One of the great aspects of any World Cup is seeing players excel and put £10 million on their price tag. I am thinking Michael Owens impact in France 1998 as well as Zidane dismantling Brazil in the final and not to mention Diego Maradonna's brilliance against England in 1986. I have been doing a bit of research on players I feel will step up a level this Summer for this respected countries.
Paul Pogba ( France ) - the young French man helped Juventus to the Serie A title with a impressive 33 wins chipping in with 7 goals and 7 assists. A lot of hype around his famous switch from Manchester United to the Italian giants Juventus. A very strong midfield player but does have a tendency of giving away fouls (87 last year). He is technically good with the ball and has a 30 yard screamer in his locker too.
Eden Hazard ( Belgium ) - Belgium really are in their golden generation and this World Cup has come at the perfect time. Hazard has gone up a gear this season at Chelsea with 14 goals ( 5 more than the highest scoring striker) and 7 assists. He did suffer a few niggly injuries, which makes you wonder how well Chelsea could have done had he stayed fit. With a inhuman like ability to drift between players as well as a eye for goal he is surely going right to the top.
Adam Lallana ( England ) - Lallana has impressed this season being part of the english core down at Southampton. Last season he was the 6th highest english goal scorer and gained many admirers up and down the country ( Tottenham reported already bidding for his services). A good old fashioned play maker he really is a natural with the ball at his feet. Along with Sterling he really is one player to run at players and make things happen in the final third.
Neymar ( Brazil ) - the young Brazilian is already a household name with various adidas adverts appearances. He got he dream move to Barcelona, even though the circumstances around the transfer have been dragged through the media in recent months. He has seemed to have struggled to impress the Spanish city, in 19 league games he has scored 9 times and laid on 8 assists for his teammates. In a team with the likes of Messi, Iniesta and Xavi these stats are seen as average. His record for Brazil is impeccable with already a whooping 30 goals in the famous yellow shirt. Looking at the Brazil squad it does look like it may attacking flair. This indicating Neymar will have a lot of pressure on his shoulders to come up with the goods.
Alexis Sanchez ( Chile ) - the Chilean has really been relishing playing in this high tempo Barcelona team. He has scored 19 goals in 34 games and 10 assists so certainly fits the bill. Chile find themselves in a very tough group so Sanchez may find he only has 3 games to impress this Summer. After seeing him in action against England in February it was clear he was a cut above the rest and he really is the main man in the Chilean team.
Angel Di Maria ( Argentina ) - Di Maria finds himself going into this tournament with a champions league medal which can only help boost confidence. An impressive 17 assists last season, it seems to have softened the blow for a lot of Real Madrid fans who were less than impressed with Ozil leaving. Playing. In a star studded team isn't anything new to Angel so playing wing Messi, Aguero and Higuain should be the norm for him. After losing heavily to Germany in the last World Cup, this year you sense the South Americans have something to prove.
Mario Ballotelli ( Italy ) - Last but certainly not least Mario Ballotelli has to be included here. A solid season personal for Mario with 14 goals, 6 assists in 30 games he has been a rare good point for a disaster season at AC Milan. He seems to be more popular for his reported off field antics ( not sure if any if these have any truth ) but let's not forget he is a very good young player. Aside from Pirlo, Ballotelli was arguably the best player for Italy at Euro 2012. I think the World Cup will bring the best out of him like the last tournament and I look forward to seeing what he can do this Summer.
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