Julian Alvarez is keeping his composure as an Atletico Madrid player, but he does not consider the door to his desired move to Barcelona to be closed.
The striker is training under Diego Simeone after finally managing to sit down with the Argentine coach last Wednesday.
Mundo Deportivo reported: "Despite the outwardly normal atmosphere that prevailed at Atletico Madrid's training sessions, Alvarez has not abandoned his plan to move to Barcelona."
He continues to follow a strategy of dialogue and diplomacy. The explosion many expected at the start of the week never came, yet Simeone's response to his request left him unconvinced. He has not given up.
The Argentine knows Barcelona will not leave him alone. He also knows the deal is a difficult one, especially given Atletico's reaction to his desire for a change of scene after two years without titles. Still, he believes he can convince the club.
In Alvarez's view, Simeone realises he cannot afford to keep a player of this calibre in his ranks unless he is committed to the team's interests.
Time is running out for everyone. There is now only a slim margin before the start of La Liga, and Barcelona will be forced to activate their alternative plan if there are no negotiations with Atletico and no resulting transfer. For now, Julian is keeping his composure.
Quiet talks are taking place within the club's offices, and Barcelona hope they will lead to Atletico opening the door to negotiations with the Catalan side. If the opposite happens, the refusal will continue.
In that case, Alvarez will have to decide whether to take an additional step. To this day, he is ready to do so.
Behind the tense calm surrounding his daily routine, Mundo Deportivo has learned that he is still sticking to his position. He is not thinking of apologising for his statements and then playing the season as if nothing had happened.
The forward still wants to play for Barcelona. If Atletico hold firm, he realises he will have to take an additional step to get his way, because the Catalans will not give him up even with an alternative plan in place.
Racing against time, Alvarez will see the matter resolved one way or the other in the coming days. For now, he is training as Simeone's only striker, with Sorloth injured.