Wonderkids: 5 Leicester City Stars Who Could Break Through in 2019

Leicester City are known around England for developing many young players into fully capable Premier League starters. The Foxes have a wealth of youth talent at their disposal and many of these youngsters could break into the first-team this campaign. 

Here are five of the most promising young products in the Leicester system. 

Sam Hughes

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Sam Hughes signed for Leicester in 2017 for an undisclosed fee from Chester United. The strong central defender enjoyed a successful first season with the Foxes' development squad but has been sidelined this term with a back injury. 

Hughes' fine form in his first campaign earned him a couple of appearances on the bench for the first team and has said this exceeded his expectations. With an ageing back line and injuries piling up for the Foxes, Hughes may very well see his full debut for the club later this season. 

Darnell Johnson

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Darnell Johnson is a right-back on loan to Hibernian FC in the Scottish Premiership. The 20 year old defender has featured for England at every youth level since the Under-16 age group and even has a U-17 European Championship title to his name. 

Probably his biggest accolade to date is that he is the godson to former Premier League star Emile Heskey, but this could change later this term if he is given some first-team minutes under Leicester's new manager. 

Hamza Choudhury 

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Probably the best-known and most highly rated player on this list is England youth international Hamza Choudhury. Choudhury has been with the Foxes' academy since the age of seven and has grabbed the attention of many high-profile clubs over the years. 

The young defensive midfielder has great positioning and a knack for disrupting play in the middle of the park. Choudhury is typically deployed in a more defensive role, but can also be effective in a more advanced position on the pitch.

Choudhury made his first-team debut with the squad in 2017 as a substitute against Liverpool in the EFL Cup. In April 2018 he made his full Premier League debut as a starter in the 2-1 loss away to Burnley. 

Harvey Barnes

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Harvey Barnes is another Leicester academy product, signing with the club at the age of nine. Barnes is the son of former Premier League footballer Paul Barnes and has already made his first-team debut for the club.

Barnes played a significant part in England's victory at the 2017 Toulon tournament, winning the tournament's Golden Boot award. The young midfielder has featured five times for Leicester this season and looks comfortable among the bigger names in the squad.

George Thomas

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George Thomas signed for Leicester for an undisclosed fee in the summer of 2017. Prior to signing his contract with the Foxes, Thomas played for League 1 side Coventry City, scoring five goals in 42 total appearances. 

Thomas is currently having a successful loan spell with Scunthorpe United, leading the team with seven assists. The 21-year-old striker is very good in possession and constantly makes intelligent runs to create space for himself and his teammates. Thomas will be hoping that his good track record at Scunthorpe this term will provide him the opportunity to push his way into the first-team squad at Leicester next season.