What the Euros may be lacking in Lionel Me si, Neymar, Falcao and other alluring South-American superstars, it more than makes up for in their European counterparts. The likes of Wayne Rooney, Cristiano Ronaldo and Wesley Sniejder will all grace the National Stadium in Warsaw, and the glorious Domba s Areana in Donetsk.However, for many national managers this summers European Championship is not an opportunity for glory, but an invaluable opportunity to blood through young players in order to give them experience of the trials of tournament football and to establish a bonding team.Player who, not too long ago, were in a very similar position to us adoring football fans, watching the drama unfold in front of our eyes, will now be the ones within our screens, making history withe very kick. Now they have a chance to elevate themselves to the next level on one of the largest stages of world football. After all, who was Mesut Ozil before the World Cup? A ill known Werder Bremen player. 2 months later, one of the first names on the team sheet amongst Real Madrids galacticos.Although they do not have the same level of expectation as other European nations in the competition, there is no doubting that the Polish will be reliant on Arsenals young goalkeeping duo, whom both hold a great deal of potential. Some authoritative performances from Wojciech Szcesny have lead many to rank him as the Premier Leagues top goalkeeper, with some of his erratic mistake ridden performance making way to a generally a sured season, and at last Arsenal feel at ease with their goalkeeping situation. There is no doubting that Szcesny will be tested to the full in his home country, but some similarly confident performances, and maybe even a few clean sheets despite a potentially error stricken back four, and Wojciech canidolizehimself amongst the home fans. More than anything Szcesny is a character on and off the pitch, and can lift the spirit around the Polish camp. Meanwhile Lukas Fabianski is likely to play a background role, although the experience of being in the midst of a major European competition will be invaluable for a player seemingly lacking in such experience.Germanys energetic youthfulne s lit up an otherwise dull 2010 World Cup, and, should Joachim Loew decide to experiment and take a chance on some of his best prospects, they could do so again in this summers Championships. Although in recent years the German national side has been littered with Bayern Munich stars, and will in all probability be so once again this summer, Borri sia Dortmunds formidablecenterback, Hummels, alongside Schalkes Howedes could prove to be the bed rock for German succe s, two solid, ruthle scenterbacks, Hummels being key to Dortmunds historic double, and Howedes performing strongly last season as Schalke reached the Champions League semi finals.However, it is Germanys midfield that will make even the likes of Spain and the Netherlands quake in their boots. Thomas Muller will be looking to replicate his World Cup performance, and should England finish second in their group could look to rip them apart once again. The name, for me, that stands out though is Mario Gotze. An unbelievable prospect, ranking up with the likes of the enigmatic Brazilian Neymar and the tease that is Eden Hazard, super Mario has already established himself amongst Dortmunds double winning side, and without the controversy of a certain other Mario. At 19 he already has experience of scoring against the super power that are Brazil, and lifting trophies for Dortmund, but is unlikely Malik Fitts Jersey to be given significant playing time this summer, as Ozil unfortunately inhabits the same attacking midfield position, although Loew could shift Gotze out on the left of midfield to compensate. Marco Reus is another superb young prospect for the Germans, playing almost every game this season for Mochengladbach, contributing 23 goals and 10 a sists. Put it this way, Dortmund are lucky to have snapped him up already for 17.5 million Euros before he attracts extreme interest from Europes richest suitors in the aftermath of this Championship.Meanwhile, although Greece have little hope of emulating their succe s in 2004, the potential of Kyriakos Papadopoulos could point to similar days ahead. The 20 year old has been in formidable form for his club Schalke, excelling during their Champions League over achievement in 2011, which lead to his call up to the national side. Making his debut for the Greek side he scored, and managed to all but secure a place in the starting eleven, although the young Greek will have to shake off competition in order to light up Euro 2012, but nonethele s a great talent and one to look out for amognst Group A.For Spain yet another wonderful young talent, who is almost guaranteed a place in the Euros. For years the Spanish national team have been enviable in every position, bar at left back. Now, however, young Jordi Alba of Valencia will make the step up, and experience at this summer will be crucial to establishing himself in the team for years to come. Young and pacey, there is always the risk of the young man being caught up the field, and for this reason Del Bosque might field him in a similar position to Daniel Alves are Barcelona. Should Sergio Ramos start next to him at center back, however, he will be given lots of positional advice from the experienced Madrid man.Although Raymond Domenech is no longer French manager, his horoscopes will all be pointing towards Mamadou Sakho. The young center back is to Paris Saint Germain what Vincent Kompany is to fellowbillionairesManchester City, almost first name on the team sheet and of the same caliber as Nemanja Vidic, willing to throw himself at anything for the sake of his team. His standing of 6 foot 2 makes him fully capable of heading out potential England long balls during Frances opening match. However, the young man s place in the France team is far from secure, he has played just once so far in 2012 and Raymond Blanc may well side with Phillipe Mexes and Laurent Koscielny at the back after some a sured performances for the Gunners this season. Nonethele s, if Mamadou were to be given a place in Blancs starting eleven, he can rely on Paris Saint Germains young prospect to put up a dedicated performance.Similarly Frances MVila could prove an e sentially fixture in the French line up, although not of the same level of glamour as some of Europes other young talents. MVila, of Stade Rennes, could be Frances main man for many years. Although if he is, he may well be unappreciated. Like Claude Makelele before him, MVila will play a holding role providing stability, allowing the likes of Ribery, Nasri, Ben Arfa and Gourcuff to roam forward and tarnish weak defenses, without having to worry so much about defensive duties. MVilas role is key to any team and a good set of performances in the Euros would spark major interest, particularly as Manchester United, Chelsea and Real Madrid all lack a strong central midfielder to break up the play, although his most likely destination at present moment is The Emirates, as Arsene Wenger looks for another Patrick Viera.For England, these Championships should be considered an opportunity for new manager Roy Hodgson to shift out the old guard in order to make room for the young prospects who could form the new Golden Generation. Manchester Uniteds Phil Jones may well be asked to fill in at some point at right back, in the centre of the midfield or even in the centre of defense, his favoured position. Jones flexibility means that he is second choice in most defensive positions, and should he be called upon the ex-Blackburn man will need to produce the confident performances from earlier on in the season, as opposed to the erratic ones that lead him to lose his place in the startingelevento Johnny Evans. Similarly his team mate Danny Welbeck will need to produce the same calibre of performances that he put up twice against Arsenal and Everton in order to pen down a place in Roy Hodgsons team. The link up between Welbeck and Rooney this term has been quite superb, there is clearly a genuine understanding between the two. He may well need Wayne Rooney, too, although he performed well on his England debut, Welbeck as a lone striker was isolated and contributed nothing more than hard work, which was all he really could do given Frances strength. Given that Hodgsons squad is littered with strikers, however, Welbeck looks likely to have support, most proabably Andy Carroll whos flicked headers couldutilizeWelbecks pace.Whilst to the naked eye it may seem that the most competitive battle for a place in the England team will be upfront, there is equal competition down the right of the midfield. The performances of Alex Oxlade Chamberlain this season, although rare due to Wengers fear of unleashing the young talent two soon, have been quite superb, in particular his 65 minutes against Manchester United in which he tormented Patrice Evra. Hodgson faces a headache as to whether he should side with Chamberlain or Theo Walcott, who for much of this season has been off the boil, but who has experience at World Cups from a younger age than Chamberlain. As an Englishman, I strongly hope that he sides with Chamberlain for the Championships. He is pacey, energetic, can produce a great cro s and can also finish of a move confidently. Chamberlain is the future of England, along with Welbeck, Jones, Smalling, Wilshere and Sturridge, and for this reason Hodgson should look to give him experience in preparation for the 2014 World Cup, when expectations will be considerably higher.All in all, a competition to look forward too, even if it does not have the same quality of rewards as the World Cup. There are certainly a lot of young players vying for position, as this article shows, but predicting who will shine is difficult, football at times can be a lottery. Who would have thought Greece could have won some eight years ago? Who thought Croatia and Turkey would get so far in 2008? Football is unpredictable, and for this reason any of these young players may be the next big thing in terms of European and even World football. Elton Brand Jersey