England U-18 Discussions Thread (2008 born)

He was awarded man of the match today but for me Jobe was better. It’s really exciting to watch us nurture two top young English youth internationals. Much better than watching a football league journeyman or a foreign import who isn’t bothered!

 

Genius.

 

Will be a lot of interest in him from the clubs in European competitions next summer since it'll be the last summer he can move and still be able to become club-trained for a new club, similar to Gray this summer.

 

Sunderland midfielder Chris Rigg, 17, is on Manchester United's radar, with the Old Trafford club viewing the England youth international as the 'new Jude Bellingham'. (HITC)

 

🚨 Manchester United are ready to step up their interest in Chris Rigg. United could make their move for the 17-year old as early as January to fend off competition from rivals.

(Source: @alex_crook) pic.twitter.com/W2MZ4wgCkE

— Transfer News Live (@DeadlineDayLive) September 24, 2024

 

Nwaneri scores for Arsenal.

 

Nwaneri's the truth. As a raw profile he's better than all the other attacking midfielders (not counting Jude as one) we've had come through the system in the last 5-10 years imo. Not seen anyone else who blends explosiveness and pausa in the way he does.

 

Manchester United and Bayern hold an interest in Sunderland midfielder Chris Rigg (17). The youngster only signed his first professional contract with Sunderland this summer after celebrating his 17th birthday in June [@MENnewsdesk] pic.twitter.com/E86nol0gGq

— Bayern & Germany (@iMiaSanMia) September 26, 2024

 

He’s got nothing on Foden or Palmer for me. He doesn’t give me the impression he’s going to be a top player - I didn’t see the cup game but hope he proves me wrong.

 

I wasn't so much thinking Palmer when I said that, I view Palmer as a pure attacker really, but I do think Nwaneri is a better profile than Foden/MGW/ESR. He's certainly not as dominant as Foden was at youth level but I think he has some raw qualities that could take him above Foden at senior level if he gets everything right. He's got miles to go yet though.

 

Better profile than Foden? Ok, I've heard it all before. I think it's fair to say that Chris Rigg, Lewis Miley and Mikey Moore have all so far far exceeded what Mwaneri has. Debut in added time, an appearance as a very late substitute in a game where Arsenal were 6-0 up and a first start (at 17 and a half) against a team at the bottom of the division two steps below and in the least important competition. Don't get too carried away.

 

Being a better profile doesn't mean he's definitely going to turn out better. There's just enough there to think he might imo.

You also can't really compare what other young players "have done" when their opportunities aren't equal. Chris Rigg has obviously done more than Nwaneri right now because he plays for Sunderland in the Championship, while Nwaneri plays for Premier League title contending Arsenal. Flip those two over and you'd have a very different situation.

Nwaneri's base skill set and physical profile sets him quite far apart from those three imo.

 

When you say “raw profile” or “better profile” what do you mean?

 

You can compare internationally though.

If you’re saying Nwaneri will be player of the season one day, assist in a euros semi and score in a euros final just say it.

 

He has better/more of the fundamentals that are more inherent and tougher to develop. So Nwaneri is slightly more powerful/explosive than Foden was at a comparable age and has a much bigger frame for winning duels, using his body to fend off challenges etc while generally being a more composed and intelligent decision-maker. They're both very left-footed but I think Nwaneri is less reliant on one or two angles like Foden is too.

That's his raw profile but I obviously can't speak on things like professionalism, commitment, ability to deal with pressure at the top level etc and those will impact how far he goes as much as his talent. We'll wait and see but if he's got those things he'll be an England starter imo.

 

Lacey back

Shea Lacey is back after 5 months out! pic.twitter.com/TI1SKCJw5K

— Academy Arena (@academyarenaUTD) September 28, 2024

 

Hmmm. Might remind you of this waffle in the future. Fending off players at youth levels is a sign that you have fundamentals that are more inherent?

 

His frame is naturally bigger but he still retains pretty much every athletic attribute you'd want. Sure, Foden could get bigger to better help him protect the ball but how would that impact some of his other athletic attributes? It's not natural for him because his frame is small. Nwaneri's physical composition is an advantage.

 

Maybe profile means he'll get more hype at Arsenal than Sunderland

 

Last season was almost a write off for hi. Hopefully the injuries haven't impacted his development too much as he's such a talent.

 

The Squad

Goalkeepers: Douglass Lukjanciks (Everton), Nicolas Michalski (Blackburn Rovers), Oliver Whatmuff (Manchester City)

Defenders: Chukwuemeka Adiele (West Ham United), Harry Amass (Manchester United), Jaden Dixon (Stoke City), Airidas Golambeckis (West Ham United), Carter Pinnington (Liverpool), Leo Shahar (Newcastle United), Olutayo Subuloye (Chelsea)

Midfielders: Jack Fletcher (Manchester United), Ollie Harrison (Chelsea), Callum Olusesi (Tottenham Hotspur), Trey Nyoni (Liverpool), Christopher Rigg (Sunderland), Souleymane Sidibe (Stoke City)

Forwards: Benjamin Broggio (Aston Villa), Jesse Derry (Crystal Palace), Shumaira Mhueka (Chelsea), Mateus Mane (Wolverhampton Wanderers), Frankie Runham (Chelsea), Trevan Sanusi (Newcastle United)

 

Interesting to see what happens with Alejandro Rodrigues, i.e. if he's back in the 17s or not with any group. He didn't get a tonne of game time with this group in the last camp, from memory.