International tournaments like the FIFA World Cup and the UEFA Euro provide a perfect platform for young players to gain worldwide recognition and raise their stocks in the transfer market. Look at how Thomas Muller became a sensation after his brilliant show during the FIFA World Cup 2010.
Like in every other major tournament, the upcoming edition of Euro also features many promising youngsters from across Europe. Many of them are familiar names to avid football fans as they play for some of the top European clubs and are regulars for their teams.
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So here is a look at the top 10 U21 players travelling to France for Euro 2016 and can send the football world into a frenzy with their dazzling performance.
#10 Joshua Kimmich
Age: 21
Country: Germany
Club: Bayern Munich
Kimmich, who is a midfielder by trade found chances hard to come by at Bayern due to the presence of players like Arturo Vidal, Thiago Alcantara and Xabi Alonso in the Bayern Munich midfield. Midway through the 2015/16 season, Bayern endured an injury crisis as their recognised centre-backs Jerome Boateng, Mehdi Benatia, Holger Badstuber and Javi Martinez were all injured.
Desperate times call for desperate measures and Guardiola put Kimmich in central defence and much to the surprise of everyone, the youngster excelled in his new role and even put in a man of the match performance against Borussia Dortmund in a game that was crucial in the title race.
Kimmich adapted to his new role brilliantly and did well despite his small stature for a centre back. His performance in defence didn’t go unrewarded as he was given a berth in Germany’s squad for the upcoming Euro. With Rudiger pulling out of the squad because of an injury, Kimmich might get his chance to shine in France.
#9 Divock Origi
Age: 21
Country: Belgium
Club: Liverpool
Divock Origi made headlines back in 2014 when he scored the only goal for Belgium in a World Cup game against Russia. The youngster was snapped up by Liverpool and struggled in England initially under Brendan Rodgers. However, the arrival of Jurgen Klopp sparked new life into him.
Origi scored his first goal for Liverpool in a league cup fixture against Southampton and he ended the game with a hat-trick to his name. Towards the end of last season, Origi became Klopp’s first choice striker ahead of Daniel Sturridge and the Belgian repaid Klopp’s faith in full by scoring 4 goals in three games including one in each leg of the famous Europa League quarter-final fixture against Borussia Dortmund.
The 21-year-old is one of the four strikers in the Belgium squad for Euros and did decently in the friendly fixtures in the build-up to the big event. If he can reproduce the form he showed with Liverpool, then he can be a trump card for the tournament’s dark horses.
#8 Julian Weigl
Age: 20
Country: Germany
Club: Borussia Dortmund
It’s amazing how Borussia Dortmund find so many relatively unknown players from around the globe and turn them into superstars, and the latest addition to the list of such players is Julian Weigl.
Weigl signed for Dortmund in summer transfer window of 2015 and quickly cemented his place in the starting line-up alongside Gundogan, while benching players like Sven Bender and Nuri Sahin.
The young German midfielder is a very good passer of the ball and rarely misplaces his passes. In addition to this, his ball retention is wonderful and is hardly dispossessed by the opposition. This skill set coupled with his hard work and the immense composure he has shown for his age has already put him on the radar of many clubs.
Weigl was named in the German squad for the Euros despite being an uncapped player and recently made his debut for Germany in a friendly against Hungary. It will be hard for Weigl to get a starting role with the World Champions, but he could still prove to be a valuable player for them like Kramer proved to be at the World Cup.
#7 Marcus Rashford
Age: 18
Country: England
Club: Manchester United
On February 25, 2016, a relatively unknown striker named Marcus Rashford started for Manchester United in a Europa League game against Midtjylland after Anthony Martial was injured during warm-up. The teenager scored a brace in the game to help United to a 5-1 win. Fast forward to the present day and the teenager is representing England at Euro 2016 and is also the youngest player in the tournament.
Following Rashford’s brace against Midtjylland, he was given his Premier League debut as a starter against Arsenal and he scored another brace and provided an assist to help United register a 3-2 win. However, his biggest moment in the limelight came in the local derby against Manchester City as he scored the only goal of the game.
His brilliant form in the last three months of the season saw him make the England squad for Euros and he celebrated his debut by scoring the opening goal against Australia in a friendly after just three minutes.
#6 Kingsley Coman
Age: 19
Country: France
Club: Bayern Munich (on loan from Juventus)
Aged just 19, Kingsley Coman has already won the Ligue 1 with PSG, Serie A with Juventus and the Bundesliga with Bayern Munich among many other domestic trophies. However, he only played a decisive role in the trophies he won with Bayern Munich last season.
Coman, who’s a graduate of PSG’s academy, moved to Bayern Munich on loan from Juventus and blossomed under the guidance of Pep Guardiola. The youngster was initially given a substitute role, but injuries to Robben and Ribery opened up an opportunity for him to shine.
At the end of last season, Coman scored 6 goals and provided 11 assists across all competitions in just 29 starts and 10 substitute appearances. The brilliant progress he made with Bayern earned him a national team call-up and he made his debut against Germany last year.
He also scored his only goal for France in a friendly against Russia back in March.
#5 Renato Sanches
Age: 18
Country: Portugal
Club: Bayern Munich
When a club like Bayern Munich spends €35m on an 18-year-old player despite the abundance of quality in their midfield, one can be sure that the teenager is extra special.
Sanches rose to fame last season while playing for Benfica and helped his team to domestic double. The interest in the 18-year-old was high and in the end, Bayern emerged victorious in the race to sign him.
The Portuguese sensation is the second youngest player at the Euro and only Marcus Rashford is younger than Sanches. Despite his age and lack of experience on the international stage, Sanches was picked in the squad ahead of the likes of Tiago, Miguel Veloso and Ruben Neves.
He made his debut for Portugal in March 2016 as a substitute and he might have to settle for such a role in France as well. However, he could prove to be a match-changing substitute for Portugal.
#4 Leroy Sane
Age: 20
Country: Germany
Club: Schalke 04
Leroy Sane is yet another promising youngster to emerge from Schalke's brilliant academy. The youngster gained worldwide attention back in March 2015 when he scored a belter against Real Madrid of all teams en route to a famous 4-3 win for Schalke at the Bernabeu.
The youngster was restricted to a bench role early in his first team career with Schalke, but when Julian Draxler left for Wolfsburg in the summer transfer window of 2015, Sane had an opportunity to make the vacant spot in the first team his.
Sane took the opportunity well and ended the 2015/16 season with 23 starts and 10 substitute appearances. At the end of the season, he had 8 goals and 6 assists to his name. His brilliant performance for Schalke prompted Joachim Loew to give him a call-up to the German squad and he made his debut against France in November 2015.
It will be difficult for Sane to get a starting role with Germany, but he is likely to get a few chances as a substitute in France.
#3 Hector Bellerin
Age: 21
Country: Spain
Club: Arsenal
It takes a lot of skill and courage for a young player to come into the first team of a club like Arsenal and quickly cement his place as the first choice right back by benching a player like Mathieu Debuchy. This alone speaks a lot about the quality of Hector Bellerin.
The Spaniard has become one of the most talked about players in Europe thanks to his immense pace. He is a very good player in attack and in defence and was named in the PFA Team of the season for 2015/16. He ended last season with 1 goal and 8 assists to his name.
Bellerin was not part of Spain’s initial roster for the Euro but was drafted in following Dani Carvajal’s injury. Make no mistake; the 21-year-old is capable of starting for Spain ahead of Juanfran if the need arises.
He made his debut for Spain as a starter in a friendly against Bosnia and Herzegovina which ended in a 3-1 win for the defending European champions.
#2 Dele Alli
Age: 20
Country: England
Club: Tottenham Hotspur
Dele Alli was one of the revelations of last Premier League season and the way in which he made his transition from League One to the Premier League was quite remarkable.
Alli was named the PFA Young player of the season for his outstanding debut season in the Premier League in which he scored 10 goals and provided 9 assists in just 33 games. The youngster, who has openly named Steven Gerrard as his role model, has surely made the Liverpool legend proud with some outstanding goals which have laid emphasis on his shooting ability.
The 20-year-old made his England debut last year against France and scored the opening goal from long range to beat his club teammate Hugo Lloris. Alli is likely to have a starting role with England considering his form with Spurs and could prove to be a match winner for the Three Lions.
#1 Anthony Martial
Age: 20
Country: France
Club: Manchester United
Manchester United star and the most recent winner of the prestigious Golden Boy award, Anthony Martial, needs no introduction. If he does, then one has to just go and watch what he did in his debut for Man Utd.
Martial is currently the most expensive teenager on the planet and he has already shown why the giants of English football spent so much money on him. The Frenchman is a very tricky customer and his ability to play on the wings or as the centre forward has made him an instant hit at Old Trafford.
The former Monaco man has been a regular for France for over a year now and although he is yet to score for them, his performance for the hosts of the Euro has been more than convincing.
Martial was one of the standout performers in a Man Utd side that struggled last season as he ended the season with 17 goals and 12 assists across all competitions. His performance against Everton in the FA Cup semi-final was key to the club reaching the FA Cup final which they eventually won.
