On the whole Kovacic getting picked over Loftus-Cheek, Kovacic is a really, really good player who has won the Champions League three times and La Liga once, and has 46 Croatia caps despite being only a couple years older than RLC.
I think RLC has the potential to be a good player, but he's not anywhere near Kovacic's class at the moment.
Agree to a point but that is flattering to Kovacic, he hasn't exactly been a star for Madrid.
See that a number of clubs in Spain want to sign Loftus-Cheek on loan yet are being put off by wage demands
FFS!! You can have one or the other Ruban!!...
You can sit on the bench / reserves for Chelsea, watch your career disappear yet enjoy a comfortable life, or you can go to Spain to become a better player and earn a little bit less money yet still enjoy a comfortable life at the end of it!!
Incredible statistics for Jadon Sancho - 102 minutes: 4 assists and 1 goal. (Bundesliga).
Ruben Loftus-Cheek continues surging ahead in his progress by running around cones on Chelsea's training ground and staring at the sub's bench from the stands.
Phil Foden completed his first 90 minutes against Oxford United and picked up one goal and one assist. Guardiola described him as already a "great, great player." This kid looks too good to be true. Any day now he will reveal he's got a great-grandparent called Alejandro and declare himself for Spain.
Ryan Sessegnon, who I predict will only turn out to be the next Kieron Dyer, has picked up 1 assist so far in 6 games.
Solanke... Well. Not played anywhere. Wondering if he should even be in this list.
Mason Mount put in an assured performance against Mourinho's Moaners, effectively setting up Derby's 3rd goal with his shot. He's scored 5 goals in 12 games this season, adding 1 assist.
Our top six clubs (and by that I mean City, United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Spurs and Liverpool) fielded just 12 English starters over the weekend between them. Both Arsenal and Chelsea, "famed" for their academies, didn't have a single English player starting.
Meanwhile Wolves had more Portuguese players starting against United (six in total) on Saturday than Porto did in their Champions League against Schalke.
So, who will improve most as a group out of these:
(1) The Portuguese players playing for Wolves in the PL (2) The Portuguese players playing for Porto in their top flight (3) The English players in the reserve sides of the top six or out on loan in the Championship
Then think about how many out and out English strikers started over the weekend who are capable of doing even a passable imitation of Kane? Equally, the World Cup semi final fool appearance shouldn't fool us. Seriously, how many of the following would get into the French side? Kane instead of Giroud but I'm really stuck after that.
Our youngsters that did so well last season at U17, U19 and U21 level need to be given the opportunity to flourish otherwise we will do what we've always done for the last 50 years or more - win nothing. The fact that there were more English teenagers starting in the Bundesliga than in the PL rather says it all.
Our top six clubs (and by that I mean City, United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Spurs and Liverpool) fielded just 12 English starters over the weekend between them. Both Arsenal and Chelsea, "famed" for their academies, didn't have a single English player starting.
Meanwhile Wolves had more Portuguese players starting against United (six in total) on Saturday than Porto did in their Champions League against Schalke.
So, who will improve most as a group out of these:
(1) The Portuguese players playing for Wolves in the PL (2) The Portuguese players playing for Porto in their top flight (3) The English players in the reserve sides of the top six or out on loan in the Championship
Then think about how many out and out English strikers started over the weekend who are capable of doing even a passable imitation of Kane? Equally, the World Cup semi final fool appearance shouldn't fool us. Seriously, how many of the following would get into the French side? Kane instead of Giroud but I'm really stuck after that.
Our youngsters that did so well last season at U17, U19 and U21 level need to be given the opportunity to flourish otherwise we will do what we've always done for the last 50 years or more - win nothing. The fact that there were more English teenagers starting in the Bundesliga than in the PL rather says it all.
When Wenger first arrived, there was this constant narrative about how many foreign players were in his team. And then the day arrived in 2005 when he fielded the first ever squad to feature no English players. Now, you wouldn't even think to mention it if it happened. N
That Loftus-Cheek is kept out of the team by a loanee isn't even mentioned in the media.
We must also remember that we did not have a great England team when our Premier league was full of English players. Playing lots of league games doesn't turn average players into world-class ones.
We just need to make sure the potentially world class players get serious game time. Clearly, some of them are not.
I'd never heard of him 'til today. He's been at West Ham since he was 12 and was 20 in April. Until last night the nearest he's ever got to the first team is in their U21s. He scored twice and made another. Yes it was only Maccclesfield but why hasn't he been out on loan learning his craft in the Championship or even League 1?
Havn't been impressed by Sessegnon so far, not ready for the top tier yet. Mason Mount the opposite however
He isn't playing top tier though
Agreed looks decent but a step up from Championship and need to see if anyone will take the chance on him in the Premier League, obviously Chelski wont play him anytime soon. Does my head them loaning all the youngsters out but never giving them a real chance, just a way to make money Lukaku,Sturridge, Ake, hope they all bite them in the ars!
Jody Morris says ex Chelsea bosses wouldn't bother watching the youth team playing an U19 Champions League game even if they were sat in their office, 50 metres away.
"The players are good enough, most definitely, but the managers are not, for one, aware of them."
There's already a match thread on the U21s so i won't go into that, but the U20s beat Italy last night to go top of the 'Elite' league. Nketiah and Willock, both of Arsenal scored the goals.
Just noticed Reiss Nelson , saw he went abroad but hadn't heard anything. He has scored 2 in 3 for 1899 Hoffenheim. Hopefully he can do well, originally i thought he signed for them outright.
Too may times we see a young player who looks like they will be something really special and they don't kick on, even sometimes they go backwards. To be honest, looking close to home - I am really disapointed Shelvey has not done a bit better. Still an excellent player, but the type of player England needs and he can't get in the squad and I don't blame Southgate for that.
Just noticed Reiss Nelson , saw he went abroad but hadn't heard anything. He has scored 2 in 3 for 1899 Hoffenheim. Hopefully he can do well, originally i thought he signed for them outright.
I thought he'd signed out right too... Sadly Arsenal only let him go to Hoffenheim provided that he sign a new four year contract with them!!
Said it when he left on loan - How the hell can kids like him be good enough for a Champions League Bundesliga side (making it on to the bench for Hoffenheim against Man City) yet isnt good enough compared with some foreign twat who is shite coming in from the continent because they've a number of appearances in the Outer Mongolia Premier Division and a handful of caps at International Level!!
Just a shame the Media run with the typical bullshit that our kids arent good enough / not ready and everyone falls for it ... Why instead arent they goddamn grilling the Managers week in / week out for choosing to pick some dross player who has already failed at a number of Premier League sides yet continues to be given another chance
Just noticed Reiss Nelson , saw he went abroad but hadn't heard anything. He has scored 2 in 3 for 1899 Hoffenheim. Hopefully he can do well, originally i thought he signed for them outright.
I thought he'd signed out right too... Sadly Arsenal only let him go to Hoffenheim provided that he sign a new four year contract with them!!
Said it when he left on loan - How the hell can kids like him be good enough for a Champions League Bundesliga side (making it on to the bench for Hoffenheim against Man City) yet isnt good enough compared with some foreign twat who is shite coming in from the continent because they've a number of appearances in the Outer Mongolia Premier Division and a handful of caps at International Level!!
Just a shame the Media run with the typical bullshit that our kids arent good enough / not ready and everyone falls for it ... Why instead arent they goddamn grilling the Managers week in / week out for choosing to pick some dross player who has already failed at a number of Premier League sides yet continues to be given another chance
I see your point but regardless of the fact they're in the Champions league, there's a big difference between Hoffenheim and Arsenal. Their main striker could barely get a game for Leicester a couple of years back and Nelson is not likely to get many chances ahead of Ozil, Aubameyang, Lacazette and Mhkitaryan.
Performance has to be seen to be believed. Acceleration, feet, distribution... Insane. Ripped Bellerin (who's no slouch) to shreds. 17 years old.
To quote SkySports: "He was - by far - the best player on the pitch. A pitch that included Premier League, Champions League and World Cup winners. He was a cut above."
Followed a little trail to see Chelsea fans complaining about him not featuring more. "We focus too much on the present and not on the future."
Looks like a potentially top, top player.
Someone on the Guardian podcast made a good point last week. Jadon Sancho is already being linked with a big money move back to the Premier League having only played a few games in the Bundesliga. That's kind of hilarious. He can play a few games in the Bundesliga, and then return to a league he wasn't getting played at all, and as a big star. Perhaps if some of our big clubs gave a few games to their fledgling players, they might have some big stars of their own.
In the meantime, a lot of players like Hudson-Odoi (who apparently is unhappy at his play time) will be looking at Bundesliga clubs thinking they look like the best move.
Brilliant game this, great comeback from Dortmund who now lead 3-2. Sancho wasn't great in the first half (although neither were Dortmund), but he has been superb in the second.
The England youngsters - both 18 - are plying their trade in the German Bundesliga - Sancho with Borussia Dortmund and Nelson at Hoffenheim.
They message each other all the time, especially when one of them has had a good game.
And with 11 goals and eight assists between them in all competitions, there's been plenty of group chat "banter" so far.
"I've got love for him, he's got love for me," Sancho told BBC Sport. "We just keep on pushing each other. If I do well on a weekend, I think it pushes him. It motivates both of us. I like seeing Reiss do well and I'm sure he likes seeing me do well, so it's good."
Comments
FFS!! You can have one or the other Ruban!!...
You can sit on the bench / reserves for Chelsea, watch your career disappear yet enjoy a comfortable life, or you can go to Spain to become a better player and earn a little bit less money yet still enjoy a comfortable life at the end of it!!
Incredible statistics for Jadon Sancho - 102 minutes: 4 assists and 1 goal. (Bundesliga).
Ruben Loftus-Cheek continues surging ahead in his progress by running around cones on Chelsea's training ground and staring at the sub's bench from the stands.
Phil Foden completed his first 90 minutes against Oxford United and picked up one goal and one assist. Guardiola described him as already a "great, great player." This kid looks too good to be true. Any day now he will reveal he's got a great-grandparent called Alejandro and declare himself for Spain.
Ryan Sessegnon, who I predict will only turn out to be the next Kieron Dyer, has picked up 1 assist so far in 6 games.
Solanke... Well. Not played anywhere. Wondering if he should even be in this list.
Mason Mount put in an assured performance against Mourinho's Moaners, effectively setting up Derby's 3rd goal with his shot. He's scored 5 goals in 12 games this season, adding 1 assist.
Meanwhile Wolves had more Portuguese players starting against United (six in total) on Saturday than Porto did in their Champions League against Schalke.
So, who will improve most as a group out of these:
(1) The Portuguese players playing for Wolves in the PL
(2) The Portuguese players playing for Porto in their top flight
(3) The English players in the reserve sides of the top six or out on loan in the Championship
Then think about how many out and out English strikers started over the weekend who are capable of doing even a passable imitation of Kane? Equally, the World Cup semi final fool appearance shouldn't fool us. Seriously, how many of the following would get into the French side? Kane instead of Giroud but I'm really stuck after that.
Our youngsters that did so well last season at U17, U19 and U21 level need to be given the opportunity to flourish otherwise we will do what we've always done for the last 50 years or more - win nothing. The fact that there were more English teenagers starting in the Bundesliga than in the PL rather says it all.
Has that knack of looking comfortable on the ball and picking the right passes.
That Loftus-Cheek is kept out of the team by a loanee isn't even mentioned in the media.
We must also remember that we did not have a great England team when our Premier league was full of English players. Playing lots of league games doesn't turn average players into world-class ones.
We just need to make sure the potentially world class players get serious game time. Clearly, some of them are not.
I'd never heard of him 'til today. He's been at West Ham since he was 12 and was 20 in April. Until last night the nearest he's ever got to the first team is in their U21s. He scored twice and made another. Yes it was only Maccclesfield but why hasn't he been out on loan learning his craft in the Championship or even League 1?
Seems he could have a bright future after scoring a good goal on their Pre-Season Tour and was another part of the U17 World Cup winning side
Agreed looks decent but a step up from Championship and need to see if anyone will take the chance on him in the Premier League, obviously Chelski wont play him anytime soon. Does my head them loaning all the youngsters out but never giving them a real chance, just a way to make money Lukaku,Sturridge, Ake, hope they all bite them in the ars!
"The players are good enough, most definitely, but the managers are not, for one, aware of them."
Link
Sancho has now assisted more goals, (in just 124 minutes) than anyone else in Europe's top five leagues this season.
Said it when he left on loan - How the hell can kids like him be good enough for a Champions League Bundesliga side (making it on to the bench for Hoffenheim against Man City) yet isnt good enough compared with some foreign twat who is shite coming in from the continent because they've a number of appearances in the Outer Mongolia Premier Division and a handful of caps at International Level!!
Just a shame the Media run with the typical bullshit that our kids arent good enough / not ready and everyone falls for it ... Why instead arent they goddamn grilling the Managers week in / week out for choosing to pick some dross player who has already failed at a number of Premier League sides yet continues to be given another chance
Hudson-Odoi Highlights
Performance has to be seen to be believed. Acceleration, feet, distribution... Insane. Ripped Bellerin (who's no slouch) to shreds. 17 years old.
To quote SkySports: "He was - by far - the best player on the pitch. A pitch that included Premier League, Champions League and World Cup winners. He was a cut above."
Followed a little trail to see Chelsea fans complaining about him not featuring more. "We focus too much on the present and not on the future."
Looks like a potentially top, top player.
Someone on the Guardian podcast made a good point last week. Jadon Sancho is already being linked with a big money move back to the Premier League having only played a few games in the Bundesliga. That's kind of hilarious. He can play a few games in the Bundesliga, and then return to a league he wasn't getting played at all, and as a big star. Perhaps if some of our big clubs gave a few games to their fledgling players, they might have some big stars of their own.
In the meantime, a lot of players like Hudson-Odoi (who apparently is unhappy at his play time) will be looking at Bundesliga clubs thinking they look like the best move.
Huge game and Dortmund can go 7 points clear of Bayern with a win. Sancho starts
He’s the real deal.
The England youngsters - both 18 - are plying their trade in the German Bundesliga - Sancho with Borussia Dortmund and Nelson at Hoffenheim.
They message each other all the time, especially when one of them has had a good game.
And with 11 goals and eight assists between them in all competitions, there's been plenty of group chat "banter" so far.
"I've got love for him, he's got love for me," Sancho told BBC Sport. "We just keep on pushing each other. If I do well on a weekend, I think it pushes him. It motivates both of us. I like seeing Reiss do well and I'm sure he likes seeing me do well, so it's good."
full article and stats on https://bbc.co.uk/sport/football/46185982
Based on an England National Team perspective I'm glad he didnt though as Southgate must be keeping an eye on him