Leading English clubs are preparing a scramble for the best teenage talent in Europe as the Premier League fears that the January transfer window will be the final time players under the age of 18 will be able to be signed from the continent.

The Premier League is increasingly worried how the league will be affected by Brexit, with particular concerns over which European players will be eligible for work permits, as The Daily Telegraph revealed last week.

Whatever is resolved, it seems likely that footballers aged 18 and over will remain free to move to England until the end of 2020, when the transition period proposed by the UK Government ends.

Fifa bars all players under 18 from moving to a foreign club but makes an exception for those aged 16 and 17 moving within two countries in the European Economic Area.

The Premier League does not expect that this will change, meaning that 16 and 17-year-olds will no longer be able to move here after the UK leaves the European Union in March – or, effectively, after January when the transfer window ends.

Players under 18 would need to move to the UK before next March, so they could not be signed after January 2019.