Not the first or last to outline the problem afflicting the development of England's promising young footballers, Patrick Vieira's outlook is simple: "Those kids need to play in one of the top five leagues in Europe."
With the 18-year-old Jadon Sancho leaving his mark with the table-topping Dortmund in Germany, the Arsenal legend and current Nice boss has been keen to stress how carefully clubs in Europe are keeping an eye on such talented individuals.
As the rich diversification of talents in the Premier League continues to hinder the breakthrough a young English player may make closer to home, Vieira, speaking to The Times, revealed how keen clubs like Nice were to bringing them out of their comfort zone.
"When you play two, three years in the under-23s, you lose motivation," Vieira stated.
"You don’t improve as you should. Then it’s too late. There are too many young players losing themselves because of the lack of challenge.
"If any good young player wants to come to France, I advise them to do it. We can give them first-team football, competitive games, chasing Europe.
"We give a chance to young players."
However inexperienced these players are, however, Nice (as with many others you'd suspect) have been left astonished at the demands that these players present nevertheless.
General manager at the club where Patrick Vieira is exploring football management, Julien Fournier explained the incredible cost a young, untested English player commands.
"One month ago I spent a week in England trying to bring a player at 17 earning €60,000 gross per month," Fournier said.
"This boy asked for €1 million for the parents, €2 million for the agents."
Yet, as Sancho continues to make progress at both the club and now international grade, some will surely take this as a signal that better things may come to those willing to consider the bigger picture.
