Julian Alvarez Transfer Saga: Atletico Madrid's Stance Against Barcelona

Julian Alvarez’s future at Atletico Madrid has turned into the transfer saga Spain cannot switch off.

The noise is constant, the positions entrenched, and with less than a week of the window left, the 26-year-old Argentine finds himself at the centre of a three-way standoff that is getting uglier by the day.

Barcelona call, Atletico slam the door

Alvarez did not train with his Atletico team-mates on Wednesday. Officially, the club put it down to a stomach bug and a bad night’s sleep. Unofficially, the timing raised every eyebrow in Madrid.

What is not in doubt is what Alvarez wants. He wants Barcelona.

Barca stopped hiding that fact on Wednesday. In a video interview on the club’s own channels, president Joan Laporta went public.

“The truth is that we're very interested in the player,” he said. “We'd like our offer to be accepted, and we say this with all due respect for Atletico Madrid.”

Respect, though, is in short supply between these two clubs.

Inside Atletico, the response has been ferocious. The message is simple and absolute: Alvarez is not for sale. And if he ever is, it will not be to Barcelona.

Marca published on-the-record quotes from Atletico, laying bare the depth of the resentment.

“The player is being portrayed as the victim, but we are the only victims in this case.

“[Barcelona] have harmed us both financially and socially. There is a zero-per-cent chance of selling him to Barcelona – it's not about money, it's about dignity.”

Zero per cent. Not low. Not unlikely. Zero.

A dressing room star, a terrace villain

The fallout has been brutal. Alvarez’s open desire to leave has gone down badly in the stands.

During Atletico’s 2-2 draw with Villarreal on Sunday, the forward was booed off by his own supporters. A player once seen as a pillar of Diego Simeone’s attack left the pitch to a soundtrack of anger.

Atletico expert Ruben Uría described the situation as “extremely tense”. He told Sky Sports News that the club’s hierarchy is united.

“Neither Miguel Gil Marín (CEO of Atlético Madrid) nor the Apollo board want to sell the player to Barcelona,” Uría said. “The entire Apollo board supports Gil Marín's decision. Alvarez has been told.”

So the line is drawn. The board backs the CEO. The fans are turning on the player. Barcelona are pushing. And Alvarez is stuck in the middle.

Arsenal wait in the shadows

Into that chaos steps Arsenal.

The Premier League champions have not disappeared from the story. Far from it. Uría reports that Arsenal sporting director Andrea Berta has stayed in contact with his former employers at Atletico in recent days, especially after the boos that greeted Alvarez against Villarreal.

Arsenal like Alvarez enough to go big. Very big.

The Gunners would be prepared to break their transfer record – the £105m they paid for Declan Rice three summers ago – to bring the Argentine to the Emirates Stadium.

There is one problem. The player does not want to move to London.

For now, that is the line from his camp. His priority is Barcelona. His dream move collides head-on with Atletico’s hard stance.

Six days to break the deadlock

So where does that leave Arsenal?

Sky Sports News senior reporter Rob Dorsett summed it up: Arsenal are outsiders. The official word is that they are not holding out great hope of pulling this off.

Yet the logic of the situation refuses to go away.

If Alvarez believes his future has to be away from Atletico, if the relationship with the fans is damaged, and if Atletico maintain that they will not sell him to Barcelona under any circumstances, his escape route narrows dramatically.

At that point, one elite door would remain open: Arsenal, the Premier League champions, with money on the table and a clear desire to sign him.

Right now, Alvarez says he does not want that option. He does not want London. He wants Barcelona, and Barcelona only.

But there are six days left in this window.

Six days for Atletico to hold their line. Six days for Barcelona to find a way past a “zero-per-cent” stance. Six days for Arsenal to see whether a player who has just been booed by his own fans decides that England suddenly looks a lot more appealing.