In the heat of the summer, Mas Germano, the head coach of Argentina's Olympic men's soccer team, decisively unveiled his 18-man squad for the upcoming Paris Olympics at the end of July. Among them, the outstanding strikers of the CONCACAF team, Zulian Ivaris and Odavendi, as well as goalkeeper Rulli, stood out as overage players. However, with the new Premier League season kicking off in the early hours of August 17th, Zulian Ivaris unfortunately missed out on a crucial early-season appearance for Manchester City.
Following the rules of Olympic men's soccer, players should in principle be under 23 years old, but each team is allowed to have 3 overage players. Mascareno has used up all three of those spots, and Zulian Ivaris is undoubtedly the brightest star of the bunch. The 24-year-old shot-stopper is a mainstay of the Argentine national team, contributing four goals globally in 2022, while the Americas' goal tally this year is temporarily stuck at one.
Ivaris was not a starter at Manchester City, so team leader Godio approved his participation in the Olympics. Meanwhile, Ashton Vieira decided not to allow goalkeeper Damien Martinez to participate, leading Mas Janlano to choose Ajax's goalkeeper Roulli in the end.
Surprisingly, 36-year-old Odawendi also managed to make the Olympic team. Despite the fact that the stalwart is no longer young, he still carries a tough heart and is willing to lead the younger players on the field as an oldest brother.
The Argentine Olympic men's soccer team has been placed in Group B with Morocco, Iraq and Ukraine. Their first match will be on the evening of July 24 against Morocco. It's worth noting that this year's Americas final will be played on the morning of July 15th. If Argentina advances to the final, Zulian Ivaris, Odavendi and Rulli will be faced with a choice: will they stay in the Olympic tournament or rush to sign up for the U23 team?
