"The Argentinian teenager slipped on Claudio Echeverri's boots and into the red sash-adorned River Plate kit shortly after Echeverri's move to Manchester City just over 18 months ago. That was Mastantuono's first breakout year, 2024, when he announced himself to South America. In 2025, Mastantuono has arrived on the world stage, the newly-turned 18-year-old has assumed starting responsibilities under Xabi Alonso at Real Madrid and that's a lot easier said than done - just ask Reinier, Endrick or Arda Guler."
"What is 'The Boy's A Bit Special'? FourFourTwo's long-running 'The Boy's A Bit Special' feature has been going since the magazine's first issue, highlighting the best young players in the United Kingdom and abroad. As of September 2025, we've given it a revamp. Our youth football expert Joe Donnohue will be profiling four teenagers each month, explaining why they're, well, a bit special."
Franco Mastantuono experienced two breakout years, first in 2024 at River Plate and then in 2025 on the world stage after moving to Real Madrid. He moved from River Plate shortly after Claudio Echeverri's transfer and completed a €40 million transfer to Real Madrid before his 18th birthday. Mastantuono became a starter under Xabi Alonso, starting four of Real Madrid's first six LaLiga matches, and became the club's youngest-ever Champions League starter while scoring as the fifth-youngest post-war goalscorer. A left-footed right-winger, he is an excellent dribbler, impactful in the final third, and was once among Argentina's top ten junior tennis players.
Read at www.fourfourtwo.com
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]