A fairly new award for EURO, the Best Young Player of The Tournament, focuses on celebrating the best young talent under the age of 23. Although a common honour awarded at the World Cup, this is only the second European Championship where this award will be handed to the top-performing youngster.
Not to be mixed up with the Best Player of The Tournament, the Young Player of the Tournament award doesn’t necessarily require the player to reach the finals. As seen at the World Cup, Franz Beckenbauer (1966) was the only player besides Kylian Mbappe (2018) to receive the reward and saw his team make the tournament final.
However, it’s worth pointing out that the EURO 2016 Young Player Award landed in the hands of Portugal’s Renato Sanches.
Over two dozens of players are eligible for the award, yet only a few stand out as the market favorites. Phil Dofen leads the market as the betting favorite at 6.00, followed by Mason Mount at 8.0, Kai Havertz at 9.0, and Ferran Torres and Matthijs de Ligt as fourth-favorites at 10.00.
Out of that group of players, there are two that have caught our attention as solid picks for the EURO 2020 Young Player of The Tournament.
Mason Mount – England
Odds: 8.00
Mason Mount is priced as high as 8.00 to end EURO 2020 as the Young Player of The Tournament, which is a very generous price for a player of his calibre. We’re very bullish on the 22-year-old Chelsea midfielder, who didn’t need long to prove what he’s capable of while playing in one of the most competitive football leagues in the world.
Early into his professional debut, many doubted Mount would prove to be such big of a talent he was billed to be. It didn’t take long for him to prove all the doubters wrong.
Every managed he has played under has made Mount a regular in the starting XI, and it’s easy to see why. He has 26 goals and 18 assists across 116 appearances, which is very impressive for someone who has just recently celebrated his 22nd birthday.
England’s boss Gareth Southgate never shied away from expressing his admiration for Mount, who he played in several positions during his stay at the helm of the Three Lions. Southgate’s trust in Mount has paid off greatly, with the youngster averaging over 0.5 goals per 90 minutes for his nation.
The future football star in the making, and without a doubt one of the biggest young talents at EURO 2020, Mason Mount is a strong contender for the Young Player of The Tournament award.
Prediction: Mason Mount to win EURO 2020 Young Player of The Tournament – 0.5 units – 8.00 at Bet365
Ferran Torres – Spain
Odds: 10.00
It was only a matter of time before Ferran Torres got called up to the La Roja’s senior squad, and it happened just north of two weeks after he signed with Manchester City in August 2020.
The 21-year-old Spaniard has had an awe-inspiring start to his professional career. He has been showing immense talent while playing for Spanish U17 and U19 teams, which he led to UEFA European Championship titles in 2017 and 2019 respectively.
Since joining Manchester City, Torres scored seven goals and added two assists across 24 appearances. Although not breath-taking numbers, Torres left quite an impression for his national side.
Torres has made his debut for La Roja in the Nations League in Spain’s match against Germany. He later scored his first international goal in Spain’s 4-0 victory against Ukraine and added a hat-trick in Spain’s historic 6-0 win against Germany.
Torres scored two more against Georgia and Kosovo during the EURO 2020 qualifiers while playing for the whole 90 minutes. In 11 appearances for Spain’s senior squad, Torres notched six goals.
You can back Torres to end EURO 2020 as the Young Player of The Tournament at odds as high as 10.0. That’s very generous given his talent and the fact that he has reached his peak form just in time.
With six goals and an average of 0.9 goals per 90 minutes, it will be tough for Luis Enrique not to include him in Spain’s starting XI. Torres will likely compete with Juventus’ Alvaro Morata for the role of a key man for Spain, but with Juventus striker’s inconsistency, Torres could easily end EURO 2020 as Spain’s top goalscorer (5.00).
Prediction: Ferran Torres to win EURO 2020 Young Player of The Tournament – 0.5 units – 10.00 at Bet365
Prediction: Ferran Torres to end EURO as Top Team Goalscorer – 0.5 units – 5.00 at bet365
