Championship Manager 3 was released in March 1999 – almost 25 years ago – and marked the start of a new generation for the CM series.
CM3 was also the first football management game I ever played, when I was about 8 or 9 years old. Over the coming months, I will revisit this game in various articles, along with a new career story that will begin very soon.
For the first installment, I have found 17 players who are currently playing for Premier League clubs, and whose fathers were themselves players on the CM3 database a quarter-century ago. I’ve taken screenshots of the dads on CM3 – and their lads on Football Manager 2024 – and written a little bit about their careers.
I’ve already done something like this before, when I revisited Championship Manager 99/00 about four years ago. Expect to see a few familiar faces from the past, along with some contemporary stars who’ve already outstripped their fathers’ achievements.
FATHER: Charlie Christie
SON: Ryan Christie (Bournemouth)
We start this article by looking at Charles Christie – or Charlie, as he prefers to be called. Born and bred in the Scottish Highlands, the midfielder/striker is an icon at Inverness Caledonian Thistle, where he played over 250 league games from their formation in 1994 to his retirement a decade later.
Christie remained a loyal servant to Caley, managing the team from 2006 to 2007, and then returning as their head of youth development in 2009. One of the young players Charlie brought through was his own son Ryan, who made his debut as an 18-year-old in December 2013.
Ryan subsequently moved to Celtic, where he won back-to-back domestic trebles in 2019 and 2020. The attacking midfield workhorse is now a Premier League regular south of the border with Bournemouth, and is closing in on 50 international caps with Scotland.
FATHER: Patrick Kluivert
SON: Justin Kluivert (Bournemouth)
Even before turning 25, Justin Kluivert has managed to fit a lot into his career. Having spent the past four seasons at Roma, RB Leipzig, Nice and Valencia, the winger netted his first Bournemouth goal in November. He became just the second man (after Stevan Jovetić) to score in each of the ‘Big Five’ European leagues in the 21st century.
Justin was capped twice by the Netherlands as a teenager, but he still has some way to go to match his father’s achievements. Patrick scored 40 goals for the Oranje, won the Champions League with Ajax, and was a star striker at AC Milan and Barcelona. He also played for Newcastle for a bit.
Kluivert Sr is one of the leading strikers on CM3, destined to be a World Player of the Year contender for at least a decade. I think we can also say that he’s the most famous dad in this article…
FATHER: David Beckham
SON: Romeo Beckham (Brentford)
…oh. Hi, Goldenballs. Yes, this is David Beckham, shortly after the 23-year-old basically ended England’s 1998 World Cup dream with one stupid kick at Diego Simeone. He would soon mature into one of world football’s finest midfielders and set-piece specialists, and eventually become an international megastar.
Following in Becks’ footsteps was always going to be a challenge for his two eldest sons. Brooklyn briefly played in the Arsenal academy but became a professional celebrity instead. Meanwhile, Romeo contemplated a career in tennis before committing himself to football in his mid-teens.
Romeo started off in the development team at Inter Miami – the MLS club owned by his dad. After scoring a whopping two goals in 20 MLS Next Pro matches, the forward moved back to his native London in 2023 and signed for Brentford’s B team. Looking at those attributes, I’d be very surprised if he ever makes it to the senior squad.
FATHER: Paul Dickov
SON: Max Dickov (Brentford)
Another Brentford reserve with a famous dad is Max Dickov. The former Oldham youth product was playing for non-league Stockport Town when a successful trial at Brentford earned him a professional contract in 2022.
Though Max was born and bred in England, his old man was a proud Scot (with a Bulgarian surname). Paul entered Manchester City folklore during the 1998/1999 season – his third at Maine Road. Trailing 2-1 to Gillingham in the Division 2 Playoff Final, it was Dickov’s 95th-minute equaliser that saved City and ultimately inspired them to win promotion on penalties.
Paul later won 10 Scotland caps and moved to Leicester, where the former Arsenal striker almost stunned their Invincibles on the final day of the 2003/2004 Premier League season. After a brief and fruitless return to Manchester City, he went on to manage Oldham and Doncaster, and is now a TV pundit.
FATHER: Kevin Lisbie
SON: Kyrece Lisbie (Brentford)
Here’s one more baby Bee for you. Kyrece Lisbie joined Brentford’s development team in summer 2022, having previously played in the Leyton Orient and Watford academies, as well as for non-league Cray Valley Paper Mills.
His old man wasn’t a bad striker in his day. Don’t let that 5 Pace or that 9 Finishing fool you; Kevin was a nifty poacher who was in or around Charlton’s first-team for a decade. His peak years came in the mid-2000s, when he earned 10 Jamaica caps and famously scored a Premier League hat-trick against Liverpool.
After leaving The Valley in 2007, Lisbie enjoyed a solid Football League career, most notably with Colchester and Orient. Impressively, he continued to play at non-league level until he was 43, finally bowing out at VCD Athletic in 2022.
FATHER: Stewart Castledine
SON: Leo Castledine (Chelsea)
Leo Castledine is a promising England Under-19s midfielder who rejoined Chelsea’s academy from AFC Wimbledon in 2020. Now 18 years old, he was given his senior debut by Mauricio Pochettino in the Blues’ EFL Cup Semi Final win over Middlesbrough this January.
Leo’s dad Stewart was also a midfielder, with strong connections to the original Wimbledon team. He made 26 Premier League appearances for the Dons in the 1990s and also had a couple of spells with lower-league Wycombe Wanderers. Sadly, fitness issues saw Castledine’s football career stall in 2002, aged just 29.
Unlike more famous members of the ‘Crazy Gang’, Stewart was actually a handsome fella, working as a model for DKNY and Topshop after hanging up his boots. He later moved into TV presenting – just like his wife (and Leo’s mum) Lucy Alexander, who hosted “Homes Under The Hammer” on the BBC for 15 years.
FATHER: Abedi Pele
SON: Jordan Ayew (Crystal Palace)
I’ve covered the Ayew family before, but here they are again. Abedi Ayew (aka Abedi Pele) was a legendary attacking midfielder who was one of Ghana’s greatest scorers, as well as a Champions League winner with Marseille in 1993.
Abedi’s goalscoring talents had waned by the late 1990s, hence those mediocre attributes. After scoring just two goals in 50 matches for 1860 Munich, he left European football behind to finish his career in the United Arab Emirates, playing for Al Ahli.
Of Abedi’s three footballing sons, Jordan is perhaps the most familiar to Premier League fans. He is now in his sixth season at Crystal Palace, having previously played for Aston Villa and Swansea. André captained Ghana at this year’s Africa Cup of Nations and currently turns out for Le Havre, while Ibrahim is based in Gibraltar.
FATHER: Danny Mills
SON: Stan Mills (Everton)
Right-back Danny Mills started his career with hometown club Norwich before moving to Leeds (via Charlton) in 1999. It was at Elland Road where he built his top-flight reputation and started his England career – the ‘highlight’ of which was getting Ronaldinho sent off at the 2002 World Cup.
Mills later signed for Manchester City, where he retired in 2009 aged 32 due to injury. Nowadays, he’s a miserable pundit with equally miserable opinions, while 20-year-old son Stanley is embarking on his own football career. Yes, in the year 2003, somebody actually named their newborn child Stanley.
Stan plays on the right flank just like Danny, but is very much a winger rather than a defender. He has made two EFL Cup appearances for Everton to date, and he spent the first half of this season on loan at League One side Oxford before that was cut short by injury.
FATHER: Lee Clark
SON: Bobby Clark (Liverpool)
Ex-England Under-21s midfielder Lee Clark joined Fulham in 1999, having previously played for both Newcastle and Sunderland. The lifelong Geordie’s time on Wearside had come to an acrimonious end earlier that year, when he was seen wearing a T-shirt with a disparaging slogan about Mackems.
A gifted left-footer with a high work rate, Clark would lead the Cottagers into the Premier League in 2001 and stay with them for another four years. He was appointed Huddersfield manager in 2008, starting a career that would later take him to Birmingham, Blackpool, Kilmarnock, Blyth Spartans… and Al-Merrikh in Sudan.
Clark’s 19-year-old son Bobby is a midfielder of some potential at Liverpool, whom he joined from the Newcastle academy in 2021. As of writing, he has made 12 senior appearances for the Reds, and was part of their EFL Cup-winning team last month. Maybe Bobby will one day better Lee’s career by earning senior caps for England?
FATHER: Jason Koumas
SON: Lewis Koumas (Liverpool)
Though his CM3 profile says he was English, Jason Koumas was a diminutive, mercurial attacking midfielder from Wrexham. The 1998/1999 season was his first in senior football, as the teenager (he was born in 1979, not 1975) established himself with Division 1 side Tranmere.
Koumas won 34 caps for Wales and got a big move to West Brom in 2002 – but despite a promising start, he never fulfilled his Premier League potential. Attitude problems meant he could not emulate his former Liverpool youth team-mate Steven Gerrard, and he instead moved on to Cardiff and Wigan before finishing up back at Tranmere.
Perhaps 18-year-old Lewis Koumas will learn from his father’s mistakes and make a name for himself at Anfield? The forward has been in good form for Liverpool’s development teams, and his senior career got off to a bright start with a debut goal against Southampton last month.
FATHER: Carlos Mac Allister
SON: Alexis Mac Allister (Liverpool)
Carlos ‘Colo’ Mac Allister was an aggressive Argentine left-back of Irish heritage. Capped three times by the Albiceleste in 1993, he played for Argentinos Juniors, Boca Juniors and Racing Club before finishing his career at Ferro in the 1998/1999 season. CM3 thus marked his final appearance in this series.
After retiring from playing, Mac Allister set up a youth sports club with his brother Patricio. He then became a conservative politician, being elected to the Argentine parliament and serving as Secretary of Sports under President Mauricio Macri between 2016 and 2019.
Carlos’ three sons all play professional football. Eldest sibling Francis is currently with Rosario Central, and Kevin is far from ‘Home Alone’ at Union SG, but it’s younger brother Alexis who really hit the big time. After making his name at Brighton, the midfielder joined Liverpool for £35million in 2023. Oh yes, and he won the 2022 World Cup with Argentina.
FATHER: Alf Inge Haaland
SON: Erling Haaland (Man City)
And now we meet Alf Inge ‘Alfie’ Håland – the former Nottingham Forest right-back who was in his second season at Elland Road on CM3. The popular Norwegian would stay with Leeds for a couple more years… and his youngest son was even born in the city.
Haaland Sr later moved to Manchester City, where his right knee bore the brunt of a horrific challenge from Manchester United’s Roy Keane in April 2001. Contrary to popular belief, Keane didn’t end Alfie’s career; it was an ongoing injury in his left knee that finished him off in 2003.
Erling was about nine months old when his dad was injured in that fateful Manchester derby. It’s fair to say the goalscoring man-machine has been making United – along with City’s 18 other Premier League opponents – pay a heavy price since.
FATHER: Emile Heskey
SON: Jaden Heskey (Manchester City)
On CM3, Emile Heskey was a powerful young frontman who was in great form for his boyhood club Leicester. Expectations remained high thereafter, but despite winning a cup treble with Liverpool alongside strike partner Michael Owen in 2001, he never quite hit those same heights again.
In hindsight, a lot of the ‘donkey’ criticism aimed at Heskey later in his career was unfair. Though his finishing wasn’t always great (especially not while on England duty), he was undoubtedly a selfless player and a hard-worker whose link-up play often created chances for his team-mates.
While Emile is now back at Leicester working as development head for their women’s team, his sons are putting the Heskey name back on the scoresheet. 18-year-old Jaden is captain of Manchester City’s Under-18s and looks a decent striking prospect on FM24. 16-year-old Reigan has also impressed at City’s academy and is set to make his virtual debut on Football Manager 2025.
FATHER: Paul Barnes
SON: Harvey Barnes (Newcastle)
The Barneses will also be familiar to anyone who read my CM99/00 post about fathers and sons. Harvey Barnes is, of course, an established Premier League winger with Leicester and now Newcastle. He also has a knack for scoring impressive equalisers. Get in!
Born in late 1997, Harvey was still in nappies when his father appeared on CM3. Paul was midway through a solid lower-league career in which he scored 185 goals in 488 matches. He had just signed for Division 1 strugglers Bury, following a successful spell at Burnley and a rather less prolific one at Huddersfield.
Paul Barnes was an old-school centre-forward – strong, hard-working, quick, and a fine finisher. Though he never graced the top flight or the England national team like his offspring, he was always a decent pick-up for any Football League team that needed a reliable goalscorer.
FATHER: Claudio Reyna
SON: Giovanni Reyna (Nottm Forest)
Born in New Jersey to an Argentinian dad, Claudio Reyna was one of the finest players to come out of the United States in the 1990s. The creative attacking midfielder never quite became a star in Germany, but he was much more appreciated in Britain, where he first established himself at Rangers in 1999.
After winning the Scottish Premier League in his first full season, Reyna went on to grace the English top flight with Sunderland (where his second son Giovanni was born in 2002) and Manchester City. He has since worked as a technical director for MLS franchises New York City and Austin FC.
Though technically born a Mackem, Gio was destined to emulate his father, playing for the USA at the 2022 World Cup. The skilful winger was a wonderkid at Borussia Dortmund, making over 100 appearances before his 21st birthday. But after losing his place at BVB this season, he went on loan to Nottingham Forest in January.
FATHER: Ryan Giggs
SON: Zach Giggs (Sheffield United)
Zach Giggs is making his Football Manager debut on FM24. The centre-back – who only turned 17 in October – is a Wales youth international who signed for Sheffield United’s Under-18s at the start of this season.
Before then, Zach had played in the academy at Manchester United, where his dad Ryan was… quite a decent player. The Welsh Wizard was perhaps in his mazy-dribbling, chance-creating, hairy-chest-baring prime during that incredible 1998/1999 season.
Ryan Giggs retired from playing in 2014, after a record 963 appearances in 24 seasons with the Red Devils. He later coached Wales to qualification for Euro 2020, though he did not lead them at the tournament due to allegations of domestic abuse.
FATHER: David Johnson
SON: Brennan Johnson (Tottenham)
Before I go, it’s time for DJ to play us one more song. After a promising start to his career with Bury, Jamaican-born striker David Johnson took Division 1 by storm with Ipswich in the late 1990s, scoring 55 league goals in three seasons.
Unfortunately, after Town’s promotion to the Premier League in 2000, Johnson could not carry his relentless form to the top flight. He returned to Division 1 at Nottingham Forest, where he was a popular figure before a back injury forced him into retirement in 2006, aged only 30.
Forest fans also grew to love his son Brennan, who broke out as a star winger during their 2021/2022 promotion season. After keeping the East Midlands side in the PL, the younger Johnson is taking his career to greater heights in Ange Postecoglou’s dynamic Tottenham team. He is also an international regular with Wales – his mother’s homeland.
Did you enjoy this article? Have I missed out any other Premier League players whose dads were on CM3? Please let me know by dropping a comment below or tweeting me @Fuller_FM.
There’ll be more CM3 articles on Fuller FM over the coming weeks. Until next time, thanks for reading.
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