Every year, there is a new star who emerges with the eponymous
statement “next big thing in football” surrounding him and is expected to take
the world over with his skills and outrageous talents. Very often, the monikers
such as “next Ronaldo” or “next Messi” have also been attached to their names
but very rarely do these players make a name for themselves other than
achieving those fifteen minutes of fame, so to say. Then again, there are some
players who do become genuine world beaters, breaking of the confines of such
articles, make big money moves and write their names in history.
Here is a look at five such stars, who could become a key
part of their club and country’s fortunes in the new season:
Léo Baptistão: The young Brazilian on the books of Spanish club
Rayo Vallecano has been extremely impressive for the la Liga club, scoring some
important goals in the recently concluded season. And this has made the 20 year
old a hot property in the transfer market and has seen him linked with the
likes of Manchester United and Inter Milan. Regardless of where he plays next
season, the youngster will indeed hope to impress even more and is expected to
be a delight for the viewing audience. With the correct tutoring he may be able
to propel himself quickly in to football stardom, but only time will tell.
Cristian Tello: For those who regularly follow Barcelona,
Tello is a very familiar name and another la Masia prospect tipped for
greatness. The Liverpool and Arsenal target has been on the peripherals for a
long time and with David Villa expected to leave the club in the summer; he
might just be given the chance to shine. They could even dangle with their
system and it could turn out to be the blessing that the talented youngster
needs to break through and become a key cog in the Barcelona machine.
Hachim Mastour: Not many people would have heard about the AC
Milan youngster except that the club paid a whopping £ 500,000 for the services of
the 14 year old. The playmaker has already been a revelation in the academy
side and has been promoted to the second team of the Italian giants and there
are also reports suggesting Milan want the Lega Calcio committee to be lenient
and allow them to field the youngster. Should be get some game time, be it in
the first team or the reserves, a super star for the future could be born.
Marco Verratti: Already dubbed as the “new Andrea Pirlo”,
the 20 year has been running the Paris Saint-Germain midfield with élan in
Ligue 1. Moreover, with players such as Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Ezequiel Lavezzi
around him, his game has improved manifolds in just one year and he is expected
to excel further come the new season. Real Madrid want to snap him up; so they
already see the youngster as capable of running their midfield battle against
Andres Iniesta and Xavi in the el Clasicos. PSG would want to keep all the
young talent at their disposal as they prepare for next season’s UEFA Champions
League. It looks like Verratti's game will improve game-by-game next season,
making the possibility that he becomes a “midfield maestro”.
Wilfried Zaha: The 20 year old England winger has already
displayed some of the talents that made Sir Alex Ferguson shell out £
17 million to make him his last signing as Manchester United manager when he
single handedly led Crystal Palace to a win in the Championship play-off final
against Watford. England coach Roy Hodgson has tipped him for great things and
with the winger coming to Old Trafford, he can expect to learn a lot which will
help him become one of the best wingers of his generation.
DISCLAIMER: This article has been written by a member of the FootballWorld fraternity and represents the personal views of the writer and not of footballworld.co.in.
Posted by Subham Mitra on behalf of FootballWorld.
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