SIX GOALS: Soon-to-be Manchester City player in record scoring night
The River Plate wonderkid unleashed all his quality on an unsuspecting victim at the Copa Libertadores
It its accustomed that players who scored three goals in a match take home the ball of the game as a prize. This makes sense as scoring three times in a single match is a rare ocurrance. However, sometimes it's just your night, and so was Julián Álvarez' on this ocassion.
The soon-to-be Manchester City player (he signed with City last winter and was loaned back to until the end of the European season) had a magical night with River Plate against Alianza Lima in their last match of the Copa Libertadores group stage.
Julián Álvarez took home a man of the match award and two foot
River Plate, who was already guaranteed the top spot in their group, hosted an Alianza Lima side who had no chances of even getting to third place to earn a Copa Sudamericana spot. The result was a where River ran rampant and Alianza was the victim.
Julián Álvarez quickly became the star of the night and scored three goals in just the first half, at the 15th, 18th and 41st minutes, with Alianza little more than a mere spectator. The match was settled, but the Peruvian team would continue to suffer the scoring fury of the Millionaires.
In the second half, as if they were in a hurry, River Plate scored three goals in four minutes, Julián Álvarez at the 54th and 57th minutes and Santiago Simón at the 53rd to definitively destroy an opponent who was unable to react. The scoreboard showed a surprising 6-0. But there was more. Elías Gómez made it 7-0 and then again Julián Álvarez scored in the 83rd minute to take things to an 8-0 and six goals for him. Pablo Lavandeira scored a penalty for Alianza in the 89th minute, which saved little face for the Peruvian side.
With this, Álvarez matched the Copa Libertadores record set by another Argentine, Juan Carlos Sánchez Frías, who in 1985 scored six against Venezuela's Deportivo Italia while playing for Bolivia's Blooming shirt.
Manchester City fans can certainly be excited about the arrival of Álvarez to their club, a player that while definetely will be in the shadow of Erling Haaland early on, could prove very quickly to be the smartest of the two signings.
Continue reading: A night at the Libertadores: Matchgoing Experience in Argentina
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