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One of the most exciting things about club football is that we get to see the rise of new stars every single season. There are various football clubs, not at all limited to the most popular and the richest, that have excellent youth academies.
There are youngsters enjoying breakout campaigns all across Europe each and every season. It's great to see youngsters go toe-to-toe or even outshine professional footballers who have already been doing it for a while.
In the 2021-22 season, we saw the emergence of quite a few young players who are now earmarked to become superstars in the future. Without further ado, let's take a look at the top five players 21 or younger with most goal contributions in the 2021-22 season.
#5 Joshua Zirkzee - 27 (17 Goals + 10 Assists)
Netherlands u21 international Joshua Zirkzee joined Belgian side Anderlecht in August 2021 on a season-long loan deal. The young Dutch striker is a towering figure, standing at 193 cms, and he gave a very good account of his marksmanship over the course of the 2021-22 season.
The 21-year-old scored 18 goals and provided 13 assists in 41 appearances across all competitions for Anderlecht in the 2021-22 season. It looks like he is ready for the big leagues and it will be interesting to see what plans Bayern Munich has for him in the upcoming campaign.
#4 Charles De Ketelaere - 27 (18 Goals + 9 Assists)
At 21 years of age, Club Brugge forward Charles De Ketalaere already has a well-rounded skillset. The versatile youngster can play on either flank in addition to being a quality centre-forward.
He is excellent at carrying the ball and also possesses an excellent passing range which makes him really good at playmaking. De Ketelaere's passing has already been likened to his compatriot Kevin De Bruyne's. The fact that he can play anywhere across midfield and the frontline make him a prized asset for Club Brugge.
De Ketelaere scored 18 goals and provided nine assists in 43 appearances across all competitions for the Belgian side in the 2021-22 season.
#3 Karim Adeyemi - 30 (23 Goals + 7 Assists)
Karim Adeyemi will join Borussia Dortmund from RB Salzburg in July as Erling Haaland's replacement. Dortmund are known for signing young and extremely talented players and Adeyemi's arrival is just the freshest chapter in that trend.
Adeyemi was in excellent form for Salzburg in the 2021-22 season. The left-footed striker packs plenty of pace and is an extremely athletic and agile player whose movement and predatory instincts belie his age.
The 20-year-old scored 23 goals and provided seven assists in 43 appearances across all competitions for RB Salzburg in the 2021-22 season.
#2 Erling Haaland - 32 (27 Goals + 5 Assists)
Erling Haaland's involvement was limited to just 29 games for Borussia Dortmund in the 2021-22 season due to multiple injury issues. He still wreaked havoc whenever he was available and Borussia Dortmund will miss him dearly now that he has joined Manchester City.
Haaland is one of the most athletic and ruthless strikers we have seen in recent times. His pace, movement, intelligence and composure in front of goal are already elite and the Norwegian international is still only 21.
Haaland scored 27 goals and provided five assists in 32 appearances across all competitions for Borussia Dortmund in the 2021-22 season.
#1 Vinicius Jr. - 42 (22 Goals + 20 Assists)
Real Madrid won the La Liga and Champions League titles in the 2021-22 season. Karim Benzema was a standout performer for them, but almost equally vital to their exploits was the young Vinicius Jr., who had a breakout season.
Up until the 2021-22 season, we had only seen glimpses of the Brazilian winger's genius. He confidently strutted his stuff last term and has now cemented his status as one of the most exciting young forwards in the world.
Vinicius Jr. scored 22 goals and provided 20 assists in 52 appearances for Real Madrid across all competitions in the 2021-22 season.
