Dele Alli shows how English youth should be developed

Earlier this year, FA Chairman Greg Dyke made several proposals to change the structure of English football. Quite easily the most controversial of these proposals was for the Football League to be given a fifth tier, between League Two and the Conference, where Premier League teams would be able to field their reserve teams in order for younger players to gain valuable experience against professional players.

At the time of these proposals, the Football League had just finished for another season, and for one player, MK Dons midfielder Dele Alli, it was a success. He had seen himself go from a mere youth prospect to an indispensable member of the Dons' side in just 9 months, and was garnering interest from just about every top English side. Surprisingly, though, he is yet to leave the club.

On the 26th of August, Dele put in a marvellous performance against Manchester United in the League Cup, dominating the likes of Anderson and Nick Powell in the middle of the park in a shocking 4-0 victory for the home side, and in the process, earned his 50th appearance for the club.

So, why is it that there aren't more 18 year olds in the country who are as talented as he is? The reason for that is simple: the majority of youth prospects in the Football League aren't given enough time to develop at their own clubs before being snapped up by the vultures that are the Premier League sides.

Take John Bostock for example. Bostock was another player who at one point in their career was regarded as the next big thing in English football, a line we hear all too often these days. He graduated from the well-respected Crystal Palace academy at a young age, and made his debut at just 15 years of age, making him the youngest Palace player ever.

However, after just a handful of first-team appearances, he was signed by Tottenham Hotspur, and stayed there for 5 years, most of which was spent on loan to other clubs. Now, a year from being released by the North London club, he finds himself playing in the second division of Belgium. Not exactly where you'd expect the 'next big thing' to be playing at the age of 22.

Now, I'm sure that if you asked Bostock now whether he regrets leaving Crystal Palace as early in his career as he did, he'd say yes. If he had been given just one season to break into the Palace first team and gain experience playing against men twice a week, then he would have joined Tottenham with invaluable amounts of experience and physicality, qualities that you have to work for rather than being gifted at birth.

That's one of the reasons why Dele Alli will be such a success. On his league debut vs Coventry City in 2012, at the age of just 16, he looked out of place. The talent was definitely there, but talent means little if you can't ride a challenge, or if you're knocked off the ball easily. Now, 20 months later, he has had weekly first team football where he's been given the chance to play against men rather than boys, and most MK Dons fans will agree that nowadays, Dele is the most likely player on the pitch to be putting in tough tackles and winning jostles for the ball.

Due to the experience he's picked up from playing weekly first team football, he could now join a Premier League side and would be more likely than most academy players to be chosen for the men's team. Why? Because he's been in that environment already. Whereas Bostock had to gain experience out on loan, Dele already has the experience, and should he stay at MK Dons until the end of this season, then he would have played close to 100 games in his career, which is a rarity for anybody less than 20 years old.

Of course, Dele Alli isn't the only case of Football League experience benefitting youngsters. Just look at Will Hughes at Derby. Almost 100 games played in the Championship at the age of just 19, meaning that should he join a club such as Liverpool as he's been rumoured to, then he'd join with the experience to match his talent, and Rodgers wouldn't hesitate to give him chances in the Premier League, as he already knows what it's like playing against men.

Other clubs such as Crewe Alexandra, Nottingham Forest and Plymouth Argyle are further examples of how to correctly handle young players, as each of them find themselves fielding academy graduates on a regular basis. Crewe especially have given the likes of Nick Powell and Max Clayton a platform in which to gain valuable experience and enhance their prospects of becoming successful players.

So, was criticism of Greg Dyke's proposal to introduce a new league for reserve teams correct? Yes. What the FA should be doing instead is encouraging the younger first team players in the Football League to remain at their clubs until they've matured, in which case they won't be so out of place playing in the Premier League. Perhaps then, English football will see a solid new crop of talented young players rise the ranks and eventually play in the Premier League.