Squad building conundrum:

hi, have been hogging the thread of my chosen team so thought i'd post here.

my RL team has a young, high potential midfield. i'd like to replicate that in FM by fast tracking these youngsters and succeeding with a "dream" midfield quartet of existing players i believe with experience and development could be great.

problem: i'm looking at filling out the squad which lacks depth and have recently come across 2 players, themselves in early 20s, who are BETTER than what i already have, and i can afford them too cos i'm managing the finances very well, have bought and sold well.

now, i DO pride myself in getting the wage bill down, this is a huge issue currently for my team IRL but, if these 2 players haven't high wage demands, what do i do?

do i buy these two players and disrupt the development of what i already have, and rotate well, or do i not buy them?

ok, writing this has in some way clarified my position but i need to determine a philosophy here, and can't work out which way to go.

i don't just need to know what to do, more importantly i need to know *WHY* either to buy these players or not. all thoughts on this welcome!

As Ajax I like to be a feeder club, so I buy cheap young players and when they are ready for first team football sell the big players, basically if I have to decide between 2 players or similar quality the cheaper one wins

Buy and Sell is the way forward

thanks guys! alas hasn't clarified it for me.

i WANT to develop the great young talent at the club already (my midfield is aged 21,21,25,25) but if i see players, gettable, who are better it leaves me with a quandry.

guess i could get ONE better player, make the fans happy as he'd be seen as a marquee signing and i DO want to stick close to real life and a spokesman for my team recently said if the manager wanted *"A"* quality player he'd be backed.

If what you want to do is to develop the youngsters already at the club from the start, the goal isn't to develop the club or your career, so why bother with the signing of players at all? Once your youngsters have reached their potential, whatever they are, your save-game objective is complete and you will have to set a new one or start a new game altogether.

Did I understand you correctly?

valid point. the problem with my RL team is that all the talent is developed at the club and is then poached by bigger teams. has happened in each of the 3 past seasons we've lost our best player. and rumour has it one of our up and coming stars is attracting desirous glances from top 4 clubs again. that won;t happen in the game, i want to keep especially this midfield quartet and get into the champs league - my ambition for the next 3 seasons- with this quartet playing a major part.

yes, i want to win things and do well but i want to do it with the talented midfield we have who will just get better

Then they are a part of a 25-man squad which you are building to the best of your ability. So sign those two players if they would improve the squad, and sell whoever two midfielders are the weakest.

It is nice to have local players who are with you from day one, but if they are not performing they will have to go. Running a football club isn't a charity.

Then they are a part of a 25-man squad which you are building to the best of your ability. So sign those two players if they would improve the squad, and sell whoever two midfielders are the weakest.

It is nice to have local players who are with you from day one, but if they are not performing they will have to go. Running a football club isn't a charity.

thanks, luckily transfer fees (i won't go over the top because if i pay well over the odds i'll be expected to start these players all the time) and wage demands are making it clearer who to get. i DO pride myself in reducing the wage bill which is the real-life reality at my club

As Ajax I like to be a feeder club, so I buy cheap young players and when they are ready for first team football sell the big players, basically if I have to decide between 2 players or similar quality the cheaper one wins

not interested in bringing ajax back to their former glory?

keep bannan, delph and albrighton... sell the rest