Serbian footballers Cvetković and Kostov rank among world's most valuable young talents

Two Serbian footballers, Mihajlo Cvetković and Vasilije Kostov, have been identified as some of the most valuable young players globally who do not yet play in Europe’s top five leagues.

According to research by the CIES Football Observatory, Anderlecht attacker Mihajlo Cvetković is ranked ninth on a list of players under 20, with an estimated transfer value of 28.8 million euros. Vasilije Kostov, playing for Crvena zvezda, is ranked 13th with a valuation of approximately 24 to 25 million euros.

Other top-ranked young talents include Porto’s Oskar Pjetuševski, valued at 56.3 million euros, and Wolverhampton’s Mateus Mane at 46.1 million euros. The CIES study highlights a global distribution of talent, noting that the MLS has the highest representation among the top 100 players outside the top five leagues with 13 representatives.