Football Manager 26 wonderkids: Best young strikers, midfielders, defenders & goalkeepers to sign on FM26
Whether you're planning to build a dynasty on a foundation of the best young players in the world or you're looking for top untapped talent to profit from by selling on, we've got you covered.
Football Manager 26 is out now and, if you're anything like us, you'll have the game fired up, ready to embark on a new challenge.
One of the most rewarding and exciting aspects of Football Manager (like Championship Manager before it, for those of us of a certain vintage!), is unearthing hidden gems and nurturing wonderkids appropriately so that they reach their full potential and become masters of the ever-expanding football universe.
Keeping your eye out for young talent is a key consideration, whether you're managing the biggest club in the world or scraping at the lower end of the football pyramid, where one or two bright sparks can ignite a blaze of glory through the divisions.
Here, GOAL brings you the best young players under the age of 20* to sign on FM26, based on their potential ability.
- AFP
Table of Contents
ToggleFootball Manager 26 wonderkid strikers & forwards
Player Club Age Pos. Nationality Endrick Real Madrid 18 AMR, ST Brazil Eli Junior Kroupi Bournemouth 19 ST France Dastan Satpayev FC Kairat 16 AMRL, ST Kazakhstan Daulet Orynbasar FC Kairat 16 ST Kazakhstan Sami Bouhoudane PSV 17 ST Netherlands Emre Unuvar Ajaz 17 ST Netherlands Francesco Camarda AC Milan 17 ST Italy Harry Gray Leeds United 16 AMRC, ST England Jayden Danns Liverpool 19 AMLC, ST England Jaime Barroso Real Madrid 17 ST Spain Djylian N'Guessan Saint-Etienne 16 ST France Alejandro Gomes Rodriguez Lyon 17 AML, ST England Semih Kilicsoy Besiktas 19 AMRL, ST Turkey Marc Guiu Chelsea 19 ST Spain Stefanos Tzimas Brighton 19 ST Greece Scoring goals, they say, is the most difficult thing to do in football, but there is no shortage of talent lining up to become the next great goalscorer.
While things may not have taken off as he would have liked in the real world, Real Madrid forward Endrick is the top of the list in FM26 when it comes to the high-potential strikers in the game. Of course, given his worldwide reputation and the fact that he is a Madrid player, he will cost a pretty penny if you want to sign him, especially early in the game.
Kazakh duo Daulet Orynbasar and Dastan Satpayev are much cheaper alternatives, if you are working to a budget, or you might have some joy seeking a loan move for Endrick's Real team-mate Jaime Barroso.
Harry Gray looks like he could be the next big thing for England, with high hopes for the striker at Leeds United, alongside the likes of Lyon's Alejandro Gomes Rodriguez and Liverpool teen Jayden Danns.
READ MORE: NXGN profile on Alejandro Gomes Rodriguez
READ MORE: NXGN profile on Eli Junior Kroupi
- Getty Images Sport
Football Manager 26 wonderkid midfielders
Player Club Age Pos. Nationality Lamine Yamal Barcelona 18 M/AMR Spain Estevao Chelsea 18 AMRC Brazil Ethan Nwaneri Arsenal 18 MC, AMRLC England Franco Mastantuono Real Madrid 17 AMRC Argentina Luca Williams-Barnett Tottenham 16 AMRLC, ST England Rodrigo Mora Porto 18 AMLC Portugal Ayyoub Bouaddi Lille 17 DM, MC France Gilberto Mora Tijuana 16 AMLC Mexico Abdellah Ouzane Ajax 16 M/AMC Morocco Can Uzun Frankfurt 19 MC, AMLC Turkey Guille Fernandez Barcelona 17 M/AMC Spain Lucas Bergvall Tottenham 19 DM, M/AMC Sweden Kerim Alajbegovic Salzburg 17 ML, AMRLC Bosnia-Herzegovina Gabriel Mec Gremio 17 AMRL Brazil Rio Ngumoha Liverpool 16 AMRL England Nathan De Cat Anderlecht 16 DM, MC Belgium Marc Bernal Barcelona 18 DM, MC Spain Kennet Eichhorn Hertha BSC 15 DM, MC Germany When it comes to midfield, whether you're looking for a rock-solid defensive midfielder or a dazzling attacking midfield playmaker, there are loads of young players to get excited about in FM26.
The likes of Lamine Yamal, Estevao and Franco Mastantuono have long been heralded as the next world-class stars in football. Their abilities mean they have been on the radar for an age already, with Yamal and Estevao in particular already lighting things up at Barcelona and Chelsea, respectively. You'll need a huge transfer budget if you want to have a chance of luring these talents to your team.
However, there are always cheaper alternatives that are not far behind the top-tier talents. Ethan Nwaneri at Arsenal and Liverpool's Rio Ngumoha are on the fringes at their clubs at the moment, so they might be open to loan moves, for example, while you might have joy convincing players from Belgium, such as Nathan De Cat, to move to a bigger league.
READ MORE: NXGN profile on Luca Williams-Barnett
READ MORE: NXGN profile on Gilberto Mora
READ MORE: NXGN profile on Marc Bernal
- (C)Getty Images
Football Manager 26 wonderkid defenders
Player Club Age Pos. Nationality Saba Kharebashvili Dinamo Tbilisi 16 DLC, WBL Georgia Myles Lewis-Skelly Arsenal 18 DL, DM, MC England Pau Cubarsi Barcelona 18 DC Spain Leny Yoro Manchester United 19 DC France Joffre Torrents Barcelona 18 D/WBL Spain Finn Jeltsch Stuttgart 18 DM, DRC Germany Davinchi Getafe 17 D/WBL Spain Luka Vuskovic Tottenham 18 DC Croatia Jorrel Hato Chelsea 19 D/WBL, DC Netherlands Matteo Palma Udinese 17 DRC Germany Jesus Fortea Real Madrid 18 D/WBR Spain Daniel Banjaqui Benfica 17 D/WBR Portugal Benjamin Real Madrid 17 D/WBR Italy Karim Coulibaly Werder Bremen 18 DC, DM Germany Axel Tape Bayer Leverkusen 17 DC, D/WBR, DM France Georgian defender Saba Kharebashvili is one of the best young defenders in the game, and at just 16 years old, playing for Dinamo Tbilisi, he is very much an attainable commodity for bigger clubs. Capable of playing in the centre or at full-back, Kharebashvili represents a dynamic prospect.
If you are able to open the chequebook and splurge, it is worth scouting Myles Lewis-Skelly at Arsenal and Pau Cubarsi at Barcelona, or else Luka Vuskovic at Tottenham, all of whom are capable of fitting in at the highest level already.
In the event you are tight on money, but building a long-term vision, have a look at Benfica's Daniel Banjaqui, Axel Tape at Bayer Leverkusen and Matteo Palma at Udinese. These three have less of a reputation than the aforementioned, but are quite capable of becoming elite-level defenders.
-
Football Manager 26 wonderkid goalkeepers
Player Club Age Pos. Nationality Kerem Matisli Bursaspor 18 GK Turkey Quenten Attigah AZ 16 GK Netherlands Alessandro Nunziante Udinese 18 GK Italy Tommaso Martinelli Fiorentina 19 GK Italy Dennis Seimen Stuttgart 19 GK Germany Julian Eyestone Brentford 19 GK United States Sherkhan Kalmurza FC Kairat 18 GK Kazakhstan Theodore Pizarro Freiburg 17 GK Switzerland Ben Vickery Manchester City 16 GK England Mike Penders Chelsea 19 GK Belgium Lucca Brughmans Genk 17 GK Belgium Goalkeeper is a difficult position for young talents to break through into, with many of the world's best shot-stoppers only truly maturing later in their careers. Nevertheless, now and then, a pretender comes along and proves their worth early on, especially if they get given a chance at a smaller club.
Not many managers are likely to thrust a 16-year-old into the limelight as a first-choice goalkeeper, but, if you're one of them, Ben Vickery at Manchester City is worth scouting, while Genk's 17-year-old Lucca Brughmans is also worth a look.
The likes of Kerem Matisli (18), Julian Eyestone (19) and Dennis Seimen (19) might be safer bets if you are looking for a young player, but one who is on the cusp of graduating to prolonged first-team action.
Advertisement
ENJOYED THIS STORY?
Add GOAL.com as a preferred source on Google to see more of our reporting