Future stars on show as wide-open under-20 Fifa World Cup kicks off in South Korea

Some of the world’s top young footballing talent will be on display with more than 500 players in 24 teams taking part, but the bookmakers are split on who to make favourites.

Bet365 make 2013 winners and 2016 under-19 European champions France 6/1 favourites, followed by Germany at 7/1 and Uruguay and Argentina, both at 9/1. But Bwin have Germany 4/1, with Argentina 5/1 and France 7/1 and Italy 9/1.

France’s Bleuets will be without Monaco prodigy Kylian Mbappe, who misses out at the insistence of his club and senior French coach Didier Deschamps, whose team have three matches to play early next month.

Saturday’s opening game sees Venezuela – whose squad includes four full internationals including the 12-cap Malaga forward Adalberto Penaranda – take on Germany in a group B encounter in Daejeon.

It is followed in Jeonju by one of the most eagerly-anticipated World Cup rivalries when England take on six-time winners Argentina.