Arsenal’s ambitious pursuit of Atletico Madrid striker Julian Alvarez has already commenced, several months before the beginning of the summer transfer window.
The Gunners are riding high in the Premier League, with Mikel Arteta’s men sitting five points clear of second-placed Manchester City with ten games remaining. They also remain competitive on three other fronts, with the prospect of an unprecedented quadruple still on the table.
Despite enjoying this remarkable season, Arteta and sporting director Andrea Berta clearly aren’t prepared to rest on their laurels. The pair have set their sights on Alvarez, who scored 29 goals for Atletico across all competitions last term, and they’ve already had an opening offer rejected for the Argentine.
Arsenal have audacious £105m bid for Julian Alvarez rejected
While Viktor Gyokeres has started to pick up form over the last month, Arsenal’s forward department looks uncertain heading into the summer. Kai Havertz continues to struggle with injury, while Gabriel Jesus is likely to leave within the next six months.
Thus, it’s no surprise that Berta is already drawing up plans to address this position in the market. Alvarez has been identified as a primary target, and it appears that the Gunners may already be looking to set the wheels in motion ahead of a potential deal with Atletico.
According to AS journalist Guille Casquero, Arsenal have already tabled a £105 million offer for the former Manchester City man. The proposal has been swiftly rejected by Atletico, although it’s not expected to be the final bid that the Gunners launch.
@HernanSCastillo: "Barcelona, Arsenal y PSG están muy pendientes de Julián…"
— Diario AS (@diarioas) February 20, 2026
En un nuevo episodio de 'Xtra', con @GuilleCasquero, viajamos a los tres puntos calientes donde hay clubes que han mostrado interés por el argentino.
Episodio completo en AS pic.twitter.com/06mUxt0MA3
Casquero reports that the offer was worth a base fee of £87.5 million, with a further £18 million in add-ons included. Given that the La Liga club paid roughly £82 million for Alvarez in the summer of 2024, and taking into account the player’s importance to Diego Simeone’s side, Arsenal are likely to have to stump up significantly more than this opening bid if they are to land him.
What may make the deal even more difficult for the Gunners to pull off is that Casquero suggests that Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain are also monitoring Alvarez’s situation.
Is Julian Alvarez the right fit for Arsenal?
Alvarez is enduring something of a below-par season by his standards, although his all-around game has still been excellent. Scoring just seven goals in 25 La Liga appearances this term, it’s certainly not been the World Cup winner’s most prolific campaign.
However, having contributed to over 30 goals across all competitions in each of his two seasons prior to this, it’s clear that Alvarez can deliver output that would justify a hefty transfer fee.
| Club | Matches | Goals | Assists |
| River Plate | 122 | 54 | 31 |
| Manchester City | 103 | 36 | 19 |
| Atletico Madrid | 93 | 42 | 14 |
| Argentina | 49 | 13 | 4 |
An exceptional presser, an astute passer and outstanding at combining with teammates in and around the box, Alvarez is the type of all-action striker Arteta has tended to favour. He would slot seamlessly into Arsenal’s system, having played under Pep Guardiola previously, and could ultimately prove to be the elite forward the Gunners have lacked.
He would certainly be worth a significant investment.
