The debate on which quarry is the best in Europe has been – and continues to be – very present. Precisely, The International Center for Sports Studies (CIES) drew up and presented a list with those that contribute the most players, both among the five major leagues in Europe and in the global calculation of the continental panoramal. In the case of the first, half of the Top-10 are Spanish clubs. A clear reflection of how well the lower categories work in Spain, one of the main sources of talent. This study has also focused on evaluating the average age of these footballers and that of their games played, mainly, obtaining a weighted average.
Real Madrid leader, followed by Barcelona
The two largest and most successful clubs in Spanish football take the top two places in terms of the number of footballers they contribute among the five major leagues. In the case of Real Madrid, it contributes a total of 43 players. While Barcelona does it up to 32. The podium is closed by a French club, which is not PSG, but the Olympique de Lyon. In his case, there are 31 footballers, outnumbering the Parisians by two (29).
Paradoxically, the latter is something that is extremely shocking. PSG (4th) is one of the teams that undoubtedly invests the most in young players for its quarry. Instead, highlights their little bet when it comes to giving them the opportunity in the first team. Without going further, lost their first Champions League final by a goal from Kingsley Coman Bayern Munich, which came out of their academy.
Valencia, Real Sociedad and Athletic complete the Top-10
Three other Spanish teams are the ones that appear and fill in the rest of the ten classified. In the case of Valencia (5th) they contribute 28, among which is one of the main emerging stars transferred this summer to Manchester City: Ferran Torres, who already scores for 'skyblue'. It is followed by the Royal Society (6th), brand new leader of LaLiga, with 26 (many of them enjoying opportunities from the hand of Imanol Alguacil), surpassing his rival in a footballer, the Athletic Club (7th), a figure that contributes, in its majority, due to its well-known transfer and club policy.
Then, to see another Spanish team, you have to go down to number 13, where Atlético de Madrid appears and its 22 players. The next LaLiga team is the Celtic (18th), followed by Seville (20th) Y Osasuna (24th), surpassing giants like Bayern, Manchester City or Milan.
Partizan and Ajax, the main continental centers
Furthermore, CIES offers another study in parallel that includes a total of 31 leagues in Europe (also including the main five major leagues). That is how Partizan Belgrade and Ajax are at the top of the leaderboard. In the case of lSerbs, set a record with up to a total of 85 players, in addition to representing an average age of 25 years. While, in the case of the Dutch, their record is 77 footballers. The podium is closed by a Croatian team like Dinamo Zagreb, with 71.
While, after Dinamo Kiev and Shakhtar Donetsk, there is Real Madrid is 6th with 63 players. You have to go down through Estrella Roja, Hajduk Split, Sporting de Portugal, Vojvodina or Benfica to see the Barcelona in 12th place with 50. The rest of the Spanish teams that appear in the Top-50 are the Valencia (33rd), Real Sociedad (42nd) and Atlético de Madrid (44th).