FIFA 23 Wonderkids: Best Young Centre Backs (CB) to Sign in Career Mode

An elite centre-back is a necessity, while a strong defensive pair is the hallmark of any great football team. Hence, FIFA enthusiasts are always looking out for the Best Young Centre Backs (CB) upon which to develop the backbone of their team.

However, signing world-class centre-backs in Career Mode is expensive and you can take a different approach to build your team. You can sign cheap young centre-backs with high potential and turn them into superstars.

And if you do decide to sign these wonderkids, make sure to train them well and give them enough minutes to develop and mature.

In this article, we take a look at the best CB wonderkids available in FIFA 23 Career Mode.

Choosing FIFA 23 Career Mode’s Best Young Centre-Backs (CB)

The likes of Wesley Fofana, William Saliba, and Joško Gvardiol are just a few of the wonderful young CBs you can try to sign in this year’s Career Mode.

Given all the talent available, those who make it onto this list of the best wonderkid centre-backs in FIFA 23 have to be 21 years old or under, have CB as their best position, and have a minimum potential rating of 83.

You will be able to see the full list of all of the best centre-back (CB) wonderkids in FIFA 23 at the end of this article. But first, check out our top seven recommendations for the best young centre-backs.

Joško Gvardiol (81 OVR – 89 POT)

Team: Red Bull Leipzig
Age: 20
Wage: £35,000
Value: £45.6 million
Best Attributes: 84 Sprint Speed, 84 Strength, 84 Jumping

Boasting a potential rating of 89, Gvardiol is the outstanding wonderkid centre-back in FIFA 23 and already at a respectable 81 overall rating, the Croatian truly has a high ceiling.

The 20-year-old’s 85 aggression, 84 sprint speed, 84 jumping, 84 strength and 83 standing tackle make him suitable for one-on-one defending in the high line of an attacking team.

Gvardiol already has 12 caps for the Croatia national team. He generated a lot of interest from the big clubs in the summer and has seen Leipzig reject a big-money offer from Chelsea. That big move is just around the corner for a highly-rated defender.

Goncalo Inacio (79 OVR – 88 POT)

Team: Sporting CP
Age: 20
Wage: £9000
Value: £31 million
Best Attributes: 82 Stand Tackle, 81 Sprint Speed, 81 Defensive Awareness

Inacio’s eye-catching ratings for a defender make him a solid choice on FIFA 23 considering his potential rating of 88.  

The Portuguese wonderkid’s cheap price does not do justice to his underlying ratings at centre-back. Inacio already has 82 stand tackle, 81 defensive awareness, 81 sprint speed, 79 sliding tackle and 78 acceleration – which is impressive in the grand scheme of things. 

The 20-year-old made 45 appearances for Sporting last season, rising to the role of first team regular in Rúben Amorim’s side. The wonderkid centre-back will look to kick on, and FIFA 23 shows his talent is destined for the top. 

Jurriën Timber (80 OVR – 88 POT)

Team: Ajax
Age: 21
Wage: £12,000
Value: £38.3 million
Best Attributes: 85 Jumping, 85 Composure, 83 Sprint Speed

Timber is an impressive centre-back and his FIFA 23 ratings make him indispensable for any Career Mode player. The Dutchman has a potential rating of 88 and can be effective straight away despite his overall 80 rating.

The wonderkid is already a very good defender with his 85 composure, 85 jumping, 83 sprint speed, 83 defensive awareness and 83 standing tackle. What’s more? Timber will continue to improve and is versatile enough to fill other defensive roles on the right side of defence.

The Netherlands international helped Ajax to the Eredivisie title last season and won the club’s Talent of The Year Award.

William Saliba (80 OVR – 87 POT)

Team: Arsenal
Age: 21
Wage: £50,000
Value: £34.4 million
Best Attributes: 84 Standing Tackle, 83 Strength, 83 Interceptions

William Saliba has finally broken through at Arsenal and Premier League fans are getting to terms with one of the best young and composed defenders in the world as well as one of best wonderkid centre-backs in FIFA 23 with his potential rating of 87.

The defender is a ready-made option for Career Mode with his overall 80 rating. Saliba’s 84 for standing tackle, 83 Interceptions, 83 Strength, 82 aggression, 80 defensive awareness and 79 sprint speed make him a top centre-back in the game.

The Frenchman was named the 2021-22 Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year and given a place in the Team of the Year following his loan spell at Marseille. Having made his international debut in March 2022, Saliba could feature at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.

At the time of writing this article, he has already staked his place in Arsenal’s starting lineup and is already earning early shouts as one of the most impressive defenders in the Premier League at the moment.

Giorgio Scalvini (70 OVR – 86 POT)

Team: Atalanta
Age: 18
Wage: £5,000
Value: £3.3 million
Best Attributes: 73 Standing Tackle, 72 Defensive Awareness, 72 Reactions

The youngest player among the best centre-back wonderkids in FIFA 23 is one with an astonishing 86 potential rating.

At 70 overall, the towering defender’s best attributes are 73 Standing Tackle, 72 Reactions, 72 Defensive Awareness, 71 jumping and 71 interceptions.

The Italian made his career debut for La Dea in 2021 and continues to rise up the first team ranks having made 18 Serie A appearances last season. The 18-year-old already made his debut with the Italy national team in a UEFA Nations League fixture against Germany in June 2022.

Castello Lukeba (76 OVR – 86 POT)

Team: Lyon
Age: 19
Wage: £22,000
Value: £12.9 million
Best Attributes: 79 Standing Tackle, 76 Defensive Awareness, 76 Interceptions

Lukeba is already one of the best defenders in Ligue 1 having made his first team breakthrough in 2022, the wonderkid centre-back has thus been placed with 86 potential.

Although his 76 overall rating isn’t particularly pleasing, the 19-year-old has a high ceiling to improve. His highest ratings in FIFA 23 include 79 standing tackle, 76 interceptions, 76 composure, 76 defensive awareness, 76 sliding tackles and 76 short passing.

The young Frenchman was nominated for the Ligue 1 Young Player of the Year award after becoming a key part of Lyon’s defence with his qualities at centre-back.

Wesley Fofana (79 OVR – 86 POT)

Team: Chelsea
Age: 21
Wage: £47,000
Value: £28.4 million
Best Attributes: 84 Interceptions, 82 Standing Tackle, 80 Sprint Speed

The former Leicester man has proven to be one of the best young Premier League defenders and retains 86 potential despite suffering a broken leg at the start of last season.

Boasting 79 overall, the French defender’s main strengths are 84 interceptions, 82 standing tackle, 80 strength, 80 sliding tackle and 80 sprint speed, to prove his credentials as a quality modern-day centre-back.

Following his excellent performances for Leicester City pre and post-injury, Chelsea splashed out £70 million to add Fofana to their extensive summer rebuild. The 21-year-old will look to marshall the blues’ backline for years to come.

All of the Best Young Centre-Backs (CB) in FIFA 23

In the table below, you will find all of the best CB wonderkids in FIFA 23, listed according to their potential ratings.

If you want to develop one of the game’s best wonderkid centre-backs, consider signing one of the above in FIFA 23 Career Mode.