Albion v Villarreal 10 Aug 2024
The Wonderkid Power Rankings: Man United & Brighton youngsters surge towards the top.
We rank the ten best young players in the Premier League right now, with Manchester United and Brighton starlets among this week’s risers.
It’s Tuesday and that means, as always, that it’s time for our weekly attempt to decide who the best young player in the Premier League is right now based on their form at the very highest level – and we’ve got plenty of ups and downs in our latest top ten, as well as two brand new entries.
Aston Villa striker and officially licensed super sub Jhon Durán took the crown last week for the very first time, but can he become the first of our wonderkids to hold on to top spot for back-to-back weeks this season?
We’ll reveal that soon enough, but only after saying farewell to the three players who drop out of the Wonderkid Power Rankings this week to make room for youngsters hitting higher notes – Leicester City duo Abdul Fatawu and Victor Kristiansen (the latter of which is a little unlucky as he didn’t do much wrong but did get out-performed) and Crystal Palace’s Adam Wharton, who hasn’t been at his dominant best and has to take the bench for a little while. We’d expect to see them all back at some stage this season.
10. Destiny Udogie – Tottenham Hotspur (new entry)
The Italian full-back was a regular in last season’s rankings but has taken a little while to hit his stride this time around – a couple of fine outings in the league win over Brentford and the EFL Cup defeat of Coventry City suggest he’s getting back to his best, though. He was especially impressive against Brentford, racking up ten tackles and interceptions, looking strong in one-on-ones and popping up all over the left flank. His best game in a little while, and enough to push him ahead of the solid but less spectacular Kristiansen.
8. Yankuba Minteh – Brighton & Hove Albion (⬇️4)
The Gambian winger is on notice after two poor performances for the Seagulls over the past week. We saw occasional flashes of quality in the final third but no end product and further evidence of a worrying habit of drifting out of games for long periods. He also struggled in tight spots, winning just one of 17 one-on-one duels in two appearances. His work ethic is unquestionable, but he needs to win in more of those situations to be able to show off his quality.
3. Jack Hinshelwood – Brighton & Hove Albion (⬆️ 4)
The versatile teenager is going from strength to strength at the moment, and seems to be putting up strong performances regardless of what Fabian Hürzeler asks him to do – after starting the season at left-back he was on the right for the League Cup win over Wolverhampton Wanderers and then used as a midfielder in the 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest, a game in which Hinshelwood bagged his first goal of the season.
A brilliant header at the far post levelled the scores for the Seagulls, and he could easily have had an assist once or twice as well as he passed the ball beautifully throughout. He may not have managed anything quite so showy in the League Cup but he didn’t put a foot wrong, either, one single foul which drew a booking aside, and he didn’t allow Wolves to create any meaningful chances from the areas he patrolled. A seriously good week for a burgeoning talent.
