Miguel Almiron certainly divided opinion at Newcastle United.
While surely few will forget Almiron’s stunning purple patch in form that helped take Newcastle United to the Champions League during the 2022-23 season, there’s little doubt the forward did frustrate at times.
Almiron left Newcastle to re-join Atlanta United in January, having left the Major League Soccer (MLS) club for St James’ Park way back in January 2019.
Indeed, Almiron scored a header against New York City FC late last month, a feat he never actually managed during his six-year stay on Tyneside.
The 31-year-old then followed that up by scoring a penalty in his team’s draw with FC Dallas on Saturday, which saw him draw level with Thiago Almada as the club’s second-highest top scorer in MLS regular season competition (23).
However, manager Ronny Deila was still left reasonably frustrated about the performance of both Almiron and his team in general.
Ronny Deila frustrated with Miguel Almiron despite Atlanta United goal
Dallas forward Petar Musa eventually cancelled out the Paraguayan’s opener but Almiron could well have had more goals.
The former Newcastle star saw a close range effort blocked before skewing a wild shot on the edge of the box well wide, albeit that was admittedly a much harder chance.
Despite his penalty, Deila sounded frustrated with Almiron’s missed chances.
Speaking at his post-match press conference, the former Celtic manager said: “I think he did well as a ten, I think he’s good there.
“He can also play left and he can play right, so that gives us opportunity inside the game. But he had a big chance in the second-half to finish [the game] but he didn’t do it.
“Again, it’s small things we have to improve but it’s just frustrating.”
Miguel Almiron named his favourite Newcastle moment after leaving
Newcastle fans will be all too aware of Almiron’s inconsistency in front of goal. In 223 appearances for the club, he scored 30 times.
Still, there were some big moments there. His stunning volley against Fulham will live long in the memory, as will his strikes against Everton and Aston Villa.
However, another goal stood out for the player himself.
Almiron revealed his goal against PSG was his favourite memory at Newcastle, with his first-half strike setting Eddie Howe’s side on their way to winning 4-1 in the Champions League group stage in October 2023.
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