The highest-rated FM27 wonderkids found so far are Kairat Almaty striker Daulet Orynbasar and Gamba Osaka goalkeeper Rui Araki, both rated 91 by FM Scout, followed by Başakşehir left-back Saba Kharebashvili on 88. Sports Interactive’s own tip is Ajax’s Abdellah Ouazane, whom SI’s Antony Farley called “a very strong player this year”. Every name and number below comes from the free FM27 Launch Preview build that went live on October 29, and SI warns that some of its data may still change before the full release on November 10.
Potential ability is hidden in Football Manager, so nobody can read it off a player’s profile. The ratings here are FM Scout’s estimates from the preview data (its list was at Revision 1, dated October 29, when we checked on October 30 at 14:30 UTC), plus attributes and starting values that SportBible reported from its own preview save. We list who said what, so you can check each name in your own game.
Table of Contents
Quick answer: FM27 wonderkids so far
- Highest potential: Daulet Orynbasar (ST, Kairat Almaty) and Rui Araki (GK, Gamba Osaka), both 91 on FM Scout’s scale. FM Scout says Orynbasar has the highest rating of any striker in the game.
- Best full-backs: Saba Kharebashvili (LB, Başakşehir, 88); Jesús Fortea (Real Madrid), Xavi Espart (Barcelona) and Daniel Banjaqui (Benfica) at right-back, all 86.
- SI’s pick: Abdellah Ouazane (Ajax), 17, valued at £34 million to £51 million at the start of the game.
- Cheapest gems reported: Facundo Aristegui (Boston River, £18,000 to £170,000), Luis Fragozo (Emelec, £333,000 to £3.3 million) and Orynbasar (about £1 million).
- Build: FM27 Launch Preview, free on PC and Mac until November 3, 18:00 UTC. Saves carry over to the full game.
FM27 wonderkids with the highest potential (FM Scout ratings)
FM Scout rates each wonderkid from 1 to 100. The number reflects the player’s average potential ability when the game gives a range, or the exact maximum when it is fixed. Its definition of a wonderkid is a player with at least 150 potential ability (PA) on FM’s 200-point scale who is no older than 20. The site says its FM27 list will hold about 850 players once the first revision is complete, so the table below is the top of an unfinished list, not a final ranking.
| Player | Position | Age | Club in FM27 | FM Scout rating | Starting value (reported) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daulet Orynbasar | ST | 17 | Kairat Almaty (Kazakhstan) | 91 | About £1m |
| Rui Araki | GK | 18* | Gamba Osaka (Japan) | 91 | £3.2m (FM Blog) |
| Saba Kharebashvili | LB | 17 | Başakşehir (Turkey) | 88 | Not reported |
| Jesús Fortea | RB | 19 | Real Madrid | 86 | Not reported |
| Xavi Espart | RB | 19 | Barcelona | 86 | Not reported |
| Daniel Banjaqui | RB | 18 | Benfica | 86 | Not reported |
| Oliver Wilkinson | Not stated | 17 | Ipswich Town | 85 | Not reported |
| Davinchi | LB | Not stated | Getafe | 85 | Not reported |
| Honest Ahanor | LB | Not stated | Atalanta | 85 | Not reported |
| Bruno Cabral | ST | 16 | River Plate | 83 | £8.1m |
Ratings from FM Scout’s Football Manager 2027 Wonderkids guide (Revision 1, October 29). Values as reported by SportBible on October 30; FM shows values as a range that moves with scouting knowledge. *FM Scout’s table lists Araki at 18; SportBible gives 19.
According to SportBible, FM Scout also rates Ayden Heaven and Joane Gadou at 85, the same as Wilkinson, and Bournemouth’s Rayan at 83, level with Cabral. A few details stand out from the preview data:
- Orynbasar is the best value at the top of the list. SportBible says his starting value is around £1 million, with 65 goals and 23 assists in 53 under-18 appearances for Kairat in real life.
- Araki is the goalkeeper to target if you want a long-term number one. FM Blog put his value at £3.2 million.
- Cabral is expensive at £8.1 million for a 16-year-old, but he starts with 14 finishing, 14 anticipation and 14 acceleration.
The Recruitment screen's control panel holds the recruitment focus and scouting range you'll use to hunt wonderkids (development build). Image: SEGA / Sports Interactive
The wonderkid Sports Interactive named: Abdellah Ouazane
Before the Launch Preview opened, SI’s Antony Farley gave FourFourTwo one name. “There’s a kid at Ajax, a 17-year-old left winger, Abdellah Ouazane, who looks like he’s going to be a very strong player this year,” he said, adding that “the fun of discovery is part of it, so I don’t want to ruin too many surprises” (FourFourTwo, October 28).
SportBible’s look at his FM27 profile shows 15 crossing, 15 dribbling, 17 first touch, 17 technique, 15 flair and 16 determination. He won’t be cheap: his market value at the start of the game is £34 million to £51 million, and his Ajax contract runs to June 2028. If you can’t afford him in the first window, shortlist him and wait for the contract to shorten.
Cheap FM27 wonderkids and bargains from the preview
SportBible’s October 30 shortlist adds players who haven’t appeared on FM Scout’s rating tables yet but look strong in the preview data. The attributes and values are what SportBible reported from its own save.
| Player | Age | Club | Position | Reported starting value | Why he’s on the list |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Facundo Aristegui | 18 | Boston River (Uruguay) | Inside winger | £18k to £170k | 14 dribbling, 15 finishing, 15 flair, 15 acceleration, 15 determination |
| Luis Fragozo | 16 | Emelec (Ecuador) | Inside forward | £333k to £3.3m | 14 dribbling, 14 flair, 14 off the ball, 16 work rate; 38 first-team games in real life |
| Tornike Kvaratskhelia | Not stated | Dinamo Tbilisi (Georgia) | Left winger | Under €2m (£1.6m) | Pacy winger who made his club debut at 16 in May; Khvicha Kvaratskhelia’s younger brother |
| Jacob Ambæk | 18 | Brøndby (Denmark) | Striker | About £18m | Pace, power, composure and finishing |
| Simon Escobar | 16 | Vélez Sarsfield (Argentina) | Left wing-back | About £10m | 15 decisions at 16 |
| Adri Mehmeti | 17 | New York Red Bulls (USA) | Central midfielder | Not reported | Composure and passing; already capped by the United States |
Values in FM depend on your scouting knowledge, your club’s reputation and the player’s contract, so expect different numbers in your save. Treat the table as a shortlist to scout, not a price list.
Will FM27 wonderkid ratings change at launch?
They might. SI’s Launch Preview notes say this version “contains information that is still under approval process by right holders and may contain data that does not, at this time, accurately reflect real world data”, and that some club and player assets may be missing. SI also calls the Launch Preview “closer in quality and finality to the official launch version” than the old Beta.
That has two practical consequences:
- Your save keeps its data. SI says careers started in the free period carry over to the paid Launch Preview and the full game. A player you sign now stays in your squad.
- Lists can shift. A new save after a data update could show different potential for some players. Fan sites such as FM Scout update their lists in revisions, so check the revision date of any list you use.
How to find wonderkids yourself in FM27
Most of the fun is finding your own. FM27 changes a few of the tools you’ll use for that, according to SI’s feature deep dives:
- Read the NXGN 50 message. SI says the annual NXGN 50 now shows all 50 wonderkids directly in the message body, so “your new scouting shortlist is right in front of you” (deeper world upgrades deep dive).
- Set a recruitment focus for young players. The Recruitment control panel lets you create a recruitment focus, change your scouting range and budget, and read staff advice without leaving the screen (interface deep dive). Narrow the focus to under-19s in a region your scouts know.
- Use the scouting progress message. It now lists players and ratings in list and card views, which SI says helps you decide where to spend your scouting budget.
- Search the Player Database early. You can now view the player database and build shortlists even if you start unemployed, so you can plan targets before you take a job.
- Check Tactical Effectiveness in scout reports. SI says scout reports show whether a target fits your shape straight away or needs time to learn it. A wonderkid who already suits your system is likely to settle faster.
Squad screens link straight to the Player Database and youth teams, where your own wonderkids develop (development build). Image: SEGA / Sports Interactive
How to sign and develop FM27 wonderkids
Signing a top teenager is only half the job. Three FM27 changes matter here:
- Promise game time. SI says young players “will now consider game time a lot more” when choosing a club, and the “treat club as a stepping stone” promise is worth more in contract talks. That helps smaller clubs compete for talent.
- Watch for sell-on fees. If a player’s contract has a sell-on clause, scout reports now show it, and selling clubs ask for more money to protect it.
- Balance training and results. SI’s training deep dive says you now have to balance a wonderkid’s long-term Individual Training against the short-term need to win matches. Don’t drop his individual plan the first time results dip.
Farley also shared a filter of his own with FourFourTwo: he won’t sign a player with a work rate under 15, which often leads him to Championship players with “the mentality bang on”. It’s a useful second filter after potential.
Where to play FM27 for free
The Launch Preview is free on PC and Mac through Steam, the Epic Games Store, the Microsoft Store, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass until November 3 at 18:00 UTC. Pre-purchasing from a SEGA-approved retailer (10% off; $53.99 instead of $59.99 on Steam when we checked) keeps your access going until launch on November 10. Start times in every time zone are in our FM27 Launch Preview start time guide, and the original announcement is covered in Football Manager 27 is free to play for 5 days.
New to the series? Start with our Football Manager 27 beginner’s guide for your first save, and see FM27’s new features, licences and PC requirements for everything else that changed.
FM27 is licensed for the UEFA Champions League, the stage a top wonderkid can reach within a few seasons (development build). Image: SEGA / Sports Interactive
FAQ
Who has the highest potential in FM27?
On FM Scout’s list as of October 29, striker Daulet Orynbasar (Kairat Almaty) and goalkeeper Rui Araki (Gamba Osaka) share the top rating of 91. FM Scout’s list was still incomplete when we checked, and potential is hidden in the game, so treat this as the best estimate so far.
Are FM27 wonderkid lists based on the final database?
No. They come from the Launch Preview, and SI says its data may not yet reflect the real world and some assets may be missing. Check a list’s revision date, and recheck after the November 10 launch.
Do wonderkids I sign in the free Launch Preview stay in my save?
Yes. SI says careers started during the free period carry over to the paid Launch Preview and to the full release, so your signings stay in that save.
Who is the best cheap wonderkid in FM27?
Among the players reported so far, Facundo Aristegui of Boston River (£18,000 to £170,000) and Daulet Orynbasar (about £1 million) offer the most for the money. Values in your save depend on your scouts and your club.
Sources: Sports Interactive, FM27 free to play until 3 November (October 29); SI Launch Preview announcement (October 21); SI deep dives on deeper world upgrades, the football world, interface and training; FM Scout, Football Manager 2027 Wonderkids (Revision 1, October 29); FourFourTwo interview with Antony Farley (October 28); SportBible, 10 hidden FM27 wonderkids (October 30) and Ouazane’s FM27 profile (October 29); FM27 on Steam. Checked October 30, 2026, 14:30 UTC.
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