Weekend wonderkids: Jadon Sancho and Real Madrid loanee Achraf Hakimi rock for Dortmund

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  • Jadon Sancho

    The Premier League took a back seat this week, but one youngster who started in England certainly did not – Jadon Sancho.

    The 18-year-old that got away from Manchester City notched his eighth and ninth assists of the Bundesliga season in Borussia Dortmund’s 5-1 thrashing of Hannover. And he wasn’t the only young’un to make a splash.

    The aim of this weekly column is to shed light on the players, aged 21 or under across Europe’s top five leagues, who aspire to lead the game into a bold new era.

    The likes of Kylian Mbappe, Marcus Rashford and Ousmane Dembele are sure to regularly pop up but as every week passes, we hope to sift out a few starlets who may have gone unnoticed.

    Without further ado, here’s our five picks from last weekend’s action.

    JADON SANCHO

    Key stat: 6 successful dribbles and two assists

    Is there a more electrifying player on the break than Sancho right now? Give this young man a yard of space and he’ll turn it into 50.

    His candour on the counterattack is presently one of the finest sights in European football and it was on full display for Dortmund’s third goal against a hapless Hannover.

    At the end of his surge the Englishman fooled four defenders and opened up space for an easy lay-off to Mario Gotze, who thrashed home.

    In all honesty, the teen’s second assist – a simple pass just outside the box – was one that Axel Witsel made the most of with a super finish. Whenever those yellow shirts are buzzing in the opposition half, though, Sancho is inevitably the player that draws the eye.

    YOUSSEF EN-NESYRI

    Key stat: 2 goals from 3 shots on target

    YoussefEnNesyri (1)

    It’s been quite a start to the year for Youssef En-Nesyri, the imposing Moroccan who had failed to impose his will for Leganes at the back end of 2018.

    A summer signing after Malaga were relegated, the 6ft3in striker had made at best a small impact in what is turning out to be another scrap at the bottom with his new Madrid-based club.

    After scoring the winner against fellow strugglers Huesca, and an assist in defeat to Barca, the 21-year-old’s true breakout came in Saturday’s come-from-behind 2-2 draw with Eibar.

    The ‘good feet for a big man’ box was well and truly ticked with his first goal. En-Nesyri turned Pedro Bigas into a spinning top, such were the angles he took at pace before stroking into the bottom corner with his left foot.

    Guess what – he’s pretty good with his head too. En-Nesyri, who scored against Spain at the World Cup in much the same manner, leapt into orbit and came back down with his second of the night.

    A huge point for Leganes in La Liga, and a giant point made by their Morocco international.

    GIANLUIGI DONNARUMMA

    Key stat: 6 saves on way to clean sheet

    GianluigiDonnarummaMilanNapoli (1)

    Gianluigi Donnarumma still has one month left as a teenager yet, watching him, you’d think he has been there and done it all.

    He still has the occasional poor game, or makes the occasional poor decision, but when everything is just right there are few other keepers in the world that can stand shoulder to shoulder with him.

    It wasn’t really the quality of saves that stood out in the 0-0 shutout of Napoli – aside from a fine stop low down from Jose Callejon in the first half there were few that would have made the 19-year-old’s scrapbook.

    However, his positioning and handling ability when Napoli late on threw not just the sink, but the entire kitchen unit at the Rossoneri – in order to revive their flagging Serie A bid – was marvellous to witness.

    ACHRAF HAKIMI

    Key stat: 105 touches, most of any Dortmund player

    You thought we’d forgot him for a second, didn’t you? The Real Madrid loanee joins Sancho on the Dortmund podium after another display that further erased the impression of that tentative kid at the Bernabeu.

    Though the team is stuffed with talent, Hakimi is one of, if not the sole focal point for springing those iconic Dortmund counters, a quite remarkable feat for a 20-year-old barely 50 senior games into his career.

    Hakimi took more touches than even midfield metronome Witsel and put the quantity of ball to good use, whether it be through rasping crosses or clever link-ups with Raphael Guerreiro in particular down the left.

    They hooked up for the opener and it was Hakimi who fired the bullet from the edge of the box, though quite why Hannover backed off so much is a puzzler. It was all about the Moroccan’s hustle for the second goal, storming from nowhere to dispossess Josip Elez and square for Marco Reus. Game over.

    With Marcelo seemingly on the wane, it’ll be interesting to see that prospective battle back in Madrid in 2020/21.

    FEDERICO CHIESA

    Key stat: 7 minutes to score two goals in comeback win

    FedericoChiesaFiorentina (1)

    It was a case of trying. And trying. And trying. And trying again for 21-year-old Federico Chiesa, who had unleashed five shots, most rather hopeful, before inspiring Fiorentina to an unlikely victory at the death.

    Chiesa and Co had seen Marco Benassi – scorer of La Viola’s second – exit stage left after picking up a red card on the hour mark.

    Chievo having levelled, Fiorentina needed something special to avoid the ignominy of letting a two-goal lead slip and Chiesa, son of former Serie A hero Enrico, duly delivered.

    The winger played the offside trap to perfection before rifling in from close range and, seven minutes later, put on an invisibility cloak as he ghosted into the box unmarked and tucked away Fiorentina’s fourth. It was to prove the crucial goal, with Chievo pulling one back at the death in a 4-3 thriller.

    Was it the most polished performance in the world? No. But the kid’s certainly got heart.
    2801 wonderkids of the week644

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