Development/Youth Squads 2022/2023 Thread - U18/U21

[Ric Flair]

14 hours ago, MalletFox said:

Serious question; and appreciate the enthusiasm a few have on here for some of our youngsters, but … other than Mahawinse, I don’t see that any of the others are putting up any kind of significant, sustained numbers (even at youth level) to merit a first team place. 
 

I know about the 3 x England U19’s etc, but even at youth level, Leicester are having a stinking season. Is it a case of over hyping some of these lot? Genuine question, not trying to be provocative, just not “seeing” the apparent amazing talent that we apparently posses from a stats point of view …

 

Alves has stepped up to U21s but hasn’t even scored a goal yet (?), Popov was prolific for the U18s yet has done minimal amount for U21s, Braybrooke spreads the ball around well, yet doesn’t assist many (or get many pre-assists?), we ship goals like the first team yet Flynn(?) is apparently highly regarded…?

 

Again, not trying to stir any pots, just trying to get a realistic understanding of what level our kids are at, as they don’t appear to be making the grade at U21 level yet? …..

You are right that attacking wise our U21's are very workmanlike and that's as much a coaching and tactical issue as it is they aren't very good. 

 

Popov was obscene at U18 level last season, as was Kian Pennant before his tough run of injuries. It remains to be seen how well they will do at U21 level but Popov impressed towards the end of last season when given a go.

 

Alves end product needs work, there's no denying that but he has all the ingredients to be a superstar. He was very good last night and his 25 yard shot that had the keeper in no man's land was very unfortunate to hit the bar and not go in, that goes in and folk are demanding him in the team for Thursday. He is starting to show signs of improvement though, an assist away at Chelsea a few weeks ago and then a goal against a mixture of 1st team and squad players vs Bradford in the Papa John's. 

 

As for Braybrooke I think you're way off the mark. He is going to be a brilliant players and creatively he is already doing what you say he isn't doing. He's not a goalscorer as a deep lying playmaker but has plenty of assists and pre-assists for club and country this season alone.

 

Plenty of mediocre players though and the coaching standard is suspect IMO. Wormleighton had a poor game last night but he is the one I'd be the most surprised if he didn't make it to the top.

[Foxxed]

17 hours ago, BroughtonFox said:

No chance Barnes doesn’t leave if we go down. The others could stay but you could still see lower premier league sides like Southampton, Brighton, Leeds etc trying for the others which could well tempt them.

Yeah. That’s my biggest worry. He may be a fan but at his age he’d surely be tempted to break into a Champions League team. The same goes for KDH but less so: I reckon we could make him the captain which should tempt him to stay. Thomas is young enough that a season in the Championship wouldn’t be the end of the world. Daka could be easily be snapped up but he’s hardly pulling up trees (much like our whole team) so he may escape the radar.

[Foxxed]

So our best u21 is not injured and
 

Braybrooke didn’t play in the u21 match

Braybrooke didn’t get into the first team

Braybrooke didn’t get into the Papa John’s match

Braybrooke probably sees no more than 5 minutes against Leeds

 

It seems so detrimental for both the club and player it reeks of Brendan.

 

 

[davieG]

23 minutes ago, Foxxed said:

So our best u21 is not injured and
 

Braybrooke didn’t play in the u21 match

Braybrooke didn’t get into the first team

Braybrooke didn’t get into the Papa John’s match

Braybrooke probably sees no more than 5 minutes against Leeds

 

It seems so detrimental for both the club and player it reeks of Brendan.

 

 

If he's even in the squad.

[Ric Flair]

45 minutes ago, davieG said:

If he's even in the squad.

Probably will be as Maddison and Soyuncu are out, so don't see who else comes on to the bench other than Vestergaard/Brunt and Braybrooke

[Stadt]

11 hours ago, MalletFox said:

Serious question; and appreciate the enthusiasm a few have on here for some of our youngsters, but … other than Mahawinse, I don’t see that any of the others are putting up any kind of significant, sustained numbers (even at youth level) to merit a first team place. 
 

I know about the 3 x England U19’s etc, but even at youth level, Leicester are having a stinking season. Is it a case of over hyping some of these lot? Genuine question, not trying to be provocative, just not “seeing” the apparent amazing talent that we apparently posses from a stats point of view …

 

Alves has stepped up to U21s but hasn’t even scored a goal yet (?), Popov was prolific for the U18s yet has done minimal amount for U21s, Braybrooke spreads the ball around well, yet doesn’t assist many (or get many pre-assists?), we ship goals like the first team yet Flynn(?) is apparently highly regarded…?

 

Again, not trying to stir any pots, just trying to get a realistic understanding of what level our kids are at, as they don’t appear to be making the grade at U21 level yet? …..

Braybrooke has 2 assists in 7 games so far, Alves is still 17 and has played out of position.

 

Numbers at youth level aren't that indicative of ability either.

[Lambert09]

2 hours ago, Foxxed said:

So our best u21 is not injured and
 

Braybrooke didn’t play in the u21 match

Braybrooke didn’t get into the first team

Braybrooke didn’t get into the Papa John’s match

Braybrooke probably sees no more than 5 minutes against Leeds

 

It seems so detrimental for both the club and player it reeks of Brendan.

 

 

Disagree with this. For starters it’s just showing a lack of how football clubs work, this isn’t a Brendan thing, this is something any professional club would do.

 

 He’s moved to a position when he’s needed for the first team. Thus he’s been preparing with the squad, team meetings, training and fully focused on the game … which is far more important than the papa johns. It’s not useful to work on two different games at once.  

 

There’s a chance he doesn’t get used and that’s a shame. But there’s also a chance we get a couple of early injuries and he’s thrown into the mix. 

 

For him and his career you could argue 5 mins off the bench here would help a lot more than 90 against sheffield weds reserves.  Not to mention if he performs well he will gain trust and may get more minutes in the future. 

 

It’s a bit ridiculous that so many people on here cry about players not getting a chance in the first team but then complain about the standard process for how a youngster gets minutes. Look at any club, they all bed them in slowly and let them prove they are ready. 

 

[Foxxed]

2 minutes ago, Lambert09 said:

Disagree with this. For starters it’s just showing a lack of how football clubs work, this isn’t a Brendan thing, this is something any professional club would do.

 

 He’s moved to a position when he’s needed for the first team. Thus he’s been preparing with the squad, team meetings, training and fully focused on the game … which is far more important than the papa johns. It’s not useful to work on two different games at once.  

 

There’s a chance he doesn’t get used and that’s a shame. But there’s also a chance we get a couple of early injuries and he’s thrown into the mix. 

 

For him and his career you could argue 5 mins off the bench here would help a lot more than 90 against sheffield weds reserves.  Not to mention if he performs well he will gain trust and may get more minutes in the future. 

 

It’s a bit ridiculous that so many people on here cry about players not getting a chance in the first team but then complain about the standard process for how a youngster gets minutes. Look at any club, they all bed them in slowly and let them prove they are ready. 

 

So far he’s missed three matches. I find it hard to believe he needs to miss that many matches to train with the first team—players are training with the first team alongside their u21 duties anyway.

 

If he does get more than a few minutes then alright but if he again sits out a fourth match it will be ridiculous. Rodgers less than appealing involvement with the academy has lessened the benefit of the doubt I’ll give him. But let’s see.

[filbertway]

1 hour ago, Lambert09 said:

Disagree with this. For starters it’s just showing a lack of how football clubs work, this isn’t a Brendan thing, this is something any professional club would do.

 

 He’s moved to a position when he’s needed for the first team. Thus he’s been preparing with the squad, team meetings, training and fully focused on the game … which is far more important than the papa johns. It’s not useful to work on two different games at once.  

 

There’s a chance he doesn’t get used and that’s a shame. But there’s also a chance we get a couple of early injuries and he’s thrown into the mix. 

 

For him and his career you could argue 5 mins off the bench here would help a lot more than 90 against sheffield weds reserves.  Not to mention if he performs well he will gain trust and may get more minutes in the future. 

 

It’s a bit ridiculous that so many people on here cry about players not getting a chance in the first team but then complain about the standard process for how a youngster gets minutes. Look at any club, they all bed them in slowly and let them prove they are ready. 

 

I'll just leave this here 

 

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/cole-palmer-man-city-reserves-25233728

 

[Lambert09]

22 minutes ago, filbertway said:

I'll just leave this here 

 

https://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/news/cole-palmer-man-city-reserves-25233728

 

there’s a difference in scenario. Palmer was in the first team as a chance to give him bennefits to reward him. Braybrooke is here because we are short of players and he genuinely might be needed in a crucial game for the club.  If he played in the game and got injured we would be left with even less options. 

 

I agree with our move here personally. 

[Foxxed]

Maybe Brendan is getting him ready for the first team by isolating him on seemingly baseless grounds? He's got former Premier League team of year player Soyuncu to learn from. He won't get that kind of experience sitting in the u21s for sure.

[Collymore]

When I saw Alves V spurs earlier in the season he looked like he was suffocated in midfield and he was expending a lot of energy just trying to dance out of tight spots and get a mediocre pass away. It looked like Spurs had done their homework well and he was pretty much stifled. Obviously none of the coaching staff did any thing proactive to counteract this in any way. 

 

I think when he plays against teams like Sheff Wed they probably just don't even bother scouting us and just play their own game expecting to win which allows Alves more joy and express himself more. 

 

I'll never forget his Watford cameo where he came on and mugged off about 5 Watford defenders in a minute before Rodgers threatened to sub him for being too exciting and flamboyant.

 

 

Edited 19 October 2022 by Collymore

[moore_94]

Posted this in the Leeds thread, but this is the extent of Rodgers’ willingness to bring through youth at this club in over 3 and a half years now

 

Luke Thomas - 64 appearances, 59 starts, 5213 minutes total

 

Vontae Daley-Campbell - 3 appearances, 3 starts in FA Cup and League Cup, 208 minutes total

 

Lewis Brunt - 2 appearances, 1 start vs Watford in FA Cup, 113 minutes total

 

Sidnei Tavares - 3 appearances, 1 start vs Brighton in the League, 95 minutes total

 

Wanya Marcal Madivadua - 1 sub appearance, 45 minutes

 

Kasey McAteer - 2 sub appearances, 18 minutes total

 

George Hirst - 2 sub appearances, 9 minutes total

 

Khanya Leshabela - 1 sub appearance, 9 minutes

 

Will Alves - 1 sub appearance, 4 minutes

[An Sionnach]

3 hours ago, moore_94 said:

Posted this in the Leeds thread, but this is the extent of Rodgers’ willingness to bring through youth at this club in over 3 and a half years now

 

Luke Thomas - 64 appearances, 59 starts, 5213 minutes total

 

Vontae Daley-Campbell - 3 appearances, 3 starts in FA Cup and League Cup, 208 minutes total

 

Lewis Brunt - 2 appearances, 1 start vs Watford in FA Cup, 113 minutes total

 

Sidnei Tavares - 3 appearances, 1 start vs Brighton in the League, 95 minutes total

 

Wanya Marcal Madivadua - 1 sub appearance, 45 minutes

 

Kasey McAteer - 2 sub appearances, 18 minutes total

 

George Hirst - 2 sub appearances, 9 minutes total

 

Khanya Leshabela - 1 sub appearance, 9 minutes

 

Will Alves - 1 sub appearance, 4 minutes

The exact reason that talented and promising young players will avoid LCFC  like the plague. Downward spiral comes to mind.

[Dan LCFC]

Puts to bed the myth about him being any good with youth. Bloke truly is the biggest fraud in football.

[Collymore]

10 hours ago, moore_94 said:

Posted this in the Leeds thread, but this is the extent of Rodgers’ willingness to bring through youth at this club in over 3 and a half years now

 

Luke Thomas - 64 appearances, 59 starts, 5213 minutes total

 

Vontae Daley-Campbell - 3 appearances, 3 starts in FA Cup and League Cup, 208 minutes total

 

Lewis Brunt - 2 appearances, 1 start vs Watford in FA Cup, 113 minutes total

 

Sidnei Tavares - 3 appearances, 1 start vs Brighton in the League, 95 minutes total

 

Wanya Marcal Madivadua - 1 sub appearance, 45 minutes

 

Kasey McAteer - 2 sub appearances, 18 minutes total

 

George Hirst - 2 sub appearances, 9 minutes total

 

Khanya Leshabela - 1 sub appearance, 9 minutes

 

Will Alves - 1 sub appearance, 4 minutes

Playing devil's advocate you could argue that none of them really took their chance and probably didn't deserve more time albeit Alves and Tavares who I feel perhaps did enough in their short stints to at least be considered for more. 

 

This is probably more indicative of our youth set up as a whole rather than down to Rodgers playing them as many of those names above simply aren't good enough for the first team and we've done very little as a club to make them ready. 

 

Let's also not forget Dewsbury-Hall has flourished under him, even though he's now suffering like most under his hideous regime.

Edited 20 October 2022 by Collymore

[ALC Fox]

2 hours ago, Collymore said:

Playing devil's advocate you could argue that none of them really took their chance and probably didn't deserve more time albeit Alves and Tavares who I feel perhaps did enough in their short stints to at least be considered for more. 

 

This is probably more indicative of our youth set up as a whole rather than down to Rodgers playing them as many of those names above simply aren't good enough for the first team and we've done very little as a club to make them ready. 

 

Let's also not forget Dewsbury-Hall has flourished under him, even though he's now suffering like most under his hideous regime.

Not to mention our bloated squad of senior players. I know, in theory, that if they're not good enough then they shouldn't play, but their experience will be the reason he turns to Mendy before Braybrooke, or Perez before Alves or Maswanhise.

 

I'm not defending Rodgers because if those players are showing something at U21, they deserve a chance to show it at first-team level, but most managers will choose experience over youth.

 

It's a real shame as we could have some breakout stars that could really change the mood surrounding this season.

[majaco]

With 9 subs, at least one should be an academy player.  It may frustrate an experienced player not being in the squad but they should be frustrated not to be starting.

 

We are led to believe that there is a lot of quality in the academy.   Seeing them on the pitch would motivate fans as well as players looking to break through.

[lcfcsnow]

1 hour ago, majaco said:

With 9 subs, at least one should be an academy player.  It may frustrate an experienced player not being in the squad but they should be frustrated not to be starting.

 

We are led to believe that there is a lot of quality in the academy.   Seeing them on the pitch would motivate fans as well as players looking to break through.

I mentioned it at the time but it should have been a rule when they upped the amount of subs. But still the likes of Man City and Liverpool always tend to have youngsters on the bench, we are actively avoiding doing so.

[Ric Flair]

31 minutes ago, lcfcsnow said:

I mentioned it at the time but it should have been a rule when they upped the amount of subs. But still the likes of Man City and Liverpool always tend to have youngsters on the bench, we are actively avoiding doing so.

Especially given he has pretty much decided that half the bench he names have absolutely no chance of ever coming on. He's got his select 3 players he will bring on and that's it, does he realise we can now make 5 subs?

[scinnell]

We do have a large squad. I think a few places on the bench will open up as soon as some are binned off. Imagine if Perez on 70+ grand a week was dropped off the bench for Alves- what would that do to the little dressing room chemistry we already have? Perez will kick off and rightly so, plus we will end up paying a high wage for someone who doesn't feature. 

[MarriedaLeicesterGirl]

2 hours ago, ALC Fox said:

Not to mention our bloated squad of senior players. I know, in theory, that if they're not good enough then they shouldn't play, but their experience will be the reason he turns to Mendy before Braybrooke, or Perez before Alves or Maswanhise.

 

I'm not defending Rodgers because if those players are showing something at U21, they deserve a chance to show it at first-team level, but most managers will choose experience over youth.

 

It's a real shame as we could have some breakout stars that could really change the mood surrounding this season.

Even with the bloated squad, you look at the COVID situation, the injury crisis last season, the extra games...I just don't get it. I loved that FA Cup against Watford: I was so frickin' proud of my club. But after that? Nothing.

[MarriedaLeicesterGirl]

1 hour ago, majaco said:

With 9 subs, at least one should be an academy player.  It may frustrate an experienced player not being in the squad but they should be frustrated not to be starting.

 

We are led to believe that there is a lot of quality in the academy.   Seeing them on the pitch would motivate fans as well as players looking to break through.

 

1 hour ago, lcfcsnow said:

I mentioned it at the time but it should have been a rule when they upped the amount of subs. But still the likes of Man City and Liverpool always tend to have youngsters on the bench, we are actively avoiding doing so.

Frankly, I think there should be 12 subs (like in other countries and in international football). However, only 7 can be over 21.

[BKLFox]

Sadly There isn’t a single 1 of them that is ready to take the premiership by storm, Braybrooke included.

Do any of them have a feel of a 16yr old Rooney, that is what’s required to make it at that age.

Best they can do is a few minutes here and there and then a loan out and learn.

 

I do worry that if Braybrooke gets on for meaningful minutes and flunks it will do more harm than good, they should all have a bit of fight in them but coming up against a seasoned pro who’s got more fight and just stronger in body and mind it could crush him, I’ll say Rooney again just because of the way he was at 16 he had that all round package that ‘X’ factor to cope.

Its great there are some shining lights coming through but I think we should leave it to the professionals to let them grow before we think of them as saviours for our club right here right now.

[MarriedaLeicesterGirl]

14 minutes ago, BKLFox said:

Sadly There isn’t a single 1 of them that is ready to take the premiership by storm, Braybrooke included.

Do any of them have a feel of a 16yr old Rooney, that is what’s required to make it at that age.

Best they can do is a few minutes here and there and then a loan out and learn.

 

I don't want them to take the premiership by storm, just be in the mix on the bench and cup games. The confidence the lads who got that FA Cup appearance really propelled them to a new level in the next few PL2 games. If you have youngsters coming off the bench, even for a few minutes, in senior games, it makes them much more attractive to clubs looking for loan players.