Julian Alvarez joins Lionel Messi among Argentina’s all-time top Champions League scorers

Julian Alvarez has joined Lionel Messi among the most prolific Argentine scorers in Champions League history. The Atletico Madrid striker scored in the 1-1 draw at Stuttgart, ending a long scoring drought and lifting his career total in the competition to 26 goals.

Atletico Madrid went into the break trailing after Leweling put Stuttgart ahead in the 36th minute. Alvarez answered early in the second half, finishing a cross from Lookman first time into the top corner in the 47th minute, scoring his first goal of the season for Atletico.

The goal also ended the longest drought of Alvarez’s career. He had not scored since Apr. 29, when he found the net in the 1-1 draw against Arsenal in last season’s Champions League semifinal, a gap of 174 days.

Coach Diego Simeone was full of praise for his forward after the match, especially for the effort he put in on the night. “The game he played was with incredible physical effort,” Simeone said. “He worked parts of the match as an inside forward on the left. The goal was a golazo and it makes me very happy for him, we need him.”

The Atletico Madrid manager also stressed how important the World Cup winner is to his team. Simeone described Alvarez as “decisive in getting to the places we need to reach” and made a request: “Let’s hope that little by little he starts to find himself again with what he showed us today”.

Alvarez moves into elite company

With the goal, Alvarez moved past Hernan Crespo, who sits on 25, and now ranks among the top five Argentine scorers in Champions League history. Only Messi, Alfredo Di Stefano, Sergio Aguero and Lautaro Martinez have scored more.

Alvarez will now try to build on his goal as Atletico Madrid look to turn their Champions League campaign around. With four points from three matches, the team will need its forward at his best, and the numbers suggest he is on his way to climbing even higher on Argentina’s all-time list.