Atletico coach Diego Simeone drops Julian Alvarez amid Barcelona transfer links

Atletico coach Diego Simeone confirmed that Alvarez will be left out of Wednesday's match, with the Argentine still linked with a move away from the club. Barcelona have been heavily mentioned as a possible destination.

Alvarez joined Atletico from Manchester City in 2024 for 75 million euros and has scored 49 goals in 106 appearances for the Spanish club.

The 26-year-old recently admitted he had spoken to Atletico about a possible transfer as he looks to "fulfil my dream".

However, Atletico chief executive Miguel Angel Gil Marin has made it clear that the club do not want to sell their star forward. He has reportedly indicated that even an offer of 200 million euros would not be enough to convince Atletico to part with Alvarez.

Simeone backed that stance ahead of the Malaga game.

"Miguel Angel is the club's owner. Nothing is more definitive than the club's owner, it's crystal clear," Simeone said.

"It's like when a judge hands down a ruling: 'Dismissed.'"

Simeone also stressed that Atletico were putting Alvarez's interests first while the transfer situation remained unresolved.

"From a sports perspective, we want to look out for the person, the player, so he can continue to uphold his reputation," he said.

"We don't see him playing in this game. I hope that over the next four days, he'll be closer to where we want him to be."

That could give Alvarez a chance of returning for Sunday's home meeting with Villarreal.

Simeone said the striker still needed more preparation before being considered ready to start.

"I still feel the same way I did the other day in Korea," he said.

"We talked as we always do and I understand that, from a sporting standpoint, he still needs to step it up a bit to be in top form for Sunday.

"He needs more practice. He's the best player we have and we're going to try to build a team around him, keeping his level in mind."