Liverpool vs. Manchester United: Who Has the More Promising Crop of Youngsters?
Liverpool and Manchester United face off in one of the Premier League's most hotly anticipated clashes on Sunday afternoon, and with both sides renowned for their approach to youth development, which has the most promising crop of youngsters at present?
Both managers, Louis van Gaal of United and Brendan Rodgers of Liverpool, have gone on record during their respective tenures as placing a heavy focus on youth development.
According to Simon Bajkowski of the Manchester Evening News, Van Gaal told MUTV in December: "We have belief in young talent and we give them also the chance to show themselves in the first team."
When Rodgers took over as Reds manager in 2012, he famously declared—as reported by BBC Sport—that: "I have an inherent belief in young players. They have to have the talent and the personality. A young player will run through a barbed wire fence for you. An older player will look for a hole in the fence."
But who has the most promising youngsters?
Ranking Criteria
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To qualify as most promising, we have factored in players' immediate route to their respective senior first teams, performances at youth level this season and a measure of subjective analysis.
Furthermore, to qualify as a youngster, we have considered players aged 20 or younger—so no Emre Can or Jesse Lingard, for example.
However, in the interest of late goalkeeping development, shot-stoppers aged 22 or younger are considered.
For the purposes of brevity, we have selected one star man for each positional department (goalkeepers, defenders, midfielders and forwards) as a marker of each side's most promising youngster and then a wider look at each side's youth banks.
To make a clear conclusion, we will round off with our overall verdict.
Goalkeepers
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Star Man: Sam Johnstone (Manchester United)
In terms of goalkeepers, neither side is blessed with a truly outstanding young talent, but the most promising of either crop is United man Johnstone.
The 21-year-old is currently on loan at League One side Preston North End, where he has kept seven clean sheets in 12 games, including a run of five consecutive shut-outs in February.
Johnstone is a superb shot-stopper from close range and has a bright future.
Whether that is at United or not, with David De Gea and now Victor Valdes blocking his route to the first team, remains to be seen.
The Rest
Liverpool's goalkeeping youth notably consists of current Morecambe loanee and previous first-team bench-warmer Danny Ward, former Tottenham Hotspur youth Lawrence Vigouroux and Scottish 'keeper Ryan Fulton.
United also have Kieran O'Hara, Joel Castro Pereira and exciting 18-year-old Vanja Milinkovic among their ranks, and the latter in particular sways this evaluation of promise towards the Old Trafford side.
Most Promising: Manchester United
Defenders
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Star Man: Paddy McNair (Manchester United)
Van Gaal raised a few eyebrows this season when he promoted McNair, along with fellow young centre-back Tyler Blackett, to his United first team, but the former in particular has vindicated his faith.
McNair has made 12 Premier League appearances so far this season.
The 19-year-old has also shown his versatility with a pair of starting appearances at right-back, and Van Gaal told MUTV (h/t ManUtd.com) back in February: "Maybe he shall be the right full-back of Manchester United for the next 10 years, you never know. He has the chance."
There is a palpable belief in McNair at United.
The Rest
Along with Blackett and the exceptional Saidy Janko, the obvious and unavoidable Red Devils stand-out defender is Luke Shaw.
The 19-year-old has suffered an indifferent 2014/15 after joining United on a £30 million deal from Southampton last summer, making just 13 appearances and being outshone by McNair, but his continued presence in the England senior squad is a true marker of his immediate quality and bankable promise.
In terms of Liverpool's defensive youth, current Accrington Stanley loanee Lloyd Jones stands out as the most promising, with many of their best young defenders—namely Tiago Ilori, Andre Wisdom and Jon Flanagan—all discounted due to our age parameters.
Most Promising: Manchester United
Midfielders
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Star Man: Jordon Ibe (Liverpool)
After a character-building loan spell with Birmingham City last season, and this season's temporary move to Derby County, Ibe has returned to Liverpool a well-rounded, devastating midfield option and a prominent member of Rodgers' first team.
Shining in a left-sided attacking role for the Rams, Ibe has shown his maturity by switching to a right wing-back role back on Merseyside and has usurped £20 million summer signing Lazar Markovic.
Ibe was particularly key to Liverpool's 3-2 win over Tottenham Hotspur in February, a victory which could have a significant say in Rodgers' side's top-four prospects this season.
The Rest
Again, one outstanding United prospect misses our top pick here, with 20-year-old midfielder Adnan Januzaj failing to capture the imagination in 16 league appearances this season.
Meanwhile, the likes of Ben Pearson, Andreas Pereira and Nick Powell promise to be hugely important players either in United's future or, in the latter's case, perhaps elsewhere in the English top flight.
However, the wealth of quality in the Liverpool midfield youth ranks is impossible to ignore when evaluating and comparing each side's promise.
Sergi Canos, Pedro Chirivella, Jordan Rossiter, Jordan Williams, Harry Wilson, Adam Phillips, Sheyi Ojo and the aforementioned Markovic will likely all have a big part to play as Rodgers prepares his side for the long-term future.
Most Promising: Liverpool
Forwards
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Star Man: Raheem Sterling (Liverpool)
That 20-year-old Liverpool forward Sterling is even in a position to, as The Telegraph's Henry Winter puts it, "[hold] out for £150,000 a week," while debatable in his deserving of such a sum, is a testament to his quality, promise and immediate importance to Rodgers' Liverpool side.
Sterling is Liverpool's joint-highest league goalscorer (six, level with Steven Gerrard) and assist-maker (seven, level with Jordan Henderson) and has played more league minutes (2,334) than any other 20-year-old this season.
It is his conversion to a centre-forward's role that has helped Liverpool blossom in the second half of the season, with a tactical intelligence and understanding of space beyond his years shredding defences.
No Liverpool or United youngster comes even close to Sterling at this juncture.
The Rest
In United's ranks, first-team back-up striker James Wilson, 19, represents the Red Devils' most exciting forward prospect, and he has scored one goal in 12 often-cameo appearances in the league so far this term.
Wilson has also scored three goals in seven U21s appearances.
Much like with the midfield, however, Liverpool's quality is in abundance when it comes to young forwards, with Jerome Sinclair scoring 22 goals for various Reds academy sides this season before moving on loan to Wigan Athletic, as detailed by the Liverpool Echo's Jake Robinson, while on-loan Lille 19-year-old Divock Origi is set to play a big part in Rodgers' future plans.
Most Promising: Liverpool
Verdict
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When considering and comparing the promise both Liverpool and United have in their youth ranks, the overriding feeling is that both Van Gaal and Rodgers have a true opulence in their respective academies to draw from in the future.
McNair, Shaw, Ibe, Pearson, Canos, Phillips, Ojo, Wilson and Sinclair will all make their mark on the Premier League in the next few years and have their managers' influence to thank.
However, when establishing which side has the most promising crop of youngsters at present, Liverpool stand out as the clear favourite.
The impact on Rodgers' first team by both Sterling and—albeit less so—Ibe, as well as the youth-level dominance of the likes of Sinclair and Canos, holds the Reds up as the most impactful in terms of youngsters.
Nevertheless, both sides can rest in the knowledge that their future is in good hands.
Verdict: Liverpool
Statistics via WhoScored.com and Transfermarkt.co.uk.
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