2011 Premier League Prospects

With the Premier League at the half-way stage, it’s fair to say that this season has been full of many twists and turns, and that it’s been more competitive than ever before.

So which players look set to shine in the business end of the season? Chris Mayer looks at the young guns all vying for the tag: the next big thing.

Barry Bannan

The past few seasons have seen Aston Villa become a conveyor belt for youth prospects. They’ve continually used reserve team coach, Kevin McDonald’s prodigies and integrated them well into Premier League football.

Just look at Gabby Agbonlahor – an England international from their academy leading the line for the club up front.

With Gerard Houllier in charge, it looks like this trend will continue, since Houllier ran France’s successful youth football centre Clairefontaine. Of the next crop of players on the fringes, Barry Bannan seems to be the most promising.

Primarily used as a central midfielder, Bannan’s performances in his 6 Premier League have been encouraging, especially against Manchester United, where he marshalled their midfield superbly for a 21 year old.

He’s been touted as the future of the Scottish international team, and early signs suggest that Bannan could well just be that.

Rodrigo Moreno

Bolton Wanderers seem to have finally left the tag as the Premier League’s bruisers by the wayside as Owen Coyle has turned them from English grit to flamboyant Europeans.

Well almost, it’s still in progress. One of the stars of Bolton’s new philosophy has been their season-long loan signing from Benfica, Rodrigo Moreno.

In the fleeting amount of time on the field, Rodrigo has shown great maturity for a 19-year old and combined that with his lightning pace.

He’s pretty versatile, playing on the wing or up-front and can make all the runs that Kevin Davies can’t. He’ll likely be an impact sub in Bolton’s run-in but what a useful talent to have on the bench.

The problem for Coyle could be making his move permanent. Real Madrid have the first option to re-buy him after he left their youth team for Benfica and surely they’d like him back.

Another problem could be Bolton’s finances, but the Brazilian-born Spaniard could well be the future for Bolton if they could hang on to him.

Phil Jones

In a complete contrast, their Lancashire rivals love to employ some direct football. Phil Jones has been a rock at the back for Blackburn for a good year now, after his debut against Chelsea, where he looked like he’d been part of the team for years. That’s how good his performance was.

The Preston born centre-back is still only 18 but made 25 appearances for Blackburn. Whilst Christopher Samba tends to play the enforcer role, Jones’s pace does the mopping up at the back for Blackburn.

An England call-up for Jones before Euro 2012 seems inevitable, but only if he can keep up the tremendous start to his career.

Josh McEachran

A bit of an obvious choice this one but Carlo Ancelotti’s new policy to incorporate younger players into his slightly aging Chelsea team.

McEachran has been at the forefront of Ancelotti’s thinking after injuries ravaged Chelsea’s midfield. His passing ability for a 17-year old is phenomenal, demonstrated in the Champions League match against Marseille. 

Chelsea were already through, but McEachran was the star in a 1-0 loss for the team, having the biggest influence in the game with passing and making himself available into space.

He’s the only player to have played and be younger than the competition itself. But just a little glimpse at his European performances have led Chelsea fans to claim he is the future of their club.

Seamus Coleman

Everton’s annual terrible start to the season has left a gloomy sky around Merseyside. But the tide might be about to change, if Seamus Coleman continues to impress David Moyes.

After spending a year on-loan at Blackpool last season, guiding them to the Premier League, Moyes put the young Irishman on the right wing straight way this season. Moyes hoped that he would help Phil Neville on the right flank defensively, but also bomb forward at any opportunity.

He’s certainly done the latter, showing incredible speed, notably outrunning Cesc Fabregas against Arsenal. Defensively, he’s not been as great but that will come in time, or maybe Coleman should follow Gareth Bale further forward. Coleman is definitely Everton’s best prospect for some years.

Tom Cleverley

You never know what you’ll get with Robert Martinez’s Wigan team. Occasionally, it all clicks and you see a great performance but those days have been rare this year as Wigan scrap out at the bottom.

But Martinez can be credited for bringing Manchester United’s Tom Cleverley in, set to be the future replacement for Paul Scholes in United’s midfield.

Cleverly’s increased game time has shown the Premier League his attacking attributes as a box-to-box midfielder; always at the centre of Wigan’s passing.

Sir Alex Ferguson will undoubtedly recall Cleverley at the end of the season, but his consistency, along with Charles N’Zogbia could prove vital if the Latics are to avoid the drop.

FemaleFirst Chris Mayer