Barcelona identify new leading striker target after Julian Alvarez move ruled out | OneFootball

In the last 48 hours, Barcelona have made the decision to end their pursuit of Atletico Madrid striker Julian Alvarez, having become very frustrated at the lack of progress made in recent weeks. For a number of weeks, sporting director Deco has been drawing up alternatives for this exact moment, and now, it must be decided who to target next.

The likes of Georges Mikautadze, Ayoze Perez and Fisnik Asllani have all attracted varying levels of interest from Barcelona, but for now, neither one of them will be sought by Deco. Rather, it is one of Alvarez’s international teammates that will now be sought by the Catalans, that being Lautaro Martinez.

As per Victor Navarro, Barcelona have decided to pursue the signing of Martinez, with a general consensus having been reached regarding the Inter Milan man. Deco has already held talks with his agent, so they are in a place where an approach can be made to the Nerazzurri in the next few days.

Inter take strong stance on Martinez sale

After once again receiving a negative answer from Atleti CEO Miguel Angel Gil Marin in the last few days, Barcelona have turned their attention to Martinez, who would be of a similar mould to Alvarez, in that he is proven quality. However, the Catalans are likely to find it just as difficult to do a deal in this case, with Sky Sport reporting that Inter consider the 28-year-old to be untouchable, and thus, no offers will be considered – especially at this late stage of the summer.

Barcelona may be very interested in Martinez, but this one is unlikely to go far. It would be a very big surprise if Inter opened the door to a sale, and given that they cannot afford to be strung along again, they may quickly have to pivot to an alternative, which could be the aforementioned Mikautadze, Ayoze or Asllani.