Sporting director Deco confirms: Barcelona gave up on Álvarez

Julián Álvarez was Barcelona’s big target in the transfer market, but Atlético Madrid never responded to the offer. Now, Deco confirms that the club presented a payment plan over three years – before the striker finally stayed at Madrid.

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The hunt for Julián Álvarez became the big serial of the summer – and the reason for the friction between Barcelona and Atlético Madrid.

Now Decos confirms that Barcelona proposed to pay for the transfer over three years, divided into six payments – one every six months. The sporting director says he sent the offer to Mateu Alemany, his colleague at Atlético. The problem for Barcelona was that the offer never got a response.

According to Deco, the club formally laid out its terms, after which Atlético publicly announced that they had no intention of releasing Álvarez. The disagreement between the two clubs produced different versions throughout the summer. Atlético questioned the way Barcelona acted, while Deco denies that Barcelona made any irregular moves to sign the player from Madrid. He also denies that the club asked Álvarez to make a public statement in order to force a transfer.

The Argentine striker eventually stayed at Atlético when the market closed on September 1 – and thus the transfer was finally shelved for this window.

Álvarez should provide a different attacking profile

The interest in Álvarez stemmed from a concrete need in the sporting planning. Barcelona had lost both Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres, and were looking for new pieces to rebuild their attack ahead of the 2026/27 season.

Gabriel Jesus eventually came on, but Deco made it clear that the Brazilian doesn’t exactly match the profile Barcelona were looking for with Álvarez. Hansi Flick has also used Raphinha as a striker, and counts Hamza as a closer alternative to the number nine role in the box.

The immediate offensive payoff has reduced the rush. Barcelona opened the season with 22 goals in their first five official games, with Raphinha playing a more central role in Flick’s system.

Álvarez, on the other hand, continues to compete for Atlético in LaLiga, after the Madrid club closed any possibility of a transfer. In the previous Champions League, he scored 10 goals and provided five assists in 15 games – figures that explain why he remained a priority for Barcelona’s sporting management.

The market is closed – for now

Deco considers the market to be closed and the episode to be closed. There are therefore no negotiations going on at the moment.

The next step depends on whether Barcelona renew their interest in Álvarez in future transfer windows – and especially whether Atlético change their attitude. It was precisely this that put a stop to the progress of the offer this summer.

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