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The Premier League is the richest football league in the world and arguably the most competitive one as well.
Unsurprisingly, the lure of the Premier League attracts the finest players from around the world to ply their trade for various clubs in the competition. The English top-flight also features a bevy of talented youngsters who have made rapid strides and impressed for their respective clubs.
On that note, let us have a look at a few of the best Under-21 players in the 2020-21 edition of the Premier League.
Top 5 Under-21 players in the 2020-21 Premier League
Under the tutelage of some of the most astute tacticians in the game, a lot of Under-21 players have evolved to become key personnel for their respective sides in the Premier League.
Without further ado, let us have a look at five such players.
#5 Mason Greenwood (Manchester United)
Considering his blistering exploits in the Premier League since his debut in the competition last season, it may be easy to forget that Mason Greenwood is still a teenager.
The Manchester United winger is no ordinary teenager, though. The 19-year-old happens to be the most prolific teenager in the Premier League since the start of the last season. Greenwood has netted twice as many league goals than any other teenager in the competition during this period.
After scoring ten Premier League goals last season - the most by a teenager in over a decade, Greenwood has had a relatively quiet start in 2020-21. The Englishman only found the back of the net in his seventh league game of the season but remains a key player for Manchester United.
Greenwood has no weak foot, is versatile and has the knack of scoring goals. This has helped him earn high praise from his manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who said about the teenager:
“Mason is different class in and around the box. He's a special goalscoring talent, a special kid that we're going to see lots more of in the years to come. It’s just so natural for him. If you open your legs, he shoots through you. If you close your legs, he shoots round you. He can go on his right or left."
#4 Ferran Torres (Manchester City)
Ferran Torres has been tipped as Leroy Sane's replacement, after two-time Premier League-winning manager Pep Guardiola made the 21-year-old winger his first major signing of the season.
The young Spaniard has not disappointed in that regard. He has already made six goal-contributions (four goals and two assists) in various competitions for Manchester City while impressing with his versatility in the attacking third.
Torres may be new to the Premier League but has stood up admirably in the absence of Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus. In the process, he has earned high praise from City manager Pep Guardiola, who said about the player:
"He is a guy who is an incredible finisher. He has a sense of goal and a quality to score a goal. We didn’t think about playing him as a striker. He is an incredible alternative for us. He’s settled really well in the locker room. He’s so shy but so calm. He wants to learn and has helped us a lot in the positions we have without the strikers. It’s an alternative that we have.”
Torres, who recently became the first Spain player to score a hat-trick against Germany, opened his Premier League account against Burnley. He could be key to Manchester City's prospects this season after the club made an indifferent start to their domestic campaign.
#3 Declan Rice (West Ham United)
Declan Rice has been a key player for West Ham United in the Premier League since joining the London club in the summer of 2017.
The 20-year-old defensive midfielder has already made over 100 appearances in the Premier League, and played in all league games for his club last season.
His impressive exploits helped him earn a national team call-up, and he became the first West Ham United player to score for the Three Lions in a decade.
West Ham manager David Moyes is unsurprisingly impressed with the versatile Rice, who can play in a number of positions in the middle and defensive third of the field. Moyes said:
“I think Declan could arguably be my best centre-half and my best midfield player. We know he will give us something else as a midfield player but he showed he was defensively sound when he goes into the back line as well. It’s really good for Declan that he’s improved so much and can play both positions."
#2 Mason Mount (Chelsea)
Mason Mount has been a key player for Frank Lampard since breaking into the Chelsea first team in the Premier League last season.
The 21-year-old English midfielder is a key player in an expensively assembled Chelsea team. After a successful debut campaign in the Premier League last season, Mount has improved by leaps and bounds in 2020-21.
Mount has played all but one Premier League game this season, scoring a goal and providing three assists to help Chelsea to the league summit after 11 games. He produced a standout performance against Leeds, creating a plethora of chances against the newly promoted Premier League club.
Chelsea manager Frank Lampard is impressed with Mason Mount's attributes, and said:
"With Mason, I think there may be something about him that makes him look clean-cut. He does one advert at the minute where he takes his top off, that's about as edgy as Mason gets. He doesn't do too many triple step overs and flicks over the back of his head, as he shouldn't do. He makes really efficient, clean, sharp passes; he presses as well as any midfielder that I have worked with or played alongside."
#1 Phil Foden (Manchester City)
Phil Foden is undoubtedly one of the finest young players in the Premier League at the moment.
Tipped to be Manchester City legend David Silva's long-term replacement, the 20-year-old has blossomed into a world-class player under the tutelage of Pep Guardiola.
The Englishman is on the cusp of 50 Premier League appearances. He has scored eight goals and four assists in the competition while operating in a number of positions in midfield and defence.
City manager Pep Guardiola is unsurprisingly thrilled to have Foden in his team, and opined that the player has great attributes to have a long and successful career for club and country.
The two-time Premier League-winning tactician said:
“I love his passion. The only thing in his mind is to be a better player for himself, his club and his national country. In training he is a dream come true for managers. He’s so patient, normally when you become older, you lose this. But he's like a little boy when he goes on the pitch in the training session. The first thing he is looking for is the ball and to play with his mates, to pass and to shoot."
