From Real Madrid attacker Rodrygo Goes to Athletic Bilbao‘s newly capped Spain striker Nico Williams, here’s the ten U21 players who have dominated LaLiga so far this season:
These are the players born in the 21st century who have played the most minutes in the competition to date, with analysis of their performance in context of their team.
Lee Kang-In (2001)
The South Korean leads the ranking thanks to his 1,177 minutes played, and is a key player for Javier Aguirre, with the third highest number of appearances as an RCD Mallorca outfield player. He is Muriqi’s main partner in attack, either starting from the left flank or from the centre. His left foot produces danger through crossing, at different heights, and shooting: He already has two goals and three assists, playing a part in five of his team’s 13 goals.
In addition, he has the courage to face up to defenders when the game calls for it, and he is proving to be effective: He is the 4th best player in the championship in terms of the number of dribbles completed (23). But his offensive impact is best understood by looking at high-impact actions, which includes all interventions with high relevance in creation and completion: He has 30 for the season (there are only ten players with more in LaLiga Santander).
Nico Williams (2002)
The Athletic Club winger has accumulated 1,128 minutes played in the first 14 matchdays of the championship, which makes him the fourth most used outfield player by Valverde. Most of his minutes have been played on the right, from where he is creating danger thanks to his speed and one-on-one ability. He has scored three goals and provided three assists, with this being his debut season on the scoresheet… and what a goal it was!
Only Berenguer (36) has more high-impact actions than Nico (27, like his brother, Iñaki) in the Athletic Club squad, which indicates not only the success of the younger Williams, but also his ability to create dangerous actions that help his team look for and find the goal.
Pedri (2002)
The Canary Islander continues to be one of the most used players at FC Barcelona: He already has 1,094 minutes this season, a figure only surpassed by Lewandowski among outfield players. His control, his ability to handle different positions, his vision… he is a key figure in the development of the team’s play. He is the 2nd best offensive player for Barcelona, and 2nd in terms of passes in the final third. Despite having only played 14 games, he has already equalled his best goalscoring record in LaLiga Santander with three goals, so it will be interesting to see how he continues in this respect. It is worth remembering that Pedri is 20 years old, despite already being considered an established player on the world stage and having accumulated more than 4,000 minutes with Barcelona in LaLiga Santander. His growth is to be welcomed.
Balde (2003)
The Blaugrana left-back has played 1,032 minutes so far, second only to Lewandowski and Pedri among the outfield players, which shows the level of confidence Xavi has in the youth player. Significant growth considering he played a total of 187 minutes last season. He is one of the most physically outstanding full-backs in the division: In addition to having high averages of distance covered at high intensity per game, only Reinildo has had a higher top speed than Balde (35.5 km/h compared to 35.4 km/h). This physical profile has made it possible for him to defend his duels with confidence. He responds judiciously in all aspects of the formation involved in the model of play, offering himself at all stages of the game, and already has three assists, second only to Dembélé (5) in the squad.
Sergio Camello (2001)
The Rayo Vallecano striker is Iraola’s main forward, with 999 minutes played. There are only two players among these ten youngsters who have made their LaLiga Santander debuts this season, and Sergio Camello is one of them. He is living up to the expectations generated after his great stint with CD Mirandés in LaLiga SmartBank, where he scored 15 goals. A striker with a collective spirit, he functions as the team’s first defender through constant pressure: this is how one of his two assists came about, after stealing from a centre-back and passing into the penalty area. He is making some top level runs and connections on the edge of the box, as we saw in the Cívitas Metropolitano and, as a striker, he has two goals in 14 games, an interesting number for a newcomer in the competition.
Rodrygo (2001)
The Brazilian has played 994 minutes for Real Madrid, making him Ancelotti’s second most used attacker so far this season after Vini Jr. It is his fourth season in LaLiga Santander, and from what he has shown on the pitch, it is the campaign in which he is going to make the most important qualitative leap. In the absence of Benzema due to injury, Rodrygo has played many minutes in the centre of the Los Blancos attack, and has shown that he has the resources to perform well: he combines with others, dribbles, has good movement, last ball and finishes. He already has four goals and four assists, equalling his best goalscoring season, and is Real Madrid‘s top assist man. He is also in the TOP 15 of players with the most high-impact actions in LaLiga Santander.
Miguel Gutiérrez (2001)
Míchel’s commitment to offering minutes in the elite to talented youngsters is unwavering. The player who is getting the most minutes is Miguel, who has already accumulated 971 minutes with Girona FC. The coach is counting on Miguel Gutiérrez, a technically gifted player who has the ability to play with the ball, to be dominant in defence in both a back four and a back five. He has two assists so far this season, second only to Aleix García in his team. He is also the player with the second most passes completed in the final third in the squad.
Yunus Musah (2002)
The American midfielder is making his presence felt in Gattuso’s plans: he has accumulated 927 minutes played, having taken part in all the matches that he has been available for the team. As an anchor in Valencia CF’s system, Yunus is bringing a lot to the team in terms of conditioning: He covers a lot of space, runs a lot of kilometres, including high intensity runs, conditions that bring energy to the press after losing the ball, which the Italian coach wants to encourage. In the offensive phase, he creates space, gives consistency, and already has two assists, a figure only surpassed by Guillamón (4) in the Valencia squad.
Take Kubo (2001)
The Japanese forward joined Real Sociedad in the summer, and Alguacil is giving him minutes: He has already accumulated 894 minutes in the first 14 matchdays, and ranks 5th in minutes of any outfield player in the Real Sociedad squad. Within his team, Take Kubo stands out for his ability to make high intensity runs: not only does he lead Real Sociedad, but he is TOP 5 in the division if we filter for players averaging at least 60 minutes per game. This resource brings depth to Alguacil’s side, who are able to stretch the opposition thanks to the Japanese’s breakaway runs. He is also making an impact in terms of passing, he is the third best passer in the final third for the team, and is making an impact on the opposition goal: he has already scored two goals and provided two assists.
Arnau Martínez (2003)
We complete the list with the second player in the top ten who, like Sergio Camello, is debuting in LaLiga Santander this season. Míchel’s second most used young talent at Girona FC comes from the opposite flank: Arnau has played 884 minutes in his debut season in the top flight. He is also the second youngest player on this list alongside Balde, which adds further value to this fact. The right-back, who was developed as a midfielder, is an intense player in the duels, with a great teamwork ability, and who identifies the moments in which he can do damage in the final third very well: He already has two goals and an assist, and is in the TOP 4 of full-backs with the most high-impact actions (17, only surpassed by Oliván, Alba and Gayà).
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