Everton Should Be The Best Team in the World by 2012

By: Daryl | November 14th, 2008

As Chris has already mentioned, crack-cocaine addictive computer game Football Manager 2009 was released today, meaning pets everywhere will be going unfed. Sorry Fido.

One real-life football manager taking the game very seriously (maybe too seriously?) is David Moyes, as Everton have signed a contract with the game’s publishers to get exclusive early access to the game’s massive massive database. If you’ve never played FM that probably sounds very very silly. But if you have, then you know Everton will be unbeatable in about four years time.

Because the Football Manager database is an absolute goldmine of 370,000 players. A thousand scouts keeping an eye on 20,000 clubs in 50 countries.

Obviously the stats for big name players are no use to David Moyes and friends. They knew Louis Saha has an injury proneness rating of 20 when they signed him. But as any FM addict will know, the most exciting thing in the game is uncovering obscure youngsters, signing them on the cheap and watching them develop into world superstars.

The game has a great reputation for accurately identifying the next big things before they happen, as they did with Wayne Rooney and Leo Messi. But experienced users will also know that game legends like George O’Callaghan and Tonton Zola Mokouko didn’t quite hit the same heights in real life. And Portuguese super striker Tó Madeira didn’t even exist. So it’s not a foolproof system.

Everton aren’t the first team to ask for access to the FM database, but they are the first team the FM people have said yes to. And that’s because co-creator Paul Collyer is a Toffees fan:

“The game’s database is a valuable resource with the most extensive scouting network in football so Everton FC is making a top signing,” says Collyer. “I am personally delighted with today’s announcement as I’m a Toffees fan. Standing on the pitch with my signing on shirt is as close to my boyhood dream of playing at Goodison Park as I will ever get.”

Unless the next database includes a promising young striker named Paul Collyer of course…