Barcelona Aims for January Move for Julian Alvarez

Barcelona walked away from Julian Alvarez in the summer. They never let go of the idea.

The Catalan club tried and failed to lure the Argentine forward away from Atletico Madrid in the last transfer window, with the Metropolitano side refusing to even sit down at the table. Barça accepted that stance, backed off, and moved on with their business. But not in their minds.

According to SPORT, Barcelona are already plotting a renewed push for Alvarez when the market reopens in January, convinced that the story between them and the 24-year-old is not over.

Jesus in now, Alvarez still for later

The signing of Gabriel Jesus might have looked like the end of the Alvarez chase from the outside. Inside the club, it is being treated very differently.

Jesus has been brought in as a short-term solution, a forward to plug immediate gaps in Hansi Flick’s attack and give Barcelona a proven presence in the final third. Alvarez, by contrast, is seen as a strategic opportunity – a different profile, a different age bracket, and a player the club believe could anchor their front line for years.

That distinction is crucial. It means Jesus is not viewed as a like-for-like alternative or a closing of the door. Barcelona, as it stands, are not ruling out another major outlay in attack.

Financially, they might be able to do it. SPORT reports that the club could have around €65–70 million of financial fair play margin available in January. That figure gives them room to manoeuvre, whether that is reigniting the Alvarez operation or turning to other areas of the squad.

Centre-back remains one such option. If Flick decides he needs more depth or a different profile in defence, part or all of that margin could be redirected there. The coach’s assessment over the coming months will carry weight.

For now, though, Alvarez sits at the top of the list.

A tense autumn ahead for Alvarez at Atletico

If Barcelona’s plan looks relatively clear, Alvarez’s next steps are anything but.

He chose to stay at Atletico Madrid in the summer, yet his relationship with sections of the club’s support has already frayed. The failed move and the noise around it have left a mark.

When he next steps out at the Metropolitano, the atmosphere could turn unforgiving. A player once welcomed as a key piece of the future may now have to win back his own crowd.

Reports have even suggested that Atletico could ask him to publicly apologise to supporters and change his agent after how the summer unfolded. For the moment, neither demand is seen as particularly likely, but the fact such ideas are circulating underlines how delicate the situation has become.

The clock is ticking. Alvarez has roughly four months to reshape the narrative before Barcelona come knocking again.

His performances will matter. So will his chemistry with Diego Simeone and the way the coach uses him in a squad already rich in attacking options. Just as important will be the reaction from the stands: does the Metropolitano turn on him, or rally behind him?

By January, those answers will define not just Barcelona’s calculations, but whether Alvarez himself is ready to open the door that stayed shut in the summer.