Arsenal’s interest in Atletico Madrid star Julian Alvarez is gaining momentum by the day.
Mikel Arteta’s focus is fully on the four competitions his side remain in, as the Gunners still have a chance of winning the quadruple.
That will remain the priority until the end of the season, but Andrea Berta is not sitting around doing nothing. He is getting ready for another big summer.
If reports are to be believed, his biggest target is Alvarez.
What is the highest fee you would pay to sign Julian Alvarez for Arsenal?
Is he worth more than Declan Rice?👀
Atletico Madrid set August deadline for Arsenal target Julian Alvarez
The upcoming summer transfer window is going to be a strange one for Arsenal and every other club.
There is the small matter of the World Cup in June and July, and it is extremely unlikely that big deals will go through in this period.
Any move for Julian Alvarez will be a big one, so it is logical to suggest that Arsenal will not be able to sign him until after the World Cup, which ends on the 19th of July.
The transfer window will remain open for about six weeks from that point, which is enough time for any club to sign any player. Atletico Madrid, however, won’t provide that luxury.
TeamTalk have revealed that Diego Simeone’s side have set a deadline. They want a sale, should there be one, to be done before the start of August.
Barcelona were recently quoted a £175 million price for Alvarez, but that fee could be a lot less for English clubs, if the report is to be believed.
It has been claimed that Atleti want a fee comparable to their record sale, which was Antoine Griezmann to the Catalans for £107 million at the time (BBC).
Alvarez’s preference is said to be Barcelona, but if he can’t get that move, he wants to move to London, where Arsenal and Chelsea are both keen on his signature and are receiving ‘weekly updates’ about his situation in Spain.
How important do you think it is that Arsenal sign Julian Alvarez before the World Cup?
Post World Cup inflation is real 😳
Atleti’s Julian Alvarez deadline is actually good news for Arsenal
Arsenal will have less than two weeks to sign Alvarez before Atletico Madrid’s deadline if Argentina make it into the final of the World Cup again, unless they wrap up a deal before the competition even starts.
Either way, that’s good news for the Gunners.
Arteta will surely want to get his new players in time for pre-season so that they can learn his system before the first game of the campaign.
Alvarez already knows the Premier League, so he should be able to adapt fairly quickly, but getting him through the door before August would be perfect for Arsenal.
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