Atletico Star Striker To Make Premier League Return? Chelsea And Arsenal Circling Forward

Chelsea And Arsenal Join Barcelona In Race To Sign One Of The World's Best Wantaway Strikers

As if he wasn't impressive enough at Man City, Julian Alvarez has gone from strength to strength at Atletico Madrid in the last two seasons, but now feels that the time is right to make a big move away in the summer.

We look set for an exciting battle to secure the signature of one of the best strikers in the world at the moment, with a three-way fight to bring in the Argentinian set to ensue.

Barcelona lead the race at the moment, but Chelsea and Premier League leaders Arsenal have imposed themselves as genuine competitors to the Blaugrana in recent weeks, with both sides receiving regular updates on the striker's situation ahead of the transfer window in a few months time.

Atletico Understanding, Yet Stubborn

The Spanish side appreciate that Alvarez sees his future elsewhere but are remaining steadfast on their demands for the transfer to go ahead.

They maintain two simple rules, though both may prove difficult for the interested parties to adhere to.

1. No sagas allowed – if there is no deal completed by August, then he will stay put
2. He won't go cheap – Atletico expect a deal worth over £100 million

Atleti effectively hold all the cards in this situation, where they either get what they want with no compromise, or they keep one of the most potent finishers in Europe, which is an enviable position for them to be in.

Alvarez has been clear that his first choice for a move is Barcelona but is open to the idea of heading elsewhere.

According to TEAMtalk, an anonymous intermediary disclosed his situation: “We all know Barca is Julian’s priority, but not to the point where he is saying a total no to everyone else.

"As it stands, if he does not stay in Spain, he is likely heading to London. It is widely known Arsenal and Chelsea love him, he is an elite player and an elite player with Premier League experience.”

🚨 Pau Cubarsí: "Signing Julian Alvarez? He is a top, world-class striker... I’ve played against him. For me, he’s Barça level." pic.twitter.com/WBaTOPrPfq

— Barça Universal (@BarcaUniversal) February 19, 2026

The club's rules may prove to complicate matters on Barcelona's part, though, who are becoming increasingly worried that they won't be able to put forward an enticing enough offer to make the move complete.

This comes off the back of several years of financial disaster, as well as the strict spending caps imposed on each club by La Liga, which could stand to offer the upper hand to the London-based clubs instead.

Who Really Leads The Race?

Though Alvarez clearly prefers to remain in Spain with Barcelona, financial demands may disqualify them from the race early on, leaving us with an all-English battle to bring him in.

If the striker were to return to the Premier League, then it would be a huge statement of intent for whichever club he joins, especially in Arsenal's case, who may be looking to combine him with Victor Gyokeres to potentially try and defend their title, should they finally get it across the line this season.

Julian Alvarez has been linked with Arsenal and Chelsea this year 💬

But the Atletico Madrid star would supposedly prefer to remain in Spain if he were to leave his current club...👀https://t.co/tyEoSwlb2e pic.twitter.com/0STITtZf2Y

— Mirror Football (@MirrorFootball) February 18, 2026

It does look as though the Gunners are pushing harder than their London counterparts to allure Alvarez back to the Premier League, having offered two Brazilian stars in Gabriel Jesus and Gabriel Martinelli as part of a deal to reduce the astronomical transfer fee expected of them.

Just to strengthen their positive position, their sporting director, Berta, joined Arsenal last summer after spending 12 years working at Atletico so he could call in some favours to his old club to gain preference over Chelsea.

Liam Rosenior's side have some catching up to do if they want to challenge the Gunners in this battle, but it could be futile should Barcelona muster up the cash to make the move complete.

Either way, this is definitely a situation worth keeping an eye on when we start heading into the summer transfer window, as any side that has Julian Alvarez in their ranks is one that should be incredibly competitive.