In the game: Perhaps the most famous CM player of all time, Congolose-born Swede Moukoko began the 99/00 game in Derby County’s youth team. He was Waitrose quality for a Lidl price; the Maradona of the Midlands, for as little as £500k. When CM is cited in divorce cases, it is surely because of a disagreement over whether “Tonton” should be the child’s first or middle name.
In real life: Tonton never made it big – after Derby he returned to Sweden to knock about the lower leagues due to “family issues”. He’s still there, as a player/youth coach for IFK Lidingö FK.
By all accounts he’s pretty happy with his cult status. There are several Facebook fan pages devoted to him, and Sports Interactive (the company that makes Football Manager) brought him over to the UK for a five-a-side game last year in what is surely the first case of a player getting a testimonial for their fictional exploits.