Diego Simeone responds to Liverpool's Julian Alvarez transfer rumors (1 Viewer)

[Martin Hare]

Diego Simeone isn’t shying away from the growing buzz around Julian Alvarez. In fact, he seems to be embracing it. The Atletico Madrid boss pulled off one of last summer’s biggest surprises when he brought the Argentine forward to Spain from Manchester City in an £82 million move. And it’s safe to say Alvarez has made the most of the opportunity.

Now getting the consistent starts he couldn’t always count on at City, Alvarez lit up the 2024/25 season with 29 goals and 7 assists in 54 appearances. Naturally, his performances have caught the eye, despite being less than a year into a six-year contract.

Premier League heavyweights Liverpool and Arsenal are reportedly keeping tabs on the situation. But they also know prying Alvarez away from Atletico won’t be easy or cheap.

Speaking to La Nacion, Simeone didn’t exactly pour cold water on the speculation. Instead, he welcomed it, saying it’s only normal that top clubs are interested in a player of Alvarez’s quality.

“It’s only logical,” Simeone said. “Julian is 25, an extraordinary player. He’s hungry, enthusiastic, humble, hardworking, and he scores goals. He has status now. Why wouldn’t the best teams in the world want him?”

He continued,

“Barcelona, PSG, Arsenal, Liverpool... they should all want him. And for us, for Atletico fans, that should be a point of pride. Because he’s ours. And because he’s ours, we have to protect him. We have to make sure he’s happy here. And how do you do that? By winning. That’s what keeps players like Julian happy.”

Simeone made it clear that success is the key to keeping top talent around and that it’ll take a collective effort.

“We all need to give 110 percent, not just for Julian, but for the whole team.”

In other words, Simeone knows exactly what he has in Alvarez and he’s not letting go without a fight.