Mentality and versatility can see Diego Gomez thrive at Brighton
It has been a quarter-century since Diego Gavilan became the first Paraguayan footballer to play in the Premier League and score in the Premier League for Newcastle United.
Since then, we’ve seen quite a few players emerge from the Corazón de Sudamérica and test their skills in England’s top-flight.
Paulo da Silva and Cristian Riveros both plied their trade at Sunderland. Antolin Alcaraz enjoyed a five-year spell in England for Wigan Athletic and Everton.
Fabián Balbuena honed his skills at West Ham. Juan Iturbe had a fleeting spell at Bournemouth. Miguel Almiron made a name for himself at Newcastle and helped them reach the UEFA Champions League. Roque Santa Cruz impressed at Blackburn Rovers and Manchester City.
Today, there are four Paraguayans who are playing in England’s top division. Enso Gonzalez is suiting up for Wolverhampton Wanderers.
Ramon Sosa is cutting his teeth at Nottingham Forest. And Julio Enciso is enjoying a new adventure after departing Brighton & Hove Albion and joining Ipswich Town on loan.
The latest Paraguayan to make the move to the Premier League is none other than Diego Gomez. Gomez came through the ranks at Club Libertad and quickly made a name for himself at club and country, eventually making his senior debut for Paraguay at the age of 19 on August 31st 2022.
Nearly one year later, Gomez departed his motherland and made the move to the United States, joining Inter Miami for €2.7 million.
After a shaky start, Gómez eventually became a versatile game-changer under Tata Martino, filling a variety of roles from the left side of attack to an attacking midfielder to a box-to-box midfielder.
His limitless stamina, ferocious shooting ability, and aggressive ball-winning nature dovetailed nicely into the Herons’ system and made him one of the first names on the team sheet.
Inter Miami achieved the best regular-season record in MLS history with 74 points, before losing to Atlanta United in the first round.
Whilst Inter Miami have managed to keep hold of legendary players like Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba, they weren’t quite as lucky with Diego Gómez.
After 18 months in South Florida, Gomez took his talents to England and joined Brighton for a fee rumoured to be around the £14 million mark.
“Diego has something which is fundamental – mental focus,” stated Gavilan. “He is a very serious player who has the physical ability to play in three to four positions, but it doesn’t matter where you put him, he can find the back of the net.
“He’s played as an inside midfielder with the national team as well as a right-sided midfielder, a left-sided midfielder and even as a false 9 and a second striker.”
“Diego had an impressive growth at a professional level, establishing a place in an Inter Miami team alongside Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez, Sergio Busquets, and Jordi Alba.”
“While he’s a quiet guy, he’s very lively on the pitch. He has matured, grown, and still maintains a high level of football.”
“He can adapt to whatever position, but if they play him as an interior, he can end up surprising many of us. Diego has the ability, quality, and mental strength to quickly adapt to the Premier League.”
Gomez made his European football debut on January 19, coming on for the final seconds of Brighton’s 3-1 win at Manchester United and becoming the 12th Paraguayan player to play in the Premier League.
He was an unused substitute in the following match, a 1-0 defeat to Everton, before playing the first half of a 1-0 defeat to Manchester United Under 21s in a Premier League 2 match.
The 21-year-old was then subbed on at halftime at the City Ground, but he was unable to stop Nottingham Forest from scoring another four goals en route to giving Brighton a 7-0 drubbing.
Brighton looked headed for a third straight defeat after conceding an early own goal to Chelsea in the FA Cup, only for Georginio Rutter to equalise immediately. Rutter then set up Kaoru Mitoma for the go-ahead goal at the Amex.
Looking to shore up the lead, Fabian Hurzeler brought on Gomez for Jack Hinshelwood for the final 26 minutes. It was here where Gomez was able to make his first real impression on English football in a Brighton shirt.
He keept things simple and effective in possession by completing 14 out of 15 passes, registering 24 touches and pulling off one out of one attempted long ball. Gomez even registered a shot, whilst he only lost possession three times.
However, his biggest value came not on the ball, but off it. Gomez won three out of three ground duels, racked up three tackles and three interceptions, and never shied away from doing the dirty work.
It provided the foundation for Brighton to edge Chelsea 2-1, securing a first home win in over two months and booking the Seagulls their ticket for the FA Cup fifth round, where they will face Newcastle.
Gomez again came off the bench six days later to do a similar job, again in a Brighton victory over Chelsea. This time, the Seagulls ran out 3-0 victors to add three Premier League points to their safe passage in the FA Cup.
After two impressive displays in midfield, Huerzeler may very well be inclined to give Gomez a more prominent role as Brighton look to make it three wins in a row away at bottom club Southampton next weekend.
Zach Lowy @ZachLowy
