All About The Beautiful Game
In recent years, clubs have put more emphasis on finding talented players at younger ages. In addition to controlling a player’s development and finding the right loan moves, it can save millions of dollars in transfer fees. Look at Bayern Munich and Barcelona: Jamal Musiala and Pedri were both signed at 16 and are now…
Read More “Five u21 Talents Who Need a Move in the Summer” »
In terms of youth academies, few cities are better than London. Chelsea has one of England’s finest, with talents breaking through despite the ridiculous sums they pay for first-team players. Arsenal’s title charge this season has been heavily aided by players who came through their academy. Tottenham’s academy, too, has produced some fine players —…
Read More “Hammer Time: Ones to Watch on West Ham’s Trophy-Winning u18s” »
The Polish national team has traditionally been very dependent on its league, the Ekstraklasa. However, that is a trend that is gradually shrinking: in the 2018 and 2022 World Cups, just four and three players from the league made the final roster, respectively. In each of their prior two appearances at the tournament (2002 and…
Read More “One Prospect to Watch on Every Ekstraklasa Team” »
For years, I’ve written about u21 (or u23) talents either with expiring contracts or no contracts. In the first of these articles, in 2020, I chose four exciting talents: Angel Gomes, Malang Sarr, Abdul Mumin, and Luca Zidane. Nearly three years later, Gomes and Sarr are in Ligue 1, Mumin is in La Liga, and…
In 2021, German super club Bayern Munich announced a new project: the World Squad. The team was made with the aim of creating “an additional opportunity for talents from all over the world to realize [their] dream,” in the words of World Squad coach Christopher Loch. You can find the first episode here. The series,…
Read More “Where Are They Now: Bayern Munich’s Released World Squad Players” »
The MLS has established itself as one of the best development leagues in the world. I’ve talked about this extensively over the years, but it’s easiest to see right now. The latest season saw the MLS sell a whopping nine U23 players overseas, with the clubs ranging from Barcelona to Rosenborg. Even the Chicago Fire…
Read More “Five U21 Free Agents That MLS Clubs Should Be Looking At” »
Over the years, many of the Czech Republic’s finest players have featured in the German Bundesliga. Tomáš Rosický spent five years with Borussia Dortmund, having left Sparta Prague when he was 20. Jiří Němec spent nine years with Dortmund’s rivals Schalke 04, having also featured for Sparta. All-time top scorer Jan Koller spent five years…
Read More “Lukáš Ambros: The Latest Czech Talent Emerging in the Bundesliga” »
Roma is a club with a long history of promoting players through its youth academy. Look at club legend Francesco Totti, for instance. No player in the club’s history has scored more goals, made more appearances, or assisted more strikes than Totti. The Italian forward spent his entire career at the club, originally joining the…
Read More “Niccolò Pisilli: Roma’s New Gladiator in Midfield” »
For two consecutive World Cups, Colombia was one of the most exciting teams in the world. In 2014, they thrashed everyone in their group, advancing to the knockouts and eventually the quarter-finals by scoring 12 times in five games. In 2018, they were eliminated in the Round of 16, having scored six goals in four…
Read More “Kevin Mantilla: Emerging Colombian Talent in Defense” »
This January, many of the best prospects in South America will face off in the South American Youth Football Championship. The tournament, essentially the Copa America for U20 players, has been a showcase for some of the continent’s stars in the past. Just look at some recent players. In 2017, Racing Club forward Lautaro Martínez…
