There’s been a lot of talk about quotas to help English youngsters get more playing time, with Tottenham Hotspur’s Harry Kane the avatar for FA chairman Greg Dyke’s proposal of new homegrown restrictions. The Spurs forward jointly leads the Premier League goalscoring charts after four underwhelming loan spells in the Football League, and Dyke has used that to illustrate the lack of chances afforded to top young players.
“How many more Harry Kanes are there out there, who just can’t get a game?” asked a vexed Dyke, but Arsene Wenger represents the opposing view – that the best English talent will always rise to the top if good enough.
Wenger may well have a point. Clubs can simply fail to recognise the potential in young players – regardless of nationality – so here’s a look at eight foreign youngsters who have also been unfairly overlooked by big clubs in England.
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1) Paul Pogba
Notably let go by Manchester United back in 2012, Paul Pogba never got a look-in in terms of the first-team at Old Trafford, and has since gone on to great things at Juventus. The players standing in his way? A late-30s Paul Scholes, Darren Fletcher and an English youngster in Tom Cleverley.
The final straw for Pogba was against Blackburn Rovers in 2011. Former Red Devils boss Sir Alex Ferguson did not select him in midfield despite an injury crisis, and Pogba made up his mind to move on.
“The coach never stopped telling me, ‘You’re this far’,” the Frenchman is quoted as saying by ESPN.
“And I didn’t understand. This far away from what? Playing? From having some playing time? From getting on the field? Or what?
“And there was Rafael in midfield and I was disgusted. I was disgusted and I didn’t get on either.”
Pogba has since won two Serie A titles and two Coppa Italias with Juve, and looks set to add another of each this season.
2) Romelu Lukaku
A superb young striker who looks like he could become one of the best in the world, Belgian international Romelu Lukaku couldn’t get a game at Chelsea despite the likes of Fernando Torres and Demba Ba toiling upfront for the Blues, who let him leave for Everton last summer.
Lukaku outscored all Chelsea players in the Premier League over the course of two season-long loan spells away from Stamford Bridge – at West Bromwich Albion in 2012-13, and at Everton in 2013-14.
Despite these clear signs of potential greatness, Jose Mourinho elected to cash in. On paper, it’s hard to argue with the results, given the fee from Lukaku last summer helped pay for the signing of Diego Costa. The Spain international is the finished article, and likely to be a crucial member in the Blues’ title winning squad in the coming years if his hamstrings hold out.
The issue for Lukaku is that he will feel Chelsea already had the solution within their ranks.
3) Kevin De Bruyne
Another Belgian harshly treated by Chelsea, Kevin De Bruyne was allowed to leave for Wolfsburg last January and has since become regarded as one of the finest attacking midfielders in the Bundesliga, and perhaps Europe.
De Bruyne has more assists than any other player in Europe’s top five leagues this season, with 17, and it’s clear to see that regular first team football has done his development a lot of good.
The 23 year-old was only given nine games by Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho, but had he had more of a chance to impress, the most creative player in Europe could still be at Stamford Bridge.
4) Carlos Vela
Despite looking like a top class forward since moving to La Liga with Real Sociedad, Mexico international Carlos Vela was not able to work his way into the Arsenal team. A series of tremendous chipped finishes in the League Cup never translated to playing time in the Premier League, and it wasn’t surprising to see Vela depart in search of playing time. In the past three full seasons, Vela has scored 42 goals and provided 28 assists in La Liga – meaning he’s directly contributed to 70 goals in 107 league matches since leaving Emirates Stadium.
What may have proved particularly frustrating for Vela was that inconsistent performers like Jack Wilshere and Theo Walcott – both English, of course – were given chance after chance to prove themselves – and neither of them have come close to fulfilling their potential yet.
5) Gerard Pique
A highly rated young Spaniard during his time at Manchester United, Gerard Pique was unable to break into the first-team due to the presence of a legendary English defender in Rio Ferdinand.
Ferdinand was absolutely superb alongside Serbian colossus Nemanja Vidic, and it’s perhaps unsurprising that Pique wasn’t able to break the partnership.
That said, Pique has since gone on to become one of the best in the world at Barcelona while United stuck with players like Jonny Evans, Phil Jones and Chris Smalling – the kind of homegrown talent many feel isn’t given a chance.
6) Adnan Januzaj
A current player struggling to make a breakthrough for Manchester United, Belgian winger Adnan Januzaj looked superb for the club last season – a lone spark in an uninspiring campaign under David Moyes.
That impressive form earned him a place in his country’s World Cup squad, but the 20 year-old has since fallen out of favour at Old Trafford.
However, given the current form of Red Devils wide players Ashley Young and Juan Mata – and the fact that Angel Di Maria is also currently barely able to trouble the starting line-up – perhaps Januzaj must simply keep working hard and wait for another chance.
7) Francis Coquelin
A player who only recently made a place in the Arsenal midfield his own, Francis Coquelin looks the player the Gunners have cried out for years – a defensive midfield enforcer.
However, the Frenchman was constantly overlooked by Arsene Wenger until an injury crisis forced him to recall the Frenchman from loan at Charlton Athletic – and the north London outfit have flown since, and are the most in-form team in the Premier League.
Coquelin’s not quite Harry Kane, but he’s another young player who had his path to the first-team blocked.
8) Nabil Bentaleb
Tottenham Hotspur’s Algerian international midfielder Nabil Bentaleb was first given a chance by Tim Sherwood last season, with Spurs clearly not planning to use him when they signed big names like Etienne Capoue and Paulinho to compete in central midfield with Moussa Dembele and Gylfi Sigurdsson that summer.
However, the youngster shone, and this term has forged a tremendous partnership with Ryan Mason at the base of Mauricio Pochettino’s Tottenham midfield.