What Chelsea are prepared to do to sign Julian Alvarez from Atletico Madrid

There could be a really heated transfer battle for Atletico Madrid forward Julian Alvarez this summer involving Chelsea.

Chelsea are believed to have Alvarez on their radar, but they are not the only club who are interested in him.

Barcelona are also keen on Alvarez; however, the Spanish champions could find it difficult to strike an agreement with Atletico.

What deal are you doing? 🤔

Julian Alvarez for £87m OR Dusan Vlahovic on a free transfer?

Chelsea ready to offer straight cash for Barcelona target Julian Alvarez

According to TEAMtalk, Barcelona want to pay less than €100m (£86.6m) for Alvarez and hope to include players in any potential deal.

In contrast, the same outlet has claimed that Chelsea, Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain are all willing to pay straight cash for his signature.

It is a proposal that Atletico are much more likely to prefer, with the Spanish giants not being too keen to sell to a league rival in the first place.

Ultimately, it means Chelsea could have an advantage over Barcelona when the transfer window opens in the summer.

Barcelona do appear to have alternatives to the 26-year-old, though, including Chelsea’s Joao Pedro.

It is being reported that Barcelona could turn to Pedro if Alvarez joins another club or remains at Atletico. Pedro only signed for the Blues last summer, but it is no surprise that the Brazilian is already attracting interest from another club after the season he has had.

Pedro has a chance to reach the 20-goal mark in all competitions before the campaign is over.

Chelsea are reportedly set to tweak their transfer strategy and sign more experienced players!

How much Julian Alvarez could cost this summer

Barcelona are going to be left feeling extremely disappointed if they think an offer of less than £86m is going to be enough to land Alvarez.

TEAMtalk’s report claims that Atletico want a minimum of £102m for their centre-forward. So Barcelona are going to have to increase the amount of money they are willing to offer or include some very good players in a cash-plus-player deal.

It is a fee that Chelsea could also struggle to pay, though, especially with the club unlikely to have any Champions League revenue next season.