10 best young players to watch out for in 2014 Forwards & Wingers

2) Mitchy Batshuayi

Who is he?: Batshuayi is a 20 year old striker who plays for Standard Liege. He also plays for the Belgian U-21 side.

Back in 2013: Having been on the fringes for the start of the 2012-13 season, Batshuayi broke into the starting line up in the last couple of months of 2012 and continued in 2013. He finished with a decent haul of 7 goals and 4 assists in 17 starts and 5 substitute appearances in the regular season. He did well in the Playoffs too scoring 4 times in the 10 games, 7 of which he started in. This season has seen Batshuayi hit the ground running. He scored in the first league game of the season against KV Mechelen setting the tone for the campaign. He’s scored 15 goals and registered 3 assists in 22 league appearances so far including a hat-trick against KV Oostende.

He has started 4 of the 5 U-21 qualifiers for Belgium so far scoring 2 goals. He also started in a 1-1 friendly draw against the Spanish U-21 team.

Looking to 2014: Standard Liege have opened up a gap between themselves and the rest of the sides, a process definitely helped by Batshuayi’s goal scoring form. They’ll be looking to stretch their lead heading into the playoffs and will be looking to their main man to keep the goals flowing.

1) Romelu Lukaku

Who is he?: Lukaku is a 20 year old striker who currently plays for Everton on loan from Chelsea. The youngster has already made 23 appearances for the Belgian senior side, a very impressive feat given his age.

Back in 2013: He spent the first half of the calendar year on loan at West Brom in what was a a highly successful spell. He scored 17 goals and 7 assists in 35 league appearances furthering enhancing his reputation as one of the most promising youngsters in Europe. He played a bigger role in the second half of the season and capped it off with a hat-trick on the last day of the season in a 5-5 draw against Manchester United. He surprisingly went out on another loan, this time to Everton and has had a good time at Merseyside thus far. After being eased into the team at the start, he’s been a regular for Everton and scored 9 goals and 6 assists in 20 appearances to date.

Lukaku was a part of the Belgian squad for all of the World Cup qualifiers and even started twice; notably against Croatia when he scored a brace. He’s also started 2 of the last 3 friendlies.

Looking to 2014: Lukaku will stay at Everton for the remainder of the season as they look to qualify for the Champions League. After that of course is the World Cup where Belgium have already been labelled dark horses.