Premier League heavyweights ready to sacrifice first-team star for Barcelona priority target | OneFootball

Barcelona have a dream centre-forward target to replace Robert Lewandowski, and it is none other than Atletico Madrid’s Julian Alvarez.

The Catalans’ interest in the player is no secret for the two clubs have publicly duelled over the topic in recent months. Atletico Madrid are refusing to sell the player to Barcelona, but the player is insistent on leaving and has even spoken publicly about his desire to leave.

As a result of the deadlock between Barcelona and the Colchoneros, several external suitors are monitoring Alvarez’s situation closely in the hope of profiting from the dispute. Arsenal are the biggest party waiting in such a standby position.

A negotiation tactic

As reported by talkSPORT via the BBC, Arsenal are now working on an active effort to coerce the player to join them in London and are prepared to move out of the shadows into a pioneering position in the transfer saga.

Arsenal want to use Gyokeres to push the Alvarez deal. (Photo by Linnea Rheborg/Getty Images)

They have now explored the possibility of offering their Swedish striker Viktor Gyokeres as part of the deal involving Alvarez, thereby proposing a swap of sorts.

They hope that receiving a world-class striker in exchange for their pearl may open up Atletico Madrid’s mind towards accepting Alvarez’s departure. The major hurdle for them, however, remains convincing the player who has his mind set on Barcelona.

Barcelona’s first belief

While negotiations with Atletico Madrid have not shown much progress for Barcelona in recent weeks, the Catalans still believe they are in pole position to land the Argentine striker.

Laporta will personally lead negotiations for Alvarez. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)

Negotiations are expected to resume after the World Cup once the player is back from the event and Atletico Madrid are more receptive to offers.

As matters stand, the Colchoneros have an active offer of €100 million on their table for the player, which Barcelona firmly stand by. They are also preparing a second bid with a similar fixed fee but a larger package in terms of variables.

Joan Laporta is personally expected to lead the negotiations with Atletico Madrid, and it remains to be seen if that makes a difference in the Rojiblancos’ stance.

The coming weeks will be key, especially with Barcelona likely to keep a deadline before they move on to alternate targets.