Non-League and Academy football writer

FC Baresi Reserves play their football in the Premier Division West (step 8) of the Essex Alliance Football League. A youthful team who are managed by Umayr Amjad, a number of players have, since the reserve side was set-up, gone on to feature for the FC Baresi first team, who currently play their football at step 6 of non-League football, and who are managed by Tufail Amjad. 

FC Baresi Reserves play a very similar style of passing football to the FC Baresi first team, making that transition for their reserve team players a lot easier, into the first team. The reserves have a lot to play for in the league, during the remainder of this season, and they will also be looking to go one better in the Premier Division Cup, this season, having reached the semi-finals of that competition last season.

As previously mentioned, there has and continues to be a really good pathway from the FC Baresi reserve side, into the first team. Players such as Teyon Weston, Glody Kalunda and Benyamin Warren have all made that step-up into the first team, from the reserves. And reserve team goalkeeper Jahnih Bulbrook, Rui Giovanni Monteiro-Da-Costa, Gabriel Mazur, Muhammad Mutesasira, and Avtandil Biliseishvili are some of the other players who have stepped up to play for the first team, from the reserves, in recent seasons.

Although he wasn’t a reserve team player, talented youngster Fatih Mustafa was for a short while an FC Baresi player, earlier on this season. He is now doing really well since signing for Stevenage Under 18s, recently scoring a goal against Bolton Wanderers, in this season’s FA Youth Cup. However, with the reserve team already providing that link into the first team, FC Baresi recently announced exciting plans for next season (2026/27) to start their own academy. The academy, which will be led by two very talented and experienced former professional footballers, in Yannick Kamanan and Jay Simpson, will also have an Under 18 side.

I think that this news of FC Baresi starting their own academy is so important for the long term future of the club. And the fact that the academy is also being led by Yannick Kamanan and Jay Simpson, will only mean that it will go from strength to strength. The academy, which has an opening day in February, will start from next season, and from the various age groups of the academy it will, I’m sure, see real progression of both the players and the club as a whole, in the future.