Five potential Leicester City debutants as Ruud van Nistelrooy builds new foundations

Ruud van Nistelrooy’s focus on next season and his commitment to looking to the academy could see a handful of youngsters get their first taste of Premier League football

There have been two debutants in the past two games for Leicester City and, judging by the way Ruud van Nistelrooy is speaking, there could be more over the final six matches of the Premier League season.

The City boss, despite the uncertainty over his own future, is looking to next season and turning his attention to the academy, believing the best chance of future success is with homegrown players forming the foundations of the squad.

Fans will want to see more of Jeremy Monga and Jake Evans over the next six games, but there will be others who will hope to get their first Premier League outing too. Here’s a look at the candidates.

On the bench against Brighton, Aluko has been training regularly alongside City’s seniors for a few weeks.

A full-back who can play on both sides, the 18-year-old has quickly risen to prominence, as he was still mostly with the Under-18s until October of this season.

He looks to be a good ball carrier and his height means he wouldn’t be out of place physically in the top flight.

Jayden Joseph

Right-back Joseph has been around the first team for practically the whole season, travelling with the squad to Newcastle in December.

He’s been a consistent presence and a consistent performer for the Under-21s, only missing their opening Premier League 2 game of the season, and he’s full of attacking intent, sometimes playing further forward on the wing.

He’s already got his City debut under his belt, but Braybrooke has not yet made his Premier League bow.