Atletico Madrid take swipe at Barcelona and media reports amid Alvarez speculation

Atletico Madrid have lashed out at speculation linking Julian Alvarez with a transfer to Barcelona.

Alvarez is reportedly a top target for LaLiga champions Barca, who are aiming to reshape their attack.

Fabrizio Romano, the Italian journalist, reported that Barca were willing to spend up to €100m on the Argentina international.

However, Romano suggested Atletico view Alvarez as being worth more than €100m, albeit he also claimed the forward wished to make the move.

In response, Atletico then used their official social media accounts to post AI-generated images of Lamine Yamal, Pedri and Raphinha wearing Rojiblancos kits, in the style Romano had previously shared in relation to Alvarez.

"HERE WE GO! We have sent a fax to FC Barcelona with our transfer offer: four tickets to tomorrow's Bad Bunny concert, a one-year subscription to ABC, and a bag of sunflower seeds. We eagerly await their response so we can prepare the announcement," a caption on the Yamal post read.

Atletico followed it up with: "And remember, it took us just five minutes to create this fake post. We live in an era where reality can be altered. Don't believe everything you see, especially if it's related to Barca."

Alvarez joined Atletico from Manchester City in 2024.

He has scored 49 goals in 106 games for Atletico, outperforming his 38.9 expected goals (xG), while also providing 17 assists.