Atletico Madrid president Enrique Cerezo has shut down suggestions that Julian Alavrez could leave the club this summer, claiming the Argentinian will “die at Atletico Madrid”.
The 25-year-old has been linked with a move away from the Metropolitano Stadium less than a year after moving to the Spanish capital. Liverpool is among the clubs credited with an interest in Alvarez, who has netted 29 times this season across all competitions.
But the latest reports mention Barcelona as a more realistic destination for the former Manchester City star. It has been suggested in the Spanish media that Alvarez could be the long-term replacement for Robert Lewandowski, with Atletico willing to offers for the player.
However, Cerezo has already shot that suggestion down. Speaking in an interview with Esport3 on Wednesday, he ruled out an exit for Alvarez. When it was put to him that Barcelona is keen on Atleti’s no.19, Cerezo replied: “And I like Yamal… We clearly have the same taste.
“Julian Alvarez is a player of Atletico de Madrid. He’s very happy here, he is our player and he will remain our player.
“He was raised at Atletico Madrid and he will die at Atletico Madrid.”
Alvarez moved to Atletico last summer for a fee of up £82 million ($110M) and has enjoyed an excellent first season in La Liga. He has mainly operated as one of two center-forwards, often dropping deep to win the ball.
(Image: Getty Images)
His ability to play up front or in a more withdrawn role would certainly appeal to most clubs, and Alavrez would be a welcome addition at Liverpool – and offer an instant upgrade on Diogo Jota and Darwin Nunez.
Alvarez was heavily linked with a move to Anfield earlier this year, following comments from his agent that Liverpool were in the running to sign the World Cup winner
“I confirm that Liverpool were interested in Julian last season,” Fernando Hidalgo, Alvarez’s representative, told winwin.com.
“As for the future, it’s not the right time to talk about it, because Julian is participating in important tournaments and is fully focused on them.”
Those reports went quiet for a few months but reemerged when Fichajes stated Alvarez and Nunez could be involved in a swap deal this summer, although Liverpool would have to pay a fee on top of that.
That looks unlikely now following Cerezo’s comments, while Liverpool has been linked with Hugo Ekitike and Benjamin Sesko in recent weeks.
