4 English youngsters who have decided to play abroad
One of the most curious things about English footballers is that for the most part, with the odd exception, it’s rare to see them leave their home shores. But with opportunities for young English players in the Premier League becoming fewer and fewer, that finally might be changing.
Sure, clubs like Chelsea have been loaning younger talent out to leagues like the Netherlands’ Eredivisie for years now, but more recently, a handful of young prospects have been moving abroad on permanent deals. Here are four young English talents who have decided to ply their trade abroad.
#1 Jadon Sancho – Borussia Dortmund
Of all of Europe’s major leagues, it’s Germany’s Bundesliga which houses the youngest English talent, but the outstanding prospect there is clearly England u17 star Jadon Sancho. Initially, a product of Watford’s academy, Sancho moved to Manchester City where he was expected to break through into their first team at some stage, but in the summer of 2017, he decided to make a big decision.
Fearing he’d never be given a fair opportunity at Eastlands, Sancho made the jump to the Bundesliga with Borussia Dortmund, who promptly handed him the #7 shirt vacated by the Barcelona-bound Ousmane Dembele. And since then, he’s gone from strength to strength, establishing himself in Dortmund’s first team by the end of 2017/18 and assisting in 4 goals as well as scoring his first – making him the youngest English player to ever score in the Bundesliga.
Big things are now expected of Sancho, who is still just 18 years old. He’s still a raw talent – reports from Dortmund’s recent friendly against his old club City suggested there were flashes of brilliance, but he still ran down blind alleys on occasion. He’s got plenty of time to develop though, and already popular with the fans in Germany, it seems like he’s in the right place to do so.