Where are they now? The Top Teenage XI in Europe from 2011/12

Last week's edition of Where are they Now revealed a crop of youngsters that went on to win four World Cups between them, although it was not a trophy-laden path to the top for all, as Lewis Holtby and Antonio Luna will tell you. Not every highly rated young player goes on to fulfil their immense potential, as some fall by the wayside.

Now it is time to jump forward another 12 months and find out what happened to the Class of 2011/12 from Europe's top five leagues. Before we reveal the first XI, Schalke was certainly the place to be for any young player. The Bundesliga outfit have three representatives in the XI!

Once more, we have teamed up with leading transfer valuation website Transfermarkt (TM) to find out how much each player was valued at the end of the 2011/12 season. Players must have been teenagers at the start of the campaign to make the XI. Here we go...

Goalkeeper: Marc-Andre Ter Stegen (Gladbach) - 7.11 rating / £9m TM Value

Ending David de Gea's successive appearances in our Top Teenage XI is shot-stopper Marc-Andre Ter Stegen. After six league appearances the campaign before, 2011/12 was the German's breakout campaign for Gladbach. At the age of just 19, Ter Stegen remarkably kept 15 clean sheets in 34 league appearances - ranking behind only Manuel Neuer (17). However, Ter Stegen really had to work hard for his clean sheets, averaging 7 saves per clean sheet, as opposed to Neuer's 3.6.

Moreover, Ter Stegen remarkably ranked third in the division for most possession won in the defensive third (138) - only two centre-backs did it more often. Two years later, Ter Stegen was picked up by Barcelona and has developed into one of the world's best goalkeepers and now his TM value is £64.8m.

Right-back: Serge Aurier (Toulouse) - 6.84 rating / £1.8m TM Value

After spending the first half of the campaign in Ligue 2 with Lens, Serge Aurier was handed a route back into French top-flight by Toulouse in January 2012. Aurier immediately earned a first-team role and never looked back. The Ivory Coast right-back made 10 league until the end of the campaign and impressively averaged 3.7 tackles per game and 3 interceptions per game.

Following two more seasons with Toulouse, Aurier would earn a high profile move to Paris Saint-Germain in 2014. Aurier sparked controversy throughout his three year stint in Paris before eventually moving to England to join Premier League.

Centre-back: Joel Matip (Schalke) - 7.34 rating / £9m TM Value

Joel Matip was in and out of the Schalke first-team for two seasons before getting a regular first-team slot in 2011/12. Matip divided his time between centre-back and defensive midfield and ended the campaign with three goals and four assists. Moreover, a return of 4.5 interceptions was the best of any player in the Bundesliga that season.

At one point it seemed Matip would spend his entire career at boyhood club Schalke but eventually joined Liverpool on a free transfer in 2016. While not always first-choice at Anfield, Matip has enjoyed moments of immense form for Jurgen Klopp's side. After winning the Champions League last season, he is now set to become part of the first Liverpool title-winning side in 30 years.

Centre-back: Kyriakos Papadopoulos (Schalke) - 7.59 rating / £10.8m TM Value

To think Schalke hold down both centre-back slots in our Top Teenage XI is just incredible. What faith was placed in two 19-year-olds. In 2011/12, Papadopoulos ranked third in the division for total clearances (194) and second for more tackles and interceptions combined (226).

A move to Bundesliga rivals Bayer Leverkusen followed in 2014 but it proved the wrong one as his career gradually stagnated. Now he is barely getting a game for Hamburg in the German second division. While Papadopoulos earned a superior rating to Matip in 2011/12, it is the latter who has enjoyed a more successful career. Whereas Papadopoulos  was valued at £10.8m by TM at the end of that season compared to Matip's £9m, the Greek defender is now just valued at £540k, with Matip at £28.8m.

Left-back: David Alaba (Bayern Munich) - 6.97 rating / £14.4m TM Value

A loan move to Hoffenheim in 2011 proved perfect for David Alaba's development, as the versatile left-back returned to parent club Bayern Munich that summer in a better place to challenge for a first-team spot in 2011/12. Alaba made 30 league appearances that season and it is to his credit he still earned a WhoScored rating of 6.97 despite the fact 16 of his outings came from the bench. When excluding substitute appearances, his rating increased to 7.18. His dribble success rate was notably 73.3% that season.

Alaba has remained at Bayern his entire career, though he has not been the same player since Pep Guardiola's departure. The Austria international has lost his place at left-back to emerging superstar Alphonso Davies and may not get a look in at centre-back either once Bayern strengthen in the summer. His TM value peaked at £58.5m at Christmas but has now dropped to £46.8m.

Right wing: Mario Gotze (Borussia Dortmund) - 7.78 rating / £27m TM Value

Holding down a place for the second year in succession is Mario Gotze. The German earned a WhoScored rating of 7.38 in his breakout season the campaign before but was in even better form in 2011/12, finishing it with a rating of 7.78. The only downside that campaign was injury limiting him to just 17 Bundesliga appearances. Nevertheless, he still scored or assisted 11 times and equalled his goal tally of six from 33 league appearances in 2010/11. Moreover, a return of 3.5 dribbles per game ranked fourth in the Bundesliga in 2011/12.

Gotze spent one more season with Dortmund before making a controversial switch to rivals Bayern Munich. It wouldn't be long, however, before Gotze returned to Dortmund but playing time has come at a premium since then due to constant battles with injury and illness. He will leave Dortmund on a free transfer at the end of the season at the age of just 28.

Central midfield: Isco (Malaga) - 7.21 rating / £10.8m TM Value

The 2011/12 campaign was Isco's first real taste of top-flight football, having signed for Malaga from Valencia that summer after making only four substitute appearances in LaLiga the season before. It proved a masterstroke. Isco was named LaLiga's breakthrough player that season and also crowned Golden Boy - award for the best young player in the world. The award was presented to him before Malaga hosted future employers Real Madrid. In his first season for Malaga, Isco made 32 league appearances and played a direct hand in nine goals. It was his low-centre of gravity and dribbling ability that really caught the eye from an early age, noted by a return of 2 dribbles per game and 2.4 times fouled per game.

Isco would spend just one more season with Malaga before moving to Real Madrid where he has remained ever since. The last seven years haven't come without highs and lows, however. The 28-year-old has spent the vast majority of that time in and out of the side and has only started 11 league games this season. Despite winning the Champions League four times with Madrid, Isco should really leave for regular playing time. In October 2018 he was valued by TM at £81m but it has plummeted since then and the Spaniard is now valued at £36m.

Central midfield: Julian Draxler (Schalke) - 7.14 rating / £9.9m TM Value

Completing a hat-trick of Schalke players in our Top Teenage XI is talented midfielder Julian Draxler. The German was eased into life at boyhood club Schalke the season prior before staking a first-team claim with 21 starts in 2011/12. Draxler only scored twice and provided three assists but he was clearly a talented player destined for the top.

Wolfsburg snapped Draxler up as Kevin De Bruyne's replacement in 2015 but it was clear he would make a similarly high profile move at some stage. In January 2017 that happened. After years of being linked with Arsenal, Draxler ended up joining Paris Saint-Germain. He made a good start to life in Paris but was eventually forced to the periphery by the arrivals of Neymar and Kylian Mbappe.

A year after joining PSG his TM value peaked at £36m but his constant battles for playing time has seen his reputation and valuation dim. He is now valued at just £21.6m, the same as it was four years ago after first joining Wolfsburg. Having made just seven league starts this season, Draxler must leave PSG this summer in order to kickstart his career once again.

Left wing: Gokhan Tore (Hamburg) - 7.36 rating / £4.5m TM Value

When Gokhan Tore burst onto the scene with Hamburg in 2011/12, he was dubbed the next star of Turkish football. The fact he also spent two years in Chelsea's academy up until that point reinforced the idea he would enjoy a promising career. A return of 5.3 dribbles per game was the best of any player in the Bundesliga that season.

Rather than kick on at Hamburg, however, Tore moved to Rubin Kazan later that summer before eventually returning to Turkey to join giants Besiktas on a permanent basis in 2014. After things soured at Besiktas, West Ham threw Tore a lifeline in 2016 but he soon suffered a serious knee injury and has never managed to recover from that. Last summer he left Besiktas to join fellow Turkish side Yeni Malatyaspor where he has started just 11 league games. His TM Value is now just £360k, having peaked at £15m prior to joining West Ham on loan.

Forward: Iker Muniain (Athletic Club) - 6.99 rating / £19.8m TM Value

Iker Muniain was only 18 at the start of the 2011/12 campaign and it marked his third full campaign as a professional. By this time he was regularly courted with moves to the likes of Manchester United. The Athletic Club speedstar was that highly rated that it seemed a move to Old Trafford was a matter of when rather than if.

However, his reputation dipped thereafter. Muniain didn't kick on as many thought and links to United and other high profile clubs quickly disappeared. TM valued the Athletic Club starlet at £19.8m at the end of the 2011/12 campaign and it remains the highest it has ever been in his career. A cruciate ligament rupture in 2015 really put an end to any hopes of an exciting career and he remains on track to spend his entire career at San Mames. His TM Value is now just £12.6m.

Forward: Roberto Firmino (Hoffenheim) - 7.47 rating / £6.3m TM Value

Rounding off our Top Teenage XI from 2011/12 is Roberto Firmino. Hoffenheim signed Firmino from Brazilian side Figueirense in January 2011 and after easing him into the life in Germany for the remainder of the campaign he was ready to be unleashed properly in 2011/12. Firmino scored seven goals in his first full campaign for the Bundesliga outfit and claimed the WhoScored Man of the Match award five times. In addition to 2.9 dribbles per game, Firmino notably even managed three tackles per game.

After three more seasons with Firmino was linked with Manchester United and Liverpool but ended up joining the latter in 2015. Firmino's role at Liverpool has often been misunderstood, due to a lack of goals compared to other Premier League strikers, but he is integral to the way they play under Jurgen Klopp. Nevertheless, he needs just two more goals in 2019/20 to reach double figures in all six of his Premier League campaigns with the Reds. His TM Value has gradually increased during his time at Liverpool and his post-Coronavirus valuation is £64.8m.