The mention of Acuña's name may be unfamiliar to many fans. But when it comes to the magical Argentine left-back in the World Cup, or "egg brother", there are more familiar people.
When he used to play for Sporting Portugal, he was beaten by football hooligans at the direction of the team's president.
Unknowingly came to the age of 31, in order to follow Messi to the World Cup, he gave up his favorite food, exclusively eating vegetables and fish to accelerate recovery, becoming one of Argentina's heroes on the way to winning the World Cup.
01. Left Dragon Player: In Argentina, it is a double-double data
From the Western Railway to Europe: in Argentina it is the left one
Acuña came from a single-parent family where only one child could choose to play football because her mother was so poor. His brother gave him the opportunity, and Acuña was once deeply pressured, even suspected that he was not talented enough, and begged his mother to stop spending money on himself.
His growth story has become an inspirational legend in Argentina. Roman, a young Argentine player who has just joined Barça B, like Acuña, also debuted at the Western Railway Club, and he specially followed the team to Sevilla to take a picture with his idol.
From the position of the pitch, Acuña, who can play as a left winger, left midfielder and left back, can be called a generalist on the left side.
After leaving the Western Railway for Atletico clubs in Argentina, he once handed over a double-double with 10 goals and 13 assists, which opened the door to Europe.
b. "Egg Brother" 10 points! Where to find the left-back who passed the goal
After leaving Argentina, Acuña joined Sporting Portugal in the Portuguese Premier League and then Sevilla FC in La Liga. Wherever he is, he is a defender with a knife and has even delivered 11 assists in a single season in the Portuguese Premier League.
After the World Cup, the Argentine players who won the championship also had high morale and scored goals. In addition to the star players in the midfield, Acuña also scored in a single La Liga pass.
In the round of Europe's top five leagues at the end of January, only two players scored 10 points after the game, and Acuña was one of them.
Even if he is a full-back of the team, he always carries a "defense-breaking knife" with him.
In Spanish, Acuña means egg, so he also has the nickname "Egg Brother".
Since he was a child, in order to repay the money his mother invested in him on the football road, Acuña almost desperately played football and seized every possible opportunity.
In addition to assisting teammates with crosses from the wing, Acuña himself has the ability to blast.
Even at the age of 31, even if he has won the World Cup, he still tries to play every minute because he has a responsibility to his mother and family on his shoulders.
02. Attacked by fans & became an Argentina international 7 years ago
a. Vicious attacks by fans: Acuña leaves Portugal
Acuña has played for a total of 4 teams so far, in addition to Argentina's Western Railway and Athletic Club, namely Sporting Portugal in the Portuguese Premier League and Sevilla FC in La Liga.
In his first two years at Sporting Portugal, Acuña delivered an answer sheet with 6 goals, 9 assists and 1 goal and 12 assists, which can be said to be remarkable.
However, in the team's third year, because Sporting Portugal lost in the final round and did not qualify for the following season's Champions League, as a result, as many as 50 fans rushed into the team's training base with sticks and belts.
Team manager Jesus and a number of players were attacked, the most serious being striker Dost, who had a 6cm long hole in his head. In the end, the Portuguese Republican Guard used more than 100 soldiers to free the players.
In the follow-up investigation, Carvalho, who was the president of the team at the time, was suspected of instructing this group of extreme fans to attack the players in order to achieve his goal of forcing some people to leave.
Half of the team's main players, including captain William Carvalho, B Fei, Gerson Martins and Podens, have proposed to terminate their contracts. Even if Sporting Portugal subsequently violated the law by unilaterally terminating the contract, it asked the court to reject the players' request.
However, in the subsequent transfer market, except for B fee to Manchester United to bring good benefits, everyone else's value has been greatly discounted, allowing Portuguese sports to lose more than tens of millions of euros.
Acuña also got the opportunity to go to La Liga powerhouse Sevilla FC for a low price of 10 million euros.
b. 16 years of national team selection: 18 years of the World Cup is the main force of the team
Before moving to the Portuguese Premier League, the 24-year-old Acuña was already selected for the Argentine national team.
With a foothold in the Europa League and Champions League (Sporting Portugal and Sevilla FC are both veteran Champions League faces), he was even one of the starting options for the Argentine national team.
The 2018 World Cup group stage second game against Croatia, the final 0-3 scoreline, made many forget that Argentina had built a huge field advantage in the first half.
In addition to a hanging shot (a cross-like cross) that hit the crossbar, Acuña also had a chance to hit the box to create confusion and give team-mate Enzo Perez an empty goal, but the latter was unbelievably deflected.
Then the rise of Tagliafko allowed him to suppress Acuña for a while, but "Egg Brother" is still one of the team's important choices, playing 442 left midfielders and even 433 left midfielders.
In the 2022 World Cup, Acuña became the main player of the team and made a great contribution to Argentina's victory in the championship.
03. Become a good helper for Messi in the World Cup: Penalty kicks in the knockout round are a great achievement
a. Give up eating meat for being Messi's teammate: Solving the Argentine tactical hole
Because of the inflammation of the pubic bone in his left foot, Acuña once faced the pressure of surgery. In order not to affect the World Cup, he gave up his favorite pasta and meat, and ate only vegetables and fish to reduce the possibility of inflammation.
Under Messi's habitual style of play, he needs a teammate with strong impact without the ball on the left wing, and the emergence of Acuña solves Argentina's tactical problems.
This kind of Messi shifting to play open on the left, Acuña cutting forward to attack the back post, and then back to the right to let Molina shoot, is a successful example.
In the World Cup round of eight match against the Netherlands, Acuña strongly suppressed the opponent's right wing-back Dumfries, and even created a key penalty, which became the main contributor to the team's promotion.
Due to physical reasons, he was unable to start the final, but substitute Acuña sent a wonderful pass to Lautaro, who gave him a one-handed chance and almost killed the match.
Argentina can reach the top of world football, and Acuña is also an important piece of the championship puzzle for the team.
b. Follow Argentina to become a triple crown: the son is also a diehard Messi
Since being selected for the national team in 2016, it has been the seventh year unknowingly. He also experienced the low point of the team, and also followed Messi, ushered in the glorious moment of 2 years and 3 championships.
Coming from a low-level family, Acuña still maintains a low-key lifestyle, living in a flat with his wife and children.
After winning the World Cup, when he returned to his community unit, he found that the doorway was blocked, and the shy Acuña looked embarrassed in the camera.
Their whole family is a fan of Messi, Acuña gave his son a birthday, and the little son's cake is Messi's customized and wearing a "give you two nests" Messi T-shirt.
Perhaps this is what characterizes the new generation of Argentines, who love Messi very much.
Conclusion:
At the age of 31, Acuña has also reached the end of his career. In order to prepare for the World Cup, he gave a lot, but also reaped huge rewards.
From Argentina, Portugal and Spain to Brazil and Qatar, Acuña has left himself with a football story that many fans will remember.