Brooke Norton-Cuffy and Alexei Rojas have been named in their respective countries’ u20 squads for the u20 World Cup this summer.
The various countries involved in the u20 World Cup this summer have been announcing their squad selections over the last week or so, with Marquinhos’ spot in the Brazil squad already having been confirmed.
Two more Arsenal youngsters have now joined the list for the tournament, with England calling up Brooke Norton-Cuffy and Colombia calling up Alexei Rojas.
Norton-Cuffy is on loan with Coventry City at the moment, but he’s been involved with the England u20s on a few occasions already this year.
As for Rojas, he spent a month at the u20 South American Championship with Colombia earlier this year, earning a Bronze medal as part of the squad.
Still just 17 years old, Rojas’ importance in the Colombia u20 squad is only likely to grow as he spends more time with them.
The u20 World Cup will take place this summer, between May 20th and June 11th.
As a result, Norton-Cuffy may miss the opening games if Coventry City make the Championship play-off final, with England making it clear that he’ll only join after his participation with Coventry is complete.
Relevant Group Draws
Group C
- Senegal
- Japan
- Israel
- Colombia
Group D
- Italy
- Brazil
- Nigeria
- Dominican Republic
Group E
- Uruguay
- Iraq
- England
- Tunisia
What is the Under-20 World Cup?
The 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup is the 23rd edition of the biennial international men’s youth football championship contested by the under-20 national teams of the member associations of FIFA.
Originally set to be hosted by Indonesia in 2021, the tournament was postponed to 2023 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Indonesia was later stripped of hosting rights amidst protests over Israel’s participation, and Argentina was chosen as the new host.
Argentina will become the second nation to host the U-20 World Cup twice, with Australia being the other.
The tournament will feature 24 teams qualified from six continental competitions.
The Dominican Republic and Israel will make their debut in the competition, with the Dominican Republic qualifying for a FIFA tournament for the first time.
The matches will take place in four cities: La Plata, Mendoza, San Juan, and Santiago del Estero.
The top two teams of each group, along with the four best third-placed teams, will advance to the round of sixteen.
The final 21-player squads must include three goalkeepers and have been chosen from preliminary squads of between 22 and 50 players.
Players must be born between January 1, 2003, and December 31, 2007 to be eligible to feature.
The tournament aims to showcase the best young talent in football and serves as a stepping stone for players to further their careers in professional clubs and national teams.