Miguel Almirón Still Has His 2018 MLS Cup Ring. He’s Betting on Another One.

Miguel Almirón keeps his 2018 MLS Cup ring close. Like, physically close. He pulled it out on a recent episode of Breakaway and held it up to the camera. Diamond-encrusted. Still fits. Still means something.

“I have it here to see if maybe we can win another,” he said.

That kind of confidence sounds a little bold for an Atlanta United team that hasn’t been back to the mountaintop since that year. But Almirón isn’t just talking. He came back from Newcastle United after six years in the Premier League, rejoined Atlanta ahead of the 2025 MLS season, and immediately linked up with the coach who got the best out of him the first time around.

Gerardo “Tata” Martino is back. The same guy who coached Atlanta to that 2018 title is running the sideline again. And Almirón made it clear what that reunion means.

“Thanks to him, I honestly brought the best out of myself. I went to Europe. I learned a lot from him,” Almirón said. “I think it’s very good to have the opportunity to learn from a coach like Tata, who has a long career and teaches us so much.”

Martino’s resumé is no joke. He led Paraguay to a quarterfinal run at the 2010 World Cup — the best finish in that country’s history. After 16 years of missing out, Paraguay finally punched their ticket back to the World Cup in 2026, and Almirón was a big part of making that happen.

Now they’re in Group D with the United States, Australia and Turkey. Not an easy draw, but not impossible either.

Almirón has been with the Paraguay national team for nine years. He’s seen the low points up close — the near-misses, the qualifying heartbreaks, the long wait. So this moment matters in a way that goes beyond just making the roster.

“I’ve been a part of that group for nine years,” Almirón said. “We went through a lot – many obstacles, many difficulties. And now, thank God, we’re enjoying this moment.”

He’s 32 now. Still quick. Still dangerous cutting in from the right. Still carrying that ring around like a reminder of what’s possible. Atlanta fans remember 2018. Paraguay fans remember 2010. Almirón is trying to give both sides something new to remember.