Atlanta United’s Thiago Almada, the other Argentine forward who is dominating MLS

World Cup champion, Thiago Almada, is making a huge impression in MLS, and his amazing numbers place him with the top players in the country.

Lionel Messi is not the only Argentine who is tearing things up in the United States. The young forward, from Fuerte Apache, the same neighbourhood as Carlos Tevez, has been one of the top performers of MLS and is probably now recognised as the player with the highest ceiling in the league.

The agile and daring 22-year-old is the star of an Atlanta United side who are sixth in their league, thanks in large part to his offensive contribution. In fact, in the last game against Nashville, Almada got a goal and two assists to give his team a comfortable 4-0 victory.

Almada’s fantastic performance against Nashville

The goal Almada scored is a display of all that he is as a player. In a counter attack for the home side, the Argentinian holds his run just before being ruled offside to receive a through ball from Xande Silva behind a defender. The ball rolls a little too far to control comfortably, but thanks to his speed, the world champion latched onto the ball managed to poke a shot over the scrambling goalkeeper.

The first assist was a beautiful long ball from right to left that swirled around the defensive line, landing perfectly on Xande Silva’s boot for the forward to volley home. As for the second, it was a pinpoint corner met by the head of Robinson in a goal that sentenced Nashville after just 57 minutes.

What are Almada’s stats for this year?

Thiago Almada returned from the World Cup in Qatar with a new feeling of confidence in himself as well as a host of invaluable experience. The fact the player won a World Cup at the age of 22 represents a tremendous leap forward for someone who already had a fantastic future ahead of him, in the USA or beyond. Formed in the youth ranks of Vélez, this is his second season in Atlanta, where he arrived for a then-record fee in MLS.

At this point in the season, Almada has already reached his best record as a scorer and also as a creator. In total, the Argentine has scored 11 goals and provided 14 assists, becoming the top provider in MLS, ahead of Carles Gil (12).