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It's a sentence that has been uttered countless times during the Premier League era - there are too many foreign stars in the top-flight and it's having a negative impact on the national team.

While the number of overseas stars coming to these shores appears to increase nearly every year, the amount of young English players forcing their way through is dwindling.

Clubs fighting for the title or petrified of getting relegated can't risk giving youngsters a proper run in the side. Top-flight teams would much prefer to open the chequebook and sign a readymade player - often, it seems, from abroad.

The top clubs don't even seem to be finding their own talent at grassroots level either. They prefer to splash the cash and pay compensation to a Football League club for the next up and coming youngster - only to let them waste away in the reserves.

It's a serious problem which is having an adverse affect on the national team. It could even be argued that the inception of the Premier League has diminished the country's chances of glory over the last two decades.

England manager Roy Hodgson is all too aware of the issue and admits there aren't that many players to choose from.

Speaking to Sky Sports' Footballers' Football Show, Hodgson said: 'We talk at great length about how there aren't too many English players today. I've got to be honest, we're not talking about as many as we were in the past.

'Glenn Hoddle's job in 1998 was harder because there was such a big pool to choose from. It's less difficult now because we don't have that enormous choice any more.

'Our 23, if picked today, would no doubt vary by two or three names come May because situations change. We don't have that many players.'

Of course there are hundreds of players who make it through the youth academy and make a few substitute appearances. Yet, without being given a real chance to prove themselves, the same players are soon deemed not good enough and released; the pathway to the first-team clogged full of world stars and less heralded foreigners.

Despite the setback, many do go on to create successful careers for themselves in the Football League. However, to be an England regular you need to be playing regularly in the top division, pitting your wits against the best players in the world week in, week out.

With England underperforming at major tournaments and less players to select, just how many young English players are being given a fair crack of the whip at club level?

Focusing on academy stars - eligible to play for England, who joined the club for nothing and went on to make five or more top flight appearances for that team - the numbers who made the grade make for worrying reading (particularly if you're a budding goalkeeper!)

Following England's friendly with Denmark on Wednesday night, Sportsmail has delved deep into the Premier League record books to see just how many graduates have muscled their way into the first-team, and stayed there, since the division's inception 22 years ago...

Since Arsene Wenger took over at Arsenal in 1996, the Gunners have always had a strong foreign contingent.

Becoming the first Premier League club to field an all-foreign squad when facing Crystal Palace in February 2005, it's little wonder so few Englishmen have made the step-up from the academy to the Arsenal first-team.

Tony Adams, Paul Merson and Ray Parlour all made their Gunners debuts before the Premier League's inception. However, since then, just fourteen Englishman have succeeded in breaking into the team and staying there.

Jack Wilshere and Kieran Gibbs are two talented young stars who have made the grade under Wenger and should go on to feature in many England squads - a feat achieved by Ashley Cole, one of the best left backs of the modern era, who made his Arsenal debut in May 2000.

While David Bentley made just one Premier League appearance for the Gunners and Steve Sidwell failed to make any, both players have enjoyed success in the top-flight since leaving Highbury.

In Arsenal's defence, while the club have brought through fewer than one player a year and established them in the first-team, Wenger has paid large sums for young English talent - Matthew Upson was signed from Luton for £2m in 1997 while the same fee was paid for Notts County's Jermaine Pennant.

Looking at the current squad, both Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain signed for Arsenal at a young age for a combined fee of £17m.

The Villans have produced 22 players eligible to play for England since 1992 and many have spent a good number of years at Villa Park.

Life-long supporter Gabriel Agbonlahor has made more than 300 appearances for the club since making his debut in 2006, midfielder Lee Hendrie spent 14 years at Villa Park before moving to Sheffield United in 2007 while Darius Vassell scored 35 times in 162 league appearances.

One player who did leave was Gary Cahill. Sold to Bolton by former boss Martin O'Neill, the Villa graduate lifted the Champions League with Chelsea last season and is now an England regular.

However, perhaps one of the most famous players to make his professional debut for Villa, Gareth Barry, didn't actually start his career in the Midlands. Currently playing for Everton on loan from Manchester City, the midfielder was actually snapped up from Brighton in 1997 before making his first Villa start a year later.

Meanwhile, Liam Ridgewell began his footballing education at the legendary West Ham academy in 1999 before moving north two years later.

In recent seasons, manager Paul Lambert has relied heavily on the club's youngsters.

Ciaran Clark - who represented England at youth level but has since been capped by Republic of Ireland - and Nathan Baker have both been regular first-teamers during his tenure.

Astonishingly, Chelsea would be unable to field a full academy XI of players who had played five or more games in the Premier League.

By far the worst offenders, just TEN English players from the Chelsea academy have made a significant number of appearances for the club.

Frank Sinclair - who went onto represent Jamaica but was born in Lambeth, south London - Andy Myers and Eddie Newton all came through the youth ranks prior to 1992 before the birth of the Premier League swiftly halted the Stamford Bridge production line.

Ken Bates' and Roman Abramovich's millions have attracted some of the best overseas stars to West London during the last two decades and with that, Chelsea became the first club to field an all-foreign eleven as early as Boxing Day 1999.

Despite the foreign influx, Chelsea did produce one of the bestcentre backs of the modern era in John Terry, who went on to captain the club, while Carlton Cole, Michael Duberry and Jody Morris all started their careers at Stamford Bridge.

Another defender, Michael Mancienne, made four appearances for the club between 2006 and 2011 before moving to Bundesliga side Hamburg.

While spending copious amounts of cash on some of the world's best players, the Blues have splashed out on young English academy stars too.

Left-back Ryan Bertrand, currently on loan at Aston Villa, arrived at the club from Gillingham for £125,000 while Scott Sinclair was purchased from Bristol Rovers for an initial £200,000.

Although the club have failed to bring through enough English youngsters, perhaps that will change in the future with the likes of Patrick Bamford, Josh McEachran - who has already made 11 Premier League appearances for the Blues - and Nathaniel Chalobah impressing while out on loan in the Championship.
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Having won the FA Youth Cup in 1998, Leon Osman, Tony Hibbert and Francis Jeffers all went on to play in the Premier League for the Toffees.

Fast forward to October 2002 and Evertonians discovered the club had unearthed a world-class talent when Wayne Rooney, a boyhood Blue, scored that goal against Arsenal to end the Gunners 30-game unbeaten run - all at the age of 16.

The teenager, perhaps one of the most exciting English players seen since Paul Gascoigne, had technical abililty in abundance and later moved to Manchester United for nearly £30million.

Another Everton fan, Ross Barkley, is the latest graduate to have come through the Everton ranks and looks set to play at this summer's World Cup in Brazil.

Another young midfielder who impressed at Goodison but probably won't be on the England plane to South America is Jack Rodwell. The Southport-born midfielder has made just 14 Premier League appearances since joining Man City for £15million in August 2012.

While the Blues have failed to bring through a young English goalkeeper themselves, they did purchase young Tranmere goalkeeper Steve Simonsen in 1998 and later spent £250,000 on Cambridge stopper John Ruddy, now of Norwich, in 2005.

There has been an impressively steady flow of youngsters making the grade at Goodison over the past two decades with 24 academy graduates playing Premier League football for Everton - that's just over one per season.

LIVERPOOL
Liverpol's two most important and best-loved stars of the Premier League era were products of the club's academy.

Scouse pair Steven Gerrard and Jamie Carragher played a huge part on that famous night in Istanbul as the Reds came from three goals down to claim the 2005 Champions League final against AC Milan.

As well as Gerrard and Carragher, Liverpool also produced two of the best finishers the game has seen - Robbie Fowler, and later Michael Owen, made the grade at Anfield during the Nineties.

Another young striker, Neil Mellor, wrote his name into Anfield folklore by scoring a last-minute long-range goal against Arsenal to claim a 2-1 victory 10 years ago.

Steve McManaman was another star player during that decade but actually made his debut in 1990, while Raheem Sterling - another wideman to come through the Liverpool ranks - joined the Reds for £600,000 from Queens Park Rangers in 2010.

Only 13 Liverpool graduates have played more than five times for the club in the Premier League. However, what the club lack in quantity, they more than make up for with quality.

The Class of '92 - perhaps the most famous group of academy graduates in the game.

David Beckham, Paul Scholes, Ryan Giggs - who made his debut against Everton in March 1991, Gary Neville, his brother Phil and Nicky Butt were the core of Sir Alex Ferguson's side who went on to achieve so much success.

In an era when England's top division was to become flooded with foreign imports, United won title after title with a group of Englishmen produced at Old Trafford itself.

More recently, Danny Welbeck is a United and England regular having made his first-team debut in November 2008, Tom Cleverley broke into the team in 2011 while Wes Brown and Phil Bardsley are still playing in the Premier League at Sunderland.

MANCHESTER UNITED GRADUATE XI

Tottenham have pro duced nearly 20 homegrown players in twenty-two top-flight seasons.

Sol Campbell, who broke into the Spurs first-team at the beginning of the Premier League era, angered supporters when he controversially switched to north London rivals Arsenal on a free transfer in 2001.

However, one player who did stay loyal, was Ledley King. The centre back was, and still is, adored by the Spurs faithful.

Forced to retire at the age of 31 having struggled with injuries for a number of years, King, who Thierry Henry described as the best defender he had played against, is now a club ambassador.

Forward Nick Barmby, who also played for Middlesbrough, Everton, Liverpool and Leeds in the Premier League, started his career with Spurs.

Andros Townsend is the latest Tottenham youth product to make a name for himself - and he did so in some style.

The winger, who played for nine different clubs on loan before finally cementing his place in the the Spurs first-team, scored and was named man of the match against on his senior England debut against Montenegro in a crucial October World Cup qualifier.

Luke Shaw, James Ward-Prowse and Calum Chambers have all played first-team football for the Saints this season having started their careers at Southampton.

Left back Shaw, who came on as a half-time substitute to make his first England appearance in Wednesday night's 1-0 win over Denmark, has received the most attention and has been linked with moves to Chelsea - the team he supported as a boy - and Manchester United.

Adam Lallana, who has really impressed this campaign and earned his first England cap in November, actually joined the Southampton from Bournemouth aged 12 and the Saints were forced to pay the Cherries compensation - should the midfielder leave St Mary's, the Championship outfit will receive 25 per cent of any transfer.

Meanwhile, 18-year-old Sam Gallagher, who has made eight Saints appearances up front already this season, joined from Plymouth in 2013 after six years with the Pilgrims.

The Saints' spell away from the Premier League following relegation in 2005 saw the club rely on its own pool of talent and the move is certainly paying dividends at the moment.

However, Southampton, who have 14 seasons of top-flight football under their belt, can boast a tally of eighteen academy stars who have made significant appearances in the Premier League - former Saints Theo Walcott and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have both been capped by England following their respective transfers to Arsenal.

Another player who began his career on the south coast is Nathan Dyer - the wideman joined Swansea from the Saints in 2009 and has played over 80 Premier League games for the Swans.

Nicknamed 'The Academy of Football', it's fair to assume West Ham would have been challenging at the top end of the table for many years had they managed to hang on to their star youngsters.

Boasting perhaps the most successful academy in the country, Frank Lampard, Rio Ferdinand, Joe Cole and Michael Carrick all went on to win Premier League winners' medals after leaving Upton Park.

What may be a surprise is that the club have only produced sixteen stars who have made five or more appearances for West Ham in the Premier League.

While Jack Collison, born in Watford, arrived at the club after Cambridge United were forced to disband their youth set-up in 2005, fellow midfielder Mark Noble has been at the club since 2000.

Jermain Defoe, who burst on to the scene during a loan spell at Bournemouth from West Ham when he first broke through, actually joined the Hammers from London rivals Charlton aged 16 - the Addicks were reportedly awarded a £1.4million fee for the striker.

Meanwhile another frontman, Freddie Sears, announced his arrival with a diving header against Blackburn which clinched a 2-1 victory for the Hammers in 2008.

Michael Carrick (99-04)
Manchester City have undergone a huge transformation since Sheik Mansour purchased the club back in 2008.

While the club have added three trophies to their collection since the cash injection, their youngsters route to the promised land of the first-team has been completely blocked.

Before the takeover Michael Johnson, Joey Barton, Nedum Onuoha, Stephen Jordan and Ishmael Miller were all regular starters for the, then, Premier League strugglers while Shaun Wright-Phillips - who joined following his release from Nottingham Forest - and his brother Bradley were also handed a chance in the top-flight by City.

The only remaining member of that crop of youngsters still plying his trade at the Etihad is Micah Richards.

However, the athletic defender actually joined City from Oldham when he was just 14 - the League One outfit will receive a 20 per cent sell-on clause should Richards move.

Another youngster purchased by City for relative peanuts compared to the fees the club pay today was Daniel Sturridge.

The club paid Coventry, who Sturridge had moved to after four years at Villa, £30,000 compensation to sign the frontman in 2003.

However, Sturridge left City for Chelsea six years later and has gone on to become one of the deadliest finishers in the Premier League with Liverpool this season.

Having had such a solid line of production from the academy conveyor belt, not one English player has made five or more Premier League appearances for City since the takeover.

MANCHESTER CITY GRADUATE XI

Andy Carroll lived every young Newcastle fan's dream by becoming the club's No 9 in July 2010.

The boyhood Newcastle fan perhaps benefited from the club's relegation a year earlier, making 39 appearances during the Magpies' successful return to the top-flight.

A string of impressive performances saw him leave his beloved club for Liverpool in 2011 in a staggering £35million deal.

Another Newcastle graduate, Shola Ameobi, has made over 300 appearances for the club while centre back Steven Taylor is close to the 200 mark.

Celtic goalkeeper Fraser Forster, who has a chance of being named in the England squad for this summer's World Cup, failed to make an appearance during his time at Newcastle while Steve Harper, another ex-Newcastle stopper, didn't actually come through the club's youth teams; he joined for a nominal fee from Seaham Red Star in 1993.

With no goalkeepers having made five or more Premier League appearances having come through the Newcastle ranks, the Magpies are also a little light in midfielder - Jamie McClen and Sammy Ameobi, brother of Shola, are the only two middle men to have achieved the feat.

With a core of local lads making up the youngsters who've made the grade at Stadium of Light, Jordan Henderson is perhaps Sunderland's most famous export.

The midfielder, who was in the stands at Wembley cheering his favourite team on during Sunday's Capital One Cup final, joined Liverpool for £16m in 2011 and has put in some impressive performances for the Reds this campaign after a slow start to his career at Anfield.

Goalkeeper Ben Alnwick was an exciting prospect but failed to make the breakthrough at Tottenham after switching to White Hart Lane in 2007.

While North East rivals Newcastle lack in the midfield department when it comes to academy talent, the Black Cats could really lend some central defenders - Richard Ord made his debut for the club in November 1987 and appeared on 33 ocassions in the 1996-97 Premier League season.

Meanwhile, Michael Gray turned down the offer of a contract at Manchester United to instead join his boyhood team. The left back went on to earn three caps for England while striker Michael Bridges played in the Champions League for Leeds.

One of the big boys in the Premier League before financial problems condemned them to relegation in 2004, Leeds produced a number of regular England internationals.

Goalkeeper Paul Robinson, who ousted Nigel Martyn from between the Elland Road sticks, went on to play 41 times for the national side while centre back Jonathan Woodgate, who had a brief stay in Spain with Real Madrid, would surely have added to his Three Lions caps but for injury.

Striker Alan Smith impressed during the club's famous run to the Champions League semi-finals before moving to rivals Manchester United following Leeds' relegation.

James Milner, who at one time was the Premier League's youngest goalscorer, and Aaron Lennon, are two of the Premier League's best widemen but sadly came through the ranks at the beginning of Leeds' demise and soon moved on.

Even in the Championship, the Yorkshire club, who won the final First Division title in 1992 before the inception of the Premier League, are producing quality players.

Right back Sam Byram has attracted interest from Man City and Newcastle, after making 60 appearances for Leeds since breaking through in 2012.

LEEDS UNITED GRADUATE XI

With 14 Premier League seasons to the club's name, Middlesbr ough have produced 21 players t hat have gone on to make a significant number of appearances in the top -flight.

Stewart Downing and Adam Johnson, both wingers, are perhaps the two most technically-gifted players to have started their careers at the Riverside.

However, both have failed to deliver following big moves in recent seasons.

Johnson left Manchester City for Sunderland after failing to nail down a place at the Etihad Stadium while Downing proved to be a flop at Liverpool following a £20million from Aston Villa and is now playing for West Ham.

MIDDLESBROUGH GRADUATE XI

One of only five clubs to have won the Premier League title, Blackburn were the first club of Manchester United's utility man Phil Jones.

The Red Devils star joined the Ewood Park outfit at the age of 10 before sealing a move to Old Trafford in 2011 for a fee believed to be in the region of £16.5million.

Local lad David Dunn, who played for Birmingham City in between two spells for the club, has made nearly 300 Premier League appearances for Rovers.

There has been a steady flow of talented youngsters coming through the doors of Selhurst Park for a number of years.

Midfielders Ben Watson, Wigan FA Cup hero in the 2013 final, and Hayden Mullins have both played in the Premier League while three exciting Palace wingers are currently plying their trade in the top-flight.

Victor Moses is currently on loan from fellow giants Chelsea while Wayne Routledge is enjoying the Premier League in south Wales.

Wilfried Zaha, who perhaps drew the most hype following his initial breakthrough is currently on loan at Cardiff having failed to break his way into David Moyes Manchester United first-team after signing for the Red Devils in January 2013.

Michael Dawson and Jermaine Jenas both started at Nottingham Forest before spending eight years together at Tottenham.

While Spurs captain Dawson is the longest-serving player at White Hart Lane, Jenas left the club for QPR's doomed fight for Premier League survival in 2013.

Midfielder David Prutton, who also came through the ranks at the City Ground
and is currently playing for Sheffield Wednesday, spent three seasons in the top-flight with Southampton before leaving the club nine years ago.

Richard Wright, Kieron Dyer and Darren Bent all played for England and all made their first forages into professional football with Ipswich Town, too.

While Dyer's Premier League career was blighted by injuries, Bent has had varying degrees of both success and failure.

A hit at Charlton and Sunderland, the striker hardly impressed at Tottenham - manager Harry Redknapp suggested his wife could have scored a chance that Bent had missed - and was frozen out at Spurs.

Courtesy of former manager Dario Gradi - who is currently a director of the club's academy - Crewe are famed for bringing through a huge amount of young players.

The League One side's first-team is often packed with the club's own graduates while a number of Crewe youngsters have gone on to play in England's top division in past seasons.

Danny Murphy went on to star for four clubs in the Premier League after signing for Liverpool in 1997 after making over 100 appearances for the Railwaymen.

Striker Dean Ashton also impressed for Norwich and West Ham but sadly had to retire from an ankle injury in 2009 aged just 26. During his time at Upton Park, Ashton, who also earned a cap for England, scored in the Hammers' 3-3 draw with Liverpool in the 2006 FA Cup final which the Reds went on to win via a penalty shoot-out.

Aston Villa's Ashley Westwood also started his career at Gresty Road as did former Derby and Leeds midfielder Seth Johnson.

Currently at the top of the Skrill Conference Premier table, Luton are another club who, despite having never played in the Premier League, have a plethora of academy stars who made it to the top division.

Centre backs Matthew Upson, Curtis Davies, Emmerson Boyce and Leon Barnett have all played in the top-flight while Southampton goalkeeper Kelvin Davis also started out at Kenilworth Road.

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Has the Premier League ruined England's chances of glory?

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It's a sentence that has been uttered countless times during the Premier League era - there are too many foreign stars in the top-flight and it's having a negative impact on the national team. While the number of overseas stars coming to these shores appears to increase nearly every year, the amount of young English players forcing their way through is dwindling.

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Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola believes the England national team would benefit from more players going abroad during their careers.

England have not had a non-UK based player in a squad for a major tournament since David Beckham and Owen Hargreaves at the 2006 World Cup.

Guardiola cited Spain's international success with Premier League players.

"When they came back into the national team, they were stronger. They were better," Guardiola said.

"They did very good things that helped Spanish football. Could that benefit the England team? I think that's true.

"I think it's a good experience to move to another country and see different realities to your own."

There are a smattering of young English players in Europe's top five leagues including former City winger Jadon Sancho at Borussia Dortmund.

Everton winger Ademola Lookman is on loan at RB Leipzig while West Ham defender Reece Oxford is on loan at Borussia Monchengladbach.

Guardiola believes the wages on offer in the Premier League play a major role in discouraging players from having a spell overseas.

The 47-year-old also thinks the Premier League 2 competition, for Under-23 players, needs to be stronger.

"I think the Premier League is a wealthy league and maybe the English players prefer to stay," Guardiola added.

"For me, the most important thing is to make the second-team league stronger. Without that, it will be tough for the English national teams. That is my personal view."

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Pep Guardiola: England national team needs more players to go abroad

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Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola believes the England national team would benefit from more players going abroad during their careers. England have not had a non-UK based player in a squad for a major tournament since David Beckham and Owen Hargreaves at the 2006 World Cup.

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England DNA - The playing and coaching philosophy of the England teams

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A teenaged boy plays soccer in a suburban park. His name is Raheem Sterling. The call is made: "Get down here quick. This is something special." Another boy is 8, going on 28. His name is Jack Wilshere. The referee, an Arsenal scout, spirits him away from Luton Town.

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Gary Neville on why youngsters are struggling to break into Premier League sides

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Gary Neville's says young players are not given the chance to progress in England because of a flawed system.

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England's Under-21 players have played less top-flight football this season than their Spanish, German and Italian counterparts.

BBC Sport analysed the minutes played by the squad members of the four 2017 European Under-21 Championship semi-finalists.

And the data shows that England's Under-21s have played 49% of the total top-flight minutes of their Spanish opponents, 58% of the Germans and 67% of the Italians.

It comes after a summer in which England's youth teams reached three out of four tournament finals - winning the Under-20 World Cup in South Korea and the European Under-19 Championship in Georgia, and losing on penalties to Spain in the Under-17 Euros. The under-21s lost to Germany in the semi-finals of their European Championship.

Aidy Boothroyd, who coached England U21s this summer, said the lack of top-flight minutes should not be used as an excuse - but admits it is a "killer stat".

BBC Sport has collated the number of minutes played by England Under-21s, the under-20s and the under-19s in this summer's tournaments and compared them to their European rivals...

England U21s

England's squad members from this summer's European Championship have played the equivalent of almost 50 Premier League matches this season. The total they might have played is 161 full games.

88% of the Spain squad's game time this season has come in La Liga - the country's top flight.

Of the other three semi-finalists, England's ratio is 47%, Germany's is 69%, Italy's is 76%.

Everton goalkeeper Jordan Pickford and Swansea defender Alfie Mawson have played the most top-flight football - appearing for every minute (630) of their club's seven Premier League games.

Germany beat Spain 1-0 in the final, despite many of their regular squad playing for the senior team in the Confederations Cup.

England U20s

Italy were the only other European side to reach the last four of the 2017 Under-20 World Cup - England beat them 3-1 in the semi-finals.

Their squad has played more than double the top-flight minutes of England's so far this season, despite less game time overall.

Only 9% of the England squad's game time is in the Premier League, compared to 41% in the Championship.

Dominic Calvert-Lewin's Everton appearances this season make up 62% of the entire squad's total Premier League minutes.

England U19s

England beat Portugal 2-1 in the European Championship final this summer.

Both squads have had very few top-flight minutes - 112 for England and 63 for Portugal.

97% of the Portuguese squad's game time this season has been in the second tier of their domestic league.

The manager's viewpoint

Last season, England Under-21 squad players played just over 20,000 minutes of top-tier football - 17,000 fewer than their Spanish counterparts. Of the other semi-finalists, Germany's youngsters played just over 31,000 and Italy's just short of 30,000.

Boothroyd managed England's under-19s and under-20s before taking the under-21s to the Euros this summer. He told BBC Sport:

Fewer top-flight minutes impact on the "fine margins of winning elite tournaments";

Players can miss "big-game understanding and experience" if they are playing in the Championship instead of the Champions League;

The globalisation of the Premier League has benefited coaches and players, but also limits young English players' game time;

More young English players could move abroad as part of their "development".

"It's a difficult one because our league is the best," said Boothroyd. "It doesn't necessarily help our players because with globalisation comes foreign owners, foreign managers and foreign players. They have helped us as coaches and our players, but the fact [England players] are stopped playing because of this is a problem."

Some young English players, starved of opportunities at home, have moved abroad. This summer, Chris Willock left Arsenal for Benfica and Jadon Sancho departed Manchester City for Borussia Dortmund.

"We may see a little bit more of that because our players are as good as anybody in the world," Boothroyd said. "Considering the summer we had, we have really put our flag in the ground and a marker about who we want to emulate and be better than.

"If players get to a ceiling of development and think they can go and play more football somewhere else, it is good for them and should be part of their development. There comes a time when they have got to have a little real-life stuff where it counts."

The player's viewpoint

Newcastle United's Freddie Woodman was chosen as the tournament's best goalkeeper as England became under-20 world champions this summer. He saved a penalty in the final as England beat Venezuela 1-0.

The 20-year-old has yet to make a Newcastle appearance, but has spent time on loan with Hartlepool, Crawley and Kilmarnock in the past three seasons. This year, he has been on the bench for the first team on three occasions. Woodman told BBC Sport:

He wanted to go back out on loan this season but is not worried that a lack of top-flight game time will hinder his progress;

More young English players will move abroad for opportunities;

Current England youth teams have developed a "strong winning mentality".

"I wanted to get game time, but the manager told me he wanted me to stay around the team and that will only improve me," Woodman said.

"I want to test myself against the best. Fortunately I am able to do that with England and I really want to do that back at my club - but that is out of my control.

"I told [Newcastle boss Rafael Benitez] at the beginning of the season that I want to push for number one - I feel I have the right to do that on the back of the World Cup and can hold my own if I do get called upon.

"I really feel like the club see my progression, especially under this manager. He speaks to me daily, working on my game, always trying new things so it is just brilliant to have a manager of his calibre there supporting me and trying to make me a better goalkeeper. I'm just really waiting for my chance."

Tim Sherwood, ex-Tottenham and Aston Villa manager
"If I go to bed on a Friday night knowing I have a choice between a young lad who might give me nine and a half out of 10 - but might also give me a three out of 10 - and an experienced player who I know will give me no better or worse than a seven, I would always go for the experienced player. You simply cannot afford to take the chance."

Case study: Chelsea & Andreas Christensen
BBC Sport's Simon Stone
Are minutes played worth the same across Europe? Getting game time in the Premier League is far harder than anywhere else - the top six harder still - and the Manchester clubs and Chelsea are at the peak of that.

Chelsea would point to Danish defender Andreas Christensen as an example of how they believe the development of young players should work.

He signed in 2012, aged 15, won the FA Youth Cup in 2014, and made his first-team debut in October of the same year.

In July 2015, he joined Bundesliga outfit Borussia Monchengladbach on a two-year loan.

He became established in the first-team, playing against strikers such as Robert Lewandowski domestically, and Lionel Messi and Sergio Aguero in Europe

So this summer, Chelsea knew exactly what Christensen was capable of and resisted Monchengladbach's attempts to sign him permanently.

Against Manchester City on Saturday, the Dane made his ninth appearance of the season, five of which have been starts - and he is just one player Chelsea feel can emerge in that manner from their extensive youth development programme.

Striker Tammy Abraham and midfielder Ruben Loftus-Cheek - on loan at Swansea and Crystal Palace respectively - are two the Premier League champions have hopes for. Defender Nathan Ake was another, but he opted to join Bournemouth for £20m in a permanent deal this summer instead.

However, the loan system is not an exact science. Chelsea acknowledge their turnover of first-team managers has not helped the development of their youngsters - during Christensen's relatively short time at the club, there have been seven bosses.

It means a majority of the players Chelsea loan out - 34 this season - are destined never to get close to the first-team squad, while others would just prefer to move on.

The Manchester City method

The Premier League II - effectively an under-23 league - was described by Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola as uncompetitive.

"The second teams in Spain, at Barcelona and Real Madrid, play in front of 40,000 people. In Italy or Germany they play with players who are 28, 29 or 30. Here they don't compete. They play with each other with small ages and no spectators," said the Spaniard.

An EFL League idea to introduce B teams into a reformed 100-team professional structure was thrown out before it had got past the discussion stage, such was the weight of opinion against it.

Even the revamped EFL Trophy, in which 16 Category A academy clubs are invited to compete, only made it into a second season because the Premier League substantially increased its contribution to the prize fund.

Manchester City have gone another way - they have bought a Spanish club.

Between them, City and Guardiola's brother, Pere, paid £6.5m to buy 88% of Catalan club Girona, who are competing in La Liga for the first time this season and boast five young City players.

The intention was for it to be more but Patrick Roberts opted to spend a second season at Celtic, while Sancho left permanently for Dortmund.

But as long as Guardiola remains in charge, Girona will be the preferred route of development for City's youngsters.
Jermaine Jenas will examine the youth development in England on The Premier League Show at 22:00 BST on Thursday on BBC Two and the BBC Sport website.

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How England U21s' Premier League minutes compare to Spain, Germany & Italy

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England's Under-21 players have played less top-flight football this season than their Spanish, German and Italian counterparts. BBC Sport analysed the minutes played by the squad members of the four 2017 European Under-21 Championship semi-finalists. And the data shows that England's Under-21s have played 49% of the total top-flight minutes of their Spanish opponents, 58% of the Germans and 67% of the Italians.

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A new film titled 'No Hunger in Paradise' looks at the problems for young players

The BT Sport film, based on the book by Michael Calvin, airs on January 7th

Arsene Wenger, Steven Gerrard and Gareth Southgate all speak on the issue

It looks at academies at top Premier League clubs and England's youth teams

With the increasing demand for immediate success in elite football, the problem of working with and integrating youth players into a first team squad continues to grow for those working within the game.

A new film titled 'No Hunger in Paradise', based on the book of the same name by award-winning journalist and author Michael Calvin, aims to explore the difficulties facing young players today.

The BT Sport documentary, which airs on January 7th, features some of football's most famous names including Arsene Wenger, Steven Gerrard and Gareth Southgate looking at the increasingly questionable ways that football academies work at top Premier League clubs and the impact it has on England's youth team players.

Arsene Wenger

Arsene Wenger has been blooding youngsters for over 20 years at Arsenal but he admits the relentless pressure to win at the top affects the amount of time he can coach youth prospects.

You've spoken about that pressure. You're in a hugely pressurised role. With the multi-faceted demands that are made on you, as a manager. How much can you concentrate on the academy process?

'I do highly concentrate on the academy process, and what I have lost in the last 10, 12 years is I've had to dedicate much more time to the first team and the environment. The media demands for example that are huge now. So I have to give much more time to the first team and have a restricted availability to take care of the young boys. But, I still follow up and I think its one of the parts of my job that I enjoy the most, to give a chance to young people.

'Let's not forget that basically what it is about in the academy. Is first, recruitment, number two - quality of education, number three - moment of integration into the first team. That final part is the most difficult nowadays. It goes always through me. I will decide, yes he has a chance, or yes he might not make it.'

There is a huge concentration on that talent search. We've got examples of 13 year olds being offered guaranteed two-year pro contracts at £45,000 a week, which must fry their brains. From a moral standpoint rather than a sporting standpoint is that defensible?

'The pressure is suddenly very early on a young boy. Because the family many times stops to work to take care of the boy, which is understandable looking at the amount of income. And we have gone from a society where your father told you if you don't work well at school, I will stop you playing football. To a system where the father asks the boy, how did you practice today?'

Is there natural English talent out there?

'There is huge English natural talent out there and the best way to prove that and to check that is if you look at the results of the young boys in England youth teams at international level. They start to win competitions, they start to exist in every big competition with the youth level. That means the talent is there. Now we go into a process number three, the integration. I would say today, many, many, many clubs do well part one and part two, quality of education, because there's a lot work that has been done in England. We all fail in part three, integration into the first team.

'Nobody has found a miraculous solution because the Premier League has become so demanding that the gap between youth and reserve level and the Premier League is so big that all the managers sit there and sweat on the Friday night and finally think - let's be conservative, we'll see next week!'

Steven Gerrard

Liverpool icon Steven Gerrard has recently made the transition from player to coach. The Champions League winner is now in charge of Liverpool's Under-18 side and he insists that young players have to be world class nowadays in order to earn and retain a regular first team place.

What about the academy structure as it is. We're here, fantastic facilities, perfect pitches. Is that the perfect preparation for real life football?

'I think the key is to make them realise what they have to do to stay here, and it's not like this everywhere. So to make the most of your time and don't have any regrets when you're moving on further into your career. There's not getting away from it, this environment is a special environment.

'They've got everything. Pitches, indoor, outdoor. The turf's like a bowling green. They get lovely food. The staff are amazing here. So I suppose they do get too much too soon and the environment can be too nice for them but it's down to us staff to make them realise that they are lucky and to make the most of it.'

One of the key areas that the game has changed, we're no longer seeing the street footballer if you like. The lad who maybe like yourself in Huyton kicking a ball around the estate. Does that come across when you get these kids coming through the system that they're not streetwise anymore?

'We do have to keep some kind of street environment in there and we can't ban them from playing from the school team too early. We can't ban them from playing on Sunday with their friends too early, because, speaking from my own experience, playing football in the street helped me, toughened me up.

'Playing football on the playground helped me, playing Sunday league and I still had Liverpool's academy but I got the best of both worlds.

'I think the main one is that I loved the game. I couldn't wait to start full-time at 16. I couldn't wait for it to be my profession. My life was based around football and that was my priority. I used to come in every day to learn and to improve.

'Looking back now I had big, big determination to get into Liverpool's first team and I was almost obsessed. I don't think you can succeed over a long period without hunger. I think talent and ability gets you a certain distance but then you've got to have all the other things around you, the desire, the commitment, the sacrifice.'

Do the boys coming through the system understand the reality of the game and how difficult it is to make it?

'Some realise how hard it is to make it in the game and the penny drops with them a bit earlier than others. Some come in and think its a game of football or a training session and they don't realise the harsh reality maybe until they're told that it's over or they get released or are moved on from the football club.

'And I bet you it hits them hard and they say to themselves "Why didn't I switch on earlier? Why didn't I understand quicker that this is a brutal environment that is very, very tough to get through".

'You see a lot of players getting towards the fringes of teams or they get to Under-23 level and they're stuck and can't really get that chance, or when the chance comes they don't do themselves justice and the next chances takes longer and longer to come.

'So to actually get in and stay in nowadays with the way the game has gone you've got to be world class. I've been saying for a short while now, if you're a very good player at the top six or eight clubs in the Premier League, then you're probably not going to get in and stay in.'

Gareth Southgate

England manager Gareth Southgate has a promising future on the horizon following the country's successful year in youth tournaments across the globe.

The Three Lions won the Under-17 World Cup, the European Under-19 Championship and the Under-20 World Cup among others in 2017. Southgate discussed which other national youth systems he admires.

When you look around the world, which countries impress you in terms of the development of a young player?

'There are examples of really good practice, places like Switzerland where at international level you know every team that you play against within their group is going to play the same way. They're all coached in a similar way, they have regional centres which I think is a real plus.

'So some of the smaller countries have less resource but that makes them a bit more creative and it also means they buy in a bit more to what the governing body's doing.

'Ours is so big, that we've a few more battles within that and it's not as straight-forward to get everybody on the same page.'

Joey Barton

Premier League midfielder Joey Barton claims the amount of money handed to youngsters in the modern game provides unnecessary problems that distract players from focusing on their development.

Is there a case of too much too soon, I know it's spoken about a lot recently?

'They shouldn't be giving these kids more than they need, you know a 17, 18 year old, there's not much you need, you're living at home with your mum dad or living in digs.

'If you're getting anything over £400, £500, £600 it's only going to get you in trouble so it's only going to go in the bookies or on stupid clothes, or stupid watches or stupid birds, it's not gonna go on your football development.'

James Ward-Prowse

Southampton midfielder James Ward-Prowse rose through the youth ranks at St Mary's and has now made just under 200 appearances for the first team.

He insists that the approach of the Saints' academy to give young players a chance is very positive for English football.

What about the mentality of the club (Southampton) itself? As a young player how much does it do for you when you realise that the club can invest in young players?

'From a young age we were all told that if you were good enough than you were old enough in a way. We all knew that and we all had that in insight and that's a great positive for English football.

'You know if you are good enough and then the club will give you chance. The club has certainly seen a lot of talented young players play for this football club and I'm sure there will be plenty more coming through.'

* Watch 'No Hunger in Paradise' exclusively on BT Sport 1 from 6:30pm on Sunday 7th January. For more info visit www.BT.com/sport

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Football's elite discuss problems for youth players in BT Sport film

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A new film titled 'No Hunger in Paradise' looks at the problems for young players The BT Sport film, based on the book by Michael Calvin, airs on January 7th Arsene Wenger, Steven Gerrard and Gareth Southgate all speak on the issue It looks at academies at top Premier League clubs and England's youth teams With the increasing demand for immediate success in elite football, the problem of working with and integrating youth players into a first team squad continues to grow for those working within the game.

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An unexpected trend has taken hold across European football: young British players are increasingly in vogue.

There is one exception: the English Premier League, where exotic and expensive international talent reigns supreme.

UEFA recently issued a study which revealed that more than two-thirds (69.2%) of Premier League players are born overseas - the highest proportion in Europe by 12 per cent.

So is it any wonder that young British players now see going abroad as the best way to develop, as a pathway to first team football?

This past summer has seen four precocious English talents make a permanent move to mainland Europe, while at least another five have gone out on loan.

The most high-profile of the transfers is Jadon Sancho, swapping the riches of Manchester City youth team football to be handed Ousmane Dembele's number 7 shirt at Borussia Dortmund.

The 17-year-old's move made many take notice of this trend. This was the Player of the Tournament at the recent Under-17 European Championship waving goodbye to one of England's elite.

What you learn scouting the football stars of tomorrow

It may be prove to be a defining moment in making clubs realise that they are in danger of losing their promising players if they fail to offer a realistic avenue towards first-team football.

What is more likely is a shrug of the shoulders and the opening of the cheque book again come January.

Yet from an individual and national team perspective, this predicament should be seen as an opportunity to develop on both fronts.

"I see it as a major positive," Dan Fieldsend, a former Premier League academy coach and author of 'The European Game: The Secrets of European Football Success', tells i.

"They will be developing as players and learning a style of play that differs from our domestic game.

"Clubs often sign players because of their ability to play in a 'German' or 'Italian' way which complements the approach they're trying to implement, such as Klopp bringing in (Joel) Matip and (Lorius) Karius for example.

"It would therefore be beneficial to sign a Brit who is versed in the German way. I don't, however, see such players spending their careers abroad. Brits do tend to boomerang back."

Chris Willock - 19 - AS Benfica

Offered a contract extension at Arsenal, the winger opted for a move to Portugal and the Lisbon giants. He signed a five-year deal and left Arsenal with a heavy heart, posting an emotional message to Gunners fans.

However, the pull of development on the continent was too much and he has already impressed his new charges, playing a starring role in a friendly against Arsenal at the Emirates.

The 'boomerang back' effect has already been seen this summer with Scottish international Oliver Burke, 20, moving to West Bromwich Albion after a season in the Bundesliga with Red Bull Leipzig.

However, that situation was more to do with game time than homesickness. More than ever, British players are showing not only a willingness but an eagerness to try a move abroad.

It is no surprise that Germany and Portugal are popular destinations. Both countries are fertile breeding grounds for talent.

Barcelona to Bayern: the secrets of European football success

As well moving to Europe others are even trying their luck in America.

Speaking to , commentator Derek Rae says, "I just think that there is a big football world out there and why would you not want to experience it?"

Younger players, through a wide range of television, films and social media, have been exposed to the prospects out there, beyond Britain's borders. Beyond Wolverhampton, Norwich and Reading, or Barnsley, Burnley and Hull.

And while there are cultural differences, there are not as marked as they once were.

"I think firstly there is a societal factor that has to be considered," says Fieldsend. "This current crop of 1990s born footballers who are moving abroad at a young age, the likes of Burke and Sancho, live in a much more globalised world.

How to predict the top football stars of the future

"They grew up playing as such teams on FIFA and watched foreign football weekly. It isn't like Ian Rush at Juventus, the notion of 'foreign' being less frightening nowadays.

"Most people in Germany under the age of 30 speak English and Dortmund will be communicating to Sancho daily in the language.

"We think of such matters in our context, but in Germany they have many foreign footballers and the mutual language, until they learn German, is English, so the coaches and board members will communicate to players in English when a translator is not available."

Mukhtar Ali - 19 - Vitesse Arnhem

Ali is a rarity at the Dutch club which has strong connections with Chelsea, in that he signed a permanent contract this summer after a six-month loan spell.

The articulate midfielder was keen to make the switch having spoken to previous Chelsea alumni who experienced the Eredivise with the club.

Somali-born, Ali believed his calming authority and technique would be more suited to Dutch football. He is joined in the squad by four Chelsea-loanees, three of whom are English.

Not only are the players more open to such moves, clubs on the continent are taking a greater interest in talent simmering below the surface in British football.

This talent has been displayed on the international stage, with England impressing in a number of youth tournaments this summer, including winning the Under-20 World Cup, the first at any level since 1966.

It's an opportunity for foreign clubs to 'play' the system. They see clubs in the top two tiers in England buying ready-made talent from them, so why not take the potential which this 'paid for' talent is keeping out the team and develop them?

In two, three, four or five years time they can then potentially sell them back to English football, with the English teams benefiting from the players' experience of a different football culture, tapping into their adaptability.

What knock-on effect will this have on how clubs in Britain recruit and develop talent?

"It could slow the trend of clubs recruiting foreigners for their expertise, and instead look to bring in players and staff of British birth who have played and studied abroad instead," Fieldsend says.

'The pressure is immoral' - uncovering the dark side of youth football

"We're much better regarded on the continent than we realise. What is interesting is that this current generation of young players coming through are products of foreign influence. They've been coached in Dutch and Spanish methods over the past ten years despite being in British academies, and will adapt admirably to their new nations.

"The work being done domestically is as good as elsewhere - consider how many international tournaments Premier League academies win. We've just not yet seen the benefits as such youngsters are not yet playing regular first team football.

"Five years from now England will be considered a good technical nation."

Latest from iFootball

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Why the best young British footballers are choosing to play overseas

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An unexpected trend has taken hold across European football: young British players are increasingly in vogue. There is one exception: the English Premier League, where exotic and expensive international talent reigns supreme. UEFA recently issued a study which revealed that more than two-thirds (69.2%) of Premier League players are born overseas - the highest proportion in Europe by 12 per cent.

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AFTER their trip to a Royal Marines commando base, Gareth Southgate came out with a show of force in defence of English football.

Even with the little matter of a World Cup qualifier against the auld enemy of Scotland looming today, England's manager was keen to laud the Under-20s team.

The young Lions are preparing for a World Cup final against Venezuela in South Korea tomorrow morning.
Keep up to date with all the latest news, gossip, rumours and done deals in SunSport's live transfer blog
And last night Southgate seemed personally affronted by the lack of opportunities for young English players at Premier League clubs.

More so than any previous England manager, he has an in-depth knowledge of the national age-group system.

He identified Harry Kane as a future Three Lions captain when they worked together at Under-21s level - and he is convinced by the quality of the players coming through beneath.

Scottish football serves as a stark warning for what can happen when a nation's once ocean-deep talent pool can dry up.

And so Southgate was determined to use the achievements of Paul Simpson's Under-20s - who defeated Italy 3-1 in their semi-final on Thursday - to beat the drum for young English talent.

Southgate said: "What they have achieved is brilliant for everybody at St George's Park but more importantly, for me, it's brilliant for youth development in our country.

"Everybody knocks our youth development. Everyone says we don't have good youth development, and people search the world to bring people in when players are under their noses.

"If we've got a team in a world final at that age group, why are we looking around the world?

"I know a lot of that team from when they won the European Under-17s in 2014 and the other boys who have come in have lifted them to another level. There's a lot of talent.

"Hopefully the world will see what is happening. This year our Under-17s were minutes away from winning the Europeans as well.

"Our coaching, youth development and young players get knocked - but why shouldn't young English players be able to achieve?

"There's no problem with talent. That group have a very strong mentality."

Southgate might also have mentioned England's Under-18s trounced Scotland's Under-20s 3-0 on Thursday as they seek to defend the Toulon tournament crown he led them to last summer.

The Scots have struggled to produce top-class players since they last reached a major tournament back in 1998.

And despite Celtic's treble-winning invincible domestic season, there will be a raft of Tartan Army foot soldiers unfamiliar to the average English punter.

They used to stage England-Scotland matches every year and General Elections once in a blue moon.

All that seems to have been reversed in recent times - and so a World Cup qualifier at Hampden Park really ought to be an occasion to quicken the pulse of any England player.
For all the build-up and action from Scotland vs England follow SunSport's live matchday blog
There's a widespread feeling that this fixture has lost some of its lustre since its glory days of Jim Baxter and Gazza and Scotsmen pulling down the Wembley goalposts in 1977.

And you don't get the feeling that the English will be entering a bearpit today - the locals suffer from a long-term inferiority complex and their media have been lavishing praise on Kane.

But Adam Lallana claimed even at the end of a long and wearying season, facing the Scots still matters keenly.

The Liverpool star scored in the reverse fixture at Wembley in November - a 3-0 victory which confirmed Southgate in the job on a full-time basis.

And it engendered such a thirst in Wayne Rooney, that he went on a drinking session which effectively ended his international career.

Lallana said: "Of course it means a lot. It's an historic game. We proved in the fixture at Wembley how much it meant to us.

"The Gazza moment from Euro 96 sticks out. I was eight... and it's a great honour to play in these games.

"We want three points. I know we have another match against France, but this is by far the most important one."

Southgate is adamant his decision to surprise his players with a two-day boot camp with the Marines in Devon will help them against the Scots.

He said: "There were some great relationships forged between the players and Marines.

"They were engrossed over dinner and there's mutual respect there for what each other does.

"There were no camera phones, no betrayal of trust, and it was lovely to watch.

"The Marines pushed us through things for a couple of days, but they were happy to share the experiences and the lads were happy discovering each other's worlds."

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Gareth Southgate is smarting over the lack of Premier League chances for his top England talent

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AFTER their trip to a Royal Marines commando base, Gareth Southgate came out with a show of force in defence of English football. Even with the little matter of a World Cup qualifier against the auld enemy of Scotland looming today, England's manager was keen to laud the Under-20s team.

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Ensure that your young footballers reach their potential! Developing Youth Football Players combines proven coaching methods with engaging games that allow young athletes to develop their skills, understand team play and appreciate the sport. Author Horst Wein provides more than 150 games, corrective exercises, and competitions for players aged 7 to 14.

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EBSCOhost | 36557060 | Factors that Influence the Development of English Youth Soccer Coaches.

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Abstract: The aims of this study were to examine what is viewed as good coaching practice in English youth soccer and to explore the factors that influence coaches' learning and development. Employing a qualitative methodology, 13 English youth football coaches with diverse coaching qualifications were interviewed.

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England won the U20 World Cup, the U19 Euros and the U18-20 Toulon Tournament, as well as finishing runners up (on penalties) in the U17 Euros and losing to eventual champions Germany, on penalties, in the U21 Euros. AFC Wimbledon, Leeds United, Brentford, Sunderland, Sheffield Wednesday, Sheffield United, Ipswich Town, Charlton Athletic, Huddersfield Town, Hull City, Swansea City, and Norwich City, all had one player involved in England's age-level success this summer.

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England's 2017 youth successes: which clubs supplied the most players for the Three Lions' World Cup and Euro glory?

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England's youth sides have seen plenty of action this summer, and been pretty successful too. It started well when our Under-17 reached the final of the European Championships, before losing to Spain on penalties. But our Under-20 side went one better, winning the World Cup, beating Venezuela in the final.

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Tony McCool has worked in all aspects of football over two decades. He was one of the pioneers in performance analysis software, coached at Luton Town's consistently productive academy before moving to Queens Park Rangers, and scouted first-team opposition for MK Dons. Now, in addition to youth development work for Norwich City, he supervises in-school activities programmes.

His concern is authentic, vivid. It requires courage to express it in such terms, because the majority of those in youth development prefer to provide private confirmation of the troubling trickle-down effect of the cynicism and brutality of first team football, rather than raise their heads above the parapet. Careers can be undermined by candour. Power is a potential pollutant at whatever level it is administered.

"Honestly, the stuff I've seen in academies. Coaches can be vile with the kids, because they think they've got to kiss someone's arse. I've sat in meetings with them, when they discuss the development of the five Cs in a player - confidence, commitment, control, concentration, communication.

"They've got their head down like the school swot, writing furiously in their notebook. They walk down the stairs, and nobody's around now. They see a player and they're like, 'Oi, what are you doing? That's rubbish.' I said to this one guy "you should read what you just wrote down. The way you are talking to that child is horrendous.'"

His voice breaks, in a mixture of incredulity, sadness and contempt. McCool is at pains to stress his respect for the vast majority of his peers yet, emotionally, the dam has burst. Bad experiences manifest themselves, like muggers emerging from a heavily-shadowed alleyway. Another episode, on a tour to Belgium, looms large.

"It made me think 'what the fuck am I doing? I don't want to be part of this.' It was heart-breaking.

There was a lad, coming up to 16, a left-back. It had been deemed that he wasn't going to be signed as a scholar, but I go into these things thinking that every day is a new day and that he might do something that will change their minds.

"We'd spent weeks and weeks and weeks with the club philosophy of playing out from the back. This lad receives the ball from the goalkeeper about five minutes into the game, chops inside, and looks to play a diagonal pass into centre-midfield. We're playing a Dutch team, who close down, press. They work hard and they're psychologically powerful, physically strong.

"They can read the game. They've shown him inside, shut the line off because they're very clever off the ball. Our lad is doing what he been told to do. He's played the ball inside, but they've doubled up on it knowing where the pass is going. They've robbed it, got a counter-attack, and nearly score. The lad is berated from the sideline. Not that the kid hasn't heard swearing before at school, but pitchside, from the dugout, really?

"Then, out of temper, a coach screams 'Get off the pitch. Get off the pitch! Get off my pitch!' I feel emotional now because the face of that child is right in the forefront of my mind. He has been demolished. There was no acknowledgement, no handshake. You could see that he wanted to cry and he didn't want to show it.

"He made a mistake, but he did what we taught him, so actually we're at fault, not the kid. He walked off down to the corner flag and I couldn't leave him. He couldn't speak to me. He had tears rolling down his face, and I just thought, 'what the fuck have we become?' To be treating so called elite talent, a maturing young man, in that way ..."

England, our England. The pretence of the Premier League's youth development strategy, in which players are defined by so-called performance clocks and coaches are turned into clerks by an obsessional desire to harvest self-justifying data, cannot hide the ignorance and intolerance it is supposed to have eradicated. Here is McCool's experience of another European tournament: "We played Feyenoord, who were coached by Roy Makaay, the great Dutch forward. I think about what he achieved in Spain, and with Bayern Munich, and I am in awe of him. I'm privileged to be standing in the next dugout to him. The biggest thing for me was his behaviour. I never heard one angry word out of him. Not one word.

"Our dugout is carrying on like a typical English pub football team. Quite frankly, we're playing like one. This guy occasionally goes to the edge of the technical area, calls a kid over, and speaks quietly to him along the lines of 'when you get the ball in that situation, maybe have a look there, or there. Do you think you could maybe move there?' All very controlled.

"Our dugout is pumped up, like a drunken crowd at a greyhound track when the dogs come round the final bend. We're in an elite football environment, shouting and screaming. Do we value knowledge? I see people I want to learn from, people who have pearls of information, let go by clubs because they are seen as a threat to someone who wants all his mates around him. Why do we do that?"
No Hunger in Paradise. The Players. The Journey. The Dream, by Michael Calvin, is published by Century on 20 April, priced £16.99 Topics

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Football youth development in England: 'We're shouting and screaming. What have we become?'

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Tony McCool has worked in all aspects of football over two decades. He was one of the pioneers in performance analysis software, coached at Luton Town's consistently productive academy before moving to Queens Park Rangers, and scouted first-team opposition for MK Dons. Now, in addition to youth development work for Norwich City, he supervises in-school activities programmes.

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developing the modern footballer through futsal

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Developing the Modern Footballer Through Futsal by Michael Skubala and Seth Burkett (Paperback)

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With over 10 million books on Wordery, all with free worldwide delivery, we're dedicated to helping fellow bookworms find the right books at the lowest prices. #HappyReading