When Florentino Perez contested with Enrique Riquelme, he promised that if re-elected, he would bring to the Bernabeu a star worth 150 million Euros. Finally, after officially taking over Real Madrid for another term, the 79-year-old billionaire let the media know that it was Julian Alvarez of Atletico Madrid.
Before the name Julian Alvarez was revealed, many people speculated that it was Michael Olise (Bayern Munich) or Vitinha (PSG). However, information from these teams at that time implicitly denied that they would sell their bright star to Real Madrid. On the Los Blancos side, if they agree to spend 150 million Euros in this deal, that player will break the record to become the most expensive contract in the history of the Royal team.
After information was released from Real Madrid about this team's interest in Alvarez, Atletico rejected the offer and said that the 150 million Euro price of the arch-rival was lower than the contract termination price of the Argentine star.
Atletico's "skillful refusal" of the Alvarez deal means that if the Argentine striker wants to come to the Bernabeu this summer, there is no way left. Not only that, last month, Barcelona also offered Atletico 100 million Euros for the Alvarez deal. After that, Atletico also refused, meaning that if this striker wants to come to Camp Nou, there is no way to do it this summer.
Throughout last season, Alvarez hinted at leaving Atletico in some interviews. When this event came, he considered giving up in finding a way to leave Wanda Metropolitano stadium.
In the past, Atletico sold their top star Antoine Griezmann. In terms of position compared to Alvarez, Griezmann is clearly bigger but still moved to Barca for a period, then returned to Wanda Metropolitano stadium. However, after that incident, Atletico's leadership was heavily criticized for selling the team's iconic number 1 star to a great rival.
Julian Alvarez is currently not a star of the same stature as Griezmann but is the brightest name in the Madrid club squad. If they once again concede too early to Real and Barca on the transfer table in the deal with their number 1 star, surely the Los Rojiblancos leadership will be vented with outrage once again by fans.
At this time, the wisest person is Perez. When promising to use 150 million Euros to buy a blockbuster, the Bernabeu owner did not break his promise. However, perhaps the 79-year-old billionaire also understands that that number is not enough for Atletico to release Alvarez immediately. Being known for keeping his word and not losing money, Perez has shown his high-handedness in the recent election campaign.
Even if Atletico nods, 150 million Euros is not too much for Real Madrid's stature. Losing this amount but eliminating the biggest power source of the great rival, that number is not too expensive for Perez.
Looking back at the whole story, Julian Alvarez is no different from a victim of the power struggle between the three strongest teams in Spain at this time. Immediately after the story with Real Madrid was revealed, the "Spider-Man" had to sit on the bench in the friendly match between Argentina and Iceland.
Alvarez's contract with Atletico is valid until 2030. At this time, the 26-year-old striker understands that at the peak of his career, he will hardly find a new destination. Atletico Madrid is a strong team but not strong enough to be the number 1 candidate in La Liga and Champions League. It seems that the biggest leap in his career, from Man City to Atletico, Alvarez chose the wrong way!
