We all know about Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappe, and Harry Kane and co, but which six younger players with less international experience are the ones to look out for over the next few weeks? Let’s find out.
Argentina’s next Messi, the classy Croatian defender who loves scoring, and England’s young attacking left-back make our short-list of lesser-known players who can have a big impact this tournament.
Nico Paz (Argentina)
Argentina has a rich history of talented, skilful, unpredictable Number 10s who can change the course of a match at any given moment with a perfectly weighted pass to split the defence, an outrageous turn, or a solo goal. Maradona, Di Maria, Messi… the list is a long one.
The latest off the production line is Nico Paz, who plays his football at Cesc Fabregas-managed Como in Serie A.
Paz left Real Madrid to join Como a couple of years ago in search of more playing time and seems to have made an excellent choice by moving there, helping them to their best-ever finish of fourth place this season, where he was voted as the club’s player of the year, scoring 13 times and coming up with plenty of assists.
He may have to wait for his turn with Argentina with more experienced players in the squad around him in that position, but when he gets his chance, expect him to impress.
Argentina are 10.0 to go on and defend their World Cup title.
Antonio Nusa (Norway)
The first clue this is something of a special player is that Nusa's nickname is the ‘Norwegian Neymar’. That should give you some idea as to the sort of player he is and how much is expected of him over the next few years.
However, while Neymar likes to occupy more central spaces just behind the main striker, Nusa is more comfortable on either wing and running at players with his raw pace and trickery, his key assets.
Seven goals in 56 appearances so far for Bundesliga side RB Leipzig is good rather than spectacular, and if he can add a few more goals to his game, he’ll be right up there with the likes of Yamine Lamal as one of Europe’s hottest attacking talents.
Norway is tipped by many to have a strong World Cup spearheaded by Premier League-based duo Erling Haaland and Martin Odegaard, but Nusa could be just as important as his more famous teammates in forward areas.
Nusa is 2.8 to score a goal in Norway’s opener against Iraq, with Norway 6.5 to win 2-0 and 7.5 to win 3-0.
Nico O’Reilly (England)
O'Reilly had an excellent season at Manchester City, scoring both goals in the League Cup final against Arsenal and also helping them win the FA Cup as well as securing a runner-up spot in the Premier League.
He mostly featured as an attacking left-back but also occasionally played in central midfield when City had a few injuries in that area. All in all, he played 57 matches this campaign, which included nine goals, excellent numbers given he mostly played as a defender.
So in one sense, he’s not such an under-the-radar player as that, but the truth is, he may not be so well-known to fans who don’t follow the Premier League too much, and despite being an almost certain starter for England at left-back at the World Cup, he’s only played three times for his country.
His pace and crossing from that left side will be a big asset to England in what has been something of a problem position for them over the years.
He’s 8.0 to score against Croatia, 3.75 to score or assist, while England are 1.7 to start with three points.
A big tournament from England could see O'Reilly being a lively contender for Young Player of the Tournament, where he’s currently 12.0 to win it.
Luka Vuskovic (Croatia)
He made his debut at just 15 and even then he already had some of the qualities that have made some of Europe’s biggest clubs- including Bayern Munich – sit up and take note: tall, quick, strong in the air, with excellent reading of the game and positioning, all key assets for a top-class central defender.
This season he was on loan at Hamburger SV from Tottenham, who probably wished they had him around this campaign as they struggled to beat relegation, only just managing it on the final day of the season.
And what a season he had. He won the Bundesliga Rookie of the Month award for both September and October, was named in the Bundesliga Team of the Season and ended the campaign with six goals, making him the highest-scoring defender in the league, goalscoring being yet another string to his bow.
This isn’t the best Croatia side we’ve ever seen, so they’ll need plenty of big performances from him if they’re to go deep, starting against England.
He’s a big 15.0 to score a goal while he’s also 6.0 to commit three or more fouls in the match. It’s 3.7 that Croatia can get a draw here, which would be seen as a positive result.
Obed Vargas (Mexico)
Mexican international Vargas moved to Atletico Madrid in the January transfer window of 2026 and has already progressed under the tutelage of the great Diego Simeone.
He’s a classic Number 8, combining energy and aggression when it comes to winning the ball with measured passing and good vision. He has both defensive and offensive responsibilities in the middle of the pitch.
He’s still only 20 and has only featured 12 times for Atletico this season as he continues his evolution, but he’s already been earmarked as a key player for one of the three host nations, and he’s the sort of player Mexico will look to build the team around for years to come.
That said, he’s not an automatic starter just now as Mexico may wish to go for players with a bit more international experience under their belts to begin with, but could be extremely important coming off the bench in hot and humid conditions, and may get his chance from the start if injuries, suspensions, fatigue kick in.
Mexico are 1.36 to beat South Africa in their first match and 1.7 to win a group also including Czechia and South Korea.
Rayan (Brazil)
As ever, Brazil’s forwards at the World Cup read like a ‘who’s who’ of top international attacking talent and include Real Madrid star Vinicius Jr, Manchester United playmaker Matheus Cunha, Barca winger Raphinha, Brentford goal machine Igor Thiago and veteran Neymar, who was somewhat controversially picked despite struggling with injuries and fitness concerns for most of the season.
But Bournemouth’s Rayan offers something a bit different. Not only can he operate from both the right and the middle, but he’s up there with the quickest Brazilian players who will be at the World Cup and can offer a more direct approach.
Rayan only joined Bournemouth in the January transfer window but made an immediate impact, becoming just the third teenager in the history of the Premier League to score or assist in each of his first three appearances. Eventually, he scored five goals from just 13 starts as Bournemouth had a superb campaign.
It says something about his potential that he was preferred in the squad to Chelsea’s more experienced Joao Pedro but it’s proof that manager Carlo Ancelotti thinks Rayan thinks the Bournemouth man has unique skills that complement those of other players in the squad.
Brazil are 5.0 to win the World Cup, 3.2 to make the final and 2.0 to make the quarter-finals, while also being 1.57 to beat Morocco first up. A Brazil win with both teams scoring is 3.5.
You can get huge odds of 50.0 that Rayan is voted Young Player of the Tournament.
