Julio Soler: Why Man Utd & Liverpool are set to battle for Argentina’s teenage Olympics star who has already rubbed shoulders with Lionel Messi

Soler made 12 appearances for Lanus across all competitions in 2023 as they finished fourth in the Primera Division and qualified for the 2024 Copa Sudamericana. However, under the stewardship of Ricardo Zielinski, Lanus made a poor start to the 2024 campaign, losing two of their first three Copa de la Liga games, which led him to promote Soler into his starting XI.

The youngster shone in a 3-0 win over Platense, and has been a fixture in Zielinski’s line-up ever since. Soler was one of Lanus’ top performers in the first half of the year and also managed to break into Argentina’s Under20 set-up. On June 10, Javier Mascherano started Soler in Argentina’s final warm-up game for the Olympics, and he notched an assist in a 2-0 win against Paraguay. That impressive display convinced the ex-Liverpool and Barcelona midfielder to include Soler in his 18-man squad for the Paris Games.

Geronimo Rulli, Nicolas Otamendi and Julian Alvarez took the three over-age spots, while Thiago Almada also made the cut, giving Soler the chance to play alongside four World Cup winners. Unfortunately, their presence did not guarantee a strong start to the tournament.

Argentina were upset by Morocco 2-1 in their first group game, which lasted 116 minutes due to a ridiculously drawn-out VAR review that eventually ruled out Cristian Medina’s stoppage-time equaliser. It was a crazy introduction to international tournament football for Soler, but he showed no sign of feeling the pressure in his 71 minutes on the pitch, and even set up Giuliano Simeone to score Argentina’s only goal of the game.

Soler retained his place in subsequent wins over Iraq and Ukraine as Argentina bounced back to reach the quarter-finals. There would be no fairy-tale finish for Soler, though, as Mascherano decided to drop him to the bench against hosts France. Soler came on as a half-time substitute in the last-eight tie, but left the field in tears after just 30 minutes due to injury, and Les Bleus managed to close out a 1-0 victory.

Argentina’s Olympics campaign was a huge disappointment, but Soler was able to return to South America with his head held high. He made the most of every minute he got on the pitch and put himself on the radar of top clubs across Europe.

The teenager emerged as a more mature footballer for the experience, too, and immediately picked up from where he left off at Lanus. He played a vital role in their run to the Copa Sudamericana semi-finals, even scoring one of the penalties in their shootout win over Independiente Medellin in the last eight.

Lanus ultimately crashed out against Cruzeiro, and are now destined to finish the season without silverware, but it will go down as Soler’s breakout year. That was confirmed in October, when Lionel Scaloni drafted him into the Argentina senior squad for the first time, after an injury to Marcos Acuna.

Unfortunately for him, Soler was an unused substitute as Scaloni’s side played out a 1-1 draw against Venezuela and a 6-0 win over Bolivia in their most recent set of World Cup qualifiers. He got to witness a Lionel Messi masterclass up close in the latter game, though, as the Inter Miami star scored a hat-trick and provided two assists.

Not many teenagers get the chance to rub shoulders with Messi; it’s a testament to how far Soler has come in such a short space of time. He was understandably a little bit star struck in training, as he admitted to reporters: “I haven’t spoken to Messi much. I’ve watched him on TV all my life and now he’s right here, it’s amazing. It doesn’t seem real.”

Soler didn’t receive a call-up for Argentina’s November qualifiers, but that shouldn’t dishearten him. The Lanus ace is way ahead of schedule development-wise, and will remain in Scaloni’s thoughts ahead of the 2026 World Cup, especially if he seals a switch to Europe next year.

Soler is a forward-thinking left-back with bags of energy and pace. He’s already a very mature, technical player with a good range of passing and an aggressive streak that makes him difficult to get past or dispossess.

There are often times when Soler takes it upon himself to get Lanus up the pitch, accelerating away from his marker effortlessly even in the tightest of spaces. He has a knack for drawing fouls, can keep the ball under control at top speed and always plays with his head up, which is a sign of his general footballing intelligence.

Soler relishes one-on-one duels, too, and rarely comes off second-best. He has everything needed to make it to the very top of the game, it will just be a case of keeping his feet on the ground as the hype around him continues to grow.

Soler has already made 53 senior appearances for Lanus, but has only registered two assists, and is still yet to open his scoring account. For a player with his physical and technical attributes, that is simply not good enough.

End product is what separates a decent attacking full-back from a great one. Soler gets himself into great positions, but his decision-making will have to improve if he is to reach the next level. He’s still very much a raw talent in need of polishing.

Soler can also get caught out of position when the ball is turned over, such is his desire to constantly bomb forward. More often than not, he recovers, but the Lanus ace can become more efficient at both ends of the pitch if he picks his moments more carefully.

If Soler does end up joining United, he would be groomed as a long-term replacement for Luke Shaw, who has suffered from countless injury setbacks over the last two years. Shaw is also well known for his attacking prowess, but Soler is not quite the same profile as the England international.

It would make more sense for him to serve as Andy Robertson’s successor at Liverpool. Robertson is one of the most athletically gifted players of his generation; a penetrating runner who presses relentlessly from the first minute to the last. Soler boasts the same burst of speed and engine, while there are also similarities to be drawn between their dribbling styles.

Interestingly, La Nacion claims that Soler used to idolise Arsenal’s Oleksandr Zinchenko, who is another accomplished ball carrier, but he has a far higher ceiling than the Ukrainian. Robertson falls into the world-class bracket, or at least he did at his peak, and that’s what Soler should be aiming for.

Soler signed a contract extension at Lanus until 2028 in October, though that was more a move for the club to drive up his value than anything else. Lanus team-mate Walter Bou has even suggested a minimum price for Soler, telling reporters in a training session: “This one is good, we’re going to sell this one for $35 million easily.”

According to Tyc Sports, Liverpool made contact with Lanus over Soler’s availability in the summer and a potential $15m deal was mooted, but Soler didn’t allow himself to get caught up in the speculation. “There was a lot of talk, but I try not to think about it,” he said to Argentine newspaper Ole. “You don’t think until it happens. I am here at home in Lanus, happy.”

There is a good chance that Liverpool will revive their interest if Soler stays on his current trajectory, especially now that Robertson has fallen out of favour under new manager Arne Slot. But Manchester United’s need for a player of Soler’s quality is greater.

With Shaw and Tyrell Malacia both still struggling for full fitness, the Red Devils are looking desperately short at left-back, with Diogo Dalot flattering to deceive. TBR Football claims United have been making regular checks on Soler’s progress with a view to launching a formal swoop in 2025.

This much is certain: whoever wins this race will be getting a special footballer. “There is only one player born in 2005 from Argentina who stands out, and that is Juilo Soler.” Independiente head coach Julio Vaccari said earlier this week. Soler has all the qualities needed to “stand out” in the Premier League, too.