The River Inferiores continue to be an inexhaustible quarry
.
Every year new gems come to light.
Last year it was the Diablito
Claudio Echeverry,
just 17 years old and already sold to Manchester City.
And this Sunday, January 28, was the debut of
Franco Mastantuono,
the kid from Azul who entered for Facundo Colidio and played his first official match at just
16 years, five months and 14 days old
.
Thus, in addition, he became
the third youngest player to debut in the First Division in the history of the millionaire club
.
FRANCISCO MASTANTUONO is 16 years old and makes his official debut with the RIVER shirt ⚪🔴⚪#LPFxTNTSports pic.twitter.com/xLxyV8Spa7
— TNT Sports Argentina (@TNTSportsAR) January 28, 2024
In his hometown, the kid stood out in two sports: tennis and soccer.
In the first, he was among the five best in the national Under 12 ranking. In the second, the left-hander dazzled those in charge of River youth football in a test they did in 2015. But it took four years to convince him to reach the club pension.
In five years he went from standing out in Ninth, Seventh and Fifth to being part of the professional team led by
Martín Demichelis
and participating in the 2024 preseason. In August of last year he signed his first contract, until December 2025, with a termination clause of 30 million euros.
On December 10, 2006, in a 1-1 draw against Vélez,
Mateo Musacchio
became the youngest footballer to debut in River's first division.
He was 16 years, three months and 15 days old.
Left behind was the mark established by
Omar Guillermo Rossi
, the brother of Pipo Néstor Rossi, who debuted in the professional strike of 1948, on November 28 against San Lorenzo (3-3) at 16 years, 4 months and 24 days.
Unlike other youth players who play during times of strike, Rossi later established himself in the First Division, with a loan to Huracán and a good return to the club.
However, in 1957 leukemia was detected and he died on July 11, 1957, at the age of 25.
Three other club glories also debuted at the age of 16.
The first was
Adolfo Pedernera
, who on July 28, 1935 (1-1 with Ferro) was that age at eight months and 13 days.
Already in the 80s,
Pablo Aimar
made his debut on August 11, 1996 (0-1 with Colón) at the age of 16 years, nine months and four days, while
Javier Saviola
was 24 days away from turning 17, the October 18, 1998 against Gimnasia de Jujuy (2-2).
“Mastantuono was a children's tennis champion in Argentina. He was not completely convinced by football but luckily, living in the club's pension and with the games, he was convinced to stay with us,"
Gabriel Rodríguez
, today the Children's coordinator, told
Clarín
a few days ago
.
The kid is left-footed, classic hitch, with technical and tactical versatility to move as a playmaker, he is a dribbler and has a tremendous punch.