Studs of Tomorrow: 17-Year-Old Soccer Stars on the Rise

There's a wealth of teenage talent around the world, and this group is close to breaking through on the elite stage sooner than later.

Author:
90 Min
Publish date:
Dec 4, 2017

It's always difficult to predict who will be the superstars of tomorrow, but judging by the wealth of incredible talent out there right now, some budding youngsters are almost certainly tipped for greatness in the future.

Although their names may not sound familiar now, be sure keep an eye out for them in the near future. Here are six relatively unknown youngsters destined to become stars:

Jadon Sancho

Club: Borussia Dortmund

Manchester City fans will for sure have heard of Jadon Sancho, after the 17-year-old prodigy made the brave move of leaving England to join Borussia Dortmund over the summer, a move that reportedly cost the Bundesliga giants around £8m.

The exciting winger was considered one of the brightest prospects at City and tipped to become a Premier League star one day, but now it seems that he will first prove his potential in Germany after taking the coveted number seven shirt at BVB.

Amine Gouiri

Club: Lyon

Another young talent that featured at this year's U17 World Cup, Amine Gouiri has already made his senior debut for Lyon after coming through the Ligue 1 side's ranks and impressing at every level.

The silky striker has been linked with a number of big European clubs following his five goals at the U17 World Cup for France, but Lyon will do everything to hold on to their prised possession for the meantime at least.

Jann-Fiete Arp

Club: Hamburg

The aforementioned Gouiri finished as joint-third highest goalscorer at the summer tournament with this man, Hamburg striker Jann-Fiete Arp. Another 17-year-old striker, Arp is seen as the next Gerd Muller, following his antics for the German youth teams.

Arp has scored 18 goals in 19 games for the U17 side and has also opened his account in the Bundesliga netting twice for Hamburg in just three appearances at the time this was written, prompting a number of Premier League clubs to take a close interest in him.

Abel Ruiz

Club: Barcelona

Sticking to the U17 World Cup, Abel Ruiz scored one more than both Gouiri and Arp, finishing the tournament with six goals for Spain, whom he captained as they ended runners-up.

Now in the Barcelona B squad, the record-breaking Ruiz scored his first goal for the second string Catalan side earlier this season and is held in very high regard by those in the know at the La Liga giants.

Moise Kean

Club: Verona (on loan from Juventus)

The young but burly striker made history a year ago when he became the first player born in the 21st century to feature in both the Serie A and the Champions League. Kean also became the first 2000-born player to score in Europe's top five leagues at the end of last season.

Expected to lead the line for parent club Juventus once he reaches his full potential, the 17-year-old striker is currently plying his trade with Serie A side Hellas Verona, with whom he has been loaned to for the season.

Vinicius Junior

Club: Flamengo

Probably the most well-known name on this list, Vinicius Junior has become a household name in both Brazil and Spain after his breakthrough performances for boyhood club Flamengo earned him a move to Real Madrid.

The 17-year-old sensation, dubbed the next big thing in Brazilian football, will officially become a Los Blancos player once he turns 18, but he will remain at Flamengo on loan until the start of the 2019/20 La Liga season.