Our Breakout Youngster Picks for Across Europe This Season

Guinean-born, Ilaix Moriba, is another one of the bright talents to emerge from Barcelona’s famous La Masia academy and with Lionel Messi now gone, the Blaugrana must look for the new man moving forward.

La Masia has been criticized for not producing elite players on the level of Andres Iniesta or Gerard Pique in recent years, however, Moriba looks to be one of those who might break this trend and will join the likes of Ansu Fati and Pedri, who have burst onto the scene in recent times.

The central midfielder has been compared to Manchester United’s Paul Pogba, as he shares a similar physical presence coupled with potentially elite technical ability and Moriba made 14 appearances in La Liga for Ronald Koeman’s side last season, scoring one goal.

Barcelona fans are aware of his capabilities and world-class potential, which could see him dominate the Barcelona midfield for years to come and with Messi gone and Sergio Busquets now 33, Moriba should get bled in over the course of this season on a more full-time basis.

Former Chelsea youngster, Jamal Musiala, broke into the Bayern Munich first team last season contributing to seven goals in the Bundesliga and he ended up finishing the 2020/21 campaign as one of the most talked-about youngsters in Europe.

Musiala is a dynamic forward, who can operate in all the positions behind the striker and even as the striker when needed. Musiala chose to play for Germany after rumours spread that he might select England. He made his debut for the German national team in March earlier this year and he managed to get in the selection for Euro 2020, although, the country crashed out in the round of 32 as they faced England.

Nurturing young German talent is in the DNA of Bayern Munich and with a talent as promising as Muisiala, they will be sure to give the young winger plenty of playing time to develop into the star he is touted to become.

Crystal Palace full-back, Tyrick Mitchell, made his debut for Crystal Palace in the 2019/20 season and featured 19 times in the league for the Eagles last season. The left-back is known for his defensive ability and has been compared to Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who completed a move to Manchester United in 2019 and he is looked at as. the future of this position for the south London side. Mitchell averaged 4.5 tackles and interceptions for Palace last season, as he challenged for the left-back position with Patrick van Aanholt.

Mitchell will look to cement his place in the Palace team as a homegrown talent and supplement the likes of Eberechi Eze, Wilfried Zaha and Michael Olise, who will be focused on affecting the game at the other end of the pitch.

Brazilian forward, Joao Pedro, was part of the Watford side that got promoted back to the top flight after spending the previous season in the EFL Championship. The 20-year-old scored nine goals in the Championship last season, showing his acclimatization to the physicality of English football.

Pedro was instantly compared to fellow Brazilian and former Watford star, Richarlison, who lit up Vicarage during his spell there and he has his chance to shine in the Premier League now. Richarlison has since gone on to represent Brazil at the International level, helping them to a Copa America Triumph in 2019. The Watford faithful will rely on Pedro to keep them in the Premier League and surpass the talents of Richarlison.

Manchester United's blueprint to success has always involved youth, and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is no different from implementing this way of life at Old Trafford with the likes of Anthony Elanga breaking into the first team.

United themselves are rich with youth as the likes of Mason Greenwood, Dean Henderson, and Brandon Williams all coming through the ranks to play for the first team last season. The additions of players like Jadon Sancho and Amad Diallo have only amplified this wealth the club boasts with young talent.

Towards the end of last season, we saw the likes of Shola Shoretire and Hannibal Mejbri, whilst James Garner enjoyed another fruitful spell on loan. However, many eyes have been focused on the young Swede, Elanga.

It took just 13 minutes for Elanga to score on his second start for the club in the Premier League, as he bagged an impressive goal against Wolverhampton Wanderers. The forward also claimed the Jimmy Murphy Young Player of the Year award when he was just 18, after a fabulous season with the reserves.

Now, with a handful of goals in preseason including a beauty against Everton, Elanga may find himself with some more minutes in absence of the injured Marcus Rashford.