Over 10 years ago, Football Manager 2012 was released to the world and bore gifts of wonderkids and unknown gems. Some of those unknowns became superstars, while some of the wonderkids failed to live up to their massive potential.
Some still became solid players for top clubs, but not the world-beaters they would develop into in the game, but others completely fell off and effectively disappeared from the footballing world without anyone noticing.
From academy prospects at the world’s biggest clubs to scouted gems who were must-buys in the game to take your team to glory, we’ve picked out seven wonderkids from the game who vanished into thin air.
Emmanuel Frimpong
One of many midfielders who would be labelled the ‘next Patrick Vieira’ at Arsenal, Frimpong came through the academy alongside Jack Wilshere, but he struggled to control his fiery temper and picked up a red card on his first start for the club.
A few loans, injury problems and a fight with Samir Nasri later, Frimpong was released in 2014. He’s failed to settle anywhere since leaving the Emirates and most recently played for Errnis Arradipou in Cyprus.
“People never really understand why that [fight] happened but I don’t like the guy,” Frimpong stated about Nasri in 2018.
“The reason I don’t like him is because he’s an idiot. Plain and simple. I would never, ever have respect for him.”
READ: Arsenal’s 16 Patrick Vieira replacements and how they fared
Sergi Samper
When Samper broke through at Barcelona he was hailed as the eventual successor to Sergio Busquets.
In most people’s FM 2012 saves, he would develop into a hybrid of Busquets and Andres Iniesta, making him a must-sign midfielder.
Samper famously turned down a move to Arsenal in 2017, and he probably regrets that now.
“I did not want to listen to Wenger,” Samper told Granada’s website. “I told him clearly that I wanted to stay, I wanted to succeed at Barcelona, and what would make me happy was succeeding at…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Football365…