5 Breakout stars in International football 2018

As the International break has come around, it gives us an opportunity to stop and look back at the football players who have stepped up and shown their brilliance at the club level. Every season there are players who take the batton and run with it and all we can do is try and fathom their brilliance.

Here's a look at 10 players having their breakout season, establishing themselves among the elite of the sport.

#5 Jadon Sancho

The young Englishman has set the Bundesliga on fire

Former Machester City and current Borussia Dortmund man has been on fire since the beginning of this season. Already providing six assists and a goal in just seven appearances of which only one he started. That means, at the moment Sancho has provided the most number of assists among anyone in the top five leagues.

At just 18, he made the bold move of swapping the Etihad stadium for the Westfalenstadion and inherited the departing Dembele's no7 kit. This season he is a part of a fluid frontline alongside club captain Marco Reus, Maximilian Phillip, and Jacob Larsen.

Comfortable playing on either flank, he has been used most frequently as a right-winger, which is a little odd, given that he is right footed. Either way, his ability has made him a vital part of the table-topping Dortmund side. Blistering pace, skills to beat his opponents and a keen eye for a pass, Sancho is someone on everyone's mind at the moment.

Full of confidence after getting his England debut, Harry Kane and Eric Dier were full of praise for the youngster who becomes only the second player after Owen Hargreaves to have played for the national team before the country's top division.

Manchester City would be absolutely gutted to see one of their academy players setting the world alight, but not in a City kit. Keep tabs on him because this lad is going places.

#4 Andre Silva

Milan might regret letting him go after all

No one batted an eyelid when Sevilla announced the loan signing of Milan forward Andre Silva back in the summer, fast forward three months and he has put in performances that have made people take note of him.

The former Milan man had a dismal record of two goals in 24 appearances in the Serie A. Silva managed to better that tally in his debut match for Sevilla, marking the occasion with his first hattrick for the club.

To ensure that no one thinks that it was just a flash in the pan, Silva has backed up that performance pretty well. Currently, on seven goals, he has managed to score in the league this season.

He has managed to carry his club form onto the national setup as well. Scoring twice in his last two appearances. Silva has picked up the mantle as the management has decided to rest starman Cristiano Ronaldo for the current international break.

Strong in the air, comfortable with scoring with either foot, Silva is a real menace in the box. He not only is good at holding up the ball, while he waits for his teammates to provide support but also manages to be in the right place at the right time to score from close range.

If reports are to be believed, his blistering start to the season has prompted Sevilla to meet his buy out clause and make the move permanent.

#3 Lucas Torriera

A strong showing at the World Cup with Uruguay prompted the gunners to sign a relatively unknown player from Sampdoria, but what a masterstroke it has turned out to be. For just around €30 million, Arsenal may have found someone could solve their midfield issues.

At Sampdoria last season, he played as a CDM in a three-man midfield, his job defensively was to shut out the opposing team's no10 and shield the centre-backs. Going forward he was the link between the team's attack and defence. Often carrying the ball forward as the team looked to break quickly on the counter.

This season at Arsenal, he would be the perfect partner for Xhaka in the midfield. As Xhaka usually pushes up to create chances with his passing range, Torriera could happily sit back and cover the gaps left by him. In a middle three, he could play as the holding midfielder, with Xhaka and Ramsey flanking him on either side.

Good at passing, robust in his tackles, a guy who'll do the team's dirty work and allow others to shine. He can provide Emery's team with strength and stability while taking off the defensive shackles of the more creative players.

#2 Krzysztof Piatek

The Genoa frontman has set the world alight with his 9 goals since the start of the season. Currently the top scorer across the top five leagues, Piatek has a big money move coming up, given he maintains his goalscoring record.

The big Pole has already racked up 13 goals in all competitions. He has become the first Serie A player to score in each of his first six matches since '94. He appears to be someone who will take Lewandowski's spot in the national side once the talismanic striker hangs up his boots.

The 23-year-old takes a huge 4.7 on goal per game with most of them coming from inside the box. These are numbers close to those put up by elite strikers like Edinson Cavani and Harry Kane.

A star on the rise, he may well end up giving Ronaldo and Icardi and run for their money in the race for the golden boot.

#1 Paco Alcacer

Can he lead Dortmund back to the top of the Bundesliga?

The Dortmund man has proven how important game time and confidence is to a striker. He looked like a shadow of himself at his time at Barcelona. Although he contributed whenever he was on the pitch, the game time he got just wasn't enough for him to replace Suarez.

A loan move to Borussia Dortmund followed and boy has he hit the ground running. He has played just 84 minutes of league football and has already scored 6 goals. He is currently averaging a goal every 13 minutes. Although he won't be able to sustain this output, he has shown what he is capable of.

His last game in the league saw him come on and score a hattrick, winning the match for his side 4-3, and if that wasn't enough, he topped that up with a brace in his match against Wales.

If reports are to be believed he has impressed the Dortmund hierarchy so much that they're ready to make his loan deal permanent, for a fee of around €25 million. Dortmund currently on top of the table will be looking to their young stars to break the monopoly that Bayern Munich has had on the league title over the past decade.

Edited by Shruti Sadbhav