Barcelona reach decision on signing Julian Alvarez after confirmed Arsenal deal
Barcelona have decided whether to move for Julian Alvarez after signing Gabriel Jesus from Arsenal, with Fabrizio Romano having detailed their plans.
It has been a huge summer transfer window for Barcelona, as they have spent around €184million (£158m) to sign eight new players. Barca had the option to sign loanee Marcus Rashford permanently from Manchester United for €30m (£26m), but they instead decided to land his England team-mate Anthony Gordon from Newcastle United for €80m (£68.5m).
The Catalans bolstered their attack further with the €22m (£19m) capture of Karim Adeyemi, while they also re-signed Joao Cancelo on a free transfer and raided Manchester City for Rodri in a stunning €60m (£51m) deal.
Barca have now completed the surprise €10m (£8.5m) signing of Jesus, with the Brazilian set to replace Robert Lewandowski at the Camp Nou.
The striker has penned a three-year contract with Barca.
As per Fabrizio Romano, Arsenal successfully negotiated a 20 per cent sell-on clause in the deal.
However, Barca fans will want to know what is going on with Alvarez, as Jesus is not exactly the statement striker signing they were hoping for.
Barca president Joan Laporta insisted last week that his side’s €100m (£86m) bid for Alvarez remains on the table.
But Atletico Madrid have repeatedly hit back at Barca for their public pursuit of the Argentine, firmly denying that he is available for transfer.
And Atleti look set to win in the current window, as Romano has written on X: ‘Barcelona currently consider their market closed in terms of incomings – following the arrival of Gabriel Jesus.’
Julian Alvarez to Barcelona OFF
It seems Barca will not be making a late move to sign Alvarez, despite the fact the 26-year-old would love to complete such a transfer.
Spanish journalist Alex Silvestre has already shut down Arsenal’s hopes of snaring Alvarez, too.
“We met with Arsenal’s sporting management to see if there was even the slightest possibility of him ending up at Arsenal, and they told us no,” he said.
Silvestre added: “It’s almost 100% certain that he won’t leave Atletico de Madrid.”
After receiving bids from both Barca and Real Madrid for Alvarez, Atleti told their LaLiga rivals to pay his colossal €500m (£428m) release clause.
Atleti were reportedly open to selling Alvarez for around €200m (£171m) privately. However, they never had any intention of letting him join another LaLiga club, and would only consider talks with Arsenal.
Meanwhile, Laurie Whitwell has confirmed Arsenal and Manchester United are battling for a late signing.
