With the Premier League’s August 21 curtain-raiser edging closer, pre-season has offered clubs a valuable glimpse at the young players pushing hard to turn summer promise into senior minutes.
Several emerging talents have made the most of their opportunities on global tours, catching the attention of supporters with performances that suggest they may be ready for a bigger role.
Here, we look at the youngsters who have strengthened their case for Premier League involvement — and the established names they must move ahead of to earn those chances.
Brian Madjo (Aston Villa)
Aston Villa recently won their appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport after the 17-year-old had initially been prevented from representing the club under FIFA regulations governing the international transfer of minors.
Although Madjo was born in London, questions over his eligibility emerged because he was raised in Luxembourg, a country he represented three times at international level before changing nationality.
The forward arrived from Metz in January in a £10million deal that prompted surprise in some quarters, but his early impact has already put him firmly in the conversation for first-team opportunities.
Standing at 6ft 4in, Madjo has scored four goals during pre-season and his imposing profile has already led to comparisons with Romelu Lukaku.
Ollie Watkins has been given an extended break after the World Cup, while Tammy Abraham is working his way back from a shoulder problem. Add in the demands of Champions League football and the departures of Morgan Rogers and Jadon Sancho, and there is genuine hope among Villa supporters that Madjo can become a regular contributor.
Nearly three years after Emery handed a 19-year-old Jhon Durán his debut, another teenage forward seems destined for minutes.
Brian Madjo has been cleared to play for Aston Villa after a Court of Arbitration for Sport decision
The 17-year-old, who cost Aston Villa £10m, scored in Aston Villa’s pre-season win at Walsall
Dastan Satpaev (Chelsea)
Dastan Satpaev, a Kazakh forward, is doing the rounds on social media after his coolly struck finish capped off a wonderful team goal just seven minutes into Chelsea’s game against Western Sydney Wanderers in Australia.
The post has over one million likes and has catapulted the 17-year-old into the spotlight. The post has also led to debate over which is Satpaev’s dominant foot as the winger is so gifted with both.
New Chelsea boss Xabi Alonso praised the youngster after the game, saying: ‘He is really strong, really quick, you will be really impressed with him.’
The biggest obstacle for Satpaev is Chelsea’s squad size, with 40 other players and a wealth of attacking talent proving a tall task to overcome.
However, the winger will be hoping to leverage his experience playing in Kazakhstan and technical ability to force Alonso to make uncomfortable decisions.
Kazakhstan teenager Dastan Satpaev has caught the eye during pre-season with Chelsea
Satpaev, however, does face a challenge in breaking through due to Chelsea’s squad size
Jonah Kusi-Asare (Fulham)
Another forward aiming at securing more first-team football is 6ft 5in striker Jonah Kusi-Asare, who plays at west London neighbours Fulham.
The 19-year-old joined the club from German powerhouses Bayern Munich permanently this summer after a successful loan period.
Kusi-Asare featured in ten first team appearances last season, while he also proved highly effective for the U21s, scoring four goals in five appearances.
The Swedish forward continued this fine form and produced an encouraging display against Al-Ahly, winning several free-kicks in the latter stages of the game.
The departures of Raul Jimenez and Harry Wilson have left a gap in terms of attacking output that Kusi-Asare could exploit with his imposing size and Bayern Munich pedigree.
New Fulham boss Alvaro Arbeloa has signalled that he wants to place a greater emphasis on youth talent, that could provide Kusi-Asare a path to regular football.
Jonah Kusi-Asare, left, could benefit from Raul Jimenez’s exit as he seeks more minutes at Fulham
Trey Nyoni (Liverpool)
Trey Nyoni must have seen Rio Ngumoha’s breakout season and decided that he’s next.
The 19-year-old midfielder has been one of the leading stories out of Liverpool’s pre-season because of the confidence and creativity he exudes, summed up by his pass in the build-up to Florian Wirtz’s goal against Leeds. In the same game he also had the most passes into the final third, with eight.
Liverpool head coach Andoni Iraola praised Nyoni, reflecting on his performance: ‘Even when he [Trey] has one opponent quite close, he asks for that ball and he’s confident, he doesn’t rush. For me, that is very valuable.’
This bravery and maturity seem to be the traits that make Nyoni poised to take the next step in his career.
Nyoni has certainly made the most of the absence of Alexis Mac Allister and Ryan Gravenberch’s World Cup break and is exploiting Curtis Jones’ inconsistent performances to pave himself a pathway to first team opportunities.
Trey Nyoni has been one of those to impress during Liverpool’s pre-season under Andoni Iraola
The 19-year-old will look to follow Rio Ngumoha in establishing himself in the first team squad
Jacob Devaney (Manchester United)
Jacob Devaney, a Republic of Ireland Under-21 International, announced in a pre-season press conference: ‘The main aim for me is to play for Manchester United week in, week out’.
His pre-season performances have not harmed his cause.
Despite Manchester United’s lacklustre performance against Wrexham, Michael Carrick highlighted Devaney’s efforts, saying: ‘JD playing centre-half, it’s not natural to him, he’s played there a little bit, but not a lot and I thought he did ever so well.’
The 19-year-old had a promising long loan spell at St Mirren last season, where he gained valuable experience.
‘He had a really successful few months up there [in Scotland] and it was good to see him kind of take that next step,’ Carrick said.
‘And you could see today the confidence and the assurance in his game, even though he was playing a slightly different position.’
This sense of positional fluidity and Carrick’s emphasis on Man Utd’s youth and academy will certainly help the 19-year-old midfielder as he aims for first team minutes at the club.
Jacob Devaney earned the praise of Manchester United boss Michael Carrick during pre-season
Ryan McAidoo (Manchester City)
Ryan McAidoo, a player signed from Chelsea two years ago, is also making waves in Manchester and hoping for a bigger role next season. The 18-year-old winger was given his debut last season by Pep Guardiola and rewarded his trust with a goal in City’s 10-1 thrashing against Exeter City.
On Saturday, McAidoo impressed against Inter Milan where he proved a constant threat against the Italian backline and nearly nestled a beauty into the back post.
Maresca certainly seemed to be impressed with the winger, commenting after the game: ‘We have been speaking with the club about Ryan and since day one, he is that kind of winger I love… very aggressive one v one, always trying, making the right decision.’
This is encouraging news for McAidoo because this is the same club that handed opportunities to Phil Foden, Nico O’Reilly and Cole Palmer. Maresca himself is also no stranger to youth players.
‘When I was at Leicester, that season there was a record number of debutants. When I was at Chelsea, record debutants from the academy,’ he pointed out.
Although Manchester City do not lack attacking options, these comments must provide hope that McAidoo will be given opportunities to shine in the coming season.
Ryan McAidoo made his Man City debut last season and will be hopeful of more opportunties
Ibrahim Osman (Brighton)
Ibrahim Osman is another player who has taken his opportunities from pre-season and given Fabian Hurzeler food for thought.
Brighton, a club known for plucking talent from thin air and improving them, may have struck gold with the 21-year-old Ghanaian winger.
Osman has scored two goals in pre-season, a spectacular overhead kick against Wycombe and a coolly taken penalty against Strausberg.
The youngster is something of a forgotten man after joining Brighton from FC Nordsjælland in 2024, before loan spells at Feyenoord and Auxerre.
Ibrahim Osman spent last season on loan at Birmingham and now will eye a breakthrough at Brighton
Osman spent the last season at Birmingham where he got his first taste of English football, scoring four goal contirbutions in 17 matches, and the Championship outfit were desperate to keep him.
However, it seems that Hurzeler has other plans. The Brighton manager has been vocal in his praise for Osman and another teenager Amario Cozier-Duberry: ‘So just talking about Osman, about Amario, they had a very impactful pre-season so far.’
With the extra demands of the Conference League, the departure of Danny Welbeck and injuries to Mitoma, could we see Osman become the next wonderkid produced by the East Sussex outfit?
