Barcelona are aware Atletico Madrid are ‘negotiating with other clubs’ as they try to sell Julian Alvarez to Arsenal.
Alvarez was brutally booed out of his own stadium by Atletico fans on Sunday with the Argentina international still desperate to join Barcelona this summer.
The Catalan giants have already seen an offer of €100million rejected this summer with Atletico furious over their pursuit of their player.
Arsenal are also interested in signing the former Manchester City star with Mikel Arteta still eager to add another forward to his Premier League-winning squad.
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Atletico are determined to hold onto their player but with the situation reaching breaking point, they have privately agreed to enter talks with Arsenal should an acceptable offer come in.
Despite Atletico’s attempts to steer him towards north London, Alvarez only wants to join Barcelona despite Arsenal’s pleas.
The saga now looks set to continue on into the final week of the transfer window with Barcelona president Joan Laporta now insisting their offer remains on the table.
Explaining his club’s position, Laporta said the club were prepared to halt their interest in the striker – deciding against that after learning Atletico are negotiating with another club.
As a result, the La Liga champions remain in pursuit of a player due it being ‘common knowledge’ he wants to move to the Camp Nou.
Explaining the saga which took a sour turn following Barcelona’s opening offer earlier in the summer, Laporta said in a statement: ‘We made an offer from club to club. I confirmed this offer in a personal phone conversation with [Atletico president] Miguel Ángel Gil.
‘They told me they had no intention of selling because they had no alternative to Julián, and I told them that we were interested, but that we respected their decision not to sell, although if they found an alternative in this transfer window, we would be interested in making the signing.
‘[Barcelona sporting director] Deco and I thought that, seeing as they weren’t selling him, we’d put the matter on hold. What’s happened? We’ve received information that Atlético de Madrid is negotiating with other clubs for the player.
‘We’re still present with our offer because it’s common knowledge that the player wants to come to Barca.
‘This situation has created a lot of noise that isn’t due to any actions by Barca. We spoke with Enrique Cerezo, and then he spoke. I have a lot of respect for him, and I want to say that Barca has risen to the occasion.
‘We’ve done the same as we do with other clubs. We’re still present, and the offer is still valid; it remains in case Atleti wants to sell the player.’
In response to Laporta’s comments however, Atletico have insisted in more unequivocal terms that they will not be doing business with Barcelona this summer.
‘There is a zero per cent chance of selling him to Barca. This situation isn’t about money; it’s about dignity,’ the club said.
‘A campaign full of lies and half-truths have been created. The only ones paying the price for all this are Atletico.’