João Félix latest: Forward trains alone, with no news on his future

The countdown is on.

Atlético Madrid have seven days to sort out the future of Joao Félix before they embark on a summer tour where they will play in South Korea (K-League XI, Manchester City), Mexico (Real Sociedad) and the United States (Sevilla). And nobody, including Joao Félix himself, wants Joao Félix to be on the plane to South Korea.

Speculation heated up after João’s first training session back with the team following his loan spell with Chelsea FC last season. He had a tense conversation with sporting director Andrea Berta after being a sub during a 10 vs 10 game, and the 23-year-old trained alone on Monday in Los Ángeles de San Rafael, at Atlético’s summer training ground in the mountains outside Madrid.

João has felt some slight physical discomfort, but nothing significant, so he was held out of training as a precaution. However, the clock is ticking not only on his return to full fitness, but also to find his next destination.

Photo by Gualter Fatia/Getty Images

Spanish journalist Rubén Uría says that if an offer does not come in that meets Atlético’s asking price, there is a chance João could stay at the club. But that seems like the most unlikely of solutions and the most unwanted by all parties at the moment.

The most normal thing is that João leaves the club, with Unai Emery and Aston Villa pushing hard for his signature. The Portuguese attacker would prefer a move to a Champions League side, but it all depends on who is willing to take a chance on a player who has underachieved massively since his 2019 summer move from Benfica for more than €120 million.

Newcastle and Manchester United have both been linked with a move for the forward, while Paris Saint-Germain have been repeatedly mentioned in the press. But Marca say they were never interested, despite being offered the player on more than one occasion.