Julian Alvarez has held a "marathon" meeting to discuss a move to Arsenal following talks with Mikel Arteta. The Atletico Madrid striker is keen to leave this summer and has his heart set on a move to Barcelona. Atletico have reportedly told Alvarez he must decide by Sunday evening whether he is staying or joining Arsenal.
Barcelona president Joan Laporta said this week that the club had not given up on signing Alvarez, despite the transfer window closing soon. "We're keeping our hopes up and sticking to our plan — with all due respect to Atletico — of trying to sign him," he told ESPN. "We would like to reach an agreement with Atletico; we are therefore standing by our proposal, our offer to Atletico, and hopefully there will be an understanding between the two clubs."
Atletico responded with a strongly worded statement defending their decision not to sell to Barcelona. It read: "The members of Atletico de Madrid's Board of Directors have unanimously expressed their absolute support for the club's decision to not negotiate the transfer of Julián Alvarez to FC Barcelona. The members of the Board of Directors acknowledge that Atletico de Madrid is open to standard transfer market negotiations when conducted in a professional, ethical and respectful manner. We fully stand behind the club’s previously communicated position that FC Barcelona failed to meet these requirements and, as a result, there will not be any negotiation and there is zero consideration of an Alvarez transfer to Barcelona. citing their concerns over how they believe the Catalan club conducted the negotiations."
The public exchange between the two clubs prompted a five-hour meeting between Alvarez, his family and his agents on Thursday evening, which reportedly continued into the early hours of Friday. According to Cadena SER, the meeting brought together his agent Fernando Hidalgo, members of the player's management team and his legal advisers to consider the options available to the 26-year-old.
With Atletico unwilling to open talks with Barcelona, Alvarez's choices appear limited. One option is accepting Arsenal's offer and returning to the Premier League, despite his preference for Barcelona. The other is trying to repair his relationship with Atletico and remain at the Madrid club.
Crucial days lie ahead, with both the Spanish and English top-flight transfer windows closing on Tuesday.
Source: www.standard.co.uk — Read the original article
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