Julian Alvarez acknowledges that he “doesn’t like” that Pep Guardiola has kept him out of Manchester City’s “important games” and that he will decide his future after the Olympics in Paris.
Alvarez joined City for £14 million after leaving River Plate in 2022, and he has since scored 36 goals in 103 games in all competitions for the Premier League winners.
And although though Alvarez played the eighth-most minutes for City in the previous campaign, he reportedly became upset with his lack of playing time at the Etihad early this month, according to sources.
Chelsea and Arsenal are keeping an eye on the matter, and it’s believed that City won’t prevent Alvarez from departing should they get a bid of £60 million for the Argentinean player before the transfer deadline, plus a further £17 million.
Alvarez and his family may also like to live somewhere warmer than Manchester, according to rumors, and Atletico Madrid is rumored to be interested in signing him this summer.
‘I haven’t stopped to think about what I’m going to do,’ Alvarez told DIRECTV Sports when asked for an update on his future.
‘When this [Argentine’s men’s football campaign at the Olympics] is over I’ll start thinking about what I want for myself. We’ll see how things go.
‘Last season I was one of the players who played the most minutes in the team.
‘But it’s true: in the end, in important games, you don’t like being left out and you want to contribute.’
Alvarez, who has largely played second fiddle to Erling Haaland over the last two seasons, is tied into a contract at the Etihad until 2028.
The attacker played five games of Argentina’s triumphant Copa America campaign earlier this summer and now finds himself in Paris representing his nation at the Olympic Games.
Alvarez and Co, managed by Javier Mascherano, suffered a shock 2-1 defeat to Morocco in their opening match before bouncing back with a 3-1 win over Iraq to go top of Group B.
‘We continue to move forward despite the loss [to Morocco],’ Alvarez said ahead of Argentina’s clash with Ukraine.
‘Getting used to winning is the best thing, it’s what happens to us in the major leagues, and we hope it applies here too.’