Massive wastes of money

So, this year with Hibs coming into a bit of cash I decided to break the chairman's piggy bank and sign a midfielder called Joel Lindpere from New York Red Bull for 950k. A combination of injuries, me buying in better players and not actually having his position in my formation anymore I mutually terminated his contract after 4 starts, and three substitute appearances, with one goal and a rating of 6.01. His wages were crippling the team's budget so it was the only way to go about things as nobody would want him.

So what was your biggest waste of money?

In FM10, I can definitely remember that once I had completed the Dafuge Challenge, I got a bit lazy with my signings (waiting for genuine quality to show up) and would sign players for ridiculous prices (for me anyway) from £35million all the way to £95million.

One centre back in particular playing at Wolves. 21 years old, English and ridiculously over-hyped by my scouts. £30million (value originally at £4-5million) spent on the transfer and £100,000+/week on basic wages. Never worth it.

Never made signings like that since, not on FM11 anyway.

Players that I buy on youth contracts in May in LLM, then leave 2 months later because they think demanding their wages x22 is going to earn them a pro contract... *shakes head*.

Ouch. Lindpere has just moved on to Al-Ain on £14,000 a week. Good riddance.

This was my biggest flop, I was convinced he was a boy wonder and paid £20m for him

Nice .... My biggest flop is Andy "waste of space" Carroll . Could not score spent 18m on him , sold for 3m 2 years later

Needed a proven goalscorer. Bought a guy from the French leauges and I can't remember his name. Bought him for €35m. He scored 5 goals in 40 games. Sold him the next season for €3m. Then he went on to another club and finished top goalscorer in that league.

David Villa, FM10, think he was 60m or so.

Awful.

David Villa, FM10, think he was 60m or so.

Awful.

I bought him for £98m to Milan in FM09. Wasn't a huge success but still a massive waste of money considering the fee...

David Villa, FM10, think he was 60m or so.

Awful.

Strange. He's the best striker in the game for me.

Played him every sort of way, he scored 4 vs Valencia, hit tiny bit of form but just never got into positions to score, if he did he probably could score tonnes!

Playing as Tonbridge Angels, I moved up 2 leagues in a few seasons but still was only bringing in players on frees. Decided I needed a good CB so ended up paying 26k for one from a mid-table league 2 side. Turns out I should have just stuck with my current defenders! After a few matches his average rating was about 5.8, not to mention he had cost me a few goals and a few own-goals! He was perhaps my 5th CB for a few seasons afterwards until I released him on a free. He just never lived up to his hype!

Funnily enough... we're now in the Championship with a £3m transfer budget and my current record transfer is still only around £50k so it proves you don't have to spend big at all!

Yeh David Villa was still at Barca when I took over. Was awesome to 35. Banged them in no problem. Retired though.

This was my biggest flop, I was convinced he was a boy wonder and paid £20m for him

That's awesome! Least he's found his level at Ross County.

I spent around £9m in a 16 year when I was managing FC København (that is a MASSIVE amount for a danish club! - like 3 time more than the current record signing for a scandinavian club)

4 years later I let his contract run out and he left on a free.. his attributes more or less didnt change at all .. he was a HUGE talent at 16, but as a 20 year old I had several better players for his position

Spent about 65m on a striker once. He didn't score one goal in 3 seasons. Useless git.

David Villa, FM10, think he was 60m or so.

Awful.

I concur, awful player. Bought for £56m sold for £21 two seasons later to Chelsea.

I remember buying a 21 year old Brazilian right back for £24m with my Everton team on I think FM2008 from Santos, it was a risk. He was a massive flop, had an average rating of 6.4, had a bad attitude and was a nightmare TBH. I tried to sell him and no one wnated him. I had blown a large amount of my transfer budget on him and he had hige wages. By far the worst I've ever made.

My biggest mistake was on FM10, signing Jordan Henderson from Sunderland to Bristol City for a 14M fee. Had him on about 22,000 a week and a 5 year contract. His average rating over 4 years was just above 6. This sort of stupidity and stubbornness to believe that EVENTUALLY he will come good lead me to the sack.

I don't know why I did it.

In FM 09. I paid £3M for James McFadden for Hibs. He was useless.

On the whole i've had really good luck with transfers. I've only had one true flop:

I spent 7M to bring AMLC, FC Carlos Eduardo to Dortmund on FM 08. He was really fun to watch, dribbling it here there and everywhere. But his end product was completely missing and he had a tendancy to miss with spectacular curling shots when a tap in would have done. And then when we weren't doing so well (which was most of the time... I got fired at Dortmund, only the second time ever) he didn't look interested at all. Though come to think of it he never showed any inclination towards doing more than dribbling it towards left hand corner flag and knocking it off for a goal kick.

Never really had a massive flop. As I usually sign proven goalscorers or talented youth players who don't cost much. A few games(FM09 I think) ago I'd signed Aguero for about 40 million, he was awful in the first season. Then I persevered with him and he was top goalscorer in the league the next season, so flop averted.

Did sign him again in a recent save though for about the same. He wasn't awful, he got about 20 goals in all comps two seasons in a row, but as he was meant to be my main goalscorer, wasn't good enough. Fell out with him at the start of his third season, he didn't play in the first half of the season, I then loaned him to Real Madrid, followed by a sale at the end of the sseason for 28 million. So a loss of 12 million for a player who never quite suceeded.

I don't think iv ever had a flop. I hardly spend over 1 million for a player.

I only buy kids for scrap money.

In FM10 I bought Chinedu Obasi for Newcastle for about 12 Mill or something like that and he was worse than shocking couldnt cross and couldnt shoot with a poor avg rating luckily though spurs came in for him in the January transfer window and paid 30 mill which i thought was brilliant. Although AI do have a tendancy to spend big on useless players and then never play them.

This is not really a flop as such as i got him on a free but in FM11 i signed Ruben Micael from Porto for Sheff Wed in the prem and he was rated my highest player. Honestly DO NOT EVER buy this player!! countless chances from inside the box and the most horribly wide shots you could ever imagine or they went flying over the bar. In fact i dont think he had one shot on target the entire time he played.

Santi Carzola. Bought him for £20 million, sold him for £10 million a year later. Bloody awful.

This was my biggest flop, I was convinced he was a boy wonder and paid £20m for him

Easily the funniest so far.

This guy, bought him for £56m, has not been a waste of money, but he has been distinctly average. His average rating is 6.8 or something in about april, he starts off okay, then steadily through most games he has gone down.. to 5.4 etc.

Then I started using him as a defensive midfielder as he was 100% fit, got 8.4 and a goal from 30 yards -.-

I want him to be a CB!

also once bought a 17 year old AMC from Southampton who Man utd and Arsenal had made bids for.. he chose me (for £6m), after his 3 year contract ran out he is still looking for a club 2 seasons on, having made no appearances for me. Will post a screenshot of him when I can...

Was his name Alex Oxlade Chamberlain?

Fernando Llorente. got him for £32 million he played for 3 years scored a grand total of 40 goals despite playing 30 + games a year. Sold him to Real for £10 million.

This guy, bought him for £56m, has not been a waste of money, but he has been distinctly average. His average rating is 6.8 or something in about april, he starts off okay, then steadily through most games he has gone down.. to 5.4 etc.

Then I started using him as a defensive midfielder as he was 100% fit, got 8.4 and a goal from 30 yards -.-

I want him to be a CB!

also once bought a 17 year old AMC from Southampton who Man utd and Arsenal had made bids for.. he chose me (for £6m), after his 3 year contract ran out he is still looking for a club 2 seasons on, having made no appearances for me. Will post a screenshot of him when I can...

He's a deep-lying playmaker type, but even that is problematic considering his achilles heel: FOUR in team-work! No wonder a player as small as him won't function as a Central Defender with 4 Team Work. 5.4 ratings and such are caused by errors, own-goals etc. Strange that he does errors considering his mental stats.

I wouldn't have signed him for £56m even though his ability must be world-class. He doesn't fit into my tactic. I would say that to make him good you'd need to tailor your tactic to him.

I'm trying to imagine what a player with 20 decisions, and 4 teamwork would be like in real-life, but can't lol.

Someone unbelievably clever with everything he does with the ball and in movement, yet selfish and absolutely worthless in synchronizing himself with his team-mate's movements? :confused:

And 20 concentration! He's incredibly focused in absolutely everything he does, incredibly clever yet still won't pass the ball?

Well... it has to be said....Carlos Tevez...

I'm trying to imagine what a player with 20 decisions, and 4 teamwork would be like in real-life, but can't lol.

Someone unbelievably clever with everything he does with the ball and in movement, yet selfish and absolutely worthless in synchronizing himself with his team-mate's movements? :confused:

And 20 concentration! He's incredibly focused in absolutely everything he does, incredibly clever yet still won't pass the ball?

Well, he's an absolute genious in understanding the game. He can read whatever's going to happen long before they actually do, and will never fail at marking and dispossessing his opponents. He can find his teammates anywhere on the pitch anytime with pinpoint precision.

... He just doesn't bother!

He is bored by it all, much like Marvin the Paranoid Android in The Hitchiker's Guide to the Galaxy...

I'm trying to imagine what a player with 20 decisions, and 4 teamwork would be like in real-life, but can't lol.

Someone unbelievably clever with everything he does with the ball and in movement, yet selfish and absolutely worthless in synchronizing himself with his team-mate's movements? :confused:

And 20 concentration! He's incredibly focused in absolutely everything he does, incredibly clever yet still won't pass the ball?

Not as good as defender I had who had 18 for freekicks, but had <4 for technique, long shots, crossing and passing - so not sure what kind of freekicks he actually took...

I hate spending masses of money on players because of the risk element involved (I think on my current save the most i've spent on a player is £7.5m), so thankfully it hasn't happened too often with me. I've bought my fair share of turkeys over the years but i've never spent over the odds on any.

I remember on my Arsenal save I bought a defensive midfielder for well over £20m and he turned out to be a waste, I ended up selling him on two seasons later for less than half of what I paid. He had all the stats and he was still fairly young, I just couldn't get him to perform (I think by the time he was sold his average was only 6.7 or 6.8).

Not as good as defender I had who had 18 for freekicks, but had <4 for technique, long shots, crossing and passing - so not sure what kind of freekicks he actually took...

High freekicks + low longshots is weird, if not for that I'd suggest he's one of those guys who just blast the ball with tons of power.

Probably not my "worst" but on my most recent save I bought Kyle Walker for 15m convinced he would turn into a very good right-back... turns out he was pretty poor and soon overtaken by some of my better youth prospects. Ended up selling for £3m a few years later