Souness: Alexis Mac Allister is a perfect risk-free signing

Alexis Mac Allister is the player that clubs in the top six should be looking at very closely according to Graeme Souness.

After not playing a minute in Argentina’s shock defeat to Saudi Arabia in the opening group game, the midfielder came into the starting lineup for the second fixture against Mexico and was a ever present from that moment on as the South Americans claimed their third World Cup defeating France in a final for the ages.

For the very casual football fan, seeing a player represent Argentina who plays his club Football for Brighton may seem a bit out of place, but even his Irish ancestry is a tale within itself. And in truth, the club career of Mac Allister has been on the slow and steady path rather than an overnight success.

Coming to England via Argentinos Juniors at the age of 20, he naturally took a while to adapt to the tempo of the league, something that he has managed to do on a more consistent basis in recent times.

Playing for managers such as Graeme Potter and more recently Roberto De Zerbi has most certainly suited the skillset of the 24 year-old midfielder down to the ground with the results showing in his general statistics.

After producing a career best five league goals last season, he has already equaled that tally in just 14 games during this campaign.

Souness is known as someone who is as tough and forthright a pundit as he was a player and is certainly one not to give praise lightly.

But in a Daily Mail piece (via Metro), Souness was glowing in his view:

“The Premier League returns on Boxing Day and there will be a few coming back from the World Cup with their tails up, and some others in need of being picked up.

“I bet there will be no player feeling more confident than Brighton’s Alexis Mac Allister. It is very easy to focus on how fabulous Messi was for Argentina, but in the games I covered, Mac Allister was their best player.

‘The ball he played for their second goal in the final, for Angel Di Maria, was sublime. Messi put him away around the corner. He took one look, had a couple more touches and never looked again before squaring the most perfect pass for Di Maria to put it past Hugo Lloris. Wonderful.

“He’s a top-four player and the big guys will be looking at him now and thinking, “We’ll have some of that”. He has proven he can play at the highest level and has already done it in the Premier League.

‘There is very little risk attached to this boy. He can create, score and works his socks off – that type of player, they are hard to find.

‘At his age, Brighton won’t be able to keep him for long and good luck trying to negotiate a new contract. I’m just disappointed he’s not playing for Scotland with a name like that!’

In a very smart piece of business, Brighton extended the contract of Mac Allister just before the World Cup until 2025 with an option for another year. While the likes of Jude Bellingham and Enzo Fernandez have been frequently linked, keeping a eye on the progress of this World Cup winner is certainly worthwhile.