Players Of The Future?

They qualified with a game in hand.

De Martis and Juan Cruz Meza (Maxi’s brother) are supposedly players with potential. I wouldn’t read too much into these games. Sub 17 is a very raw stage for players. Lucas Ocampos, for example, looked like a future superstar at that level many years ago, but he ended up having just a decent career.

Let’s not put too much stock into these games or the kids. Around the Sub 20 level is when we start to get a clearer idea of what they might become.

 

Well, looks like United are interested in him. That would be an awful place for him. Awful.

 

Well, let’s all hope so. I mean, River did pass up on Messi when he was a kid. Talk about having egg on your face. Maybe this could be somewhat of a consolation prize, albeit a nice one.


But I do agree with you about Franco. I’m very high on Paz but Mastantuono could be even a level above and Paz is being regarded as one of the best young talents in Italy. Totti recently came out and said that Nico can be one of the world’s best.

But Franco needs to make his next move very carefully. Choose wisely,’kid.

 

Just looking at them, I think Franco has more of an adult frame. You can tell he hits the gym. Paz is a bit more lengthy. I believe it was Fabregas who said that Paz' size helps him because he is an imposing size. He is about 6'1 or 6'2 but he is quite elegant. He does little flicks and tricks that opens up the game. He is not scared to run at defenders either and can provide great balls through. However, I believe Mastantuono is perhaps more technically gifted.

Nevertheless. Both have received high praise. Totti came out and said that Nico could be "One of the best in the world." And as we know about Mastantuono, the praise has been non-step.

I also still believe in Echeverri. He's had up and down moments but we've seen what he can do when he turns it on. He is naturally gifted. He just has to get a bit stronger. A loan deal should be in the cards, at least I hope.

I think all of us should be very optimistic. After having to deal with utter crap and mediocrity for many years, we are sitting back at the top, where we belong.

I am still hoping for another Sub 20 title. Yet, as we have mentioned here, it could be difficult to have some of our shining stars play at the tournament since the European sides won't have to release them.

 

He's apparently been doing quite well for the youth team. Perhaps he can continue to grow and develop. From whatever I have seen, (granted all of these clips make players look like the second coming) he has tricks and flicks and is very dynamic. But he does seem to make stupid plays but given the age and whatnot, it is somewhat expected.

💎 El golazo de Francisco #Barido en el Puskas-Suzuki Kupa con la #Juventus
Este año ha hecho 7 goles y 8 asistencias en 13 partidos con la #Juve
Próximo año subirá a la sub20 con posibles presencias en la NextGen
[ @ilbianconerocom ]pic.twitter.com/c4n9lwKmJU

— PuebloJuve (@Pueblo_Juve) May 2, 2025

I did a little bit of digging and apparently he has Croatian ancestry. His entire family moved with him to Turin. He has represented us a number of times at youth level and was born and raised in Argentina until he was a teenager. But he can possibly be poached down the road.

 

Milton Delgado is being linked to some bigger sides. I think he's too small to play in England. Maybe Spain, Italy and Portugal would do him good.

 

You also are not going to know who is going to pop-up. There could be players flying under the radar or some crack that is 14-15 right now we do not know about. But as mentioned by @locoxriver, the GK is kinda a concern. I mean, there are the likes of Brey, Lavagnino, Iacovich, Blázquez and etc who are on the younger side. We just have to see how they will develop. But let's be frank here, in 2017-18, how many of us had Dibu on our 23 list? He also bounced around a few places and did not do all that great until he became a back-up for Arsenal and took his chance and ran with it. The rest is history.

And the big question will be who is going to lead this team. I do not think it will be Scaloni since it is kinda obvious he is aiming for 26 and 26 alone. There is no real rush to build for the future. I hope it will be one of his cohorts.

If we can figure out the GK and manager situation for 2030, I think we should be fine.

 

U17 groups(the tournament will be played in Nov).



The draw for the U20s will be held tomorrow. We are seeded in the second pot. Colombia, Chile, Brasil, US, South Korea and Italy will be in pot 1. I am assuming we will not be seeded with any of our federation rivals. I could be wrong. But if that’s the case, we will get either the US, SK or the Tanos.

Technically, we can be in a group like Italy, ourselves, Spain(FIFA allows teams from UEFA being in the same group) and Morocco.

But nevertheless, there will be 48 teams and qualifying for the next round should actually be a breeze. Top 3 teams for the most part can progress. Once again, if we have our top players, I don’t see why we should not contend for this title. But as we know, things aren’t ever that easy for us.
This kicks off of Sept 27.