How to Build Up Your Transfer Budget in Football Manager

Build your transfer budget in Football Manager by buying and selling bosman and young players in the game. Guide on building up your transfer budget.

Get the most out of your transfer budget in Football Manager by buying and selling players.

In this Football Manager guide on building your transfer budget, I will discuss how to build your budget by trading players; which types of players are best to sign, when is the best time to sign them, what not to do, and how to make the biggest profit when selling them in the future.

Building up your transfer budget in FM

Everyone dreams of being given a massive transfer budget on FM, but that usually limits you to pick only the rich clubs to manage, which can sometimes become a boring or unfulfilling game to play. Well, have you ever considered taking it upon yourself to build your transfer budget at less wealthy clubs? This can make a fun game and is a great alternative to managing an already cash-rich club.

You may not be able to build a budget the size of Manchester City's, but with a few smart strategies, you can build your transfer budget gradually season upon season. The money-making strategies all involve a bit of wheeling and dealing with the players, and the basic principle is to buy low and sell high.

We want to try and sign players that will be good investments so we can sell them on to other clubs in the future and make a tidy profit that can be pumped back into your transfer budget. When looking for players to sign for investment purposes, the aim is to target players who are currently undervalued by their current club and whose value could be set to rise in the future.

I will discuss a couple of key strategies for making money on player transfers which can help boost your transfer budget on football manager.

Target young players to build up your transfer budget

Young players have time on their side, so generally, unless you overpay for a young player, you will at least make your money back on them in the future when another club comes in for them, as they will still be relatively young. If the player you choose to sign has any ounce of potential about themselves, you are sure to make a profit. The key is not to overpay when trying to acquire the player in the first place.

I usually find that big clubs hold certain youngsters in very high regard; these players are typically costly as they have massive potential. However, it doesn't mean you shouldn't sign them, but be careful and make sure you don't spend beyond your means in acquiring the player.

For example, Juventus won't let Moise Kean go for anything less than £15million. However, if you can afford him, you are looking at doubling your money over the next couple of seasons when clubs like Barcelona, Real Madrid, Chelsea and Manchester City come calling.

But this guide is not about signing expensive players; this is about tips on how to pick up bargains and sell them on for decent profits in the future.

I would advise targeting two types of youngsters.

Type 1

Target players in big clubs reserve teams.

First of all, you have young players at large clubs, like Barcelona, who have a lot of competition for places. There will always be a couple that will not be the cream of the crop and breakthrough into the first team. These players often languish in the reserves/B teams and get put on the transfer list near the end of their contracts.

These are good players to pick up on Football Manager as they clearly have the pedigree and will turn out to be decent players, but you can usually pick them up for a couple of thousand pounds each. In a couple of years after getting games here and there in your first-team squad, their values can easily rise by a couple of million each.

Type 2

Target smaller clubs top talent.

The other type of youngsters are players at relatively small clubs, these players usually are the top talent at smaller clubs, but you can pick them up for a cheaper fee than bigger club's best young prospects as they will accept lower bids for their players. You can usually structure a deal where you pay out bonuses on goals scored and international appearances which allows you to offer a lower fee upfront.

These players go for more money than the transfer listed players at the bigger clubs, but they are still worth the money as they are usually good enough to go straight into your first team, where if they perform well, their market value will soar.

Target players near the end of their contracts

Target players nearing the end of their contract.

Once a player is in the last year or two of their contract, their value will drop dramatically, and you will be able to agree on a much lower fee with the selling club. I usually go for players under the age of 27, so they still have a few more playing years left in them before they reach their peak between 28-30. Once they hit their peak, you can sell them to other clubs for a profit.

The contract situation also works both ways. When it comes to selling a player, it is always best to keep your investments under longer-term contracts as you will be able to demand a higher transfer fee for them. This is a handy little football manager tip that a lot of people miss out on.

Summary

To build up your transfer budget in Football Manager, while buying and selling players, you must target youngsters which we divided into one of two groups: B team players from big clubs and top potentials from smaller teams. Also, you'll need to keep track of players who are nearing the end of their contracts. Always look for players who still need to develop or are near their peak age. You can either develop these players for a higher profit or flip them quickly for smaller gains. Apply these methods in your saves, and you'll be on your way to having a wealthy transfer budget.