Barcelona have officially submitted a €100 million offer for one of Atletico Madrid’s biggest stars as tensions continue rising between the two clubs.
The Catalan giants reportedly sent the proposal directly to Atletico Madrid sporting director Mateu Alemany as they attempt to complete one of the biggest deals of the summer transfer window.
According to Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona internally view the situation as a normal transfer operation despite Atletico Madrid publicly denying that any offer existed.
The report states that Fabrizio Romano first revealed the proposal last Friday before Atletico dismissed the claims and described them as “just another lie” from Barcelona.
However, Mundo Deportivo claim the offer was genuine and officially reached Atletico Madrid.
Barcelona reportedly do not want to create a public conflict with Atletico despite frustration inside the club over several recent statements from the Madrid side.
The report also states that Barcelona were unhappy with Atletico’s references to the Negreira case, the registrations of Dani Olmo and Pau Victor, and social media posts involving Barcelona players.
Despite the tension, Barcelona reportedly want to handle the negotiations for Julian Alvarez professionally and avoid escalating the situation publicly.
The report claims Alvarez already informed Atletico Madrid through his agent, Fernando Hidalgo, that he wants to leave the club this summer and join Barcelona.
Barcelona reportedly believe the Argentine wants a more ambitious project and remains attracted by the possibility of moving to Camp Nou.
Atletico Madrid continue insisting they do not want to sell Alvarez and still point towards his contract running until 2030 alongside a €500 million release clause.
However, Barcelona reportedly expect Atletico to formally respond to the offer through standard transfer procedures.
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