Alvarez fits perfectly with Atletico Madrid DNA, Simeone says
Atletico Madrid manager Diego Simeone praised his new signing, Julian Alvarez, and has high hopes for the 24-year-old Argentine forward.
Alvarez recently joined Atletico from Manchester City in a deal reportedly worth around 75 million euros ($82.7 million). Simeone mentioned that Alvarez might be available for Atletico’s LaLiga opener against Villarreal on Monday.
Simeone said, “Julian Alvarez is a player we’re excited to see in action. Everything happened so quickly—he just arrived a few days ago and has been training for four days, but he’s adapting well. I see him full of enthusiasm, and he understands what’s expected of him here. His skills are a perfect match for Atletico’s style.”
Atletico spent over 150 million euros this summer on Alvarez, Spain Euro 2024-winning defender Robin Le Normand, and last season’s LaLiga top scorer Alexander Sorloth. However, Simeone downplayed title expectations.
As Atletico continues to negotiate for Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher, Simeone acknowledged that they still need to strengthen the squad to compete with Real Madrid, who won both the Champions League and LaLiga last season and recently signed France captain Kylian Mbappe.
“Real Madrid starts the season as the top team, and they’ll need to prove it with their great players. The rest of us will be competing to challenge them,” Simeone said.
“We haven’t finished building our squad yet, but we’re focusing on tomorrow’s game and will take it one game at a time. Barcelona still has a strong team, and Real Madrid continues to grow with amazing players, but our focus is on ourselves.”
