Julian Alvarez remains an Arsenal transfer target with a fresh verdict issued on his uncertain future at Atletico Madrid
Arsenal have been handed a Julian Alvarez transfer verdict by Alan Shearer
Arsenal have been handed a Julian Alvarez transfer verdict by Alan Shearer(Image: (Photo by Angel Martinez/Getty Images))
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Alan Shearer has admitted Arsenal have a small window to sign Julian Alvarez - with the Premier League title wrapped up if he does join. The Atletico Madrid star could be on the move in the final few days of the trading period with Emirates Stadium one of his possible destinations.
Barcelona seemingly remains the preference of Alvarez but selling to their La Liga rivals is something that Diego Simeone's side our firmly against. And now Shearer has weighed in on the future of Alvarez and what his potential arrival would mean for Arsenal.
"We’ve heard of a lot of pushing from Barcelona and the reluctance from Atletico,” Shearer said on The Rest is Football podcast. "It seems like their thinking might be, ‘if we have to sell, we’re not selling to you [Barcelona]’.
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"There’s just maybe a small opportunity or a small window there for Arsenal to nab him, you would think. And if they do it’s done by the way [the Premier League title race].”
Co-host Micah Richards also offered a verdict on the former Manchester City star and he is of the belief that Alvarez should be prioritised over potential incomings in other positions.
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He said: “I would actually go for a striker if I was Arsenal and we’ve all seen the situation with Alvarez at Atletico. He was booed by his own fans the other night and there are reports he wants to go to Barcelona. But are Atletico going to sell him to Barca?
“It might be one for Arsenal to just sneak in there and offer a bid. He’s clearly not happy… If Arsenal had Alvarez he would take them to the next level.”
Julian Alvarez
Julian Alvarez played for Atletico Madrid over the weekend
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The price is an issue though, with Atletico wanting in excess of £100million, with The Athletic reporting they would consider sanctioning a sale for €150m, which translates to around £128m.
The 26-year-old returned to action this past weekend in a 2-2 draw against Villareal and was heavily booed by his own supporters before being escorted off by club staff while his team-mates went over to the home supporters.
Following the stalemate, Simeone gave his players a few days off with the players back in full training on Wednesday. However, Alvarez was not present with Spanish outlet Marca reporting that he was absent due to illness.