They were considered by many as the future of football, but where are the so-called 'wonderkids' from Football Manager 2013, a decade on?
Following the release of FM in November 2012, the guys at Football Manager Story compiled a comprehensive list of players with 5 star potential in-game.
Eden Hazard, who was only 21-years-old at the time, was establishing himself as one the Premier League's biggest talents at Chelsea following a £32 million move from Lille.
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Ten years later and the Belgian has recently announced his retirement from professional football, aged 32, after struggling with injuries throughout his time at Real Madrid.
So who else features on the list? Here are 10 other 5* players on Football Manager 2013.
Marc-Andre Ter Stegen
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Only one goalkeeper received a TFM rating of 5 and his name is Marc-Andre Ter Stegen.
At 20, he was of the highest rated goalkeepers in world football but you could easily snap him up from Borussia Mönchengladbach on the game for around £10-15 million.
After joining Barcelona in real life, the German has gone on to lift five La Liga titles and a Champions League. He has also made 38 appearances for his country.
David Alaba
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The Austrian defender is by far one of the most established players on this list. After making over 300 appearances for Bayern Munich between 2009 and 2021, he joined Real Madrid in 2021 on a free.
His honours include ten Bundesliga titles, three Champions Leagues and over 100 caps for Austria.
Mario Fernandes
The Brazilian defender was the highest rated right-back on Football Manager 2013, according to Football Manager Story, who valued the CSKA Moscow player at £15.2 million.
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He spent a decade at the Russian club from 2012 to 2022, where he would make over 300 appearances. Last year, Fernandes spent a year on loan at Brazilian club Internacional.
The 33-year-old, who has made 33 appearances for Russia, joined Zenit Saint Petersburg in July.
Kyriakos Papadopoulos
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Papadopoulos was one of the most popular buys in FM13. You were able to snatch him away from Bundesliga away for around £10 million, and he would soon turn into one of the best centre-backs in the game.
Unfortunately in real life, he would fail to live up to those lofty expectations. He's spent the majority of his career in Germany, featuring for the likes of Bayer Leverkusen, RB Leipzig and Hamburg.
At 33, he currently plays for Greek Super League side Lamia.
Phil Jones
Rated so highly by Sir Alex Ferguson, the defender joined Manchester United from Blackburn in 2011 for £16.5 million with hefty expectations on his shoulders.
A year later and Football Manager gave the England international a high PA [potential ability] and value to match his impressive debut season at Old Trafford.
A decade on and Jones is currently a free agent after leaving United when his contract expired at the end of the 2022/23 season. He made 229 appearances for United and has played 27 times for England.
Romulo
Perhaps the biggest surprise on this list, Romulo is currently playing for Brazilian side Cruzeiro but back in 2012, he was rated better than Casemiro and Koke on Football Manager.
He initially impressed in Italy with Fiorentina and Hellas Verona but a career-threatening knee injury derailed his career.
Thiago Alcantara
Another one of the more established names on the list, Thiago lifted seven successive Bundesliga titles with Bayern Munich after leaving Barcelona for regular first-team football.
The Spaniard currently plays for Premier League side Liverpool but injuries have somewhat hampered his time in England. Still, he has made 46 appearances for Spain and boasts two Champions League titles to his name.
Mario Gotze
With a value of £24.5 million, then-Borussia Dortmund midfielder Mario Gotze was one of six attacking midfielders to be handed a TFM rating of 5.
A year after the release of Football Manager 2013, he joined Bayern Munich after they triggered his £32 million release clause but he struggled to make a real impact in a three-year spell at the Allianz.
A decade on and the German is enjoying life at Eintracht Frankfurt.
Jack Wilshere
After his breakout display in the Champions League last-16 game against Barcelona, the England international was destined to be handed a 5 star rating on Football Manager.
The 31-year-old announced his retirement from playing professional football last year after suffering a string of injuries.
In fact, when he was just 18-years-old, Wilshere damaged his right ankle at the end of the 2010/11 campaign and went on to miss 151 games over a six-year period at Arsenal.
He is currently the manager of Arsenal's under-18 team.
Romelu Lukaku
The Belgian forward was playing for Chelsea when he was handed the highest TFM rating.
Lukaku would go on to play for Everton, Manchester United and Inter Milan before returning to Chelsea in the summer of 2021.
He may have scored over 250 goals during his club career, including 79 goals in 112 games for Belgium, but the 30-year-old has divided opinion in the majority of those above spells.
Featured Image Credit: Getty ImagesTopics: Football Manager, Gaming, Chelsea, Manchester United, Premier League