GETTING THE BEST OUT OF 3 CENTRE-BACKS

    LAST UPDATE: 17/08

  • SCOUT REPORTS

    Kylian Mbappe

    Kylian Mbappé is considered to be the biggest French wonderkid since Thierry Henry. Great winger!

    Kuki

    Is Kuki one of the biggest wonderkids in Football Manager 2017? Check his profile and find out!

    Vinicius Junior

    Real Madrid are reported to have made a 45M bid for this young Brazilian. Is he worth the cash?
    VIEW ALL PLAYERS

  • FOOTBALL WHISPERS

  • GUIDES

    How to get the best out of 3 centre-backs

    The use of three centre backs has been a controversial move used by many managers in football leading their virtual counterparts to recreate their tactics on Football Manager. When looking at a teamsheet which has an extra defensive player it reads as a preventive choice however, if deployed right, it adds more attacking intent, allowing other players to have a higher attacking input. 
     
    Here are just a few ways to get the best out of playing three central defenders.
     
    COMBINATIONS

    Like every great centre back pairing the defenders must complement each other. At least one of the defenders must be adept in distributing the ball and at least one must be dominant in the air. A Ball-Playing Defender in a defensive trio a vital part in a team’s build up play as most of his team will be in more advanced positions, e.g. the wingbacks and attacking midfielders. A centre back with high Passing, Composure, Technique and Vision will allow your team to play out from defence with ease.
     
    One tactic I like to set is telling the goalkeeper to distribute the ball specifically to the Ball-Playing Defender this reduces the risk of the defenders giving away the ball cheaply in dangerous areas. Having the Ball-Playing Defender is the middle of the three opens more passing channels for the player, increasing the chance of your team keeping hold of the ball.

    My Favourite Examples are Sergi Gomez from Celta Vigo, Hector Moreno from PSV and Virgil Van Dijk from Southampton. All three players have great passing stats for defenders and when starting a new save these three tend to be on my shortlist. Whilst Van Dijk is very expensive he worth every penny I found, providing consistent 7.5 plus ratings. 
     
    DOMINATIING THE AIR
    Alongside the Ball-Playing Defender should be someone who dominates in the air, providing a presence in both boxes. This role must have high Jumping Reach, Heading, Strength and Bravery will offer both defensive and offensive prowess to your team. In the tight games where both teams are cancelling each other out, set pieces often prove to be the difference. At the end of the season goals scored or prevented by your dominant centre back could be the difference between taking the club to next tier and failing to meet objectives.

    Niklas Sule from Hoffenheim, Domagoj Vida from Dinamo Zagreb and, again, Virgil Van Dijk of Southampton are ideal candidates for this role. At the start of the save you can buy Vida for around 10 million, the only down side of this player is his ability to pick up a lot yellow and red cards. Van Dijk again makes the list as he is adept to playing either role as his stats are so well rounded and is a must of any team looking to dominate their domestic league.
     
    ROLES
    Every centre back has three specific roles within their playing style, Stopper, Defend and Cover. These control the defender’s positional play and how aggressive they are when closing the ball down. The way I decide which roles each defender takes on is based on the oppositions attack. If the opposing team lines up with a Target Man or someone who’s game relies on their aerial ability I tend to put my best defender in the air in the middle of the three and set his role to Stopper. This means the defender will push ahead of the defensive line and challenge the Target Man, typically Target Men lack pace therefore there is reduced risk of them turning and running past your defence.

    However, when the opposition line up with a quick forward who is a good dribbler switching the central defender to Cover is the best suited tactic to combat your opponents. The defender will sit a little deeper than the other centre backs allowing him to be in a better position to sweep up any balls put through or over the defence. The other counter to a fast striker is using the offside trap however this is a very risky tactic as to be effective all three centre backs must be on the same wavelength. I tend to void away from using the offside trap as I like to have control over what my players do and where they are positioned.
     
    CENTRE-BACK CONVERSION
     
    Football Manager allows the opportunity to retrain players in different positions and it is wise that you explore this avenue. When joining a team and wanting to play 3 at the back you may not have the strength in depth to field 3 centre backs every game. By retraining players as central defenders it increases the flexibility of your squad, creating new options and possibly saving you having to go out and spend in the transfer window. 

    The best example of this is retraining full-backs as centre-backs as they have the necessary defensive attributes and added speed to play as one of the outside centre backs. Antonio Conte’s use of Cesar Azpilicueta as the right sided centre back is a good example of a manager utilising a full backs defensive capability and speed in a different position. 

    Roma’s Danielle de Rossi is someone who has produced great performances as a central Ball-Playing Defender in my Roma save, surrounding him with fast centre backs either side making up for his declining pace. His tackling and passing stats make him a vital asset when recycling possession and building up from the back. I also found that retraining Matteo Darmain as a right sided centre back was a good move as he was not good enough to be playing at wingback and I needed cover in defence.
     
    CONTROL
    Playing three central defenders not only adds extra defensive stability it also allows attackers creative freedom. When deployed correctly and the players have been given time to learn the tactics it creates a fluid, yet stable shape to a team. I found in my saves that a Control mentality works best with 3 defenders as it means the team has the majority of possession reducing the amount of pressure the 3 defenders are under and allowing them to bring the ball out of defence. The central midfielders should drop deep every now and again and collect the ball from the defenders and then pass it on to the other centre back creating a triangle around the onrushing striker or strikers. 

    The use of a defensive trio should be one of your three main tactics as it can often act as a very good plan B when perhaps results aren’t going your way or players are getting restless about their playing time.
     
    This guide has been written by Tom
     
    FM17 ESSENTIALS
    How to create a basic tactic How to improve your tactics

    How To Properly Defend Corners

    Last year i wrote this exact article for Strikerless and I recently found out that this also works in Football Manager 2017. So i thought it would be wise to share this once more with the Football Manager community!
     
    THE SET UP
    Next to the attacking corner routines everybody needs a solid defensive corner routine as well. There are many ways to defend your opponents corner but i always try to give it a little extra. In this article i will show you my views on how to properly defend a corner and how you can turn your opponents corner into a counter attacking opportunity for your own team. This setup all depends on the quality of the players your team possesses. The idea is to convert a defensive corner routine into a counter attacking opportunity for your own team. To do so i have kept the setup rather simple as I’ve tried to eliminate all scoring options from my opponent.
     

     
    1st  option closing down the short corner: Due to the present of one of my (usually smaller) players I’ve taken away the option to use a short corner. The opponent will be immediately pressurized if they try to do so anyway and this will mainly end up for my team having ball possession very quickly. 2nd option is taking away scoring from the six yard box: I have placed one of my backs at the near post. I have left the far post undefended as most opponents don’t attack that area. The six yard box is defended by the three players that have the best attributes for heading as well as jumping reach. This way the opponent shouldn’t be able to score from close range. In the middle i have placed my tallest player so he can take out any ball that comes in that area. 3rd option is the marking of tall players: Three of my own defenders have been assigned to guard/annoy the opponents three tallest players. This way scoring from the penalty spot area should be very had or even impossible. 4th option is scoring from the edge of the area: By placing a technical and quick player, who can jump and head very well, at the edge of the box i give myself options to start a counter attack. Look at the picture below.
     
     
    We managed to get the ball away from our box and have quickly began our counter attack. Four or five man are rushing towards the enemy box in an attempt to score a goal. 5th option is keeping defenders occupied: One of my players (quick one) is staying near the halfway line. This means your opponent has to keep two or three defenders at the back. This way they have less players in your box which decreases the chances of getting a goal against.  
    CONSLUSION
    I hope you get the general idea of what i am talking about. Using this defensive corner routine has gave me quite a few goals already. It also made sure my opponent hardly ever scores against me and that is just what this is all about.
     
    DOWNLOAD LINKS:
    Defense left Defense right

    Tips when starting a new save

    A new article series here at FMInside.net, where we take a look around the football manager community and ask bloggers and writers we admire and respect to write something for the website. Today we kick-off this new series with one of the more well-known bloggers from the community: Mr. Keysi Rensie. A great article on what he does after he decides to start a new save on Football Manager. Enjoy the read!
     
    "You have selected two leagues from one nation with a small database. The game will start in June 2016."
     
    I think the very important thing is just before you click to "Start Game" because if you want to have a good save it's important to load the right database and right nations around the country you play in. For example, if I play in the Czech Republic I always load Slovakia, Poland, Germany and Austria. So all nations around the borders. 
     

     
    What about a database? I always make a custom setup and I load Players of the nationality of all nations I load. Why? If nothing more because of Youth Intakes and it's also very useful in terms of transfers out & in. You can add & remove leagues during the save of course. 
     

     
    We need to divide some tips because it's different if I start a new save with club I knew before and if I start a save with a club I didn't know before.  For my saves is very common I try to find most of the available information about the club to be closer to the club I selected. 
     
    The first way - if I know the club it's very easy as I know what I want to change in terms of staff, players and other. 
     
    The second way is opposite, that means I spent a lot of time analysing the First team, reserve and youth team. There is also room for analysis of staff, training regime, scouting network and etc. 
     
    I think about tactics in absolutely the same way as you can choose a team for your new save and you don't know the PROS & CONS of each player and you can decide to develop formation to suit your players. 
     
    TACTICS
    Like I said it depends if I know before what I want to play or if it's random choice and I develop tactic after I know all players. But since you are able to have up to 3 formations loaded in the game I always have some variations there.
     
    Example - I want to play 4-3-3 narrow as my main tactic so this one is in the first slot. The second slot is for 4-3-1-2 formation with similar instructions or little bit tweaked and the last slot is for 4-1-3-1-1 for example. But the most important for me is to have almost similar instructions, mentality and shape to be sure players will be familiar with it faster. 
     
    TRAINING
    My training regime is very easy. I always use Team Cohesion as general training and intensity level is average. Main match preparation focus is Match Tactics. Time from the time I change match preparation to Attacking Set Pieces. 
     
    SET PIECES
    One of the most important thing in the game for me same as in the real life football. I always spent a lot of time with developing routines for all types of set pieces. They could be very useful in time you try to create a new tactic and not everything is perfect and your team is not playing in the right way. 

    Set Pieces could give you some advantage in these times as you could score some goals from the free kick, throw-in or corner routines. And it could help to get some positive results and maybe it could save you the job. 
     
    DOWNLOAD KEYSI'S SET PIECE ROUTINES
     
    SQUAD - PROMOTING PLAYERS
    My saves in the past were almost all about to play with young players who are at most 24 or 25 years old. It was not unusual I played with the average age around 19 or less.
     
    And I always have the best young players around 16 or 17 years old in the First Team squad because of training and they also have a chance to get some playing time in cup matches. And of course, they have a lot of playing time in the reserve team. 
     
    During the save there are many players who leave the club for free as they are not good enough but when I start a new save I always keep them, even if they are not good enough, in the youth team to be sure there are players available to play in matches. 
     
    FRIENDLIES
    The last important thing for me is friendlies. It could sound weird to mention this part of the game but it could be very important for good pre-season and also for your finances.
     
    I never let to arrange friendlies by my assistant. I always arrange it by myself because of two reasons. I'm sure I will select better teams to play against in terms of their quality and maybe more importantly better teams because of financial profit. 
     
    It's a great way how to earn money if you're a small club. Just invite more reputable club to play at your stadium and you can earn money thanks to attendance and sometimes also thanks to TV revenue. 
     
    The second important thing is – you should arrange friendlies/leagues/cups as soon as possible and you should not wait when your players will be back from holiday or pre-season starts. Why? When you will wait until the last moment, the most reputable clubs will have their friendlies already arranged. And it would be a shame for you.
     
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    This article has been written by Keysi Rensie, owner of mrkeysirensie.wordpress.com and one of the better Football Manager tacticians in the community.
     
    He also shares his own stories, tactical stuff or set pieces articles on his blog. You can also find there some guides from the past or you can download player/staff search filters and more.
     
    Would you like to feature as a guest writer here on FMInside? Please contact us for more info.
    VIEW ALL GUIDES

  • SHORTLISTS

    Top 70 Brexit-Proof Players

    The United Kingdom will be leaving the European Union in the future and that could have some effect on Football Manager. While the real-world implications of 'Brexit' remain unclear for the football world, Sports Interactive has jumped in, creating multiple possible scenarios in Football Manager 2017. According to Miles Jacobson (director at SI Games and one of the founding fathers of Football Manager) there are three main scenarios for Brexit in your game, but the finer details within these three main choices can vary as well. In some saves Scotland will leave the UK, in others multiple countries may decide to leave. The type of Brexit you will get will be different in every save you play, but here are the three main scenarios:
     
    SOFT BREXIT
    If you are lucky enough, the United Kingdom will leave the European Union without any changes to the Work Permit system. This means players from the European Union can be signed without applying for a Work Permit, while players from outside the European Union would still need to go through the application process.
     
    MILD BREXIT
    Footballers are granted the same special exemptions that are currently given to ‘entertainers’. This means it is easier for them to obtain work permits than other people, and it will not have a huge impact on movement from players in the European Union.
     
    HARD BREXIT
    The hardest possible option for your game is a Brexit where similar rules to those which currently apply to non-EU players are adopted for all non-United Kingdom players. That means that a German, French or Spanish player will have to meet the same requirements as a player from Brazil or Argentina to be allowed to play in the United Kingdom.
     

     
    BREXIT-PROOF PLAYERS
    Lucky for you, FMInside.net has been searching the database of Football Manager 2017 and has come up with a list full of Brexit-proof players. So, if you're getting anxious about a possibly more severe Brexit outcome, you could lower the risk by signing some of the players on this list.
     
    To create the list we have selected only the best available players under the age of 23. These players all have a Potential Ability of at least 150 or -8 and higher. The players on this list all have the potential to become World Class and some of them are already considered to be World Class. So, if you want to create an unbeatable team full of players from the UK, this is the list to use as your shortlist!
     
    * Players marked with a * have been added to our Player Database. Click their names to see their development over 10 years in FM17.
     
    Name Club Age Position Jordon Ibe  AFC Bournemouth 20 M (R), AM (RL) Lewis Cook *  AFC Bournemouth 19 DM, M (C) Tyrone Mings  AFC Bournemouth 23 D (L) Calum Chambers  Arsenal 21 D (RC) Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain  Arsenal 22 AM (RL) Reiss Nelson *  Arsenal 16 AM (RL) Andre Green  Aston Villa 18 M (L), AM (RL) Jack Grealish  Aston Villa 20 M (RL), AM (RLC) Joe Rankin-Costello  Blackburn Rovers 17 D (RC), M/AM (RLC) Rico Henry  Brentford 19 D/WB (L) Keiran Tierney  Celtic 19 D (L) Lewis Baker  Chelsea 21 DM, M (C), AM (RLC) Ruben Loftus-Cheek  Chelsea 20 DM, M/AM (C) Tammy Abraham  Chelsea 18 AM (R), ST (C) Trevoh Chalobah *  Chelsea 17 D (RLC), WB (RL) Dujon Sterling  Chelsea 16 D (RC), WB/M/AM (R) Dominic Solanke  Chelsea 18 AM (RL), ST (C) Jay Dasilva  Chelsea 18 D/AM (L) Nathaniel Chalobah *  Chelsea 21 D (C), DM, M (C) Will Hughes *  Derby County 21 DM, M/AM (C) Brendan Galloway  Everton 20 D (LC), DM Ross Barkley *  Everton 22 M/AM (C) Ryan Sessegnon  Fulham 16 D/M/AM (L) Jordan Williams  Huddersfield Town 16 D (RLC) Andrew Robertson  Hull City 22 D/WB (L) Teddy Bishop  Ipswich Town 20 M (C) Andre Dozzell  Ipswich Town 17 M / AM (C) Ben Chilwell  Leicester City 19 D (LC), WB (L) Demarai Gray  Leicester City 20 M/AM (RL) Andre Wisdom  Liverpool 23 D (RC) Sheyi Ojo  Liverpool 19 M (L), AM (RL) Cameron Brannagan  Liverpool 20 M/AM (C) Ryan Kent  Liverpool 19 M (RL), AM (RLC) Adam Phillips  Liverpool 18 DM, M/AM (C) Trent Alexander-Arnold  Liverpool 17 D/WB (R), DM, M (RC) Joe Gomez  Liverpool 19 D (RLC) Ben Woodburn *  Liverpool 16 AM (RL), ST (C) Danny Ward  Liverpool 23 GK Jon Flanagan  Liverpool 23 D (RL) Patrick Roberts  Manchester City 19 M (RL ), AM (RLC) Jadon Sancho  Manchester City 16 M (L ), AM (LC), ST (C) Tosin Adarabioyo  Manchester City 18 D (C) Phil Foden  Manchester City 16 AM (RLC) Ian Carlo Poveda  Manchester City 16 AM (C) Raheem Sterling *  Manchester City 21 M (L), AM (RLC), ST (C) John Stones *  Manchester City 22 D (RC) Angel Gomes *  Manchester United 15 M (RL), AM (RLC) Callum Gribbin  Manchester United 17 M (C), AM (RC) Ro-Shaun Williams  Manchester United 17 D (C) Cameron Borthwick-Jackson  Manchester United 19 D (LC) Marcus Rashford  Manchester United 18 AM (L), ST (C) James Wilson  Manchester United 20 ST (C) Luke Shaw *  Manchester United 21 D/WB (L) Jesse Lingard *  Manchester United 23 M (RL), AM (RLC) Harry Chapman  Middlesbrough 18 M (RL), AM (RLC), ST (C) Jordan Rossiter  Rangers 19 DM, M (C) Oliver Burke  RB Leipzig 19 DM, M (C) Joe Wildsmith  Sheffield Wednesday 20 GK Matthew Targett  Southampton 20 D/WB (L) Callum Slattery  Southampton 17 M (C) Harrison Reed  Southampton 21 DM, M (C) James Ward-Prowse  Southampton 21 M/ AM (RC) Nathan Redmond  Southampton 22 M/AM (RL), ST (C) Jack Butland  Stoke City 23 GK Jordan Pickford  Sunderland 22 GK Joshua Onomah  Tottenham Hotspur 19 M/AM (C) Marcus Edwards  Tottenham Hotspur 17 AM (RLC) Kyle Walker-Peters  Tottenham Hotspur 19 D (RL) Ben Davies  Tottenham Hotspur 23 D (L) Dele Alli *  Tottenham Hotspur 20 M/AM (C) Eric Dier *  Tottenham Hotspur 22 D (RC), DM, M (C) Harry Kane *  Tottenham Hotspur 23 ST (C) Dennon Lewis  Watford 19 WB/M/AM (R), ST (C) Tommie Hoban  Watford 22 D (LC) Jonathan Leko  West Bromwich Albion 17 AM (RL), ST (C) Tyler Roberts  West Bromwich Albion 17 AM (RL), ST (C) Saido Berahino  West Bromwich Albion 22 M (R), AM (RC), ST (C) Reece Oxford  West Ham United 17 D (C), DM

    Best FM17 -10, -95, -9 Wonderkids

    Wonderkids, wonderkids and more wonderkids! We dove into the FM17 Editor and collected the best young football players from all over the globe. On the list you see below you will find the -10, -95 and -9 wonderkids of Football Manager 2017. These kids all have the potential to develop into World-class players.
     
    WHAT IS -10 OR -95?
    To create a dynamic world in Football Manager, Sports Interactive decided to introduce the Dynamic Potential ranges some years ago. That means that every time you load up a new save, these players will have a different maximum potential. That way the game will be challenging to play as a super Wonderkid could be an amateur in another save you load up.
     
    Sortable; Don't forget! The list can be sorted. You can click either of the four columns to sort that column. That way you can either see the youngest or oldest players. To start with, we have sorted the table based on the players' nationality.
     
    Every player on this list has been added to our Scout Database. You can find the individual player profiles by clicking on the players name.
     
    Name Club Nat Age Pos Gianluigi Donnarumma  AC Milan  ITA 17 GK Marco Asensio  Real Madrid   ESP 20 M/AM (RLC) Ousmane Dembele  Borussia Dortmund  FRA 19 M (RL), AM (RLC) Anthony Martial  Manchester United  FRA 20 M (L), AM (RL), ST (C) Adam Ounas  Girondins Bordeaux  ALG 19 AM (RL) Maximiliano Romero  Velez Sarsfield  ARG 17 ST (C) Giovani Lo Celso  Paris Saint-Germain  ARG 20 M (LC), AM (C) Facundo Colido  Boca Juniors  ARG 16 ST (C) Youri Tielemans  Anderlecht  BEL 19 DM, M/AM (C) Divock Origi  Liverpool  BEL 21 AM (L), ST (C) Gabriel Barbosa  Internazionale  BRA 19 AM (R), ST (C) Gabriel Jesus  Manchester City  BRA 19 AM (RL), ST (C) Gerson  AS Roma  BRA 19 M (C), AM (RLC) Malcom  Girondons Bordeaux  BRA 19 AM (RL) Thiago Maia  Santos FC  BRA 19 DM Matheus Pereira  Empoli  BRA 18 AM (RLC) Ante Coric  Dinamo Zagreb  CRO 19 M/AM (C) Marcus Rashford  Manchester United  ENG 18 AM (L), ST (C) Alban Lafont  Toulouse  FRA 17 GK Thomas Lemar  AS Monaco  FRA 20 M (C), AM (RLC) Lucas  Atletico Madrid  FRA 20 D (LC), WB (L) Kurt Zouma  Chelsea  FRA 21 D (RC) Kylian Mbappé  AS Monaco  FRA 17 M (L), AM (RL) Kai Havertz  Bayer Leverkusen  GER 17 M/AM (C) Johannes Eggestein  Werder Bremen  GER 18 ST (C) Christian Fruchtl  Bayern Munich  GER 16 GK Amadou Diawara  Napoli  GUI 19 DM, M (C) Riechedly Bazoer  AFC Ajax  HOL 19 D (C), DM, M (C) Manuel Locatelli  AC Milan   ITA 18 M (C) Moise Kean  Juventus   ITA 16 AM (L), ST (C) Andrea Pinamonti  Internazionale  ITA 17 ST (C) Alex Meret  Udinese  ITA 19 GK Fillipo Melegoni  Atalanta Bergamo  ITA 17 M (C) Hirving Lozano  Pachuca  MEX 21 M (L), AM (RL) Kelechi Iheanacho  Manchester City  NGA 19 ST (C) Martin Odegaard  Real Madrid  NOR 17 M (R), AM (RC) Bartlomiej Dragowski  Fiorentina  POL 18 GK Afonso Sousa  FC Porto  POR 16 M/AM (C) Ze Gomes  Benfica  POR 17 ST (C) Gelson Martins  Sporting CP  POR 21 AM (RL) Andre Horta  Benfica  POR 19 M (C), AM (LC) Ruben Neves  FC Porto  POR 19 DM, M (C) Carlos Soler  Valencia  ESP 19 DM, M (C) Dani Ceballos  Betis Sevilla  ESP 19 M/AM (C) Oliver  Atletico Madrid  ESP 21 M (RLC), AM (C) Jesus Vallejo  Real Madrid  ESP 19 D (C) Kuki  Malaga  ESP 18 AM (C), ST (C) Pol Lirola  Juventus  ESP 18 D/WB/M (R) Jorge Mere  Sporting Gijon  ESP 19 D (C) Breel Embolo  Schalke 04  SUI 19 M/AM (R), ST (C) Christian Pulisic  Borussia Dortmund  USA 17 M (L), AM (LC) Mauricio Lemos  Las Palmas  URU 20 D (C) Adalberto Penaranda  Watford  VEN 19 AM (L), ST (C) Ben Woodburn  Liverpool   WAL 16 AM (RLC), ST (C)  
    RELATED CONTENT
    -85 Wonderkids -8 Wonderkids Goalkeepers Top 70 Brexit-proof players

    Golden Boy 2017

    The Golden Boy is an award that is given by sports journalists to a young football player playing in Europe perceived to have been the most impressive during a calendar year (two halves to two separate seasons). All nominees must be under the age of 21 and play in a European nation's top tier (source Wikipedia). The award has been introduced back in 2003 and players like Rafael van der Vaart (2003), Wayne Rooney (2004), Lionel Messi (2005) and Paulo Pogba (2013) have all won the Golden Boy Award. Last year FC Bayern and Portugal midfielder Renato Sanches was voted the winner. The young powerhouse has been nominated for this years' award as well.
     
    The list has been published several days ago and we have noted all the players that are on the list for you to use with Football Manager 2017.
     
    To help you on your way we have sorted the table on position and have created profiles for most of the players in our Scouting Database. If you want to sort the table on Name, Club, Nationality or Age, just click on the column-head to sort that column.
     
    If the player has been reviewed  by our staff, you will see a 'Profile' link which will re-direct you towards the correct FM17 Player Profile.
     
    NAME CLUB NAT AGE POSITION FMI DB Gianluigi Donnarumma AC Milan  ITA 17 Goalkeeper Profile Mile Svilar Anderlecht  BEL 16 Goalkeeper Profile Alban Lafont Toulouse  FRA 17 Goalkeeper Profile Lazar Carevic Grbalj  MGO 17 Goalkeeper   Antonis Stergiakis Slavia Sofia  GRE 17 Goalkeeper Profile Luca Zidane Real Madrid  FRA 18 Goalkeeper   Julen Arellano  Osasuna  ESP 19 Full-back   Diogo Dalot Porto  POR 17 Full-back Profile Theo Hernandez Atletico Madrid  FRA 18 Full-back   Pol Lirola Juventus  ESP 18 Full-back Profile Cristian Manea Excelsior Mouscroun  ROM 18 Full-back   Adrian Marin Villarreal  ESP 19 Full-back   Aaron Martin Espanyol  ESP 19 Full-back   Paolo Medina Real Madrid  MEX 17 Full-back Profile Felix Passlack Borussia Dortmund  GER 18 Full-back Profile Claud Adjapong Sassuolo  ITA 18 Full-back   Benjamin Henrichs Bayer Leverkusen  GER 19 Full-back Profile Pablo Maffeo Manchester City  ESP 18 Full-back   Borna Sosa Dinamo Zagreb  CRO 18 Full-back   Tosin Adarabioyo Manchester City  ENG 18 Central Defender   Cameron Carter-Vickers Tottenham Hotspur  USA 18 Central Defender   Matthijs De Ligt Ajax  NED 16 Central Defender Profile Timothy Fosu-Mensah Manchester United  NED 18 Central Defender Profile Jorge Meré Sporting Gijon   ESP 19 Central Defender Profile Malang Sarr OGC Nice  FRA 17 Central Defender Profile Dayot Upamecano RB Leipzig  FRA 17 Central Defender   Erik Andersson Malmo  SWE 19 Def Midfielder   Nicolò Barella Cagliari   ITA 19 Def Midfielder   Pape Cheikh Celta de Vigo   ESP 18 Def Midfielder   Tom Davies Everton  ENG 18 Def Midfielder   Amadou Diawara Napoli  GUI 18 Def Midfielder Profile Kolbeinn Finnsson FC Groningen  ISL 16 Def Midfielder Profile Jean-Victor Makengo SM Caen  FRA 18 Def Midfielder   Manu Morlanes Villarreal   ESP 17 Def Midfielder   Valentino Müller Altach  AUT 17 Def Midfielder   Ruben Neves FC Porto  POR 19 Def Midfielder Profile Ferran Sarsanedas FC Barcelona   ESP 19 Def Midfielder   Idrissa Touré Schalke 04  GER 18 Def Midfielder   Daniil Utkin Kuban Krasnodar  RUS 16 Def Midfielder Profile Cristian Rivera Eibar   ESP 18 Def Midfielder   Christopher Nkunku Paris Saint-Germain  FRA 18 Def Midfielder   Kai Havertz Bayer Leverkusen  GER 17 Midfielder Profile Manuel Locatelli AC Milan   ITA 18 Midfielder Profile Abdulkhadir Omur Trabzonspor  TUR 17 Midfielder Profile Renato Sanches Bayern Munich  POR 18 Midfielder Profile Youri Tielemans Anderlecht  BEL 19 Midfielder Profile Federico Chiesa Fiorentina   ITA 18 Winger   Mikkel Duelund FC Midtjylland  DEN 19 Winger   Ianis Hagi Fiorentina  ROM 17 Winger   Jonathan Ikoné Montpellier  FRA 18 Winger   Bozhidar Kraev Levski Sofia  BUL 19 Winger   Emre Mor Borussia Dortmund  TUR 18 Winger Profile Javier Ontiveros Malaga   ESP 18 Winger   Mikel Oyarzabal Real Sociedad   ESP 19 Winger   Gerson Santos Da Silva AS Roma  BRA 19 Winger Profile Fabian Benko Bayern Munich  GER 18 Winger   Joel Asoro Sunderland  SWE 17 Winger Profile Jean-Kevin Augustin 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