According to Diario Sport, Alvarez's future is at a standstill, with Atletico Madrid unwilling to let him go to Barcelona, while Arsenal are watching from the sidelines, waiting for Vinicius to renew his contract with Real Madrid before the next episode of this transfer saga unfolds.
Alvarez expressed his desire to leave during the World Cup and now hopes to persuade Atletico Madrid to open the door to Barcelona for him. However, given Atletico Madrid's previous sarcastic remarks on social media, this doesn't seem like an easy task.
Ade Benitez during a CE Europa training session. / @CEEuropa
In recent weeks, sports programs and fan discussions have been lively, with many speculating on how to break the deadlock. Former Girona player Adélez Benítez is one of them. Just a few months ago, he was the coach of the European national team, leading them to a historic promotion to the Spanish Football Federation's top league in 2025.
Benitez believes that Alvarez's most extreme approach would be to "just say he won't train. Start stretching now and keep it up until the very end." In his view, "nobody will pay €500 million," and if he were Atlético Madrid, he would accept an offer of around €100 million without hesitation.
The former left-back understands that, in this position, the club has no choice but to sit down and negotiate with the striker and listen to Barcelona's offer. However, it's unlikely that Alvarez will make such a drastic decision and take a completely hard line, because if Madrid takes a completely hard line, he might end up in the stands.
Alvarez, currently wearing the number 19 jersey, has returned to training this week, but not as the club had initially expected. On Monday, he visited Atlético Madrid's training ground hoping to speak with Simeone, but the latter was on holiday in Ibiza, a turn of events that left the player unhappy.
Wednesday, which should have been the second most anticipated day, was expected to see the two meet during the morning training session. However, the tense atmosphere on the training ground was quite palpable. It seemed that the two had already met before training began, and the head coach had conveyed the club's stance to him: not for sale.
This summer transfer window saga seems far from over, but Alvarez is very clear that he wants to wear the Barcelona jersey. Barcelona, meanwhile, is handling other pending transactions, including Ferran's departure to Paris Saint-Germain and Rodri's subsequent arrival at Camp Nou. Time is ticking away, and the transfer window's closing date is drawing ever closer.
