Foden, Knight and the Top 10 teenage stars to watch at Man City

Foden, who finished fourth in the 2019 NxGn, is by far the brightest star in the City academy and he is slowly but surely getting chances in the first team.

Many have suggested he should have followed Jadon Sancho's footsteps by moving elsewhere to get even more first-team football, but while Sancho is the 18-year-old with the most game time to his name this season, Foden is not far down the list.

He has played 850 minutes so far, a total of 21 appearances, and has scored three goals in the FA Cup and two in the Carabao Cup.

He could have played even more, of course, but has to contend for a midfield spot with Kevin De Bruyne, Ilkay Gundogan, Bernardo Silva and David Silva, and the flip side is he has been able to train alongside world-class players every day while learning exactly what Pep Guardiola wants from his players.

Foden is a lifelong fan of the club and if he wants to make the grade at the Etihad Stadium he needs to stick around and play under Guardiola, rather than learn a new style elsewhere.

McNeill is just 14 but has been making a name for himself in the City academy for the past few years.

The tall forward has proven to be impressive with both feet and has been racking up remarkable numbers at junior level: 110 goals and 38 assists in 72 games for City's U15s and England's U16s.

Those familiar with the City youth set-up believe he is one of the best prospects of any age group and is definitely one to keep an eye on in the coming years.

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Nmecha was named on the bench against Leicester in the Carabao Cup, a reflection of his excellent reputation in the City academy.

The 18-year-old attacking midfielder has already captained the U23 side this season and is said to be a better player than his older brother, Lukas, who is on loan at Preston and actually scored a shoot-out penalty at Leicester in the Carabao Cup last season.

Felix, who has dual nationality and has represented both England and Germany at youth level, is strong, fast and authoritative.

He has been in the academy for eight years and has even trained with Guardiola's first team on several occasions recently.

Indeed, the Catalan was taken with Nmecha's positivity, humility and willingness to learn, having been previously left underwhelmed by the attitude of other youngsters invited to train with the senior squad.

Knight, 16, joined City from Ipswich last summer for a reported fee of £700,000 ($893,000) and has gone straight into the U18 set-up.

The diminutive playmaker says he models his game on David Silva and his dribbling skills are certainly a joy to behold.

He was coached by Kieron Dyer at Ipswich and the former England international has compared the youngster to Lionel Messi in terms of his technical skills and small stature.

City were first linked with a move for Knight in 2016, when he was just 13, and had to see off interest from Tottenham – including a personal intervention from Mauricio Pochettino – to finally get their hands on him.

Knight, whose uncle Nick played cricket for England, has lived up to the hype in his first months at the club and is expected to have a big future at the Etihad.

The former captain of Barcelona's youth teams has already made his senior debut for City and looked very comfortable in doing so. The 17-year-old is a ball-playing centre-back whose maturity shines through both on the pitch and off it. 

Garcia broke into the City team during the pre-season trip to the United States and caught the eye with some commanding performances, and that was the case once again when he faced Leicester City in the Carabao Cup in December and again against Burton in January.

In all of his senior appearances, he has been seen ordering his considerably more experienced team-mates around. 

“Eric Garcia is 17 or 18 and played like he is 24 or 25,” Pep Guardiola said after one pre-season outing.

And Garcia sees it as a vital part of his role to be telling the likes of Kyle Walker and Nicolas Otamendi what they need to be doing. 

"I always say when we are on the pitch we are all the same team," he said last month. "I think if we speak to each other it is better for the team because you try to help your team-mates and at the end that’s the most important thing.

"Obviously, with the age gap, there’s a lot of difference but I just feel that I need to do it."

City could have paid just £34,000 ($43,000) to sign Burns from Southend but agreed to a £175,000 ($223,000) deal, which could rise to £250,000 ($319,000), to sign him last January – when he was just 13.

Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool were said to be interested in the centre-back but City ensured they would not miss out, and he has impressed coaches in his first 12 months at the club.

He is still just 15 but is a considerable presence on the pitch and has also represented England at U15 level.

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The younger brother of Tom Dele-Bashiru, Fisayo was born in Hamburg and joined City at the age of eight.

He has excelled in the middle of midfield for City's youth teams and has been called up to train with Pep Guardiola's seniors on several occasions.

It is said that Guardiola has been impressed by his work-rate and attitude, and that is not something that can be taken for granted.

Doyle is known to many City fans already as he is the grandson of two club legends, Mike Doyle and Glyn Pardoe. 

He is the England U17 captain and scored twice at the U17 European Championship last season before being sidelined by a metatarsal break.

That injury hampered his progress midway through 2018 but by that point he had already turned out for City's U23s – a sign of his pedigree – and featured in the U19 UEFA Youth League competition.

Doyle has been at City since he was eight years old – the club's official website says he was scoring 80 goals a season for Sandbach FC before that.

Over the years he has been converted into a defensive midfielder and it is from that position that he has earned a reputation around the club as a player of enormous potential.

Blessed with fine technique and blistering speed, Frimpong can play at both left-back and right-back.

He has also played on the right side of the attack this season and his versatility is seen as a major bonus.

The Spanish striker joined City from Valencia when he was 15 and has played as a central striker for the Blues' youth teams in the past two seasons.

He has regularly featured for City's U23 side despite being just 18 and has scored nine goals in 18 games this season, including three appearances in the UEFA Youth League and three in the EFL Trophy.

A close friend of Eric Garcia, Touaizi has settled in well in Manchester despite relocating at such a young age and there is hope that he will blossom into a talented goalscorer.