Tottenham Hotspur reportedly scouted Camavinga as Rennes stunned PSG in Ligue 1.
Imagine for a second that you are 16. But forget the pressures of that looming Physics GCSE that you have desperately tried to forget about, you have Marco Verratti, Julian Draxler and Angel di Maria to keep you awake at night instead.
Yet if Eduardo Camavinga was worried about starting in the centre of park against Paris Saint-Germain’s star studded playmakers, he didn’t show it. A 16-year-old midfielder born in 2002, Camavinga outshone the giants from the capital and catapulted himself into the big-time.
According to the Mail, scouts from Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester City and Arsenal were all present at Roazhon Park as the Angola-born teenager helped Rennes beat PSG yet again, three months after they defeated Thomas Tuchel’s side in the Coupe de France final.
But what makes him so special? Simply put, Camavinga is one of those players who’s talent shines through immediately. It takes a special talent to look so comfortable sharing a pitch with Brazilian internationals and Champions League winners, after all.
But not only did Camavinga set up Romain del Castillo’s second half winner with a peach of a cross that Di Maria himself would have been proud of, he also outshone Verratti, Marquinhos and Draxler while dominating the game from the centre of the park. A reminder, he wasn’t even born when Ronaldinho lobbed a free-kick into the far corner of David Seaman’s net.
Camavinga attempted 41 passes at a staggering success rate of 97 per cent, the best of any midfielder on the pitch. Each of his three long balls hit the target too and, with three tackles to his name, the most of any Rennes player, he did not shy away from his defensive duties either.
No wonder Mauricio Pochettino, Pep Guardiola and Unai Emery and all queuing up to sign a 16-year-old who made Verratti look like a run-of-the-mill Ligue 1 shuttler.
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