Thursday 17 September 2015

Ruben Loftus-Cheek and Reece Oxford among the 10 Premier League youngsters pushing to make a first team breakthrough




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Ruben Loftus-Cheek was named Man of the Match as Chelsea kicked off their Champions League campaign with victory over Maccabi Tel Aviv.

Great things are expected of the teenage midfielder at Stamford Bridge, but he is by no means the only youngster pushing to make a Premier League breakthrough this season.

NigerianEchoes now takes a look at the top 10 up-and-coming stars.


RUBEN LOFTUS-CHEEK (Chelsea)

Position: Midfielder

Age: 19

While 33 Chelsea players have been allowed to go out on loan, Jose Mourinho has kept Loftus-Cheek in his squad and on Wednesday night the powerful teenager showed why.

The England Under 21 midfielder, who only made his full debut for the club in May, gave a complete midfield performance in the 4-0 win and appears to have a very bright future ahead of him.


KELECHI IHEANACHO (Manchester City)

Position: Striker

Age: 18

The Nigerian striker scored a dramatic late winner at Crystal Palace last weekend to maintain City's 100 per cent Premier League record, just 54 seconds after arriving off the bench for his second appearance in the top-flight.

There were concerns that City had left themselves light up front after letting Edin Dzeko leave without signing a replacement but Manuel Pellegrini has been adamant that Kelechi, a Golden Boot winner at the U17 World Cup two years ago, deserved his chance.


JAMES WILSON (Manchester United)

Position: Striker

Age: 19

The prolific England U21 striker made an immediate impact on his debut, scoring twice against Hull in May 2014, and was handed a further 17 appearances in all competitions last season – including two Premier League starts.

Louis van Gaal hopes that Wilson will be able to contribute even more this term after Robin van Persie, Radamel Falcao and Javier Hernandez were allowed to leave in the summer.

He was added to United's travelling party for the Champions League tie against PSV Eindhoven this week after Wayne Rooney have been ruled out due to injury.



REECE OXFORD (West Ham United)

Position: Centre Midfield/Centre Half

Age: 16

Oxford sprang to nationwide prominence when he starred in West Ham's victory at Arsenal on the opening weekend of this season, becoming the second youngster player ever to start a Premier League game at the age of 16 years and 236 days.

The England U17 international was acclaimed for his outstanding performance as a midfield anchor role against the Gunners and has since made two more appearances for Slaven Bilic's side.


JORDAN ROSSITER (Liverpool)

Position: Midfielder

Age: 18

The young midfielder scored on his debut against Middlesbrough in the Capital One Cup a year ago, but had to wait until last month for his first taste of Premier League action as a substitute against Arsenal, having made the bench on a number of occasions.

Rossiter, an England U19 international who has been compared to Steven Gerrard, is in line to make his full debut against Bordeaux in the Europa League on Thursday night.




DELE ALLI (Tottenham Hotspur)

Position: Midfielder

Age: 19

A £5million signing from MK Dons at the start of the year, Alli made his full Premier League debut for Spurs against Sunderland last weekend after three appearances off the bench – including his first top-flight goal in the 1-1 draw at Leicester City.

A goalscoring midfielder who represents England at U21 level, Alli was voted Young Player of the Year in the Football League last season and was watched by Liverpool and Bayern Munich before signing for Tottenham.



BRENDAN GALLOWAY (Everton)

Position: Left Back

Age: 19

The Zimbabwe-born defender has made a huge impact in the absence of the injured Leighton Baines this season, making four Premier League starts and providing the cross for Steven Naismith to head Everton's first goal in the 3-1 win over Chelsea last weekend.

Galloway, who made his top-flight debut in May, is already being lined up for a new contract despite signing a long-term deal when he joined from MK Dons in 2013.

He was the Championship club's youngster ever first-team player at the age of 15.



ROLANDO AARONS (Newcastle United)

Position: Winger/Midfielder

Age: 19

The exciting teenage forward has made six Premier League appearances off the bench for Newcastle United since a debut appearance against Manchester City on the opening day of last season but has yet to start in the top-flight.

Compared to Raheem Sterling due to his Jamaican background and attacking style, Aarons has also chosen to play for England and impressed for the U20s at the Toulon Tournament this summer.


JOE DODOO (Leicester City)

Position: Winger/Striker

Age: 20

Dodoo made a stunning impact on his debut for Claudio Ranieri's side, scoring a hat-trick in the Capital One Cup against Bury last month, and was rewarded with his first Premier League appearance against Bournemouth four days later.

The 20-year-old of Ghanaian descent has played for England at youth-team level and is now on the brink of a call-up for the U21s, having broken into Leicester's first-team squad.



JONATHAN LEKO (West Bromwich Albion)

Position: Striker

Age: 16

The England U17 striker has come through the youth ranks at the Hawthorns and is being tipped to follow in Saido Berahino's footsteps to the first-team after manager Tony Pulis included him on the club's pre-season tour of Austria.

Leko has been in England since he was eight after his family escaped war-torn Democratic Republic of Congo.

He was a regular for Albion's U21s at the age of 15 and has attracted plenty of interest from the big clubs.










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