Switzerland’s 20-Year-Old Weapon Just Became the Youngest World Cup Scorer and Assister Since Memphis Depay

Switzerland didn’t just beat co-host Canada on Tuesday. They punched their ticket to the knockout round with a 2-0 win that was less dramatic than the scoreline suggests. And the guy leading the charge? A 20-year-old Freiburg forward nobody outside the Bundesliga had on their radar two months ago.

Johan Manzambi is having a tournament. He came off the bench in Switzerland’s first two group games and scored twice against Bosnia and Herzegovina. Against Canada, with everything on the line, he got the start. And he delivered.

First, he set up Rúben Vargas for the opener in the second half. Then he scored one himself. In a span of about 15 minutes, Manzambi went from breakout sub to the guy Switzerland has been waiting for since Xherdan Shaqiri stopped doing Shaqiri things on the biggest stage.

He’s now the top scorer in the World Cup among players 21 or younger, per Squawka. He’s also the youngest player to both score and assist in a World Cup match since a 20-year-old Memphis Depay did it for the Netherlands in 2014. That is not bad company.

The summer nobody saw coming

Before this tournament, the conversation around Switzerland’s attack started and ended with Breel Embolo. That made sense. Embolo has been the guy for years. But Manzambi won the Europa League Young Player of the Season award in 2025-26, helped Freiburg reach the final of that competition, and apparently decided that was just a warm-up.

Coach Murat Yakin kept him on the bench for the first two games. That changed after Manzambi made his point with a brace off the bench against Bosnia. Against Canada, he was unplayable. He pulled defenders wide, made runs that didn’t exist in the first half, and finished with the composure of a guy who has been doing this for a decade.

Yakin might have a problem now. But it’s the best kind of problem. Manzambi isn’t a flash in the pan. He’s 20, playing in a top European league, and he just announced himself to the world.

Switzerland has been the tournament dark horse so many times before. They’ve reached the quarterfinals and bowed out with a shrug. But this feels different. Not just because they topped Group B — although that puts them on the easier side of the bracket — but because they have a genuine young star who doesn’t look fazed by any of it.

Manzambi flew under the radar for exactly one week. That radar is now locked on him. And the rest of the knockout field has to figure out how to deal with a 20-year-old who is playing like he belongs. Which, at this point, he clearly does.