For a long-term left-back signing in Football Manager 2024, the 4 March 2024 guide ranked Nuno Mendes first, followed by Alejandro Balde, Aaron Hickey, Adrien Truffert, Lucas Jetten, Miloš Kerkez, Miguel Gutiérrez, Destiny Udogie and Matteo Ruggeri. Its transfer costs are estimates for the game, not guaranteed asking prices; your save and database version can change both availability and price.
How to read this FM24 ranking
This is the displayed order of the 4 March 2024 guide, not an official Sports Interactive ranking. The guide does not explain a formal scoring formula, so treat the sequence as an editorial shortlist rather than a calculated comparison on one shared metric.
| # | Preview | Product | Price | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |
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Football Manager 2024 (PS5) | $34.34 | Buy on Amazon |
| 2 |
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Football Manager 2014 | $7.25 | Buy on Amazon |
| 3 |
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Football Manager Classic 2014 | $34.99 | Buy on Amazon |
| 4 |
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Football Manager 2015 | $24.74 | Buy on Amazon |
| 5 |
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Football Team Manager T-Shirt | $18.97 | Buy on Amazon |
Database version matters. Sports Interactive announced FM24’s Main Data Update on 29 February 2024, reporting more than six million data changes, refreshed squads, and changes to Current Ability ratings and attributes for tens of thousands of players. The publisher also noted that some licensed leagues whose seasons follow the calendar year reflected rosters only through the end of 2023. Consequently, player details and transfer estimates may differ across updates and saves. Read the official FM24 Main Data Update announcement.
The nine left-back wonderkids
The costs below reproduce the guide’s approximate FM24 transfer estimates. They are not current real-world valuations, fixed release clauses or promises of what a club will accept in your save.
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| Rank | Player | Club in guide | Nationality in guide | Approximate guide cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nuno Mendes | PSG | Portugal | £300m |
| 2 | Alejandro Balde | Barcelona | Spain | £199m |
| 3 | Aaron Hickey | Brentford | Scotland | £84m |
| 4 | Adrien Truffert | Rennes | France | £102m |
| 5 | Lucas Jetten | Ajax | Netherlands | £17m |
| 6 | Miloš Kerkez | Bournemouth | Hungary | £41m |
| 7 | Miguel Gutiérrez | Girona | Spain | £23m |
| 8 | Destiny Udogie | Tottenham | Italy | £243m |
| 9 | Matteo Ruggeri | Atalanta | Italy | £54m |
Choosing the right player for your save
Check role fit before potential
A left-back shortlist can include players whose positional labels also cover wing-back or other roles. Check the player’s position familiarity and the duties in your tactic rather than assuming every name is an interchangeable full-back. Sortitoutsi describes its FM24 left-back selection as under-21 players with high potential and rates them by potential ability in the left-back position; that is a particular database methodology, not a universal definition of the best left-back. See Sortitoutsi’s FM24 left-back wonderkid database.
Separate present ability from development ceiling
Football Manager Blog’s FM24 wonderkid table lists both Current Ability and Potential Ability for some of these players. In that table, Balde is listed at 19 years old with 151 current ability and 175 potential ability; Udogie at 20 with 146/173; Kerkez at 19 with 130/159; Jetten at 16 with 90/158; and Ruggeri at 20 with 142/155. These are that table’s game-data values, not guarantees of how a player will develop in an individual save. A higher potential figure alone does not make a player the best immediate starter for your squad. View Football Manager Blog’s FM24 wonderkid table.
Rank #2
- Football Manager 2014 PC & Mac. *English game play, on disc manual included English, Czech, Danish, Dutch, French, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish* Printed manual in French. Includes ONE user activation code. BRAND NEW Factory Sealed DVD Box by Sega UK for worldwide use. Ship daily via USPS 1ST CLASS(4 - 7 Business days)w/FREE delivery confirmation & Shipment Notification. Platform: Windows XP/Vista/7/8. MAC OS X 10.6.8. PEGI: 3. System Requirements: OS: Windows XP, Vista, 7, 8, Processor: Intel Pentium 4, Intel Core, AMD Athlon, Graphics: NVidia GeForce FX 5900 Ultra, ATI Radeon 9800, Intel GMA X3100, 128MB VRAM, Direct X 9.0c compliant Memory: 1GB RAM, 3GB HDD. For Mac: Mac OS X 10.6.8, 10.7, 10.8 Processor: Intel Core, 1.8GHz+. Graphics: NVidia GeForce 7300 GT, ATI Radeon X1600, Intel GMA X3100, 128MB VRAM, OpenGL 2.0 compliant. Memory: 1GB RAM, 3GB HDD Ubuntu 12.04 LTS Linux Processor: Intel Pentium 4, Intel Core, AMD Athlon, 1.8GHz+. Graphics: NVidia GeForce 7300 GT, AMD Radeon HD 2400 Pro, Intel HD 3000/4000, 128MB VRAM, OpenGL 2.0 compliant Memory: 1GB RAM, 3GB HDD. Earlier cards or laptop chipsets may only display the match in 2D and are not supported. Online play requires broadband connection. Note: Computers with high-performance hardware will provide the best game performance. Requires Internet Connection and free STEAM account to activate. NOTICE: Product offered subject to your acceptance of the Steam Subscriber Agreement ("SSA"). You must activate this product via the internet by registering for a Steam account and accepting the SSA. Please see steampowered agreement from their web site to view the SSA prior to purchase. If you do not agree with the provisions of the SSA, you should return this game unopened to your retailer in accordance with their return policy. Please check software compatibility before purchased. NO OPENED BOX RETURN(Please read Amazon Software/Video game's return policy)
- The best-selling, incredibly realistic football management drives on with over 1,000 improvements and enhancements in Football Manager 2014. The 3D match engine has seen extensive improvements, including enhanced AI, improved lighting and player animation, individual player character and kit models, more realistic player reaction to on-field incidents and a range of optimisations which combine to make this the best looking and fastest FM Match Engine yet. On the pitch, redesigned tactics management makes the player roles and team strategies even more prominent. Improvements to rival managers’ AI allow them to adapt their tactics more readily over time.
- FM 2014 features a revamped transfer module where opposing clubs and managers adopt a more realistic approach when making or responding to transfer offers. In addition, a number of new ‘real world’ transfer clauses have been added, such as the facility to loan a player back to the club he’s just been bought from and the option to offer a combination of cash and loan players, as well as new contract clauses such as a sub bench appearance fee. On top of this, the old ‘turn-based’ system of transfer negotiations can now be done two ways, the tried and tested system and a new ‘live’ system, similar to that used in FM’s contract negotiations.
- The 3D match engine has seen extensive improvements, including enhanced AI, improved lighting and player animation, individual player character and kit models, more realistic player reaction to on-field incidents and a range of optimisations which combine to make this the best looking and fastest FM Match Engine yet. Major changes have also been made to FM 2014’s user interface. Key areas have been redesigned – including the training overview page, the transfer centre and the news homepage – while widespread changes have been made across the game’s user interface. The language employed throughout the game has also enjoyed a major overhaul and now corresponds more closely to the language of real world football.
Match the fee to your budget and timeline
Use the guide’s costs as a rough comparison, then check the player’s in-save asking price and contract situation before committing. For a club that needs a starter now, compare current ability and tactical fit; for a project signing, weigh the potential ceiling against the time and minutes you can offer. Younger prospects can need more development time, and potential ability does not ensure they will reach it.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why other names may appear on FM24 lists
A “best nine” is a selected shortlist, not a complete enumeration of every promising left-back in the database. Football Manager Blog’s left-back section also includes Jorrel Hato, Harry Amass, Valentín Barco, Amar Dedić, Ayoub Amraoui, Prince Aning, Andrei Borza, Luca Netz and Nathaniel Brown. Different lists can therefore look different because they use distinct eligibility rules, positional assessments, database versions or editorial choices.
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