Barcelona president criticises Atletico Madrid’s reaction over Julian Alvarez pursuit: ‘No way to justify their attitude’

Barcelona president criticises Atletico Madrid’s reaction over Julian Alvarez pursuit: ‘No way to justify their attitude’ Julian Alvarez was one of the major talking points of the summer transfer window. FC Barcelona made the Argentine striker a priority and submitted a €100 million offer to Atletico Madrid, who refused to consider the proposal. Atletico subsequently accused Barcelona of tapping up the player before they were permitted to do so, even lodging complaints with FIFA and RFEF. Not stopping at that, the Rojiblancos , led by CEO Miguel Angel Gil Marin, launched several verbal attacks towards the Blaugrana . Laporta hits out Speaking at Barcelona’s General Assembly, Joan Laporta has now given his version of events and responded publicly to Gil Marin for the first time since the transfer window closed. The Barça president explained that he contacted Gil Marin directly during Barcelona’s attempts to sign Alvarez. “They were offended because they had no way to justify their attitude. We did what is always done,” he started, as quoted by SPORT . Barcelona were keen on signing Julian Alvarez. (Photo by Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images) “I called Miguel Angel Gil and he told me they weren’t selling because they had no alternative. I told him that if they did have one, they should let us know. They reacted out of line.” The Barcelona president said he did not understand Atletico Madrid’s response, although he suggested he had his own theory about what might have motivated it. “I don’t know why. I imagine there might be something, but I won’t say it publicly because I have no proof that it was the case,” he cryptically said. Laporta also claimed Barcelona repeatedly received reports that Atlético were prepared to sell Alvarez to other clubs but not to Barça. “We constantly received information that they wanted to sell to everyone except Barça, and they admitted it. In the end, they acknowledged that we had contacted them,” he said. Despite the failed transfer, Laporta insisted that Barcelona have moved on and are satisfied with the squad assembled by Deco. “That is all in the past and we are very happy with the squad we have, and the coach is very happy with the extraordinary work Deco has done,” he said, drawing a line in the sand on the matter. Laporta criticises the international break Laporta also criticised the international break. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images) The Barcelona president also used the Assembly to criticise the upcoming international break, which will include four Nations League matches for European teams in a three-week window. Laporta believes the interruption is particularly damaging given the demands already placed on players throughout the season. “This break makes no sense. Hansi told me the other day. A four-match break that harms us and interrupts our rhythm,” he said. The Barcelona chief acknowledged the importance of major international competitions but argued that the number of tournaments and fixtures has become excessive. “There is the World Cup and the European Championship, but there’s also the Nations League. There are too many tournaments and matches,” Laporta complained. “The calendar is extremely packed and the players suffer. What we want is for the players to win titles with Barça.” Laporta pointed to Raphinha as an example of the problems created by the international schedule. “Last year it happened to us with Raphinha. He was in excellent form and then a series of circumstances occurred, with a lot of travelling. Our staff had warned that he could get injured, and he did,” he said. “We will speak with UEFA and FIFA so that this can be resolved,” concluded Laporta.