The youngest player to pick up sustained minutes for Leeds United last season was Brenden Aaronson. The American turns 26 in October.

In a promoted team fighting to buck the recent trend of immediate relegation, Daniel Farke did not want to risk inexperienced players. Recruitment was focused on the 25-to-28-year-old bracket.

This pre-season, with senior figures returning late or leaving for pastures new, academy players have made up the numbers. The expectation, however, is that once transfers and injuries settle down, there will be little room for inexperienced players.

The Leeds squad has at least two seasoned options in virtually every position. The one department where stars could align is at left wing-back, where Leeds have a vacancy and, arguably, their brightest youth prospect. United need to recruit a backup for Gabriel Gudmundsson, who is injured and likely to miss the start of the Premier League season.

James Justin can, and likely will, moonlight at left wing-back, but he is right-footed and better suited to filling in for Jayden Bogle on the right.

It just so happens that Jayden Lienou, the now-18-year-old left-back they took from Manchester City last summer, is building up steam.

Jayden Lienou in action against Wrexham in Florida in July (Leonardo Fernandez/Getty Images)

Lienou graduated to United’s matchday squads in the league over the final weeks of last season, after a stellar first year with the under-21s, and then signed a new contract until 2029. The fact that he had only signed his first contract, to 2028, last summer underlines the impression he has made at Elland Road.

It should be stressed that the club is expected to recruit a more senior option to cover for Gudmundsson, but if anyone is going to break through, Lienou looks the most likely. His call-up to the senior Wales squad in May was telling, too.

Daniel James, who went up against Lienou in training for much of last season, was asked about his team-mate during that Wales camp. He told reporters: “He has been brilliant this season. We have been training against him a lot. He’s a great lad.

“It’ll be great for him this week to experience it, but it always helps to have a few familiar faces coming into camp, too. He thoroughly deserves it. He’s been great since he’s been here and great at Leeds. He’s definitely one for the future, a great player.”

Ethan Ampadu, his captain in West Yorkshire and another Wales international, told the media: “I see him day in and day out at Leeds, and I know the ability he’s got and the levels he can get to, but he’s a hard-working kid. He’s young, he’s got a lot to learn, but I’m sure he can.”

Farke has shown that if a player is good enough, they are old enough. Archie Gray, one of the finest academy graduates from Leeds in recent memory, was a mainstay in the 2023-24 season at 17 years old.

If Lienou shows Farke he can be trusted in the heat of the Premier League, the opportunities will be there. Regardless of what happens this season, Lienou is happy with his progress.

Speaking to the club’s official website after signing his new contract this summer, he said: “I’m probably further ahead than I thought I was going to be when I first signed for Leeds. When me and Scott (Gardner, under-21 head coach) sat down at the start of the season, we set some goals to get to certain situations, milestones in my career, and I’ve exceeded that.”

Gardner spoke about Lienou’s rapid development. He acknowledged that the 18-year-old was far better than what they already had at Thorp Arch when he arrived from City.

“The new faces like Jayden offer something completely different to what we had before and they complement the rest of the players, particularly the younger group coming up,” he told the club website. “We are excited to see where they can go.”

Gardner also said youth football would only take Lienou so far: “There comes a point where under-21s football provides a certain amount for the lads, but after that, they do need to go and experience senior games and they will be much better and more experienced as players and as people.

“We have also had six or seven lads around the first-team training group, so for them to be around Premier League footballers every single day can help them improve as players.”

As he continues to train with the first team, Lienou will hope he can make that leap.

Another season in the Premier League, another new manager.

Nottingham Forest will kick off their fifth consecutive campaign of top-flight football when Leeds United visit on Saturday.

Following another summer of change, what is the mood like at the City Ground?

What are the expectations inside the club?

Oliver Glasner has been appointed to take Forest to the next level. The ultimate ambition is to return to the European stage and challenge in cup competitions.

There is a feeling at Forest that the squad underachieved as they fought for Premier League survival last season.

Delivering European qualification or silverware immediately is unrealistic, but after reaching the Europa League semi-finals last season, Glasner and Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis are keen to ensure it was not a one-off.

Who have they signed?

Forest bolstered their midfield options with Xaver Schlager, signed as a free agent after leaving RB Leipzig. They also invested £35million ($46m) to sign 22-year-old defender Ousmane Diomande from Sporting CP.

They are viewed as significant additions. Schlager knows Glasner’s approach inside out, from their time working together at Wolfsburg. Diomande is seen as the final piece of the jigsaw in the centre of defence, where the club feel he can form a formidable trio with Murillo and Nikola Milenkovic.

What is their transfer priority before the window closes?

Glasner still wants, a wing-back and a striker and possibly a midfielder, although that is less of a priority.

Adding another striker feels particularly significant. Chris Wood’s minor injury struggles in pre-season and long-serving Taiwo Awoniyi’s departure to Coventry in a £9million move have both underlined why the club are still pursuing another striker. Glasner wants a player with a strong physical presence and the pace to stretch opposition defences. Jean-Philippe Mateta, who filled that role under him at Crystal Palace, is not a target. Liam Delap, the Chelsea forward, is on Forest’s list.

What else is new?

There are different roles for George Syrianos, Pedro Ferreira and Andy Reid within the Forest hierarchy, as the club has undergone a restructuring behind the scenes.

Syrianos, previously the global technical director, becomes chief football officer at the City Ground, taking on the role vacated when Ross Wilson departed to join Newcastle last summer. Ferreira, previously the club’s head of recruitment, will be the technical director.

The void left when Craig Mulholland joined the Scottish Football Association as chief football officer at the end of last season will partially be filled by the popular figure of Reid. The former Forest winger has moved into the head of football development role for the men’s and women’s academy teams. He will work closely with head of academy Chris McGuane, newly appointed B team head coach Dylan Malicheff and head of women’s football Amber Wildgust.

Following the departure of Geoff Scott, who was appointed on a consultancy basis in February, Dimitrios Kalogiannidis, who was at Chelsea for over a decade, is Forest’s new head of medical.

Who has been the best player in pre-season?

A tough call. Igor Jesus has been in fine form, having scored in every friendly he has played, aside from the defeat to Barcelona. That included four goals in Forest’s first five friendlies and making a strong claim for either one of the two No10 roles in Glasner’s preferred 3-4-2-1 formation or as the man leading the line. The Brazilian was a key figure in Europe and will be hoping to match that impact domestically.

Igor Jesus celebrates his opener in Nottingham Forest’s 4-1 defeat against Sporting CP in Faro last month (Carlos Rodrigues/Getty Images)

The other attacking midfielder will almost certainly be Morgan Gibbs-White, who has looked like a man with a point to prove after he was left out of England’s World Cup squad.

Gibbs-White was arguably the best player in his position in the Premier League last season and Forest will hope he can repeat that form under Glasner, who has a track record of taking talented players and making them even better.

What are they worried about?

Replacing Anderson. The England midfielder was one of Forest’s best players for generations.

There was at least one bid rejected for Tottenham Hotspur’s Sweden international Lucas Bergvall in July but Forest still have quality in the centre of the pitch. Ibrahim Sangare has evolved into the dominant figure the club hoped he would be when they signed him from PSV in 2023, Nico Dominguez is a versatile talent, Glasner trusts Schlager, and we should never write off Ryan Yates.

But it is former Manchester City man James McAtee who Glasner — and senior figures at Forest — hope can fill the Anderson void. McAtee has played in a deeper role all summer and is likely to start there again on Saturday.

How is the manager feeling?

Glasner was in a hugely positive mood when he spoke at length in Portugal about his ambitions.

The 51-year-old believes he is inheriting a squad with more to give. Glasner wanted to leave Palace in search of a fresh challenge — he will definitely find that in Nottingham.

What is the percentage chance of Glasner seeing out the season?

Landing Glasner feels like a serious coup for Forest. His stock was high at Palace after adding a Conference League trophy to the FA Cup and Community Shield he helped win.

A change in manager is nothing new at Forest — they worked their way through four head coaches last season — but the chaos was more nuanced than some might recognise. Nuno Espirito Santo talked himself out of the job, Ange Postecoglou was a mistake from day one and Sean Dyche lost the dressing room. Vitor Pereira was unlucky after doing a fine job of keeping Forest up. But it is possible to feel sympathy for him and still recognise that Glasner is a step up.

Marinakis does not sack managers on a whim. It would require a complete disaster for Forest to part company with a coach they went to great lengths to appoint. At Forest, nothing is certain, but there has to be at least a 90 per cent chance that Glasner will still be in charge in May.

I wouldn’t be surprised if…

McAtee thrives under Glasner.

No player suffered more amid the chop and change last season, with none of the head coaches finding a way to maximise the versatile midfielder’s talents, despite their varied tactical approaches.

James McAtee battles for possession against Bayer Leverkusen last week (Shaun Botterill/Getty Images)

Glasner’s football ethos helped Mateta, Eberechi Eze and Ismaila Sarr make the very most of their ability at Selhurst Park.

Maybe he can work a similar brand of magic with McAtee, who Forest believed was capable of big things when he signed from Manchester City for £30million a year ago.

What is their strongest XI?

(3-4-2-1) Matz Sels; Ousmane Diomande, Nikola Milenkovic, Murillo; Ola Aina, James McAtee, Ibrahim Sangare, Neco Williams; Igor Jesus, Morgan Gibbs-White; Chris Wood.

In Fantasy Premier League, investing in players from the promoted teams often comes with its risks, as their Premier League form is challenging to predict.

However, plenty of fantasy managers are considering looking at Coventry City, Hull City and Ipswich Town, especially since all of their defenders are priced at the lowest £4.0million.

So, which of the players from the promoted teams are worth considering for your team for the opening gameweeks of the season?

The goalkeepers

Unfortunately, there’s no starting goalkeeper from the promoted sides priced at the lowest price point of £4.0m, with all of these picks coming in at £4.5m.

Carl Rushworth (£4.5m) of Coventry would be my pick of the bunch after he made his loan deal from Brighton permanent this summer. He kept 17 clean sheets last season in the Championship.

Despite this, I think that there are better options in the game at this price point, including Brighton’s Bart Verbruggen (£4.5m) and Tottenham Hotspur’s Antonin Kinsky (£4.5m).

The defenders

This category is the richest, supported by a blanket £4million pricing for all defenders from the three promoted teams, with strategy perhaps dictating which sides to invest in. These budget defenders are useful enablers for an early Bench Boost in one of the opening two gameweeks.

Ipswich Town have the best clean-sheet potential of the promoted sides in Gameweek One when they take on Sunderland at Portman Road. Regis Le Bris’ were one of the worst attacks on the road last season, scoring just 17 goals.

Issa Diop (£4.0m) has Premier League experience with West Ham and Fulham, which perhaps explains why, at the time of writing, he’s the highest-selected defender from the Ipswich defence. The Morocco international is in around 18 per cent of sides.

However, Dara O’Shea (£4.0m) is the one to go for if you’re chasing defensive contribution points, having averaged around nine defensive contributions last season. That’s a figure we’d expect to see improve given the challenges of the Premier League.

However, there’s a small chance he ends up beginning the campaign at right-back, which would dampen his appeal. A goal in their final pre-season friendly does help O’Shea’s case, though.

Ipswich’s Dara O’Shea carries good DEFCON potential (Alex Burstow/Getty Images)

Leif Davis (£4.0m) is perhaps the more attractive short-term punt, given his attacking potential. He provided six goal involvements for his side last season.

The left-back has the ability for much more though, having registered 18 Championship assists in 2023-24. Two goals and one assist in pre-season certainly strengthens his appeal.

Moving our attention to Gameweek Two, the utility comes from Coventry’s defenders. They face champions Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium in Gameweek One but then host Championship play-off winners Hull City at home.

This is a fixture which ended 0-0 home and away last season. Again, it’s a battle of defensive contributions or attacking threat between Milan van Ewijk (£4.0m) and Bobby Thomas (£4.0m), and I’ve tinkered with owning both in my early drafts.

Van Ewijk has the upside once again, with the right-back producing eight assists in the Championship last season, more than any of his team-mates. He may often be in the mix for defensive contributions, too.

We expect Thomas to pick up defensive contribution points more consistently, with the centre-back racking up what would have counted for just under nine per 90 minutes last season. He’s no stranger to attacking threat either, with three goals and four assists last season.

When it comes to assets from Hull, their clean-sheet potential isn’t tempting enough in any individual game for me to consider investment. However, I do think John Egan (£4.0m) has the best potential of their assets given his ability to score defensive contribution points.

The midfielders

If you’ve got a £4.5 million midfielder spot in your squad structure, then Hull City’s Regan Slater (£4.5m) looks to be the best option to fill it. He offers consistent minutes, playing every game for his team last season.

He produced four goal involvements last season and should be in the mix for defensive contribution points, too. He’s a safe option as the eighth ‘attacker’ in your squad (counting your forwards and four other midfielders) but doesn’t have enough upside for those on Bench Boost.

The forwards

Ollie McBurnie (£5.5m) carries the most potential among the promoted forwards, but he’ll struggle to disrupt the template at £1.0million above the base price, and with the popular Dominic Calvert-Lewin (£6.0m) coming in just £0.5 million more.

McBurnie has significant Premier League experience, with 13 goals and six assists across three seasons as a regular. He registered 24 goal involvements in the Championship last season, and he’s on penalties.

There are few attractive forward options but Hull’s Oli McBurnie might be worth a punt (Tony King/Getty Images)

Meanwhile, Ipswich’s Sindre Walle Egeli (£4.5m) has an outside chance of starting up front in Gameweek One, but it’s a very short-term punt due to the recent arrival of Julio Enciso. 

He is a high-risk enabler for those using their Bench Boost in Gameweek One, with three assists across pre-season from the wing.

We saw Coventry City’s Haji Wright (£5.5m) miss Coventry’s final pre-season friendly against Monaco — a 2-0 win — playing just 15 minutes across their entire preparation. He’s been their top scorer for three seasons, including 17 in their last campaign.

In Wright’s stead, Ellis Simms (£5.0m) stepped up, scoring in that win against Monaco, his second goal of pre-season. If he’s likely to be a starter by Gameweek Two, it opens up the Bench Boost strategy.

It’s a risk, though. Taiwo Awoniyi (£5.5m) has just signed from Nottingham Forest, which instantly negates any appeal.