Renato Sanches' Rebound

In the Ville Lumière, it is often hard to shine brightest. Paris is a city rebuilt in the image of Napolean III, and foreign entities have rarely found favour tyring to penetrate the wide, oblique, angled streets of the French capital. But in 2016, Renato Sanches masterminded the last true siege on the city of love. 

Portugal's first-ever European Championships saw Sanches come to the fore. At 18 years old, his driving runs and deft exchanges captured the world's attention. With his rasping left-foot finish against Poland, the crowning glory of a remarkable four weeks for the teenager. In the space of 90 minutes, Sanches became not only the youngest player to start for Portugal at the European Championships, but also the youngest goalscorer in the knockout stages of the competition. So it came as no surprise to see Bayern Munich part with £27.5 million to snap the midfielder up from Benfica. 

It would, however, come as more of a surprise to learn that five years later, the apex of Sanches's admittedly short career remains that night under the lights in Paris. A Bundesliga title would follow in his debut season in Bavaria, but the golden boy nominee struggled to impose himself on Europe's domestic calendar. Football is a game of opinions where mentality can topple talent, and Sanches, fresh into adulthood, found his character tested to the limit in South Wales. 

"His arrival (at Swansea City) further bolsters Clement's options in midfield, which have been boosted by the recent signing of Sam Clucas from Hull City." Swansea's official statement following the loan signing of Sanches was perhaps poetic of the youngster's sudden demise. The Euro 2016 young player of the tournament mentioned in the same vein as Clucas, a man that just four years earlier had been plying his trade in non-league for Hereford United.