Atletico Madrid will not budge on Julian Alvarez. The forward is not for sale to Barcelona this summer.
The mood around the club has turned sour since the fans rounded on Alvarez during the Villarreal match, yet Atletico refuse to shift their position.
They would sell him to Arsenal. To Barcelona, never, and the Catalans now accept they cannot land the Argentine forward this summer.
None of this comes as a shock. Atletico dug in from the start, resisting every push from the player, who made his feelings plain during the World Cup when he called the move the ideal option.
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According to the newspaper "Marca", Barcelona have finally reached a decision after a long struggle: if Julian does not arrive, there is no alternative.
Their backup plan involves no new signings at all. Hansi Flick and sporting director Deco have decided against bringing in a forward this summer.
Barring a late chance before the window shuts, Barcelona will stand pat. Club officials know such a chance is unlikely with just one week to go, because only a top-class player would tempt them.
The sporting management will not settle for a mid-level option. Any new arrival must be a genuine, high-calibre forward, and no club sells one of its best players at this stage of the window, with too little time left to find a replacement. So Barcelona will stay put.
What Flick saw during pre-season and in the opening official match against Elche shaped the call. The German is happy with his attacking options, and his players can cover several positions up front, as both those matches made clear. Raphinha was superb against Elche.
Take the centre-forward role the Brazilian filled in that last match. Several others can do the same job. Gordon and Adeyemi, the two new signings, are wingers by trade but can operate through the middle, something Flick already tried in pre-season.
Dani Olmo slots into that position with ease too. Then there are the youngsters. Hamza Abdelkarim finished pre-season as the team's top scorer and looks a real prospect. Bessiou has barely featured, yet he has already shown a nose for goal.
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Flick trusts his current squad, so he is not chasing a new forward. And if it all goes wrong, Barcelona can always return to the market in January.