Young Player Spotlight #4
This week the newest promising Grêmio winger, an Ecuadorian boy headed for England and a Bundesliga champion.
Gustavo Nunes, 18, Grêmio — 0x2 Huachipato, Libertadores, 09/04/24
Gustavo made his senior debut in February, after a great Copa São Paulo for the U20s, and quickly became a regular starter for Grêmio. On Tuesday the three-time Copa Libertadores winners were surprised by Huachipato at home, trailing from the 11th minute.
Grêmio decided to rotate the squad following the Gauchão finals a few days before and Nunes started on the bench. However, with Huachipato widening their lead just before the break, he was required to come in for the second half, expected to help turn things around. Grêmio ended up failing to get on the scoreboard but Gustavo didn’t shy away from the game.
Starting wide on the left wing and looking hungry to save the game, Nunes was Grêmio’s biggest threat creator in the second half. He frequently found himself in 1v1 situations on the wing and from them he created danger. Confidently taking on opponents and mostly succeding, he followed with shots, shots assists, crosses and dangerous combinations. An unfortunate result for Grêmio but another great performance from the 18-year-old. Another talented winger in a long line of academy graduates shining in Porto Alegre.
Kendry Páez, 16, Independiente del Valle — 2x2 U. Católica, Liga BetPro, 14/04/24
Already sold to Chelsea, bound to make his move after his 18th birthday, Kendry Páez made his senior debut at just 15 years of age and scored in his first match. Now 16 and an established starter, he already has 37 appearances for Del Valle under his belt and 6 for the senior National Team.
On Sunday, Del Valle visited Universidad Católica and Páez took only nine minutes to get on the scoreboard and give his team the lead through a well-taken penalty kick. He followed the goal with a solid, well-rounded performance. Playing as the right-sided number 10, he was an important part of Del Valle’s creation, progression and circulation. His great passing and dribbling prowess were essential in attack, with quick combinations and direct take-ons.
Florian Wirtz, 20, Bayer Leverkusen — 5x0 Werder Bremen, Bundesliga, 14/04/24
And finally, Bayern’s dominance in the Bundesliga is over. Xabi Alonso took Leverkusen to a long-awaited league title, and the young Florian Wirtz was an important part of this campaign. He’s been one of Europe’s most creative players for some time, and this season wasn’t different, now racking up some goals as well, as shown by his incredibly impressive stats:
Speaking of goals, Wirtz came on in the second half of Leverkusen’s title-winning match against Bremen to score a hat-trick and clench the title with style. He started a bit quiet, but as the protagonist he is, he rose to the occasion and led Bayer’s 4–0 thrashing in the second half. As usual from him, a solid performance as a number 10, combining with teammates around the final third and creating danger in diverse situations, be it in settled possession or transitions, be it with passes, shots or dribbles.
Lucas Barth
