The Premier League has fully cemented itself as the greatest football league in the world. With some of the biggest teams and most high profile managers, it’s no wonder the league rakes in billions of pounds of revenue each season. A big reason the Premiership is such a draw is due to its monumental star power. The likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Harry Kane and Mohamed Salah put on show for audiences week after week and grow the English brand.
Not only do all 20 league teams now have the funds to compete with the best in the division for players due to lucrative tv rights deals with the likes of Sky and BT, but they have also heavily invested in their youth academies and women’s teams. The growth of some of these academies has been astronomical, and institutions such as Chelsea and Arsenal have been able to build youth set ups, Cobham and Hale End, that have been able to rival some of the historically best set ups in Europe such as La Masia and De Toekomst. Chelsea’s youth academy has specifically been hailed in recent seasons due to the emergence of young talents such as Mason Mount, Reece James and Andres Christensen, all players who played major roles in Chelsea’s run to Champions League gold last term.
The formula for nurturing young stars has not been strictly resigned to developing youth stars however. Another strong strategy utilised in recent years has been buying youngster from either the lower divisions of English football or from teams around Europe, who have shown potential to be better than their teammate counterparts. Some good examples of such signings are Liverpool acquiring Andy Robertson from Hull for £8million back in 2017 and Jon Stones from Barnsley to Everton. Both players have had success since making the step up.
Today we are going to look at 5 young players (aged 22 or below) who are set to break out in the league in the coming seasons, and eventually move on to one of the powerhouse teams in the division. These are players who don’t play for the traditional top 6 teams (Man City, Liverpool, Chelsea, Man Utd, Arsenal & Spurs), but I could very well see them moving for big money in the future. All these players listed have shown sparks of the potential they possess but are still in the infancy of their careers so still have much to prove at the next level. So let’s dive right in.
Michael Olise- Attacking Midfielder (Crystal Palace) 20 years old
Signing for Palace last summer from Reading for £8million, French youth international Michael Olise was expected to come in and be a solid rotational player for the Eagles. A side that employs attacking talents such as Wilfried Zaha, Eberechi Eze and Odsonne Édouard is a hard unit to cement a place into, but Olise has excelled under the tutelage of manager Patrick Vieira and cemented his place as a starter in a team fighting in mid table. Though he has spent a large part of the season coming off the bench. Recent performances suggest this won’t be the case for long. Olise is a fantastic technical player who is electric with the ball at his feet. Equally as fast with his straight line speed as he is agile, he causes nightmares for opposing fullbacks. Olise is in the top 5% in the league for progressive carries per 90 this season at his position, which demonstrates how comfortable the youngster is on the ball. As well as his ability to keep hold of the ball, he is also adept at distributing it and creating chances for his teammates. He likes to be the focal point of attacks and has provided 5 league assists in just 971 minutes so far, which equates to roughly one assist every 180 minutes, which puts him again in the top 5% in the league at this category.
Not only is Olise capturing the hearts of the Crystal Palace faithful but he is also grabbing the attention of current England manager Gareth Southgate. Though Michael has played for France at youth level, he is yet to make a senior appearance for Les Bleus meaning he can still be called up to his country of birth, England. At just 20 he’s receiving plaudits from some of the best clubs around, former England striker Darren Bent recently suggested that Arsenal should come in with an offer for the silky winger in the summer, rival London club Chelsea have also shown interest.
As previously mentioned, Olise is just 20 years of age, which shows he has plenty of years to grow and hone his craft but he already has the tools and attributes to contribute in the toughest league in the world. He offers something invaluable to managers, the ability to be versatile. He plays most comfortably on the right hand side where he is able to cut in on his favoured left foot and deliver in crosses, but he’s also shown that he can do the same out on the left, running at defenders. But due to his calmness and composure on the ball, he’s been able to demonstrate that he can play the traditional number 10 position at a high level. Regardless of which position he eventually calls home, given a few more years of development where he can work on his craft and learn to score more goals in South London, I see him making a move to one of the top teams in the world.
Tino Livramento- Fullback (Southampton) 19 years old
Back in August Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhüttl decided to take the risk and sign Chelsea academy graduate Faustino Livramento for £5 million. The move was risky because the 18 year old English youth international had not played a single minute of senior football. His excellent performances for the Chelsea youth side in the 20/21 season, where he won their player of the year award, was enough for Southampton to pull the trigger on a deal. That risk has certainly paid off as Tino has taken like a duck to water in the Premier League. With no prior league experience, he’s come in to an experienced side and cemented his spot playing out on the right hand side of the defence. He’s even displaced Kyle Walker-Peters and moved him out to the left, which has demonstrated a huge show of faith in the youngster. So far this term, the fullback has logged 1995 league minutes, which is amongst the most amount of time played in the Saints squad.
Livramento plays like a player beyond his years. Very comfortable on the ball, he likes to get involved in play and has the confidence to maraud forward in the attacking phases. He is in the top 15% of players in his position in the league for dribbles completed per 90 minutes. He has the ability and potential to play in a very attacking side. With Kyle Walker nearing 32, Tino could very well be his successor in Pep Guardiolas possession heavy side. Though he is strong when the team attacks, he certainly doesn’t shirk away from his defensive responsibilities. In fact, I feel when he is playing with his back to his own goal he is at his best. Very assured when tacking and astute in intercepting passes from the opposition, he’s making himself invaluable for the Solent based side. Averaging 5.19 tackles and assists per 90 put him up there with some of the best defensive players in the league.
The biggest takeaway when watching Livramento play is that he’s still very young. At only 19 years old and very limited first team minutes, it just shows that with time and the right manager to mould him, the sky is the limit. He has all the physical attributes to succeed. The youngster is very fast and has an engine on him. Plus he shows great game IQ, which is not often visible with players so early on in their careers. Former club Chelsea have a £25 buyout clause option for the former youth star, but with the emergence of England star Reece James, I can’t see him returning to Stamford Bridge any time soon. So therefore the Saints are likely to make a pretty penny from a sale that I see happening no so far down the line.
Jacob Ramsey- Central Midfielder (Aston Villa) 20 years old
Jacob Ramsey has had a sensational 21/22 season so far considering his lack of minutes the previous season. After only starting 6 games last term, Ramsey has really pushed on and upped his game and has been rewarded with 22 league starts this year. The young Englishman is a traditional box to box midfielder with a toolbox of attributes to boot. Though still in the early years of his career, Ramsey uses his body well, and he manipulates his slender frame to be able to get stuck in with the big boys. He has a dog like mentality in him but also the flair to make him standout from his peers. Jacob is great with the ball at his feet and often surges through the middle of the park, often drawing fouls from defenders. Ramsey also has an eye for a pass and can progress the ball through the air as well as with his feet. Pairing him with workhorse players like Douglas Luiz and John McGinn has been a master stroke for Villa manager Steven Gerrard, and he appears to have upped his game since experienced creative talent Coutinho has joined him at Villa Park.
Ramsey has upped his attacking output this term scoring 6 league goals. Most notably finding the back of the net against Manchester United, and scoring a brace against Leeds. The youngster has really improved his all round game and at such a young age he is likely to only grow. Due to his impressive performances there have been comparisons drawn between him and current manager, and Premier League legend Steven Gerrard. Not a bad comparison all in all, and as Ramsey has scored an average whoscored rating of 6.88 this term it’s not hard to see why. There has also been recent speculation about an England call up for the youngster, who has been capped 3 times for the England under 21 side. If his performances carry on the way they have been, it will be no surprise if manager Gareth Southgate calls up the Villain for World Cup duty later in the year. Considering in recent years Villa have developed such midfielders as Jack Grealish, James Milner and Gareth Barry, it’s safe to say Jacob is in safe hands. Give it a few years and I could see a mega money move involving the player to a top side. But which one will be smart enough to make the bid?
Pedro Neto- Winger (Wolverhampton) 22 years old
After signing a lucrative 5 year deal only last week, it appears that Pedro Neto doesn’t look to be leaving his home of Molineux any time soon. But with how the dominative winger has performed so far in his a premier League career, it won’t be too long until teams look to break Wolves resolve for the youngster. Still only 22 and coming off a serious injury that has seen Neto miss a majority of the season, the Portuguese international is looking to bounce back and show the league just why he was so highly touted only 6 months ago. Last year was the real catalyst for his success so far at this level. Playing 31 league games at just 20 years of age, he showed glimpses as to why Wolves bought his from Lazio for £15 million, even though he was unproven.
Neto used his skills to quickly pay back then manager Nuno Espírito Santo as he went on to score 5 goals and assist a further 6. All numbers that were seriously impressive considering Wolves were set up to be a heavy defensive side. Neto brilliantly utilised his breakaway speed and dribbling ability to start counterattacks and get his team into scoring positions. He averaged over 2 dribbles and key passes a match showing he was multifaceted when it comes to the creative side of his game. His goal scoring was impressive too, though 5 goals in a season for a winger is common, at his age he showed that he could get into scoring opportunities in a verity of ways. He can score from outside the box, dribble past players and find the back of the net in a one on one and he can also be the poacher in a side. The Portuguese youngster scored some vitally important goals last term, including winning strikes against both Southampton and Chelsea. All these goals played a part in providing Wolves with enough points to reach a respectable 13th. Which isn’t bad considering they spent most of the season without star man Raul Jimenez.
Pedro has the ability to be the star man for his team. Every time he gets the ball he gets the crowd on their feet. He is electric and incisive with his movements. Like everyone else on this list, he’s so young, he has a lot more room to grow. And considering he’s already forced his way into a star studded Portugal side, I can only imagine he’ll be playing for a team fighting for titles soon. If his 20/21 seasons is anything to go off, he’s got game changing abilities and has genuine quality to fit into any side as he can play possession based ball with his passing and ball retention and also counterattacking play with his speed and finishing ability. Last term he received 5 man of the match awards in the league, so he’s already showing Eden Hazard like levels of potential. And that’s not a bad comparison.
Bryan Mbeumo- Winger (Brentford) 22 years old
Mbeumo’s form has admittedly been up and down this season. Starting off the league year like a man possessed, the Frenchman lit up the field against the likes of Arsenal and Wolves. However, in line with the drop off of Brentford’s form, Mbeumo’s contributions dipped as well. But contributing to 6 goals in 26 league games in Brentford maiden season is nothing to be scoffed at. The goals may have dried up but his partnership with Ivan Toney has flourished this year and has displayed Bryan’s ability to link up play and create scoring opportunities. And form is only temporary, we’ve seen the France under 21 star perform at a very high level in recent years. Combining for 41 league goals across the past two Championship seasons has shown that when Mbeumo is firing, he really can be on the money. His performances even saw him nominated for EFL player of the year and young player of the year.
Still only 22 Mbeumo has something that others on this list don’t, and that’s a wealth of playing time under his belt. He has utilised this time to really work his craft and now excels in certain aspects of he game. He has great ability with the ball at his feet and he often cuts in off the right and delivers threatening balls into the box with his lethal left peg. As well as being a winger, he can also play as an unorthodox frontman. He has the speed and awareness to persistently find space in the final third and break between defences. Playing in Thomas Frank’s heavy attacking side, he has learned to press well and embraces his defensive duties. The player averages over 2 tackles and interceptions a game, showing he’s not afraid to get stuck in. The winger is on the shorter side but he has a stocky frame that means he can both bully people off the ball, and his low centre of gravity means it’s hard to take it off him.
With the technical ability that Mbeumo possesses I feel that he would step up his game if he were to join a more dominant side. A team that could play to his strengths could really see him flourish. And with this current season being only his first in top flight football, I’d imagine that he’ll get the opportunity to show what he can do. And I’m sure Brentford will make a sizeable profit on a player that they bought for only £5million back in 2019.
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