Roberto Rojas talks Almiron to Newcastle United, Paraguay, and more

Back in December, Roberto Rojas broke the story that Almiron would join Newcastle United. Now that he has, we catch up with Rojas to hear more about the move, their native country, and more.

The Newcastle United pursuit of Miguel Almiron took a long time and had many twists and turns. One of the central figures of the reporting was Roberto Rojas. The 21-year-old native of Paraguay tweeted that Atlanta United midfielder would likely be joining Newcastle United back in December. Now that his compatriot is signed, sealed, and delivered, we caught up with Rojas, who has visited Almiron’s house in Asuncion, to discuss his newfound life as an insider, Paraguay, and what’s next for him.

Newcastle Toons: First off, how does it feel to have this much buzz personally as this deal has now been completed?

Roberto Rojas: Incredible! I didn’t expect it would be this crazy and I did not expect the Newcastle fanbase to be so happy and supportive towards the work I’ve been doing regarding the Almiron news. They’ve been nothing but great and I feel as I’m loved already by a lot of people there!

NT: Being a Paraguayan-American, how big is this moment for Paraguay?

RR: Very big. I think it can’t get any bigger for a professional player, especially from Paraguay, to play in the Premier League. Prior to Almiron, there had been seven previous compatriots to play in England and because of the popularity of the league and potential of Miguel, this move was a long time coming and many people are very happy that this happened!

NT: In three words, how would you describe Miguel Almiron’s style of play?

RR: Fast, intelligent and refreshing.

NT: Obviously, Miggy will now be a more known commodity in world soccer. Who are some of the other young, promising players from Paraguay?

RR: Among the many in the new generation below the age of 25, you have Antonio Sanabria at Genoa, Derlis Gonzalez at Santos, Gustavo Gomez at Palmeiras, Cecilio Dominguez at Independiente, and even though he might not be part of this current group of players, there’s a 14-year-old at Cerro Porteño called Fernando Ovelar! He scored in his second game ever and did so against bitter rivals Olimpia.

NT: Now that Newcastle United have added Almiron, should we save you a spot in the Toon Army?

RR: I won’t say that I will be supporting any club because I think it doesn’t feel right to support a certain club. I enjoy watching English football and have been all my life, but I’m a fan of the league rather than a certain team and I hope to stay that way. But, of course, I’ll definitely be more focused on Newcastle with Almiron’s move. Not just him but also another Paraguayan playing in England, Fabian Balbuena at West Ham.

NT: The Almiron move faltered a bit earlier this month, according to rumors. Did you ever doubt it would happen?

RR: I did have some doubts because of what the media was reporting, but I always knew that I had to stick to my guts because of what I’ve been told and everything that was going into place, but thankfully it happened the way it did and that’s all that matters.

NT: A lot of people are not overly familiar with Paraguay. Tell us something about your native country. 

RR: The people and the warm hospitality make the country the way it is. If you’re a fan of that and hot weather and if you want an underrated country away from the tourist havens in South America, this country is for you.

NT: I know you’re graduating from college soon, fill our readers in on that and what else you have going on currently. 

RR:  I’m graduating in May from Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Connecticut! I will be graduating with a double major in Communications with a concentration in sports media and & Media Arts with a concentration in journalism.

In addition to his upcoming degrees, Rojas co-hosts a podcast on LowLimitFutbol.com and writes soccer articles on Vavel.com.

A big thank you to Roberto Rojas for giving us some of his time and make sure to check out his current work and all the great things he will do in the future. Follow him on Twitter @RobertoRojas97.