Can’t get a gamein the Prem? It’s NEVER been this easy to move abroad

THE solution to Gareth Southgate’s concern about a lack of opportunities for English players has been provided by the likes of Jadon Sancho.

By leaving Manchester City to move abroad and join a club the size of Borussia Dortmund, the 18-year-old is leading the way.

Others have made similar moves and more players should follow in the future. When I was playing, I was linked with teams like Barcelona, Panathinaikos and Fiorentina.

Terry Venables was very interested in me when he was at Barca. And I remember playing in a tournament in Italy for Nottingham Forest, and Fiorentina had made several enquiries.

But for me, at that stage, I had only been a pro for three or four years, so I wanted to learn my trade in England. Back then it was, ‘You’re born in England, you live in England, you play in England and that’s it’.

The idea of moving and playing abroad came with too many unknowns. Going at 23, 24 or 25 then would have been like going at 17, 18 or 19 now.

Kids of that age now are a lot more worldly wise and universal in their outlook than players who were in their mid-20s back then. If you’re 18-20 now, and a player from the European Union or even Latin America, you are a completely different beast to what I was.

They play Champions League, Europa League games and lots of under-age competitions abroad.

And with the internet and social media, it has never been easier for a youngster to find out that not only should Europe be a destination to play in the short term, but to realise the Premier League is not the be-all and end- all – that they can go and play in Italy, France, Spain or Germany for two or three years and expand their skill set.

When I was a football-mad youngster, thinking about living in Florence, there were a lot of unknowns. Now, within five or six months, if you’re motivated enough, you can find out everything you need to know using the internet. That has massively changed. And clubs in Europe realise this young crop of English players – from 17 to 21 – can easily adapt to a European club system as footballers, rather than just the “big frontman” or “gritty midfielder” roles that used to make them attractive. If these players can’t get games in the Premier League, foreign clubs will happily take the bulk of England players that have proved with the national youth teams their technique is good and that they often bring a great British character that is still a currency too. Add in the success they have enjoyed and I am not surprised clubs in Germany, Holland, Belgium and other countries have started taking English players.

The time is now for these youngsters. Instead of the odd player going here and there in the 1960s, 70s, 80s, 90s and 2000s, like Steve McManaman ( far left) going all the way back to Jimmy Greaves (middle) and Denis Law (left), let’s turn it on its head.

Let’s give Gareth a problem. If these players won’t get into Premier League clubs with their bloated squads, they will get into Italian, German, French, Spanish, Belgian and Portuguese teams.

So give it a go, youngsters. There is nothing to be scared of. Go and enjoy yourselves in a different league for a season or two.