Daniel Campos, who represents the 26-year-old, claimed on Paraguayan radio station Futgol 970 that were it not for the global pandemic, he would no longer be at Newcastle, with clubs from Europe looking at the player for a move back in the summer.
Campos hinted that Atletico Madrid were scouting Almiron, who is said to be unhappy with his playing time and style of football at Newcastle.
That’s probably not a surprise, seeing as the former Atlanta United attacking midfielder has been utilised in an unfamiliar 5-3-2 formation in recent weeks, operating in more of a box-to-box role. Add to that the fact that Newcastle have the lowest average possession in the Premier League this season and there’s likely some truth to the rumours of discontent.
At the time of his signing, Almiron was Newcastle’s record transfer at £20.7m, a fee that would be eclipsed six months later by Joelinton’s £40m arrival from Hoffenheim.
Almiron has started four of Newcastle’s eight games this season and despite registering just one assist, is clearly one of Steve Bruce’s most creative players.
The Paraguayan showed that during the international break, winning his country a penalty in a 1-1 draw with Argentina, before missing the game against Bolivia through suspension.
Newcastle did want him to come back before that game, but Paraguay insisted he stayed with the squad and trained with them before flying back to Newcastle on Wednesday.
