Pep Guardiola has heaped praise on Julian Alvarez for his efforts on and off the pitch for Manchester City.
The striker put in an impressive display during City’s recent 3-1 win over Red Star Belgrade in the Champions League, scoring two of the Manchester club’s goals on the night.
With the Citizens set to take on Nottingham Forest this weekend in their latest Premier League match, the Spaniard has shared his thoughts on the 23-year-old and his behaviour on and off the pitch.
Guardiola lauds Alvarez
Speaking in his recent press conference ahead of Saturday’s meeting with Forest, Guardiola had this to say about Alvarez.
He said: “Always have good behaviour, playing not playing, being a world champion or not. Always the same. The perfect dose of disappointment when he doesn’t play but always ready for the opportunity.
“Right now with the injuries he’s had minutes and he gives us a lot of good things. That’s why he’s playing but he has to continue. Many games, some games he won’t play, hopefully players come back and fight for positions.”
Having completed the full 90 minutes in all five of City’s Premier League games this season, Alvarez has scored two goals and provided four assists, highlighting how impressive and prominent he has been in the team.
Specifically, the centre-forward, who the club paid £14m to sign back in January 2022, has racked up more key passes (16) and more goal-creating actions (5) than any other City player in the league.
Looking back to Tuesday’s European win, the Argentine had eight shots at goal and created seven chances, becoming only the third player on record from 2003-04 onwards to hit both totals in a single Champions League game, after Karim Benzema and Arjen Robben.
With all of that in mind, it’s easy to see why Guardiola has been quick to praise Alvarez, who we feel could end up being a vital player for City if he can continue to have such a significant attacking impact in the side throughout the season.
