The documentary chronicles a year like no other for the fab young forward.
Ahead of it coming out, we look at 10 things we learned from watching it.
JULIAN ALVAREZ: STANDING ALONE – WATCH NOW
1] RISING CREDENTIALS
The name on everyone’s lips in the summer of 2022 when our new signings arrived for their promotional photoshoot was Erling Haaland.
Haaland was the hottest property in world football and he breezed into the CFA with an assurance that explained what was to come as he broke record after record on our way to the Treble.
Alongside him was Stefan Ortega Moreno, a confident German goalkeeper who was keen to provide competition for Ederson between the sticks.
Joining them was…Julian Alvarez?!?
Who was he? That was the million-dollar question. And even some of his new team-mates weren’t sure.
“No,” was Manuel Akanji’s response when asked in the documentary if he’d heard of Julian Alvarez when he arrived.
“I didn’t really know much about him,” said Rico Lewis.
“We didn’t know who Julian was,” added Rodrigo.
I think it’s fair to say that by the end of 2023, everyone knew the name Julian Alvarez as he won six of world football’s most prestigious honours, writing his name in the history books as the only player to have won the World Cup and Treble.
2] THIRSTY WORK
Julian Alvarez loves nothing more than enjoying time with a mate after training.
But it’s not a friend. It’s a drink!
You see, a mate is a South American caffeine-rich infused herbal beverage.
It’s served in a gourd and you drink it with a bomba – or metal straw.
Alvarez has a selection of special gourd cups at his home in Manchester, too.
The top on one of them showcases a carving of him doing his ‘spider’ goal celebration while another features engravings of the Libertadores, Champions League, Copa America, Finalissima and World Cup trophies.
We’ll drink to that!
3] ORIGIN STORY OF SPIDER-MAN
Julian Alvarez is known as ‘La Arana’ – the Spider.
But why? Well, it’s quite simple, really.
When he was a young, emerging talent at Atletico Calchin, his footwork on the pitch with the ball was so rapid that fans, players and coaches thought he had more than two legs.
When he moved to River Plate, though, his new team-mates called him ‘Juli’.
But the La Arana moniker returned when a team-mate suggested he do the spider celebration he’s become synonymous with when he scored his next goal.
The rest, as they say is history.
Sergio Aguero, another one of our Argentinian Blues, takes the nickname a step further, referring to Alvarez as ‘the spider who bites’ because of his devastating form in front of goal since joining City in the summer of 2022.
4] HOMETOWN PRIDE
The admiration that the people of Calchin have for Julian Alvarez comes across loud and clear in this documentary.
“Here in Calchin, I don’t know if we are fans of a club but we are fans of La Arana,” says childhood friend Santiago Masera.
“For the little ones, he is their idol and they can’t believe he was born here, that he came from a place as simple as this,” adds his former teacher Gerardo Coraglio.
JULIAN ALVAREZ: STANDING ALONE – WATCH NOW
Claudio Caon, Mayor of Calchin, sums up the veneration that the 3,000 residents have for Alvarez when he reveals: “Julian Alvarez has made his mark in the history of our town. He is our second founder.”
Lovely words.
5] AGUERO’S VOICE NOTE
Sergio Aguero once gave away a Julian Alvarez signed shirt – before he’d asked the fab forward if he could have one.
One lucky viewer won the top live on Kun’s online show, with the club’s record goalscorer forced to frantically send a WhatsApp voice note to our No.19.
“I’m giving away his shirt without asking him,” Kun laughingly admits.
His voice note went like: “Juli, my dear. Spiderman. Spiderweb. Listen to me. Can you send me a signed City shirt? And draw a web when you sign it. The spider that bites.”
Alvarez then jokes that getting a response from Aguero on where to send it proved challenging.
6] NO DOUBTS FROM TXIKI
Director of Football, Txiki Begiristain reveals in the documentary that it can be a daunting experience for young starlets when they join City because of the plethora of world-famous star footballers in the dressing room.
But Begiristain says it didn’t take him long to realise that Julian Alvarez would settle perfectly.
When asked whether there was a moment when he knew the forward was the right fit, he answers: “In the first week of training.”
7] WEATHER WATCH
Julian Alvarez sought the wise counsel of fellow Argentinian Blues, Sergio Aguero and Nicolas Otamendi when the opportunity to join City came up.
He wanted to know more about the club and the coach, Pep Guardiola.
But instead, they spoke to him about the weather in Manchester!
JULIAN ALVAREZ: STANDING ALONE – WATCH NOW
“They talked a lot about the weather,” admits Alvarez.
“They said it gets dark early. It rains almost every day. And it’s cold.”
That may all be true but thankfully Alvarez was more interested in medals than meteorology as his five soccer souvenirs attest to.
8] FORTUNE TELLER
Julian Alvarez’s first proper interview took place in June 2011 after he’d scored a hat-trick for his team, Atletico Calchin.
Journalist Josue Murua asked the young forward what his biggest football dream was.
Alvarez replied without hesitation: ‘To play in a World Cup.’
He followed up by enquiring who his football idol was.
He answered: ‘Messi’.
Murua tells the documentary: “I was surprised because I expected him to give a short-term response.
“But he already had a clear idea of what he wanted for his future, which was to play in a World Cup.”
Alvarez himself says: “I had a dream when I was young. I never stopped thinking about it. And then it came true.”
The 24-year-old, of course, helped Argentina win the 2022 World Cup, alongside his hero Messi, scoring four goals en route to La Albiceleste ending a 36-year wait for glory in Qatar.
9] REAL DELIGHT
As a promising 11-year-old, Alvarez had a trial with Real Madrid and scored twice to help Real win a prestigious youth tournament during his month-long spell with the Spanish giants.
However, a move did not materialise on the back of that trial, due in part to age restrictions on foreign signings in Spain with youngsters not able to move under the age of 13.
Within a couple of years Alvarez had then made the move to River Plate joining the club in 2016.
So you can imagine the personal satisfaction he’ll have got when he scored late on against Real in our 4-0 Champions League semi-final victory over them, a second leg result which ensured we reached the competition’s final in Istanbul.
“To come on late in that game and put in the finishing touch against this global giant who turned him down when he was 11, what a sweet moment,” says BBC Sport’s South American football correspondent Tim Vickery.
10] PERFECT ENDING
The bulk of the filming of the documentary took place before the FIFA Club World Cup.
At that point, he’d won five major honours – the FIFA World Cup, the Premier League, FA Cup, UEFA Champions League and UEFA Super Cup.
Hence when Txiki Begiristain is interviewed, our Director of Football insists: “He hasn’t won the Club World Cup. Still he is missing some trophies.”
So, when our triumph in Saudi Arabia was confirmed and we’d landed back in England, our filmmakers caught up with Alvarez to record an added segment.
In it, Alvarez jokes ‘hey, I almost forgot about this one’ while pointing to the newest medal in his collection.
What a perfect way to wrap it all up!
