Barcelona are still unable to fill the void left by Robert Lewandowski at the out-and-out striker position, with Atletico Madrid's Julian Alvarez remaining the Blaugrana's top target to fill it. However, Atletico are strongly refusing to enter negotiations, according to the Catalan newspaper"Mundo Deportivo".
The final week of July has arrived, and with it the deadline set by Barcelona president Joan Laporta for the 100 million euro offer the club tabled at the end of May. Yet there is no sense of urgency or desperation inside the Catalan club.
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Alvarez still commands strong interest from Barcelona. But after signing Anthony Gordon and Karim Adeyemi in the wake of Marcus Rashford's loan ending, the club do not rule out the possibility of skipping an additional striker signing this summer, unless several players leave the squad.
Gordon and Adeyemi are not the only options. Ferran Torres, who has not told Barcelona he wants to leave, and Dani Olmo can play the out-and-out striker role, as they have done in the past, while Raphinha can also fill in there.
A belief has taken hold at Barcelona that they will not sign a player simply to complete a deal, given how few chances the market offers to land big stars at reasonable prices.
A difficult deal
Barcelona know that getting a deal done for Alvarez, 26, will be extremely difficult. That is despite the Argentine putting pressure on Atletico on 22 June during the World Cup, when he revealed he had asked the club for a "move" in order to fulfil his dream.
He never named Barcelona directly. But he was referring to the club he supported as a boy, during his River Plate days.
Atletico, for now, will only sell Alvarez to Arsenal, in a deal that includes Swedish striker Viktor Gyokeres, or to Paris Saint-Germain.
No to Barcelona
Miguel Angel Gil Marin made that clear to the club's fans just two days before the World Cup final. Atletico refuse to open the door to Barcelona.
Barcelona, in turn, do not intend to go beyond the 100 million euros they offered for Alvarez two months ago. Nor will the Catalan club propose adding players to sweeten the deal, especially with Atletico refusing to negotiate at all and holding firm on keeping their star.
All eyes now fall on Alvarez. What will he do in the coming weeks to break the fierce resistance from his club and force them to sanction his exit?
Barcelona, meanwhile, prefer to wait and watch without tension. Hansi Flick wants another striker, but he already has plenty of attacking options in his squad, according to"Mundo Deportivo".