Atlético Madrid manager Diego Simeone has expressed high expectations for his new signing, Julián lvarez. The 24-year-old Argentine forward recently joined the club from Manchester City in a deal reportedly worth 75 million euros (82.7 million dollars). Simeone hinted that lvarez might make his debut in Atlético’s LaLiga opener against Villarreal on Monday.
Speaking ahead of the match, as quoted by Reuters, Simeone said that Alvarez is a player who will help Atleti get better and had been adapting fast with the squad. The Argentine manager said that he can see a lot of enthusiasm with Alvarez and he fits perfectly to the Atleti DNA.
“Julian (Alvarez) is a player we are all looking forward to seeing and who will help us to be better. It was all very sudden, so quick. He just arrived a little while ago, has been training for four days but has been adapting fast,” Simeone told a press conference on Sunday.
“But I see him with a lot of enthusiasm, knowing where he is coming from and understanding where he is heading towards. His characteristics fit to the Atleti DNA.”
Atleti not title contenders
Despite a summer spending spree of over €150 million on lvarez, Euro 2024-winning Spanish defender Robin Le Normand, and last season’s LaLiga top scorer Alexander S¸rloth, Simeone tempered expectations regarding the title race. With negotiations ongoing to sign Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher, Simeone emphasized that the squad needs further reinforcement to compete with a Real Madrid side that not only won the Champions League and LaLiga last season but also added France captain Kylian Mbappé to their ranks.
“Real Madrid start the season as the best team and will have to prove it with the wonderful players they have while all the rest of us will be behind to compete against them,” Simeone said.
“We haven’t closed the squad yet, apart from not closing it yet, we need to focus on tomorrow’s game and see game by game how the team progress.
“Barcelona continue to have a very good team, Real continue to grow with players who are phenomenal but it’s clear for me that we have to think about ourselves.”
Atletico finished 4th last season and will start their campaign against Villareal on August 19, Monday.