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The 100 best Football Manager 2019 wonderkids – for every budget

Every year... every incarnation of football’s greatest management sim – no matter which edition, wonderkids are among the most exciting elements of any Football Manager save. We all remember our first, right?

FM has made heroes of stars who didn’t quite live up to their promise in real life, and unforgettable virtual folklore in bedrooms around the globe.

For Football Manager 2019’s wonderkids, we’ve collected the cream of the crop from SI’s selection of the best U21 players in the game. No matter your budget, there’s a talented youngster waiting for you to take their career – and maybe even yours – to the next level...

Unlimited • Under £35mUnder £20mUnder £7mUnder £3.5m

Please note: Prices are very much a guideline and can differ depending on club status, add-ons and more.

Unlimited budget

Rodrygo

Available for: £35m (second season)

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Need to know: Another gem Real Madrid have plucked from South America, Rodrygo is very much in the traditional Santos mould: a magician on the ball, and one blessed with enough natural talent that he can turn a game on his head in an instant. Remember the name.

Ryan Sessegnon

Available for: £38m

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Need to know: It’s become almost a running joke that Sessegnon is still a teenager, thanks to commentators in Championship games last season bringing it up every 4.5 seconds on average. He’s adjusting to Premier League life, and netted his first top-flight goal against Cardiff in October.

Amine Gouiri

Available for: £40m

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Need to know: The Frenchman saw what was considered his breakout season cut cruelly short thanks to an ACL injury in August, but there’s plenty for Lyon fans to get excited about when he returns. A striker who can befuddle full-backs by cutting onto his right after drifting in the left channel, Gouiri should still be on course to lead the line for Lyon in the years to come. Providing you don’t snap him up first, that is.

Justin Kluivert

Available for: £40m

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Need to know: A 10-goal season while playing as a winger at Ajax invariably caught the attentions of Roma, who coughed up £15m for the Dutchman. While he hasn’t hit the heights of that heady season, he’s done more than enough to shake off the tag of merely being Patrick Kluivert’s son.

Manuel Locatelli

Available for: £40m (second season)

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Need to know: Scoring with your first two shots in senior club football (one against Gigi Buffon, no less) means things are always going to take a bit of a dip after that. Locatelli, a ruthless operator in the centre of the pitch, has now been shipped off to Sassuolo, where he’ll hope to prove ex-coach Gennaro Gattuso wrong for letting him go.

Achraf Hakimi

Available for: £40.5m (release clause)

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Need to know: Don’t baulk at that release clause: Achraf is a marauding right-back in the mould of a Dani Alves. For a real life example, watch his performance against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League, where he picked up not one, not two, but three assists in the 4-0 mauling. Los Blancos must have been pleased.

Dennis Geiger

Available for: £43m

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Need to know: If helping Hoffenheim to a third-placed finish in the Bundesliga in his debut season didn’t alert football’s elite, Geiger’s supreme confidence on the ball will have done it. Might he follow manager and mentor Julian Nagelsmann to RB Leipzig come the end of the season?

Eder Militao

Available for: £45m (release clause)

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Need to know: Equally confident at either right-back or centre-back, Militao has suitably impressed Brazil coach Tite enough to earn his first international cap – just months after signing on the dotted line with Porto.

Lucas Paqueta

Available for: £45m (second season)

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Need to know: Sorry, everyone. If you’ve started a game after the Football Manager 2019 beta, you’ll be met by the crushing news that Milan have snapped up this precocious talent. You’ll have to wait a while to lay your hands on the exciting attacking midfielder.

Sergio Gomez

Available for: £46.5m

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Need to know: Forget about his real-life prowess (he joined Borussia Dortmund from Barcelona): Gomez looks like the real deal from the start in Football Manager 2019. His big-game moxie has already been shown – he scored twice for Spain in a ultimately-lost battle against England in the 2017 U17 World Cup Final – but this won’t be the last you’ve heard of him.

Ben Wilmot

Available for: £47m

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Need to know: You wouldn’t think that someone who has made only 20 or so senior appearances, and only been playing his current position (centre-back) for around 18 months, would have any chance of making this list. But it speaks volumes about Wilmot’s potential that he’s here and has been part of Watford’s Premier League squad on a handful of occasions this term. More to come.

Willem Geubbels

Available for: £49m

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Need to know: Kylian Mbappe comparisons are already coming thick and fast for the Frenchman, who joined Monaco for around £17.5m at just 16. They’re not far wrong. The youngest player in Europa League history has it all: pace, power, height, speed, and the unteachable quality of knowing exactly where to be at the right moment. Inarguably one of the most exciting wonderkids in world football right now.

Angel Gomes

Available for: £49m

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Need to know: The youngest player to play for Manchester United since Duncan Edwards – and the Premier League’s first Year 2000-born player – might have his work cut out in turning Jose Mourinho’s head, but Gomes has all the tools needed to make an impact at Old Trafford. One day.

Joao Felix

Available for: £49.5m

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Need to know: Few take to the field with the joie de vivre that Felix shows on a weekly basis. Offering up a slate of skills that would scare any full-back, Benfica’s Portuguese attacking midfielder has recently signed a new contract to help ward off the likes of Chelsea and Arsenal.

Federico Chiesa

Available for: £50m

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Need to know: Chiesa is already excellent and performing at a high level. Blessed with an unnaturally effortless ability to maintain the ball under pressure, he can also deliver a mean cross and what is now becoming a trademark curling shot into the far corner. We might not have to wait long to see him strut his stuff in the Premier League if certain reports are to be believed.

Wendel

Available for: £54m (release clause)

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Need to know: Few at Sporting would have been happy to see a large chunk of expensive talent depart over the summer in controversial circumstances, but midfielder Wendel is one of them. Now, the prodigiously talented Brazilian has the chance to add to his meagre two appearances with the beleaguered Portuguese club.

Nordi Mukiele

Available for: £55m

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Need to know: Most teams would kill for one wonderkid; RB Leipzig have two. Joining compatriot Dayot Upamecano at the heart of the Bundesliga club’s defence is Frenchman Mukielem, who is also proficient at right-back, where he’s spent much of the season.

Felix Passlack

Available for: £55m

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Need to know: As long as nominative determinism doesn’t catch up with the current Norwich loanee, Passlack could have a stellar career ahead of him. Upon leaving Borussia Dortmund, Jurgen Klopp reportedly remarked: “I could start crying knowing that I won't be coaching this guy.”

Dayot Upamecano

Available for: £56m

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Need to know: One of only 10 defenders shortlisted for the 2018 Golden Boy award, Upamecano has already shown he has what it takes to rise above his peers. On the pitch he’s a commanding presence and has even popped up with a goal from time to time, having netted three times during the 2017/18 Bundesliga season.

Abel Ruiz

Available for: £58m (release clause)

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Need to know: Ruiz scored 32 times in 50 appearances for the various Spanish youth teams he’s played a part in, demonstrating his deadly eye for goal. Can he step up and make a mark at senior level for club and country? That might be up to you.

Matteo Guendouzi

Available for: £61m

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Need to know: The news of Guendouzi’s signing may have had Gunners scrambling for search engines and YouTube compilations, but they needn’t have worried: Guendouzi already has an Arsenal player-of-the-month award and a Europa League goal in his first handful of games.

Lautaro Martinez

Available for: £62m

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Need to know: Following in the footsteps of Mauro Icardi and Diego Milito, the Argentine attacker has donned the black and blue of Inter Milan for what promises to be a breakout 2018/19 season. He’s already bagged a debut goal for his country, too:  a picture-perfect near-post header against Saudi Arabia in October.

Pietro Pellegri

Available for: £62m

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Need to know: Monaco have splashed out over £20m on Pellegri, who only turned 17 in March. All told, it could prove to be a bargain down the line, such is his terrific hold-up ability and a body that’s still developing.

Callum Hudson-Odoi

Available for: £63m

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Need to know: It’s no surprise that Chelsea fans are clamouring for Callum Hudson-Odoi to start the odd match. Even at 18, he’s turning heads on the training pitch, and has impressed his manager enough to forgo the traditional loan route – a path well and truly travelled by youngsters at Stamford Bridge.

Ademola Lookman

Available for: £63m

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Need to know: Lookman has every right to be disappointed at being sat on the bench at Goodison Park. His promise was on full display as he impressed in the Bundesliga on loan at RB Leipzig last season, but the 21-year-old has seen his progress curtailed by the signing of Richarlison this season.

Juan Hernandez

Available for: £65m

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Need to know: Thanks to the Pozzos, Watford now have their hands on one of the best emerging starlets in South American. He’s already impressed at senior level, having helped firing Huesca to La Liga during a loan spell in Spain last season. A second season with the minnows awaits, but he won’t stick around there (or at Watford) for long if his international record is any indication: he bagged two goals on his Colombia debut and can apparently now count Barcelona among his many suitors.

Carles Alena

Available for: £67m (release clause)

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Need to know: It’s not easy being a young Spanish starlet making your way through La Masia, where the Xavi and Iniesta comparisons follow central midfielders around like a shadow. Still, Alena shouldn’t be too fazed by the expectations if his pre-injury performances for Barcelona B are anything to go by.

Rhian Brewster

Available for: £68m

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Need to know: Back-to-back U17 World Cup hat-tricks (one against Brazil, no less) must have had Liverpool fans dreaming of another prodigious talent performing in front of the Kop. A serious ankle injury has kept him out for most of 2018, so here’s hoping 2019 will be a little kinder to the fiery frontman.

Gianluigi Donnarumma

Available for: £68m

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Need to know: What is it with Italian keepers named Gianluigi? While Donnarumma has enjoyed a less-than-friendly relationship with Milan fans over the past 18 months, he’s shown all the promise that suggests a continued bright future between the Azzurri sticks after Buffon’s retirement.

Ben Woodburn

Available for: £70m

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Need to know: Despite struggling to make an impression during his current loan spell at Sheffield United, Woodburn is still highly rated by the likes of Jurgen Klopp as he looks to regain the form that saw him become Wales’ second youngest scorer.

Mason Greenwood

Available for: £71m

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Need to know: Unless you’ve got a subscription to MUTV, there’s little chance you’ve seen Greenwood in action. You’re missing out: aged only 16, the Reds striker is exciting scouts and pundits alike with his sublime fleet-footed play and knack for finding the net from all sorts of angles.

Paulinho

Available for: £72m (release clause)

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Need to know: Bayer Leverkusen shelling out north of £15m for a 17-year-old Brazilian raised eyebrows last summer, but those who’ve followed Vasco da Gama will know that the German side may very well have picked up one of the world’s best U18 talents. His wing wizardry and confidence on the ball bely his tender years.

Douglas Luiz

Available for: £75m

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Need to know: While parent club Manchester City try to sort out work permit issues, Douglas is currently plying his trade at Girona but has found chances hard to come by. Perhaps a season under Pep would do him good.

Christian Pulisic

Available for: £75m

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Need to know: It’s not easy carrying the hopes of a nation on your shoulders at the age of just 19, but if anyone can, it’s Pulisic. Having barely missed a beat in his career so far at Borussia Dortmund, the teenager has also managed to excel at international level thanks to his keen eye for goal and composure in the final third.

Renato Sanches

Available for: £75m

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Need to know: Euro 2016 winner at 18; relegated with Swansea at 19 after a lacklustre season. It’s less a case of ‘where did it all go wrong for Renato Sanches?’ and more about what he can do to bounce back from such disappointment. His second full season with Bayern Munich has shown signs of improvement thanks to a series of solid, effective performances.

Tahith Chong

Available for: £80m

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Need to know: There’s a reason why you’ll need to cough up a Cristiano-sized fee to prise this talented Dutchman away from the clutches of Jose Mourinho and Old Trafford. The big-haired baller may have had his early United career curtailed by injury, but the early signs are promising, judging by Mourinho’s decision to include him on the bench for a Champions League clash against Juventus.

Mickael Cuisance

Available for: £85m

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Need to know: Cuisance hasn’t played as much as he’d have liked in 2018/19 after a breakout season for Borussia Monchengladbach last time out which included nine starts and 24 appearances overall. Still, the talent is there: his passing range and silky skills make him a danger anywhere on the pitch.

Theo Hernandez

Available for: £88m

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Need to know: Fresh from scoring in the Copa del Rey final against Barcelona, Hernandez was shipped out on loan to Real Sociedad for the 2018/19 season. Far from it being surplus to requirements, parent club Real Madrid expect him to return stronger and try to make the left-back berth his own come 2019.

Vinicius Junior

Available for: £90m

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Need to know: £40m for a 16-year-old. A big gamble, and one that sacked Real Madrid manager Julen Lopetegui apparently didn’t want to make, gifting the now-18-year-old a measly 12 minutes during his ill-fated reign. Things are much better under Santiago Solari, who has played the thrilling Brazilian far more regularly.

Ethan Ampadu

Available for: £92m

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Need to know: Chelsea have recently seen many a talented player fly the coop and find that the grass is greener away from Stamford Bridge. Ampadu, though, remains steadfast in his desire to play for the club. A January loan move is on the cards for the talented Wales international.

Claudio Gomes

Available for: £92m

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Need to know: A near-impossibility to sign in your first FM season, Gomes is the latest in a line of Manchester City youth talent hovering around the first team. Dubbed ‘N’Golo Kante’ during his time at PSG, this tough-tackling midfielder may need some time to grow into himself, but when he does, he’ll add some much-needed steel to City’s (and perhaps your) midfield.

Diogo Dalot

Available for: £95m

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Need to know: Jose Mourinho may have splashed £20m on a full-back he doesn’t yet trust to start (m)any Premier League games, but the Portuguese was bought for his potential. Next season looks like his most likely chance at staking a real claim in the first team.

Kai Havertz

Available for: £96m

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Need to know: Widely regarded as Germany’s next great wonderkid, Havertz has stamped his authority on the Bundesliga this season. Three goals and two assists don’t tell the whole story; he’s an influential player who provides plenty in the build-up, without necessarily getting the final credit.

Marcus Rashford

Available for: £96m

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Need to know: Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you’re probably fairly familiar with Rashford. He first lit up several competitions under the tutelage of Louis van Gaal in his debut season, and is now kicking on this season at international level having scored in England’s famous 3-2 win against Spain.

Phil Foden

Available for: £98m

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Need to know: It’s hard to displace the likes of David Silva and Kevin De Bruyne in Manchester City’s first XI, but Foden looks best placed to do it. Endlessly praised by Pep Guardiola – and the youngest Premier League winner in history – Foden’s ability on the ball belies his 18 years. Now he’s got to push on from League Cup cameos and stake a claim for a starting spot.

Javairo Dilrosun

Available for: £101m

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Need to know: Spending many of his formative years at Ajax and, latterly, and the mammoth complex that is the Manchester City academy, Dilrosun has a football education like no other. He’s capitalised on it, too, with an impressive start to his Bundesliga career at Hertha Berlin, where he has two goals and three assists in nine games.

Ainsley Maitland-Niles

Available for: £106m

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Need to know: Already an U20 World Cup winner, Maitland-Niles was looking to kick on under new Arsenal coach Unai Emery but unfortunately suffered a broken leg in the opening-day defeat against Manchester City. Before that he was looking like a bright prospect indeed.

Arne Maier

Available for: £106m

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Need to know: Already hailed as the next Toni Kroos, Maier has been linked with Manchester United and Arsenal but appears to have his feet firmly on the ground with hometown club Hertha Berlin.

Jadon Sancho

Available for: £107m

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Need to know: Pep Guardiola probably doesn’t regret much in his career, but he might just regret letting the electric Sancho go for (relative) peanuts. He’s lit up the Bundesliga with five goals and seven assists in 15 appearances this season and can now count himself as a full England international.

Gedson Fernandes

Available for: £108m (release clause)

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Need to know: Strong, quick, agile and elusive, Fernandes may be able to succeed where Renato Sanches – another member of this list – has stumbled in recent years. He’s kicked on this season as well, earning a young-player-of-the-month award in Portugal’s top tier, a handful of Champions League appearances and senior caps for Portugal.

Josip Brekalo

Available for: £111m

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Need to know: Former Bundesliga champions Wolfsburg could easily be plying their trade in the second tier of German football if it wasn’t for a series of outstanding performances from Brekalo, including a goal and assist on the final day of the season. The Croatian winger will be hoping he can now break into the senior national side after proving himself at every youth level, right down to the Croatian U14 side.

Houssem Aouar

Available for: £120m

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Need to know: Aouar’s style, swagger and underrated strength on the ball make him one of the deadliest midfielders in the game today. His one-in-five record for Lyon aged 20 is proof enough that he’s worth shelling out on.

Trent Alexander-Arnold

Available for: £150m

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Need to know: Alexander-Arnold could easily be Liverpool’s first-choice right-back for the next 15 years. The youngster has developed brilliantly in the past year, to the point where it was obvious that he’d be starting a Champions League final when the time came. The first of many?

Leon Bailey

Available for: £150m

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Need to know: Rumours of an England call-up for the 2018 World Cup ultimately came to nothing, but it speaks volumes of Bailey’s talent that he’s still on the radars of almost every European club worth their salt – having turned many of them down already. He’s also mates with Usain Bolt, which can’t hurt.

Reiss Nelson

Available for: £160m

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Need to know: No, that’s not a typo. £160m! While the eye-watering fee is steep, Nelson has scored the second-highest amount of goals by a foreign teenage player in Bundesliga history, during his real-life breakout season on loan at Hoffenheim. It’s only November.

Emile Smith-Rowe

Available for: £177m

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Need to know: The Croydon-born attacker has already repaid the trust shown in him by Unai Emery with a Europa League goal at Qarabag. He’s now firmly part of the Arsenal set-up and could add an extra dimension to the team’s attacking play as Emery looks to put his own stamp on the Gunners.

Kylian Mbappe

Available for: £232m

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Need to know: Yes, he’s still technically a wonderkid. Then again, an argument has been made that he’s already fulfilled his potential, having won Ligue 1 and the World Cup in the same year. Mbappe could go on to be one of the best players of his generation – and then some.

Unlimited • Under £35m • Under £20m • Under £7m • Under £3.5m

Under £35m

Marco Varnier

Available for: £20m (second season)

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Need to know: First, the good news: Varnier is an exceptionally composed centre-back with a knack for getting the better of forwards in one-on-one duels. The bad news? In Football Manager, at least, you can’t get your hands on him until well into the second season. That’s due to Atalanta having a deal in place to buy him after his loan deal expires in June 2019.

Federico Valverde

Available for: £21.5m (release clause)

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Need to know: Changes have been rung at the Bernabeu recently, but still Valverde hasn’t managed more than mere minutes for Real Madrid this season. It’s a shame: the Uruguayan is able to unlock defences with his trademark long diagonal balls, and has shown great promise at international level. But when you’re competing with Luka Modric for a place...

Fiete Arp

Available for: £22m

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Need to know: Hamburg made our list of 12 teams we can’t wait to play as on Football Manager 2019 with good reason. Arp should be firing on all cylinders in the 2.Bundesliga and, if reports are to be believed, Bayern Munich is his next likely destination.

Steven Bergwijn

Available for: £22m

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Need to know: It’s been a whirlwind year for the young Dutch winger. Bergwijn scored the third goal in a defeat of Ajax to give PSV their third Eredivisie title in four years, has pulled on the orange shirt of his national side and proving incredibly productive so far in 2018/19. Europe’s elite might beckon sooner rather than later.

Dan-Axel Zagadou

Available for: £23.5m

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Need to know: If you’re 19 and manage to shut out both Antoine Griezmann and Diego Costa in a 4-0 tonking of Atletico Madrid, you’ve probably got something about you. Zagadou may not be a guaranteed starter at Borussia Dortmund yet, but it’s surely not long before he starts dominating more world-class strikers with his back to the Yellow Wall. And inspiring terrific terrace chants...

Matthijs de Ligt

Available for: £24m

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Need to know: Virgil van Dijk and Nathan Ake may be ahead of the centre-back at international level, but De Ligt is a terrific prospect nonetheless. Effortless on the ball and ruthless off it, it seems only a matter of time before he’s making a step up at club level in real life.

Moise Kean

Available for: £24.5m

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Need to know: While he’s yet to enjoy much first-team football for Juventus in 2018/19, the Champions League’s first Year 2000-born player has thrilling potential. His quick feet and natural finishing ability are reflected in-game, and should help him forge a fine career in Serie A and beyond for years to come.

Pol Lirola

Available for: £27m

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Need to know: There’s a criminal lack of full backs on this list, but Lirola helps make up for it. His in-game stats only tell half the story, though, as evidenced by his debut Europa League goal in 2016/17 where he cut inside on his left foot after a marauding run, jinked past one Aymeric Laporte and then slid home past the onrushing keeper.

Lukas Mai

Available for: £27m

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Need to know: Mai became the first player born in the 21st century to turn out for Bayern Munich early in 2018 and, while he’s mostly stuck in reserve football, it’s clear that the higher-ups in Bavaria rate him massively. He even kept a clean sheet on his debut, too.

Marin Pongracic

Available for: £27m (second season)

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Need to know: Just look at that passing stat. It’s well warranted, too, as Pongracic is able to pick one out as competently from 50 yards as he can from five. If the Salzburg man can rein in his temper – he’s been sent off once already this season and also stamped on an opponent in the Champions League – he’ll be among the cream of European defenders.

Ezequiel Barco

Available for: £28m

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Need to know: Barco made history by becoming the record signing for an MLS club in January 2018 but, with all due respect, you can’t see him staying Stateside much longer. Europe awaits for this prodigious youngster, who has left defenders backpedalling all season with his frightening pace on the ball.

Alban Lafont

Available for: £28m

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Need to know: One of the best young goalkeepers in both real life and the virtual world of Football Manager 2019, Lafont has made over 100 senior appearances across two of Europe’s top leagues. He’s not even 20. We could be looking at Hugo Lloris’s heir apparent and, who knows, maybe another World Cup winner?

Luka Jovic

Available for: £30m (second season)

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Need to know: Jovic has already made most people sit up and take notice with an absurd five-goal performance against Fortuna Dusseldorf, but he’s so much more than one outstanding performance. His goals-per-minute ratio was, at one point, the greatest in Bundesliga history – even better than the legendary Gerd Muller.

Felix Uduokhai

Available for: £30m

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Need to know: What is with German football and its ability to produce ready-made talent? Uduokhai, who is also eligible for Nigeria, is another on the long list of youngsters plying their trade to good effect in the Bundesliga. He’s that rare thing, too: a left-footed centre-back who you can trust on the ball.

Sergio Diaz

Available for: £30.5m (second season)

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Need to know: Diaz’s progress was curtailed last season by a serious knee injury. He’s now on loan at Brazilian club Corinthians until the end of 2019.

Odsonne Edouard

Available for: £31m

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Need to know: If endearing himself to the Celtic Park faithful after a late-season brace against Rangers wasn’t enough, Edouard also hit the ground running this season with seven goals in 10 SPL games and, crucially, five goals in nine European matches. He’s finally starting to hit his stride.

Gian-Luca Itter

Available for: £31m

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Need to know: Left-back Itter made his Bundesliga debut towards the end of last season, pocketing Bayern Munich’s Arjen Robben no less. While this year he has dropped back down to Wolfsburg’s B side, the future is certainly promising for a player who could soon find himself playing for Die Mannschaft.

Panagiotis Retsos

Available for: £31m

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Need to know: Having replaced Crystal Palace-bound Luka Milivojevic as Olympiakos captain at the tender age of 18, Retsos has seemingly been fast-tracked to the top. He joined Bayer Leverkusen and has been impressing for both club and country.

Kasper Dolberg

Available for: £33m

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Need to know: Dolberg didn’t get much of a chance to show what he can do at the World Cup but, where lesser players would have carried it with them into the next season, Dolberg has used it as motivation. The Danish striker – the latest in a long, long line of young Ajax talent – has continued scoring at a healthy rate for his club.

Kristoffer Ajer

Available for: £34m

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Need to know: Plucked from the Norwegian league for just over £500k, Ajer has been an integral part of Brendan Rodgers’ domestic success at Celtic, often instigating attacks by playing out from the back. He’s just as adept in midfield, too, should you need someone with both steel and style plugging a gap in the middle of the park.

Jacob Bruun Larsen

Available for: £34m

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Need to know: Bruun Larsen is still trying to pick up regular minutes at Borussia Dortmund thanks to other bright talents who also feature on this list, but they will come. He can already count a debut Champions League goal against Monaco among his exploits this season.

Unlimited • Under £35m • Under £20m • Under £7m • Under £3.5m

Under £20m

Pedrinho

Available for: £7.5m

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Need to know: It’s little wonder that Barcelona have reportedly been in talks with the diminutive winger, who couples samba flair with bags of natural ability. This is one South American well worth keeping an eye on – if you can keep up.

Lincoln

Available for: £9m

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Need to know: No goals as of yet for Flamengo striker Lincoln, but he’s already making strides in trying to fill the void left behind by Vinicius Junior. Time and patience is of the essence – he’s still only 17, after all.

Josha Vangnoman

Available for: £10m

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Need to know: A bit of a hidden gem in-game, Vagnoman is on the radars of a few big Premier League clubs despite only making a handful of appearances in his career. Then again, he is only 17 and plays with composure far beyond his age group.

Gavin Bazunu

Available for: £11m (second season)

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Need to know: Imagine being a goalkeeper in Ireland, winning player of the month and being snapped up by Manchester City months later. That’s what’s happened to Bazunu, but here’s the catch: he only turned 16 in February. The ex-Shamrock Rovers shot-stopper has clearly impressed someone high up at the Etihad, and the decision was made to sanction his £400,000 move.

Jamal Lewis

Available for: £13.25m

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Need to know: Virtually an ever-present at Carrow Road since his Norwich debut in December 2017, Lewis’s star continues to rise with a series of confident, assured performances. He’s also picked up an EFL Young Player of the Month award for his troubles and has been a bright spark for the Norfolk club.

Matheus Fernandes

Available for: £14.25m

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Need to know: Touted as the next Gilberto Silva in-game, Matheus can do so much more than destroy. Deploying a style honed on the streets of Itaborai, just outside of Rio de Janeiro, the midfielder can turn games in an instant thanks to his exceptional close control.

Chris Mepham

Available for: £14.5m

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Need to know: Already earmarked for a Premier League future with the likes of Bournemouth and Leicester waiting in the wings, it’s been a rapid rise for the tough-tackling centre-half who languished in Sunday League during his teenage years. Now, he’s very much part of the furniture at Brentford and looking to continue impressing one and all in the Championship.

Patrick Cutrone

Available for: £15m

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Need to know: How Cutrone’s heart must have sunk after witnessing the Rossoneri snap up Gonzalo Higuain in the summer. If it did, though, he’s showing no ill effects now, continuing where he left off by offering razor-sharp instincts and movement in and around the box.

Dael Fry

Available for: £15m

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Need to know: Local lad Fry has thrived since Tony Pulis arrived on Teesside, and it’s hard not to see him emulating Jonathan Woodgate’s career path in later years thanks to his tenacity in defence and ability to bring the ball forward when needed.

Salih Ozcan

Available for: £15m

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Need to know: Another wonderkid cruelly robbed of a chance to shine in the top tier after his club’s relegation, Ozcan is eager to pull Cologne back up to the Bundesliga. With the Germany youth international in tow, you wouldn’t bet against them returning very soon.

Fabio Silva

Available for: £18.25m

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Need to know: One of the youngest players in the game, the freshly-turned-16-year-old is already turning heads – Sporting’s scouting director Manuel Fernandes has already compared him to a certain Cristiano Ronaldo. No pressure.

Ferran Torres

Available for: £19.5m

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Need to know: Torres may have been at Valencia since the age of six, but it’d be hard to see him sticking around at the Mestalla if he continues his ascent. Combining Spanish passing flair with an ability to bamboozle defenders with his skill on the ball, Torres – though awkward in style – is comfortably embracing the spotlight.

Josh Tymon

Available for: £19.5m

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Need to know: After his Stoke signing was announced via the worst Twitter reveal video of all time (seriously, Google it), Tymon has yet to really kick on in his senior career but has all the makings of a future Premier League left-back should he get a chance in a competition other than the Johnstone’s Paint Trophy. Well, according to FM anyway.

Unlimited • Under £35m • Under £20m • Under £7m • Under £3.5m

Under £7m

Javi Ontiveros

Available for: £4.9m (release clause)

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Need to know: His parent club was relegated while away on loan, but that hasn’t stopped Ontiveros from impressing in the Segunda Division with a wide array of flicks, shimmies and feints. La Liga has even posted a video of him to its YouTube channel under the banner ‘Young Talents’. High praise, indeed.

Matheus Henrique

Available for: £5m

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Need to know: After Arthur’s move to Barcelona, Gremio were desperately scrambling for a replacement. Step forward, Matheus Henrique. Having recently signed a contract extension until 2022, the youngster will be hoping his tough tackling will take him as far as the man he’s trying to emulate.

Lee Kangin

Available for: £5m

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Need to know: Kangin may have made his name in South Korea via a reality television show looking for the next big football talent, but he’s not letting the bright lights faze him. The outrageously gifted attacking midfielder has a wand of a left foot and is oh-so-close to breaking through at Valencia. A real snip if you can pick him up for just £5m.

Leo Santos

Available for: £6.75m

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Need to know: Real Madrid are keeping tabs on this South American starlet in real life. Showcasing defensive knowhow far beyond his years, Santos can also make use of either foot and turn defence into attack in the blink of an eye with his trademark raking passes.

Sandro Tonali

Available for: £6.8m

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Need to know: Don’t let Tonali’s half-season in Serie B fool you. The Andrea Pirlo comparisons for this long-haired Italian playmaker are obvious, but they’re warranted: his composure and poise on the ball are just as effortless. Chelsea and Juventus have been among the teams tracking the mercurial talent.

Unlimited • Under £35m • Under £20m • Under £7m • Under £3.5m

Under £3.5m

Ryan Gravenberch

Available for: £1.1m (Compensation)

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Need to know: Born in 2002 (!), Gravenberch has already managed to break a decades-old record this season by becoming the youngest Ajax player to play in the Eredivisie at just 16 years and 130 days. The man he beat? Clarence Seedorf. Some big boots to fill, then – but Ajax clearly have full faith in Gravenberch to do so from his central midfield role.

Pelayo Morilla

Available for: £1.6m (release clause)

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Need to know:Football Manager have Morilla down as an out-and-out attacking midfielder, but we think he’s a winger with an eye for goal. He proved it, too, by netting for Sporting Gijon in the Copa del Rey and almost scoring within minutes of coming on for his senior debut back in August with a mazy dribble and vicious snapshot. Manchester City apparently want him and, if that release clause is any indication, they could get a real bargain for Pep to mould.

Antonio Marin

Available for: £3.1m

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Need to know: It’s always a worrying sign when a 17-year-old already has a dubstep-filled YouTube montage to his name, but Marin might just be worth the hype. Equally proficient on either foot, the winger has been impressing against some of Europe’s best youth sides and it wouldn’t be surprising if he moved on from Dinamo Zagreb when the big boys come calling.

Joshua Zirkzee

Available for: £3.3m (compensation)

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Need to know: Pre-season tours can be nothing more than money-making exercises. Not so for Bayern Munich’s Josh Zirkzee, who showcased his natural finishing instinct with a well-timed run and finish to put PSG to the sword in a 3-1 win. Next stop, Bundesliga?