Barcelona's Lautaro Martinez pursuit threatens to derail Alvarez's dream move to Arsenal

Barcelona’s pursuit of Inter Milan captain Lautaro Martinez could reshape one of the summer’s most complicated transfer sagas, with Julian Alvarez’s hopes of joining the Catalan club now under serious threat — and Arsenal waiting in the wings.

Alvarez, 26, is believed to have his heart set on a move to Barcelona, but Atletico Madrid have been unwilling to sell to their La Liga rivals. Now, according to Spanish outlet El Chiringuito, Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick and sporting director Deco are actively targeting Martinez as an alternative, with Deco reportedly holding talks in Madrid last week with the Argentine’s representative, Alejandro Camano, and Barcelona’s football co-ordinator, Bojan. Those discussions are said to have produced an agreement in principle on personal terms, with Barcelona’s opening proposal expected to fall below £86 million (€100m).

Inter Milan, however, are not willing sellers. Gazzetta dello Sport reports the Italian club have no intention of letting their captain leave, leaving Barcelona’s pursuit far from straightforward.

The situation at Atletico is growing increasingly fraught. Banners have appeared around the club’s Sports City training ground bearing the message “JULIAN OUT” with his number 19 shirt crossed out, and supporters voiced similar frustrations ahead of Atletico’s La Liga opener against Malaga. Alvarez was absent from the matchday squad at the Metropolitano and has not featured for the club at all since last season.

Mundo Deportivo reports that Atletico now recognise the situation is becoming unsustainable and are open to negotiating a sale. Arsenal are among the interested parties, and Viktor Gyokeres — signed by the Gunners barely 12 months ago — is understood to be on Atletico’s radar as a potential replacement, with manager Diego Simeone reportedly receptive to the idea.

For Arsenal, the calculus is unusual: offloading a striker they acquired less than a year ago in order to land one who does not want to be at his current club. Whether that dynamic works in the Gunners’ favour depends largely on whether Barcelona can secure Martinez — and whether Alvarez is ultimately prepared to accept a move to north London over his preferred destination.