Arsenal’s move for Julián Álvarez was at the centre of a five-hour meeting as the striker, his family and representatives tried to work out what to do next.
Cadena SER have the details from Spain. Álvarez met his family, agent Fernando Hidalgo and his lawyers at his home, with discussions continuing into the early hours.
And there were essentially two options on the table: accept Arsenal’s proposal or stay at Atlético Madrid and try to repair the damage.
Five-hour meeting over Arsenal decision
Marta Casas explained on SER Deportivos that the Arsenal route remains difficult for Álvarez, even if it is now one of his only realistic choices.
“It seems there are only two alternatives to find a way out. The first would be his move to Arsenal, something which Julián still doesn’t seem to want to fully consider.”
That hesitation fits with information coming from Argentina earlier this week. Journalist Ariel Senosiain said Álvarez had already turned down Mikel Arteta despite Arsenal offering €125m (£108m) plus €10m (£9m) in bonuses.
Atlético were reportedly prepared to accept that package. Yet Arsenal clearly haven’t gone away.
Casas continued: “The truth is that in the last few hours there has been a meeting involving Julián Álvarez’s family, Hidalgo and all his people, including lawyers.”
“In fact, it went on until the early hours, more than five hours of meetings to decide what to do and whether they finally accept going to England, because they have now understood that Barcelona doesn’t seem to be a likely destination.”
Arsenal waiting for their answer
The alternative discussed during the meeting would involve staying at Atlético and trying to rebuild relationships after a difficult few weeks.
“The second option would be for him to apologise, keep his head down and work as hard as possible to regain the trust of supporters who already made their position clear at the Metropolitano on Sunday,” Casas said.
Meanwhile, Arsenal are simply waiting.
“The market is running out and Atlético’s position of not selling him to Barça remains inflexible. Arsenal continue lurking, waiting for developments, with money in the bank.”
Casas even floated another possibility, although only as a hypothetical scenario. She pointed out Arsenal have players such as Viktor Gyökeres who “could enter into a hypothetical operation”.
There is no suggestion at this stage that Arsenal have actually offered Gyökeres or that Atlético have requested him. Álvarez also missed Atlético training for a second consecutive day on Thursday after again reporting that he felt unwell.
So, after more than five hours of discussions, there is still no final answer. Arsenal have the money and appear prepared to wait. The bigger question is whether Álvarez and his family can be convinced that returning to England is now their best way out.
