World Cup 2018: Six Unheralded Talents to Watch in Russia

 Peru’s Christian Cueva, Swiss midfielder Denis Zakaria, Serbia’s Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Denmark’s Pione Sisto, Russia’s Aleksandr Golovin and Alireza Jahan Bakhsh of Iran. Composite: Getty Images
Peru’s Christian Cueva, Swiss midfielder Denis Zakaria, Serbia’s Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Denmark’s Pione Sisto, Russia’s Aleksandr Golovin and Alireza Jahan Bakhsh of Iran. Composite: Getty Images
TT

World Cup 2018: Six Unheralded Talents to Watch in Russia

 Peru’s Christian Cueva, Swiss midfielder Denis Zakaria, Serbia’s Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Denmark’s Pione Sisto, Russia’s Aleksandr Golovin and Alireza Jahan Bakhsh of Iran. Composite: Getty Images
Peru’s Christian Cueva, Swiss midfielder Denis Zakaria, Serbia’s Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, Denmark’s Pione Sisto, Russia’s Aleksandr Golovin and Alireza Jahan Bakhsh of Iran. Composite: Getty Images

Aleksandr Golovin (Russia)

The whipped free-kick that flew past Petr Cech during Arsenal’s 4-1 victory over CSKA Moscow in April proved little more than a footnote, but its provider looks destined for headlines. What little positivity Russians are able to muster about their team’s prospects tends to centre on the drive and vision that Golovin, who only turned 22 in May, brings to the midfield. He is that rarity among the host nation’s fairly staid current vintage: a genuine game-changer who makes those around him perform better. Premier League clubs are watching closely and if Golovin, who was born in the Siberian town of Kaltan and primarily played futsal growing up, can inspire Russia to some semblance of success he may be able to take his pick.

Sergej Milinkovic-Savic (Serbia)

Speculation linking Milinkovic-Savic with an £80m move from Lazio to Manchester United provokes a certain degree of déjà vu. He is 23, 6ft 4in, motors between the boxes, boasts a marvellous creative range and has become a consistently dominant figure in Serie A. Everything Paul Pogba was trailed as being, in other words, and the Serbia midfielder is on track to be at least as good. Brilliance at club level has given way to enigma status for his country, though. Slavoljub Muslin, the manager who guided Serbia to qualification for this World Cup, was relieved of his duties in November largely because he did not fit Milinkovic-Savic into his system. Mladen Krstajic, his successor, is unlikely to make that mistake this summer and if things click straight away the world could see a potential superstar talent come of age.

Alireza Jahanbakhsh (Iran)

In Iran eyes still mist over at memories of the breakaway goal scored at France ‘98 by the feted right-winger Medhi Mahdavikia, which sealed victory over the US and helped earn him a successful 12-year stint in the Bundesliga. For several years Jahanbakhsh was compared to his Team Melli predecessor but a blistering season in the Netherlands with AZ Alkmaar suggests he can be even better. He finished 2017-18 as the Eredivisie’s top scorer with 21 goals, adding a dozen assists – some return for a wide player – and if comparisons with Mohamed Salah are premature it is easy to see the connection. Jahanbakhsh – who turns 25 in August – bristles with pace and power, and finishes explosively. Those facets might yet make negotiating Group B a more viable prospect than it looks for Carlos Queiroz’s side, while earning Jahanbakhsh a move to a top league in the process.

Pione Sisto (Denmark)

It was a source of considerable relief in Denmark when Sisto, jinking inside from the left before curling a slick finish into the far corner, finally injected some quality into a drab friendly against Panama. Not only because it won them the game; Sisto’s intervention also suggested Denmark have another way of breaking opponents down when Christian Eriksen is not firing. Sisto, born in Uganda to South Sudanese parents, is something of a throwback: a dribbler who is not afraid to try things, a stylish winger with a flair for the unexpected, but one who can fit into a system, too. At 23 he already has two seasons in La Liga with Celta Vigo under his belt; nine assists and five goals in 2017-18 were a good return and the task now is to bring that productivity into a major international tournament.

Denis Zakaria (Switzerland)

The numbers looked good in Zakaria’s first Bundesliga season with Borussia Monchengladbach, and the visual evidence was not bad either. Signed from Young Boys last summer, the 21-year-old was ranked as the league’s second-fastest player and also came joint top of the pass-completion charts. Discipline was his only significant issue, with 11 yellow cards suggesting that a primarily defensively minded player has yet to curb an overenthusiastic streak when it comes to recovering possession. He is a serious contender to start for Switzerland, though, and could partner Granit Xhaka, the man he has effectively replaced at club level, in an all-action deep midfield axis. Zakaria – who has Congolese and (like Sisto) South Sudanese ancestry – could be a trump card for Vladimir Petkovic in what looks likely to be a tough fight with Serbia for second place in Group E.

Christian Cueva (Peru)

The emotional outpouring of support for their captain Paolo Guerrero – seemingly banned from the World Cup after a positive cocaine test – has occupied Peruvian hearts and minds in the run-up to Russia 2018, but they might cheer up quickly enough once the action gets underway. That is because Cueva, the 26-year-old Sao Paulo playmaker, has the ingenuity to lift them out of Group C and is perfectly capable of filling the team’s hero-shaped void. Cueva, a diminutive figure at a shade under 5ft 7in, is all darting feet and smart ideas: his wiles brought four goals, all of them significant, in qualifying, and most observers agree he is currently playing the best football of his career. Any iteration of his top form could see fretfulness quickly turn to joy on the streets of Lima, Cusco and beyond.

The Guardian Sport



Spurs Boss Postecoglou Urges Out-of-Favor Johnson to Keep Working

Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Liverpool - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - December 22, 2024 Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou looks dejected after the match. (Reuters)
Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Liverpool - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - December 22, 2024 Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou looks dejected after the match. (Reuters)
TT

Spurs Boss Postecoglou Urges Out-of-Favor Johnson to Keep Working

Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Liverpool - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - December 22, 2024 Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou looks dejected after the match. (Reuters)
Football - Premier League - Tottenham Hotspur v Liverpool - Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain - December 22, 2024 Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou looks dejected after the match. (Reuters)

Tottenham Hotspur winger Brennan Johnson will eventually return to the starting line-up as coach Ange Postecoglou looks to shuffle his pack during a busy run, the Australian said on Tuesday ahead of a trip to Nottingham Forest.

Johnson, 23, had a promising spell earlier in the season during which he scored six goals in nine Premier League matches, but has fallen out of favor in recent weeks due to the form of teammate Dejan Kulusevski.

"Brennan just needs to keep doing what he's doing. I've had Deki (Kulusevski) there and he's done really well and scoring goals," Postecoglou told reporters ahead of Thursday's match.

"It's about the balance of the team. It's about managing that load. We're already overburdening some of the players up there. Brennan will get his minutes."

Spurs will be looking to bounce back from a disappointing 6-3 loss at home to leaders Liverpool on Sunday, which left the north London outfit 11th in the standings and eight points behind fourth-placed Forest.

With the club struggling in the league and still involved in both the Europa League and League Cup, Postecoglou said the squad would need to be reinforced in the winter transfer window.

"We will be short in a couple of areas and we are going to need a boost, but January is a bit tricky in terms of what sort of players you can bring in," he added.

"For us, ideally - and for any club I guess - it would be people that are going to make you stronger. But I think the fact that we're in the League Cup semi-finals, we've still got Europe, we're in the FA Cup, we're in all of the competitions - it's not like our schedule will ease up at any stage.

"So, it makes sense to try and reinforce but where and what number we will sort of have to wait and see."

Postecoglou also said the Spurs squad had no new absences, adding: "Destiny (Udogie) was on the bench (against Liverpool) but wasn't 100% quite right and should be right.

"(Rodrigo) Bentancur is available after his suspension. That's kind of it for now."