Welcome to the ESPN FC hotlist, which highlights some of the most in-form talent aged 23 or under across Europe’s top leagues each month.
Generally, young but established stars like Manchester City‘s Erling Haaland, Borussia Dortmund‘s Jude Bellingham or Barcelona‘s Gavi aren’t included — otherwise they’d be on the list every month — but we’ll shine a light on some of those who deserve praise for their performances and who could potentially be the European football’s next big name.
– Stream on ESPN+: LaLiga, Bundesliga, MLS, more (U.S.)
While a certain lack of physicality in duels is often held against the youngster, there are few who match his action radius or have a better sense of where to snatch the ball. In the 1-0 away win at FC Porto last Friday, the industrious midfielder entered an impressive 26 challenges in midfield (60% success rate) and no fewer than nine ball recoveries, thus enjoying one of those performances where he seemed be sweeping up the ball everywhere, before circulating it intelligently.
Despite recent reports linking him with Liverpool, Luis recently committed to a new five-year deal with Benfica.
