Barcelona’s pursuit of Julian Alvarez has reportedly hit another major obstacle, with Atletico Madrid refusing to even consider offers in the region of €100 million for the Argentine forward.
The striker remains one of Barcelona’s top transfer targets, and reports in recent hours have claimed that the Catalan club submitted a €100 million proposal in an attempt to start negotiations.
However, Atletico Madrid’s position remains as firm as ever.
According to the latest information from Pedro Fullana, the Madrid-based club has no intention of discussing a transfer at that figure and would only begin to reconsider their position if an offer much closer to €150 million arrived.
Atletico will not entertain €100m offers
The latest update suggests Atletico Madrid are not interested in debating whether Barcelona’s offer officially exists or not.
Atletico Madrid want at least €150 million to consider Alvarez’s sale. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)
In fact, the focus within the Rojiblanco club remains on keeping Alvarez at the Metropolitano.
The information does not end there, as Atletico CEO Miguel Angel Gil Marin has no intention of evaluating proposals worth €100 million, believing such figures fall well short of the player’s importance to the club.
The Argentine is viewed as one of the cornerstones of Atletico’s sporting project and a player around whom future plans are being built.
Because of that, the club see little value in entertaining discussions at the numbers currently being mentioned.
What now for Barcelona?
While Atletico acknowledge that a major sale would generate significant financial resources, the feeling is that losing Alvarez would create a sporting problem that money alone would not immediately solve.
Atletico Madrid are not interested in selling Alvarez. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)
From their perspective, replacing a player of his quality would become a priority and could force the club into a significant rebuild of its attacking structure.
This development certainly comes as a massive problem for Barcelona, who view the Argentine as the perfect replacement for Robert Lewandowski.
The problem for Barcelona is that Atletico do not see the player as a transfer opportunity but as an essential part of their future and that distinction changes the negotiation entirely.
In most transfer situations, clubs discuss the price, although in this case, Atletico’s objective appears to be avoiding a sale altogether.
