Which Premier League Veterans May Lose Their Starting Jobs to Young Players?

As the Premier League season draws to a close, younger players will be looking to stake their claims to starting berths as they look ahead to next season. Should they impress their coaches, their starting spots could come at the expense of more established names.

What this article will be setting out to do is point out a few of the veteran players who are in danger of seeing diminished playing time in the future. In this case, "veterans" would refer to players who have been starter-quality players in the Premier League for at least four or five seasons.

It will exclude players like Frank Lampard, who is expected to leave his club in the offseason and as such automatically loses his starting job. It will also not consider players in the late stages of their careers, like John Terry or Ryan Giggs, who won't be everyday players anyhow.

Branislav Ivanovic

Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanovic was thrust into the headlines last month as he fell victim to the hungry jaws of Liverpool striker Luis Suarez. But much like his arm, his playing time could see a big chunk about to get taken out of it.

Chelsea have brought in a number of defensive reinforcements over the last couple of seasons, including David Luiz, Gary Cahill and Cesar Azpilicueta. All three have made roles for themselves, which could see the 29-year-old Ivanovic as the odd man out.

Luiz, 26, and Cahill, 27, are probably the best pairing overall at central defense. John Terry, of course, is still an able player at that position as well and the club captain will see his fair share of time. Luiz is capable of playing defensive midfield to accommodate the elder statesman.

But it is Azpilicueta's signing that could be the most threatening to Ivanovic's status. The Serbian was the team's primary right-back before Terry's injury, at which point "Dave" stepped in to fill in at right-back as Ivanovic slid over.

The 23-year-old Spaniard has made the right-back position his own since his inclusion. As Spain manager Vicente del Bosque said upon giving the former Marseille man his first call-up: "He has a lot of energy, defends well and is always willing to attack."

He has shown himself to be an able passer as well as a solid tackler. And at his tender age, he's got plenty of time to become a top-class performer at his position. This could see Ivanovic left out far more often.

Benoit Assou-Ekotto

When Gareth Bale first arrived at Tottenham, he was a left-back forced to compete with Benoit Assou-Ekotto for playing time. The Welshman never got a hold of the job, was moved forward, and the rest is history.

But now, it is the Cameroonian who could be bumped out of the left-back spot. He was given a rough ride by the energetic Oscar on Wednesday as the young Brazilian notched a goal and never looked like he could be contained.

As such, Spurs fans may be asking themselves one or two questions about Assou-Ekotto's recent performances. Sure, he missed a few months early on in the season, but he hasn't seemed to get a hold on his overall play since his return.

Tottenham do already have a talented young left-back on their books, of course. 22-year-old Danny Rose endeared himself to the White Hart Lane faithful with this thumping volley on his league debut in 2010, against Arsenal no less.

Currently on loan at Sunderland, the former Leeds United youngster has enjoyed a successful season with the Tyne and Wear side. He has impressed a lot of people including current manager Paolo di Canio, who hopes Rose leaves the club on a high note.

Spurs will surely not want to let this kid leave after a season like this, though the Black Cats will certainly try to keep him around. He can definitely unseat Assou-Ekotto to make Tottenham's left flank even more dangerous.

Antonio Valencia

Lost in the wonderment of Manchester United's 20th league triumph has been the underwhelming play of some key players. Wayne Rooney has had a down year, while Chicharito has just been buried in the pecking order.

But most troubling of all, perhaps, is the steep decline of right-winger Antonio Valencia. Though not a veteran by age, Valencia has plenty of Premier League experience, dating back to a loan spell at Wigan beginning in 2006.

Last season, Valencia had his best year as a Red Devil, scoring ridiculous goals and putting himself amongst the league leaders in assists. This year, however, has been a different story entirely.

And not a good one, at that.

Just one goal and four assists are on his record this year, with his performances becoming increasingly uninspiring. Aside from his pace, he's not been especially threatening. Which is where winter signing Wilfried Zaha comes into play.

The Crystal Palace youngster was signed for £15 million and allowed to stay at his current club, where he burst onto the world stage. He's got plenty of pace, a good eye for goals, and the ability to play through the middle if needed.

Valencia could be considered a one-trick pony for some. The Ecuadorian can run with anyone and whip in some crosses, but a different kind of threat could be helpful. David Moyes could easily look to Zaha to provide some excitement down the right.

Fernando Torres

Fernando Torres' time at Chelsea has been one of struggle in the broadest sense. Yet to truly justify his £50 million price tag, the Spaniard does seem to be rounding back into solid form this season with 20 goals in all competitions.

It was his inconsistency combined with a lack of depth that led to Chelsea signing Senegalese striker Demba Ba in January. Ba, however, has yet to truly carry over his strong form in front of goal from his half-season at Newcastle (13 goals in 20 league games).

As such, Torres has been called on to shoulder the load, and he's provided five goals in as many games to help guide the Blues to the Europa League final. But he hasn't scored in the league since Chelsea's 8-0 demolition of Aston Villa in December.

Meanwhile, 2011 Chelsea signee Romelu Lukaku has been in quite the imperious form in his current loan spell at West Brom. 14 goals in league play, including 11 in just 19 starts, has ramped up speculation on whether he could finally work his way into the starting lineup at Stamford Bridge.

As this B/R profile on the Belgian suggests, Lukaku provides a much different threat than either Torres or Ba. He's physical enough to get through tough central defense pairings, yet composed enough to put about two-thirds of his shots on target.

Torres' purchase, as well as other big-name Chelsea striker purchases such as Andriy Shevchenko, suggests that the big-money move doesn't always pan out. So if Roman Abramovich is smart, he'll forgo Radamel Falcao and simply bring a player back from loan to strengthen his starting lineup.