by CurtyFM
Fresh from his Dutch adventures with AZ Alkmaar in the Eredivisie, we asked WeStreamFM OG CurtyFM for his FM20 Player of the Year from this year’s version of the game…considering one of his players even had a song dedicated to him, will there be any surprises? 👀
With Football Manager 2020 in the winter of it’s lifespan, I often start to think about who would make my FM20 starting XI. I’ve had quite a collection of saves this year, probably two or three more than I would normally have during one single version of FM. I started as usual with my beloved Aldershot, but I’ve also had brief stints at Lille, Hertha BSC, Rangers, Rosario Central & Man City. However, my favourite save of this cycle, and it’s not even close, was with AZ Alkmaar. Myself and Herb began a network save based in Holland with the idea that we didn’t want to start as the ‘big boys’ of Dutch football, namely Ajax & PSV, so Herb took over at Feyenoord and I plumped for AZ. Little did I know I would be blessed with an abundance of talent within the starting squad. I enjoyed the save so much that when the network part of the journey ended after season 3, I continued with the save solo and at the time of writing have completed 6 seasons in Holland, winning 4 Eredivisie titles and I’m well on the way to my 5th.
It’s safe to say that the majority of my FM20 starting XI would come from this AZ side, but the thought of narrowing it down and picking my FM20 Player of the Year will take some serious consideration. Let’s look at the top 3 contenders:
Teun Koopmeiners
Koopmeiners, or ‘Koop’ was the beating heart of my AZ midfield for 4 and a half seasons. Deployed from central midfield as a DLP, his vision and long passing were a joy to behold. The player trait combination of ‘Tries Long Range Passing’ and ‘Likes To Switch Ball To Other Flank’ were key to starting counter attacks, especially coupled with a striker who operates on the shoulder of the last defender. Koop was my club captain before his departure to Barcelona for £80m, and he’s established himself as a key player in Catalonia as well. A phenomenal midfielder who scored important goals and was an ambassador for the club.
Sebastiano Esposito
Oh, Sebastiano. I know this guy will be a popular pick amongst FM players this year. He’s relatively easy to sign if you have a few quid and rarely offers a less-than-great return on investment. Esposito left Inter to join us after Man City triggered Myron Boadu’s release clause. I actually brought in Fabio Silva alongside him, paying less for both wonderkids combined than the transfer fee I received for Boadu. Esposito started life in Alkmaar playing from left and scored some very important goals along the way. Since Silva’s departure to Man Utd he has taken up the mantle of being the premier striker in the Dutch league and is loving the new responsibility. At the time of writing this, he’s still only 23 years old and is attracting the attention of all the usual European giants. It’s unclear how long I’ll be able to hang on to him, but hopefully we can win a European trophy before he departs to pastures new.
Benoit Badiashile
Badiashile might just be one of my favourite FM defensive signings since the days of Eder Alvarez Balanta. He has been an absolute behemoth at the heart of my AZ defence since signing for a bargain £7.5m from Monaco at the end of season one. Badiashile has notched up double digits for goals scored in the last two seasons in all competitions and gives me a great amount of comfort when defending set-pieces at the other end. After each season, I have a deep dive into player statistics to try and spot any weaknesses that need to be addressed, and every season Badiashile dominates almost every key defensive area. He is the first player on the team sheet for every important game and has become a club icon during his time in Holland.
I have to give a few shout-outs to some that didn’t quite make the final three. Esteban Andrada has comfortably been the best goalkeeper I’ve managed this year, Calvin Stengs was awesome in his time at AZ and has become one of the greatest in the world since moving to Chelsea, and Kenzo Goudmijn is basically Paul Gascoigne reincarnated.
Now to announce my FM20 Player of the Year. It’s such a tough call, but if you held a gun to my head and made me choose, I’d have to plump for Benoit Badiashile. After taking into account the fact that he cost a fraction of what I paid for Esposito, plus he hasn’t deserted me, unlike Koopmeiners, the big Frenchman deserves the crown.
Up the AZ!
Thanks for reading,
Chris aka CurtyFM.
If you somehow aren’t already following, you can catch CurtyFM live on Twitch where he is currently knee deep in a homegrown save at Man City - Twitch.tv/Curty.
Interested in sharing your own FM Player of the Year? Drop us a message or reach out to MaddFM for more info.
