Julian Alvarez has been linked with Arsenal (Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images)
According to Ekrem Konur, Arsenal and Barcelona may face a huge trade war for Atletico Madrid striker Julian Alvarez.
Posting on X today, the Turkish journalist gave the latest information on the future of Alvarez, revealing that the Argentine international could cost more than 150 million euros, and possibly closer to 200 million euros.
It looks like Barca are looking to replace Alvarez with long-term replacement Robert Lewandowski, with director Deco already in talks over a deal.
See below for details from Konur X’s post…
?#Atletico Julián Álvarez – transfer battle!
? Arsenal looked at him in the summer; now he competes with Barcelona.
? Atleti valuation over €150M; figures up to €200M mentioned.
?? Deco met with Alvarez’s reps; Barça sees him as Lewandowski’s replacement.
? Atletico sees him… pic.twitter.com/hx9X6sphdz
— Ekrem KANUR (@Ekremkonur) January 22, 2026
According to Konur, Arsenal are considering Alvarez and could be set for a “transfer battle” with Barcelona, but talks with Deco could suggest that the Catalan giants have advanced in their pursuit.
What David Ornstein said about Arsenal’s interest in transferring Julian Alvarez
Speaking on Sky Sports yesterday, as quoted by afcstuff on X, reliable David Ornstein also offered insight into the Gunners possibly being in the race to sign Alvarez.
“Arsenal were considering Julian Alvarez in the summer, his name came up,” said Ornstein.
“You can see that type of player coming into Arsenal. If there is an outside direction, then there is an opportunity to come. [in attacking positions].”
The 25-year-old looks to be a good fit for Arsenal, even if he has recently dropped in form, so this will be one to watch again, especially if Viktor Gyokeres doesn’t improve.
How does Julian Alvarez compare to Arsenal’s strikers
It was widely felt that AFC needed a big signing this season, but Gyokeres has not made a move since joining Sporting Lisbon.
Meanwhile, Kai Havertz and Gabriel Jesus have had problems staying fit in recent times, and are not growing even when fully fit, so could Alvarez be the upgrade Mikel Arteta needs?
Here’s a look at their goalscoring records over the past four years…
| Julian Alvarez | Viktor Gyokeres | Kai Havertz | Jesus Gabriel | |
| 2022/23 | 17 | 22 | 9 | 11 |
| 2023/24 | 19 | 43 | 14 | 8 |
| 2024/25 | 29 | 54 | 15 | 7 |
| 2025/26 | 11 | 9 | 0 | 3 |
| TOTAL | 76 | 128 | 38 | 29 |
The numbers undoubtedly paint a clear picture, even if there is some variation there, where Havertz and Jesus rarely look like they could be 20-30-aa-season players.
Gyokeres looks like he might have been able to do that, but it seems those crazy numbers in Portugal haven’t translated into success in England so far.
Alvarez, in contrast, has shown that he has great potential everywhere he plays, even if he was not a regular starter for Manchester City.
It will be interesting to see if he likes to return to England or if he prefers to stay in La Liga with a move to Atletico’s rivals Barcelona.
