They were to conquer the football world. But something didn’t work out. Great talents from FIFA 10

From year to year, EA Sports tries to select future football talents in its games, by giving them a high indicator of potential. Thanks to it, individual players can achieve a very high level, developing their assessment in the career mode. Sometimes the predictions of Canadian creators are found in reality, and the highlighted players grow into real stars. But loses happened to EA as often. “Electronics” have repeatedly overestimated the strength of young footballers. Therefore, it is worth taking a look at the past and check how some of them finally jumped. The time will go back 12 years to FIFA 10.

Alexandre Pato (92 potency)

Not the first and not the last gold child of the Brazilian football. After Pato, however, much was to be expected. He would inherit the generation of Ronaldo Nazario, Ronaldinho and the rest of the magical team that charmed the world in the first decade of the 21st century. There was pressure on Pato from a very early stage. If Milan is after you at 18 and spends 100 € 24 million, know what’s up.

Pato started very promisingly. Already in the first season in the Italian fields, he had almost a double-digit number of goals. Statistics only improved for the next three years. Nevertheless, the Brazilian did not shoot out of lightning, and more and more skeptical opinions about his talent emerged. Soon after, the problems of the attacker worsen even more.

In 2011 and 2012, Pato suffered more and more injuries. They made the Brazilian not only pause, but also completely unable to catch the rhythm. The Pickaxer gas, and Milan was less and less patient with him. Still in the winter of 2013, the club from Milan odesa Pato back to Brazil, where Corinthians were signing him. The still very young striker had to take a step back to rebuild his career, but as it turned out, this one will never get back on track.

Interestingly, the Brazilian will get a chance to return to Europe, but there is nothing he is talking about here. He will pass the Chelsea episode like a ghost, and Villareal will only make it to the net a few times in the 2016/2017 competition. After moving to China, he started shooting regularly, but like many other footballers, he won’t stay there for a long time. Currently Pato is 32 years old and plays for Orlando FC. In fact, it is already on the slow path to retirement – it is unlikely to be any breakthrough. Certainly, he will have a very colorful career, from which, however, he will not get the 50% that was expected of him. EA Sports also overestimated him, making him one of the most promising footballers in FIFA 10.

Yoann Gourcuff (92 potency)

French football’s great hope. Go with brilliant technique. From an early age he was attracted to a great career and he would go out into the deep waters of world football. Nevertheless, he left his home league only once, like Pato, to Milan. He will win the Champions League with him, but he has not had much to do with it. He was in Italy for two years, then he would return to his backyard.

There, the gradual cutting off of the coupons has already begun. Gourcuff did rebuild in Bordeaux, but after his transfer to Lyon, he landed again on a downward slope. He had problems with his health, he was playing less and less and he would not be able to repeat the numbers from the previous team. In the end, both sides thanked each other for their cooperation, and the French became a kind of laggard.

Mother Stade Rennais intercepted it, but it does not occupy too much space in it. The last stop in his career turned out to be Dijon. However, it will not even last until the end of one season. In January 2019, Gourcuff will hang his boots on a bun. Sam was sure to be disappointed with where he had jumped. The French seems to be a victim of his own talent. The one where he dozes, but never managed to overcome certain limits, while the environment promised a lot after him.

Bojan Krki (91 potency)

He was to become the second Messi, although he was only building his legend by himself. Bojan Krki was seen as a great talent from an early age. She made her debut in Barcelona at the age of 17. He will score 10 goals in his first season. Mia will go to Euro 2008 and expectations are constantly diminishing.

And it overwhelmed the young Bojan. This pressure and a constantly inflated balloon. The Spaniard would not be ready for it:

I was horrified by the vision of joining the national team in 2008. I was not ready for the pressure of Euro 2008, it overwhelmed me. I had to take Trankimazin to stay focused and calm. It was horrible.

Ultimately, Krki will play for the national team only once. Gradually, his career began to end before it actually started for good. In Barcelona, ​​they still have good numbers, but they will be too weak for a club aspiring to be the best team in the world. He was sold to Roma, where he did not live up to expectations. Then there were Milan, Ajax, Stoke, Mainz, Deportivo Alaves, Montreal, and finally Vissel Kobe.

Krki is now 31 years old. In Japan, he plays with two other former Barcelona players – Andres Iniest and Sergi Samper. Bojan is not the club’s lead character, but a backup. Twelve years ago, no one expected him to jump in this place after such a long time. It was not expected by football fans or Electronic Arts, which gave him as much as 91 potential points in FIFA 10.

Jack Wilshere (90 potency)

Brilliant, dynamic and very versatile midfielder. Jack Wilsher was considered a great future for both Arsenal and the England team. He quickly found a request from Arsene Wenger, who was not afraid to give him a chance, despite his young age. In Champions League and Premier League, Wilshere made her debut before her seventeenth birthday. He will go to the national team shortly after 6pm.

Unfortunately, Jack gets hurt very quickly. He spent the 2011/2012 season practically entirely in a doctor’s office. It severely disrupted his footballing development. Arsenal ultimately needed healthy and proven players, while Wilshere would not be able to guarantee such stabilization.

Another series of injuries began in 2014. For an Englishman, it would be a real drama and an intermediate point to the coffin of a promising career. He was very fond of him at Arsenal, but Wilshere had to leave in the end. And then you practically disappear.

For more sports and gaming content, see

The episodes at West Ham and Bournemouth are unsuccessful attempts to rebuild their reputation. The helper had health problems again, which made him unusable. “Cherries” released him in the summer of 2021 and Wilshere was left without a club for several months. In February, the proposal came from an unexpected side. The Danish Aarhus extended his hand to the Englishman. The 30-year-old even has his debut in the new colors behind him, where he will try to get more out of his career.

Other unfulfilled talents

There are, of course, many more stories like the ones above. The world of football looks to various footballers, and so did EA Sports. In FIFA 10, high potency was awarded to Micach Richards, Rafael, Mauro Zarate and Theo Wallcot. Some of them were hindered by resentment, while the rest simply never climbed to the expected ceiling.

Hulk will receive 89 points in 2009. Admittedly, the powerful Brazilian took an interesting career path and it cannot be said that he did not fulfill his talent. It just does it in leagues at a slightly different level than everyone expected. The game flies in Russia and China, when he was written about the future in England or Spain. He never hides that what matters most to him is a thick wallet, and not huge ambitions. And some will shake their noses, because it’s a pity in their own way that Hulk will not play, and probably will never play again in any of the world’s leading leagues. Nevertheless, each one is a forge of his own destiny. The Brazilian will choose the route according to personal preferences.

The Brazilian footballer, who also received high potential from EA in FIFA 10, is Anderson. The midfielder with the characteristic braids was then playing for Manchester United. With the “Red Devils” he will win – he will win the Champions League, and the Premier League four times. Nevertheless, it had a lot more to do, and it will stay at its peak for a very short time. The backstage of his career is very interesting, as told by Jakub Kosecki, who met Anderson in Adana Demirspor:

He came up to me with the computer and showed that he would make a nice sum selling bitcoins. He screams that he is ending his career. I was laughing at his announcement, and during the next training session, he stepped forward and asked to speak. He said he was thankful for everything and was just about to end his adventure with spades. We didn’t see him again.