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2017/18 Dominic Calvert-Lewin

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In terms of premier league experience and goals, Calvert-Lewin has done more now than Kane had at his age. I’m not saying Calvert-Lewin will ever be that good. But to get shut of him because he’s not a goal machine right now would be stupid.
I'm not advocating getting rid of DCL as I do feel has a number of really positive attributes and still has time and the potential to develop.

Yet, right now I do feel that his position in the team surely must be out of necessity, for as the season progresses his form is arguably waning.

Furthermore, his finishing ability - or possible lack of - is starting to concern me as in the mainstay it's something you've either got or you haven't.

I can fully appreciate the rest of his game developing over time, however he simply doesn't look overly competent or confident in front of goal.

I'm not sure how much you can coach that into a player - if that makes sense. I sincerely hope I'm proven wrong but comparisons with Kane are...

... well, for me slightly fanciful. I fully expect him him to be a competent PL player in time, however any more than that and I'll be surprised.

Nevertheless, let's not take away from the lad how much effort he's shown and for a fair period being forced to lead the line - hats off for that!
 
Some fans just have an in-built hostility to young players. Same across the whole country. We just don't have the same culture of developing young players that the other major footballing nations have. Hopefully that will change with time.
 
I'm not advocating getting rid of DCL as I do feel has a number of really positive attributes and still has time and the potential to develop.

Yet, right now I do feel that his position in the team surely must be out of necessity, for as the season progresses his form is arguably waning.

Furthermore, his finishing ability - or possible lack of - is starting to concern me as in the mainstay it's something you've either got or you haven't.

I can fully appreciate the rest of his game developing over time, however he simply doesn't look overly competent or confident in front of goal.

I'm not sure how much you can coach that into a player - if that makes sense. I sincerely hope I'm proven wrong but comparisons with Kane are...

... well, for me slightly fanciful. I fully expect him him to be a competent PL player in time, however any more than that and I'll be surprised.

Nevertheless, let's not take away from the lad how much effort he's shown and for a fair period being forced to lead the line - hats off for that!

Forced?!?!?!

He's on £2m a year to do his dream job, how is he being forced?!?
 

Some fans just have an in-built hostility to young players. Same across the whole country. We just don't have the same culture of developing young players that the other major footballing nations have. Hopefully that will change with time.
We also don't have a league which is expected to blood youngsters for the bigger teams any more. The German and Spanish leagues are nowhere near as competitive as the premier league and the teams outside of the top 6 no longer have to hand over their players unless they get silly money.
 
Some fans just have an in-built hostility to young players. Same across the whole country. We just don't have the same culture of developing young players that the other major footballing nations have. Hopefully that will change with time.
It's called short-termism mate. Premier clubs, and sadly a large portion of their fans, demand success (relative to their status of course) immediately, and I can understand that to a degree given the financial rewards of just being in the premier league.

For good young players to develop they need to be challenged, and the good ones won't get this playing youth or lower league football. They also need to be given the opportunity to play alongside top class players so they can learn from the best. There is also an old adage that says the quickest way to learn is from your own mistakes.

Therein lies the problem. Young inexperienced players make mistakes. They are also notoriously inconsistent. Premier clubs, and their under fire managers, are extremely reluctant to accommodate those mistakes as they pursue success, whether that be measured by survival, European qualification or trophies. So unless young players succeed early like Lukaku, Dele Alli or Hazard, clubs won't take a chance on them. So invariably they don't develop.

In other countries, Spain, Germany, France, even Italy, clubs introduce their best young players to the first team squad each season. Even the top ones. Some clubs even run their finances based on the policy of bringing in young players and developing them. However, it will take a very brave Premier owner/board/manager to build a team around a group of young players and see them grow together.

Everton have a tradition of bringing through young players, but lets be honest with ourselves, in the vast majority of cases it has been injuries that has given them the opportunities. The likes of Holgate, Kenny, Lookman, Vlasic and DCL wouldn't have got near the first team had we a half decent squad or had injuries to key players. And the ones who had earned their spots, Barkley, Stones, Dellboy, Davies, were hounded all the time for their inconsistencies and mistakes. Even Lukaku had his regular detractors and he was the best striker we had at the club in 30 years.

We have an opportunity here to try and build a team around this current group of young players. Six in the England U21 squad plus the likes of Beni and Vlasic (who I see has been dropped back down to the Croatian U21 squad). But TBH, I'm starting to give up on the chances of this ever happening, especially whilst the club continues to employ the likes of Allardyce as manager.

In fact, I'll think you'll find that more and more of our young English stars will follow the example of Sancho from City and pursue their development in Europe. English youth is the envy of world football at the moment, but don't expect this to be reflected in the future prospects of our National team, as it did with the likes of Spain, Germany and Portugal.
 

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