The Best Young Goalkeepers to Sign in EA FC 27 Career Mode—Ranked

Building a great squad in EA Sports FC 27 Career Mode is all about finding the right talent before everyone else does.
Goalkeepers can be especially tricky. You need someone capable of performing now, but ideally young enough to develop into a long-term No. 1 without completely blowing your transfer budget.
With that in mind, we’ve rounded up 10 goalkeepers aged 23 or younger who combine strong current ratings with plenty of room to grow.
To keep things realistic, every player on the list is valued at less than $40 million.
Honorable Mentions

Before we get into the top 10, there are plenty of other young goalkeepers who deserve an honorable mention.
Among them are Matthieu Epolo of Standard Liège, Lukáš Horníček of Newcastle, Guillaume Restes of Toulouse, Simon Eriksson of Racing Santander, Renato Marin of CD Nacional, Áron Yaakobishvili of Almería, Pierce Charles of Queens Park Rangers, Rome-Jayden Owusu-Oduro of AZ Alkmaar, Radek Vítek of Middlesbrough and Enis Kamga of Kaiserslautern.
All are young, relatively affordable options with plenty of potential, making them worth keeping on your scouting list if you’re looking for a future No. 1 without breaking the bank.
Best Young Goalkeepers to Sign in EA FC 27 Career Mode
10. James Trafford (Leeds United)

Rating: 79
Potential: 85
James Trafford’s underwhelming spell at Manchester City—through no fault of his own, it must be said—has seen his ceiling drop slightly in this edition of EA FC compared to last year.
Still, he remains an appealing goalkeeper with a scanned face and a “sweeper keeper” profile that makes him particularly useful for possession-heavy teams.
The main drawback is his relatively high release clause, which could make him a costly addition for clubs working with a tighter budget.
9. Mio Backhaus (SC Freiburg)

Rating: 77
Potential: 85
Mio Backhaus is a particularly appealing option if playing out from the back is central to your tactics.
The 22-year-old’s strong distribution makes him an attractive Bundesliga-based option, while his scanned face is a nice added touch. His 71-rated kicking is the main area that could use some attention as he develops.
8. Florian Hellstern (SpVgg Greuther Fürth)

Rating: 66
Potential: 86
Hellstern is the bargain option.
At just 18 years old, he costs only $2.4 million and already has an 86 potential rating. He is currently on loan, meaning you may have to wait before bringing him in, but the price and upside make him an excellent project for clubs operating on a smaller budget.
His four-star weak foot is another major bonus for managers who want their goalkeeper comfortable playing as an extra option in possession.
7. Konstantinos Tzolakis (Hull City)

Rating: 79
Potential: 86
Konstantinos Tzolakis offers an intriguing combination of size, reflexes and potential, while his 79 overall rating means he is already close to being ready to step straight into the starting XI.
Having only recently moved to the Premier League with Hull City, negotiations could be a little more complicated. But if your club can afford the deal, the Greek goalkeeper is certainly worth considering.
6. Robin Roefs (Sunderland)

Rating: 81
Potential: 86
Robin Roefs is one of the more complete goalkeepers available, combining an 81 rating with an 86 potential.
His relatively manageable wages also make him an attractive option for clubs that want a goalkeeper capable of stepping straight into the starting XI.
The catch? There isn’t quite as much development left as with some of the younger names on this list.
5. Jonas Urbig (Bayern Munich)

Rating: 79
Potential: 86
With Manuel Neuer still occupying the No. 1 spot at Bayern Munich, Jonas Urbig could be an interesting player to target on Career Mode.
He isn’t the cheapest option, but his 86 potential and solid distribution make him a useful long-term investment. A loan could also be worth exploring if a permanent move proves too expensive.
4. Mike Penders (Chelsea)

Rating: 79
Potential: 86
At only 20, Chelsea’s Mike Penders offers plenty of upside. He boasts a high ceiling, strong diving and kicking, and stands a massive 6'7"—making him an imposing presence between the sticks.
One slight drawback is his two-star weak foot, which makes him less suited to teams that demand their goalkeeper play aggressively out from the back. His wages could also prove a stumbling block, particularly for clubs working with a tighter budget.
3. Bart Verbruggen (Brighton & Hove Albion)

Rating: 81
Potential: 87
Bart Verbruggen is already one of the more polished goalkeepers on this list, making him a natural fit for a club aiming to compete at the highest level.
His 81 rating is backed up by an impressive 84 reflexes, while an 87 potential suggests he can still take another significant step forward.
2. Dennis Seimen (Stuttgart)

Rating: 72
Potential: 87
If your Career Mode budget is a little tighter, Dennis Seimen is your man. He’s incredibly affordable at just $5.6 million, has a high ceiling and already boasts well-rounded attributes, including solid reflexes, kicking and diving.
1. Robin Riser (RC Lens)

Rating: 81
Potential: 87
Robin Risser looks like the complete package for a club with serious ambitions.
Already rated 81, he is more than capable of starting for most teams from the outset, while his strong diving and reflexes give him an elite foundation to build on. A three-star weak foot also makes him comfortable playing out from the back, adding another layer to his appeal for possession-heavy sides.
EA FC 27 Career Mode: Best Young Keepers—Ranked
Rank | Name | Club | Age | Rating | Potential | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
10. | James Trafford | Leeds United | 23 | 79 | 85 | $25.9m |
9. | Mio Backhaus | SC Freiburg | 22 | 77 | 85 | $23.6m |
8. | Florian Hellstern | SpVgg Greuther Fürth | 18 | 66 | 86 | $2.4m |
7. | Konstantinos Tzolakis | Hull City | 23 | 79 | 86 | $34.5m |
6. | Robin Roefs | Sunderland | 23 | 81 | 86 | $35.7m |
5. | Jonas Urbig | Bayern Munich | 22 | 79 | 86 | $35.1m |
4. | Mike Penders | Chelsea | 20 | 78 | 86 | $30.5m |
3. | Bart Verbruggen | Brighton & Hove Albion | 23 | 81 | 87 | $38m |
2. | Dennis Seimen | Stuttgart | 20 | 72 | 87 | $5.6m |
1. | Robin Risser | RC Lens | 21 | 81 | 87 | $38.5m |
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Barnaby Lane, better known as Barney, is a soccer writer for SI FC. With nearly a decade of experience in the industry, he has worked for a range of household-name publications in both the United States and the United Kingdom, and has interviewed some of the world’s biggest athletes—from Usain Bolt and Rafael Nadal to Christian Pulisic (though his favorite interview remains Adebayo Akinfenwa). Barney specializes in Premier League soccer, covering everything from the nostalgia of years gone by to the modern, vastly different landscape of today’s game. He also has experience reporting on La Liga and Major League Soccer, the latter of which he developed a particular affinity for during his university days at Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond.