RB Leipzig 1-3 Manchester City: Julian Alvarez scores beauty for the visitors | OneFootball

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Julian Alvarez scored an absolutely incredible goal to put Manchester City in front as they beat RB Leipzig 3-1 in the Champions League on Wednesday night. The forward came off the bench in the second half and waited just five minutes before scoring the strike to give Pep Guardiola's side the lead in the contest.

It was a goal worthy of winning any match and that's what it did here as City went on to win the fixture, with Jeremy Doku adding to the lead in the closing stages. After Phil Foden gave City the lead in the first half, Lois Openda levelled things up shortly after the restart. Leipzig held on until the 84th minute when Alvarez fired his side in front before City's new boy Doku sealed the deal well into stoppage time.

What was Julian Alvarez's goal like?

Coming off the bench, Alvarez made an immediate impact for City and won the game for them in style. After Doku dribbled past a couple of Leipzig defenders, he played the ball to the Argentine on the edge of the box. Taking just one touch to control the ball, he then side-footed it from the outskirts of the area, and it curled straight into the top right corner of the goal.

It was a simply sublime effort and one that no keeper in the world would have saved. It was a fine example that sometimes placement is more important than power. That certainly was the case here, just look at it.

You won't see many goals better than that this week. What a way to win it. Of course, this isn't the first time that Alvarez has conjured up the goods for City. The striker has been fantastic since joining the club.

How has Julian Alvarez's Manchester City career played out?

Signed in January 2022, Alvarez was initially loaned back to River Plate, the side he'd spent his entire career up until that point for the remainder of the year. He finally made his Cityzens debut in the Community Shield at the start of last season and has been a major success since.

With Erling Haaland also joining Guardiola's team last summer, opportunities up front were always going to be limited for Alvarez but he's certainly made the most of his time in the side, whether it be leading the front line or a little deeper as an attacking midfielder. In his first season at the Etihad, the Argentine scored 17 goals in 49 appearances and proved himself to be a solid alternative to Haaland should the Norwegian ever be unavailable.

This season has started just as strongly for the forward too, with five goals in 11 appearances so far as City have gotten off to a blistering start to the campaign. Aside from their loss to Wolverhampton Wanderers at the weekend, they've looked simply unstoppable so far in the Premier League and will almost certainly come close to replicating last year's treble-winning exploits. With how good Alvarez has been so far, expect him to play a major role in their future success too.

*2023/24 season still ongoing.