Miguel Almiron has already enjoyed his best goal scoring season for Newcastle United – and it’s only October.
Winning goals last week against both Everton and Spurs have taken the Paraguayan’s total for the season to six, with five coming in the last five games and only four players outscoring him in the Premier League – two of which being formers Mags Ivan Toney and Aleksandar Mitrovic.
Almiron’s previous best season in front of goal on Tyneside came in 2020/21, with four goals – which dropped to just one in our previous campaign.
However, following an impressive pre-season – where he notched six goals an three assists – and comments from Jack Grealish who said his teammate Riyad Mahrez should have been subbed off because he had been “playing like Almiron”, Miggy is the latest to look a completely rejuvenated player since Eddie Howe’s arrival.
But are the numbers from his recent performances suggesting that his goalscoring form is sustainable – perhaps unsurprisingly, no, Almiron is not expected to score a goal every game for the rest of the season.
Almiron has produced an xG of 3.6 so far this season, meaning he is overperforming with his finishing slightly. However if the winger continues to produce 0.33xG per 90 in the remaining 26 games of the season it would be reasonable to expect him to score an impressive 14 league goals this season (14.58), which would have been within the top 10 scorers last season.
Almiron’s recent strikes include a goal of the month contender for October, converting an unbelievable volley with the outside of his left boot at Fulham. What’s more, the 28-year-old also has to be in the conversation for Premier League Player of the Month.
Although four of Miggy’s six goals this season have been in and around the six-yard-box, his opener against Fulham, curling effort against Everton and Salah-esque solo run at Spurs have proven that his form is no fluke and his finishing and confidence in front of goal has improved leaps and bounds.
Having started every league game this season, and with injuries to Alexander Isak, Callum Wilson and Allan Saint-Maximin, it is little surprise that Almiron has taken more shots than any other Newcastle player, with 31 leading to a conversion rate of 19% – a vast improvement on last seasons 3%.
My “stats” tell me that over the last five games he’s averaged a goal a game, so surely that means that with 26 games left he’ll end up with 32 goals!!
Helen Clarey(Quote)