5 best English U21 players in the world right now (2021)

#3 Jadon Sancho

Southampton v Manchester United - Premier League

A drawn-out transfer saga finally came to an end when Manchester United announced the arrival of Jadon Sancho from Borussia Dortmund for £73 million this summer. His arrival has filled United supporters, who are assured that the club has secured a future star, with optimism and hope.

Sancho joined the Manchester City academy back in 2014 with high ambitions of playing for club and country. However, when City offered him a senior professional contract in 2017, he was unconvinced by the opportunities being guaranteed and engineered a move to German side Borussia Dortmund. That was the start of something special.

With Sancho, the Red Devils have got a player who has shown a knack for finding the back of the net as well as helping his team-mates do the same. At Borussia Dortmund, when Sancho enjoyed his purple patches, which were quite often, he would be unplayable and entertaining at the same time.

The winger commanded the attention of the whole football community when he was lighting up Signal Iduna Park with his fine display in the Bundesliga. He made the cut to Team of the Year in the German top flight two years in a row from 2018-2020.

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#2 Jude Bellingham

Besiktas v Borussia Dortmund: Group C - UEFA Champions League

Jude Bellingham is the youngest player on the list, but by no means the easiest to go against on the pitch. The 18-year-old also flourished at Borussia Dortmund thanks to their policy of trusting young talent with first-team football on a regular basis.

For someone with his work rate to be technically strong on the ball and be able to create time and space for passes from midfield is commendable. The early signs were always visible when he was part of Birmingham City and he wasted no time at Dortmund to show the world what he's made of.

On his debut, he scored for Dortmund, becoming their youngest scorer ever. It's not the only piece of history he has to his name. He was so good for Birmingham City in his first professional season that they retired his No.22 shirt when he left.

Gareth Southgate has kept tabs on the youngster's confident and responsible displays which earned him a call up to Euro 2020. Bellingham became the youngest ever Englishman to feature in a major international tournament when he played England's Euro 2020 opener against Croatia in June.

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#1 Phil Foden

Brighton & Hove Albion v Manchester City - Premier League

If you can break into Pep Guardiola's team at 20 and cement your spot as the starter amidst Kevin De Bruyne, Bernardo Silva and Raheem Sterling, you are special. Phil Foden has done exactly the same and is a generational talent who is being nurtured by one of the greatest managers.

To quote Guardiola, "He is the only player that can't be sold under any circumstances, the only one. Not even for €500 million." The Spanish coach's statement goes on to show that Foden could really be the center of attraction in world football sooner rather than later.

Although Manchester City have consistently lifted silverware since Guardiola's arrival and their squad is arguably second to none in Europe, they have a David Silva-sized gap there. That is exactly where Foden could fit in. He can play on the left, on the right, through the middle. His excellent passing distribution and an eye for the goal makes it difficult to predict his moves.

The Premier League champions are in negotiations to tie Foden to an attractive long-term contract that will reportedly add to his current wages by an amount of £100,000-a-week.

Last season, Foden was integrated into the Manchester City squad as a regular and started frequently in the Premier League. He decorated his 28 league appearances with nine goals and four assists. Overall, Foden played 50 games, scoring 16 goals and registering 10 assists.