Football Manager 2018 wonderkids: Under £35m

Football Manager 2018 wonderkids

Achraf Hakimi

Available for: £20.5m (release clause)

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Need to know: Hakimi made it look he’d been playing right-back at Real Madrid for years when he started in los Blancos’ 1-1 draw with Tottenham at the Bernabeu in October. Confident going forward and equally as proficient in his own half, the young Moroccan has taken chances in Dani Carvajal’s heart problem-enforced absence and is definitely one to watch.  

Nahuel Leiva

Available for: £20.5m (release clause)

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Need to know: If you’re willing to wait until Leiva’s two-year loan deal at Real Betis expires, £20.5m will get you one of the top young attackers in La Liga. While Argentina-born, the Villarreal starlet has (for now) decided to represent Spain at youth level – despite his home country’s best efforts to the contrary.

Alessandro Plizzari

Available for: £21.5m

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Need to know: Poor Plizzari. If he was with any other team in Europe, his career path would look much more straightforward. Unfortunately for the Italian shot-stopper, he’s got the small matter of usurping Gianluigi Donnarumma – himself only 18. For now, though, he’s on loan at Ternana and willing to prove his worth in Serie B.

David Neres

Available for: £22m

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Need to know: Neres has only played in 24 senior games – for Sao Paulo and Ajax respectively – but has already scored 11 goals. The Brazilian is sublime on the ball, often cutting in from the right to good effect. He already has a Europa League final appearance to his name. The first of many, perhaps?

Kieran Tierney

Available for: £22m

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Need to know: Celtic fans had better make the most of him, because he surely won’t be in Glasgow for much longer. Tierney has already been touted as Britain’s best left-back at the age of 20 and, if you’re buying him on FM, you’re investing in a defender who can slot seamlessly into any defence in the game from day one. A must-buy.

Toni Lato

Available for: £22.5m

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Need to know: Having spent most of his formative years in Valencia’s B team, the left-back has snatched his chances for los Che after debuting in a Europa League win against Rapid Vienna last season. He’s even caught the eye of a certain Jurgen Klopp – apparently not discouraged from signing Spanish left-backs for the rest of his days.

Mateus Vital

Available for: £27.5m

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Need to know: Romario’s old stamping ground of Vasco de Gama is home to this prodigious talent. A tabloid headline writer’s dream, Vital has kicked off his fledgling career with a series of scintillating performances in Brazil.

Alban Lafont

Available for: £29.5m

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Need to know: Toulouse’s man between the sticks has played over 70 times for his club at the tender age of 18. Lafont is the youngest goalkeeper to ever play in France’s top division, and ended the 2016/17 season with 11 clean sheets to his name. Not too shabby.

Nicolo Barella

Available for: £30m

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Need to know: Another to add to the list of players who Liverpool have reportedly watched, Barella has fitted into Caligari's team seamlessly. While his disciplinary record – 10 yellow cards – shows a rough edge, his ability in the final third is much more refined.

Manuel Locatelli

Available for: £30m

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Need to know:Locatelli made the top 10 of our list counting down the world’s 100 best teenagers, having broken through impressively at Milan last season and caught the eye with a cracker against Juventus in Serie A. The central midfielder will be a player Italy now look to integrate after their failure to qualify for World Cup 2018.

Andrea Pinamonti

Available for: £32m

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Need to know: Inter Milan haven’t been doing well for a long time now – but Pinamonti could very well help change all that. With Nerazzurri manager Stefano Pioli talking him up, the lifelong Inter fan might well be able to realise his dreams of establishing himself as a viable long-term alternative to Mauro Icardi.

Cengiz Under

Available for: £32.5m

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Need to know: The Turkish winger reportedly saw a move to Tottenham break down last year, and – when he eventually joined a big European team in Roma – duly scored against Spurs in pre-season within a week of signing. Expect big things from a player who is seemingly just as quick on the ball as off it.

Jeff Reine-Adelaide

Available for: £33m

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Need to know: Considered one of the next big things off the Arsenal academy conveyor belt, Reine-Adelaide complements his wing wizardry with strength on the ball. Arsene Wenger thinks highly of him – and the Frenchman could be yours for £33m if you want to shine up this unpolished gem yourself.

Moise Kean

Available for: £33m

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Need to know: Having become the first 2000s-born player to feature in both the Champions League and one of Europe’s big four leagues, Italian forward Kean is a name to watch over coming years. Currently on loan at Hellas Verona, he can be yours for under £35m once he returns to Juventus. He’s worth it, too: just look at those physical stats.

Henry Onyekuru

Available for: £33m

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Need to know: Signed by Everton in the summer and immediately loaned to Anderlecht, Onyekuru has picked up where he left off in Belgium: bagging goals. The Nigerian had scored seven in 19 for the Belgian giants by the November international break, and will return to Goodison Park next summer determined to make an impact on Merseyside.

Donny van de Beek

Available for: £33m

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Need to know: It’s no wonder Ajax didn’t kick up that much of a fuss about letting Davy Klaassen join Everton in the summer. Van de Beek is more than capable of following in his former captain’s footsteps, as his performances from last season onwards have demonstrated – earning him a Netherlands call-up in August.

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

The 95 best Football Manager 2018 wonderkids… sorted by budget

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