How Alexis Mac Allister grew as player and person at Brighton

They were heading towards what would have been a creditable draw at home to Arsenal in the match to kick-off the Restart fixtures in June, 2020, when the ball looked to be going out for a throw in their favour.

READ MORE: ALEXIS MAC ALLISTER SIGNS FOR LIVERPOOL

READ MORE: MAC ALLISTER AND MILNER LOOK GOOD SIGNINGS 

Mac Allister, who had just gone on as his team’s fifth substitution (a moment of history in itself) and remained an unknown quantity on these shores, called out urgently what sounded like: “Go, go, go go!”

Davy Propper kept the ball in play by hooking it over his shoulder.

Then Mac Allister did what he did so often this season for Albion and for Argentina in the World Cup.

He got the ball down in a tight area, looked to play a forward pass and found a team-mate in more space.

Neal Maupay and Aaron Connolly then combined for the last-gasp winner which sent Albion five points clear of the drop zone.

It was perhaps their most important win at the Amex in their Premier League years after 15 weeks hovering two points clear of 18th place during the Covid stoppage.

It is that sort of pro-active, competitive and forward-looking approach which has seen him emerge as a power in various midfield roles for the Seagulls.

The sort of work which was the perfect foil for Lionel Messi as he sought that elusive World Cup triumph in Qatar.

Now he could be the driving force in midfield for Liverpool as they look to regain top-four status.

Mac Allister appears to be leaving the club on good terms with all concerned.

He has come a long way as a player and a person since first signing for the Seagulls on a day trip from Argentina in January, 2019.

I spoke to him that day and what struck me was he looked and spoke like someone older than his 20 years.

Or since linking up with the club a year later after loan stints.

It is well documented now that he flew from the Argentinean summer to a Sussex coast being battered by one storm after another.

That he went out on that first Saturday afternoon at Lancing, when the squad were on a weekend off, to do some running in the wind and rain before posing for photos and speaking to me in the media room.

That he had to wait several weeks for his debut, played for 13 minutes at Wolves and then saw the season and indeed the nation put on hold due to Covid.

He has not come through the easy way having left his beloved Boca Juniors.

So what are the key moments of that progress?

Maybe the goals in successive Carabao Cup ties against Portsmouth and Preston which gave a glimpse of what he can do.

Or the late equaliser behind closed doors at Selhurst Park to open his Prem account.

That goal happened to come on Mother’s Day in Argentina and a social media message to his mum back home underlined the importance of family.

He started the following season with a goal at Burnley as crowds were welcomed back.

But a landmark afternoon probably came just down the M6 at the very start of 2022.

That was when he scored twice to spark a first ever Albion win at Goodison Park.

His quotes that day underlined the in-and-out nature of his contribution to that point.

He said: “It is really good. I didn’t play that much so it’s good to score and get confidence.

“[Starting] three matches in a row and as I said, really happy to help the team.

“I don’t know, it’s just decisions. I always try to give my best but Graham (Potter) has to take decisions and we have to respect that.”

Bit by bit, the performances became more influential and the interviews more eloquent.

When he first arrived, I was invited to speak to him in Spanish – both on that first day in 2019 and when he came back a year later from loan.

His English has come on in leaps and bounds and that has enabled quite a fun-loving personality to come across.

Speaking after the win at Chelsea, he told how he could see himself in Julio Enciso as he did his bit to help the Paraguayan teen settle in.

Mac Allister was often used on the left of a 4-2-3-1 when on loan at Boca Juniors.

He has operated more centrally, be it deeper or as a No.10, with the Seagulls.

Brought up in a footballing family, he has shown strength of character at times.

Such as when he came through those lockdown months.

Such as struggling for game time in a period when he wondered whether he had made the right move from Argentina.

Such as stepping up to take a penalty at Wolves just a few minutes after seeing a spot kick saved. And, of course, such as his emergence as an Argentina mainstay at exactly the right time as they bounced back from defeat by Saudi Arabia to win the World Cup.

There is a school of thought his club form has dipped since then.

I don’t go along with that. Maybe perception or expectation has shifted.

But he arguably continued to be as effective and versatile in midfield and his penalty conversions were valuable for a team who have missed too many from the spot.

If there is one room for improvement, it is in goalscoring other than from penalties.

That includes shots from just outside the box or closer-range efforts when he gets into great positions arriving late in the box.

But Mac Allister’s progress and growth has been Albion’s progress and growth in many ways.

He will forever be their first World Cup winner.

It appears his legacy might include the guiding role he has played for other young South Americans, especially Enciso and Facundo Buonanotte.

It is a regret that we won’t see what he would have done for the Seagulls in Europe.

But there has been plenty more positive to think and smile about.

Go, go, go, go. On to the next challenge.