Wesley Sneijder (above) and David Villa could overshadow the Portuguese star.

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His 42-goal season for Manchester United makes him the favourite. But he may have a serious rival in the shape of the Netherlands' Wesley Sneijder, the architect of Italy's 3-0 humiliation at Euro 2008.

And while the world waits to see if the Portuguese completes his 'dream' move to Real Madrid, the bigger transfer scramble will involve Spain's David Villa.

Hat-tricks in European Championship Finals are rare. And Villa's treble in the 4-1 humbling of Russia was only the eighth in the tournament's history, and put the player in the company of Marco van Basten and Michel Platini.

His financially-troubled club, Valencia, will be delighted to squeeze every cent from suitors like Real, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool.

The diminutive striker, with 91 goals in 175 games in the Spanish top flight, showed every facet of his ability against Russia - from intelligent running to his killer instinct in front of goal.

Not to mention his near-telepathic link with Fernando Torres, the Liverpool striker.

It was Torres who unselfishly fed Villa to slot home the opening goal. Torres then drew an extra defender away, and made it easier for Andres Iniesta to put the Valencia striker through for his second.

'Two of my goals were due to him,' said Villa. 'He did the unseen work and I got the credit. And that's why I celebrated with him.'

That explained why Villa rushed to the bench to hug Torres after his 17th goal in 32 games for Spain. So exuberant was the hug that Villa hurt his finger when it got tangled in Torres' shirt.

How Liverpool fans would welcome the pairing at Anfield. With a Spanish manager and a large contingent of Spanish players, Liverpool would have been favourites to sign Villa, 26.

But the striker has declared that he is a fan of Arsenal. And Spain's Gunner, Francesc Fabregas, said: 'He would be amazing for the English Premier League. I would like to have him in my team because, as you can see, he can make the difference.'

But there are rumours suggesting Real have already done a deal for Villa, which will be announced at the end of Euro 2008.

Sneijder, 24, will not be moving anywhere soon, on the back of a superb title-winning season for Real.

His creative contribution for the Netherlands has sometimes been limited by him being used as a holding player.

But with Nigel de Jong playing that role in van Basten's 4-2-3-1 formation, Sneijder was deployed in an advanced position on the left and handed a licence to roam.

The result, from an Italian point of view, was devastating.

Beautifully balanced, Sneijder is comfortable on either foot. But it is his left that has the slight edge in raw power - a fact he demonstrated with the ferocious shot that Ruud van Nistelrooy turned in for the Dutch opener.

He could well be the Player of the Tournament if the Dutch lift the trophy, leaving Ronaldo in the shade.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE, REUTERS