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Wonderkid Factory | Part 30 | Penalty Shootout Drama
A fourth successive Apertura stage title saw Envigado establish their dominance in Colombian football. Robinho Lazaró had led his fully homegrown team to three successive titles, seven of the last eight and ten of the last 13.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 29 | Four In A Row
After 15 years in charge of Colombian wonderkid factory Envigado FC, Robinho Lazaró had proven that focusing on youth development alone can deliver success. In that time, Lazaró hadn’t spent a single penny on new players but brought in an incredible £92m by selling 131 players.
FM Experiment | FM Retro 98/99 | Part 4: Real-Life Newgens Join Hammers Revolution
Trebor Mahtal led his exciting West Ham wonderkids to back-to-back titles led by the exceptional Ronaldinho and Hidetoshi Nakata in 2025. And more exciting times were in store for Irons fans.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 28 | Goalscoring Records Smashed
Robinho Lazaró spent two weeks between league stages celebrating becoming the greatest Colombian ever to try his hand at football management. But his attention swiftly switched to targeting a league stage double and Copa Libertadores progression.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 27 | Greatest Colombian Manager Ever
Robinho Lazaró was proving that transfers weren’t everything in the beautiful game. He’d relied on Envigado FC’s prodigious youth development to continually churn out new starlets that had won 10 league stage titles.
FM Experiment | FM Retro 98/99 | Part 3: Big Name Signings
Trebor Mahtal led West Ham United to their first-ever league title in just his second season in charge led by future superstar Ronaldinho and a team that had been wholly rebuilt from the one he inherited.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 26 | Borrero Smashes League Goals Record
Envigado FC had well and truly established themselves as the best team in Colombia by sealing four consecutive league stage titles. But competing with the very best in South America looked a step too far for Robinho Lazaró’s side.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 25 | Record-Breaking Acevedo
Envigado FC celebrated a second Liga BetPlay Apertura and Finalización double in the 2033 season as an exciting generation of players really hit their stride. The challenge now was for Robinho Lazaró to try and keep hold of his top talents.
FM Experiment | FM Retro 98/99 | Part 2: Ronaldinho At West Ham
The start of 1999 saw an exciting new name join West Ham United, as Mahtal beat the likes of Milan and Juventus to the signature of Ronaldinho for £2.3m from Gremio.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 24 | Copa Libertadores Excitement
Robinho Lazaró had assembled the best squad he’d worked with in his 12 years as Envigado FC anager. Going into the second half of the 2033 campaign, the club had won six of the last eight Liga BetPlay Dimayor titles, reached the least eight league stage finals and was seeking a fifth successive Finalización victory.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 23 | Envigado: Most Reputable Club In Colombia
Robinho Lazaró ticked off one of the overarching aims of his Wonderkid Factory challenge as Envigado became the most reputable team in Colombia. They’re also the 25th most reputable team in all of South America.
FM Experiment | FM Retro 98/99 | Part 1: West Ham Wonderkids
Having just completed a Football Manager Experiment using a custom database in the European Super League, we were keen to take on another fantasy challenge in FM23. So the release of The Mad Scientist’s annual retro database was very timely.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 22 | 50 Goals, 50 Goals, Acevedo
Robinho Lazaró oversaw a mass of sales and somehow dragged one of his youngest group of homegrown players so far to a sixth successive Liga BetPlay Dimayor league stage final. But the sales weren’t done there as another young starlet departed between the Apertura and Finalización stages.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 21 | Record-Breaking Sales
Envigado FC wrapped up a third-successive Finalización title at the end of the 2031 campaign. But the summer ahead of the 2032 season was set to be one of significant changes and record-breaking sales.
FM Experiment | European Super League | Part 6: Title Defence
In four seasons, we’d taken Vélez Sarsfield from the bottom tier through to becoming European Super League champions. The key to this success had undoubtedly been Endrick, who’d scored 126 goals in 121 league games and 161 goals in 157 games in all competitions for the club.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 20 | Copa Libertadores Pain Continues
After a couple of seasons of massive success, Envigado’s board invested in a new trophy cabinet to house the shiny Recopa Sudamericana trophy earned by defeating the mighty Corinthians. But as we see all too often, with great success comes greed.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 19 | Envigado Leads National Team Production
Envigado FC’s homegrown heroes enjoyed a historic season in 2030, winning a famous quadruple as they bagged both the Liga BetPlay Dimayor Apertura and Finalización titles, Copa Sudamericana and Súperliga BetPlay Dimayor.
FM Experiment | European Super League | Part 5: A Frightening Strikeforce
Vélez Sarsfield had made light work of progressing through the lower reaches of the fictional European Super League database which was, effectively, a global super league. But their rewards for significant cup and league success in season 3 were game- and club-changing finances.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 18 | Homegrown Heroes
Robinho Lazaró’s team of young starlets became the first Colombian club to win back-to-back league stage titles for a decade. But these homegrown heroes were verging on the edge of greatness.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 17 | Juan Manuel Zapata: Record Appearances Holder
The wonderkid factory that is Envigdo FC saw its exciting prospects flourish in 2029 as, free from the shackles of continental football, a young team dominated Colombia’s Finalización stage. But the hard work began now.
FM Experiment | European Super League | Part 4: Massive Financial Rewards
Vélez Sarsfield quickly progressed to the second tier of the new-look European Super League as we dominated the Rest of the World Africa division led by the talents of striker Endrick.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 16 | Lazaró’s Best Envigado Team
The absence of continental football had seen Robinho Lazaró’s Envigado FC return to the upper echelons of Colombian football, finishing second in their Apertura post-season group. And Lazaró was excited to see if his promising homegrown squad could continue to flourish.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 15 | Youth Products Shine Again
Robinho Lazaró came into his eighth season as manager of Envigado FC with the board’s full backing despite a couple of tricky seasons and failing to qualify for continental football for the first time in five years.
FM Experiment | European Super League | Part 3: Endrick Smashes Vélez Goalscoring Record
We completed the first task in rising through the fictional European Super League database by leading Vélez Sarsfield to promotion from the Pepsi Elevation League. But now could we make it back-to-back promotions?
Wonderkid Factory | Part 14 | Consecutive Cup Finals
The worst league stage of Robinho Lazaró’s time in charge of Colombian wonderkid factory Envigado FC was fairly inevitable after losing several key players and replacing them with raw youngsters. But Lazaró was optimistic after a prolonged rest between the Apertura and Finalización stages of the 2028 campaign.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 13 | Fully Homegrown
A summer break was much needed as Robinho Lazaró’s Envigado FC endured a heavy conclusion to the 2027 campaign, such is the ridiculous rigour of fixture overload in Colombian football. But that failed to take the gloss off winning the club’s first-ever Colombian Cup.
FM Experiment | European Super League | Part 2: Elevation League Title Battle
In Part 1 of our first FM Experiment series of FM23, we introduced you to the intriguing format of the custom European Super League database and took control of Vélez Sarsfield, who are at the very bottom of this mammoth new format.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 12 | Trivino Breaks Guzmán’s Goalscoring Record
Robinho Lazaró takes positives from an Apertura failure by finding new levels of success in a competition he’d previously disregarded.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 11 | Elite Talents Overload
The summer of 2027 saw significant change at Envigado FC as club icon James Rodríguez retired from football on a high aged 35. He was joined in leaving by stalwart midfielder William Hurtado, which saw manager Robinho Lazaró turn to his exciting young academy prospects.
FM Experiment | European Super League | Part 1: Into The Super League System!
The more cynical among you out there may hypothesise that the new Champions League format is the natural first step towards the European Super League. So we tested out a new format in our first FM23 Experiment.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 10 | Talisman Departs Envigado
The streets of Envigado were packed with orange shirts as Robinho Lazaró and his exciting young Envigado FC team celebrated the club’s first-ever Apertura trophy with their growing supporter base.
FM Experiment | Bottom At Christmas | Season 6: West Ham
Big Sam’s final set of options in this Bottom At Christmas series included one standout team as West Ham propped up the Premier League with just 12 points.
FM Experiment | Bottom At Christmas | Season 5: Metz
Season 5 of Bottom At Christmas might be the toughest task yet with FC De Metz bottom of Ligue 1 with just 2 wins and having only scored 10 goals. However, they were only 3 points from safety.
FM Experiment | Bottom At Christmas | Season 4: Torino
Having assessed his options, and having already managed in England and Germany, Big Sam decided it was time to tick off a new country. Because Allardici was headed to Italy.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 9 | Hitting Form At The Right Time
Robinho Lazaró’s focus on youth development at Colombian wonderkid factory Envigado FC was undeniably yielding results. After four years in charge, he’d led the club to its first Colombian title with a Finalización win, three Apertura runner-up finishes, a Súperliga success and three straight Copa Libertadores campaigns.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 8 | Guzmán Breaks Goalscoring Record
The brutal nature of the Colombian football season had seen Envigado FC play 38 matches at the halfway mark of the 2025 campaign. Robinho Lazaró’s young squad was exhausted, so he gave them a week off training between the Apertura and Finalización stages.
FM Experiment | Bottom At Christmas | Season 3: Union Berlin
After last season’s dismal conclusion, Big Sam was keen for a bit of Bundesliga redemption. So he decided to take over at 1. FC Union Berlin, who were very lucky to survive in 2024.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 7 | Goals Galore For Guzmán
Robinho Lazaró and his young Colombian superstars paraded the Liga BetPlay Finalización trophy through the streets of Envigado as they celebrated the club’s first-ever piece of silverware with their adoring fans.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 6 | Record-Breaking Envigado
Midway through his third season, Robinho Lazaró was loving life at Colombian wonderkid factory Envigado FC. His team was packed with promising youngsters and two stellar youth intakes gave the club’s fans plenty to get excited about in the future, even if they couldn’t be bothered to come and watch the team.
FM Experiment | Bottom At Christmas | Season 2: Schalke
Six months on from Saints glory, Big Sam holidayed ahead, spent a few months in the Caribbean topping up his tan and was now ready to discover the second team in this FM Experiment.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 5 | Envigado’s Copa Libertadores Debut
The depth of talent at Envigado FC could not be argued against. Robinho Lazaró’s young charges qualified for Copa Libertadores for the first time in club history by winning the Liga BetPlay Finalización league stage in 2023 – but, crucially, not the playoff stage that sees the trophies handed out.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 4 | League Winners But Not Champions
Despite not signing any players, Robinho Lazaró was quietly building a squad brimming with potential at Colombian wonderkid factory Envigado FC.
FM Experiment | Bottom At Christmas | Season 1: Southampton
This year, we’re bringing the Bottom At Christmas experiment back but on a bigger scale, with leagues in England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain available to choose from. First up, is Southampton!
Wonderkid Factory | Part 3 | Stunning First Youth Intake
Robinho Lazaró massively exceeded all expectations in his first season at the helm of Colombian wonderkid factory Envigado FC. His massive overachievement saw one of Colombia’s top teams Junior FC offer him an interview in the summer of 2022, which he swiftly rejected.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 2 | Massive Overachievement
Robinho Lazaró enjoyed a solid start to life in charge of Colombia’s leading Wonderkid Factory. He’d led a young team fancied for relegation – which he thought was very much misguided on the media’s part – into the top six halfway through Liga BetPlay Dimayor Apertura.
Wonderkid Factory | Part 1 | Bienvenido A Envigado
During a previous incarnation, Robinho Lazaró had led a successful campaign dominating South American and European football. But now he had his eye very much on honing the promising youth in his homeland of Colombia.
OstDeutscher Sieg | Part 7 | Searching And Failing
Ruprecht Prusseit found himself on the managerial scrapheap within two years of starting his Football Manager career. The Dresden-born coach was unceremoniously sacked when his FSV Zwickau side was dumped out of 3. Liga in dramatic fashion by local rivals Erzgebirge Aue.
OstDeutscher Sieg | Part 6 | Zwickau #5: Final Day East German Relegation Clash
Second season syndrome appeared to have struck for Ruprecht Prusseit as his FSV Zwickau flirted with the relegation places then clambered back into mid-table in the first half of the 2023/24 campaign. But luckily, he still had a B- rating with the board and C+ rating with the supporters.
OstDeutscher Sieg | Part 5 | Zwickau #4: Second Season Syndrome
FSV Zwickau massively exceeded all expectations in 2022/23, coming within one goal of promotion to 2. Bundesliga. But it wasn’t to be and now a daunting rebuild awaited Ruprecht Prusseit in his first proper summer transfer window.
OstDeutscher Sieg | Part 4 | Zwickau #3: Final Day Carnage
Fledgling and totally unqualified East German manager Ruprecht Prusseit had made a surprisingly strong start to his career, leading FSV Zwickau into third position in 3. Liga before a near two-month break for the Winter World Cup.