Pep Guardiola responds to increasing Julian Alvarez transfer speculation

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has claimed while he is not thinking about the possibility of Julian Alvarez departing, the Argentine may be allowed to leave if he ultimately wants out of the club.

Alvarez has not always been a guaranteed starter during his two-year stint at the Etihad Stadium thus far, even though he has played 103 games in that time.

Earlier this week, Alvarez put Europe's top clubs on alert when he admitted he still needs to think about his future at City, stressing his desire to play in their biggest games.

While away with Argentina's Olympic team, Alvarez told DIRECTV Sports: "I haven't stopped to think about what I'm going to do. When this [the Olympics] is over I'll start thinking about what I want for myself. We'll see how things go.

"Last season I was one of the players who played the most minutes in the team. But it's true: in the end, in important games, you don't like being left out and you want to contribute."

Guardiola has now been given an opportunity to respond to Alvarez's comments, stating a decision over the forward's future will be decided and communicated with City's director of football, Txiki Begiristain, after the Olympics.

"I don't think about replacing [Alvarez]. I knew he said he will think about it," Guardiola said. "Once he has finished thinking, his agent will call Txiki and we will see what happens.

"I know he wants to play in important moments, but the other players [want that] too. We have 18 or 19 players who want to play in the important games.

"I read he has to think about it, so OK, think about it, and after that he will inform us what he wants to do."

Alvarez has been linked with the likes of Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain and Atletico Madrid during the summer transfer window.

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