The hunt for Barcelona's next number nine seems to be postponed for another summer, while Robert Lewandowski barrels to his 37th birthday. This is permitted by the strong form of Ferran Torres, who can make his own business to postpone the next season for an indefinite period of time, but they look at their options.
Joan Laporta, president of Barcelona, distanced the club of Erling Haaland on Monday, while there has also been interest in people like Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyokeres, two players who seem out of reach. According to El Chiringuito, the star of Atletico Madrid is another on their shortlist last summer Julian Alvarez.
They say that Barcelona Alvarez wants to sign in 2026 and be clear that he must be the replacement of Lewandowski. They also say that the Alvarez camp announced that if a respectable offer would arrive at his door, then if things are standing, he would evaluate it and possibly present it to Atletico if he was interested.
It was not long before Atletico President Enrique Cerezo responded to those reports and TV3 (via Sport) told that there was no chance that it happened.
“Well, I really love Lamine Yamal. It seems that we have the same flavors. Julian Alvarez is an Atletico player. He will be ours and will stay ours. Julian will thrive in Atletico and die in Atletico in a sporting sentence because he is a player made for us.”
It certainly seems unlikely, not least because Barcelona's salary limit has been difficult for some time. Alvarez moved from Manchester City to Atletico for € 75 million, in a deal that could rise to € 90 million, which means that an exit will probably be up to € 100 million. Alvarez is also occasionally linked to Liverpool, as well as Barcelona, and suggests that someone is interested in keeping his options open, but it should be a mammoth offer for Atletico to give up his distance.