Pressing Issues

Mikel Arteta recently said that building a career for 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri can only be done “brick-by-brick” – and received heavy criticism for not playing the teenager enough during Martin Odegaard’s injury absence.

Conversely, Spanish star Lamine Yamal has started 13 of 15 La Liga games for Barcelona this season, returning 14 goal contributions while doing so.

Wonderkids have long been a big part of football – Wayne Rooney was 16 when he emerged as one of England’s brightest stars, Lionel Messi started for Barca at 16 and caught the world’s eye.

Yet despite these examples, it is exceedingly rare that a young talent (such as Yamal) emerges as a regular starter – especially with the high levels of physical intensity that are synonymous with modern football.

It is much more common that youngsters are slowly embedded into a team over a period of time, such as with Curtis Jones at Liverpool, who has made incremental gains in terms of Premier League minutes since his debut at age 18 in 2019.

So which approach is better? And how do managers manage players’ expectations while also exposing them to enough football for them to develop?

Throw Them In The Deep End

There is a lot to be said for clubs who completely trust their youngsters. Mauricio Poccetino’s Tottenham thrived on integrating young stars such as Harry Kane and Dele Alli – and turning them into world beaters. Brighton’s modern approach of giving young players consistent Premier League minutes to build their stocks over time has seen success for both club and player – such as with Moises Caicedo’s £100 million move to Chelsea.

Many sports psychologists say that frequently playing at the highest level from a young age is optimal for young players’ mental development – they are exposed to pressures and challenges, and are able to overcome these to accelerate development.

Yet while there are success stories – Kane and Caicedo, there is also tragedy that coincides with such an approach.

During his teens and early 20s Dele Alli was touted as one of football’s brightest stars – his arrival to Tottenham from MK Dons was an immediate success. The Englishman provided 44 goal contributions across two Premier League seasons before turning 21.

Yet, at the age of 28, Alli is now a free agent having not played a professional match since February 2023 – during a time where he should be in his footballing prime.

Alli’s career has been curtailed by injury, and it doesn’t look like reemerging anytime soon.

On the contrary, Poccetino’s faith in Harry Kane has seen him become England’s all-time top goalscorer and recently break the record for the fastest player to 50 Bundesliga goals.

Playing young players as much as possible can reap massive rewards. It shows a manager’s trust in the player, prevents any frustration building up over a youngster’s lack of minutes, and allows them to adapt at an early age to the demands of elite level football.

“Brick By Brick”

Mikel Arteta recently said that “I am the one responsible for building a career” for 17-year-old Ethan Nwaneri, and attributed the process as being a step-by-step process.

Arteta has been seen to do this in the past – his slow integration of WIlliam Saliba to the Premier League, loaning the Frenchman out multiple times despite fans calling for him to start. A decision which in retrospect, Arteta can be seen to have been correc ton.

Pep Guardiola has been seen to adopt a similar approach. Someone like Cole Palmer, whom he “knew the quality” was slowly exposed to more minutes year on year, before growing frustrated and asking to leave. The City academy graduate has since gone onto show the quality that Guardiola recognised and has become one of the Premier League’s best. The lack of opportunity Guardiola afforded Palmer – albeit because of the sheer quality of City’s squad – led to the Citizens losing one of Europe’s hottest talents.

Phil Foden can be seen to be Guardiola’s success story. Now 24, Foden won Premier League Player of the Season last campaign, and Guardiola’s patient approach to his development can arguably be seen as a big factor for his current status.

Although I mentioned Brighton as a club who provide youngsters with minutes earlier on, the Seagull’s transfer policy of signing a series of prospects almost every transfer window and the number of young players in their squad often results in players receiving limited minutes and being heavily rotated. Brighton have found a great balance between exposing players to elite level football, while also managing their expectations, physical restrictions and media attention to an appropriate level.

As a result, they are potentially the best club in the world for a young player to go and develop.

So what’s best?

Although coaches tend to have an approach they employ almost universally, the best way to raise a youngster is completely player-dependent. Some players are very physically developed from a young age (and thus able to play significant minutes) whereas others would be put at risk of injury if overexposed. Some players have the mindset to overcome challenges and pressures, others will struggle with the new issues they face.

Even players who initially burst onto the scene may rue their decisions later on in their careers if they become hampered by injury.

A balanced approach where expectations and pressures are managed appropriately while also allowing a player to develop with consistent first team minutes is one that would work with almost every young hotshot in the world.

In essence, moving to Brighton is the best way to raise a football wonderkid.