Atletico Madrid striker Alvarez: I had to reject Real Madrid offer

Atletico Madrid striker Alvarez: I had to reject Real Madrid offer

Atletico Madrid striker Julian Alvarez admits he could've joined Real Madrid as a junior player.

Alvarez is now starring with Atletico in LaLiga, having made the move 18 months ago from Manchester City.

He told L'Equipe: 0"I had the opportunity to come to Madrid when I was 11. My father accompanied me to Spain for about 20 days.

"I trained with Real Madrid and then took part in a tournament in Peralada that we won. But for me to stay, my whole family would have had to come and live with me. It was a wonderful experience, but it was still too early for me."0

Asked about replacing Robert Lewandowski at Barcelona next summer, Alvarez added: "Frankly, I don't know. I see what's being said on social media... There's a lot of talk in Spain about me and Barcelona. When I signed for Atl9tico last year, there was also a lot of talk about Paris.

"It's true that there were discussions between the PSG management and my agent; they showed interest in me, but nothing materialized. For now, I'm focused on Atl9tico. We'll see what happens at the end of the season."