We may be in the midst of the hype around EA Sports FC, the reboot that drops next month, but the last ever FIFA still has plenty to give.

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As FIFA 23 is now on Xbox Game Pass and EA Play, a lot of you are probably getting stuck into Career Mode.

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Like in the previous entries, if you want to kick-start your career without completely emptying your wallet, you'll want to sign a few wonderkids. These are the cheap young players who are starting to show potential.

It's hard to know where to start in your search through the copious amount of young players out there, but fear not: We've sifted through the list and had a good look at the stats for you.

Keep reading to find out the best young players in FIFA 23, broken down into strikers, midfielders, defenders, goalies and best players overall. We'll also include a few hidden gems that are easy to miss!

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Be sure to check out the rest of our top tips for FIFA 23. We've scouted the best cheap players, best strikers, best defenders and you can see even more on our FIFA hub page!

Best young strikers in FIFA 23

Grabbing goals is always an, ahem, goal in FIFA games. These are the best young strikers or wingers in FIFA 23 that should sort you out in Career Mode or FUT for a long time:

  • Rodrygo - Overall 81, RW, age 21
  • Ansu Fati - Overall 79, LW, age 19
  • Dusan Vlahovic - Overall 84, ST, age 22
  • Rafael Leao - Overall 84, LW, age 23
  • Joao Felix - Overall 84, CF, age 22
  • Vinicius Jr - Overall 86, LW, age 22
  • Phil Foden - Overall 85, LW, age 22
  • Erling Haaland - Overall 88, ST, age 22
  • Youssoufa Moukoko - Overall 71, ST, age 17, (89 potential)

Best young midfielders in FIFA 23

Some young guns in midfield will add energy in the middle of the park and, hopefully, some good passing play for years in Career Mode. Here are the best young midfielders in FIFA 23:

  • Pedri - Overall 85, CM, age 20
  • Jude Bellingham - Overall 84, CM, age 19
  • Florian Wirtz - Overall 82, CAM, age 19
  • Bukayo Saka - Overall 82, RM, age 21
  • Jamal Musiala - Overall 81, CM, age 19
  • Enzo Fernandez - Overall 80, CM, age 21
  • Gavi - Overall 79, CM, age 18
  • Yeremy Pino - Overall 79, RM, age 19
  • Khephren Thuram - Overall 78, CDM, age 27 (85 potential)

Best young defenders in FIFA 23

The best young defenders in FIFA 23 will have you keeping goals out of your team for (digital) years to come, only getting better as time goes on. These are the best young defenders in the FIFA 23:

  • Goncalo Inacio - Overall 79, CB, age 21
  • Jeremie Frimpong - Overall 80, RB, age 21
  • William Saliba - Overall 80, CB, age 21
  • Jurrien Timber - Overall 80, CB, age 21
  • Nuno Mendes - Overall 80, LB, age 20
  • Nico Schlotterbeck - Overall 82, CB, age 22
  • Josko Gvardiol - Overall 81, CB, age 20
  • Alphonso Davies - Overall 84, LB, age 21
  • Castello Lukeba - Overall 76 (potential 86), CB, age 19

Best young goalkeepers in FIFA 23

In a Career Mode, it’s best to stick someone young between the sticks as it is the easiest position to maximise potential due to the player being picked in every match. Think what Leeds is doing with Illan Meslier in real life and you get the idea. Here are our picks for the best young goalkeepers in FIFA 23:

  • Gavin Bazunu - Overall 70, age 20
  • Gianluigi Donnarumma - Overall 88, potential OVR 92, age 23
  • Alban Lafont - Overall 80, age 23
  • Luis Maximiano - Overall 78, age 23
  • Diogo Costa - Overall 79, age 23
  • Giorgi Mamardashvili - Overall 77, age 22
  • Illan Meslier - Overall 77, age 22
  • Lucas Chevalier - Overall 67, potential OVR 83, age 20
  • Maarten Vandevoordt - Overall 71, potential OVR 83, age 20

Best young players in FIFA 23 overall

These are the best young players in FIFA 23 with the highest overall ratings aged 21 and under. Wonderkids who have already proved themselves among the very best that you’ll definitely want in your team. A warning: these players will prove very costly in Career Mode:

  • Pedri - Overall 85, CM, age 20
  • Jude Bellingham - Overall 84, CM, age 19
  • Florian Wirtz - Overall 82, CAM, age 19
  • Bukayo Saka - Overall 82, RM, age 21
  • Jamal Musiala - Overall 81, CM, age 19
  • Josko Gvardiol - Overall 81, CB, age 20

Best young players in FIFA 23 with highest potential: Hidden gems

You likely won’t have heard of these hidden gems but get them into your team if you’re playing as a lower division side in Career Mode and you can thank us later:

  • Guillaume Restes - Overall 58, GK, potential OVR 81, age 17
  • Darko Gyabi - Overall 57, CM, potential OVR 80, age 18
  • Ben Chrisene - Overall 58, LB, potential OVR 81, age 18
  • Ashley Phillips - Overall 59, CB, potential OVR 82, age 17
  • Alfie Devine - Overall 60, CAM, potential OVR 83, age 18
  • Fabio Chiarodia - Overall 60, CB, potential OVR 83, age 17
  • Christian Riquelme - Overall 60, LB, potential OVR 83, age 18
  • Laurin Ulrich - Overall 60, CM, potential OVR 83, age 17
  • Luke Harris - Overall 61, CAM, potential OVR 84, age 17
  • Kayky - Overall 66, potential OVR 86, age 19
  • Antonio Silva - Overall 69, CB, potential OVR 87, age 19

There you have it. All of the best young players in FIFA 23. Sign any of these lot up and you’re sure to have a team of world-beaters in Career Mode after a couple of seasons. Now get out there and get signing.

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