PORTUGAL'S "SECOND WAVE" OF THE GOLDEN GENERATION
Who'd forget the Portuguese golden generation that has been gracing the European and World football for the past one and a half decade?
Led by the elegant Luis Figo, followed by the then-young prodigy Cristiano Ronaldo, Deco, Pauleta just to name a few... These bunch of talents played the biggest role in putting Portugal's map back in the international footbal elites.
New Wave
In last year's FIFA U21 World Cup (eventually won by France), I kept a watchful eye on every team, part of my job as a youth football lover. France, Ghana, Spain, Uruguay had all been tremendous. And there were Portugal.
The Portuguese outfit that played in the once in two years tournament boasting players from Premeira and Segunda Liga, the top two tiers in the Portuguese National Football League System. It was quite easy for the gaffer Rui Jorge when you have stream of nationwide talents good enough to pick up the call.
The results - 23 players picked - all with class. 21 play in multiple of top clubs across Portugal, one from Germany and one from Italy. This is the team that I personally thought the best since Ronaldo, Meireles and Co. showed up almost eight years back.
The Standouts
Shooting straight, there has been three players I really admire, straightaway from my intense 'scouting' in Istanbul 2013. These are they and what follow are the reasons why.
1. BRUMA
One of the most exciting young prospects in European football that you've never heard of cause you're too busy focusing on Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain or Wilfried Zaha? Look, Bruma might not be an English but trust me he'd beat the s**t out of those two.
Blessed with blistering speed, silky skills, very comfortable on the ball, went one-on-one like nobody's business... You name it. Perfect winger, beautifully crafted. Might be a new Cristiano if he get all his things together (and should he didn't go to Turkey at the first place).
What I'm sure of is he's not going to stay long at Galatasaray, tifos and great fans are something, but not everything. So what you'll be hearing first here is, the kid will be at one of these places - Real Madrid, Barcelona or those top eight English teams that would never stop recruiting like they're in the middle of a war.
2. ANDRE GOMES
Andre Gomes has been in and out for the team from the beginning to end of the U21 Portugal's World Cup campaign, one thing that I regret seeing the most in this player. I certainly think that they'd come out with something had Rui played him more! (I don't know if there are fitness/ injury problems)
But despite being given less playing time he deserved, I thought he was magnificent in the engine room. Operating mainly on the park, he was hard (despite the tech-geek-whom-became-a-multi-million-billionair-by-owning-a-social-media-site hair), neat and collected. He does his job well that I thought at times I'm seeing another Kaka.
His vision is beyond good and honestly it's good to see him getting games in such club as Benfica. He even played over 30 minutes in a CL clash with Paris-Saint Germain. All that he needs to do now is buffing up more, or else he might have to choose between being Angel Di Maria......
.... or Javier Pastore.
3. WILLIAM CARVALHO
Boom! The best out of the three. Hot at the moment with Moyesey's sending his troops in a record-breaking eight times of scouting mission on this boy. You've seen how Yaya Toure has been bossing around BPL like nobody's business? This guy is even better than the Ivorian at his age.
The calmness, vision and immense speed of thought. He can play anywhere in the middle of the park. DM? Checked. MF? Excellent. AMF? Goals from the second ball with Lampard-esque runs.
It's shame people has only been talking about him now which I think would have happened three years back at the very least. His maturity makes me feel like he can fit in anywhere now, even Barcelona.
Moyesey, are you still going to rely on Tom "Sideways" Cleverley?
WHAT MOYESEY?? I CAN'T HEAR YOUU!!!