Last Saturday, Spain defeated the Netherlands 2-1 after extra time in the final of the 2024 European women’s under-19 Championship. It was a thrilling end to a good tournament, in which a number of players stood out. 

Here are 10 of the best individuals from the tournament. Each profile comes with a video highlighting their skill set. At the end, I’ll also go through some technical observations—teams and tactics. 

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Daniela Agote

• Born: 27/08/2006 (17 years)
• Team: Spain
• Position: Winger

This diminutive winger packs a punch. Agote played on the right flank for Spain and dazzled with her pace and skill. A natural on the ball, she didn’t lose speed when dribbling. The left-foot step-over is her trademark, followed by acceleration on her right side. Predictable, perhaps. Stoppable? Not so much. Left-back after left-back found themselves chasing her, to no avail. Once she’d glided to the by-line she maintained her composure, producing accurate cut-backs for teammates to finish. Her goal against England exemplified her timing, speed and touch. Athletic Club are lucky to have her, and so are Spain.

 

Ainhoa Alguacil

• Born: 08/01/2006 (18 years)
• Team: Spain
• Position: Central midfielder

Alguacil is already a starter for Valencia in the Spanish league, and her experience shone throughout this tournament. She was Spain’s midfield master, an all-rounder moving from one box to the other, driving play forward with pinpoint passing, give-and-goes and exceptional vision of play as it opened up around her. A crafty small-spaces operator with quick feet, quicker thought process, close ball control and an array of turns. Pirouette, drag-back…you name it, she probably used it as a way out of tight situations. At once elegant and efficient, rarely—if ever—did she choose the wrong option.

 

Ria Bose

• Born: 07/02/2006 (18 years)
• Team: England
• Position: Full-back

The standout player in a solid English defence, Bose impressed with her one-on-one defending, speed and toughness. Not the tallest full-back, but it’s hard to think of another player who relishes slide tackles more, or executes them as well. Good luck getting past her near the touchline—she pocketed two of the trickiest wingers in the tournament in France’s Fanny Rossi and Spain’s Pau Comendador. She offered something going forward, too, frequently dribbling infield at speed with small touches. Recently announced her departure from Chelsea, and surely won’t be short of offers to play at the highest level somewhere else.

 

Aicha Camara

• Born: 11/12/2006 (17 years)
• Team: Spain
• Position: Centre-back

Unquestionably the best one-on-one defender at the tournament, Camara was rock solid at the heart of defence for Spain. Fast and astute, she took away her opponent’s space and angles, and timed her tackles well. She also performed well at right full-back when asked, which is often where she plays at club level for Barcelona’s B team. In attack, she was able to penetrate with passes or drive forward effectively, to the extent that Germany essentially sat their striker on her in an attempt to reduce her influence. Quite simply, an outstanding defender. Remember her name.

 

Merle Hokamp

• Born: 30/01/2007 (17 years)
• Team: Germany
• Position: Centre-back

In a German side devoid of coherence, Hokamp led the defensive line as well as she could. A quick and aggressive centre-back, she imposed herself and wasn’t afraid to shoot from range when her team needed a goal, taking ownership and injecting urgency. That her shooting was so good indicates she might adapt to a midfield role, but Germany are in more urgent need of defenders. Currently plays in the second division with FSV Gutersloh, but don’t be surprised if she rocks up in the top flight—and the senior national team setup—over the next few years.

 

Isa Kardinaal

• Born: 31/03/2005 (19 years)
• Team: Netherlands
• Position: Centre-back

Kardinaal captained the Netherlands and provided a steady presence at the heart of their defence, forming a strong centre-back partnership with the more combative Karlijn Woons. Her positioning and reading of play was excellent, she did well in one-on-one defence when required, and she wasn’t afraid to put herself in front of shots. On the ball, she was able to split lines or play fairly accurately over long distances. At club level last season, she started for Ajax in five of their Champions League games, including both legs of the quarter-final with Chelsea.

 

Lotte Keukelaar

• Born: 25/09/2005 (18 years)
• Team: Netherlands
• Position: Winger

Keukelaar must be a nightmare for opposition full-backs. An outside right with pace and purpose, she was a constant threat with her powerful, direct running. There are fancier forwards out there, but few so effective. Her acceleration, strength and determination make her extremely difficult to shrug off the ball, and she’s always looking to attack her opponent. There is cutting edge too—she plays with her head up and can pick a pass, while her peel-off and bottom-corner finish against Spain in the group phase evidenced a ruthlessness inside the penalty box.

 

Nina Matejic

• Born: 08/02/2005 (19 years)
• Team: Serbia
• Position: Striker

With 14 caps and four goals already for Serbia’s senior team, Matejic was a known quantity going in. Nonetheless, she was mightily impressive throughout the group phase, scoring in all three games, bagging five goals overall—one against England, one against France, and a hat-trick against Lithuania. She ran the line and held the ball up brilliantly, calling upon a sumptuous first touch to link up and clever movement to stretch defences. Quite clearly the best No.9 at this tournament, it must be a matter of time before she leaves Red Star Belgrade for a top club in Europe or beyond.

 

Sophie Proost

• Born: 11/03/2007 (17 years)
• Team: Netherlands
• Position: Central midfielder

The connective player alongside Jasmijn van Uden and Jade van Hensbergen in the Netherlands’ midfield three, Proost was a whirlwind of activity who contributed defensively and offensively. Fast and energetic, she read the game well and wasn’t shy putting her foot into tackles. Going forward, she dribbled with fluidity, sensational control and balance, not to mention deception to fool opponents and slalom out of pressure in any direction. Just recently left Ajax for domestic rivals Twente, and presumably that move will come with more first-team action in the very near future.

 

Julie Swierot

• Born: 14/03/2006 (18 years)
• Team: France
• Position: Central midfielder

Swierot perhaps had too much on her plate within a disjointed French team. A tall, strong holding midfielder, she stood out for her finesse on the ball. Combined strength and skill, delicate touch with intelligent use of her frame, to shield, roll or turn out of pressure. Always on the move, she dictated France’s possession and demonstrated excellent passing range, regularly switching play or putting disguise on her passes to open up the game. Has all the qualities to be a top playmaker, and will no doubt feature more for Lyon in the 2024-25 season.

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Technical observations

Here are my additional thoughts on the tournament, teams and tactics.

As the host nation, Lithuania chose to defend in numbers but looked overawed by their opposition. They conceded 10 against England and six against France, but competed admirably against Serbia in the final group game. At 1-1 they stood a real chance and threatened occasionally on the counter, taking advantage of the opponent’s frustration, before succumbing to a 4-1 loss.

The Republic of Ireland took a similar basic approach, defending with a back five, but offered more going forward and took the lead against Germany. Eventually they lost that match 2-1, but they drew 0-0 with Spain in their opener and were able to compete physically and tactically in an extremely tough group.

Every other team in this tournament defended with a back four, except for France, who alternated between a back four and back five without any real success.

Germany were perhaps the biggest disappointment of the tournament, going out in the group phase after a draw with the Netherlands and defeat to Spain. It was difficult to discern any coherent attacking approach, while their best talents—Melina Kruger and Estrella Merino Gonzalez—only stood out in moments. Hokamp did her best at the back, but on the whole this was a worrying performance from the Germans.

Serbia were, on the other hand, a nice surprise. Matejic was the star, but they played well as a team, full of strength and speed, technical quality and solid defence. They took the lead against both England and France, and it was a shame they didn’t hold on and go further.

In midfield, Aleksandra Ilic impressed with her spirit, movement and control. This is a player with real personality, completely unafraid even against top opposition. Meanwhile, on the left wing Sara Stokic was quick off the mark and very tricky in one-on-ones. (I wasn’t at all surprised to learn later that Stokic had recently signed for AC Milan). Keep an eye on Serbia’s senior team in the next few years. Assuming some of these players can make the next step, they should qualify for a first major finals soon.

France and England, much like Germany, were all but illegible. Both changed formation and found it difficult to impose themselves on their rivals. There is no shortage of individual quality, but—unlike finalists Spain and the Netherlands—there is no consistency to their play.

England sometimes played with one striker, sometimes with two. Their back four was solid, with the aforementioned Bose shining alongside a reliable centre-back pairing of Brooke Aspin and Lucy Newell. However, as a team England too often failed to establish control in midfield, leaving their strikers isolated.

France changed formations throughout the tournament and it was unclear why. Rossi showed glimpses of brilliance, but sometimes was played as a wing-back, given too much space to cover and defensive responsibility. The 3-4-2-1 they frequently used left them without dynamism on the wings, and play forced through the middle. This meant striker Camille Robillard drifting wide and away from the box, where she looked so dangerous, while Swierot was forced to take matters into her own hands with mixed results.

Spain and the Netherlands were, by some distance, the best two teams at the tournament, with clear and effective styles of play, so it was fitting that they met in the final. Both played a 4-3-3 attacking system, but with different ideas.

Spain’s midfield was extremely fluid, with Alguacil and Marina Artero dropping in-between the centre-backs at times. They played as you would expect from Spain, with the ball on the ground, short passes and combinations. They often dominated possession, their movement off the ball was excellent, and they always had two quick, tricky wingers to take risks on either flank. However, Marisa Garcia was their preference to lead the line, a target striker. They could played directly to her and she helped to establish their attack.

As for the Netherlands, their 4-3-3 was built upon the physicality and speed of their midfield and front line, and they were able to impose themselves on their opposition, occasionally using man-marking in midfield. Offensively, there was less movement off the ball and rotations than Spain. There was also more directness to their play. They circulated around the sides of the opponent or went directly to the frontline, usually looking to get their wingers one-on-one as quickly as possible. From that point, they could cross it in with target striker Danique Tolhoek joined by a powerful winger, Keukelaar from the right or Mirte van Koppen from the left.