Beware exodus of British talents
ROBBIE BURTON left Arsenal this week.
Most of you dear readers won’t have heard of him. To be honest, neither had I before researching this week’s offering – but why is this significant?
Because Burton quit north London and headed for Dinamo Zagreb in what is the latest example of the Premier League talent-drain.
The Wales Under-21 midfielder, who had been part of the academy at the Emirates since age six, has decided to take his chances in Croatia.
The 20-year-old – who had played for Arsenal’s kids in the Football League Trophy and had appeared extensively for the U-23s – believes he is better served in the Balkans than here if he is to make a breakthrough.
Just let that sink in. Here is a young player at a top English club who has grown fed up of waiting around and wants to further himself by playing in Zagreb.
He has made an excellent choice. The reason why Dinamo are regarded as one of the hottest breeding grounds in Europe is because of the ratio of players to coaches which stands at eight to one.
For an aspiring midfielder, it’s a smart move. As far as countries go, Croatia is pretty neat, too.
There is a growing recognition across Europe that England’s clubs are producing good players. The problem is not with the quality, but with the pathway.
Another snapshot can be seen from an England’ U-16s game against Spain at St George’s Park this week. Plenty of Premier League representation among the assembled throng – but there were just as many German clubs watching as those from our own shores.
One of those who attended told me: “It was like a who’s who of the Bundesliga. Schalke were there, Bayern Munich too...”
Clearly the extent to which Jadon Sancho’s switch from Manchester City to Borussia Dortmund has paid off is influencing others to come over here and see what else is on offer.
However, there is also one other spectre on the horizon that should prompt a re-think about how the best homegrown youngsters are going to advance their frontline education in the game.
And that’s Brexit.
The rank and file won’t see it, of course, but during the course of several conversations on this subject with people in the game, it is a very real issue for the Premier League.
They want to know where they stand ahead of next season. Clubs are already working out their retained lists for the summer. The unconfirmed word is that up to 15 non-domestic players will be allowed in first-team squads of 25.
Additionally, there will also be restrictions placed on how many U-18s from abroad can be added to an academy. Those are the rumours, anyway.
Of course, the Premier League has always prided itself on having an open-door policy but the change in relationship with Europe looks certain to have a significant knock-on effect.
The fact that Sancho has increased in transfer value by ten-fold has, unsurprisingly, made a few sit up and take notice.
The fact that players such as Burton are now heading to Croatia – waving goodbye with the words ‘this is the right decision for my career’ – should be ringing alarm bells.
And the fact that Brexit is certain to prompt additional reliance on our own should force clubs to take the pathway of their kids far more seriously.