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Aqib and Masood have made it clear that the spin strategy is not short-term, but is it really a fix?

Danyal Rasool27-Jan-2025There has been lots of glorious myth-making of Pakistani fast-bowling. Of Sarfraz Nawaz, wily inventor of a new art no one new anything about. Of Imran Khan running in open chested, grace and effectiveness in equal measure, all culminating in a gazelle like gallop, creating the cricketer that led Pakistan’s greatest ever side. Of Wasim Akram and Waqar Younis, whose swing and accuracy were as addictively watchable as they were devastating, of Shoaib Akhtar, a high-speed train in a world of freight locomotives. The legends are passed on from one generation to another, and, for much of the region’s cricketing history, marked Pakistan out as the exception to the rule that the sub-continent was a land of spin-bowling specialists.The stories we tell of Sajid Khan and Noman Ali will be different, and nowhere near as enduring. After years of repeated failures to develop a home template in line with the self-image Pakistan wish to live up to, the current setup – led in part by Aqib Javed, member of Pakistan’s selection panel and all-format interim coach – dispensed with the idealism and injected realpolitik into their philosophy. The fast bowlers weren’t taking 20 wickets, and all attempts to prepare seam-friendly wickets had failed, as, seemingly, had the ability and willingness of many of their fast bowlers to actually play Test matches.Related

Warrican bags five as West Indies win in Pakistan after 34 years

Warrican dominates a series made for spinners in Multan

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Masood wants turning pitches in Pakistan domestic cricket

Their new idea was as brilliant as it was simple, hiding in plain sight. Pakistan had wizened old fingerspinners who always seemed to do well in spin-conducive conditions in domestic cricket. So, by way of fans and heaters, windbreakers and greenhouses, they prepared surfaces that ragged from day one, where fast bowlers were rendered as superfluous as horse-drawn carriages; seamers have bowled 17 overs for Pakistan in their last four Tests, and taken one wicket. Bat first, get the ball ragging, rinse, repeat.Pakistan finished the World Test Championship cycle at the bottom•AFP/Getty ImagesAnd supporters, despite disgruntlement from some quarters, were happy to sacrifice playing style at the altar of effectiveness. Drawbacks, such as what it meant for Pakistan’s fast bowling future, or the toll it would take on batters’ confidence and techniques could be ignored. Their captain Shan Masood went far enough to call it a “sacrifice” that the batters and fast bowlers were making. However, they had to win. That was the social contract.But if your only selling point is that the trains run on time, you do at the very least have to ensure the trains do, in fact, run on time. Over the past two days, West Indies demonstrated to Pakistan the precarity of that assumption. Any denunciation of Pakistan’s playing style over the past three Tests largely circled around whether these were sporting wickets of if they were doing Pakistan’s long-term prospects hard; that victory would be achieved was almost assumed. Before this Test, Aqib was already referencing the next World Test Championship cycle and how Pakistan would replicate these wickets because they needed to win “all their Test matches” at home to qualify for the final.Yet, results – on these surfaces more than perhaps any other – can tilt substantially on the flip of a coin. Pakistan were on the right side of it in two of the first three Test matches they won this way, but no pitch can guarantee you won’t have to bat fourth. And while three out of four wins is a vastly improved Test run than any Pakistan have managed at home in years, West Indies hoisting Pakistan by their own petard in Multan was a reminder of how few data points we have to extrapolate meaningfully into the future. Brendon McCullum’s “Bazball” approach to the England Test side began with a similar uptick in results to equally wild optimism over the first season, but longer sample sizes can provide surprisingly sobering reality checks.Pakistan were willing to ignore drawbacks of playing on a turner – like the toll it would take on batters’ confidence•AFP/Getty ImagesBut Pakistan have, to their credit, provided consistent clarity on their future intentions. An on-paper soft draw over the next cycle has encouraged Pakistan to dream of a possible slot at the WTC final in 2027, with the path invariably running through home wins. Masood backed his coach up, promising domestic cricket on similar pitches to help batters cope with opposition spin better.But Pakistan have to guard against chasing their own tails here; they may find they’re preparing for the season just passed than the one that follows. This was billed as the “bumper home Test season” with seven home games across three series, but it has come and gone, with their spin strategy “a new one for our batters, too” as Masood said. It may not be quite as new for them when the next season does roll around.Pakistan are scheduled to host South Africa later this year and then welcome Sri Lanka – a side that, in any case, they are unlikely to want to curate uber-spin tracks for – for two Tests in 2026. A year of honing batters’ spin techniques on pitches that have nothing for red-ball quicks is unlikely to be of much assistance when they travel away between March and August next year, five of which come in West Indies and England. Not to mention, of course, that in Pakistan, where the domestic red-ball season is jostled around at the mercy of different priorities, two years might as well be an epoch.The most flippant criticism of Aqibball, as it has come to be known, is that it was a short-term fix. But Aqib and Masood have made clear they don’t view it as short term, and Jomel Warrican’s West Indies showed them it may not necessarily even be a fix.

First win at Sophia Gardens since 1981 can’t make up for disappointment of missing out on promotion

ECB Reporters Network supported by Rothesay26-Sep-2025

Keaton Jennings helped Lancashire hunt down a small target•Huw Evans Picture Agency

Lancashire 374 (Wells 78, Jones 62, Balderson 51, van der Gugten 5-85) and 134 for 3 (Jennings 47) beat Glamorgan 265 (van der Gugten 53, Bailey 5-51) and 241 (Cooke 52, Balderson 4-75) by seven wicketsLancashire wrapped up their 2025 Rothesay County Championship campaign with a three-day win over Glamorgan thanks to a one-day style evening session.Stand-in captain Josh Bohannon oversaw his side’s first County Championship win at Sophia Gardens since 1981 against Glamorgan, whose promotion was confirmed last week. It was also Glamorgan’s first red-ball defeat since April, in departing captain Sam Northeast’s last appearance.After controlling the game from day one, Lancashire took eight wickets, including 4 for 75 for George Balderson before Keaton Jennings’ top-order blaze of 47 from 33 balls set the visitors on their way to chasing 133 inside 26 overs remaining in the day.The north-west county provisionally rise to third in an unsuccessful attempt to gain promotion from their first season back in Division Two while Glamorgan will play in Division One for the first time since 2005 next year.Resuming with the intention and requirement to bat all day, Northeast and Zain-ul-Hassan kept Lancashire’s bowlers at bay for a 58-run partnership before the former’s dubious lbw for 21 in his last Glamorgan innings, and Zain’s reckless reverse sweep on 45 chalked the hard work off.Balderson’s impressive stint of 25 overs all told gave a feel of him nagging at Glamorgan batters for the whole innings. On a varying pitch, his skiddy medium-pace with Matty Hurst stood up to the stumps for the majority saw Billy Root and later Mason Crane pinned, the latter putting up a good fight with half-centurion Chris Cooke before being undone by the new ball straight after tea.Despite single-figure scores prominent, every other wicket seemingly kept day four in contention for Glamorgan – Colin Ingram and Cooke held things together before the wicketkeeper’s hard-fought 50 came up with a counter-attacking six while in the company of No. 11 Ned Leonard.Lancashire made no changes to batting order, seemingly happy to see through day three on a pitch that provided plenty of turn for Tom Hartley – promising signs for Crane – as well as bounce variety for seamers. The assumption was wrong. Luke Wells together with Jennings in white-ball mode belted the new-ball around to take all the pressure off.Twenty from James Harris’ fourth over left wickets of no concern before Bohannon, George Bell and Hurst continued the momentum despite two consolation wickets for Crane.With five to win, Northeast stepped up to bowl as the final act of his four-year captaincy stint.

Squads, purses, players in the fray… eveything you need to know about the first ILT20 auction

ESPNcricinfo staff30-Sep-2025There have been capped Indian cricketers at the UAE’s ILT20 league in the past – like Robin Uthappa, Ambati Rayudu and Yusuf Pathan – but not many and not any as high-profile or as recently retired as R Ashwin. On Wednesday, Ashwin will be in the fray at the ILT20’s inaugural player auction where he has listed the maximum base price of US$120,000. Ashwin, though, isn’t the only talking point ahead of the auction.Ashwin first – how come, what’s the deal?He retired from international cricket during the 2024-25 tour of Australia, and then from the IPL in August this year. At the time, he said, “My time as an explorer of the game around various leagues begins today”. He has been doing some of that, and last week became the first capped India cricketer to earn a BBL deal, with Sydney Thunder.Now, Ashwin is in the ILT20 auction, and he has entered it with the highest base price – the only player at the auction with a base price in six figures. At a tournament where teams have names like (Dubai) Capitals, (Abu Dhabi) Knight Riders and MI (Emirates), he should be in demand. Especially because he has committed to the entire ILT20, and will go to the BBL only after it’s over.Is he the only Indian in the mix at the auction?No. There were 24 Indians in the longlist, and in the shortlist, there are five.Apart from Ashwin, another prominent capped player who has officially retired quite recently, though he had been out of the frame for a while, is Piyush Chawla. Chawla, with 192 wickets, is still the fourth-highest wicket-taker in IPL history. Ashwin is actually fifth on that list, with 187. And like Ashwin, Chawla should find a team too, especially at a base price of US$40,000.The others are Priyank Panchal, Ankit Rajpoot and Siddarth Kaul, all at a base price of US$10,000.ESPNcricinfo LtdI don’t recall ESPNcricinfo talking about the ILT20 auction before. Why now?Oh, there hasn’t been one in the past. Only drafts in the first three seasons. This time, there will be an IPL-like auction. Therefore, this. What’s also new is that the ILT20 in 2025-26 will happen in the December-January window, unlike the usual January-February window to avoid the crammed period at the start of the year. In fact, in 2026, the men’s T20 World Cup is also expected to start in early February, so it’s more cluttered than usual.What about auction purse?The franchises had announced their retentions and direct signings in July. Each team could spend up to US$1.2 million on those, with the balance amount to be added to the auction purse of US$800,000. While a franchise can exhaust its entire US$2 million purse, it will need to spend a minimum of US$1.5 million. The ILT20 rules also permit franchises to spend an additional US$250,000 to buy up to two wildcard players outside the auction.Here’s how much each franchise has left:Abu Dhabi Knight Riders: US$825,000
Desert Vipers: US$802,500
Dubai Capitals: US$10,35,000
Gulf Giants: US$10,35,000
MI Emirates: US$800,000
Sharjah Warriorz: US$800,000
Apart from Ashwin, who are the others at the auction with high base prices?After Ashwin’s base price, the highest slab is US$80,000, and there are 20 players at that price: Evin Lewis, Tymal Mills, Jason Roy, Karim Janat, Naveen-ul-Haq, Obed McCoy, Taskin Ahmed, Andre Fletcher, Liam Dawson, Mohammad Nabi, Jayden Seales, Shamar Joseph, Craig Overton, and seven Pakistan players – Fakhar, Saim Ayub, Imad Wasim, Mohammad Nawaz, Naseem Shah, Abdul Samad and Faheem Ashraf.The lower slabs are of US$40,000 and US$10,000, which is the lowest base price.That should be fun. So there are the usual player retentions and everything else?Of course. And pre-auction signings. Here’s the full list:Retained players
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders: Alishan Sharafu, Andre Russell, Charith Asalanka, Phil Salt and Sunil Narine
Desert Vipers: Dan Lawrence, David Payne, Khuzaima Bin Tanveer, Lockie Ferguson, Max Holden, Sam Curran and Wanindu Hasaranga
Dubai Capitals: Dasun Shanaka, Dushmantha Chameera, Gulbadin Naib, Rovman Powell and Shai Hope
Gulf Giants: Aayan Afzal Khan, Blessing Muzarabani, Gerhard Erasmus, James Vince and Mark Adair
MI Emirates: AM Ghazanfar, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Kusal Perera, Romario Shepherd, Tom Banton and Muhammad Waseem
Sharjah Warriorz: Johnson Charles, Tim Southee and Tom Kohler-CadmoreNew signings
Abu Dhabi Knight Riders: Alex Hales, Liam Livingstone, Sherfane Rutherford
Desert Vipers: Andries Gous
Dubai Capitals: Luke Wood, Waqar Salamkheil and Muhammad Jawadullah
Gulf Giants: Azmatullah Omarzai, Moeen Ali, Rahmanullah Gurbaz
MI Emirates: Chris Woakes, Kamindu Mendis
Sharjah Warriorz: Maheesh Theekshana, Sikandar Raza, Saurabh Netravalkar, Tim David* On Tuesday, the day before the auction, Dinesh Karthik was picked as Kusal Mendis’ replacement at Sharjah Warriorz.ESPNcricinfo LtdRemember, each franchise needs a minimum of 19 players and a maximum of 21, excluding the two wildcards they are allowed to buy outside the auction. The franchises will also have one right-to-match card but they can use it only to buy back a UAE player. That player must have been part of the franchise’s development squad or the 2025 squad.All that being said, the line-ups as they are could go through some tweaks, because despite the change in the playing dates, there will be a clash with the Lanka Premier League and the Bangladesh Premier League.Wildcards?!Yeah, all teams are allowed two wildcards. And all teams bar MI Emirates have signed their wildcards. By the way, a franchise can sign a player as wildcard anytime. Following is the list of players who’ve already been picked as wildcards:Abu Dhabi Knight Riders: Jason Holder and Usman Tariq
Desert Vipers: Shimron Hetmyer
Dubai Capitals: David Willey and Leus de Plooy
Gulf Giants: Kyle Mayers and Matthew Forde
Sharjah Warriorz: Tom Abell and Adil RashidSo Vipers can get one more if they want, and MI Emirates can get their two at a later stage.But I don’t see any Pakistanis anywhere. What’s up with that?Well, the first thing you need to do is read this by Osman Samiuddin. And no, there is no official ban on them, in case you were wondering.Also, there are 16 players from Pakistan, including many from the squad at the Asia Cup recently, who are in the auction shortlist: apart from Fakhar, Ayub, Mohammad Haris, Imad, Naseem, Samad and Faheem mentioned above, there are Mohammad Nawaz, Hasan Nawaz, Hussain Talat, Mohammad Wasim, Mohammad Hasnain, Salman Irshad, Sufiyan Muqeem, Usama Mir and Zaman Khan. You’d expect many of them to be in demand, unless there are non-cricketing factors at play.And how will the auction play out? When do the big names come up for bidding?The shortlist has 196 players who will fill the remaining slots. A minimum of 11 players will have to be bought by each team, so that’s at least 66 players who will find new teams on Wednesday. It will start with the players in Set 1, 2 and 3, who are all local UAE players, including familiar names like Rohan Mustafa, Ethan D’Souza, Vriitya Aravind and Junaid Siddique, among others.This will be followed by nine sets of players from Full-Member countries, and this includes the big stars: Ashwin, of course, as well as all the players in the US$80,000 base price category, and some even in the US$40,000 and US$10,000 slabs.Next come three sets of players from the Associate countries, numbering 23. Some familiar names are there too, like Namibia’s David Wiese, Netherlands’ Roelof van der Merwe, USA’s Aaron Jones and Unmukt Chand, and Nepal’s Dipendra Singh Airee.After that are the uncapped players from UAE, and players from Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, and finally the accelerated round, which is by no means a selection of unfamiliar names. You will find the likes of Ravi Bopara, Lorcan Tucker, Benny Howell, Curtis Campher, Blair Tickner, Gudakesh Motie, Keacy Carty, Bas de Leede and many others there.That’s a lot to look forward to. What else? When does it start, what are the other details to make a note of?The tournament starts on December 2 this year, and runs till January 4, 2026. So far, it has been an all-teams-play-each-other-twice in the first round, followed by four playoffs, totalling 34 games, and there’s no indication that will change.

Iran has announced they will boycott the event in Washington next month due to the U.S. denying visas to several members of its delegation, but will not withdraw from the World Cup itself, at this time. The U.S. has long-standing, strict visa restrictions on citizens from certain countries, including Iran, for claimed political and security reasons.

World Cup draw fiasco as Iran threatens boycott

The Iranian Football Federation (FFIRI) spokesman, Amir-Mahdi Alavi, stated the officials faced "visa obstacles that go beyond sports considerations". The U.S. granted only four visas, including one for the head coach, but notably denied the application for FFIRI President Mehdi Taj for the ceremony at the Kennedy Center on December 5th. Iran views the decision as a non-sporting, political decision and has informed FIFA, urging the governing body to intervene. 

The incident has raised speculation that the travel ban could potentially impact Iran's participation in the actual tournament to be held in America, Canada and Mexico, but officials have not confirmed a World Cup boycott at this stage. The issue highlights broader diplomatic tensions, as the U.S. previously announced potential visa exemptions for athletes and support staff for major sports events, though their application to the draw was unclear.  

AdvertisementAFPIran FA: 'No one will attend the event'

Following the announcement, Taj said: "We are evaluating our options, which will depend on timing and circumstances. We remain in close communication with the Iranian foreign ministry and other authorities, and we will take the necessary decision at the appropriate time. The current position of the Iran Football Federation executive committee is that no one will attend the event unless all visas are issued. It appears to us that the matter has become politicised. We informed the FIFA president, Mr. Infantino, that they have taken a political stance and the situation is completely politicised. We believe that FIFA should take a stand against such behaviour." 

Remarkable run of qualifications

Iran have consistently navigated the challenging Asian Football Confederation (AFC) qualification process to secure berths in the last four consecutive FIFA World Cups: 2014, 2018, 2022, and the upcoming 2026 tournament, making seven appearances in total at the tournament in the competition’s history. 

For the 2014 World Cup, they topped their final qualification group with a decisive win against South Korea. They achieved back-to-back appearances for 2018 by dominating their group undefeated, without conceding a goal in the final two rounds. Qualification for 2022 saw them again finish atop their group as the first Asian team to secure a spot with a win over Iraq. Most recently, they secured their place for the 2026 World Cup with a draw against Uzbekistan during the third round of the qualifiers in March 2025, marking an unprecedented fourth consecutive appearance through consistent top-tier performance relative to the quality in their confederation. 

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AFPWhat if tensions between the countries escalate?

There's no suggestion Iran will boycott the tournament, but if the visa issue remains unresolved and they do pull out, FIFA will have a decision to make on who they replace them with. FIFA regulations state that if an association withdraws or is excluded from the competition, the Organising Committee "shall decide on the matter at its sole discretion and take whatever action is deemed necessary". If they pull out before the main tournament draw FIFA would be more likely to invite a replacement team to fill the spot in the final tournament to avoid an unbalanced group. This replacement would likely be the best-ranked non-qualifying team, potentially from the AFC. If they withdraw after this point the spot at the tournament would most likely remain empty and opponents awarded victory by forfeit. 

Norwich City have held talks with one manager who has a 100% win record over the recently sacked Liam Manning.

When Norwich City could appoint Manning’s replacement

The Canaries finally parted ways with Manning after a seventh straight Carrow Road defeat prior to the international break.

The 2-1 loss to Leicester City was Norwich’s 10th defeat from 15 Championship games, leaving them in 23rd place and four points off safety.

Sporting director Ben Knapper said in a statement that he understood criticism from supporters and is looking to “repair the relationship” with fans.

“We have tried absolutely everything possible to work through this incredibly challenging period but, unfortunately, given the recent run of results and performances, we have been left with no choice other than to make a change at this stage.

“Liam and his staff worked tirelessly to move our football club forward. They are all fundamentally good people and we wish them the very best in whatever comes next.

“We very much understand the frustration and criticism from our supporters at this stage. So far, results and performances on the pitch haven’t been good enough.

“We accept that responsibility, but it’s now imperative that we start to repair the relationship with our supporters and do everything we can to give them something to get behind.”

Norwich City’s next 5 Championship fixtures

Date

Birmingham City vs Norwich City

22nd November

Norwich City vs Oxford United

25th November

Norwich City vs QPR

29th November

Watford vs Norwich City

6th December

Sheffield United vs Norwich City

9th December

Something that will get supporters back on side will be to appoint a winning manager, with former midfielder Gary O’Neil linked with the vacancy.

Norwich, according to reliable reporter John Percy, have interviewed O’Neil and want to appoint a new manager by November 22, the day club football returns and the Canaries travel to Birmingham City.

Norwich City hold talks with Will Still

Sky Sports reporters Zinny Boswell, Lyall Thomas and Anthony Joseph shared a Norwich City manager update on Wednesday morning, naming the three bosses who the Canaries have spoken with.

As well as former player O’Neil, Norwich have also held talks with Jon Dahl Tomasson and Will Still, with the former Southampton manager available following his St Mary’s departure earlier this month.

Still, who plays a 3-4-1-2 system, struggled to turn the Saints around, winning two of his 13 Championship games which resulted in his sacking a week prior to Manning.

He did defeat Manning and Norwich 3-0 at Carrow Road in an EFL Cup second round tie, though, which began a terrible spell at home for the former Canaries boss.

Still has a 100% win record vs Manning, and he was impressing over in France with Lens before his move to England, being linked with numerous jobs.

The 33-year-old is still inexperienced in English football, though, and after his spell on the south coast, taking a chance on Still would be a gamble by the Norwich board as they look to climb out of the relegation zone.

It could be a risk worth taking, although O’Neil and Tomasson have more experience in English football than Still.

Some of the most expensive players in European football just so happen to be some of the youngest. The next generation is officially breaking through, scrambling to take football’s crown in the Premier League, La Liga and across Europe.

CIES have ranked the most valuable teenagers in world football, and some of them also feature in the 2026 Ballon d’Or rankings, with Lamine Yamal next in line to become football royalty. The Barcelona winger finished second behind Ousmane Dembele in the last edition and is highly-tipped to take his crown in 2026.

But he’s not entirely alone in that battle. CIES’ list also includes four Premier League talents, and as English football continues to attract some of the world’s best players, there’s no denying that it could produce its best generation yet.

Lamine Yamal

Barcelona

€349.6m

Estevao Willian

Chelsea

€118.1m

Pau Cubarsi

Barcelona

€112.7m

Franco Mastantuono

Real Madrid

€102.4m

Warren Zaire-Emery

PSG

€92.3m

Ethan Nwaneri

Arsenal

€88.1m

Myles Lewis-Skelly

Arsenal

€84.8m

Geovany Quenda

Sporting CP

€80.2m

Endrick Felipe

Real Madrid

€73.2m

Lucas Bergvall

Tottenham

€68m

10 Lucas Bergvall (Tottenham): €68m

At just 19 years old, Lucas Bergvall is already an important member of Thomas Frank’s squad at Tottenham Hotspur. One of four Premier League players in the top 10, the Swede is valued at as much as €68m. The only way is up for the midfielder and that value, too. Whether that development ends in North London is the big question.

Bergvall has the talent to reach the highest heights in the Premier League – something that has not historically arrived at Spurs. Having already had a taste of trophies when winning the Europa League last season, the teenager will be one to watch in the coming years.

9 Endrick Felipe (Real Madrid): €73.2m

Although Endrick has endured a tough time under Xabi Alonso and is likely to head out on loan in the January transfer window, he remains one of the most impressive teenagers in European football. The Brazilian arrived in Spain for as much as €72m in 2022 and has since maintained that value in the last two years.

Now 19 years old, he simply needs the game time that he won’t be getting any time soon at Real Madrid. Whether that means a move to the Premier League or elsewhere remains to be seen. The likes of West Ham United and Manchester United have already been mentioned as reported suitors in what would be quite the move this winter.

8 Geovany Quenda (Sporting CP): €80.2m

Geovany Quenda’s place on this list comes as no surprise. The impressive winger is already reportedly on his way to Chelsea next summer after the Blues agreed a deal worth a combined £62.4m (€71m) to sign both him and teammate Dario Essugo in advance. Those at Stamford Bridge have made a reputation for sweeping up young players in recent years and Quenda will be next to arrive.

Chelsea should be glad that they got in when they did. According to CIES, the 18-year-old is now valued at as much as €80.2m on his own, let alone with Essugo. Set to combine with the likes of Cole Palmer and others next season, Enzo Maresca will be hoping to see a teenage star realise his potential in full at Stamford Bridge.

7 Myles Lewis-Skelly (Arsenal): €84.2m

An England international and mainstay in the Arsenal squad, it feels absurd that Myles Lewis-Skelly is still just 19 years old. The Gunners’ famous Hale End academy has produced yet another gem and one of the most valued teenagers in European football. Although, it’s difficult to imagine the left-back being anywhere but in North London.

It’s a scary thought that the best is yet to come from Lewis-Skelly, who is already valued at as much as €84.2m by CIES and is set to play a crucial part in Arsenal’s Premier League title ambitions.

6 Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal): €88.1m

Speaking of Hale End graduates, Ethan Nwaneri has been valued at a staggering €88.1m by CIES – making him the sixth most-valued teenager in European football.

Like Lewis-Skelly, the 18-year-old’s inclusion is no real surprise. The impressive attacker hasn’t been without his injury issues at times, but if any onlooker wants to discover his talent in full, then it’s worth watching his stunning goal against Manchester City last season.

That fact that Nwaneri burst onto the scene just a few years after Bukayo Saka emerged proves just how stacked Arsenal’s academy is with the next generation of stars.

5 Warren Zaire-Emery (PSG): €92.1m

Breaking into a side as dominant as PSG’s is no easy task, but Warren Zaire-Emery featured in 13 of their 15 Champions League games last season as they secured European glory as part of a historic treble.

At 19 years old, the Frenchman is only likely to play a larger part as the years tick by, taking his place alongside the likes of Joao Neves in Luis Enrique’s midfield.

Meanwhile, if anyone wants to take the midfielder off PSG’s hands, then it could cost them as much as €92.1m. Having graduated from the French side’s academy to become one of their most promising stars, his future looks almost certain to lie at the home of the European champions.

4 Franco Mastantuono (Real Madrid): €102.4m

Into three figures, Real Madrid’s Franco Mastuono is worth as much as €102.4m, according to CIES. The talented 18-year-old only arrived at Madrid in the summer in a deal worth around €45m, but is already looking like an excellent signing for the future. Unlike Endrick, he’s been thrown straight into Alonso’s plans and has even earned a number of starts at his new club.

One of the best teenagers that European football has to offer, Real Madrid have undeniably landed another gem at what should prove to be a bargain price in years to come.

3 Pau Cubarsi (Barcelona): €112.7m

The first and only defender on this list, Pau Cubarsi already plays a crucial part in Hansi Flick’s Barcelona side. It speaks volumes that the 18-year-old is often selected over the more experienced Ronald Araujo and that’s reflected in CIES’ €112.7m valuation.

Whilst the La Masia academy has produced some great attacking talents over the years, they’ll be relieved to have unearthed such an impressive defensive gem and someone who should be at the heart of their backline for years to come.

2 Estevao Willian (Chelsea): €118.1m

In years to come, many supporters around European football are going to be wondering how exactly Chelsea won the race for Estevao Willian. Whilst the likes of Florian Wirtz and Xavi Simons have struggled to adjust to life in the Premier League, the Blues’ 18-year-old Brazilian has thrived in the face of endless opportunities at Stamford Bridge.

Although those in West London have missed with a number of young signings, they’ve undoubtedly hit the mark by signing Estevao. Their teenager is destined for greatness and is already valued at €118.1m.

1 Lamine Yamal (Barcelona): €349.6m

It was always going to be him, wasn’t it? Yamal isn’t just the most valued teenager in European football, but he’s one of the most valued players in the world. He is next in line for football’s throne. This generation’s answer to Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo – that’s the level that Barcelona have produced once again.

Even with that pressure on his shoulders, the Spaniard has continued to thrive – becoming the main man at Barcelona in just a couple of years. Still just 18 years old but already outrageously talented, CIES value Yamal at as much as €349.6m – more than double the amount they valued second-place Estevao.

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