By most accounts, Argentina is the favorite, or at least co-favorite to win the World Cup.
And now, in something of a milestone for MLS, the league will feature a player on said World Cup favorite: Atlanta United midfielder Thiago Almada.
Argentina head coach Lionel Scaloni called Almada into his World Cup squad on Thursday as an injury replacement, with the 21-year-old joining Ángel Correa as the pair replacing Nicolás González and Joaquín Correa.
Almada joined Atlanta United from from Vélez Sarsfield prior to the 2022 season for a reported league-record transfer fee of $16 million.
In his debut MLS campaign, Almada put up six goals and 12 assists en route to being named the MLS Newcomer of the Year.
That form earned Almada his first Argentina cap in September and although he did not make the country’s initial 26-man roster, he was named as an alternate and got the nod after two players went down injured.
After making his international debut, Almada was praised by none other than his teammate Lionel Messi.
“Thiago is very fresh,” Messi said. “He’s a very fast player who can play one-v-one. He’s clever and isn’t afraid of anything.”
🗣 “Thiago is not afraid of anything.”
It’s time to shine on soccer’s biggest stage 🏟🏆pic.twitter.com/ZAedf6WODS
— Atlanta United FC (@ATLUTD) November 17, 2022
Almada is the first active Atlanta United player to represent his country at a World Cup, and the first MLS player to represent Argentina at the tournament.
For MLS, Almada is one of a league-high 37 players who are on World Cup rosters. Canada (11) and the United States (9) make up over half that amount, but there is also representation from Australia, Cameroon, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Mexico, Poland, Switzerland, Uruguay, and now, Argentina.
No active MLS player has ever won a World Cup. Almada is clearly the strongest candidate the league has ever had to break that streak.
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