Julian Alvarez Stays at Atletico as Barcelona Move Dies

The Decision at the Metropolitano

Julian Alvarez, the 26 year old Argentina forward, will remain at Atletico de Madrid after the European transfer window closed, according to OneFootball. He trained normally under coach Diego Simeone and travels with the squad to face Athletic Club in Bilbao at San Mames on Saturday, initially expected to start on the bench.

OneFootball reports that Alvarez had publicly stated his wish to join Barcelona before joining pre-season on 10 August. Those options faded, and talks with Arsenal did not progress.

MARCA reports that Alvarez accepted several days ago that his stated "dream" of signing for Barcelona was impossible, and that a move to England's Premier League was ruled out by his own refusal to return there.

Atletico's Position

The Syrian agency SANA reported that Atletico's board unanimously backed the club line that "there has not been and there will not be any negotiation" with Barcelona over the player. Chief executive Miguel Angel Gil Marin said the club would not deal with Barcelona "under any circumstances", while leaving open the possibility of studying an exit to a different destination.

Mateu Alemany, Atletico's director of men's professional football, insisted in recent days that the forward remained part of the sporting plans. SANA noted that Alvarez is under contract at Atletico until 2030, and that Spanish media said Atletico did not want to strengthen a direct LaLiga rival.

Fichajes.com, citing Radio Marca, reported that Atletico has asked Alvarez to change agents immediately and to apologise publicly to the club's supporters. Neither MARCA nor the other sources confirm those demands, and the player's response is not yet known.

The Arsenal Approach

Vietnam.vn, citing The Guardian, reported that Arsenal had agreed sales of Gabriel Martinelli, Gabriel Jesus and Fabio Vieira for a combined total of more than 70 million pounds, freeing wage room and an attacking slot. It said manager Mikel Arteta was directly involved in trying to persuade Alvarez.

That account presents the transfer as still open and dependent on the player's decision. The later reports from OneFootball and MARCA say the move did not happen.

Recent Weeks

Alvarez missed three training sessions last week with what the club described as an indisposition, and sat out the 3-1 win over Sevilla. His only playing time so far came against Villarreal, coming on in the 66th minute.

He was whistled by Atletico supporters during that match amid the speculation about his future. MARCA described him training among the reserves this week, accompanied by Giuliano Simeone, Cristian "Cuti" Romero and Juan Musso, with coaching staff calling out encouragement after one strong passage of play.