Teenage Picks: The Young Players Lighting Up The Premier League

When Max Dowman came disconnected nan chair for Arsenal against Leeds earlier this season, he became conscionable nan 3rd 15-year-old to play successful nan Premier League. A fewer days later, erstwhile 16-year-old Rio Ngumoha scored Liverpool’s victor against Newcastle, it felt for illustration a confirmation of a trend: teenagers are not conscionable filling gaps successful squads, they are driving results.

At a clip erstwhile clubs tin walk much than £100m connected a subordinate – Liverpool did it doubly successful nan summertime – nan Premier League is witnessing a quiet revolution: nan emergence of nan teenagers. Teenagers made 430 appearances successful nan convention past play – nan highest successful 19 years – and they person already made 130 appearances this season.

This gyration is happening crossed Europe too. Dowman became nan youngest subordinate to look successful nan Champions League erstwhile he came connected for Leandro Trossard against Slavia Prague this week. His quality adds to a trend. The grounds for nan youngest Champions League debut has been surgery 3 times successful nan past 5 years: by Youssoufa Moukoko, Lamine Yamal and now Dowman.

Last season, players specified arsenic Myles Lewis-Skelly, Ethan Nwaneri, Lucas Bergvall, Nico O’Reilly and Leny Yoro made their people successful nan Premier League. This season, support an oculus connected these six teenagers.

Eli Kroupi

Kroupi has wasted nary clip making an effect aft his £10m move from Lorient. The 19-year-old has scored 4 goals successful 7 convention games this season, becoming conscionable nan 15th teen successful Premier League history to people successful 3 consecutive matches. Can Uzun, nan Eintracht Frankfurt player, is nan only teen pinch much goals successful Europe’s apical 5 leagues this season.

The France Under-21 world suits Bournemouth’s strategy perfectly: his explosive movement, instinctive finishing and positional elasticity are perfect for Andoni Iraola’s high-tempo, direct, transition-heavy style. Kroupi scored 23 goals for Lorient past play and he has not dropped nan gait successful nan Premier League.

Josh King

The 18-year-old has go a captious cog successful Marco Silva’s instrumentality this season. After much than a decade successful nan Fulham academy, he made his debut past December – “one of nan champion moments of my life” – and impressed nan head capable to go a starter this season. Starting a azygous Premier League crippled arsenic a teen is noteworthy but starting 9 of nan first 10 matches this play – nan astir of immoderate teen successful nan convention – underlines conscionable really overmuch religion nan nine is placing successful their academy graduate.

King combines nan maturity and footballing intelligence of a seasoned pro pinch nan fearless assurance of a young talent. His head was peculiarly impressed by nan characteristic he showed successful Fulham’s triumph complete section rivals Brentford earlier this season. His misplaced walk talented their rivals an early extremity but, alternatively than hiding, he pressed pinch strength and continued to request nan ball. As Silva put it: “Sometimes you effort to hide to summation assurance again, but that was not nan case. He popped up again and showed himself. I was really impressed.”

The England Under-21 world takes risks connected nan pitch. He looks to break lines pinch eager passes and demands nan shot moreover nether pressure. He is nan latest talented youngster to look from nan Fulham academy, pursuing players specified arsenic Harvey Elliott, Eberechi Eze, Djed Spence and Matt O’Riley.

Josh King has been astatine Fulham since he was 8 years old. Photograph: Javier García/Shutterstock

Estêvão Willian

It’s difficult to cognize what to deliberation erstwhile Chelsea motion a young player. Will they beryllium loaned to Strasbourg for experience, utilized to supply squad extent aliases fixed a existent chance successful nan first team? Early signs propose that Estêvão, nan 18-year-old signed from Palmeiras for £29m, has nan spot of his manager. He has made 15 appearances this season, scoring 4 goals and picking up 1 assist.

Estêvão has nan hallmarks of a classical Brazilian playmaker: flair, intelligence and creativity. He ranks 4th successful nan convention for successful dribbles completed, 3rd for goal-creating actions per 90 minutes, 14th for shots per 90 minutes, and 3rd for take-ons attempted per game. And, crucially, he tin beryllium nan man for nan large juncture arsenic he showed pinch his stoppage-time victor against Liverpool.

Tyrique George

Given nan number of signings Chelsea bring in, and nan truth they person made £250m from trading younker graduates successful nan past 3 years, it is difficult to climb done nan ranks from nan academy to nan first team. The number of minutes fixed to academy graduates has declined successful caller seasons – from 8,606 successful 2022-23 to 7,166 successful 2023-24 and conscionable 5,471 past play – which makes George’s advancement each nan much impressive.

A Chelsea instrumentality who joined nan nine arsenic an eight-year-old successful 2014, he has made 35 appearances successful each competitions complete nan past 2 seasons. His grounds this play is impressive: 3 goals and 1 assistance successful conscionable 439 minutes of football.

With truthful galore wingers playing regimented, system-driven football, it is refreshing to watch George play. His crippled is built connected flair, spontaneity and confidence. He feints past defenders by letting nan shot tally crossed his body, adds a touch of accomplishment to elemental passes, and isn’t acrophobic to effort a backheel aliases a flick successful tight spaces. Every touch feels improvised alternatively than rehearsed and he perpetually looks to make thing happen. He is simply a activity of caller aerial and could go thing typical astatine Stamford Bridge.

Estevão and Tyrique George observe during Chelsea’s 4-3 triumph against Wolves. Photograph: Andrew Kearns/Getty Images

Max Dowman

It is nary concealed conscionable really highly Mikel Arteta rates Dowman. The Arsenal head practically lights up erstwhile asked astir nan youngster. Speaking aft Arsenal’s 3-0 triumph successful Prague this week, he said: “The first point he did erstwhile he came connected was to return group on, dribble and get a foul. That is characteristic and that is courage, you cannot thatch that. You person it aliases you don’t.”

Dowman – calved connected New Year’s Eve 2009 – was training pinch nan first squad astatine 14 and has already surgery a bid of records, becoming Arsenal’s youngest starter, nan Champions League’s youngest player, nan Premier League’s second-youngest (after his teammate Nwaneri), and nan youngest goalscorer for England Under-19s.

Given his younker – he has not yet sat his GCSEs – he will not beryllium fixed arsenic galore minutes arsenic immoderate of nan players connected this list. “He is 15 years aged and still growing,” says Arteta. “There are a batch of things we person to make judge are nether power truthful he develops successful nan measurement he tin do.” But expect large things from this record-breaker successful nan coming years.

Rio Ngumoha

An instinctive winger, Ngumoha combines crisp acceleration pinch tight power and a fearless attack successful one-on-one situations. He has nan intelligence to make nan correct determination successful nan last third, whether it’s slipping a precise walk through, picking his infinitesimal to shoot, aliases forcing a foul.

He announced himself connected nan large shape successful August, delivering that 100th-minute victor for Liverpool against Newcastle. That decorativeness not only sealed nan triumph but besides made him nan club’s youngest ever goalscorer and nan 4th youngest successful Premier League history (after James Vaughan, James Milner and Wayne Rooney). Like Dowman, expect his minutes to beryllium constricted this season. But, if Liverpool negociate him right, Ngumoha will go a regular.

This is an article by WhoScored