Pep Guardiola has made it clear that he wants to retain Julian Alvarez at Manchester City, despite ongoing discussions with Atletico Madrid regarding a potential transfer.
Since joining City in the summer of 2022, Alvarez has been instrumental in their success.
He has contributed to two Premier League titles, a Champions League victory, an FA Cup win, and the Club World Cup.
Additionally, he played a key role in Argentina’s triumph at the 2022 World Cup.
However, his opportunities at City have been somewhat limited due to the outstanding form of Erling Haaland.
This situation has led Alvarez to express dissatisfaction and consider his future this summer.
According to Mirror Football, Arsenal are among the clubs monitoring Alvarez’s situation.
With four years remaining on his contract, Manchester City hold the upper hand.
Guardiola has seemingly quashed any hopes Alvarez might have had of securing an exit.
After City’s 4-2 victory over Chelsea, Guardiola described Alvarez as “absolutely our player” and expressed his expectation that the 24-year-old would return quickly from his stint at the Olympics, following Argentina’s exit at the hands of hosts France.
He added: “No news.
“I don’t have anything to say.
“He will come back I count on him, but he said in the news that decisions will be made all together.
“Now he has to rest and when he feels ready to come back he will come back.
“I’m sure when he comes back I’ll hug and congratulate him for the Copa America, for the Olympics and we will start to work together.
“This is the reality.
“What happens in the meantime, I have a thousand million things to think about the team.
“Next week we play for the first trophy of the season [the Community Shield against Manchester United at Wembley].
“Two weeks we play at Stamford Bridge again, that’s my only concern.”
Alvarez will be given some time off after a demanding summer, having participated in both the Copa America and the Olympics, in addition to a strenuous season with City.
During this period, it seems he will focus on evaluating his options.
He said ahead of the defeat to France: “There is a lot of talk. I am focused here [at the Olympics] because it is a short tournament.
“We will see after the Games. First, if I can, I will take a few days off.
“Then we will decide.
“At Manchester City, I feel very good, I played a lot of minutes.
“Maybe it’s annoying to be out in big games; players always want to help on the pitch.
“But my season was good, so I’m very happy.”
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