Mainly a central defender, he holds a Spanish passport due to the years he spent in the country, representing three clubs and amassing La Liga totals of 192 games and 15 goals over the course of seven seasons.
In 2000 he was signed by UD Las Palmas in Spain, going on to spend three seasons with the club, two of those in La Liga.
While in the Canary Islands he was found guilty of forging a European Union passport, spending several months during the 2001–02 campaign on the sidelines.
[3] In the middle of 2006, Álvaro joined Levante UD, which had just regained top flight status.
He was expected to sign for Premier League team Newcastle United for a fee around £3 million before the January 2008 transfer window closed, but finally remained in Spain until the end of the season as the offer from the latter proved to be a hoax.