Everton boss Roberto Martinez turned heads in a recent interview about new signing Mason Holgate, when he suggested that the club boasted a “golden generation” of talent in its youth ranks.
“Mason Holgate is a clear example of a really strong, young English defender and Leandro Rodriguez is a young striker with a real knack of scoring goals,” said the Catalan.
“He’s (Holgate) a phenomenal young prospect coming into that golden generation we have at this football club.”
Statements such as these are bound to provoke debate and expectation in equal measure, but the Blues boss already has key trio Romelu Lukaku, Ross Barkley and John Stones at his disposal (all 22 and under) and isn’t the only one at Goodison talking up the young talent currently being nurtured at the club’s Finch Farm academy.
“We are the finest club in the country for a grounding of a Premier League player,” noted Everton U21 coach David Unsworth before last month’s mini-derby.
“There are some fine academies and some fantastic people working there but what I see here, every single day, from top to bottom and the pathway we produce, makes ours the best.”
As Read Everton editor and Click Liverpool match reporter, I’ve been lucky enough to see some of the Blues’ talent first-hand in recent months, and while I take bold, somewhat hyperbolic statements about ‘golden generations’ with a pinch of salt- that was the very same phrase coined to describe the thoroughly underwhelming generation of England players between 2006 and 2010 that failed to meet the heady expectations placed upon them, by the way- it’s clear to see that the Everton hierarchy’s faith in their young talent is well founded.
Below you’ll find a comprehensive ( I hope) analysis of Roberto Martinez’s ‘golden generation.’ Let’s just hope they live up to their billing!
Goalkeeper
For my money the weakest position for the U21 and U18 development squads, both in terms of talent and general depth. Russell Griffiths, a solid, commanding ‘keeper, has just received a call up for England U20’s, and is perhaps the best of the bunch. The Chester-born stopper captained Everton U18’s to Premier Academy League glory in 2013/14, excelling against a strong Manchester City side in the final.
18-year-old Polish import Mateusz Hewelt is the current incumbent of the U21 side’s number one jersey, while Czech youth international Jindrich Stanek is a regular feature for Paul Tait’s U18 squad.
Defence
Loads of talent in this particular department, with young trio Matty Pennington, Brendan Galloway and Tyias Browning all featuring for Roberto Martinez’s senior squad in recent weeks.
Pennington, a committed, stopper defender in the Jagielka mould, seems better suited to centre-back than right-back, but is versatile enough to cover if necessary.
The same applies to Galloway and Browning– both of whom can fill in at full-back but lack the quality on the ball in the attacking third to trouble opposition defences like first team colleagues Leighton Baines, Seamus Coleman and Luke Garbutt.
Browning is a pacey, physically imposing player, deemed to have taken over Sylvain Distin’s mantle as the best one-on-one defender at the club, and Galloway, also renowned for his speed, is a slightly more elegant, left-footed ball player ala John Stones.
Mason Holgate (mentioned above) is another whom the club hold in high esteem, predominantly due to his confidence on the ball- indeed, I was surprised by his ability to spray the ball around the pitch in the 3-3 derby draw against Liverpool- while England U19 full-backs Callum Connolly and Jonjoe Kenny (last season’s U21 captain & currently first choice on loan at Wigan) are also expected to challenge for first team places in the coming seasons.
Lower down the ranks, left-back Antonee Robinson– a quick, attacking full-back who has already trained with the first team- and England U18 right-back James Yates, are notable prospects, currently playing at least one age group above most of their peers.
If pushed, I’d highlight Galloway, Holgate and Kenny as the exceptional defensive talents at Finch Farm.
UPDATE: Several of our readers have noted the omission of Wales U21 right-back Gethin Jones. I, personally, don’t rate Jones as highly as some of the others in this department, but the Welshman is, in truth, worthy of a mention due to his appearance in last season’s Krasnodar game and the fact that he has trained with the Wales senior side on occasion. The 19-year-old, originally a central midfielder, was converted to full-back by astute former U18 coach Kevin Sheedy, and is certainly another to look out for.
Some have mentioned that Jones is more Hibbert than Coleman. I’d reject this notion as what’s always impressed me about him is his ability to bomb on from right-back and deliver quality crosses into the box. Jones, I’m sure, will have a professional career- whether it’s at Everton or not is another matter. My guess is that if push came to shove, Tyias Browning would be more likely to deputise for Seamus Coleman than the Perth-born defender.
Midfield
The Finch Farm youth ranks are stocked with exciting midfielders to keep an eye on. 17-year-old Kieran Dowell is probably the pick of the bunch, as evidenced by his superb performance against Dundee in pre-season and his role in last season’s Europa League dead-rubber against Krasnodar. A talented, left-footed attacking midfielder with excellent vision and dribbling ability, Dowell has an innate ability to find space in between the lines and create chances for his teammates. May well be the jewel in the Finch Farm crown.
Elegant in possession, imposing in the tackle and blessed with two sparkling feet, defensive midfielder Ryan Ledson’s displays as England U17 captain during the successful title-winning European Championship campaign have led to a wealth of plaudits both at home and on the continent. Ledson, who has also been in and around the first team on numerous occasions, is highly thought of by Roberto Martinez but probably would be best served going out on loan in order to develop to the level needed for regular inclusion in the senior squad.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POLCUcycFrw
Liam Walsh is a gifted passer of the ball who usually plays as a deep-lying playmaker for both Everton and England youth sides. Small in frame, but wonderfully agile, Walsh was name-checked as a potential first team player by Martinez last season, and blesses the technical quality to make it at Everton.
Others to look out for are England U17 duo Tom Davies and Nathan Holland. Davies is an energetic box-to-box midfielder who regularly chips in with goals for Unsworth’s U21 side, while Holland is a tricky, skillful attacking midfielder/winger whose productivity in the final third has made him an important part of the Everton U18 setup.
Antony Evans, the 16-year-old attacking midfielder who so impressed for the U21’s in pre-season, is another potential star. Tall, languid and excellent from set-pieces, Evans’ knack of ghosting into the box and scoring goals has made him an ever-present for Unsworth’s charges so far this season. One for the future, once he bulks up, without a doubt.
Attack
In attack, it is 23-year-old Conor McAleny who is closest to a first team opportunity. Nimble, with a low centre of gravity and excellent finishing skills, the injury-prone McAleny is in the last chance saloon as far as impressing at Everton is concerned. This season may well be make or break for the talented local lad, in that regard.
Elsewhere, archetypal number nines Courtney Duffus and Sam Bryne are probably yet to convince Roberto Martinez of their first team quality. Duffus, 19, is perhaps the better talent, yet is currently recovering from a long-term injury, while Bryne, who scored twice in last week’s 4-1 win over Tottenham, holds the ball up well but had, until then, failed to hit the net regularly enough to be considered a serious proposition.
Callum Dyson is a mobile forward on the fringes of the U21 squad, and currently out on loan at Conference side Stockport, while Welsh youth international Nathan Broadhead has starred for Everton U18’s in what has been a very impressive opening month of the season for Tait’s men.
Finally, summer signing Shane Lavery is also excelling for Paul Tait’s side and earned a call up to David Unsworth’s U21 squad after netting a stunner against Crewe (below). The Northern Ireland youth player has several years of development to go, but is certainly a hot prospect with a lot of potential. Time will tell on this one, but I’d say that out of the batch of strikers in the U18’s, Lavery looks most likely to make it at Everton.
UPDATE: Another omission (see Gethin Jones, defence) was new signing David Henen. Here I must admit that the Belgian’s lack of inclusion in this article was purely accidental- he’s one of the top talents in the academy ranks.
Best as a wide forward (think Kevin Mirallas), Belgium youth international, Henen, provoked plenty of confusion in last summer when he moved to Everton on loan after Greek giants Olympiakos originally trumped the Goodison side to his signature. A pacy attacker with an impressive scoring record of 9 goals in 19 games for Unsworth’s men last time around, Henen fully deserved his permanent summer move to Goodison Park.
I’ve included a clip below of his best bits from last season. You’ll see that he’s got bags of talent, skill and dribbling ability, and if he can repeat last year’s exceptional form, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him feature off the bench for Martinez’s first team squad later in the campaign. One note of caution would be that after all of the hype, Henen slightly disappointed me when I saw him against Tranmere in pre-season. The former Anderlecht, Monaco and Olympiakos youngster didn’t quite seem up to the physical battle against Gary Brabbin’s side, and was withdrawn due to injury with little over half an hour played.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mMYjBgTkKu4
Conclusion
It would be remiss of me to neglect the perils facing youngsters attempting to make their way in the professional game. In the last decade, a long list of touted first teamers, such as John Lundstram, Jose Baxter, John-Paul Kissock and Danny Cadamarteri have all failed to make the grade at Everton after initially impressing. As such, it would be foolhardy to imagine that all of the names mentioned above will go on to star for Roberto Martinez’s first team, but, for my money, the likes of Galloway, Holgate, Dowell, Walsh and Ledson are all in with a significant chance of forcing their way into contention. One thing is clear, regardless: rarely have Everton had such an abundance of talent in the youth ranks. The future’s bright, the future’s blue…
Follow us on Twitter @ReadEverton. Likewise, author and editor Paddy can be found at @Paddy_Boyland.
