{"id":3253,"date":"2024-06-14T12:08:09","date_gmt":"2024-06-14T12:08:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.icons.com\/news\/?p=3253"},"modified":"2024-10-31T16:54:54","modified_gmt":"2024-10-31T16:54:54","slug":"five-icons-youve-heard-of-five-you-havent-and-next-gen-talent-at-uefa-euro-2024","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.icons.com\/news\/2024\/06\/14\/five-icons-youve-heard-of-five-you-havent-and-next-gen-talent-at-uefa-euro-2024\/","title":{"rendered":"ANDY BRASSELL: Five Icons You Have Heard Of And Five You Have Not at UEFA EURO 2024"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

You’ll have seen him on Sky Sports, heard him on The Football Ramble and read his expert European football insight here, there and everywhere, now ANDY BRASSELL<\/strong> tells Icons.com the stars you need to keep your eyes on at UEFA EURO 2024.
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Five Icons You’ve Heard Of…<\/strong><\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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We have to come straight out the gate with the man who makes France (at least joint) favourites, Kylian Mbapp\u00e9<\/strong>. The 25-year-old had a strange final season with Paris Saint-Germain, banished from the first-team squad at the beginning of the season after declining to opt into the final year of his contract and further marginalised since telling the club he was leaving in February. Real Madrid CF\u2019s future centre-forward, remarkably, still scored 51 times over the course of the season and even if he has looked understandably rusty in recent weeks after playing only intermittently, perhaps he\u2019ll have plenty left in the tank for this tournament. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Despite Harry Kane\u2019s amazing first campaign outside of his home country, we have to look to Mbapp\u00e9\u2019s future club for England\u2019s main man. In any normal situation the Premier League\u2019s outstanding player Phil Foden would be a shoo-in to be stationed just behind Kane, but nothing about Jude Bellingham<\/strong> is normal. He has had a phenomenal first season at the Bernab\u00e9u in a more advanced role in which Gareth Southgate will want to use him. Bellingham has scored only three times in his opening 29 games for England but it does not take a genius to figure that will now change very quickly \u2013 probably in the country where he made his name with his performances for Borussia Dortmund. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bellingham could have easily had Jamal Musiala<\/strong> next to him in the Three Lions\u2019 midfield, with the pair having appeared for England Under-16s together, but the Bayern Munich midfielder opted for Germany after a Jogi L\u00f6w charm offensive and the rest is history. At just 21, he is already vital for Germany with his change of pace, his dribbling, his ability to trim through the lines and his goalscoring. He will be one of the most exciting players to watch this summer. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

“Nothing about Jude Bellingham is normal.”<\/p>\u2013 Andy Brassell on England’s talisman<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Bruno Fernandes<\/strong> always aims to be exciting too \u2013 a player who conducts the orchestra with urgency rather than reserve. Like many at Manchester United, he has had his difficulties this season but this current Portugal team is built for him. It is no longer the Cristiano Ronaldo show and it is no longer the case that everything has to run through their number seven. It is Fernandes\u2019 team now and he has the passing to bring their wide men into play as well as make his late runs into the box to score.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

After Khvicha Kvaratskhelia<\/strong>\u2019s unbelievable debut season at SSC Napoli in 2022-23 helped them win their first Serie A title since Diego Maradona\u2019s time at the club (the locals don\u2019t call him \u2018Kvaradona\u2019 for nothing), the sophomore campaign has been a bit tougher, always playing catch-up after his pre-season was curtailed by injury. Kvaratskhelia has still had his moments and his superstar status in Georgia demands he show out in Germany, with the trademark dribbles and directness that make him such an idol. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Five Icons You Maybe Haven’t Heard Of…<\/strong><\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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It\u2019s very possible you\u2019re already well-aware of the work of Florian Wirtz<\/strong> after his instrumental role in Bayer Leverkusen\u2019s amazing league and cup double-winning season. But UEFA EURO 2024 is set to be the time in which he becomes a household name the world over. He is the only player in Xabi Alonso\u2019s team to be given the freedom to \u201cdribble where he sees fit\u201d (as Alonso described to me last year) but that\u2019s because he is always trusted to make the right call. Wirtz opens space to make the last pass and score and is full of confidence \u2013 as well as having been rotated judiciously by Alonso, so he should have energy to spare.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If Wirtz hopes to make a dent in next season\u2019s UEFA Champions League, Georgiy Sudakov<\/strong> has already done it. Ukraine\u2019s 21-year-old midfielder put in a series of stunning performances for Shakhtar Donetsk in the season just gone \u2013 including a man-of-the-match display as they racked up a famous win over FC Barcelona \u2013 and has a rare feel for when to keep the ball and when to send it on its way. If he repeats that with his national team this summer, Shakhtar can consider selling him for a similar price to that for which his best mate Mykhailo Mudryk went. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Johan Bakayoko<\/strong> is also aiming for the top, having spoken recently about how he intends to aim for the Ballon d\u2019Or in years to come. For now the Belgium winger is coming off a very good season for an all-conquering PSV, scoring 12 times and providing nine assists for their winning Eredivisie campaign. His speed and canny left foot is becoming more and more important for a national team trying to take some of the creative burden off Kevin De Bruyne. The Premier League beckons next for Bakayoko.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“UEFA EURO 2024 is set to be the time in which he becomes a household name the world over.”<\/p>Andy Brassell on Florian Wirtz<\/cite><\/blockquote><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Georges Mikautadze<\/strong> is another set for a big move this summer. Georgia\u2019s starting centre-forward began the season with Metz, went to Ajax, was loaned back to Metz after limited playing time and almost kept them in Ligue 1 with his goals (13 in 20 starts). A smart finisher with plenty of pace, Mikautadze could make the most of space from Kvaratskhelia drawing all the attention and seal a big move in the process. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Italy might not have a squad packed with star names as we\u2019ve come to expect, but there are a few who could present themselves to the world this summer. Perhaps Davide Frattesi<\/strong> could be one of them. The 24-year-old midfielder has had to bide his time in his first season at Internazionale, starting only six times in Serie A, but has made some important contributions charging forward to score big goals. Frattesi has already done the same for Italy, hitting a brace at San Siro to decide a vital qualifying win over Ukraine, and should have plenty left in his legs at the end of a long season compared to some of the competition.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which exciting new talent should Icons be signing in the future?<\/strong><\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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Given Spain\u2019s domination of much of European football\u2019s 21st<\/sup> century so far it is remarkable that a 16-year-old is their most f\u00eated player ahead of UEFA EURO 2024. Lamine Yamal<\/strong> has been Spain\u2019s youngest ever player, youngest ever starter and youngest ever scorer, and will likely go on to impress in this tournament. His surgical left-footed delivery and ability to go past players should give La Roja the ability to speed up play, something they have lacked in recent tournaments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where Yamal could well start for Spain, Francisco Concei\u00e7\u00e3o<\/strong> may have to content himself with a place on the bench for Portugal, but he has everything you could want in an impact player. Back at FC Porto after a disappointing spell at Ajax, Concei\u00e7\u00e3o\u2019s mazy left-footed dribbling creates chances and commits defenders. The 21-year-old finished the season in fine form and was excellent in the friendly win over Finland. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Portugal also have box-to-box power in Jo\u00e3o Neves<\/strong>, a talent who is attracting the attention of the Premier League\u2019s biggest clubs after his performances for SL Benfica this season. At 19-years-old Neves has an incredible engine, he rarely gives the ball away and could even earn a starting place should Roberto Mart\u00ednez aim for more balance in a team full to the brim with attacking talent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dark Horses<\/strong><\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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It\u2019s extraordinary that since the full-scale invasion by Russia, Ukraine<\/strong>\u2019s national side have not only carried on but come within a whisker of getting to the 2022 FIFA World Cup before qualifying for this tournament. This tells us about the fortitude of a nation and its footballers, of course. It should also tell us that this is a squad jam-packed with talent. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As well as Murdyk and Sudakov, they have La Liga\u2019s top scorer in Artem Dovbyk, his Girona teammate Viktor Tsygankov and a great goalkeeper to back it all up in Benfica\u2019s Anatoliy Trubin \u2013 or Real Madrid CF\u2019s Andriy Lunin, if coach Sergiy Rebrov prefers. Add to that the fact they\u2019re facing a far-from-insurmountable group comprising Slovakia, Romania and Belgium and a repeat of UEFA EURO 2020\u2019s unexpected quarter-final is on the table.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Shop the full collection of official UEFA EURO 2024 memorabilia<\/a> on Icons.com, including signed shirts, boots, balls, photos and replica trophies.<\/strong>
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You’ll have seen him on Sky Sports, heard him on The Football Ramble and read his expert European football insight here, there and everywhere, now ANDY BRASSELL tells Icons.com the stars you need to keep your eyes on at UEFA EURO 2024. Five Icons You’ve Heard Of… We have to come straight out the gate… <\/p>\n

Read More<\/i><\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":3276,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[329],"tags":[571,146,574,400,73,573,570,572,413,128,12,569,397],"class_list":["post-3253","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-previews-and-predictions","tag-bruno-fernandes","tag-england","tag-georgia","tag-germany","tag-italy","tag-jamal-musiala","tag-jude-bellingham","tag-khvicha-kvaratskhelia","tag-kylian-mbappe","tag-portugal","tag-spain","tag-uefa-euro-2024","tag-ukraine"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/icons.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/UEFA-EURO-2024-1.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pfQcey-Qt","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":3567,"url":"https:\/\/www.icons.com\/news\/2024\/11\/29\/andy-brassell-worlds-best-xi\/","url_meta":{"origin":3253,"position":0},"title":"ANDY BRASSELL: World\u2032s Best XI","author":"Andy Brassell","date":"November 29, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"World football expert ANDY BRASSELL talks through our selections for the World's Best XI, introducing some of the incredible icons whose shirts are 50% OFF on Icons.com throughout our Black Friday sales event. 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