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The Premier League's top six are always at each other in their bid to win the title race and also to secure a place in the UEFA Champions League. This only makes the league more exciting and entertaining to watch.
Over the years, top players have come out of the academies of these clubs. Many Premier League greats like Paul Scholes, Steven Gerrard, John Terry and others have come through the ranks at these top six clubs.
The Premier League's big six have a great academy setup
With the aim of promoting youth, the league's top six have always focused on using their academy players for the senior team at the right age and time. While most have worked well for them, some haven't performed as expected.
There have been cases where these clubs have let go of their academy players who have then turned out to be amazing footballers. Here, we take a look at players from each of the top six in England's top-tier league who shouldn't have let go of.
#6 Conor Coady (Liverpool)
Born in St Helens, Conor Coady grew up on Merseyside. He joined the Liverpool academy at the age of 12 and was with them for six years but wasn't deemed good enough for the senior team.
Conor Coady has been a well-established centre-back in the Premier League for the past few years, playing for Wolverhampton Wanderers. Had he been available with Liverpool before the arrival of Virgil van Dijk, the Reds might have had success earlier than they do now.
#5 David Beckham (Tottenham)
This must come as a surprise to many, but it is true that the great David Beckham was once part of Tottenham Hotspur. Born in London, the Englishman joined Spurs' School of Excellence in 1987.
He was loaned out to Brimsdown Rovers for two seasons before signing for Manchester United as a trainee in 1991. Beckham was a part of the famous Class of 92 players who went on to achieve big things for the Red Devils in the future.
It only makes one wonder what could have happened had the English winger stayed at Spurs. The north London club would probably had a better chance of winning silverware with Beckham at their disposal.
#4 Paul Pogba (Manchester United)
Paul Pogba was a part of the Manchester United academy for two seasons before he decided to join Juventus on a free, seeking more game-time. While it didn't look like a big deal, the Frenchman proved United wrong, performing amazingly well with the Old Lady.
He was one of the best midfielders in the world with the Serie A giants courtesy of his amazing box-to-box abilities. Despite Paul Pogba being back at Manchester United in the 2016-17 season, he came in at a hefty transfer fee worth around £89.3 million. This could have been easily avoided had the Red Devils kept the French midfielder.
#3 Jadon Sancho (Manchester City)
Jadon Sancho joined the Watford academy at the age of seven before moving to Manchester City's academy in 2015. Despite giving impressive performances, the Englishman was not assured of playing time on a new contract with City in 2017.
This prompted Sancho to seek a move away and he went ahead and joined Borussia Dortmund. Since then, the English winger has become one of the finest young forwards and signed for City rivals Manchester United in the last summer transfer window. The defending Premier League champions would have any day benefitted from Sancho's services.
#2 Declan Rice (Chelsea)
The Englishman joined Chelsea's academy at the age of seven. Declan Rice was released by the Blues at the age of 14 after which he joined the academy of West Ham United. Today, the 23-year old has become one of the best defensive midfielders in the Premier League.
With his brilliant reading of the game, amazing tackling and intercepting skills, Declan Rice is a massive asset in midfield. He has a long and bright future ahead of himself, something Chelsea could have easily capitalized on had they not let him go. It will only get worse for the Blues should Rice join one of their title rivals next summer.
#1 Harry Kane (Arsenal)
Harry Kane started his youth career by playing for Ridgeway Rivers before joining Arsenal's youth academy. The Gunners released him after a season deeming the Englishman a bit chubby and not very athletic.
He then joined Watford and eventually ended up at Tottenham Hotspur's academy. Today, Harry Kane is one of the finest strikers in the world and a deadly goal-scoring machine. Had he been with Arsenal fron his youth days, the Gunners would surely have had more success and not struggled wanting a natural striker.
