Julian Alvarez has been confirmed as Manchester City's new No.19 for the 2022-23 season, a shirt that has been previously graced by Leroy Sane.
City completed the £14 million ($18m) signing of Alvarez on a five-and-a-half-year contract from River Plate in January 2022.
He remained on loan with the Argentine outift and after they were ousted from the Copa Libertadores on Thursday, the forward is ready to fly to Europe and join Pep Guardiola's pre-season training.
What was Julian Alvarez's previous number at River Plate?
The forward used to wear the No.9 shirt at River Plate and also uses the same number for the Argentina national team. However, the No.9 has already been taken by Erling Haaland, so Alvarez has to settle with 19.
"I have been using the number nine until now and I wanted the number nine to be on my shirt. And it is also an important date because the 19th was my grandmother's birthday,” he told City's official website.
Alvarez feels that he is ready for the next level and cannot wait to start training under Pep Guardiola.
“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. https://www.goal.com/en-gb/news/sterling-transfer-man-city-forward-personal-terms-chelsea/blt8aee0af29a4e6107
"I want to give my best to this club, help my teammates and contribute to Manchester City’s success," he stated after completing the move to the reigning Premier League champions.
Alvarez will be unveiled to City fans at West Reception on Sunday, alongside fellow new signings Haaland, Kalvin Phillips and Stefan Ortega Moreno.
Alvarez made his River Plate debut in October 2018 and has scored 53 goals and 31 assists in 120 appearances, including a league-winning strike against Racing in November.
Who else has worn No. 19 at Manchester City?
A host of impressive players have donned the No. 19 at Manchester City. Leroy Sane wore it for three years during his stay in England. In the 2014-15 season, Dutch defender Karim Rekik used the number.
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Other City players like Samir Nasri, Joleon Lescott, Gelson Fernandes also had the No. 19 at their back.
However, it is Sane who has been the most successful of the lot. During his tenure at the Etihad he won seven trophies, including two Premier League titles and one FA Cup.