Manchester City announced in January 2022 that they’ve acquired the next great South American talent in the form of Julian Alvarez. But however, they remained at River Plate for the rest of the season. It seemed to be a familiar story, but no one expected the impact he has created except Pep Guardiola and Alvarez himself.
Julian Alvarez has been incredible
Alvarez joined the camp of City in 2022 and yet everyone thought he would be going on loan like every other young player. However, that was not the case with him. The chief executive of the club said,
“We’ve had many offers from clubs to loan Alvarez, but he is not going to leave. He will do pre-season with us and I think he will stay.”
Yet no one thought about the significant role he will play in the ongoing season.
Alvarez was handed the no. 19 shirt and at the same time, both Gabriel Jesus and Raheem Sterling left the club. The club didn’t even bring anyone to replace the wide forwards. Then everything became apparent of how highly Alvarez was important to the club.
He made his debut against Liverpool in the Community Shield match and scored within a minute on the pitch. So far, he has notched up 12 goals and four assists in his debut campaign. He has made his space in the team over the time given the remarkable form of Erling Haaland.
A big opportunity for him after the international break
The 23-year-old might get a chance after the international break to play for City. The club is currently sweating over the groin injury of Haaland which he picked up against Fulham. In the last three matches, Haaland has scored nine goals. The Norwegian striker is in a touch-and-go situation and has also missed the international games. It would be a massive blow for City as their next clash is with Liverpool and it will be a massive test for Alvarez.
Liverpool might be a wounded beast as of now but they are still a very talented side and often up their game against City. Playing upfront against them and especially against Virgil van Dijk is no easy task which even Haaland discovered in October. He will no doubt be up for the challenge after earning his new contract last week and being successful could earn him more starts.
However, it is evident that Alvarez is capable of playing against big teams. He has started against Chelsea twice, easily the hardest fixture for him, in both domestic cups and has scored in each victory. He has that pedigree in him to score goals when he is in the starting XI, with nine of his 12 goals being named in it.
Conclusion
Starting against Liverpool without Haaland by his side would be Alavrez’s toughest challenge at City yet, but given his trajectory, it will be of no surprise if he passes with flying colors. It would be very fascinating to see what he is capable of doing.
For more sports-related updates, follow us on Twitter.
For more sports updates, make sure to follow us on:
