Manchester City’s academy graduates have been ranked as the most valuable assets in all of England, says new data.
According to a report produced by the CIES Football Observatory, only Barcelona in European football have a bigger pool of more expensive academy players, with Manchester City ranking second in the list.
Manchester City has the most valuable academy in England according to new data
A general view of Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium (Image credit: Getty Images)Topped by Barça, it is no surprise that the LaLiga giants lead the way, given Lamine Yamal is the latest product of their fabled La Masia academy.
The report also credits fellow stars Pau Cubarsi, Fermin Lopez and Alejandro Balde as the reason the Blaugrana rank so highly, with all four players thought to be worth close to €600m (£519m).
Pau Cubarsi is already a mainstay in Hansi Flick’s side yet only aged 19 (Image credit: Getty Images)Manchester City’s most valuable asset is recorded as young defender Nico O’Reilly, with his market estimate thought to be an eye-watering €92m (£80m) at present.
O’Reilly is hoping to be involved in Thomas Tuchel’s plans for the 2026 World Cup this summer, having excelled in his performances for both club and country over the last 12 months.
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Phil Foden, Rico Lewis, Max Alleyne and Reigan Heskey are all names that also fall under the required CIES value criteria.
Local boy Foden is arguably City’s best-ever graduate from their academy system.
It is unclear whether Oscar Bobb was included in the findings, but he could be given that the report states: “For players who spent at least three seasons between the ages of 15 and 21 in two different clubs (e.g. Kenan Yildiz), only the first team was considered as the training academy.”
Oscar Bobb is closing in on a move to Fulham (Image credit: Getty Images)Arsenal are down in 5th in the table, with Myles Lewis-Skelly ranked as their most valuable academy-graduate asset. Chelsea are one place below with Levi Colwill topping their list.
For more information on all clubs and a further look at the data, you can visit the CIES Football Observatory’s latest findings.
