Atletico Madrid have agreed a deal worth up to €95m with Manchester City for striker Julian Alvarez.
Subject to final personal terms, he will move to Spain this summer in what will be a record sale for the Premier League club.
The Athletic reported on Monday that the two clubs were negotiating the final price and payment structure of a deal that would see the 24-year-old striker finish out his two-and-a-half-year stay in Manchester.
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The versatile forward joined the Premier League club from River Plate in January 2022 for €17m (£14m) and extended his contract until 2028 in March last year.
He is expected to become Atletico’s third summer signing following the arrivals of Robin Le Normand from Real Sociedad and Alexander Sorloth from Villarreal. The La Liga club also remain keen on Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher, who has rejected two new contract offers in recent months.
Alvarez made 54 appearances in all competitions for City last season, contributing 19 goals and 13 assists.
He was instrumental in Pep Guardiola’s side winning the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup in 2022/23, with City becoming only the second English team in history to win the treble.
He also played a crucial role in Argentina’s triumph at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and has won the Copa America twice. He has been capped 36 times for his national team. Alvarez represented his country in the men’s soccer tournament at the Paris Olympics, contributing two assists to help Argentina reaching the quarter-finals, where they eventually lost to hosts France.
The fee is one that makes complete sense when you consider that he has been an important figure in teams that have won just about everything there is to win in football inside just two years.
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Atletico get a tireless Argentinian, which you obvious conclusion is that they will, given their stance all summer of only buying when others leave. However, it would be no surprise if they feel they have enough replacements in attacking midfield with Phil Foden, Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva and even James McAtee, especially with two options on the right wing (Oscar Bobb and new signing Savinho), so any of the aforementioned players may not need to move out wide.
One of those players could also serve as a false nine in case Erling Haaland is unable to play.
Manager Pep Guardiola was keen to keep the 24-year-old, and the Spaniard said in early August that he was “counting on Alvarez” ahead of the season.
“I’m counting on him, but he said in the news that decisions are made together,” Guardiola said.
Yet, as they have done in the past with Ilkay Gundogan, Riyad Mahrez and Aymeric Laporte, City will not stand in the way of a player who wants to leave. Atletico, who have also agreed a deal to sign Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher, have yet to agree personal terms with Alvarez.
The Argentine, who joined City in a £2.3bn deal from River Plate in 2022, has scored 36 goals in 106 games for Guardiola’s side.
Alvarez won the Treble in his first season at the Etihad and the striker featured mid-season in Argentina’s 2022 World Cup triumph in Qatar.
Alvarez’s status at Manchester City is said to be an issue from the moment he won the World Cup with Argentina in 2022.
After joining as an unknown from River Plate earlier this year for a relatively small fee, Alvarez has made 20 appearances for City, but less than half have been as a starter. The reality was that he was never going to replace Erling Haaland as a number nine, so he would either have to make way for Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Jeremy Doku, Bernardo Silva and others, or accept a back-up role. And his lofty status meant the latter option would not work in the long term.
Atletico are a huge club with Champions League ambitions and an attractive alternative.
For City, it could mean a bigger commitment for 20-year-old Brazilian newcomer Savinho than initially expected after his £30.8m arrival from Troyes.
It could also tempt manager Guardiola to bolster a squad aiming to win the Premier League title for an unprecedented fifth consecutive year.#leomessi #olympic2024 #olympicgames #simonebiles #serenawilliams #tombrady #cristianoronaldo #ronaldo #lebronjames #kobybryant #michaeljordan #barca #psg #fifa #olympics #paris2024 #paris #ralphlauren #noahlykes #novakdjokovic #simonebilea #hockeypro #footballnews #latesttransfers #chealsea #atleticomadrid #realmadrid #mancity #manchesterunited #latestfootballnews
