- 7 weeks ago
Welcome back to The Boy's A Bit Special! Each month, we highlight four teenagers set to explode onto the global football stage.
In this episode, we scout four players who embody the future of the game. We break down the £45 million Chelsea signing tipped as the next Bukayo Saka, the French striker who has taken the Premier League by storm since his bargain £12 million move, the elegant Turkish forward making waves in the Bundesliga and the versatile Belgian powerhouse perfecting his game at Ajax. Four clubs. Four countries. Four rising stars. Find out why these wonderkids are attracting the attention of Europe's elite.
In this episode, we scout four players who embody the future of the game. We break down the £45 million Chelsea signing tipped as the next Bukayo Saka, the French striker who has taken the Premier League by storm since his bargain £12 million move, the elegant Turkish forward making waves in the Bundesliga and the versatile Belgian powerhouse perfecting his game at Ajax. Four clubs. Four countries. Four rising stars. Find out why these wonderkids are attracting the attention of Europe's elite.
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00:00Welcome back to our new 4-4-2 video feature, The Boys A Bit Special,
00:03in which we're highlighting the best and brightest teenagers world football has to offer.
00:07Don't forget to comment your suggestions below if there's a player we really should be spotlighting.
00:11We might cover them, we might not. You'll just have to keep watching.
00:18Giovanni Cuenta could be Chelsea's answer to Pakao Saka,
00:21but only if the Portuguese winger is given the same trust and the same pathway.
00:24We really think he's got that much potential.
00:26Football in the modern era is all about athleticism.
00:29Coaching has come a long way in the past couple of decades,
00:32raising the floor of elite footballers' general ability,
00:35but the truly elite players combine that on-ball ability with athleticism
00:38that would blow most pros from the 80s and 90s out of the water.
00:42Giovanni Cuenta is among them, and that's exactly why Chelsea bought him.
00:46Their stockpiling of young talent in recent years has irked fans of rival clubs,
00:50and rightly so, especially if your team has also been linked with the same player.
00:54But one thing you can't knock is their talent ID.
00:56Cuenta was born in the former Portuguese colony of Guinea-Bissau,
00:59and moved to the mainland as a youngster,
01:01eventually joining Benfica's renowned academy.
01:04But when those in charge failed to make good on their promises to house Cuenta at their club facilities,
01:08he moved across town to sporting instead.
01:10Talk about backing yourself.
01:12Fast forward six years, and it's a move which has definitely paid off.
01:16He's got great feet, great confidence, and an even greater price tag,
01:20thanks to that lot from Stamford Bridge.
01:22Chelsea agreed a £45 million fee for the teenager back in March 2025,
01:26and Cuenta is set to join up with the rest of the squad at the beginning of the 2026-27 season.
01:31He was a standout at the under-17 euros in 2024,
01:34and even better for Portugal at the under-21 euros a year later, despite their early exit,
01:40making Chelsea look pretty smart for securing his long-term future months in advance.
01:45Cuenta is a creative player first and foremost, and an intelligent one too.
01:49He can play on either flank, creating chances from both sides,
01:51and due to his Nuno Mendes-esque athleticism, covers ground from byline to byline.
01:57And that could make him a useful wing-back option as he matures.
02:00It's something Ruben Amorim has done previously at Sporting,
02:02although we think he's best suited as a right-winger.
02:05His trademark move is receiving on the back foot near the touchline,
02:08pausing for a brief moment to draw in a defender,
02:10and then knocking it past him, and accelerating into the space.
02:13Cuenta is the type of player to make his marker look pretty daft for getting too tight,
02:16but doesn't overdo it, which I have to say is a particular gripe of mine,
02:20beating his man just the once because that's all that's necessary.
02:23Chelsea may have Pedro Neto, Jamie Gittins, Alejandro Garnaccio and Estevão to deploy in wide areas,
02:28but soon they'll be joined by Quenda.
02:31Here's hoping stiff competition is what's needed to get the best out of him.
02:37There aren't many players who make the jump from France's second tier to the Premier League
02:41as seamlessly as Eli Jr. Kruppi appears to have done for Bournemouth this season.
02:45And that's what makes him a little bit special.
02:47We're big fans of Kruppi at 4-4-2,
02:49and we're surprised there was little fanfare over the summer for the French teenager's arrival.
02:53Although that was largely due to the fact that he signed for Bournemouth from the Cherries' partner club, Lorient.
02:57And the deal that was pre-agreed at the beginning of the year.
03:01Nevertheless, Kruppi was signed on the back of a big breakout year in France,
03:04scoring nine and assisting twice for the would-be Ligue des Champions during the first half of 2024-25.
03:10It was then, after his Premier League move had been confirmed,
03:13that Kruppi's goal scoring really took off, scoring 13-13,
03:17and in doing so firing Lorient back to the top flight.
03:20Upon arriving in England, Kruppi scored four goals from the first eight shots in just 165 league minutes.
03:27That's how you get everybody at your new club on board and match-of-the-day pundits sitting up to take note.
03:32In terms of his style, Kruppi is an extremely effective striker of the ball,
03:36marrying up placement and power to great effect.
03:38He turns good shooting opportunities into great ones and great chances into the unsaveable.
03:43His goal against Nottingham Forest in a 2-0 Bournemouth win earlier this season was typical of his style.
03:47Finding the corners of the goal, giving goalkeepers little chance of saving his efforts.
03:52Okay, I know what you're thinking.
03:53How on earth did football's big clubs miss out on the £12 million teenager
03:57who scored 22 times in 30 appearances last year?
04:00Well, dear 442 subscriber,
04:02the answer lies in the multi-club model under which Bournemouth operate.
04:06Don't you just love modern football?
04:08Lorient are one part of wealthy US businessman Bill Foley's Black Knight football and entertainment stable.
04:13And without doubt, Bournemouth's Kruppi acquisition wouldn't have happened
04:16without Foley's minority holding in the French club.
04:19For a team who've made their mark on the Premier League throughout 2025,
04:22their latest revelation could prove to be their next big sale.
04:25Because now Kruppi's at the spear tip of Foley's multi-club structure,
04:29Europe's major clubs know that the next step is signing for one of them.
04:33Spacey for Ozzin!
04:35There's something very Dimitar Berbatov about Eintracht Frankfurt's Schan Ozzin.
04:39And we couldn't get enough until he picked up an injury just as we'd finished planning this episode.
04:43The turkey forward mixes nonchalance, brilliant feet and plenty of shots
04:47to create an attacking profile that would fly off the shelves if he was sold in a footballing department store.
04:53Ozzin is an elegant player, shifting the ball from his left foot to his right and vice versa,
04:58often in the penalty area or close to it and usually under intense pressure.
05:02Eintracht have a reputation for honing and developing forward players.
05:06They've sold Sebastian Haller, Luka Jovic, Randall Kolomuani, Omar Marmouche and Hugo Eketike,
05:11all for big money in recent years. Ozzin is probably going to be the next.
05:14Born in Germany to Turkish parents, Ozzin broke through at Nürnberg in the second tier,
05:19stepping up to the plate in 2023-24 after the club had parted ways with several of their more
05:24senior attacking options the preceding summer.
05:26In his first and only full campaign for the club, Ozzin notched 19 goals in 32 appearances across all
05:32comps. So, understandably, the Bundesliga's foremost striker factory came calling.
05:37Ozzin isn't even a centre-forward, even though his strike rate suggests he is.
05:41He plays slightly deeper, more as a supporting forward on number 10,
05:45and you might assume because of his goals output that the creative side of his game suffers,
05:49but that couldn't be further from the truth.
05:51In fact, Ozzin thrives on having runners around him, loves threading through balls into space
05:55and is a really effective link player to have between an opponent's defensive and midfield lines.
06:00Trying to find the right word for this proved difficult, but I think we've nailed it with this.
06:03He doesn't seem bothered under pressure, or by anything for that matter,
06:07and there's a real calmness and composure when he's on the ball, which translates directly to his finishing.
06:13He strokes the ball into the net almost like he's passing it beyond the goalkeeper.
06:17This season, he beat last year's goal tally by September, doing so in 25 fewer matches.
06:23Outstanding, right?
06:24Nah, that's part for the course for a player who scored 27 times in 24 games for Nuremberg's under-17s,
06:29and then hit 20 goals in 19 appearances with the under-19s.
06:34Mokio! Mokio!
06:3717 years old, left-footed, defensive midfielder, playing regularly for Ajax.
06:41They've done it again, haven't they?
06:42One of the world's best academies.
06:44Well, not quite. Not this time.
06:46Jolte Mokio didn't come through the Amsterdamers' world-famous De Toukampst Academy.
06:50The club's reputation for developing talent certainly played a part in Mokio signing for the club on a free last summer.
06:56Mokio is a full Belgian international already, and for good reason.
07:00He's versatile, first and foremost, playing at left-back, central midfield, defensive midfield and centre-back.
07:06He's had three Ajax managers so far, Farioli, Heitinger and the unfortunately named Grimm,
07:11none of whom have had any qualms deploying him in a variety of positions,
07:15primarily because his style is that of a sweeper-upper.
07:18Mokio wins possession when games are stretched and puts his team back in control.
07:21If there's danger, he'll attempt to snuff it out, get a handle on things and drive with the ball at his feet.
07:27Critics will say his barrelling style needs polishing, and that's true.
07:30But come on, he's 17 and more than makes up for it with his ability to protect the ball.
07:35Just try and get it off him without being shrugged off, just as many defenders in the Eredivisie have found this season.
07:40Mokio's journey, albeit a brief one so far, saw him come through at Belgian club Ghent prior to the Ajax move.
07:45In February 2025, Mokio scored a first senior goal on his full debut in European competition,
07:51and then, a month later, made his debut for Belgium.
07:54Fast forward to present day, and Ajax is arguably the best finishing school in Europe for Mokio to be at right now.
07:59The club have pedigree when it comes to trusting in youth and providing opportunities,
08:03that teams in more established or competitive leagues simply don't.
08:07And that's something Liverpool's Ryan Gravenberg can attest to.
08:10So, if you were looking for a household name to compare Mokio to, look no further,
08:13because there are definitely similarities between his Amsterdam breakthrough and Mokio's currently.
08:18Remember to let us know in the comments what you think of 442's selections,
08:21and which teenagers we need to be spotlighting in the near future.
08:24Thanks again for tuning in, but if this is your first time watching The Boys A Bit Special,
08:28we've got a few more episodes in the back catalogue, and we'll be releasing plenty more in the weeks to come.
08:33So make sure you subscribe to get the lowdown on the future of football.
08:36Or, if you like football analysis you can physically hold in your hands,
08:39have a look at maybe getting yourself or someone you know a 442 magazine subscription,
08:44in which there's more Boys A Bit Special every month.
08:46Bye for now.
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