Arsenal-linked striker apologises to Atletico fans over his Barcelona ‘dream’, but never rules out leaving

Julian Alvarez has apologised to Atletico Madrid supporters for openly saying he wanted to leave, but the Argentina international stopped short of closing the door on a future exit, and that keeps the Julian Alvarez Arsenal story very much alive.

The former Manchester City striker was heavily linked with both Arsenal and Barcelona in the summer window. His wish to join the reigning La Liga champions was an open secret, and it has cost him goodwill at the Metropolitano.

Alvarez had claimed it was his “dream” to play for Barcelona. Atletico fans have been booing him at home games this season ever since, according to reports from Sports Mole.

What did Julian Alvarez say about his Barcelona comments?

Speaking to Movistar after Atletico’s 1-0 win over Deportivo La Coruna, as quoted by Fabrizio Romano, Alvarez called his words during the World Cup a mistake, in both the way he said them and the timing.

“I wanted to apologize to our fans for my words during the World Cup. They were a mistake,” he said. He added that he understood why supporters were angry and that he would have felt the same as a fan, given how much they had backed him.

Alvarez also thanked his team-mates for their support and said he was “gradually feeling better”. “Hopefully, through hard work and humility, I can turn this situation around,” he said.

Julian Alvarez form and fitness at Atletico

His transfer desire and fitness problems have disrupted his 2026-27 campaign. Saturday’s win over Deportivo La Coruna was his first La Liga start of the season, and he scored the only goal.

He now has decisive contributions in Atletico’s last two league games. Alvarez supplied the assist for Alex Baena’s 89th-minute winner in a 1-0 victory at Espanyol on October 17, and he also scored Atletico’s only goal in their 1-1 Champions League draw with Stuttgart during the week. That is three goal involvements in his last three games.

Is Julian Alvarez still an Arsenal target?

Alvarez is under contract at Atletico until the end of the 2029-30 season. Atletico would be expected to demand at least £100m to sanction a sale in the summer of 2027.

The apology did not directly rule out a move away from the Metropolitano in the near future. Alvarez has also recently parted ways with Fernando Hidalgo, the agent he had worked with since the age of 15, and turned to Pablo Barquero, who has strong ties with Barcelona.

That could suggest he is leaving the door open to Camp Nou, even though Atletico publicly said they would not deal with the Catalan giants in any capacity over the summer. We looked at how the Alvarez verdict on Arsenal played out at the end of August, and at the other striker Arsenal tried to sign before the deadline.

Arsenal remain in the picture and have been backed to beat Barcelona to a deal. The Gunners are also linked with other forwards, such as Eli Junior Kroupi at Bournemouth.

Author opinion: Berta and Arteta can only wait

This is a smart bit of reputation repair from Alvarez, and the sort of humble line Atletico fans wanted to hear. It is also carefully worded. No one has said a move is off, a £100m price tag is waiting in 2027, and the agent change points towards Barcelona rather than N5.

For Arsenal, nothing changes before January. Alvarez is back in form and back in the Atletico side, so the Gunners will have to keep watching. The saga is far from over.