After what seemed like an eternity for City fans, Erling Haaland was finally confirmed as their new go-to goal-getter. Yet it’s the versatility of another attacking arrival that could be the key to maximising our superstar No. 9’s impact.
Julian Alvarez has arrived in Manchester and will be keen to get started with the Premier League champions after putting up some impressive numbers with former club River Plate. 23 goal involvements in 24 appearances in all comps last season are certainly nothing to sneeze at.
Soccer Football – World Cup – South American Qualifiers – Ecuador v Argentina – Estadio Monumental Banco Pichincha, Guayaquil, Ecuador – March 29, 2022 Argentina’s Julian Alvarez celebrates scoring their first goal Pool via REUTERS/Franklin Jacome
Whilst the main priority for the club was getting Haaland in the door – City may just have hit upon the perfect solution as to who will provide the Norwegian with some backup. This is a conundrum that clubs up and down the land face when they’re in possession of a nailed-on No. 9 starter. Harry Kane is obviously such a man at Tottenham but, whenever the England captain’s been injured, it’s left Spurs with a glaring hole they just couldn’t fill. The likes of Vincent Janssen and Carlos Vinicius all tried and failed to offer any sort of replacement value when Kane missed out on matches. Hardly a surprise that these lads don’t give you exactly what Kane did, but the fans would nonetheless have expected a bit more from such players.
This can be attributed to general fitness and match sharpness issues (it’s obviously hard to hit the ground running when you’re not playing every week) and it’s hard to remain razor sharp when you’re not getting any game time. The Alvarez solution comes in his ability to play comfortably right across the front three. This gives him the edge that your average common or garden backup striker doesn’t have. Match sharpness shouldn’t be an issue as Alvarez will be expected to play a role across the front three, but especially off the right as a backup for Riyad Mahrez. The moral of this tale is – given the right level of action Julian Alvarez could be next bright young thing on the Etihad Campus.