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2023–24 Professional U21 Development League

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Premier League 2
Season2023–24
ChampionsTottenham Hotspur U21s
Matches played275
(260 RS, 15 PO)
Goals scored1,104 (4.01 per match)
(1026 RS, 78 PO)
Top goalscorerWill Lankshear
(18 goals) (5 playoffs) (23 total goals)
Biggest home winManchester United U21s 10–1 Stoke City U21s
(26 August 2023)
Biggest away winLeeds United U21s 1–7 Crystal Palace U21s
(3 November 2023)
Manchester City U21s 0–6 Norwich City U21s
(17 December 2023)
Newcastle United U21s 1–7 Chelsea U21s
(8 March 2024)
Highest scoringManchester United U21s 10-1 Stoke City U21s
(26 August 2023)
Longest winning run11 Matches Tottenham Hotspur U21s August 12, 2023–January 27, 2024
Longest unbeaten run12 Matches Tottenham Hotspur U21s
12 August 2023–17 February 2024
Longest winless run12 Matches Leeds United U21s
22 September 2023–8 April 2024
Longest losing run5 Matches Leeds United U21s
19 February 2024-8 April 2024
Highest attendance4,182 Tottenham Hotspur U21s 3–1 Sunderland U21s
(26 May 2024)
Lowest attendance32 Reading U21s 3–0 Manchester City U21s
(26 April 2024)
All statistics correct as of 20 March 2024.

The 2023–24 Professional U21 Development League was the 12th season of the Professional Development League system.

The Premier League 2 changed format for 2023–24 with one division instead of two.[1]

Reading regained Category One status in the summer.[2]

Premier League 2

[edit]

Table

[edit]
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts
1 Tottenham Hotspur U21s (C) 20 14 4 2 54 28 +26 46 Qualification to the Elimination Playoffs
and Premier League International Cup
2 West Ham United U21s 20 13 3 4 53 29 +24 42
3 Fulham U21s 20 11 5 4 52 30 +22 38
4 Chelsea U21s 20 11 3 6 53 32 +21 36
5 Arsenal U21s 20 10 6 4 47 33 +14 36
6 Reading U21s 20 10 5 5 35 35 0 35
7 Sunderland U21s 20 10 4 6 45 32 +13 34
8 Liverpool U21s 20 10 3 7 34 27 +7 33
9 Crystal Palace U21s 20 9 4 7 49 42 +7 31
10 Wolverhampton Wanderers U21s 20 9 4 7 39 36 +3 31
11 Middlesbrough U21s 20 9 4 7 38 39 −1 31
12 Manchester United U21s 20 8 5 7 56 43 +13 29
13 Brighton & Hove Albion U21s 20 8 5 7 35 38 −3 29 Qualification to the Elimination Playoffs
14 Nottingham Forest U21s 20 7 7 6 30 33 −3 28
15 Blackburn Rovers U21s 20 8 3 9 41 58 −17 27
16 Aston Villa U21s 20 7 4 9 40 48 −8 25
17 Southampton U21s 20 7 3 10 43 47 −4 24
18 Norwich City U21s 20 7 2 11 43 42 +1 23
19 Stoke City U21s 20 7 2 11 38 55 −17 23
20 Leicester City U21s 20 5 5 10 33 41 −8 20
21 West Bromwich Albion U21s 20 5 4 11 24 36 −12 19
22 Newcastle United U21s 20 5 4 11 29 46 −17 19
23 Manchester City U21s 20 4 6 10 32 50 −18 18
24 Leeds United U21s 20 5 3 12 28 48 −20 18
25 Everton U21s 20 4 5 11 25 40 −15 17
26 Derby County U21s 20 5 1 14 30 38 −8 16
Source: Premier League 2 Table
(C) Champions

Results

[edit]
Home \ Away ARS AVL BLB BHA CHE CRY DER EVE FUL LEE LEI LIV MNC MNU MID NEW NOR NFO REA SOU STK SUN TOT WBA WHU WOL
Arsenal U21 — 3–5 — 6–3 — — — — — 1–1 4–1 — 3–3 — 1–0 — — — 3–0 4–2 — — 1–1 — 3–0 —
Aston Villa U21 — — — — 0–4 — 3–1 2–1 1–1 — 2–2 — — — 4–0 — 1–4 — — — 2–2[a] 2–3 — 0–3 — —
Blackburn Rovers U21 2–2 2–3 — — — 3–3 — — — — 4–1 1–0 — 2–5 — 2–1 — — — — 3–6 0–4 — — 1–3 —
Brighton & Hove Albion U21 — 2–1 — — — — — — — 2–4 0–0 4–2 — — — 1–1 2–0 1–0 0–3 — — — — 2–1 1–4 —
Chelsea U21 2–4 — 6–1 2–3 — — — — 2–2 — 1–1 — — 3–2 — — — 2–3 3–2 2–0 — — — 3–0 — —
Crystal Palace U21 — 4–2 — 2–1 2–2 — — 0–0 2–5 — — 2–4 — 3–2 — — — — — — — — 5–0[b] 3–0 1–5 —
Derby County U21 — — 1–3 2–3 — — — 3–0 — — — 1–1 4–2 — — — — 0–1 5–1 — 1–2 — 0–2 — — 1–2
Everton U21 1–1 — 2–3 0–4 — — — — — — 4–3 — 1–1 — — — 2–1 1–2 — 5–0 — — — 1–3 — 0–2
Fulham U21 — — 1–2 3–0 — — 2–1 — — — 1–3 — 2–1 1–1 2–2 — — — 7–1 5–1 — — 0–2 — — —
Leeds United U21 — — — — 0–2 1–7 3–0 1–1[c] 3–5 — — 2–2 — — — — 0–2 — — — 2–1 1–3 — — 2–5 —
Leicester City U21 — — — — — 1–1[d] 2–1 — — 2–0 — — 1–3 — 1–3 2–2[e] 2–3 — — 1–2 3–0 — — — — 1–3
Liverpool U21 0–2 0–2 — — 2–1 — — 4–0 2–0 — — — 2–0 — 1–4 — — — — — 3–1 — — — 0–4 2–0
Manchester City U21 — 4–4 — — 1–2 0–3 — — — — — — — — — — 0–6 2–0 — — — 2–2 0–5 2–0 2–2 3–3
Manchester United U21 2–4 — — 1–1 — — 2–4 3–1 — 1–2 — 0–3 2–1 — — 3–2 4–2 — — — 10–1 — — — — —
Middlesbrough U21 — — — — 1–3 2–3 1–0 2–2 — — — — — 3–2 — 3–2[f] — — — — 4–1 — 1–2 0–1 — 3–2
Newcastle United U21 — 0–1[g] — — 1–7 — — 1–0 1–3 0–2 — 1–2 0–4 — — — — 1–1 — 5–3 — — — 3–2 — —
Norwich City U21 — — 4–0 — 3–2 — — — 3–3 — — — — — 2–3 — — 2–2 — 0–2 — — 3–4 2–1 0–2 3–4
Nottingham Forest U21 2–0 3–0 1–5 — — 4–3 — — — 4–0 — — — 0–0 2–2 — — — 0–0[h] — — 0–5 — — — 2–2
Reading U21s — — 7–2 — — 2–0 — — — 3–2 2–1 0–0 3–0 — 2–2 1–0 2–1 — — — — 2–1 — — — —
Southampton U21 — 4–2 — — — 4–0 2–1 — — — — 0–3 — 3–6[i] — — — 1–1 6–0 — 5–1 1–2 2–3 — — —
Stoke City U21 2–2 — — 4–3 — 1–3 — — — — — — 5–1 — — 1–2 4–2 3–1 0–2 — — — 0–2 — — 2–1
Sunderland U21 1–2 — — 1–1 — — 3–1 — — — 4–2[j] 2–1 — 5–5 1–2 2–3 2–0 — — — — — 2–4 — — —
Tottenham Hotspur U21 — 5–3 4–0 — 4–2 — — 1–2 — 1–0 — — — 2–2[k] — 4–1 — — 2–2 — — — — — 1–1 5–1
West Bromwich Albion U21 3–0[l] — 3–3 — — — 0–1 — 0–3 4–2 — — — 0–3 — — — — 0–0 1–1 — 0–0 — — 2–4 —
West Ham United U21 — — — — 0–2 — 3–2 3–1 0–3 — 1–3 — — — 5–0 — — 3–1 — 3–3 3–1 2–0 — — — —
Wolverhampton Wanderers U21 2–1 — 1–2 1–1 — 3–2 — — 2–3 2–0 — — — — — 2–2 — — — 2–1 — 1–2 — 3–0 — —
Source: Premier League 2 Results
Legend: Blue = home team win; Yellow = draw; Red = away team win.
Notes:
  1. ^ Originally scheduled to be played on 1 December 2023, the Aston Villa match against Stoke City was postponed due to a frozen pitch.
  2. ^ Originally scheduled to be played on 9 February 2024 and then 29 March 2024, the Crystal Palace matches against Tottenham Hotspur were both postponed due to a waterlogged pitch.
  3. ^ Originally scheduled to be played on 15 January 2024, the Leeds United match against Everton was postponed due to a frozen pitch.
  4. ^ The match between Leicester City and Crystal Palace was abandoned after 86 minutes due to an injury to Crystal Palace player Joe Sheridan. The Premier League confirmed that the result will stand.
  5. ^ On 3 November, the Leicester City match against Newcastle United was abandoned with the score at 2–2.
  6. ^ Originally scheduled to be played on 9 February 2024, the Middlesbrough match against Newcastle United was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch.
  7. ^ Originally scheduled to be played on 15 January 2024, the Newcastle United match against Aston Villa was postponed due to a frozen pitch.
  8. ^ Originally scheduled to be played on 9 February 2024, the Nottingham Forest match against Reading was postponed. The rescheduled game on 22 April 2024 was abandoned after an injury to Nottingham Forest player Ben Perry.
  9. ^ Originally scheduled to be played on 9 February 2024, the Southampton match against Manchester United was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch.
  10. ^ Originally scheduled to be played on 9 February 2024, the Sunderland match against Leicester City was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch.
  11. ^ Originally scheduled to be played on 2 December 2023, the Tottenham Hotspur match against Manchester United was postponed due to a frozen pitch.
  12. ^ Originally scheduled to be played on 1 December 2023, the West Bromwich Albion match against Arsenal was postponed due to a frozen pitch.

Elimination Playoffs

[edit]
Round of 16 Quarter-finals Semi-finals Final
            
1 Tottenham Hotspur U21s 4
16 Aston Villa U21s 3
1 Tottenham Hotspur U21s 3 (5)
8 Liverpool U21s 3 (4)
8 Liverpool U21s 3
9 Crystal Palace U21s 2
1 Tottenham Hotspur U21s 2
4 Chelsea U21s 1
5 Arsenal U21s 6
12 Manchester United U21s 2
5 Arsenal U21s 2
4 Chelsea U21s 3
4 Chelsea U21s 5
13 Brighton & Hove Albion U21s 4
1 Tottenham Hotspur U21s 3
7 Sunderland U21s 1
6 Reading U21s 2
11 Middlesbrough U21s 0
6 Reading U21s 3
14 Nottingham Forest U21s 1
3 Fulham U21s 0
14 Nottingham Forest U21s 2
6 Reading U21s 3
7 Sunderland U21s 4
7 Sunderland U21s 4
10 Wolverhampton Wanderers U21s 1
7 Sunderland U21s 3 (5)
2 West Ham United U21s 3 (3)
2 West Ham United U21s 4
15 Blackburn Rovers U21s 1

Round of 16

[edit]
Arsenal U21s6–2Manchester United U21s
 Report
Attendance: 610
Referee: Aaron Farmer
Chelsea U21s5–4 (a.e.t.)Brighton & Hove Albion U21s
 Report
Attendance: 389
Referee: Stephen Parkinson
West Ham United U21s4–1Blackburn Rovers U21s
 Report
Rush Green Stadium, Romford
Attendance: 196
Referee: Aji Ajibola
Reading U21s2–0Middlesbrough U21s
 Report
Attendance: 841
Referee: Gary Parsons
Liverpool U21s3–2Crystal Palace U21s
 Report
Attendance: 178
Referee: Dean Watson
Tottenham Hotspur U21s4–3 (a.e.t.)Aston Villa U21s
 Report
Attendance: 601
Referee: Robert Massey-Ellis
Sunderland U21s4–1Wolverhampton Wanderers U21s
 Report
Attendance: 534
Referee: Benjamin Wyatt
Fulham U21s0–2Nottingham Forest U21s
Report
Attendance: 116
Referee: Alan Dale

Quarterfinals

[edit]
Arsenal U21s2–3Chelsea U21s
Lewis-Skelly 13'
Butler-Oyedeji 55'		 Report Diego Moreira 45+2', 80', 90+5'
Attendance: 500
Referee: Paul Johnson
Reading U21s3–1Nottingham Forest U21s
Wareham 8' (pen.)
Clarke 33', 67'		 Report Esapa Osong 38'
Attendance: 1,161
Referee: Jason Richardson
Tottenham Hotspur U21s3–3 (a.e.t.)Liverpool U21s
 Report
Penalties
 5–4[6]
Attendance: 1,180
Referee: Ruebyn Ricardo
Sunderland U21s3–3 (a.e.t.)West Ham United U21s
 Report
Penalties
 5–3[7]
Attendance: 831
Referee: Aaron Bannister

Semifinals

[edit]
Tottenham Hotspur U21s2–1Chelsea U21s
 Report
Attendance: 1,123[9]
Referee: Richie Watkins
Reading U21s3–4 (a.e.t.)Sunderland U21s
 Report
Attendance: 2,374
Referee: Andrew Humphries

Final

[edit]
Tottenham Hotspur U21s3–1Sunderland U21s
 Report
Attendance: 4,182
Referee: Gareth Rhodes

Professional Development League

[edit]
U21 Professional Development League
Season2023–24
ChampionsSheffield United U21s
Matches played313
(310 RS, 3 PO)
Goals scored1,200 (3.83 per match)
(1189 RS, 11 PO)
Top goalscorerDaniel Adu-Adjei, Patrick Casey (18 Goals)
Biggest home winMillwall U21s 7–0 Watford U21s
(March 11, 2024), Queens Park Rangers U21s 7–0 Crewe Alexandra U21s
(April 9, 2024)
Biggest away winIpswich Town U21s 1–8 Charlton Athletic U21s
(February 13, 2024)
Highest scoringFleetwood Town U21s 4–6 Crewe Alexandra U21s
(September 26, 2023), Charlton Athletic U21s 5–5 Cardiff City U21s
(November 27, 2023), Ipswich Town U21s 7–3 Swansea City U21s
(February 20, 2024)
Longest winning run5 Matches Millwall U21s
Sheffield United U21s
Longest unbeaten run10 Matches Birmingham City U21s
Longest winless run14 Matches Colchester United U21s
Longest losing run11 Matches Colchester United U21s

The Professional Development League 2 is Under-21 football's second tier, designed for those academies with Category 2 status. The league is split regionally into north and south divisions, with each team facing opponents in their own region twice both home and away and opponents in the other region once resulting in 30 games played for the North Division, while the south division played 29 games. The sides finishing in the top two positions in both regions at the end of the season will progress to a knockout stage to determine the overall league champion. Millwall are the defending champions.

21 Teams competed in the league this season, one more team than the previous season. Reading U21s regained Category One status in the summer leaving the league after one solitary season.[12] Meanwhile, AFC Bournemouth U21s,[13] and Fleetwood Town U21s[14] join the league for the very first time as both Academies reaches Category Two status for the 2023-24 season.

Tables

[edit]

North Division

[edit]
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Sheffield United U21s 30 19 6 5 83 34 +49 63 Qualification for Knock-out stage
2 Birmingham City U21s 30 15 10 5 59 36 +23 55
3 Sheffield Wednesday U21s 30 16 6 8 58 34 +24 54
4 Barnsley U21s 30 17 3 10 65 44 +21 54
5 Hull City U21s 30 14 3 13 59 63 −4 45
6 Burnley U21s 30 12 6 12 53 57 −4 42
7 Fleetwood Town U21s 30 13 3 14 48 58 −10 42
8 Peterborough United U21s 30 7 6 17 47 73 −26 27
9 Wigan Athletic U21s 30 7 5 18 44 66 −22 26
10 Coventry City U21s 30 7 5 18 41 67 −26 26
11 Crewe Alexandra U21s 30 5 4 21 37 90 −53 19
Source: Professional Development League table

South Division

[edit]
Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Millwall U21s 29 17 8 4 80 45 +35 59 Qualification for Knock-out stage
2 Swansea City U21s 29 16 3 10 72 49 +23 51
3 AFC Bournemouth U21s 29 16 3 10 60 45 +15 51
4 Queens Park Rangers U21s 29 14 7 8 66 43 +23 49
5 Ipswich Town U21s 29 14 4 11 63 59 +4 46
6 Watford U21s 29 10 7 12 45 66 −21 37
7 Bristol City U21s 29 10 5 14 43 63 −20 35
8 Charlton Athletic U21s 29 9 4 16 63 64 −1 31
9 Cardiff City U21s 29 7 10 12 55 66 −11 31
10 Colchester United U21s 29 9 4 16 48 67 −19 31
Source: Professional Development League table

Knock-out stage

[edit]

Semi-finals

Millwall U21s1–2 (a.e.t.)Birmingham City U21s
 Report
Sheffield United U21s4–2Swansea City U21s
 Report

Professional Development League National Final

Sheffield United U21s2–0Birmingham City U21s
Attendance: 1,500
Referee: Niall Smith

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Reformatting of Premier League 2 for 2023/24 explained". Premier League. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
  2. ^ "WE'RE BACK! OUR ACADEMY REGAINS CATEGORY ONE STATUS". Reading F.C. 11 July 2023. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
  3. ^ "U21s drawn against Chelsea in PL2 quarter-final". Arsenal F.C. 7 May 2024. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  4. ^ "U21 Quarter Final Details Confirmed". Reading F.C. 7 May 2024. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  5. ^ "Under-21s to host Liverpool at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium – tickets available now". Tottenham Hotspur F.C. 7 May 2024. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  6. ^ "Under-21s march on after shoot-out success against Liverpool". Tottenham Hotspur F.C. 12 May 2024. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  7. ^ "SAFC U21s 3-3 West Ham United U21s (5-3 pens)". Sunderland A.F.C. 13 May 2024. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
  8. ^ "PL2 play-offs: Quarter-finals confirmed". Sunderland A.F.C. 7 May 2024. Retrieved 7 May 2024.
  9. ^ "Stoppage-time Nile John winner hands Under-21s victory over Chelsea". Tottenham Hotspur F.C. 19 May 2024. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
  10. ^ "Away derby for Under-21s in PL2 semis". Chelsea F.C. 14 May 2024. Retrieved 14 May 2024.
  11. ^ "PL2 Play-Off semi-final confirmed". Sunderland A.F.C. 14 May 2024. Retrieved 16 May 2024.
  12. ^ "We're back! Our Academy regains Category One status". Reading F.C. 11 July 2023. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
  13. ^ "AFC Bournemouth awarded category 2 status". vitalfootball.co.uk. 18 July 2024. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
  14. ^ "Town confirm Category Two status has been awarded to the Club's Academy". Fleetwood Town FC.
  15. ^ "Millwall's Under 21s suffer extra-time Semi-Final defeat". Millwall F.C. 18 May 2024. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
  16. ^ "Dixon double sends Blues Under-21s into national final". Birmingham City F.C. 17 May 2024. Retrieved 19 May 2024.
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