Ranking the 8 most exciting EFL League One youngsters right now | OneFootball

Football League World takes a look at some of the most promising players aged 21 or under in the third tier ahead of the new season

The 2026/27 League One campaign kicks off soon, and there are plenty of talented young players to keep an eye out for.

Clubs in League One have spent the summer loaning in exciting youngsters from clubs in the Premier League or the Championship and have organically brought through academy prospects into their first teams, too, ahead of the campaign.

There are numerous players ready to either make a name for themselves or continue to showcase why they're among the brightest stars in the EFL after a few years already in the spotlight.

It's been difficult to narrow them down to just eight, but in no particular order, here are eight of the brightest stars aged 21 and under that you should be looking out for in the third tier this year.

8 ? ? Patrick Kelly

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There are plenty of exciting young players at Barnsley heading into the new season, and while Reyes Cleary will get the majority of the plaudits, Patrick Kelly isn't too far behind and is just about young enough to squeeze into this list.

The Northern Irish midfielder had a brilliant debut campaign at Oakwell last season after arriving from West Ham United, taking the appropriate next steps after helping Doncaster Rovers win League Two the year prior.

Kelly can play numerous roles in the middle of the park, from a holding midfielder to a more advanced role and was in the upper percentiles for defensive, possession and chance creation stats out of all League One midfielders last year.

The 21-year-old also netted against a strong France side in a World Cup warm-up game for Didier Deschamps' side back in June, helping some more casual fans recognise his game, which could reach a new level under Daniel Stendel this season.

7 ? ? Sulyman Krubally

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While winning the League One Apprentice of the Season doesn't always correlate with having a big future in the game, it definitely means there'll be more eyes on Sulyman Krubally this season to see if the EFL chose right in awarding him the accolade back in April.

The Burton Albion midfielder turns 18 later this month, but already has 28 senior appearances for the Brewers under his belt, 20 of which came in League One last season, picking up an assist in that time, too.

With Gary Bowyer's side losing a few key players this summer, he'll be looking for the likes of Krubally to step up if Burton are going to remain above the dreaded relegation line once more come May.

He definitely has the potential to, and a midfield pivot of him and Charlie Webster could be quite exciting at the Pirelli this year.

6 ? ? Tom Iorpenda

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Tom Iorpenda returns to Huddersfield Town this summer off the back of being one of the more influential attacking midfielders in League Two last season at Notts County, contributing 11 goals for Martin Paterson's side en route to promotion via the play-offs.

The 21-year-old is now set to get a real shot in the first team at the club he's been with since 2021. He did make five sporadic appearances in League One during the 2024/25 term, but under Martin Drury, he will be right amongst the starting squad.

Iorpenda is on a real wave of momentum from last year, and it's up to him to capitalise and take the necessary next steps towards being a top-level attacking midfielder in the third tier.

5 ? ? Louis Page

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We mentioned Krubally winning the Apprentice of the Season last year in League One. Leicester City's Louis Page, meanwhile, won the Championship award back in April.

The midfielder only just turned 18 in July, and has his whole career ahead of him. He'll definitely be one of the many youngsters in the Leicester academy who will indirectly benefit from their consecutive relegations, as it's arguable he'd have been earmarked for a loan at this level if the Foxes were playing higher up the pyramid.

As it happens, Page could be set to play a key role in a side many expect to be winning the league this year, which will only do wonders for his progression.

After making 21 appearances in all competitions last year, the 18-year-old will be keen to build on that in his second campaign at senior level.

4 ? ? Tommy Watson

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We've tried to limit selections to just one per team, but in Leicester's case, it's hard not to ignore the promise of both Page and Brighton and Hove Albion loanee Tommy Watson heading into the campaign.

Sunderland's play-off final hero a little over 12 months ago has endured a difficult start to life on the South Coast, following his £10 million move to the Premier League side. He only made six top-flight appearances for Fabien Hurzeler's side, all off the bench, before being loaned out to Millwall in January.

Even back in the Championship, he struggled for games for the promotion-chasing side and started just two games in the second half of the season. Alex Neil left him on the bench for both play-off semi-final legs against Hull City.

Now, the 20-year-old finds himself in League One, desperate to get his young career back on track. With regular game time at the King Power Stadium, the wideman could tear the third tier up.

3 ? ? Jake Richards

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Jake Richards already has 46 League One appearances under his belt despite just turning 19 at the start of August, and his future is definitely bright in the Luton Town midfield.

The former Exeter City academy graduate had a great debut campaign at Kenilworth Road last year, scoring five times in just 16 league starts and playing a key role in the impressive end to the campaign under Jack Wilshere.

He started in the EFL Trophy final win against Stockport County back in April and was consistently in the squad during their unbeaten run to end the League One campaign, which nearly ended in a late surge into the play-offs.

You'd expect that Richards will be given an even bigger role in the Hatters fold by Jack Wilshere this season, which would give him the tools to be up in the Young Player of the Season conversation come April.

2 ? ? Harry Gray

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Harry Gray is one of the most promising young English frontmen in the EFL currently, and that's not an exaggeration.

The Leeds United frontman played up as many as four age groups during his time in the Whites academy, made his senior debut for the club aged just 16 back in April 2025, and in January, it was decided that the 17-year-old was already too good for youth football and needed to be loaned out.

That initial loan destination to Rotherham United wasn't the most ideal place for Gray to improve, though, given the Millers' situation down at the bottom of League One.

Still, he managed three goals in 20 games and now finds himself at Sheffield Wednesday, a club with much higher expectations and a lot more quality across the squad for the young striker to benefit from.

With a long, storied lineage of Leeds players behind him, including great-uncle Eddie Gray and brother Archie Gray, there's plenty of promise and expectation among Leeds fans for him to improve, and they, plus other neutral England fans, will be keeping an eye on his progression this season.

1 ? ? Benony Breki Andresson

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Benony Andresson has been on the periphery of first-team action throughout the 18 months he's spent at Stockport, but this season could prove to be the campaign where the 21-year-old truly explodes.

The young Icelandic striker came to Stockport in 2025 with quite a bit of hype after he scored 25 times in 28 appearances as a teenager during the 2024 Icelandic top-flight campaign with KR Reykjavik.

He scored four times in just two starts in the second half of the 2024/25 campaign, but last season, only made eight starts, netting twice in just under 700 minutes of action.

That may not change this year, but Andresson has a big opportunity to open the campaign on the right foot and make himself one of the first names on the teamsheet.

Adama Sidibeh, who the 21-year-old will be contesting for the starting place with, is set to miss the first couple of months of the campaign with a hamstring injury.