4 THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT LUKA ROMERO

Luka Romero is a young talent who, despite his age, has already made many strides in the world of senior football. The new Rossonero signing has a special story to tell: discover it with us, amidst records and curiosities.

HIS RECORDS
Romero's career has been characterised by a particular precociousness. His professional debut came on 25 June 2020 for Mallorca against Real Madrid. At the age of 15 years and 219 days, he became the youngest player to feature in La Liga, surpassing Francisco Bao Rodríguez's record (15 years and 255 days) which had stood since the 1939/40 season. His first professional goal came on 29 November 2020, at 16 years and 11 days, creating history at Mallorca as their youngest scorer ever. In the 2021/22 season, with Lazio, he became the youngest debutant ever in Serie A, at 16 years, 9 months and 10 days, but also the first player born in 2004 to score a goal in Serie A, against Monza on 10 November 2022. 

THE GUARDIAN LIST
The emerging Argentine's talent has been recognised across all of Europe, earning him a spot in the Guardian's prestigious "Next Generation" list in 2021, which consisted of the 60 best footballing talents in the world born in 2004. In addition to Luka, players of the calibre of Gavi of Barcelona, Moukoko of Borussia Dortmund and Lavia of Manchester City all featured on the list. 

THREE NATIONAL TEAMS
Luka is the son of ex-Argentine footballer Diego Romero but was born in Victoria de Durango in Mexico, whilst his father was playing for Alacranes de Durango. In 2011 the family moved to Spain, where Luka lived for ten years, playing first for Saint Jordi and then for Mallorca. The 18-year-old therefore finds himself in the unique position of being eligible to represent three different national teams: Argentina, his parents' country of origin, Mexico, the country where he was born and Spain, the country where he lived for more than ten years, as mentioned. In the end, he chose Argentina, he has already represented the Albiceleste at U15, U16, U17 and U20 levels. Unlike Luka, his twin brother Tobias (as a goalkeeper) chose Mexico, answering El Tri's call to the U17 team in 2021. 

THE REALITY
It was Gustavo Siviero, the Argentine of Friulian origin, who brought Romero to Mallorca, back in 2015. As he recently explained in an interview, he first noticed Luka through a football reality show in Ibiza. "The aim was to form two teams of 14 boys each after having seen 1200 in all the Balearic Islands. Luka stood out because he did not play like a 10-year-old: he struck the ball very hard, positioned himself well with his body, communicated with his teammates and interpreted movements well. He played in attack, on the wing or in the middle, but was always looking to get the ball onto his left foot to shoot." From there, discussion with his parents, invitation to a trial and the blooming of a very young career. 

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