Man City targeting River Plate striker Julian Alvarez | OneFootball

Manchester City are targeting River Plate striker Julian Alvarez, reports BBC Sport.

The Argentine youngster has scored an impressive 23 goals in 57 league appearances for River.

He made his international debut in June and was subsequently selected for his country's Copa America squad as Lionel Messi finally ended his long wait for an international trophy.

Alvarez now has five caps and has been selected for his country's forthcoming World Cup qualifiers against Chile and Colombia.

City manager Pep Guardiola has never made any secret of his belief that signing an orthodox striker is essential, even though his side effectively won last season's Premier League without one and are currently nine points clear of Liverpool at the top of the table.

A fee in the region of £20m has been mooted for Alvarez.