Most playing time for U21 talents: BVB first - 4 Premier League teams in top 20

In Erling Haaland and Jadon Sancho, Borussia Dortmund have the world's two most valuable U21 players. Furthermore, the club leads the way in Europe when it comes to U21 playing time. No other team on the continent has granted more playing time to players who are 20 or younger than the Black and Yellows. Altogether the top 20 list is dominated by French clubs. 

Together Haaland, Sancho, Giovanni Reyna, Jude Bellingham, Mateu Morey, Youssoufa Moukoko, Reinier and Ansgar Knauff have played 6353 minutes in the Bundesliga, the DFB Pokal and international competitions. 

Altogether, the development of young players has surprised sporting director Michael Zorc. "The boys have developed quickly, both on and off the pitch," Zorc said to Sport Bild. "For their age, they have shown a lot of maturities and are ready to take on responsibilities." For the coming season, Zorc would like to add Manchester City talent Jayden Braaf—the Dutchman would add to a long list of talented players. The BVB talents with a German passport are Knauf and Moukoko. 

French clubs dominate the ranking - US Boys help German clubs

The lack of German talents stands out and has had an impact on the national team. In November, U21 national team coach Stefan Kuntz was critical of Germany's youth development level. "We have fallen behind," Kuntz said to the kicker meets DAZN Podcast when asked about the amount of U21 players receiving playing times in Europe's top leagues. "The gap is significant." Ligue 1 is the clear leader in playing time for young talent in Europe's top leagues, far ahead of Spain, England, and Germany. 

Transfermarkt's ranking confirms Kuntz's impressions. With 6216 minutes of U21 playing time, LOSC Lille are just behind Borussia Dortmund. OGC Nice are third. The club from the Côte d’Azur had 12 U21 players feature for them, with a total of 5845 minutes played. What also stands out. France has four more clubs (Monaco, Stade Rennais, Dijon, RC Lens) in the top 10—no other country uses more youth players, and most of those players are French. 

And the Bundesliga? In Werder Bremen (14th) and Schalke (16th), there are two more German clubs in the top 20. At the Royal Blues, Matthew Hoppe recently scored a hattrick, and Ozan Kabak is a regular feature in defense. At Werder striker, Josh Sargent on his own has featured 1361 minutes. The Bundesliga and Ligue 1 aside, the Premier League has four teams, Serie A three and LaLiga just two clubs in the top 20. 

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