Julian Alvarez is the talk of the City. He scored two goals in Manchester City’s first game of this season’s Champions League, helping to secure Pep’s squad with a 3-1 victory over Crevena Zvezda at the Etihad.
The Argentinian is thriving and scoring. Stunning fans left, right, and center. Born on January 31st, 2000, he is only 23 years old. Yet his accomplishments are far-reaching and monumental.
Wonder-kid
Infamously nicknamed “el Aranita”, a little spider in Spanish, he has experienced hyper success in the 2022/23 season – both internationally and domestically.
The Citizens forward won the World Cup with Argentina in Qatar in 2022. This is the tournament that most players can only dream of winning and yet, he has already achieved it at the ripe age of 23. He is proving to be a wonder kid who can perform at a consistently high level of football, performing well under pressure and most importantly, scoring goals regularly. With his two goals in the semi-final of the Qatar World Cup, he was the youngest player to have done this since Pele, writing himself into the history books. Not only did he experience international success, but he also had intense domestic success with Manchester City, winning the treble: the Premier League, FA Cup, and Champions League all in one season. An unbelievable feat.
Taking the reins
In this current season, “el Aranita” is proving himself to be a top player once again. With Kevin De Bruyne suffering from a long-term hamstring injury, Man City have been missing their star player since the beginning of the season. However, there has not been much change in the quality of Man City’s football without De Bruyne. The Argentinian seems to be perfectly filling the gap which the Belgian left in the squad. With De Bruyne getting older and the club postponing his contract negotiations, it may be the start of a new era. An era in which “el Aranita” is the star player. Few believed that Man City would survive without KDB but with Alvaraz’s current form, this have been proved false.
It signifies an era in which a 23-year-old Argentinian will be making his mark in the Man City squad. This is only the start of Alvarez’s career at Man City and it is certain that he will continue to impress the fans with his football.
The Messi effect
Not only has he impressed the fans, but he has impressed his idol, Lionel Messi. Alvarez was playing alongside Messi in the 2022 World Cup and scored goals in his presence. A dream made into reality. They gracefully shared the pitch, united as one under the Argentinian flag. He did not fold under the pressure of playing with the likes of Messi. Rather, he exceeded all expectations and played fantastically. Soon enough, “el Aranita” may just be the idol that young Argentinian players look up to.
As of right now, many consider him to be one of the best young players in the world and there is much backing to this considering his last season.
There is validity in the idea that this could be his peak and that maybe he has peaked too early. It is a classic tale for a player to succeed at an immense scale, get overhyped by the media, and end up falling off, failing to fulfil the potential projected onto him. However, with the expert guidance of Pep Guardiola, he could ensure that the Argentinan can maintain such form and general class. Alvarez does seem to have a fantastic career ahead of him, but only time can tell if he can continue what he has now started.
