The most exciting teenagers in the world right now aren’t exactly waiting in the shadows, are they? Gone are the days of players making their name in their early 20s. We know the names of nearly every breakout star under 21 worth watching.
The Messi/Ronaldo era is all but over, the credits rolling in retirement leagues for two former GOATs. The race to replicate and reflect them is well and truly on. The next generation are here.
And here they are. Every season, we scour the globe, from top-level academy compilations to the flickery tapes from South America of street-ballers riding tackles from seasoned ankle-crunchers, to compile our definitive list of the teenagers you need to be keeping a close eye on.
But unlike most, we’re not ranking these from the worst to best. That seems counterintuitive, given that some of these stars are yet to taste senior football, while others are the cornerstones of their respective institutions.
As ever, we’re going purely from the heart of how much these players excite us. Whether it’s an attacker so young that they could only possibly modelled their game from YouTube clips of the legends they ape, or a defensive beast so mature that they could redefine the position, every one of these players moves us in one way or another.
So behold, our wonderkids to watch for the coming campaign. Come back in 12 months and see where they are then.
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The most exciting teenagers in world football: 50. Jobe Bellingham
Age: 18 (September 23 2005)
Club: Sunderland
Save from your De Boers, Laudrups and a select few others, siblings don’t tend to grace the elite together in football. The adage of ‘if he can be half as good as his brother’ has weighed like an albatross around the necks of younger bros for years, from Ethan Mbappe to Phil Neville. Jobe Bellingham seems unfazed, however, as his parents split their time between Madrid and Wearside, tracking their kids’ careers.
While the cliche is to want a Jude-like skillset from Jobe, Bellingham the Younger actually does have comparable traits: clever movement and iciness in front of goal being the most eye-catching. Jude Bellingham – once a topper of this list – was a ready-made midfielder in secondary school and we shouldn’t take that for granted: but Jobe is a different man. He isn’t involved on every blade of grass but he may yet become a superstar for his ability to change games with his intelligence in the final third.
49. Francesco Camarda
Age: 16 (March 10, 2008)
Club: Milan
Camarda was 6ft tall at the age of 15. He made his debut during that year of his life, and went viral this year for the most exquisite take-down, swivel and dink against Cagliari that you’re likely to see from any striker, teenage or otherwise, this year.
Such composure in front of goal has been lacking in Italian frontlines since Francesco Totti trudged off into the Eternal City sunset but Camarda has a clear pathway. Milan’s history with youth integration coupled with the gaping void left by LA-bound Olivier Giroud could see Camarda given more opportunities to impress at San Siro this season. Goodness knows Italy need a forward for the next generation.
48. El Chadaille Bitshiabu
Age: 19 (May 16, 2005)
Club: RB Leipzig
Bitshiabu made his senior bow for Paris Saint-Germain in December 2022. His performance was so good that his manager vowed the club wouldn’t be signing defenders, in order to prioritise the wonderkid’s development.
It’s not quite worked out that way (when does it?). Bitshiabu is now at RB Leipzig, following the Castela Lukeba path: he’s a left-footer able to play centre-back or left-back, and with more of that profile emerging in the last couple of years, it seems destined that he’s tailor-made for a return to the elite in the next few years. Perhaps back to PSG, you know.
47. Max Dowman
Age: 14 (December 31, 2009)
Club: Arsenal
Born during the week that Rage Against The Machine reached number one in the UK in protest against the X Factor – yes, really – Max Dowman is one of the youngest players to have ever trained with Arsenal’s first-team. Mikel Arteta is on a mission to crack down on his most talented youngsters departing, and means business getting such a young player in with the senior side.
The technique is exquisite. Obviously he has to mature physically but Dowman assisted four times on his step up to the under-18s, alerting just about everyone to how good he could be. Midfield gems keep spawning out of Hale End right now and Dowman is one to watch over the next few years.
46. Harry Amass
Age: 17 (September 10, 2007)
Club: Manchester United
You can take the Glazers out of running day-to-day operations at Manchester United but removing the bad luck is somewhat harder, as injuries to Leny Yoro and Rasmus Hojlund have shown in preseason. Some things never change.
With left-back a problem position covered by Diogo Dalot, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and even Sofyan Amrabat last term in the absence of Luke Shaw and Tyrell Malacia (remember him?), there may be a spot opening up for Harry Amass. Signed from Watford’s academy last year, the teen is stocky, tenacious and looking for a Mainoo-like glow-up, should injuries bother those above him again this season. He’s technically solid and could be an asset as depth.
45. Assane Diao
Age: 18 (March 7, 2005)
Club: Real Betis
There’s no better way to cap your 18th than with a mazy run through defenders’ legs and scoring on your La Liga debut, right? Assane Diao may not be unique as one of a plethora of exciting young wingers in Spain’s top tier – but he’s one of the most breathtaking.
The teen went onto score on each of his first three starts. He has the pace, the directness and most importantly a fearlessness that could well translate to La Roja’s senior setup, with Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams demonstrating over the summer that Spanish football is changing. It’s players like Diao who are leading the sea change from wide playmakers to slaloming wingers.
44. Jayden Danns
Age: 18 (January 16 2006)
Club: Liverpool
Despite signing Darwin Nunez, Jurgen Klopp gravitated back to a false nine-style Cody Gakpo mere months later. But history tells us Arne Slot is a ‘Santiago Gimenez up front’ kind of guy, who would prefer his strikers to stretch than drift into midfield.
This might be the change that Jayden Danns needs to truly explode. Physically, the forward is cut from a Cavani cloth – but though his movement is exemplary, he’s been focusing on his all-round game under Klopp. With Gakpo likely a winger to Slot, that leaves Nunez as the sole centre-forward – and Danns could be the longterm successor with the kind of ability to bring others into play that recalls Roberto Firmino, with the kind of killer edge needed under the new regime.
43. Martim Fernandes
Age: 18 (June 5, 2006)
Club: Porto
With the Lisbon giants accelerating into the distance with recruitment, Porto are at risk of being left behind in Portugal. Andre Villas-Boas is president, Sergio Conceicao gone and Pepe packed up, too.
Marginal gains from the academy are thus welcome. Martim Fernandes is a throwback full-back capable of bombing down the touchline and delivering a whipped cross, with a tireless engine and the will to get stuck in. It looks likely that he makes the right-back slot his own over the next 18 months, but how he develops could be fascinating: he already looks comfortable cutting infield and at such a young age, could become a phenomenal talent for Portugal.
42. Eliesse Ben Seghir
Age: 19 (February 16, 2005)
Club: Monaco
A brace on his home debut. The youngest Monagasque to do so since Thierry Henry. The headlines write themselves.
Eliesse Ben Seghir is perhaps as exciting as he is because he’s so hard to box, both literally and as a profile. Though he has the swagger of the aforementioned Henry, a close control akin to ex-Monaco star Bernardo Silva suggests he could crystallise as a No.8, No.10 or a winger on either flank. He seems to revel in breaking free from opponents, drawing them close before finding space to accelerate into. He’s not just effective: he’s fun to watch, too.
41. Ibrahim Osman
Age: 19 (March 26, 2004)
Club: Brighton & Hove Albion
They’ve done it again, haven’t they? Ending up in Brighton, via Nordsjaelland and the now-famed Right to Dream academy is becoming a golden route to stardom.
Ibrahim Osman follows Simon Adingra’s lead: similarly ambipedal, unpredictable and comfortable anywhere on the pitch, so long as there’s green space to run into. The idea of the Seagulls luring a press before releasing these two west African wingers is ferocious – and so many of Brighton’s wide options, Osman has intelligence, final product and a frightening ability to accelerate at full pelt from a standstill. He’s raw, but he’s at the best place to develop.
40. Myles Lewis-Skelly
Age: 17 (September 26, 2006)
Club: Arsenal
The Eduardo Camavinga comparisons are apt. Myles Lewis-Skelly is left-footed, thoughtful in possession and shows intensity when he doesn’t have the ball. The Hale End teen has been a huge plus of preseason and has shown the kind of intelligence and work ethic that Mikel Arteta demands from his players.
And now, MLS is training as a left-back: very Cama. Wherever he ends up, he has a solid career ahead of him.
39. Geovany Quenda
Age: 17 (March 9, 2005)
Club: Sporting
While Sporting have risen to the top of Portuguese football with ball-to-feet wingers in Marcus Edwards and Pedro Goncalves, who will want to cut in and playmake, Geovany Quenda is waiting in the wings as a solid Plan B. He’s far more direct, has pace and bullishly bulldoze past defenders inside or out.
Comparisons with other Iberian wingers born in Guinea-Bissau are inevitable (hello, Ansu Fati). Quenda looks to be the next supreme talent out of Sporting – and he could leapfrog Edwards in the team in time.
38. Ivan Fresneda
Age: 19 (September 28, 2004)
Club: Sporting
Arsenal and Borussia Dortmund opted to pass on Ivan Fresneda when he became available at Real Valladolid. It may come back to bite them, too.
The Spaniard has potential to be a complete right-back, equally proficient defensively, overlapping and stepping into the centre of the pitch. Physicality tends to be prioritised at full-back but Fresneda is technically gifted, with the intelligence to read situations as a game develops. He’s due another big move if he continues on his current trajectory.
37. Chido Obi
Age: 16 (December 8, 2006)
Club: Manchester United
Arsenal are gutted to lose Chido Obi-Martin. He netted 10 goals as Arsenal beat Liverpool 14-3 at under-16 level and seven goals in a 9-0 win against Norwich City, earning the opportunity to train with Arteta's senior side at the age of just 15: quite the way to announce yourself.
Now, he’s set for bigger things. A youngster who expected to be a part of Arsenal’s under-21 setup this season has now been given the role of being Manchester United’s third-choice striker being Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee. It’s going to be fascinating to see if this natural-born killer can ascend in senior football at the same rate.
36. Lewis Miley
Age: 18 (May 4, 2006)
Club: Newcastle United
Lewis Miley has been lavished with plenty of praise but perhaps none greater than Eddie Howe describing his “brilliant brain”. Physical maturation is to follow: but the fundamentals are already in place for this talent.
Miley broke into the first team at Newcastle United last season to play in a role in which he was responsible for space: defending it and exploiting it. The teenager was dropped in at the deep end but he excelled, showing a knack for drawing opponents towards him and finding the gaps to move the ball on, all the while, screening off the ball, pressing diligently and showing a composure in the pass under pressure. He’s a huge talent for the future, and one that Toon fans hope won’t be sold on.
35. Tyrique George
Age: 18 (May 20, 2007)
Club: Chelsea
Perhaps Cobham academy’s greatest asset at current, Tyrique George may be fast-tracked this season. After all, some of the players ahead of him in the pecking order are hardly indispensable.
George offers dynamism that the Blues so often sorely lack. He’s explosive over short and long distances, and has excellent ball-striking when he cuts inside from the touchline. While he looks statuesque when his long legs hover over the ball though, he has superb close control: there’s a hint of Rafael Leao in his strides. Whether he remains as a winger or moves to centre-forward will be enthralling to see in the coming years, too.
34. Nico Paz
Age: 19 (September 8, 2004)
Club: Real Madrid
He’s already played in the Champions League and he was called up to the long-list of Argentina’s 2022 World Cup squad. Nico Paz has been fought over by the Albiceleste and Spain – where he was born – and now, there’s talk that he could leave the European champions, too. He’s held in very high regard.
It’s as if Florentino Perez hand-crafted a midfielder. Paz is tall, rangy, able to snatch possession back at a stretch, but he’s elegant, too. He floats on the ball when he drives forward and can pick a lock against a block. If he leaves the Bernabeu, he could be the next Martin Odegaard: Los Blancos hope he remains to learn from the best.
33. Stefan Bajcetic
Age: 19 (October 22, 2004)
Club: Liverpool
Stefan Bajcetic’s absence last term was a disappointment for many. The Spaniard with a Scouse accent won admirers for his off-ball work and his verticality, which was notable in its absence during Jurgen Klopp’s farewell tour.
While he’s been pigeon-holed as a No.6, Bajcetic is so much more. The teen is an all-action affector in the centre of the pitch, with supreme intelligence on and off the ball. With Arne Slot looking for deep-lying midfield talent, Bajcetic’s development over the next couple of years could be stratospheric: Liverpool might well have an Ilkay Gundogan-level talent on their books.
32. Mathys Tel
Age: 19 (April 27, 2005)
Club: Bayern Munich
Balance is key in football. For every action, there must be an equal and opposite: for every Kane, a Tel.
The Frenchman feels like Nicolas Anelka reincarnated, No.39 shirt on his back. Tel is pacy, flickers from left to centre and has impressive hold-up play for one designated to drift into the space that Kane vacates. Bayern Munich will be sure not to lose this guy in the same way that they did Joshua Zirkzee.
31. Angelo Gabriel
Age: 19 (December 21, 2004)
Club: Chelsea
It’s unclear whether Angelo will ever play for Chelsea. Such is the surplus of right-wing talents, and a certain Cole Palmer standing directly in the way, the Brazilian may have to find somewhere else in Europe to flourish.
The Brazilian dazzled at Santos and was solid at Strasbourg last term, learning his trade in Ligue 1. Angelo has a wand of a left foot and naturally sees openings that others don’t – so his development is more a case of how he adapts to such an alien environment. Wherever he ends up, the future is bright.
30. Jack Hinshelwood
Age: 19 (September 8, 2006)
Club: Brighton & Hove Albion
Of all the unmeasurable metrics, perhaps footballing IQ is the most nebulous of traits. It elevates an Iniesta from La Masia but it’s not a tangible quality that can be pointed to in terms of goals, assists or checklist contributions.
Pascal Gross was perhaps the biggest example of it in the Premier League for years, with his Dortmund move signalling a chorus of “perhaps Brighton will miss him more than some realise” from those who, you know, actually watch the Seagulls. Luckily, Jack Hinshelwood is cut from a similar cloth, with a reading of play that belies his 19 years and an ability to alter his game depending on his role. Perhaps most fun to watch though, is the effortless with which he clips passes forwards: another trait difficult to measure on paper, but glorious to watch in action.
29. Ayman Kari
Age: 19 (November 19, 2004)
Club: Paris Saint-Germain
FourFourTwo has been at the front of the Ayman Kari hype train for a while now. Patience is required with this talent, but having seen him in senior action with Lorient last season, hope is still high for him to become a top-level midfielder.
Football is played with your mind as much as your feet, after all. Kari only does what needs to be done, keeping his movements and actions as minimal as possible: he’s mastered the basics of what a midfielder should do at an age in which most players try and over-elaborate. The Frenchman plays like he’s controlling the play with a joystick. He may well go under the radar for another few years yet but he’s a stunning footballer for one so young.
28. Cavan Sullivan
Age: 14 (September 28, 2009)
Club: Philadelphia Union
The United States’ sum contribution to football – proper football – underwhelms for many, still, for a nation of 334 million people and the launch of the sport 30 years ago Stateside with a World Cup. Some top goalkeepers, sure, Christian Pulisic and a couple of notable Fulham strikers… but some still cry of a real lack of technical brilliance.
Getting the call from Manchester City, therefore, is a big deal for Philly-based Cavan Sullivan: it’s even bigger that he’s just 14. Like a bleach-blond Bernardo Silva, he has the pausa in his game to stop on the spot and toy with defenders, possessing a swagger rarely seen from Americans playing this game. His penchant to strike from range might be what makes headlines across the pond, but his ability on the ball is what City are banking on.
27. Assan Ouedraogo
Age: 18 (May 26, 2006)
Club: RB Leipzig
It’s very modern of German football that a Schalke wonderkid has left for RB Leipzig, with the former flirting with the third tier. But Assan Ouedraogo is a throwback Knappenschmiede graduate, showing levels that the likes of Mesut Ozil, Ilkay Gundogan and Leroy Sane suggested while in Gelsenkirchen.
He’s played all over: left-wing and as a No.10, but will likely develop into a No.8 in time, with his off-ball work needing a little time. Ouedraogo is stunning, however: a powerful runner, offering height and aerial threat, and able to shoot on either foot. With physical midfielders thriving once again in football after Pep Guardiola reinvented the position in the 2010s, Ouedraogo’s path could be interesting as an attacking threat able to bully and bustle.
26. Eli Junior Kroupi
Age: 18 (February 8, 2007)
Club: Lorient
The sweet spot between instinct and decision-making is what makes an elite striker. Someone who knows the best place to place, as the picture is shaping up. While France have produced plenty of clinical forwards in recent times, Eli Junior Kroupi is one the more interesting from this perspective.
Kroupi’s intelligence is his strongest suit. He wants the ball played to him rather than running onto it – yet he’s lethal and icy in the penalty box. This is a player who excels in the pockets, can drop deep to associate and make the defining run into the area to finish chances. There aren’t too many of his profile around: and that could make him invaluable in the coming years.
25. Arthur Vermeeren
Age: 19 (February 12, 2005)
Club: Atletico Madrid
Arthur Vermeeren is just 19 and already a complete footballer. It’s not just in the awareness of what goes on around him, his ability to affect higher or deeper on the field: he’s a leader in buildup and creative in the final third.
That Atletico managed to snare him relatively unchallenged may come back to haunt those who had their eye on the teen. Vermeeren represents the future of Belgium’s midfield, and he may well become the cornerstone of Los Colchoneros’ next step under Diego Simeone.
24. Sverre Halseth Nypan
Age: 17 (December 4, 2006)
Club: Rosenborg
The Santi Cazorla comparisons are there, if only because Nypan is supremely good on either foot. Really though, the Norwegian is more akin to Frenkie De Jong in style, leading a struggling Rosenborg at the age of just 16 years old, as the giants have floundered of late.
Nypan reads the game beautifully, accelerates with purpose through the centre of the pitch and can pick a pass, to boot. To have put his club on his back is what impresses most, though. Nypan has all the talent of a top-level No.8 – and seemingly the mental strength to match.
23. Rico Lewis
Age: 19 (November 21, 2004)
Club: Manchester City
To call Rico Lewis nothing more than Kyle Walker’s heir would be a disservice – however much the veteran right-back is an idol to the Manchester City academy product. Lewis has already stepped in for Walker on occasion, taking Joao Cancelo’s mantel in the squad following the Portuguese’s wobbly, yet you feel like he’s destined for whatever Pep Guardiola chooses at any given moment.
The Catalan doesn’t often trust youngsters like this, having deployed Lewis in midfield in a top-two clash against Arsenal last term. The teenager is composed, physically adept and very intelligent, turning his hand to any task his manager throws at him. He’s a new breed of full-back – assuming, of course, that he ends up as one.
22. Archie Gray
Age: 18 (March 3, 2006)
Club: Tottenham Hotspur
Arguably the best talent in the Championship has been snapped up by a top-six side. As if that’s not exciting enough, he was playing out of position for most of the season. And while Archie Gray could probably do a decent shift in place of Pedro Porro mind, Ange Postecgolou no doubt has higher aspirations.
Gray is a unicorn: a midfielder with supreme vision and the ability to carry the ball, but with an aggressive streak that separates him from the rest. He’s the bite and the brilliance at once, and at 6ft tall, he may yet be moulded into a physical monster able to anchor at No.6 or box-crash. Watching Spurs field him and Lucas Bergvall together might be transformative for their future.
21. Roony Bardghji
Age: 18 (November 15, 2005)
Club: Copenhagen
Rooney is a name that Manchester United fans forever adore. After knocking them out of the Champions League, Roony… is not.
Bardghji announced himself during that campaign for his intensity, his guile and his will to step into the spotlight when needed. He’s one of a number of Scandinavian creators currently lighting up European football – and with the likes of Anthony Elanga, Alexander Isak, Viktor Gyokeres and Dejan Kulusevski vying for spots in the Sweden national side, there could be a revolution underway for the Blue and Yellow.
20. Lewis Hall
Age: 19 (September 8, 2004)
Club: Newcastle United
No more Trippier at left-back, guys. For club or country. That Chelsea let Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento both leave for Tyneside for £45 million may be the worst piece of business they've done in recent seasons.
It may be hyperbole to describe Hall as the golden example of a shift in English football but there has arguably never been a left-back from this country like him. Unbelievably press-resistant, a gifted passer, able to carry over long distances and exceptional when pressed, he’s in the Trent/Kimmich/Zinchenko category of full-backs good enough to be midfielders.
Real ambition is using his intelligence and versatility in the first phase, however. He can do it, and he probably will lead from the back.
19. Patrick Dorgu
Age: 19 (October 23, 2004)
Club: Lecce
Compared to Alejandro Balde as a rare overlapping left-back in an era of very different full-backs, it would be easy to categorise Patrick Dorgu as a bullet train in a china shop. A Danish Davies, all bluster, bombing to the touchline and back.
What separates the Lecce talent is his passing, however. It’s not that he has the range or incision: it’s that carrying the ball is his strong suit, and he still knows exactly when to stop and find a team-mate. Dorgu is extremely calm, on or off the ball, and despite his obvious physical supremacy and excellent final ball, he never looks to force the opportunity.
Such maturity is as promising as the obvious ability he has. Dorgu looks to be a complete full-back already – his ceiling could be extremely high indeed.
18. Jorrel Hato
Age: 18 (March 7, 2006)
Club: Ajax
From Dorgu to Hato. One complete left-back to another – for different reasons.
The recent ‘boring, anti-football’ trend of centre-backs moving out to flank a back four, after all, is nothing of the sort. It’s not an admission of needing defensive solidity but an evolution to having more rounded full-backs, utilising players like Josko Gvardiol and Ben White as attacking weapons as much as anything. And Hato is cut from this cloth: an extraordinary ball-playing centre-back, able to receive like a midfielder and charge forward with gusto.
He is unique. A left-footed centre-back with an exquisite pass and John Stones-like gallop, Hato may well end up as a full-back long-term – but he’s so good, that there may not be too many centre-backs better than him when he reaches peak performance, either. With Ajax producing some of the most interesting defensive prospects on Earth of late – from Jurrien Timber to Lisandro Martinez – Hato’s pathway could well be the most watched of anyone out of Amsterdam in the next couple of years.
17. Kendry Paez
Age: 17 (May 4, 2007)
Club: Independiente del Valle (joining Chelsea in 2025)
With the tumult and the turmoil of the last 24 months, Chelsea hope their house will be in order to welcome Kendry Paez next summer. While the Blues have burned bridges in the short-term, the long-term planning has at least left fans with plenty to look forward to.
The Ecuadorian is one of a handful of right-wingers on the Stamford Bridge books. Riyad Mahrez comparisons are apt: he can start wide, drift in-field and shoot or create with equal aplomb. The best part is that you don’t know what’s happening next: Paez has the unpredictability to turn on a sixpence, dig himself out of tight spots and provide the difference.
At 17, he’s been capped 12 times by Ecuador already. Whether he remains as a winger or moves centrally remains to be seen – but he already looks like he’s been playing at the top level for years.
16. Claudio Echeverri
Age: 18 (January 2, 2006)
Club: River Plate (on loan from Manchester City)
Claudio Echeverri picked up the ball outside the penalty area and carried it, beating three men before walloping it into the roof of the net – teasing one of them that he might come back inside (he was never going to) – for his first goal in senior football. Sergio Aguero posted it on X (formerly Twitter), with Echeverri’s name and the sunglasses emoji. He’d arrived.
Argentines have worked out well for City in recent years, after all. Echeverri follows the Julian Alvarez model of remaining at River Plate until ready but is already integral back home, changing games when he comes off the bench. The teenager has fantastic awareness of what’s around him, is able to find space or create it at will and his confidence is unshakeable.
When he’s in full flow, there’s no stopping him already. No wonder he’s moving King Kun.
15. Evan Ferguson
Age: 19 (October 19, 2004)
Club: Brighton & Hove Albion
That Evan Ferguson is on a barren run in the Premier League since last November is of little concern to Brighton. The Seagulls struggled as a unit in the second half of last season – their striking starlet is hardly an anomaly.
The Irishman still has all the ingredients to hit the top. Poise and calmness in front of goal is key for a No.9 of course – and Ferguson is equally comfortable holding up play or toiling the channels, showing his considerable all-round game.
Centre-forwards don’t often present themselves so fully-formed so young. Most begin life as wingers before moving into the middle or blossom later, free from the shackles of expectation. It’s important not to see Ferguson’s progress as linear: he’s set for a great career, however long it takes him to fully realise his potential.
14. Pau Cubarsi
Age: 17 (January 21, 2007)
Club: Barcelona
When Gerard Pique retired midseason, it was the abrupt end of a distinguished era of Barcelona’s history. Pau Cubarsi wasn’t too far behind to pick up the baton and assume control of the next.
Ball-playing is pre-requisite of defenders from this academy. Even by La Masia standards, however, the composure of Cubarsi is something else, Cules pinching themselves that really, he’s half the age that Pique was when he left them. Unfazed by the drama around him during this uncertain time at the club, the youngster has been a bastion of calm and reads the game like someone who’s been carrying Barça for years.
He seems destined too to lead from the back in the Spanish national side, which may be set for another sustained dominance in European football. From the left-sided centre-back role, Cubarsi can see the whole pitch, has exemplary reading of the game and can stretch it with his raking balls. He’s the very future of club and country.
13. Gabriel Moscardo
Age: 18 (January 12, 2005)
Club: Paris Saint-Germain
The lone No.6 has taken somewhat of a hit in recent years: it’s just too hard to be across quite so much of the pitch at once. Midfield pairings – either from the start of a match or with inverted players – have platformed the likes of Joao Palhinha and Declan Rice to bigger statuses, as even the proto-pivot himself, Pep Guardiola, has looked to minimise space as much as maximise it.
So now, it seems South America is the place to find the best defensive midfielders on Earth: after all, Fabinho and Fernandinho may have been the finest lone DMs before Rodri reinvented things. Argentina have Federico Redondo, Brazil have Gabriel Moscardo, who’s signed for PSG among interest from the elite. He has the go-go-gadget legs to cover an extraordinary amount of pitch, a solid passing range and the engine to keep driving all day.
He’s a duel-winning machine, a cheat code against the tide of a transition, but his ball-carrying is far better than a pure destroyer suggests. He could be the Makelele of PSG’s next Galactico project – or he could become an all-round midfielder. We can’t wait to find out.
12. Ethan Nwaneri
Age: 17 (March 21, 2007)
Club: Arsenal
Those who talk about Bukayo Saka’s ‘pace’ have plainly never watched him. He has the brain of a midfielder, with his ability to beat a man unrelated. It’s that simple: he’s the finest example of an academy founded in Arsene Wenger’s ambition to create a team full of midfield brains.
Cesc Fabregas and Jack Wilshere paved the way; Emile Smith Rowe followed. Ethan Nwaneri was dangled a debut at a record-breaking 15 years old – and two years later, he’s ready for senior football. His maturity is stark: he can create openings from nowhere with both his movement and his passing. He can play across midfield or wide. He elevates those around him with his play, rather than looking for the Hollywood pass or shot. Nwaneri is a facilitator for those around him.
It was claimed by a minority that Mikel Arteta handed him his first Premier League minutes against Brentford as a gimmick: a carrot to sign a contract amid interest from others. But he didn’t look physically out of his depth then – and he looks even more polished now. Nwaneri is a top player at the top level already, and a superstar of the future. But most importantly, he’s the very embodiment of everything Arsenal stand for – and that’s why Arteta gave him that eye-catching debut.
11. Marc Bernal
Age: 17 (June 13, 2007)
Club: Barcelona
Famously, the greatest midfield of all time was built on an education. Iniesta, Busquets and Xavi knew the existing framework on which to apply their specific roles – before the latter implemented Pedri and Gavi in Barcelona’s next midfield.
Finding the future Busquets was always going to be the hardest part, given the complexities of his role, but Marc Bernal is Barça’s long-term No.6. The role is as much about the mind of the player as the ability, and the signs are superb with Bernal, who can receive at any angle, find space off the ball and minimise it when the opposition have it. He has the calmness, he has the build and he has the know-how of when to intercept and when to tackle.
As a bonus, he can strike the ball well, too. In 722 games, Busquets scored just 18 times. It’s a target for Bernal to beat, for sure.
10. Estevao Willian
Age: 17 (June 7, 2007)
Club: Palmeiras (joining Chelsea in 2025)
Bojan, Gerard Deulofeu, Alen Halilovic, Ryan Gould. Gelson Martins, Juan Iturbe. ‘The new Messi’ is a moniker that hangs heavy, sinking more than it helps float, believe it or not.
Leo reached GOAT status not because of his dribbling, shooting or passing, but because of the combination of all three. Which makes ‘Messinho’ perhaps the first of these young pretenders who actually profiles similarly to the man himself. He actually has it all: not just the aesthetic running style or original story.
The ball is glued to Estevao Willian’s feet when he dribbles. He can swivel and shimmy to beat defenders, ghosting past them like smoke and when he shoots, he recalls old-fashioned Brazilians like Ronaldo and Romario who generated supreme power. Estevao is supremely creative, whether that’s through the space he creates or the pure opportunities, and he has torn up Brazilian football at such a young age.
We‘re on tenterhooks for the next chapter. In a boat with Chelsea’s myriad right-wing prospects, some of them may not make their extraordinary ceilings. It would be a shame if Estevao goes anywhere other than the top, however: he’s too fun not to.
9. Leny Yoro
Age: 18 (November 13, 2005)
Club: Manchester United
Manchester United’s new era has begun, with a comeback against Aston Villa to start with and an FA Cup final win over Pep Guardiola to savour. Leny Yoro’s signing is a statement up there with the best.
He has an air about him already. There’s something of countryman Eduardo Camavinga in Yoro’s stature (despite the comparisons to William Saliba), in that it’s almost impossible to get past him with the ball. Yoro doesn't even lean in to tackle, making it difficult for an attacker to read him – and his reading of the game is excellent. He might be coming for that Van Dijk ‘dribbled past’ cliché.
He has time. Yoro is barely old enough to buy a pint in Manchester and yet he towers over forwards – yet he’s about far more than just his physical attributes. He could probably make it as a midfielder, too, given his technical prowess. An injury will rob us of seeing him right away but this was always going to be a long-term project: Yoro is the definition of one for the future.
He may have only wanted Real Madrid – and they may regret not getting him. He is a talent that all things being well, will go to the very top. This is the kind of buy that United haven’t made enough over the last 10 years, and it may well turn out to be a bargain.
8. Desire Doue
Age: 19 (June 3, 2005)
Club: Rennes
Pep Guardiola has ruined football, sucked all the fun out of the beautiful game, reducing the great entertainers of the sport into possession recyclers and a maverick like Jack Grealish into a sideways pass merchant. At least, according to a few folks on the internet.
Desire Doue has been likened to Ronaldinho and has a spark of Jamal Musiala when he shifts from first gear to fifth. He can pirouette through tight spaces and slalom through defences like the wind. But for all the joga bonito, he’s a proper, ‘2024 footballer’, too. And that’s what makes him special.
For every trick from his box, Doue has the willingness to press diligently; the IQ to steal the ball from deep. He’s creative without being wasteful. He could so easily take on half your team – but he has the intelligence to know the opportune moment. No.8s with high take-on stats are ten a penny – they need a little covering, defensively – but Doue is disciplined. He has all the talent in the world and all the brain for when to apply it.
Rennes midfielder Baptiste Santamaria described his team-mate as unplayable. And that’s what all the great artists are: breathtaking on the ball, with a foundation of maturity to match.
7. Joao Neves
Age: 19 (September 27, 2004)
Club: Paris Saint-Germain
“I've never seen a situation like it in my career,” Portugal head coach Roberto Martinez said after calling up Joao Neves to the senior team for the first time. Despite being a teenager, a little under 5’9, the then-Benfica starlet had a presence about him, even in a room with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Pepe and Bruno Fernandes. “In two days he gained the respect of the entire Portugal locker room,” Martinez waxed.
His leadership is exerted in his actions on the pitch. Neves is a No.8 who shoulders the responsibility of dropping deep to receive, yet he dictates attacks with authority. His low centre of gravity makes him excellent in ball-winning situations and hard to press; his vision is superb and he lacks any real weakness. Even with his diminutive stature, his aerial ability is impressive.
And he’s incredibly resilient. A move to PSG makes Benfica the first club in football history to have completed six sales of over €60m. With Neves’ exit following Joao Felix, Ruben Dias, Darwin Nunez, Enzo Fernandez and Goncalo Ramos, it’s wholly fair to be sceptical of whether he’ll surf the stratosphere he’s suggested in his short career so far – and the reduced fee of just €60m raises question marks when Benfica were adamant he wouldn’t leave for double.
But this is a player who barely feels like a teenager at all. A sure bet? There’s no such thing – but the signs are that he can be anything he wants to.
6. Kobbie Mainoo
Age: 19 (April 19, 2005)
Club: Manchester United
When Alan Hansen piped up that “you can’t win anything with kids,” an entire club took it personally. Great players have come through the Manchester United ranks at a young age. Generational ones have put the Red Devils on their backs.
Kobbie Mainoo led United to silverware as a 19-year-old, much like his predecessors did in the 90s. He’s grabbed this team by the neck, assuming a leadership role with a quiet, unstated style. And a rise from academy prospect to a starter in the Euro 2024 final would have been impressive alone: coupled with Gareth Southgate’s famed fear of deviating from experience, it’s an indication of just how good he really is.
Mainoo is the kind of footballer that England simply didn’t produce when he was born. Unpressable deep, able to swivel on a dime and progress vertically; perhaps, most excitingly, with an eye for an occasion. An FA Cup final goal shows composure, but also how this Stockport native feels like he belongs at the top.
A bright spot in a dreary season, Mainoo has only just begun. What’s the betting he features in a couple more finals for England?
5. Franco Mastantuono
Age: 16 (August 14, 2007)
Club: River Plate
It’s been said in the past that when the Wimbledon roof closed and Roger Federer stepped out onto court, he was simply unbeatable. Such was his precision – when he didn’t have to calculate and contend with the elements – that he could measure his way to a victory instead of battling for it.
It’s a parallel to Argentine tennis prodigy Franco Mastantuono – fifth in the national youth rankings, doncha know – despite the translation of sport. Now in the football world, Mastantuono stepped up over a free-kick against Sarmiento last month, 25 yards from goal. He looked like he measuring a serve over the net. Sure enough, he hit an ace.
That he’s younger than Kanye West’s ‘Stronger’ makes his ability all the more astounding. He has Federer’s elegance across the grass, but he’s Nadal-like, too: no one can knock him off the ball in one of the most brutal leagues on Earth. It’s the deadly combination of decision-making and ball-striking. The capacity to smash the target. The sense to time it to perfection.
When, how or where he reaches the top is a story for the latter half of the decade. He is simply stunning to watch, graceful even, when he’s in full flow.
4. Endrick
Age: 18 (July 21, 2006)
Club: Real Madrid
There’s just something about Endrick that no one can put their finger on. Citing Sir Bobby Charlton as a hero, signing for Real Madrid at 16 years old, surfing across a crowd with a Pele-esque energy. He has that dreaded word, ‘aura’, from the quotes, to the records that are tumbling at his ferocious feet.
The story will go down in history – however it ends. Endrick rattled 165 goals in 169 games for Palmeiras’ youth teams, became Brazil’s youngest samba star since Ronaldo in ‘94 and signed for Real Madrid, all before turning 18. He became Wembley’s youngest-ever scorer (Sir Bobby would be proud). He weeped at his Bernabeu unveiling.
The hype is well-placed at least. The way he strikes a ball can’t be taught: it’s un-Brazilian, in some ways, opting for cold, ruthlessness, rather than anything aesthetic. He’s Ronaldo-like in his ability to create chances just from manipulating space in the final third – and he has that habit of demanding in the big moments.
And it’s all underpinned by a mentality that seduced even Real Madrid into buying into The Endrick Show. Whichever way it goes, we’ve never seen anything like it.
3. Warren Zaire-Emery
Age: 18 (March 8, 2006)
Club: Paris Saint-Germain
Antoine Griezmann played 84 consecutive games for France – but was conspicuous in his absence twice. In the second half of the World Cup final in 2022, and left out of the Euro 2024 semi-final. Now 33, he’s forever been the bastion of calm and control in a Les Bleus side of runners and riders. The baton is slipping from his fingers.
Warren Zaire-Emery is not the same kind of player. He’s a No.8 who blossomed in the shade of Marco Verratti, picked up his press resistance and learned a thing or two about space – on and off the ball. The PSG teen is old beyond his years, able to dictate the tempo of a game like a veteran, finding space where there’s none to be seen and always putting the ball in a better place than where he found it.
In that respect, he’s the future of France. WZE is the cool head when Kylian Mbappe is threatening to lose his – he’s an elite decision-maker and unbelievably silky on the ball. He is the perfect complement to Aurelien Tchouameni and Eduardo Camavinga.
With Mbappe no longer at PSG, Zaire-Emery may well be the core of the project, too: a homegrown hero with the talent to decide the biggest occasions, albeit in a different manner. He’s incredibly special, and already brilliant to watch.
2. Arda Guler
Age: 19 (February 25, 2005)
Club: Real Madrid
German stadiums rumbled with anticipation every time Arda Guler picked up the ball this summer. The Turkish were among the most vociferous of audiences at Euro 2024 – but there was something special about this boy, levitating spectators out of their seats every time he shaped up on that wand of a left foot.
There’s a reason for ‘inevitability’ in football: last-minute winners aren’t luck. Those who take on copious levels of responsibility are the ones who deliver knock-out blows – and Guler is happy to soak it all up. He’s incredibly efficient, never wasting a touch on the ball and his movement is excellent. He missed half of his debut season for Real Madrid, made 12 appearances and scored in half of them. He will step up, whether anyone around him does or not.
In this Los Blancos superteam, the expectation is that everyone will, in fact, step up. Mbappe, Endrick, Rodrygo, Bellingham and Vinicius all want Guler’s minutes. A loan move has been touted.
But more important than the ability, the mentality is already there for Guler. He demands his moments – just like he did at the Euros.
1. Lamine Yamal
Age: 17 (July 13, 2007)
Club: Barcelona
In Barcelona lore, being applauded by opposition fans is reserved for the likes of Diego Maradona and Ronaldinho. When Cadiz fans clapped Lamine Yamal’s senior debut, they knew they’d witnessed history – less than 12 months later, he’d written more for the national team.
Yamal might just be the best right-winger on Earth, regardless of age. You saw it for yourself all summer long. He played 50 times in his first full season not because Barcelona are desperate to hail a new Lionel Messi – but because already, he is utterly indispensable. The same goes for Spain.
The 17-year-old is elite in tight spaces and explosive across a long stretch of grass, yet he doesn’t need to beat you in a footrace. His vision is flawless and he can pick out a pass through the eye of a needle. He can drop a shoulder to fool an entire back four; he can bend the whole game to his will, just by drifting inside.
There’s no good reason that he shouldn’t have picked up the player of the tournament at Euro 2024. This is an elite talent already. We’ve seen the future: the excitement isn’t in what Lamine Yamal will turn into, it’s the fact that we’ll get to see it, touch wood, for years to come.
