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Best Teenage Soccer Players In The World 2022: Three Barcelona Starlets Make Top 10

Three Barcelona players feature on this list of the top 10 best teenagers in world soccer in 2022, but neither Ansu Fati, Gavi or Pedri is no.1.

Robert Summerscales

Best Teenage Soccer Players In The World 2022: Three Barcelona Starlets Make Top 10
Best Teenage Soccer Players In The World 2022: Three Barcelona Starlets Make Top 10 /

The era of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo dominating world soccer is over.

For just the second time since 2007, neither man will win the Ballon d'Or this year.

Erling Haaland, 22, and Kylian Mbappe, 23, have been touted as the most likely co-stars to replace the Messi-Ronaldo rivalry going forward.

But which other wonderkids have the potential to dominate the beautiful game in years to come?

We have ranked 10 of the best current footballers aged 19 and under.

Top 10 Teenage Soccer Players

10. Giovanni Reyna (Dortmund)

Attacking midfielder Reyna was born in England in 2002 when his father, Claudio Reyna, was playing for Sunderland.

But Reyna Jnr opted to represent the USA at international level and has already been capped 14 times - just 98 games to go to beat his dad's record.

Giovanni Reyna pictured in action for the USMNT in September 2022
USMNT star Giovanni Reyna is one of the top teenagers in world soccer :: IMAGO/Laci Perenyi

9. Yeremy Pino (Villarreal)

This Spanish dribbling wizard has already played in a Europa League final and a UEFA Nations League final.

Expect to see him on the big stage many more times in the coming years.

8. Destiny Udogie (Udinese/Tottenham)

Italy U21 left-back Udogie is bound for England's Premier League in the summer of 2023 after agreeing a move to Tottenham from Udinese.

He made 35 Serie A appearances for Udinese last season, scoring five goals and providing four assists.

Destiny Udogie pictured celebrating after scoring a goal for Udinese in May 2022
Destiny Udogie earned a move to Tottenham with a brilliant 2021/22 season for Udinese :: IMAGO/Pacific Press Agency/Agostino Gemito

7. Eduardo Camavinga (Real Madrid)

Real Madrid clearly expect big things from Camavinga, having signed him from Rennes for around €40 million last year.

The France midfielder made 26 La Liga appearances in his first season in Spain and also featured in the Champions League final as Real beat Liverpool in Paris.

6. Ansu Fati (Barcelona)

He is only 19 but Spain winger Fati has already scored 21 goals for Barcelona, overcome an almost-year-long injury lay-off and been trusted with Lionel Messi's famous no.10 jersey.

5. Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen)

After helping Germany win the UEFA European Under-21 Championship in 2021, Wirtz tore up the Bundesliga last season.

Wirtz provided 10 goals and 14 assists in all competitions for Leverkusen in their 2021/22 campaign, including seven goal involvements in the Europa League.

4. Gavi (Barcelona)

Gavi only turned 18 in August but he already has more than 50 senior Barcelona games under his belt.

The central midfielder featured in 34 of Barca's 38 matches in La Liga last season and is nailed-on for a place in Spain's World Cup squad for Qatar 2022.

3. Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich)

England missed out on a real gem in Musiala. The midfielder spent much of his youth career at Chelsea and represented England's U15s, U16s, U17s and U21s before choosing to play for Germany, the country of his birth, at senior level.

He moved to Bayern Munich in 2019 and is already a first-team star with 15 Bundesliga goals to his name.

2. Pedri (Barcelona)

Pedri won the Golden Boy award in 2021, as well as the Kopa Trophy, which is effectively the Ballon d'Or for players aged under 21.

He played 47 times in the center of midfield for Barcelona in all competitions last season and was named in the La Liga Team of the Season.

Barcelona midfielders Gavi (left) and Pedri (right) pictured during a game against Elche in September 2022
The future of Barcelona's midfield looks to be in safe hands with Pedri (right) and Gavi (left) :: IMAGO/NurPhoto/Urbanandsport

1. Jude Bellingham (Dortmund)

Europe's top clubs are queueing around the block to sign midfielder Bellingham when he decides that he has outgrown Dortmund, just as he did Birmingham City.

Bellingham played 44 games as a 16-year-old for Birmingham before moving to Germany aged 17 in the summer of 2020.

He has already hit the 100-game mark for Dortmund and is being tipped by many to become England's best midfielder in generations.

Jude Bellingham pictured in action for England against Hungary in June 2022
England midfielder Jude Bellingham is already a superstar :: IMAGO/Sportimage/Darren Staples
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Robert Summerscales
ROBERT SUMMERSCALES

Robert Summerscales launched FanNation Futbol in February 2022. Rob is a British journalist who previously spent two years on the sports desk at the Daily Mail in London, having earlier served as editor of CaughtOffside.com. He has been to the last two FIFA Men's World Cups, in Russia and Qatar, and is looking forward to completing his hat-trick in North America in 2026.

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