Lucas Alario · Biography

Lucas Nicolás Alario made his Argentine Primera División debut for Colón de Santa Fe on 11 June 2011. The match was on matchday 18 of the Clausura tournament against Arsenal de Sarandí, and he came on for Germán Lesman in the 71st minute of a 1-0 defeat. A 1.84-metre centre forward nicknamed “Pipa”, he was born on 8 October 1992 in Tostado, in the north of Santa Fe province. He won the 2015 Copa Libertadores with River Plate and spent five seasons in the Bundesliga with Bayer Leverkusen. He has played for Estudiantes de La Plata since 2025.

Early years at Colón

Alario came through Colón’s youth system and won the 2013 reserve-team championship with the club. He struggled to hold down a first-team place in his early seasons. In May 2014, with Colón fighting relegation, he scored in the fourth minute of stoppage time to give them a 2-1 win over Olimpo de Bahía Blanca. The goal avoided automatic relegation and sent the club into a play-off against Atlético de Rafaela. Colón lost the play-off 1-0 at Rosario Central’s Gigante de Arroyito stadium and dropped into the Primera B Nacional after nineteen straight seasons in the top flight. Alario scored 6 goals in 17 second-tier matches, and Colón won back their top-flight place at the end of 2014. He finished with 12 goals in 60 appearances for the club.

River Plate and the Copa Libertadores

River Plate signed him in July 2015 on a four-year contract, and he made an immediate impact. On 5 August 2015, in the second leg of the Copa Libertadores final against Tigres, he headed the opening goal at the Monumental in the 44th minute. River won 3-0 to become South American champions, and Alario was named in the team of the tournament. On 6 September that year he scored a hat-trick in a 4-1 away win over Nueva Chicago. With River he also won the 2015 Suruga Bank Championship and the 2016 Recopa Sudamericana, and he was in the squad that finished runner-up at the 2015 FIFA Club World Cup.

His best night in Argentina came on 15 December 2016 in the final of the 2015-16 Copa Argentina. He scored three goals in a 4-3 win over Rosario Central and finished as the competition’s top scorer and best player. River won the 2016-17 Copa Argentina as well. Alario left the club with 41 goals in 82 competitive matches.

Bayer Leverkusen

Bayer Leverkusen paid his release clause at the end of August 2017, but the transfer was then blocked. River argued that the contract had been agreed after the season had started, and the Argentine Football Association held back his registration. FIFA approved the move on 21 September 2017. Three days later he made his Bundesliga debut, scoring once and setting up another goal in a 3-0 win over Hamburg. On 18 May 2019 he scored a hat-trick in a 5-1 away win over Hertha Berlin. In five seasons at the club he made 126 Bundesliga appearances and scored 42 goals.

Eintracht Frankfurt and Internacional

In June 2022 he joined Eintracht Frankfurt, who had just won the Europa League. His playing time in Frankfurt was limited, and he scored once in 20 league matches. In January 2024 he left Europe and signed a two-year deal with Internacional of Porto Alegre. That season he made 36 appearances in Brazil’s Série A and scored 5 goals.

Argentina national team

He made his senior Argentina debut on 1 September 2016 in a World Cup qualifier against Uruguay, replacing Lucas Pratto in the 71st minute of a 1-0 win. His first international goal came on 13 June 2017 in a 6-0 win over Singapore. In October 2019 he scored in two friendlies in a row: a 2-2 draw with Germany in Dortmund on 9 October and a 6-1 win over Ecuador in Elche on 13 October. He won the Superclásico de las Américas with Argentina in 2017 and 2019. He was named in the squad for the 2021 Copa América but had to withdraw with a thigh injury. He has 9 caps and 3 goals for Argentina.

Playing style

Alario is a penalty-box striker who is strong in the air and good at first-time finishes. His height makes him a target for crosses and set pieces, and he often drops deep to receive the ball with his back to goal and lay it off to midfielders. At River and Leverkusen he mostly played as a lone striker, though he also played alongside a second forward.

Estudiantes de La Plata

In January 2025 he returned to Argentine football with Estudiantes de La Plata. Estudiantes reached the final of the 2025 Torneo Clausura and beat Racing on penalties in Santiago del Estero in December that year. A few days later the club also won the 2025 Trofeo de Campeones.