Without the knot of the nerves of the debut, the Under-20 team played unleashed and showed its best version in the cycle of Javier Mascherano. Therefore, Argentina had no problem beating a humble Guatemala 3-0 and thus secure its ticket to the knockout stages. With ideal score, the team of the 'Jefecito' leads group A and on Friday with New Zealand will define in San Juan if it finishes this first phase as a pointer.
He didn't want to touch too much Mascherano from the team. He understood that he had to give filming to a base to begin to settle societies, movements, functions. And he was right. He only made two changes from debut to second commitment. He opted for Tomás Avilés instead of Lautaro Di Lollo at the back and gave the opportunity to Juan Gauto above, replacing Brian Aguirre, who had made a great wear against Uzbekistan. And the Huracán was the protagonist of the first of the afternoon for Argentina by throwing the center between three rivals that was directed to the head of Alejo Véliz. The '9' albiceleste won the double brand, Andy Dominguez and Jeshua Urizar and with a frentazo, as in the premiere, broke the local zero in the Only Mother of Cities that looked full again.
The national youth team showed a looser face from the game. The constant rise of Valentín Barco, as if he were another winger, allowed him to focus on Matías Soulé, who took possession of the ball in the first half. The Juventus player began to show his conditions with the Argentine shirt. Hooks, walls with the Colo, filtered passes to Véliz... Soulé was an unsolvable problem for the middle and defense of Guatemala, which again relied on the 5-4-1 scheme with which it fell to New Zealand last Saturday. Precisely by placing himself in the spaces between the lines, Soulé floated without a fixed rival brand and had freedoms to generate.
From the center to the left the one who commanded was Valentín Carboni, who by positioning had more dialogue with Gauto. In fact, Inter was the one who gave the ball to the Globe for the center of the 1-0. Thus, the ball was always from sole to blue and white sole. From the first pass of a safe and attentive Mateo Tanlongo, the dominance was total of those led by Mascherano who, beyond a cross shot from Véliz that went next to the post, should have generated more in the first half.
Photo Juano Tesone / special envoy - Clarín
The Central Americans tried to hurt the back of Agustín Giay, who had suffered greatly against the Uzbeks. A couple of times Figo Montaño was able to overflow there, although without solving well in the final meters. The most dangerous was Carlos Santos' shot that Federico Gomes Gerth took from the angle.
Even losing, the Mexican coach of Guatemala, Rafael Loredo, who in the previous one had denounced the Argentine delegation of espionage, maintained the five defenders and their defensive system. He continued betting on fishing some counterattack, the problem is that his team did everything very slow every time he had the chance to progress on the ground. He did the same against the New Zealanders, to no positive avail. Much less changed when he was left with one less after the correct expulsion of Santos for double yellow.
There, Masche started with the rotation to take care of some legs and to give shooting to others thinking about Friday. Beyond not having the result resolved, the coach decided to move the bench and put Luka Romero and Maestro Puch instead of Soulé and Véliz, the figures of the first stage. He also took out Barco (with a hit) to put Tomás Vega, player of Barcelona B.
It went well because Luka Romero, in one of the first he played, scored the second to lead the second victory of the World Cup. The Lazio player raised his head and visualized the gap in Jorge Moreno's goal. And there he put it left-handed from about 20 meters, against the left post.
And about the end, Perrone caught a rebound from the goalkeeper and scored the 3-0 to the empty goal. Before, the bad one: Avilés saw the red for double warning.
Thus, Mascherano is finding the answers to the questions that had remained after the frustration of the South American. With the classification in his pocket he managed to reverse that bitter taste.
Santiago del Estero. Special envoy.
See also