It's a Question of Youth

In the last two seasons of my current save i have decided to spend a decent proportion of my money in the summer buying regens or players between the ages of 16 - 18.

I have brought all players with at least three star potential for my scouts. So i have high hopes for them moving forward but they do need more time to develope.

This season i decided to loan some of them out. With the hope that they will get a decent amount of experience. Not all of them have been loaned out though. Just a hand full.

So the question is; who will fair best. The players out on loan or the one still in my youth and reserve teams?

Depends on the state of your facilities vs the state of facilities of the club you are loaning them to. If they get 1st team match time, that helps their progress.

1st team football is by far the best way to get your regens to increase in ability though.

I have excellent you facilities and an acadamy. I also have very good training facilities for all my players.

I'm just hoping that the teams they have gone to play them as much as possilble.

What do you do with these very young players?

Hi Seba

Mixer of both i try loan them out to get game's but make sure the team borrowing the player is saying the player will be part of first team or at least figthing for first team. Also to check how many players they have that can play in that postion.

i always try to loan them out to clubs i know they will get games for, so for instance if i have lots of clubs chasing one player ill generally loan him to the team thats the lowerst ranked as i know theres more chance he will play.

i always try to loan them out to clubs i know they will get games for, so for instance if i have lots of clubs chasing one player ill generally loan him to the team thats the lowerst ranked as i know theres more chance he will play.

I guess there is a balance there between getting lots of games and having decent training facilities.

Players with high stats in work rate and that develop quicker than other players with lower stats in those areas.

In my current game I have a 17 year old that is keeping Eden Hazard out of the side an he's also got his first England call up and scored on his debut.

Whereas I have other young players that have been there since 16 who are now 20/21 and they struggle to get their game.

It all depends.

What if your reserve team plays in the same league as the loan club. Would it be better to have the players at your club because of the better facilities or would the 'first team football' still be more important?

What if your reserve team plays in the same league as the loan club. Would it be better to have the players at your club because of the better facilities or would the 'first team football' still be more important?

Can the reserve team play in the same league. Tehy have there own little reserve leagues i think. It has always got to be better playing for a proper first team i would have thought.

However i do always worry a bit that that they may get more loyal to the team they are on loan to.

Don't know if anyone has had a problem with players wanting to leave after a loan spell?

A kind of related point to make, grab as many feeder clubs as possible and don't be afraid to terminate an agreement and look for another club if your feeders decide not to play your young'uns.

I like to have at least a top League One and a mid-table Championship club when playing as a Prem side, well on top of the usual WP/Financial ones of course.

A kind of related point to make, grab as many feeder clubs as possible and don't be afraid to terminate an agreement and look for another club if your feeders decide not to play your young'uns.

I like to have at least a top League One and a mid-table Championship club when playing as a Prem side, well on top of the usual WP/Financial ones of course.

Had never considered this. Might be worth looking at.

What do you mean by "the usual WP/Financial"

What if your reserve team plays in the same league as the loan club. Would it be better to have the players at your club because of the better facilities or would the 'first team football' still be more important?

If you play in a league where the reserves play in the same league structure, then by all means use the reserves. But it also depends on level of competition I believe. Some reserve teams play in the 4th tier of their country, which may not be the best experience for better youth.

For me, nothing beats regular playing time. However, mentoring can be crucial to the development of your youngsters.

If they're good enough to get a few appearences in your first team, keep and mentor them. If they're not good enough then loan them out. I like to make sure there is a recall clause tho' as if they don't get played out on loan, i bring them straight back.

I tend to follow this piece of advice http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php?t=122234 as I find its a pretty good system for development.

One thing definitely worth mentioning: Make sure your feeder clubs are in active leagues. If their leagues are active, than they'll actually play matches; if not, than they'll spend that time just away from your club. Since playing matches is your goal, make sure they'll actually be doing that when you ship them out.

Also, make sure that the league your own reserve team plays in is active; for some countries (Spain and France spring to mind, but there are others), you need to make sure lower leagues are active to get any benefit out of having a reserve team.

Had never considered this. Might be worth looking at.

What do you mean by "the usual WP/Financial"

I assumed everyone playing would get feeders to help them out with work permits, usually Belgian or Spanish sides, and the commercial link-ups with Asian clubs.

Both are pretty useful if you are managing a reasonably big club.