The 2022 World Cup semifinals is a good day for Argentina. Not only did the nation see La Albiceleste reach the final, but they also got a glimpse of what the future holds when Lionel Messi hangs up his cleats.
Messi might be the Man of the Match in the semifinals against Croatia, but there's no doubt Julian Alvarez was close to getting that honor from him. The 22-year-old Manchester City forward scored two goals in the contest, and he even paved the way for Messi to score their opening goal on the penalty spot after he was fouled by Croatia goalkeeper Dominik Livakovic at the half-hour mark.
In the process, Alvarez joined the likes of Brazil legend Pele and Argentina icon Carlos Peucelle as the only players under 23 years old to score multiple goals in a World Cup semifinal or later. Pele did it in 1958, while Peucelle achieved the feat in 1930.
That's definitely an elite club that only a few football players can dream of. Not even Messi did it!
Making things even better, Julian Alvarez is actually a huge Lionel Messi fan growing up. After he and La Pulga starred for Argentina on Tuesday against Croatia, a photo of him went viral. It features his 12-year-old self posing for a photo with the then-FC Barcelona star back in 2012.
10 years ago, a young Julián Álvarez took this pic with Lionel Messi @brfootball
Today, both Álvarez and Messi scored to help send Argentina to the World Cup final
What a time.
(via juliaanalvarez/IG) pic.twitter.com/h9wQhysXI2
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) December 13, 2022
It's definitely a beautiful full circle moment for the veteran and the prodigy. While some would argue it's still too early to hail Alvarez as the next star of Argentina, we can't blame the home fans for being excited about the future.
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