The best wonderkids to sign in Football Manager 26
At SCOUTED, we’ve compiled a list of players that can be defined as some of the best wonderkids in FM26
With Football Manager 2025 cancelled, we've had to wait a long time for the latest iteration. But Football Manager 26 is finally here and now it's time to start signing wonderkids.
There is no better feeling than scouting, signing and developing a wonderkid on Football Manager. To help you get started, we’ve compiled a list of our favourite young players to sign on FM26. A few of the will be familiar names, others will be players you’ve never heard of.
They’re not necessarily the best; they’re players that we like in real-life that look good in FM26. If you just want the list, here you go - here are the players we’re recommending you to scout and sign on your saves this year.
The best Wonderkids to sign in FM26
Here's some of the best out-and-out wonderkids that you should be trying to sign on your FM26 saves:
- Ayyoub Bouaddi
- Kenan Yıldız
- Samu Aghehowa
- Said El Mala
- Gilberto Mora
Of course, SCOUTED is all about detail. The team's put together some short profiles for those of you itching for more detail. Read on, my friends.
Ayyoub Bouaddi
Position: CM, DM
Club: LOSC Lille (FRA)
Nation: France
Transfer Value: €35-100 million
Ayyoub Bouaddi will probably be the most popular player on Football Manager 2026.
The LOSC Lille midfielder is one of the very best emerging talents in real life, and the same goes for this year’s edition of FM. His profile is one of a high floor and an even higher ceiling: he is more than good enough to star in a Big Five League midfield already, but he has the top-end potential to become one of the absolute best players in the game. Think De Bruyne, Bellingham, Pedri, perhaps even higher.
What will drive his popularity in FM26 is his relative affordability. Players of Bouaddi’s ability and potential are often restricted to a select few clubs, but the 18-year-old is just about cheap enough for broader set of sides to sign. But you’ll have to move quickly to get ahead of the Real Madrids and Manchester Citys.
Llew Davies
Kenan Yıldız
Position: LW, AM, ST
Club: Juventus (ITA)
Nation: Türkiye
Transfer Value: €58-170 million
Put simply, Kenan Yıldız is one of the very best under-21 players on FM26. He’s not far off being one of the best players on FM26, full stop.
The 20-year-old is a multi-threat attacker of the highest order: natural playing off the left and through the middle, Yıldız has a skillset that can threaten teams in a range of different ways. He has outstanding ratings for Dribbling, Passing and Finishing, complete with the mental attributes and physical ability to make the most of them. Play him off the left to score goals; through the middle to needle through blocks; between both to do everything. He’s a top-level difference-maker already, with the potential to get better.
Yıldız is a premium talent that will only come at a premium price for the premium clubs. If you can get him for anything less than €50 million, then something unusual has happened.
Samu Aghehowa
Position: ST
Club: FC Porto (POR)
Nation: Spain
Transfer Value: €50-130 million
Samu Aghehowa probably doesn’t get the plaudits he deserves. At 21 years old, he has scored almost 70 goals in a little over 130 senior appearances. His first season at Porto was a stonker, bagging 27 in 45. Those are the numbers of a high-level centre-forward.
If we had to compare Samu to anyone, it would be Victor Osimhen. Like the big Nigerian, Samu is someone who can dominate the penalty area and dunk on defenders. He hangs around the goal, attacking crosses and sniffing out loose balls between the posts. He causes chaos by powering into channels, battling with defenders and buffeting in the box. He’s the type of centre-forward that can lead a line by himself, providing an invaluable outlet and target for his teams.
The big Portuguese clubs always sell their best for premium fees, and it will take a lot of money to get Samu out of Porto. He will be reserved to the Premier League and the biggest clubs across the rest of the Big Five Leagues. If you want the next Osimhen, get Samu Aghehowa.
Luka Vuskovic
Position: CB
Club: HSV, on loan from Tottenham Hotspur
Nation: Croatia
Transfer Value: €11-35 million
Heads were turned when Spurs spent upwards of €10 million on a 16-year-old Luka Vuskovic, who couldn’t officially join the club for two years – but they did so for good reason. Because he’s really good.
Everything the now-18-year-old centre-back has done in senior football since is testament, as is his FM26 profile. The Croatian is a bastion of bravery, aggression, power and strength, with outstanding attributes in each, and a well-rounded technical skillset that is of a solid level already and has the potential to develop exponentially. Everything is in place for Vušković to become one of the leading centre-backs in world football.
He starts the save on loan at Hamburg from Spurs, and you’ll have to bank on his parent club not giving him the pathway he deserves in order to sign him. You’re set for the present and future if you get your hands on him.
Givairo Read
Position: RB, RWB
Club: Feyenoord Rotterdam (NED)
Nation: Netherlands
Transfer Value: €13.5-40 million
Flexibility is a key feature of modern football. You need players who can adapt to different roles and pose different problems. That’s where a full-back like Givairo Read comes in.
Straight off the bat, his versatility is an eye-catching trait. He can play to differing levels in no less than nine positions in FM26, but is best when lined up at right-back or right wing-back. From there, he has the qualities to mix up his game: he can bomb down the wing, tuck inside, underlap, overlap, hold his positions, the lot. His proficiency in multiple aspects as a technician and athlete is a significant advantage for teams that mix up their approach.
Read is one of the premium young full-backs on FM26, and that premium will be attached to the price it takes to sign him from Feyenoord. But, if you manage him properly, the fee could look like a snip in the long run.
Said El Mala
Position: LW, RW, ST
Club: 1. FC Köln (GER)
Nation: Germany
Transfer Value: €11-30 million
As dribblers go, Said El Mala is one of the most exciting to watch. He’s fast and powerful, sleek and jinky. He beats players then drives into space, angling toward the box, causing all sorts of damage.
His FM26 profile is as explosive as his rapid rise to the Bundesliga. After beginning his career in the 3. Liga with Viktoria Köln, El Mala made a cross-city move to 1. FC Köln last summer and has made an immediate impression in top-flight football. His dribbling has been a difference, and it’s underlined in his FM26 profile with a rating of 17. He has room to refine other aspects of his game, but his ability to beat players and drive into space moves the needle already.
Already valued at over €10 million at the start of your saves, you’re probably best off moving for El Mala as soon as you can – unless you can afford the premium it will cost to let him develop at Köln.
Llew Davies
Nathan De Cat
Position: DM, CM
Club: RSC Anderlecht
Nation: Belgium
Transfer Value: €10-35 million
We are big fans of Nathan De Cat at SCOUTED.
The 17-year-old is well ahead of the typical development curve having already played a full season of senior football in the Belgian second division and now establishing himself as a regular for the Anderlecht first team. Even at his tender age, he stands out on the pitch for his size first and foremost – tall and lanky, with a distinctive gait. He pairs that physical profile with quality passing, wrapping the ball through lines and pinging big switches across the pitch, and a tenacious edge in defensive battles. It’s rare that you get such a mix of profiles, and that makes De Cat a very exciting prospect for an elite-level future.
The Belgian is valued at €10 million at the start of your saves, which is a significant amount of money, granted, but a snip when you consider the bigger picture. De Cat has the potential to become a premium midfielder in the Football Manager world. Get in early and reap the rewards.
Llew Davies
Honest Ahanor
Position: LB, LWB
Club: Atalanta BC (ITA)
Nation: Italy/Nigeria
Transfer Value: €9-27 million
If you’re looking for an up-and-down full-back, look no further than Honest Ahanor.
This is a 17-year-old that is already an elite-level athlete on FM26: he has acceleration and speed, balance and agility and strength and power in abundance, making him capable of playing in the best leagues from the off. His mental attributes definitely need work – understandably so for a teenager fresh to the senior game – but his technical skillset offers a dynamic package, particularly as a dribbler who can cross.
Atalanta paid a hefty fee to get him from Genoa, and you’ll likely have to pay another hefty fee to get him from Atalanta. His ability and potential would make any investment worthwhile. Ahanor is one of the outstanding full-back talents around.
Jérémy Jacquet
Position: CB
Club: Stade Rennais (FRA)
Nation: France
Transfer Value: €8-25 million
Name a better partnership than France and highly-talented young centre-backs. You can’t, it’s impossible, and Jérémy Jacquet at Stade Rennais further proves it.
The 19-year-old is the next big centre-back talent to come out of French football. He ticks the boxes of what’s needed to play in the role at the highest level nowadays: firstly, he is athletic, with a rangey physique that combines speed and agility; secondly, he has the defensive fundamentals to clamp strikers and overwhelm attackers; thirdly, his ability on the ball is of a sound standard already with room to grow. All three are reflected in his FM26 profile, which ranks him among some of the best in his position.
Jacauet is one to target early – if you’re managing clubs like Bournemouth or Sunderland – before the big boys like Paris Saint-Germain, Liverpool and Real Madrid come calling. His ability could be the cornerstone to your club’s exciting future.
Gilberto Mora
Position: AM
Club: Club Tijuana (MEX)
Nation: Mexico
Transfer Value: €2-8 million
We could easily have included Gilberto Mora in our Best Bargains page, but he’s too good to leave off this list.
Already a regular starter for Club Tijuana and Mexico, Mora is an outstanding emerging talent in the creative phase of the game. He is a technician of a high standard already, with eye-catching attributes for Dribbling, Passing, Technique, Vision and Flair. He’s the type of player you want on the ball as much as possible, in the final third, needling and combining and facilitating and creating. His diminutive size and nippy agility affords him a great ability to escape tight spaces too, and there is scope to develop him in a deeper role as he ages.
As mentioned in the opening paragraph, his affordability is remarkable – so much so, Mora will likely push Bouaddi for the esteemed title of FM26’s most popular player. If you can get him for something like €5 million, you’re laughing. It’s all reward and zero risk.
Lucca Brughmans
Position: GK
Club: KRC Genk (BEL)
Nation: Italy/Nigeria
Transfer Value: €2-9 million
Belgium have a strong history of bringing through good goalkeepers, and Lucca Brughmans is the next one up.
The teenage ‘keeper has been a standout at junior level for club and country over recent seasons, not least for his eye-catching frame: the 17-year-old is stood at 2 metres tall already, equipped with a spindly frame, gangly arms and extremely long legs – he fits the bill between the sticks. His base profile in FM26 is a promising one. Brughmans is already well-rounded across the board and has the potential to develop into one of the world’s best on your save.
If you move early, you can probably get him for something like €8 million – a fee which allows some flexibility in loaning him around to further his development before slotting him into your side.
Bosh. There are the best SCOUTED-approved wonderkids to sign Football Manager 26. If you want more options, check out the players that featured on our FM24 list:
- Valentín Barco
- Rooney Bardghji
- Ousmane Diomandé
- Lucas Gourna-Douath
- Karim Konaté
- Eli Junior Kroupi
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That's 150 wonderkids all born in 2003 or later you could start scouting on FM26. Better get started.
What are Football Manager 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 Lamine Yamal 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 on FM26?
You should start by reading SCOUTED. We have countless profiles – both extensive and brief – one some of the best emerging talents from across world football.
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 wonderkids on FM26?
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 on FM26?
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.
How do you sign young players on FM26?
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.
How do you sell young players on FM26?
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 to generate even more profits and reinvest in the squad or club.
