{The teenager}, with three senior caps for Argentina, has already made an impression in his fatherland.
“Franco’s passage via our membership left an indelible mark.” Roberto Binzuna, the president of Cemento Armado, the place Mastantuono earned his stripes earlier than becoming a member of River, tells BBC Sport.
“Solely time will determine how lengthy it lives on in our reminiscence.
“He is a sensational younger man, with excellent human and sporting traits, distinctive in no matter sport he performed – an distinctive tennis participant and a fair higher footballer.
“His presence at all times stands out over the opposite gamers, even the older ones, and he has an unimaginable shot on him.”
Certainly, Mastantuono’s capability to strike the ball from vary has caught the attention. Most notable was his free-kick towards Superclasico rivals Boca Juniors in April, swept into the highest nook from about 30 yards.
That apart, the left-footer is agile, rapidly shifting the ball a method and the opposite when dribbling. Such has been evident from the beginning.
“I bear in mind he was stressed behind the ball. However what I noticed set him aside,” says Marcelo Olariaga, the vp of Membership Atletico River Plate Azuleno, Mastantuono’s first house.
“In comparison with the remainder, he ran very calmly with the ball. However he at all times had it tied to his ft.”
Though {the teenager} typically begins on the proper wing, a lot of his affect is available in central positions.
In River’s first Membership World Cup outing this summer season, a 3-1 win towards Urawa Pink Diamonds, Mastantuono roamed inside and bent a cross to the left, finally resulting in Facundo Colidio’s opening aim.
As for the statistics, Mastantuono has featured 64 instances for River, scoring 10 objectives and helping seven. At 16, he was the youngest to attain for the Argentine giants with the well-known crimson sash.
In the meantime, he’s the youngest to characteristic competitively for Argentina’s senior group, reaching that landmark towards Chile in June.
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