Nothing quite compares to the fiercely competitive nature of Champions League football as Europe’s finest take centre stage to compete for the highly-coveted ‘Big Ears’ trophy.
It is without question the crème de la crème of knockout competitions for clubs across the continent, as it offers a rare opportunity for the very best in the game to go toe-to-toe and showcase their talents.
Over the years it has also been a platform for Europe’s most promising and exciting youngsters to explode onto the scene and announce themselves to the football world; who remembers a 19-year-old Jack Wilshere against Barcelona in 2011, or Wayne Rooney’s debut hat-trick against Fenerbahce in 2004?
These performances can often facilitate transfers to some of the biggest clubs across the globe as scouts are continuously on the prowl for potential future superstars; a certain Mohamed Salah scored against Chelsea in Europe – albeit it the Europa League – and was signed the following season.
Well, FIFA 19 career mode offers a fascinating opportunity to fill the boots of a club manager and recruit those starlets who have the potential to become world-beaters, but who has the highest potential rating out of every Champions League club’s wonderkid at 21 years and under?
Group A
Atletico Madrid – Borja Garces
Age: 19
Position: ST
Current rating: 64
Potential rating: 83
Garces has already made a significant impact this season, coming on as a late substitute against Eibar last month and scoring an equalising goal in the 94th minute – one La Liga appearance, one goal.
Borussia Dortmund – Christian Pulisic and Jadon Sancho
• 10 starts
• 12 assists
• 18 years oldThis is the reason he was called up by England.
pic.twitter.com/q4oKXFQY5F
— Squawka Football (@Squawka) October 9, 2018
Age: 20
Position: RM/LM
Current rating: 79/73
Potential rating: 88/88
The Pennsylvania prodigy is already a regular fixture in Champions League football, appearing 16 times since exploding onto the scene as a fledgling forward three years ago – he also netted the winner against Club Brugge earlier this season.
Jadon Sancho has made a blistering start to life in Germany and seems incapable of *not* providing assists. He made his competition debut this season, becoming the youngest English player to do so whilst playing for a foreign club.
Club Brugge – Wesley
Age: 21
Position: ST
Current rating: 77
Potential rating: 85
The Brazilian is a regular starter for the Belgian outfit and is leading the line in the Champions League this season, so far starting both matches against Atletico Madrid and Borussia Dortmund.
Monaco – Youri Tielemans and Pietro Pellegri
Age: 21/17
Position: CM/ST
Current rating: 79/67
Potential rating: 88/88
Tielemans has been dubbed a wonderkid for about six years now, and we are all still waiting for him to take the leap and become the world-class midfield maestro we have all transformed him into on FIFA over the years.
Group B
Barcelona – Ousmane Dembele
Age: 21
Position: RW
Current rating: 83
Potential rating: 92
The ambipedal king, Dembele has already turned heads in this season’s Champions League after his sensational solo goal against PSV last month, and he is set to wreak further havoc as Barcelona look on full song in the competition.
Inter Milan – Lautaro Martinez
Age: 21
Position: ST
Current rating: 79
Potential rating: 86
Martinez’s potential is seemingly boundless and he will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of compatriot and Inter legend Mauro Icardi, who overtook Christian Vieri’s Nerazzurri goalscoring record in the Derby della Madonnina on Sunday.
PSV Eindhoven – Steven Bergwijn
Age: 21
Position: LW
Current rating: 78
Potential rating: 86
Bergwijn has started the season like a house on fire and received his first full cap for the Netherlands earlier this month.
Tottenham Hotspur – Juan Foyth
Age: 20
Position: CB
Current rating: 71
Potential rating: 85
Foyth has found playing time hard to come by in north London, but he received a first call-up to the Argentina senior squad this month which could be the turning point for the youngster.
Group C
Liverpool – Joe Gomez and Trent Alexander-Arnold
Age: 21/20
Position: CB/RB
Current rating: 78/78
Potential rating: 88/88
Already a Liverpool mainstay, Gomez has the potential to reach the heights of some of Europe’s finest centre-backs. Trent Alexander-Arnold’s rise has been meteoric.
Napoli – Alex Meret
Age: 21
Position: GK
Current rating: 75
Potential rating: 89
Signed from Udinese in the summer, Meret has all the makings of a future world-class gloveman.
Paris Saint-Germain – Kylian Mbappe
Age: 19
Position: RW
Current rating: 87
Potential rating: 95
It is hard to believe Mbappe is just a teenager having already won the World Cup and Ligue 1 title with two different clubs – the future of France football.
Group D
Galatasaray – Henry Onyekuru
Age: 21
Position: LM
Current rating: 76
Potential rating: 86
The on-loan Everton forward will return to Goodison Park a more polished player after getting some much-needed Champions League experience this season, and he looks a deadly proposition on the wing.
Lokomotiv Moscow – Mikhail Lysov
Age: 20
Position: LB
Current rating: 68
Potential rating: 80
If nurtured right then Lysov could turn into a tidy left-back as he possesses a growth potential of 12.
Porto – Diogo Leite
Age: 19
Position: CB
Current rating: 74
Potential rating: 87
The teenager is considered hot-property at the Estadio do Dragao and has the potential to become a top-class defender in the future.
Schalke 04 – Breel Embolo
Age: 21
Position: ST
Current rating: 76
Potential rating: 86
The Swiss forward has fully overcome a serious injury and could yet become the phenom every was expecting of him at Basel.
Group E
AEK Athens – Konstantinos Galanopoulos
Age: 20
Position: CDM
Current rating: 71
Potential rating: 84
The once-capped Greek international is a brutish pint-sized anchorman and would add real steel and grit to any team.
Ajax – Matthijs de Ligt
Age: 19
Position: CB
Current rating: 81
Potential rating: 91
Tipped to move to one of Europe’s perennial powerhouses in the near future, De Ligt has all the makings of a future star.
READ MORE: Which club will sign Ajax wonderkid Matthijs de Ligt?
Bayern Munich – Christian Fruchtl
Age: 18
Position: GK
Current rating: 65
Potential rating: 86
The heir to Manuel Neuer, Fruchtl is learning from the best and he could one day become the best.
Benfica – Joao Felix
Age: 18
Position: LW
Current rating: 71
Potential rating: 87
Benfica have a plethora of young talent at present, but Felix looks a star in the making with his dazzling feet and mesmeric movement.
Group F
1899 Hoffenheim – Reiss Nelson and Nadiem Amiri
Age: 18/21
Position: RW/CAM
Current rating: 65/78
Potential rating: 85/85
The on-loan Arsenal winger is emulating the rise of Jadon Sancho and it might not be too long before we see him in an England shirt. His team-mate, Amiri, is already a polished player but the growth is not quite as spectacular.
Lyon – Houssem Aouar and Tanguy Ndombele
Age: 20/21
Position: CM/CM
Current rating: 78/79
Potential rating: 88/88
Lyon’s centre-midfield duo is one of the most exciting in Europe so it’s not surprise to see them rated so highly by EA.
Manchester City – Gabriel Jesus
Age: 21
Position: ST
Current rating: 83
Potential rating: 92
Already a ridiculous talent, the Brazilian marvel has the potential to become one of Man City’s most prolific players.
Shakhtar Donetsk – Maycon
Age: 21
Position: CDM
Current rating: 70
Potential rating: 84
The latest Brazilian to hail from Shakhtar’s South American production line, and he scored an absolute thunderbolt against Hoffenheim earlier in the competition.
Group G
CSKA Moscow – Nikola Vlasic
Age: 21
Position: RM
Current rating: 74
Potential rating: 83
Another Everton loanee, Vlasic scored the goal that condemned Real Madrid earlier in the season.
Real Madrid – Vinicius Junior
Age: 18
Position: LW
Current rating: 77
Potential rating: 92
Big things are expected of the teenager and early signs look very promising.
Roma – Ante Coric
Age: 21
Position: CAM
Current rating: 76
Potential rating: 88
Another graduate of Dinamo Zagreb’s esteemed academy, Coric is built similarly to Luka Modric and has the capabilities of matching his compatriot further down the line.
Viktoria Plzen – Pavel Bucha
Age: 20
Position: CM
Current rating: 59
Potential rating: 68
The 20-year-old could turn into a decent little player, but it is probably not worth the effort.
Group H
Juventus – Rodrigo Bentancur
Age: 21
Position: CM
Current rating: 76
Potential rating: 88
The Uruguayan looks set to have a more influential role this season and could become a permanent fixture for the Old Lady.
Manchester United – Marcus Rashford
Age: 20
Position: LW
Current rating: 81
Potential rating: 89
One of United’s key players, the incisive winger could go on to write his name in Red Devil folklore.
Valencia – Kangin Lee
Age: 17
Position: CAM
Current rating: 70
Potential rating: 88
The teenager reportedly has an €80m release clause on his shoulders such is the expectation of the South Korean to become a star.
Young Boys – Djibril Sow
Age: 21
Position: CM
Current rating: 70
Potential rating: 83
The Swiss has made significant noise in his homeland since relocating to Young Boys, and he received his first international cap last month.
The post Every Champions League club’s highest potential wonderkid on FIFA 19 appeared first on Squawka News.
From Squawka NewsSquawka News https://ift.tt/2PjVJcy
No comments:
Post a Comment