Rob Dawson
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Rob Dawson, Correspondent
Manchester City and Atlético Madrid have agreed a deal for striker Julián Álvarez, a source has told ESPN.
The LaLiga side are set to pay up to €95 million ($104m) for the Argentina striker. Around £64m (€75m) will be due up front with another £17m (€20m) in performance-based add-ons.
It represents City’s record departure and a huge profit on the £14m they paid for Álvarez when he arrived from River Plate in January 2022.
Sources have told ESPN that Álvarez has not yet agreed personal terms with Atlético but it’s understood to be a formality.
City, according to a source, were reluctant to let the 24-year-old leave after scoring 36 goals in 103 games in two years and helping the club win the treble in 2023 and another Premier League title last season.
However, with Álvarez’s prospects of replacing Erling Haaland as Pep Guardiola’s first-choice striker slim and keen to find regular football elsewhere, City are satisfied they’ve negotiated a good deal for the 2022 World Cup winner.
City have signed Brazil winger Savinho this summer but were expecting an otherwise quiet summer window.
However, with Álvarez set to leave they will have to decide whether or not to find another understudy for Haaland. The Norway striker missed two months of last season because of injury meaning Álvarez made 54 appearances in all competitions.
Álvarez only failed to appear in two of City’s 38 Premier League games, scoring 11 league goals.
Information from ESPN’s Rodrigo Faez contributed to this report.