Diego Simeone states he will “do everything” possible to ensure Julian Alvarez “feels valued” at Atletico Madrid when the forward comes back to training amid ongoing uncertainty regarding his status at the Spanish club.
Atlético Madrid has indicated they will not transfer him to Barcelona, making a transfer to Arsenal the striker’s sole option.
Simeone stated that Alvarez will not join Atletico for Saturday’s La Liga match against Sevilla, mentioning that he is not well, as he missed his third straight training session on Friday.
“Once he is back in training, I will do everything possible to ensure he feels valued,” stated Atletico coach Simeone.
When questioned if Alvarez’s circumstances might still change, Simeone responded: “As long as health is present, anything in life can be altered.”
This week, the La Liga club issued two public statements within 24 hours, reaffirming their position that Alvarez will not be allowed to fulfill his desire to join Barça soon.
Simeone acknowledged that inquiries about Alvarez would overshadow his press conference but emphasized that the club had already been “assertive and straightforward” in clarifying the matter.
“I’m still in the same position, hoping, from a sporting point of view, to be able to help him in the best way so that he continues to be the very important player he is for us,” he said.
“Julian will not be there [on Saturday] against Sevilla, who have just won two games and will be high with confidence.”
Injured Norwegian striker Alexander Sorloth is also unavailable, leaving Atletico without two attacking options.
“Sorloth’s absence hurts us. He’s very important for us,” Simeone said.
“In this situation with Julian, it has much more impact. The team will try collectively to find solutions to score goals and win. We are working with them on that awareness. We are going to try to improve it collectively.”
Simeone also rejected claims that the uncertainty surrounding Alvarez could affect his squad.
“Honestly, no,” he said. “The boys are working very well, especially the World Cup players. The team played good matches against Malaga and Villarreal, and we are focused on playing a good match [against Sevilla].”
