Julián Alvarez walks alone after Atlético 2-2 Villarreal amid Barcelona transfer standoff
Julián Alvarez walked off the pitch alone at Atlético Madrid’s Metropolitano after the club’s first home game of the season, a 2-2 draw with Villarreal, as supporters whistled and shouted at him following a long-running transfer saga involving Barcelona.
Alvarez has made clear he wants to join Barcelona while Atlético insist they will not sell; he is under contract until June 2030 with a €500m buyout clause and the club has refused approaches they say were disrespectful. Joan Laporta described Barcelona’s offer as “important” and added: “If Atlético are prepared to accept, fantastic,” while Atlético chief executive Miguel Ángel Gil Marín said: “I know Joan: he’s always acting up for the media, fans, his own personal circus,” and added, “I told him: ‘Leave it, please. We don’t want to sell and won’t sell, stop insisting’. He loves to play the part but he knows perfectly well that Julián won’t play for Barcelona next season.” Barcelona said they had acted with “respect” and Atlético reported them to the RFEF; the player’s agent Fernando Hidalgo has disputed Atlético’s account, writing: “Never ask a liar to explain why he lied; he would only have to lie again.”
At the end of the match Alvarez remained on the pitch as his teammates gathered to greet the supporters; after a private word from someone in a suit and a gesture from the press officer he walked west toward the exit alone, head down, accompanied by whistles and chants. A scarf landed at his feet and was left there; he climbed the stairs to an empty dressing room, not looking up, and his teammates followed together about four minutes later. “Unhappily, this situation isn’t comfortable for anyone,” Jan Oblak said.
The hostility had begun earlier: fans whistled when his name was read out, when he warmed up and again when he came on, his first appearance in Atlético colours since April and since he declared it his “dream” to leave. Alvarez had first hinted he might not continue after facing Tottenham in the Champions League last March — a match in which he had scored twice and Atlético won 5-2 — and he used the moments after Argentina beat Austria at the World Cup to say: “It’s not the time to talk about this but nor can I hide,” he said. “I spoke with the people I needed to [at Atlético] and the best thing for everyone is a transfer. I want to fulfil my dream.”
When he went to warm up on 51 minutes the whistling intensified and the south end responded with chants including “Fuck Barcelona! Fuck Catalonia!”, “We are Atlético”, “Atlético yes, mercenaries no!” and “Tell him to go, once and for fucking all!” The atmosphere did not relent with the final whistle; his touches were limited and the rejection continued through to the end. As Atlético players came to the touchline the fitness coach indicated Alvarez was about to enter and Marc Pubill replied: “Careful, eh.” The domestic results that weekend read: Rayo Vallecano 1-1 Alavés, Real Betis 1-0 Real Sociedad, Espanyol 1-2 Real Madrid, Valencia 0-0 Celta Vigo, Athletic Club 1-3 Sevilla, Elche 0-5 Barcelona, Getafe 1-0 Racing de Santander, Atlético Madrid 2-2 Villarreal.
Club leadership and coaching staff have presented a united front while managing the fallout: Gil Marín accused outside clubs and media of disrespect and criticised Alvarez’s advisers, and Diego Simeone said the club had been clear, arguing: “You can’t be clearer than the club’s been. It’s like when the judge says: ‘Denied!’” Simeone also stated the club had instructed that Alvarez should not greet the fans and added: “All I know is that if Atlético want to win titles we have to be together, we need strikers and we need important strikers,” noting he had apologised to Ademola Lookman for deploying him in Alvarez’s absence alongside the injured Alex Sørloth. “We’re stronger together,” Giuliano Simeone said, and Oblak added: “Julián is with us in the team and for as long as he is, we’re going to support him.”
With eight days left in the transfer window the situation remained unresolved and Alvarez’s solitary exit from the Metropolitano underlined the impasse between the player’s wish to leave and Atlético’s refusal to sell.