The official signing of Julián Alvarez by Atlético de Madrid took place yesterday early in the afternoon, with the move being one of the most talked about in the market. The colchoneros encouraged their fans with several welcome teasers for a world-class player who arrives at Atlético ready to leave his mark on the club. At just 24 years of age, Alvarez has won everything there is to win in collective football and hopes to continue to add to his legend as a red-and-white.
However, not all Spanish sports newspapers have echoed the signing of the Argentine star by Atlético, or at least they have not given it the importance it deserves. The Spanish sports press is, at times, very sensationalist and has ideals in line with what is most important in Spanish football rather than the most rigorous current affairs. Caught up in the Madrid-Barcelona binomial, many of the leading newspapers in Spanish sport often focus on these two clubs and remain oblivious to the rest of the country's teams.
The stampede of some national newspapers with Julián
One of the flagships of the Spanish sports press, Diario AS, has given the runaround on the signing of Julián Alvarez by Atlético de Madrid in its morning opening. The brand new sports newspaper has decided to open its morning issue with the news of the supposed stratospheric offer from Saudi Arabia for Vinícius Jr, something that has been quite disrespectful. The fact that the arrival of a transcendental signing for one of the greats of Spain has been relegated to the background is a sign of the power of Madrid and Barcelona.
The newspaper Marca, involved in the same controversy yesterday for having prioritized the Saudi offer over the official nature of the signing, has decided to include Julián's arrival on its front page. In the digital edition, Marca continues to put the Brazilian's tentative transfer first, but in physical format it is "The Spider" who takes over the front page of the newspaper. In light of these embarrassing elections, many recall other front pages not exempt from controversy, in which it is perfectly clear where both newspapers are lame.
Common occurrences
Both newspapers tend to prioritise information relating to Real Madrid and FC Barcelona over that of any other Spanish team, although there are a few exceptions at times. If a more sports-related topic is not on the front page, it is usually occupied by an event that has a correlation with the two football giants in our country. Given the apparent passivity of the signing for the sports media, many Atlético de Madrid fans have noticed and have shown their discontent with the Spanish press.
Little hype, huge magnitude
It seems incredible that the kings of the sports press are overlooking, or relegating to a secondary role, such an important signing for Atlético and LaLiga. The domestic competition is set to take a considerable leap forward with the incorporation of Julián into the red-and-white ranks, whose contribution to the championship is set to be very large. While waiting to see him debut in the first few days, everyone is waiting to see how "La Araña" fares as the new idol of Atlético fans.