Academy stars & signings – who are the youngsters to watch?

The Premier League season is almost upon us.

We all know the established stars who will be making plenty of headlines in the new campaign – but who are the young players we should be keeping an eye on?

BBC Sport’s football writers pick out some of the youngsters they expect to make a name for themselves.

BBC Sport’s Nizaar Kinsella: The 17-year-old midfielder has caught the eye of new manager Arne Slot during pre-season. He excelled in a friendly against Real Betis, which saw him singled out for praise by a manager who is usually reluctant to do so. Nyoni joined Liverpool from Leicester last summer.

BBC Sport’s Nizaar Kinsella: The 18-year-old defender made his Chelsea debut last season against Tottenham and was one of just two youngsters on tour in the United States from the academy. He is an outstanding athlete who can play centre-back or right-back.

BBC Sport’s Nizaar Kinsella: The 16-year-old forward has been scoring goals under Ange Postecoglou in pre-season. The immensely gifted youngster excelled in the under-21s team that won PL2 last season. He is too young to go out on loan so will probably stay and get a mixed first team and youth role.

BBC Sport’s Alex Howell: There’s been a lot of expectation around the development of Nwaneri since he became the youngest player in Premier League history when he made his debut for Arsenal at just 15 years and 181 days old in the 2022-23 season.

The 17-year-old made just one appearance last season in the Premier League against West Ham but hopes remain high for the midfielder.

Nwaneri started the Gunners’ pre-season friendly against Manchester United in the USA and provided an assist for Gabriel Jesus as Arsenal went on to win the match.

Manager Mikel Arteta has said that Nwaneri and the rest of the young players’ futures are in their own hands and they should “show what you can do” in pre-season.

If Nwaneri carries on how he has done so far, there’s a chance he will be getting more minutes this season.

BBC Sport’s Alex Howell: It’s quite remarkable that Adam Wharton only made his Premier League debut in February of this year.

His impressive performances in a short space of time saw him make his England debut and be included in the squad that reached the final of Euro 2024.

Sources at Crystal Palace believe that the 20-year-old is their best signing from the Championship and that is high praise considering Michael Olise came that way and has just secured a move to European giants Bayern Munich.

Then England manager Gareth Southgate said the national team had been missing a player like Wharton for “seven or eight years”.

If Wharton continues to flourish like he did in his first few months in the Premier League, a move to one of the division’s top sides could not be far away.

BBC Sport’s Alex Howell: Being a young winger at Crystal Palace can be hard, especially when the players initially put in front of you when you are trying to break into the team are Eberechi Eze, Michael Olise and Wilfried Zaha.

Rak-Sakyi went on loan to Charlton in League One during the 2022-23 season and won their player of the year award after scoring 15 goals and adding eight assists.

The 21-year-old suffered with injury last season and made just eight appearances across all competitions for the Eagles.

However, he has done well in pre-season, looking at home in Oliver Glasner’s 3-4-3 formation.

BBC Sport’s Simon Stone: Arsenal [where Obi-Martin played for the last two years] believe they made a fair offer to the 16-year-old forward, who has represented both England and Denmark at youth level. But he has decided to join Manchester United.

The reasons for this will be debated but Obi-Martin has proved himself to be lethal in youth ranks – he scored 10 goals in a single game against Liverpool Under-16s when he was 15.

It will be fascinating to see how quickly he develops and whether he gets a chance in the EFL Trophy and UEFA Youth League. If he does well there, might we see him on the United first-team bench at some point?

BBC Sport’s Simon Stone: I am not going against Pep Guardiola. It is a truism with youth players that they have the power to make it impossible to ignore them through the excellence of their performance.

The 19-year-old O’Reilly did just that against Barcelona in Florida. And while a number of senior stars are yet to return to training after the Euros and Copa America, O’Reilly’s performance against the manager’s former club is bound to stick with Guardiola.

As a midfielder, he knows a regular first-team slot is impossible for now given Rodri’s presence. But he may get opportunities from the bench, especially after another impressive display in the Community Shield win against Man Utd.

Leicester’s signing of Golding from Chelsea last month was an intriguing one.

The 18-year-old did not make a lasting impression on the first team at Stamford Bridge – making just one appearance as an 89th-minute substitute in a 4-0 FA Cup win over Preston – but has plenty of youth experience with England’s age groups.

He will not be expected to fill the gap left by Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, who joined Chelsea in July, but as a midfielder who can play as a 10 or a number eight, there is potential for him to become the next box-to-box star for the Foxes.

Nottingham Forest brought in winger Moreira from St Pauli this summer for less than £2m.

A Germany Under-17 international, he only made his professional debut last season but helped St Pauli win promotion to the Bundesliga for the first time in 13 years.

Moreira, who can also play right-back, helped Germany win the Under-17 European Championship and World Cup last year and joins with winning pedigree for someone who only turned 18 in May.

Wolves brought the 18-year-old Lima to Molineux for £8.5m from Sport Recife in July, reportedly snatching him from Chelsea’s grasp, and he has impressed in pre-season.

Nelson Semedo’s red card in last season’s final-day defeat at Liverpool gives Lima the chance to prove himself at right-back early on, with Semedo banned for the opening three games.

Portugal international Semedo is still likely to regain his place, but Lima is expected to leave a mark this season.

The 18-year-old has impressed in the Everton academy and earned his first professional contract in July, signing a three-year deal.

The midfielder broke into the club’s under-21 side last season and has been given a chance to feature in the first team during pre-season.