Julian Alvarez 'holds family meeting to discuss Arsenal move' after Mikel Arteta talks

Julian Alvarez has held a “marathon” meeting to discuss a move to Arsenal following talks with Mikel Arteta .

The Atletico Madrid striker is desperate to leave this summer, with his heart set on a move to Barcelona. Atletico are said to have told Alvarez that he must decide if he is staying or joining Arsenal by Sunday evening.

Barcelona president Joan Laporta said this week that the club had not yet abandoned their pursuit of Alvarez, despite there being just a few days left of the transfer window.

“We’re keeping our hopes up and sticking to our plan — with all due respect to Atletico — of trying to sign him,” he told ESPN.

“We would like to reach an agreement with Atletico; we are therefore standing by our proposal, our offer to Atletico, and hopefully there will be an understanding between the two clubs.”

Atletico responded with another sternly worded statement defending their decision not to sell to Barcelona.

It read: “The members of Atletico de Madrid's Board of Directors have unanimously expressed their absolute support for the club's decision to not negotiate the transfer of Julián Alvarez to FC Barcelona.

“The members of the Board of Directors acknowledge that Atletico de Madrid is open to standard transfer market negotiations when conducted in a professional, ethical and respectful manner. We fully stand behind the club’s previously communicated position that FC Barcelona failed to meet these requirements and, as a result, there will not be any negotiation and there is zero consideration of an Alvarez transfer to Barcelona. citing their concerns over how they believe the Catalan club conducted the negotiations.”

Julian Alvarez LondonStandard26082026 The latest public back and forth between Atletico and Barcelona has prompted a five-hour meeting between Alvarez and his family and agents on Thursday evening, which reportedly dragged into the early hours of Friday morning.

According to Cadena SER, meeting brought together his agent Fernando Hidalgo, members of the player's management team and his legal advisers as they considered the options available to the 26-year-old.

With Atletico unwilling to open talks with Barcelona, Alvarez's choices appear increasingly limited.

'I played with Henry at Arsenal - this is why Alvarez will be a special signing'

One possibility is accepting Arsenal's offer and returning to the Premier League, despite his preference for a move to Barcelona.

The other is attempting to repair his relationship with Atletico and remain at the Madrid club.