European U21 Team of the Weekend: Dembele and Donnarumma Are Unstoppable
Bleacher Report is embarking on unearthing the talents of the future, and we will showcase them each week in our European U21 Team of the Weekend.
French starlet Ousmane Dembele is once again the focal point of this team's attack—just as he is Borussia Dortmund's on the pitch, despite his young age. At the other end of the pitch, Gianluigi Donnarumma features after collecting his ninth clean sheet of the season.
In order to be eligible to feature in this side, the players must have been born in 1997 or later.
It's a narrow field, but there are plenty of young talents out there, and it's our pleasure to highlight them.
The team—in a 4-4-2 diamond formation on this occasion—is selected in conjunction with WhoScored.com, from where all stats are referenced unless otherwise indicated.
GK: Gianluigi Donnarumma, AC Milan
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WhoScored.com rating: 7.70
Having celebrated his 18th birthday on Saturday, Gianluigi Donnarumma got back to work just 24 hours later as Milan took on Sassuolo at the Mapei Stadium. Back in October 2015, the goalkeeper made his professional debut against the same opponent and was caught out by a free-kick from Domenico Berardi.
This latest clash was just 12 minutes old when the same player had a chance to beat Donnarumma from the penalty spot, only to drill his effort wide. The Rossoneri youngster clearly felt he played a role in the miss, while there was no doubt about his excellent save—one of five on the day—to again deny Berardi in the second half.
Milan eventually ran out 1-0 winners, a result that kept their slim hopes of UEFA Europa League qualification alive and saw their No. 99 collect his ninth clean sheet of the campaign.
RB: Kelvin Amian Adou, Toulouse
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WhoScored.com rating: 7.00
There's always a Toulouse player in this XI, and in the absence of Alban Lafont (who was outperformed by Gianluigi Donnarumma) and Issa Diop (suspended this weekend), it's Kelvin Amian Adou who steps up to the plate.
He put together a solid and steady performance as his team ground out yet another clean sheet. He managed three tackles and two interceptions on the way to locking down the right flank and preventing Nancy's attackers from finding their rhythm.
CB: Nordi Mukiele, Montpellier
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WhoScored.com rating: 7.00
Among several debutants in this team is Nordi Mukiele, who we've had to move over to centre-back in order to fill a gaping hole in our XI.
Mukiele impressed from right-back this weekend, and although his Montpellier side went down 2-1 to OGC Nice, the 19-year-old impressed with his marauding runs up the flank. He totalled five dribbles as he gave Dalbert a tough time.
Signed in January from Ligue 2 side Laval, Mukiele has made the right-back berth his own and has impressed in these early stages.
CB: Joris Gnagnon, Rennes
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WhoScored.com rating: 8.22
After a short spell of a few weeks outside of the XI, Joris Gnagnon is back with a bang.
A star performer for Rennes during their 1-0 victory over Lorient at the weekend, he produced three tackles, won 100 percent of his aerial duels and managed a whopping eight clearances.
He and his team-mates had to dig in for periods of the game as Lorient enjoyed more of the possession, but they emerged with a clean sheet, ensuring Giovanni Sio's early strike was enough to secure victory.
LB: Aaron Martin, Espanyol
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WhoScored.com rating: 8.02
Aaron Martin did a passable impression of David Alaba or Philipp Lahm at the weekend, as he was heavily involved in Espanyol’s build-up play in their win over Osasuna to the tune of making a whopping 101 touches—from left-back.
The 19-year-old was the initial outlet from Espanyol’s own half for the vast majority of the game, ready to raid forward down the flank and take the game to the away side at every opportunity. Some of his aggressive dribbles were overly ambitious, taking on two or three opponents at once and getting caught in cul-de-sacs from time to time, but more often than not he opened spaces for others to exploit.
Martin was strong defensively in one-on-one situations, sometimes a weakness of his, and was diligent in his use of the ball in his own half. An excellent display and a deserved clean sheet.
DM: Assane Diousse, Empoli
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WhoScored.com rating: 7.14
It was another tough round for Empoli this weekend, the Tuscan side slumping 2-0 to Juventus as the Italian champions racked up their 30th consecutive league win on home soil. The Bianconeri did not have things their own way, however, with Giovanni Martusciello’s side putting up a strong resistance as they kept the game scoreless in the first half.
That was due in no small part to midfielder Assane Diousse, the 19-year-old registering five tackles, two interceptions and blocking two shots. Furthermore, despite Juve dominating possession, the Senegal native connected with 93.3 percent of his game-high 90 pass attempts in an excellent all-round display.
CM: Lucas Tousart, Lyon
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WhoScored.com rating: 8.30
Lucas Tousart has put together quite the streak of form for Lyon, and he makes his third successive appearance in our European U21 Team of the Week as a result.
He partnered the superb Corentin Tolisso in Bruno Genesio's 4-2-3-1 formation, and the pair dominated proceedings against Metz, paving the way for a thumping 5-0 home victory. Tousart racked up tackles and interceptions with ease, and he also won the second-most aerial duels on the pitch (six).
CM: Nicolo Barella, Cagliari
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WhoScored.com rating: 7.23
Back in the Cagliari starting XI after his red card against Juventus earlier this month, Nicolo Barella quickly set about proving he deserved his place in a relegation battle with struggling Crotone. The Sardinian outfit eventually secured a 2-1 win thanks to Marco Borriello’s second-half goal, but their victory owed much to the dogged performance of the 20-year-old midfielder.
Featuring at the heart of coach Massimo Rastelli’s 4-4-1-1 formation, he registered four tackles and four interceptions, both team-highs on the day. Barella tormented the Crotone defence, completing two take-ons as he ran at the opposition, who often resorted to hauling him down to prevent being further exposed.
However, the Cagliari youngster received a yellow card of his own and his distribution was largely poor, connecting with just 54.6 per cent of his 33 pass attempts.
AM: Ousmane Dembele, Borussia Dortmund
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WhoScored.com rating: 8.09
Even though Ousmane Dembele was not involved in any of Borussia Dortmund's three goals against Freiburg on Saturday, the Frenchman once again played a pivotal part in the Black and Yellows' strong attacking display.
Registering a team-leading four key passes, the 19-year-old could have added to his impressive number of assists with more clinical finishing from his team-mates. His incredible technical skills once again were worth the price of admission alone, as Dembele continued his superb debut season in the Bundesliga.
It is no stretch to say that he carries Dortmund's attack even at this early stage of his career at the Westfalenstadion.
ST: Allan Saint-Maximin, Bastia
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WhoScored.com rating: 7.16
In a week when few young strikers played well, Allan Saint-Maximin makes the team despite his side being on the wrong end of a 3-0 scoreline with Angers.
His side managed just three shots on target—one from Saint-Maximin—as they struggled to get a foothold in a game that quickly passed them by, but you can at least say Saint-Maximin tried his best to spark attacks by dribbling forcefully at defenders.
He completed an impressive six dribbles but was also dispossessed seven times—both were game-highs. Boom or bust.
ST: Borja Mayoral, Wolfsburg
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WhoScored.com rating: 7.51
Friday evening's 2-1 loss to Werder Bremen was not a happy occasion for Wolfsburg, the match even costing head coach Valerien Ismael his job.
For Borja Mayoral, however, it was a rare opportunity to show his quality from the first whistle, as the Real Madrid loanee made only his third start of the campaign. Playing in place of Germany veteran Mario Gomez, the Spaniard was lively in the centre and popped up on the flanks to allow for more free-flowing movement from midfielders making runs into forward positions.
Unfortunately, the Wolves wasted numerous chances in what was arguably their best performance in weeks, with Mayoral the only goalscorer of the evening.
It is impossible to say what would have happened had he scored the equaliser and not hit the post five minutes from the break. Regardless, his strong showing will send out a message to whoever replaces Ismael as head coach.
