EPL

Julian Alvarez given Man City lowdown by club legend Aguero

By Sports Desk July 08, 2022

Julian Alvarez has been provided with plenty of information about Manchester City by club legend Sergio Aguero after officially making his move following his final game for River Plate.

Argentine forward Alvarez penned a five-and-a-half-year deal with City in January for a reported £14million fee but remained with River on loan.

Alvarez's switch has now been completed after River suffered a 1-0 aggregate defeat to Velez Sarsfield in the Copa Libertadores last 16.

The 22-year-old caught the attention of several of European heavyweights thanks to a record of 53 goals and 31 assists in 120 River appearances.

He will have to go some to emulate the achievements of countryman Aguero in a City shirt, with the now retired striker becoming the club's all-time leading goalscorer with 257.

"We all know how important Kun was for Manchester City and what he means for the world too, as a club player and as a player for the Argentinian national team as well," Alvarez, who will wear the number 19 shirt, told City's official website.

"I had the opportunity to speak with him and he told me many things about the city, about the team-mates, about Manchester City in general.

"I also spoke with Willy Caballero and Nicolas Otamendi since we are team-mates in the national team.  

"I am very excited about what's to come and I'm very happy to be part of this club."

Alvarez is another piece in an exciting window for City, who have already added Erling Haaland, Kalvin Phillips and Stefan Ortega to their ranks.

For Alvarez, the chance to work with Pep Guardiola and play in the Champions League were among the huge lures of leaving South America for Europe.

"I was able to talk to him [Guardiola] in February, when the signing was confirmed," Alvarez added.

"He welcomed me to the club. I am glad to be part of the City project. I think he is one of the best coaches in the world and he has been at incredibly successful clubs. 

"I want to do a good job for him, to continue growing as a footballer and as a person.

"I am very excited and proud having come this far.

"The Premier League is one of the best leagues in the world. As a boy I always dreamed of playing in Europe, playing for the best clubs, in the major leagues and so to be here today is a privilege.

"I have watched a lot of City games. It's very satisfying to watch them play. City are one of the best clubs in the world and they have an incredible playing style."

Related items

  • Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds owed nearly £9million by Wrexham Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds owed nearly £9million by Wrexham

    Wrexham lost £5million in the year of their promotion to the English Football League and now owe nearly £9m to Hollywood owners Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds.

    But turnover doubled to almost £10.5m and Wrexham say financial losses suffered since McElhenney and Reynolds’ takeover in February 2021 should not be repeated due to the income now generated by the League Two club.

    “The amount owed to The RR McReynolds Company, LLC (owned by McElhenney and Reynolds) at the year-end was £8.977m (2022: £3.714m),” read a Wrexham statement.

    “The financial losses suffered by the club since the takeover shouldn’t be repeated, with income generated by the club now sufficient to meet the operational costs of the club going forward.

    “These losses were deemed necessary to allow the club to maximise its full potential in the shortest time practically possible.

    “The club is under no immediate pressure to repay these loans at the expense of the progress we seek to achieve and further financial support will be provided/secured to support the capital expenditure projects the club is currently planning, which includes increasing the capacity of The Racecourse Ground and the development of a training facility for all the club’s teams.

    “The year-on-year income comparisons since the takeover, show the potential of the club.

    “These will significantly increase again for the year ending June 30, 2024, following promotion and the continued popularity of Welcome to Wrexham.”

    Wrexham ended a 15-year absence from the EFL last April by winning the National League, while the women’s team also won promotion to the top tier of Welsh football.

    Turnover increased from £5.972m to £10.478m in the year ending June 30, 2023, but losses were up from £2.913m to £5.113m.

    Wrexham payroll rose from just over £4m to nearly £7m, offsetting increased income in retail operation, sponsorship and advertising and football revenue due to the Dragons reaching the fourth round of the FA Cup.

    The club has attracted widespread global interest following two successful seasons of the FX documentary series Welcome to Wrexham.

    Phil Parkinson’s side are chasing a second successive promotion and are currently third in League Two with seven games to play.

  • Marco Silva wants Rodrigo Muniz to relish new expectations at Fulham Marco Silva wants Rodrigo Muniz to relish new expectations at Fulham

    Marco Silva believes the pressure on Rodrigo Muniz’s shoulders is a “privilege” after the Fulham striker extended his scoring form against Tottenham.

    The Brazilian has starred for the west Londoners in recent weeks, scoring seven goals in his last seven appearances in the Premier League, including an impressive brace in the 3-0 win over Ange Postecoglou’s Spurs earlier this month.

    Muniz’s rise to become the Cottagers’ main striker comes after he struggled for minutes at the start of the season, being out of favour and sitting behind Raul Jimenez and Carlos Vinicius in the pecking order up front.

    Speaking ahead of Fulham’s clash with Sheffield United on Saturday, head coach Silva said: “The pressure is a privilege for Rodrigo’s situation.

    “He is in a much better position now than he was three months ago. Why should he feel so much pressure now? Three months ago he was on the bench and fighting to have a chance to score.

    “He’s playing so well, he’s improving and working hard and scoring goals so why should he feel so much pressure now?

    “The defenders are more aware of him and it’s fantastic for a striker when you feel the people around you trust that you can solve the problems for us and that you can be a decisive player.

    “I see it as a privilege rather than something which is not good.”

    Chris Wilder’s Blades sit bottom of the table and are looking for just a fourth league win of the season after a 2-2 draw with Bournemouth last time out snapped a three-match losing run.

    Silva warned that his players cannot afford to be complacent and expects their hosts to bring the fight at Bramall Lane.

    “If we go into the game complacent then we are going to have problems, we will be surprised,” Silva added.

    “We have to have the same ambition, focus and desire which we played the last few games with.

    “They will fight really hard to get the points and they are not in a position they wanted, bottom of the table is tough and every game where you don’t get points you are getting more in trouble.

    “They have shown the capacity to react and their last game was an example.”

    Fulham’s form of four wins in seven has seen them close the gap on teams in contention for European places and Silva insists motivation is high among his players to finish the season well.

    “We are full of motivation,” he said. “The motivation was really high against Tottenham and we felt that at Craven Cottage.

    “It is about motivation, desire, the will to go every time and the commitment. We always have to be on top and it will always be the same for us. Every time we go into a match we have to do our maximum.”

  • Mauricio Pochettino surprised Ben Chilwell started England games after injury Mauricio Pochettino surprised Ben Chilwell started England games after injury

    Mauricio Pochettino admitted he was surprised Ben Chilwell started two games for England during the international break, having only recently returned from a knee injury.

    The defender last started for Chelsea on March 2 against Brentford and since then has played just a few minutes for the club, as a late substitute in the FA Cup against Leicester.

    Yet he played the entirety of England’s 2-2 draw with Belgium on Tuesday, three days after completing 67 minutes against Brazil.

    The Argentinian is no closer to seeing the end of his team’s injury crisis with nine players currently ruled out of Saturday’s meeting with Burnley at Stamford Bridge.

    More squad members will be assessed after returning from international duty, including Chilwell, who took a knock to his knee against Belgium.

    “He didn’t play after Brentford, then he played only a few minutes against Leicester,” said Pochettino. “(Then) he started two games (for England).

    “It’s a surprise for us. It’s bad luck because he got a dead leg in the last moment against Belgium. Now we need to assess if he can be available.”

    Enzo Fernandez was set to return to the club’s Cobham training base on Thursday afternoon after playing twice for Argentina in the United States during the break, and is another player whose fitness will be checked on.

    Three names unlikely to feature on Saturday however are Robert Sanchez, Trevoh Chalobah and Carney Chukwuemeka, the latter after returning injured from duty with England Under-21s.

    The club confirmed this week that Romeo Lavia would be out for the rest of the season.

    The summer signing from Southampton has played just 32 minutes for the first team since arriving in west London for £58million and has suffered a series of setbacks.

    “It’s a difficult situation for him,” said Pochettino. “He’s sad. He only played 30 minutes, for a new player at the club.

    “When we signed him, he arrived with problems. He couldn’t train with us for the first months. Then when he was ready he suffered a problem in his feet.

    “He recovered, he played 30 minutes then got injured in December. Then he didn’t have the possibility to train. It’s really sad news.”

    However, top scorer Cole Palmer is likely to be available to face Burnley, having not featured in either of England’s games during the last week.

    The 21-year-old was injured for the Brazil game and was an unused substitute against Belgium.

    “I talked with him,” said Pochettino. “He’s a little bit disappointed because he couldn’t play with the national team.

    “The first game he had a small problem. He thought maybe he’d play the second game.

    “Now he’s OK, is training well. The plan is he will be available for Saturday.”

© 2023 SportsMaxTV All Rights Reserved.