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FLORIAn WIRTZ
Age 18 Club Bayer Leverkusen
Nationality German
Position Attacking midfielderTHE LOWDOWN Likened to ex-Leverkusen
starlet Julian Brandt, Wirtz is a classic No.10
who glides by opponents and splits defences
with laser-like precision. The 18-year-old was
already discussed in hushed tones at Köln
before Leverkusen pounced in January 2020,
since when he’s become the club’s youngest
ever player and the Bundesliga’s youngest
scorer (subsequently surpassed by Youssoufa
Moukoko) with a divine curling effort against
Bayern. He’s the future, all right.
DID YOU KNOW? Football is a family business
in the Wirtz household. Florian’s older sister
Juliane plays as a defender for Leverkusen’s
women, and their parents serve as agents
for both siblings. His father, Hans-Joachim, is
also the chairman of sixth-tier Grun-Weiß
Brauweiler. We wonder what they talk about
at the dinner table...
THEY SAID... Germany manager Hansi Flick
is a huge fan. “Florian is just a huge asset for
this team thanks to his carefreeness,” said
Flick. “He’s simply an outstanding technician;
he loves to play, he’s very creative, has a good
shot, runs hard and is really quick – he’s the
complete package.” Anything else?07
ALPHOnSO DAVIES
Age 21 Club Bayern Munich
Nationality Canadian
Position Left-backTHE LOWDOWN The most heart-warming
story in football. Born in a Ghanaian refugee
camp to Liberian parents, Davies has had to
overcome poverty, adversity and language
barriers to become one of the world’s most
exciting young footballers. Bayern picked
up the Canadian attacker from Vancouver
Whitecaps (where he’d debuted at 15) in
January 2019, and have re-wired him into
the most devastating left-back in Europe
right now. His fearlessness has been crucial
to three Meisterschalen, two DFB-Pokals and
2020’s Champions League triumph.
DID YOU KNOW? ‘Phonzie’ holds the record
for the highest sprint speed in Bundesliga
history, clocking a mind-boggling 36.51km/h
(22.7mph) in a June 2020 match against
Werder Bremen. It’s only 7.5km/h slower
than Usain Bolt’s peak pace.
BEST MOMENT Davies’ scorching assist as
Bayern devoured Barcelona 8-2 in 2020’s
Champions League quarter-finals. After
pirouetting beyond Leo Messi and Arturo
Vidal, the Canadian made a mockery of
Nelson Semedo before putting goal No.5
on a plate for Joshua Kimmich. Meep meep!FourFourTwo December 2021 4105
KARIM ADEYEMI
Age 19 Club Red Bull Salzburg
Nationality German
Position StrikerTHE LOWDOWN The first post-war player
from Austria’s top flight to receive a call-up
for Germany, Adeyemi could provide the
solution to Die Mannschaft’s recent striker
shortage. After ditching Bayern’s academy
aged nine, the Munich local rose through the
youth sides of third-tier Unterhaching before
signing pro terms with Salzburg in 2019. The
lightning-quick starlet has since developed
into an ice-cold finisher, helping Salzburg to
another league and cup double last term.
Thrust into the spotlight after Patson Daka’s
summer exit to Leicester, he averages nearly
a goal a game, and boasts a first Germany
strike, too. Eyed by Liverpool, PSG and Bayern.
DID YOU KNOW? Adeyemi became the first
player in Champions League history to win
three penalties in the first half of a match,
against Sevilla in September. Only one was
converted, though – Adeyemi missed the
first – then Sevilla levelled... from the spot.
THEY SAID... “I know him from Unterhaching- we weren’t ready to pay €3m at the time
because it was a lot for a 16-year-old,” said
Bayern’s former CEO Karl-Heinz Rummenigge
recently. “It may cost a zero more now.”
22 FOR
2022