Julian Alvarez secured a summer move away from Manchester City following Argentina’s 2024 Copa America final win and has fit in perfectly at Atletico Madrid.
The Argentina international set out his intention to leave Manchester following Argentina’s 2024 Copa America final win and Pep Guardiola was left with no choice but to sanction the deal.
Alvarez joined Atletico Madrid on an £82m deal and has grown to become an important player in the squad. With 20 goals scored across 39 appearances in his debut campaign, Alvarez has added a new level to Diego Simeone’s team as they remain in the La Liga title hunt plus the Copa del Rey and Champions League final stages.
With Atletico looking like the team to beat this season, Alvarez in a new interview admitted those nights of Champions League frustration ultimately made his decision to leave the Etihad Stadium.
Julian Alvarez of Atletico de Madrid celebrates scoring his team’s first goal during the Copa del Rey Semi Final match against FC Barcelona (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images)
“Something inside told me I needed a different challenge, to look for something new in my career, he told an interview with Argentinian outlet Infobae.
“The last conversations with Pep were positive, he thanked me for everything, and I never gave any trouble to the club.
“You always want to play in the most important games. I think about the Champions League final where I didn’t get on the pitch.
“In the semi final, I didn’t play much, I would have liked to play in those type of games. It’s a bit because of that, where I thought about the change.”
Atletico Madrid will be facing fierce rival Real Madrid in this season’s Champions League round of 16 and Alvarez will be eager to break the defending champions heart.
