Julián Álvarez will be the “spider” of the Argentine team in the World Cup

Recently retired from football, Gonzalo Higuaín scored 31 goals in 74 games for the Argentine national team. The average of 0.41 is not bad. But he will be marked forever with the albiceleste shirt for the goals he lost in the finals.

None of them were worse than the 2014 World Cup decision against Germany.

Sergio Aguero, Lionel Messi’s best friend in football, became a legend at Manchester City (ING). But added the 2014 and 2018 tournaments, he scored twice.

Anyone who considers that Tevez never showed the same performance for the national team compared to the clubs he played for, will realize that Messi, one of the greatest players in history, never had an efficient attacking partner on the most important stage of world football: the World Cup.

In his last chance to lift the trophy, his hope may be Julián Álvarez, 22.

A striker who saw up close the disaster that was the Argentine campaign four years ago, in Russia. He was one of the sparring partners, players from the youth categories who are taken with the delegation to help with training.

“I don’t say that I was his coach because Julián was born knowing how to play. He walked around with a ball under his arm. It was exactly as it is today, only a miniature version”, says Rafael Varas, his first coach in the small city ​​of Calchín, in the region of Córdoba.

Álvarez arrived in European football this year when he was signed by Manchester City on the express orders of Pep Guardiola. It could have happened much earlier. At age 11, he auditioned for Real Madrid. In the final of an under-12 competition, he scored two goals. He did not stay in the Spanish capital for bureaucratic reasons. It is much more difficult for national teams to hire and register foreign boys under the age of 13.

Unable to defend Real, he sieved in another team, but Argentine: Boca Juniors. The story became part of the striker’s personal folklore because he would later become a key part of archrival River Plate’s team.

“Julián is the player that every coach likes to have,” praised Marcelo Gallardo, the River coach, marveling at the goals and versatility of Álvarez, who arrived at Monumental in 2016, aged 16.

In an almost cosmic conjunction, Madrid, Boca and River would be together in the striker’s greatest moment of glory so far in his career. He came on as a substitute during the Libertadores final played by both teams at the Santiago Bernabéu in Spain in 2018. Álvarez’s club won 3-1 in what is considered the biggest victory in their history.

“Julián knows how to play in various positions efficiently. The intelligence he shows on the field is remarkable. He is very mature for his age”, added Gallardo.

At different times at River Plate, where he debuted as a professional in 2018, he played as a centre-forward, an open forward on the sides of the field and even as a midfielder at times. This is a versatility that could be vital for Argentina in a tournament like the World Cup, as coach Lionel Scaloni can also count on Lautaro Martínez for attack.

“He is a boy who can be useful in different roles, despite being a striker. It is evident that he is now at one of the biggest clubs in the world, he will face the best and that is good because he will make Julian grow”, explains Scaloni.

Versatility will also come in handy at City, as the undisputed number 9 is Norwegian Erling Haaland.

It will be important for the Argentine to live up to the nickname “spider” received when he was a child and played for Club Atlético Calchín, his first team.

“This nickname gave him his brother because it looked like Julian had more than two legs when he played,” says Varas.

Perhaps that’s why he drew so much attention from Guardiola, who sanctioned the signing of the Argentine for 21 million euros (about R$108 million at the current price).

This is the fifth in a series of ten texts about players who can surprise at the 2022 World Cup. They are published on Tuesdays.