Argentina’s national under-20 football team kicked off its 2025 U-20 World Cup campaign on the right foot, beating its Cuban counterpart 3-1 on Sunday.

The match seemed to be going well for the Albiceleste after it took the lead just three minutes in, as forward Maher Carrizo put a cross for striker Alejo Sarco, who tapped it in for the 1-0.

But the team coached by Diego Placente was left with 10 players less than 10 minutes into the match, when Talleres (Córdoba) defender Santiago Fernández was sent off by the referee. The controversial red card forced the coach to make the first ever use of a green card in Argentine national team history. 

The system, which has been trialed by FIFA before and is making its debut in the U-20 World Cup, allows coaches to show a green card when they wish the referee to videoreview a play. Each team has two requests per game, and is limited to key moments such as goals, sending-offs and potential penalties.

This time, the referee held up his call despite Placente’s request.

Argentina nevertheless remained largely in control of the match, with Sarco scoring again from a cross — this time a high, arching pass from defender Dylan Gorosito — which he headed for his second goal of the night in the 41st minute.

Cuba shrunk the gap right before half-time, as an Argentine defensive mistake from a corner allowed the Caribbean team to make it 2-1.

It was to little avail, as the 10-man Argentine team was still dominant in the second half, and capped it all off with a goal by River Plate striker’s Ian Subiabre in the 89th minute.

“Debuts are always difficult, and we will learn from each game in order to finish in the best possible way,” said Placente after the game. “After the sending off, they pressed higher up the pitch, but we found space and were able to make the most of our chances.”

Argentina’s campaign continues on Wednesday, when it will face Australia. On Saturday, it’ll match up against Italy, who won its opener against the Socceroos. Both matches kick off at 8 p.m. Argentina time.