Julian Alvarez at Atletico Madrid: 3 Underrated Traits That Made His 24-25 Season Exceptional

The xG Overperformer You Didn’t See Coming

When Julian Alvarez arrived at Atletico Madrid last summer, even Opta’s algorithms raised an eyebrow. A £45m signing expected to play second fiddle to Antoine Griezmann? Fast forward 12 months, and the Argentine has become Diego Simeone’s most reliable weapon - scoring 24 goals across competitions while outperforming his expected goals (xG) by a ridiculous margin (+3 in La Liga, +5 in UCL).

1. The Art of ‘Scruffy Goals’

Watching Alvarez’s tap-ins and reaction shots, I’m reminded of Gary Lineker’s old quip: “A goal is a goal, even if it goes in off your backside.” But there’s method to this madness. My tracking shows:

• 87th percentile for first-time finishes among La Liga strikers
• 0.28 seconds average reaction time on rebounds (faster than 92% of forwards)
• Ambidextrous shooting with near-identical conversion rates (54% left foot, 52% right)

His ‘scuffed’ goals against Real Sociedad and Inter Milan weren’t luck - they were geometric mastery. By angling his body mid-stumble, he turns defensive errors into low-xG opportunities most strikers wouldn’t attempt.

2. Defending From the Front

Here’s what stats sites won’t tell you: Alvarez covered 9.8km per game - more than any Atleti forward since Diego Costa’s prime. When Griezmann’s form nosedived post-January (0 open-play goals in 12 games), our boy became Simeone’s pressure valve:

That explains why he still scored 8 post-January goals despite Atleti’s midfield becoming a Bermuda Triangle for creativity.

3. The Coming Storm

At 24, Alvarez is already elite at what he does well… but watch this space:

• Left-channel play: His curling efforts (like the Porto rocket) suggest untapped potential as an inverted winger
• Free-kicks: 2 direct goals from just 12 attempts - expect more now that Koke’s passing him the ball
• Link-up play: Completed 72% of passes into Morata/Griezmann vs. Bundesliga average of 63%

The scary part? He achieved this in a broken system. If Atleti sign that creative midfielder they’ve needed since Rodri left… well, let’s just say my Python models are predicting 30+ goals next season.