Right, a few questions for experts:
1. Youth Development with a team coming up through the ranks. Is it pretty pointless to do? I've been trying it but none of my youngsters are improving much/at all, some haven't improved at all after 3 whole seasons (eg I signed Josh King on a free, and nobody even wants to buy him off me now). I have very good coaches but my training facilities have only just been upgraded to "good". Do you need top facilities to produce world class players like those posted here?
No, it's
definitely worth doing. I don't use any cheats (unless you count downloaded training regiments cheating), no FM Scout or any of that sort, and I'm almost completely relying on youth now. I still buy the odd superstar for obscene amounts of money, but then I can afford that simply because I've got at least 5 top players in my current team who I bought for next to nothing and brought up through the ranks.
The thing is, you're going to have hits and misses. A lot more misses than hits. I very rarely go in outright negative on players, even players that don't turn out that great, but it does happen. But the superstars make up for it and more. Top fascilities aren't all of it, though they certainly help. The single most important factor (except for their potential, which you can only sort of know, and even with 20 scouting potential they are often wrong, either positively or negatively), is letting them play.
Either loan them out to somewhere they will get to play (like a feeder-club in a lower level, or even same level if they are good but not quite ready), or play them yourself when you can. I never loaned Thon, probably the best youngster I've ever had) out. He was ready to play a little bit of first team football when he was 17, substitutions, cups, etc.
Oh, and you have to think very long term. There's little point doing the youth thing if you think you'll play 5 seasons or less. I'm currently in my 11th or so season with Roma.
2. How much attention do you pay to the star ratings used by coaches and scouts? None of them rate my centre mid (2 stars) but he does well enough on the pitch and has very good stats. And with the youth development thing, my players never reach the high potential star rating, which drops season by season it seems. For the record my assistant and scouts have highest ratings in judging ability.
It varies. I rarely pay any attention to the ratings you get when you ask for a team report from the Assistant. It just doesn't really add up. And a change SI made in the last couple of FM's is that scouts will frequently be wrong about players. I had a player in a game that was pretty good in Norway, but my very good assistant said he would never get better. So when I got a job at a top European club, I left him in Norway. A few seasons later he was the best striker in the World. If they keep improving, keep playing them.
3. Positions. How much difference does it make playing someone in their natural position, opposed to accomplished or competent, or even non-existent. It really pisses off my that a natural DM supposedly can't play in CM, for example. And I'm reluctant to sign AMs because I don't know where to play them in a 442. Oh, also, wide forwards. What are they all about then. My assistant doesn't rate my strikers or wingers in that position, so who can actually play there?
No idea about wide forwards. As for the positions, there's no doubt they're best in their natural position. That doesn't mean you can't change that, though.
I bought Fabio from United with Roma, and he was a left back with something like accomplished on right back. And my assistant said he wouldn't improve, and his best position was left back. But he was right-footed, and I needed a right back, so I set him to train that position, and played him there. Before very long he was a natural right back, and was better there than left. If you're doing the youth thing you can pretty much mould them into whatever you want, if you have the patience.
If it seems like I just wrote an essay, I think it might have something to do with me actually writing an exam right now.
