Major Arsenal transfer boost as Alvarez makes U-turn as ‘more than open’ claim emerges | OneFootball

Arsenal are refusing to give up on a deal to sign Atletico Madrid striker Julian Alvarez despite Barcelona being favourites for his signature, according to reports.

The Gunners spent around £64m on Viktor Gyokeres in the summer transfer window as they finally brought in the centre-forward they were looking for.

However, there have been mixed reviews of the Sweden international this season with Gyokeres scoring 18 goals in all competitions since joining.

Some Arsenal fans have been unhappy at his overall contributions to team play with the Swede sometimes seen as ineffectual when not scoring goals.

There have been rumours that Arsenal are now looking to bring in competition for the 27-year-old, or even replace him.

Top of the Gunners’ agenda is understood to be Argentina international Alvarez, who is also being linked with moves to Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain.

There were recent rumours that Alvarez could now reject Arsenal and favour a move to Barcelona because of his links to Manchester City.

However, our friends at TEAMtalk insist that Arsenal are ‘refusing to give up on signing’ the Atletico Madrid superstar this summer with the Argentine ready to leave.

The website insists that Alvarez’s camp are still ‘deep in talks with Barca’ but, crucially for Arsenal and other clubs, they have ‘made it very clear to the Catalan giants that they will not allow the whole scenario to turn into a saga.’

A quick deal could prove tricky for Barcelona because of their well-known financial issues with a €30m deal for Rashford looking beyond them this summer.

TEAMtalk adds:

Simeone confirms Arsenal interest in Alvarez

Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone revealed on Tuesday that Arsenal, PSG and Barcelona all had interest in Alvarez ahead of the summer.

Simeone told reporters: “I’m not inside Julian Alvarez’s head. But it’s normal that an extraordinary player like Julian Alvarez is wanted by Arsenal, Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona.”

Ex-Arsenal striker Jeremie Aliadiere has insisted that Alvarez would be a “great fit” for Mikel Arteta’s side as he is a “proven” player.

Aliadiere told Aceodds.com: “Alvarez will be a great fit because he is that player, but can also play as a nine. He will go and press with a Martin Ødegaard next to him.

“I want to see great players at the club, and he’s a top player and proven when he won the World Cup.”