FA Cup: Julian Alvarez Reveals What Kepa Told Him Before His Penalty

Kepa Arrizabalaga tried to get into Julian Alvarez's head, during the FA Cup third-round tie between Chelsea and Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium. 

Fresh from winning the World Cup with Argentina last month, Alvarez came into the starting eleven in place of Erling Haaland and scored his side's second goal via the penalty spot. 

Riyad Mahrez had opened the scoring through a wonderfully taken free kick, to set the pace for the Premier League defending champions. 

Minutes later, Kai Havertz bizarrely handled the ball inside the penalty area and Alvarez made no mistake from the spot, despite Arrizabalaga's antics. 

What Kepa tried to do 

As he placed the ball on the spot, the world's most expensive goalkeeper approached him and engaged him in a conversation, seemingly to throw him off balance.

 Arrizabalaga then dove the correct way but couldn't keep the shot out. 

Julián Álvarez!pic.twitter.com/wEECHdH2hK

— Roy Nemer (@RoyNemer) January 8, 2023

Speaking after the game, Alvarez revealed how his conversation with the Chelsea goalkeeper played out. 

"The goalkeepers always try to do their thing; it doesn’t bother me at all. I had already decided to shoot it like that and well, it was a goal," he said, as quoted by Football 365.

 The Argentine played a starring role in his country's triumph in Qatar, which was marked by Emi Martinez's penalty-saving elegance. 

Kepa tried to psych out Álvarez and Álvarez was just laughing with him and scored. Imagine trying to psych out a World Cup winner who trains penalty kicks with Emiliano Martínez. 🇦🇷

— Roy Nemer (@RoyNemer) January 8, 2023

Source: SportsBrief