Roberto Alvarado

Celaya

Alvarado was brought by his father to tryout for Celaya, immediately earning a spot on the club's reserve side in Tercera División.

2013–14: Debut season

Alvarado made his professional debut for Celaya on 25 September 2013 in the Apertura Copa MX group stage match against Estudiantes Tecos, coming on as a substitute for Guillermo Clemens on the 59th minute in a 1–0 win. He made his league debut three days later, also against Estudiantes Tecos, in a 0–0 draw, coming on as a substitute for René García on the 86th minute. Alvarado was 15 years, 21 days of age, becoming the youngest player ever to play in Ascenso MX. Alvarado scored his first professional goal in the 27th minute of a 1–0 win in a Clausura Copa MX group stage match against Atlas on 18 February 2014.

2014–15: Trials in England

Alvarado had unsuccessful trials with English clubs Manchester United and Sunderland in November 2014, and Leicester City in January 2015. His father later said in 2021 that FIFA regulations did not allow his transfer to England due to him still being 14 years old at the time.

2016–17: Breakthrough, final season, and departure

It was not until the Apertura 2016 season that Alvarado truly broke out, scoring six goals in 14 games, and catching the attention of Mexican top-flight teams.

Pachuca

On 13 December 2016, Pachuca acquired Alvarado from Celaya with a two-year contract. He scored his first goal with the team on 3 March 2017…

Youth

2018: Toulon Tournament

Alvarado was part of Marco Antonio Ruiz's roster that participated at the 2018 Toulon Tournament, where he was the second highest scorer in the tournament with 3 goals, scoring once in the group stage matches against Qatar and China and in the final against England where Mexico lost 2–1. He was called up yet again ahead of the 2018 Central American and Caribbean Games; however, Cruz Azul refused to release him for the tournament.

2021: Olympic Qualifying Championship and Summer Olympics

Called up by Jaime Lozano, Alvarado participated at the 2020 CONCACAF Olympic Qualifying Championship, appearing in all five matches, where Mexico won the competition. He was subsequently called up again by Lozano to participate in the 2020 Summer Olympics. Alvarado won the bronze medal with the Olympic team after defeating Japan in the third-place match.

Senior

2018–19: Beginnings and first CONCACAF Gold Cup

On 29 August 2018, interim manager Ricardo Ferretti called up Alvarado for the first time to the senior national team for a pair of friendly matches against Uruguay and the United States. He made his debut on 7 September, coming on as a second-half substitute for Alan Pulido in a 4–1 loss to Uruguay in Houston, Texas. In May 2019, Alvarado was included in Tata Martino's preliminary roster for the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup. On 5 June 2019, he scored his first international goal in a 3–1 friendly victory…

Nicknamed El Piojo (The Louse) after his idol Claudio López, Alvarado is a left-footed player that mainly plays on the right wing. A versatile attacking player, he can also play on the left wing and is also capable of playing as an attacking midfielder or second striker. Technically proficient with both feet, playing on the right allows him the opportunity to cut or drift inside onto his favoured left. He has shown an ability to finish from in and around the box, but comparing his shots on target to shots off target suggests that shooting isn't his strongest attribute. Instead, his style of play focuses on creating opportunities. The change of pace is Alvarado's favoured technique, and he excels when there's space behind an opponent to race into, but he can also deceive defenders with close control. He is proficient at pulling away from defenders to make himself available for a pass and has the ability to accurately place floated crosses and through balls. Under Javier Aguirre's tenure as Mexico's manager, particularly during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, Alvarado was dubbed as a "tactical Swiss Army knife" due to his versatility on the pitch, work rate, and taking on defensive wing-back/full-back responsibilities. Early on in his career, he was compared to fellow national teammate Diego Lainez, although Alvarado has stated they both have differing playing styles. His manager at Cruz Azul, Pedro Caixinha, has compared Alvarado to João Moutinho. Alvarado has also cited Ángel Di…

Alvarado was born on 7 September 1998, in Salamanca, Guanajuato, Mexico, to Guillermo Alvarado and Julia Hernández.