The next player that caught my eye at the U21 Euro’s was the young Slovak CB, Jakub Jakubko. The 20 year old defender who plays for FC Košice in the Slovak top flight is almost certainly a relative unknown for the football world. At this tournament, he partnered the more established Adam Obert in defence, and never looked out of place. Obert, for comparison, has already played 77 matches for Cagliari in Serie A, and has registered 12 caps for the Slovak senior team. As Obert was the more ball playing CB, Jakubko played a defensive cover role very effectively.
The first thing I noticed about Jakub Jakubko was his mentality. He is as determined of a player as you’ll ever see, with the bravery required to make crucial blocks and tackles. While he was not yet leading and commanding the backline (naturally, due to Obert’s seniority), he will still be eligible for the next U21 Euro tournament in 2027, where he will be the most experienced CB on the squad and given a leadership role.
Physically, Jakubko is as ready to play at the top level as any 20 year old CB you might see. Some physical development will come with time, but he already exhibits very good pace and stamina. While not losing duels at this tournament on strength, that could be a development curve if he were to play in a top 5 league right now. However, with his pace and positioning sense, Jakubko often puts himself in place to make a defensive play before the need for a physical duel is necessary.
In this match against Spain, the Slovak defence was put under heavy pressure for the majority of the match. Jakubko showed impressive concentration throughout the match, and made many important blocks. He rarely put himself in position to concede a penalty, being very smart with his physical challenges inside his own box.
The area most requiring development (if it was required for the system he is playing in), is his on-ball play. Comfortable making short to medium range passes, you could not call him a ball playing CB at the moment. Not all systems require ball playing CB’s, and so this is more a hurdle if Jakubko is to play for a top team in Europe.
Overall, I think that Jakubko could be playing for a mid to low table Serie A club within the next year. There has been a successful path to the Italian leagues for promising Slovak players. Milan Skriniar, Tomas Suslov, Ondrej Duda, Stanislav Lobotka, the aforementioned Obert, and of course, Marek Hamsik are all examples of Slovak national team players who came through Italy in their club careers. Clubs like Cagliari will look at Obert’s success at that level and have (hopefully) seen that Jakubko made a very solid CB partner for him at this tournament. Barring significant technical development on the ball, I think Jakubko may not play for Inter Milan and PSG like Milan Skriniar did, but he absolutely has a very strong chance to be a good Top 5 leagues player and Slovak senior team starter.
So I recently returned from a trip to Slovakia to watch the U21 European Championships, and today is the start of a series of player scouting reports for promising players that caught my eye in the match. I was generally focusing on players that the majority of football clubs/supporters might not know, if you are not a follower of that national team. So this means that even though Jarell Quansah had a good game for England, his 58 senior appearances for Liverpool already make him a pretty well-known quantity and not worth my time to scout compared to a more unknown player. For each report, I’ll be assessing the player’s level in relation to the others on the pitch, identifying their strengths/weaknesses, and making an educated guess on what their ceiling for potential might be.
When watching Slovakia take on Spain, I was impressed by Dominik Javorcek’s match, albeit a losing effort. Javorcek, 22 years old, is a product of the Zilina youth system, and spent the past season on loan in the Bundesliga with Holstein Kiel.
Javorcek is primarily a wide-left, defensive player, able to comfortably play anywhere from Left-back to left midfield. In a back 5, he would be a competent wide centre back on the left. If needed, he could play as a LW, although this will not be his best position. Javorcek is tall for a full-back, at 183cm, and has a strong build.
Technically, there is still work to be done if Javorcek wants to become a top level fullback/wingback. He does not possess a lot of tricks and is a very functional dribbler (when the moment calls for it, he does not go out of his way to try and dribble his man). He is very comfortable playing short passes in buildup, and has a very good sense of positioning both on and off the ball. His crossing is already at a decent level, but some more consistency in his delivery is needed. Javorcek has strong defensive sense and is physically capable of keeping up with speedy forwards. While not an elite aerial player, Javorcek will win headers over opposition wingers relatively easily.
The tactical and mental sides of his game were what impressed me the most about Javorcek in the match against Spain. His best attribute is his off the ball runs. Javorcek showed a great sense for when to make a run forward, and consistently curved his runs to stay onside. Javorcek was able to recognize when he needed to make a run inside to support his winger, and did so very competently. He made more positive forward runs than his teammates were able to take advantage of by finding him with the ball, which is a good sign if Javorcek were to play at a higher level. Mentally, he appeared to have a professional mindset already despite his young age. His determination and effort levels did not drop off during the match, despite having to cover a lot of ground up the left flank.
Javorcek (#5), playing at LB against Spain U21
While his season at Holstein Kiel did not appear spectacular just based on statistics, football is a lot more than statistics, especially for defenders. Kiel was one of the weakest teams in the Bundesliga, which also will affect how an individual player on that team appears to be performing. In the match against Spain, Javorcek was able to catch Marc Pubill off guard with his runs on several occasions, who had a very strong season in LaLiga 2 this year. As Pubill is a player more of you will be likely to know, it can be a useful comparison. Defensively, Javorcek is on Pubill’s level if not slightly better. In terms of making runs and positioning in possession, Javorcek outperformed Pubill. Only in technical ability was Pubill clearly superior to Javorcek in this match, which is understandable given that Spain regularly prioritizes technical development in young players.
Given that the Bundesliga is a significantly better league than La Liga 2, and Javorcek was playing for a relegation candidate in the Bundesliga vs Pubill playing for one of the better teams in La Liga 2, the difference in their season statistics/ratings appears to be mostly down to this. As of right now, I believe Javorcek is at the level of a very good 2nd division player in the Top 5 nations in Europe (2. Bundesliga/Championship/Serie B/ etc.), or pushing for a starting spot in the Dutch/Belgian top divisions. Considering that the main area he needs to improve in is technique, while his game sense and mentality are already at a very high level, joining a club with a strong coaching staff could see Javorcek get significantly better, very quickly. He already is the type of person you want on your team, and is very close to being at a technical level to contribute in Europe’s biggest leagues. At only 22 years old and a defender, Javorcek has plenty of time to reach his full potential. I strongly believe that he will be a starter for the Slovak senior national team soon, possibly as soon as the 2026 World Cup (given Slovakia’s relatively thin depth at LB).
I have a new name to add to your watchlist: 16 year old Danish striker Mikkel Bro Hansen. A product of the Aarhus GF academy (the same club that former Glimt star Albert Grønbaek came from), and Danish youth international, Bro Hansen recently signed with Bodø/Glimt in February and has been immediately integrated into the first team. Moving from youth teams, to training with the Glimt first team every day will be very beneficial to Hansen’s development, and Glimt is a club that he can start to reach his full potential at.
The Bodø/Glimt manager, Kjetil Knutsen, takes a general philosophical approach of “marginal improvements, every day.” This means he does not set specific targets or goals for his players to try (or possibly fail) to reach. Instead he wants his players to simply focus on making improvements every day, focusing on the process instead of the end goal. This type of environment will be key to help Bro Hansen develop while also growing in confidence, without an unrealistic progression goal to try and reach.
So far, the young striker has featured for the Glimt senior team in two cup matches so far this season. While both were against lower tier sides in Norway, these were still fully grown men, and the 16 year old striker was given the start in both matches. He delivered, scoring a hat trick + assist in each match. While not the most physically imposing centre-forward (this is to be expected, as he is still just a child), Mikkel Bro Hansen has already shown a high level of competence in many of the mental areas that are necessary to be an elite striker, things many strikers often do not develop until later in their careers. His sense of when to make a run and WHERE to make that run is excellent, some of the best I’ve seen for a player this age. This allowed him to totally dominate opponents who were held significant physical advantages over him. Bro Hansen is a very fluid type of centre-forward, who does like to drop deeper and link up with his teammates. This suits Glimt’s style of football, another reason this transfer is likely to be beneficial to him. He is a smart player who knows how to play to his strengths, and with where he’s at now at 16, I believe he has all the potential to become a elite centre-forward at a top European club. Bro Hansen has the talent, and seems to have the ambition required to reach his full potential. Leaving home and joining the Glimt first team at 16 is no simple task for a very young player, but the plan Glimt have presented to him for his development made it worthwhile. If Bro Hansen reaches his full potential, it isn’t a question of if Bodø/Glimt can keep hold of him, but rather when a club with more than 10x the budget of Bodø come knocking.
In the end this move will only be a win-win for Bodø. Top European clubs likely will not try to make a move for Bro Hansen until he turns 18 (which will happen near the end of the January 2027 transfer window). If his development skyrockets at Glimt, we could see him making a move this early. However, as many other players have shown at Glimt, it would not hurt his career to stay in northern Norway for another year or two, playing regular European football with Bodø. It is impossible to know with certainty how good a player this young could become. There are so many factors affecting a player’s development, on and off the pitch, that all we can really do is track their progress year by year and re-evaluate regularly. Given what we’ve seen so far, Mikkel Bro Hansen has everything he needs to become one of Denmark’s finest centre-forwards in their nation’s proud history, and even if he doesn’t reach his full potential, will almost certainly carve out a very respectable career in Europe at the top level.
In the Europa League semi-final against Tottenham (the first leg starts today), Bro Hansen is coming into the match as Glimt’s only legitimate backup striker, as Andreas Helmersen, the usual sub for Kasper Høgh, is suspended for the first leg. Obviously Knutsen will not want to harm his development by throwing him into a game-state that isn’t set up for him to succeed. However, this is the most likely chance we will have to see Bro Hansen make his top-level debut for Glimt, and that is exciting.
Mikkel Bro Hansen. Remember the name, he is One to Watch.
It’s time we talk about Djed Spence. The now 24 year old wingback is in the midst of a true breakout season at Spurs, showing that he is one of the squad’s most important players this year after starting the season with his place at the club uncertain. If you don’t recall, Spence has had a bit less direct of a journey to the Premier League than many of the highly touted wonderkids you see making debuts as a teenager.
After first joining the Fulham academy, Spence was playing for Fulham’s U18’s at 16 years old, before moving to Middlesbrough in January of 2020. After a solid couple of seasons with Middlesbrough, Spence was loaned to Nottingham Forest for the 21/22 season, having a very strong year, prompting his ~15 million euro move from Middlesbrough to Spurs at the end of his Forest loan. At the time, Antonio Conte was the Spurs manager, not a manager known for signing promising youngsters and developing them. Conte made Spence’s start to life at Spurs difficult by immediately labelling him a “club signing”, implying that it was Daniel Levy who wanted to sign Spence, and that Conte had nothing to do with the transfer. After being unable to get any significant playing time under Conte, Spence joined Stade Rennais on loan for the remainder of the 22/23 season.
Once the 23/24 season began, Djed Spence yet again could not find a place at Spurs, and was sent out on loan again, to Leeds this time. This was possibly his least effective loan yet, as Leeds manager Daniel Farke made claims that Spence’s attitude and character wasn’t up to standard, and that’s why Spence wasn’t playing. At this point, a lot of people started to write off Djed Spence. His loan to Leeds was cancelled in January, and he went out yet again, this time to Genoa in Serie A. Spence had a strong season with Genoa, who were interested in signing him permanently, a move Spurs were close to making last summer. Instead , Spence stayed at the club, and Ange Postecoglou gave him another chance to prove himself as a professional and as a player with a future at Spurs. Amidst an injury crisis, Spence was thrown into the deep end, going from fringe player to starter overnight, and make the most of this opportunity he did.
Early on in Spurs’ EFL Cup run, they looked likely to go out to Coventry City, trailing late in the game before Spence made a weaving run forward from LB, played a quick interchange with Dejan Kulusevski and scored to tie the game for Spurs, who would score again to win the game before fulltime. Spence would begin a regular run of starts towards the end of December, and since then has been arguably Spurs most consistent player (with Kulusevski showing signs of fatigue lately after being played in near every match this season).
Spence’s story is a lesson to both players and coaches. All young players will have a different path to reach their full potential. Some will have everything click at 18 or 19 years old, and some will take a little longer to reach their full potential. Djed Spence is a lesson to not write off a player just because he hasn’t become a Premier League superstar by age 20. From looking like a Spurs’ reject a year ago, to being one of their most important players now, Djed Spence has shown immense resilience and professionalism to work hard in training every day waiting for his chance. As Postecoglou confirmed, it was how Spence approached training on a daily basis while he was not playing regularly that earned him his chance.
Now he’s been unleashed, and isn’t a secret anymore. Tuchel should be seriously considering Spence for his next England team, what he can do from fullback is very unique amongst the England players. How many recent England teams have been cursed with a lack of directness, a lack of the final ball, all while holding relatively meaningless possession in their own half? What Djed Spence brings to a team in possession, is ball progression. Amongst fullbacks, Spence ranks in the 97th percentile for successful take-ons per game, often completing more dribbles in the match than Spurs’ wingers. When facing a compact block, the creativity and movement of Djed Spence can create significant space for England’s other playmakers and give defenders a tough decision to make when marking, and this is a skillset that I do not see other England FB options showing regularly.
Make sure to keep an eye on him, because Djed Spence is here, and he’s not going anywhere.
It’s time to talk about Dean Huijsen. The 19 year old centreback, born in the Netherlands, grew up in Marbella, now showing what Dutch total football with a Spanish touch is all about. Huijsen is balling out at Bournemouth this season after joining from Juventus Next Gen in the summer. Another smart piece of business by Bournemouth, recognizing Juventus’s need to sell promising prospects to raise funds for the here and now. Signed for around a 15M euro fee, Huijsen was seen as a depth option for Bournemouth now, but was never expected to contribute as much as he has. Compared to other CB’s in the top European leagues, Huijsen registers in the 85th percentile or higher for all offensive metrics. Not to forget the primary focus of a central defender, Huijsen has been no slouch in his own end this year. See his comparison to other top league CB’s from FBRef, below:
As you can see, this is a CB who wants to be on the ball. Progressive passes, carrying the ball, getting forward to receive passes behind the first line of press, he’s been doing it all this year. At only 19, one has to wonder if the sky is the limit for Huijsen. Take social media rumours for what you will, but the fact I’ve seen him linked with interest from Real Madrid is at the very least a testament to his play this year.
The young Spanish/Dutchman has shown a love for the biggest stage already. Bagged the game winner over Spurs at home, and 3 games later scored again at Old Trafford leading to another Bournemouth win over a Top 6 opponent. In his last outing vs Everton, Huijsen did his part and then some in a clean sheet performance, registering 9 clearances and 4 ball recoveries, while winning the majority of his duels. At the rate he’s going, I wouldn’t be surprised if a club tries to prize Huijsen away from the south coast of England, with a hefty profit going to Bournemouth, of course.
He’s one to keep an eye on. Dean Huijsen. Remember the name.
Hello again, football fans! I hope everyone’s had an enjoyable holidays, and are ready for the second half of the season in Europe! As we are pretty much at the halfway point for Europe’s top 5 leagues, I thought I’d start a series looking at the top players from each position based on performance this season alone! Today’s article will be the keepers, and there are certainly some standouts to discuss, none more so than this articles headliner: Alvaro Valles.
Álvaro Valles (La Liga/ Las Palmas,/26 years old)
For me, the award of “Most Valuable Keeper” so far this season can only go to one man. Álvaro Valles is performing so much better than any other keeper could be expected to in his place, it is almost unbelievable. Playing for a newly promoted Las Palmas side in La Liga, Valles has accumulated a mind-blowing 10.3 Goals Prevented so far this season across 18 matches.
Goals Prevented and xG on Target (xGoT):
Goals Prevented is an advanced statistic that compares the total xGoT (xG on Target) a keeper has faced to the number of goals conceded. Most of you have probably heard of xG by now, but perhaps not xGoT. While xG is a measure of the quality of shot selection (location of shot, # of nearby defenders, type of shot), xGoT is a measure of the quality of the actual shot taken. The most obvious example to use is someone like Roberto Carlos, known for his powerful and accurate free kicks. The xG given to a Roberto Carlos free kick would be very low, because it is based on an average of all shots taken by all footballers in that league over time (let’s say the xG = 0.05). Now let’s say Roberto Carlos takes the free kick, and it is perfectly struck right into the top corner, off the post and in. The xGoT attributed to this shot would be very high, much higher than the initial xG, due to the quality of Carlos’s shot. This is why we use xGoT when analysing keepers, not xG. To summarize, “Goals Prevented” is the difference between all of the xGoT accumulated on a keeper, and that keeper’s goals conceded.
Now, back to Valles. Valles has a Goals Prevented total this year of 10.3 so far, meaning based on the quality of shots he has faced, we would expect at least 10 more goals to have been conceded by Valles. To put this stat into context, the next best in La Liga is Unai Simon, with 4 Goals Prevented, while the Premier League’s leader, Thomas Kaminski, has 5.0 Goals Prevented, less than half that of Valles! Las Palmas, as a newly promoted side, have the 2nd fewest goals conceded in La Liga after only Real Madrid, and Alvaro Valles is the biggest reason why. Las Palmas currently sit 9th in La Liga at the time of writing, and one has to expect them to stay mid-table if they can hold on to Valles, which may not be a sure thing. Barcelona are reportedly already looking at buying Valles from Las Palmas, which would make sense from their perspective.
Thomas Kaminski (Premier League/Luton Town/ 31 years old)
After making 118 appearances for Blackburn from 2020-2023, Thomas Kaminski signed with Luton Town ahead of their inaugural Premier League season. Since joining, he has been outstanding for the Hatters, seemingly giving them a chance in every game despite not having nearly as much talent in the squad as the rest of the league. This is reflected in the fact that Luton are 3rd worst in the Premier League in goals conceded this year, and yet Kaminski is still outperforming expectations, with 5.0 Goals Prevented this season. With Luton currently sitting one win from pulling themselves out of the relegation zone, there will be one main person to thank if they stay up this year, Thomas Kaminski. His performances against the best clubs in the league have been quite admirable , making 5 stops to earn a draw vs Liverpool, while outperforming his expected goals conceded in near every match Luton play.
Marcin Bulka (Ligue 1/OGC Nice/24 years old)
Undoubtedly the top keeper in Ligue 1 this season, and a major part in Nice sitting just 5 points off league leaders PSG by New Year’s, the Polish former Chelsea academy keeper is truly making a name for himself this season. 17 matches played, 11 clean sheets. Yes, you read that correctly. Bulka has recorded a clean sheet in 65% of Nice’s Ligue 1 matches this season, and Nice’s 9 goals conceded so far is the lowest in Ligue 1, 5 less than next best PSG and Lille. Bulka boasts the highest save percentage in Ligue 1, as well as a very respectable 4.0 Goals Prevented. Bulka has saved 2/3 of the penalties he’s faced this year, and looks to become one of the transfer market’s most wanted keepers if he can continue this form. At only 24 years old, the sky is very much still the limit for Bulka and I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s moved on from Nice in a year’s time.
Guglielmo Vicario (Premier League/Spurs/27 years old)
Throughout last season, it became a sad truth to Spurs that their longtime leader in net, Hugo Lloris, was clearly past his prime and could no longer offer what is needed from a modern goalkeeper, especially with the ball at his feet and acting as a sweeper. Enter Guglielmo Vicario, fresh off a career season at Empoli where he was the main reason that Empoli did not get relegated (see: this year’s Serie A table), arriving at Spurs for a 18.5 million euro fee. Vicario wasted no time upon arriving, establishing himself as the clear #1 keeper of the future and showing how perfectly suited he was to play under Ange Postecoglu’s new system at Spurs. If there were any doubts about Vicario’s sweeping ability before this year, I’d like to turn your attention to the Chelsea 4-1 Spurs result from this year. In this match, Spurs went down to 9 men and played an extremely high line despite the disadvantage, often at the midfield line. Countless times Vicario sprung out of his box to clear a through ball sent in behind the Spurs’ backline, and he alone prevented the scoreline from being something closer to 8-1. Having watched every Spurs game so far this year, I have yet to see a bad performance from Vicario, he has been without a doubt Tottenham’s most consistent player this season, offering so much calmness and composure at the back. Even when his teammate makes a mistake, Vicario is quick to tell them to shake it off and move on, unlike many keepers we see who seem to love any opportunity to scream at their defence whenever they make a save. From his ball playing ability, to his shot stopping, to his mentality and leadership, Guglielmo Vicario has been a perfect signing for Spurs, and will be one of the Premier League’s top keepers for years to come.
Honorable Mentions: Lukas Hradecky (Leverkusen), Marvin Schwabe (Koln), Michele Di Gregorio (Monza), Yann Sommer (Inter), Brice Samba (Lens)
Conclusion:
So that wraps up my top performers in goal so far this season! How many of these keepers will remain on their team in a year’s time, and how many will be picked up by bigger clubs? By just how much will Alvaro Valles finish the season as the best keeper in La Liga? Will Thomas Kaminski or Guglielmo Vicario finish the year with the most Goals Prevented in the Premier League? We’ll have to wait and see to find out the answers to these questions, but that’s the fun of football isn’t it? Thanks to everyone for reading, and as always feel free to leave any comments or suggestions!
Hello football fans, I hope you’ve all been enjoying the interesting start to the season across Europe’s leagues! Today I’d like to look at some of my favorite success stories that were perhaps unpredicted heading into the year. With that, let’s start from the top of UEFA’s league rankings and go from there.
English Premier League: West Ham and Wolverhampton
At the start of the season, West Ham and Wolves both had a troubling lack of signings, and there were well-merited concerns that both clubs could be in relegation danger if things did not go their way this year. West Ham addressed their lack of signings, bringing in Mohamed Kudus, Edson Alvarez, and James Ward Prowse. The latter has been as sensational as you would expect the best set-piece taker in the league to be under David Moyes, a set-piece enamored manager. West Ham have marked wins over Chelsea and Brighton to start the season, with their only losses being to Liverpool and Manchester City. After just 7 games, I believe West Ham have shown enough for relegation concerns to be a thing of the past, and they very well might have their sights set on European places again! It will be interesting to see the toll their Europa League campaign takes on their Premier League season.
Wolves on the other hand, did not address their lack of signings, as their financial troubles handcuffed their player recruitment. However, Gary O’Neill deserves plenty of praise for the way Wolves have played to start the season. He has great attacking options in Matheus Cunha, Hwang-Hee Chan, and Pedro Neto, who have proven to be very dangerous breaking in the counter -attack against teams playing a high-line possession game. Wolves were unlucky not to get a point from Old Trafford in the season opener, with THAT Onana non-call robbing them of a last-minute penalty to secure a draw. I must say that they have been inconsistent. Wolves were heavily outplayed by Liverpool and surprisingly Luton Town, but were able to match Manchester United, Brighton, and Manchester City in terms of xG produced during those matches. A win over Manchester City last week is the biggest surprise of the Premier League so far, with few people expecting Guardiola’s men to lose their first game to Wolves. I cannot say that Wolves are guaranteed safety from relegation yet, but their performances have certainly been much better than that of a relegation side. If they can find some more consistency against the lower teams in the table, then I believe Wolves have every chance to stay up, and even finish in a mid-table position.
Honorable Mention: Spurs
(Disclaimer: I support Spurs)
I was optimistic about Spurs entering this season under Ange Postecoglu, especially with the signings of James Maddison, Guglielmo Vicario, and Micky van de Ven. Several problem areas from last season were addressed with those signings and I rate Postecoglu highly as a manager, he seems to be a perfect fit for Spurs so far. That being said, I did not expect Spurs to have this good of a start to the season. Postecoglu’s teams usually take a while before getting into their true stride, but the speed at which this new-look Spurs squad have adapted to his system is truly impressive. Maddison has been a revelation, being arguably the best player in the Premier League so far, producing 2 goals and 4 assists through 7 games. Yves Bissouma looks reborn in midfield, with everyone questioning why on earth Antonio Conte didn’t play him last year. No player across Europe’s top 5 leagues have had a more all-around impact in midfield than Bissouma, who is winning tackles, breaking presses, and making progressive passes constantly throughout each match. Even against strong pressing teams like Arsenal and Liverpool, Bissouma calmly kept possession under a press countless times, showing his class. Currently Spurs sit 2nd in the table, having notched wins over Manchester United and Liverpool, while showing incredible spirit to fight back twice to earn a 2-2 draw at the Emirates in the North London Derby. Squad depth and injuries are a potential issue for the team, but with no other competitions until January, Spurs can be optimistic about their chances of continuing this start into the January transfer window, where more reinforcements will be needed to mount a serious charge for the top spots in the table.
La Liga: Girona
After a 10th place finish last year, and being promoted from the 2nd division of Spain the year prior, I don’t think many expected Girona to start this La Liga season right up at the top of the table. Ukrainian attacking duo Artem Dovbyk and Viktor Tsigankov have been stellar for Girona to start the year, notching 3 goals and 4 assists between them. Savio Moreira, on loan from Troyes, is a promising Brazilian youngster who is the third main man in attack, with 4 goals and 2 assists through 8 games. Youth is a common theme in this team, with 3 out of 4 members of Girona’s most regular starting XI being 22 years old or younger. Veteran Daley Blind leads the young backline, complemented by Eric Garcia on loan from Barcelona, with Miguel Gutierrez and Yan Couto supporting from fullback. The one criticism of the hype around Girona could be their strength of schedule. They have not yet beaten a team that finished in the top half of La Liga last season, drawing Real Sociedad and recently losing 0-3 at home to Real Madrid. Time will tell if this young squad can maintain this blazing start and challenge the established elite in La Liga.
Serie A: Lautaro Martinez
With Romelu Lukaku departing for Roma in the offseason, and Andre Onana heading to Manchester United, Inter Milan needed someone to step up. That someone has been Lautaro Martinez. A whopping 9 goals through the first 7 matches of the Serie A campaign, with an average of 61 minutes played per goal. In addition, Martinez is outperforming his xG significantly, with those 9 goals coming from 4.6 xG. The addition of Marcus Thuram on a free transfer was priceless for Inter in a way, and the frenchman has found an instant chemistry with Lautaro up front in Inzaghi’s 5-3-2 system. Thuram has contributed 4 assists and added 2 goals of his own, to form Italy’s best attacking duo so far. Inter sit first in Serie A, ahead of their rivals AC Milan on goal difference, largely in part to the 5-1 win in the Milan derby. The Nerazzurri do not look to have lost a step from their UCL-final pace of last season, and should be considered early favorites for the Scudetto.
Bundesliga: Bayer Leverkusen
Xabi Alonso’s squad is firing on all cylinders to start the Bundesliga campaign. 5 wins and 1 draw, with the draw being away to Bayern Munich, and Leverkusen sit top of the Bundesliga table after Bayern’s draw with Leipzig. In the match against Bayern, nothing separated the teams, with the usual Bayern dominance seeming to fade. That’s not to say Bayern aren’t playing well, but we aren’t used to seeing legitimate contenders for the German title, in the past Bayern have often already been 5-8 points clear at the top after 6 games. Both Leipzig and Leverkusen look to have the ability to truly challenge Bayern this season, and it may be the most interesting title race Germany has seen in a while.
Honorable Mention: Serhou Guirassy
The Guinean striker in his first season as a full time Stuttgart player has almost single handedly willed them to 2nd place in the Bundesliga off his incredible 10 goals through 6 games. Now the only top team played in this stretch was Leipzig, where Stuttgart lost 5-1, but Guirassy scored the only goal. While Stuttgart shouldn’t be expected to maintain their standing in the table, Guirassy has put himself in a place to challenge for the Golden Boot this year!
Eredivisie: Heracles Almelo
So far, the biggest surprise in the Eredivisie is not a good one, Ajax sitting 1 point above the relegation places after winning just 1 of their first 4 games. That win came against our positive surprise, Heracles Almelo. The newly promoted club from the Dutch 2nd division play in the town of Almelo, home to just over 70,000 inhabitants. This is their first year in the top-flight of Dutch football in 28 years, and they have made the most of it so far! Following their opening day loss to Ajax, Heracles have only fallen to FC Utrecht since then, earning wins against NEC Nijmegen, Excelsior Rotterdam, and PEC Zwolle, in addition to a strong result drawing away to AZ Alkmaar. That is enough to put Heracles in 7th place after the opening 7 games, 7 points clear of the relegation zone. There will be no dreams of a title this year, but Heracles are giving their fans plenty to be happy about, showing that they might be deserving to stay up this season!
Ligue 1: Akor Adams
I have to stop and say I told you so on this one, because I told you so. In my previous article on the top talents in the Norwegian league I thought would be getting a transfer soon, leading the list was Lillestrom’s striker Akor Adams. Montpellier noticed his talents and acquired the Nigerian striker for 4.5 million euros entering this season. After Montpellier’s teenage sensation Elye Wahi moved to RC Lens after scoring 19 goals in 33 Ligue 1 games last season, there was a hole to fill. Akor Adams has come in from the Eliteserien and made an instant impact, with 5 goals already in his first 7 matches, on pace to surpass Wahi’s total from the season prior. Adams is just another example of the talent level that’s available to teams in Europe in the Eliteserien, and you can be sure I’ll be flagging the next Akor Adams as soon as I spot him in Norway.
Liga Portugal: Robert Bozenik
The much needed future of the Slovak national team’s attack, Robert Bozenik is a name that is likely unknown to most of you reading this, which is why I chose him as my best surprise of the season. Already capped 33 teams by the senior national team by age 23, Bozenik has been the best striker option for Slovakia more due to a lack of depth in the position than his goalscoring record. With only 6 goals in 49 games while under contract at Feyenoord, Bozenik was sold to Boavista in the Liga Portugal this summer after spending last season on loan at the club. Last year, Bozenik tallied 4 goals in 27 appearances. This season, he has already surpassed this, with 5 goals in his first 7 matches, including a brace in Boavista’s win over Benfica! The young striker looks to be hitting his stride now, and if he can maintain this form over the season, he will be crucial in Slovakia’s quest to qualify for Euro 2024 and Boavista’s goal of a finish in the European places.
It’s still early in the season, but I thought these players and clubs deserved a mention for their strong starts to the season, despite what was expected of them. Hopefully you’ve heard of a player you didn’t know before, or learned about a new club! Be sure to check back in for more player scouting, game analysis, and overall football discussions. Thanks for reading!
Hello football fans! The summer transfer window is well upon us, with many exciting moves happening. The Norwegian Eliteserien is yet again being scouted by the bigger European leagues with a few notable departures.
First, fan-favorite Hugo Vetlesen finally departed Aspmyra after 3 seasons and 2 Eliteserien titles won. Club Brugge, under their new Norwegian manager Ronny Delia, formerly of Strømsgodset and Vålerenga, paid a 7M euro fee for Vetlesen’s services, and I believe he will do quite well in the Belgian League. The attacking central midfielder can operate through the middle, or take the ball wide, and will always make good runs into the box to finish off a cut-back.
Second, Christopher Bonsu Baah enjoyed one of the shortest stints in the Eliteserien, departing for KRC Genk this summer for 5.2M after only arriving at Sarpsborg 08 in March. In such a short period of time, Bonsu Baah integrated himself into the team and merited a starting role almost immediately. A creative, agile right-winger who loves to cut inside and can pick a pass or pick out the top corner of the net. Bonsu Baah joins fellow Eliteserien graduate Gift Orban at Genk, and could combine to make quite the attack pair.
Finally, Odin Thiago Holm makes his long awaited departure from the Eliteserien, off to join Brendan Rogers at Celtic after a 3M fee was agreed upon. This is one of the most exciting young Norwegian prospects heading out to the Scottish Premiership to prove himself. Odin Thiago Holm can play anywhere in the midfield, from a defensive #6 to a pure #10. He has the stamina to run all game long, and possesses an elite work-rate to match. I am very excited to see how he progresses while at Celtic. So, now that some more great talents have departed, who are the most interesting prospects to keep an eye on in the Eliteserien?
1. Sivert Mannsverk – The young anchor of Molde’s midfield shows composure and a level of ability beyond his years. He has the potential to go all the way to the very top if he keeps progressing as he has. Also featuring in Norway’s U21 side at the recent U21 Euros, Mannsverk looks to be the future defensive midfielder of the Norwegian national team. Currently valued near 5M euros, I don’t believe it will be long before a club is willing to pay that to secure their future. I could see Mannsverk succeeding in the Belgian, Dutch, or German leagues very easily. (Current market value: 5M)
2. Akor Adams – The 23 year old Nigerian is currently in the midst of a breakout season in the Eliteserien, notching 14 goals and 1 assist in 13 matches so far this season. Adams joined Sogndal in the 2nd division of Norway in 2019, when he had a market value of 50k. 2022 was his first full season in the Eliteserien, where in 23 appearances he was able to record 8 goals and add 2 assists. Now, at the halfway point of this season, he’s already surpassed his best ever season, and there are still games to play. If Akor Adams keeps up this form, you can expect him to follow the path of Gift Orban and Christopher Bonsu Baah, likely moving to Belgium. (Current market value: 4M)
3. Albert Gronbaek – the young Dane has some big shoes to fill in Bodo’s midfield now: Hugo Vetlesen’s. Gronbaek and Vetlesen are similar profile players, both attacking midfielders who enjoy operating in the wide areas as well. Since Vetlesen’s departure, Gronbaek has elevated his game, creating consistent chances for Bodo/Glimt and developing more of an eye for goal. Vetlesen’s departure to Brugge in a way foreshadows Gronbaek’s eventual departure as well, he’s simply too good to stay in Norway forever. (Current market value: 5M)
So there you have it, three great talents departing the Eliteserien, and three great talents who are next up to follow in their footsteps. This league keeps getting more recognition from the rest of Europe, so keep an eye on these players, as the Eliteserien is where you’ll find tomorrow’s superstars, today.
You might not have heard about the young Colombian making impressions for Millionarios FC, but you absolutely want to remember his name: Oscar Cortes. An electric footballer with an ability to find space while surrounded by defenders and with one eye seemingly always turned towards goal, looking for that final ball to be put home by a teammate in the box. At home on the wing, Cortes can play on either flank and is strong with both feet, giving fans a reason to buy a ticket just to watch his ability to make magic out of nothing. Not to heap pressure on the kid (I don’t think he’ll be reading this anyways), but I haven’t seen so much potential in a Colombian winger since Luis Diaz.
Amidst starring for Colombia at the U20 World Cup, Oscar Cortes has recently been linked with RC Lens, and while Fabrizio Romano hasn’t given the “Here We Go!” yet, there is good reason to believe this move is happening. Reported by Colombian sports journalist Pipe Sierra, RC Lens have recently agreed on a 4M euro initial fee for Cortes. Lens are in prime position to finish 2nd in Ligue 1 this year, and with PSG looking less and less intimidating by the year, Lens could be looking to boost their chances at a potential title challenge with the addition of Cortes.
RC Lens and Millionarios share a common owner, Amber Capital, an investment firm owned by Frenchman Joseph Oughourlian. This is a long shot from the wealth of clubs owned by say, the City Football Group or Red Bull, but the movement of players through “feeder clubs” is nothing new to modern football. This also helps explain the modest 4M fee for a player of Oscar’s potential. Should Lens sell him on in a few seasons, they will almost certainly make a handsome profit, as I believe Cortes has the potential to become a top player in the best leagues in the world.
Of modest stature at 5’7″, Cortes possesses the build to produce intricate dribbles through tangles of defenders, using his low centre of gravity to make up for any lack of weight when being challenged by defenders. Capable of playing in the #10 role in the centre of the pitch, Cortes is adept at cutting inside from either wing and looks calm under pressure. What consistently impresses me is his ability to find space, whether it is space to run into, to thread a pass through a defender’s legs to a teammate, or the space that will open up in the box.
His tactical versatility is a manager’s dream. With experience playing across the width of the attacking midfield line and his excellent vision of the field, Cortes can easily roam from his natural right-wing position to the centre or left flank, creating man advantages and the chaos in defense he is so good at exploiting. Due to his skill, Cortes is often tightly marked by one or more defenders, and has shown the ability a top footballer needs to draw those defenders out of position and find a teammate in space. This work rate is prevalent out of possession as well, with Cortes often pressing hard and winning the ball back, though his tackling technique can be improved to avoid conceding as many fouls.
I’ve praised his playmaking ability so much, as it is the area I believe Cortes will become world-class in, but don’t let that make you think he can’t score. Cortes helped Colombia to a 3rd place finish in the 2023 CONMEBOL Sudamericana Sub 20 tournament with 3 goals, one behind the team leader. Cortes is averaging a goal contribution every 83 minutes in the Colombian top league, Categoria Primera A, for Millionarios, which is an impressive feat for a 19 year old winger playing against grown men in South America.
If you didn’t know, the top-flight leagues in South America are officiated much less strictly than European leagues, meaning if you’re a talented young winger, you’re going to get fouled, a lot. For any stats people out there, Cortes is fouled an average of 2.4 times per game. Neymar, the most fouled man in the world since 2016, has been fouled an average of 3.1 times per game. This goes to show the problems Cortes can cause for defenders, who are incapable of stopping him without committing fouls. There seems to still be some bias against South American players moving to Europe (especially the Premier League), where their toughness and physicality are questioned. I’m here to tell you, any teenager that can perform in the top men’s league in Colombia is not going to have ANY issues with toughness, physical play, or the most belligerent of opposition fans.
Oscar Cortes is a bargain for Lens at 4M and should the rest of their recruitment be as efficient as this, we might have an interesting Ligue 1 title race next season. I cannot speak highly enough of this future star, if he receives playing time at Lens next season, there will not be a club in Europe that doesn’t want to sign him. Don’t be like most of the world outside of South America. Remember the name: Oscar Cortes.
futbird 