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With the youth setup coming of age at most top football clubs and many wonderkids seamlessly stepping up to the top echelons, there have been many great performances by young players in the ongoing season ravaged by the COVID-19 pandemic.
It's fair to say that these young football players will be a force to reckon with in the years to come, and some of them might even go on and win the coveted Ballon d'Or.
On that note, let us look at five talented football players aged 21 and under who vae belied their young years with impressive performances. A few of them have done it for more than one season.
Without further ado, let us meet five of the hottest young prospects in world football.
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Top five young prospects in world football:
5: Vinicius Junior
Born in the year of 2000 and hailing from Brazil, Vinicius Junior joined Real Madrid in July 2018 for €46 million and has since made nearly 50 league appearances during his two seasons with the Spanish capital club.
The young Brazilian football player scored his first Merengues goal in the El Clasico against Barcelona this season, which happened before the COVID-19 outbreak.
Vinicius Junior has had a fairly a good season, with 29 appearances and three goals to his name.
Originally a left winger on the football field, the Brazilian has had more game-time this season due to injuries to Marco Asensio and Eden Hazard coupled with Gareth Bale falling out of favour with manager Zinedine Zidane.
With his skills and pace upfront, Vinicius Junior is the young football player to look forward to in the Real Madrid attacking ranks as he can play in all the front three positions.
The 20-year-old has time to develop his game and is likely to get more game-time with Real Madrid next season.
Real Madrid have just won the La Liga title and have a key Champions League tie against Manchester City in August coming up. Vinicius Junior would like to make a difference in the closing stages of a long football season.
4: Gianluigi Donnarumma
Number four on the list of the world's top five young football players is Italian Gianluigi Donnarumma who has been with AC Milan since 2015. He made his 200th appearance for the club just a few days ago against Sassuolo, which was the same club against whom he made his Serie A debut.
A Milan regular since the young age of 16 years, Donnarumma is considered one of the brightest prospect of Italian football with his height and technical abilities as a goalkeeper. He is the heir to the throne of Azzurri football legend Gianluigi Buffon, who has predicted an extraordinary future for the boy who has also played for Italy.
AC Milan are on the way up in Serie A. In the 2019/20 season of the competition, Donnarumma has kept 12 clean sheets. With a top-four finish already out of reach for Milan, Donnarumma would like to help Milan seal a Europa League spot for next season.
3: Erling Braut Haaland
Born in Leeds, England to retired Norwegian football player Alf-Inge Haland, Erling-Braut Haaland is a fantastic striker who scores goals for a living. With his tall stature and good built, he is a striker that every team would like to have as he is a threat to the defence because of his keen positional sense.
He lit up the Champions League this season with RB Salzburg, scoring in his first five matches to become the only teenager to do so.
Haaland has 10 Champions League goals, not too bad for a teenager in his first season in European club football's blue riband competition. He moved to Borussia Dortmund in the winter, a team that gives promotes young players and plays attacking football, which should stand Haaland in good stead in the years to come.
At Dortmund, Haaland has scored 13 goals in 15 matches in half a season, proving once again how good he is as a striker. With Dortmund securing Champions League football for next season, it remains to be seen if Haaland will have the same impact and retain his goal-scoring form.
2: Kai Havertz
Kai Havertz is a name which has been appearing in the football transfer market often. He is supposed to sign for Chelsea FC, though nothing official has been confirmed in this regard yet.
Born in 1999, Havertz joined Bayern Leverkusen at the age of 11 and came through their youth ranks to make his senior debut in 2016 against Werder Bremen. Havertz is a talented attacking midfielder who can also play as a right winger and is two-footed, which gives a lot of attacking options to the team.
Havertz is the youngest player to make both 50 and 100 appearances in the Bundesliga, in the process beating former record holder Timo Werner. He also made the 2018-19 Bundesliga team of the season. As an attacking midfielder, Havertz has scored 45 goals and registered 31 assists in his club football career.
Bayer Leverkusen did not qualify for the Champions League next season. Havertz would like to keep playing in Europe's top club football competition with an elite club like Chelsea. But it remains to be seen where Chelsea finishes in the Premier League table.
1: Jadon Sancho
Jadon Sancho is an ex-Manchester City youth player who made a move to Borussia Dortmund in 2017 as he did not make the cut in the senior team for at City.
In the limited time that he received during his first season with the German football club, Sancho made a name a for himself and was since been a regular in the Dortmund team.
Sancho also played in the preliminary rounds of the 2017 U-17 World Cup held in India. He plays predominantly as a right winger but can also play as a left winger.
The young Englishman has already made over 70 appearances in the Bundesliga, tallying 38 assists and 30 goals. He made the Bundesliga team of the season in 2018-19.
Looking at his form and talent, Manchester City seems to have lost out on a great player. Sancho has the potential to perform even better in the coming seasons. He has been pursued by a number of top European football clubs, but as of now, he ooks likely to join Manchester United.
