Developing players . . .

[stockwellpete]

I have a 22 year old wing-back who is rated two and a half yellow stars. The coaches think he could eventually reach 4 stars (three and a half is more likely, I feel). I am playing a Championship (UK) club. Two and a half stars is average for Sky Bet 1, the league below mine. What are my options to develop him?

1) Grin and bear it and play him in my first team and wait for the rating to go up. It might not, of course.

2) Loan him out to a club in Sky Bet League 1 and hope the rating goes up.

3) Loan him out to a club in the Championship and hope the rating goes up.

 

Obviously I would need to ensure that the player is getting regular football while on loan, but would sending him to a League 1 club actually work? Or would it need to be a Championship club. Logically (i.e. as in real life), a stint at a League 1 club should help. And if his rating does not go up at all and his traits are not improving by the end of the loan period, then is it safe to conclude that the coaches have probably over-estimated this player's potential.

[DMaster2]

The best result is achieved by playing him regularly in your team. For example i've made a custom european superleague database and i started a save with a team from San Marino in the bottom division (division 8) using only players that accept to play for the San Marino NT (it's a build a nation save) and i've seen many getting huge boost to their CA, even tho they are playing far above their ability level. That is also due to your usually better coaching/training schedule compared to AI clubs. But of course playing a L1 worth player in your team may not be the best idea.

 

In which case the second best option is to loan him out so he can play football close to his current ability. If your scout/assman tells you he's a good side for L1 teams, your best bet is loaning him there making sure you pick a side that will play him consistently and with decent training facilities. You can also try to see if a championship team is willing to give him first team opportunities, but be warned that if his average performance is low (below 6.5) that may hinder is progression, hence a loan in L1 may be a better idea.

Edited July 9, 2023 by DMaster2

[stockwellpete]

16 hours ago, DMaster2 said:

The best result is achieved by playing him regularly in your team. For example i've made a custom european superleague database and i started a save with a team from San Marino in the bottom division (division 8) using only players that accept to play for the San Marino NT (it's a build a nation save) and i've seen many getting huge boost to their CA, even tho they are playing far above their ability level. That is also due to your usually better coaching/training schedule compared to AI clubs. But of course playing a L1 worth player in your team may not be the best idea.

 

In which case the second best option is to loan him out so he can play football close to his current ability. If your scout/assman tells you he's a good side for L1 teams, your best bet is loaning him there making sure you pick a side that will play him consistently and with decent training facilities. You can also try to see if a championship team is willing to give him first team opportunities, but be warned that if his average performance is low (below 6.5) that may hinder is progression, hence a loan in L1 may be a better idea.

Thanks. I thought as much. I would even go so far as to say that a two and a half star player would be better off being loaned to a League 2 side rather than stating in the U21's. At least, they are getting some really competitive match experience in front of reasonable crowds. In real life, they would still be learning a lot and gaining experience. Not tried it in the game though. 

[Scotty Walds]

IMO, this is the hierachy for development:

Own 1st team regular, loan 1st team regular (same or 1 division lower), own 1st team regular sub of 20+ mins, loan 1st team regular (even lower division), own U23s/U18s regular, own U23s/U18s regular sub of 20+ mins

There are other scenarios, like a non-playing 1st team squad member but in a mentoring group, but you'd have to treat them on merits. I often have my 3rd best keeper on the 1st team subs bench to allow the 2nd best to develop with gametime in the U23s or even on loan.