U23 Players 2020-21

[Trequartista20]

Danny Mandroiu has signed for Shamrock Rovers.

[Trequartista20]

Shamrock Rovers' Brandon Kavanagh is training with Palace, and teammate Killian Cahill is reportedly interesting Brighton.

https://m.independent.ie/sport/soccer/league-of-ireland/shamrock-rovers-starlet-brandon-kavanagh-on-crystal-palace-radar-39869584.html

[elatedscum]

Shamrock Rovers' Brandon Kavanagh is training with Palace, and teammate Killian Cahill is reportedly interesting Brighton.

https://m.independent.ie/sport/soccer/league-of-ireland/shamrock-rovers-starlet-brandon-kavanagh-on-crystal-palace-radar-39869584.html

Was Cahill playing in goal for Rovers II? Assumed it was Kian Clarke.

Good for Brandon. Lovely kid, lovely player.

Guess the signing of Danno Mandriou means that Rovers have given up on Byrne resigning.

[Razors left peg]

Neither Smallbone or Obafemi make the bench for Southampton tonight. Would have hoped both would have kicked on a bit more this season.

[Trequartista20]

It seems strange to think that Obafemi was being linked with £10m moves to Villa and WBA a matter of a few months ago after some promising performances last season. His career really hasn't progressed this season as I'd hoped.

Smallbone's been injured recently, but again it's disappointing he hasn't seen more game time. I do think he'll come good, however.

[liamoo11]

Was Cahill playing in goal for Rovers II? Assumed it was Kian Clarke.

Good for Brandon. Lovely kid, lovely player.

Guess the signing of Danno Mandriou means that Rovers have given up on Byrne resigning.

Byrne has set mandriou a high bar which is great , Byrne brought great consistency hopefully mandriou can develop that under Bradley. Kavanagh and mandriou would be hard to fit in the same team I guess. Is Sean brennan with rovers full time now and finished at Southampton? Hopefully zefi is in rovers first team in the new year

[Eirambler]

Daniel Grant signing for Huddersfield subject to a medical. Would probably be aiming to go straight into the first team squad in the Championship.

There are different dates of birth listed for him online - December 1999 or October 2000. If it's 2000 he'll be eligible for our under 21s in the next campaign, if the December 99 date is correct he misses out by a week.

Edit - I see his Twitter handle is dangrant99. So he's too old for all our underage teams unfortunately.

[tetsujin1979]

His Twitter account has 99 in it, so it's probably December 1999 - I know someone pointed that out to me here, but I can't remember who!
1339666825051828227

[nigel-harps1954]

Byrne has set mandriou a high bar which is great , Byrne brought great consistency hopefully mandriou can develop that under Bradley. Kavanagh and mandriou would be hard to fit in the same team I guess. Is Sean brennan with rovers full time now and finished at Southampton? Hopefully zefi is in rovers first team in the new year

Zefi is 15 years of age...

[Exgrad]

Zefi is 15 years of age...

Now that 18 year old Troy Parrott with less than 20 senior appearances is all washed up, i feel it is time to go all in on a 15 year old. However if he has not made a champions league appearance for Inter Milan by the time he is 17 he can do one as well.

[Olé Olé]

I see Lee Harkin came on for Wolves 23s today. Think it is his first appearance at that level. Only turned 17 in May. From Derry but has plumped for us. Prospect.

[Olé Olé]

A bit unfair by me not to mention Cork's Ethon Varian for his hat trick for Stoke against West Brom.

Springett, Giurgi, Carty, Richards, Omobamidele, McEntee and bright young prospect James McCarthy all played today too. Young McCarthy getting a goal.

[Trequartista20]

A bit unfair by me not to mention Cork's Ethon Varian for his hat trick for Stoke against West Brom.

Springett, Giurgi, Carty, Richards, Omobamidele, McEntee and bright young prospect James McCarthy all played today too. Young McCarthy getting a goal.

Ethon Varian's a fantastic name! Sounds like the morally ambiguous anti-hero from a dark, gritty, dystopian neo-noir novel.

[tetsujin1979]

A bit unfair by me not to mention Cork's Ethon Varian for his hat trick for Stoke against West Brom.

Springett, Giurgi, Carty, Richards, Omobamidele, McEntee and bright young prospect James McCarthy all played today too. Young McCarthy getting a goal.
Highlights from the Stoke - West Brom game, including Varian's hat trick are on YouTube
IdArYW-k0x0

[tetsujin1979]

New contact for Andrew Omobamidele at Norwich until 2024: https://www.canaries.co.uk/News/2020/december/andrew-omobamidele-signs-new-contract-with-the-canaries

[Olé Olé]

New contact for Andrew Omobamidele at Norwich until 2024: https://www.canaries.co.uk/News/2020/december/andrew-omobamidele-signs-new-contract-with-the-canaries
I know they have a lot of injuries but he's been in the first team squad a lot recently. Cracking player from what I have seen of him underage for Ireland. Great reader of the game and good in the air and on the deck. If he can sustain his physical development he can make it.

[tetsujin1979]

Odubeko might make his senior Wear Ham debut in the cup in January
1341819262286131200

[Trequartista20]

Adam Idah signs a new deal at Norwich running to 2024.

https://www.canaries.co.uk/News/2020/december/adam-idah-new-contract/

[Trequartista20]

Looks like he may be back sooner than expected from injury, too.

Happy Christmas everyone.

https://www.pinkun.com/sport/norwich-city/adam-idah-signs-new-norwich-city-ontract-6867736

[liamoo11]

Zefi is 15 years of age...
He was involved 10 times for rovers b team since football returned after lockdown so heis playing mens football already. The progression from the start of the new season to having him continue to play mens senior football but at a higher level with shamrock rovers first team would be great . He will be 16 then which I think is a similar age to when bazuna played for rovers first team. I'd far prefer that to happen than have him move like furlong did from rovers first team involvement at 16 to Brighton's 18s and 2 years later just been involved in their 23s.

[Charlie Darwin]

He's not close to the first team at the moment, to be honest. Huge talent but there's a big step up from a development team to a team chasing a league title. That could easily change over the next three months but the principle applies.

[pineapple stu]

Yeah, it has to be noted Rovers B were fairly crap in a poor First Division.

Obviously that's still a good standard for a 15-year-old, but it's still worth keeping it in perspective

[Charlie Darwin]

Yeah, it has to be noted Rovers B were fairly crap in a poor First Division.

Obviously that's still a good standard for a 15-year-old, but it's still worth keeping it in perspective
I went to a few games and they weren't crap, just they were at a level above their capability at the moment. They were still better than the awful B team we put out years ago that was actually full of adults.

[pineapple stu]

Well in this context (potential national team players), the First Division as a level above your capability is fairly crap in fairness. Obviously more potential there than in most of the other sides, but I wouldn't put too much stock in it for now.

[liamoo11]

He's not close to the first team at the moment, to be honest. Huge talent but there's a big step up from a development team to a team chasing a league title. That could easily change over the next three months but the principle applies.

Thanks Charles. Been in and around the first team squad would hopefully bring him on and continue his development In a progressive football environment. Kinda depressing to think of him signing for a big club and struggling to make their youth cup team. For rovers there must be an incentive to have their very most talented youngsters somewhat involved to give them a better chance of a decent transfer fee

,

[Charlie Darwin]

Well in this context (potential national team players), the First Division as a level above your capability is fairly crap in fairness. Obviously more potential there than in most of the other sides, but I wouldn't put too much stock in it for now.
Well it's pretty good for a bunch of 16 and 17 year olds. I'm not sure what point you're trying to make here.

[pineapple stu]

I'm not sure what point you're trying to make here.
You quoted the point I was trying to make.

In the context of potential national team players (even at underage level), playing First Division football is meaningless.

Yes, he's 15 and has lots of potential, but how many players have we said that about down the years?

So while liamo is mapping his career progression to first team football next year and onwards from there, I'm just saying to hold the whisht a little bit yet. That's all.

[liamoo11]

You quoted the point I was trying to make.

In the context of potential national team players (even at underage level), playing First Division football is meaningless.

Yes, he's 15 and has lots of potential, but how many players have we said that about down the years?

So while liamo is mapping his career progression to first team football next year and onwards from there, I'm just saying to hold the whisht a little bit yet. That's all.

I'm not really chatting out his career I'm simply saying moving him into an environment with better players in rovers first s would likely bring him on more in my uneducated opinion compared to inter Milan under 18s or a big British academy. Of course that mighten be correct but from rovers point of view it has to be a big incentive to give them a better chance of a good transfer fee. Isn't this model what alot of people want to see with Brexit, basically league of Ireland clubs giving young players opportunities in the hope of selling them on as 19 or 20 year olds for fees in the hundreds of thousands and maybe millions?

[liamoo11]

Louie Watson on bench today. Similar to Scully at west ham he seemed to practically miss a couple of full seasons with injuries so great to see he has got himself fit enough to at this level

[pineapple stu]

I'm not really chatting out his career I'm simply saying moving him into an environment with better players in rovers first s would likely bring him on more in my uneducated opinion compared to inter Milan under 18s or a big British academy. Of course that mighten be correct but from rovers point of view it has to be a big incentive to give them a better chance of a good transfer fee. Isn't this model what alot of people want to see with Brexit, basically league of Ireland clubs giving young players opportunities in the hope of selling them on as 19 or 20 year olds for fees in the hundreds of thousands and maybe millions?
Well ok, that's fair. He may be a bit away from regular first team involvement though.

My post wasn't intended as a dig btw. I guess let's keep the feet on the ground is all. But yes, I do agree it's better than going to England (or Italy) now.

[Charlie Darwin]

You quoted the point I was trying to make.

In the context of potential national team players (even at underage level), playing First Division football is meaningless.

Yes, he's 15 and has lots of potential, but how many players have we said that about down the years?

So while liamo is mapping his career progression to first team football next year and onwards from there, I'm just saying to hold the whisht a little bit yet. That's all.
I think Liamo was just enquiring about the gap between first team and reserve.

[tetsujin1979]

Louie Watson on for his senior Derby County debut
1343999902045659143

[tetsujin1979]

U19 player Alex Gilbert named on the bench for Brentford today
1344319977441132548

[samhaydenjr]

Louie Watson on for his senior Derby County debut


U19 player Alex Gilbert named on the bench for Brentford today

That's brilliant - two players I hadn't even heard of making a breakthrough!

[Olé Olé]

Both of those lads left Premier League sides to move to the Championship clubs during the summer too. Watson left West Ham and Gilbert left West Brom. Interesting route to the first team. They may yet rely on the uncertainty of the loan market but it's great to see them both earn senior exposure in this manner first.

[Eirambler]

With the January transfer window opening in a few days hopefully a few of our under 23 players will get moves in January - either on loan or as permanent transfers - because a lot of them have been playing little or no competitive football this season.

Molumby - I think he was right to stay and try for a first team place in the autumn but it hasn't worked out. Should have a choice of Championship clubs though after his performances with Millwall last season.

Kilkenny - seems to have stalled at Bournemouth but did at least make his league debut. Needs games though.

Obafemi - Out of favour at Southampton. Might interest a Championship club in a permanent transfer.

Masterson - doesn't seem to be trusted at QPR - should maybe drop another division on loan to get a run of games.

Coventry - possibly injured? Unlikely to play much at West Ham either way though.

Connell - hasn't played any first team football in close to two years now. Surely he will finally be allowed to go on loan in January - Celtic's treatment of him bordering on negligent at this stage.

Ferry - made the Southampton bench a few times last season but seems to have fallen back since.

Hodge - quite a few of the other city players around his age have gone on loan, including Bazunu, would be good to see him go to somewhere in League 1 for a few months.

Travers - needs first team football but will probably be retained as second choice keeper at Bournemouth.

Parrott - a different situation to the others but it's just not working out at Millwall between injuries and the way the team is set up. He turns 19 in a month so still very young obviously but Millwall doesn't seem to be the right place for him. There has been some talk of him being recalled and sent elsewhere. I wouldn't have a problem with a move to League 1 or an Eredivisie team or somewhere else for a few months to see how he goes in a different environment.

In terms of our under 23 players that have been playing this season the clear standouts so far have been O'Shea, Collins and Knight. Bazunu's performances before he got injured were really encouraging as well and Kelleher's short run in the Liverpool first team was great to see, although it now presumably means no loan move this season.

Danny McNamara and Jake Doyle Hayes have also both done really well in Scotland and Mark McGuinness is getting great first team experience out on loan at Ipswich. Scully has done well at Lincoln also.

In the negative column, other than Parrott's spell at Millwall, O'Connor's loan move to Tranmere has been a bit of a disaster - he has lost his place in the team despite being the only right back in the squad and a new right back seems to be their main transfer priority next month. He doesn't seem to have transferred well to men's football at all in the last year and you'd have to worry about his prospects at this stage if he's not good enough for a mid table League 2 team - his place in our Under 21 team could be under pressure in the next campaign as well.

Similarly Afolabi hasn't really managed to break into the Dundee first team, although he did suffer an unfortunately timed injury. But it's a concern that he isn't first choice in a division that would be weaker than the League of Ireland for comparison.

Ryan Cassidy seems to be struggling for minutes at Accrington as well and Aaron Bolger is another I'd be concerned about. 6 months left on his contract at Cardiff and you'd wonder where he goes from here. Probably back to the League of Ireland but he didn't make much of an impression during his loan move to Shamrock Rovers.

Possibly O'Connor, Afolabi, Cassidy and Bolger are four that won't turn out to be as good as we might have hoped a couple of years ago.

[Olé Olé]

The Athletic did a piece on "The 20 Young Premier League players to watch out for in 2021", selecting one from each club. No set criteria for making the list but it is primarily players without a first team appearance. One Irish player on the list- Mipo Odubeko at West Ham.

[ColourfulPeanut]

I fully expect him to play and star for England under the residency rule and for him to be hated to the levels of Rice in the future.

Obviously cynical and hope I'm wrong. He wouldn't be far off senior cap for us now, basically the same situation as Parrott when he was capped, so we'll see soon enough.

[tetsujin1979]

Full list is here: https://theathletic.com/2300583/2021/01/05/premier-league-prospects-2021/
Also includes former U16 striker Louis Barry, and Ireland-born Denis Cirkin, and it mentions that he's also eligible for Latvia

[Eirambler]

I find these kind of articles interesting but unreliable. The Guardian do a next gen series every year profiling what they think are the top 50 or so young players from around the world but their rate of success in terms of picking out future stars is terrible to be honest.

I was looking through their list for players born in 1997 to see how they got on (all of the players are now 23) and very few, maybe five or six at most, have lived up to the hype. Maybe The Athletic will do a better job of picking out talent but it shows what a lottery this kind of thing can be.

https://www.theguardian.com/football/blog/ng-interactive/2014/oct/14/next-generation-2014-40-of-the-best-young-talents-in-world-football

[tetsujin1979]

The BBC made predictions in 2002 for England's 2010 world cup squad, and it comes up from time to time online - none of them made the final squad.

[Olé Olé]

It would be interesting to do one for Ireland right about now. If only to see how many times each member of the squad gets written off over on YBIG before this season even ends.

[Eirambler]

Don't think I'm brave enough to do one for 2028. 7 years time - there could be 11 year olds today that would be in that squad!

Here's a stab at one for Euro 2024 if we were to qualify.

Gavin Bazunu (22)
Caoimhin Kelleher (25)
Mark Travers (25)
Seamus Coleman (35)
Matt Doherty (32)
Dara O'Shea (25)
Nathan Collins (23)
Mark McGuinness (23)
John Egan (31)
Enda Stevens (33)
Sean Roughan (20)
Jayson Molumby (24)
Jason Knight (23)
Josh Cullen (28)
Joe Hodge (21)
Alan Browne (29)
Will Smallbone (24)
Robbie Brady (32)
Aaron Connolly (24)
Troy Parrott (22)
Adam Idah (23)
Callum Robinson (29)
Evan Ferguson (19)

Eight currently uncapped players. Probably pushing it a bit with Coleman but he's such a warrior that you wouldn't rule it out.

That list will probably look ridiculous in three and a half years time.

[Olé Olé]

The beauty of your list is that it demonstrates that only a couple from each age bracket/underage side need to make it to improve the senior squad. Odubeko, Obafemi, Cassidy, Kayode are examples of strikers that have a strong chance of making it to a level worthy of senior recognition that don't make your squad. Even in midfield, Bowden, Noss, Grant, Okoflex, Scully, Ferry, Taylor and Connell are potential internationals if they can maintain or, in Connell's case, kickstart their progression.

At the back, I really think that Collins and O'Shea look to have very bright futures. I would have them in the same bracket as Knight and Connolly for my list of long-term squad mainstays. Parrott and Idah could easily join them but have more to do in men's football for me at present.

[Charlie Darwin]

I fully expect him to play and star for England under the residency rule and for him to be hated to the levels of Rice in the future.

Obviously cynical and hope I'm wrong. He wouldn't be far off senior cap for us now, basically the same situation as Parrott when he was capped, so we'll see soon enough.
He can't qualify for England on residency. The only way he could play for them is if he had an English parent or grandparent.

[tetsujin1979]

The BBC made predictions in 2002 for England's 2010 world cup squad, and it comes up from time to time online - none of them made the final squad.
I was way off here, it was actually predictions made in 2003 for Euro 2008, which England went on to not qualify for: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/2641675.stm

[ColourfulPeanut]

He can't qualify for England on residency. The only way he could play for them is if he had an English parent or grandparent.
That's not true. You can gain residency eligibility by acuquiring British Nationality while also fulfilling the below criteria

"He has engaged in a minimum of five years education under the age of 18 within the territory of the relevant association."

So if he moved to England before he turned 13, he became eligible for England soon as he turned 18 in October last year. I'm not sure exactly when he left Ireland but he could easily be eligible.

[Olé Olé]

The last I can find of him playing for St Joseph's is in 2015: http://dairewalsh.com/?p=3630

He would have been 12 at the time as he turned 18 in October 2020. He could have been schooled in England for 15/16, 16/17, 17/18, 18/19 and 19/20 before turning 18 in October 2020.

So, if he moved to Man City (his first English club) in time to bring the 15/16 school year, assuming the criteria set out by CP is accurate, he would eligible for England.

[Olé Olé]

This Nigerian website reckons he relocated to England with family at 12 in time for the 15/16 school year:
https://www.allnigeriasoccer.com/read_news.php?nid=31271&fb_comment_id=2076079575846884_2076126419175533

[tetsujin1979]

Gilbert on the bench again tonight against Spurs
1346528298126495750