Why Bundesliga is better at developing talent than Premier League?

There’s a reason, why Bundesliga has become a destination for several young English players and countless others from countries across Europe

Bundesliga is not just the place to be for the fans but also for the players. With over €1.5 billion invested in youth development since 2002, it is hardly surprising that young players are flocking to Germany for an unrivalled football education. The clubs have shown themselves to be willing to give teenagers a chance in the first team rather than simply keeping them on the bench.

Between 2009 and 2017, the average age of Bundesliga players was 25.84, younger than France (25.91), Spain (26.5), England (26.79), and Italy (27.13). With the opportunities on offer, young players like Christian Pulisic, Erling Haaland, Ousmane Dembele, Jadon Sancho, and Weston McKennie have all taken strides in the Bundesliga, which also produced players of the calibre of Naby Keita and Leroy Sane, among many others.

Quite simply, if you’re good enough, you’re likely to get a game in the German top flight. It’s why Jadon Sancho has thrived at Borussia Dortmund. Why Erling Haaland decided BVB was a better fit than PSG, Manchester United, or Chelsea And why the likes of Kai Havertz, Alphonso Davies, Dayot Upamecano, and many more have established themselves among Europe’s best despite being 21 years old or younger. A major driving feature of the Bundesliga is the production of home-grown players.

A decade ago, the Bundesliga and the German FA made an agreement that to obtain a licence to compete, one must find and run an education academy. The results have been spectacular, as less money is spent on transfers and a vast array of talent is provided for the national team, which has had successful runs in all the major European and world competitions. Of the 23-man national squad announced for the World Cup in South Africa, 19 came from the Bundesliga academies, while the other four came from the Bundesliga-2 academies.

Bundesliga – Youth development and scouting

There are stats that prove why a good place to start is the Bundesliga. Italy is housing fewer and fewer young stars, especially ones that aren’t Italian. Spain is loaded, but it is mostly the domain of the Spanish and Argentines. It’s the Bundesliga that houses most of the young international talent in the world. The fact is that Spain has limits on foreigners, and England has work permit regulations.

Meanwhile, Germany has few restrictions other than that a player must learn German. England puts an overvaluation on youth but rarely produces young stars. The exception is Arsenal and Manchester United, where established managers like Sir Alex Ferguson and Arsene Wenger have made a cottage industry of buying young kids from outside of England and developing them.

England may buy talented teenagers, but these players were almost always developed elsewhere. In fact, even with English talent, rarely does the EPL develop it, other than clubs with smaller spending pockets such as Southampton, Leicester City, and West Ham, and the lower leagues as well.

If we start including players over the age of 22, then Mats Hummels comes into the discussion, as do Mesut Ozil and Jerome Boateng. Simply put, there is no nation in the world with a better conveyor belt of talent than Germany right now. Not even Brazil or Argentina, traditionally the best nations at producing world-class talent in bulk, can take the title of “best talent producer” away from Germany right now.

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Premier League – money over talent

While that may change if FIFA is able to implement the proposed 6+5 rule, the fact is that money has allowed England to give up on the academic system. Bayern Munich is as big as any of the clubs in England. Their squad produced Lahm, Hummels, and Schweinsteiger, whom they developed from their youth system.

Compare that with Manchester City, who haven’t promoted their developed players in their own squad after losing players like Sancho to the Bundesliga; only Foden has left his mark in their recent glorious history. Any kid with an ounce of talent in their youth system is bound for Belgium or Sunderland. It begs the question of why they even incur the expense.

Bundesliga players in FIFA tournaments:

At Euro 2008, every team except for Spain had a representative in the Bundesliga. And this was done without detriment to the German national team, which is exactly the opposite effect that a slew of internationals are having in England. And the league also had the most players at this year’s tournament.

In these academies, at least 12 players who are admitted in each round have to be eligible to play for Germany, thereby providing a continuous replenishment of great, young football talent, and all clubs have a strong relationship with the German FA. In contrast, in England, there is a great deal of infighting between the FA, the Premier League, and the Football League.

Out of the two billion euros in turnover for the Bundesliga, only 80 million euros are spent on the academies. In England, around 95 million euros are spent each year, and the results are appalling, as only one per cent of boys who join the academy age of nine turn into professional footballers. Marco Reus, Mario Goetze, Holger Badstuber, Andre Schurrle, Lewis Holtby, Toni Kroos, Marko Marin, Tomas Muller—the list goes on and on.

Young managers changing the course of traditional management:

It’s not only young players who are given an opportunity in the Bundesliga; clubs have often turned to relatively inexperienced coaches or promoted those from within their academy set-up. The latter is how Julian Nagelsmann got his start at Hoffenheim and why the 32-year-old German, now in charge of RB Leipzig, is viewed as European football’s next great coach and has been dubbed ‘Mini Mourinho’.

He is far from alone, though. Gladbach turned to 43-year-old Marco Rose last summer, and he has built an entertaining and attacking young side at Borussia Park that is challenging for a place in the top four.

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