Official: Manchester City announce the arrival of our new No.19

Manchester City

Manchester City have announced Julian Alvarez will arrive in Manchester this weekend ahead of the 2022/23 season.

Alvarez will wear the No. 19 shirt at Manchester City.

The 22-year-old signed a five-and-a-half-year contract with the Club in January but remained at River Plate on loan until the end of the South American campaign.

His final match for River came on Thursday in the second leg of their Copa Libertadores last-16 match against Velez Sarsfield, a game which finished 0-0 and saw Velez progress 1-0 on aggregate.  

“I am incredibly happy and I feel ready to play for City,” Alvarez said.

“This is, without doubt, one of the biggest teams in world football. You only have to see what this team has won in the last decade to understand the quality of the setup.

“I feel confident I can flourish here. The style of play Pep encourages is exciting and I can’t wait to be a part of it.

“City has an amazing recent history of Argentinian players and I want to put my stamp on the Club in the same way Sergio Aguero, Pablo Zabaleta and Carlos Tevez did.

“I am so thankful for everything River Plate did for me and I want to thank the fans, staff and players for their support.

“But I am now 100% focused on Manchester City. I want to give my best to this club, help my teammates and contribute to Manchester City’s success.”

Txiki Begiristain added: “I said when we announced the signing we were getting a player of significant potential and everything we have seen from him since then has only confirmed that.

“He scores all kinds of goals and has real variety in his game.

“We feel with the manager and staff we have here, he can develop even further and become a really top player.”