Stock Up, Stock Down on 5 of World Football's Best Teenage Starlets
It's time to check on how the possible superstars of tomorrow have been faring most recently, as we take a stock-watch on five teenage talents in world football.
The intense pressure to continuously perform at the highest level, despite being barely old enough to be classed a man, can have significant mental and physical effects on players. At times, regardless of talent, it can be these testing times of the season which determine exactly what kind of player the youngster will turn out to be.
No long-term judgements should be drawn about a player on the back of a couple of performances, of course, but watching fans and rival clubs will certainly take an interest on whether a player's form is on the way up or down.
Here's all the latest from five of the best young talents in the game.
Stock Up: Adam Maher
1 of 5AZ Alkmaar's attacking midfielder Adam Maher has enjoyed a fine past week or so, seeing his stock soar both on and off the pitch.
He first hit a point-winning goal for his side in an away fixture against rival Eredivisie side NEC Nijmegen in a 1-1 draw, before being heavily involved in a 6-0 drubbing of FC Utrecht on Sunday. Maher didn't trouble the scoresheet that time around but was still an impressive performer as his side moved to 13th position in the league.
As well as his fine performances, Maher was also in the media after being linked with a summer move to Premier League side Manchester City following an excellent season in Holland (via Metro).
Stock Down: Raphael Varane
2 of 5Raphael Varane has had a superb campaign with Real Madrid in Spain, first cementing his club place in the heart of the defence. Lately he's done the same at the international level with France.
The past couple of weeks, though, he has not quite been up to the same standard.
Varane has been left out of the side for the past two La Liga fixtures, rested against Levante and dropped to the bench against Athletic Bilbao. That second match followed a game in the starting XI against Galatasaray in the UEFA Champions League, where Varane put in something of an error-strewn match.
Some less-confident-than-usual defending from Varane and his teammates saw Galatasaray put three goals past Real, though the Spaniards went through on aggregate.
It wasn't the best week for Varane, though he'll doubtless be back to his best soon enough.
Stock Up: Viktor Fischer
3 of 5A marginal stock up, but up nonetheless, for Viktor Fischer.
The Ajax wide forward put in an exciting performance full of promise against bitter rivals PSV Eindhoven in the Eredivisie at the weekend, but he ultimately delivered little in the way of telling final passes or finishes.
He was not at his scintillating best but still managed to put in a shift and was very active in getting his shots away during the game. Eventually he was replaced in the second half with the scores tied at 2-2. Fischer's Ajax side eventually triumphed 3-2.
At just 18 years of age, he has enjoyed a superb breakout campaign in Holland.
Stock Down: Marquinhos
4 of 5Like Raphael Varane, Marquinhos has enjoyed a real breakthrough season in the centre of defence but has endured a run of games to forget about quickly.
Having been a mainstay of the team since October, he has now featured in just two of the past six league games for his team AS Roma as a result of injury and loss of form.
Most recently, he played in the Derby della Capitale against Lazio, where he conceded an early second-half penalty—though it was subsequently missed—and put in an unsteady performance in the 1-1 draw.
Marquinhos was then left on the bench for the game at the weekend, away to Torino, which his side won.
Stock Up: Julian Draxler
5 of 5It's been a great past couple of weeks for Schalke's versatile midfielder Julian Draxler, who continues to go from strength to strength. The 19-year-old has been prevalent in his team's good results and performances of late, as they have risen into the top four of the Bundesliga.
Draxler was on the scoresheet a week ago when his team won 2-0 at Werder Bremen, putting in a good all-around performance and being a constant danger on the ball in the final third.
Most recently he was in the side for the 2-2 draw against Bayer Leverkusen, again being an influential figure on the ball and testing goalkeeper Bernd Leno on several occasions. Draxler didn't add to his tally for the season on this occasion but was still an impressive performer.
Very much a case of stock up for the young German this week.
