Fulham academy chief Gary Brazil admits his young players are now under huge pressure to keep progressing.

"Time doesn't wait for young players anymore," Brazil explained to fulhamfc.com. "The days of a club giving a boy two years and saying, 'leave him and see how he gets on' are gone. You have to drive on and it's a lot of pressure on young kids which I acknowledge. It's a tough industry which requires some very driven young men if they want what they say they want. Success comes at a price.

"These young kids are still learning and there bodies are still growing so they're not always at the same level physically week in, week out, which are all things that affect a performance. At 16 or 17 years of age you're not going to play well every week but there are certain things you can do technically to make sure you play to a certain level at least."