5 Players Whose Careers Took Off at the Euros 2020

Euros 2020 is over, and Italy has come through as winners in the end. The tournament gave many young stars the opportunity to shine on the international stage. Players like Raheem Sterling and Giorgio Chiellini set the stage on fire. The careers of many young players took off at the tournament. These players include:

Manuel Locatelli (Italy and Sassuolo)

Manuel Locatelli is a central defensive midfielder who plays for Sassuolo in the Italian Serie A. While Locatelli has performed great at the club level, he showcased his talents on the international stage at the Euros. Locatelli played a major role as the Azzuri won the tournament.

Juventus are looking to sign the Italian as they finished in 4^th position in the 2020/21 season. Another club linked to Locatelli is Arsenal who is looking to add creativity in their midfield after not finishing in European places in the Premier League.

Mikkel Damsgaard (Denmark and Sampdoria)

Denmark were popular dark horses before the tournament has begun, but that was because of Kasper Schmeichel in goal, Simon Kjaer and Andreas Christensen at the back, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in midfield, and Martin Braithwaite in the attack.

While those players have certainly impressed, a relatively unknown player who impressed is Mikkel Damsgaard as Denmark made it to the semifinals. Mikkel Damsgaard capped his impressive tournament by scoring the only direct free-kick of the competition against England in the semis. The winger scored 2 goals and 1 assist.

Pedri (Spain and FC Barcelona)

While Barcelona might be having major financial issues, they have produced a midfield player that they can probably rely on for the next 15 years. Pedri was already starring at club level before this competition, but his performances have ensured that he will be listed among the best midfielders in the world for years to come.

The 18-year-old has all the hallmarks of the great La Masia midfield products that have gone before him, with his metronomic passing, in terms of both accuracy and penetration. No midfielder completed more passes at Euro 2020 than Pedri, who failed to mislay a single one in the semi-final clash against Italy at Wembley.

Kalvin Phillips (England and Leeds)

Most England fans didn’t fancy the idea of two defensive midfielders playing at the same time in the line-up. But Kalvin Phillips has shown his incredible versatility in the tournament, darting forward to support the attack regularly and snapping at the heels of the opposition when they have possession in their own third.

A standout display, featuring an assist for Raheem Sterling’s winner, against Croatia, was the springboard for the Yorkshire man, but his fitness and football intelligence means he has had as much of a say at the end of the tournament as he did at the beginning.

 

Emil Forsberg (Sweden and RB Leipzig)

Sweden’s exit to Ukraine can largely be attributed to a debatable red card and the inevitable fatigue that it caused as extra time went on, yet they were probably a better team than Ukraine, and Forsberg is one of the reasons why.

The RB Leipzig midfielder is hardly an unknown quantity, having racked up over 200 appearances in six seasons for the German side, but nobody could have anticipated the impact that he had in front of goal. The 29-year-old had nine goals from 58 caps heading into the Euros, but ranked fourth for shots per game and netted four times despite the Swedes’ premature exit.

 

Euros 2020 has been a great stage for these players to showcase their talents and you can be sure some of these players will be making moves to bigger clubs. With the international break over, the 2021/22 season is quickly approaching. You can also place bets on the upcoming Premier League season. Betting Best Odds is a well-renowned provider of betting bonuses in the UK. The company provides bonuses for a plethora of betting sites including Betfair, PaddyPower, Bet365, William Hill, 888Sport, and many more.