Football Manager 2023 is just around the corner and I know there’s one thing on all of our minds, WONDERKIDS. Who do we think are going to be the best young players in FM23? Here’s a list of all the players we think need to have their PA improved in this year’s game, let us know in the comments if you think we’ve missed anyone out.

Before we start, let me just remind you how PA works. In your FM career all players have a CA (Current Ability) and PA (Potential Ability) of 0-200, with 200 being the best. Before the game starts some players, mostly young players, have a negative PA such as -5 or -6, this means that their potential is random and will change with every save within a certain threshold. Here’s what each random value means:

-10 = 170-200
-9.5 = 160-190
-9 = 150-180
-8.5 = 140-170
-8 = 130-160
-7.5 = 120-150
-7 = 110-140
-6.5 = 100-130
-6 = 90-120
-5.5 = 80-110
-5 = 70-100
-4.5 = 60-90
-4 = 50-80
-3.5 = 40-70
-3 = 30-60
-2.5 = 20-50
-2 = 10-40
-1.5 = 0-30
-1 = 0-20
0 = 0-200

The best wonderkids in Football Manager will generally have -8, -85, -9, -95 or -10 PA.

Now let’s look at who needs improving in Football Manager 2023:

Gavi - Barcelona

Gavi became a first team regular in 2021/22 for Barcelona and while his PA of -9 in FM22 is good, i’d expect that to go up to -95 or -10 especially since his CA should go up from the measly 132 he was on in FM22.

FM22: CA 132 / PA -9
FM23 Prediction: CA 160 / PA -10

Giorgio Scalvini - Atalanta

The tall Italian Giorgio Scalvini broke into the Atalanta defense in the second half of the season and looks set to stay as a first team player. With a PA of -8 in FM22 he had the potential to become one of the best in the world but his starting CA of just 113 meant this often wasn’t realised.

FM22: CA 113 / PA -85
FM23 Prediction: CA 140 / PA -9

Moisés Caicedo - Brighton

Caicedo was only recalled back to Brighton from a loan spell in January due to injuries, but he’s quickly proven himself to be Premier League quality in Graham Potter’s side. His CA of 118 is clearly far too low to be playing in the Premier League and I reckon his PA should get a boost as well.

FM22: CA 118 / PA -85
FM23 Prediction: CA 140 / PA -9

Luka Sucic - RB Salzburg

Luka Sucic hasn’t quite forced himself into the first team on a regular basis yet, but one cap for Croatia is sure to have influenced the researchers at SI, expect to see a small boost in both CA and PA.

FM22: CA 120 / PA -85
FM23 Prediction: CA 130 / PA -9

Mohamed-Ali Cho - Real Sociedad

Real Sociedad stumped up €15m to buy Cho from Angers in real life. Having represented England at youth level he’s now aligned to France and has proven himself a first team player in both Ligue 1 and La Liga.

FM22: CA 111 / PA -85
FM23 Prediction: CA 135 / PA -9

Joe Wormleighton - Leicester City

Unless you’re a Leicester City fan you probably haven’t heard of Joe Wormleighton, he was an absolutely nobody in FM22 with CA 55 and PA -5 meaning he was unlikely to ever make it as a professional footballer. But talk to anyone in the know at Leicester and alot is starting to be expected of Wormleighton. Hopefully FM23 picks up on that and makes him at least Championship level.

FM22: CA 55 / PA -5
FM23 Prediction: CA 75 / PA -75

Kristjan Asllani - Inter Milan

After breaking into the team at Empoli Albanian midfielder Asllani got a €14 move to Inter Milan and begun featuring immediately. A modest PA of -75 meant he always had the potential to stand out in your FM22 saves, but I would expect to see him at -8 or -85 following his move.

FM22: CA 115 / PA -75
FM23 Prediction: CA 127 / PA -85

Maxime Estève - Montpellier

Now into his second season as a starting defender in Ligue 1 the 20 year old is starting to catch the eye. Expect to see him moving to a Premier League side in FM23 and a CA/PA boost to go alongside it.

FM22: CA 116 / PA -75
FM23 Prediction: CA 135 / PA -8

Adrià Bernabé - Parma

After featuring for Man City, Bernabé moved to Parma at the start of last season and has been clocking up first team appearances ever since. A disappointing PA of -7 should really be improved upon in FM23.

FM22: CA 108 / PA -7
FM23 Prediction: CA 130 / PA -8

Alexis Tibidi - Stuttgart

You probably never encountered Tibidi in your FM22 save. With a CA of just 76 you’d need a keen eye and alot of luck to realise he had the potential of a -7. In real life Tibidi made a number of cameo’s from the bench in Bundesliga showing there’s more to him than the official FM researcher thinks.

FM22: CA 76 / PA -7
FM23 Prediction: CA 110 / PA -75

Djed Spence - Tottenham

No doubt Forest would have loved to have kept Spence, but he got a move to Spurs. Spence is fairly unique in having a fixed PA in FM22 of just 145, meaning he’s a low prem to high champ player. Expect that to rise to around 156 in FM23.

FM22: CA 123 / PA 145
FM23 Prediction: CA 135 / PA 157

Aurélien Tchouameni - Real Madrid

Tchouameni got a big money move to Real Madrid this summer after starring for Monaco for 2 seasons. That move will have a big impact on his ratings so expect to see a big boost in both and a near impossibility of signing him.
 

FM22: CA 140 / PA 164
FM23 Prediction: CA 165 / PA 182

Destiny Udogie - Tottenham

Udogie moved from Udinese to Tottenham this year before being loaned straight back for one season after receiving big interest from a host of other big clubs including Juventus, expect that to be reflected in his ratings. I’m surprised they weren’t higher already considering Sports Interactive’s relationship with the family behind Udinese and Watford.

FM22: CA 127 / PA 157
FM23 Prediction: CA 145 / PA 170

What do you think?

Let us know in the comments if you think we've missed anyone!

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