star-player-career-stalling

Football is rich with tales of prodigious young players who burst onto the scene and announce themselves as the next big thing, only to slide rapidly into obscurity and mediocrity; burning brightly before quickly fading away.

Whether it’s down to an inability to handle pressure, the dreaded ‘second season syndrome’ or early burnout, young players need to be handled with care if they are to fulfil their potential.

Here are five immensely talented players whose careers have stalled this season.

José Giménez – Atlético Madrid

Atlérico Madrid centre-back José Giménez came to prominence as a 19-year-old during the 2014-15 season, making 19 starts for Los Colchoneros.

Displaying a level of maturity and physicality beyond his years, the Uruguayan youngster looked like being the long-term partner and eventual heir to compatriot Diego Godín at the heart of the Atléti backline.

With 5.6 clearances and 2.1 tackles per game, Giménez was an impenetrable wall. Last season, his statistics remained stable, with 5.4 clearances, 2.5 interceptions and 2.1 tackles per outing, though he soon found himself out of favour.

Despite racking up 27 starts in La Liga and seven more in the Champions League, towards the business end of the 2015-16 campaign, Giménez lost his place to Stefan Savić, with the Montenegrin selected to partner Godín in the final of Europe’s Premier Club competition.

And the 21-year-old is yet to regain his place at the Vicente Calderón, having made one start in the Champions League and only a single substitute’s appearance in the league.

Now in his early twenties, Giménez has reached a crucial phase of his development. A lack of game-time now could see him fail to truly fulfil his potential.

A move away from Atléti would have seemed unthinkable a year ago, especially as he had just penned a new long-term contract. But out of the side and with no immediate route back to the starting line-up, Giménez has been linked with a January move to Manchester United.

Anthony Martial – Manchester United

In what was a frustrating season for Manchester United fans, French youngster Anthony Martial offered a shining ray of hope that things would soon look up.

Louis van Gaal’s side consistently produced a dour and uninspiring brand of slow, possession-heavy football. But with Martial, a £36 million signing from AS Monaco, either leading the line of dribbling in from the left-wing, the Red Devils had a dynamic and exciting ace in the hold.

A stunning solo goal against bitter rivals Liverpool marked a spectacular introduction to English football for the former Lyon academy player; a star was born.

Martial finished his first campaign in Manchester with 17 goals and an FA Cup winners’ medal. With goalkeeper David de Gea being voted the club’s player of the year for the third season in a row, Martial was easily the 20-time champions’ best outfield player.

This season, under José Mourinho, Martial has made just four starts in the Premier League, and looks bereft of confidence. Having netted just a single goal, Martial appears a shadow of the near-unplayable forward of last term.

Amid rumours of personal troubles and following a string of lacklustre displays on the pitch, the 20-year-old Frenchman has fallen down the pecking order at Old Trafford.

But Martial’s potential and pedigree is unquestionable; it would be foolish to bet against him returning to form in the near future.

Mahmoud Dahoud – Borussia Monchengladbach

Syria-born Germany under-21 international Mahmoud Dahoud has found playing time hard to come by at Borussia Monchengladbach this season.

After making 42 appearances in all competitions during the last campaign, Dahoud has started only four of Gladbach’s 10 Bundesliga games this term.

With five goals and eight assists to show for his efforts in 2015-16, the 20-year-old appeared set to develop into one of the finest box-to-box midfielders in Germany.

But manager Andre Schubert has pumped the breaks on expectations of Dahoud, often selecting the more experienced Christoph Kramer and Tobias Strobl as the central midfielders in his 3-4-1-2 system, with Lars Stindl and Thorgan Hazard tending to take up the more advanced midfield roles.

Despite being strongly linked with moves to Liverpool and Borussia Dortmund this summer, Gladbach resolved to hang onto Dahoud, which would suggest that, despite having fallen somewhat out of favour, he is still valued highly at the club.

Daniele Rugani – Juventus

Daniele Rugani has been one of the hottest defensive prospects in Italy for several years now.

The one-cap Azzurri international signed for Juventus from Empoli in 2013, but was immediately loaned back to the club of his youth for two seasons.

During this time, he impressed greatly with his calmness, maturity and ability to play the ball forward out of defence. Regarded as the future of the Italy defence alongside AC Milan’s Alessio Romagnoli, Rugani appeared to have the world at his feet.

But since joining up with his parent club at the start of last season, the 22-year-old has made only 13 Serie A starts.

The task of having to unseat one of the famous Juventus ‘BBC’ back three of Leonardo Bonucci, Andrea Barzagli and Giorgio Chiellini was made all the more difficult for Rugani when the Old Lady brought in Mehdi Benatia from Bayern Munich this summer.

During the last transfer window, Napoli were thought to be keen on signing the young centre-back, with Partenopei boss Maurizio Sarri having worked with Rugani at Empoli, but Juve were stern in their rejection, insisting that the player was not for sale.

Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri will understandably be reluctant to break up his experienced and outstanding defensive trio but, sooner or later, the former Milan coach may have to do just that in order to ensure Rugani blossoms into the player many believe he can become.

Gabriel Barbosa – Internazionale

Internazionale fought off interest from Barcelona, Juventus and Leicester City to sign Brazilian youngster Gabriel “Gabigol” Barbosa this summer.

The striker, who has also spent a large part of his fledgling career playing on the right wing, earned his nickname due to his coolness in front of goal while playing for Santos.

Inter snapped up the 20-year-old for around €30 million late in August, with the four-cap Brazil international fresh off the back of helping the Selecão win gold at the Rio Olympics.

There were high hopes that the 20-year-old would be able to ease the goal-scoring burden on captain Mauro Icardi, while adding another dimension to the Nerazzurri’s attacking play with his pace and deadly finishing ability.

But, to date, Gabriel has made just one appearance for his new club, coming off the bench for the final 16 minutes of the 1-1 draw with Bologna back in September, and is already being linked with a January loan move away from the San Siro.

About the author- Ryan Baldi

Ryan is a Midland’s based freelance sports writer specialising in European football. He has been fascinated with the continental game ever since he was presented with his first football kit at the age of 7 whilst on holiday in Spain – a Barcelona shirt with ‘Romario 10’ on the back. A contributor to numerous footballing websites, Ryan has also covered martial arts for local and national print publications.

Twitter:  @RyanBaldiEFB

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Inter-Transfers-Header

It’s been a summer of change like no other for Internazionale. There has been a change of ownership, with the Suning Group from China purchasing a controlling stake in the club. Then there was a somewhat unexpected change of manager, with Roberto Mancini parting ways with the Nerazzurri less than three weeks before the start of the season, and former Ajax coach Frank de Boer taking his place.

And in addition to the changes of leadership, there has also been a raft of new players arriving at the Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, not least because of the cash injection from the aforementioned take over.

The timing of the deals may not have been perfect – several players arrived after the Serie A season had already begun – and the squad still has a hole or two overall. But the improvements Inter have made via the transfer market this season stand to thrust the Milanese giants back up into the upper echelons of Italian football.

Inter have made as many as nine first team additions this summer, and here’s the pick of the bunch.

Éver Banega

Argentinian playmaker Éver Banega has been signed from Sevilla on a Bosman free transfer, in what could prove to be one of the finest pieces of business completed on the Continent this summer.

The 28-year-old was outstanding in Sevilla’s run to a third straight UEFA Europa League title, scoring nine goals and registering five assists in all competitions for the Andalusian club last season.

In the previous Serie A campaign, Inter were often lining up with an incredibly negative midfield trio of Felipe Melo, Gary Medel and Geoffrey Kondogbia; Banega has come in to add finesse and creativity in the middle of the park.

If de Boer can strike the right balance by covering the spaces in behind Benega, while providing pace and willing runners in forward areas, Inter will reap the benefits of having one of the most skilled and creative midfielders in Europe in their side.

Antonio Candreva

Antonio Candreva was earmarked as a transfer target early in the window by Inter, and the Nerazzurri managed to fend off rival interest from Chelsea to sign the Italian international winger for €25 million.

In his four seasons with Lazio, Candreva scored 41 goals from 150 Serie A appearances. And despite the Biancocelesti’s inability to find a consistent level of form last season, Candreva still managed to rack up 12 goals while also registering five assists.

The Rome-born player is 29 years old now, so Inter will be expecting him to come straight into the team and have an immediate impact – especially considering the money laid out for the former Udinese man.

But the 40-cap Azzurri winger will back himself to add a level of dynamism to the right side of Inter’s attack, and his impeccable delivery from wide areas will prove to be a valuable source of goal-scoring opportunities for captain and star striker Mauro Icardi.

Gabriel Barbosa

Brazilian prodigy Gabriel “Gabigol” Barbosa had a host of elite European clubs lining up to sign him from Santos this summer, but it was Inter who won the race for his signature.

Barbosa has been making waves in Brazil since his 2013 debut. The youngster earned the nickname “Gabigol” because of his coolness and finesse in front of goal, belying his tender years and relative inexperience.

An impressive tally of 56 goals from 153 appearances for Santos – all while still in his teens – makes it easy to see why so many top clubs wanted to sign the youngster.

And he didn’t come cheap: in order to beat the likes of Juventus, Atlético Madrid and Manchester United to sign the Brazilian, Inter had to pay a fee in the region of €30 million, with Barbosa joining the Serie A giants on his twentieth birthday.

Barbosa is unlikely to unseat Icardi as Inter’s primary marksman this season – not least because the former Barcelona and Sampdoria man has just signed a bumper new contract – but his ability to play on the right of the front three, as well as centrally, will see the four-cap Brazil international get plenty of game time.

Joao Mario

With a transfer fee in the region of €45 million, 23-year-old Portuguese midfielder Joao Mario became Inter’s second most expensive purchase ever – behind only the world record signing of Christian Vieri from Lazio in 1999.

Joao Mario was impressive for Portugal during their historic UEFA European Championship triumph in France this summer, acting as the main creative force in Fernando Santos’s midfield.

Despite only having three full seasons of senior football under his belt, Joao Mario has earned rave reviews for his performances with Sporting Clube de Portugal. Capable of playing wide on the right or centrally as a number 10, the 23-year-old is fast, athletic and a skilled dribbler with an eye for a defence-splitting pass.

With the hefty price tag, Inter fans will be expecting big things from Joao Mario, and if the Porto-born midfielder can hit the ground running in Milan, he’ll be a major factor in the Nerazzurri’s push for Champions League qualification.

With the acquisitions they have made, Frank de Boer has somewhat of a selection dilemma on his hands, as several top quality players will not make his starting eleven.

But if he sticks with the 4-3-3 utilised in the club’s recent 1-1 draw with Palermo (although a 4-2-3-1 could perhaps better accommodate Joao Mario), Inter fans can expect to see a line-up of Samir Handanovic; Danilo D’Ambrosio, Jeison Murillo, Miranda, Davide Santon; Éver Banega, Geoffrey Kondogbia, Joao Mario; Antonio Candreva, Mauro Icardi, Ivan Perisic – a side capable of qualifying for the Champions League, and maybe even contesting lo Scudetto.

About the author – Ryan Baldi

Ryan is a Midlands based freelance sports writer specialising in European football. He has been fascinated with the continental game ever since he was presented with his first football kit at the ge of 7 years old whilst on holiday in Spain – a Barcelona shirt with ‘Romario 10’ printed on the back. A contributor to numerous footballing websites, Ryan has also covered martial arts for local and national print publications.

Twitter:  @RyanBaldiEFB

 

 

 

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6-Potential-Copa-America-Breakout-Stars

The Copa América is now held every four years and the last edition was in 2015, where Chile won their first title after defeating Argentina in the final on a penalty shootout after a goalless draw.  Even though the Copa América is usually held every four years, we have an additional tournament in 2016, the Copa América Centenario, as part of the competition’s centenary celebrations.

The Copa América Centenario kicks off on June 3rd and we have come up with some of the potential stars of the tournament who may not yet be household names.

Marlos Moreno (Colombia)

Colombia has produced some fine attacking players in recent years and Marlos Moreno could be the next from a nation that has produced the likes of Falcao, James Rodriguez and Faustino Asprilla. Moreno has starred in Atletico Nacional’s run to the semi-finals of this year’s Copa Libertadores, and this has attracted the interest of some of Europe’s biggest clubs. Inter, Bayer Leverkusen, Porto and Benfica have all reportedly approached the 19 year-old who would cost around €10m.

A good Copa América for Moreno would surely bump this price up and with Falcao left out the squad, Moreno has a chance to announce himself to the world in the US this summer.  Moreno is equally comfortable playing wide or through the middle and he will surely be a useful option as Jose Pekerman aims to take Colombia further than the quarter-final exits his side suffered at the 2014 World Cup and last year’s Copa América in Chile.

Christian Pulisic (United States)

In Dortmund’s tricky playmaker, the United States may have finally found the global star they have craved. 17 year-old Christian Pulisic has forced his way into Thomas Tuchel’s Borussia Dortmund first team squad since Christmas and will almost certainly be given his chance in Jurgen Klinsmann’s US side this summer.

Pulisic scored in consecutive games against Hamburg and Stuttgart in April, and with his low centre of gravity, ability to glide past players and calmness infront of goal, he has been compared to former Dortmund hero Mario Gotze. As hosts, USA will be expecting to progress from a tough Group A and Pulisic could be the one to provide them with that extra bit of quality in the final third that will be needed if they are to make an impact this summer.

Gabriel Barbosa (Brazil)

Gabriel Barbosa Almeida or ‘Gabigol’ is one of the most coveted teenagers on the planet. Dubbed the ‘new Neymar’, Gabriel already has a wealth of experience in Brazil’s Serie A, with over 50 appearances and 19 goals to his name already. With Neymar left out of the Copa América squad, Gabriel should finally be given the chance to impress for the famous Selecao.

Gabriel has the platform to boost his reputation further this summer by representing his country in both the Copa América and the Olympics and if he impresses, it should accelerate his inevitable move to one of Europe’s giants with PSG, Barcelona and Real Madrid leading a host of clubs in Europe that would love to secure his signature.

Profiling Gabriel Barbosa, The Next Santos Star?

Edison Flores (Peru)

Peru are the great underachievers of South American football. Thy have not won the Copa América since 1975 and the last time that they qualified for a World Cup was in 1982. This is surprising because over the last decade the likes of Juan Manuel Vargas, Claudio Pizarro and Jefferson Farfán have all played for Los Incas.

The Peruvian Copa América squad lacks household names but that could all change this summer if Edison Flores leaves his mark. The 22-year-old attacker has already played in Europe for Villarreal B. However, things didn’t work out and after only 20 months he returned to Peru and signed for Universitario. Since his return to Peru the tricky attacker has been terrorising defences and this has resulted in recognition at continental level. The Copa América could bring him to the attention of the world and possibly another opportunity to play in Europe.

Antonio Sanabria (Paraguay)

20-year-old Antonio Sanabria ended the 2015/16 season with 11 goals for Sporting de Gijón. This is an impressive feat as it was his first full season and for a side that spent the entire campaign battling against relegation. The Paraguyan excelled in Gijón, leading the line in 4-2-3-1 and was hailed as a revelation.

Despite making his debut for Parguay in 2013 aged 17-years, he only has 5 caps to his name. With Lucas Barrios and Roque Santa Cruz left out of the squad, he will be looking to increase this number as well as score his first international goal, whilst proving that he can be the next No.9 for Paraguay for years to come.

Roma seem intent on cashing in on the ex-Barcelona youth academy player this summer and the player’s agent has already received numerous phone calls from Italy. A good performance at the Copa América will lead to even more clubs interested in securing his services ahead of the 2016/17 season.

Blás Riveros (Paraguay)

Barcelona, Benfica and Manchester United were all interested in securing the services of  18-year-old Blás Riveros but it was Swiss champions Basel that won the race for his signature. This is probably the best move for the teenager’s fledgling career, as he has only featured in 21 professional games for Olimpia over the course of two seasons.

The left-sided defender is yet to feature for Paraguay and is heading into the tournament as back-up for the experienced Miguel Samudio of Club América. If he is given his chance by Ramón Ángel Díaz, he will seize his opportunity in the tournament.

Blás Riveros will be hoping to follow in the footsteps of fellow Paraguayan, Derlis González, who used Basel as a springboard to a bigger club and also to become a regular for the national team.

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Gabriel-Jesus

It’s a long shot, but in Brazil this is his nickname: this youngster is known as “Fenomeno do Palmeiras” or “Novo Fenomeno”. He plays for Palmeiras, the “Italian” Brazilian team who are the latest team to win the Brazilian cup.

We won’t draw a comparison between Luis Nazario da Lima Ronaldo and Gabriel Fernando de Jesus. It’s a long way to the top for this teenager, although he has got what it takes to to be a star for some of Europe’s elite football clubs.

He’s 19 years old. He was born in Sao Paulo, in the favelas of Jardim Peri, and started playing football on the streets, as many other past players have done. He started playing football for the amateur Anhanguera, and at the age of 16 he scored 54 goals in just 48 appearances. He joined Palmeiras after these staggering performances. Whilst playing for the under-17 team he scored 37 goals in 22 appearances in Campeonato Paulista.

In 2014 the Palmeiras fans pleaded with the club to give him an opportunity in the first team, but Palmeiras were struggling to survive in the first division and Gabriel didn’t play a match. Maybe this has been a good thing for him, because in those situations it’s hard for young players to express themselves and showcase their talents.

Why is he so popular? He’s a forward, which is a  role that Brazilian clubs and the National team are currently struggling to fill. He’s a skillful dribbler, creative and fast; in the Brazilian national youth team he has displayed good passing ability as well as some customary tricks associated with Brazilian players such as backheels and nutmegs.

He has been closely watched by a host of top European clubs such as Manchester United, Arsenal, Juventus, Roma, Internazionale and many more. All of these clubs needs a good forward and the brazilian wonderkid seems not only a hot prospect for the future but also a great deal for the present. At the moment he doesn’t want to move from Palmeiras as he said recently, but the appeal of those elite European clubs could be compelling.

With Gabriel Barbosa and Matheus Pereira he seems to be the most important player of the next generation of Brazilian footballers. He plays for Palmeiras who are a rival club to Santos and Corinthians, so their fans wanted him in the senior National team before the other young talents. And he did it: he has been called by the Brazilian first team, maybe because they lack in the forward department and have a large number of wingers and playmakers.

All of Brazil hope to see a good forward player emerge for the national team: Neymar often plays in that role, but he’s better as a winger. Could Gabriel be the player they have been waiting for?

About the author – Marco Santanche

Marco was born in Rome and supports Inter because of Luiz Nazario Da Lima Ronaldo. He is a Brazilian citizen because of his father’s roots.  He played futsal for several years, even in the FIGC (Italian FA) as a winger, playmaker and striker.  He is now studying for a degree in finance.

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Gabriel-Barbosa

Of all the teams in Sao Paulo (Brazil) there’s a team where stars never stop shining: Santos FC. From Pelè to Neymar, the next young Brazilian talent from the Peixe (“fish” in English, because Santos is the only club next to the sea out of the 4 major clubs in Sao Paulo) could be Gabriel Barbosa.

Quick, skillful, fast, with good long range passing ability, he plays mainly at CF and RW. Predominantly left footed, he loves to play defence splitting through balls and to target the opposition defences at pace. Growing up in the youth ranks, he was he was affectionately referred to as “Gabigol” by his team mates as a result of him scoring over 100 goals for his team.

At a Height of 1.78 cms, he’s possesses good heading ability. On top of this his finishing ability for someone so young, gives him the foundations to become a top CF. He can also play as a playmaker because of his good range of passing. Although at present he hasn’t scored as much for the Santos First Team,  he’s a player developing at a fast rate, and has attracted admiring glances from a number of top European clubs, who are eager to unearth the next footballing superstar from Brazil.

However, to fulfill his potential and become a future star, he has to improve his work rate, defensive attitude and tactical positioning: he rarely helps his team in pressing and recovering the ball, he never tackles and has to improve his right foot shooting. His mental approach is aggressive, sometimes a little too much: in a match against Sao Paulo he scored and took off his shirt, gaining a second yellow card. Santos lost that match in the last minutes. His Brazil U20 team won the Cotif Youth Cup in Spain, but he didn’t play in the final having being dismissed in the match against Argentina.

However, at 19 years old, surely it is only a matter of time before he moves to Europe, where he can develop his talent and mentality. If he continues training, developing and progressing with his team, he has the potential become one of the best Brazilian players in the world.

About the Author – Marco Santanche

Marco was born in Rome and supports Inter because of Luis Nazario da Lima Ronaldo. He’s a Brazilian citizen because of his father’s roots, and he has played futsal for several years, even in FIGC (the Italian FA) as a winger, playmaker and striker. He is now studying for a degree in finance.

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