Young stars of EURO 2016

EURO 2016 ended with the unlikeliest of winners as Portugal claimed its first-ever international title, helping Cristiano Ronaldo seal his status as a true great. The tournament had quite a few stories to tell; first time 24 teams took part, the introduction of the round-of-16, five new debutants, Iceland’s heroic run to the quarters and so on. But, the performance of some of the youngsters, at times even eclipsing their more illustrious senior team-mates, is the biggest tale to come out of EURO 2016. Sportstar looks at five youngsters who impressed in the month-long footballing extravaganza. Only players under the age of 23 were eligible for the list. Read on...

Photo: AP

Portugal's Renato Sanches hit a ball during the Euro 2016 quarterfinal soccer match between Poland and Portugal, at the Velodrome stadium in Marseille, France, Thursday, June 30, 2016. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Photo: REUTERS

Football Soccer - Hungary v Belgium - EURO 2016 - Round of 16 - Stadium de Toulouse, Toulouse, France - 26/6/16
 Belgium's Michy Batshuayi scores their second goal 
 REUTERS/Michael Dalder
 Livepic

Photo: REUTERS

Football Soccer - Spain v Turkey - EURO 2016 - Group D - Stade de Nice, Nice, France - 17/6/16
 Spain's Alvaro Morata celebrates after scoring their first goal 
 REUTERS/Eddie Keogh
 Livepic

Photo: REUTERS

Football Soccer - Germany v Italy - EURO 2016 - Quarter Final - Stade de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France - 2/7/16
 Germany's Joshua Kimmich scores in the penalty shootout
 REUTERS/Christian Hartmann
 Livepic

Photo: REUTERS

Football Soccer - Poland v Portugal - EURO 2016 - Quarter Final - Stade Velodrome, Marseille, France - 30/6/16
 Poland's Arkadiusz Milik scores during the penalty shootout
 REUTERS/Kai Pfaffenbach
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Portugal's Renato Sanches hit a ball during the Euro 2016 quarterfinal soccer match between Poland and Portugal, at the Velodrome stadium in Marseille, France, Thursday, June 30, 2016. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)