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Five starlets who shone stateside
- A host of starlets announced their arrival on the global stage during the FIFA Club World Cup
- Desire Doue won the FIFA Best Young Player Award, presented by Panini
- Gonzalo Garcia, Marcos Leonardo , Estevao and Dean Huijsen also starred stateside
The inaugural edition of the FIFA Club World Cup™ showcased some of the best emerging talents in world football. Some were stars on the rise heading into the tournament but others used it as a springboard to announce their arrival on the global stage. Whether through goals, assists, outstanding performances or consistently high performance levels throughout the competition, several young players have left their mark at the tournament.
Desire Doue was crowned as the winner of the FIFA Best Young Player Award, presented by Panini following the final. Here, FIFA shines the spotlight on the French prodigy as well as several other starlets who caught the eye over the past month.
Gonzalo Garcia (Real Madrid): 21 years
Almost as soon as Real Madrid C.F. arrived in the United States, the news broke: Kylian Mbappe had to be hospitalised due to acute gastroenteritis, which prevented him from training with his team-mates. This was a significant blow for Los Blancos, who were left without one of their star players at a tournament they had hoped to win to salvage a rather disappointing 2024-25 season.
New head coach Xabi Alonso received a warm welcome as he took charge of the Spanish giants for the first time in the latest major change to the reigning FIFA Intercontinental Cup™ champions’ set-up. The highly-regarded tactician, who plied his trade at the club from 2009 to 2014, gave Gonzalo Garcia the nod to lead the line against Al Hilal in their opening match. From there on out, he never looked back.
Gonzalo – a Fabrica product likened to the legendary Raul as a child for his goalscoring prowess – had accumulated fewer than 90 minutes of football across six previous first-team appearances (five in La Liga and one in the Copa del Rey) prior to this tournament. He made sure to demonstrate his goalscoring ability in the United States, reaching four goals in six matches. He found the back of the net against Al Hilal, FC Salzburg, Juventus FC and Borussia Dortmund, making him one of Los Blancos’ key players at the tournament.
Desire Doue (Paris Saint-Germain): 20 years
Throughout the Club World Cup, Paris Saint-Germain looked every inch a well-oiled machine; it is easy to forget how young some of their key players are. Most notably, Desire Doue, who has emerged as one of the main orchestrators of the Parisian attack.
Although it may sound cliché, at PSG everyone attacks and everyone defends. Not just the starting XI, but the whole matchday squad lives and breathes this playing philosophy – competition for minutes is therefore fierce.
Nevertheless, Doue managed to cement himself as one of the first names on Luis Enrique’s team sheet. He ended up starting every match at the tournament, with the French international getting his name on the scoresheet and emerging as one of the leaders who took the Parisian side all the way to the final, before ultimately being crowned the FIFA Best Young Player Award, presented by Panini winner.
Marcos Leonardo (Al Hilal): 22 years
Although better known in Brazil and Saudi Arabia, the lethal striker also found global attention when he was the second top scorer at the FIFA U-20 World Cup™ in 2023. After a brief stint with SL Benfica, he moved to one of Asia's most iconic sides, Al Hilal, where he has continued to plunder goals at an impressive rate, including turning in several headline outings in the AFC Champions League.
The Blues impressed in reaching the quarter-finals in the USA, where they lost 2-1 to Fluminense FC, having also held Real Madrid to a 2-2 in the group stage. Their standout performance though came in the Round of 16, when they eliminated English powerhouse Manchester City with a 4-3 victory in extra time. Marcos Leonardo scored twice, including the extra-time winner. The Brazilian notched four goals in the tournament, making him one of the top scorers at the global showpiece.
Estevao (Palmeiras): 18 years
Estevao was one of the names that had sparked the most interest before the competition got under way. Comparisons with Messi and his signing for Chelsea FC resulted in many fans being eager to see the latest gem to emerge from Brazil’s fruitful pool of youngsters in action. His story was rather remarkable since the Club World Cup was his final farewell to the team he had played for all his life; it was written in the stars – SE Palmeiras were drawn against Chelsea in the quarter-finals.
Estevao lived up to expectations in the much-anticipated encounter between his current and future clubs. From the outset, his future team-mates did not make it easy for him, testing him unreservedly as if he were any other player. It was a gruelling contest, but the young Brazilian never shied away from a tussle. He had some tough duels against Marc Cucurella and Enzo Fernandez, but with the ball glued to his feet, he kept on coming back for more.
Messinho scored O Verdao's only goal of the match (which ended 2-1 to the Blues). The winger received the ball in the box, powered towards the goal line, and just when it looked like he had run out of space, he hit the crossbar from the tightest of angles and watched as the ball bounced down into the far post and in. At Stamford Bridge, they are already aware of the kind of player they have on their hands next season.
Dean Huijsen (Real Madrid): 20 years
Alongside Trent Alexander-Arnold, Dean Huijsen was one of two defensive reinforcements brought in by Real Madrid ahead of the Club World Cup. Despite his age, the Spain international, who recently signed for Los Blancos from Bournemouth in England, was destined to lead the back line from the moment he arrived. Thanks to his defensive composure and passing ability, which seem to be vital to Xabi Alonso’s style of play, he has done so with flying colours.
The young defender – who joined Malaga’s youth academy aged ten – performed so well that he was trusted to start five of the six matches Los Blancos played at the tournament. Huijsen was though sent off in the quarter-final showdown against Borussia Dortmund, which resulted in a one-match ban. Although PSG’s rampant attack would likely not have been kept at bay had Huijsen been available, his semi-final absence was still clear for all to see.
We will never know how the match would have unfolded with the towering centre-back on the pitch. That said, without him, Real Madrid conceded two goals within the opening ten minutes due to defensive errors that cost them any chance of getting a result.
