Premier League Predictions: The Best Young Player this season

One of the features of any new season that fans look forward to is the next big thing breaking onto the scene.

The young player of the year award is often just as hotly contested as the ultimate individual prize and crossovers often occur, so we’ve predicted who will be the top rated player currently aged 23 or under come the end of the Premier League season.

Martin Laurence - Naby Keita

Given the fee that the club spent to secure his services, along with some eye-catching displays in pre-season, there’s little doubt that Keita will be at the heart of Liverpool’s plans next season. Given that he may well line up in a midfield comprising of Fabinho and Jordan Henderson the 23-year-old should have plenty of freedom to get forwards and his all action style and ability to break the lines should be a joy to watch. The former Leipzig man should suit Klopp’s approach perfectly and if he can return to the sort of form he displayed in his first season in the Bundesliga, scoring eight times and registering seven assists, he will make the move to England with similar ease.

Josh Wright - Naby Keita

Liverpool now have a formidable team ahead of the new season and it will be brilliant to finally watch Naby Keita on a weekly basis. The 23-year-old arrives with a huge reputation following his exploits in the Bundesliga and I can't imagine it will be long before people ask why Liverpool had such a free run at the dynamic midfielder.

Ben McAleer - Leroy Sane

A surprise exclusion from Germany’s World Cup squad, Leroy Sane will be fit and raring to go for the coming campaign. He was exceptional for Manchester City last term, earning a WhoScored.com rating of 7.54, with the winger one of five players to register double figures for both goals (10) and assists (15) in the Premier League last term. With a full pre-season under his belt, we could see Sane take his game to the next level this time around.