FIFA 19 Wonderkids: Best Italian players to sign in Career Mode

From Giuseppe Meazza through to Franco Baresi and Paolo Maldini, Italy has produced some of the very best footballers the world has ever seen. They have won the World Cup four times in their history, and hosted it twice. Trying to get your hands on the current Italian greats is a very expensive proposition, but what about the next generation?

How to choose the best Italian wonderkids in FIFA 19 career mode

We are looking for the best wonderkids from Italy in FIFA 19. We have looked for players aged 23 or younger at the start of Career Mode, with an overall rating of at least 68 and a potential of 80 or more. These are players that can slot into most teams straight away without hurting you, and will eventually be a quality option for nearly every team in the world. They will be cheaper than the likes of Lorenzo Insigne or Marco Verratti, but they won’t come cheap. You will have to be willing to spend a big chunk of your transfer budget, but if you wait the price will be even higher.

Gianluigi Donnarumma (OVR 82 - POT 93)

Age: 19

Positions: GK

Club: AC Milan

Work rate: Medium/Medium

Best stats: 88 GK diving, 88 GK reflexes, 78 GK handling

Cost: £48.5 million (release clause)

Wage: £29,000 a week

Gianluigi Donnarumma is the future of Italian goalkeeping. He is stepping into the large shoes of Dino Zoff and Gianluigi Buffon, but he has all the talent in the world to do the position justice. He already has 112 appearances under his belt for Milan and eight caps for Italy.

Donnarumma is not yet the best goalkeeper, but he could well be one day. His keeping stats are already superb (88 diving, 88 reflexes, 78 GK handling).

Alessio Romagnoli (OVR 82 - POT 89)

Age: 23

Positions: CB

Club: AC Milan

Work rate: Medium/High

Best stats: 88 marking, 84 stand tackle, 84 interceptions

Cost: £44.3 million (release clause)

Wage: £74,000 a week

Alessio Romagnoli is another quality AC Milan prospect. He has made 95 appearances for the club already, scoring three times, and has been capped eight times by Italy.

In FIFA 19 Romagnoli is already a very good defender. His defensive stats are strong (88 marking, 84 stand tackle, 84 interceptions) taking him to an overall of 82 with a potential of 89. The centre half will cost £44.3 million and wages of £74,000 a week. 

Daniele Rugani (OVR 82 - POT 86)

Age: 23

Positions: CB

Club: Juventus

Work rate: Low/Medium

Best stats: 87 marking, 86 stand tackle, 86 interceptions

Cost: £37.2 million (release clause)

Wage: £83,000 a week

Daniele Rugani has been with Juventus for his entire career, though he was loaned out to Empoli from 2013 to 2015. He has made 55 appearances for the Turin club, as well as seven for Italy.

Rugani is another quality player from day one on the game. An excellent defender (87 marking, 86, stand tackle, 86 interceptions, 82 slide tackle) he is also strong in the air (81 jumping, 80 heading accuracy) and has good physicality (79 strength). 

Federico Chiesa (OVR 78 - POT 87)

Age: 20

Positions: RW, CF

Club: Fiorentina

Work rate: Medium/High

Best stats: 86 agility, 86 acceleration, 84 sprint speed

Cost: £26.8 million (release clause)

Wage: £44,000 a week

Federico Chiesa has been with Fiorentina for his whole career, making his senior debut with the team in 2016. He has already scored 11 times for his club and won 7 caps with Italy.

Chiesa is terrific athlete with very good pace (86 acceleration, 84 sprint speed). He is also good with the ball at his feet (83 dribbling, 80 ball control) and is a solid passer already (75 short pass).

Bryan Cristante (OVR 78 - POT 86)

Age: 23

Positions: CM, CAM

Club: Roma

Work rate: Medium/Medium

Best stats: 83 short pass, 81 ball control, 78 dribbling

Cost: £12.3 million

Wage: £24,000 a week

Bryan Cristante began his career with AC Milan and made his senior debut for them in 2011 at just 16 years old. He made a move to Benfica in 2014 but rarely played for them. He's now with Atalanta but on loan at Roma. He has made 5 appearances for Italy, but is yet to score for his country at the highest level.

Cristante is great on the ball (81 ball control, 78 dribbling) and is a solid passer (83 short pass, 78 long pass). He isn't up to much defensively (70 marking, 69 stand tackle, 66 slide tackle), but going forward he is a superb player already and has a lot of room for growth too.

Lorenzo Pellegrini (OVR 78 - POT 84)

Age: 22

Positions: CM

Club: Roma

Work rate: Medium/Medium

Best stats: 82 short pass, 79 ball control, 79 long pass

Cost: £23.4 million (release clause)

Wage: £47,000 a week

Lorenzo Pellegrini started his career with Roma but moved to Sassuolo in 2015. He made 47 appearances before moving back to Roma in 2017. He is now a fixture in the senior squad and has won 7 caps for Italy.

He is a good passer (82 short pass, 79 long pass) and a solid tackler (74 stand tackle, 72 slide tackle, 70 interceptions) making him a very good centre midfielder for any team. He has reasonable pace (77 acceleration, 74 sprint speed) and stamina (76). He can immediately step into a lot of sides and contribute, and will only improve as time goes on. 

Domenico Berardi (OVR 78 - POT 83)

Age: 23

Positions: RW, ST

Club: Sassuolo

Work rate: High/Medium

Best stats: 87 agility, 85 ball control, 83 shot power

Cost: £20.4 million

Wage: £46,000 a week

Domenico Berardi joined Sassuolo in 2010 and made his debut for them in 2012. He has played 182 games for them and scored 60 times. He won his first cap for Italy this year.

Berardi is a very good forward in FIFA 19. He has good pace (79 sprint speed, 79 acceleration) and can play others in well (76 crossing, 75 short pass, 75 long pass) whilst also finish himself (83 shot power, 79 long shots, 74 finishing). He's an extremely well-rounded player with few weaknesses and a lot of scope for improvement.

Patrick Cutrone (OVR 77 - POT 89)

Age: 20

Positions: ST

Club: AC Milan

Work rate: High/Medium

Best stats: 80 finishing, 80 positioning, 77 sprint speed

Cost: £24.8 million

Wage: £63,000 a week

Patrick Cutrone has been with AC Milan for his whole career. He made his senior debut with the team in 2017 and to date has scored 11 times in 33 appearances. He also won his first cap with Italy this year.

The 20-year-old is a solid striker with a very high ceiling. He is already good in front of goal (80 finishing, 74 shot power, 72 composure) and has decent pace to make last-minute runs (77 sprint speed, 75 acceleration). He is physical (74 strength, 72 stamina) and good on the ball too (76 ball control, 74 dribbling). He isn't quite a complete striker yet, but with development Cutrone could be one of the best player in the world.

Davide Calabria (OVR 77 - POT 87)

Age: 21

Positions: RB

Club: AC Milan

Work rate: Medium/Medium

Best stats: 83 agility, 81 stamina, 81 acceleration

Cost: £18.6 million

Wage: £51,000 a week

Davide Calabria has been with AC Milan since 2006 and made his debut with the team in 2015. He has made 46 appearances for Milan so far and scored twice. He's also reached the U21 Italy side and played for them 15 times.

In FIFA 19 Calabria is a good athlete (83 agility, 81 stamina, 81 acceleration) who can get up and down the flank all day long. He is a good defender already (78 marking, 77 stand tackle, 77 slide tackle, 76 interceptions) and can whip a good ball into the box (78 crossing). He has the potential to be a very good player in the near future.

Marco Benassi (OVR 77 - POT 82)

Age: 23

Positions: CM

Club: Fiorentina

Work rate: High/Medium

Best stats: 80 shot power, 80 short pass, 79 stamina 

Cost: £15.3 million

Wage: £44,000 a week

Marco Benassi started his career at Inter Milan, and made his senior debut with them in 2012. He then moved to Torino in 2014 and had a successful spell with them before joining Fiorentina in 2017 and becoming a vital part of their first team.

Benassi is a solid passer (80 short pass, 76 long pass) and pretty good without the ball too (74 stand tackle, 72 interceptions, 71 marking). His well-rounded nature means he can fulfil a number of roles for a team immediately, and he has room for growth too.

All the best Italian wonderkids on FIFA 19