Arsenal have made contact with Atlético Madrid to explore the conditions of a potential deal for Julián Álvarez, with the Gunners testing the possibility of bringing the Argentine forward to England.
Softfootball understands that a direct meeting took place in London with Atlético director Mateu Alemany, as Arsenal sought to understand the financial requirements and overall conditions of a potential transfer.
However, Álvarez’s current valuation is considered too high by Arsenal.
Another major obstacle is the player’s preference. Álvarez has not opened the door to a move to England so far, with the Argentine understood to have prioritised a potential transfer to Barcelona.
Arsenal nevertheless decided to explore the situation and have now made their interest clear to Atlético.
The development comes after Atlético remain firmly committed to Álvarez. Diego Simeone has repeatedly expressed his satisfaction with the striker and stressed the club’s desire to help him continue developing in Madrid.
Atlético continue to view Álvarez as a key part of their long-term sporting project and have maintained that he is not available for transfer unless their conditions are met.
For now, Arsenal’s approach represents an exploratory move rather than an advanced transfer, with Álvarez’s valuation and preference for Barcelona making a deal difficult.
