The reasons behind Arsenal and Tottenham's interest in MLS star

It’s squeaky bum time in the MLS playoffs. As we come into the semi-finals, and with four teams remaining, the quartet will sense success in a season where a new champion will be crowned. Atlanta United are perhaps the favourites to lift the MLS Cup and they’ll be keen to send Gerard Martino off with a winners' medal around his neck. 

The Argentine is leaving the MLS side once Atlanta United’s playoff pursuit comes to an end, be it with heartbreak or glory, amidst reports he’ll be taking over as Mexico head coach later this year. That should, then, spur the players on to end 2018 on a high. Standing between them and a spot in the final is New York Red Bulls, who finished two points ahead of Atlanta to top the Eastern conference. 

The Red Bulls hold the upper hand in terms of head to head record, too, with New York winning three of the four meetings between the pair, so there is perhaps greater pressure on Atlanta to secure a key first leg victory. To their credit, they’ve already bettered last season’s playoff finish by securing their place in the semi-finals, but the inexperience at this stage could come back to haunt the Five Stripes. 

Nevertheless, Martino has assembled a hugely talented squad with quality in every position, no less in the final third. Atlanta United scored more goals (70) than any other team in the regular MLS season, with record breaking Josef Martinez netting 31 of those. The striker’s fine campaign, though, has taken some of the shine off what has been a fine season to date for Paraguayan star Miguel Almiron. 

The form of Wayne Rooney and Zlatan Ibrahimovic saw the spotlight shifted further away from Almiron, but it shouldn’t take any of the sheen of what was a fine season for the 25-year-old creator. His WhoScored rating (7.77) was the third best in the regular MLS season as he won more WhoScored man of the match awards (10) than any other player. 

He was one of only six players to register double figures for goals (12) and assists (11) in the regular MLS campaign. 74 key passes was enough to rank among the top 15 players in the league, reinforcing a statistically calculated WhoScored strength of ‘key passes’, while no player created more clear-cut goalscoring opportunities than the 25-year-old (17). Capable both out wide or behind the striker, Almiron’s versatility is a huge reason for his fine figures this term. 

The attacker is able to find space and spot passes that others may not see and, importantly, execute these passes for the good of the team. With a willing runner in Martinez operating on the frontline, it’s no surprise that four of Almiron’s 11 assists were for the Venezuelan to score. Importantly, still, is that he works hard off the ball, too. Modern creative players are tasked with working tirelessly when out of possession for the good of the team and here the Paraguay international excels having returned 1.9 tackles and 0.8 interceptions per game in MLS to reinforce a statistically calculated WhoScored strength of ‘defensive contribution’. 

Almiron’s form hasn’t flown under the radar either, with Arsenal, Tottenham, Everton, West Ham and Newcastle all linked with a January move for the Atlanta United star. While two, admittedly very good, seasons in MLS isn’t a great indicator of his quality, his outstanding showings for Martino’s side aren’t to be ignored, both with the January transfer window looming and on Football INDEX. At the time of writing, Almiron boasts a buy price £2.28 per share, but that stands to increase if he can guide Atlanta United to the MLS Cup final and speculation over his future intensifies as January nears. 

That being said, swapping MLS for the Premier League would be a huge step for Almiron, and a period of acclimatising would be expected, yet after such a superb individual season, interest in his signature comes as little surprise and he should continue to grace the gossip columns between now and the end of the transfer window, even if he doesn’t end up moving to England at the turn of the year.