Julián Álvarez has run out of patience. Today, Wednesday, the Argentine Atlético Madrid striker will finally get his moment: a face-to-face conversation with manager Diego Simeone, where he will ask to leave Atlético and join Barcelona in the current summer transfer window.
The pair are due to meet at nine o’clock in the morning at Atlético Madrid’s training ground to begin the session, according to newspaper “Mundo Deportivo“.
Álvarez returned to Atlético Madrid last Monday, determined to speak with Simeone and request his exit. But the manager never showed up.
Fresh off the Asian tour, Simeone had headed to Ibiza for two days of rest. The move blindsided the Argentine striker, who had wanted to use the time to thrash out his situation in person.
That was not the only snag. Miguel Ángel Gil Marín was also absent, another figure Julián considers key to his future, with Atlético’s chief executive away on holiday. The player was left without either of the two men he had hoped to sit down with in search of a solution through dialogue.
Julián completed two training sessions yesterday, Tuesday. In the afternoon he met sporting director Mateu Alemany, who attended the session and has been at the Cerro del Espino training ground for days.
Álvarez’s agent, Fernando Hidalgo, stayed by his side too, hoping to broker a solution after playing a pivotal role with the player. He has been responsible for driving him to and from the training ground.
According to the Catalan newspaper, Álvarez feels deeply aggrieved. As Mundo Deportivo previously reported, his message has been clear since Monday: he is holding firm to his decision, he wants to leave, he should not be counted on, and he is prepared to take more drastic measures if necessary. He had tried to resolve the dispute through dialogue for some time, but his attempts failed.
Simeone’s no-show on Monday went down badly with Álvarez. The striker believes the manager knew full well in advance that he wanted to talk, and reckons that at such a sensitive moment he should have addressed the situation in person. Simeone’s decision to go to Ibiza only deepened the discontent of a player already under pressure.
So the Argentine plans to act after the morning session: he will speak with Simeone and tell him he still insists on leaving Atlético Madrid, with Barcelona his target. According to sources close to him speaking to “Mundo Deportivo”, the player received a promise from the club last February to facilitate his move this summer.
Everything hinges on that direct meeting with Simeone. The showdown Julián chased last Monday will finally happen today, Wednesday, but it arrives in a completely different climate. The striker is no longer content simply to explain his position. He feels aggrieved, believes the dialogue has hit a dead end, and has warned he is ready to take further steps to reach a solution.