Gavi is so back, record-chasing title challengers, and a left-footed Saliba regen
Ann Perkins is right.
Due to the brain-rotting algorithm, I was served an all-time great Parks and Rec blooper a couple of times over the weekend. I have no idea why ‘Historical Vids’ was posting it, but it was through their account on the cursed For You tab that I saw it for the second time.
It opens with Ann Perkins (Rashida Jones) speculating that: “Everyone loves a good comeback story, right?”. I won’t spoil Andy Dwyer’s (Chris Pratt’s) punchline, you can watch it here if you like.
The reason I’ve mentioned it is because two of the highest-ceiling prospects in European football returned this weekend. I, for one, did indeed love it.
But first…
SCOUTED50 2024/25 launched on Friday.
Your support since then has been incredible. I want to say a massive thank you to all of our paid subscribers.
SCOUTED
If you are still wondering whether or not to sign up, remember you can get 25% off an annual subscription right now. This link will apply that discount automatically and it works for both individual and gift subscriptions. Not a bad early Christmas present.
Secondly, you will gain automatic access to SCOUTED50 2023/24 (and all of our other content, of course). That means that you will have instant access to a list of 100 players born in 2003 or later to scout on FC25 Career Mode, shortlist on FM24, or start tracking in real life.
Use the discount code ‘SCOUTED50’ to claim a 25% discount off an annual subscription.
You Can Win Something With Kids
Speaking of SCOUTED50 2024/25, no team had more entries than AS Monaco.
Lamine Camara, Eliesse Ben Seghir and George Ilenikhena all made the top 20. On Friday night, they all started against Lille. It was a game that promised so much. Not just because of Monaco’s SCOUTED50-inspired XI, but it was a battle between 2nd and 4th.
It was also a match between the only teams that have prevented Paris Saint-Germain winning a Ligue 1 title in the last 12 seasons. Monaco did so with that squad in 2016/17 before Lille managed it in 2020/21.
Of course, Friday night’s game finished 0-0 and failed to deliver on those storylines. But that point maintained Monaco’s status as one of the best teams in Europe’s Big Five Leagues this season. They are also one of the youngest.
I have labelled Monaco one of the best because they are among the five teams averaging 2.5 points per match this season: Barcelona (2.7), Liverpool (2.63), Manchester City (2.5), PSG (2.5) and Monaco (2.5). Of those teams, only Man City, PSG and Monaco remain unbeaten.
Thanks to Transfermarkt, I confirmed they are one of the youngest by inspecting the average age of players used this season, which differs slightly from the average age on the league snapshot page. PSG (23.2), Barcelona (23.6) and Monaco (23.7) have an average age below 24. Meanwhile, Liverpool (26.5) and Man City (26.9) are packed with peak-age players.
Across the entirety of Europe’s Big Five Leagues, the BlueCo assets - Chelsea (23.4) and RC Strasbourg (21.4) - are the only other sides with an average age of players used below 24 years old.
The fact that three of the five youngest teams in Europe’s Big Five Leagues have the most or joint-most points in their respective leagues was a pleasant surprise. So, I decided to challenge Alan Hansen’s infamous quote and find out whether history came with a warning for these young title challengers.
Going back to the PSG-topplers, the average age of Lille’s 2020/21 title winners was 24.7, while Monaco’s 2016/17 squad was slightly older at 24.8. Xavi recently won the LaLiga title with an average age of 25.5 and Pep Guardiola’s youngest Premier League winning squad was the Centurions of 2017/18, with an average age of 26 years old from 25 players used.
For further context, Opta crown José Mourinho’s Chelsea side as the youngest Premier League winners in the competition’s history with an average starting XI age of 25 years and 250 days old during the 2004/05 campaign. To keep things consistent, the average age of their players used that season is 25.0 years old on Transfermarkt.
Alan Hansen’s infamous Match of the Day comment “you can't win anything with kids” made after Manchester United lost 3-1 to Aston Villa on the opening day of the 1995/96 campaign. I’ve described it as infamous because United went on to win the league with what Transfermarkt define as the youngest squad in the division that season - at 25.1 years old, it’s the second-youngest Premier League-winning squad in the competition’s history.
Using 1992/93 as the cut-off point - I have a deadline to meet - I logged the average age of all 160 title-winning squads in Europe’s Big Five Leagues during this 32-season period.
From those squads, only 11 had an average age below 25 years old. Here are the youngest for each league:
🇫🇷 Ligue 1: 23.8 years old - AS Monaco (1999/00)
🇩🇪 Bundesliga: 23.8 years old - Borussia Dortmund (2010/11)
🏴 Premier League: 25.0 years old - Chelsea (2004/05)
🇪🇸 LaLiga: 25.3 years old - Barcelona (2004/05)
🇮🇹 Serie A: 25.8 years old - Milan (2021/22)
Hansi Flick is on course to smash the record in his first season in Spain. Meanwhile, in France, PSG and Monaco are not only going head-to-head for the shiny new Ligue 1 trophy, but also the chance to call themselves the youngest winners in the modern era.
Only two squads with an average age below 24 years old have won a Big Five League title in this timeframe. If Barça secure the title alongside either PSG or Monaco, that tally will double.
Comeback SZN
On Saturday, for the first time since March 2024, Evan Ferguson started a Premier League game. In truth, it feels like he has been away much longer.
Since completing a stunning hat-trick against Newcastle in September 2023 - a performance that played a huge role in propelling him to the top of the SCOUTED50 2023/24 rankings - Ferguson has scored just two Premier League goals in 27 appearances. Granted, the majority have been from the bench, but it is still a poor return from a player of his quality. Phil Costa detailed his struggles in the SCOUTED50 follow-up below.
Phil Costa
Ahead of the game against Newcastle, Ferguson was the featured player on the the Brighton & Hove Albion Social Media teamsheet - a reflection of how highly-anticipated this return was.
On paper, it appeared as if he would play alongside Danny Welbeck - the Seagulls lined up in a 4-4-2 shape for kick-off. In practice, he operated as a auxiliary striker in possession and an extra midfielder without the ball. Due to the incredible pressure the Seagulls were tasked to absorb, the latter was far more common. The home side had 59% possession, attempted 21 shots, whipped in 23 crosses and forced Brighton to make 37 clearances at St. James’ Park.
This was not conducive to a vintage Ferguson display - we did not see the superhuman ball-striking ability that drew comparisons to Harry Kane. But the most important thing is that he celebrated his 20th birthday with 60 minutes and three points. Should Danny Welbeck’s injury prove relatively serious, Ferguson should get the opportunity to rediscover his confidence and goalscoring touch.
A day later, we witnessed another comeback. Although more fleeting in minutes, the wait had been even longer.
On Sunday, for the first time in 336 days, Gavi played a game of football. His first action? Committing a foul.
Although we were denied a reminder of our favourite Evan Ferguson traits a day earlier, Gavi’s 11-minute comeback cameo encapsulated the blend of tenacity and technique that characterised his breakthrough and made everyone fall in love with him.
The untied laces and the head-first tackles were expressions of the competitiveness that transformed him into an indispensable player for club and country almost immediately.
I also found the most Gavi stat possible.
Since the start of the 2021/22 season, 2021 outfield players have played at least 1,800 minutes across Europe’s Big Five Leagues. Only five players from that list average 2.5 fouls won and 2.5 fouls conceded per 90. Only one of them was born in the year 2000 or later: Pablo Martín Páez Gavira.
The fact that he displayed this same attitude 20 seconds into a comeback 336 days in the making was a genuine joy; this is why it triggered such an emotional reaction from the fans and Gavi himself.
Ann Perkins was right: we all do love a comeback story.
SCOUTED Stats
As always, unless explicitly stated, all records refer to single-game tallies by players under the age of 23 in Europe’s Big Five Leagues. It saves me writing that out to contextualise each stat.
Two weeks ago, I told you to watch Joško Gvardiol’s feet the next time he played. In his first game for Man City since, he received the ball inside on his right foot and smashed it top bins with the same foot.
Beyond the goal, Gvardiol had 85 touches in the attacking third - only Florian Wirtz has managed more in a single game. It is also 30 more than any other defender has recorded - Riccardo Calafiori racked up 50 against Leicester City. These two will be the poster boys for the modern left-back role but, right now, Joško is just a joke.
Alejandro Garnacho rattled off eight shots and recorded five shots on target against Brentford. No player has registered more shots on target in a game this season while only Jamal Musiala (9) has attempted more shots.
Interestingly, although both Garnacho and Marcus Rashford started, it was the Argentinian deployed on the left. Erik ten Hag is still trying to work out the best composition of his wide players, but this display will move Garnacho further up the pecking order for his favourite spot.
Bradley Barcola attempted 11 take-ons against Strasbourg, his second 10+ entry this season. Florian Wirtz and Lamine Yamal are the only other players with multiple 10+ entries (imagine that trio in a 4-2-3-1).
Mikel Jauregizar is first player of any age to make 5+ fouls and win 5+ fouls in a single game this season. Have we just found another Gavi? A quick scan through Athletic Club fan reactions to the 20-year-olds displays this season suggests so: brutal physicality and incisive passing are both mentioned frequently.
Facundo Buonanotte made four tackles in the attacking third against Southampton, equalling the record set by Tim Ireoegbunham against Brighton on MD1. Buonanotte made seven tackles in total, the most by a forward in a single game. He also attempted 5 shots, completed 4 take-ons and created 3 chances.
The 19-year-old is always a nuisance for the opposition, usually committing and winning lots of fouls - this seems like the theme for this week’s MNS - and he continues to impress for the Foxes. His stock is rising.
Nathan Zézé - #36 in SCOUTED50 2024/25 - made nine tackles against Nice, the most by a centre-back in a single game this season, while his seven tackles made in the defensive third equalled the record jointly-held by Jon Aramburu and Moisés Caicedo.
Even more impressively, Zézé equalled the record for most challenges made without losing a single one (6/6), previously set by Aramburu.
Here’s a snippet from Zézé’s SCOUTED50 summary:
Zézé is very much a ground defender. He has the physical profile to compete and hold his own in the air, but thrives when covering large distances to sweep or making front-footed lunges to intercept the ball before it reaches the desired recipient.
His frame, his gait and the way he recovers and wins tackles reminds me of William Saliba. If anyone is looking for a left-footed regen, here you go.
That is all for Monday Night SCOUTED this week, but it will not be the last you hear from me or the team.
I’ll be back tomorrow with a Watchlist for the midweek UEFA Champions League, Europa League and Conference League action. Stay tuned for Llew’s SCOUT NOTES and our in-depth UEFA Youth League coverage.
Tom has also interviewed Tifo’s Jon Mackenzie and The Athletic’s Alex Barker about their SCOUTED50 picks.
Have a great week,
Jake.
Get Monday Night SCOUTED in your inbox, every week, by subscribing below.
Discover the next generation: get independent journalism on football’s future… now.
If you enjoyed it, leave a like and share this post — that’s the easiest way to support what we do. More likes and more shares mean more algorithmic nonsense and more eyes on SCOUTED. Do it. We would greatly appreciate if you did.
