Football Manager 2020 is expected to release in November and you’re probably wondering what team to go on the beta. In this PL Teams to Manage in FM20 guide, I will cover youth players and key players for each team. Will it be the newly promoted teams like Aston Villa, or European champions Liverpool, you might even try Chelsea under a transfer embargo? This guide should help you pick a Premier League Team to manage.

If you haven’t read part one, please do – PL Teams to Manage in FM20 | Part One

Manchester City

The Premier League champions are next in this PL teams to manage in FM20 guide. Similar to Liverpool, where do you start? Strength in depth, incredibly talented youth prospects, winning mentality and a lot of flamboyant attackers.

I will start with focusing on the youngsters this time, and in particular Phil Foden. This is a player I would put a lot of faith in, he is already good enough to play, but with the current attackers City have, it’s tricky. The only positive is David Silva is set to leave at the end of the season. There are so many young talented players coming through the City ranks. Players like Gavin Bazunu, Taylor Harwood-Bellis and Morgan Rogers are in the under 18’s, who look like they can develop nicely in to talented youngsters who can fight for a spot at Man City in years to come. Tommy Doyle, Claudio Gomes and Arijanet Muric are my pick of the bunch from the under 23’s, but there are so many more.

One problem will be keeping everyone happy. There’s a lot of players who will want first team football, and you will have to come up with a plan to give people game time. Otherwise the atmosphere in the dressing room might change and performances might start dropping. It’s a nice problem to have, as there are so many talented footballers within the squad. Players like Sergio Agüero and Gabriel Jesus will be fighting to lead the line, or you could find a system that compliments them both. João Cancelo and Kyle Walker is another selection headache, both are absolutely superb. Fernandinho, Nicolás Otamendi and Sergio Aguero are all over 30, so planning for the future will be key.

Manchester United

Is it time to return to the glory days for The Red Devils? A 6th place finish and a Europa League spot is all they could achieve. With a summer spending frenzy and a fantastic young up and coming players, United might be the team for you. Harry Maguire (26) was the oldest signing to join in the summer. The rest of the signings were 21 or under, which shows a real intent for the direction the club wants to go in.

I will pick out a handful of younger players who I expect will be influential in your save. Mason Greenwood, Daniel James, Hannibal Mejbri, Tahith Chong, James Garner and Angel Gomes. I could sit here all day and tell you about them all, but honestly, just check them out for yourself. You won’t be disappointed. The future is definitely bright with these players, and if all else fails they will likely sell for a lot. The first team isn’t shy of young talented players either, you have players like Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Marcus Rashford at your disposal.

Focusing now on some of the big name players, who you can expect to rely on. Paul Pogba is the obvious name and you’d want him to be illustrious in the midfield. You also have David De Gea and Harry Maguire to ensure your defence is solid and you try to claim as many clean sheets as possible. Further up the field, Antony Martial and Juan Mata can be catalysts. Despite Mata’s age, he can be very influential and slowly create a pathway for the younger generation. The club could do with another left back or a younger player to come through to add competition.

Newcastle United

With off the field issues taking the spotlight, Newcastle have been left in an awkward position. I think this season is a turning point for the club if you can steer them in the right direction. With summer signings arriving and two major signings, things just might click. Joelinton and Allan Saint-Maximin add attacking quality to the Newcastle ranks, and could help the club improve.

Miguel Almirón is the stand out player in this team. Jonjo Shelvey is a player who can change the game, if he doesn’t lose his temper. Fabian Schär, Florian Lejeune and Jamaal Lascelles are very good defenders for the club. Perhaps a 3/5 man defence could be the answer to Newcastle’s defensive errors. Matt Ritchie and Martin Dubravka also get honourable mentions for their attributes.

Sean Longstaff is the standout in terms of younger players, but he’s not the only one. Both Joelinton and Saint-Maximin are 22 years old. Sean’s brother Matty Longstaff is there, and it could be his break through season with cameos off the bench. Yannick Touré and Victor Fernández are other youngsters who could progress nicely and compete for a spot in the squad.

Norwich City

Newly promoted, Norwich City are the next PL teams to manage in FM20 guide. It will come as no surprise that Norwich are one of the favourites to go down. However, the team they have already have capable players in. Players like Emi Buendía, Max Aarons, Teemu Pukki, Kenny McLean and Ralf Fährmann can really help the club stay in the Premier League.

They boast a young and exciting team, but that may come as a risk with the inexperienced players. It is about finding the right balance, but of course, there is experienced players within the ranks. Focusing back to the youth Daniel Adshead, Todd Cantwell, Rocky Bushiri, Jamal Lewis and Ben Godfrey are really exciting prospects who don’t seem to far off first team level. Slowly allowing these players game time and under the right training will be important. Especially with the limited money available by the board.

The club overall have a solid amount of depth in each position. Any improvements would need to keep the current players out of the first team. I believe Patrick Roberts will be a player who can really change a game and help grind out results. Keeping him, if he performs should be a priority.

Sheffield United

Sheffield United, another recently promoted team are looking to stay in the Premier League. Like Norwich they are favourites to go down, but stranger things have happened. With a summer spending of around £50 million, it is considerably higher than Norwich City’s. They have added a lot of experienced players to the ranks, who they can hope to rely on for this Premier League journey. The most experienced player they’ve added to the team is Phil Jagielka who joins on a free from Everton. The 36 year old will be a fantastic asset to have on the field and off. Oliver McBurnie, Mo Besic, Dean Henderson amd Luke Freeman are notable signings made in the summer.

A lot of the first team are playing at their peak and their isn’t so much to say about the youth prospects in the first team. Kean Bryan is a defender who doesn’t look far from the first team.  There really isn’t much going for them in terms of players capable of playing at Premier League level. There is the possibility of a great youth intake and a training regime. I would focus on the Premier League.

Oliver Norwood is the talisman in the team and I think any success will be made with him in the team. John Fleck and Jack O’Connell are two players who I think can influence the teams position as well. Lys Mousset isn’t the best of finishers but he has fantastic pace, where as Oliver McBurnie isn’t fast but is a great finisher. A partnership there could be really exciting. Enda Stevens is the only real left back so keeping him fit is essential. There is also a lack of wingers within the team, so maybe playing without and using wing-backs could work.

Southampton

Narrowly missing out on relegation could be the turning point for Southampton, or another season trying to fight for their life in the Premier League. With summer additions and departures I think Southampton would be an exciting team to try and build something with. Nathan Redmond being one of the key players is important and his form may help the club in achieving their goals. Summer signing Danny Ings if he performs will look to bully defences and try to score more frequently than last season.

There are several young exciting prospects who will be in and around the first team this year. Yan Valery, Moussa Djenepo, Che Adams and Josh Sims who is currently out on loan. Callum Slattery, Kayne Ramsay and Michael Obafemi are players not far off the first team. They may make a few cup appearances or be used as an impact sub. Enzo Robise is a 17 year old who has a really exciting future. Southampton have always boasted good youth prospects they have used or sold on.

The club have good depth in every area of the pitch. This will be important if you want to survive the Premier League. Keeping players fit will always be a hard task, so having the depth there is necessary. Sofiane Boufal, Nathan Redmond and Moussa Djenepo producing the goods from the wings could be very exciting. Kevin Danso is the loan signing in this window and the fact there is an optional fee is brilliant. It’s just short of £10m.

Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham are next in the PL teams to manage in FM20 guide. 2nd,3rd and 4th are the recent standings for Spurs. They narrowly missed out on the Champions League winners medal last year and with some very exciting players joining the team in the summer, it could be the right time to get Spurs challenging for the title. Ryan Sessegnon, Jack Clarke, Tanguy Ndombele and Giovani Lo Celso are the key signings who joined in the summer.

Trying to tell you all the players who will be pivotal in this season is hard, so i’ll just name a few. Harry Kane, Deli Alli, Son Heung-Min, Christian Eriksen, Toby Alderweireld are the obvious names here. But there are other players who might not be seen. Players like Tanguy Ndombele, Juan Foyth and Oliver Skipp will be influential despite their age. I think the squad will really have to rally together and stay together in order to compete in all competitions.

The youngsters Tottenham have exite me. Oliver Skipp and Juan Foyth who have previously been mentioned will be stars of the future. The same with Ryan Sessengon and Kyle Walker-Peters. Jack Clarke is one of the most exciting prospects you can have and with a season out on loan, he will come back relishing the opportunity to play. Troy Parrott is 17 and looks like he can play, a loan spell would be great for him. Cameron Carter-Vickers is in my eyes a player who is either going to come back off loan ready, or be sold. That choice is up to you.

Watford

A mid table finish is what’s expected from Watford, but surely you’d want more? Ismaïla Sarr is the biggest name joining The Hornets this summer. They have signed a couple of key players like Danny Welbeck and Craig Dawson. The vast majority of players signed have been younger prospects. Watford did sell Dodi Lukebakio for £18 million after only making one appearance.

Carrying on from the subject of youth, Watford have a lot of players still requiring a work permit. Depending on your Brexit or their performances these players may have to be sold. Ismaïla Sarr is the obvious youngsters to focus on. There is others like Adalberto Peñaranda, Luis Suárez and Pervis Estupiñán who can break through. Pervis is still requiring a work permit, which may lead to problems. Ben Wilmot looks like a fantastic young, English defender who can break through after his loan at Swansea. Pontus Dahlberg is a goalkeeper who can replace Gomes (38) or Foster (36) in the coming season. I also believe Lewis Gordon could develop in to a fine player over time.

Gerard Deulofeu, Abdoulaye Doucouré, Roberto Pereyra and Troy Deeney are the obvious stands out from The Hornets. However, Nathaniel Chalobah and Etienne Capoue could be industrious in improving Watford. There are obvious areas for improvement, particular in goal. Both keepers are reaching the end of the careers. Left back is an area which I believe could do with more depth, José Holebas is 34 now and coming to the end of his career. Centre back could do with more depth with an ageing defence, but not a serious issue.

West Ham United

It really is tricky to work out The Hammers intentions. They seem to sign these fantastic players, but they just crumble. I believe this years squad is some what superior to previous years. Add to that a big summer window and youngsters breaking through, I can see why West Ham are a team to look out for this year. The big names that signed in the summer, if settled, can be brilliant. The likes of Pablo Fornals and Sébastien Haller were the big money signings.

I think West Ham have some of the best youngsters around that are already playing first team football. Declan Rice is the obvious stand out, and his attributes on the game back this up entirely. Issa Diop, Albian Ajeti and Gonçalo Cardoso are players in and around the first team. Cardoso is still only 18 and could do a job. Xande and Sead Haksabanovic look like talents for the future, but a little too soon to be competing for a starting spot. In the Under 18’s Amadou Diallo looks like the pick of the bunch and at 16, has a whole career ahead of him.

The first team boasts fantastic international talent from around the globe. Felipe Anderson and  Andriy Yarmolenko are the two players, who, on their day can influence the game. Creating a good relationship between them two, could be vital. Manuel Lanzini is another player who can change the game. Zabaleta is coming to the end of his career and I believe a new right back will help create depth for Fredericks.

Wolverhampton Wanderers

Wolverhampton Wanderers are the final PL teams to manage in FM20 guide. With an amazing first season in the Premier League and Europa League secured, it’s exciting to have the prospect of Europe. The only down side, there’s usually a drop in league form with the amount of games that need to be played.

A big summer window to try and stay in Europe as long as possible has meant that Wolves add to their squad. Raúl Jiménez joins permanently after a successful loan. Patrick Cutrone, Bruno Jordão, Leander Dendoncker and Petro Neto all joined in the summer. Wolves added strength in depth and that’s vital in maintaining good league form, whilst being in Europe.These players add to the list of experience like Jonny, João Moutinho, Matt Doherty and Willy Boly.

The youngsters and breakthrough players excite me. Nuno has recruited well, and the players that are available are fantastic. Morgan Gibbs-White is a player who has a bright future for both club and country. Pedro Neto and Rúben Vinagre are two notable first team players who will have a big say in the starting 11. It is hard to narrow these players down, but they are my ones to watch. Christian Herc and Ryan Giles both look like they could break through this season or next, Herc after his loan. For a 17 year old, Pascal Juan Estrada looks like a player for the future. He already has good attributes for a player who can make a breakthrough.

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Summary of PL Teams to Manage in FM20 – Part Two

I hope you enjoyed this two part article. Covering every Premier League team and looking at some of the players you might want to use for your save. I can’t believe how much young talent is on offer at these clubs, it’s brilliant to see.

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