He doesn't mind stupid jokes about his nose.

Lucas Alario likes his nickname.

The Argentinian striker, who joined Frankfurt's Eintracht from Bayer Leverkusen on Friday, was at one point nicknamed "El Pipa" - the whistle - by his youth coach in Santa Fe.

Peter Hess

sports editor.

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Alario's keen sense of smell reminded him of professional Jorge Higuaín, who is incidentally the father of Argentina international goalscorer Gonzalo Higuaín.

"I've had him ever since.

My big nose doesn't bother me, and such a nickname is quite normal in Argentina.

We like to make fun of each other, there are also numerous players who are affectionately called 'El Gordo', the fat one.

That is never meant to be derogatory.”

Never a regular in Leverkusen

The story he told the Leverkusen club magazine says a lot about the 29-year-old striker, whose nose for goals should take Eintracht further in the Champions League and Bundesliga.

Alario is one of those unpretentious football professionals, one whose ego doesn't express itself in vanity or social status.

His history at Bayer Leverkusen confirms this character image.

For five years he fought tirelessly for a regular place in the Werkself attack, and apart from very few phases his efforts did not lead to success.

Accurately from the bank

From October 17 to November 8, 2020, the Argentine made the headlines.

Seven goals in four Bundesliga matches is an exceptional rate.

But then knee problems slowed him down and Alario resumed the role that was his main role at Leverkusen: as a noble joker who was drawn when the Werkself had bad cards in the game.

And the backup stocking often liked to prick.

58 goals and 16 assists can be seen in 164 competitive games, especially because he was not even involved in 20 percent of them for 90 minutes.

Strong competition

Eintracht already liked this accuracy last summer.

At that time, however, it was not possible to agree on the finances with Bayer.

And the persistent Alario wanted to try again with the Werkself.

But as always, the competition threw a spanner in the works.

When Kevin Volland and Kai Havertz left the Werkself, Moussa Diaby, Florian Wirtz and Patrik Schick followed.

Julian Brandt, Karim Bellarabi, Leon Bailey and Nadiem Amiri further consolidated Alario's place on the Leverkusen offensive.

Alario was hoping to be called up as a second striker alongside Czech Patrik Schick.

But coach Seoane didn't do him the favor.

So the Argentinian thought the time had come for a change after Schick had earned irreplaceable status with 24 Bundesliga goals in the past season.

The fact that Alario still made 27 Bundesliga appearances, in which he scored six goals, speaks for a certain appreciation.

“Fits perfectly with our requirement profile”

But that measure was no longer enough for him: "Here in Frankfurt I have the opportunity for more playing time, which I would also like to use," said Alario on Saturday about his reasons for the change.

Of course, the chance to play the Champions League again also appealed to him.

"A great challenge that I'm looking forward to."

A motivation for him to agree financially with Eintracht.

The negotiations dragged on, because the Frankfurters don't have too much to spend at the moment.

With Bayer, the Frankfurters reached a compromise not to immediately pay the fixed fee for Alario of 6.5 million euros in full.

If the Argentine meets expectations, the base amount of five million euros bonus will increase to the amount targeted by Leverkusen.

Alario received a three-year contract.

Eintracht sports director Markus Krösche commented on the commitment as follows: “Lucas Alario is an experienced player, he fits our profile perfectly.

Internationally and also in the Bundesliga, he has always had a very good hit rate.

With him we gain a new component in the offensive game.

With Lucas attacking in this constellation, we see ourselves well-equipped for the challenges of the new season.”

A component that the Frankfurt game was missing when André Silva left for RB Leipzig – that of the executor.

And that's exactly how Alario sees himself: "I've always played at the top and was the one who completed the attacks.

My game has never been great going to the outside.

My office is the penalty area.

Close to goal, ready to finish.”