European Under-21 Championships – Who to Look Out For.

With the fledglings of European football set to jet off to Denmark for the European Championships this Saturday, we will give a run down of the players we think you need to keep an eye on!

Ajax superstar Christian Eriksen

Christian Eriksen – Denmark

When Christian Eriksen lined out for Denmark earlier in the year when they faced England, not many English football fans would have been familiar with the Ajax attacking-midfielder, but his splendid performance that night caught the attention and prompted mass speculation in the media with moves to England’s elite sides.  

The 19-year-old Ajax star, who has been a main-stay in the first team this season, has been likened to former Arsenal and Dutch frontman Dennis Bergkamp because of his intelligent movement, technical talents and eye for a killer pass. Eriksen has the potential to be the Player of the Tournament, and he will no doubt be a key player for the host nation this summer.

 Thiago Alcântara- Spain

Thiago Alcântarais the latest graduate from La Masia to enter Barcelona’s first team squad, making 17 appearances in his break-through season last term. Thiago is now becoming a very able deputy to midfield maestro Xavi  Hernandez, and he could be the reason that Barcelona won’t continue their pursuit of Arsenal’s Cesc Fabregas. He will be at the heart of La Roja’s central midfield as Spain hunt for more International glory as they enter this tournament as the hot favourites.

Like all Barcelona players Thiago is very comfortable with the ball, he is creative and comparable to team-mate Xavi, whilst also being able to offer more further up the field in the advanced position. Expect to see much more of him in a Barcelona shirt over the coming seasons.

 Adam Hloušek – Czech Republic

Kaiserslautern secured the loan of Hloušek in January from Czech side Slavia Prague, and the pacey, exciting forward helped the Bundesliga side to a 7th place finish in the league. The Czech Republic have a tough group containing England and Spain, so it is unlikely we will see them progress any further than the opening round, but Hlousek should be one of the stand-out performers for the Czech’s this summer alongside another highly rated young player Vaclav Kadlec.

 Vaclav Kadlec – Czech Rep.

The 19-year-old is being touted as the next big thing in Czech football and is expected to follow in the footsteps of fellow Sparta Prague luminaries such as Petr Cech, Tomas Rosicky and  Jan Koller. Kadlec made his club debut at the age of 16 and has gone on to make 86 appearances and hit the back of the net 15 times since then. The youngster can also play on either flank and has contributed 6 goals and an assist in 35 appearances this season.

Kadlec is known for his pace and finishing instincts. He rejected a move to Liverpool at the age of 15 to stay in the Czech Rep, he was told he’ll be back one day. That big move looks like it’ll be coming sooner rather than later with long term admirers such as Chelsea.

 Gylfi Sigurðsson – Iceland 

Icelandic Central Midfielder Sigurdsson

Sigurðsson is the poster boy of Icelandic football, he has had trials at Preston North End and Arsenal before signing for Reading in 2005. The 21-year-old made his first team bow against Bournemouth in October 2008, during that season he was loaned out to Crewe and Shrewsbury. The midfielder went on to become Reading’s Player of The Season 09/10 after scoring 21 goals in 44 games. The following summer the Icelandic made the move to German club Hoffenheim for a reported £6m and won Player of The Season there as well after scoring 10 goals in 13 starts.

Reknowned for his long range shooting and dead ball prowess, it will be interesting to see how the ever improving Hoffe keep hold of their star players including Sigurðsson.

Andriy Yarmolenko – Ukraine

Phil Jones