So, as the title implies, this is the final episode of my Santástico series. It’s been one fun ride, but everything has to come to an end. The perfect ending would of course have been one where I triumphantly showed you the reincarnation of Pelé, that I through my brilliance had nurtured and developed. This won’t be that kind of episode, but I still feel that this is a fitting time to close this book.
After 15 seasons with Santos FC I’ve come to two conclusions; 1. Brazil produces one hell of a lot of good players on FM20. 2. Creating a player with my very specific skills set was harder than I had imagined. I know that the aim was to create a generational player, which means that I shouldn’t be that disappointed, but I really thought I’d be closer to getting there by now.
Several players have been excellent for my Santos FC over these 15 years and quite a few players managed to reach 100+ goals for the club in what must be considered Santos FC’s most successful era by far. That wasn’t the problem. The aim of getting a player to a Ginga Rating of 90+ seemed to be way tougher though. During my 15 years as manager of Santos FC, I didn’t manage to get a single player past that illusive mark. As 2033 turns into 2034, there’s actually not a single player in the entire game universe with a Ginga Rating of 90+, so it’s a really tough task. Two players reached a Ginga Rating of 88, Diogo who is now playing for PSG and Paulo Henrique who is still with the club. With a Flair of 15 and a current ability that is probably the same as his potential, he will most likely never reach 90. There’s not really any younger players getting close to him either, which makes me think that it would take me at least another 5 years (probably a lot longer) to get a new player anywhere near his GR and then another 10+ years to try to get him to reach the other goals of this series. This fact, together with my feeling of playing the same season over and over again, makes this the right time to put an end to this saga.
Since I did a 10 year anniversary post a while back, I won’t go through all the details of the progress the club has made. It’s been the most successful period any South American club has ever had (by far) and we are the 11th most reputable club in the world. Finances are secure, despite me spending £120M to sign Kaká back to the club for Man City, and facilities are top notch. I’d like to end this series by looking at the most prolific players that came through our ranks over the years though.
Kaio Jorge
Many of you out there have experienced great success with Kaio Jorge on FM20 and this series was no exception. Well, that’s only partially true, but at least he scored for fun for us during the first few seasons. He was the first player to reach 100 goals, but he pretty much didn’t develop as a player at all. This meant that as he got older, interest in him completely faded and I basically had to force him away from the club to get him to Europe.
Things never took off for him in Europe either. He had maxed out his potential early and was never to become a world class player. He played two games for Brazil at age 20, when the sky was still the limit for him, but after an underwhelming career he plays for Fortaleza nowadays.
Renyer
Renyer was the first really big move, and by far the player that has made the biggest impression in Europe. After scoring 84 goals for Santos he moved to Real Madrid, where he became an important player for five years, before making a £100M move to Chelsea. At age 30, he probably has a few decent years left in him.
Willian 2.0
The third and final player of this summary is the apple of my eye, my favourite youth intake player/newgen for many game versions (perhaps even ever) and the player I thought and hoped would reach that 90 Ginga Rating. As you know by now, he didn’t. Instead he peaked at 87, which means that he’ll never complete the challenge. Despite this he has been nothing short of a success. With 200+ goals for Santos he is their brightest shining star, and the only thing that has kept him at the club is his loyalty and love for Santos FC. A true legend already, at the age of 23!
If I would have kept the save going I would have done everything in my power to get Willian 2.0 to a great European club and I would eventually have brought Renyer home to get him to 100 goals for Santos. I might revisit this save one day just to see Willian 2.0’s face or perhaps sim a number of years into the future, just to see what happens to the series, but for now it’s time to fold it away and put it to rest. As we approach the end of FM20 and FM21 soon is here, it’s time for new exciting adventures. Therefore it’s to say goodbye and good night, my love. Sweet dreams! If you want to follow my FM21 adventures you can find my FM21 save reveal video here!
But wait! Wasn’t that the end of the post? Why is there more text?
Well, I actually did sim 5 seasons into the future for an article on Willian 2.0 for WeStreamFM which you can find here.
In that simulation, after scoring almost 300 goals for the club, he finally left for Europe and Inter Milan. His average ratings have continued to be great for his new club even though he hasn’t managed to replicate his Brazilian goal tally. Quite the career though, and he still has a few good years left in him!
The Santos FC team have also made a comeback in the “YouTuber Invitational Championship”, a tournament against teams from other creators’ favourite saves. You can find the group draw here and my games recorded on YouTube here.
MikaelinhoFM 