Jadon Sancho is fully aware that he could become a trailblazer.
At just 18 years old, the English winger is starring for Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga.
And he’s creating a path that he wants others to follow.
“I would say to anyone, ‘Don’t be afraid to follow me and make a move like this,’” Sancho told the Mirror in December.
Arsenal’s Reiss Nelson is also benefitting from regular game-time on loan at Hoffenheim and it seems inevitable that more Premier League academy players will start heading to Germany.
Such moves profit both parties; the players get much-needed experience and the clubs get a young player eager to show off his talents.
Chelsea starlet Callum Hudson-Odoi, 18, could be next to fly the nest; he’s been linked with a move to Bayern Munich.
Bundesliga clubs eyeing young talents
And the Independent have revealed a list of other youngsters who are generating serious interested from Germany’s top flight.
Eleven play in the Premier League, while three belong to Championship clubs.
20 years old – Reece Oxford (West Ham United)
18 – Matt O’Riley (Fulham); Xavier Amaechi (Arsenal); Curtis Jones (Liverpool); Arvin Appiah (Nottingham Forest)
17 – Mason Greenwood (Manchester United); Tyreece John-Jules (Arsenal); Arthur Okonkwo (Arsenal); Luca Ashby-Hammond (Fulham)
16 – Troy Parrott (Tottenham Hotspur); Morgan Rodgers (West Brom)
15 – Louie Barry (West Brom); Harvey Elliott (Fulham); Leojo Davidson (Manchester City)
The Independent’s report, penned by Miguel Delaney, revealed just how much of an interest Bundesliga clubs are now taking in the Premier League’s stars of tomorrow.
“The agent of one young player spoke about how as many as 12 Bundesliga clubs are regularly onto him about his next move,” Delaney wrote.
It’s not just Germany that has caught on to the rising crop of young stars. Apparently other countries are beginning to take note.
This all seems to be the natural culmination of the Premier League’s mass spending on foreign players.
Now, with it becoming increasingly difficult for youngsters to make the first team, there's an opportunity for them to make a name for themselves abroad.