Hammer Ben Johnson was missing from the Europa League squad A list announced today but will still be eligible to play in Europe.
While the West Ham player has already turned 21 years of age he was under 21 on 1st January this year which is the key decider.
Each club is responsible for submitting to UEFA an A list of players (List A) and a B list of players (List B), duly signed by the club and verified, validated and additionally signed by its association. These lists must include the surname and first name, date of birth, shirt number and name, nationality and national registration date of all players to be fielded in the UEFA club competition in question, as well as the surname and first name of the head coach and first assistant coach. In addition, the lists must include the confirmation by the club’s doctor that all players have undergone the requested medical examination; the club’s doctor is solely responsible for ensuring that the requested players’ medical examination has been duly performed.
No club may have more than 25 players on List A during the season. As a minimum, eight places are reserved exclusively for “locally trained players” and no club may have more than four “association-trained players” listed in these eight places on List A. List A must specify the players who qualify as being “locally trained”, as well as whether they are “club-trained” or “association-trained”.
Each club is entitled to register an unlimited number of players on List B during the season. The list must be submitted by no later than 24.00 CET on the day before the match in question.
A player may be registered on List B if he is born on or after 1 January 2000 and has been eligible to play for the club concerned for any uninterrupted period of two years since his 15th birthday by the time he is registered with UEFA, or a total of three consecutive years with a maximum of one loan period to a club from the same association for a period not longer than one year. Players aged 16 may be registered on List B if they have been registered with the participating club for the previous two years without interruption.
A “club-trained player” is a player who, between the age of 15 (or the start of the season during which he turns 15) and 21 (or the end of the season during which he turns 21), and irrespective of his nationality and age, has been registered with his current club for a period, continuous or not, of three entire seasons (i.e. a period starting with the first official match of the relevant national championship and ending with the last official match of that relevant national championship) or of 36 months. In the context of this paragraph, the season immediately preceding a player’s 15th birthday may be counted if his birthday is after the last match of the relevant national championship but before or on 30 June (winter championships) or 31 December (summer championships), and the season immediately following his 21st birthday may be counted if his birthday is on or after 1 July (winter championships) or 1 January (summer championships) but before the first match of the relevant national championship
An “association-trained player” is a player who, between the age of 15 (or the start of the season during which the player turns 15) and 21 (or the end of the season during which the player turns 21), and irrespective of his nationality and age, has been registered with a club or with other clubs affiliated to the same association as that of his current club for a period, continuous or not, of three entire seasons (i.e. a period starting with the first official match of the relevant national championship and ending with the last official match of that relevant national championship) or of 36 months. In the context of this paragraph, the season immediately preceding a player’s 15th birthday may be counted if his birthday is after the last match of the relevant national championship but before or on 30 June (winter championships) or 31 December (summer championships), and the season immediately following his 21st birthday may be counted if his birthday is on or after 1 July (winter championships) or 1 January (summer championships) but before the first match of the relevant national championship.