The tricky winger has scored for the Cityzens at every age group level and all that is left is to make his senior debut alongside his older brother

Five sets of brothers have played together for Manchester City, with the most recent and successful example being Yaya and Kolo Toure, who together helped the club win their first trophy in 35 years in 2011 as they lifted the FA Cup and then a first league title in 44 years 12 months later. And a sixth pair of siblings, with a famous father of their own, are looking to join them.

Jaden Heskey, son of former Liverpool and Leicester City striker Emile, has been steadily making a name for himself at youth level within the Etihad Campus over the last two years, and last May got his first taste of glory when he helped fire City to win the FA Youth Cup. But this term, his younger brother, Reigan, has been grabbing the headlines, earning a reputation as a twisting and tricky winger with a thirst for goals. Indeed, the only player at the club who can currently compete with the teenager when it comes to finding the net is Erling Haaland.

City have produced some thrilling wingers within the last few years, with Cole Palmer developing into one of the Premier League's biggest stars since leaving the Etihad Stadium for Chelsea while Oscar Bobb impressed Pep Guardiola before his season was cruelly disrupted by injury. And now Heskey is shaping up to be the next big thing to come out of City's academy and make the leap into the first team.

Provided, of course, that his older brother doesn't get there first…

Getty ImagesWhere it all began

Reigan was born in January 2008 while his father was playing for Wigan Athletic. Part of his upbringing came in Australia, however, when ex-England international Emile played for Newcastle Jets. In 2016, a couple of years after the family had moved back to the north west of England, Reigan enrolled in the City academy at the age of eight, following the path of Jaden, who is two years his senior.

He steadily worked his way through the club's age-group teams, but was catapulted into the Under-19s in November 2023 when he was just 15 for a UEFA Youth League game against Young Boys. Heskey was informed he had been called-up to the team while he was in class at school, and he lined-up in attack alongside Jaden. In just the eighth minute, he earned a penalty, which he duly stepped up to convert.

AdvertisementGettyThe big break

Heskey was promoted to City's U21s – also known as the Elite Development Squad (EDS) – earlier this season at Norwich City, and despite being five years younger than some of his opponents and team-mates, he scored a hat-trick in the space of 22 minutes. The forward scored his team's second goal within two minutes of being brought on at the start of the second half, netting with a close-range tap-in following a short corner, while his other two goals were individual efforts after coming in from the left wing.

"He’s got an unbelievable chance to be a top player. He has a lot of attributes you’d look for in someone of his position," raved coach Ben Wilkinson. "To come on in an EDS game as a 16-year-old and score a hat-trick isn’t something you see very often.

"Our job is to steer him in the right direction over the next couple of years and not let him get too high in these moments. I’m sure he’ll have some bumps as well. We’ll make sure he doesn’t get too low in that point and just try to keep him on track."

How it's going

Heskey has scored 16 goals this season across four separate competitions and four different age categories. He is the joint-leading scorer in City's U18s team with 10 goals, while he has also netted in the EFL Trophy – against senior professionals twice his age – and the UEFA Youth League, in addition to his treble in the Premier League 2.

The forward is also on the way to emulating his father's international career, as he has made five appearances for England's U17s, and in September he scored his first international goal, netting against Germany.

Getty Images SportBiggest strengths

Heskey is renowned for his pace, his nifty footwork and his ability to worm his way past defenders on the left wing and cut inside. He also has a deadly shot, and although he is naturally right-footed, he is more than capable of using his left, which makes him harder to defend against..

"We're synonymous with players in those wide positions that at this club have to be able to beat players one-vs-one and create situations you can win the game from. Reigan's got all those qualities every single game I've seen him," City's then-U19s coach Brian Barry-Murphy said after Heskey's Youth League debut. "He's a highly talented player – who obviously has a lot of things to work on – but it was good to see him play so well in his first game."