Sunderland, Middlesbrough and Watford ought to brace for transfer avalanche: View | OneFootball

The Championship has seen many young players star in the division in recent seasons, with plenty of them going on to big things.

Jude Bellingham, Jack Grealish and Michael Olise are just some of the best young talent to have shined at Championship level in the last decade, and many more players are coming through at the moment that look set to join them in the Premier League in the years to come.

But with that, in this current season, there have been many young players that have shined this season, in particular with teams that look set for mid-table finishes, having failed to mount a strong push for the top six.

With these teams looking set to play Championship football once again this season, it means that these clubs may not have enough strength to hold on to their best youngsters in the upcoming summer transfer window.

Some of these players include Sunderland’s Jobe Bellingham, Middlesbrough’s Rav van den Berg, and Watford’s Yaser Asprilla.

Jobe Bellingham, Rav van den Berg and Yaser Asprilla have all had excellent seasons

Bellingham has become a key player for Sunderland this season after joining from Birmingham City in the summer.

The 18-year-old midfielder has appeared in all but one league game for them so far this season, and has even been doing a job up-front amid injuries - a position that could potentially end up being his home in the future.

Van den Berg has started regularly at the back for Boro having moved to Teesside in the summer from Dutch side PEC Zwolle, following in the footsteps of his big brother - Liverpool defender Sepp.

The 19-year-old started off at right back for Michael Carrick’s team, but has shifted to play at centre back in a back three, and has done exceptionally well in his first season in England.

Asprilla meanwhile has added goals and assists to his name in his second season in England, after moving from his native Colombia to play in Hertfordshire.

The attacking midfielder has six goals and five assists in the Championship so far this season, with the 20-year-old contributing to more goals this season than any other Watford player.

Sunderland, Middlesbrough and Watford face a fight to keep their star youngsters

With these three players doing so well, naturally interest from higher up the football pyramid comes with it.

Spanish giants Barcelona are said to be interested in Asprilla, Everton and West Ham United are amongst the teams credited with an interest in van den Berg, and Bellingham has reported interest from Chelsea and Tottenham.

All three clubs will have a massive fight on their hands to keep all three. All three players have at least two years left remaining on their contracts, so there will be no worries about anyone leaving on a free transfer anytime soon.

But it will be hard to reject big offers from big clubs, especially with how much Championship clubs can be impacted by financial fair play.

They may feel they need the money desperately to balance the books, and all three will have a big task on their hand of keeping hold of their star youngstrs with the size of the clubs that have been linked with their services.