International tournaments offer players the perfect platform to breakthrough and gain a move to a bigger club. The 2010 World Cup saw the likes of Mesut Ozil and Sami Khedira put in performances that saw them both move to Real Madrid. Two years later, Mario Mandzukic scored three goals and impressed for Croatia at Euro 2012. He gained a move to Bayern Munich on the back of those performances. There will be several players traveling to Brazil this summer, who hope to perform well enough to earn a move to a top Champions League club. The following are only five of those:
Antoine Griezmann
France have a deep pool of talent, but they have failed to perform to the level they should have done in the past couple of tournaments. The latest French winger making a name for himself is Antoine Griezmann. He has struggled to break into the French squad, which may be due to never playing in France, but after making his international debut, it looks like the winger is part of Didier Deschamps’ long term plans. He has impressed in La Liga for Real Sociedad scoring 15 league goals this season, which is no mean feat in a competitive league like the Spanish top flight.
The Frenchman’s best position is left wing, but he isn’t a traditional winger. He is a very good dribbler of the ball, rarely losing possession, however he isn’t a good crosser of the ball. Griezmann’s strengths are cutting inside with the ball and shooting when he has the ball at his feet. His movement in the final third is brilliant as he often finds pockets of space to exploit, which is why his goal tally is so high. The winger is an impressive header of the ball, despite his size. He will be hoping to perform well this summer, in order to move to a regular Champions League side. It appears that England is his most likely destination with Manchester United and Arsenal being linked to the winger.
Romelu Lukaku
Although he is well known in England, Romelu Lukaku has yet to get first team football in a Champions League side. Many think his time at Chelsea has come and gone as Jose Mourinho doesn’t appear to see the striker as part of his plans, but there is no doubt that the Belgian is good enough to play in the Champions League already. He is still only 20 years old and he is already a regular scorer in the Premier League, scoring ten goals this season during an injury hit campaign. The striker seems keen to improve his own game which was seen in the summer when he pushed for a loan move to secure first team football.
The on loan Everton striker is a physical striker who relies on his strength and pace to bully defences. He can compete well both on the ground and in the air, unlike many physical strikers, Lukaku can run with the ball, which highlights another string to his bow. The Belgian international is a very good finisher when he gets into the box, while he is also brilliant at setting up attacks for his team-mates using his stature to hold the ball up. If he has a good tournament, he will increase the interest in him, while he may even convince Chelsea to give him a run in the side at Stamford Bridge. At the moment Lukaku is a very good young talent, by the end of the summer, he could be a world superstar.
William Carvalho
Many will focus on Cristiano Ronaldo this summer when Portugal are playing, but they have an excellent defensive midfielder in William Carvalho. The Angola-born player has started to enhance his reputation this season with his all action displays in the Sporting Lisbon midfield. The defensive midfield role promoted by the likes of Claude Makelele is becoming a thing of the past, but Carvalho has a lot more to his game than being purely a ball winning midfielder. He is comfortable on the ball as he can pick a pass, while he can also carry the ball out of midfield. As he progresses, he could develop into a similar player to Yaya Toure, especially when you look at the midfielder’s physique.
He only has two caps to his name so far, however many expect him to be a key player for Portugal this summer, alongside Joao Moutinho in the middle of the park. Over the past few weeks, he has been linked to Inter Milan, Manchester United and Chelsea, but it looks like England is his most likely destination. Manchester United in particular need a player like Carvalho to add power to their midfield, yet it may set them back up to £37m to sign the midfielder. It could be even more than that if Carvalho has a good World Cup this summer.
Matthias Ginter
Germany have started to produce a lot of promising youngsters over the previous decade, with the latest player being Matthias Ginter. He is a centre defender who plays for Freiburg, after starting his career as a centre midfielder. Ginter has since become one of the brightest talents in the Bundesliga, earning his first cap for Germany in their previous friendly against Chile. The defender has a lot to do to gain a starting place for the World Cup, but with good performances he could do just that. Germany’s weakness is their defence and eventually Ginter will be the long term answer to that problem, but this summer may come too early for him.
The German international has the quality to become a top class defender. He has a lot of pace for a centre back, while his passing range is also very impressive despite his size. He often switches the play from deep, allowing his side to counter attack dangerously. Ginter is an excellent tackler of the ball, which highlights why he was switched to defence. Many clubs are interested in the German including Arsenal and Manchester United, but it is expected that he will move to either Bayern Munich or Borussia Dortmund in the near future.
Adam Lallana
After England’s last friendly, many are pushing for Adam Lallana to secure a place in the first eleven for the World Cup. He has risen through the leagues with Southampton and he has reaped the rewards for staying with the club, but it appears that he is starting to outgrow the South Coast outfit. He will be 26 when the World Cup starts, therefore he will be approaching a stage in his career where he needs Champions League football to fulfill his potential. A string of good performances in Brazil will lead to clubs sniffing around the attacking midfielder, it’s yet to be seen if Lallana will remain loyal to Southampton in a similar way to Matt Le Tissier.
The attacking midfielder is a natural dribbler who eases his way past defenders using his pace and guile. He works hard getting up and down the pitch, while he is also a strong finisher when he gets chances in front of goal. Lallana has scored 8 goals and got 4 assists this season, which highlights his good form this season. The big clubs in England will be looking at Lallana’s situation as he has already showed that he can perform in the English top flight, while other clubs on the continent will be monitoring his situation.