What are FIFA 23 wonderkids?

Wonderkid is a cliché term that's synonymous with Football Manager. They're young prospects – usually aged 16 to 18 – that have elite-level potential in the game. Freddy Adu is a prominent example for older managers, while Youssoufa Moukoko is a current case. They're the superstar youngsters that are must-buys on every save. But it's also subjective. A wonderkid at Accrington Stanley is completely different to a wonderkid at Manchester City. Essentially, the surroundings dictate the status.

How do you search for wonderkids in FIFA 23?

You should start by getting your hands on a Scouted Football Handbook. We've profiled over 300 young players over the last three years, ranging from the lower level, like Harry Pickering, to the absolute elite like Erling Braut Haaland. We will be your external scout, and scouts are equally important in the game. Building up a good core of talent-spotters and recruitment analysts should be a priority when building your club. No scouts on the search, no wonderkids.

How do you develop young players in FIFA 23?

As always, pathways are paramount. You have to make sure that your youngsters have access to meaningful minutes at the appropriate levels. If you have a first-team ready talent, phase him into the team gradually, during pre-season ideally. If your prospect needs a bit more polishing, the loan system is a valuable tool. But pathways to senior level minutes are key. Assess your youngsters on a case-by-case basis, decide what they need, and enact your decision.

How do you loan out young players in FIFA 23?

Loans are an important tool in youth development, and they can be difficult to get right. It's all about accurately assessing the levels your prospects can play at, then finding suitable environment for them to develop in. It's especially important you consider the styles and shapes teams play, and league style is a factor too. One way to ensure greater success is by building a network of clubs, like Red Bull and Manchester City have. Get your board to find affiliate clubs.

How do you sign young players on FIFA 23?

Squad planning is crucial. Check your depth charts, keep your shortlits updated, sort them by position even, and assess which areas you need to strengthen. Once you've done that, you can start signing young players that fit your demands. Work to your budgets as well – don't overstretch your club's financial capabilities. If you're a smaller club, future incentives and clauses (like fees after milestons, sell-on percentages, and even buy-backs) are a great tools to utilise.

How do you sell young players on FIFA 23?

Again, squad planning is key. Making sure your young players are playing, whether at your club or elsewhere, is important; more minutes increases their value. Sell at the right time too, set a defined policy and stick to it. Don't be afraid to sell young players too. If you haven't got the right pathway for them, move them on (with a chunky sell-on percentage or accessible buy-back clause) to generate even more profits.

Who are the best wonderkids in FIFA 23?

Alberto Moleiro (Las Palmas) is one of them; he has incredible potential and growth.

How do you find the best wonderkids in FIFA 2023?

The best way is by building a strong scouting team, then assigning them to search for players under the age of 21 with at least four star potential.

Which player should you buy in FIFA 23?

Alberto Moleiro is a bargain signing that you can sign from Spain's second division. He can grow from 75 to a 90 overall.

Football Manager 2024 Best Strikers

Some of our favourite strikers to sign in Football Manager 2024

Home - Best Young Players - FM24 Best Strikers

Youth football and Football Manager – name a better combo. Luckily for you, we’re experts in both. We’ve combined both to compile a list of the young strikers that you should try and sign on your Football Manager 2024 saves.

These aren’t exclusively the “best” but they’re intriguing prospects for clubs across the spectrum of football, available at a range of prices. They’re players that we like in real-life that look really good in FM24 too.

For more, check out our talent lists and player profiles. Scroll down to see our lists.

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We post multiple times a week over there, and deliver extensive SCOUTED50 player profiles, youth tournament round-ups, transfers podcasts, and much, much more, straight to your e-mail inbox. It’s the best youth football journalism anywhere on the internet.

Who are the best wonderkids in Football Manager 2024?

Here are the highest potential rated players in FC 24 Career Mode.

1. Erling Haaland – Manchester City – Age 22 – ST – 91 Overall/94 Potential

2. Vinicus Jr. – Real Madrid – Age 22 – LW – 89 Overall/94 Potential

3. Jamal Musiala – Bayern Munich – Age 20 – 86 Overall/93 Potential

4. Pedri – FC Barcelona – Age 20 – CM – 86 Overall/92 Potential

5. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia – SSC Napoli – Age 22 – LW/RW – 86 Overall/92 Potential

6. Florian Wirtz – Bayer Leverkusen – Age 20 – CAM/CM – 85 Overall/91 Potential

7. Jude Bellingham – Real Madrid – Age 20 – CAM/CM – 87 Overall/91 Potential

8. Rodrygo Goes – Real Madrid – Age 22 – RW/LW/ST – 85 Overall/91 Potential

9. Gavi – FC Barcelona – Age 18 – CM/LW – 83 Overall/90 Potential

10. Bukayo Saka – Arsenal – Age 21 – RW/RM – 86 Overall/90 Potential

11. Phil Foden – Manchester City – Age 23 – LW/RW – 85 Overall/90 Potential

12. Alex Balde – FC Barcelona – Age 19 – LB/RB – 81 Overall/89 Potential

13. Rasmus Hojlund – Manchester United – Age 20 – ST – 76 Overall/89 Potential

14. Gabri Veiga – Al-Ahli – Age 21 – CM/CAM – 78 Overall/89 Potential

15. Eduardo Camavinga – Real Madrid – Age 20 – CDM/CM/LB – 82 Overal 89 Potential

16. Enzo Fernandez – Chelsea FC- Age 22 – CM/CDM/CAM – 83 Overall/89 Potential

17. Xavi Simons – RB Leipzig – Age 20 – CAM/LW/RW – 80 Overall/89 Potential

18. William Saliba – Arsenal – Age 22 – CB – 83 Overall/89 Potential

19. Aurelien Tchouameni – Real Madrid – Age 23 – CDM/CM – 84 Overall/89 Potential

20. Sandro Tonali – Newcastle United – Age 23 – CDM/CM – 86 Overall/89 Potential

21. Matthijs de Ligt – Bayern Munich – Age 23 – CB – 86 Overall/89 Potential

22. Warren Zaire-Emery – Paris Saint-Germain – Age 17 – CM/CDM – 75 Overall/88 Potential

23. Antonio Silva – SL Benfica- Age 19 – CB – 78 Overall/88 Potential

24. Fabio Miretti – Juventus – Age 19 – CM/CAM – 75 Overall/88 Potential

25. Alejandro Garnacho – Manchester United – Age 19 – LW/LM – 75 Overall/88 Potential

26. Ansu Fati – Age 20 – Brighton – LW/ST – 78 Overall/88 Potential

Evan Ferguson

Brighton’s Evan Ferguson is quickly pushing himself into the upper echelons of the world’s best strikers as a 19-year-old. He’s still building, but you can’t deny the talent, especially after his early season hat-trick against Newcastle.

He won’t come cheap in FM24, but to sign the best, you often have to pay up. What you get in return is an 18-year-old (at the start of your save) with 15 finishing, 14 heading, 14 longshots, 16 pace and 15 acceleration. That’s a little bit outrageous.

Wilfried Gnonto

It’s hard to believe he’s still only 19 – Willy Gnonto has been amassing plenty of first-team minutes over a few seasons now. After a season in the Premier League and regular games for the Italian national team, the Football Manager boffins have given him plenty of love this season.

Just look at those physical attributes at 19: an outrageous blend of speed, strength and dexterity, and he has excellent dribbling, technique, first touch and finishing to match. If you need a young player to come in and play a role straight away, Gnonto is a superb option, and wrenching him out of Leeds United should be made easier by their relegation from the Premier League last season.

The best wonderkids to sign on Football Manager 2024

FM24 Wonderkids

The best bargain cheap players to buy in Football Manager 2024

FM24 Bargains

The best free agents to sign in Football Manager 2024

FM24 Free Agents

Marcos Leonardo

Marcos Leonardo might not be associated with the same hype as some of his compatriots plying their trade in Brazil right now, but he’s quickly putting together an excellent resume with Santos, accumulating over 100 appearances since his debut in 2020, including 12 goals in the Brasileirão so far this year.

The Santos striker has had that red-hot form recognised with 15 finishing, off the ball, composure and acceleration – a strong foundation for a goalscorer. He’ll be a pretty solid level striker for a top five league club with the potential to grow further, at a relatively affordable price.

Matheus Nascimento

If you’re looking for a cheaper, less ready-made version of Marcos Leonardo, then take a look at Matheus Nascimento. The Botafogo striker is a bit-part player at this stage of his career in Brazil.

His fundamentals are pretty strong for your standard advanced forward though, with his main deficiencies being on the physical side and heading. But at that price, if you have some spare funds he presents as an intriguing development prospect.

FM24 Wonderkids

FM24 Bargains

FM24 Free Agents

What roles can strikers play in Football Manager 2024?

There are so many roles for strikers in Football Manager form strikers, each one fulfilling different duties. The selection includes:

Target Forward
Advanced Forward
Complete Forward
Pressing Forward
Poacher
Deep-Lying Forward
Trequartista
False Nine

Let’s start with the Target Forward. This is your traditional number nine role, where your striker will look to use their physicality to be the focal point up front. They’ll look to stay high and open up spaces for team-mates to move into where they can receive flick-ons and knock-downs.

Next is the Advanced Forward. It’s the most popular on the game and can yield very high scoring volumes as they look to lead the line and stretch defences in behind to either score or get into good positions to assist others. They hit the channels too, on occasion, and need to be comfortable combining with others.

Then there’s the Complete Forward. Your striker needs to be a jack-of-all-trades that can combine physicality, technique and speed to involve themselves in every single aspect of your attack to play this one. Switching between Support and Attack duties will alter their aggressiveness in leading the line.

The role of the Pressing Forward is the epitome of defending from the front. Their aim is to close defenders down with their speed to restrict the amount of time they have to play out of their defence. It has three duties: on defend, they look to pass safely to their team-mates; on support, they look to take more risks as a creator; and on attack, they try to get into goalscoring positions more.

Next is the classic Poacher, which is a pretty self-explanatory role. They play on the last man and look to get onto passes in behind the defence, or look to get onto crosses with good positioning in the penalty area. They won’t look to hit channels or combine with team-mates, as they will focus purely on goal-scoring.

Then there are the more creative roles. First, there’s the Deep Lying Forward. This role will see your striker play more of a linking role, combining with the midfield or spreading it to your wide players. On support duty, they will focus mostly on their creative function, while on attack duty, they will look to create shots for themselves off the dribble.

Then there’s the Trequartista, which is a floating role in which your striker will look to find pockets of space to roam into and create in transition from between the opposition lines of midfield and defence. They are going to give almost no defensive output though, so you will need to have complimentary pieces around them.

And lastly, there’s the infamous False Nine. The premise of the role is about making centre-backs think: do I follow them into midfield, or do I let them go? The idea is that you can then either bolster your midfield with extra numbers if the defender lets your striker go, or disrupt the stability of the defensive line if they follow you, opening up spaces for other attackers and midfielders to exploit.

What attributes are important for strikers in Football Manager 2024?

There are a few core tenets of every striker’s skillset in Football Manager: finishing, first touch, anticipation, composure, decisions, and off the ball movement. The rest of their skills will need to be moulded to their role.

For a False Nine, attributes such as dribbling, passing, technique, flair, vision, agility, balance, teamwork and acceleration are crucial as they look to bolster numbers in midfield and dribble/pass the ball to others.

As a role that is similar, but situated a little higher up the field, the Deep Lying Forward trades the False Nine’s dribbling, acceleration and agility for strength in order to play more effectively with their back to goal.

A Trequartista requires all the same attributes as the False Nine, but given their lack of work defensively, the teamwork attribute is not required as part of their skillset.

The Pressing Forward requires the most unique set of attributes, with work rate, teamwork, concentration, bravery, aggression, acceleration, agility, balance, pace, stamina, and strength the key facets of their make-up as they look to defend from the front.

The attributes required for a Poacher are the most basic. Outside of the base attributes required, they will need good heading, technique, and acceleration. That’s it. They only need to finish chances, after all.

On the other end of the spectrum is the Complete Forward, who needs to have a good rating for just about everything: dribbling, heading, long shots, passing, technique, teamwork, vision, work rate, acceleration, agility, balance, jumping reach, pace, stamina, and strength. The physical aspect is particularly important, given how all-action the role is.

The Target Forward is also reliant on their physique: especially their height, balance, heading, strength and jumping reach, given the aerial nature of the role. Aggression, bravery, balance and teamwork are also important.

And lastly, there’s the Advanced Forward, who are reliant on their speed as a crucial aspect of their skillset. Therefore, acceleration, pace, and stamina are very important, as are agility, balance, work rate and then solid dribbling, passing and technique are required when they are in possession.