There are few things more satisfying in the sports card hobby than predicting a future star of a sport, buying their rookie card while it’s cheap, and watching it sharply rise in value as the player establishes themselves as one of the best in the world.
The best young soccer player going into the 2022-23 soccer season was Erling Haaland; Him, and the rest of the top 15, including their rookie cards, are listed further down.
It’s exciting trying to predict the next Messi or Ronaldo in Soccer.
The players on this list will all be under 23 years old by the start of the 22-23 season.
15. Gabriel Martinelli
What Is Gabriel Martinelli’s True Rookie Card?
2019 Panini Adrenalyn XL Premier League Gabriel Martinelli #15
D.O.B: 06/18/2001
Gabriel Martinelli is one of a few talented young players at Arsenal who is showing potential to be a top player in the future. The Brazilian forward was described as a ‘talent of the century’ by Liverpool manager, Jurgen Klopp, back in 2019. Although he hasn’t progressed as much as some were predicting since he joined Arsenal in 2019, he had a good 2021-22 season and considering he’ll still only be 21 by the start of the 2022-23 season, he’s still very young.
14. Aurelien Tchouameni
What Is Aurelien Tchouameni’s True Rookie Card?
2018 Panini FOOT Stickers Aurelien Tchouameni #64
D.O.B: 01/27/2000
The 2021-22 season was a big one for Aurelien Tchouameni. The young French midfielder had a very good season for French side Monaco, which gained the attention of soccer’s biggest teams. His former teammate, and legendary midfielder, Cesc Fabregas described Tchouameni as ‘the complete, modern midfielder’. He’s also broken into the highly competitive France national team.
13. Julian Alvarez
What Is Julian Alvarez’s True Rookie Card?
2019 Panini Adrenalyn XL FIFA 365 Julian Alvarez #303
D.O.B: 01/31/2000
Julian Alvarez became a bit of a sensation in South American soccer during 2021 and 2022. The young Argentinian forward’s impressive performances for Argentinian side, River Plate, earned him a big transfer to English side Manchester City, ahead of the 2022-23 Premier League season. He’s been a goal-machine in South America, and if he can continue scoring goals in European soccer, his profile will skyrocket.
12. Darwin Nunez
What Is Darwin Nunez’s True Rookie Card?
2020 Panini Futebol Sticker Darwin Nunez #52
D.O.B: 06/24/1999
The 2021-22 season was a breakthrough season for Darwin Nunez – The young Uruguayan striker became a prolific goalscorer for Portuguese side Benfica, in both domestic competition and the UEFA Champions League, scoring 34 goals in 41 games. His recent form has raised his profile to make him one of the most exciting young forwards in world soccer.
11. Jamal Musiala
What is Jamal Musiala’s True Rookie Card?
2020 Topps Now Bundesliga Jamal Musiala #6
D.O.B: 02/26/2003
Jamal Musiala has been on soccer fans’ radar for a few years now, after his transfer from Chelsea to Bayern Munich in Germany, when he was just 16. The German international is now an established part of a good Bayern team, with versatility to play in a number of different positions. Musiala had a successful 2021-22 season, with his goal securing victory in the game to win Bayern Munich the German Bundesliga.
10. Karim Adeyemi
What Is Karim Adeyemi’s True Rookie Card?
2020 Panini Osterreichische Fussball Bundesliga Sticker Karim Adeyemi #30
D.O.B: 01/18/2002
Another young German international who has bags of potential is Karim Adeyemi. The young forward had a prolific goal-scoring 2021-22 season, and his transfer from RB Salzburg in Austria to Borussia Dortmund in the German Bundesliga ahead of the 2022-23 season feels like a natural progression in his career – The same move has worked out so well for Erling Haaland. Borussia Dortmund have gained a reputation in recent times for developing young players into superstars, and with Erling Haaland recently departing, there will be plenty of opportunity for Adeyemi to play and progress at Dortmund.
9. Eduardo Camavinga
What is Eduardo Camavinga’s True Rookie Card?
2019 Panini Foot Sticker Eduardo Camavinga #424
D.O.B: 11/10/2002
Camavinga has long been one to watch for the future. His performances for Rennes in the French Ligue 1 earned him a transfer to one of the world’s biggest and best teams, Real Madrid, ahead of the 2021-22 season. Despite having to compete for playing time with some of the world’s most established and best midfielders, Camavinga had a good season with Madrid and will look to build on that in the 2022-23 season. He’s likely to be a fixture in the Real Madrid midfield for many years to come.
8. Ryan Gravenberch
What Is Ryan Gravenberch’s True Rookie Card?
2020 Topps Now Champions League Ryan Gravenberch #23
D.O.B: 05/16/2002
Ryan Gravenberch is another in a long list of young talents to come through Ajax’s youth academy – A lot of top players have come through their youth set-up, and Gravenberch could well be the next. The Dutch international’s impressive performances in the last 2 seasons at Ajax, in the senior team, have led to him being considered one of the best midfield prospects in the world by many.
7. Pedri
What Is Pedri's True Rookie Card?
2020 Panini Liga Megacracks Pedri #430
D.O.B: 11/25/2002
The 2021 European Golden Boy award winner, Pedri, is one of a number of exciting young talents currently at Barcelona. Pedri is already an established part of the Spanish national team at such a young age, and is seen as a big part of the future at Barcelona. In the 2022-23 season, the technical midfielder should also benefit from being managed by one of the best midfielders of all time, Xavi. There’s no doubt Pedri has an exciting future in soccer.
6. Dušan Vlahović
What Is Dušan Vlahović’s True Rookie Card?
2016 Panini Fifa 365 Sticker Dušan Vlahović #336
D.O.B: 01/28/2000
Dusan Vlahovic had an eventful, and highly successful 2021-22 season. The Serbian international goal-machine was being watched by many of soccer’s biggest and best teams, before he ultimately decided to join Italian giants, Juventus, from Fiorentina during the mid-season transfer window in 2022. With a total of 29 goals in 21-22, Vlahovic will aim to build on that in 2022-23, and now that he’s at one of Europe’s biggest teams, there’s every chance he can develop into one of the stars of the game.
5. Jadon Sancho
What Is Jadon Sancho’s True Rookie Card?
2017 Panini WCCF Jadon Sancho #A15
D.O.B: 03/25/2000
Jadon Sancho’s decision to leave Manchester City to Join Borussia Dortmund, in search of first-team soccer, certainly paid off. A few impressive seasons at Dortmund not only earned him a place in the England national team, it also got him a big transfer to one of the world’s biggest teams, Manchester United ahead of the 2021-22 season. Although he had a slow start, Sancho did settle and put in some impressive performances during the second half of the 21-22 season. With Erik Ten Hag taking over as Man Utd manager for the 2022-23 season, Sancho is likely to benefit and develop under his guidance – He’s got the potential to be one of the best players in the world.
4. Jude Bellingham
What Is Jude Bellingham’s True Rookie Card?
2020 Topps Now Bundesliga Jude Bellingham #4
D.O.B: 06/29/2003
Another young English talent with a massive amount of potential is Jude Bellingham. Despite being wanted by some of soccer’s biggest teams, he opted to follow the same route as many young talents in recent times, like his fellow countryman Jadon Sancho, and join Borussia Dortmund in 2020, from Birmingham City, in search of high-level senior playing time. Dortmund are good at developing young players, and Bellingham has had a very impressive couple of seasons there in midfield, despite being so young.
3. Vinicius Jr
What Is Vinicius Jr’s True Rookie Card?
2018 Panini Colecciones Este La Liga Vinicius Junior #15
D.O.B: 07/12/2000
Vinicius Jr has become a big part of Real Madrid’s new generation, after a very good 2021-22 season for the Spanish giants. The exciting Brazilian winger has been at Real Madrid since 2018, but was brought with the future in mind, and he’s now established as part of their senior team. The 2021-22 season was a success for Madrid, and Vinicius played a big role in that – he’s certainly become one of the hottest young talents in world soccer.
2. Phil Foden
What Is Phil Foden’s True Rookie Card?
2017 Topps Match Attax Premier League Extra Phil Foden #U33
D.O.B: 05/28/2000
There’s no doubt England are about to enter another golden generation of players, and Phil Foden is going to be a big part of that. One of the best managers ever, Pep Guardiola, once described Foden as the most talented youngster he’s ever seen, which is high praise considering he managed a young Lionel Messi at Barcelona. Going into the 2022-23 season, Foden has already won 9 major trophies with Manchester City, including 4 Premier League titles. The incredibly gifted, and technical attacking midfielder is already a top player and there’s no ceiling to his potential.
1. Erling Haaland
What Is Erling Haaland’s True Rookie Card?
2019 Panini Austrian Fussball Erling Haaland #32
D.O.B: 07/21/2000
Erling Haaland is already one of the best soccer players in the world. His rapid rise started in the 2019-20 season with RB Salzburg, after an incredible first half of the season, which led to a transfer to Borussia Dortmund, a club where he could develop further. The Norwegian forward is the definition of ‘goal-machine’, and his mix of pace, power and height, with his deadly finish, make him the dream all-round striker. His transfer to Manchester City ahead of the 2022-23 season seems like the perfect fit for Haaland.
What Is The Best Soccer Rookie Card To Buy In 2022-23?
The obvious answer here is Erling Haaland – His rookie card prices will likely do the best in the future out of any of the best young soccer players in the world right now.
However, Haaland’s rookie card values are already very high. I think Phil Foden and Vinicius Jr are both very good soccer card investments for the future. Both have established themsleves at top teams, and are still so young – Their current rookie card values are also affordable for the average collector, and I see a lot of upside potential in them.
