10. Ben Brereton (Nottingham Forest, 19)
The Stoke-born striker turned 19 last week, days after showing his nerve from the penalty spot against Ipswich to end a Forest goal drought of more than 10 hours.
It's debatable whether Aitor Karanka is the ideal manager for his development at this stage, though, and Brereton's rise is unlikely to be sensational. But he has the maturity and mental strength to carve out a solid career whatever obstacles lie in his path, and he won't shy away from the challenge of ploughing a lone furrow.
9. Ronaldo Vieira (Leeds, 19)
It's been a tough campaign for this midfield destroyer, having struggled to impose himself in an engine room stocked with too many similar players. But Vieira's physique itself is a constant reminder of his ability to break up play and drive from deep.
Really, he needs more daring players alongside him to flourish. The attributes that helped him make such a sensational impact in his breakthrough season under Garry Monk haven't just vanished overnight.
8. Jarrod Bowen (Hull, 21)
Hull aren't renowned for their youth development, which makes Bowen arguably their biggest success story in the past 20 years.
Picked up from Hereford when the Bulls went bust in 2014, it was only the chaos of a shambolic pre-season and open-mindedness of former Hull coach Leonid Slutsky that presented him with a sniff of regular first-team football. He seized that opportunity with both hands. Bowen is now an automatic choice under Nigel Adkins, 14 goals from out wide tells its own story.
7. Chris Mepham (Brentford, 20)
The Bees rejected two bids in the region of £8m for this ball-playing centre-back in January, despite the fact he'd played barely 800 minutes.
He nearly walked away from the game at 16 after being told he wasn't good enough by Chelsea, Watford and then, most crushingly, his boyhood club QPR. But Mepham is now a senior Wales international; a cool head in possession for Brentford, who has been rewarded with recognition from Ryan Giggs. Bournemouth boss Eddie Howe has made no secret of his admiration.
6. Ebere Eze (QPR, 19)
Premier League scouts have been flocking to Loftus Road for a glimpse of this dazzling playmaker, and you suspect, like any loose ball he latches on to, Eze is taking it all in his stride.
Ian Holloway has warned about giving him too much responsibility too soon, but the youngster himself is banging on his door for starts. Raw pace and trickery mark him out as an immediate threat but it's the awareness of others' movement and nonchalant distribution that is truly astonishing.
5. David Brooks (Sheffield United, 20)
Big clubs love nothing more than a talent who can be moulded into anything you want him to be, and Brooks feeds the imagination better than most.
The Warrington-born midfielder makes an impact all over the pitch, but his quality when venturing into the penalty box has led to reports that Tottenham see him as a potential long-term replacement for Harry Kane. Brooks was voted player of the tournament at the U20 Toulon tournament last summer, having switched allegiances from England to Wales.
4. Diogo Jota (Wolves, 21)
Performances have dipped from the Portuguese wideman in recent weeks - albeit long after pundits predicted that the gruelling Championship season would catch up with him - but it's a mark of his quality that Jota continues to make decisive contributions in the final third.
With 17 goals and five assists to his name, Wolves have already confirmed that his loan move from Atletico Madrid will be made permanent in the summer.
3. James Maddison (Norwich, 21)
It's one thing showing regular glimpses of your potential at 21 but actually taking charge of games, week after week, and being the fulcrum of a team is something else.
Maddison might not be ready to do likewise in the Premier League just yet, but the trajectory of his career and his adaptation skills would suggest he's close to doing so. For now, he might be wise to stick with the Canaries and make the most of the license he's granted.
2. Ryan Sessegnon (Fulham, 17)
We're all guilty of getting ahead of ourselves with Sessegnon, because it doesn't take the wildest imagination to work out that he's the real deal – close enough to the finished article already at 17. Everything about him screams Premier League.
Comfortable at left-back or left-wing, his scarcity as a commodity only adds to his value. Sessegnon is delightfully cavalier, and comparisons come from different generations; Ryan Giggs and Gareth Bale are the only names that spring to mind. And what comparisons.
1. Ruben Neves (Wolves, 21)
It's awards season, and the comparisons between Sessegnon and Neves have been raging – the outcome of which mostly boils down to playing styles and personal preference. It's the Championship's answer to Ronaldo or Messi.
Neves gets the vote here, though, purely on the grounds of control, culture and the extra variety he has to his game. Liverpool have been linked, and if you plonked him in that defensive midfield role at Anfield tomorrow, he improves them. Simple as that.
See also...
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