Zubeldía met Fábio at U17 World Cup 28 years ago | OneFootball

A rare duel took place in 1997, when the coach was a midfielder for Argentina and Fábio was defending Brazil; Zubeldía’s playing career ended at the age of 23.

The relationship between Fluminense’s coach, Luis Zubeldía, 44, and goalkeeper Fábio, 45, holds an unusual curiosity: the manager is younger than one of his key players. Even more remarkably, the two actually faced each other as professional athletes.

The direct encounter was found by GE in 1997 archives, during the quarterfinals of the U-17 World Cup, held in Egypt. Zubeldía played as a midfielder for Argentina, while Fábio was already the goalkeeper for the Brazilian national team.

In that match, Brazil came out on top, winning 2-0, and eventually went on to become champions of the tournament. Interestingly, at the time, the spotlight was on other young talents, such as Ronaldinho Gaúcho on the Brazilian side, and Gabi Milito, future defender and coach, on the Argentine side.

Records of Zubeldía as a player are scarce due to his early retirement. A product of Lanús, he was seen as a promising midfielder, with a strong personality and call-ups to Argentina’s youth teams, where he played alongside names like Saviola and Maxi Rodríguez.

However, at the age of 23, he was diagnosed with osteochondritis dissecans, a serious disease affecting the cartilage in his left knee, which forced him to end his career. Shortly after hanging up his boots, he began his coaching journey at Lanús itself, culminating in his arrival at Fluminense, where he now leads his former on-field rival.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.