Barcelona are famous for their La Masia academy as they have churned out some of the best technical players of the modern era. Their current squad is also filled with wonderkids.
Xavi has done a good job when it comes to integrating their younger stars into the first team and Barcelona now boasts one of the youngest squads in La Liga with an average age of 25.5.
We’ve gone through Barcelona’s 10 wonderkids on Football Manager 2023 and have assessed how they are developing and progressing in real life.
Alejandro Balde
Balde has been the understudy to Jordi Alba for the past couple of seasons, but this year the teenager has actually started in more league games than his older counterpart.
The 19-year-old has already featured in 16 matches this season, which is more than double his appearances last season. He also featured in all four of Spain’s matches at the 2022 World Cup.
Gavi
Barcelona fans have high hopes for Gavi and rightly so. The midfielder showcased just how good he can be at the World Cup and he is already a regular for Barcelona at just 18 years old.
Gavi particularly shined during Spain’s 7-0 drubbing of Costa Rica which prompted Luis Enrique to lavish the youngster with praise during his press conference.
“The most surprising thing for everyone is that someone, at 18 years and 100 days old, has that amount of self-confidence,” Enrique told reporters.
“You have to look at the intelligence he has in his positioning, how he dominates the technical aspects of football, and his physical capacity despite being 18. We have to stay calm, he’s 18, but he can define an era.”
What. A. Goal. 🔥
Gavi becomes Spain’s youngest goalscorer at a World Cup finals with this absolute stunner!! 🇪🇸🚀#ITVFootball | #FIFAWorldCup pic.twitter.com/SiscLFR16O
— ITV Football (@itvfootball) November 23, 2022
Nico Gonzalez
Having been tipped as the natural replacement for Sergio Busquets, Gonzalez has quite the reputation to live up to. The 20-year-old is spending this season on loan with Valencia where he is gaining vital first-team experience.
“[Nico] is a player who can mark an era,” former Barcelona B manager García Pimienta told Mundo Deportivo in August 2021. “If everything goes to plan, he is going to be the heir to Busquets.”
Ansu Fati
As a result of Barcelona’s busy summer transfer window, Fati now has plenty of competition for his place in the side. The 20-year-old remains a big part of Xavi’s side although…
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