Cutting The Fat From The Cash Cow

By Andy Jones, writing from London

This season, in the Premier League, we see the introduction of the new Home Grown regulation, which all teams must adhere to. For those of you that haven’t read them or aren’t quite clear on them, here’s a brief explanation:

Every club will have to name a first-team squad of no more than 25, of which a maximum of 17 may not be home-grown players.

The Premier League defines a home-grown player as a player who “irrespective of his nationality or age, has been registered with any club affiliated to the Football Association or the Welsh Football Association for a period, continuous or not, of three entire seasons or 36 months prior to his 21st birthday (or the end of the season during which he turns 21).”

For some clubs this is no problem, as they have sufficient home grown players, however, for one club in particular this brings in a whole new problem, deciding which players, who aren’t under 21, don’t make the final 25-man squad. This club is, of course, free spending and player vacuum Manchester City who have a total of 38 first team players (currently listed on their website) and don’t forget, more players may still be arriving!