• Only Cyprus has more overseas players than England
• Ajax tops the league for developing young players

The scale of the challenge facing the commission set up by the Football Association chairman, Greg Dyke, to try to increase the number of homegrown players in the Premier League has been laid bare by a European study.

The survey by the CIES (Centre International d’Etude du Sport) Football Observatory indicates that the English Premier League has the second greatest proportion of imported players of 31 countries researched, after Cyprus, at 60.4%.

It also suggests that the trend is widespread, with expats also making up the majority of squads in Italy, Turkey, Portugal and Belgium. Internazionale are the club with the biggest proportion of overseas players, at 89% of their squad.

Despite new regulations introduced by Uefa to try to force clubs to live within their means and a redoubled effort to encourage the development of homegrown talent, the study shows that the proportion of players plying their trade with the club where they trained as youngsters has fallen to a record low of 21% across Europe.

The percentage of expat players has reached a record high of 37%, according to the annual survey of 31 top division leagues across Europe, 472 clubs and 11,653 players. The figures are likely to fuel further the debate raging in England about the proportion of homegrown players in the Premier League and the impact it has on the chances of the national side, which Dyke has promised to tackle with his commission. The debate is a delicate one, with a consensus forming that, while overseas imports have been good for the Premier League, the volume may be crowding out domestic talent and hurting the national side.

The survey also indicates that, despite Uefa’s attempt to cool football’s overheated finances, a record number of transfers took place in 2013 and turnover is higher than ever. On average players recruited since January 2013 represented just over 41% of all squads, an average of more than 10 signings per club.

The survey also reveals that, contrary to the assertions of many an amateur coach, height has little to do with footballing success. Barcelona have the second shortest squad among the 472 clubs surveyed and La Liga has the shortest players in Europe. The statistics also suggest that the Catalan club is the most stable in Europe, with squad players having been at the Camp Nou for an average of five and a half years. Across the continent, Manchester United is the only other club with an average of more than five years.

The study confirms Ajax’s pre-eminence in developing young players: the Dutch club has trained more of Europe’s top flight players (69) than anyone.

• The FA
• Uefa
• Premier League

Owen Gibson

theguardian.com