Julian Alvarez is close to completing a move from Manchester City to Atletico Madrid in a deal worth over £81million in total, the PA news agency understands.

The deal is not yet fully complete, but it is understood to be made up of a 75 million euro initial fee and 20m euros of add-ons and would be a record sale for City.

It represents a significant profit on a player City signed from River Plate in his native Argentina in 2022 for £14m, and underlines City boss Pep Guardiola’s willingness to listen to market-value offers for any of their players.

Alvarez enjoyed astonishing success in his debut 2022-23 season for City. By Christmas of that season he was a world champion with Argentina, and went on to win the treble of Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League with his new club, who retained the English top-flight title last season.

Alvarez, like Gabriel Jesus before him, highlights City’s ability to identify and recruit top talent from South America.

The club have brought in Brazilian forward Savinho for the new season from Troyes after he excelled on loan at Girona, while Claudio Echeverri signed from River Plate in January and will move to the Etihad Stadium at the start of next year.

Alvarez’s move to Atletico Madrid could pave the way for the Spanish side to sell their forward Samu Omorodion to Chelsea.