Manchester City enjoyed a 3-1 win over Sevilla on Wednesday night and Julian Alvarez was the star of the show. The 22-year-old led the line in Erling Haaland’s absence and had a hand in all three of City’s goals at the Etihad Stadium.
Alvarez’s trio of goal contributions led to him setting a new record too, according to Opta. The former River Plate striker is the youngest Argentinean (22 years, 275 days) to be directly involved in three goals in a single Champions League match since Lionel Messi vs Bayern Munich in April 2009 (21 years, 288 days).
3 – Aged 22 years and 275 days, Julián Álvarez is the youngest Argentinean to be directly involved in three goals in a single UEFA Champions League match since Lionel Messi vs FC Bayern München in April 2009, also under Pep Guardiola (21 years 288 days). Blessed. pic.twitter.com/F6OiPrACO6
— OptaJoe (@OptaJoe) November 2, 2022
City equalised in the 52nd minute through Rico Lewis side-footing home from close range after collecting a through ball from Alvarez.
The Argentine then turned goalscorer in the 73rd minute, latching onto a brilliant ball from Kevin De Bruyne before rounding the goalkeeper and finishing emphatically into an empty net.
City’s third goal came in the 83rd minute and saw Alvarez steal the ball from Jose Angel Carmona before feeding it to Riyad Mahrez who made no mistake from inside the penalty area.
Pep Guardiola was the manager of Barcelona when Messi had three goal contributions, and he will be delighted that Alvarez has gone on to match him.
In other news, Pep Guardiola explains Jack Grealish substitution at half-time
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