Alvarez has not yet cut ties with Hidalgo, the agent who has represented him throughout his career. But Onda Cero journalist Gonzalo Palafox reported on 16 September that the 26-year-old is considering the change for the first time and has already made contact with The Elegant Game, the agency founded by former Argentina international Javier Pastore that also represents his Argentina teammate Enzo Fernandez.
People close to the striker are said to believe elements of his summer were mishandled during months of speculation over his future.
Atletico CEO’s rebuke of the striker’s advisers
The trigger was a public breakdown between Hidalgo and Atletico’s boardroom during the transfer chaos.
Miguel Angel Gil Marin, Atletico Madrid’s CEO, aimed a barbed comment at those around the striker.
Read also: 'Mickey Mouse racing': why Verstappen's fury changed nothing about Red Bull's penalty math
“Julian is really in a bad way. There have been people who have taken it upon themselves to deceive him, to confuse him,” Gil Marin said.
The remark was widely read in Spain as a direct shot at Hidalgo.
Alvarez has started the season under Diego Simeone and completed his first full match of the campaign at Anfield, where he assisted Marcos Llorente in Atletico’s 2-1 Champions League defeat at Liverpool. The club sit third in La Liga with 13 points, two points behind Real Madrid.
Barcelona and Arsenal walked away empty
Alvarez was one of the most tracked names of the summer. Barcelona, his stated preferred destination, pursued him openly. Arsenal moved for him as their leading striker target after failing to sign Vinicius Junior from Real Madrid.
Read also: Donald Trump called Infantino. Balogun played. Now the FA wants every document.
Neither deal materialised. Alvarez himself had publicly asked to be allowed to leave, but Atletico refused to sanction a move and eventually got the answer they wanted: he informed sporting director Mateu Alemany on 1 September that he would stay in Madrid.
Barcelona director Deco later acknowledged the Catalan club had tried to sign him, but insisted they had never asked the player to force a move away from Atletico. beIN Sports has since followed the agent story up, pointing to a strained relationship between Hidalgo and the Atletico boardroom as one of the reasons Alvarez is now looking elsewhere.
Contract to 2030 and a release clause tied to goals
Alvarez is under contract at Atletico until 2030. Gil Marin has reportedly promised the player his release clause would be lowered if he reaches 20 goals during the 2026-27 season, a target he matched across all competitions last term. The club has not confirmed the arrangement, first attributed to Pipi Estrada of El Chiringuito.
Alvarez has not made a final call on his representation. Atletico host Real Madrid in the league derby on Sunday, 20 September.
Read also: 'I want to create history': Isak on why he pushed so hard for Liverpool
Read also: Days after Russia destroyed a tennis star’s home, Ovechkin says: ‘I support my country’
