Hello and welcome to my FM 2013 Guide on how to develop youth players. When I first started playing FM, maintaining a save was near impossible, I’d manage 2-3 seasons but then lose interest and gain very little in the way of success. It wasn’t until I became invested in youth development that my saves were extended and success within the game came piling in. Since then I have obsessed over player development and I think it’s time to share how I go about it.
We will begin with the basics, how to set everything up to give your players the best start. After that we’ll go into more detail and delve into how you should look at individuals.
Coaching staff
Yes this is an FM 2013 guide on how to develop youth players, but without the right coaches you stand no chance. Johnny has already written an excellent guide on how to get good coaches and then assign them roles in training.
You should start by reading that, but also remember that a ‘coach’ will only train the first team, he will not spend time with your U18’s. These guys are trained by the ‘head of youth development’ and ‘U18 coaches’, so be sure to check your under 18 training and get those star ratings up in each category. ‘Working with youth’ is a very important skill for these guys so make sure they have it. Obviously some clubs will struggle to make up the numbers in this area (due to board restrictions) but just do what you can.
General Training
All I will offer here is my advice, Johnny has outlined how best to use training in a previous FM 2013 guide.
After using Johnny’s advice about pre-season training and how best to prepare your side, I also want to add that setting your training intensity to high and keeping it balanced is best through the season. With training intensity set to average or lower I have seen a real lack of development, I even noticed some players attributes dipping at times.
Club Facilities
It goes without saying, but you must invest in your clubs facilities if player development is going to improve. Again this is an area that may be restricted by your board and cash flow, but all I can say is its worth the investment. Upgrade your training and youth facilities as regularly as possible. Junior coaching is well worth an investment as well.
You should now have the basics in place and be looking through your youngsters. But this isn’t enough, we aren’t even half way to developing superstars yet.
You must pay close attention to each individual, so select the few players that can really develop and discard anyone who will not be a first team regular in the future. Trust me, you can’t develop everyone so focus your attention and energy on the best of the best…now keep reading.
Player analysis
Before you do anything, look at the youngster and decide which role you’d like him to play. Obviously you’ll need to curve their development towards your vision and doing this early is vital. Once you know what the player is heading towards you can start the first stages of his development.
Loan deals
But before you do, analyze the players ability and assess how much game time you can offer. Even if your player is 16 or 17 years old he still needs to be playing competitive Football. Below are some guidelines on when to send players out on loan.
- Aged between 15-17 and getting less than 12 games a season.
- Aged between 18-20 and getting less than 20 games a season.
- Older than 20 and getting less than 30 games a season.
The above isn’t a perfect guide. You can use your common sense when it comes to substitute appearances but if you break the rules above put your player on the ‘Development list’. Your Director of Football (or whoever is assigned to the duty) will find your player a suitable club.
Word of advice, always check the loan offers that come in for your player, don’t just trust your Director of Football. Make sure you manually reject any offers that show the player may be used as backup or rotation, he must play first team football.
Individual Training
Here we have one of the most important tools in player development. You should use individual training for a number of reasons and below are some bullet points to consider.
- If you want to play your youngster in a specific position that he isn’t natural in, then use the ‘new position’ tool. Just because a player isn’t natural in a position doesn’t mean he can’t play there though. If he’s ‘accomplished’ then you may not need to waste time in this area.
- You can train your wonderkid in a specific role, ie ‘inside forward’ or ‘winger’. Use the focus on individual role and he will not only become more familiar with it but the players attributes can be curved slightly to suit your goals…I’d recommend focus intensity of high for this, unless your player complains about workload of course.
- I focus most on ‘specific attributes’. If I have a slow striker with all the makings of a poacher I’ll focus on his quickness, then maybe switch to any other weak areas and keep changing it up every couple of months. High intensity works best here.
In a nutshell you should use individual training to mold your wonderkid and change the type of player he will become.
Tutoring and preferred moves
There are some attributes and traits that can’t be curved through general training and most individual training. Determination is one of them, your player may naturally develop that on his own, but if you desperately want him to develop in said area then use tutoring. You can ask a senior player in a similar role to tutor your youngster, obviously selecting someone with excellent ability in the area you want improving. Though I rarely use this to be honest.
Another way of changing your players style is through ‘New preferred move’ found within individual training. Again I rarely use this, but its handy when you have a player that argues with officials or dives into tackles, traits that can get him into trouble.
First team Football
The most important part of any players development is game time, this is the best way to improve mental attributes and stats in general. I have already mentioned the minimum amount of games a youngster should play, but he must also be involved in the right type of games. Don’t just fling a 16 year old into the Manchester derby from the start, chances are he’ll have a poor game which may hinder his development.
Start slowly, easing your kids into cup matches, easy league games and simple matches in Europe. The better they play the better they’ll develop.
Examples
OK I think we’ve covered almost everything, so now its time for me to share some examples. Below are regens I have bought with Newcastle and their development season on season.
Marin (MC/AMC) — Bought aged 16 from Barcelona for £16 million
Second season: Here we have a player with the potential to be a star. My plan was to adapt Marin into a maestro from the centre of midfield. Due to his high CA and great all round ability I just worked on passing and technique through individual training. I also tried to make him more familiar with the MC position and advanced playmaker role.
Third season: While passing and technique remained the same, training Marin in his role helped develop a lot of mental attributes. While game time against easier opponents seemed to aid some physical attributes.
Fourth season: Unfortunately this season was hampered by a hamstring injury, but Marin did still progress. Individual training improved both his passing and technique while further carefully selected game time helped develop the mental attributes further.
Godoy (DC) — Bought aged 16 from Independiente for £8.25 million
First season: A solid centre back with many areas to improve. I instantly spotted quickness, strength, composure and positioning as the key areas to improve through individual training.
Third season: Godoy played in almost every Champions League match over the first two seasons and also featured in the domestic cups. I wanted him to gain experience without conceding too many goals and this seemed to do his mental attributes the world of good. I switched individual training focus between the previously mentioned areas and all those attributes went through the roof.
I have many more examples but these two show what can be achieved through care and close attention. Yes you need to switch individual training focus on a consistent basis but you also need to pick the right matches for your kids to play in, I think the screenshots above show that.
That is all for this guide, I hope it helps but please feel free to ask any questions below. Thanks for reading and I look forward to your comments.
tmg
3 декабря, 2012 at 15:15
Hi, How often do you change the individual training focus? every couple of months of every couple of weeks?
Darren Smith
3 декабря, 2012 at 19:06
Every couple of months roughly.
tmg
4 декабря, 2012 at 09:47
thanks. Maybe add that to the article? It’s not mentioned.
Darren Smith
4 декабря, 2012 at 11:45
Maybe but that is personal choice and varies on the player and how he responds, that is why it isn’t mentioned.
tmg
3 декабря, 2012 at 15:16
just subscribing to comments
saltwater
3 декабря, 2012 at 16:58
That’s an incredible guide — you developed those players extremely well. This is one area of the game I have always struggled with and I’ve ended up on a few occasions having to sell young players due to my inability to develop them. Seriously Darren, a couple of mini tips in there have really opened my eyes as to what I’ve been doing wrong.
Interesting question, what length of injury would a good prospect have to suffer for you (and you would advise your readers) to let him go?
Darren Smith
3 декабря, 2012 at 19:14
Thanks mate, I’m glad it helped. As for your question it is a tough one to answer, mainly because it depends on the players position and age at which he’s injured. I will always wait half a year after a player gets injured badly to assess how far back his development has gone. But anyone injured for less than 5 months is OK IMO, any more and it depends on the individual. The bigger issue comes with constant 1 month injuries which I am getting twice a season with Marin, potentially the best player in the world I may have to sell him if he can’t stay fit!
PeeDub
3 декабря, 2012 at 21:07
Must have something to do with the last name Marin. Marko also has this hidden attribute.
Darren Smith
3 декабря, 2012 at 21:35
Yeah, it certainly seems cursed.
Adam D
3 декабря, 2012 at 20:00
I’ve been wondering just how much you can shape a player. For example I have a young striker who would be an excellent poacher but he has Acc 9 and Pace 11. If I focus just on quickness am I likely to see those stats (eventually) hit around 15 or is his speed going to be capped permenantly?
Tangential but regarding youth players, is there some way around the limitation of Brazilian players not being able to sign for a foreign (or at English club at least) club before they’re 18? I allways have to wait to sign them yet I see AI controlled Man U with a couple of Brazilians in their youth team (and I’ve checked, they have Brazilian clubs in their histrory, they weren’t regened at ManU) that are 16 and 17 years old.
Darren Smith
3 декабря, 2012 at 21:01
A players pace and acceleration is effected in varying degrees for each player TBH, I currently have someone very similar who started with 8 and 10, he now has 13 and 11, still not enough but he’s 21 so I’m hoping he’ll keep improving. So in answer yes each player will have a limit but I’d always take the risk on a player that could be incredible bar a few attributes.
There is no way around the Brazilian’s signing at a certain age, it is what it is I’m afraid. Not sure why the AI could sign em though.
Heresy
3 декабря, 2012 at 22:59
Perhaps the youngsters have more than one nationality? If their second nationality is european, then perhaps they can move clubs sooner?
ilovefood
4 декабря, 2012 at 06:39
This is from what i observed, whether it is a new feature or not. In your case, Man Utd’s club poach/approach the brazilian while that boy is still in the academy and was presented as a Man Utd youth candidate on England’s newgen date. Therefore, if you go to the brazilian club in the previous season, the boy is not there, eventhough it is stated in the boy’s career history. Similar case in real life would be Ryan Giggs started at Man City, but went to Man Utd at 14 years old.
sorry if there are language errors as english is not my first language.
Darren Smith
4 декабря, 2012 at 11:43
All feasible explanations, but doesn’t make a difference at the end of the day, you still can’t buy a Brazilian player from the youth team straight away.
ilovefood
4 декабря, 2012 at 15:00
yes, it’s just an extra feature, which i find it nice as i always like to check my youth’s history to see whether they are poached from other clubs :) .
by the way Darren, lets say i have a youngster with poor CA, but high PA, is it better to put it role training instead of attributes?
if general training set to high, individual training set to high too, then the workload will be «very heavy» , which will cause unhappiness, is it viable to set the general training to average ?
thanks.
Darren Smith
4 декабря, 2012 at 19:13
I would say it is better to set their specific training to their role as opposed to individual attributes when their CA is very low yes, that way the coaches will target more than one area which is required. I often have my kids training at ‘very high’, don’t worry about that until they start complaining about it. You could change general to ‘average’ but that will then effect the entire team so I wouldn’t do it personally, I’d adjust the individuals training intensity if they complain.
ilovefood
5 декабря, 2012 at 01:23
ah, thanks, i’ll adjust those settings and see how it goes. Will you be making a tutoring guide in the future? i had a youngster with decent stats but low determination, keep complaining about training workload. I plan to sign old players with high determination just to tutor him. Does determination affect the training or only his personality?
Darren Smith
5 декабря, 2012 at 11:52
We won’t have a guide on that no as its common sense really and too smaller a subject. Determination is part of the players personality alongside professionalism and work rate etc. It is his overall personality that depicts his work ethic in training.
Adam D
6 декабря, 2012 at 19:34
OP chiming in, I can confirm ilovefood’s chain of events is present in my save. Both players have a Brazilian club in their history but neither clubs transfer history lists the player as leaving (either to ManU or on free transfer).
Heresy may also be onto something as both players have English second nationality despite only being in UK for 2 and 3 years respectively. Both also have semi-English full names whilst having the traditional Brazilian nick name (Bobo = Marvyn Gudgeon, Guilherme = Guilherme Wright), which seems to indicate second nationality from parents rather than time spent in country.
Soooooo …. new feature accurately modeling ManU poaching youngsters? Or just quirk of second nationality function?
Darren Smith
6 декабря, 2012 at 21:24
Could be both, but I think what matters is that you can only sign these players if they have dual nationality otherwside you must wait., thats what matters.
tmg
4 декабря, 2012 at 15:21
Hi if I’m always sending my young players out on loan will that be better than training?
In the article you suggest sending youngsters out to loan if they are getting less than 12 games a season as a 15-17 year old so if they’re out on load I can’t train them right??
So which is preferable? Sending a player on loan or keeping him at the club for training?
I think that’s something that SI might want to look at in the future, when clubs like Chelsea and United send their players to their feeder clubs or out on loan they are always coming back regularly to be monitored and to train with their owning club.
Darren Smith
4 декабря, 2012 at 19:22
They will still get trained so its not too bad, and the first team football is more vital. However, if you have a player in which you want to mold a lot (ie change pace and acceleration by 5 or more) then you will need him at the club to train him individually, only in that case should you ignore the loan rules. You have to make a judgement call, if the player is already well suited to the type of player you want him to be then send him on loan, if not you may need to keep him…usually you will be left somewhere in between, in which I’d loan him for the first year and then maybe keep him at the club after that and afford the odd cup match for experience while you mold his attributes.
tmg
5 декабря, 2012 at 09:15
Thanks for the reply, I think you’re right it’s a bit of a balancing act.
In future though I think it would be great if you can send a player out on loan and also give instructions on what training you want him to focus on while he’s there.
Darren Smith
5 декабря, 2012 at 11:52
That would be nice yes.
Gaurav Chaddah
4 декабря, 2012 at 20:32
Very nicley written their mate, good piece, intresting to see how you develop the players, will be taking a few notes and attempt to develop some of my own.
When you say set the training to high for the whole team, who do you mean the general training?
Darren Smith
4 декабря, 2012 at 20:52
Yes the general training, cheers Gaurav.
Rodd
5 декабря, 2012 at 20:57
Hey, how are you doing guys, as always, excellent work! But i may say i disagree in something, you are underestimating the power of tutoring, and i say this because i seriouslly tested in a few saves with Boca Juniors (first a save with tutoring, same amount of matches, and then one without tutoring), they have experienced players like Riquelme and Battaglia, that have strong mental and technical attributes, and it really can do wonders in the young players. I tested the improvement of Leandro Paredes, Juan Sánchez Miño and Guillermo Fernández, and i was absolutely delighted with the results of tutoring, you should pay more attention to that (Paredes was a special one, because he had Riquelme as favourite player).
Darren Smith
5 декабря, 2012 at 21:26
Must admit I have been put off by tutoring ever since my youth constantly turned down the opportunity to be tutored which caused morale problems, that is why I don’t use it too often now and because my players seem to reach what I see as their full potential anyway I have never sort after it. I’m sure it can be very useful, but I cannot recommend something in a post that I don’t use often, especially when the results are so inconsistent, ie sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn’t.
Rodd
6 декабря, 2012 at 20:57
The key of tutoring for my players is compatible personalities, same natural position, and if it’s possible favourite player. Of course you should look at what you expect to improve, if you aim to improve the mental attributes you should choose that option when talking to the player. Leandro Paredes at 20/21 y/o, has 20 technique, 20 creativity, 19 passing, 18 first touch, 19 determination, 20 flair, 17 decisions, and it’s amazing since most of those attributes 2 years ago (when the save started) were between 10-15.
Cheers!
Darren Smith
6 декабря, 2012 at 21:27
So you are saying you tested the tutoring over two seasons on two separate saves one testing with and one without tutoring?
Lee
7 декабря, 2012 at 12:33
Very good solid guide but to be fair, the kids you bought im sure would have had a moderate CA and v high PA based on there initial stats and price (the barca kid is ridiculously good)
Is it really that hard to develop kids of that initial standing? Do you have examples of players with more «raw» ability because if I had those kids in any past FM I would be very very disappointed if they didn’t evolve into first team players and would question why I play the game.
The coach guide I will be using, thanks for that!
Darren Smith
7 декабря, 2012 at 12:49
Those were hand picked examples to show how specific guidance can change a player, ie the CB needed to improve specific areas and individual training did that whereas Marin needed game time to improve mentally. Obviously these guys are easy to develop, any wonderkid is, but they are there to show more how you can mold a player.
Lee Gaskell
8 декабря, 2012 at 02:49
i bought two German youths (15 and 16), but they get zero game time in the U18s 1 month into the season — is it simply the coach’s preference or a contractual issue? They’re easily best in their position in the squad, I don’t get it (I’ve not come across this issue before and am an experienced player)
Darren Smith
8 декабря, 2012 at 08:39
Not sure what the problem is there, all I could recommend is promoting them to the reserves and see if they get game time there.
Vitaliy Mokosiy
9 декабря, 2012 at 16:07
My congrants! Your blog was mentioned in Football Manager Digest #2 at my True Football Manager blog.
Darren Smith
9 декабря, 2012 at 16:38
Thanks Vitaliy.
celticman
14 декабря, 2012 at 07:09
Hi Darren,
a great guide as always. I was interested in the part about the number of games young players should play to develop;
Aged between 15-17 and getting less than 12 games a season.
Aged between 18-20 and getting less than 20 games a season.
Older than 20 and getting less than 30 games a season.
Am I right in assuming you mean first team games — not games in youth tournaments (like NextGen, National U20/U18 leagues and Cups)?
Does it also mean the number of games they start or can it include sub appearances. My guess is the former is better for their development.
It does seem quite a high number, though my guess is that’s why you say to focus on only a few players.
Darren Smith
14 декабря, 2012 at 14:56
Thanks mate, the number of games is just an example TBH, this will probably vary depending on the player but as a rule I use this.
You’re right in assuming those reserve and U18 matches don’t count, even if they are classed as competitive, the standard just isn’t good enough.
As for substitute appearances, if the wonderkid is going to get an appearance every other match with around 30 mins left of the game then that is OK, he doesn’t need to start the matches…but if he’ll rarely be used then I would recommend following the rules mentioned above.
It is tough to offer so much game time and I’m not saying a player will crash and burn without it, just that you must offer so much to make sure you give him the best chance of development. I usually find that rotating youngsters with the star players during Europe and domestic cup matches works well. And as you guessed, I only pick a select few to really focus on due to the game time required.
Heisenberg
1 апреля, 2013 at 00:16
No required number of games…just play them as much as you can afford to. Give them appropriate exposure to the competitive nature of the league you’re in and I guarantee you: they will develop, and fast.
http://i.imgur.com/MvN3oJU.png
Bought him in 2013-14 season for only $800k. He has developed EXTREMELY well. Next season (after Ibrahimovic retires) he will be my new captain.
Darren Smith
1 апреля, 2013 at 10:04
Yeah but most people that read a guide like this are looking for as precise guidelines as possible…so no required number of games wouldn’t be the best advice TBH, while I understand your point most gamers look for advice in this area probably wouldn’t.
Chris Lean
15 декабря, 2012 at 16:03
Hey Darren great guide, however I have a pretty annoying issue…
Just bought fm13 week ago and into my 5th season at Rangers, back in the SPL, doing fine, used your guide to develop some of the youths that where at the club to great effect, however I have seen NO youth players coming through the ranks at all, NONE, not a sniff!
The last FM I owned was FM2010, you always got your new batch of youth around june 20ish and where given a full run down on them. In my first season beofre I started this new save, around March alot of youngsters came in, but I have never seen this replecated again.
I have been searching the net almost 3 hours now trying to find a solution, as you know with the state of Rangers finances I cant afford for there to be no youth prospects coming through.
Any input, help would be much appreciated mate.
Darren Smith
15 декабря, 2012 at 16:49
Hmmm that is strange, never heard of a bug like that but that doesn’t mean anything to be fair. So you don’t get a message in your inbox for youth intake where you can sign or leave the youth players during spring/summer? If not I can only imagine its some kind of glitch or self inflicted problem if you used the editor or use in game editors (not that you would or this suggests you would.) Either way its not a problem I am aware of so I can’t help I’m afraid. I’d suggest reporting it on the SI forums.
Chris Lean
15 декабря, 2012 at 17:15
Yeah thats basically it, not used the editor, I some times go on holiday during that period, make food, eat, goto shops etc. Do you think that would be the problem? It is March on FM13 that you are offered youngsters right?
Darren Smith
15 декабря, 2012 at 17:22
It varies for each country but Scotland get their newgens around 8th of March I believe. Could well be the case that your assistant filters through the list of players in your absence, I’d recommend not going on holiday and see what happens.
Chris Lean
15 декабря, 2012 at 17:27
Nothing planned tonight, so i’ll bash on through a new save and let you know, thanks for the advice.
Chris Lean
15 декабря, 2012 at 20:53
You where right, 8th of March I was given a team of youth candidates and a game was organised between them and my current under 19s… I was clearly on holiday or space bar smashing my way past the notices.
Chris Lean
15 декабря, 2012 at 20:56
After the game I was given the option to sign recomended, again must have space bar smashed past it.
Darren Smith
16 декабря, 2012 at 08:35
Good, at least its not a glitch and you can now look through the candidates.
Goh Jun Ling
18 декабря, 2012 at 07:51
Wait…did Marin smiles wider on his 3rd year…? -_-» that’s creepy. :p
Darren Smith
18 декабря, 2012 at 11:38
Haha well spotted, he must be happier now he’s settled :)
Chinmay
18 декабря, 2012 at 13:15
Any good Head Of Youth Development ? And read Goh Juns’s comment , yes regens smile , last year while i was playing with Crewe , I had a team full of regens , and lets say after scoring a hattrick ,or a new contract , they were all grinny !!
Darren Smith
18 декабря, 2012 at 18:51
I haven’t looked into head of youth development so I can’t really recommend anyone TBH.
Herman
14 января, 2013 at 17:15
Got a few questions in mind..
1) Should i move some of my U-18 players from the U-18 team to my senior squad because of better coaching? I cannot hire anymore U-18 coach due to restriction from the board.
2) If one of my young player is unhappy with his high training workload, would it hinder his development?
3) All of my coaches suggest one of my AMC to have individual training on tackling which i believe is not so useful for this position. Should i listen to them or put him to train on the more useful skills for an AMC?
Thanks!
Darren Smith
14 января, 2013 at 19:41
1) I don’t think it would make a difference, if they are below a certain age they’ll train in the youth category anyway.
2) If a player isn’t happy it will effect his development yes, by how much I am not sure, but if he’s unhappy then chances are he doesn’t have the right attitude to be a top, top player anyway.
3) Just use your own judgement here, if you feel he needs to use tackling even slightly then take their advice, if you don’t want him getting involved defensively then ignore them.
ilovefood
20 января, 2013 at 02:49
hello Darren, i would like to know what you usually do , when a youngster that has been developing nicely starts getting red arrows for his attributes? Currently, my ademilson is having this problem, he is not injured, in good fitness condition, good personality and has a few games too.
Darren Smith
20 января, 2013 at 09:17
That is natural provided they don’t do that a lot, a player can’t just improve all the time. Just be sure to have your general training set to high and be training them in their role or individual area with high intensity too, but most importantly be sure to play them.
ilovefood
20 января, 2013 at 11:49
i see, so even when it shows red arrows, games are important? previously, i won’t select him in games until there are no red arrows, is this the wrong method?
Darren Smith
20 января, 2013 at 12:06
As mentioned in the guide, first team football is vital for development, so if you wait for those arrows to show green then it will be one long downwards spiral. All they mean is he has fallen back a tiny bit in recent training, I’m not sure why you’d pay attention to them if they are there just once.
liang yu
1 февраля, 2013 at 06:49
Nice guide Darren,
I have a question, I always go out and hunt young regens on the regen date and I usually find plenty of 5 star regens. As you said I cannot develop all of them, so my questions what attributes are you looking for when you sign a regen?
I heard most people look for high determination and techniques.
Darren Smith
1 февраля, 2013 at 11:39
It varies completely on the position and individual really, its more a mixture I look at, I try to get a feel for the player as opposed to setting strict attribute guidelines. But determination and work rate are fairly important and if one has low natural fitness (below 9) I tend to feel put off. Bar that it depends on what you want in a player.
Cimegs5088
1 февраля, 2013 at 06:57
After 15seasons, I would say work rate n professional character is better than determination. I had a keeper with model professional, 20det n 20 work rate, and with tutor of reina, he turn into 5stars in less than 2 years time before age of 18. A world class keeper at 20. I was lucky to have spot em from the hammers. In 2013, Southampton n west ham are the major English talent pool.
Cimegs5088
1 февраля, 2013 at 07:13
Maybe I should take another example, was too excited to brag bout my regen lol. I got 2 regen, 1 with 15 det, 20 work, n the other with the other way round, both are resolute character, playing DM, tutored by pirlo, rossi, de Rossi, Gerard, Lucas leiva. Both usually play together when I line up youth for easy game. Oh, both em have 11 technique to start with at 15. At 20 years old, higher work rate has 4star, and the other at 3star. Both Nv injured more than 3 months in total over 4 years. This is what I based on regarding det vs work
Cimegs5088
1 февраля, 2013 at 07:17
Usually for 20 work rate n model prof, their training afford are always full or close to full. But others u will need to talk to them, gv them the whip to push them, it is not easy to have 5star potential turn into 5star ability if u can’t play them enough at top flight. I have aff club with galatasaray, Celtic n usually one of the newly relegate from epl team that has top youth n training to send my kids to. So yeah
Chipauchan
17 февраля, 2013 at 10:42
Quality post but how do you find your players? Scout them like I do or would it be better to type in the specific attributes I want for a certain role?
Darren Smith
17 февраля, 2013 at 12:46
This guide should answer all your questions related to finding wonderkids. https://www.footballmanagerstory.com/2012/11/fm-2013-guide-how-to-scout-top-players-and-wonderkids/
Edgar
16 марта, 2013 at 01:17
Hi, when loaning out, what do you look for in a club besides their plans to feature your player as a first team? Training facilities? Staff? Or is just the first team football important?
Darren Smith
16 марта, 2013 at 08:53
All the above is important but 9 times out of 10 you’ll have to settle for less. I personally just ensure that they are going to get first team football.
Gaurav Chaddah
6 апреля, 2013 at 11:10
Darren… I just have a question about this, say you sign player and you want to imrpove it’s finishing, dribbling and pace. I train on pace 2 3 months later the pace hasnt improved do you just rotate between the 3 even if they dont improve every couple of months or wait until it goes up?
Darren Smith
6 апреля, 2013 at 11:51
I would usually suggest waiting until the attribute rises…however, when you have a cluster of attributes like that it would be best to train him on the ‘poacher’ focus as that covers all those and more.
Gary B
7 мая, 2013 at 04:57
Great advice Darren. I am wondering when it comes to appearances how significant are substitute apps in terms of development? For example when you talk of roughly 20 games for an 18-20 year old do you mean a whole 90 minutes? I’m deciding whether its worth keeping a guy to throw on for 20 mins here and there or whether I should send him on loan. Cheers.
Darren Smith
7 мая, 2013 at 11:59
Its hard to say really, I personally think they need to start, one things for sure, less than 20 minutes would do very little to help them.
Gary B
9 мая, 2013 at 06:20
Ok cheers
Jack
7 мая, 2013 at 19:00
Have you still got this Marin guy? I’d love to see a profile of him now Darren!
I was wondering if you could provide some advice relating to the development of Phil Jones, as I know you have some experience of him from one of your previous saves.
For some reason, his development has just stopped and he is only 22. It’s weird. I play him as a central defender as his attributes applicable to that role are as follows:
Heading: 17
Marking: 16
Tackling: 20
Composure: 16
Concentration: 15
Decisions: 15
Determination: 17
Positioning: 16
Jumping: 12
Strength: 18
His attributes have remained like this for months, and whatever I do to try and increase them, like bollocking him for not training hard enough, doesn’t work. What do think might be preventing him from developing?
I have a big squad but I tend to play Jones most games, unless he needs a rest that is.
Cheers.
Darren Smith
7 мая, 2013 at 19:14
Heres Marin now https://www.footballmanagerstory.com/wp-content/uploads/imgs/2013/05/marin.png he’s been a little hampered by injuries but really hit a nice run of games in the last season or so.
As for Jones he may well have progressed fast and now be enduring a phase of very steady development where you’ll barely even notice the attributes rising, they can take more than months to rise if he’s been progressing very, very fast in seasons gone by. That can happen sometimes.
Jack
7 мая, 2013 at 19:30
Jesus man. He’s a monster! The next Xavi and Iniesta perhaps? Looks like he’ll even exceed their level of ability mate! That’s amazing development.
What about that Godoy lad? How’s he looking now?
I’m also really getting into youth development now. I have this German lad and he’s labelled as the next Gunter Netzer which is some expectation indeed. I also have two Italians one of whom was labelled as the next Franco Baresi — so looking forward to developing them both.
One of the most interesting features of the game is developing youth I think.
Cheers for that as well. I guess I’ll just be patient and wait for him to develop. What do you think of his development to date on my save? Decent?
Darren Smith
7 мая, 2013 at 19:53
Godoy has been plagued by a few minor injuries and then one really bad one recently so his development hasn’t gone as planned, but here he is to date. https://footballmanagerstory.com/scout/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/godoy-2021.png
As for Jones, his development seems very good from those attributes mentioned, that is why I instantly suggested he will slow down in terms of development now…some players are late bloomers whereas some just grown too fast, I found Jones to develop quick then mellow out somewhat.
Jack
8 мая, 2013 at 11:57
He still looks the business!
And cheers for that.
You know when you say that the training intensity should be set to high, do you mean for the general training, the players’ individual training, or both? It confuses me a bit this part of the game. Never sure I’m doing the right thing. Thanks.
Darren Smith
8 мая, 2013 at 12:06
I mean both on the intensity, only reason I wouldn’t set both those to high is if the player complained.
Jack
8 мая, 2013 at 12:56
I’ll change them all to high then. Thanks for the help with this Darren.
You developing any more youth players at the minute?
Darren Smith
8 мая, 2013 at 18:36
Not really focusing on any as such, just general development really.
lorenzo
22 мая, 2013 at 11:07
Hi! Great guide, I just love your whole site.
But I was wondering if you get a 15-16 year old regen. He needs at least 12 games in a season. That is with your first team, right? What about U18 team then … they play the whole season in U18 league.
Or is it meant to be at least 12 games with first team and other times the young regen would be with U18 team and playing for them?
Thanks in advance.
Darren Smith
22 мая, 2013 at 11:58
Playing for the U18 is a waste really, the level of football is so low that they will learn very little, it must be in the first team and then leave them available to play for the reserves for 45 mins also.
Tham Mun Wai
11 июня, 2013 at 15:47
Hello,
I had just started an arsenal game where i bought a few young promising players but don’t have the confidence to start them in games so often. So i would like to ask whether was it a right decision for me to send my young promising players out on loan with first team football promised. These are the players send
1. 17 years old Leon Goretzka — Bayer 04 Leverkusen — First Division
2. 16 years old Neal Maupay — Girondins Bordeaux — Ligue 1
3. 16 years old Maximillian Meyer — Hoffenheim — First Division
4. 16 years old Gennaro Tutino — Exeter City — Npower League 2
5. 18 years old Mattheus — Rayo Vallecano SAD — Liga BBVA
Or should i just keep them in my club and play them every once in a while to help develop them into better players.
Darren Smith
11 июня, 2013 at 18:45
I’d say you did the right thing, but only if those clubs will give the players a minimum of 15-20 matches.
Tham Mun Wai
11 июня, 2013 at 19:31
I am not sure whether they would be able to play like 15-20 matches in those clubs. So far i had seen Leon Goretzka and Mattheus being played quite frequently in the first team while Gennaro Tutino was played in the first team and U18 ones.Unfortunately, Neal Maupay was played a few times in the first team and the majority of the games he had played was for the reserves and the U19s while Maximillian Meyer was played in the U19 team to my dismay. I regret sending Neal Maupay and Maximillian Meyer there although i was told that they would gain first team football when they offered to loan them.
Darren Smith
12 июня, 2013 at 11:54
Yeah its a judgement call really, but if they are getting less than 10 games its a definite no no as they’ll gain more from your training facilities and reserve team.
Gargantuan
12 июня, 2013 at 17:26
In terms of attributes…Is it realistic to expect a wonderchild who starts off with 15 points at Finishing at the age of 15 to reach 19 points at Finishing by the time he’s 23?
I’m currently training Stan Kooistra (Ajax)…An incredible talent…He started off with a potential of 4,5 stars and at the moment he is 20 years old, has a potential of 5 stars and has a Finishing rating of 18…I’m guessing it probably would be wise to train other weak points (poor Heading rating of 11, his Free Kicks are up to 14 now, Dribbling and First Touch are 15)…The only problem with this guy is his specific weak point: Important Matches…
Darren Smith
12 июня, 2013 at 18:52
I’d say he probably will reach that level of finishing but it depends on many factors including his PA. I would recommend focusing the training on the role you want him to play, that will help improve a number of attributes more naturally.
Odisseas
19 июня, 2013 at 15:58
you say that aged 15-17 kids must get 20 or more matches…you dont mean full time matches?
Darren Smith
19 июня, 2013 at 19:15
I didn’t say that. If you re-read I suggest a minimum of 12 games for that age group and that is based on a top flight club in Europe so the number isn’t too tough to hit. The majority should be first team apps but a couple can be half-time subs.
The only time I mention the numbers suggested by yourself is in a specific comment to someone talking about players going out on loan to pretty poor quality leagues, where more game time is required to develop.
kim
12 июля, 2013 at 15:15
let say a regen player have 1* CA and scouts told us that he have 4* in PA. Bad management will halt the progress of the player definitely and they will lose their PA, but will setting him into proper and right training enable him to get more like 5* ?or 4.5* maybe?
Darren Smith
12 июля, 2013 at 18:46
The only reason that could happen is if the scout misjudged the PA from the beginning. Its not possible for a player to improve his potential ability…but he can run out of time to reach it if trained badly and every year that he doesn’t improve as much as expected by the coaches, they assume he will not reach his potential.
kim
12 июля, 2013 at 21:21
thanks darren. Looking for kids with 5* PA.kinda hard to get them
Darren Smith
13 июля, 2013 at 09:26
It depends on who you manage. Remember the scouts and coaches star ratings are just their opinion on the player compared to other players in your squad. So if you’re a lowly EPL side then 5 star talent is definitely available. But if you’re Barcelona then chances are there will be few reports come back with 5 stars, otherwise a winger would be classed as potentially better than Messi.
Mika
29 июля, 2013 at 13:25
Thank you for the great guide Darren!
I’m wondering one thing about youth development.
I understood that loaning players to get first team football is most beneficial for them, but when they are at loan I can’t develop attributes of my choice via individual training.
So if I want to develop certain attributes, should I let 17yo player to go for loan and next season keep him in my team if I cant give him first team football much at all and again next season put him on loan?
I guess my real question is, until what age it is beneficial to use individual attribute training before the player development peak has past ?
Darren Smith
29 июля, 2013 at 19:19
I think the answer to that comes in personal choice, there is no right or wrong answer, while he stays at the club not playing the attribute increase will be far lower bar the area you train him in individually, equally its pot luck which attributes improve while he’s on loan. I personally send the player out and see how he progresses, if the attribute in question isn’t moving at all then I have no choice but to try and develop him in house, so your suggestion could be an ption in this case. I would say you can do individual training at any point, obviously it varies for every player and depends on how quickly they develop so again its guess work and you’ll know better by watching your player grow year on year.
Erin
2 августа, 2013 at 00:30
It seems perfect but I had a question.
A couple of players start decreasing all their skills during the season, for no reason at all. They r not old, they r first team players, and they r not unhappy with their training.
So I thought i might need to lower the General Training to light. Shouldn’t it make sense? less general training, will result in more time to train specific role at high intensity. Well, with low intensity in general training, 20% match prep and heavy individual training, it was the same, even young players start dropping skills like once a month or in 2 months.
Does this happen to you too?
+ i have 1 coach per training category and my assistant trains all categories, maybe I need more coaches?
Darren Smith
2 августа, 2013 at 18:18
That is natural, its just realistic, no player in real life just improves constantly. But you will hinder it further by adjusting your training. That needs to stay at high intensity. All you are doing by lowering that is lowering their training in general, it won’t give them more time to focus on individual training.
Just do what you need to do to get each training categories star rating as high as possible. Obviously one category per person is a must, so adjust the AM also.
chris
13 августа, 2013 at 12:54
If i send youth players out on loan does anybody know if the time they are on loan still counts as training at your club? (With reguards to the CL homegrown Cap)
Johnny Karp
13 августа, 2013 at 19:03
Hmm, I think so but I am not entirely sure.
William Heath
7 сентября, 2013 at 14:40
Great guide mate.. I can honestly say, I also develop players in very similar ways. It’s the long waiting game. One can’t keep speeding through the game, as my nephew does, just trying to win every game. This is such an in depth game and the rewards to developing players can be immense. Great guide mate, well done.
Darren Smith
7 сентября, 2013 at 17:44
Thanks, I’m glad you like it. There’s a lot to be enjoyed in game and developing youth is certainly one of the highlights for me.
bdp2158
12 октября, 2013 at 23:37
Dude I have a question..ive signed a few high pa kids..but my under 18 manager hardly selecting any of them? What should I do? Btw when u say a youth player shouod get a certain number of games do u mean games only at first team level or is under 18 acceptable?? Otherwise I will have to loan them out im assuming?
Darren Smith
13 октября, 2013 at 09:32
Yeah its first team Football that counts so a loan moves probably required. Its not so important when they are 15-16 but beyond that they desperately need to play.
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