Alexis Mac Allister

World Cup winner Alexis Mac Allister arrived at Liverpool FC in the summer of 2023 from Brighton & Hove Albion.The midfielder claimed the No.10 shirt upon his arrival to Anfield, occupying the squad number last taken by Sadio Mane after signing a long-term deal.The Argentina international, who was a key figure in his nation's success at the 2022 World Cup, slotted in seamlessly in his first season on Merseyside.He ended it with 46 appearances in all competitions, 14 goal contributions (seven goals, seven assists) and a Carabao Cup winner's medal.

Mac Allister would make his debut on the opening day of 2023-24 away at Chelsea and then opened his goalscoring account with a stunning strike against Fulham that was later nominated for Premier League Goal of the Season.

His levels rose as the campaign went on, sealing April's Standard Chartered Player of the Month award, as he helped Liverpool secure Champions League qualification with a third-place finish in the Premier League. Born into a footballing family in Santa Rosa, Alexis' father Carlos was a player himself and teammate of Diego Maradona at Boca Juniors and with the national team.

Alexis' older brothers Francis and Kevin are also professionals.Mac Allister's own journey in the game began at the prestigious Club Social Parque academy, which counts Maradona, Carlos Tevez and plenty of other Argentina internationals among its alumni.From there, he joined Argentinos Juniors, where he would progress to the first team and make a senior debut in October 2016, helping them secure promotion to the Argentinian top flight in the same season.Brighton came calling at the start of 2019 and he would return to Juniors on loan after completing his transfer to the Seagulls.Having joined Boca Juniors for a temporary spell, a debut for Argentina soon followed, when he appeared as a second-half substitute in a friendly with Chile in September 2019.Mac Allister made 20 appearances for Boca before that loan was cut short and he was recalled to kickstart his Brighton career.He would fully establish himself on the south coast in 2021-22, during which he made 33 Premier League appearances and was on the scoresheet on five occasions.

His rise for club and country continued the following season.Mac Allister started all but one of Argentina's fixtures at the World Cup, scoring against Poland and then laying on an assist in the victory over France in the memorable final.

Returning to England with that winner's medal, he then helped Brighton secure European football for the first time in their history with a sixth-placed finish in the league.