MIKA AARITALO
Possibly the greatest bargain buy in Football Manager history, Aaritalo’s services could be yours for the modest sum of just £50k from Finnish side Turun Palloseura. The striker spent two years at Aston Villa between January 2003 and February 2005 but failed to make an appearance during his time at Villa Park.
Despite all that potential, Aaritalo only made six appearances for Finland scoring just once against Trinidad and Tobago in January 2012. From Villa, he returned to Turun Palloseura and spent nine seasons at the club where it all began before joining German Third Division outfit Holstein Kiel on loan.
BALAZS DZSUDZSAK
The Hungarian attacking midfielder would cost you just £250k from Debrecen and, if you could spell his name in the search, would prove to be a fantastic piece of business for any Premier League side or Championship outfit aspiring for promotion. Capable of playing on the left side of midfield, behind the striker or in central midfield, Dzsudzsak provided plenty of assists with his creative flair and also had a keen eye for goal too.
From Debrecen, where he won three league titles, Dzsudzsak moved to PSV Eindhoven in January 2008 and helped the Dutch giants to the Eredivisie title that season. In January 2011, Dzsudzsak moved to Russia to join Anzhi Makhachkala where he teamed up with the likes of Roberto Carlos and Samuel Eto’o. Unfortunately, a broken collarbone meant he only played eight times for Anzhi before he became the most expensive Hungarian player ever when Dinamo Moscow met his release clause (believed to be in the region of £13.8m) to secure his services in January 2012.
Now Dzsudszak plies his trade with Turkish side Bursaspor who finished sixth in the Super Lig last season. He has scored 17 goals in 69 appearances for Hungary.
Balazs Dzsudzdsak
£250,000
Pablo Piatti
£60,000
Gabriel Torje
£300,000
SOTIRIS NINIS
This young winger is the most expensive of our bargain buys, but you’d only have to part with £500k to recruit the Greek starlet from Panathinaikos. If given the opportunity, Ninis would flourish and become a key player for any Premier League team with his direct wing play.
From Panathinaikos he moved to Serie A side Parma in March 2012 but failed to make an impression in Italy. Eventually, Ninis moved back to Greece with PAOK Salonika but had his contract terminated by mutual consent in August 2014. He then rejoined Panathinaikos in November 2014 and played 17 times last season.
Ninis became Greece’s youngest ever scorer when he netted against Cyprus in a friendly match on 19 May 2008 at the age of 18 years and 46 days. He has represented his country 30 times, scoring three goals.
PABLO PIATTI
Another wonderfully cheap bargain buy, Piatti could be prised away from Argentinean side Estudiantes for just £60k – but you had to act fast otherwise Serie A giants Roma or Napoli would generally steal a march on you.
From Estudiantes, Piatti headed to the continent to La Liga outfit Almeria where he formed a prolific partnership with Alvaro Negredo before the Spanish striker signed for Sevilla in 2009. The duo would be reunited at Valencia some years later after Piatti signed for Los Che in July 2011 for a fee of around £5.5m.
Used as a winger in reality the Argentinean, who has been capped once by his country, was best deployed in the number ten role on FM08 where he had the habit of scoring timely goals and providing a hat full of assists. A fantastic signing for Premier League clubs willing to give a young player a shot.
GABRIEL TORJE
The diminutive right-winger could be poached from Politehnica Timisoara for between £250k and £300k – ten times less than what Romanian giants Dinamo Bucharest shelled out for him in January 2008.
A quick turn of pace, an eye for goal and a devilish cross, Torje had the potential to be a key player for any Premier League team given the opportunity. From Bucharest, he moved to Serie A outfit Udinese in August 2011 for around £5m to try and fill the void left by Alexis Sanchez’ departure to Barcelona. However, after just one season in Udine, he was sent out on loan to Granada to gain more first team football.
Since then, he has spent spells on loan at Espanyol and Konyaspor before joining Osmanlispor on loan at the start of this campaign. He’s scored ten times in 49 appearances for Romania and is still only 25-years-old.
FM08 BARGAIN BUYS
Whatever happened to those gems on FM08 that you could buy for the loose change in your chairman's coffers?
Article posted: 31 August 2015
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