- 5 minutes ago
With under 100 days to go, Joe Donnohue dabbles in a World Cup version of 'The Boy's A Bit Special.' Under the microscope today, there's Barcelona's defensive youth product whose size isn't an issue, plus PSG's midfield maestro who looks more and more at home with each passing season. This is FourFourTwo, and these are the 2 wonderkids destined to run the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
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00:00It's less than 100 days until the 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off in the United States,
00:04Canada and Mexico. And, for the first time, 48 countries will do battle to be crowned
00:09world champions. Which means that with 16 more squads to pick from, there'll be more wonder kids
00:14at the finals than ever before. Here at 442, we've handpicked two of the best who, fingers crossed,
00:20you'll be seeing plenty of at this summer's tournament. So stick around with me, Joe Donoghue,
00:24and get ahead of the curve with this latest World Cup instalment of The Boys A Bit Special,
00:28the 442 video series spotlighting world football's best and brightest youngsters.
00:35Warren Zaire Emery is a name plenty of you will be familiar with in passing, pun very much intended,
00:42but maybe not in as much detail as we're about to provide. He is, of course, the young midfielder
00:46belonging to Paris Saint-Germain, who made France's Euro 2024 squad at the tender age of 18. But,
00:52there's so much more to the Parisian tempo setter. Zaire Emery has made well over 100 appearances for
00:57PSG, has a handful of senior France caps to his name, and will probably walk, stride and ball carry
01:02into most Premier League midfields. What sets Zaire Emery apart is twofold, and it affects both his
01:08club and international football. In the modern PSG era, an academy graduate having such a pronounced
01:13impact at such a young age, he was starting regularly as a 17-year-old by the way, is pretty
01:18much
01:18unheard of at this club. Sustaining that run in the team, when other academy grads, many of whom are
01:23very accomplished in the game, but have had to go elsewhere to further their careers, is a ringing
01:27endorsement of Zaire Emery's. PSG are, of course, a club that can afford whoever they like in the
01:32transfer market, and they've no issue showing their cash. Zaire Emery, however, has broken and continues
01:37to break the mould. The PSG man was genuinely one of the best players we've ever seen in the UEFA
01:42Youth League, which is an under-19 competition that mirrors the Champions League, and that was when he was
01:4615. At 17, he was made France Under-21 captain, and at club level has rarely missed a game for
01:52the
01:52reigning European champions over the past three years. Not to mention, his trophy cabinet reads as
01:56follows. One Champions League, one UEFA Super Cup, one FIFA Intercontinental Cup, two Coupe de France
02:02titles, three French Super Cups, and finally, three Ligue 1 titles. Described as a player of action
02:07rather than a player of words by former youth coaches, Zaire Emery is said to have had a detrimental
02:11effect on his teammates at a younger age. That's because previous coaches noted that whenever
02:16the team lost the ball, Zaire Emery himself would recover possession, putting his team back on the
02:21front foot, pretty much single-handedly. And so he was promoted from under-9s to under-11s,
02:26and that was a pattern which continued throughout his youth career. Now, you don't need us to tell
02:31you that the boy's a bit special. He's done that himself by becoming both PSG and France's youngest
02:36ever player. Only Mamadou Sakho of Champs-Élysées Scooter and Liverpool fame has captained PSG at a younger age.
02:42He's worked under Thierry Henry, Didier Deschamps and Luis Enrique,
02:45all of whom recognise he's an elite-level talent. But what you were really waiting for was the Joe
02:50Donoghue 4-4-2 co-sign, weren't you? It's okay, just admit you were. Colleagues of mine in the youth
02:55football world have compared Zaire Emery's emergence to that of Laminya Mal, minus, of course,
03:00the attacking highlight reel because of the different positions the two play. That's how good he's
03:04considered to be. Either way, scouts and real ball appreciators spot an outstanding natural talent,
03:09regardless of where they feature on the pitch. It's got to the point now where, having only just turned 20,
03:14Zaire Emery's inclusion in Ballon d'Or long lists, PSG team sheets and Le Bleu's 26-man squad at this
03:20summer's World Cup isn't that notable anymore, when it really still should be. Once upon a time,
03:25a leading sporting director told me that when he's watching young players, it's not about how much
03:29they get right, but how little they get wrong. That particular individual was describing a midfield
03:34player, and the same rings true for Zaire Emery. He just always seems to be in control, whether it's making
03:39passes, protecting possession, creating chances, or simply being in the right position on the pitch when
03:44the opposition have the ball. He's there. It's perhaps why, increasingly, Zaire Emery is being used as
03:49a right-back for PSG, something which many managers have done with their sitting central midfielders to
03:54create a numerical superiority in that area of the pitch. It also helps that Zaire Emery is an extremely
04:00effective ball-progressor, taking the ball in his stride and carrying upfield, often through lines.
04:06Could we see Zaire Emery playing right-back for France this summer? Possibly, don't rule it out.
04:10France's boss Deschamps has tended to prefer Jules Koundé in that role, or Chelsea's Mal-Augusto,
04:15but Koundé recently suffered a minor hamstring tear and Gusteau were not sold on, particularly if the
04:20game doesn't require an overlapping, underlapping full-back. The World Cup is the global stage and
04:25frankly, knockout football is the sort of environment where you need a cool head on young shoulders.
04:29And we believe Zaire Emery is the man for the job. When games can become stretched and the clock is
04:34ticking down, he can defend and attack the big spaces that open up. Now, of course, France have
04:39an abundance of midfield options, all slightly different. But, in our humble opinion, we think
04:44the World Cup will be a far richer place with Zaire Emery in the States. Senegal and Norway in the
04:48group
04:48stage is no easy task, and France could probably do with a player who's been making light work of the
04:53best that France and the rest of Europe has to offer for the past three years.
04:56Do you want more from 442? Then why not join our community with a completely free membership?
05:01There's loads of benefits, including extra content, quizzes, Q&As, fan discussions,
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05:15La Masia is the creme de la creme when it comes to producing young footballers. It's where Lionel
05:19Messi came through after joining Barcelona at the age of 13. And there's no greater argument than that
05:24for the place being a tremendous environment for developing players. I would like to reel off a
05:28list of fellow academy graduates, but we're on a schedule here, there's other people wanting to use
05:32the studio and I really want to tell you about this one in particular. If Zaire Emery is in with
05:37a good
05:37chance of making the France squad this summer, then Barcelona's Pau Cubasi is a near certainty for
05:42Spain's 26-man list. Cubasi made his Spain international debut about two years ago at the
05:46age of 17. And strangely enough, he was a full Spanish international before appearing with the
05:51under-21s for the first time. There aren't going to be many players at the 2026 World Cup who jumped
05:56from under-17 to senior international in one leap, which was over the span of four months. Ridiculous.
06:02The baby-faced central defender is the advert for Barcelona and Spain's youth football pathway.
06:07If you're good enough, you're old enough. And it's never been truer than in Cubasi's case.
06:11He's not particularly tall, six foot maybe a little bit, possibly even half an inch less than that.
06:16And how often can you say that about modern day centre-halves? He's not built like a brick
06:20shithouse either. But then again, name me a Barcelona academy player, literally ever,
06:25Adama Traore aside, who has been. Cubasi is, oddly enough, the type of defender you line up against for
06:31the first time as an attacker and think, you know what, I could bully you today. And yet,
06:35time and time again, it's the Barca boy who comes out on top. He's a great passer of the ball
06:39because
06:40he keeps it simple and for his size does alright in the air, even if that isn't really his primary
06:44task. And I know what you're thinking, because I assumed it too. Ah, Joe, he does so well in Spain
06:49because La Liga isn't anywhere near as physical as the Premier League. And you'd be right, it isn't.
06:53That doesn't mean he hasn't faced his fair share of imposing centre-forwards and
06:57rapid wingers cutting inside. Take the 2024 Olympic final for example. Cubasi,
07:02Spain beat France in extra time, a team which included the experienced front two of
07:06Alexandre Lacazette and Jean-Philippe Mateta, Michael Alisse, as well as Ryan Scherke and
07:10Desiree Douai off the bench. Cubasi made 14 clearances, seven of which were with his head.
07:16And that's something he's not been forced to do week in, week out for Barcelona. But crucially,
07:20it shows that he's capable. Not convinced by his handling of those players? Alright,
07:24let's take a look at the forwards he faced as a 17-year-old during his first two Champions League
07:28appearances. Victor Osserman and Kylian Mbappe. Barcelona won both games against Napoli and PSG.
07:34And while Mbappe grabbed a brace in the second leg that year, ultimately knocking Barcelona out,
07:3829th minute red card for Cubasi's centre-back partner, Ronald Arrojo, definitely didn't help.
07:44Cubasi's knowledge of the game is top of the pile. He reads it like he's been doing it a decade.
07:48And this is a small thing, but given his age, it's noteworthy. He likes dinking the ball out towards the
07:52left
07:53flank with these mini-switches of play from that right-sided centre-back position.
07:57Yes, he keeps it simple most of the time, but when a more ambitious pass is on, he makes it.
08:02And that long passing is only going to improve the more he matures and the longer he remains
08:05in this possession-dominant Barca team. Just a quick side note, can you imagine two players
08:10of Laminya Mal and Pau Cubasi's quality coming through the same academy at the same time? That's the
08:15reality at Barcelona. Both born in 2007, separated by six months in age, arguably the best teenagers
08:21in the world in their respective positions. How much are they going to save Barcelona in transfer fees?
08:26You know what? It doesn't bear thinking about. Would Cubasi get on as well in the Premier League?
08:31No, he wouldn't, not right now. But this is the World Cup we're talking about.
08:34Games decided by moments and Cubasi's pretty effective at snuffing them out as a last man when
08:39the situation requires it. And considering Spain's group, alongside Uruguay, Cape Verde and Saudi Arabia,
08:45they're very likely going to see loads of the ball. So, who better to be starting your moves from the
08:50back than the youngster schooled at the home of Tiki Taka? Remember to subscribe to 442 for more
08:54Boys A Bit Special, unique stories, wonderkids, scout reports, football documentary shorts and so much
08:59more. We'll have much more pre-World Cup content coming on this channel in the coming weeks and months
09:04and we've got exciting plans for the tournament itself this summer, so make sure you're subscribed.
09:08Until next time, bye for now.
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