In their first match of the 2005 World Youth Championship, now known as the Under-20 World Cup, the United States and Argentina faced off in the Netherlands with a phenom on either side. On the U.S. team was Freddy Adu, perhaps the most famous teenage talent of all-time. The next Pele, he was known as back then. He was 16, the second youngest player in the tournament, but arguably the most famous after signing with D.C. United at age 14.
Argentina had their own starlet. You may have heard of him: his name is Lionel Messi.
We all know how it went for those two. Messi went on to become arguably the greatest of all time, with that summer run in the Netherlands being his first title in Argentina colors. He would famously win the most important one 17 years later in Qatar, cementing his place as a legend and perhaps the greatest of all time.
Adu, meanwhile, became something of a journeyman rather than a superstar, playing in the U.S., Portugal, Turkey, Serbia, Finland and Sweden. But, on that day, it was Adu and the U.S. that got the last laugh with a famous result, taking down Messi and co. on Argentina's road to a title.
Now, all these years later, GOAL looks back at that big game and what it meant to all involved...
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