The Under-21 UEFA European Championships are officially underway in Croatia and Slovakia, and the tournament couldn’t have gotten off to a more electric start. Spain and Romania kicked things off, and it looked as though it would be a comfortable evening for La Roja when they raced into an early 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Marc Pubill and Mateo Joseph. The Romanians weren’t about to be embarrassed, though, and they roared back into life to tie things up at 2-2 in the second half, only for César Tárrega to fire home a last-minute winner.
England’s Young Lions head into the tournament as the reigning champions after beating the aforementioned Spaniards in Georgia two years ago. A team led by the likes of Cole Palmer and Morgan Gibbs-White stormed past the rest of the competition to secure the trophy for the first time in almost 40 years, and now online gambling sites make them contenders to successfully defend the title. The latest online gambling at Bovada odds currently price the English as a 4/1 joint favorite to reign supreme this summer, level with both Spain and Germany.
But what of the players themselves? Well, over the years, illustrious names such as Luis Figo, Fabio Cannavaro, and Andrea Pirlo have all put on blistering displays to claim the Player of the Tournament award. But who are the last three players to have secured that honor, and how have their careers progressed since? Let’s find out.
Anthony Gordon
Two years ago, Anthony Gordon was well on his way to superstardom. The talented English winger had already broken through into the Everton first team and was the shining light in a Toffees side that had narrowly avoided relegation. Six months before the 2023 U21 Euro, he made a blockbuster £40m move to Newcastle United, helping the Magpies secure Champions League football in his first campaign with the club.
Out in Georgia, goals in the group stage victory against Israel and the quarterfinal win against Portugal secured him the Player of the Tournament award, and he has continued his upward trajectory since. Gordon has gone on to become one of the main men at St. James’ Park, even helping the Tyneside club to its first piece of silverware in 70 years last term as they won the League Cup.
Two years on from his exploits at the U21 Euro, he is also a fully fledged member of the England senior team, making ten appearances and scoring his first goal in the 5-0 demolition of Ireland last November.
Fábio Vieira
Back in 2021, the U21 Euro had a far different look. Global events meant that crowd capacity had to be significantly reduced, and while that may have affected the atmosphere at games, it certainly didn’t affect the quality.
Portuguese midfielder Fábio Vieira was the star of the show that summer. The talented playmaker had just broken into the FC Porto first team in the months before the tournament getting underway, and he was beginning to look like a world-beater. He was the beating heart of the young Portugal team that went on to reach the final. He scored one and assisted another in the group stage win against co-hosts Hungary, and was a key reason as to why his side would end the tournament as runners-up.
Following his success at the U21 European Championship, Vieira caught the eye of many European heavyweights. English giants Arsenal eventually won the race for his signature, forking out £35m to secure his services in the summer of 2022. But unfortunately, things didn’t quite work out at the Emirates.
The central midfielder played a bit part role in the 2022/23 campaign, but he would make just ten appearances the following year. Last season, he was loaned back to boyhood club Porto, making 39 appearances in all competitions as his side finished third in the Liga Portuguesa. It remains to be seen whether he still has a future in North London.
Fabián Ruiz
Spanish attacking midfielder Fabián Ruiz is the player who has perhaps had the most success on this list. Back in 2019, he was the star of the show as Spain won the tournament for the third time in eight years.
The former Betis youngster was already a fully fledged Spanish international before the 2019 U21 Euro got underway, featuring in several Euro 2020 qualifiers for La Roja. However, he would step back down to the youth setup in a bid to help his side secure the title in Italy, and he was certainly up to the task.
His tournament didn’t come to life until the knockout stages, but boy, would it be worth the wait. He assisted Dani Olmo’s goal in the semifinal victory against France, before scoring the opener in the final against Germany and ultimately being crowned the player of the tournament. After that success, he returned to his club team Napoli, before joining Paris Saint-Germain for €22.5m in the summer of 2022.
In 2024, Ruiz started all but one game as Spain claimed a record-breaking fourth senior European Championship title, scoring twice and assisting two more. A year later, he went on to lead PSG to their first-ever UEFA Champions League trophy, starting 54 games in all competitions and becoming one of the most important players at the Parc Des Princes. Still aged just 29, further success is expected.