Football Manager 23’s arrival means that once again, I’m allowed to get excited about building a team full of wonderkids and shipments of South American talent.
Any manager worth their salt knows that this is a serious matter, and I treat it as such.
It feels like youngsters are bursting onto the scene a lot more frequently each year, which in turn means more wonderkids on FM.
As expected, there are a lot of wonderkids in FM23 from the start. It’s not just the well-known names too, and you’ll see when you go through this guide that you can pick up a good number of them for cheap if you move quickly.
This is an in-depth guide to the best wonderkids in Football Manager 2023.
I’ve pulled out 20 of the best wonderkids in FM23 to highlight, but there’s a full Football Manager 2023 wonderkid list below. Let’s get into it!
FM23 Best Wonderkids
One thing that I noticed almost immediately when scouring the game for these wonderkids is that the goalkeeper department is far behind the other positions.
It was really hard to find a goalkeeper that immediately struck me as a world-class talent, and my scouts at Liverpool seemed to agree. However, there are a couple of options that can develop nicely under the right guidance.
The bulk of the talent in FM23 is found in the attacking positions, but there are a handful of potentially world-class options in midfield and defense as well. Basically, a similar pattern to what we’ve gotten used to.
Let’s start off with a player I’d never heard about until I opened FM23 for the first time.
Endrick
- Age: 15
- Position: ST (C) / AM (R)
- Club: SEP U-20s (Brazilian U-20 Championship)
- Estimated Value: £11.5M – £14M
Nothing gets me going more than a Samba attacker when it comes to wonderkids in Football Manager, and Endrick looks so good it’s almost unreal.
No, really, I had to look this guy up to make sure that he is an actual player that exists in real life, and apparently, he is considered to be one of the best Brazilian football prospects. Well, sign him up!
Forget the hype, this guy looks like the real deal based on his stats alone. At 15 years old, his finishing is as good as you’ll see from many fully developed players in the best leagues in the world.
He has solid physical stats too, and just imagine what those mental attributes will look like a few years down the line. Spoiler – I see lots of greens!
His estimated value at the start is not cheap for a player of his age, but you won’t find better talent in that position at that age anywhere else.
Goncalo Inacio
- Age: 20
- Position: DC
- Club: Sporting CP
- Estimated Value: £21M – £25M
Now this one, I was already familiar with. Inacio already has quite a bit of first-team experience with Sporting, so it is only natural that he’s considered to be a wonderkid in FM23.
At 20 years of age, this guy has no physical weakness. In fact, he doesn’t seem to have any glaring weakness relevant to his position at all.
His marking, tackling, jumping, and heading numbers are already pretty good, so he has the basics locked down, and you can only expect further improvement once you get his training schedules sorted out.
14 vision and 14 passing are strong numbers for a developing ball-playing center-back, and I have no doubt that Inacio could grow to be one of the very best in that role in FM23.
Antonio Silva
- Age: 18
- Position: DC
- Club: Benfica
- Estimated Value: £22M – £27M
Antonio Silva is almost a copy of Goncalo Ignacio, but he has the advantage of being even younger than his fellow Portuguese center-back. He costs about the same too, so it’s a toss-up between the two really.
If you’re managing Portugal in FM23, you’re sorted in that position for many years to come!
Ridiculously composed for his age, you can expect Silva to ooze calm and class on the ball, which is what you want from a ball-playing center-back at the top level.
He’s got all the basics of defending locked down too, and with your guidance, can become one of the very best defenders in the game.
Youssoufa Moukoko
- Age: 17
- Position: ST(C)
- Club: Borussia Dortmund
- Estimated Value: £25M – £30M
Look at the stats first, and then look at the age. Mental.
Youssoufa Moukoko should not be new to you if you played FM22. He was one of the best young players then, and he remains one of the best wonderkids in FM23.
This guy can conveniently start for many teams in Europe’s top five leagues and not look out of place, and there is a lot of room to grow too – it’s frightening!
The impact of Erling Haaland’s departure has been somewhat mitigated by the arrival of another FM23 wonderkid, Karim Adeyemi, so Dortmund should not put up too much of a fight if you go for Moukoko.
£30M is a lot of money to shell out for a 17-year-old player, but if you can afford it, Moukoko can make sure that you don’t have to worry about that striker position for many years to come.
Moisés Caicedo
- Age: 20
- Position: DM, M(C)
- Club: Brighton
- Estimated Value: £35M – £53M
Speaking of FM23 wonderkids that can go straight into many first teams, it only gets better from here onwards.
Caicedo already has a few league appearances for Brighton under his belt, and he even scored his first league goal in his debut season. On FM23, he can bring a useful combination of youthful energy and vibrance to the center of the park.
His physical attributes are already excellent, and he’s good on the ball too. He’s a tough tackler that can also pick out a pass, which is a mix that you don’t find very often.
Caicedo’s blend of skills makes him useful in several roles in defensive and central midfield – he’s a true utility midfielder.
Nuno Mendes
- Age: 20
- Position: D/WB(L)
- Club: PSG
- Estimated Value: £64M – £94M
I’m not going to spend too much time on this one, partly because he’s a well-known name and partly because he just doesn’t excite me that much for some reason.
As far as full-backs go, you can’t do much better than Nuno Mendes. He’s sort of a B-tec Alphonso Davies in FM, even though that guy is still a young player himself.
He’s quick, and he can whip a cross in. Work on his defensive stats (such as marking and positioning) and you’ll have a gem on your hands.
Tino Livramento
- Age: 19
- Position: D(R) / WB(R)
- Club: Southampton
- Estimated Value: £56M – £67M
Take everything I said about Nuno Mendes, and apply it to Livramento. They have similar stats in the key areas, with the key difference being that Livramento plays on the right instead of the left.
He’s also a few months younger than Mendes, not that it means much.
Also, like Mendes, you will have to shell out a lot of money if you hope to get Tino – not as much, but a lot regardless.
Personally, I’d rather invest that money in other positions at the start of the game and wait to see if he becomes cheaper with time. However, it might be a good deal straightaway if right-back is the only position you need reinforcements in.
Ansu Fati
- Age: 19
- Position: AM(RLC), ST(C)
- Club: Barcelona
- Estimated Value: £36M – £53M
Make no mistake, Ansu Fati is more than just an FM23 wonderkid – he’s a full-blown first-team player for almost any club in the game.
Fati is a very versatile player, evidenced by the fact that he has three natural positions in attack. His player traits of moving into channels and placing shots are useful in any of those three positions, and he certainly has the stats to use those traits to maximum effect too.
A few years of improvement should see even more greens in his stats than there are from the start, and if you can improve his passing to a really good level, you’ll have a versatile attacker with no obvious weaknesses.
In my books, £50M is a bargain for this one.
Benjamin Sesko
- Age: 19
- Position: ST(C)
- Club: FC RB Salzburg (joining RB Leipzig)
- Estimated Value: £16M – £24M
Sesko is one of the most-hyped young players of 2022, and his FM23 stats reflect that hype.
Unfortunately, he has agreed to a transfer to Salzburg’s affiliate club, RB Leipzig, so you can’t get him from the start. However, keep an eye on his growth and an opportunity to sign him from Leipzig might open up sooner than you think.
Sesko is a tall, quick striker, which is a great combination. He can finish all sorts of chances in the air or on the ground, and that versatility gives you the flexibility to experiment with the way your team creates chances.
He’s not the greatest at linking up play, and he doesn’t like to use his weaker foot. However, he’s only 19, so there’s plenty of time for you to help him make progress in those areas.
Yeremy Pino
- Age: 19
- Position: AM(RL) / AM(C), ST(C)
- Club: Villarreal
- Estimated Value: £69M
Yeremy Pino is another one of these FM23 wonderkids that’s just not for me. I like my wingers to be fantastic athletes or fantastic playmakers, and he doesn’t really fit into either one of those descriptions.
However, he is very highly rated by the scouts, and I’m not blind to the fact that his overall stats are actually pretty good for his age.
Pino has a release clause of £69M at the start of the game. There’s no guarantee that the number will remain the same after a full season, so you might want to move quickly if you can afford to.
That off-the-ball stat will be your biggest worry. But, again, there is time to improve.
Giorgio Scalvini
- Age: 18
- Position: D(C) / DM
- Club: Atalanta
- Estimated Value: £13M – £16M
Atalanta has real talent on its hands in 18-year-old Italian center-back, Giorgio Scalvini.
Unlike the likes of Inacio and Antonio Silva, Scalvini doesn’t seem built to be a ball-playing center-back. However, he has all the key areas covered when it comes to defending.
His physical stats are great overall, and there is no real weakness in his game. He can also play as a defensive midfielder, although it is not his natural position.
At £16M max, this is one of the cheapest deals I’ve discussed so far, and that might be enough to help you make your decision.
Florian Wirtz
- Age: 19
- Position: AM(C) / M(C)
- Club: Bayer 04
- Estimated Value: £67M – £97M
When you get an A- scout report on a player that will remain injured for months in Football Manager, it’s a sign that there’s a serious player in there.
In my experience, FM scouts are wary of giving top marks to players with long-term injuries, and the fact that it did not affect Florian Wirtz’ report too much is a testament to how good he is in FM23.
However, considering the fact that he’s priced at close to £100M and he probably won’t pass a medical anyway, this is one of those signings that you’re better off waiting for.
In terms of strengths, Wirtz appears to be a traditional playmaker that does his best work in the hole just behind the striker/s, although he can do a job in central midfield too. In my opinion, if you don’t play with an attacking midfielder, this signing might not be worth consideration.
Assan Ouédraogo
- Age: 16
- Position: M/AM(C) / AM(R)
- Club: Schalke 04
- Estimated Value: £1.4M – £3M
Take a second to register the name, minimize this page, open up Football Manager 23, sign him, and then come back to read the rest. I’ll wait.
Seriously though, imagine our shock when this guy popped up as a wonderkid in FM23. The picture attached is two years into the game, so he actually starts out as a 16-year-old that’s easy to miss in scout reports.
At 18, he has no significant weaknesses and many strengths. I can’t think of many players in my time playing Football Manager that were this good at that age – bar overpowered regens.
Assan can fill in many roles in that central midfield position, and I’ll highly recommend playing him there – don’t waste him on the right flank. At £3M (when he’s still 16), it’s the most ridiculous bargain you’ll find.
Gavi
- Age: 17
- Position: M(C) / DM, AM(C)
- Club: Barcelona
- Estimated Value: £50M – £59M
The central midfield is certainly blessed with a lot of talent in FM23, and Barcelona’s Gavi is another one of them.
He’s already a wonderkid at 17, and he’s first-team material for many clubs from the start. If you’re doing an FM23 challenge save idea that involves winning trophies with kids, signing Gavi is a cheat way to inject some real quality into your XI.
He’s a playmaker that can fill in at DM or AM when required, and you can really maximize his talent if you have players around him that can handle the defensive side of things better.
Those mental attributes? Sick.
Harvey Elliot
- Age: 19
- Position: M(C), AM(R) / AM(LC)
- Club: Liverpool
- Estimated Value: £37M – £46M
As a Liverpool fan, my first save in every FM game since 2008 has been with the club. The first thing I did when I opened up the squad page in FM23 was to bring Harvey Elliot up from the U23s into the first team.
He’s one of the most exciting English talents around and rightly so, judging by the number of greens on that profile page.
He’s already a pretty good playmaker, and you can even get good use from him in the right-wing position with the right player instructions.
In my case, I would use him as an inverted winger with support duties and player instructions that compel him to look to create chances more often than trying to get on the end of them.
Bukayo Saka
- Age: 20
- Position: AM(RL)
- Club: Arsenal
- Estimated Value: Not for Sale
I have to say, I was a bit surprised by Saka’s technical stats in FM23, but those mental stats make up for it to a large extent.
In my experience playing Football Manager, I have found that in many cases, you can get away with using a player with not-so-good technical attributes but great mental attributes, but you can’t get away with using a player with poor mental attributes.
Saka’s technical attributes are not even bad, but they could definitely use some improvement.
He’s only 20 though, so there’s time for that. However, your biggest worry will be Arsenal’s complete lack of interest in selling him for any fee – keep an eye on him though!
Jude Bellingham
- Age: 19
- Position: M(C) / DM
- Club: Borussia Dortmund
- Estimated Value: £85M
You’ll have to forgive me. I didn’t get a screenshot of his estimated value before I brought him in to Liverpool. However, I signed him for the lowest value shown at the time – £85M.
Many FM players will be familiar with Jude already, so there’s no real surprise here. His mental stats are…mental, his physical stats are great, and his technical stats are really good.
He is the true definition of an all-action midfielder. He can defend just as well as he can attack, and he has really good stamina to help with those lung-bursting runs across the length of the pitch.
One of the new features in FM23 is the inclusion of more nuanced defensive tactics such as “high-pressure” or “safety-first” approaches, and I imagine that Jude would shine in the former.
His strength score is a bit lower than it should be in my opinion but as far as FM23 wonderkids go, there are few better than him. It’s not very often that £85M is a bargain, but this is one of those occasions.
Jamal Musiala
- Age: 19
- Position: AM(LC) / M(C), AM(R)
- Club: FC Bayern
- Estimated Value: £63M – £77M
Personally, I feel like I wouldn’t know what to do with Musiala if I signed him in FM23. It’s a similar situation to how I felt about Sancho a couple of years ago, even though both players clearly have very good stats.
Musiala’s got great technique to go with a decent amount of pace, and he’ll create a few chances from any position too.
I do think that the “Likes to beat man repeatedly” trait is something you should look to train him out of immediately as players that hog the ball tend to be frustrating on FM.
All the ingredients are clearly there.
Eduardo Camavinga
- Age: 19
- Position: DM, M(C)
- Club: Real Madrid
- Estimated Value: £56M – £68M
Compared to his mental and physical stats, Camavinga’s technical stats are a bit of an eye-sore. However, refer back to what I said about this in the bit about Bukayo Saka.
That said, his technical stats in the areas that pertain directly to his position and role in the XI are pretty solid, so there are no real worries there anyway.
Whether you’re playing him at DM or CM, I would use Camavinga as a ball-winner that just wins it back and recycles possession.
His mental and physical stats should grow naturally over time, and you can focus on improving the relevant technical bits more quickly on the training ground.
Pedri
- Age: 19
- Position: M/AM(C) / AM(RL)
- Club: Barcelona
- Estimated Value: £67M – £83M
Pedri is, in my opinion, the best wonderkid in FM23, considering current ability as a major factor as well as potential.
He’s already better than most midfielders in the game, and he’s only 19. Apart from his inability to impose himself physically, he has everything else.
Considering the fact that his primary duty should be a creative outlet, you can get other physically dominant players in the team to do the dirty work and allow Pedri to shine.
Despite his young age, I’m not sure if there’s a lot of room for Pedri to grow in FM23. It looks like he might be one of those players that peak early, but that won’t matter too much because he’s already so good.
Full FM23 Wonderkid List
Goalkeepers
| Name | Age | Estimated Value | Current Club |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gabriel Slonini | 18 | £14M – £21M | Chicago/Chelsea |
| Dennis Seimen | 16 | £5.4M – £8.2M | VfB Stuttgart |
| Nathaniel Nwosu | 16 | £8K – £85K | Water F.C. (Nigerian League) |
| Gavin Bazunu | 20 | £38M – £57M | Southampton |
| Elia Caprile | 20 | £325K – £3.1M | Bari |
| Faaris Yusufu | 17 | £95K – £950K | Schalke 04 |
Defenders
| Name | Age | Position(s) | Estimated Value | Current Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Morato | 20 | DC | £11.5M – £17M | Benfica |
| Nicola Zalewski | 20 | WB/M/AM (L) / D (L) | £20M – £29M | AS Roma |
| Joško Gvardiol | 20 | D (LC) | £72M – £84M | RB Leipzig |
| Tanguy Nianzou | 20 | DC / DM, M (C) | £28M – £34M | Sevilla |
| Kaiky | 18 | DC | £17M – £25M | Almeria |
| Alejandro Balde | 18 | D/WB (L) / M/AM (L) | £22M – £33M | Barcelona |
| André Amaro | 19 | DC | £14.5M – £21M | VTSC |
| Castello Lukeba | 19 | DC | £20M – £24M | OL (Lyon) |
| Luca Netz | 19 | D/WB (L) / M (L) | £26M – £38M | Borussia M’gladbach |
| Callum Doyle | 18 | D (C) / D (L) | £9M – £13.5M | Coventry/Man City |
| Amar Dedić | 19 | D (L) / D (R) | £15.5M – £18.5M | FC RB Salzburg |
| Leopold Querfeld | 18 | D (C) / DM | £11M – £13.5M | SK Rapid Vienna |
| Leandro Morgalla | 17 | D (C) / D (R) | £1.4M – £2.9M | TSV 1860 München |
| Diego Coppola | 18 | DC | £12M – £17.5M | Verona |
| Calvin Ramsay | 18 | D (R) / WB (R) | £5.6M – £8.4M | Liverpool |
| Tarek Buchmann | 17 | DC | £3M – £5.8M | FC Bayern |
Midfielders
| Name | Age | Position(s) | Estimated Value | Current Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kenneth Taylor | 20 | DM, MC / AM (C) | £33M – £38M | Ajax |
| Ryan Gravenberch | 20 | M/AM (C) / DM | £40M – £48M | FC Bayern |
| Nico | 20 | DM, M (C) | £20M – £25M | Valencia/Barcelona |
| Giovanni Reyna | 19 | M/AM (C) / M/AM (L) | £69M – £81M | Borussia Dortmund |
| Lucas Gourna-Douath | 18 | DM / M (C) | £18M – £22M | FC RB Salzburg |
| Hannibal | 19 | M (C) / AM (LC) | £17M – £21M | Birmingham/Man UFC |
| Charlie Patino | 18 | M (C) / DM | £8.4M – £12.5M | Blackpool/Arsenal |
| Yunus Musah | 19 | M (C) / M (R). AM (RC) | £17M – £20M | Valencia |
| Ilaix Moriba | 19 | M (C) / DM, AM (C) | £58M – £69M | Valencia |
| Fabio Miretti | 18 | M (C) | £27M – £40M | Juventus |
| Roméo Lavia | 18 | DM, M (C) | £30M – £45M | Southampton |
| Xavi Simons | 19 | M/AM (C) | £15M – £18.5M | PSV |
| Oscar Gloukh | 18 | M/AM (C) / ST (C) | £2.1M – £4.2M | Maccabi Tel-Aviv |
| Andrey Santos | 18 | MC / DM | £350k – £3.4M | VDG |
| Matheus França | 18 | M/AM (C) / ST (C) | £8M – £10M | FLA |
| Alex Scott | 18 | M (C), AM (RC) / WB (R) | £7.8M – £11.5M | Bristol City |
| Jamie Bynoe-Gittens | 17 | AM (L) / AM (R) | £15M – £23M | Borussia Dortmund |
| Tobias Gulliksen | 18 | M (C), AM (L) / M (L), AM (C) | £210K – £2.1M | Strømsgodset |
| Paul Wanner | 16 | M/AM (C) / AM (R) | £14.5M – £21M | FC Bayern |
| Arda Güler | 17 | AM (C) | £8.6M – £10.5M | Fenerbahçe |
| Wiliot Swedberg | 18 | M (C) / AM (RLC), ST (C) | £8.6M – £12.5M | Celta Vigo |
| Laurin Ulrich | 17 | M (C), AM (LC) / M (L), AM (R) | £250K – £2.5M | VfB Stuttgart |
| Warren Zaïre-Emery | 16 | DM, M (C) | £9.6M – £14.5M | PSG |
Forwards
| Name | Age | Position(s) | Estimated Value | Current Club |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nico Williams | 19 | M/AM (R) / M/AM (L) | £43M | A.Bilbao |
| Karim Adeyemi | 20 | ST (C) / AM (R) | £55M – £81M | Borussia Dortmund |
| Michael Olise | 20 | AM (R) / AM (C) | £39M – £58M | Crystal Palace |
| Armando Broja | 20 | ST (C) / AM (RL) | £112M – £132M | Chelsea |
| Noni Madueke | 20 | M/AM (R) / M (L), AM (LC) | £64M – £94M | PSV |
| Ander Barrenetxea | 20 | AM (RL) / M (RL) | £22M – £32M | Real San Sebastian |
| Ez Abde | 20 | AM (RL) / M (RL), ST (C) | £16.5M – £24M | Atletico Pamplona/Barcelona |
| Rasmus Højlund | 19 | ST (C) / AM (C) | £14.5M – £17.5M | Atalanta |
| Fabio Carvalho | 19 | AM (C) / AM (RL), ST (C) | £26M – £32M | Liverpool |
| Andreas Schjelderup | 18 | AM (L) / ST (C) | £6M – £7.6M | FC Nordsjælland |
| Adam Hlozek | 19 | AM (L), ST (C) / AM (R) | £12.5M – £19M | Bayer 04 |
| Wahid Faghir | 18 | ST (C) | £11.5M – £14M | FC Nordsjælland/VfB Stuttgart |
| Fábio Silva | 19 | ST (C) | £46M – £69M | RSC Anderlecht/Wolves |
| Maximilian Beier | 19 | ST (C) / AM (RL) | £6.2M – £7.6M | Hannover/Hoffenheim |
| Datro Fofana | 19 | AM (R), ST (C) / AM (L) | £200K – £5.8M | Molde |
| Vitor Roque | 17 | ST (C) / AM (RL) | £11.5M – £14M | ATP (Brazilian League) |
| Marcos Leonardo | 19 | ST (C) / AM (L) | £9M – £13.5M | SAN (Brazilian League) |
| Mathys Tel | 17 | AM (L), ST (C) / AM (R) | £22M – £33M | FC Bayern |
| Yaser Asprilla | 18 | AM (RLC) / ST (C) | £11M – £13.5M | Watford |
| Alberto Moleiro | 18 | AM (LC) / M (C) | £5.4M – £8.2M | Las Palmas |
Final Words
If you’re unable to sign the FM23 wonderkid that you want at the start of the game, it would be a good idea to add them to a shortlist and keep tabs on their progress.
That way, you’ll be the first to know if their value drops, or if there is any opportunity in the future (such as a transfer listing) that you can take advantage of to snatch them up.
If you’re not in a position to splurge on a wonderkid, then I recommend checking out the best cheap signings and free agents in Football Manager 23. Even if your club is rich, a good bargain can still be better suited to your team than a luxury signing.
