Peake: The Future Is Bright For Young City Stars

- Leicester City U18s fell to a slender 1-0 defeat to Fulham on Saturday

- Trevor Peake bemoans a lack of goals but says City are improving

- City's young players have tested themselves in the UEFA Youth League

- Peake hails a 'fantastic' experience for those who have stepped up

City U18s fell to a slender 1-0 defeat to Fulham last weekend after Reece Yorke’s 41st minute strike proved to be only goal of the game at Motspur Park but Peake says there is cause to be optimistic for the future. 

“It was a familiar trait of most of our matches this season,” Peake said at full-time in Surrey. 

“We have struggled to score goals, we’ve only scored eight in the U18 Premier League all season, so that’s something we’re working on and we’re showing signs of improvement. 

“But, you have to remember, we have been pushing a lot of players through the ranks this season and that has been paying dividends in terms of their own personal development. 

“It’s brilliant to see the likes of Alex Pascanu representing the Under-23s team, alongside his international commitments, and it shows that we must be doing something right here. 

“Some of the lads are very young indeed so it’s been a test of their qualities to see how they can handle the high-pressure environment of playing competitive matches every week. 

“The latest in a long line of players to make the step up is Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall who has recently returned from injury to play for the U19s' squad in Europe.” 

Peake pointed to the UEFA Youth League as another steep step on the ladder for some of the Club’s youngest players but he nonetheless believes it is an invaluable experience for them. 

Under Beaglehole, the U19s have acquitted themselves well in the competition and defeated Copenhagen 3-2 in October at Loughborough University. 

However, City missed out on a spot in the round of 16 after the 3-2 defeat by Club Brugge at Belvoir Drive on Tuesday afternoon but Peake says they will benefit in the long run from having played at that level this season. 

He continued: “It’s been brilliant for some of the lads to test themselves in Europe. It may mean we’ve been a little short on numbers in the U18s squad but, for them, it’s been fantastic. 

“We’ve spoken about it at the Club in the past, but we’re hopeful there will be a couple of players who may be able to break into the first-team over the coming seasons.” 

Peake’s side face Brighton and Hove Albion this Saturday (11am kick-off) hoping to overtake the Seagulls into 10th in the U18 Premier League table following the setback in Surrey seven days ago. 

“We’re looking to push on over Christmas and get some points on the board,” he added. 

“We’ve shown the shoots of recovery these last few weeks and the players have been excellent in training, taking everything on board and learning from their mistakes. 

“There’s no reason why we can’t start scoring some of our chances and get climbing that league table.”