Every story of greatness begins in the shadows, where talent is overlooked, where dreams are tested by doubt.
For Miguel Almirón, the journey started in the Cerro Porteño academy when he was barely 14. Skinny, quiet and easily underestimated, coaches often left him on the bench, or even at the stands. He had the vision, the touch, the hunger, but they doubted his body could withstand the game.
“In the U-15 squad he barely played," said Hernán Acuña, who at the time was a head coach in the academy, and now serves as its Director. "He was considered a player with technical quality and talent but due to his physique he was practically being let go from the squad."
At home, life carried its own weight and survival required sacrifice. His mother worked two shifts at the supermarket so Miguel could keep chasing a ball that, to most, seemed like a faraway dream. His grandfather became his guardian angel, taking him to the academy, waiting in the rain, never leaving until Miguel’s training was done.
In those silent rides back home, between sacrifice and faith, the foundation of Miguel’s resilience was built.
“They put him in the worst team in the Academy and he came to me that day and told me, ‘Mom, I’m not going to go to practice anymore,'” recalls Sonia Soledad Relaja, Miguel’s mom. “I told him, ‘No, you’ve sacrificed a lot. You are where you are and you’re not going to quit football.
“'If you quit, you’re coming with me to work in the supermarket.'”
It was Acuña who had always seen something in Miguel, and in the under-17s, he pushed him hard to make sure his speed and creativity could no longer be ignored.
“He hadn’t really played for two years, so I knew he was very anxious, and I told him, ‘I’m going to give you five games to show me what you can really do,'” Acuña remembers. “Incredibly, he snapped and was one of the standouts of the entire Academy system.”
Promotion to the first team followed, and soon the boy once thought too small was lifting titles, in 2013 and again in 2015.
Miguel Almirón Contar Contigo | Documentary
The film explores Almirón's relentless pursuit of excellence, his role in ending Paraguay’s 16-year World Cup drought, and the unwavering love of his wife Alexia and family who continue to shape his journey. It’s a story of resilience, identity, and the power of home.
Of love and shadows
With the national team, Miguel’s story had always been one of hope and heartbreak. He wore the Paraguayan colors first at the U-20 level, finishing runner-up in the South American Championship and competing at the U-20 World Cup. His senior debut came in 2015, followed by a call-up to the Copa América Centenario in the United States.
The road with Paraguay hasn’t been easy. For years, despite his talent and leadership, the team fell short of World Cup qualification. Every failure weighed heavily, not just on Miguel, but on a nation waiting to return to the grandest stage. Critics were harsh, especially at home, but Miguel endured.
“We know everything he goes through and all he’s suffered throughout this time of his career,” says Alexia Notto, Miguel’s wife. “I keep reminding him that every sacrifice will bear its fruit.”
In 2025, after 16 long years, the drought finally ended.
Paraguay qualified for the 2026 World Cup. For Miguel, it was the culmination of everything: the sacrifices of his mother, the faith of his grandfather, the support of his wife, the nights of doubt, the years of waiting. For the first time, he would represent Paraguay at the world’s greatest tournament.
Earlier that same year, destiny brought him back to Atlanta. Despite interest from clubs in Brazil, and Europe, Miguel listened to his heart. “I want to go home,” he told his mother. And home was Atlanta.
“There were offers from Italy and pretty much all the Brazilian teams who had deeper pockets,” acknowledges Daniel Campos, Miguel’s agent. “But he was always clear that if there was an option to go back to Atlanta, he would choose Atlanta.”
The reception was nothing short of a hero’s welcome. Hundreds waited at the airport, banners and chants filling the night. The boy who once built Atlanta’s foundation returned as a man, as a captain, as a symbol of what the club stood for.
The 2025 season has not been easy, but Miguel’s resolve is unshaken. He inherited the captain armband and wears it with pride, determined to write another chapter of triumph for the city and the fans who first embraced him and his family.
What drives Miguel Almirón is not just victory, it’s his family, humility, and an endless love for the game. He trains beyond the club’s hours, guided by a personal trainer who lives with him to ensure he gives everything his body can. He honors the sacrifices made for him by never stopping, by running as hard now as he did when Alexia first saw him in a number 10 jersey, sprinting across the field at Cerro Porteño’s academy.
Miguel’s story is not just about trophies, goals, or transfers. It is about resilience — a scrawny boy who wasn’t chosen, becoming a man who carries the hopes of a nation and the pride of two homes, Paraguay and Atlanta.
And though his career has already spanned continents, leagues, and historic moments, his greatest legacy may be even deeper: inspiring others to believe that even when the world doubts you, even when the road is long and uncertain, you can run with faith, with humility, with love until the dream is yours.
“I just play for my family," Miggy said. "For my son, for my wife, my mom, my dad, and all the people who are always behind me, and are always thinking of me and want everything to go well for me."
Success was his answer to skepticism
In 2015, Lanús of Argentina brought Miguel across the border. The move was sudden, but transformative. Under Guillermo Barros Schelotto, Miguel blossomed into more than just a promising young player. In 2016, he was the heartbeat of a Lanús side that swept through Argentina, winning the league title and the Bicentennial Cup. The skinny boy from Asunción had become a champion in another country, in the land of legends like Maradona.
However, fate was already pulling him further. At the end of 2016, a brand-new club from the United States came calling. Atlanta United, preparing for its first season in Major League Soccer, saw in Miguel the star they wanted to build around. The transfer fee, a reported $8 million, was one of the largest in MLS history at the time. And the gamble paid off.
“Atlanta had already been in touch with Daniel Campos, Miguel’s agent. When I was negotiating to join the club, they said the name Miguel Almirón. I said, ‘Right away,’” emphasizes Gerardo ‘Tata’ Martino. “Miguel had been the big star in the Argentine first division playing for Lanús, he’d had an amazing season.”
Atlanta became more than a team. It became Miguel’s stage, his proving ground and eventually, his home. Under Tata Martino, Miguel dazzled. His pace, vision and tireless energy made him an instant fan favorite.
In 2017, he was named MLS Newcomer of the Year, was selected to the All-Star Team and was chosen for the league’s Best XI. He repeated those last two honors in 2018, but that year brought something greater: Atlanta United’s first-ever MLS Cup. In only its second season, the new club lifted a championship, and Miguel was at the center of it all.
“Miguel is very personable, a very affectionate kid, it’s very easy to make an instant connection with him,” Martino said.
But dreams, once reached, grow larger. Europe called, and in 2019, Miguel signed for Newcastle United. The Premier League — faster, more physical, relentless — was the stage he had long imagined. The adjustment was brutal, but Miguel’s humility and work ethic carried him through.
Slowly, he won over the fans, the team and eventually the world’s respect. He became a key figure in Newcastle’s resurgence, scoring the club's first goal in the Champions League in over 20 years, etching his name in history as one of Paraguay’s brightest exports to the world’s most demanding league.
