In Football Manager, for players, developing ‘wonderkids’ into world-class players is one of the most exciting aspects of the game.
What is a ‘Wonderkid’?
A wonderkid is a player who has extraordinary talent at an early age. Over the years, there have been some perfect examples of players in real life who have been wonderkids, with the likes of Pele, Lionel Messi, Johan Cruyff, Wayne Rooney, and Michael Owen all fitting the description well.
More recent examples of wonderkids in the world game are Barcelona and Spain winger Lamine Yamal and Real Madrid and Brazil youngster Endrick.
These are young players who are far better than their generational peers. Players that light up football pitches and get fans off their seats despite their tender years.
Wonderkids In Football Manager
For a look at the best wonderkids in the current FM edition and past versions see our guides below:
We all love a wonderkid in FM
There is nothing quite like scouting a fantastic 16- or 17-year-old on FM, developing them, and making them the star of the show for your team when they reach their late teens or early twenties.
You forget that your 29-year-old captain, who has played for you for years, is your star. He is flung out like a bit of furniture you were once fond of but is now destroyed from years of use.
They may even have been your top goalscorer the previous season. However, that is all forgotten as your new shiny wonderkid is ready to take the world by storm.
The new kid on the block is no ordinary young player. No, he is a ‘wonderkid’ who is suddenly in demand for interviews from the press and questions about his likes and dislikes.
They are undoubtedly a player who will excite the fans with their technical ability or make that vital tackle or save despite being barely out of school.
These players are thrust into superstardom, and they live up to their reputation as potential world-class players.
They don’t always make it
We all know that wonderkids can become exceptional players. However, not all wonderkids go on to thrive in the professional game.
Some of these talented youngsters end up the subject of ‘Where are they now?’ questions in online quizzes.
There is a long line of wonderkids who have failed to live up to their potential in both real-life and Football Manager.
The likes of Cherno Samba, Freddy Adu and Kerlon are all more famous for their careers on Championship Manager/Football Manager than anything they did in real life.
All three were projected to be superstars in real life, so you can’t blame FM for predicting that they would be stars in the game.
However, all three failed to really make a mark in the professional game despite such early career promise.
They are prime examples of wonderkids who didn’t fulfil their potential because of various factors. They prove that footballing success needs more than just talent.
For a footballer to succeed, he must have luck, a good attitude, and the willingness to sacrifice certain aspects of his life to fulfil that grand ambition of being an elite player.
How to help nurture young players
To fulfil their potential, wonderkids need to be nurtured in the right way. That means having the best coaches to develop them at club level.
If your club has good youth facilities and coaches, they are more likely to fulfil their potential.
Another significant aspect of their development is getting regular minutes so they can gain experience in a first-team environment.
In Football Manager, this helps the player’s attributes grow, and in turn, they get better. In real life, there may not be a number placed on the player’s development, or there may be depending on who is analysing them.
Whatever way they are assessed, allowing your players to go out on loan can be the key to your players developing into the superstar of the future. However, they can’t be allowed to go on loan to just any team.
The ideal club to send your players should guarantee them regular first-team action, have a high reputation for developing young players, and, if possible, have a similar style of play as your team.
If the club meets all those criteria, then your player is likely to thrive and come back a far stronger player for their temporary move.
Finding new wonderkids is a joy
As FM players, there is great joy in finding unfamiliar wonderkids when playing the game.
These may be a Serbian centre-back who hasn’t yet burst onto the scene, or even a talented young South American number ten who is going to be ‘The next Lionel Messi’.
That is the joy of a wonderkid, they could turn out to be a star, or they could turn out to be a flop. Only your scouting, guidance and luck will determine their destiny within the game. It’s all you.