The Argentina U20 team will start their 2023 U20 tournament on Saturday as we look at some facts and the 2001, 2005 and 2007 finals.
Argentina qualified as hosts for the 2023 U20 World Cup but for many years, the team qualified for the tournament and won it in fashion. The Argentina U20 team hold the record for most U20 World Cup trophies won with six.
Diego Maradona helped the Argentina U20 team to their first trophy in 1979 when the tournament was hosted in Japan. After that came back to back titles, the first in 1995 in Qatar and the second in 1997 in Malaysia.
They would then go on to win it with Lionel Messi in 2005 in the Netherlands and Sergio Aguero, who was also part of that 2005 team, would win it in 2007 in Canada.
This makes the Argentina U20 team the only U20 team to win consecutive U20 World Cup tournaments twice. The last trophy won was in 2007 with Sergio Aguero at the helm.
That 2007 U20 World Cup team had two, or three if you want to count Sergio Aguero, senior World Cup winners. Angel Di Maria and Papu Gomez both won the 2022 World Cup.
The team which won the 1997 U20 World Cup is often regarded as one of the greatest U20 teams ever assembled. Juan Román Riquelme, Pablo Aimar, Esteban Cambiasso, Walter Samuel, Lionel Scaloni and Diego Placente, just to name a few.
Of the 18 players which won the 1997 U20 World Cup, six of them would take part in the 2006 World Cup. Those six are Leo Franco, Leandro Cufré, Esteban Cambiasso, Juan Román Riquelme, Pablo Aimar and Lionel Scaloni.
From the 18 players, eight would play in a World Cup. In addition to those six, Diego Placente played the 2002 World Cup and Walter Samuel in 2002 and the 2010 World Cup.
The last time the U20 World Cup was held in Argentina, it was in 2001 when Jose Pekerman’s team ran riot. Javier Saviola scored 11 goals in the tournament, an Argentine record.
That 2001 team had Javier Savola, Maxi Rodríguez, Andrés D’Alessandro, Willy Caballero, Fabricio Coloccini, Nicolás Burdisso and Julio Arca, just to name a few. Of the 19 players whichw on the World Cup, Nicolás Burdisso, Fabricio Coloccini, Javier Saviola and Maxi Rodríguez would all play in the 2006 World Cup while Maxi Rodríguez would play the 2018 World Cup.
Sergio Aguero is the last Argentine captain to lift the U20 World Cup. He has also won the U20 World Cup two times, the first in 2005 and the second in 2007 in Canada.
The 2001, 2005 and 2007 U20 World Cup finals are on Youtube and can be viewed below.
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