The 20 Premier League youngsters with the most potential

Martin Macdonald

• Updated: 25 Apr 2022 14:22 BST
• 3 min read

Phil Foden is the Premier League player at the age of 21 or younger with the most potential, according to SciSports.

Using in-game data to calculate the performance of every Premier League player, the Manchester City star has statistically the highest ceiling of any youngster plying their trade in England's top flight.

Under the careful tutelage of Pep Guardiola, who initially received criticism for not sending Foden out on loan, the attacking midfielder has emerged as one of the most talented players of his generation and is also a key member of the first-team squad at Man City.

FOOTBALLTRANSFERS' MOST VALUABLE PLAYERS IN THE WORLD

In the 2021/22 campaign, he has scored 12 goals and recorded nine assists in all competitions, and the scope is there for him to improve on these stats in the years ahead.

In second is Arsenal's Bukayo Saka. After breaking into the squad on a consistent basis in the 2019/20 season, the England international has arguably developed into the Gunners' most important player.

The world seems to be waiting for Callum Hudson-Odoi's career to truly catch fire, as the potential is there for him to become a star, even if he is in and out of the Chelsea team under Thomas Tuchel. He has the third-most potential of any young Premier League player.

Another player linked to Chelsea is in number four, as the Blues will likely be regretting allowing Marc Guehi to leave for Crystal Palace in the summer. He has been a revelation under Partick Vieira at Selhurst Park, and Chelsea could certainly be doing with him as they face a defensive exodus in 2022.

Rounding out the top five is Leicester's Wesley Fofana. Widely considered to be one of the best central defensive prospects in the world, he has successfully recovered from a serious knee injury to find his best form again for the Foxes.

How is the SciSkill ranking calculated?

SciSports explains how our development ratings are gathered:

“Among others, a positive development could be boosted by more playing time, playing time on a higher level or better performances on the pitch.

“A negative development could be due to the player being active on a lower level than he used to play, bad performances or the fact that he does not play that often as he used to do.

“A SciSkill Development of 0.0 could indicate that a player is performing exactly like our algorithm expects him to do. Another reason could be inactivity (e.g. a long-term injury or suspension).”