IT'S A sign of the times when only one Englishman scores a goal in the Premiership during two days of action.

Derby County's Lee Morris, a youngster who only came on for eight minutes in the 3-0 win over Leicester, grabbed an 89th minute goal.

But Morris' strike proved to be the one and only from an English player on a weekend when there were 13 goals.

A player each from Cameroon, Georgia, Belgium, Canada, Holland and Greece all broke through along with six Frenchmen.

And just for the record the netbusters along with Morris were Lauren, Patrick Vieira, Thierry Henry (2), Steve Marlet, Georgiou Kinkladze, Branko Strupar, Nicolas Anelka, Tomasz Radzinski, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Frederic Kanoute and Nikos Dabizas.

It has been known for some time that the Premiership is home to players from across the globe and that is by no means a bad thing.

A youthful Sven-Goran Eriksson's national team, that is gunning for glory at this summer's World Cup, is testament to the fact the status quo in the domestic game has not affected talent coming through.

It is vital the English game does not over-indulge in foreigners - if they do then there could be serious damage done to the future of the English game.

On the pitch at Highbury, there were 11 French players alone involved in proceedings of the Arsenal versus Fulham match, while both managers, Arsene Wenger and Jean Tigana, were of the same nationality.

But football supporters across the country would not argue about star names performing on the Premiership stage.

Arsenal striker Henry, Manchester United's van Nistelrooy, West Ham's Paolo di Canio are all names who fans enjoy to watch.

However, it is the signing of lesser known names which causes the most upset.

And with so many clubs up and down the country now concentrating on youth development and Academies, it is good to see that they are aiming to spot any children with potential.

In this region Middlesbrough's Under 19 and Under 17 sides have gained enormous respect over the past few seasons and players from these teams are now breaking through.

Hartlepool-born David Murphy has played in each of Boro's last three games while Stewart Downing and Luke Wilkshire have both travelled with the first team squad.

The Riverside outfit are obviously planning for the future and their plans are being carried out by a host of other top clubs in England.

And with that belief there should always be a place for a star signing from abroad to captivate and boost the moods around the grounds.

After all if Arsenal fans were asked which player excites them the most in their side, it would be a shock if they answered Ray Parlour or Sol Campbell.

Why? It's simple; because they have such talented players in their ranks like Henry or Robert Pires.

And the same would also be said at many clubs in England.