New Premier League Squad Rules Explained

There has been a huge debate in recent years about the number of foreign players being brought into the Premier League. Often, players of questionable talent have been brought in for various amounts of money and taken the place of young home grown talent which has begun to dwindle.

After this summer’s dreadful performance by England in the World Cup the need to bring in young and hungry talent was highlighted and it seems the league have finally heeded the call and have introduced a new squad system that has been put into immediate affect.

Here I have put together a short guide to the new regulations for the 2010/11 Premier League season.

Squad Size

All 20 teams will have to register a squad of 25 players at the end of each transfer window. It is not as simple as just selecting your 25 strongest players, though.

Importantly, each squad must contain at least eight players who are considered "homegrown" talents. The rules will only apply to the Premier League, though, leaving clubs with more freedom in the domestic cup competitions as well as European competition.

Homegrown Players

A homegrown player does not necessarily have to been English by birth or even through family. The official explanation given by the Football Association is that a homegrown player is one who "irrespective of nationality or age, have been affiliated to the FA or Welsh FA for a period of three seasons of 36 months prior to their 21st birthday."

This means that players like Cesc Fabregas are considered homegrown as he has been registered at Arsenal since the age of 16.

Exceptions

Despite being limited to the selected squad of 25 in-between transfer windows, clubs are able to include players outside the squad who are under the age of 21. This is designed to allow clubs to blood young players if they want cover for injuries or want to rotate the team.

Clubs will only be able to alter the squad during transfer windows, but the FA have said that there can be room for negotiation in exceptional circumstances. This would have to be a major issue, like the end of last season when Manchester City were left without a goalkeeper following injuries to Shay Given and Steven Taylor.

Also

If a player is named in his side’s 25-man squad and then shipped out on loan to the Football League, his parent club will be unable to bring in a replacement to make up numbers. However, when the player returns, he will be able to regain his place.

The first deadline for the new rule will fall on 1 September, 24 hours after the close of the summer transfer window.

Personally, I think that this is a fantastic rule and is a great way to encourage clubs to start bringing in young English talent and utilising their youth systems. I do believe, though, that this is only the beginning and as clubs adapt, more strict rules will have to be brought in to make sure there are plenty of English players being used more and more, not just young foreigners who have been brought into the youth systems as teenagers.

As far as I am concerned, this is a big step in the right direction for the Premier League and the future of the English national team.