Julian Alvarez has softened his stance on a potential move to Arsenal, according to Spanish outlet AS, with Atletico Madrid now ready to sell the striker but only to the Gunners and not a La Liga rival. The Argentina international, who has played in two World Cup finals, had previously prioritised a move to Barcelona, but reports indicate he is no longer 'completely ruling out' a switch to north London.
Arsenal's long-term interest and Atletico's changing stance
Arsenal have held long-term interest in Alvarez, and the club expressed interest in signing him at the start of the summer transfer window. Atletico initially rejected the possibility of the Argentine leaving, reacting angrily to approaches from Barcelona and rejecting a bid from Real Madrid worth almost £130m. However, it was reported last week that Atletico Madrid feel the current situation cannot continue and were therefore finally ready to sell Alvarez, but only to Arsenal.
While Alvarez would still ideally join Barcelona, he has not 'closed the door' on Arsenal and is intrigued by Mikel Arteta's sporting project. The Gunners spent £64m to sign Viktor Gyokeres last summer, and the Sweden international scored 21 goals in his first season at the Emirates Stadium to help Arsenal win the Premier League and reach the Champions League final. Bosses at Arsenal are not unhappy with Gyokeres, but there is a belief he could be upgraded by someone like Alvarez.
Fan backlash and Simeone's comments
Alvarez was heavily jeered when he came on as a second-half substitute in Atletico Madrid's 2-2 draw with Villarreal on Sunday. At one point the supporters were chanting: 'Tell him to leave, let him leave forever.' After the game, Alvarez headed straight down the tunnel to yet more boos as his Atletico teammates performed their customary acknowledgement to the fans, with Diego Simeone later claiming that was the club's decision.
Discussing his striker's future before the La Liga fixture, Simeone said: 'For me, Julian is an extremely important player for us to achieve our objectives. As long as he's with the team, I'm going to look after him.'
Neville's assessment and Arsenal's title defence
The Gunners began their Premier League title defence with an emphatic 3-0 win over newly-promoted Coventry City on Friday night. After that victory, Gary Neville said Arsenal would become strong contenders to not just retain the Premier League but win the Champions League if they sign 'world-class' Alvarez.
'What a squad he [Arteta] has built here and if he adds another forward into that then I don't see how anyone can stop them,' Neville told Sky Sports. 'We think that Alvarez wants to go to Barcelona but if they could get Alvarez somehow Arsenal, I mean that is going to light this place up because you've then got a world-class striker to go with all the world-class defenders and midfield players. And they become, not just Premier League title winners, you then think they can go the extra step and win a Champions League as well.'
Gyokeres has been linked with a shock move to Barcelona amid Arsenal's interest in Alvarez, and reports claim the Sweden striker would be open to a move to Spain. Arteta decided to keep Gyokeres on the bench against Coventry but may call upon the 28-year-old when Arsenal return to action against Aston Villa next week.
