Euro 2016: Young Player of the tournament contenders
Individual performances are the norm of big international competitions, and sometimes these individual performances come from young players who kick-start their careers in these competitions, their baptism by fire. Think Cristiano Ronaldo of the Euro 2004, his threshold from being potentially one of the best became the first step to be the superstar he is today.
The prestigious "Young Player of the tournament" award goes to the player under the age of twenty-two who has had a brilliant tournament or has shown incredible potential to go on to be one of the best. There have been quite a few players at Euro 16 fitting the description, we look at the contenders to pick up the award.
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# Eric Dier
The only shining light of the English team, he announced himself in the tournament with a brilliant free kick against Russia, only to see it get cancelled out in injury time. After a gruelling season with Tottenham in which he almost played all the games, he had three great games at the heart of midfield (during the group stages) for the Three Lions.
He got taken off after half-time in the loss against Iceland, and the England midfield looked disjointed and devoid of inspiration. He may not be your next Pirlo, but he is definitely one around whom a team can be built.
# Breel Embolo
The Swiss wonder-kid started the competition on the bench, but soon was promoted to the starting line-up to provide inspiration to an otherwise poor frontline of the Swiss. Strong and fast, he may not have set the world alight, but his clever movement afforded much more space to the likes of Shaqiri who had an appalling till that stage in the competition.
Signing for Schalke during the tournament, he was linked to the likes of Manchester United and Liverpool, and at 19 years, with the strength and technical ability he possesses he is one to keep an eye out for.