Isolation and fan indifference: details of the harsh scene as Julian Alvarez returns to Atletico Madrid

The player is determined to leave for Barcelona

Julian Alvarez has dodged a major headache. The Atletico Madrid star's holiday is over, and he's back in training with Los Rojiblancos.

According to "Mundo Deportivo", Alvarez is sticking to the plan. Far from staging any rebellion, he turned up at the Majadahonda training complex again on Wednesday, his third day back with Atletico after the break. He arrived fresh from the World Cup final, a tournament in which he demanded to leave the club in comments that spread right across the globe.

Medical checks came first, on Monday. Alvarez then trained on Tuesday across two sessions at Cerro del Espino, working alone in the morning and joining the rest of the World Cup finalists in the afternoon.

Atletico Madrid have no intention of selling Julian Alvarez. As they have insisted for weeks, any departure will never be to Barcelona, the Argentine's dream destination.

The club are standing firm, confident their striker will keep training as normal.

Wednesday in Majadahonda was anything but normal, though. Dozens of journalists and cameras gathered to catch the meeting between Alvarez and Simeone.

Never before had a pre-season session drawn such a crowd of media. Yet Alvarez faced no trouble from the fans, the very thing some had feared.

Those few supporters who did show up ignored the Argentine completely. Nobody approached him, and he trained without a hitch.

Match days may bring a different reaction. For now, though, complete calm reigns.

His conduct in training told its own story. Julian looked isolated, throwing himself into the work but keeping his distance from his teammates.

It showed most when Koke, Baena and Llorente shared a joke with a member of the coaching staff while he stayed out of sight. He exchanged only a few words with Lemar during the fifteen minutes open to the media.