FIFA 21 Career Mode: Best Young Players to Sign

In almost every Career Mode since FIFA began, young players have been the key to sustained success.

Purchasing the very best in the world enables you to stay ahead of the competition, becoming stronger as they develop into their full potential.

So, of course, you’ll be wanting to sign one or more of the best young players in FIFA 21’s Career Mode. With the top ratings having been released before launch, we were able to get an early look at the who made the cut as the very best young players in the game.

On this page, you’ll find the top-five best young players in FIFA 21 featured, with a table of all of the best young players of Career Mode at the foot of the article.

Selecting the best young players of FIFA 21’s Career Mode

While it’s always the teenage sensations that grab the headlines as top young players, some players in their early-20s are still considered to be young and inexperienced. As such, this collection of the best young players in FIFA 21 has an age cap of 23-years-old.

Those that make it onto the list are the ones with the highest overall ratings from the beginning of the game, so that you can bring in or utilise those who are the best young players now rather than needing to wait for them to develop.

Kylian Mbappé (90 OVR)

Team: Paris Saint-Germain
Best Position: ST
Age: 21
Overall Rating: 90
Nationality: French
Best Attributes: 96 Acceleration, 96 Sprint Speed, 92 Dribbling

Some questioned why Paris Saint-Germain would pay so much money for a relatively unproven youngster from AS Monaco back in 2017, but 124 games, 90 goals, and 51 assists later and everyone knows that PSG were right to sign Kylian Mbappé.

The 21-year-old Frenchman looks to be one of the elite-level showstoppers in line to take the place of players like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi when those legends retire, having already accrued 14 goals in 35 games for France.

Not only is Mbappé one of the best young players of FIFA 21, but he’s also one of the best strikers in Career Mode, and one of the highest-rated players overall.

Mbappé’s mighty 90 overall rating is propped up by gaudy attributes, such as his five-star skill moves, 96 acceleration, 96 sprint speed, 91 finishing, 92 agility, and 92 dribbling.

Jadon Sancho (87 OVR)

Team: Borussia Dortmund
Best Position: RM
Age: 20
Overall Rating: 87
Nationality: English
Best Attributes: 92 Dribbling, 91 Agility, 91 Ball Control

In the summer of 2017, promising former Watford trainee Jadon Sancho jumped ship from the talent-stacked ranks of Manchester City, moving straight from the under-18s at the Etihad Stadium to Borussia Dortmund first-team contention.

Without any first-team caps anywhere, Sancho was given 12 Bundesliga matches, in which he scored a goal and four assists in 2017/18. Then, he exploded with offensive might, scoring 13 goals and 19 assists in the following campaign, snagging another 20 goals and 20 assists last season.

In FIFA 21, Sancho weighs-in as one of the best young players to have in Career Mode, especially as he’s only 20-years-old at the start of the game.

With 91 ball control, 91 agility, 90 balance, 92 dribbling, 86 acceleration, 81 sprint speed, and five-star skill moves, Sancho is certainly one of the more exciting players to have on the virtual pitch.

Trent Alexander-Arnold (87 OVR)

Team: Liverpool
Best Position: RB
Age: 21
Overall Rating: 87
Nationality: English
Best Attributes: 93 Crossing, 89 Long Passing, 88 Curve

Trent Alexander-Arnold has played a pivotal role in Liverpool’s return to the top over the last few seasons, with the now-21-year-old firmly the club’s first-choice right back.

Showcasing tremendous consistency for a young player, as well as an exceptional talent for working the wing, Alexander-Arnold has already strung together eight goals, 35 assists, and 135 games for his home club.

Tied with teammate Andrew Robertson, the best young right back in FIFA 21 Career Mode is also the best full back in the entire game at launch.

The English defender’s strengths are in his 93 crossing, 85 free-kick accuracy, 89 long passing, 88 curve, 87 ball control, 83 standing tackle, and 88 stamina.

Gianluigi Donnarumma (85 OVR)

Team: AC Milan
Best Position: GK
Age: 21
Overall Rating: 85
Nationality: Italian
Best Attributes: 89 Goalkeeper Diving, 89 Goalkeeper Reflexes, 83 Goalkeeper Positioning

For what seems like an age, Gianluigi Donnarumma has been set to be the next best goalkeeper in the world, following in the footsteps of compatriot and legend Gianluigi Buffon.

Still at a floundering AC Milan, Donnarumma has plenty of time left in his career. The lanky Italian shot-stopper is only 21-years-old but has already posted over 200 caps and 70 clean sheets for the club that brought him in from Castellammare Calcio in 2013.

He doesn’t make the cut as one of the elite-class goalkeepers in FIFA 21, but goalies tend to improve past what’s considered to be an outfielder’s prime, meaning that the already highly-rated netminder still has a lot more to give.

Despite his age, Donnarumma is already a worthy first-choice goalkeeper, boasting hefty attributes of 89 goalkeeper diving, 81 goalkeeper handling, 83 goalkeeper positioning, and 89 goalkeeper reflexes.

Marcus Rashford (85 OVR)

Team: Manchester United
Best Position: LM
Age: 22
Overall Rating: 85
Nationality: English
Best Attributes: 93 Sprint Speed, 90 Shot Power, 89 Acceleration

Having been thrust into the first-team, almost out of desperation, by Louis van Gaal in 2016, Marcus Rashford snatched at his opportunity.

The then-18-year-old scored twice in his Europa League debut against FC Midtjylland – who beat Manchester United in the first leg – following up with another brace against Arsenal in the Premier League just three days later.

Still only 22-years-old now, Rashford is a core piece of the United attack, proving his versatility across the frontline as well as his eye for a goal. In 214 matches, the Englishman has scored 67 goals and 39 assists.

As you’ll probably know, speed wins in FIFA, and Rashford is already loaded with pace from the start of Career Mode, starting with 89 acceleration, 93 sprint speed, and 86 agility.

All the best young players in FIFA 21

This is the list of all of the best young players in Career Mode on FIFA 21, with the table to be extended once the game arrives in full.