Julian Alvarez responds as Atletico tell him to join Arsenal over Barcelona…

Julian Alvarez has responded as Atletico Madrid encourages him to choose Arsenal over Barcelona.

Despite Atletico Madrid’s efforts to persuade him to join Arsenal or Paris Saint-Germain, Julian Alvarez is resolute in his desire to move to Barcelona this summer.

Currently participating in the World Cup with Argentina, the former Manchester City player’s future remains a significant topic of discussion.

The Gunners have identified him as a key target for the summer transfer window, with Mikel Arteta keen to add another forward following their first Premier League title win in 22 years.

PSG is also looking to enhance their already formidable attack by signing him, but Alvarez has expressed a strong preference for a transfer to Camp Nou.

Barcelona has already angered Atletico with what they consider a public and disrespectful pursuit of the 26-year-old. Atletico has rejected an initial bid of €100 million (£86.4 million) and is unwilling to negotiate with the Catalan club.

While Atletico is determined to retain their valuable player, they are privately acknowledging that they may need to sell him to another club, as reported by Mundo Deportivo, which indicates they are attempting to guide Alvarez towards Arsenal or PSG.

However, Alvarez remains fully committed to joining Barcelona and is resisting his club’s efforts to facilitate a transfer elsewhere.

Despite receiving public criticism earlier this month, Barcelona continues to negotiate behind the scenes for a player they see as the long-term successor to Robert Lewandowski.

Although the situation is currently stagnant, Barcelona believes that Alvarez is solely interested in them, having previously rejected a move to PSG after Atletico discussed a deal with the European champions weeks ago.

As Alvarez focuses on Argentina’s quest to defend their World Cup title, this transfer saga is likely to extend throughout the summer.

Real Madrid has also entered the competition this month, revealing that they had a €150 million offer turned down by their city rivals.

This followed Florentino Perez’s statement made just days prior to his re-election as club president, in which he promised to present a record-breaking offer for a yet-to-be-named ‘great player’.