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1. Dani Olmo
Age: 23
Position: Attacking midfielder
Club: RB Leipzig
Country: Spain
International caps: 16
Catalan boy Dani Olmo spent his early years in official football in the academies of fierce local rivals Espanyol and Barcelona. However, he received an offer which meant he moved to Croatia to play for Dinamo Zagreb, moving on to the first team when he was only 17 years old. His style and influence caught the attention of RB Leipzig, which he joined on a 4-year contract in January 2020, and where he is now a key player in construction.
Olmo has also been a part of Spain’s youth squads from the Under-16s to the senior squad, for which he first played in 2019. He was very productive in midfield for Spain during of the last Euros.
2. Max Kruse
Age: 33
Position: Before
Club: Union Berlin
Country: Germany
International caps: 4
Max Kruse (Source: Getty Images)
Max Kruse joined his local club at the age of four and joined Werder Bremen in 2006 after having spent his time in his region until then. He was unable to find his way to first-team football, however. After transferring in 2009, he made several short but successful stays across Germany, as well as a year at Fenerbahçe. He now plays for Union Berlin.
Kruse was quite influential in his international youth appearances, but fell out of favor with senior management in 2015. It will be his first appearance for Germany in 6 years.
3. Matheus Cunha
Age: 22
Position: Striker
Club: Hertha Berlin
Country: Brazil
International caps: 0
Matheu Cunha (Source: Ricardo Moreira / Fotoarena / Lancepress)
Matheus Cunha made his football debut in Brazil, then moved to Switzerland at the age of 18 to join FC Sion. He has been prolific during his year here, scoring 10 goals, after which RB Leipzig offered him a 5-year contract. However, he struggled to establish himself in the first team and joined Hertha Berlin in January 2020 as part of another long-term deal, and hit the ground running, scoring 12 goals in his 37 appearances so far.
He seems to feel most comfortable in the Brazil jersey – in his 19 U23 appearances so far, he has scored 18, emerging as the top scorer in both competitions he’s been in. Brazil will be eager to see this continue as it presents itself. to obtain consecutive gold medals.
4. Wataru Endo
Age: 28
Position: Defensive midfielder
Club: VfB Stuttgart
Country: Japan
International caps: 28
Wataru Endo (Source: AFC Media)
Wataru Endo started relatively late in professional football, joining Shonan Bellmare’s youth team at age 15, and spent his first 7 years at the club as a vital member of the squad. He then went to the Urawa Red Diamonds in 2016, and after two more seasons, to Sint-Truiden, where he was quickly spotted by VfB Stuttgart. He has been on loan from the club for a year and has impressed heavily, meaning he is now rewarded with a contract until the end of the 2023-2024 season.
Two years after his senior debut, he made his first appearance for Japan U19, and for U23 soon after. He made his senior international debut at the age of 22 and hopes to guide his team to the medals in front of his home crowd.
5. Lucas Tousart
Age: 24
Position: Midfielder
club: Hertha Berlin
Country: France
International caps: 0
Lucas Tousart (Source: 90 min)
Lucas Tousart has played most of his football in his home country, being part of several local clubs from the age of 6. His professional debut came for the Ligue 2 team of Valenciennes in 2014, after which he was awarded a contract with Olympique Lyonnais. He spent one season in his B-side, after which he was a mainstay of the squad for the next 5 seasons – the last he spent on loan after signing for Hertha Berlin. He is now an influential presence for the German club.
He was relatively late in the international youth roster, playing for the U19 for the first time in 2015, but ended up with the U21 in less than a year. His hard work was rewarded with his first national call for the Olympics.
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