The last Weekly Post of 2025, the 527th in a series that began in 2012, presents the 100 players worldwide born in 2006 or later who are not yet playing for a big-5 league club having performed best this year. The rankings were established using a method developed exclusively by the CIES Football Observatory and the data meticulously collected by our partner Impect.
The highest score overall was recorded for Dutchman Givairo Read of Feyenoord (85 out of 100). Although currently injured, he should soon be able to celebrate his first cap for Netherlands. This 'well-rounded' wide back is ahead of Portugal's Geovany Quenda (Sporting CP, but already signed by Chelsea) and Ghana international Caleb Yirenkyi, from the veritable talent factory that is Danish side FC Nordsjælland.
France's Joane Gadou (RB Salzburg) ranks first among centre backs and Sweden's Simon Eriksson (IF Elfsborg) among goalkeepers. This Scouting Report presents the top ten U20 players outside the big-5 for fifteen categories established by combining players’ level of activity in six areas (aerial play, recovery, distribution, take on, chance creation and finishing) as per Impect data and their main position (method also here).
>>> Full Scouting report (including estimated transfer values for all players)
Classement des joueurs hors big-5 nés en 2006 ou après
Score CIES, année 2025 jusqu'au 08/12. Données Impect.