The new stars of the Premiership is a title which is thrown around a lot and I know people are expecting to read about the same players over and over again. So don’t worry i wont mention Jack Wilshere, Aaron Ramsey or the Da Silva twins. They have all been publicised too often.
The first player who is destined for the top is nineteen year Jordan Henderson. The Sunderland midfielder has already made sixteen appearances these season and looked like he has been part of the first team for years. Henderson is a Sunderland academy product and spent last season on loan at Coventry.
Since being given a baptism of fire against Chelsea the teenager hasn’t looked back. The fact that makes his performances stand out is the fact that he is being played out of position. Steve Bruce has deployed him in central midfield due to injuries to key players. Henderson’s natural position is right of midfield.
Sunderland first team recognition has been duplicated on the international scene where he has represented England under 19′s.
The teenager is rated very highly and showed his potential in Sunderland’s 4-3 defeat to Manchester City. He not only scored one but a jinking run and cross allowed Kenwnye Jones to score.
With the right coaching and amount of premier league football it seems the sky is the limit for the Wear-side teenager.
The second player is Chris Smalling of Fulham. Chris’ rise has been meteoric. The twenty year old was brought from Maidstone United in June 2008 and went on to represent Fulham’s reserve team throughout the season, before eventually making his first team debut on the final day of the season against Everton.
The Greenwich born central defender has since gone on to represent the first team this season, most notably against Chelsea where he scored an unfortunate own goal.
Smalling actually represented his county while still playing for Maidstone United. He was chosen to represent his county (Kent) where his performance warranted a trial with the English School’s Football Association’s under 18 squad. Smalling went on to appear in the Centenary Shield in 2008.
The Fulham’s international career has grown since his move and has represented England at both under 20 and under 21 level. He is now seen as a first team regular by Stuart Pearce, who chose him for both qualifiers in November 2009.
The whites clearly hold their prized asset in high esteem as Roy Hodgson was quoted saying,
“I thought, if you analysed his performance over the 90 minutes, that he played with a maturity that I’m not entitled to expect from a player so young.”
this quote was after Smalling represented Fulham in the Europa League against CSKA Sofia.
The final player I want to mention is Jack Rodwell. The midfielder clearly has a boundless talent. He has already broken into the Everton first team and represent England at every youth level (except for under 20) at the age of 18.
It was clear from the start of his Everton career that he was going to be a star. At the tender age of 14 Rodwell made his Everton under 18′s debut. A solitary year later he was making his Everton reserve debut when he came on as a substitute against Sheffield United in October 2006.
Rodwell also broke the record of being the youngest player to play in Europe for Everton when he appeared against AZ Alkmaar in the Europa league. And what was his age you ask, a mere sixteen years and two hundred and eighty four days.
As well as Everton having high hopes for him he clearly has them for himself. He was quoted in a Telegraph interview speaking about his ambition to be in Fabio Capello’s England squad. He said, “At the moment there are a lot of good centre-halves with England: John Terry, Rio Ferdinand, Joleon Lescott and Phil Jagielka. There are not as many centre mids, which is an area you can work towards with the senior squad.”
As well as having an outrageous talent the teenage sensation clearly has his feet placed firmly on the ground,
“All I’m focusing on is the next game. I’ve got to be ready to start the next game and be in the manager’s thoughts. Obviously anyone would be flattered by interest from other clubs, but I really am happy playing for Everton. I enjoy it there. It’s where I’ve always been and I love it.”
This not only bodes well for the future of Everton but the future of one of the games brightest stars.
Tom Leeder
Tom Leeder is a recent University graduate and an avid Arsenal fan who will spend this summer and, hopefully, a few more fretting over the future of a certain Spanish central midfielder.
Written by Tom Leeder
Tags: Chris Smalling, Jack Rodwell, Jordan Henderson, Premiership
This entry was posted on Monday, January 4th, 2010 and is filed under England. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.
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what a irrelevant article. The players mentioned are not in the same league as Wilshere or Gibbs. Way off.
Have to totally disagree. Players at Arsenal such as Wilshere, Ramsey and Gibbs are talents, however they aren’t the only ones.
Since I saw Rodwell play the first time in the cup game against Liverpool last year (January?) I’ve been in awe of the composure he has on the ball. I think thats the first step to becoming a top footballer, being composed and being able to play your own game, of which he definately has the talent.
The clubs outside the top 4 are important for developing (English) Premiership talent just look at teams such as West Ham and how their ex-stars are littered across the Premiership.
I didnt want to write an article about the names you have already heard of. I understand Jack Rodwell has been in the limelight for a long time now but he has been playing consistently for a top six team.
I agree with you ewan Gibbs and Wilshere are amazing talents but there are others out there.
Have to agree on Rodwell. His touch and composure are fantastic. He does still look like the converted centre-half, but I expect the creases to be ironed out with experience. As is the case with any young player.
Another young star I like is Danny Sturridge at Chelsea. He looks a special prospect, the type of skillful striker that England rarely produces. Unless I have missed it he seems to have avoided the hype that has been heaped on the Rooneys, Wilsheres etc. He’ll be getting some gametime at Chelsea in the coming weeks and I have a sneaky feeling he might be a real dark horse to get on the plane to South Africa in June.