The Brasileiro Serie A is a gold mine for wonderkids and future gems, with the likes of Neymar, Ronaldinho, Rivaldo, and more having gained prominence in that league. Recent times have been no different, with players like Vinicius Jr, Gabriel Jesus, and Rodrygo making a name for themselves there. There are a few gems in there today, which we will be going over. Some are younger, some older, but they all have the potential to do great things in their careers.
Honorable Mentions:
Matheus Franca
Matheuzinho
Gabriel Menino
Abner
Rodrigo Nestor
10: Patrick de Paula
Age: 23
Position: CM
Value: 11m
Team: Botafogo
We start with the oldest player to feature on our list, Patrick de Paula. He’s also the only player on the list who has changed clubs, switching Palmeiras for Botafogo back in March.
At the age of 23 he has 118 appearances in all competitions for Palmeiras and Botafogo, and is one of the most decorated players we’ll be talking about, winning the Copa Libertadores twice.
De Paula operates mostly in midfield with 10 goals over his career. In the past, he has been linked with Manchester City, Man Utd, Leeds, and most recently Crystal Palace, even though his development period is nearly over, he’s one of the best players on this list currently.
9: Andrey Santos
Age: 18
Position: CM
Value: 5m
Team: Vasco de Gama
The man named the “Brazilian Busquets”, Andrey Santos is a mix of a CM and CDM who has been one of Vasco de Gama’s most important players this season.
While he languishes in Serie B, Andrey Santos is still a player who I believe would do a good job in the top flight, and we may see that soon with Vasco de Gama in a tight promotion battle. Santos has 30 games this season, and has scored 7.
He’s been linked with Newcastle and Barcelona, with the Barca links the heavier ones. However, we may see Santos in Brazil for a while yet with a contract until 2027.
8: Joao Gomes
Age: 21
Position: CDM
Value: 10m
Team: Flamengo
Joao Gomes is a Flamengo centurion, and when he leaves Brazil, could provide us with one of the biggest Transfer Fees among the players in this list.
The 110-capped player has been played mostly as a CDM and CM, even playing as a CAM, CB, LM, and RM at times. He has 3 goals and 3 assists for Flamengo with 23 games this season.
Manchester United and Liverpool have both been linked with Gomes, but Liverpool are leading the race, apparently willing to pay his 60m euro release clause. He could be a Palhinha + type player once he makes the move, and it’ll be fun to see how his career progresses.
7: Mateus Nascimento
Age: 18
Position: ST
Value: 7m
Team: Botafogo
The first attack-minded player on this list, Mateus Nascimento is a Sporadic star who looks like a Roberto Firmino type player.
20 Appearances this season, not a single goal or assist, which is a little worrying. To his credit, he’s been playing mostly off the bench, but he should still be scoring with 20 appearances.
Nascimento has been linked with a few teams, Crystal Palace, but mostly, and very strongly, to Real Madrid. His contract expires at the end of the 2022-23 season, so Los Blancos can sign him on a free. However, to be a serious target for European teams, he has to start scoring.
6:.Giovani
Age: 18
Position: RW
Value: 10m
Team: Palmeiras
He gets here, like a couple others on this list, for his accolades in youth football, having an Endrick-type youth career, and has 19 senior games for Palmeiras.
He’s been deployed across the attacking line, as a CAM, and as a RM, so he has the versatility. It’s still a bit of a mystery how he can do in senior football, so this is where he places.
Palmeiras are demanding 50 million pounds for the youngster, so Ajax’s bid of 10 million earlier this year was rejected. As well as Ajax, Man City and Newcastle are interested. I can’t put him above here because we haven’t seen enough of him at senior level, but he can certainly become a star.
5: Vitor Roque
Age: 17
Position: ST
Value: 7m
Team: Athletico Paranaense
Vitor Roque is a beast, and could be my most unfairly low placement on this list. Playing as a Striker and Right Winger, he has 12 career goals already for Atlético Paranaense and Cruzeiro.
He’s already been compared to R9 and has 49 games at the age of 17, so he has all the potential in the world to be the best player on this list, but there are so many players like that on here.
He’s been linked to both Barca and Real Madrid, but for now, there have been surprisingly few transfer rumours. You’d have to think that he has to get his move soon to continue his development well
4: Marcos Leonardo
Age: 19
Position: ST
Value: 12m
Team: Santos
This is the best sheer goalscorer on this list, only bested by a truly elite top 3. Marcos Leonardo, in (already) 114 games for Santos, has 32 goals in all competitions, with 11 in the league just this season.
He’s a pure striker, only playing 2 games anywhere else. He also already has 4 goals in continental competitions, and he’s Santos’ 1st choice.
He’s being linked to Arsenal, Spurs, Liverpool, and Man Utd, with Liverpool the likeliest destination. This player is certainly a gem.
3: Angelo Gabriel
Age: 17
Position: RW
Value: 11m
Team: Santos
Despite the fact he’s turning 18 in 2 months, Angelo Gabriel has been used vastly by Santos, along with Marcos Leonardo. The greatness of the last 2 we’ll cover today has overshadowed him.
Angelo Gabriel can be deployed either as a RW or RM, depending on what system you use, with similar amounts of success. He has a whopping 91 games for Santos, with 3 goals and 7 assists in all comps.
Angelo Gabriel has a first option from Barcelona, which they didn’t trigger when Kaiky signed for Almeria earlier this year, but they’d be crazy not to sign him. If they waive it though, many unknown as of right now clubs will pounce on the opportunity.
2: Danilo
Age: 21
Position: CDM
Value: 25m
Team: Palmeiras
Danilo has the most appearances of anyone on this list at 135 for Palmeiras at just 21.
Despite being used as a CDM, he has 13 goals and 10 assists, showing his box-to-box nature. He also has 2 Copa Libertadores titles, 1 Brazilian Cup, and 1 Recopa Sudamericana in his trophy cabinet.
As you may know, he has been heavily linked to Arsenal in recent months and should become an Arsenal player sometime in 2023.
1: Endrick
Age: 16
Position: ST
Value: 15m
Team: Palmeiras
Who else would it be? This is the most heavily hyped Brazilian wonderkid since Neymar, and despite my doubts about him making his debut, he does now have 2 senior games.
He has 49 total minutes of senior football, but has already topped 2 lists of mine and even had his own blog post (co starring Rayan Vitor). He has so much hype, and I really hope he can live up to it.
You know the transfer rumours already, but I’ll tell you again: He’s in an El Clasico rivalry, while Chelsea and Man Utd are waiting in the wings if he wants something else.
That does it for this post, and as you can see, the Brasileiro Serie A and Serie B have many world class prospects on its hands, which ones do you think will go on to have successful careers? I’m Jim James, until next time.