Euro 2024: Six superstars in waiting whose transfer values could skyrocket in Germany

Less than two weeks after the Champions League final between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund at Wembley, the 2024 European Championship will begin.

The month-long tournament in Germany will host some of the game’s biggest talents and the usual suspects will battle for international glory.

And, as ever, there will be a collection of gifted young players who will emerge to announce themselves on the highest stage, all under the watchful eyes of clubs who could be looking to invest in their potential afterwards.

Here are six young players whose values could sky-rocket at Euro 2024.

Lamine Yamal

Spain and Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal will turn 17 the day before the Euro 2024 final.

What the uber-gifted teen has accomplished in the game already is nothing short of remarkable and would represent a career’s worth of achievement for many players.

The Barcelona native became the youngster player to play for his boyhood club in 100 years when he made his La Liga debut aged just 15 years and nine months in April 2023. He became the youngest player to register an assist in the Spanish top flight before the end of that season and the youngest scorer early in the following campaign.

The 2023-24 season has seen Yamal truly break through for the Catalan giants, playing 50 games in all competitions for Xavi’s side and scoring seven goals.

A left-footed right winger with fearsome dribbling skills and a keen eye for a through ball, comparisons to Lionel Messi are inevitable. The teenager has already accumulated six caps – plus two goals – for Spain and could take the international stage by storm this summer. Euro glory would be a fitting way to celebrate turning 17.

Warren Zaire-Emery

Kylian Mbappe’s imminent departure from the Parc des Princes means there will be a vacancy for a superstar at Paris Saint-Germain next season. Many expect the big-spending Ligue 1 champions to fill that void via the transfer market, but they might already have a suitable future figurehead developing in-house.

Warren Zaire-Emery, the reigning Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year, only tuned 18 in March, but already the midfielder from the Parisian suburbs has been a regular feature for PSG for two seasons, claiming two top-flight titles.

Cool and creative in central midfield, Zaire-Emery plays with the maturity of a much more experienced player. France boss Didier Deschamps should have no hesitation in trusting the PSG youngster, who was a European champion at under-17 level two years ago, with a prominent role for Les Bleus in Germany.

Kenan Yildiz

Germany-born Turkey star Kenan Yildiz joined Juventus from Bayern Munich in 2022, and while the 2023-24 season was a disappointing one for the Old Lady, the versatile teenage forward’s breakthrough offered a welcome positive outlook for the club’s future.

Yildiz clocked just shy of 1,000 Serie A minutes and although he only scored two league goals, he consistently displayed a degree of dynamism and creativity that marked out the 19-year-old as a top prospect ahead of the European Championship.

The Juve prodigy’s average of 3.69 shot-creating actions per 90 minutes in the Italian top flight ranked him among the 90th percentile of forwards in Europe’s top five leagues this term, while his 2.17 successful take-ons per 90 put him in the 97th percentile.

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Antonio Silva

“Ruben Dias is my role model,” Antonio Silva said in the summer of 2022 as he was breaking into the Benfica first team. Now, after being a substitute as a teenager at the last World Cup, he will partner his idol for Portugal at Euro 2024.

Stylistic similarities abound between the Benfica youngster and the Manchester City star, too. Like Dias, the 6ft 2ins Silva is powerful, imposing and strong in the air, while also confident with the ball at his feet and in possession of strong leadership skills at the heart of defence.

With several elite European sides in the market for central-defensive upgrades this summer, Silva’s stock could sky-rocket with a string of solid displays in Germany.

Benjamin Sesko

Already a top target for Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham, Benjamin Sesko has been earmarked as one of the potential young stars of Euro 2024.

For his size, power and scoring ability – plus a shared background with Red Bull Salzburg – the 20-year-old Slovenian striker has long been likened to Erling Haaland, although Sesko insists Zlatan Ibrahimovic is the player he has aimed to model his game around.

After joining RB Leipzig last summer in a €24 million deal, Sesko has impressed in his maiden Bundesliga campaign, firing Marco Rose’s side to a top-four finish and Champions League qualification with 14 goals from 31 appearances.

A similarly productive European Championship campaign could see his reported €60 million price tag rise alongside his growing reputation as one of Europe’s best young goal scorers.

Arda Guler

Real Madrid winger Arda Guler found playing time difficult to come by at times in his debut season at the Bernabeu, but his form towards the end of Los Blancos’ title-winning campaign sees him enter the Euros on a wave of momentum.

The 19-year-old Turkey star managed just 10 La Liga appearances for Carlo Ancelotti’s side in 2023-24 following a €20 million move from Fenerbahçe last summer, but a return of six goals represents an impressive level of productivity.

A skilful dribbler who can create and score, Guler will be one to watch as a talented Turkey side look to navigate a tricky group.

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