MJ
Well-Known Member
With home grown rules already in place and likely to get more restrictive, and Brexit looming with a potential big impact on foreign imports, I can't help feeling we need to look more seriously at British players now. With Clichy gone, Hart about to go, and continued stories about Delph being moved on, HG/British players are getting more scarce. Even our academy seems to be filled with good foreign players that may not be eligible after brexit - HG might not matter. And if Scotland separates after brexit, the pool might get even smaller with just English players an option.
Obviously decent British players are already over priced and we can get similar quality abroad for a lot less, and yes we're being held to ransom for players like Walker, but how much might these players cost in a couple of years? There aren't that many British players that would fit in Pep's squad, so for me if we can get them in now, we should.
The question is how many can really make the grade? Walker and Bertrand might be an upgrade from last year and would be reasonable additions, but are they good enough to help us win the champions league? Alli and Kane are good but would cost maybe $80-100M each and we have better options now. Are any other British players even anywhere close to being world class except maybe Bale?
So a priority has to be young British players that have the potential we can develop. Looking at the U20 and U21 teams, are there any young British gems we should be looking at? We don't seem to have much of a presence on these teams right now (although at this age Roberts is a stand out).
Obviously decent British players are already over priced and we can get similar quality abroad for a lot less, and yes we're being held to ransom for players like Walker, but how much might these players cost in a couple of years? There aren't that many British players that would fit in Pep's squad, so for me if we can get them in now, we should.
The question is how many can really make the grade? Walker and Bertrand might be an upgrade from last year and would be reasonable additions, but are they good enough to help us win the champions league? Alli and Kane are good but would cost maybe $80-100M each and we have better options now. Are any other British players even anywhere close to being world class except maybe Bale?
So a priority has to be young British players that have the potential we can develop. Looking at the U20 and U21 teams, are there any young British gems we should be looking at? We don't seem to have much of a presence on these teams right now (although at this age Roberts is a stand out).