The first thing I do when I sign a new player who isn't very well known, as in not active in the highest division from a top nation, is look up his name in Wikipedia or Google to find more background information and possible footballing relatives and such. I actually do the same for all potential signings (not including newgens...).
An unorthodox method of scouting, I must admit, but not entirely weird. It usually tells you something about a players personality, as those hidden stats are not visible in FM Live and I don't have the need to boot up the FM Scout everytime I want to know such details.
Oh and before I forget, this method is actually used by real-life clubs as well. The tale of Dutch winger Istvan Bakx is one of the more obvious cases where a club used the internet and its capabilities to find and scout a potential signing.
Bakx gained some notability in Belgium with his transfer from the Dutch amateurs of Hoek to Belgian second division side Kortrijk. Manager Hein Vanhaezebrouck was searching for a left winger and he typed the Dutch word for that (linkeraanvaller) into Google. The search results showed a positive report on Bakx. Vanhaezebrouck sent out Kortrijk's head scout who confirmed these reports and Istvan Bakx' transfer to Kortrijk became reality.
As a result of this unorthodox scouting method, Belgian and Dutch media dubbed Bakx "the Google striker." For those wondering if he actually performed well, Bakx impressed during his first two seasons at Kortrijk, earning him a transfer to top-side Racing Genk.
So is there any point in this blog? No, not particularly, besides the fact that I enjoy typing the names of my squad members into Google and Wikipedia to find out more about their careers and personal lives.
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