This article is intended for those people that are thinking about buying 2021-2022 Prizm Premier League before the checklist and release date. This is a risky proposition these days so here are some things to think about before making your decision.
*All Search on eBay links on this page are to Ebay listings
2021-2022 Panini Prizm Premier League Rookies
TL;DR: Panini missed on a couple of rookies which lowers the value ceiling. This is likely going to be a better current value than Road To Qatar and Topps Deco. Also Ronaldo is in it. You can Search on eBay
Panini Prizm Premier League is a set that always seems to be better than it ultimately becomes. The Premier League is the most talented and most watched domestic league in the world. You would think that would make this set a must get every year. There is one thing that constantly holds it back, a lack of rookies. It is very tough for young players to get time much less put up stats in the Premier League. This year’s class could change that if Panini nails the checklist.
First let’s talk about the box makeup. We all know there are going to be Color Blasts. While we don’t know how rare they will be we do know from the recent trend that Panini has been on they will likely be a case hit. There will be 1 autograph per box which is pretty standard for soccer hobby boxes now. There will also be 4 Silvers, 5 numbered hobby exclusive parallels and 8 additional non numbered hobby exclusive parallels. These days those 18 cards (auto + 17 parallels) will be what determines whether you hit or whiff the box. The days of base rookie cards in a product like this that will be printed to the moon are small. There will be plenty of retail to go around. Just as a comparison last year there was 1 Silver, 5 numbered and 10 additional non numbered parallels. It will be interesting to see how the market adjusts for the increased Silver run.
Here is a link to the checklist – Here
Rookies Review
This article was originally written to try and guess what rookies would make it in the product months before the checklist was released. We now know the checklist and I give my thoughts on who made it and who didn’t below. All new content is italicised.
I used the 2020-21 Panini Premier League Sticker checklist, 2021-2022 Adrenalyn XL and 2021-2022 Score Premier League which will be referred to below to try and determine who made the list. Each player’s 1st Premier League appearance will be referenced as Panini has to set the checklist far in advance for printing purposes. The sooner the player made an appearance the more likely they are to be included. Takin all these clues into account I will try to guess whether each player will be included. This is purely a guess and should not be used as investment advice.
Topps has released their 1st Edition UCL checklist so we know of the players below that Delap, Palmer, Mcatee, Elanga, and Elliott are in it. Panini missed all of these guys except Elliott but Topps is much better at identifying rookies so this is not surprising.
Liam Delap
Team – Manchester City
1st Premier League appearance – September 27, 2020
2021-2022 Sticker – Actually has a 2020-2021 (Search on eBay)
2021-2022 Adrenalyn XL – No
2021-2022 Score PL – No
Liam is one of a couple of Manchester City rookies that could be included. He is a well known talent who has been injured most of this season.
Soccer Cards HQ Prediction – Lean towards in. Unlike the other players he actually had a sticker last year as well as this year. He was included in the Next Gen Stars subset of this years sticker set. He surprisingly does not have a Score card. Panini may have got scared off by his injury somehow, he should be in.
Final Result – Didn’t make it in. I am not shocked at anything Panini does but this is the miss that shocks me the most. He made it in the Next Gen Stars sticker subset and every single other player in that made it in.
Cole Palmer
Team – Manchester City
1st Premier League appearance – October 16, 2021
2021-2022 Sticker – Yes (Search on eBay)
2021-2022 Adrenalyn XL – No
2021-2022 Score PL – No
He doesn’t have a Premier League goal yet this season but he did score in the Champions League.
Soccer Cards HQ Prediction – Probably makes it in. If you told me Panini was only going to include one of the Manchester rookies I would choose Liam. While his first Premier League appearance was this season he did get a senior callup for a Champions League game last season. That game should have put him on Panini’s radar. Surprised he didn’t have an Adrenalyn or Score this year. Completely unrelated how did Topps not jump on that 9 minute UCL sub appearance last year to crank out a Topps Now card.
Final Result – Didn’t make it in. Not as surprised as Liam not getting in but the fact they did not include Cole or Liam is why Topps keeps pulling away from Panini in soccer.
James Mcatee
Team – Manchester City
1st Premier League appearance – November 21, 2021
2021-2022 Sticker – No
2021-2022 Adrenalyn XL – No
2021-2022 Score PL – No
The 18 year old got his first appearance this year versus Everton.
Soccer Cards HQ Prediction – Very doubtful. He does not have anything from Panini yet and his first and only appearance was in late November.
Final Result – Didn’t make it in. Not surprised.
Joe Gelhardt
Team – Leeds
1st Premier League appearance – October 16, 2021
2021-2022 Sticker – Yes (Search on eBay)
2021-2022 Adrenalyn XL – Yes (Search on eBay)
2021-2022 Score PL – Yes (Search on eBay)
The Leeds 19 year old striker started the season playing for the U-23 squad but after bouncing up and down it looks like he may be in the senior squad for good.
Soccer Cards HQ Prediction – Despite the late appearance I predict he makes it in. He has a sticker but more importantly he is in the Next Gen Stars 8 and a Score Hot Rookies player subset. He is also included in Adrenalyn so Panini was well aware they needed to include him this year.
Final Result – In and will be a chase.
Anthony Elanga
Team – Manchester United
1st Premier League appearance – May 11th, 2021
2021-2022 Sticker – No
2021-2022 Adrenalyn XL – No
2021-2022 Score PL – No
The 18 year old Swedish made his Premier League debut last season and even scored a goal against Wolves. He started the season in Premier League 2 and didn’t get his first senior squad callup this year until Ole was sacked. He has now made 2 Premier League appearances as well as starting against Young Boys in the Champions League.
Soccer Cards HQ Prediction – Not likely to be included. Despite playing and scoring last season he did not get included in any of the releases so far. That probably means he wasn’t on Panini’s radar for this year. He also did not get a Premier League appearance this year until December which was likely after the checklist was finalized. The Champions League game allowed Topps to put out a Topps Now (Search on eBay) so if Panini dropped the ball on Elanga for the whole season the Topps could be a key card. Now that he has scored versus Atlético Madrid in UCL it would be a bad miss by Panini.
Final Result – Didn’t make it in. Not surprised as he has just recently got significant playing time. Not getting any of the Manchester teams youngsters caps the long term potential of the product.
Michael Olise
Team – Crystal Palace
1st Premier League appearance – September 11, 2021
2021-2022 Sticker – Yes (Search on eBay)
2021-2022 Adrenalyn XL – Yes (Search on eBay)
2021-2022 Score PL – Yes (Search on eBay)
The 20 year old Frenchman arrived at Crystal Palace over the summer after signing from Reading. He scored 7 goals and had 12 assists in the EFL last year so he can put up stats. So far he has a 1.40 G+A/90 in 13 appearances for Palace.
Soccer Cards HQ Prediction – Certainly in. He has a sticker including a Next Gen Star and Score. He was also included in Adrenalyn in the Star Signings update.
Final Result – In. Likely the biggest chase.
Carney Chukwuemeka
Team – Aston Villa
1st Premier League appearance – May 19, 2021
2021-2022 Sticker – Yes (Search on eBay)
2021-2022 Adrenalyn XL – No
2021-2022 Score PL – Yes (Search on eBay)
The 17 year old English Wonderkid made his Premier League debut last season against Spurs. If you are 17 and getting time in the Premier League you are a talent. Early in his career he was considered more of a box to box mid but he has been getting time on the wing lately which would help his hobby chances.
Soccer Cards HQ Prediction – Likely in. He made the appearance last year as well as getting run starting in week 3 this season. He was also in the Next Gen Stars sticker set as well as Score. He is only 17, although he will be 18 by the time the box releases, so Panini knows he will get hype.
Final Result – In. Teams with Ramsey to give the Villa spot some juice.
Armando Broja
Team – Southampton (on loan from Chelsea)
1st Premier League appearance – March 8, 2020
2021-2022 Sticker – Yes (Search on eBay)
2021-2022 Adrenalyn XL – No
2021-2022 Score PL – No
The 20 year old Albanian striker actually saw 5 minutes of Premier League action two seasons ago for Chelsea. He spent last season in the Eredivisie playing for Vitesse. He is back in the Premier League this season playing for Southampton. He has 7 starts and 4 goals so definitely one to keep an eye on.
Soccer Cards HQ Prediction – Lean slightly out. He transferred in before the start of the season. He had that appearance a few years ago so he was at least known to Panini. Southampton is not full of stars (Sorry Saints fans) so Panini has plenty of room to include him. Him not being in Score makes me lean he didn’t make the cut but would not be shocked if he is in.
Final Result – In. One of two players not in Score that made it in. I had him in until that so not really shocked. Scored the game winner today and will likely be moving to a bigger team next year.
Jacob Ramsey
Team – Aston Villa
1st Premier League appearance – September 28, 2020
2021-2022 Sticker – Yes (Search on eBay)
2021-2022 Adrenalyn XL – Yes (Search on eBay)
2021-2022 Score PL – Yes (Search on eBay)
The 20 year old English midfielder debuted last season and did not put up any goals or assists is 626 minutes. This season for Aston Villa he has started 13 games and has 3 goals and 1 assist.
Soccer Cards HQ Prediction – Certainly in. He played in enough games last year where Panini certainly had him on their radar. He was in Score, Adrenalyn and the sticker product this year. He scored and had an assist against Manchester United and had 2 goals vs Leeds all in his last 5 games so he will get some hype.
Final Result – In. With 2 rookies the Villa spot should be popular. Not a chase for me but will be for plenty.
Folarin Balogun
Team – Arsenal
1st Premier League appearance – August 13, 2021
2021-2022 Sticker – Yes
2021-2022 Adrenalyn XL – No
2021-2022 Score – Yes (Search on eBay)
The 20 year old striker was actually born in the USA but moved to London at age 2. He started the first game of the season for Arsenal and subbed in the second before spending the rest of the season so far in Premier League 2.
Soccer Cards HQ Prediction – Probably in. He is in the Next Gen Stars sticker set and has a Score card. He also played in the first two games of the season when Panini was probably paying close attention. I don’t think he is the level of the other players in the list but I have a feeling breakers will be pumping him since he plays for Arsenal. The most creative breakers could even try to say he could technically play for the US to really juice his prices.
Final Result – In. Not for me but with all the non Arsenal youngsters that people will be chasing it gives them some fallback.
UPDATE: I was right about his US ties but wrong about his level. He got loaned out to Reims and has been a goal scoring machine for the Ligue 1 side. He ended up only with a Prizm and Score so his prices have shot up.
Harvey Elliott
Team – Liverpool
1st Premier League appearance – May 4, 2019
2021-2022 Sticker – Yes
2021-2022 Adrenalyn XL – No
2021-2022 Score – No
The 18 year English wonderkid is back in the Premier League for Liverpool. It’s his 3rd official season in the Premier League after making his debut 2 seasons ago for Fulham. He is the youngest player to play in the Premier League at age 16 and 30 days. He played the first 4 games of the season before getting hurt.
Soccer Cards HQ Prediction – 50/50. I wasn’t going to include because I wasn’t sure Panini would include a RC shield if they did include him. He had his first Topps Now card in 2019 and had a Match Attax Chrome last year. Topps included him in Deco with no RC shield. Shockingly Panini didn’t include him in Score which takes me from likely in to 50/50. I really can’t believe they would miss on him but stranger things have happened. Since he doesn’t have a Panini card yet he will probably get a RC shield and for that reason people will want it.
Final Result – In. Like with Broja I had him in until not being in Score. Not sure how Panini didn’t have them in one but in the other but I digress. If he has the RC shield he will be the chase of the product even though it’s not really his rookie.
Soccer Cards HQ Conclusion – I’m going to leave my original thoughts below for transparency but now seeing the checklist my thoughts have changed. I did buy a few boxes for $325 so I took my own advice.
Final Conclusion – A couple key rookie misses takes this from what could have been a great set to an average one. I still think it is better than last year because Ronaldo is in it and the rookies are better if not as good as they could have been. First Off The Line boxes sold out at $358 so regular hobbies probably go around $300. If money is limited I would rather wait on Topps products now that we have seen the UCL checklist. Topps will again be so far ahead of Panini for rookies again. The good news is outside of Elliott none of the rookies in here are in UCL. Some may make it into Merlin because of the inclusion of Europa and the Conference League but I doubt we see that checklist for a while. I also really thought the Dual Signatures Manchester United card would be Ronaldo and Beckham but instead it’s Martial and Van De Beek. Now that is FUNNY considering neither player is on the team. I would still rather have a box of this over Road To Qatar but that may be an unpopular opinion. If you are interested Search on eBay
Let me lead this off by saying this is just my opinion. My goal is to better inform soccer card collectors. Don’t take anything I say as gospel and run out and buy anything. There are too many pumpers in the hobby and that is not what Soccer Cards HQ is about.
OK with that out the way I think this product could be a decent buy at current prices. This is coming from someone who has never bought a box of Prizm Premier League. These rookies as a group have a chance to be better than any of the previous years of this product. The sales sheet includes Joao Pedro so he wasn’t included in the list. There will be others such as Trevoh Chalobah who will be a bit of a chase as well. After seeing Martinelli get a Rated Rookie in Donruss he will probably get an RC here. Panini saw what Topps did by stacking rookies in the 2020-2021 products and how well it worked. They can no longer drag their feet.
I have two bits of hesitation with pre-buying this. One was how awful the Road To Qatar rookies were. The caveat being that a World Cup product is always going to be tough to justify rookies. As you can see from my predictions I think they get at least 5 of the rookies in. The other being that Panini has someone how managed to miss getting true rookies in this product in the past. I am looking at Mason Greenwood and Bukayo Saka especially. I would hope they learned their lesson here, but never underestimate the lack of soccer research by Panini.
Another way I am looking at this is by looking at the market right now. We are starved for new product as evidenced by the prices that Road To Qatar are fetching. Both are very overpriced in my opinion though they are coming down to price levels that make more sense than they were a week ago. As it stands right now this box is selling for about the same as the Donruss and Deco. I somewhat understand the Donruss prices, Kabooms, but for the life of me don’t see it with Deco. (What I don’t understand is why kabooms and Color Blasts get so much of a premium of another case hit Prized Footballers Fusion which you can read about HERE) The Kaboom checklist will be much better than anything Panini could put on this Color Blast list. That said there should be a Ronaldo Color Blast which will be a big chase card. This will be Ronaldo’s first Prizm card in a Manchester United kit as well. I would guess there will be a Phil Foden Color Blast as well. He does not have a Color Blast or Kaboom yet so those will get people excited. Lukaku has neither and would be a good addition to the list. Where this product could potentially lap Donruss and Deco is the rookies.
Last year’s boxes of Prizm are selling in the $300 – $350 range and the makeup of these boxes is certainly better than those. Just having Ronaldo alone does that regardless of the rookies. The extra Silvers don’t hurt either.
Whether to buy or not comes down to price. If you get a box up to the $350 range, which is about where they are now, you will be near the floor. This is not to say ripping at $350 will be a great deal but ripping wax hardly is. I think these have a chance to sell for more than $350 based on past years. If we see shenanigans like we did with Road To Qatar and these jump to $500 I would not buy until I see a checklist. If you are interested Search on eBay as there are not a bunch of listings.
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