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The Premier League is arguably the toughest league in the world in terms of competition and physicality. The league, which started in 1992-93, has seen several youngsters take the centre stage - the "Class of 92" of Manchester United being the prime example, during the initial era of the league.
The arrival of Roman Abrahamovic started a trend of the big teams buying well-established professionals and in turn ignoring the youngsters. The multi-million-pound broadcasting deals and the arrival of new owners for Manchester City has seen the big clubs looking more to well-established players compared to the 2000s, with more and more youngsters moving out of the big teams to get more game time.
With that thought in mind, let's look at the five best teenagers playing outside the top six in the Premier League.
#5 Ruben Vinagre - Wolverhampton Wanderers
One of the young stars in the stable of Portuguese super agent Jorge Mendes, Ruben Goncalo da Silva Nascimento Vinagre, or Ruben Vinagre as he is called, joined Wolves' roster last year on loan from French giants AS Monaco.
The 19-year old started his career at the famed Sporting CP career before moving AS Monaco, where he signed his professional contract before joining Wolves on loan last season. A member of the 2016 U17 European Championship winning Portuguese side and 2018 U19 European Championship winning Portuguese side, the left full-back is expected to break into the national team in the very near future.
Born on the 9th of April 1999, Vinagre is blessed with a blistering pace that helps him run past players with ease as well as a superb crossing ability, both the qualities that are likely to see the young defender being deployed further up the pitch. His prowess in a dead ball situation is equally good, evident from his performances in the U17 European Championship in 2016.
After struggling to get into the first team last year the young Vinagre has already made 11 appearances in the Premier League, 6 from off the bench, and looks to become further involved in the first team setup.
Ruben Vinagre was officially made a Wolves player after making his move permanent this season.
#4 Domingos Quina - Watford
Another Portuguese starlet in the Premier League, Domingos Quina was a product of the Benfica, Chelsea and West Ham United academies before signing his first professional contract with the Hammers at the age of 17 in 2016.
A European U17 and U19 European Championship winner in 2016 and 2018 respectively, Quina joined the Hornets this season, after the Hammers accepted a bid rumoured to be around £1m on the deadline day.
Domingos Quina failed to make a league appearance but made 6 appearances for the Hammers. The Portuguese wonderkid though has seen more first-team chances after switching sides with the 19-year old already making 8 appearances for the Hornets with 5 of them coming in the Premier League.
The attacking midfielder is a technically gifted player who has the ability to find the net as well as the awareness to find his teammates in a crucial situation.
Quina made his first league appearance against Manchester City on the 4th of December before scoring his first ever Premier League goal against Cardiff City in the same month, becoming the youngest ever Watford player to score in the league.
#3 Morgan Gibbs-White
Another wonderkid amidst the Wolves club, Morgan Gibbs-White is a Wolverhampton Wanderers product, joining the academy at the age of 8 before signing his first contract at the age of 18.
Morgan Gibbs-White was part of the England team that won the first ever World Cup, of any age group since their triumph in 1962, and even scored one the goals in the finals.
Gibbs-White is probably the only player from the U17 English team to have secured starting XI position with the midfielder turning out to be one of the crucial players for Wolves. The 18-year old midfielder has already made 17 appearances in the league and was a crucial figure in the Wolves shock win over Chelsea as he provided the assist for Raul Jimenez.
The midfielder made his debut for Wolves at age of 16 against Stoke City and was a bit part player in their run to the EFL Championship before finally securing a place in the final XI this season.
The 18-year old is yet another technically gifted player who cam employed in a wide variety of positions due to his versatility. The ability to pick a pass makes him a dangerous opponent to face.
#2 Michael Obafemi
Michael Obafemi started his footballing career with local club Ryan FC before moving through the academies of Chelsea, Arsenal, Watford and Leyton Orient before finally joining the Saints in 2016. Obafemi made his professional debut at the age of 17 against Tottenham Hotspur, becoming the second youngest Saints player to do so, before scoring his first goal almost at the end of the year in December against Huddersfield.
Born to Nigeran parents in Dublin, Obafemi was eligible to play for England, Nigeria and Republic of Ireland and decided to represent U19 Irish team and has now gone onto make his Irish debut at the age of 18 against Denmark in the UEFA Nations League in December.
Michael Obafemi has made 6 appearances in the league and already has a goal to his name. Obafemi is blessed with scintillating pace and has a good finishing ability that makes him one of the strikers to look out for in the future.
#1 Ryan Sessegnon
Arguably the best teenage player in the league, Ryan Sessegnon is the twin brother of England U17 World Cup winning star Steven Sessegnon and joined the Fulham academy at the age of 8 before signing his first professional contract at the age of 17.
It seems a bewildering fact that the 18-year old already has 105 first team appearances at Craven Cottage, with 91 of them coming in the league matches. The young Sessegnon made his debut aged 16 years and 81 days against Leyton Orient in an EFL match and became the first player born in the 2000s to score a goal in any tier of the English league when he scored against Cardiff City.
Wanted by nearly everyone in Europe, Sessegnon was a crucial figure in Fulham successful promotion campaign last year as the young winger/fullback scored 15 goals in 46 appearances for the Cottagers, becoming the EFL Young Player of the season, EFL Championship Player of the season and was included in the EFL team of the season.
The youngster also became the first player outside the Premier League to be nominated for the PFA Young Player of the season award last year. The 18-year old is a technically gifted player blessed with an immense pace that can leave you catching for air.
His versatility helps him to deployed either as a winger or a full back, drawing comparisons with Gareth Bale, and is equally quick with and without the ball at his feet. His shotmaking is very mature for his age and accuracy is another bright aspect and was even once touted to be a bigger prospect than Kylian Mbappe.
