I turned down Real Madrid - now I want to end their Champions League dream with Man City

Last season, when Manchester City destroyed Real Madrid in the Champions League at the Etihad, Julian Alvarez strolled off the bench to add the icing on the cake of one of the Blues' best-ever European performances.

Alvarez wants more than a five-minute cameo when City and Madrid lock horns again this season, knowing there will be a clear plan in place to beat the Spanish giants for a second season running for him to express himself.

Had history taken a different turn 13 years ago, however, Alvarez could have been part of the shell-shocked Real side who were blown away by City 12 months ago and who are looking for revenge this month.

ALSO READ: Real life of Julian Alvarez - Man City future, medal admission and his little slice of Argentina

ALSO READ: 'It's not right' - Bernardo fires treble warning to City after weekend results

Back in 2011, when Alvarez was a promising 11-year-old playing for his local team in Argentina, he was invited to Girona, Spain, for a month-long trial with Real Madrid. He played a tournament wearing the famous white strip of Real, impressing their coaches and doing enough for the club to explore a deal to sign him permanently.

"I was there for about 20 days," he told MEN Sport, underplaying the significance of the trial ahead of this week's Champions League quarter-final. "I was just 11 years old. To go to Spain, all my family had to move. It's already in the past."

Claudio Gorgerino, mayor of Alvarez's hometown of Calchin, previously told Infobae: "He spent a month in Madrid. He made such a difference playing here that they came to see him from everywhere. He would overpower his opponents. He'd go left or right and get into the box."

However, FIFA rules recently introduced at the time meant