Our Own Youngsters

[Douglas Higginbottom]

Ok.

Lot of talk going on which youngsters will get chances next year and who will be in around the squad. With new 25 player squad limitations and with homegrown rule in place it's almost guaranteed some will feature at some stage. I'd love to hear from people who have attended Academy/reserve games.

Some names that should have a chance:
Guidetti - Tied to new contract and seems very promising to me from what I've seen of him on. I think he has been promised some sort of role as back up striker

McGivern - Involved in North American tour. We are filled with leftbacks and centerbacks and while he has had some fine reports on his loans and made his debut, I doubt he'll make it with us in long term. I think he'll be sold next summer.

Boyata (does he actually count as homegronw? Not sure) - One of Mancini's favourite youngsters and hugely talented imo although needs lot of work still. He'll be in, I'm sure.

Mee - Same as McGivern. Talented lad but I don't see much future for him at this stage on level we are.

Helan - Supposed to be another talented lad but some say it's hard to tell what position he'd play in next level. Apparently doesn't quite have build for fullback in next level and we don't play with 4-4-2 wingers (nevermind wingbacks which seems his natural position).

Henshall - Supposed to be really really talented lad but too early for him this year and probably next as well. From what I've seen of him, kind of player who really needs to train his right foot as right now he is almost as one footed as Petrov.

Ibrahim - Didn't really look like someone who has attributes needed in modern world class team but we'll see.

Bunn - Some people have been raving about his performances for Academy and reserves but looks nothing like ready for top professional football against grown men. Needs to spend time drinking Guinness and eating cheese with some gym work thrown in. Clearly has eye for goals though.

Weiss - Will be interesting to see whether he gets his chance. If he doesn't, he is in situation where there will be demand for him and he will probably be sold.

Nimely - I think he'll be fighting with Guidetti. Another who is supposed to be hugely talented but some say his overall contribution still needs lot of improvement.

Razak - Honestly, don't know much about the kid.

Wabara - Got his first game against Bolton but as Razak don't know much about him

Have I missed anyone? Thoughts?

From what I have seen of all this lot.

Guidetti would be a no but I would still like to see him get some chances to prove me wrong. Strong runner if not that quick and a decent finisher.
McGivern/Mee/Ibrahim all no. Decent footballers but not at prem level.
Henshall tricky and quick but seems to lack the heart needed to make it. A full season in ( or trying to get in) the EDS will tell us more.
Helan , same as Henshall and would astonish me if he made it.
Boyata, really good prospect and I think a full year somewhere would be good for him.I don't think Mancini feels he is ready yet.
Weiss, an older Henshall. Tricky ,flashy and might be useful in the squad but not for me. I expect him in Spoain for a year.
Nimely,just another good footballer but not good enough.
Ibrahim as for Nimely
Razak ,not seen enough but doesnt seem good enough to me.I would like to see more in EDS.
Wabara,I have a good feeling about if he doesnt get too big headed.Probably a full back in the future.

Assulin is surely likely to be involved this season.Looks very talented. Roman is possibly as talented but I think this year will be a bit early for him.He should start to shine a bit in the EDS though.
Suarez looks a talented lad from the 2 minutes I have seen in training and it's good that he is on tour now.I expect he will feature pre season and maybe get on the bench in early season.
Bradley Robinson I have been told is being looked at closely. Way too early for the first team but if gets to train with them it suggests he is on the radar.

[Niall Quinns Discopants]

Doug? Was waiting for your reply but that was bit of a let down!

[the_georgian_genius]

Razak looked promisisng in that mini cameo he made against WBA.
Abu is supposed to be doing really well on loan in Norway.
Roman and Benali are supposedly the most talented players in our academy, don't think others stand much chance since the club moved on so much in a such a short space of time. I remember just a few years back we were all dead excited about Weiss, Vidal, Mee and Trippier

Francis Benali kid? Really? Haven't seen him mentioned much in Academy match reports.

Been injured alot last season but the season before he was in the reports for scoring alot and i don't think they are related.

I kind of seem to remember reading somewhere that he is Benali's son or nephew or something like that. Then again, I could easily be getting him mixed with someone else.

He could be unless Benali in Libya is like Smith and Jones in the UK.

[Douglas Higginbottom]

Doug? Was waiting for your reply but that was bit of a let down!

yep pressed wrong button initially :)

[Niall Quinns Discopants]

Ok.

Lot of talk going on which youngsters will get chances next year and who will be in around the squad. With new 25 player squad limitations and with homegrown rule in place it's almost guaranteed some will feature at some stage. I'd love to hear from people who have attended Academy/reserve games.

Some names that should have a chance:
Guidetti - Tied to new contract and seems very promising to me from what I've seen of him on. I think he has been promised some sort of role as back up striker

McGivern - Involved in North American tour. We are filled with leftbacks and centerbacks and while he has had some fine reports on his loans and made his debut, I doubt he'll make it with us in long term. I think he'll be sold next summer.

Boyata (does he actually count as homegronw? Not sure) - One of Mancini's favourite youngsters and hugely talented imo although needs lot of work still. He'll be in, I'm sure.

Mee - Same as McGivern. Talented lad but I don't see much future for him at this stage on level we are.

Helan - Supposed to be another talented lad but some say it's hard to tell what position he'd play in next level. Apparently doesn't quite have build for fullback in next level and we don't play with 4-4-2 wingers (nevermind wingbacks which seems his natural position).

Henshall - Supposed to be really really talented lad but too early for him this year and probably next as well. From what I've seen of him, kind of player who really needs to train his right foot as right now he is almost as one footed as Petrov.

Ibrahim - Didn't really look like someone who has attributes needed in modern world class team but we'll see.

Bunn - Some people have been raving about his performances for Academy and reserves but looks nothing like ready for top professional football against grown men. Needs to spend time drinking Guinness and eating cheese with some gym work thrown in. Clearly has eye for goals though.

Weiss - Will be interesting to see whether he gets his chance. If he doesn't, he is in situation where there will be demand for him and he will probably be sold.

Nimely - I think he'll be fighting with Guidetti. Another who is supposed to be hugely talented but some say his overall contribution still needs lot of improvement.

Razak - Honestly, don't know much about the kid.

Wabara - Got his first game against Bolton but as Razak don't know much about him

Have I missed anyone? Thoughts?

From what I have seen of all this lot.

Guidetti would be a no but I would still like to see him get some chances to prove me wrong. Strong runner if not that quick and a decent finisher.
McGivern/Mee/Ibrahim all no. Decent footballers but not at prem level.
Henshall tricky and quick but seems to lack the heart needed to make it. A full season in ( or trying to get in) the EDS will tell us more.
Helan , same as Henshall and would astonish me if he made it.
Boyata, really good prospect and I think a full year somewhere would be good for him.I don't think Mancini feels he is ready yet.
Weiss, an older Henshall. Tricky ,flashy and might be useful in the squad but not for me. I expect him in Spoain for a year.
Nimely,just another good footballer but not good enough.
Ibrahim as for Nimely
Razak ,not seen enough but doesnt seem good enough to me.I would like to see more in EDS.
Wabara,I have a good feeling about if he doesnt get too big headed.Probably a full back in the future.

Assulin is surely likely to be involved this season.Looks very talented. Roman is possibly as talented but I think this year will be a bit early for him.He should start to shine a bit in the EDS though.
Suarez looks a talented lad from the 2 minutes I have seen in training and it's good that he is on tour now.I expect he will feature pre season and maybe get on the bench in early season.
Bradley Robinson I have been told is being looked at closely. Way too early for the first team but if gets to train with them it suggests he is on the radar.

Cheers mate!

That's the first I've heard of Bradley Robinson but have to remember that name. Interesting about Henshall and Helan. I'm really surprised that you don't really rate Nimley as I've read some (fairly) glowing reports about him.

[the_georgian_genius]

Ok.

Lot of talk going on which youngsters will get chances next year and who will be in around the squad. With new 25 player squad limitations and with homegrown rule in place it's almost guaranteed some will feature at some stage. I'd love to hear from people who have attended Academy/reserve games.

Some names that should have a chance:
Guidetti - Tied to new contract and seems very promising to me from what I've seen of him on. I think he has been promised some sort of role as back up striker

McGivern - Involved in North American tour. We are filled with leftbacks and centerbacks and while he has had some fine reports on his loans and made his debut, I doubt he'll make it with us in long term. I think he'll be sold next summer.

Boyata (does he actually count as homegronw? Not sure) - One of Mancini's favourite youngsters and hugely talented imo although needs lot of work still. He'll be in, I'm sure.

Mee - Same as McGivern. Talented lad but I don't see much future for him at this stage on level we are.

Helan - Supposed to be another talented lad but some say it's hard to tell what position he'd play in next level. Apparently doesn't quite have build for fullback in next level and we don't play with 4-4-2 wingers (nevermind wingbacks which seems his natural position).

Henshall - Supposed to be really really talented lad but too early for him this year and probably next as well. From what I've seen of him, kind of player who really needs to train his right foot as right now he is almost as one footed as Petrov.

Ibrahim - Didn't really look like someone who has attributes needed in modern world class team but we'll see.

Bunn - Some people have been raving about his performances for Academy and reserves but looks nothing like ready for top professional football against grown men. Needs to spend time drinking Guinness and eating cheese with some gym work thrown in. Clearly has eye for goals though.

Weiss - Will be interesting to see whether he gets his chance. If he doesn't, he is in situation where there will be demand for him and he will probably be sold.

Nimely - I think he'll be fighting with Guidetti. Another who is supposed to be hugely talented but some say his overall contribution still needs lot of improvement.

Razak - Honestly, don't know much about the kid.

Wabara - Got his first game against Bolton but as Razak don't know much about him

Have I missed anyone? Thoughts?

From what I have seen of all this lot.

Guidetti would be a no but I would still like to see him get some chances to prove me wrong. Strong runner if not that quick and a decent finisher.
McGivern/Mee/Ibrahim all no. Decent footballers but not at prem level.
Henshall tricky and quick but seems to lack the heart needed to make it. A full season in ( or trying to get in) the EDS will tell us more.
Helan , same as Henshall and would astonish me if he made it.
Boyata, really good prospect and I think a full year somewhere would be good for him.I don't think Mancini feels he is ready yet.
Weiss, an older Henshall. Tricky ,flashy and might be useful in the squad but not for me. I expect him in Spoain for a year.
Nimely,just another good footballer but not good enough.
Ibrahim as for Nimely
Razak ,not seen enough but doesnt seem good enough to me.I would like to see more in EDS.
Wabara,I have a good feeling about if he doesnt get too big headed.Probably a full back in the future.

Assulin is surely likely to be involved this season.Looks very talented. Roman is possibly as talented but I think this year will be a bit early for him.He should start to shine a bit in the EDS though.
Suarez looks a talented lad from the 2 minutes I have seen in training and it's good that he is on tour now.I expect he will feature pre season and maybe get on the bench in early season.
Bradley Robinson I have been told is being looked at closely. Way too early for the first team but if gets to train with them it suggests he is on the radar.

Cheers mate!

That's the first I've heard of Bradley Robinson but have to remember that name. Interesting about Henshall and Helan. I'm really surprised that you don't really rate Nimley as I've read some (fairly) glowing reports about him.

http://www.mcfc.co.uk/Video/Match-highl ... highlights

1st goal

[Douglas Higginbottom]

The team for the Espanol game was:

Lawlor (Karius 46), Trippier, Meppen-Walter (Plummer 46), Kennedy,Rekik, ,Clowes, Ibrahim,Benali (Drury 65), Cole (Hiwula 46), Roman-Angel (Luca Scapuzzi 46), Helan(Henshall 80)

A very young side with Trippier as the old man captain. Tripp seems back playing well again but I think is likely to go somewhere on loan.
Meppen Walter is a strong player learning and should stay for at least another season in the EDS Left back at the mo but has played some centre back and he has the build for centre back.
Kieran Kennedy another centre back. Grown a lot of late and a prospect.
Rekik. I saw for the first time at Stalybridge and was impressed but his stature.Just something about him but not seen enough yet.
Clowes,intelligent holding mid player links the play very well and likes to get forward when he can.
Benali ,injuries halted him a little last year.I liked him a lot before so I hope he finds his feet again and impresses.A good eye for a pass and a goal.
Drury, pacy wide player who also can play well of a front man.Not much of him.
Cole, son of Andy and has inherited some of the genes.Not seen much of him personally but highly rated and coached a bit by Uwe so must be good.
Hiwula , not seen much but havent been impressed so far.
Roman, can play a bit with his head down but for me makes things happen and is a real talent.
Helan ,sorry not impressed.

Wish I knew where Wabara was. I think should be on loan this year.

[ant london]

Thanks Mr Higgi.....much appreciated

Was it an older team from Espanyol?

[lets all have a disco]

I'd love a group of players to come through the academy together and be as good as that rag lot in the 90's.

[bluelogic32]

The team for the Espanol game was:

Lawlor (Karius 46), Trippier, Meppen-Walter (Plummer 46), Kennedy,Rekik, ,Clowes, Ibrahim,Benali (Drury 65), Cole (Hiwula 46), Roman-Angel (Luca Scapuzzi 46), Helan(Henshall 80)

A very young side with Trippier as the old man captain. Tripp seems back playing well again but I think is likely to go somewhere on loan.
Meppen Walter is a strong player learning and should stay for at least another season in the EDS Left back at the mo but has played some centre back and he has the build for centre back.
Kieran Kennedy another centre back. Grown a lot of late and a prospect.
Rekik. I saw for the first time at Stalybridge and was impressed but his stature.Just something about him but not seen enough yet.
Clowes,intelligent holding mid player links the play very well and likes to get forward when he can.
Benali ,injuries halted him a little last year.I liked him a lot before so I hope he finds his feet again and impresses.A good eye for a pass and a goal.
Drury, pacy wide player who also can play well of a front man.Not much of him.
Cole, son of Andy and has inherited some of the genes.Not seen much of him personally but highly rated and coached a bit by Uwe so must be good.
Hiwula , not seen much but havent been impressed so far.
Roman, can play a bit with his head down but for me makes things happen and is a real talent.
Helan ,sorry not impressed.

Wish I knew where Wabara was. I think should be on loan this year.

I'm pretty sure Wabara tweeted about being on international duties, someone asked him why he wasn't on tour and that was his response.

Here it is... "international duty on 14th ! “ "just finished training with the england team... hottttt out here!" etc, etc.

[Douglas Higginbottom]

Thanks Mr Higgi.....much appreciated

Was it an older team from Espanyol?

Yes it was. here's a match report:

A young City side lost to Espanyol on Saturday evening but gained some valuable European experience ahead of the start of the NextGen League.
Goals either side of the break gave the hosts the win in Barcelona.The first goal of the evening came on 35 minutes when Bakari, who has joined Espanyol from Valladolid B, demonstrated why he had joined them with a well taken goal.In the second half Espanyol started with a totally different side from the first 45 minutes and City also rung the changes and introduced a young Italian striker, Luca Scapuzzi

The home side increased their lead on 53 minutes with Hector getting his name on the score sheet.
Loris Karius, on as a second half substitute, did well to keep out a penalty in the 73rd minute after Messina had been brought down after a solo run (so thats 3 pens in three games the EDS have conceded) and Karius kept out the effort of Cristian Alfonso.

City’s best chances came from Devante Cole and Ahmad Benali but were all to no avail in what was a tough game against much older players.

[FBlue]

Roman seems like a really good prospect. He has been scoring for fun since the start of the season, and I saw on the website he scored one cracking goal.

[ant london]

I think Fanzone Danny is a bit cringey but he's better than the normal OS commentator and I have to say that I like what they've done on the new format of EDS coverage

http://mcfc.co.uk/Carousel?id=7a972b57- ... 78b&play=1


On a more serious note, Assulin looks fantastic on those highlights......he will now replace MJ as my asbergers question for Doug's training reports!

[HeyMark]

I seen from an MCFC tweet that Pablo was at the game again the other night. I know some people reported him being at these games before.

Do you think Bobby has asked him to go to these games to check up on the young players, see how they get on?

[Douglas Higginbottom]

I think Roberto was there as well,maybe just to watch his son and Patrick was also there so no I don't think Pablo was there in a special role. It's not his first visit to Hyde either, I think he might just enjoy going.

[Dronny]

I think Roberto was there as well,maybe just to watch his son and Patrick was also there so no I don't think Pablo was there in a special role. It's not his first visit to Hyde either, I think he might just enjoy going.

Pab Zab just keeps on going up in my estimation......15 years from now as PZ lifts the Chumps League for the 3rd successive season :-)

[Mike J]

watched the highlights on the OS. Even for only a few clips, Assulin looks a player

[Douglas Higginbottom]

watched the highlights on the OS. Even for only a few clips, Assulin looks a player

He does look a player and he is a player but highlights against a pub team where I might have looked good are not a good measurement.

[Mike J]

watched the highlights on the OS. Even for only a few clips, Assulin looks a player

He does look a player and he is a player but highlights against a pub team where I might have looked good are not a good measurement.

didnt realise the opposition was that poor. however i think he is a prospect to get excited about. hope mancini gives him a shot this year.

[Ted Hughes]

I'm sure he's a nice bloke, if you know him, & a true blue, does a lot for charity. etc etc but I wish Fanzone Danny would just FUCK OFF.

GET OUT OF THE FUCKING WAY AND PUT MORE OF THE FUCKING FOOTBALL ON, I'M NOT INTERESTED IN ANYTHING YOU HAVE TO SAY. Why the fuck do I want to see him, when I went on the site to watch City?

I think that the changes being made to our reserves/academy are fantastic & it's almost everything I've been asking for in recent years. I love the difference in our EDS where, last season, I was going off on one about the number of obvious no-marks like Etuhu & Mee who were clogging it up, wasting time. Now it seems to be used for genuiniely trying out players who at least have a chance of making it to the level we need. Hopefully as they decide on the triallists etc, some of the better academy prospects will be fast tracked into that squad & play with the best we have. I think we have some real prospects at each level. Just on little bits I've seen; some look a level higher than most of what we've had in the past & the Etihad Campus hasn't even been built yet.

We are going to revolutionise the production of young footballers in this country. I just know it. Everyone has been getting it wrong.