The most clued-up clubs in Europe seldom expect to make a “find”, to discover and recruit the next best superstar at senior international tournaments such as the European Championships. Their scouts do their best work at junior level, under-18 and even under-16 events, scarcely televised competitions that bring together the best young footballers from South America, Africa and Europe. But that’s the wisest clubs, and, with some exceptions, not too many Premier League outfits count among them. English football, for all its wealth and muscle-flexing, has not yet developed the best scouting systems in elite football, so from Euro 2008 expect a dozen or so players to be signed by the clubs who make up England’s top 20 in the season to come. And come they will. The best wages in Europe are being paid across English football’s super-rich top flight.

Still, the glimpses of talent from a tournament that has so far largely thrilled, occasionally dazzled and sometimes surprised will have Premier League chairmen excited. They may well reach for their cheque-books for some of these ...

The man in demand
David Villa
Cost: £16m
Would suit: Arsenal, Chelsea
The son and grandson of miners from the northwest of Spain, Villa is neither afraid of hard work nor of declaring his sense of his own value. His hat-trick in Spain’s opening Euro 2008 fixture did not come out of nowhere. Three years ago he became hot property for his goals with Real Zaragoza. Valencia paid handsomely for him and, despite denying that they have any intention of letting him go, they remain a selling club when high enough offers come in. They will let him move on, while reminding suitors how much Liverpool paid for Fernando Torres last summer. The trouble for Premier League clubs is that those suitors may include Barcelona and Real Madrid, both of whom are seeking a striker, and as long as he gets the right offer (ie a hefty six-figure weekly wage), Villa would rather remain in Spain than move to England. Some observers wonder about his lack of height, but his record speaks for itself. At 26, he is two years older than Spain teammate Torres and won’t fetch quite as much.

Ricardo Quaresma (Portugal)
Cost: £11m
Would suit: Tottenham, Liverpool
Sometimes caricatured as a poor man’s Cristiano Ronaldo, he is unlucky to be around at a time when Portugal have an overabundance of skilled wingers. Behind Ronaldo and Simao in the pecking order, the Porto man made the most of his 10 minutes against the Czech Republic to score. On the ball he can be bewitching, he has a good right-footed shot and is much matured since his indulgent and inconsistent year with Barcelona in 2003-04.

Jeremy Toulalan (France)
Cost: £10m
Would suit: Arsenal. Aston Villa
Covering for the injured Patrick Vieira can be a time - consuming task but Toulalan has been doing a good job, until a very ordinary display against the Dutch on Friday night. He was tidy enough for Lyons after they sold first Michael Essien to Chelsea and then Mahamadou Diarra to Real Madrid. Could anchor a midfield even in the helter-skelter of the Premier League.

Joao Moutinho (Portugal)
Cost: £8m
Would suit: Liverpool, Everton
Quick-thinking, nice feet, ambitious, the midfielder is in the vanguard of Sporting Lisbon’s gifted young batch of footballers. Good performances in the Portuguese Superliga are not kept quiet for long these days.

Danijel Pranjic (Croatia)
Cost: £5m
Would suit: Newcastle, West Ham
Another left-sided player, who would come cheaper than Zhirkov. Employed by Heerenveen in the Dutch first division, Pranjic, 26, was a dynamo in Croatia’s win over Germany. Can hold the left-back role, but likes to get forward.

Artur Boruc (Poland)
Cost: £6m
Would suit: Tottenham, Arsenal, Aston Villa
Poland’s best player so far, strong against Germany in defeat, excellent in one-on-ones against Austria. Celtic fans won’t be surprised by this agility, nor would Martin O’Neill, who used to manage Celtic and is in search of a goalkeeper at Aston Villa. Boruc will not want a season without Champions League football, and may find someone who can offer him further progress in that competition than Scotland’s finest.

Johan Elmander (Sweden)
Cost: £7m
Would suit: West Brom, Fulham
Kept out of Sweden’s starting XI by the return from his umpteenth retirement of Henrik Larsson, but highly rated by his country and by Toulouse, where he has consistently been among the goals. A useful, worldly operator.

Karim Benzema (France)
Cost: £25m
Would suit: Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal
On club form, the most exciting centre-forward to emerge in Europe in the past 18 months. It is a shame that his first major tournament has been a slow-burner for France. Benzema, who is still only 20, signed a new contract with Lyons in the spring and seems committed to staying there for at least another year. A number of major clubs – Manchester United included – are interested in him, admiring his powerful running, willingness to shoot from distance and sound combination play.

Joris Mathijsen (Holland)
Cost: £5m
Would suit: anyone worried about accumulating 40 points
Contracted to Hamburg, where new head coach Martin Jol, formerly of Tottenham, may be clinging tightly to his compatriot after seeing Mathijsen’s performance against Italy. A centre-half with a good left foot, Mathijsen could help keep a struggling team from the drop or make a better team sounder.

Miguel (Portugal)
Cost: £6m
Would suit: Liverpool
Yet to take the field for Portugal, but that’s because he is third choice at full-back behind Jose Bosingwa and Paulo Ferreira, who have cost £30m of Chelsea’s money. Miguel, 28, may be the most naturally talented of all three but has not had his best season in Valencia’s defence. He is skilful, nippy and not long ago was desired by...Chelsea. His luck is that right-back is a coveted position in England.

Vaclav Sverkos (Czech Republic)
Cost: £4m
Would suit: West Brom, Hull, Wigan
Shades of the younger Milan Baros about this striker, who scored the first goal of Euro 2008. Sverkos plays for Banik Ostrava, just as Baros did when Liverpool signed him, and was the Czech Republic league’s top scorer last season. Lively and pugnacious.

David Silva (Spain)
Cost: £12m
Would suit: Arsenal, Tottenham
Dainty-looking player with a lovely left foot. Tricky on the ball, not so much a winger as playmaker, and vulnerable to a bruising man-marker if he does not impose himself through good footwork early on. Silva is looking for Champions League football, which Valencia can’t offer him.

Andrei Arshavin (Russia)
Cost: £12m
Would suit: Everton, Portsmouth, Manchester City
Still waiting his tournament debut because he was suspended for Russia’s first two games after being sent off in their final qualifier against Andorra. He may only get one match to show his talents as a playmaker. Can thread a lovely pass and can score goals too, but is highly valued by Uefa Cup holders Zenit St Petersburg, who expect hefty fees.

Roger Guerreiro (Poland)
Cost: £4m
Would suit: Middlesbrough, Fulham, Wigan
There is nothing like a European passport to raise a Brazilian footballer’s value, and Guerreiro’s Polish citizenship came to him with unseemly haste. Dynamic in the Polish league with Legia Warsaw, Guerreiro has only lived in his adopted country since 2006, but Poland, needing a bit of creativity, called him up and he was quickly naturalised. He has scored their only goal so far at Euro 2008. The converted defender also makes good runs from midfield.

Cosmin Contra (Romania)
Cost: £1m
Would suit: Bolton, Middlesbrough
Veteran right full-back with a CV as long as his impressive stride. Has a knack of rising to the big occasion, as he did for Getafe in the Uefa Cup last season. Has itchy feet and might fancy a final gig somewhere in the Premier League, where right-backs are eagerly sought.

Jan Koller (Czech Republic)
Cost: £1.5m
Would suit: Stoke, West Brom, Fulham
The veteran’s veteran, and even at the age of 35 he is possibly good for a few 60-odd-minute stints at a club that likes tall target men. And yes, like the best beanstalks, Koller can also play the ball a bit with his feet. Bags of experience.

Valon Behrami (Switzerland)
Cost: £6m
Would suit: Manchester City, Sunderland
Right-sided Lazio player with an attention-seeking taste in haircuts. Interesting background, too, having fled Kosovo to live in Switzerland, for whom he has shown some signs of being a footballer with skills above the mundane average of his team.

Ivan Rakitic (Croatia)
Cost: £8m
Would suit: Manchester City, Tottenham
Excellent against Germany last Thursday for a bullish, confident Croatia. He is one of the youngest among their number, having only turned 20 in March, but can deliver threat from either flank of midfield. Plays in the Bundesliga with Schalke.

Slaven Bilic (manager, Croatia)
Cost: small, or no, compensation, reasonable wage
Would suit: West Ham
His players call him “Our very own Special One”. The 39-year-old has had tremendous success in his first job in charge of a senior team, his native country. With a charismatic personality that embraces guitar-playing skills and a university qualification in law, Bilic is multilingual, has a Premier League playing background as a defender with West Ham and Everton, and his team prevented England taking part in this tournament.

...and five names to steer clear of

LILIAN THURAM (France)
Sad to report, but Thuram against Holland on Friday looked like Marcel Desailly had done four years earlier - well past his sell-by date. A fabulous defender for much of his 36 years, he’s looking for a couple of years more in a top flight somewhere having been released by Barcelona. He has not helped his case here

MARCO MATERAZZI (Italy)
The pantomime villain of Italian football, Materazzi has an in-your-face aggression which some managers have appreciated. As for his opponents … just ask Zinedine Zidane. Jose Mourinho has just taken over at Internazionale, where Materazzi plays, and his assessment of this ageing centre-half is yet to be made clear. If he moves, a Premier League wage may be tempting, although his record there with Everton some years ago, was not impressive

MARIO GOMEZ (Germany)
Touted as a fine mix of Spanish flair - his father is from Spain - and German power, this striker has been poor so far. He has attracted admiring glances cast from Iberia, Bayern Munich and even the Premier League, but may well have lost his place in Germany’s starting XI

MILAN BAROS (Czech Rep)
His Premier League experiences chart a slow decline from the young tyro brought to Liverpool by Gerard Houllier. Had spells with Aston Villa and Lyons before going to Portsmouth on loan last season. Pompey have not pursued their option

OTTO REHHAGEL (Greece)
This manager became a sort of shorthand for how high fitness and a loudmouth sergeant-major approach from the boss could make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. Greece are the European champions, yes, but have not decorated this tournament