Barcelona young stars among top U23 talent across 67 leagues according to CIES
The latest rankings from the CIES Football Observatory have highlighted the best-performing under-23 outfield players across 67 leagues worldwide, underlining the growing influence of data analysis in football recruitment and strategy.
Barcelona defender Pau Cubarsi and winger Lamine Yamal are among the young stars identified as some of the best in the world according to a study by the International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES).The study, which evaluates players based on performances over the past six months, uses a detailed model developed in partnership with data company Impect. Players are assessed across multiple aspects of the game, including defensive work, passing, dribbling, chance creation and finishing, with additional weighting given to match level, results and playing time.A CIES spokesperson said the system is designed “to provide an objective and comparable measure of performance across different contexts,” adding that it helps identify players who are outperforming both their peers and teammates.Among the standout performers, Cubarsí ranked highest among centre-backs, while Warren Zaïre-Emery led wide defenders. In midfield, Aleksandar Pavlović topped the central category, with Kenan Yildiz leading attacking midfielders.Further forward, Spanish winger Yamal was ranked as the top winger, while Vítor Roque led the centre-forward category, reflecting his continued development as one of South America’s most promising young talents.The rankings also highlighted emerging prospects, with Lennart Karl, Konstantinos Karetsas and Kerim Alajbegović identified as the youngest players among the top 100.Beyond Europe’s traditional top five leagues, several players stood out for their performances. Mika Godts, Andreas Schjelderup and Carlos Forbs recorded the highest scores among players operating outside those competitions, underlining the increasingly global nature of talent development.Regionally, Vítor Roque was also recognised as the leading performer in South America, alongside Boca Juniors duo Lautaro Di Lollo and Milton Delgado. In North and Central America, Armando González topped the rankings, while Musab Al-Juwayr led the way in Asia.The CIES methodology reflects a broader shift within football towards advanced analytics. By breaking down performance into specific categories — ranging from defensive duels to attacking output — the model allows clubs to compare players across leagues and positions with greater precision.As competition for young players intensifies, the latest CIES rankings reinforce how analytics are shaping decision-making at the highest levels of the game, with global scouting now driven as much by data as traditional observation.