Brighton’s Barber is sure Mac Allister stays despite high demand

After a spectacular performance with

Argentina

in the 2022 World Cup, the

midfielder's future is under speculation with many clubs considering signing him. However, with the former Boca Juniors player signing a new long-term deal with the Seagulls in October, Barber doesn't expect him to leave anytime soon.

"

We were working on a new contract for Alexis in the build-up to the World Cup,"

Barber told

.

"We met Alexis' father [Carlos] several times. He himself played for Argentina with [Diego] Maradona no less, so there's a fantastic family history to playing for their country.

“As we've always said, when players do well, when their profile increases, there's always going to be interest in them. This will be no different; Alexis is no different. There was interest in him before the World Cup and I'm sure there will be more interest in him afterwards.

"All we can do in situations where you've got a great asset is to try and protect yourself as best as possible. We've done that with several of our players and staff over the last several years, and that's all you can do in these situations. We hope Alexis will continue to be playing for us for some time to come."

On whether he allows

Alexis Mac Allister

to celebrate the triumph in Argentina, Barber added:

"We would be a very poor club [to deny him the chance to return to Argentina].

"On the other hand, we've got games coming up thick and fast and one of the downsides of the Qatar World Cup is that we haven't yet even completed half a season.

"We've actually got a lot of work to do now and Alexis will be a big part of that. We're all looking forward to it very much."

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