{"id":73502,"date":"2026-08-20T22:58:58","date_gmt":"2026-08-20T22:58:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/73502\/"},"modified":"2026-08-20T22:58:58","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T22:58:58","slug":"barcelona-eight-alternative-striker-signings-as-alvarez-deal-stalls","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/73502\/","title":{"rendered":"Barcelona: Eight alternative striker signings as Alvarez deal stalls"},"content":{"rendered":"

Robert Lewandowski has gone, Ferran Torres too, and try as they might, Julian Alvarez just seems to be out of reach for Barcelona<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Atletico Madrid aren\u2019t messing about when it comes to Alvarez\u2019s future. He\u2019s been Barcelona\u2019s dream target up front all summer \u2013 and the subject of some Real Madrid melodrama<\/a> \u2013 but Atleti are in no mood to sell.<\/p>\n

And Barca are finally getting the message. Reports out of Spain say a move for Alvarez is now \u201899% off\u2019.<\/p>\n

Never say never, then, but Barca will have to look elsewhere if they want a new striker.<\/p>\n

They\u2019ve brought in Anthony Gordon and Karim Adeyemi this summer \u2013 two players who can play through the middle but are more used to playing out wide.<\/p>\n

So it wouldn\u2019t be the end of the world if they can\u2019t get a new number 9 in, but it would be the icing on the cake for a team looking to compete for the Champions League.<\/p>\n

Here are eight alternatives Barca could turn to after accepting defeat with Alvarez.<\/p>\n

Viktor Gyokeres<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t have this one on our summer 2026 transfer window bingo cards, but Gyokeres to Barcelona has been floated in the gossip columns this week.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s only been a year since he made his big move to Arsenal, and while he helped them to the Premier League title, he wasn\u2019t as prolific as they\u2019d have hoped.<\/p>\n

Gyokeres isn\u2019t a guaranteed starter for Arsenal after his lowest goal tally in four seasons. It\u2019s not like 21 was a bad return at all, but there\u2019s enough of a question mark over his head for Barca to test the waters.<\/p>\n

His previous spell on the Iberian Peninsula was outstanding. Scoring 97 goals from 102 games for Portuguese giants Sporting made him one of last summer\u2019s most coveted strikers.<\/p>\n

His stock isn\u2019t quite as high this summer, but could that play into Barca\u2019s hands? He\u2019d still cost them a lot of money, but you\u2019d guess not as much as Alvarez would have.<\/p>\n

Lautaro Martinez<\/p>\n

If Barca are aiming high, then one of Alvarez\u2019s Argentine compatriots could become their next dream target.<\/p>\n

Martinez is eight seasons deep into his Inter Milan career and has scored 175 goals along the way.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s hard to see him leaving, but Barca would be one of the only feasible destinations if he was to.<\/p>\n

Martinez, who\u2019s about to turn 29, has three years left on his Inter contract.<\/p>\n

Georges Mikautadze<\/p>\n

If La Liga experience matters to Barca \u2013 and their preference for Alvarez suggests it might \u2013 then Mikautadze might give them something to work with.<\/p>\n

The Georgian joined Villarreal last summer and scored 15 goals in his debut season in Spanish football.<\/p>\n

Potentially one of the more realistic Alvarez alternatives for Barca, Mikautadze is at a good age at 25 with a chance to become even better.<\/p>\n

But Villarreal will seek a high price for him at this stage in the window.<\/p>\n

Nicolo Tresoldi<\/p>\n

If Barca have to go down the less proven route, Tresoldi is a name that stands out.<\/p>\n

Born in Italy, playing for Germany at youth level and based in Belgium with Club Brugge, the 21-year-old has 40 goals to his name at senior level so far.<\/p>\n

Barca would be a big leap for him right now but he\u2019s the kind of talent that clubs might want to pick up before they explode in value.<\/p>\n

There have been some rumours about Tresoldi and Barca in recent days and it\u2019s a link that could pick up pace before the end of the window.<\/p>\n

Fisnik Asllani<\/p>\n

Hoffenheim striker Asllani has made no secret of Barca being his dream club to join. However, he was almost on the verge of joining RB Leipzig instead.<\/p>\n

His \u20ac25m cross-Bundesliga move fell through, though, due to issues around a medical \u2013 which Hoffenheim have disputed.<\/p>\n

The asking price is right there in plain sight for Barca to consider a hijack, before making their own judgement of Asllani\u2019s condition.<\/p>\n

The 24-year-old scored 11 goals for Hoffenheim last season.<\/p>\n

Victor Osimhen<\/p>\n

It\u2019s that time of year again.<\/p>\n

Osimhen has been in the news over the past couple of weeks, linked with a move away from Galatasaray.<\/p>\n

But where next? The Premier League? The Saudi Pro League? A few options are on the table for the former Napoli hotshot.<\/p>\n

Depending on the cost, the 27-year-old could come into view for Barca too. But that concern about the price is a big if.<\/p>\n

Luis Suarez<\/p>\n

Wait, haven\u2019t they had him before? Isn\u2019t he like 40 now?<\/p>\n

No, not that one.<\/p>\n

This Luis Suarez is the 28-year-old Colombian who replaced Gyokeres at Sporting last summer.<\/p>\n

He\u2019s quickly appeared and disappeared from Barca\u2019s striker shortlist over the past few days, with Sporting pointing to his \u20ac80m release clause after a 38-goal debut season.<\/p>\n

Gyokeres has shown that kind of form doesn\u2019t always translate to the bigger leagues, but you can see why Suarez has been on Barca\u2019s radar. They know what a name like that can do up front.<\/p>\n

We\u2019ll see if they can find a way to rekindle this one, but it\u2019s unlikely for now.<\/p>\n

Marcus Rashford<\/p>\n

Yes, they have had this one before.<\/p>\n

Going back in for Rashford would require some fresh negotiations with Manchester United after the \u20ac30m option to buy lapsed. But it might be worth trying their luck.<\/p>\n

Sure, Rashford might be more of a left winger than a centre-forward, but he can play through the middle. He scored a decent amount of goals while on loan and knows how Hansi Flick\u2019s side play.<\/p>\n

Rashford has a chance to revive himself back at Old Trafford now Michael Carrick\u2019s in charge there, but he was always dreaming of a long-term stay at Barca before.<\/p>\n

The door might not be as closed as it once appeared.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: 9 players who chose Barcelona over Real Madrid ft. Neymar, Messi, Eto\u2019o\u2026<\/a><\/p>\n

TRY A QUIZ: Can you name Barcelona\u2019s 25 most expensive signings in history?<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Robert Lewandowski has gone, Ferran Torres too, and try as they might, Julian Alvarez just seems to be…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":73503,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[92,301,4966,4298],"class_list":["post-73502","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-barcelona","tag-barcelona","tag-la-liga","tag-latest","tag-popular"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73502","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=73502"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/73502\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/73503"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=73502"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=73502"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/spain\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=73502"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}