Thiago Almada

Thiago Almada

Almada during the 2023 MLS All-Star Game
Personal information
Full name	Thiago Ezequiel Almada [1]
Date of birth	(2001-04-26) 26 April 2001 (age 22)
Place of birth	Ciudadela, Buenos Aires, Argentina
Height	1.71 m (5 ft 7 in) [2]
Position(s)	Attacking midfielder, winger
Team information
Current team	Atlanta United
Number	10
Youth career
2005–2006	Santa Clara
2006–2018	Vélez Sarsfield
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2018–2022	Vélez Sarsfield	45	(10)
2022–	Atlanta United	66	(18)
International career‡
2019	Argentina U20	6	(1)
2021	Argentina U23	2	(0)
2022–	Argentina	4	(1)
Medal record Men's football Representing   Argentina FIFA World Cup Winner 2022 Qatar
*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 15 April 2024 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 19 June 2023

Thiago Ezequiel Almada (born 26 April 2001) is an Argentine professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for Major League Soccer club Atlanta United and the Argentina national team.

Almada was a member of the Argentina team that won the 2022 FIFA World Cup, making history by becoming the first active MLS player to win the tournament.

Early life

Thiago 'Guayo' Ezequiel Almada was born on 26 April 2001, in Ciudadela, Buenos Aires in Argentina. He grew up in the neighbourhood of Fuerte Apache, which is known for high crime rates and prevalent drug use. ^[3] Almada spent many of his early years selling fruit and vegetables door-to-door to earn extra money. Much time was spent with his grandparents while his parents worked. ^[4]

Club career

Vélez Sarsfield

At the age of four, Almada played football for a local club, Santa Clara. He was picked up by Vélez Sarsfield at age five, where he made his way through the youth academy. In August 2018, just four months shy of his 17th birthday, Almada made his professional debut with the club. ^[5] In October 2018, he was included in The Guardian's "Next Generation 2018". ^[6]

Almada began his first-team career as a wing forward under manager Gabriel Heinze. He played alongside Matías Vargas, Nicolás Domínguez, Lucas Robertone, and Fernando Gago. In his first two years with Heinze at the helm, Almada appeared in 46 matches and tallied nine goals.^{[ citation needed ]} In 2020, new club manager Mauricio Pellegrino moved Almada to midfielder, due to the departure of several players in midfield, Almada earned 15 goals in 42 matches.^{[ citation needed ]}

Atlanta United

Signing and 2022 season

On 4 December 2021, Vélez Sarsfield announced that it had reached an agreement with Major League Soccer club Atlanta United for the pre-transfer of Almada in February 2022. ^[7] The transfer, reportedly worth a league-record $16 million, was officially announced by Atlanta on 9 February 2022. ^{[8] [9]}

On 10 February 2022, Atlanta United officially announced the transfer of Almada with a series of photos on the club's Instagram page, showing him with the club's president Darren Eales at the Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta. Shortly afterward, Almada was unveiled in the club's kit for the very first time in front of thousands of fans in a virtual welcome ceremony (due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic). ^[10]

On 11 February 2022, Almada came under scrutiny from supporters in Atlanta after it was revealed that in his final match for Sarsfield, he had scored a goal and celebrated with a racially insensitive gesture with his eyes, this raised many concerns for the club, and his future, but he had apologized shortly after being asked about the situation. ^[11]

On 14 February 2022, Almada made his official debut for Atlanta wearing the number 8 in a pre-season match versus Mexican outfit C.D. Guadalajara during Atlanta's pre-season tour of Mexico. Atlanta would end up losing the match 3–0. ^[12]

On 15 March 2022, Almada made his MLS debut against expansion team Charlotte FC as a substitute in Atlanta's win against them, 2–1. Almada had 18 touches in 34 minutes; he said, "I wanted to be here" and "I wanted to get to know everybody. It worked out well in the end. I’m here. I’m ready to fight for everything that we have to fight for."^{[ citation needed ]} Shortly after the Charlotte FC game, on 19 March 2022, Almada scored his first ever MLS goal in a 3–3 draw vs CF Montréal. The goal would end up winning the MLS' Goal of The Week contest for Matchday 4. ^[13]

2023 season

On 25 February 2023, Almada scored two goals (one of which was a free kick) in the first game of the 2023 season, helping Atlanta gain a 2–1 win over San Jose Earthquakes. ^{[14] [15]} As a result, Almada was named MLS Player of the Week, ^[16] as well as being featured in the league's Team of the Matchday. ^[17]

International career

Almada played for the Argentina under-20 squad in 2019, before featuring for the under-23 squad in 2021.^{[ citation needed ]}

His debut in the Argentina national football team came on 23 September 2022, in Miami, during a friendly match against Honduras.^{[ citation needed ]}

In November 2022, Almada was officially called up to the Argentinian World Cup squad to replace injured Joaquín Correa, only five days before Argentina’s first game of the tournament. ^[18] He was a member of the squad that ultimately won the tournament, becoming the first active MLS player to win a World Cup. ^[19] In Argentina's final group stage game, he made his World Cup 2022 debut against Poland. He came on in the 86th minute as a substitute of Alexis Mac Allister in which Argentina was victorious by 2–0. ^[20]

On 23 March 2023, Almada scored his first international goal for Argentina at the senior level during a friendly against Panama in his third appearance for the senior team, becoming the first-ever MLS-based player to score for the national team. ^[21]

Personal life

In February 2021, Almada was identified as a person of interest by local authorities after a party in San Isidro, Buenos Aires on 4 December 2020. A 28-year-old woman said several people sexually abused her in a house rented by Juan Martín Lucero. After the investigation became public, his club suspended both him and Miguel Brizuela. ^[22] A week after Almada was suspended, he was reinstated with the club stating, "substantial modifications were generated by virtue of the incorporation of new evidence, expertise and testimonies." ^[23]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 31 March 2024 ^[24]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup [lower-alpha 1]		League cup [lower-alpha 2]		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Vélez Sarsfield	2018–19	Argentine Primera División	16	3	1	0	4	1	—		—		21	4
	2019–20	Argentine Primera División	22	4	—		1	0	2 [lower-alpha 3]	1	—		25	5
	2020–21	Argentine Primera División	—		—		—		8 [lower-alpha 3]	4	—		8	4
	2021	Argentine Primera División	7	3	—		7	4	6 [lower-alpha 4]	2	—		20	9
	Total		45	10	1	0	12	5	16	7	—		74	22
Atlanta United	2022	Major League Soccer	29	6	2	1	—		—		—		31	7
	2023	Major League Soccer	31	11	0	0	2	1	—		2 [lower-alpha 5]	1	35	13
	2024	Major League Soccer	4	1	0	0	0	0	—		0	0	4	1
	Total		64	18	2	1	2	1	—		2	1	70	21
Career total			109	28	3	1	14	6	16	7	2	1	144	43

1. Includes Copa Argentina and U.S. Open Cup
2. Includes Copa de la Superliga and MLS Cup Playoffs
3. Appearances in Copa Sudamericana
4. Appearances in Copa Libertadores
5. Appearances in Leagues Cup

International

As of match played 19 June 2023 ^[25]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Argentina	2022	2	0
	2023	2	1
Total		4	1

Argentina score listed first, score column indicates score after each Almada goal.

List of international goals scored by Thiago Almada

No.	Date	Venue	Cap	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition	Ref.
1	23 March 2023	Estadio Antonio V. Liberti, Buenos Aires, Argentina	3	Panama	1–0	2–0	Friendly	[26]

Honours

Argentina

• FIFA World Cup: 2022 ^[27]

Individual

• MLS Newcomer of the Year: 2022 ^[28]
• MLS All-Star: 2023 ^[29]
• MLS Best XI: 2023 ^[30]
• MLS Player of the Month: February/March 2023 ^[31]
• MLS Young Player of the Year: 2023 ^[32]

References

1. "FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022 – Squad list: Argentina (ARG)" (PDF). FIFA. 18 November 2022. p. 1. Retrieved 18 November 2022.
2. "Thiago Almada". Atlanta United FC. Retrieved 21 August 2022.
3. SeventhQueen (28 August 2019). "LN – The evil called Fuerte Apache, a neighborhood marked by stigmas". About Argentina (in Spanish). Retrieved 23 September 2021.
4. "Thiago Almada: Argentina's next great playmaker on Man City's radar | Goal.com". www.goal.com. Retrieved 23 September 2021.
5. "Thiago Almada, el centennial de Fuerte Apache que ilusiona a Vélez". 2 October 2018.
6. "Next Generation 2018: 60 of the best young talents in world football". The Guardian. 11 October 2018. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
7. "La noche del 10" [The night of the 10] (in Spanish). Club Atlético Vélez Sarsfield. 4 December 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
8. "Atlanta United acquires Thiago Almada from CA Vélez Sarsfield | Atlanta United FC".
9. "Thiago Almada to move to Atlanta United for MLS-record $16 million fee, Argentine club says". The Athletic. Retrieved 9 February 2022.
10. "Atlanta United acquires Thiago Almada from CA Velez Sarsfield". Atlanta United FC. 10 February 2022. Retrieved 15 February 2022.
11. "Atlanta United newcomer Thiago Almada apologizes to Atlanta United supporters". Atlanta Journal-Constitution. 11 February 2022. Retrieved 15 February 2022.
12. "Thiago Almada debuts in Atlanta United's 3–0 defeat to Guadalajara, Dom Dwyer starts in 3–0 loss against Tepatitlan FC". Dirty South Soccer. 14 February 2022. Retrieved 15 February 2022.
13. "Thiago Almada's screamer wins MLS AT&T Goal of The Week for Matchday 4". Major League Soccer. 19 March 2022. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
14. Booth, Chuck (26 February 2023). "Free kick excellence from Thiago Almada sees Atlanta United to an opening day victory". CBS Sports. Retrieved 26 February 2023.
15. Schirru, Francesco (26 February 2023). "Almada superstar: dal Mondiale vinto alla doppietta d'oro nel primo match post Qatar". Goal.com (in Italian). Retrieved 26 February 2023.
16. Robertson, Doug (28 February 2023). "Atlanta United's Thiago Almada voted MLS player of the week". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution . Retrieved 28 February 2023.
17. Sigal, Jonathan (28 February 2023). "Team of the Matchday: Who shined brightest on MLS is Back weekend?". Major League Soccer . Retrieved 28 February 2023.
18. Argentina national football team [@Argentina] (17 November 2022). "El futbolista Thiago Almada se suma a la convocatoria mundialista de Qatar 2022" [Thiago Almada has been added to the squad for Qatar 2022.] (Tweet) (in Spanish). Retrieved 17 November 2022– via Twitter.
19. Vertelney, Seth (18 December 2022). "Thiago Almada becomes first active MLS player to win World Cup". USA Today . Gannett . Retrieved 23 January 2023.
20. "Thiago Almada reacts to historic World Cup debut with Argentina". 90min.com. 2 December 2022. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
21. https://www.mlssoccer.com/news/thiago-almada-scores-for-argentina-as-lionel-messi-hits-800-career-goals ^{[ bare URL ]}
22. "Argentina's Velez suspends players charged with sexual abuse". AP NEWS. 9 February 2021. Retrieved 23 September 2021.
23. "Vélez Sarsfield reinstated Thiago Almada and Miguel Brizuela to the squad". La Pelotita (Wayback Machine). 16 February 2021. Archived from the original on 16 November 2021. Retrieved 23 September 2021.
24. Thiago Almada at Soccerway. Retrieved 12 October 2018.
25. "Thiago Almada". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
26. "Argentina vs. Panama - 23 March 2023". Soccerway. 23 March 2023. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
27. Murray, Scott (18 December 2022). "Argentina beat France on penalties after thrilling World Cup final – live reaction". The Guardian. Retrieved 18 December 2022.
28. "Atlanta United's Thiago Almada named 2022 MLS Newcomer of the Year". Major League Soccer. 25 October 2022. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
29. "2023 MLS All-Star Team Roster". Major League Soccer. 7 July 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
30. "2023 MLS Best XI presented by Continental Tire". Major League Soccer. 28 November 2023. Retrieved 28 November 2023.
31. "Atlanta United star Thiago Almada named MLS Player of the Month". Major League Soccer. 30 March 2023. Retrieved 29 June 2023.
32. "Almada named 2023 MLS Young Player of the Year". Major League Soccer. 6 November 2023. Retrieved 6 November 2023.