The statistics reflect the importance that Lezama has in the international concert. Athletic quarry is the seventh in terms of contribution of players in the five main European Leagues, according to the latest report published by CIES Football Observatory.
Twenty-four Athletic youth players play in the major championships, most of them in the rojiblanco first team. The ranking is led by Real Madrid with 44, followed by Barça (40), Olympique de Lyon (31), Valencia (29), PSG (28) and Manchester United (26). Next on the list is Athletic. The Top-10 is completed by Hoffenheim (24), Chelsea (23) and Bayern Munich (23). In this last figure there is also Stade Rennais.
Real Sociedad is thirteenth with 22 and Atlético de Madrid is nineteenth with 18 players trained in their quarry and now in one of the major continental leagues.
The main criteria followed by this prestigious football observatory to classify a footballer as a youth player is that established by UEFA: being at the club for at least three seasons between the ages of 15 and 21.
In addition, Athletic is the entity with the most youth players in the first team, with 16. Then there are Real Sociedad (12), Valencia (11), Friburgo (9), Osasuna (9), Las Palmas (9 ) and Barça (8).
Source: La Verdad
I am Shawn Partain, a journalist and content creator working for the Today Times Live. I specialize in sports journalism, writing articles that cover major sporting events and news stories. With a passion for storytelling and an eye for detail, I strive to be accurate and insightful in my work.
