The Premier League is the most competitive division in soccer. Therefore, it is extremely difficult for young players to break through in the league. Often, teams rely on signing talented players who have developed in other countries rather than producing their own.
There are many positives in academy players making it to the first team of their Premier League club. Supporters can connect better with them, especially if they are from the local area. You also have not had to pay a transfer fee for them.
Recently, we have seen more homegrown talents move on from their teams due to the Premier League's profitability and sustainability regulations. They represent 100% profit on balance sheets but the club is losing a player who could have played for them for much of their careers.
Premier League table
TEAM | RECORD (last five games) | POINTS |
|---|---|---|
Liverpool | W-D-W-W-W | 70 |
Arsenal | W-L-D-D-W | 58 |
Nottingham Forest | L-L-D-W-W | 54 |
Chelsea | L-L-W-W-L | 49 |
Man City | W-L-W-L-D | 48 |
Newcastle | L-L-W-L-W | 47 |
Brighton | W-W-W-W-D | 47 |
Fulham | W-L-W-L-W | 45 |
Aston Villa | D-D-W-L-W | 45 |
Bournemouth | W-L-L-D-L | 44 |
Brentford | W-L-L-D-L | 41 |
Crystal Palace | W-L-W-W-W | 39 |
Man United | L-D-W-D-W | 37 |
Tottenham | W-W-L-D-L | 34 |
Everton | W-D-D-D-D | 34 |
West Ham | L-W-W-L-D | 34 |
Wolves | L-W-L-D-W | 26 |
Ipswich | D-L-L-L-L | 17 |
Leicester | L-L-L-L-L | 17 |
Southampton | L-L-L-L-L | 9 |
And here is what things look like if we re-ranked by most goals scored by players under 21.
Premier League table ranked by most goals scored by players under 21
TEAM | GOALS |
|---|---|
Brighton | 10 |
Aston Villa | 7 |
Leicester | 6 |
Arsenal | 4 |
Man United | 4 |
Bournemouth | 4 |
Ipswich | 3 |
Southampton | 3 |
Man City | 2 |
Crystal Palace | 2 |
Newcastle | 1 |
No surprise Brighton & Hove Albion are top
Brighton is regarded as one of the best-run clubs in English soccer. They have been excellent at producing their players or signing young talent and selling them on for far more than they had paid for them. They sold Moises Caicedo to Chelsea for £115 million when he was only 21 years old. Brighton had previously bought Caicedo from the Ecuadorian club Independiente del Valle for just £4 million.
The Seagulls are at the top of the reordered Premier League table, mostly thanks to Yankuba Minteh, who has scored five of their goals. The Gambian international did not come through Brighton's academy. He made his first-team debut for the Danish club Odense Boldklub and then joined Newcastle United. However, he was sent on loan to Feyenoord by the Magpies before he signed for Brighton permanently.
Minteh cost Brighton £30 million, but he could be the next player that they make a huge profit on. Of course, if the Seagulls continue to be a selling club, it will eventually frustrate their managers. Their former boss, Roberto De Zerbi, left the club after complaining publicly about their transfer policy.
Jhon Duran is no longer at Aston Villa
Aston Villa are second on this list with seven goals, but all of them came from Jhon Duran. Unfortunately, Duran is now plying his trade with Al-Nassr in the Saudi Pro League. The player had grown frustrated at playing second-fiddle to Ollie Watkins, and the riches of Saudi Arabia were too great a pull for him.
Villa replaced Duran in January with very experienced forwards. Marcus Rashford and Marco Asensio both joined on loan from Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain, respectively. Whilst Donyell Malen signed for the club permanently from Borussia Dortmund.
Asensio is 29, Rashford is 27, and Malen is 26. This shows that Unai Emery is focussing on the here and now whilst Villa is still in the Champions League and is pushing to compete again in the competition next season.
More should come for West Ham United
West Ham United are not on the re-ranked list, but they do now have a 20-year-old who has scored in the Premier League this season. Evan Ferguson joined the Hammers in January on loan from Brighton — who he scored for against Wolverhampton Wanderers in the division earlier on in the campaign. Ferguson has made five substitute appearances for West Ham so far but should get a chance to start soon.
The Hammers use the term Academy of Football to describe their club as they have produced so many top players. The likes of Frank Lampard, Rio Ferdinand and Joe Cole all come through at West Ham. More recently, Declan Rice was nurtured at West Ham before being sold to Arsenal for £100 million.
The talent being produced at West Ham has dried up since the late 1990s and early 2000s. However, they now have a Graham Potter in charge, who at Brighton was known for giving young players a chance. The Hammers have a 19-year-old in Luis Guilherme, who has made seven substitute appearances in the Premier League this season without scoring. Perhaps Potter will be willing to give the Brazilian winger more of a chance soon.