Manchester City know more than most the value of academy talent.

Amid a flurry of transfer activity from a clutch of Premier League clubs shifting and selling young players to each other in a scramble to meet the top flight's Profit and Sustainability rules (PSR), City are sitting pretty.

They have no PSR concerns and if anything, act as a blueprint to those chasing 'pure profit' income. City have made millions in recent years from selling youngsters on. This summer alone they have raised PS25million from the departures of Tommy Doyle and Taylor Harwood-Bellis. Liam Delap could follow.

The likes of Jack Harrison, Lukas Nmecha, Gavin Bazunu, Samuel Edozie, Shea Charles and James Trafford have all fetched fees in excess of PS10m in the past three years while Cole Palmer was sold to Chelsea for PS42.5m last summer.

It's a vast and vital source of income for City, who are rightly proud of their academy graduates making it in the top echelons of the game - whether that is at the Etihad or not. While City can cherry pick the best of the young talent on offer given their set-up and success it is still a remarkable record and one the likes of Aston Villa, Newcastle United, Chelsea and Everton will be looking on enviously given their current trials and tribulations around PSR.

This past week saw Everton acquire Aston Villa graduate Tim Iroegbunam in what was reported to be a PS9m move. In a separate deal, Everton academy graduate Lewis Dobbin headed to Villa Park for around PS10m.

If the contract length for both players is five years, the way that transfers are accounted for via a process known as amortisation would mean that Iroegbunam would be costing Everton PS1.8m per year, while Dobbin would be costing Villa PS2m per year. However, the magic arrives in the fact that the full sale price can be accounted for by each club, and with both players being academy graduates and having no book value, meaning pure profit, it helps go some way to easing PSR issues for both.

There would be little lost in terms of value for each player, and the signings could be loaned out for an annual loan fee, they could feature and see value growth, or they could be resold for profit later down the line.

Amazon Those moves are naturally attracting suspicious glances from elsewhere and the Premier League have written to all clubs to explain its rules regarding the fair valuation of players involved in transfers after 'a significant number requested clarification' following recent swap deals. There is no suggestion any of the clubs involved have breached any rules.

For City, this is all something to just watch from afar. Their enviable academy record is one reason why PSR is a non-issue and it's one several of their Premier League rivals would love to be able to turn to just now.