Under-the-radar players to watch in UEFA Champions League

The Soccer Central panel preview Champions League Match Day 2 where Barcelona will face Tottenham and Manchester United faces Valencia.

Like every season, there are always a handful of youngsters who break onto the scene in the UEFA Champions League and catch the eye of fans across the world.

There are plenty of intriguing names in the competition this year, so here are 12 relatively unknown youngsters that you need to know ahead of Matchday 2.

Florian Grillitsch (Hoffenheim)

Despite making the jump from Werder Bremen last season, Florian Grillitsch immediately settled in at Hoffenheim. Life in the Champions League also began brilliantly for the Austrian, as he scored the opening goal against Shakhtar Donetsk on Matchday 1.

Grillitsch played as a striker in his younger days, but has established himself as a dominant box-to-box midfielder. The 23-year-old is especially astute with his passing, often dropping deep to orchestrate the midfield.

Grillitsch’s pass map (left) and defensive actions vs. Shakhtar.

If all goes well for the Austrian international, perhaps another move to an even bigger club is in his future.

Mohamed Camara (Young Boys)

Even in a 3-0 defeat to Manchester United, centre-back Mohamed Camara showed excellent composure on the big stage against some of Europe’s best attackers.

Watch how he stays tight on Romelu Lukaku and pushes him out wide by staying goal side of the Manchester United striker. That’s very smart defending.

Even before Paul Pogba’s screamer, Camara read Lukaku’s run intelligently and knocked the ball out of harm’s way. Unfortunately for him, Pogba raced in alone and smashed it into the net.

Camara also shows a willingness to push up and distribute, but this is more common in the Swiss Super League where Young Boys can dictate the tempo.

There were moments when Camara was a bit too eager to push up and win a defensive duel, which allowed United’s attackers to burst through alone on goal. However, this is the Guinean defender’s second season in Europe, so he will improve in that area as he gains experience.

Nikola Vlasic (CSKA Moscow)

When Aleksandr Golovin was sold to Monaco after a stellar World Cup with Russia, CSKA Moscow needed a replacement. They found him, albeit temporarily, at Everton.

Nikola Vlasic, on loan from Merseyside, was considered one of the brightest Croatian talents at this time last year. However, Vlasic’s first season with Everton was a struggle. That hasn’t been the case in Moscow so far. He’s been involved in four goals across seven appearances in all competitions for CSKA this season. That includes both goals for the Russian outfit versus Viktoria Plzen on Matchday 1.

A quick and tricky dribbler, Vlasic is an exciting player to watch in the final third. He’s not the most consistent passer, but he’ll unlock defences with his incredible technique.

Joao Felix (Benfica)

Normally a substitute, 18-year-old Joao Felix has turned heads in Lisbon thus far.

Felix is Benfica’s third-leading scorer with two goals, despite his limited minutes off the bench. After a loss to Bayern Munich in their group-stage opener, coach Rui Vitoria might be enticed to start the teenager.

Normally deployed on the left wing, Felix has ridiculous dribbling ability, a great touch and composure under pressure. With those attributes, it’s understandable why he made his professional debut at 16 years of age.

Eder Militao (Porto)

Already drawing interest from Real Madrid and Everton, Eder Militao has enjoyed a flawless transition from Sao Paulo to Porto.

Militao arrived in Portugal with 57 matches under his belt with Sao Paulo as a teenager, so he’s further along than most young defenders. The 20-year-old has logged four starts for the Dragoes and his early-season form has led to a pair of Brazil call-ups.

In Brazil, Militao consistently racked up yellow cards, but that’s evaded him at Porto. He reads the game very well and has incredible awareness, so he doesn’t need to execute a last-ditch tackle or sprint back into position.

He’s already considered the best young Brazilian centre-back, but many reserved judgement until he made the jump to Europe. So far, so good for Militao.

Andre Onana (Ajax)

This crop of youngsters at Ajax is drawing rave reviews. Matthijs de Ligt and Frenkie de Jong were heavily linked to Barcelona over the summer, plus Donny van de Beek rejected an offer from Roma.

With so many promising youngsters, Cameroonian goalkeeper Andre Onana has slipped out of the public eye. Yet Onana is still 22, is approaching 100 appearances with Ajax, and fits the mould as a modern goalkeeper.

Onana spent five years at La Masia, Barcelona’s famed academy, so he was already comfortable with the ball at his feet before joining Ajax. Thanks to the club’s total football philosophy, Onana’s distribution has been fully utilized. Most of Ajax’s attacks are started by the Cameroonian international, just like Ederson at Manchester City or Alisson at Liverpool.

Of course, Onana is also an excellent shot-stopper with fantastic reflexes.

Steven Bergwijn (PSV Eindhoven)

Mexico international Hirving Lozano is the name on everyone’s lips in Eindhoven, but they also have an exhilarating Dutch winger on the opposite flank in Steven Bergwijn.

In fact, Bergwijn (four goals, two assists) has been involved in as many goals for PSV as Lozano (five goals, one assist) in the Eredivisie this season.

Even against Barcelona at the Camp Nou, Bergwijn was fearless. On the counter, he was consistently beating Sergi Roberto on the dribble and set up a couple of scoring chances. In De Topper versus Ajax, the 20-year-old absolutely torched right-back Noussair Mazraoui in a dominant 3-0 win on Sept. 23. He also assisted Lozano’s goal in that match.

There are similarities to Memphis Depay when he first broke through at PSV, although Bergwijn is less selfish on the ball, which could help him in the future.

Maycon (Shakhtar Donetsk)

After Fred departed for Manchester United, Shakhtar Donetsk needed to address a gaping hole in its midfield. They acted quickly and signed Maycon from Corinthians, making 90 appearances for the Brazilian champions.

Like his predecessor, Maycon is equally strong with his distribution, vision and defensive attributes, although doesn’t usually go into tackles, which is one of Fred’s strong suits.

Shakhtar coach Paulo Fonseca eased the 21-year-old into the team, but has he started the last two matches in the league, so Maycon will surely be back in the lineup versus Lyon. He scored on Matchday 1 off the bench against Hoffenheim and a driving presence in his 14-minute cameo. Let’s see what he can do with more time.

Tanguy Ndombele (Lyon)

Probably one of the well-known players on this list is Tanguy Ndombele.

However, Lyon was out of the Champions League last year when Ndombele broke through. He certainly announced himself with an exclamation point in his side’s victory over Manchester City. Ironically, Man City reportedly offered €50 million for the midfielder in the summer, which was quickly rejected.

Given the demand for box-to-box midfielders in the modern game, Ndombele could feasibly be sold for an astronomical price this summer because he’s the complete player. He completes an average of two tackles and six ball recoveries per game, which highlights his defensive prowess. He’s also an excellent playmaker and dribbler, as evidenced by his four assists in eight Ligue 1 appearances.

Ndombele can do it all, and could easily be the hot commodity across this Europe come the summer.

Stanley N’Soki (Paris Saint-Germain)

There is a bit of a logjam at left-back for PSG with Juan Bernat and Layvin Kurzawa. However, an academy graduate is staking his claim this season.

Stanley N’Soki turned heads in the French Super Cup against Monaco, picking up two assists in the 4-0 victory. N’Soki has also impressed in two Ligue 1 starts, showing remarkable confidence at just 19 years of age.

Coach Thomas Tuchel would be wise to start the teenager if the Parisians want to progress from a difficult group. N’Soki is dangerous going forward and defensively astute, so Tuchel would enhance both sides of pitch with his introduction.

Rodri (Atletico Madrid)

Atletico Madrid desperately needed a replacement for Gabi. The club found him in former youth product Rodri, who was released at 18 years old for being too small. After a couple of fantastic seasons with Villarreal, he was brought back to Madrid and has been brilliant thus far.

Rodri is seen as the heir to Sergio Busquets when he retires from Spain duty. The 22-year-old narrowly missed out on the 2018 World Cup squad, so he’s already held in high regard internationally.

A deep-lying midfielder, Rodri is always in the right position to receive a pass or to break up an oncoming attack, ala Busquets. His signing was crucial for Atletico, who needs a two-way player in the heart of the midfield.

Fabian Ruiz (Napoli)

Napoli’s big summer signing was Fabian Ruiz from Real Betis. Ruiz shined in Quique Setien’s fluid system as an advanced midfielder, although he was able to fill a variety of roles. Be it as a goal-scorer, playmaker or box-to-box player.

Ruiz has been eased into Napoli by coach Carlo Ancelotti, he’s shown why the Partenopei triggered his €32 million release clause in his brief time on the pitch. The 22-year-old was the driving force in midfield against Red Star Belgrade and might’ve done enough to convince Ancelotti that he should start more often.

But Ruiz is much more than a creative midfielder. He’s also willing to track back and cover ground defensively, which is expected from all of Napoli’s players.

[relatedlinks]

When submitting content, please abide by our submission guidelines, and avoid posting profanity, personal attacks or harassment. Should you violate our submissions guidelines, we reserve the right to remove your comments and block your account. Sportsnet reserves the right to close a story’s comment section at any time.