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Headliners

The players we watched this week will watch over the next few weeks.

The UEFA U-17 EURO has just finished, the UEFA U-21 EURO has just started and now the UEFA U-19 is just about to begin. We're tired, lads. So much for the 'summer break'.

Anyway, to refresh your memory, here's our best XI from last year's tournament:

SCOUTED XI: Our UEFA U-19 EURO Team of the Tournament

A team of outstanding performers in Northern Ireland, compiled by SCOUTED.

SCOUTEDStephen Ganavas

Like the U-17 EURO, the U-19 tournament is contested by eight teams. Romania will host Denmark, defending champions Spain and Montenegro in Group A. Germany, Norway, England and the Netherlands battle it out in Group B.

Players born on or after 1 January 2006 are eligible to participate. Don't fret - this newsletter will highlight the names you need to keep track of, and we'll return with a Team of the Tournament at its conclusion.

Short…listed:

A short recommendation from Scouting Editor Llew Davies.

Introducing Kees Smit, the first Dutchman added to The Shortlist.

The 19-year-old has achieved quite a lot in a fledgling career: he was one of the leaders in the AZ Alkmaar team that famously won the UEFA Youth League a few campaigns ago, and has since scaled from the B team to the first team, ending the season just gone as a regular starter. This year’s UEFA U-19 EURO has the potential to be a kicker ahead of what promises to be a breakout year in 2025/26.

When you watch him, the sheer intensity with which he plays will stand out. The tenacity of his mobility, particularly when squeezing and engaging the game, is both eye-catching and effective. On the ball, he operates with the quality fundamental skills that you’d expect of a graduate of an academy like AZ Alkmaar’s. It means he has a high floor, a rock-solid platform which provides value as a ball-player in a range of midfield roles. He has more than enough skill and awareness to slip pressure and punch passes through lines.

The relative maturity of Smit’s skillset should shows itself in Romania. Very few at the tournament have had anywhere near the senior experience he has, let alone at a high-level Eredivisie side. He will probably look like a man amongst boys at times, particularly if the Dutch supporting cast is of a capable standard.

Beyond this tournament, expect big things from the Dutchman. Next season should be the campaign that catapults him into the wider public conscience.

Watchlist

Every squad for the UEFA U-19 EURO — and the players to keep an eye on.

Group A

🇷🇴 Romania

The hosts are making their third Finals appearance, failing to make it out of the Group in their previous two attempts. Without feigning knowledge of these players, I thought Ianis Târbă was worth looking into given the fact he plays for Celta.

After trawling Google, I found out he is the first Romanian player to have a contract with Jorge Mendes’ agency and was a team-mate of Lamine Yamal at La Masia before making the move to Celta in 2022. Watch this space.

🇩🇰 Denmark

Surprisingly, the Danes made their U-19 EURO debut in 2024. This year, they qualified from the Elite Round with three wins from three. Chido Obi Martin is the big name missing - he is playing another age group up, representing the Under-20s at the Toulon Tournament.

Instead, keep tabs on centre-back Tobias Slotsager. He was signed from OB by Hellas Verona in February in 2025 and looks set to be a replacement for Brighton-bound Diego Coppola - they are big boots to fill. Further forward, Oscar Schwartau will turn the most heads. He joined Norwich City at the start of the 2024/25 season and made 40 Championship appearances, 17 as a starter. In July 2022, he became the youngest player in Brøndby IF history after making his debut at 16 years and 61 days before becoming the second-youngest goalscorer in Superliga history a month later.

🇪🇸 Spain

Reigning champions Spain have won twice as many titles at this level (12) as combined tournament appearances of their Group A opponents (6). Nine of those have come since the switch from the Under-18 to the Under-19 age group in 2002. They are the powerhouse nation at this age group.

Keep an eye on Barcelona’s UEFA Youth League winners, particularly the diminutive Quim Junyent in midfield and Jan Virgili out wide. But this tournament should very much be Jon Martín watch. Real Sociedad’s aerial monster is going to the very top.

🇲🇪 Montenegro

This year’s tournament debutants finished above Poland, Georgia and Slovakia in their Elite Group to qualify for the tournament. Two names caught my eye from the squad list. The first is Bodin Tomašević and the main reason is because he plays for Bologna. Their recruitment has been fantastic in recent years, leading them to a record points tally in 2023/24 which secured UEFA Champions League football for the first time in 60 years before winning the Coppa Italia this season, ending a 50-year drought. Basically, if they have spotted something in Tomašević, I want to find out what that is.

The second name is Marko Tadić, again because of the club he plays for. FK Partizan have serious pedigree when it comes to centre-forwards and in Tadić they have a 1.95m, two-footed frontman that has nine goals in 12 caps at this level. He’s going straight on my shortlist.

Group B

🇩🇪 Germany

Two-time champions Germany are ending an astonishing eight-year spell away from the tournament. In this year’s squad, it’s difficult to look past Paris Brunner. He wasn’t just a part of Germany’s U-17 EURO and FIFA U-17 World Cup winning squads, he was the top scorer at the EUROs and won the Golden Ball at the World Cup.

This culminated in a Gold Fritz Walter Medal for the U-17 age group, the prestigious annual youth awards presented by the DFB. In fact, the entire podium for the 2006-born award in 2023 make this squad. Silver Medal winner Noah Darvich has since moved from SC Freiburg to Barcelona Atlétic while Bronze Medal winner Assan Ouédraogo has joined RB Leipzig from Schalke 04.

🇳🇴 Norway

Norway have qualified for three consecutive U-19 EURO tournaments for the first ever, making history after winning all three games in the Elite Round. However, their top two scorers from the qualifying campaign are missing from the final squad.

The top scorer was 2007-born attacking midfielder Sebastian Olderheim. I can’t find the reason why, but he is not in the squad and that’s really disappointing. Goalkeeper Einar Bøe Fauskanger is 2008-born but I doubt he will start. The youngest outfield players in the squad are 2007-born duo Jonathan Norbye, a jumbo-sized centre-back, and the quick-footed Alexander Røssing-Lelesiit.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 England

The Young Lions have won the U-19 EURO in its current guise twice, first in 2017 and most recently in 2022. In fact, that was the last time they appeared at the tournament.

The big news is that Tyler Dibling will not feature and has been replaced by Crystal Palace’s Jesse Derry, who isn't dissimilar in skillset. The one to watch is Kiano Dyer. Llew has described him as a Spanish-spec midfielder, a unique profile when compared to his compatriots across all ages.

The future of English football

Plus: the battle for Sverre Nypan begins, Celta go home-grown, and much more in SCOUT NOTES

SCOUTEDLlew Davies

🇳🇱 Netherlands

Like Germany, the Netherlands have not featured at this level since 2017. They reached the semi-finals that year, their best performance to date. First, a shoutout for Kiyani Zeggen. The AZ goalkeeper was a penalty shootout hero in this season’s UEFA Youth League.

But fellow AZ academy graduate Kees Smit really is the must-watch player. He was a key part of the club’s historic UYL triumph in 2022/23, beating Real Madrid and Barcelona along the way. Smit played a full season for Jong AZ in Eerste Divisie before stepping up to first team in 2024/25, ending it as a regular starter. He is an all-round athlete with mobility, intensity and a solid physique who is comfortable being on the ball in every phase while actively looking to get on it. Oh, he also scored the cheekiest of goals in 5-a-side REWE Juniorcup before making his senior AZ debut in 2023. See below.

And yes, Lucas Vennegoor of Hesselink is the son of the Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink. Incredible.

Enjoy the tournament! You can catch every game on UEFA TV, as usual.

That’s all, folks. See you next Friday.

For everything on the next generation, stay tuned to SCOUTED.

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