5 Manchester City Youngsters Manuel Pellegrini Should Give Time to

Prior to Sheikh Mansour's takeover of Manchester City in 2008, the club were reliant on their excellent academy to produce first-team players.

Shaun Wright-Phillips, Joey Barton, Nedum Onuoha, Stephen Ireland and Micah Richards are just some of the players the club nurtured who went on to play for the senior side.

However, with Mansour's investment meaning City's squad is now full of world-class players, chances for young players are few and far between. The opening of the Etihad Campus, an 80-acre site that will house both youth and senior players, is an enterprise aimed at producing more players, but the benefits of that won't be felt for some years.

In the meantime, though, City have some promising youngsters playing in their Elite Development Squad managed by Patrick Vieira.

Here, we take a look at five who could be given significant game time by Manuel Pellegrini fairly soon.

1. John Guidetti

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John Guidetti has had his fair share of fitness problems in his short career, but he showed enough promise during his successful loan spell with Feyenoord to keep people believing he can play a role for City’s first team.

He’s currently on loan at Stoke in an attempt to ease him back into top-level football, but it’s a move which has so far been unsuccessful given Mark Hughes’ reluctance to use him regularly.

There’s little doubt that if he had have been fitter this season, he would have played for City—particularly when both Sergio Aguero and Stevan Jovetic have been injured at the same time. During those spells, Pellegrini used Alvaro Negredo and Edin Dzeko in tandem, but they have failed to strike up a consistent partnership given the similarities in their games.

Guidetti may well have provided City with something different, but his lack of match fitness means he wasn’t trusted and his current loan move followed.

The Swede scored 20 goals in 23 games for Feyenoord and left a hero with their fans. Goals in the Dutch Eredivisie don't always translate to the Premier League—just ask Afonso Alves—but he couldn't have done much more to impress during his time in Holland.

2. Marcos Lopes

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Largely seen as the most talented young player at the club, Lopes is solid technically and has an excellent footballing brain—something he has showcased in the first team already.

His appearances this season in the League Cup saw him impress, particularly during the away leg against West Ham, when he looked sharp and full of creativity.

He’s a rare talent, capable of dropping between the lines and causing problems with his vision and passing. He’s very highly thought of by those involved at the youth level at the club, so expect his involvement to increase as his physical strength develops.

3. Emyr Huws

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Another youngster to have tasted first-team action this season is Emyr Huws, who came on in City's FA Cup third-round replay against Blackburn before recently signing with Birmingham on loan.

He's made eight appearances for the Midlands club and scored his first senior goal in the 3-3 draw with Burnley this week.

He's played for Wales at the U-17, U-19 and U-21 levels. Earlier this month, he made his first senior international appearance in their 3-1 friendly win over Iceland, playing the full 90 minutes in the holding role and acquitting himself well.

It is hoped his latest loan spell is the catalyst for consistent first-team involvement.

4. Jose Angel Pozo

Jose Angel Pozo is a 17-year-old striker who has spent much of this season injured, but it was clear from his performances in the previous campaign that this is a player with a very bright future.

Pozo was signed from Real Madrid in 2012 for £2.4 million, and in his first year at the club, he was the top-scoring under-21 player at the club despite being much younger than many of the players he was playing against.

He is technically sound and can lead the line very well for a player his age, with an excellent turn of pace making him difficult to mark. He is certainly one to watch in the coming years.

5. Karim Rekik

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Karim Rekik is a 19-year-old left-footed centre-back currently on loan at PSV Eindhoven.

Before his move to the Dutch side, he made three appearances for City's first team and had loan spells at Portsmouth and Blackburn.

Once he returned to City, it was felt he was too good to sit around waiting for opportunities. His move to PSV has seen him flourish, often playing at left-back to improve his distribution, making 21 appearances already this season.

With City's squad in need of a shakeup defensively, Rekik looks set to be involved next season.