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Atletico Madrid-bound Julian Alvarez has seemingly made it clear that he still supports Manchester City after he sent a message following his team's FA Community Shield win. His future has been one of the most-discussed topics during the current transfer window, with a big-money move now set to be finalized.
According to Fabrizio Romano, Manchester City have accepted an offer of €95 million (with add-ons) for Alvarez. The player is reportedly set to fly to Madrid on Sunday (August 11) before undergoing a medical the following day.
Despite missing the FA Community Shield clash against Manchester United, Alvarez shared a post from City's official account on his Instagram story after the full-time whistle. The Cityzens, of course, beat their arch-rivals 7-6 on penalties (1-1 in regular time) to win the trophy for the third time under Pep Guardiola.
Alvarez shared the post and added the 'clapping' and 'flex' emoji on his story.
Check out Alvarez's post below:
The 2022 World Cup winner notably featured in the last two Community Shield matches, where City lost to Liverpool (3-1) and Arsenal (1-1, 4-1 on pens), respectively.
Pep Guardiola explains why Manchester City accepted Atletico Madrid's Julian Alvarez offer
Pep Guardiola admitted that he didn't try to block Julian Alvarez's transfer to Atletico Madrid when the player made it clear he wants to leave Manchester City. The Argentine was signed from River Plate in January 2022 for a fee of €21.4 million.
Since then, Alvarez has registered 36 goals and 18 assists in 103 games for the club. What is more impressive is that he averaged a goal contribution every 111.2 minutes in a City shirt.
Speaking about the 24-year-old's impending exit, Guardiola said before the win against Manchester United (via ESPN):
"I don't like to tell players what they have to do. Contracts are nice but they can be broken. If you are not happy, why should you be here? He's incredibly loved by the team for his behaviour, but like I said many times of the players, if he wants to leave and wants a new challenge — Atlético is a top club in Spain and in Europe — and when they suggested to me through the club that he wanted to leave, I said it was OK. Imagine he stays when he doesn't want to stay?"
Alvarez is a highly versatile striker who can play anywhere across the frontline and in attacking midfield. He already has 36 senior caps for La Albiceleste and now looks set to lead Atletico's frontline under his compatriot Diego Simeone.
