Atlético Madrid's plan to keep hold of Julián Álvarez | OneFootball

As he prepares to face his second World Cup, this time already as a star of the Argentina national team, Julián Álvarez is beginning to define his future from afar. Barcelona have already made a multimillion-dollar offer and Paris Saint-Germain have long been trying to lure him, but Atlético Madrid are determined not to let him go. What strategy will they follow to secure the continuity of their biggest star?

Atlético even went so far as to mock on social media the proposal made by the Catalan club. With jabs about how ridiculous the offer was, the intention was to make it clear that they would be the ones setting the terms and that they were not willing to negotiate over their best player. Despite this so-far unbreakable stance, everything could change after the World Cup.

People close to Julián Álvarez have let it be known that the player’s intention is to seek a change of scenery. Although he has never said it openly, he had dropped some hints in post-match interviews, for which he was heavily criticized by the fans. If, after returning from the upcoming World Cup, La Araña stands firm and asks to leave, there will be nothing anyone can do.

Be that as it may, in Atlético Madrid’s offices they remain unfazed by any kind of offer while preparing a financial package to improve his contract, and perhaps even extend it, although the current one runs until mid-2030. The intention is to give him a world-class salary and, basically, make him the club’s flagship player. Most likely, when the back-and-forth with the player and his representatives takes place, a final decision will emerge: if he wants to leave, he will not accept a new deal and they will have to begin negotiations with Barcelona or PSG, so far the only serious suitors.

Here is where Atlético Madrid’s secret plan appears: as the club made clear in its social media posts, they are not willing for the Calchín-born striker to end up playing for Barça. That is why, if he were to ask to leave, they would already have a line of communication open with PSG for a sale that could be around 175 million euros. Of course, if the former River player’s only intention is to land at Barcelona, this strategy would be pointless and they would have to sit down and negotiate.

Since arriving in Spain for the second half of 2024, Julián Álvarez quickly became one of the standout players in Diego Simeone’s team. In two years he has scored no fewer than 49 goals in 106 matches, many of them decisive (he has five goals against Real Madrid and four against Barcelona), and he is coming off carrying the team (with 10 goals) in a Champions League campaign that Atlético narrowly lost in the semifinals to Arsenal. That is why his club has already said no to 100 million euros, but that is far from meaning that La Araña’s continuity is guaranteed.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.