La Liga has been rejuvenated in recent seasons, with both the Madrid clubs and Barcelona each winning a title over the past three campaigns.
The El Clasico rivalry is as fierce as ever, and there is a new kid on the block, with Girona joining the big three and actually leading the table a third of the way through the 2023–24 season.
And there have been some spectacular performances from some of the youngest players in the top flight, and we’ve picked four to look at.
You can guess who the first is!
Jude Bellingham: Real Madrid
He’s still only 20 years of age and Jude Bellingham has been one of the most talked about players in European football for the last two seasons. He looked like a real prospect for Borussia Dortmund, and Bellingham has become one of England’s most highly rated stars, but his arrival in Spain has been something else. In his first three months at Real Madrid, Bellingham has made enough La Liga 2023 highlights to last a whole season.
As a high-energy box-to-box midfielder, Bellingham has had a superb all-round game, and since he arrived at the Santiago Bernabeu, Bellingham has added goals. He scored an incredible 10 in his first 10 games for Los Blancos, equalling the record set by Cristiano Ronaldo, and in La Liga games he has beaten CR7, scoring 10 in his first 10 league games.
He scored a brace in El Clasico, including an injury-time winner to beat Barcelona 2-1, and has recently won the Kopa Trophy for the best young player in world football.
Here at SBOTOP, we’ve watched Bellingham’s progress closely, and we are convinced he is a Ballon d’Or winner in the making. The latest La Liga 2023 betting odds have installed Los Blancos as favourites to win the 2024 title, and the form of Bellingham will be a major factor.
Lamine Yamal: Barcelona
The Blaugrana have developed some fantastic young players in recent seasons, Pedri, Gavi and Ansu Fati to name but three, and now 16 years old Lamine Yamal is the latest to leap off the Catalan production line.
At 15 years of ageYamal became the youngest player ever to represent the Blaugrana in a 4-0 win over Real Betis last April and, this term, he has kicked on. He has become a regular in Xavi’s first eleven and Yamal became the youngest player to score for Barcelona, and the youngest ever in a La Liga game in a 2-2 draw away to Granada.
The club has moved quickly to extend his contract and have inserted a one billion euros buyout clause. A left-footed forward with superb ball control and electric pace, he has already made two appearances for Spain, scoring twice.
This boy is special.
Arnau Martinez: Girona
The surprise league leaders, Girona, are showing no signs of fading any time soon and have recorded 11 victories from 13 games to leave Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid looking upwards. Led by Girona legend Cristhian Stuani the squad is not a catalogue of big names but 20-year-old Martinez surely has an exciting future, either in Catalonia or elsewhere in the higher reaches of European football.
A cultured right back, Martinez can also play as a right sided centre back and, over the past two campaigns, he has established himself as a mainstay of this rapidly improving Girona side, making 86 appearances and scoring six goals.
He is fast and strong in the tackle, has a superb reading of the game and his distribution, particularly with accurate long passes, and Martinez is a real asset to the league leaders. Girona will do well to keep hold of this young star.
Takefusa Kubo: Real Sociedad
Japanese winger Kubo was schooled at Real Madrid and was signed by the Basque giants in 2022. At 22 years of age, he had his breakout season last term, playing either on the right wing or in an attacking midfield role. He came to Sociedad’s attention when he was out on loan at Real Mallorca, where his close control, speed off the mark, and dangerous delivery made him a huge threat to opposition defences.
He already has 28 caps for Japan and, in his second season at Sociedad, Kubo has added goals to his game, scoring 14 in 47 appearances. He is thriving in the Basque, but recent reports in the Spanish press suggest Kubo might be on his way back to Madrid before long. The La Liga favourites have been tracking Athletic Club’s 21-year-old winger Nico Williams, but Los Blancos president Florentino Perez is said to prefer to bring Kubo back to the Santiago Bernabeu.
Real Madrid sold him to Sociedad for 6.5 million euros in 2022 and have a buy-back option at 30 million euros, but the player is enjoying himself at Sociedad and will want assurances around game time if he is to return to Madrid.
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