How Newcastle and Steve Bruce got the most out of Miguel Almiron

[ASFN Admin]

Miguel Almiron has always been one of those players who is exciting up to the point you want them to have a decisive impact on a game and then something would go wrong, a final pass or a shot on goal. It would be harsh to call him a jigsaw player, who falls apart in the box, because even when he has not played well, he has never let his head drop and has always put maximum effort into everything he does. He is like a road runner, who gets his head down and never stops. Quick and skilful, he has consistently been one of Newcastle’s more eye-catching players without managing to consistently hurt opposition teams. That, though, could not be said of the Paraguay international against Southampton, whose speed over the ground, link up play, as well as his two goals, were the big factor in Newcastle securing a 3-2 win. He was even superb supporting the valiant last-stand defensive effort that protected their lead, for more than 15 minutes, with only nine players and no specialist centre backs on the pitch. So, what has been behind Almiron’s stunning return to form? Playing in his best position Almiron has always preferred playing as a number 10, which is where he played virtually all of his football for Atlanta United in the MLS and it is where he plays for Paraguay too. Strangely, he has not played there nearly as much for Newcastle, under Rafa Benitez and Steve Bruce, who both used him mainly out wide. But when he is in the pocket of space in the middle, he can be devastating, causing a nuisance with the speed of his pressing – which led to Newcastle’s third goal when he dispossessed Ryan Bertrand – and his link up play. He ran more than 11 km in the game, the most by any player. He can also break into the box from a central position. His two goals against the Saints took him to four goals in 21 appearances this season, but the most encouraging thing is he looks capable of getting plenty more in the new system. Change in tactics and formation At one stage, Almiron was playing so deep, he was almost a wing back, picking up the ball in his own half or on the halfway line which allowed teams to drop off in defence and crowd him out in midfield. Since Newcastle switched to a 4-3-1-2, not only is he pushed further up the pitch, when he gets the ball there are more players around him and he can either run at the opposition centre backs or link up with one of the wide men. Against Southampton, he was even pushed into a false nine position, at times, in a 4-3-3, with Callum Wilson moving wide to confuse markers. The flexibility of the new, more attacking system, which aims to push the team far higher up the pitch, is bringing out the best in him. The return of Allan Saint-Maximin How Newcastle have missed their dynamic winger who is just as important to them as Wilfried Zaha is to Crystal Palace. With the winger starting against Southampton for the first time since November after a complicated recovery from Coronavirus, he not only created Newcastle’s first two goals, he also created the space for Almiron to operate in. Opposition managers are simply too scared to leave just one man on Saint-Maximin as he can dance around full backs, so they double up. That leaves Almiron far more space to operate in.

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