communicated by the club that FC Barcelona have not met these requirements and, as a result, there have been no negotiations, nor will there be any negotiations with them regarding the transfer of Julian Alvarez."
Arteta hints at exit
Arteta had hinted the striker could be heading for the exit door, alluding to 'personal situations'. "Well, it's something to do with the numbers that we have in the squad at the moment and the way we're managing that kind of situation individually with all the players that have some personal situations," Arteta said in a press conference.
Asked to clarify what he meant by 'personal situations', Arteta added: "Personal situations, whatever they are, I think it's clear."
Jesus was regarded as a transformative acquisition from Manchester City upon his arrival in 2022. The Brazilian international scored 32 goals and contributed 22 assists across 123 appearances for Arsenal, yet has been sidelined for lengthy spells through injury. Jesus has been consistently linked with a departure, with clubs such as Napoli understood to hold interest in the player, but he is now set for a La Liga move instead.
