Lots of yummy kids…

Arsenal’s, obviously.

They beat Sheffield Utd 6-0 at Highbury last night, with Carlos Vela netting a hat trick, Nicolas Bendtner two, and Jack Wilshire finishing the rout. The Telegraph’s take on the youthfullness:

If Arsenal’s players had worn white nappies and carried red dummies, few would have been surprised. Their combined age was just 209 – 90 years fewer than United.

The average age of Wenger’s youngsters was 19, with four players – Vela, Wilshere, a mere 16 years and 267 days, Gavin Hoyte and Fran Merida – starting a competitive game for the first time.

And if this is the future of Arsenal, traditionalists should be satisfied; the starting XI included four Englishman and a Welshman, the first time in more than five years that five Brits have worn Arsenal’s colours from the start.

Arsenal really are a shining example to the rest of the Premiership. They are a well run, financially secure, un-indebted (except to Arsene Wenger) well supported club, who invest in youth and look to the future.

They scour the world for the best young talent to bring on and develop in the Arsenal (Arsene) mould… that talent is simply not English (or is too expensive, minus the odd exception like Aaron Ramsey) hance the foreign bent – but as above, even this may be changing.

Its all very well for Utd and Chelsea to mortgage themselves up to the eyeballs and buy success – but in my mind Arsenal’s is the greater achievement.

If the credit crunch does take its toll on football, and the huge debts becomes unserviceable, Arsenal’s young starlets will be the ones laughing.