Talent Radar Young Players Team of the Week #20: Michy Batshuayi and Harry Kane Feature

A regular feature on our website is the Talent Radar Team of the Week with the best young players compiled into an XI from across Europe’s top six leagues. You can read this for all details on Talent Radar, who is eligible under it and what else we publish within this feature.

Timon Wellenreuther | Schalke | Germany | 19 | Goalkeeper: Schalke welcomed Hoffenheim on Saturday, a game that Schalke needed to win after losing two and drawing one of their previous three games. The match ended in a 3-1 win for the visitors, with Timon Wellenreuther, being one of two Schalke players to make it to our Team of the Week. The 19 year old had a relatively quiet game (barring the goal), with his performance on the night focused more on individual discipline. The youngster barely ventured out and stayed not far from his line, despite the back three seeming to venture out quite a bit. Wellenreuther has recently got a solid run of games and looks to maintain his place by playing it safe with regard to his distribution.

Head this way for a Scout Report on Timon Wellenreuther.

Almamy Toure | Monaco | Mali |18 | Right Centre Back: Monaco were away to face Evian Thonon Gaillard this past weekend and left the ground with all three points thanks to a 1-3 scoreline. With only this third league start of the season, Almamy Toure makes it into our Team of the Week. The 18 year old claimed his first goal as a professional from a second half Monaco corner; first attempt was a direct volley but the spectacular effort was blocked and was followed up by Toure with a shot which put the ball in the back of the net. Defensively, the youngster had a good game, with 2 interceptions, 3 clearances and a blocked shot. After being left out of the squad for majority of the season so far, it’s nice to see him get a chance to prove himself out on the field and not twiddling his thumbs or playing the most popular Canadian Online slots.

Baptiste Aloe | Marseille | France | 20 | Centre Back: Marseille ran riot when they visited Toulouse this past weekend coming away from the game with an emphatic 1-6 scoreline. The home side were in the relegation zone at the start of the game and Marseille did them no favours either with the scoreline or the scorers as their second goal was from their 20 year old centre back, Baptiste Aloe, who put the ball in the back of the net after a free kick was cleared, and the second ball fell to the Frenchman who stabbed it home. An impressive tally of 9 clearances and a couple of interceptions would be the subdued story for the young man to tell, with the attention falling on his first goal of the season.

Layvin Kurzawa | Monaco | France | 22 | Left Centre Back: Another Monaco player to feature in this week’s Team of the Week, Kurzawa had an excellent game in Monaco’s 1-3 away win at Evian TG. The Frenchman was involved straight away with the game’s opener, weaving past an opposition player, crossing the half line and slipping in Anthony Martial who finished off the move quite neatly in just the 18^th minute. The second half saw Kurzawa try his luck from a free kick, which, to give credit where due, was on target and made the keeper uncomfortable despite being from quite a distance away. 3 interceptions and 4 clearances capped a good night for the youngster.

Hakim Ziyech | FC Twente | Holland | 21 | Central Midfielder: Our only entry from the Eredivisie this week is Hakim Ziyech, who was a part of the FC Twente side that traveled to face Willem II in the Friday night kick-off. The match ended with the two teams sharing the spoils. The game ended 2-2, with both teams seeing braces, one of which was scored by Hakim Ziyech. A 28 metre free kick from the youngster was quite the spectacle to watch as the goal was the start of the comeback that Twente had to make after going 2-0 down early in the first half. A quick counter in the second half saw Ziyech get on the end of a ball played across the face of the goal to bring things level on the night.

Johannes Geis | Mainz 05 | Germany | 21 | Central Midfielder: Mainz were at home to Gladbach this weekend and heavy focus on getting a result was on the cards, given their floating status above the relegation zone. The home team staged a second half comeback after being 0-2 down after 67 minutes with Johannes Geis taking the initiative on the 73^rd minute with a goal from a freekick, a good 30 yards from goal. While not the most special free kick you would see, the strike was good enough to seep through a crowd of players before awkwardly bouncing before Yann Sommer and reaching the back of the net.

Heung-Min Son | Bayer Leverkusen | South Korea | 22 | Attacking Midfielder: Paderborn entertained Leverkusen over the weekend, with the match resulting in a 0-3 drubbing for the home side. Of the three goals, two of them were by the man in the spotlight, Heung-Min Son. The South Korean talent has now moved his personal tally to 16 goals and 4 assists across all competitions. His knack for being in the right place (attacking midfielder getting into the box) was displayed during the first goal as the ball was squared to him for an easy finish after a neat team build up. His second of the night tells you why we rave about him: a sweet finish in the bottom right corner after pouncing on a loose ball outside the box.

Max Meyer | Schalke | Germany | 19 | Attacking Midfielder: After being left on the bench against Dortmund the prior weekend, Max Meyer had a strong word sent out with a splendid performance in Schalke’s home game against Hoffenheim. The match ended in a 3-1 victory for Schalke, with Meyer scored earning a brace. Both goals were courtesy of a Choupo-Moting/Meyer link up, the Cameroonian with some excellent wing play to set up Meyer twice. Meyer’s desire to get on the end of those square balls across the face of the goal certainly shows his willingness to improve and commit, the character that will come in genuine need as Schalke chase European football.

Max Mayer featured in our Top 100 Young Players to watch in 2015.

Nabil Fekir | Lyon | France | 21 | Attacking Midfielder: The youngster, who recently decided on which international team he intended to play for, put forth a sublime performance against Montpellier this past Sunday, earning him a Whoscored rating of 9.89! The game, which ended 1-5 to the visitors Lyon, saw the 21 year old bag a brace which brings his tally to 11 goals and 9 assists across all competitions this season. Fekir started Lyon’s night by earning a penalty for the team which was converted by Alexandre Lacazette. Fekir showed why he is constantly rising in our Talent Radar rankings once again with a neat one two with Yohan Gourcuff followed by a well-placed strike to give Lyon’s second goal. The second half saw him try the spectacular from distance (about 25-30 yards), the ball grazing the top surface of the cross bar. His second on the night saw a lovely little chip after yet another Fekir-Gourcuff link up play.

Michy Batshuayi | Marseille | Belgium | 21 | Striker: Having recently scored a brace against Saint Etienne barely two weeks ago, the Belgian Michy Batshuayi was among the goals once again as Marseille thrashed relegation threatened Toulouse courtesy a 1-6 scoreline at the end of the 90 minutes. With 4 goals in three games in the league, the 21 year old striker seems to be overflowing with confidence. In just the second minute of the game, Batshuayi displayed his worth, holding off the defender to collect a pass before neatly skipping away from him and stylishly slotting the ball in the back of the net with a beautiful strike. His second goal came from a Marseille counter, the ball squared to him in the 18 yard box, Batshuayi calmly cutting a defender and the keeper in one move to bag his second brace in 3 weeks.

Harry Kane | Spurs | England | 21 | Striker: The man of the moment right now in England, Harry Kane bagged a brace as Spurs made the short trip to face Queens Park Rangers on Sunday. Kane has now taken his personal tally to 26 goals for the season across all competitions with those two goals. His overall play and involvement in the game is highlighted by the fact that despite being a striker, the youngster managed 54 touches during the game (to put things in perspective, close to two of Spurs’ midfielders and more than one of them). His aerial threat was seen in Spurs’ opener, as he beat every QPR player to the ball from a first half free kick to head it into the back of the net. With his confidence high, the second saw him coolly take the ball around the approaching Robert Green to give Roy Hodgson more to think about.

Written by Razim Refai