By Jamie Griffith
Having been around 33/1 before the tournament began Enzo Fernandez was a surprise winner of the Young Player of the Tournament award at the 2022 World Cup.
This year, however, it is the likely candidates who are leading the way, with popular ante-post picks Lamine Yamal, Desire Doue and Pau Cubarsi sitting at the head of the market as we enter semi-final territory.
Morocco’s Ayyoub Bouaddi had been prominent before France sent the North Africans home while Switzerland sensation Johan Manzambi was looking like a real contender before being struck down by injury.
Nico O’Reilly and Antonio Nusa have also enjoyed solid tournaments but Yamal, Doue and Cubarsi have been the real standout youngsters and now is a good time to ponder which of those wonderkids has truly stolen the show in North America, with France and Spain preparing for a semi-final clash on Tuesday.
Lamine Yamal
It hasn’t quite been the perfect debut World Cup for the Spanish sensation, but he has shown glimpses of his brilliant best and, perhaps most importantly, he seems to be improving with every game.
An ongoing injury struggle meant Yamal’s minutes were limited during the group stage but he has come to life in the knockout rounds, providing a constant threat in victories over Austria, Portugal and Belgium.
For a player who scored once and provided four assists during Spain’s Euro 2024 triumph, a return of just one World Cup goal is a touch underwhelming. However, there is a case of expectations being too high and he can’t always put up the video-game numbers he does for Barcelona.
Looking beyond statistics, Yamal is undoubtedly Spain’s biggest threat. He is a nightmare to defend and capable of the spectacular.
One or two moments of magic in the semi-final or final - should La Roja make it - on top of his already impressive performances would be enough for him to land the award he was ante-post favourite for.
Desire Doue
Versatile Paris Saint-Germain winger Doue was closest to Yamal in the betting before a ball was kicked and some solid performances mean nothing has changed.
Like Yamal, Doue hasn’t quite put up the numbers he is capable of, netting just one goal and providing a solitary assist, but his overall play has been impressive.
The difference is, however, Yamal is a nailed-on starter and the go-to man for Spain. Doue is not that for France.
He has been sharing minutes with his PSG teammate Bradley Barcola, hinting that Didier Deschamps is not too happy with his output, and he either needs to spring into life or France must win the tournament if he is to land the award.
Pau Cubarsi
Prior to a 2-1 win over Belgium in the quarter-finals, Spain hadn’t conceded a goal. Cubarsi was a huge reason for those five consecutive clean sheets and he is a worthy contender for the award.
Yamal, his Barcelona teammate, is the more obvious wonderkid, so it may take another couple of clean sheets or monumental blocks for the defender to land the award, but he deserves plenty of plaudits and his importance to La Roja cannot be underestimated.