5 Underrated midfielders you should be keeping an eye on | UEFA Champions League 2019/20

#4 Houssem Aouar (Olympique Lyon)

Aouar was impressive against Manchester City in last year's UCL group stage

Olympique Lyon is amongst those teams that were severely raided by the big clubs in the transfer market. With Tanguy Ndombele, Ferland Mendy and club captain Nabil Fekir leaving, all the attention will finally be on Houssem Aouar. The Algeria-born French midfielder has exceptional dribbling expertise and has been fantastic in the number 8 role.

When Lyon pulled off a surprise win over Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium in the group stage, Pep Guardiola praised the 21-year-old for his impeccable performance. Aouar is intelligent with the ball and press resistant, indicating that he can easily glide past the opposition.

Despite having a relatively small frame, Aouar holds the ball exceptionally. He tracks back whenever he is dispossessed and can also tackle bravely. His defensive contributions require special appreciation, as in the modern football world, players as creative as Aouar tend to neglect their defensive duties and focus on advancing upfront.

New manager Sylvinho is deploying Aouar at the left-hand side of a 4-3-3 to free him from a burdening workload and increase his involvement in the build-up.

Last season, Lyon's run in the Champions League was cut short by FC Barcelona that ran riot in the second leg of the Round of 16. Aouar was exceptional for the French side, providing three assists in seven games. He averaged 2.4 tackles, 2.6 dribbles, 1.4 key passes and 1.2 long balls per game. He will have to up his game and replicate the form he displayed in the previous edition for Lyon to have a memorable run this year.