A graphic has popped up online today showing the number of minutes played by teenagers in the Premier League this better.
It’s interesting – you’d expect Chelsea to be at the top, but in fact they’re 8th. The Blues have had 435 minutes of action from their teenagers, compared to 3,751 from Brighton at the top of the list.
That goes to show that while we’re certainly a young squad, our players have been bought mainly in the 20 to 21 year old range, clearly a deliberate decision from those upstairs. 19 year old Lesley Ugochukwu makes up almost all of our allowance.
You can see it all in the graphic embedded here:
Kind of a distinction without a difference if you ask me. A player at 20 is no longer a “teenager,” but the difference between them and a 19 year old a minimal at best. And the number of teenagers is also a lot less meaningful if those teenagers are playing within a group dominated by experienced veterans (as is the case at a place like Utd). Look at the median age if you want to gauge how heavily a club is relying on youth.