The widely reported price tag on Arsenal transfer target Julian Alvarez is well wide of the mark.
It appears the Gunners will need to dig significantly deeper if they are serious about signing the Atletico Madrid striker this summer.
That, at least, is the verdict of transfer insider Ben Jacobs, who has poured cold water on the figures that have been doing the rounds.
Speaking on the Market Madness podcast, Jacobs was asked whether Julian Alvarez could leave Atletico this summer.
What is the highest fee you would pay to sign Julian Alvarez for Arsenal?
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“It’s really difficult,” he said. “I think Atletico will fight to keep [Alvarez], maybe even offer him a new deal. The money is going to be astronomical if they sell.
“A lot of people are saying 80 to 100 million euros… That’s not my understanding. It would have to significantly surpass what Barca paid to Atleti a few years back when they signed Antoine Griezmann.
“So you’re looking really at a minimum of 125 or 130 million euros to start a conversation.”
Arsenal face competition from Europe in race for Julian Alvarez
Spanish football expert Guillem Balague recently confirmed that Alvarez is Barcelona’s number one summer transfer target as they search for a long-term successor to Robert Lewandowski.
But at £108 million-plus, Jacobs makes clear that Barcelona’s appetite for that number is limited.
“Players are very keen on Barca. Barca are not keen on that number. So at face value, it’s a non-starter. But Barca haven’t discounted making a move or somehow trying to drive the price down,” he said.
PSG are also in the picture, though Arsenal could gain a significant advantage over the Parisians if they beat them in the Champions League final on 30 May — which would, among its many other benefits, be quite a good thing.
The prospect of European football’s biggest prize, combined with Andrea Berta’s existing relationship with Atletico from his time as their sporting director — though that may have since soured somewhat after his sideline altercation with Diego Simeone — would surely give Arsenal the most compelling pitch.
Alvarez himself gave the Gunners a taste of what they would be getting across both legs of the Champions League semi-final, causing William Saliba and Gabriel problems throughout before an ankle injury restricted him in the second leg.
At 26, with a World Cup winners’ medal and a Champions League pedigree, he is about as complete a striker as any you will find in Europe.
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