After the release of the FM26 best assistant manager, we continue our staff recommendations to let you assemble a 5 star coaching team. Today we hand you our recommendations of the best FM26 Head of Youth development staff.
This type of backroom staff will have the important task to He will be your link to the youth department and will oversee youth development.
The head of youth development staff will be a highly important figure in the brand new ‘Development Centre’. Not only will he assess and report to you about the youth player’s progression, but also bring new talents into the club, and notify you about who might have the potential to reach first-team level.
His experience and skills at working with the youngsters will be highly important to ensure a new crop of talents is coming through, and the success of your youth development program is pretty much in his expertise. Our list of the best Head of Youth Development in Football Manager 2026 lets you find the best backroom staff for this role.
We have sorted this list of head of youth development according to their level of Working with youngsters and their level of judging player potential, but as you’ll notice from the backroom staff search filter he will also require a decent level of coaching attributes if you’d like him to lead youth team training or set up individual training for the youth players.
Editor’s Pick
How to find the best Head of youth Development in FM26?
The head of youth development staff is tasked to identify and monitor the development of youth within your team. His abilities and personality will affect what types of youth players you get at the annual youth intake. In this instance, he’s finding the perfect head of youth development according to your Club DNA and tactical style is highly important.
Spending an extra time, browsing for the best Head of youth Development staff will be of great reward later on in the game as his judgement of youth players and ability to identify talents will be of great resource to your squad building.
To be labelled as the best Head of Youth Development in Football Manager, the staff requires exceptional abilities with working with youth.
- Working with Youngsters
- Judging Player Ability
- Judging Player Potential
- Personality (Positive)
- Similar Tactical Style & Formation to the club’s football philosophy
You can learn more about the Head of Youth Development staff role and its requirements and duties in Football Manager in this guide.
5-Star Rated Head of Youth Development Staff in FM 2026
Welcome to this years edition of our massive list of best FM26 head of youth development staff. To help you find the best HoYD in Football Manager 26 we have sorted the staff by their attribute levels of ‘Working with Youngsters’, ‘Judging Player Ability’ and ‘Judging Player Potential’ skills. Since personality is of huge importance to the youngsters development, we have also included it.
When making this list of the best head of youth development in Football Manager 26 we haven’t fully prioritized the person’s coaching attributes, even though it’s important if you’re considerating to let your HoYD take charge of leading the training of your U18 or U21 squad.
Please keep in mind that staff attributes, their qualities and/or personality may vary from save to save.
Last Updated: 18 April 2026
| AGE | NAME | CLUB | YNG | JCA | JPA | PERS. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 45 | Andreas Steiert | Freiburg | Elite | Outstanding | Elite | Model Citizen |
| 73 | Pablo Blanco | Sevilla | Elite | Outstanding | Elite | Model Professional |
| 55 | Volker Kersting | Mainz 05 | Elite | Outstanding | Elite | Professional |
| 52 | Michael Wiesinger | 1.FC Nürnberg (Bayern München May 2026) | Elite | Outstanding | Elite | Fairly Professional |
| 48 | Dario Baccin ** | Inter Milan | Elite | Outstanding | Elite | Resolute |
| 59 | Robert Samaden | Atalanta | Elite | Outstanding | Elite | Determined |
| 47 | Thomas Krücken | Man City | Elite | Outstanding | Elite | Spirited |
| 47 | Jochen Saier | Freiburg | Elite | Outstanding | Elite | Light-Hearted |
| 40 | Francesco Garcia Barletta | Grémio | Elite | Very Good | Elite | Professional |
| 65 | Gabriel Rodríguez | River Plate | Elite | Very Good | Elite | Balanced |
| 61 | Ariel Paolorossi | Newell's | Elite | Outstanding | Outstanding | Fairly Determined |
| 60 | Klemens Hartenbach *** | Freiburg | Elite | Outstanding | Outstanding | Professional |
| 68 | Norbert Elgert * | Schalke 04 | Elite | Very Good | Outstanding | Professional |
| 52 | Jochen Sauer *** | Bayern München | Elite | Very Good | Outstanding | Professional |
| 49 | Sebastián Pait *** | Velez Sarsfield | Elite | Very Good | Outstanding | Perfectionist |
| 61 | Huw Jennings | Fulham | Elite | Very Good | Outstanding | Driven |
| 69 | Jose Ramón Alexanko | Barcelona | Elite | Very Good | Outstanding | Professional |
| 77 | Hugo Tocalli | Independiente | Elite | Very Good | Outstanding | Professional |
| 52 | Stephan Hildebrandt *** | Stuttgart | Elite | Very Good | Outstanding | Fairly Professional |
| 53 | Jason Wilcox *** | Man Utd | Elite | Very Good | Outstanding | Resolute |
| 47 | Nick Cox *** | Everton | Elite | Very Good | Outstanding | Determined |
| 54 | Rodolfo Borrell *** | Austin FC | Elite | Very Good | Outstanding | Fairly Determined |
| 62 | Edorta Murúa | ASPIRE | Elite | Very Good | Outstanding | Fairly Determined |
| 54 | Jefta Bresser | Bayer 04 Leverkusen | Elite | Very Good | Outstanding | Fairly Determined |
| 64 | Bryan Klug *** | Norwich | Elite | Very Good | Very Good | Professional |
| 55 | Tom Freddy Aune * | Gresvik | Elite | Very Good | Very Good | Balanced |
| 55 | Álex Garcia | - | Elite | Very Good | Very Good | Light-Hearted |
| 55 | Jean-Sébastien Mérieux ** | - | Elite | Very Good | Very Good | Model Citizen |
| 50 | Oleg Kornaukhov | CSKA Moscow | Elite | Very Good | Very Good | Driven |
| 46 | Joaquim Milheiro | Benfica | Elite | Very Good | Very Good | Driven |
| 51 | Marco Otero | Espanyol | Elite | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Determined |
| 40 | Moussa Koné ** | Barcelona | Elite | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Determined |
| 57 | Angelo Carbone | Sassuolo | Elite | Very Good | Very Good | Resilient |
| 63 | Peter Elstrup | Randers | Elite | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Loyal |
| 48 | Gianluca Grava | Napoli | Elite | Very Good | Very Good | Jovial |
| 56 | Iddo Rocher | FC Den Bosch | Elite | Very Good | Good | Fairly Determined |
| 70 | Bruno Conti ** | AS Roma | Elite | Good | Very Good | Model Professional |
| 53 | Alex Inglethorpe | Liverpool | Elite | Good | Very Good | Professional |
| 61 | Frank Vogel **** | Hertha Berlin | Elite | Good | Very Good | Fairly Professional |
| 61 | Jorge Theiler | - | Elite | Good | Very Good | Fairly Professional |
| 58 | Joan Barbará * | Barcelona | Elite | Good | Very Good | Fairly Professional |
| 64 | João Couto | - | Elite | Good | Very Good | Ambitious |
| 46 | Samuel Fénillat | Nantes | Elite | Good | Good | Fairly Determined |
| 42 | Denis Silva * | - | Elite | Good | Good | Balanced |
| 56 | Abdel Bouhazama | - | Elite | Good | Good | Fairly Professional |
| 53 | Sune Smith-Nielsen *** | - | Elite | Average | Very Good | Resolute |
| 54 | Massimo Tarantino | Inter Milan | Outstanding | Outstanding | Elite | Determined |
| 48 | Christoph Freund *** | Bayern München | Outstanding | Outstanding | Elite | Professional |
| 62 | Daniele Bernazzani ** | Inter Milan | Outstanding | Outstanding | Outstanding | Fairly Determined |
| 52 | Oliver Ruhnert *** | - | Outstanding | Outstanding | Very Good | Spirited |
| 65 | Jean-Michel Vandamme | LOSC Lille | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Model Citizen |
| 60 | Jean Kindermans | Antwerp | Outstanding | Very Good | Outstanding | Perfectionist |
| 44 | Abian Perdomo *** | - | Outstanding | Very Good | Outstanding | Resolute |
| 61 | Mauro Bianchessi | - | Outstanding | Very Good | Outstanding | Professional |
| 67 | Giuseppe Baresi ** | Inter Milan | Outstanding | Very Good | Outstanding | Professional |
| 49 | Dean Rastrick *** | Norwich | Outstanding | Very Good | Outstanding | Resolute |
| 50 | Mark Harrison | Aston Villa | Outstanding | Very Good | Outstanding | Resolute |
| 48 | João Paulo Sampaio | Palmeiras | Outstanding | Very Good | Outstanding | Resolute |
| 65 | Juan Carlos Pérez Rojo | Barcelona | Outstanding | Very Good | Outstanding | Balanced |
| 57 | Vincenzo Vergine | AC Milan | Outstanding | Very Good | Outstanding | Fairly Determined |
| 47 | Darren Wassall | - | Outstanding | Very Good | Outstanding | Very Loyal |
| 70 | Giancarlo Finardi **** | Atalanta | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Resolute |
| 54 | Stephane Roche | Dijon FCO | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Resolute |
| 66 | Josep María Nogués ** | Barcelona Atletic | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Resolute |
| 46 | Kristjaan Speakman *** | - | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Professional |
| 56 | Fernando Kuyumchoglu | - | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Professional |
| 68 | Patrick Battiston | - | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Professional |
| 61 | Giovanni Invernizzi | Sampdoria | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Professional |
| 53 | Marco Bertelli ** | Inter Milan | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Determined |
| 65 | Alberto Giráldez *** | - | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Resolute |
| 59 | Jill Ellis * (W) | - | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Driven |
| 52 | Denis Arnaud | Stade Rennais | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Professional |
| 50 | Matt Hale | Derby | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Determined |
| 49 | Patrick Kluivert | - | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Ambitious |
| 44 | Thomas Broich | Bor. Dortmund | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Ambitious |
| 59 | Bertrand Reuzeau | Montpellier | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Spirited |
| 48 | Pius Kaspar | Luzern | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Balanced |
| 63 | Enrique Borrelli *** | Chacarita Jrs | Outstanding | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Loyal |
| 62 | José Mari Bakero | - | Outstanding | Very Good | Good | Resolute |
| 44 | Adam Underwood *** | Leeds | Outstanding | Good | Outstanding | Resolute |
| 47 | Paul Brandenburg | AZ | Outstanding | Good | Outstanding | Determined |
| 47 | Tozé Pereira | Braga | Outstanding | Good | Outstanding | Fairly Determined |
| 61 | Brian McClair | - | Outstanding | Good | Very Good | Model Citizen |
| 40 | Per Mertesacker | Arsenal | Outstanding | Good | Very Good | Professional |
| 49 | Claudiomir Rates | America FC | Outstanding | Good | Very Good | Resolute |
| 66 | Nasser Larguet | - | Outstanding | Good | Very Good | Resolute |
| 43 | Andoni Bombín | Karpaty Lviv | Outstanding | Good | Very Good | Fairly Determined |
| 68 | Edmund Becker | Karlsruher | Outstanding | Good | Very Good | Fairly Loyal |
| 45 | Max Balster ** | Schalke 04 | Outstanding | Good | Very Good | Fairly Loyal |
| 47 | Gareth Prosser | Al-Jazira | Outstanding | Good | Very Good | Balanced |
| 54 | Aloys Wijnker | PSV | Outstanding | Good | Very Good | Balanced |
| 62 | Ramón Lozano | - | Outstanding | Good | Very Good | Balanced |
| 57 | Albert Capellas *** | Dinamo Zagreb | Outstanding | Good | Good | Professional |
| 62 | Sylvain Matrisciano *** | Racing Besancon | Outstanding | Good | Good | Fairly Professional |
| 61 | Luís Martins | - | Outstanding | Good | Good | Fairly Professional |
| 48 | Gary Issott | Crystal Palace | Outstanding | Good | Good | Fairly Determined |
| 43 | Simon Rolfes *** | Bayer 04 Leverkusen | Very Good | Outstanding | Outstanding | Model Citizen |
| 48 | Jim Fraser | - | Very Good | Outstanding | Outstanding | Driven |
| 58 | Valentino Angeloni | Fiorentina | Very Good | Outstanding | Outstanding | Fairly Professional |
| 44 | Edd Vahid | - | Very Good | Outstanding | Outstanding | Fairly Determined |
| 47 | Deco *** | Barcelona | Very Good | Outstanding | Outstanding | Spirited |
| 45 | Eric Abidal *** | Al-Wasl | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Resolute |
| 67 | Maurizio Constanzi | - | Very Good | Outstanding | Elite | Perfectionist |
| 54 | Dan Ashworth *** | - | Very Good | Very Good | Elite | Resolute |
| 39 | Marco Neppe *** | Paris FC | Very Good | Very Good | Outstanding | Resolute |
| 39 | David Fernández ** | Barcelona | Very Good | Very Good | Outstanding | Ambitious |
| 52 | Steve Weaver **** | RB Leipzig | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Resolute |
| 46 | José Manuel Sevillano | Alavés | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Driven |
| 54 | Gianluca Pessotto ** | Juventus | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Model Professional |
| 45 | Sebastian Kehl *** | Bor. Dortmund | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Professional |
| 61 | Antonio Mur * | Comerciantes | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Professional |
| 39 | Julian Battmer | Hannover 96 | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Professional |
| 42 | Edgar Cardoso | Estoril Praia | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Professional |
| 57 | Roman Hangarter | Lugano | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Professional |
| 58 | Uwe Scherr *** | 1.FC Kaiserslautern | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Professional |
| 58 | Jean-Francois Pien | - | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Determined |
| 53 | Ayhan Tumani *** | Paderborn | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Determined |
| 57 | Francesco Palmieri *** | Sassuolo | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Determined |
| 58 | Fernando Berón | - | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Determined |
| 58 | Loren *** | Malaga | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Spirited |
| 36 | Jack Francis | Chelsea | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Balanced |
| 42 | Nuno Figueiredo | Sporting CP | Very Good | Very Good | Very Good | Balanced |
| 44 | Juanjo Camacho | Huesca | Very Good | Good | Very Good | Driven |
| 39 | Diego Gil de Gómez | Independiente del Valle | Very Good | Good | Very Good | Driven |
| 54 | Manuel Pirés | - | Very Good | Good | Very Good | Resolute |
| 49 | Sébastien Muet | Monaco | Very Good | Good | Very Good | Fairly Professional |
| 58 | Rainer Widmayer | - | Very Good | Good | Very Good | Fairly Professional |
| 43 | Stephen Torpey | Man Utd | Very Good | Good | Very Good | Balanced |
| 54 | Gus Williams | Wrexham | Very Good | Good | Very Good | Balanced |
| 43 | Carl Darlington *** | Everton | Very Good | Good | Good | Driven |
| 51 | Simon Davies | Tottenham | Very Good | Good | Good | Balanced |
| 50 | Raffael Tonello | Schalke 04 | Very Good | Good | Good | Balanced |
| 56 | Luki Iriarte | Real Sociedad | Good | Outstanding | Very Good | Fairly Determined |
| 35 | Miquel Gelabert | Mallorca | Good | Very Good | Very Good | Fairly Determined |
| 39 | Yohan Cabaye | Paris SG | Good | Very Good | Good | Perfectionist |
| 45 | Rodrigo Magalhães | NEOM | Good | Very Good | Good | Fairly Determined |
| 43 | Luis Arnau | Villarreal | Good | Good | Very Good | Balanced |
Download Instructions
- Download the file above.
- Put the files into folder :
My Documents / Sports Interactive / Football Manager 26 / Shortlists - Open Football Manager 26
- Go to: Recruitment >
Staff Shortlist - Click Load Shortlist
- Import the file:
Best Head of youth developmentand click Load
Who’s your favorite Head of Youth Development staff in Football Manager 2026? Let us know which FM26 HoYD you prefer to sign!




