Agustín Ruberto

Agustín Ruberto
Personal information
Full name	Agustín Fabián Ruberto
Date of birth	14 January 2006 (age 18)
Place of birth	Buenos Aires, Argentina
Height	1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s)	Forward
Team information
Current team	River Plate
Number	32
Youth career
2010–2011	Barrio Nuevo
2011–2024	River Plate
Senior career*
Years	Team
2024–	River Plate
International career
2022	Argentina U16
2022–	Argentina U17
	*Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 18:51, 27 February 2024 (UTC)

Agustín Fabián Ruberto (born 14 January 2006) is an Argentine footballer currently playing as a forward for River Plate.

Club career

Born in the city of Buenos Aires, Ruberto first took an interest in football from the age of four, when he joined local youth side Barrio Nuevo in the San Fernando Partido of Buenos Aires Province.^[3] After almost two seasons, he impressed a scout from another youth side named Parque Chas at a youth tournament.^[3] Parque Chas' goalkeeper was a close friend of Ruberto, and after the scout helped to arranged a trial at professional side River Plate for the goalkeeper, Ruberto was invited to join him.^[3]

After three days of trialling, he was offered a place in the River Plate academy.^[3] Initially a central defender, he was converted to play as a centre-forward by River's youth coaches, who noticed his physical and technical ability.^[3] This change was beneficial for both River Plate and Ruberto, as he established himself as a prolific goal-scorer in the club's academy.^[3] Following the break from football due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina, Ruberto returned to action scoring seventeen goals in fourteen games in the 2021 season.^[4] He was rewarded for his good form with a professional contract in April 2022 - a deal running through December 2024.^[3]

The following year, having been promoted to the club's reserve team, he drew interest from English Premier League side Brighton & Hove Albion.^[5]

In 2024's first week, the striker renew his contract with River Plate until December 2027. This new contract includes an update with an increase release clause of €30,000,000, being the highest release clause in the squad.^[6]

The forward scored his first goal for the senior River Plate squad, in his second appearance against Barracas Central, just 15 minutes after being substituted into the match.^[7]

International career

In April 2022, Ruberto was called up to the Argentinian under-16 team for the 2022 edition of the Montaigu Tournament, where he scored three goals in four appearances as Argentina finished second.^[3]

At the 2023 South American U-17 Championship, Ruberto started Argentina's campaign with two goals in a 4–2 win against Venezuela, before scoring against Peru in a 3–0 win.^[8] Following the tournament, in which Argentina finished third, he scored in a 1–0 friendly win against Mexico, in preparation for the 2023 FIFA U-17 World Cup.^[9]

At the 2023 FIFA U-17 World Cup, Ruberto scored in each of Argentina's first two games, against Senegal in a 2–1 loss and then the third in a 3–1 win against Japan.^[10] In the semi-finals against Germany, Ruberto scored a last-minute goal to equalize 3–3, completing his hat-trick, only for Argentina to lose on penalties.^[11] In the entirety of the tournament, Ruberto scored 8 goals, winning the golden boot.^[12]

Honours

Individual

FIFA U-17 World Cup Golden Boot: 2023^[13]

References

^ ^a ^b "FIFA U-17 World Cup Indonesia 2023" (PDF). fdp.fifa.org. Retrieved 8 November 2023.
^ Agustín Ruberto at WorldFootball.net
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Gagliardi, Juan Franco (23 April 2022). "Quién es el "Gigante" Ruberto, la joya de 16 años de River Plate que brilló en la Selección Sub 17 y ya tiene contrato profesional" [Who is “Gigante” Ruberto, the 16-year-old jewel of River Plate who shone in the Under 17 National Team and already has a professional contract]. infobae.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 November 2023.
^ García Dresch, Luciano (3 February 2023). "Quién es Agustín Ruberto, la joya que debutó en la Reserva de River" [Who is Agustín Ruberto, the jewel that debuted in the River Reserve]. lapaginamillonaria.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 November 2023.
^ "Qué jugador de River que se iría al Brighton de Alexis Mac Allister en la Premier" [Which River player would go to Alexis Mac Allister's Brighton in the Premier]. lmneuquen.com (in Spanish). 24 April 2023. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
^ "River blinda a su nueva joya: Ruberto renueva hasta 2027 con una cláusula de € 30 millones" [River shields his new talent: Ruberto renews until 2027 with a clause of € 30 millions]. www.ole.com.ar (in Spanish). 4 January 2024. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
^ Delia. "Agustín Ruberto scored his first goal with the River Plate shirt". Euro Sport.
^ "La joya de River que marcó un doblete en la Selección Argentina Sub-17, por el Sudamericano: quién es Agustín Ruberto" [The jewel of River who scored a double in the Argentine U-17 National Team, for the South American: who is Agustín Ruberto]. tycsports.com (in Spanish). 1 April 2023. Retrieved 14 November 2023.
^ Bielak, Juan (11 October 2023). "la joya de River Agustín Ruberto le dio el triunfo a la Sub 17 de Argentina" [River's jewel Agustín Ruberto gave the victory to the Argentina Sub 17]. lapaginamillonaria.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 November 2023.
^ Noya, Pablo (14 November 2023). "Quién es Agustín Ruberto, la joya de River que la rompe en el Mundial Sub 17 con Argentina" [Who is Agustín Ruberto, River's jewel who breaks it in the Under 17 World Cup with Argentina]. lapaginamillonaria.com (in Spanish). Retrieved 14 November 2023.
^ "Argentina Stars Echeverri And Ruberto Light Up The U-17 FIFA World Cup". forbes.com. 28 November 2023. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
^ "FIFA U-17 World Cup adidas Golden Boot race final standings". fifa.com. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
^ "FIFA U-17 World Cup awards". FIFA.com. 2 December 2023. Retrieved 2 December 2023.