“Don’t go there” – Arteta tight-lipped on Arsenal’s Alvarez quest

Despite some persistent probing at today’s press conference, Mikel Arteta refused to be drawn on Arsenal’s attempts to lure Julian Alvarez to the Emirates.

The story, as we understand it, goes something like this…

The Argentina international wants to join Barcelona and Barcelona want to sign him. Atletico Madrid have spent much of the summer insisting they won’t allow that to happen and today released a statement underlining their stance.

In the background, Arteta and Andrea Berta have been trying to persuade Alvarez that his future should instead be in north London. The forward was booed by sections of the Atletico support at the weekend, and his position at the Metropolitano looks increasingly difficult.

While the Spanish club would be willing to do business with Arsenal, there are complications. Alvarez would want members of his extended family to join him in England and UK visa rules make that more difficult than a move within Spain.

Time is also running out. Arsenal need to decide whether to keep pushing for their preferred target or look elsewhere, particularly with Gabriel Martinelli seemingly on his way out. The alternative, of course, is to sit tight and revisit the situation in January.

Unsurprisingly, Arteta wasn’t keen to fill in any of the blanks.

“Don’t go there,” joked Arteta when asked if he’d spoken to Alvarez. “I’m not going to make any comment about any player that is not with us.”

Pressed on reports in Spain that Alvarez didn’t even pick up the phone when Arteta last called, the boss wasn’t biting.

“You know I’m not going to make any comments about what is said publicly, because I would have a different job.”

While Arteta wasn’t prepared to discuss Alvarez specifically, he was more forthcoming when asked about the process of convincing prospective signings to join Arsenal.

The manager has spoken before about wanting players who are genuinely excited by the prospect of moving to north London. He doesn’t expect them to advertise that desire publicly, but establishing their motivation is clearly an important part of the conversations that take place behind closed doors.

“Publicly, I never ask them. I think it’s more private to get the feeling that if it’s something unique, an attachment, a feeling, that they really want to join us, and they have that desire to come and be part of our family.”

That courtship also involves selling a player on the wider Arsenal project and explaining exactly where they would fit. Arteta stressed that the decision rarely involves the player alone, with family and other members of their support network often playing an important part in the process.

“Explaining what we are, what we are doing and how we expect a player to fit in within our club, and his role in the team, that is certainly the case. They either come by themselves or with a team, whether they have family or people who work with them; I think every player’s system has to be understood. I think everybody around it has to feel it’s the right thing to do.”

Those comments feel particularly pertinent given the complexities surrounding Alvarez, even if Arteta was careful not to make that connection himself.

With only a few days of the window remaining, Arsenal’s patience is being tested. In an ideal world, a signing of this magnitude would presumably have been completed much earlier, giving the player time to settle and Arteta the chance to integrate him into his plans.

Nevertheless, the manager insists he isn’t frustrated by the apparent waiting game and remains confident in Arsenal’s pulling power.

“No. We haven’t had situations like this really. We are really privileged that players want to come to Arsenal.”

The post “Don’t go there” – Arteta tight-lipped on Arsenal’s Alvarez quest appeared first on Arseblog News - the Arsenal news site.