Crystal Palace are notorious for some of the outstanding players who have come through the youth side over the years. Many of the hidden gems within the club’s academy, however, have gone under the radar thus far. Some of the talents currently in the youth team can undoubtedly reach the heights of the likes of Victor Moses, Nathaniel Clyne and Wilfried Zaha.
The Best of the Crystal Palace Youth Team
Jason Eyenga-Lokilo
Eyenga-Lokilo signed for the Eagles in September 2016. He started off in the under-18s, then moved his way up to the under-23s, and recently he made his debut for the senior squad in a friendly against Metz. The 18-year-old has a very exciting style of play which involves a lot of attempted dribbles, shots and skills. It is clear that Frank De Boer is keen on him and he could quite easily play a part in the first team this season.
Palace have quite the reputation for being a team with quick, skilful wingers who are very good with their feet. Eyenga-Lokilo easily fits into this category and could easily turn out to be one of the best youngsters the club has ever produced.
Luke Dreher
Starting at Palace as an eight-year-old, Dreher has really shown improvement in his game since he was named on the bench against Manchester United in the 2015/16 season under Alan Pardew. The former under-18s Player of the Year has had to deal with a couple of injury struggles as of late but he will hope to continue the start to his promising career in the 2017-18 season.
One criticism that most Palace fans seem to have of the central midfielder is that he is too physically weak and needs to gain some muscle. Once he sorts out his lack of physical presence, Dreher will be a good fit to replace Yohan Cabaye once he leaves the club.
Levi Lumeka
Lumeka has impressed so far in pre-season. The winger is strong on the ball, meaning that he can play up front with equal comfort. In the 2015-16 season, Lumeka finished as top scorer for the under-18s, showing that he could be the next big thing for Crystal Palace.
Once again, he will fit comfortably into the first team: either as a winger or as a rotation player alongside Keshi Anderson. It’s fair to say that Freddie Ladapo hasn’t had the best of times as a Palace player so far and he is no longer a ‘young’ player in football terms, so maybe Lumeka can step up to the task and give Christian Benteke a run for his money.
Nya Kirby
Kirby signed for the Eagles after impressing for the development side in late 2016. He was previously on the books of Tottenham Hotspur and has picked up caps for England at under-16 and under-17 level. Having skipped the under-18s and moved straight to the under-23s, the midfielder has already shown that he could be the next big thing for the Eagles.
When Kirby signed for Palace, he had just had a move to Chelsea collapse for reasons that are unknown. All this goes to show, however, is that he has shown enough potential to attract some of the biggest clubs in the world.
Michael Phillips
A player who has featured on the bench for the senior team on four occasions, Phillips is yet to make his first team debut for Palace. The 18-year-old is predominantly used as a defender for the youth team, but can be used in a variety of positions further up the pitch. In fact, he even made an appearance as a goalkeeper, saving a penalty in the process.
It seems that Phillips is probably the closest player on this list to reaching the first team currently. Alongside Kian Flanagan, Phillips came through the Oasis academy, which has produced well-known Palace talents such as Sean Scannell and Ben Wynter.
The key to sustaining a great structure of a football club with depth is to develop some top talents within the academy. Players like Scott Dann, Andros Townsend and Yohan Cabaye are great assets to the team, but they aren’t going to be around forever. Should this current crop of talent make it up to the next level, the future will be bright for Crystal Palace.
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