La Liga is one of the finest leagues in world football that keeps churning out talented youngsters on a consistent basis.
La Liga this season could be wide open with Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid all expecting to contend for domestic and European titles. Players from these clubs heavily feature in this article but there are players from other clubs, who could also have good seasons. Here are the top youngsters in La Liga that can shine for their teams.
1.João Félix (Atletico Madrid)
Hailed as "the next Cristiano Ronaldo", Félix is undoubtedly the next big thing in Portugal. He joined Los Rojiblancos for a transfer fee of €126 mn. He has been signed to replace Antoine Griezmann, who joined rivals Barcelona for €120 mn.
His career at Atletico has barely begun and he has already started winning hearts with dazzling feet and a speed Ronaldo himself would be proud of.
A versatile forward who can play on both wings and as a second striker, Félix scored 15 goals last season for Benfica and bagged 7 assists.
Atletico supporters should be excited about what comes next.
Key Primeira Liga stats (2018-19)
Matches - 26
Goals - 15
Assists - 7
Shots per game - 2.0
Succ. dribbles per game - 0.7 (57%)
Duels won per game - 4.1 (47%)
Big chances created - 12
2. Vinicius Jr. (Real Madrid)
No one expected the Brazilian to settle in so fast to life in La Liga as Vinicius made his debut for Real Madrid last season.
He has a similar playing style to Neymar and likes to dribble. He has to work on finishing though.
Vinicius will surely be looking forward to become a first team regular this season. But it won't be a cakewalk for the Brazilian, with Hazard & Jovic joining Real Madrid this summer. He showed last season that he has the attitude & personality to perform at the highest level.
Key La Liga stats (2018-19)
Matches - 18
Goals - 2
Passing accuracy - 76%
Succ. dribbles per game - 2.3 (59%)
Duels won per game - 4.1 (48%)
3. Riqui Puig (FC Barcelona)
Young Barca B midfielder, Puig only made his La Liga debut this April against Huesca, but observers around the Camp Nou have long earmarked the locally-born playmaker as a future first team star.
Although Barça coach Ernesto Valverde is carefully introducing the 20-year-old into his first team plans, the youngster appeared to be quickly moving ahead of more experienced ones after his performances in the pre-season friendlies.
Interestingly enough, Puig’s performance in the pre-season games is what captured everyone’s attention. He went from being “just another talent" to the next big thing in a matter of moments
and moments is all it took for the world to see that this kid is special.
4. Samuel Chukwueze (Villarreal)
Nigerian forward Samuel Chukwueze was one of the biggest revelations of La Liga last season, showing really good performances for Villarreal.
Now the 19-year old winger is widely seen as one of most exciting young players in La Liga.
A fast & direct right winger, Chukwueze likes to cut inside and shoot.
During the 2018-19 La Liga season, Chukwueze was in immense form as Villarreal avoided relegation. He also played vital role in Nigeria’s third place finish at the 2019 African Cup of Nations in Egypt.
Key La Liga stats (2018-19)
Matches - 26
Goals - 5
Assists - 2
Succ. dribbles per game - 2.0 (55%)
Duels won per game - 4.1 (42%)
5. Martin Ødegaard (Real Sociedad)
Since joining Real Madrid, Ødegaard has been written off by many, but still has time on his side. Loan moves to Heerenveen and then to Vitesse in Eredivisie, took the focus off Ødegaard.
At Vitesse, he produced the best form of his career to date with 11 goals in 34 matches. But it still wasn't enough to make it to Zidane's first team squad.
He has joined Real Sociedad on a season long loan. He needed a season or two in Spain before joining the Spanish giants' first team.
It's funny how he's only 20 years old and people have already labeled him as "finished" or "abject failure" just because of his early hype.
Key Eredivisie stats (2018-19)
Matches - 31
Goals - 8
Assists - 10
Big chances created - 17
Key passes per game - 3.6
Succ. dribbles per game - 2.8 (64%)
Duels won per game - 6.5 (50%)
6. Diego Lainez (Real Betis)
El Tri's Messi, Diego Lainez joined Real Betis from Club America this winter, becoming the youngest player to emigrate from the Liga MX as well as the second most expensive transfer paid for a Mexican player by a European club ($ 14 mn reportedly).
He made 12 La Liga appearances last season and scored his debut goal for Los Verdiblancos in the Europa League round of 32 against Rennes.
Just 19, he is not yet the finished product but Betis look to have got themselves a potentially top-class winger for this season...
Key La Liga stats (2nd half of 2018-19 season)
Matches - 12
Started - 3
Assists - 1
Passing accuracy - 86%
Succ. dribbles per game - 1.3 (48%)
Duels won per game - 3.2 (54%)
