Each World Cup is an opportunity to see the emergence of a young player's talent on the biggest football scene. For those of us who are constantly immersed in championships, transfers and fantasy football leagues, the player in question is not really a stranger. For the (very) general public who is only interested in football every four years, he is. The 2014 World Cup, for example, became the career catalyst for James Rodriguez (top scorer) and Paul Pogba (best young player). We take the bets that one or more of these players will take their place this year.

Marco Asensio (22, Spain)

The Spaniard is the very definition of the "golden boy", the young player with such a big potential that everyone knows: one day it will explode. At Real Madrid, he has impressed for two years with his runs with the ball, maturity of play and unbelievable left-foot shots. He is not yet an indisputable starter, but it will not last long until he is. His 500 milion euro release clause (2.5 Neymars) testifies to this. Expectations from Asensio have always been huge, but he still manages to systematically exceed them. He is the only player in history to have scored in his first match in La Liga,the Champions League, the Spanish Supercup, the Spanish Cup and the Club World Cup. Certainly, this statistic means nothing, but these performances have translated into a strong self-confidence. When asked to name the revelation of the competition, he answers: "I will say myself."

Hirving Lozano (22, Mexico)

Since 1994, Mexico has been present at every World Cup, and each time were relegated in the Round of 16. The inevitability of this elimination is so integrated into the Mexican collective unconscious that it has originated a quadri annual curse, "the curse of the fifth match". Lozano might be the one to break it. A very fast and agile little winger, he is a kind of reversed Arjen Robben, a right-handed player who plays on the left wing and moves to the middle, leaving a trail of disoriented defenders behind him. He finished his first season at PSV Eindhoven with solid stats (17 goals, 8 assists). The perfect adaptation to the European style allows him to enter his first World Cup with full confidence. In the event of a media explosion, the only thing left will be to wish him better career management than his namesake Ladislas had.

Gonzalo Guedes (21, Portugal)

He is a part of the new generation of Portuguese internationals - with Gelson Martins, Andre Silva and Bernardo Silva - taking over from the former - Cristiano Ronaldo, Joao Moutinho and the king of the right side, Ricardo Quaresma. Guedes combines the explosiveness and pass quality essential on the wing with the solidness of a centre forward. A lethal combination for those who defend against him. Valencia FC, who have returned to the top of La Liga standings this year, can congratulate themselves for having obtained the PSG winger, an author of a thunderous autumn (27 matches, 5 goals, 9 assists at the end of season). More than anyone, the club from Paris wish a bright World Cup for Guedes, to increase the price of the player who was bought for 30 million euros in 2017. And to sell it as soon as the competition is over, which is required by the financial fair play.

Amine Harit (20, Morocco)

From the reserve team of FC Nantes to global glory in two years ... this could well be the trajectory of the Moroccan. First he did well at France U-21 and won the U-19 Euro with Augustin-Mbappé generation, then got stuck on Nantes’ bench after a night out before a game, humbly disappeared to Germany to make a full season with Schalke 04 and to be voted the best Bundesliga young player (31 games, 3 goals, 7 assists). Not to mention his debut with the Morocco national team which he preferred to France. Logically, the last step should be a successful campaign with Morocco, who will go as far as their young leader can bring them.

Cristian Pavon (22, Argentina)

When we visualise the Argentine attack, we see Lionel Messi in the centre, and a group of killers around: Gonzalo Higuain, Sergio Aguero, Paulo Dybala or Angel Di Maria. One might think that faced with this competition, young Pavon will go to Russia only to wax the bench and take notes. But his great season with Boca Juniors (Argentina champion, 7 goals and 20 assists) earned him a place in the squad, his automatism with Messi gave him some playing time in the friendlies, and the recent Manuel Lanzini’s injury offers him almost a place in the starting eleven, or at least secures him some playing time.

Aleksandr Golovin (22, Russia)

Before the World Cup in their country, the Russian team look dull. Their young creative midfielder is one of the few bright spots: impeccable tackles, perfectly accurate deep passes, and a crazy free kick in the skylight from time to time. Already very experienced despite his young age (U-17 EURO in 2013, U-19 EURO final in 2015), Golovin is the anchor of his team, the belt that ensures the transition between the defensive and offensive phases. He is a player who excels in both and it makes sense: his youth idols were Zinedine Zidane and the sturdy Russian midfielder Alexey Smertin, whose career has brought him from Siberia, Golovin’s home, to Chelsea through Bordeaux.

Alireza Jahanbakhsh (24, Iran)

With the Dutch team AZ Alkmaar, Jahanbakhsh has moved to another dimension this season: usually a decisive passer, he has turned into a scoring machine, adding 21 goals to his usual 12 assists. As skilled on the right wing as on the left (which is easy when your both feet are equally good), the Iranian has been struggling to shine at the national team. In Russia, he will be surrounded by a generation that arrives at the World Cup in full maturity. In Brazil, Portuguese coach Carlos Queiroz gave only 49 minutes to the player. Four years later, the same Queiroz counts on him more than ever to help Iran reach the Last 16 for the first time.

Source: Lemonde.fr