Source: Daily_Mail
Man City scrap reserves to focus on kids' Champions League NextGen series
ShareManchester City will scrap their reserve team to focus on the new Champions League style youth tournament.[LNB]The big-spending Premier League side reckon the new under-19s European club competition will provide ideal experience for the Champions League stars of the future.[LNB]Plans are in place for a 16-team competition - the NextGen Series - involving teams from all the major nations on the continent.[LNB] Major players: Manchester City, who last won the FA Youth Cup in 2008, have helped pioneer the idea[LNB]City, Liverpool, Tottenham and Aston Villa will be England's representatives when the event debuts in September, Celtic are Scotland's sole team while Barcelona, Inter Milan and Sporting Lisbon are also involved.[LNB]City have already withdrawn from next season's reserve league to concentrate bringing through their youngsters.[LNB]City's academy chief Mark Allen.believes the tournament will help raise standards among younger players.[LNB]'The average age for a Premier League debut is becoming older, 21 or 22 when before it might have been 17 or 18,' said Allen.[LNB]'You have to bridge that gap and prepare them for a better standard of football.We'll be competing against the best in Europe, a la the Champions League format, and we see it as an important chapter in the development of Manchester City.[LNB] Star turn: Lionel Messi came through Barcelona's youth ranks[LNB]'It's the next stepping stone, so as they come through the academy system there is the platform for them to be playing football at a level that is commensurate with their development.[LNB]'It will prepare them for those balmy nights we'll hopefully have in the Champions League as the club moves forward.[LNB]'We want to prepare them for what they will encounter as fully-fledged professionals. Who knows, we might be seeing the new Lionel Messi on a Thursday night at Hyde.'[LNB]City have decided to opt out of next year's Barclays Premier Reserve League as they plan to field a mix of elite development squad (reserves) players and academy prospects as clubs are allowed to include three under-20 players in each predominantly under-19 tie.[LNB]They will continue to play in both the Manchester and Lancashire Senior Cups and 'prestige' friendlies.[LNB]'We found it (the reserve league) just a little bit too rigid in terms of fixtures, added Allen. This will allow us the scope for a flexible games programme.[LNB]'We can also take advantage of playing games further afield as we engage more with some of the clubs we have close relations with in Europe and across the UK.'[LNB]The new tournament will not, however, impact on the Barclays Premier Academy League.[LNB]'It is an individual choice to play in the reserve league but all teams play in the academy league,' a Premier League spokesman said. 'The NextGen fixtures have to be completed over and above the Premier League Academy season.'[LNB] EXCLUSIVE: Now the top kids in Europe get a Champions League of their ownClub-by-club guide to all the Barclays Premier League summer transfers[LNB] Explore more:People: Lionel Messi Places: Barcelona, Liverpool, Manchester, Lisbon, Scotland, United Kingdom, Europe
