Welcome to the most detailed and comprehensive Football Manager 2012 ultimate best player list. The table below contains every single player FMS Scout has written a profile on. Not only can you order the table by any category (eg asking price or position) but you can also search using key words to narrow your options. Type what you’re after in the empty box next to ‘search’ but remember it will only search under words and numbers within the table. You could for instance type in 18 to see all the players that are 18 years old. Alternatively type in a position or players name to see what we’ve got. If that’s not enough, click on the players name to see their massive FM 2012 player profile and find all you need to know along with our best buy rating and a future profile from 2017 or 2019. This Football Manager 2012 ultimate best player list will grow continuously.
Please note that all profiles have been updated with details taken from patch 12.2 on the 26/03/2012.
| Player Name | Position | Asking Price (million GBP) | Age | Club | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Moura, Lucas | AMC/AMRL/ML | 53 | 18 | Sao Paulo |  |
| Hazard, Eden | AMC/CM/AML | 35 | 20 | Lille | |
| Vrsaljko, Sime | DR/WBR/DMC | 1.0 | 19 | Dinamo | |
| Strootman, Kevin | CM | 5.5 | 21 | PSV | |
| Fierro, Carlos | ST | 1.2 | 16 | Chivas | |
| Sigurdsson, Gylfi | AMC | 9.0 | 21 | Hoffenheim | |
| Hulk | AMRL/ST | 29 | 24 | Porto | |
| Willian | AMC/CM/AMRL | 10.5 | 22 | Shakhtar | |
| Valencia, Joel | AMR/MRC/AMC | 0.9 | 16 | Zaragoza | |
| Hamsik, Marek | CM/AMC | 29 | 23 | Napoli | |
| Kovacic, Mateo | AMC/CM | 3.8 | 17 | Dinamo | |
| Kara | DC/DMC/CM | 1.0 | 21 | Tromso | |
| Zouma, Kurt | DC | 12 | 16 | Saint-Etienne | |
| Sanogo, Yaya | ST | 2.5 | 18 | Auxerre | |
| Badelj, Milan | CM/AMC/DMC | 3.6 | 22 | Dinamo | |
| Marin, Marko | AML/AMRC/ST | 11.7 | 22 | Werder Bremen | |
| Neymar | ST/AMLC | 84 | 19 | Santos | |
| Gotze, Mario | AML/AMRC | 75 | 19 | B. Dortmund | |
| Papadopoulos, Kyriakos | DC/DMC | 38.5 | 19 | Schalke | |
| Rafinha | AMC/CM/ST | 28.5 | 18 | Barcelona |  |
| Romulo | DMC/CM | 8.7 | 20 | Vasco | |
| Torres, Erick | AMC/ST | 3.7 | 18 | Chivas | |
| Jenssen, Ruben Yttergard | CM | 1.0 | 23 | Tromso | |
| Yarmolenko, Andriy | AML/ST | 8.7 | 21 | Dinamo Kyiv | |
| Boyata, Dedryck | DC | 15 | 20 | Man City | |
| Kroos, Toni | CM/AMLC | N/A | 21 | FC Bayern | |
| Teixeira, Alex | AMC/CM/AMRL | 4.2 | 19 | Shakhtar | |
| Prestia, Giuseppe | DC | 1.3 | 17 | Palermo | |
| Kadlec, Vaclav | ST/AML | 4.1 | 19 | Sparta Prague | |
| Weiss, Vladimir | AMR/MRLC/AMC | 15.5 | 21 | Man City | |
| Kvekveskiri, Nika | DR/DC/DMC/MR | 0.8 | 19 | D. Tbilisi | |
| Kameni, Carlos | GK | 5.2 | 27 | Malaga | |
| Corchia, Sebastien | DR/WBR | 23.5 | 20 | Sochaux | |
| Damiao, Leandro | ST | 57 | 21 | Internacional | |
| Rodriguez, James | AMC/AML/ML | 19 | 19 | Porto | |
| Bertolacci, Andrea | CM/DMC/AMC | 2.0 | 20 | Roma | |
| Ayew, Andre | CM/ML/AML | 15.7 | 21 | Marseille | |
| Nkoulou, Nicolas | DC/DMC | 10 | 21 | Marseille | |
| Ayew, Jordan | ST/AMR | 4.9 | 19 | Marseille | |
| Muniain, Iker | ST/AMCL | 21 | 18 | Athletic | |
| Costa, Douglas | AMR/MRC/AMLC | 19 | 20 | Shakhtar | |
| Poli, Andrea | CM | N/A | 21 | Sampdoria | |
| Anderson, Felipe | CM/AMC | 5.2 | 18 | Santos | |
| Gaitan, Nicolas | AMRL/AMC | 14.5 | 23 | Benfica | |
| Sandro, Alex | DL/WBL | 18.2 | 20 | Porto | |
| Romario | DR/WBR | 0.6 | 17 | Vitoria | |
| Alderweireld, Toby | DC | 4.2 | 22 | Ajax | |
| Allen, Joe | CM | 5.5 | 21 | Swansea | |
| Doumbia, Seydou | ST | 17.5 | 23 | CSKA Moscow | |
| Isco | AMC/CM | 17.5 | 19 | Malaga | |
| Rakitskyi, Yaroslav | DC/DL/DMC | 5.0 | 21 | Shakhtar | |
| Dzagoev, Alan | AMC/CM | 5.0 | 21 | CSKA Moscow | |
| Guilherme, Luis | GK | 0.3 | 19 | Botafogo | |
| Gutierrez, Felipe | ML/CM/AMC | 1.8 | 20 | U. Catolica | |
| Oliveira, Nelson | ST | 4.4 | 19 | Benfica | |
| Niang, Mbaye | ST | 12.5 | 16 | Stade Caen | |
| M'Vila, Yann | DMC | 27.5 | 21 | Rennes | |
| Chalobah, Nathaniel | DC/DMC | 13.5 | 16 | Chelsea | |
| Torje, Gabriel | AMR/MR/AMC | 7.2 | 21 | Udinese | |
| Jali, Andile | DMC/CM | 0.3 | 21 | Orlando Pirates | |
| Robinson, Jack | DL | 36.5 | 17 | Liverpool |  |
| Ganso | AMC/CM | 71 | 21 | Santos | |
| Barkley, Ross | CM | 18 | 17 | Everton | |
| Marc-Andre ter Stegen | GK | 20.5 | 19 | Gladbach | |
| Coulibaly, Souleymane | ST | 2.0 | 16 | Tottenham | |
| Pogba, Paul | CM | 21.5 | 18 | Man Utd | |
| Nainggolan, Radja | CM/AMC/DMC | 13.5 | 23 | Cagliari | |
| Kakuta, Gael | AMC/AMRL | 23.5 | 20 | Chelsea | |
| Vass, Adam | DMC/CM | 0.6 | 22 | Brescia | |
| Thiago | AMC/CM | 63 | 20 | Barcelona | |
| Jano | AMC/CM/AML | 13 | 18 | Spartak M. | |
| Howedes, Benedikt | DC | 17.7 | 23 | Schalke | |
| Aurier, Serge | DR/DL/WBRL | 14 | 18 | Toulouse | |
| Alaba, David | CM/ML | 28 | 19 | Bayern | |
| Villanueva, Carlos | AMC/ST | 1.5 | 25 | Al-Shabab | |
| Toloi, Rafael | DC | 9.2 | 20 | Goias | |
| Shaqiri, Xherdan | AMR/MRL/AML | N/A | 19 | Basel | |
| Sam, Sidney | AMR/AML/ST | 6.5 | 23 | Leverkusan | |
| Witsel, Axel | CM | 18.7 | 22 | Benfica | |
| Wijnaldum, Georginio | AMC/MRLC/AMRL | 8.5 | 20 | PSV | |
| Fleck, John | AMC/MLC | 2.2 | 19 | Rangers | |
| Inkoom, Samuel | DR/WBR | 7.7 | 22 | Dnipro | |
| Nangis, Lenny | AMRL | 7.5 | 17 | Stade Caen | |
| Demirci, Muhammed | AMC/AMRL | 1.7 | 16 | Besiktas | |
| Stepanenko, Taras | DMC | 3.7 | 21 | Shakhtar | |
| Xulu, Siyanda | DC | 0.2 | 19 | Sundowns | |
| Konoplyanka, Eugene | AML/ML/ST | 8.5 | 21 | Dnipro | |
| Ekdal, Albin | CM/AMC | 5.6 | 21 | Cagliari/Juve | |
| Moutinho, Joao | CM | 23.5 | 23 | Porto | |
| Eriksen, Christian | AMC/CM | 21 | 19 | Ajax | |
| Miranda, Roderick | DC | 0.8 | 20 | Benfica | |
| Oscar | AMC/CM/AMR | 35.5 | 19 | Internacional | |
| Branescu, Laurentiu | GK | 0.9 | 17 | Juventus | |
| Collison, Jack | CM/MRL | 4.5 | 22 | West Ham | |
| Toro, Sebastian | DC/DR | 1.1 | 21 | Colo Colo | |
| Garcia, Javi | DMC | 8.7 | 24 | Benfica | |
| Montoya, Martin | DR/WBR | 6.5 | 20 | Barcelona | |
| Ekici, Mehmet | CM/AMC | 8.5 | 21 | Werder Bremen | |
| Kana-Biyik, Jean-Armel | DC | 3.7 | 22 | Rennais | |
| Griezmann, Antoine | AML/AMC | 21 | 20 | R. Sociedad | |
| Sarabia, Pablo | AML/MCL/AMC | 32 | 19 | Getafe | |
| Sterling, Raheem | AMR/AML | 11.7 | 16 | Liverpool | |
| Pajot, Vincent | CM/DMC | 2.2 | 20 | Stade Rennais | |
| Crisetig, Lorenzo | DMC/CM | 0.8 | 18 | Inter Milan | |
| Ramirez, Gaston | AML/AMRC | 40.5 | 20 | Bologna | |
| Wilson, Danny | DC | 12.8 | 19 | Liverpool |  |
| Wilfried | ST | 20 | 22 | Vitesse | |
| Mendy, Nampalys | DMC/CM | 1.5 | 19 | Monaco | |
| Traore, Lacina | ST | 7.0 | 19 | Kuban | |
| Rojo, Marcos | DL/DC/WBL | 6.7 | 21 | Spartak Moscow | |
| Leandro | ST/AMRLC | 8.8 | 18 | Gremio | |
| Sakho, Mamadou | DC | 58 | 21 | PSG | |
| Benitez, Christian | ST | 11 | 25 | America (MEX) | |
| El-Kaoutari, Abdel | DC/DL/WBL | 2.9 | 21 | Montpellier | |
| Heung-Min, Son | ST/AMRC | 37.5 | 18 | HSV | |
| Lodeiro, Nicolas | AMC/CM | 4.2 | 21 | Ajax | |
| Papastathopoulos, Sokratis | DC/DR | N/A | 23 | Genoa | |
| Nestor, Loic | DC | 0.8 | 22 | Le Havre | |
| Camacho, Ignacio | DMC/CM | 17.5 | 21 | Malaga | |
| Martins, Anderson | DC/SW | 1.9 | 23 | Al-Jaish | |
| Sammir | AMC/CM | 3.5 | 24 | Dinamo | |
| Belhanda, Younes | AMC/MRC/AMR | 19.5 | 21 | Montpellier | |
| Alcacer, Paco | ST | 8.8 | 17 | Valencia | |
| Vossen, Jelle | ST | 1.9 | 23 | Genk | |
| Zieler, Ron-Robert | GK | 15.5 | 22 | Hannover | |
| Brahimi, Yacine | AMC/CM/AMRL | 3.3 | 21 | Rennais | |
| Roberto, Sergi | CM/AMC | 6.0 | 19 | Barcelona | |
| Green, Robert | GK | 6.0 | 31 | West Ham |  |
| Casemiro | DMC/CM | 26.5 | 19 | Sao Paulo | |
| Soukouna, Ahmed | ST/AMR | 0 | 21 | Free agent | |
| Kweuke, Leonard | ST | 2.2 | 23 | S. Prague | |
| Boka, Arthur | DL | 1.3 | 28 | Stuttgart | |
| Verratti, Marco | DMC/CM/AMC | 2.5 | 18 | Pescara | |
| Tshabalala, Siphiwe | AML/ML/CM/AMC | 0.4 | 26 | Kaizer Chiefs | |
| Vermeer, Kenneth | GK | 6.5 | 25 | Ajax | |
| Ostrzolek, Matthias | DL | 1.9 | 21 | Augsburg | |
| Courtois, Thibaut | GK | 55 | 19 | Chelsea |  |
| Rodriguez, Ricardo* | DL | 63 | 18 | Werder Bremen |  |
| Holtby, Lewis | AMC/AML/MCL | 42.5 | 20 | Schalke | |
any chance of seeing how marco verratti turns out?value of £1m, have to pay £2.5 to get him but signed on last few games and wondered how much of a bargin he will be for me this time.
No problem mate, I’ll do you a profile this weekend so check the home page this Saturday and Sunday.
can you make one on phil jones because for me he is the best defender in the game he wins every tackle and header
He is just far too expensive unfortunately and near impossible to buy.
hi darren could you check up wallace from flamengo
He’s not very good to be honest and never progressed in any of my saves.
i bought him for 2.5 mill and he is lightly said AAAAAAWWEEEESOMEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!
Yeah he’s a good player but will never reach the level he did in FM10.
whilst he wont reach FM10 levels Verratti is proving a great buy again.2.5@ start of season ive just passed jan window and refused bids of £7m, £8m & £9m from man utd.probs helps that my newcastle team are somehow still top of league and 5 points clear
Sounds great at that then…a good indicator of a players talent is when big clubs start bidding
i buy him from pescara for barcelona 2.5….tutor by messi xavi and iniesta…after 2nd season play regularly…3rd season becoming cultured midfielder….yeahhhhh….hehehehe…although he really does not like his development at 2010 ….but still…the new xavi for me…hehehehe…avrage game…7.2+…..lol
Well if you get past four seasons I’d love a screenshot of his profile and career history to feature here if its better than what we already have.
why cant i find verratti
It will be one of two things, either you don’t have the Italian league loaded or you have a small database loaded.
Verratti turns out very well on the game. Currently got a transfer value of about £10 million on my West Ham game 4-5 years in. Brilliant in AMC.
Yeah he does look good in some saves I’ve seen, just a shame he isn’t to the standard of a few years ago.
Well, what about Danny Welbeck? man he is a great backup for MUFC
And i m not seeing Cavani from Napoli, one of the best Strikers of the match
45goals per season!
Welbeck has not developed in more than six of my saves so safe to say he isn’t worth a profile and as for Cavani, while he is amazing I am waiting to see a save where he hits his best before I provide a profile because of his price tag.
i have cavani darren…he is pure class! ive had him for 4 seasons with man utd and everyone season he has scored 30+ and most assists can u get the profile of (vadillo he plays for betis B)
Both will get a profile at some point.
hey great list darren!just wondering what do you do with young players who arnt good enough for first team, leave in squad or send on loan?when i sent sanogo out on loan he didnt improve at all!
also could you scout felipe anderson, just signed him!
Thanks Chris! When it comes to youngsters you need to loan them out to good clubs, with good facilities and that will offer first team football. I’d suggest that loaning out more than two leagues below the one your in isn’t worth while. Here is my guide that goes into detail. http://www.footballmanagerstory.com/2011/08/football-manager-2011-guide-how-to-develop-youth-and-turn-prospects-into-stars/ I have almost done Andersons profile mate, I’ll publish it tomorrow.
Valcav Kadlec?…a fav for my west ham team in FM11…will there be a profile on him soon?
There will be one on Kadlec mate, just need to get a few more defenders on the lists first.
If its defenders you want I can think of a few, I expect I shall be able to get some reports done this week and week-end so I’ll try and find some.
I’ve managed to include two new ones since then but you are more than welcome to have a go also….its the cheap players that are tough to find in my opinion because I only look for top quality.
Man Utds back line is an enviable future defence…maybe a bit obvious
Da Silva Twins…Phil Jones and Smalling….
Sam Magri of pompey looks decent…dont know how he progress tho…
Problem with Man Utd’s back line is they wouldn’t move anywhere and Fergie would demand daft cash so they’re a no go. Its just tough to find top class defenders at a low price.
Hey, could you scout “Erick Torres” for me.
Signed him a few days ago. He’s immense! Wont stop scoring.
No problem mate, I’ll have it up on Friday but know he’s incredible so you should look forward to seeing him in 2019.
love the website guys
any chance though of seeing babacar from fiorentina??? he was a monster for me on fm11 with the arsenal
Thanks Stuart, unfortunately Babacar isn’t on the scouting network for a reason, he’s very average this year and doesn’t get anywhere near the ability of last year. If I see any different I’ll post him up mate.
Hey, I found a second guy that looks immense that you don’t have on here…Name is “Tiago Ilori”. He’s a central defender.
He starts with Sporting. He currently is 4 stars for me and is a rock in my defence. A truly amazing player. Definitely worth looking at.
Yeah he does look pretty good but I’m not sure how far he could develop. That determination and work rate is a little worry and from my future save he doesn’t play much and falls behind as a result. I’ll keep tabs on him within my Malaga game and do a profile when I have a reasonable future profile of him. Thanks for the recommendation mate.
take a look at Griezmann at Real Sociedad hes a wonderkid, helping me sit 4th in spanish premier with a team that had media place them 18th at the start of the season!
Yeah I’ve been keeping tabs on him, he’s a little pricey but well worth the fee. I’m just waiting until I’ve done the cheaper players then will move onto him.
Cheers for the recommendation.
After all the cheap players are done any chance of a profile of Gabriel Torje from udinese, branded as next Messi but just wondered if he will hit those heights to make the original outlay of c£13m worth it.
Cheers and keep up the excellent work!!
Of course mate, I’ll get one done probably this weekend.
LEGEND
Lorenzo crisetig? got him for 550k from inter, could be a future midfield general! Also rafael toloi? ball-playing brazilian centre back.
Yep both very good players, I’ll try and get their profiles sorted.
darko lazovic hes a midfield wonderkid very cheap ive got him for my dormund team hes my top goal scorer he scored hat-rick againt ac milan in europe for me
Thanks I’ll have a look.
Probs one that you know about but Branescu, young Romanian keeper from Juventus, just finished first season and signed him for £1.3m after some good displays and scouting reports. May not grow into world beater but any chance of profile to see if he has potential to be a top keeper or if he is just an average/good keeper (then i can go home and sack my scout as i never like to trust them!haahaa
He is a very good player mate and with first team football from the off can become world class. His rushing out is shocking and a real weakness but everything else develops excellently….don’t shoot your scout just yet lol
May be an obvious choice for some but I signed Douglas Costa for around £12 for Napoli. Player of the season behind Cavani. Great buy
He should be in the list already mate, unfortunately he didn’t develop well in my future save so isn’t rated too highly but I know he can get really good with the correct management.
Just thought i would mention a player i signed for rangers that was on a free transfer, Ahmed Soukouna, he is 21 and french. He scored 35 goals in his first season with me. He is always my first signing
Great mention indeed, Soukouna signs for Getafe in my game and scores a boat load….I didn’t profile him because I didn’t realise he’s available for free. Good find.
cheers for the profile on him
No problem
Could you check out Oscar from Internacional?
No problem mate I will do.
any chance we can see how enzo zidane turns out,16 @ real madrid at start of game,does become half as good as his dad?
Sorry mate he isn’t even worth profiling….I would be surprised to see him ever get above a relegation threatened second division side. Shame really.
nice list,
how about nathaniel chabolah, nathan ake, josh mceachran and romelu lukaku (chelsea). i am in 2016 and all of them are destroying the premiership
Out of them only Lukaku could be world class to be honest and maybe McEachran with a little luck. However I don’t think Lukaku is worth a profile because the only way of getting him (cash wise) is later in the game if he fails at Chelsea, but if he fails he won’t be half the player he could be anyway.
I have a save, where Nathaniel Chabaloah turns out world class, so you might want to revise that statement
I have three saves where Chabaloah turns out awful. I can only go off the information I have to hand. Having said that, if you want to provide me with his future profile and career stats I’d gladly make a profile around them…a lot of the time players don’t develop due to bad management or lack of first team football by the CPU.
Lukaku actually starts whining about first team football very early on. That’s how I got him from chelsea for 16 mil with 5mil extra after 30 apps. He’s developing very well. At the begining he doesn’t score much but once he settles he starts banging in hatricks on his day. at 21 he’s already had a higher goals/game than both chicharito and rooney. I just wish his determination or aggression were a bit higher, but I guess you can’t have it all.
Yeah, he is a good player but I feel for the money most gamers will pay he needs an outstanding future profile which I haven’t got just yet…when I or Karl do he’ll get profiled.
Iker Muniain? Javi Martinez? Jon Aurtenetxe? Perhaps Bilbao would want too much money for them?
I’m starting a Bilbao challenge and enjoying all of this talented youth at my disposal. Keep up the good work Darren and company! This list is ace when I can sign non-Basque players!
I have Muniain ready to publish from the weekend, Martinez will follow eventually but Jon Aurtenetxe just isn’t goo enough I’m afraid. Athletic do have some nice talents though.
Great list. How about Emre Can? I bought him on the cheap near the start of the game and he’s developing nicely
Thanks Chris, not sure if you noticed but every single player in the list has an in-depth profile when you click their name. This profile includes a screenshot of the players future stats and I can’t find a single save in which Can does well so while I’ve heard some hype I just can’t include him without the proof I’m afraid….but like I said I have heard people saying they think he has talent, its just whether he misses first team action when controlled by the CPU.
Hi Darren
I’m new to FM12 and was wondering if you could tell me which team would be best to start off with, as i am not sure.
Thanks
Jude
It depends on which country you want to manage in really and if you want a challenge. I’d say Newcastle would be good but that could be because I am a fan.
I would agree with Darren, Newcastle is a good challenge, bit of cash so need to spend wisely, but with a bit of luck you can do really well as the players are all good. I somehow managed to win the league in my first season, was greatly helped by Man U and City loosing some stupid games mind!
Hi Darren Ive read alot of your fm blogs and i must say you do your homework and everyone should be thankful of all the time and effort you put into providing the info you do so thanks mate….Could I ask a question what would be your ultimate starting lineup from all the info you have given?
Thanks mate, I appreciate the kind words. As for my favourite XI, well I’d have to think on that as it feels near impossible to pick….it would depend on a team, tactic and budget really.
Great list Darren! Can you profile Ganso? This guy looks really good on my save but i havent seen him on any lists on the internet so far
Yeah I’ll be doing Ganso….there’s so many cheap players out there I wanted to get them all first but starting to do the more expensive ones now.
hey darren, the list is great and has helped me out enormously. i would just like your personal opinion on picking between two players – Milan Badelj and Yann M’Vila. Im finishing season 1 off and was wandering which one you would recommend buying for season 2. cant afford both though. cheers
Glad to hear this has helped Yoni, I personally have a weak spot for Badelj but M’Vila. It depends on what you want, if Badelj hasn’t moved clubs he’ll be way cheaper but he is a technical player while M’Vila is like a bulldozer.
thanks so much for this! was also wandering what you thought of juanmi, felipe anderson and lorenzo tassi as potential wonderkids… cheers
Not much to be honest Juanmi and Tassi are good wonderkids but don’t turn worldclass while Anderson is hit ‘n’ miss….he must get game time.
thanks so much with helping me so far. i was also just wandering though what you thought of hervin ongenda… he is 16 and i think he turns out alright according to my scouts
I have checked Ongenda and there’s not much to go off as PSG left him to rot in the reserves….he could be a good player but I don’t see him been as good as the usual Niang, Fierro, Kadlec etc.
Ongenda is killing in my R.Madrid team. :O
He hasn’t developed in my game due to not been played at all…like seriously I don’t think he’s been given a single senior start.
Hi Darren,
Well done for this list … great job – keep updating as it’s great
I am trying to buy an AM. Actually I found list very useful … I though encountered with 3 AM which definetely should consider having in your list. Refer to underneath:
Ganso – Brazilian
Montillo – Argentinian
Wilshere – English
They all seem to be awesome prospective stars! I have though still undecided yet of which to buy so the update of the above would be much appreciated.
cheers
Johann
Thanks Johann, I’ll look at all of those names soon….Ganso is actually half done by the way, just needs publishing this week.
Heya,nice job u ‘ve done here,thanx.
i would like to ask u if uhave discovered “Asamoah Gyan” from Al-ain
Thanks for the the compliment, I’ve seen Gyan but won’t be doing a profile for now.
forget him,it was my bad !!
Darren, could you look at these two players for me?
Vid Belec
Rene Krhin
Would like to know how they develop after a couple of seasons.
Got Rene Krhin in my Bologna squad at the moment.
Both develop fairly well but don’t seem to have world class potential. I’d say they would suit as backup players for any top 4 sides at best.
I know he is “The Wonderkid” but would you mind doing a profile on Neymar. Does he get better than messi for example?
Thanks a lot!
No one on FM can touch Messi, most of the players that come close lack finishing which prevents them from hitting 30+ a season like Hazard, Gotze and Neymar. He is very good and I’ll try get a profile done but the asking price is just ridiculous….then again that is the case for many of the best players
Thanks a lot mate. Great website by the way. What about Alex Chamberlain from Arsenal?
No problem, unfortunately I tried to make a bid for Chamberlain and Arsenal rejected me all the way upto £120 million so I won’t be doing his profile until a newer update and his price tag dropping.
That is outrageous, when will you finish the neymar one then mate?
Yeah tell me about it, I got bored of making offers so just gave up
I’ll have Neymar done within 4 days but probably sooner.
hey there! first, i wanna thank you for compiling all these lists, i really needed some cheap central defenders for my team and the scouts were totally useless. second: I just wanted to say to keep an eye on messi. in one of my games (with Man City) his contract with Barca expired and agreed to come at City for the humble figure of… 0 pennies hahaha
but the salary was 300K euros/week, aside from appeareance fees and others so you’ll need to coach a team with similar payroll budget. cheers! PS: got him in 2016 
I have done around 4 saves and Messi has never been available for free but if he was under 30 years old and available for free I’d jump at the chance for sure.
Could you also do Marc-Andre ter Stegen, He’s the young German goalkeeper from Gladbach. He’s listed as a wonderkid on his profile on my save, was wondering how he turns out.
I’ve already done Stegen mate, there’s a lot of names I know but try typing Stegen in the search box just above the table and he will pop up.
what about azpilicueta??
I’ll get round to him soon mate, haven’t looked for right backs since finding three of the best at such a small price.
i just bought him for $7 mill after loan him first and he is looked good…
and your arsenal tactic just awesomeee for my milan game..
Thank a lot mate…
No problem Johny.
hey again
i was just wandering about an incredibly young kid markus muller…. he is 14. but my scouts say he will become 4 star worthy. i got the best scouts following your other report on the website. i was also wandering how paco alcacer ends up (18 years old). Also shinji kagawa. cheers 
I can’t find that kid I’m afraid mate, sounds like a regen to me. I have already profiled Alcacer and he is decent but very difficult to develop as I experienced with Malaga before selling. Kagawa is an excellent player and worth signing for the left wing as an inside forward.
what about sergey zubkov. plays for cska moscow
Sorry another player that I can’t find.
okay, i think this will be my last guy. but he is 15 years old and is meant to have potential of 4.5 stars. name is rui marques
Again I can’t see this guy in my game, chances are he’s a regen at that age which means he isn’t real.
Darren I have a couple more players for you to checkout for the future both from my Brescia save:
Bartosz Salamon (MC)
Nicola Leali (GK)
Would love to see how these two turn out after a couple of seasons
Sorry mate they aren’t good in terms of development so wouldn’t be worth entering into the list.
Great work mate! Can you do any profiles for some young english talent like Daniel Sturrdige, Danny Welbeck and Micah Richards?
I’ll only do the profiles if the players aren’t outrageously priced which most of those are in first season or if they are world class to warrant the price tag which those three aren’t.
Sorry mate missed a bit off this comment….if I find more time I will do profiles like these but only when others are done first. Cheers
Shame really because Barca are after both these two in real life……
Bartosz Salamon (MC)
Nicola Leali (labeled the next Buffon) (GK)
Really, I’m not keen on Salamon at all and while Leali is pretty good he shouldn’t be compared to Buffon through the eyes of FM anyway. Having said all that this tends to happen, FM have an opinion like any pundit does I guess.
NEYMAR!
Yeah I’ve just about finished Neymar’s profile.
Are Sandro and Christian Eriksen worthy of being on this list? Keep up the good work mate!
I reckon so yes, will get round to them eventually.
what about phil jones..mate??
He’s not on for the same reason as Chamberlain, both cost such an outrageous amount to buy from the start of a newly loaded game that I decided they’d be almost impossible to sign anyway.
thank mate…just bought him (2014-2015) for just $29 million..after i sold t.silva to barcelona for $55 million…
No problem.
sorry for my bad english..hee.
Darren. First of all, thanks for the site. It really helps me a lot. I have a question, what do u think about Andrea Poli & Emre Can?
Thanks Jeff. I don’t rate Can but that’s because I’m yet to see him hit any kind of potential however Poli is a very good player, I am waiting another season in game before writing his profile.
Ok. Thanks Darren. Looking forward to Poli’s profile
Can you make a profile for Pablo sarabia?
I’ve already been asked that one but he’s not developed in my save I’m afraid.
Any chance of a profile on Tim Krul, approaching the end of my 2nd season with Newcastle and Krul is my number one with Branescu my number 2, but as always looking to improve, im wondering if worth hanging on to Krul or cashing in and getting another keeper like Guilherme in the summer
Yeah that is quite a good idea, Krul looks like a top prospect in real life and starts fairly well on FM too so I’ll have a look.
great,look forward to it.he has done very well on my save wi almost 2 seasons as number 1 under his belt
and what about zakaria labyad?
I am waiting to see a good future profile mate, he has been up and down on game…I just want to do him justice, but will get there eventually.
Could you say who you’ve added every day or whenever you’ve updated it?
If you just check http://www.footballmanagerstory.com/scout every other day then that will show the latest profiles just below the slideshow. You can check the date on each post to see when it was done.
can you do a profile for yohan mollo?
thanks for the work btw
Thanks Kim, I will do a profile on Mollo, I just want to find the best future profile I can first.
how about jelle vossen from genk?
he’s a real bargain for me
he scored 10 goals on first season
Yeah he is good but the pace and acceleration can hold him back. I’ll take another look but feel he get swallowed up in this list.
How about Romelu Lukaku or Daniel Sturridge… can you do a profile for both of them please
Both good players but not worth a profile. When developed properly they are too expensive and the only reason they price would drop is when, like in my game, they haven’t developed that well.
Hi Darren just wandering if you have a profile on Miguel Medina, he is an 18 year old striker from paraguay and my United scout has him at four star potential so just wondering if he turns out good with proper training.
Not a good one I’m afraid, he’s played a but but only in the Real reserves so I wouldn’t say he isn’t good as I’d need to see a save where he’s played proper first team football.
alright hes not worth 10 million then is he? I’ll cancel my offer so thanks.
I wouldn’t say so mate, there’s a lot more options out there that are guaranteed success for the same price and less.
can you give me a few options? I got sanogo on a free and he is doing alright, Kadlec went to Chelsea so I can’t get him either. I dont have the mexican league on so I can’t get fierro,but will he come back do you know if I activate the mexican league again or will the game make new players for every club?
Firstly you don’t need the Mexican league loaded to see Fierro, I don’t have it. But you may need a medium database. However loading the Mexican league will mean you can see him for sure.
Thats fair enough, try Mikel San Jose (Athletic, CB)Ignacio Camacho (Malaga, DM) and Christian Eriksen (Ajax, CM)
San Jose hasn’t really hit an acceptable level in my game although he should with the right training, Camacho is probably more expensive than he should be but will get a profile while Eriksen will get done but I’m afraid his future profile won’t do him credit.
or Kevin De Bruyne (genk) – for some reason doesn’t always appear in the game for me, which is strange as I always have a large database loaded.
He doesn’t appear on my game I’m afraid.
Loving this scouting network…its really taking off now your focussing on this…altho i do like your malaga seasonal updates also…
just a quick mention of nassim ben khalifa (BSC Young Boys)…i have never signed him myself but three seasons in and hes destorying the prem for sunderland…how is he on ur save?
Thanks Tom, glad you’re enjoying this. I’ve checked Khalifa but can’t find him in my future save.
Yuri Mamute and Henrique Miranda are two wonderkids you can get for peanuts. Also Nkoulou and Kolbeinn Sigþórsson?
Thanks for the recommendations, I know the latter two of which I’m waiting for better future profiles to do them justice. Cheers.
No problem. I think it’s Yuto Mamute actually.
Sorry I didn’t mention the first two, while they look good and would develop faster if trained and played correctly they aren’t World Class on my game I’m afraid.
Yann M’Vila
Moussa Sissoko
Alex Chamberlain (I know his asking price is too much but you can just reduce his star quality if he is overpriced!)
M’Vila has already been done, Sissoko hasn’t developed in any of my saves yet so although I know he’s talented I don’t think its worth a profile until I can show his potential. As for Chamberlain at the start of the game I literally can’t sign him as Arsenal won’t accept any bids. Besides he hasn’t reached his potential in any of my saves so I’m waiting for him to do that. Thanks for the tips.
Oh well, keep up the good work!
good website darren helped me out big time. ive signed leigh griffiths from wolves on a free and he scores more goals than games every season for me. immense you should check him out. also i got marin lloris on a free at 15 yrs old and he is already in my startin line up and all the huge clubs wants him after only 6 games in. you should check him out too
Hei Darren. Thanks again for the site. quick question.
Will Arsenal’s Francis Coquelin & Alex Chamberlain develop into worldclass players?
Coquelin is decent but not World Class while Chamberlain is a little tougher to predict. When the CPU manages him he doesn’t play much until later on when its too late to develop. My prediction is that he’ll be world class if you manage him yourself and give appropriate amount of first team football. I can’t profile him as he hasn’t developed in any of my future profiles.
Ok, thanks Darren.
Btw, how about Wojiech Sczseny? Can he be WorldClass?
He could be but needs working on his throwing and composure.
darren. how about abel hernandez, junior hoilett, lucas digne, kyle walker and dede?
All ones that I’ll be taking a look at, most I already have in mind but just need to clear some off my list that have been lying around a while.
sure looking forward to more of your wonderful work !
Thanks Gordon, I’m trying my best to average one profile every other day so hopefully that should continue.
The sorting of the column with the stars in it doesn’t seem to work
I haven’t really kept up with Fm12 but got it for Christmas so I will be keeping up to date now
That column is an image so I can’t make it sortable. When you first enter the page it will be in order but as soon as you start changing the order of other columns you won’t be able to put it back in order by the star rating.
Ok, Thanks for replying
Hi Darren,
First of all great list and it is always a help when looking for someone. I have always wanted to sign Kara as every game i have played he is just immense. Anyway have you ever come across any of these players when playing? I have found them great additions to my Sampdoria save.
Giulio Donati (Inter)
Ravy Tsouka Dozi (FC Nantes)
Xherdan Shaqiri (FC Basle)
Kolbeinn Sigborsson (Ajax)
Thanks Tom, glad this has helped. As for the players mentioned, I am keeping an eye on Sigborsson, have already profiled Shaqiri in the list above, I can’t see Dozi and haven’t seen Donati improve into much.
Hi Darren, awesome list, congratz on it, has lots and lots of young talent that helped my atletico mardrid squad so far. I am curious tho, i see Alvaro Dominguez, Koke, Asenjo and Eduardo Salvio playing pretty well in my squad and growing steady in attributes. Any chance you could profile any of them. Would like to see what your opinion is of them, they seem as good talents to me.
Thanks Tibi, good to hear this has helped. As for the players mentioned, they are all very good. My problem like with many is that I don’t have an acceptable future profile to hand. Those guys can develop into world class talents but haven’t done so in my games due to the poor CPU management. If I find a good future profile for them then I will be able to do their profiles.
Hi mate great stuff, what about sergio canales. Is he worth a punt on the game
Canales is a good player and will get a profile eventually, in the mean time I can say he’s worth a bid.
thanks and can you recommend a cm, all rounded to replace song?
Yann M’Vila.
where is the download button??
What download button are you referring too?
Kevin Gameiro 2 seasons in row top goalscorer.
First of all, kudos for the ammount of effort put into the list!
I was wondering if you have something to say about Jean-Christophe Behabeck and Mapou Yanga Mbiwa. First one seems to be attracting buyers from Premier League already in first season. Mbiwa is like a super sub for me, can go anywhere in defense and he really delivers!
Thanks for the kind words. I do like Mbwia, just a shame my future profile doesn’t show as good as it should or I’d report on him. For some reason I can’t find Behabeck though.
It’s Bahebeck, from PSG. Terribly sorry for the typo.
Another finding from my scout: Luiz Eduardo (18 yo DC from Sao Paulo). He has him at 4 stars in potential even with average fitness stats (11-13 in atributes of that section). Work rate is 16 though which is amazing for such a young player.
Yeah I realized the mistake after replying to your comment, I have checked him out and he’s one of those players that is decent but over rated by the press…I personally believe there must be better options.
As for Eduardo, I can’t find him I’m afraid so not sure.
Thanks for the comments. As for Luiz Eduardo, I can find him in a newly created game so I suppose he’s not a regen. He starts in Sao Paulo under 20s team, perhaps you neeed to set Brazil as playable to see him.
Yeah that would make sense.
Darren I’m currently West Ham top of the league but were struggling for goals and Christian Benitez doesn’t want to join me can you recommend anyone ?
Hey Matt, which league are you top of? The Championship? and what season are you in?
It’s our first season, Carlton Cole injured but were still in the English League Cup final but were also in the championship
Have you tried Sanogo?
Yes were already signing him in July as that’s just the date he would sign as I got him on a free transfer
I would suggest doing a filtered search for strikers within your price range including the key attributes you look for.
Jay Rodriguez seems to be my best bet and he has now developed 17 pace somehow
Rodriguez isn’t usually managed well by the CPU and doesn’t always develop well but I have seen two saves where gamers have made this guy a legend. If managed well you have a real gem so I’d certainly go for it mate.
Everything about him is very good but I’m a bit concerned about his dribbling stat do you think it matters that much with Jay ?
Yakubu is rated as a bad dribbler by FM yet he scores like a beast so I wouldn’t worry. You can always train him individually on that area anyway.
Got a couple of questions to you, Darren, as I see you as a sort of a scounting/development guru..
I like having one midfielder assigned on defence duties (ball winning midfielder is awesome) and I’m gonna get a bit of cash for my next transfer window. Which of the following would you recommend and why?
1. M’Vila (concern – he doesn’t play as midfielder)
2. Fellaini
3. Moussa Sissoko
Another one of my concerns is developping wingers. How much should I rely on my coaches in terms of advice for personal training? For example, one of my winegrs is said to be needing some training in tackles and technique, while I’d just rather concentrate on dribbling, crossing and composure. He also scores a lot of goals with his head for some reason, should I train him on that to increase chance of success in front of the goal?
And lastly, do you think having 2 wonderkids in rivalry for the same possition good? My midfielders are very injury prone and there’s a spot for them to step in but I can only give them those 15 games/year before the’re any good. Would giving all the first team experience to just one be better or is rivalry good enough of a drive?
Sorry for the length, hope it doesn’t cause problems. Cheers.
It is very tough finding an affordable top class balling winning midfielder this year, I remember struggling with Malaga. Having said that I would go for M’Vila as he’s a real beast…also he can create something once the ball is back at his feet and a ball winning midfielder is far more valuable when he can make a pass after winning the ball back. Don’t worry about the position issue as it has little effect on his performance. Just train him to play CM and all will work fine.
As for individual training, always rely on your instincts as opposed to coaches. Sometimes they are right but when they say a winger needs to concentrate on tackling and you want him attacking alone then you know he’s talking crap
I wouldn’t listen too much to your coaches in that area as you are the one with the big picture, whereas they see one low attribute and think it should be improved. So, concentrate on that guys composure etc…I would anyway.
As for the drive you are mentioning it doesn’t work, first team football is all that matters and I don’t think the CPU can translate competition into improvement.
Thanks a lot for the input!
I think that the CPU sees AM L/C/R as midfield and as such they advise to get some points into defensive attributes, as my AM just got advised tackling as the best possible training…
Turns out I got Fellaini for only 14M Euro in the end. Guy was begging me to sign him
He’s already a well-rounded BMC and his physical abilities surpass those of my defenders!
The reason for his low price was Everton having a lousy season, I suspect. But in the end, I do believe he’s one of the best in the world for that possition and being only 23 at the start of the game, perahaps you should consider putting him on your list?
Nice one, I might do a profile on him but will need some time to do so as things are hectic at the mo.
How much budget does Man City get? I need a good young winger too.
You can open the editor and check wage/transfer budgets for each team. The list on this site provides info on many wingers, you have a lot to choose from!
Transfer budget for Man City: 42M £/ 48,3M €
Heresy is correct, you can look at the editor to find that info.
I managed to get Leandro for 25m with ease. Crazy wages though.
Glad to hear it, I hate the thought of everyone having to pay the same price tag as shown above…I was shocked when it happened to me twice.
how can I download that shortlist and use in FM2012?
There isn’t a shortlist available to download I’m afraid as its been added to every other day.
Found another possible bargain. Guy’s name is Anderson Martins, a 23 year old Brazilian who is given a potential of 3,5 stars according to my scouts. He’s available for around 500k Euro in the winter transfer window, perhaps even less. He may not be anything special but judging from his attributes in 2012, he can be a solid target for any mid-table team!
He’s an interesting player and with such rounded attributes can really handle himself well on the ball. I am not a fan of his development and his career history in my future save isn’t great either but I think you have to forget that and judge this guy on what he is from the start. I do think he’s a bargain for the price and will look further into him.
Forgot to say that this is probably the best list for FM12 players on the net, great job, Darren. I usually check this list before going ahead with a transfer or if I’m looking for a player. Does Oxlade-Chamberlain become good in the game? Don’t see him on the list but seems like he has potential.
Thanks mate, glad to hear the site is helping. As for Chamberlain he certainly has massive potential but the issue comes in fulfilling it which he hasn’t in any of my saves. I think the CPU manages him badly with little game time and poor training so maybe a human manager could get more from him.
Hi Darren great work as always, in my third year with united and im looking for a AMR and my main target was hulk but porto are looking for 55 million for him? his attributes are improving well but i was wondering if you have any other decent players for that position, cheers in advance.
I would always recommend Vladimir Weiss of Man City, I bought him with Malaga in my second season and he was the best buy I reckon, absolute legend winning me all kinds of trophies and at a fraction of Hulk’s price tag.
thanks for the quick reply, i’ll check him out.
what about Lacina Traore? Scores alot of goals on mye save!
and Javi Martinez?
Javi Martinez is good enough I bought him for United in my second season for 24 million and he is doing well, He suprisingly got me 9 PL goals in his first year so he can also get goals in midfield if thats what your looking for.
Too much money wise considering his ability in my opinion but I also need a better future profile than the one I have now.
He’s not much good on my future save so I don’t have a good enough future profile to show.
How about making a profile on Pastore? On my 2nd season he’s got a consistent rating of around 8.50, scoring goals, assisting and dribbling past just about everyone. It’s also thanks to him that my 2 youngsters (Nyang and Fierro) are doing so well (which cannot be said about Gameiro, who’s been a benchwarmer for 4 months now). Pastore’s attributes are astonishing, if he continues developping like that, by 25 he will become a 1 man army at the front.
Pastore costs way too much and I don’t like doing profiles on players hardly anyone can buy…great player though.
You’ve done profiles on the Brazilian superstars that cost 50M or more
but i understand 
Perhaps it’s worth it if PSG keeps underachieving. If he’d want out, his price would go down a bit. Anyway, consider profiling him at some point, please.
While you do have a point there, I haven’t done a profile on the likes of Chamberlain because they are near impossible to buy whereas those Brazilians aren’t if you have the cash. Either way, I don’t want to fill this site with obvious players and that’s the main reason for limiting the names you may know well.
How does Hervin Ongenda from PSG turn out? Also Gabriel Araujo from Cruzeiro? Cheers.
Ongenda has not developed at all in any of my games but he hasn’t really played much either so until you see a save with a human manager in charge of him its difficult to say how good he is. As for Araujo I can’t find him in my future save.
I’m playing PSG and i sold him after the first year. He wasn’t bad, could probably develop for 3,5 stars but needs a lot of work in training department. His attributes weren’t rising fast enough for my taste, and Nyang got more playing time in the end. Perhaps if he were forced to playing a lot of first time football, 20+ games (played 14 for me), things might have been different. I feel that, personally, there are better young strikers out there.
I found Araujo in my future save but he never got enough playing time and thus is only decent. Perhaps with human managment he could achieve more but again, I feel there are better players out there.
Yeah I would say that sounds about right, if players like Kadlec, Niang and Fierro turn into superstars without human management then why wouldn’t Ongenda, the only explanation is he’s not good enough I guess.
Hello, I am wondering if you canpost a screenshot of Diego Rubio(18yrs Sporting Club Portugal)? I have a feeling he has great potential but most likely only if he is played often. Thanks in advance.
He isn’t in my game I’m afraid.
interesting. here is his wiki(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diego_Rubio). they speak very highly of him and was just wondering how he turns out in this fm. I would see for myself as I started with Sporting Portugal but than had an urge to start(and continue) with tottenham and was considering buying him. thanks anyway.
Looks like you have to have the Portuguese league loaded for him to show, which usually is an indication that FM don’t see him as a potential superstar, as the best youngsters show up even if the country isn’t loaded.
ahh ok good to know. Can you tell me if this is the same with other young footballers in the Sporting squad such as Tiago Ilori, Tobias Figueiredo, or Bruma? Sorry for being a pain in the butt:p and thanks.
Out of those young players the only worth while talent in my eyes is Tiago Ilori but that is very dependent on playing him a lot.
I was wondering if you would profile a player that isn’t available in the default database. His name is Kenneth Zohore and he’s Didier Drogba’s nephew. Plays for FC Kobenhavn and you need to read in the Danish League in order to see him. But for those with i5-i7 processors and TBs or RAM, i don’t suppose it would be a problem. And he’s worth it.
My scout has him at a 3-star potential but i do believe that if you develop him solely for the targetman – sniper role, he can easily reach 3,5 stars at his peak.
To start with, he’s really fast for a tall player and already has 11 in first touch and finishing at the age of 17 with very impressive physical stats. His mental attributes are what hamper him from developping into a world-class player but if you can get his composure up from 6 to a decent enough level and give him a lot of playing time, this kid might really grow into a star.
Here’s the best thing, you can get him for 500k Euro! Not bad considering his potential and age.
Sorry I don’t profile players like that, most people visit this site after selecting their leagues and very few select Denmark. Its just one of my rules or I could profile 100′s of players.
You got a point there
Probably got your hands full with profiling the ‘default’ players anyway. Amazing site, best of luck developing it even further!
Thanks
hi i am looking for someone to get me more goals not got alot money tho can u help
Well you have come to the right place, take a look through the list above.
If you can wait 2-3 years then I’d recommend Fierro. Costs 1,5M euro in compensation at the start of the game and you’ll get him in july 2012. You can also try and snatch Yaya Sanogo on a free. If you need a striker this instant, then Cristian Benitez would probably be your best bet. He should be available for around 10M Euro, maybe less if you’re lucky.
Darren, have you heard about Greio’s young striker Leandro? Seems like a brazillian Walcott to me and should be available for around 8M Euro. He should be visible as he’s in the first team there.
I’d love to provide a future screenshot for him but my laptop is too slow and going on holiday for even 6 months takes 45 mins… I’d have to leave the thing to oevrheat for a whole day.
I meant Gremio, not Greio.
He’s in the list above, but unfrotunately I couldn’t find a good future profile as he always goes to Real where they leave him to rot in the reserves. Looks talented though.
Indeed, the profile’s there! But I expected him much higher up, never actually opened it.
Yeah I’m sure he’s capable of been higher up but I haven’t seen a decent future profile yet and until I see one I’m only guessing what he is capable of.
hey darren, just wondering if there’s any chance you could do a focus on young English talent i like the idea of wining the premier league with as many English or home nations players as possible if its abit too much work, i wouldnt mind you dropping a few young talent names cheers
I will try but the best English talent is too expensive and those who are in the youth system of the bigger clubs that look capable never get enough game time to develop and therefore I can’t find good future profiles.
Ask your scouts to profile players in u18, reserves, Premier League and either the lower leagues or FA cup. You might also send a a scout to england to look for u21 players.
I usually just open the editor, set PA on 160 and search (you might also want to add nationality there).
fairenough lads cheers anyway, ill pick up the ones your have profiles for already, then ill keep an eye for game generated players, and ill use my scouts like that
Make sure your scouts have at least 18 in judging potential though. The lower it gets, the greater the mistake chance and the error severity. I always load in brazil for cheap and good scouts, coaches and physios. you can get a 20/20 scout for 500Euro/week. Crazy!
woah! never knew thats all they would need to be paid ill defo check that out
Matt Phillips from Blackpool and Gylfi Sigurðsson from Hoffenheim are excellent players. They are vital in my teams
Gylfi has already been profiled in the list above and is an excellent player but I haven’t seen Phillips develop enough as yet.
I’ve got a new list of potentially good players
Some may be obvious, but then again Neymar is very obvious and is there right at the top. So, I’d love you to take a look at those:
-Jesus Navas – need to wait 1-2 seasons to get him
-I.Afellay – had saves where Barca offered him for 6M Euro at the start.
-Steve Mandanda – 26 year old keeper for Lyon. I was able to get him for 12,5M Euro.
-Mats Hummels – Crazy potential but even crazier price
-Eyal Golasa – Never got him but he’s cheap and has bags of potential
-Thomas Muller – another expensive German
-Domenico Criscito – need to wait 1-2 seasons to get him from Zenit, top class fullback
-Aly Cissokho – cost me 13M Euro and has potential similar to Sagna’s.
-Ivan Rakitic – don’t know much about him apart from the fact that he’s cheap.
I think everyone knows they are great players and while I am doing profiles of everyone I feel like I’ve done a fair amount of obvious names recently with more to come just ready to be published. Therefore I am going to research some less obvious choices first then may return to these names at a later date. I have five profiles ready to be published and about nine that I am on with now so it may take a little while.
Forgot about Lucas Digne. For the price of just 2M Euro you can get a decent DL. Only problem with him is his stamina. Has the potential to be on rotation in the top clubs. Definitely one of the best young fullbacks available this year. But he needs to play a lot. In the first season in my PSG game he became my main DL and did exceptionally well considering his age.
Hey Darren. Thanks for this awesome site. Im really enjoying reading all your player “reviews”… Only problem is: which should i buy now.. To many choices
I think you should take a look at the young danish upcoming superstar “Lucas Andersen” only 17, playing in “Aab”… Attacking midfielder… And he is really cheap!
Thanks for the kind words, I’m glad you find this site useful. A few people have mentioned Andersen to me but in all my saves he doesn’t seem to hit the potential I expect and until I find a save in which he does I can’t get a future profile good enough.
Hey. Could you look at Olivier Giroud and Dalibor Stevanovic? Can you tell me if they are good buys in 2011 or wait and then purchase or leave them completely?
No their not really worth while, but it depends on who you are managing.
Thanks for the heads up Darren. Had these guys offered by agents, but it seems they aren’t good for the future.
Found another bargain…. at least I think it’s a bargain. Guy’s name is Omer Damari, and israeli playing for Tel-Aviv. He’s 22 at the start of the game and available for around 2M Euro (maybe less). I scouted him at the end of my first season, so he might have progressed, but 4 stats are worth mentioning:
15 in finishing
13 in composure
16 in determination
17 in flair
and he’s also rather quick. For 2M Euro i feel he can be welcomed to a low-end/mid-table team from the best leagues. He’s got room for improvement and I’m pretty sure that, if things go well, he might gain a lot of value within 2 seasons.
I can’t see him in my save.
This is rather strange because I can find him in the editor and I only have the english and brazilian leagues loaded.
Omer Damari, 22, born in Jerusalem, playing for Hapoel Tel-Aviv, PA 160.
When you look in the editor you don’t have any leagues loaded, its the editor so you are searching under everything the game has to offer, the editor isn’t the actual game, just a database to change or look at things within the game. Its completely different to searching in a game.
I know that. I found him in the game
He’s not a newgen ro regen or whatever and you should be able to access him regardless of the number of leagues loaded. That’s what I’m trying to say. I searched him in the database just to confirm he’s not a generated player.
Ahh I see, the only other thing I can think of is that you are using the large database.
Indeed I am. Too bad you don’t
But if i don’t get bored with playing Arsenal for 5 years, I’ll let you know how he turns out 
OK sounds good
has anybody got anything to offer about cleverly, id like to keep hold of him if he amounts to a good player, ive got teams coming in for him at the start of my second season for about 7 million so just wondering if i should stick with him or sell up
He develops into a good player but not World Class…you could keep him for the bench or as rotation I’d say but I have never seen him grow to a world class standard.
managed to squeeze 6 million upfront and another 6 over a year from fulham for him so i sold him
Yeah sounds like a wise decision mate as I can’t see you ever getting a lot more. Best to develop a very young wonderkid regen than have a mediocre 20 year old I say.
one more question, i signed fierro wanted to ship him to Huddersfield on loan, his work permit goes through but Huddersfield said no cos they got their loan targets, now i cant play him cos it says he has no work permit wtf is that about
I’m not sure, if you have him in your squad in the first season (which I didn’t think was possible) then he won’t have a work permit. However if you are in the second season or beyond then that is a little weird but you should try and loan him out to a foreign club.
Darren, I’m a bit confused about match experience. Do cup and Champion’s Cup matches count toward it? Because the history only reveals league matches and I have so many youngsters I can’t give each 15+ league appearences. I can squeze them into the squad for cup and easy ECC meetings, no problem there, but I don’t want to slow down their development if it does no good.
Match experience is any and every match. Ignore the career history thats just how FM show stats, they don’t show anything bar the league but those games count for development just as much. A player gains more from playing well against a mediocre team than badly against a great one.
Wow, thanks a lot for this explanation!
No problem mate.
wont let me reply to your last comment, i approached to sign him at the start of my first season, so he joined on 26th July i think it was, and now theres the problem with the work permit, im worried that if i dont sort it, his development will stall
I think all you can do is try to offer him to clubs on loan, if you can get him somewhere that will offer game time he’ll be fine.
cheers mate
I think that it’s a database glitch. I have the same problems with players in need of work permit who returned from loan spells. Needed to offer them a new contract to be able to play them.
Could well be.
ill try the new contract actually never thought about that
Darren, ever thought about profiling Fernando (FCP player)? His mental attributes are through the roof it seems and although he’s already 23 at the start of the game, so not the youngest out there, I feel he would make a nice addition to your list.
Not entirely certain if he joins HSV already at the start of the game or they only bid for him. But he only cost 3M then and 2 seasons later PSG bought him for 15M Euro.
Yeah he is good and if available for the price mentioned would be a great signing but my list of profiles has grown too long, so I’ll have to revisit him later.
Oh yes, and what about profiling Alphonse Areola? It may be a name familiar for those who played the previous FM versions but who is to say this site’s guests all have that experience?
Anyway, available for around 4M at the start of the game. In 18 months he became my no.1 keeper in Arsenal. Only weakness I see is his rushing out stat.
While I do agree with that I am still waiting to find a suitable future profile for him as I feel the ones I have don’t do him justice.
firstly, this is definately the best list ive ever seen for fm, it doesnt just cover kids. the future profiles you do are fantastic, so thanks loads for the hard work.
i bought yann mvila, i play as marseille pretty much all the time. i bought him on the last fm. i was always get great scout reports but he doesn’t seem to play well, gets very mediocre ratings, i use him as a cdm (alou diarra isnt getting any younger), any advice on how to get the best from him? ive got around this in the past but with m’vila im kind of at a loss. also any other cm’s you would recommend in a 4-2-2-1 formation to go with m vila?
If I may reply, M’Vila works best sa a ball winning midfielder. They don’t normally get high rating because they do the dirty job without any fireworks. Also, If you tend to use an advanced playmaker with attack duty as your second (and third?) midfielder, the effort to control the midfield relies solely on the BWM.
If you get ‘M’Vila isn’t having the best game of his career’ or something message from your ass.mgr., it could indicate that M’Vila is just short on form and you should rest him for a few games, perhaps even risk sending him to the reserves.
Also, try the ‘retain possession’ shout and if M’Vila loses the ball often, start preferred moves training to decrease his playmaking efforts (no dribbling, simple passing game, no going forward).
With a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-2-1 (I assume it’s either of those and you’re not playing a 10-man team
), you could get a player suitable for ‘Deep Lying Plamaker’ support/defend or ‘Box to Box’ midfielder since they help a lot on efforts to control the midfield.
My 2 cents. Hope it helps.
yea sorry i meant 4-3-2-1 on fifa its a
4-5-1 formation, cdm/cm/cm/ram/lam/st
cheers your point about ballwinning makes sense its just that on the profile it show him as having very decent season averages. on my save moussa sissokho has become an absolute power house, man u just picked him up. im kind of regretting not taking him over m’vila but i not giving up on him i still want to get the best out of him.
It depends on how you use him though, any midfielder can be used as the focal point of attacks and because those players get assists and noticed more they get better ratings…however if you have a tactic and his role set for donkey work then you’ll get very average ratings, though its not a bad thing. The best manages I know, know the importance of players that look great but rarely go above 6.8 match rating…its deceiving.
cheers, that helps a lot. hopefully he can maybe reach the record in the profile.
Great list, does anyone know how Jack Rodwell turns out? And where best to play him?
Thanks Matt, Rodwell develops into a top player and would suit central midfielder role with support duty or even ball winning midfielder. Don’t expect ridiculous ratings for matches though as he does a lot of unseen work which every CM and BWM needs to.
Best football manager list I’ve even seen nice work Darren, been through the list countless times but still not sure who to partner Van Persie with, was thinking a target man – attack like leandro damiao or cavani.. but maybe he would be better pared with a poacher but not sure who, any help anyone?
Thanks for the kind works John. I personally would love to see Cavani as poacher and RVP as deep lying forward or even complete forward.
I bought Prestia a year after i started the game with atletico madrid, now after the second season, during witch he was injured for ~ 3 months, and played only 20 or so matches in the first team, he has actually become worse then progressing. Can you please tell me if his chances of becoming a great player are gone? I was planning on moving Kara up to play defensive midfielder and using Prestia with Dominguez, but it looks like prestia isnt progressing nearly enough for keeping a regular first team spot at my team atm.
Just because he had a 3 month injury doesn’t mean he’ll be effected development wise. You just need to make sure you’re training him correctly and offering at least 15 games a season, then he’ll develop.
For me, Prestia never progresses much during the first 2 years. He builds up some physical skills and the stats I coach him individually on (usually tackling), but the rest falls behind. In the 3rd season however, I’m not sure why, he stops developping his strength as much and begins training his mental and technical skills more.
Patience is the key with him I feel.
Agreed, that can be the case with many players. Each one develops differently, just because one players attributes rise from the off doesn’t mean another won’t reach their potential when they seem to be stalling at the start.
Hi Darren, playing a save with arsenal using your 4-5-1 formation, going great at the moment, teams a bit short of ball winning midfielders so looking to buy one who maybe can jump above song into the first team. Any recommendations? I was thinking possibly Javi Martinez but not sure!
Unfortunately there’s a major lack of great BWM’s in this game, but I’d say try and sign Kara…may fail work permit but worth a try.
hey darren, just wondering if there’s much point in setting up a chase for jack rodwell im after a replacement for carrick, and id like him to be English or home nations hes 22 in my save at the moment, is there much more development chance with him being this age
Rodwell is a solid MC that tends to really improve from the age of 22. Because Rodwell has a brain for Football, those mental and passing attribute keep improving, I’d say go for it if he’s reasonably priced.
About two of my findings which I’ve recommended sometime earlier:
Omer Damari – not possible to sign or even loan him in the first transfer window.
Fernando (DMC from FCP) – the 3M deal signing to HSV had to be a part-exchange because I’ve tried signing him in the first transfer window in a new game and a deal worth of 10M got rejected. Haven’t tried further bids as I see no particular point, thought he’d be a great cheap signing which he hasn’t turned out to be.
Cheers.
I’ve tried looking at Damari in my future save but can’t find him.
We’ve agreed that you need a large database to see him. He’s a good buy for 2M Euro nonetheless.
First of all great compilation, very nice work.
Have you looked at Stefan Bell, Mainz 05 (start of the game 19 loaned at Frankfurt)?
He has fixed potential, very good mentals, good defending stats, allways develops into an international star.
Not in my future save I’m afraid, whether you need a large database loaded or the German leagues to see him I’m not sure…but all the profiles we do are and will be based on medium database with very few leagues loaded (ie Italy, Spain, England, and 2 more as view only) This is because the average gamers computer will run slow with anymore loaded.
find christopher drazan.bought him in second half of season from SK Rapid Wien for my team,Liverpool.really good player with average 7.2+ per game.scores 2 goals and 1 assists in his debut agains wolves at anfield.Plus,suarez scores more goals with drazan behind him
He seems like a good all round player without any outstanding skills but good general ones. I’ll take a deeper look later to see of he’s worth a profile.
Decent list. Though as you’ve addressed in your comments, someone like Digne really needs a profile. Costs peanuts and becomes nearly as good as in FM2011. How does Dudu (Eduardo Pereira Rodrigues) develop? Don’t know if he starts at Cruzeiro or if Dynamo Kyiv have bought him. Just bought him and he looks excellent and versatile, but he got a nasty injury at the start of the season. Are Aït Fana, Bocaly and Sidney Sam too old to figure on this list? All were exceptionally cheap at the end of the first season and they’ve been top players for me.
Yeah Digne is quality and he will get a profile, he’s developing nicely in my current save so I’m waiting a few more seasons then I’ll profile him. Dudu does look good too but his future profiles aren’t good enough so that is why I haven’t been able to report on him yet. I’m not keen on Bocaly and Fana but Sam does look worth a profile, again I’m waiting to get a better profile of him before committing though.
I can understand Fana when comparing them to some on that list, but Bocaly really compares equally or even favourably to most DR’s in your list. He’s at least as good as Romario in his mental stats, about the same in his technical ones, and what he lacks in speed he makes up for in jumping. To top it off, he’s more versatile and he’s no more expensive. Just my tuppence
does anybody have any tips on maybe being able to train a player to increase his acceleration or pace, or does this have to develop on its own, any help would be nice cheers
The best thing to do is make the players individual training intensity high and train them individually on quickness.
Hi Darren i am Leeds and i cant seem to get them promoted, is there any players you recommend?
Afraid not mate as I only scout for the top teams but you could try looking here http://www.footballmanagerstory.com/2011/10/the-very-best-free-players-in-football-manager-2012/
Try loaning young players from the top clubs. Their form may not be reliable but they’re capable of magic if it hits. Also, scout the reserves and look for 30-something players. They may be a bit slow but overall, as long as they play, they should provide the quality. And there should be a lot of them available for free.
When I played Nimes Olympiqye in FM 11, I used an attacking tactic (4-2-3-1/4-2-2-2) with overlap shout. No, my goalie wasn’t happy. But I usually scored more than my opponent
Darren, has anyone recommended Samuel Inkoom from Dnipro to you yet? He’s not a bargain exactly and in the first season he’d probably cost around 8-9M Euro. But with time the fee should drop and if he’d be available for 5-6M, i think he’d be a worthwhile signing.
No they haven’t, I’ll take a look later. Cheers.
I’ve got NEWS. Remember Fernando, the DM? Well, in the second season I did get him for 3M. Best bargain ever! He wasn’t unsettled or anything. It’s a must buy.
Yes but we go off the starting price at beginning of a new game as things change for every single game. Either way, we’ll be taking a look at new players in the future but for now there are too many to profile to take more on.
I’ve seen the 3M bid happen twice, once it was even in the first season, though I now suspect he went to HSV then in the winter transfer window. The first transfer window bid is ridiculous (something like 28M, due to recent arrival at the club) but you usually give tips if the price drops with time.
Anyway, he’s worth taking a look, so whenever you have time…
Fair enough, I will take a look but as mentioned things are hectic at the mo so he’s on the back burner for now mate.
Two ‘new’ findings:
Sven Bender – decent Ball Winning Midfielder, becomes cheaper in 1-2 seasons (15,5M bid got accepted in summer 2012 window). Lacks a bit of strength but can be coached individually on that
Pajtim Kasimi – he’s been performing rather well for my Fulham team. A nice box-to-box midfielder, pops up unexpected around the pitch, quite often overlapping my striker and scoring the winning goal in 88th minute
Not sure about the price, I suspect something in order of 8M, definitely under 10M.
Time to get some sleep
I meant Pajtim Kasami*… was late so I’ve got an excuse
While Kasami doesn’t develop much in my games Bender is very talented…but he’ll have to go into the waiting list with the rest for now I’m afraid.
can u do me a report on manuel heidel i signed him for my fulham team as cover but he seems to be a good prospect
Sorry I can’t find him in my game to check.
No need for their own player profiles if you don’t want to, but I’d add Ravel Morrison, Paul Pogba and Danny Welbeck onto this list. All at United and have excellent training facilities to help them develop.
Ravel, sadly, forced himself out of United in real life and was sold but obviously still with United in the game. He goes on to be good enough to start for them. Danny Welbeck becomes the complete forward who’ll easily get 30+ goals a season. Pogba turns into a wonderful player, perhaps a luxury player, but would be a star player for most top flight clubs. Of course they are costly + not exactly desperate to leave but so worth the money.
Also, Sanogo and Fierro are ridiculously good.
I am in the process of doing Pogba’s profile as I found a suitable future profile to match but the other two have just never progressed any of my saves. I’m sure it could be a different story with someone actually managing them but without a future profile I can’t add them, that is what makes this site different to all the other endless lists, we have proof of the players talent. If you have the screenshots I may need then by all means put them in a comment and I’ll take a look but without those neither player can go on the list I’m afraid.
What do you think about Chalobah and Deulofeu?
I am yet to see Deulofeu grow into the player most say he is, and Chalobah looks very talented but again I haven’t seen a good enough future profile of him yet.
Viewing international u19/21 squads, I got reminded about two wonderkids I always swooped up in FM 10 or 11: Stephan el Shaarawy and Khouma Babacar. Both ridiculously expensive now of course. But I just love tormenting you with new names to scout so…
: ) Shaarawy isn’t really good enough this year while Babacar has dropped in standard from last year too, though the striker will be a worth a profile as soon as I find a suitable future profile.
bought cammy barr from scotland he,s 15 an cost 10k after 2 years he a under 21 international striker an scoring 2 or 3 every game but carnt seem to get him scoring for my exeter team any thoughts mat
Never heard of or seen him, are you sure he’s not a regen? (player made up by the computer.)
In fact he is definitely a regen if bought two years in at that age, he is unique to your game so no one can see him I’m afraid.
Hmm.. is 35 too old to be featured on your list? I just bought Morgan de Sanctis, a 35-y-o goalie, for 3M and he made me win against Barca. Rating of 9.3 or something, still has 3-5 years left in him. The rating isn’t a fluke, He’s been getting 8.0+ on a regular basis. A real bargain
I’m afraid it is too old yes, but sounds like a great keeper.
Yeah, thought so. He’s starting to decline and his physical stats are rubbish. But the rest is amazing. My 40 year old keeper was retiring and I needed someone for the big games as Areola doesn’t have the skills yet and needs a year, maybe a bit more to develop his skills enough not to keep me biting my nails everytime there’s goal action in my own half
Pitty about goalkeepers – most of the skills needed for good goalkeeping comes from experience and can’t be taught through individual focus. Areola’s handling is amazing, positioning is getting better and better, he has godly physical stats… but the rest isn’t good enough.. yet
There are a few exceptions though, I always find Stegen and Kameni very reliable.
Alright Darren? Fantastic site mate, I signed two young(ish) players on my Newcastle save, Toby Alderweireld from Ajax, he’s 22 and has some pretty fantastic stats from the off and another called James McArthur, a Scot, he’s 23 and plays for Wigan and he has all the making of a very decent midfielder. Could you do a report on them and see how they turn out?
Thanks Toby, I will do a profile on Alderweireld eventually but you’ll need to bare with me as there’s a lot to do first. However McArthur isn’t quite the right player for the list I’m afraid, he hasn’t improved enough in any of my saves.
That’s a shame, his passing looked amazing, keep up the good work though, really appreciate the work you put in.
Darren i feel that one player missing on this list is Andrea Poli. He can easily be bought for 2 mill at the start of the gam,e and he have tremendous potential.
Already on it, he’s next up and been ready to go for about a week. I actually think its impossible to sign him from the off due to his loan deal but provided he doesn’t sign for Inter at the end of the first season he can be cheap.
Alan Dzagoev and Tomas Necid from CSKA Moscow
Taufic Guarch from Mexican league
Luuk De Jong and Nacer Chadli from Twente
Khume from Kaizer Chiefs
Botia from Sporting in Spain
We’ve already profiled Dzagoev but will certainly check out the rest so cheers.
Hi Darren,
I’ve just taken over Man United in 2014 and was wondering if Danny Wellbeck and Ashley Young are worth sticking with? Wellbeck seems decent enough but at 29, Young might end up on the transfer list.
On your recommendation I’ve picked up Jack Rodwell for 14.5m and am also using your Arsenal tactic. You’re like my assistant manager haha.
Cheers mate,
Chip
I’d personally have rid of them both, some gamers say Welbeck is good but none of them have provided a profile to prove it yet and what I have seen in years to come doesn’t look promising. But Young should definitely go at that age IMO.
Nice to know this and the main FMS site can help mate, we like to be used as a real life assistant of sorts so thanks for the kind words.
Alright, time for a new batch of eastern platers
Pavel Mamaev from CSKA Moscow
Henrik Mkhitaryan from Metalurg or Shakhtar (not sure where he starts)
from Dnipro:
Diego Suarez (may require large DB)
Eugene Konoplyanka
Giuliano (may cost a lot)
Ante Vukusic from Hajduk
Thanks I will take a look at them, a couple I can’t find and the rest do look like they may develop well under proper management but as is the case so many times their future profiles aren’t good enough from lack of development.
In my game, Man U just bought the 24 year old Henrik Mkhitaryan for 18,5M, he’s very versatile, can play nearly anywhere and can be molded into anything you want. I like players like that
Will be a signing for me for sure when I start a new game.
Giuliano cost Inter 22M in the end.
I got Suarez for my right wing (sold Ruiz for 28M to Athletic). 6M isn’t a lot and if he doesn’t perform, I’ll sell him for twice that in 2 years
wanna see how he performs and if he’d be worth signing (for 2-3M at the start of the game) for a new game.
If you can see Diego Suarez (he’s in the Dnipro reserves at the start ofthe game), then he definitely deserves a profile. In 2 seasons I will personally get one for you if you’d like. If he’s good after spending 3 years playing for Dnipro and going on loan to Cyprus, he’s definitely one to watch out for!
Sorry I can’t see him as mentioned so he won’t be profiled. I have a feeling the actual league needs to be loaded unfortunately.
I don’t have the Croatian league loaded
Just a large DB 
I prefer that to loading 5 different leagues 
Ah, I’ve made a mistake in the list. Diego Suarez plays for Dynamo Kyiv. Both Dnipro and Dynamo have roughly the same logo and are ofc from Ukraine -.- anyway, would appreciate it if you looked for the Bolivian again although I suspect you won’t be able to find him anyway as he plays for the reserves.
Still isn’t in my saves I’m afraid.
young striker at chivas carlos fierra hes 17 when u start in 2nd season 30goals plus every year on u gt him for free when start to
He’s already on the list.
Kara is a beast of a player.
Must say Yarmolenko is a beast… Bought him for Man utd – a real goalmachine!
Badelj is also a nice buy i must say!
Update on the transfer market (ever considered those 2 players?):
Hosny – Egyptian DM available for around 2M euro. Isn’t a pro in any category but I suspect that with his stats, he could make a decent box to box midfielder
Bryan Rabello – Chilean youngster natural in AM position but he’d probably work better as a winger. Has potential and is incredibly cheap. Very similar in nature and stats to Yaisien.
Also, Aly Cissokho is a must buy, and even if many know him (possibly), I’m not sure they know he’s available for as little as 10M (up to 13M). And for that you get an amazing package ready to play for any team in the world.
Also, even after 4 years, my scouts are nagging me about Emre Can and Ilkay Gundogan. While the first hasn’t played much and is lacking in mental stats due to that, Gundogan seemed to push himself through to the first team and would be a good signing even for the top teams.
Sven Bender has been my best signing in my new PSG team, and I’ve signed Willian and D.Costa as well. He’s been making assists, scoring goals and generally been a rock in the midfield. Nothing gets past him when he plays as a DM, he’s glued to the opposition. When in midfield, he does get passed, but only with long balls and good through balls. He isn’t very agressive, which I like for that role. He just sticks to his man and doesn’t let him cross or shoot. Doesn’t tackle too often and rarely gets cards.
Hosny just isn’t the sort of player that would make the list and while Rabello looks interesting I don’t have a screenshot of him developed enough to profile.
matias suarez anderlecht pure class
While he looks good for mid-table sides I worry he may not cut it with the better clubs but I can’t say for sure as haven’t signed him.
can anybody offer a name as replacement for billy sharp? im playing as donny, and ive got about 2.5million to spend id like abit of pace if possible, rating 14 or 15 in acceleration and pace ill look at any names people can provide cheers!
Without knowing who will join your club it may be a wasted exercise so I’d suggest searching under strikers aged under 25 with the attributes you like and go from there.
i want to manage 3 teams( is that advisable?), have chosen malaga, santos and for the final team am still contemplating. any advice on a team from premier league that is outside the top 6… ttthat is very good,with wonderful bank account?
I wouldn’t advice that as I find investing in one save means you’ll put all your energy into it, whereas doing three would see your thoughts spread out too much and probably end with all three saves been incomplete. But Newcastle would be a good team to start with.
what if i used 3 teams under one save, you know by adding 2 managers in the same save? so between sunderland/aston villa and newcastle, which is more advisable?
I don’t understand why you would want to do that and certainly would not advise it because those games never last, I’ve already offered my opinion on the team.
im west ham in played 2 seasons promoted 1st then avoided relagation i need a new left bk for the prem in my 3rd season any cheap ones??
Sorry I would have no idea who is cheap and developed three seasons into your game…try doing filtered searches for specific attributes maybe.
It surprises me that you haven’t profiled Rondon yet. Had signed Sanogo before and I’ve got to say he’s just as good as the Frenchman aged 21. For me he plays best as a TM lone striker with mixed delivery. But he needs some crosses so he probably isnt well suited for a dual IF tactics (I personally played IF on the left and AP on the right wing swapping players on those positions, and this has worked amazingly). Sold him for 20M after 1 season!
He is a good player but not got a profile of him improving enough to warrant the report especially as I personally found very inconsistent and not as dangerous as many other ST’s.
Shame that. He bagged 36 goals in all competitions for me in season 1. Guess you need a tactic for him to work well. If it weren’t for the 20M income, I’d keep him. Now I only have teenagers for that position (Niang, Fierro, Kadlec) and am quite fearful ahead of season 2.
Where’s all the English talent?!
Also, how has Romelu Lukaku done on your game?
English talent comes at a premium and since almost everyone knows who they are we get through the less known players first then come back to the English players after updating all the profiles. Lukaku has turned out not so good in one save and to a good standard in another…I think he requires first team football and attention to reach his potential thats for sure.
Darren, what do you think about Cesar Azpilicueta? Is a little expensive, but is he worth the outlay?
He is a quality player but the asking price is far too high for a right back IMO.
I suppose that with all the work you have now, you’re not keen on adding more names to your list. Was wondering if Beram Kayal is suitable to be featured here. He’s nowhere near the standard of M’Vila or Fellaini, but with scarsity of good Ball Winning Midfielders available, he’s the next best thing. He’s also ready to go, no need to wait years before he gets any good. One thing I’m worried about is his potential. He plays in the scottish league, which isn’t really top flight tbh, and left there, he won’t improve much, so a future profile might not do him justice
Afraid there will be no profiles a while and we won’t be considering any until everything is updated. Sorry.
Some hints for watchable players after updating:
Moritz Leitner
Julian Draxler
Bernd Leno
all got raised in CA and PA (all of them -9)
Will take a look once we have updated the profiles.
Hey Darren. One thing i’m abit intrigued by.
What if i am only interested in getting the best possible players for the best possible team, what should i go after? As i understand your rating system is based on value for money, so i could guess that with players as Hazard, Neymar, Gøtze, Moura who has 5 stars, even though they are pricy, can be assumed to become absolute world class.
But what about players like Fierro, Kara, Badelj and Vrsaljko? Does their 5 stars mean that they will become the best in the world at their position, or just that they are extremely good, their value considered?
It is a mixture but any player rated 5 star can be world class…why not click on the players names to see their actual profile, that way you can see how they may turn out for yourself.
Thanks, i’ll try that.
Arturo Vidal
Danilo da silva
Adam maher
ZNka jorgensen
Marvin martin
Jackson martinez
Alvaro morata
Igor lichnovsky
Ali ahamada
Etienne capoue
Josip ilicic
Luciano narsingh
There you go fellas all great buys
We aren’t looking at new players for now but will come back to the list once the schedule calms down so thanks.
read alot about adam vass , but never loads in any of my games !!!
Yeah he is a little hit and miss to be honest but that’s what you get with some cheap signings.
You don’t get near enough credit for all this mate. You should be bloody knighted, no joke! You’ve helped so many with these kind of lists.
All the best mate!
Tony
Thanks alot for the reponse Darren. Think i allmost have my ideal first 11 ready now. Just got a question regarding my defence and Goalkeeper.
Currently thinking Alex Sandro in LB, Sahko+Papad in Centre and Corchia at RB. GK is Ter-Stegen.
Hows your take on that lineup?
I’d say that is certainly the ideal back four and I always say the your defense is the foundation to success. All I’ll recommend is patience because they my not develop and settle in the first season…but give them time and they’ll be irreplaceable.
Hehe i was planning to. Papad and Alex Sandro has actually been outstanding allmost from the beginning. The rest will surely be thereabouts soon aswell.
Only problem with Alex sandro, at least for me, is that if you dont buy him at the start he gets sold to another club, which will demand 40+ £.
Thanks for the help.
Whenever I’m interested in a player but don’t have the money to buy him, I add him to my shortlist and monitor transfer offers. I’ll be ready to sign him in the next transfer window or next season but I don’t want anyone to beat me to it
And Sando usually leaves FCP after the 2nd season in my saves, so that’s plenty of time to get those 10M for him.
Great site mate!
Am chelsea and struggling to get a commanding CM to boss the midfield whist still being creative. Looking to replace lampard, so need someone who will come in and perform week in week out straight away.
Any suggestions mate?
Much apreciated
I would suggest Hamsik mate.
Thanks for the reply.
Man city just signed him unfortunetly, any other suggestions? How do you rate nevas for right mid and llorente to partner torres, only in start of second season.
Many thanks again
Both those players would be good investments but as for another suggestion I’d recommend looking through the list above as there are plenty of good options there.
Amazing job, Darren, such dedication and so well received! I have learnt the hard way to get these players in year 1, as they quickly become unattainable (or won’t sign for low rep clubs)
Two questions: If a player won’t sign for you, is the only way to get him around by winning trophies etc, or is there another sneaky way?
Second, any thoughts on Jordan Spence and Grant Hanley? They are working out quite well for me in my save, were cheap and tho not world class, have solid, consistent performance?
Thanks again for all your hard work!
The only way to get a player to sign for you if he sin’t interested is by getting his interest, that won’t happen until you gain more reputation, ie cup wins higher league standings etc. As for those two players, I don’t rate them alongside other defenders at a similar price to be honest.
I also found out that training facilities have something to do with it. So even if you don’t get many trophies, if you upgrade your training facilities to the best possible standard, players are more likely to join you. At least the younger ones.
Had yarmolenko and rakitskyi in my Dortmund team and they turned out to become icons. Ruben rochina can also be developed into a goal machine with the right guidance. Players like salvatore Bocchetti I would like to see scouted more. Raheem sterling also turns out quality after a few years
I will take a look at Bocchetti once the site is updated, we’ve already done Sterling though.
Hi Darren,Fantastic Site.. My ShortList For Man Utd in 2014 :
Nicolas Gaitan, Iker Munian, James Rodrigues Andry Yarmolenko.. (AM/RL)
Jack Rodwell, Yann M’villa, Javi Martinez, Javi Garcia.. (CM/DCM)
What do you things..??
Very good players there and especially if they hit their potential.
bochetti is a beast !!!
Markus Henriksen and Darwin Quintero are good players as well, very cheap (1.5 and 1.9 million) so if you need more players for your cheap players list…
They aren’t visible in most of my future saves and the ones they are visible in they haven’t developed so can’t get a profile I’m afraid.
Aw, that’s a shame, especially Henriksen will be a great player! Always ends up at Liverpool in my saves
Take a look at Ivan Bandalovski and Pablo Mouche!
Same as with the last two I’m afraid…its not just the price that we look for in cheap players, the quality comes first then they are assigned to the cheap list if the value is right.
Hey Darren im starting over with Malaga, i was wondering if you could help me out with some signings that would help me out and maybe a formation(i have 2 i always use but a 3rd would be good) Ive never really done any management in Spain before so any help would be amazing
Hey Adam, I’d suggest reading this post http://www.footballmanagerstory.com/2011/11/football-manager-2012-guide-to-win-with-malaga/
thanks a lot
any suggestions for first season transfer activity, who to sell buy right off?
Here is my first season and at the top of the post who I signed/sold http://www.footballmanagerstory.com/2011/10/football-manager-2012-malaga-story-season-one-report/
thanks a lot:) have you seen a striker called Alvaro from espanyol? i signed him for liverpool and he got 30 goals in his first season just a thought
I’ve noticed him but he’s not been as good on my saves.
Hey Darren. Is Kenneth Zohore worth in your list? Got him with £1.5M from Kobenhavn with add league Denmark in game. Score in his debut in league, and cup. Man Utd, Chelsea, Juventus and Real Madrid is already interest in him even i’m very rarely play him. He is a goal-machine target man with a very good physical attributes. His 17 pace is reason that make him dangerous Target Man and i’m already touted him next Hulk.
Sorry we don’t profile players unless they are visible with major European leagues loaded only.
hey, just wondering if anyone can chip in with some names for a deep laying playmaker for my newcastle save, id like someone who would put a tackle in but can play killer passes, if not then someone to win the ball will do, ive got 5 million im afraid :/ any help with be welcome cheers!
I’d recommend Andile Jali as a cheap option and Badelj.
I would also add Ruben Yttergard Jenssen to the lineup
And if you’re more advanced in the game and those 3 are either more expensive or just changed clubs, try Andrea Poli.
hey Darren, i was wondering if you could recommend wingers that would work well in a flat 4-4-2, ive tried in the past with people like james rodriguez, he was amazing as a left wing(30 assists) but very poor as a left mid, 4-4-2 has been more successful for my style of play and i was just wondering if you would have any suggestions, thanks
Pajtim Kasami is perfect for the MR position. Needs a season or two to develop but when I coached Fulham, I remember reaching this conclusion based on his attributes. I was using him as either a box to box midfielder or AMR, never utilising his full potential though. He has good defensive stats, deveops well in the physical aspect, his dribbling and crossing can reach an outstanding level. One thing he lacks is technique but gets better in that department when coached individually on it.
For ML I’d try Andre Ayew. Never played him so I can’t tell you how he’d perform. Try browsing through the existing profiles on this site as well as doing a filtered search ingame for players with stats that interest you.
thanks, definatly looking into kasami, sorting out a ML hopefully, ayew is a wee bit expensive unfortunatly, he’s what im looking for which is a bit of a kick in the teeth
No problem. Perhaps Felipe Gutierrez would be more of the price range you’re interested in. From the profile Darren has kindly compiled, the player looks very promising.
Also, if you, by any chance, have a large database loaded, scout Henrik Mkhitaryan. He has a number of positions he can play at and is relatively cheap, providing that he hasn’t joined Shakhtar yet. Otherwise you’d need to wait a season or two before his price goes down again,
Sorry I can’t recommend from experience as I find that role far too limited…I’d just suggest looking through the better wingers and assessing yourself…I struggle to make RM and LM’s work so can’t offer any advice in this area.
Too limited? If anything, it’s more complex than the role of a winger IMO. You need an all-round player for this, very much like a box-to-box midfielder, only much quicker
Sorry I didn’t make myself clear. When I said its too limited I meant the attacking aspects it adds to my tactics. I find that an AMR or AML can attack far better than an MR and ML and the attacking positions suit a lot more players as opposed to the MR/ML positions, so when I said its limited I meant the amount of players that can perform int he role and also what the role offers for me in my tactics.
I’ve been tempted by this tactic for a long time but I like my inside forwards too much
But I do see the possible pros of this tactic – most of the goals come from the strikers. So you have a clear picture who to build your team around 
And the wingers also help in defence. I usually lose goals from actions on the wings and curse my defenders when I really should blame my tactic.
wat about bruma portugese and emre can from bayern munich …………. they turn out good
While they look fairly talented neither has ever grown to anything in any of my saves and that is why they have never been profiled.
Darren, have you ever considered doing a profile on Delev? This Bulgarian is on fire in Granada! In the top 3 in La Liga striker classification, completely destroyed my Malaga team with a hattrick in the first 30 minutes. Granada finished 4th, beating everyone but me and the usual 2 teams. Even gave Real Madrid a run for their money for the 3rd place. All thanks to Delev.
Oh yeah, forgot about Sergio Romero, a GK from either Sampdoria or AZ (not sure where he starts). Looks decent a couple of years into the game and a bargain as well.
No he has never progressed in any of my saves and doesn’t look that great at the start either so not good enough for a report. I’m not saying he can’t improve, but not enough IMO and as usual without the profile I can’t do a report.
Sorry to be a pain but could you suggest any players that would help, basically unlimited funds due to my success last year
Gk-Reina/Courtois
Rb-Azpilicueta/Romario
Cb-Agger/Papadopolous/Wilson/Coates
Lb-Enrique/Robinson
Rm-Marin/Weiss/Sterling
Lm-J.Rodriguez/Weiss/Marin
Cm-Eriksen/Canales/Kovacic/Bertolacci/Gerrard
St-Damiao/Erik Torres/Suarez/Fierro
should i buy/sell any of these? Soryy again if im a bit of a pain
As long as you can offer them all a decent amount of game time I’d say hang onto them all, but get rid of Wilson and maybe sign Sakho or Kara.
due to unfortunate circumstances i have to start a new save, im going to start with liverpool again and due to me having a better budget in 12.2 could you a suggest a striker who would complement carroll AND suarez? just as backup, prospect for the future and all, if you could please give me some ideas
Any from the list above that are five star, Sanogo, Fierro, Torres etc etc.
thanks going to try sanogo, wish me luck
Good luck.
have you seen Patrick Herrman? AMR German Ajax, has he developed any. im going to take a punt on hime but I want to know if it will be worth it
Sorry he is not visible in any of my saves to check.
ah its ok, ill give him a try, never seen him in any other saves mself, strange one :/
Could yo possibly tell me some good centre midfielders before the new patch – I am in an old game and my centre mids have left – cheers
I’d recommend the likes of Kovacic, Badelj, Sigurdsson and M’Vila…ow also Crisetig as long as you can develop him.
top of league with wigan after 11 games only signed 4 average players! fm GOD
Well done mate, glad your save is going well.
just found a GEM!! FELIPE ANDERSON
We have already profiled him but Anderson never seems to develop well enough in game…while that is maybe due to the CPU’s bad management we can’t include a player without the future screenshot.
hey, whats your opinion on Kyle Walker? I picked him up for 3.3 mill which im pretty sure is more than worth it but ive never really seen much of him.
He’s one of my favorite right backs, just never profiled him due to the daft asking price I assumed he’d have…but an absolute bargain at £3.3 mill.
good stuff
! he was only that price as he didnt get registered for some random reason and he handed in a request as he didnt get ANY football. ive seen my scouts price him at ridiculous fees but im glad i snatched him up now, got rid of glen johnson and got walker with a fraction of the wages too. as you said, bargain 
im having troubles in the defence, i need a solid centre back, a friend told me about salvatore bochetti and dede, dede isnt an option anymore, there are a few profiles on here but i wanted to know the options, bout £30million budget?
Bar the players in this list you could also try alderweireld and Shawcross.
how does mbaye niang become in the future? becoz his stats at the start of the game when he is 17 are amazing!!
We have profiled him in the list above, just click his name to see how he develops.
Jordi Alba left back, any good?
Yeah he does develop into a good player, certainly worth signing as he hasn’t hit his peak in my future save…but I can’t profile him due to that future profile been under par.
Pierre-Michel Lasogga from Hertha BSC?
Average in my future save I’m afraid.
hey Darren, ever thought about a profile on Seydou Doumbia? just a though as he has been my best buy ever, an absoloute goal machine
We actually have one prepared that will be published in the future.
ah brilliant, good stuff
Was wondering if you were interested in profiling Mohamed Yahaya. He’s a free agent at the start of the game and still young enough to progress. Looked at a few 3 season old saves and his attributes seem to be rather random, just like Prestia’s, but he’s still worth a look. I don’t think you can do better than him on the free transfer market
Another defenter who caught my eye – Eric Mathoho. Not great in mental attributes but has amazing strength and is still young. I bet he could be a very good capture for a mid-table team and for a fraction of what he’ll be worth after a few years.
Yahaya isn’t visible in my future save to profile unfortunately and Eric Mathoho just isn’t of the standard we’re looking for I’m afraid.
Jan Vertonghen should be in your list, maybe he is and i missed his namn.
Great ballplaying centreback for any team that wants to play possession and control matches. He has also got decent set pieces and is great in the air.
He has been profiled but we haven’t published it yet as there’s a backlog of profiles to get out there.
Hi,
Think Aaron Ramsey needs to be on this list, He’s class in my Arsenal account averages 7+ ratings and led the Prem in assists.
My buddy bought him with United and he did the same. Correct me if I’m wrong and he wasn’t good for anyone else
Ramsey is one of if not the best CM on this years FM…but he is virtually unbuyable and that is why we’ve not profiled him.
Ah makes sense, will you be doing a profile of Jack Rodwell anytime soon? I’ve heard good reviews on him but have yet to see anything of his future stats
We won’t be profiling Jack anytime soon no, but Karl might do a report if he sees fit in the future.
Hi I wonder if you know how good Kwando Asamoah from Udinese becomes? Cheers
This is strange as I was sure Darren has already done a profile on this lad. I’ve never signed him personally but from what I’ve seen, he’s very similar to Alex Song and has bags of potential to develop. The price is, imo, on the steep side, but you will get a solid midfielder for many years to come.
He develops very nicely into a strong and rounded CM, but not had time to profile him as other players are a priority due to Asamoah been reasonably well known.
Hi Darren, nice profile addition with kevin strootman, and the others new profile. What about tomas necid and bernd leno? Have you noticed them? or they do not develop well enough?
Leno can develop well and will get a profile but not for a while as we have a backlog of them, while Necid isn’t good enough in our future saves.
You should have a look at quintero for championship sides… at the start of the season he was 10 goals off 5 games.
I couldn’t agree more and while I’d usually say we don’t profile for that level of football I am adding such a category and list in the near future of which Darwin will be included. He is a little pricey for that level though making him out of reach for most clubs.
Thanks for the replies. I have had my eye on Asamoah for quite some time (I am in the 2013-14 season as Man Utd). I have signed a lot of attacking talent in midfield and this has sacrificed somewhat on the defensive side of my midfield (with only Fletcher and Jones who would come into this category). However Jones is practically my first choice centre back so I cannot afford to use him in midfield. Can you recommend anyone who would be equally as good as Asamoah but on the cheaper side?
To be honest if you are in 2013/14 then we couldn’t recommend a player as most of the ‘cheap’ players aren’t available anymore. But maybe look towards Kara.
hey darren who would you say would be the best striker for 7.5 million for liverpool first season, im looking to have them play quite a bit, they dont have to be world class from the off, but have some sort of impact. any help would be fantastic.
ive never really used any of the strikers on this list, except doumbia, and he’s a bit out of my reach, tried for J.Ayew but he doesnt want to join.
I’d check the players that are rated 5 star in the list above, but the best ones for the price you want won’t make an instant impact I’m afraid…not at the top clubs anyway. My recommendations are Fierro, Torres and Sanogo from the list above.
i started a season with port vale in league 2 signed few good players but need a striker any ideas? ps how about alexander kwiek he seems to be quite good not bad for lower div teams
Sorry mate but we’re not specializing that low down the league ladder yet, but hope to one day. I searched for Kwiek but can’t find him unfortunately.
Hey Darren, have you checked out Roberto Firmino from Hoffenheim? He seems to be a potential superstar in the AMC position.
He has developed well in my save but not quite enough, I’ll see if Karl has a better future screenshot and if he wants to profile Roberto.
What about Isaac Cuenca? got him for £2 mill and was wondering how he turns out, hope he’ll be a great player
He’s not improved in my saves unfortunately but that could be poor CPU management.