Julián Álvarez has insisted he never caused any problems at Manchester City and his exit was not on a bitter note.
ESPN cover comments from the Argentine striker today in which he discusses his surprise departure from Manchester City this summer.
The 24-year-old elected to leave the Etihad and join Atletico Madrid in the summer transfer window, bringing an end to a two-year stay with Pep Guardiola’s side.
He joined them in a €21.4m deal in January 2022 but only moved the following summer and had initially been expected to be left to develop for the future.
Instead, he proved to be a superb alternative for Erling Haaland, going on to score 54 goals and register 31 assists in 122 games for the club and establish himself for Argentina, with whom he’s won the World Cup and Copa America.
That secondary role behind Haaland prompted him to leave and join Atletico, where he is very much considered a key player under Diego Simeone after they spent €75m to get him.
He’s now focused on the Spanish side but wants everyone to know that there’s no hard feelings with Manchester City, who he left on good terms.
“I couldn’t go to Manchester (to say goodbye), but in those days when I was about to sign, we spoke and I thanked him for the two years, for trust, for the treatment, for everything I learned and for everything I experienced,” he said.
“I don’t think it (the farewell) was in a bad way. I always spoke with total sincerity, what I said at that moment may have sounded a little bad, but it was magnified by social networks, by the media and it was what I felt.
“I simply said I was going to analyse what had happened and project what could come in the future. I said that I had had a great time at the club, that I was very happy, very comfortable.
“They were simply words that were not enough to explain or explain properly. That’s where things get a little distorted.”
