Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Full name | Álvaro Martín Barreal | ||
Date of birth | 17 August 2000 | ||
Place of birth | Buenos Aires, Argentina | ||
Height | 1.72 m (5 ft 8 in) [1] | ||
Position(s) |
Left Wing-back Winger | ||
Team information | |||
Current team |
Cruzeiro (on loan from FC Cincinnati) | ||
Number | 21 | ||
Youth career | |||
Vélez Sarsfield | |||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | ( Gls) |
2018–2020 | Vélez Sarsfield | 18 | (1) |
2020– | FC Cincinnati | 104 | (13) |
2024– | → Cruzeiro (loan) | 5 | (0) |
International career | |||
2018 | Argentina U20 | 5 | (2) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 24 May 2024 |
Álvaro Martín Barreal (born 17 August 2000) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Cruzeiro.
Barreal began his career with Vélez Sarsfield. [1] [2] Gabriel Heinze promoted the midfielder into the club's first-team squad at the beginning of 2018–19, selecting him for his professional debut on 2 September at La Bombonera against Boca Juniors; he was substituted on for Lucas Robertone with thirty-two minutes remaining. [1] [3] [4] He netted his first goal on 3 February 2019 against River Plate. [1]
On 2 September 2020, Barreal signed for Major League Soccer side FC Cincinnati. [5] He signed a three-year contract with a club option for a fourth year. [6] Reports out of Argentina listed the transfer fee in the range of $1.5 to 1.7 million for 75 percent of the player's rights, with Vélez Sarsfield retaining 25 percent of any future sale. Also noted was the potential of $250,000 additional for a set number of appearances. [7] [8] [9] Barreal made his debut on October 7 in a 3–0 defeat away to the Philadelphia Union at Subaru Park, having replaced Frankie Amaya early in the second half. [1] Four further appearances, all as a starter, arrived in his first season with the American club. [1]
In September 2023, Barreal was nominated for the prestigious FIFA Puskás Award for his 71st-minute goal scored against Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC in the U.S. Open Cup Quarterfinals. [10] Barreal joined 10 other players on the shortlist for the world's "most beautiful goal" of the year. [10] [11] He was the fourth active MLS player to be nominated for the award, and the first since a 2018 goal by Zlatan Ibrahimović for LA Galaxy. [12]
Barreal represented the Argentina U20s at the 2018 COTIF Tournament in Spain. [13] [14] He scored two goals in five games, as Argentina won the tournament. [15] [16] [17] [18] [19]
Scouts from the Argentina men's national football team visited two FC Cincinnati games in 2023 to assess him for an potential call up to the senior team. [20]
Club | Season | League | National Cup | League Cup | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
Vélez Sarsfield | 2018–19 | Primera División | 10 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 13 | 1 | |
2019–20 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
Total | 15 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 1 | ||
FC Cincinnati | 2020 | Major League Soccer | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | ||
2021 | 33 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 33 | 3 | ||||
2022 | 19 | 3 | 2 | 3 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 21 | 6 | ||||
Total | 57 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 59 | 9 | ||
Career total | 72 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 77 | 10 |
FC Cincinnati
Individual