Garang Kuol - Australia
Following his heavily publicised transfer to Premier League side Newcastle United taking effect from January 2023, Socceroos fans will surely struggle to remember a more momentous rise to prominence in such a short period of time.
Upon joining Central Coast Mariners Academy just over 18 months ago, the forward took less than a year to make his senior debut, in which he scored seven minutes after coming on in a 6-0 FFA Cup victory back in December.
The 18-year-old also scored on his A-League Men debut in February and netted three more times from eight other first team appearances, earning a call-up to the A-League All Stars where he wreaked havoc on Barcelona's defence at the May exhibition match.
Kuol proved that he was far from 'boring' upon his national team selection last month when he joked at a press conference about being picked in the Socceroos squad before his older brother, Alou.
His debut in the second of two friendlies against New Zealand saw him make a spellbinding run down the right wing, almost resulting in yet another debut goal but proving enough to secure his lucrative move to Newcastle just four days later.
While Kuol has seemingly done more than enough to raise his hand for selection in Qatar, the matter of whether he will start, appear off the bench or go unused in the November tournament lies completely in Graham Arnold's hands. However, the unbelievable career trajectory which the teenager has taken thus far could result in the former happening, come their tournament opener against France.
Pedri - Spain
The versatile midfielder has been one of Barcelona's shining lights since joining from Las Palmas during the 2020 summer transfer window.
Debuting for the club at the age of 17, Pedri quickly became a mainstay in the Barca side, going on to make 37 league appearances in his first season and netting three goals, in addition to scoring on his UEFA Champions League debut in October 2020.
The technically-gifted player earned his first call-up to the senior Spanish side in March the following year, playing a total of 10 matches in the first team as well as taking part in the Olympics squad primarily consisting of U23 players.
An injury-riddled 2021-22 season, which saw him make just 12 league appearances, has since been followed by a strong showing to begin the current La Liga season and four more appearances for Spain, although he is yet to score for La Roja. However, if Pedri continues to bring his club form to international football, a maiden goal for his country would seem imminent come November.
Jude Bellingham - England
Amid growing transfer rumours, with Bellingham being closely linked with Liverpool, Manchester United and Real Madrid, his stellar club form with Borussia Dortumund over the past three seasons has shown why the midfielder became the most expensive 17-year-old in history upon signing for them in 2020.
After being the youngest senior debutante at his former club, Birmingham City, Bellingham continued to smash similar records in Germany when he became the youngest ever goalscorer in the DFB Pokal on his first team debut in September 2020 and became the youngest ever player to start a Champions League match the following month.
After earning his first senior call-up to the England side in November 2020, Bellingham was a key contributor off the bench in England's narrow failure to claim the Euro 2020 title. He has now made 17 senior appearances to date.
You would not need to look any further for the midfielder's maturity than the past weekend when he captained the Dortmund side during his 101st appearance. It is easy to forget that he's only 19!
Rafael Leão - Portugal
After breaking through the Sporting CP youth system in true Cristiano Ronaldo-like fashion, Leão made his Primeira Liga debut at 18 years of age but quickly moved on to Ligue 1 side Lille ahead of the 2018-19 season. A messy exit from the Lisbon club was sparked by an alleged fan incident at training and compounded by the club claiming the €45 million of his release clause.
However, the forward put the off-field drama firmly behind him when he scored eight times across 24 appearances in his breakout season which earned him a €35 million, five-year contract at AC Milan ahead of the following season.
Being a tall, lean and particularly dynamic player, Leão quickly drew comparisons to Kylian Mbappe, Thierry Henry and his much-older compatriot in Ronaldo when he quickly found his feet at the Italian club, netting six goals in each of his first two seasons and an astonishing 11 in his third, taking out the golden boot race in the latter alongside teammate Olivier Giroud.
Upon opening his current account in Serie A with four goals across seven games, it is surely only a matter of time before the 23-year-old finds the back of the net for his country, as the World Cup will surely provide the perfect backdrop for becoming a household name.
Gavi - Spain
The Barcelona junior stunned La Liga onlookers when he made his first team debut at the age of 17, but surprised few when he went on to make 34 appearances last season, being dubbed the new Xavi for his sharp passes, vision and intelligence in central midfield.
Just six weeks after debuting in his breakout season, Gavi earned a surprise call-up to the senior Spanish team, making him the country's youngest ever debutante and, in his eighth senior appearance, goalscorer when netted against Czech Republic in a Nations League match in June.
In the midst of a Spanish squad full of fast-rising young talent, the teenager could very well rise above them all as the young star of the 2022 finals.
Jamal Musiala - Germany
Before switching allegiances to Germany when he made his senior international debut for them last year, Musiala represented both England and Germany at youth level. The player spent 12 months and nine years in Southampton and Chelsea's junior set-ups respectively, before making his way to Bayern Munich in 2019.
The versatile attacking player made his first appearance for the club in a 3. Liga match for the second team, before making his Bundesliga debut less than three weeks later as the youngest player ever to play for Bayern.
Musiala continued to break records for both club and country, including when he became Bayern's youngest ever goalscorer in September 2020 and became the youngest player to appear in a major tournament for Germany, when he came off the bench in a group match against Hungary at Euro 2020 to set-up Leon Goretzka's equalizer which sent them through to the Round of 16.
While the youngster may have difficulty getting regular game time in Qatar, his extraordinary achievements for a player at just 19 years of age will surely not go unnoticed by Hansi Flick, who is likely to use the utility in some capacity.
Phil Foden - England
Despite being only 22 years of age, Foden's list of achievements at club level read like a player nearing retirement.
That is just how much Foden has accomplished in his short career, already being a four-time Premier League winner, three-time EFL Cup winner as well as having taken out both the Premier League and PFA player of the season titles twice on each occasion.
Described by Manchester City head coach Pep Guardiola in 2019 as the "most talented player I have ever seen in my career as a manager," Foden debuted for England in September 2020 while helping himself to a brace just two months later in a Nations League match against Iceland.
With the Qatar tournament almost certain to add to Foden's 18 senior appearances for England to date, it appears that his prosperous career is just getting started.
Ansu Fati - Spain
The Barcelona striker could prove lethal at the 2022 finals if his recent appearances at club level are anything to go by.
In the second match of the La Liga season, the 19-year-old provided an extraordinary one goal and two assists in the form of a 26-minute cameo off the bench in Barcelona's 4-1 victory over Real Sociedad.
The match was a reminder of Fati's world-class potential after a horror run of injuries that saw him make only 17 appearances across the previous two seasons in La Liga.
While the pacey attacker has played only four times for Spain since his senior international debut in 2020, the form from his stellar seven-goal debut season at Barca that he has since recovered will surely be a decisive factor in Luis Enrique's squad selection ahead of the tournament in Qatar.
Aurélien Tchouaméni - France
The holding midfielder of Cameroonian descent burst onto the scene for Bordeaux in the 2018-19 season, where his combination of tough and defensive attributes as well as creativity in the final third quickly became apparent upon his 16 appearances.
During his next season for the club, in which he played 15 league matches, Tchouaméni made the switch to Ligue 1 rivals Monaco during the winter transfer window where his maturity at a young age quickly showed en route to becoming a regular starter.
He went onto make 96 appearances and scored a total of eight goals for the club, before the 22-year-old signed a lucrative €80 million, six-year contract with Real Madrid.
Having appeared in six La Liga matches to date, Tchouaméni is expected to maintain his spot in Didier Deschamps' starting XI where he has often been situated since his making his senior international debut in September last year.
Antony - Brazil
Amid Brazil's incredible squad depth leading up to the 2022 finals, Antony will be competing with the likes of Neymar, Gabriel Jesus and fellow youngster, Vinicius Jr for a place in the Seleção forward line.
However, despite the potential difficulty in being selected, Antony appears well positioned for getting some game time in Qatar having already appeared 11 times and scoring two goals for the senior Brazilian side.
Antony's international debut last year came off the back of his incredible run of form with Ajax over his two seasons with the club, totalling 17 goals across his 53 league appearances.
While the forward has only made only two Premier League appearances since signing for Manchester United over the summer, he has scored in both, including memorably in his first match when the Reds went onto defeat league leaders Arsenal 3-1.
