Manchester City's decision to loan Julian Alvarez back to River Plate has been explained by the South American club’s technical secretary.
The 22-year-old, who scored in Argentina's 1-1 draw with Ecuador on Wednesday, was bought by Pep Guardiola in January for around £15m but immediately returned to the Argentine outfit until the end of the season. It was a move questioned by some, with City boasting just one recognised striker - Gabriel Jesus - in their squad.
But it seems Alvarez’s temporary staying-on period at River Plate may benefit City in the long term. Club chief Enzo Francescoli revealed that he fought to keep the striker at his Buenos Aires side until July, partly to protect him from the cut-and-thrust of European football so soon.
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He told domestic sports news outlet La Pagina Millonaria : “For us, it’s better for the player to stay here. We try to look after the player, and he knows that. There is an age issue.
“Sometimes guys leave very young, and it’s hard for them. It depends on the league they go to as well.
“It’s very difficult to make the leap to Europe and for everything to work out.I think the big teams in Europe know that process and try to find that security, that they arrive with an intermediate step by another European club or that they arrive already made, as it happens today with Julian.”
Alvarez has netted 43 times in 103 games for River Plate, and won the Argentine title with them last year. He was also part of the national squad that lifted the Copa America last summer.
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