Spain Under-21s: £620m ‘young galacticos’ are the toast of Europe – and here’s what it would cost to snap up each young star
Marco Asensio, Saul Niguez, Jesus Vallejo and Hector Bellerin are latest young Spaniards to dazzle on international stage
IN the end a Europa League winner and Champions League runner-up made the difference as Spain’s all-star Under-21 side breezed into the final of the European Championships.
In a 3-1 win over ten-man Italy, that player was Atletico Madrid midfielder Saul Niguez.
The 22-year-old opened the scoring on Tuesday evening with a well-taken left-footed strike from the edge of the penalty area.
Azzurrini midfielder Roberto Gagliardini was then dismissed for a trip on Dani Ceballos five minutes later but soon after Federico Bernardeschi levelled.
Not for long, though, as Saul scored the best of his three, crashing home from 30 yards before completing his hat-trick 16 minutes from the end.
But Saul is just one of an array of young stars who will now face Germany in the final.
Our friends at profile each member of Tuesday’s starting XI.
Name: Kepa
Position: Goalkeeper
Value: £3.5m
Buyout clause: £34m
The 2016/17 campaign has been a big one for Athletic Bilbao keeper Kepa who made his first-team debut for the Basques against Deportivo La Coruna in September.
Since then the 22-year-old, who has represented Spain at Under-18 and Under-19 level previously, has been Bilbao’s first-choice.
Kepa also won the 2012 Under-19 European Championships with Spain.
Name: Hector Bellerin
Position: Right-back
Value: £40m
It might not have been his best season for Arsenal but flying full-back Bellerin is still a Barcelona transfer target and played for the Blaugrana before moving to the Emirates.
The 22-year-old, who was dropped towards the end of the season, is one of the best right-backs in the Premier League on his day, though, using his searing pace to run at opposing defenders.
Name: Jorge Mere
Position: Centre-back
Value: £5m
Buyout clause: £26.5m
With Sergio Ramos and Gerard Pique both the wrong side of 30, Spain know the next generation of central defenders is safe with Sporting Gijon’s Jorge Mere one half the current Under-21 pairing.
The 20-year-old was called up to the senior side for the first time in May last year and after an impressive campaign with Los Rojiblancos it is unlikely to be his last senior call-up.
Name: Jesus Vallejo
Position: Centre-back
Value: £20m
Buyout clause: £31.5m
The other half of Spain’s centre-back pairing is Real Madrid prospect Vallejo.
The 20-year-old won plenty of admirers on loan at Eintracht Frankfurt last season.
Whether he can force his way into Zinedine Zidane’s plans next season remains to be seen.
Ramos, Raphael Varane and Nacho are all ahead of the former Zaragoza defender who won the Under-19 European Championships in 2015.
Name: Jonny Castro
Position: Left-back
Value: £6m
Buyout clause: £20m
Versatile defender Castro was part of the Celta Vigo side which reached the semi-finals of last season’s Europa League only to be knocked out by Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United.
Capable of playing anywhere across the back four, the 23-year-old was also part of the Spanish Under-19 side which won the 2012 European Championships.
Name: Saul Niguez
Position: Central midfield
Value: £50m
Buyout clause: £70m
Vice-captain to Everton outcast Gerard Deulofeu, Saul was the hero of the semi-final win over Italy with three well-taken strikes taking his tally for the tournament up to five.
The Atletico Madrid midfielder was a Champions League runner-up with Atleti in 2016 and has also won the Europa League, Copa del Rey and Supercopa de Espana with Los Rojiblancos where he has been a regular for the last three seasons.
Name: Marcos Llorente
Position: Central midfield
Value: £15m
Buyout clause: £18.75m
Born in Madrid, Llorente joined Los Blancos in 2008 and made his first-team debut in October 2015.
But he has had to be patient waiting for his chance owing to the star-studded collection of midfielders ahead of him.
An impressive loan spell with Alaves last season, in which he played 34 times, should strengthen his case for more regular involvement.
Name: Dani Ceballos
Position: Central midfield
Value: £13m
Buyout clause: £13m
A tidy and technically impressive midfielder, Ceballos might never had made it in professional football after being released by Sevilla due to chronic bronchitis.
But the 20-year-old returned to the game with Real Betis and Los Verdiblancos’ faith has been rewarded.
He helped Betis win the Segunda Division in 2015 and has been a regular since.
Name: Marco Asensio
Position: Attacking midfield
Value: £60m
Buyout clause: £350m
One of the stars of this Spain team, Asensio scored the fourth for Real Madrid in their Champions League final win over Juventus earlier this month.
The 21-year-old was not always a regular starter for Zidane’s side as they did the double but impressed when given a chance and scored 10 times in all competitions despite making just 18 starts.
Name: Sandro Ramirez
Position: Striker
Value: £5.25m
Buyout clause: £5.25m
A former Barcelona prospect – winning the Champions League, La Liga (2), Copa del Rey (2), UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup – Ramirez scored 14 times in just 28 La Liga starts last season.
Name: Gerard Deulofeu
Position: Attacking midfield
Value: £10.5m
Buyout clause: £10.5m
The 23-year-old skipper is set to rejoin Barcelona from Everton thanks to a £10.5m buy-back clause which expires at the end of this month.
The expectation is Barca will then sell the winger.
After a good start to life on Merseyside, Deulofeu’s form dipped and he spent the second half of last season on loan at Milan, scoring four times in 17 outings for the Rossoneri.