Atletico Madrid are pushing to sell Julian Alvarez to Arsenal after his comments at the FIFA World Cup. They want Viktor Gyokeres from the Gunners in a deal for the Argentine forward.
According to a report in COPE, Atletico Madrid do not want to sell Alvarez to Barcelona, who are keen on signing him. The Catalan side are the forward’s dream destination, but the Rojiblancos are furious with the Catalan side and unwilling to negotiate.
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The report claims that the Spanish side want a player-plus-cash deal done with the Premier League champions. They want Gyokeres in exchange for Alvarez, but with an addition €60 million in cash.
The demand comes after they rejected the €100 million offer from Barcelona earlier this month. They also rejected a €150 million bid from Real Madrid, after Florentino Perez made the move hours after winning the presidential election.
Atletico Madrid released a statement via AS on Monday, June 22, insisting that no deal will be negotiated with Barcelona. They said:
“There is no amount of money for which Barça can buy Julián. He will not be transferred to Barcelona. Either they pay the release clause (€500m), or there is no deal. We have already seen how Barcelona operates in the past, such as when Atletico were preparing for their Champions League tie against Juventus and Barça were promising commissions to Griezmann’s sister, his family, and the player himself… Everyone knows that it is a cheating club. But they have come up against a club that is not going to laugh at them.”
Atletico Madrid also informed Real Madrid that they would let Julian Alvarez leave if they paid the €500 million release clause for the Argentina star, who is currently at the FIFA World Cup.
What did Julian Alvarez say at the FIFA World Cup?
Julian Alvarez spoke to the media after Argentina’s win over Austria at the FIFA World Cup. He revealed that the decision to leave Atletico Madrid has been made and said:
“I told Atletico Madrid that I want to leave. I want to fulfill my dream. I don’t think this is the right time to talk about it, but I also can’t hide from it or pretend otherwise. I try to be an honest person and I spoke honestly with the people at the club with those I needed to speak to. I think the best thing for everyone is a transfer and I want to fulfill my dream.”
Julian Alvarez has Premier League experience, having played for Manchester City after leaving River Plate.
Edited by Sripad