In the past few weeks, Riechedly Bazoer’s profile has steadily grown from a precocious talent who has become a prominent fixture in Frank De Boer’s starting lineup to scoring on his debut for the Dutch Under-21 side in its qualifying campaign for the Under-21 European Championship to a much deserved call up by Danny Blind
Adriano Galliani, the general manager of AC Milan, thought they had a deal for Monaco’s Geoffrey Kondogbia wrapped up before they saw him unveiled in the blue and black stripes of city rivals Inter. Just like I Rossoneri thought Porto’s Jackson Martinez was joining them before he chose to move to Atletico Madrid, it would
Ligue 1 is brimming with top talents at the moment, and it is not surprising to see clubs ready to pounce and poach these players. Latest to be linked with a move away from France is Monaco’s young forward Anthony Martial. Chelsea have been linked with the 19-year-old in the last few days and Barcelona
The average age of a goalkeeper in the Norwegian top division is 27 years, but at Odd BK a 19-year-old is performing so well that he is being hailed as the biggest Norwegian keeper talent since Tottenham legend Erik Thorstvedt. QUICK FACTS Name: Sondre Rossbach Age: 19 D.O.B: 07 February 2022 Position: Goalkeeper Club:
He has barely made his debut in the Norwegian Tippeligaen, but 17-year-old winger Rafik Zekhnini has already impressed enough to be chased by the likes of Manchester United and Borussia Dortmund. QUICK FACTS Name: Rafik Zekhnini Age: 17. D.o.B: 12/01/2022 Position: Left winger Club: Odd BK The rapid left winger ran circles around Dortmund
Awkward start Mateo Kovacic did not get his Real Madrid career off to the best start when he chose the Catalan language to greet onlookers during his unveiling. It is not sure whether he was set up by a new teammate or made a genuine mistake, but it certainly added an awkward atmosphere to the
There may be a few European players feeling left out because they have not been linked with a move to Manchester United this summer, but Aymeric Laporte is not one of them. If reports are to be believed, the Athletic Bilbao defender is the latest in a long line of players that have been the
Name: Robbie Kruse Position: Winger Age: 26 Country: Australia Club: Bayer Leverkusen Troubled start After a troubled start to his professional career, Robbie Kruse has worked diligently and transformed into one of his national team’s most important players. A knee injury ruled the winger out of the 2014 World Cup and his absence was
Ricardo Kishna: Exceptional raw talent. An Ajax youth system product. Future star winger for the Dutch national team. Recently moved to Lazio after having a fallout with Ajax manager Frank de Boer. Can he develop his skills at Lazio under Stefano Pioli? Beginnings At the beginning of his career, Ricardo Kishna joined ADO Den
Kenneth Omeruo may not have featured for Chelsea’s first team in a competitive fixture, but he is highly regarded by manager Jose Mourinho and has been a key member of the Nigeria senior national team since 2013. Still only 21, Omeruo still has his future ahead of him and will be hoping to make an
Chidiebere Nwakali has not been as lucky at Manchester City as his compatriot, Kelechi Iheanacho, but he still remains one of the most talented and promising young Nigerian footballers coming through. Discovered at the 2013 FIFA U17 World Cup, Nwakali has shown huge potential and will get regular playing time at Malagueno in Spain’s lower
In the presence of such massive stars as Messi, Ronaldo, Neymar and Suarez, it’s very easy for other players in La Liga to get lost in the shadows. In fact, the Spanish league is full of technically-gifted players that rarely make the headlines. So, with the start of the new season just around the corner,
The transfer window rumour mill has been in full force this week with the latest reports suggesting that Arsenal were about to sign midfielder Grzegorz Krychowiak from Sevilla. When asked if he was looking to add the €30m player to his ranks, the Gunners boss replied with an emphatic: “No.” However, Arsenal’s scouts were present
I wonder if Russian sports minister Vitaly Mutko is starting to regret his crackdown on foreigners in the national championship at all. Less than two months after seeing a new 6+5 limit put in place, with only six non-Russian players being allowed on the pitch at one time, the whole existence of Russian football
When top clubs across Europe last season were scouting Strømsgodset’s Martin Ødegaard they could all report back with two fantastic talents at the Norwegian club. Ødegaard was the first to leave Drammen in Norway and the question now is when – and not if – Iver Fossum will follow in his childhood friend’s footsteps.
20-year old Moses Simon is one of Nigeria’s brightest prospects and is expected to become an integral member of the Super Eagles sooner rather than later. He has already won his first cap, in a 0-1 loss to Uganda in Uyo last March and is expected to feature regularly in Sunday Oliseh’s plans. Quick Facts
Few football fans across Europe, including Norwegians, had heard of Martin Samuelsen when he signed a two-year-deal with West Ham in June. The former Manchester City youth player got his debut in July, and now he is the Premier League player Norwegians look forward to seeing the most as the season kicks off. QUICK
Premier League new boys AFC Bournemouth recently landed Max Gradel after their £7m bid for the Saint-Etienne star was accepted. The pursuit of the striker has certainly been tough for the Cherries as Gradel has actually been linked with the English club since last summer. However, the lure has obviously definitely been more since Eddie
Despite a slight wait for a work permit, Newcastle’s signing of Chancel Mbemba was completed pretty swiftly compared to when the Congolese international joined Anderlecht in 2011. Seemingly a victim of the murky practice of African talent being exported to Europe, Mbemba was registered with four birthdays and a subsequent FIFA investigation required a MRI
Angel di Maria is on the verge of completing a move to Paris Saint-Germain which is extremely disappointing for most Manchester United supporters. But Louis van Gaal needs to look at the practical side of things and think about replacements. While the task could be made easier because di Maria didn’t really contribute with a
In the last two days, reports in Spain have suggested that Barcelona starlet Adama Traore is bound for the Premier League with Liverpool being the most likely destination. Further reports in England have backed up these claims although alternative sources have also linked the right-winger with a move to Stoke City or Aston Villa. While
One of the exciting talents that emerged in the Bundesliga recently has been left back Abdul Baba Rahman. The twenty-one year old Ghanaian plies his trade for first division side Augsburg. Baba Rahman is a product of the Dreams Football Academy in Accra. He joined Ghanaian giants Asante Kotoko before sealing his first foreign deal
The Russian Premier League is one of the earliest championships to commence in Europe, and already into week three there have been plenty of scandals. Dynamo Moscow have been expelled from Europe as a result of UEFA’s financial fair-play protocols, former Spartak striker Artyom Dzyuba has shone for Zenit Saint Petersburg, and Russian sports minister
Reports in the Le Parisien claimed that Spurs had tabled an offer worth over £7m for 21-year-old Clinton N’Jie, but the Ligue 1 side was holding out for double the money. Lyon president Jean-Michel Aulas has denied these reports, but interest from London is there and even Tottenham’s arch-rivals Arsenal are said to be interested
Name: Charis Mavrias Position: Winger Age: 21 Country: Greece Club: Panathinaikos It has been a chastening two years for Charis Mavrias at Sunderland. The Greek winger has made just six senior appearances during his time with the English Premier League club and looks set to depart the Stadium of Light this summer. The Black