The Julián Álvarez crisis is escalating fast. The Argentine striker spoke with his coach Diego Simeone in the minutes before this morning’s training session on Wednesday, and things only got more complicated.
According to the Catalan newspaper “Sport”, the conversation with Simeone did not go the way the player had hoped. Álvarez wants to leave the Madrid club for Barcelona this summer.
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Simeone simply reaffirmed Atlético Madrid’s decision not to sell. He refused to listen to the arguments Álvarez put forward, and the response left both the striker and those around him deeply annoyed.
The player had seen Simeone, who worked hard to bring him to Atlético, as a potential route to persuading the board to let him go. That was down to the strong relationship the two had built since Álvarez arrived at the club.
Frustration was written all over Álvarez as he walked out of the brief conversation. Simeone had done nothing more than confirm he would count on him during the season and do everything in his power to help him develop, according to “Sport”.
By the same account, the coach showed little interest in how the player feels. Álvarez is under mounting pressure over his situation, with time slipping by and no sign of negotiations opening with Barcelona.
As far as the player is concerned, Simeone is not handling this properly. Álvarez put his faith in the coach and his sporting project, turning his back on other options to leave England for Atlético.
An anticipated escalation
There had been, in the eyes of the player and those around him, a kind of commitment to let him leave should a suitable offer land at the Madrid club.
That trust began to crumble once the coach threw his weight fully behind the club during the current crisis. The player and his camp reckon Simeone “washed his hands of the matter” and chose to look the other way.
This route now appears completely shut, and that will push Álvarez and those around him to take the matter to higher levels. According to the Catalan newspaper, the striker will not abandon his desire to join Barcelona and will keep pressing to get his wish.
Should Simeone refuse to respond to his demands, the player will wait for the return of Atlético Madrid’s chief executive, Miguel Ángel Gil Marín, and seek a direct meeting with him.
Álvarez and his camp insist Gil Marín promised to smooth his exit this summer. They now believe he has gone back on those promises and would rather keep the player at any cost.