Arsenal’s transfer interest in Julian Alvarez isn’t going away; in fact, it’s growing.
Andrea Berta signed Alvarez at Atletico Madrid from Manchester City in 2024, and now, he could have a say in the striker’s future again.
Alvarez is very high on Arsenal’s transfer wishlist heading into the summer window, but he won’t be easy to acquire, given how valued he is at Atletico.
With 53 goal contributions in only 88 appearances thus far for Diego Simeone’s side, signing Alvarez would be a huge hit for Berta, but there’s a clock ticking that the sporting director will be wary of.
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Arsenal need to agree a transfer for Julian Alvarez before the 2026 World Cup
The 2026 summer transfer will run from Monday, 15th June to Monday, 31st August.
On paper, it gives Berta plenty of time to organise Arsenal’s summer transfer plans, but when it comes to Alvarez, a different approach must be taken.
It’s a busy summer for football, as four days before the transfer window opens, the World Cup commences.
As a result of the summer tournament, Berta must prepare to strike a pre-agreement with Atletico Madrid for Alvarez, as his performances at the World Cup could be detrimental to Arsenal’s chances of signing him.
How important do you think it is that Arsenal sign Julian Alvarez before the World Cup?
Post World Cup inflation is real 😳
The ‘World Cup bounce’ is a transfer phenomenon that has happened for many years, seeing clubs pay inflated prices for players who impress at the competition.
It comes as no surprise to see Chelsea at the heart of the most expensive instance of the occurrence, as the Blues paid £106.8m for Enzo Fernandez after he won the World Cup with Argentina.
Before the World Cup, Fernandez had an estimated market value of around €55m, which is just £47m, as per Transfermarkt.
The midfielder’s performances at the World Cup saw his value rocket, which has happened before in other transfers, and will happen again.
It’s therefore integral that Arsenal avoid this happening to Alvarez, who has already shown his worth at the World Cup, winning the tournament in 2022 and scoring four goals in seven games.
Arsenal are in a good position in the Alvarez race already
Berta works meticulously at Arsenal, so there’s no need for anyone to offer the renowned sporting director any advice.
The Italian, more than anyone, will be wary of what the World Cup could mean for Arsenal’s chances of signing Alvarez, which is why he must repeat one of the Gunners’ recent masterclasses.
What is the highest fee you would pay to sign Julian Alvarez for Arsenal?
Is he worth more than Declan Rice?👀
In January 2025, it was revealed that Arsenal would sign Martin Zubimendi from Real Sociedad in the summer, which they did.
The North Londoners had all things agreed before the window opened, and aside from a few bumps along the way, the deal went through, and Berta got a £51m bargain.
With the World Cup in sight, there’s a good chance that the Italian will be inspired to pull off something similar to protect Alvarez from other suitors and an inflated price, but Atletico would surely have other ideas.
It’ll be a thrilling summer for the Gunners, who, with Berta at the helm, are in a very good position.
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