Manchester United produce more first-team players for Europe's top 5 leagues than any other English club
Manchester United produce more first-team players for clubs in Europe's top 5 leagues than any other team in England, according to research by Sporting Intelligence.
Sir Alex Ferguson's side are ranked fifth in the world behind the likes of Real Madrid and Barcelona, and French clubs Lyon and Rennes.
Twenty players who have graduated from the Old Trafford academy have gone on to play in the Premier League, La Liga, Bundesliga, Ligue 1 or Serie 'A', one less than French side Rennes who sit fourth with 21 'primary' academy products.
The research deemed a primary youth academy prospect to "belong" to a certain club if they had spent three or more years at the facility between the ages of 15 and 21.
For Manchester United, that meant the likes of Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Darren Fletcher, Jonny Evans, Tom Cleverley and Danny Welbeck all count as home-grown players, and the majority are now first-team regulars.
Other players to have come through the ranks at Old Trafford, only then to have moved on, include Stoke City defender Ryan Shawcross, Sunderland's Phil Bardsley and Everton's Phil Neville, while Paul Pogba left this summer for Juventus.
Elsewhere in the Premier League, Aston Villa came second behind United with 15 primary players, Arsenal third with 14, Tottenham and West Ham joint fourth with 13 home-grown players apiece.
Outside the Premier League, Barcelona are the undisputed kings - with a massive 38 players produced by the prolific La Masia academy. 36 of those were 'primarily' produced by the academy - that is they spent at least three years at the club before the age of 21 and Barcelona was their first club.
And it's not just the sheer scale of production that impresses, it's the unbelievably high talent level too.
Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta, Xavi Hernandez, Sergio Busquets, Pedro, Victor Valdes, Carles Puyol, Cesc Fabregas, and Gerard Pique are all home-grown players. World Cup winners and European champions abound.
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