What happened to the 20 highest-rated wonderkids on Football Manager 2012
Any seasoned Football Manager player will tell you that one of the most satisfying parts of each year's game is developing wonderkids into world-class talents.
From the likes of Cherno Samba and Kim Kallstrom, to Lorenzo Lucca and Endrick - to name just a few - from the modern day, everyone has a favourite FM wonderkid that they would try to sign in every save where possible.
Game developers Sports Interactive have generally got it right more often than not when identifying players that could become future stars.
The year 2011 was no exception, with SI naming a number of top young stars as wonderkids on FM12 that would go on to fill their potential - and then some.
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Let's take a look at 20 of the highest-rated wonderkids from FM12, and where they are now:
Paul Pogba
In 2019, Paul Pogba had just turned 26 and was named in the PFA's Premier League Team of the Year following the best goalscoring season of his career at Manchester United.
By that point, you could say that the Frenchman wasn't too far away from achieving everything. A World Cup winner with France, multiple-time Serie A winner with Juventus, Europa League winner with United, multiple-time Ballon d'Or nominee.
But Pogba's career at United fizzled out and, after he left in 2023 and re-joined Juventus on a free transfer, tested positive for the banned substance DHEA.
His initial four-year ban was reduced to 18 months on appeal, and he joined Monaco in the summer of 2025.
Pogba has only made three appearances for the Ligue 1 side, however, and has been out with a calf injury since December.
Adryan
Perhaps a more recognisable face to players of FIFA 13 than Football Manager, many may not be aware that Brazilian midfielder Adryan actually played in England for a brief time.
After breaking into Flamengo's first team, he was loaned out to Championship side Leeds in the summer of 2014.
Adryan started brightly but his most memorable act came in November 2014, when he spectacularly dived to the ground in an attempt to win a free-kick against Derby.
Leeds didn't take up the option to buy him, and the midfielder has since had spells in France, Switzerland and Turkey. He was most recently seen in the Brazilian fourth tier in 2024.
Yaya Sanogo
Yaya Sanogo was brought to Arsenal in the summer of 2013, with Arsene Wenger having known of him since he was 14.
Though Wenger never actually compared the young French striker to Nicolas Anelka - he spoke generally about criticism associated with young players - there was expectation placed on Sanogo that ultimately didn't come to fruition.
He started Arsenal's Champions League last 16 clash with Bayern Munich in 2014, and scored against Borussia Dortmund in November of that year.
But that was as good as it got, with Sanogo sold to Ligue 1 side Toulouse in 2018.
He enjoyed a relatively solid spell in France, and has since had stints in Armenia and China.
Jack Wilshere
After earning a place in the PFA Team of the Year at the age of just 19 in 2011, it seemed to be given that Jack Wilshere would dominate English football for the next decade or more.
However, during the 2011/12 pre-season, he suffered a stress fracture to his ankle which caused him to miss the entire campaign. He was never quite the same player again.
After a series of injury issues, Wilshere left Arsenal to join West Ham in 2018, and retired in 2022 at the age of 30. He became a coach after retirement, and is now in charge of League One side Luton Town.
Phil Jones
Phil Jones was one of the top young English defenders in the country back in 2011, having been sold to Manchester United by hometown club Blackburn Rovers.
Jones likely would have realised that potential had it not been for a horror run of injuries which effectively derailed his career.
United stuck by him throughout, and he retired in 2025 shortly after being released. Jones is now a first-team coach at Blackburn Rovers under manager Michael O'Neill.
Jack Robinson
Another highly-rated young English defender at the time, Jack Robinson came through Liverpool's youth academy as a left-back.
He played three Premier League matches before his 18th birthday in 2011, but never played in the top flight again for the Reds.
He found a permanent home with Queens Park Rangers in 2014, and was eventually converted into a centre-back after suffering a serious knee injury.
Following a stint with Nottingham Forest, Robinson signed for Sheffield United and made over 150 appearances before joining Birmingham City last summer.
Jordan Ayew
Jordan Ayew was regarded as a top goalscoring prospect when he came through Marseille's academy, but has instead carved out a respectable top-flight career through his sheer work rate and pressing ability.
He netted 21 goals across a six-year spell with Crystal Palace before signing for Leicester in the summer of 2024. Now 34, it remains to be seen as to how long he has left in the upper echelons of English football.
Thibaut Courtois
Thibaut Courtois had already signed for Chelsea by the time FM12 came out, but would in fact spend three seasons on loan at La Liga side Atletico Madrid.
After reaching the Champions League final in 2014, he was more than ready to replace the long-serving Petr Cech as the Blues' number one goalkeeper, and he was one of the best shot-stoppers in English football for four years before transferring to Real Madrid, where he remains today.
Christian Eriksen
Christian Eriksen signed for Spurs in 2013 - the same summer the club sold Gareth Bale to Real Madird.
But while the six other players bought with the Bale money didn't exactly enjoy strong careers in north London, Eriksen became a key part of the XI in an attacking midfield role under Mauricio Pochettino.
He left Tottenham in 2020 to join Inter Milan, before suffering an on-pitch cardiac arrest while playing for Denmark at Euro 2020.
He returned to play professional football after being fitted with an ICD device, and after further Premier League stints with Brentford and Manchester United, the 34-year-old now plays in Germany with Wolfsburg.
John Fleck
After coming through Rangers' academy, John Fleck established himself in English football with League One side Coventry City.
He earned a move to Sheffield United in 2016, and became a key player as the Blades finished ninth in the Premier League in the 2019/20 season.
After a short stint with Blackburn Rovers, the 34-year-old now plays for League Two side Chesterfield under manager Paul Cook.
Serge Aurier
Ivory Coast right-back Serge Aurier lists PSG, Tottenham, Villarreal and Galatasaray among his former clubs, though he never truly established himself as number one choice at any of those sides.
Aurier is currently without a club, having left Iranian top-flight side Persepolis midway through their league season in December.
Erik Lamela
Erik Lamela arrived at Spurs in 2013 - the aforementioned Gareth Bale summer - as one of potentially the most exciting signings of that particular transfer window in the Premier League.
Lamela had a penchant for the spectacular, including a rabona goal from outside the box in a Europa League game in 2015, and although he made over 250 appearances for Spurs, there was a feeling that he hadn't quite lived up to his full potential.
After three seasons with Sevilla, Lamela retired from football aged 33 last year after leaving AEK Athens, and is now back in Seville as an assistant coach.
Kurt Zouma
Kurt Zouma made the move to English football aged 19 in January 2014 - meaning he had just turned 17 when FM12 came out - and was quickly identified as a future first-team centre-back as John Terry wound down his career.
In 2016, he ruptured his ACL, and spent two seasons between 2017 and 2019 on loan at fellow Premier League sides Stoke and Everton.
He joined West Ham in 2022 and helped them to win the Europa Conference League. Now 31, he currently plays for Al Wasl in the UAE Pro League.
Oscar
Another talent snapped up by Chelsea in the early 2010s, Oscar proved to be a key player under Jose Mourinho as the Blues won the Premier League title in 2015.
A creative Brazilian attacking midfielder, Oscar was often deployed in an attacking three alongside Willian and Eden Hazard, and behind Diego Costa.
He made the decision to join the Chinese Super League and Shanghai Port in 2017 amid a significant influx of investment in football in China.
But, unlike many others, decided not to return to Europe and stayed in Shanghai for seven years, becoming a club legend in the process.
He moved back to Brazil with Sao Paulo in 2025, but retired on medical grounds later that year after collapsing during a training session.
Neymar
Fourteen years on from the release of FM12, Neymar is still at the same club - Brazilian giants Santos.
During those 14 years, he's formed one of the greatest attacking trios of all-time at Barcelona alongside Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez, won Champions League titles, secured a world-record move to Paris Saint-Germain, carried the French club to their maiden Champions League final in 2020, and moved to Saudi Pro League side Al Hilal to become one of the highest-paid players in world football.
Sadly, an ACL injury suffered on international duty with Brazil in 2023 cost Neymar a full year of his career, and after failing to reach his previous heights, he returned to Santos and helped to keep them in the Brazilian top flight last season.
Marc-Andre Ter Stegen
Though he has recently been frozen out at Barcelona under Hansi Flick and is on loan at fellow La Liga side Girona, Marc-Andre Ter Stegen was Barca's undisputed number one goalkeeper for eight years between 2016 and 2024.
He has won a staggering 20 trophies during his time at the Camp Nou, including the 2015 Champions League and six La Liga titles.
Xherdan Shaqiri
Formerly of Liverpool, Inter Milan, Lyon and Bayern Munich, Switzerland international Xherdan Shaqiri has enjoyed a career playing for some of world football's biggest clubs.
He didn't exactly hit the heights that many might have expected of him, but Shaqiri was a reliable squad option as Liverpool won the Premier League title in 2020 and was part of the squad which won the Champions League a year later.
Now 34, Shaqiri is back in Switzerland with his first club FC Basel.
Mario Gotze
When Mario Gotze scored the winning goal in the World Cup final in 2014, the sky seemed to be the limit for the Bayern Munich star.
He followed up his success with 15 goals in all competitions during 2014/15, but never reached those same performasnce levels again.
Following a stint back at Borussia Dortmund and then at PSV Eindhoven, Gotze has firmly established himself again as a more-than-capable Bundesliga midfielder with Frankfurt - even if he didn't become the star many expected him to.
Raheem Sterling
Another firm tick in the box for Football Manager 2012, given the career that Raheem Sterling has had.
The winger is among a select group of players to score over 100 Premier League goals, having netted 123 across spells with Liverpool, Manchester City and Chelsea.
He has 12 career trophies to his name and helped England to reach the final of Euro 2020.
Sterling had his contract with Chelsea terminated by mutual consent in the summer, and he subsequently signed for Dutch Eredivisie side Feyenoord.
Carlos Fierro
The last name on this list is someone you may not know too much about.
Mexico midfielder Carlos Fierro earned his place in the FM12 wonderkids list after winning the Golden Ball at the 2010 U17 World Cup.
He went on to establish himself in his home country with Guadalajara but didn't leave Mexico until the age of 25, when he signed for San Jose Earthquakes of Major League Soccer.
Fierro is now back in Mexico with second-tier side UdeG, and has never received full international honours.
Topics: Football Manager, Football, Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1, Champions League, Paul Pogba, Neymar, Raheem Sterling, Thibaut Courtois
Ryan Smart