Football Manager - Your Career

[Pyeman]

The Hatters revolution has begun.

After avoiding relegation by the skin of my teeth last season, we now sit third after 16 games on 29 points. I managed to sign a couple of my better loan players on permanent deals, with Alex Samuel being the best example. He's got 11 goals in 14 starts so far.

Also managed to bring in a couple of other loan players who have been doing well, although I've recently lost my two best loanees. One is injured for 3 months and the other I've had to send back because Fulham suddenly want me to cough up half of his £20,000 a week salary. JOG ON.

 

[yellow]

In my book they've gotta be tall. Attributes wise I look for:

Aerial Ability, Command of area, communication, handling, reflexes, positioning, bravery, concentration.

Anyway, at the end of January and we're 2nd in the table. smat I'm on my way!

Why oh why oh WHY DID I SAY THIS.

 

[yellow]

this game can fuck off

 

[Techno Natch]

this game can fuck off

Hate it when you know it's going tits up and there is nothing you can do. It gets to the point where I almost stop trying.

 

[Pyeman]

Why oh why oh WHY DID I SAY THIS.

I'm glad it's not just me. I'm never updating mid-way through a season again.

 

[Luke Imp]

Doncaster, late October, mid-table in L2. No money, in the red. Massive squad as well, ridiculous.

Going back to Coventry, and they've sold their/my four best players for a £1.2m total. I rejected more than that for one player and I also made sure that all the best players were tied up so they didn't have to sell for a couple of seasons. Now bottom of the Championship, so serves them right the prats.

 

[Madejski]

Just finished my third season at Reading, second in the Prem. Not too much change from my update in February. Was eighth then, finished in eighth. Dropped away a bit in February/March from the top 7, and at the same time lost in the Cup QF. Wasn't too difficult. Was very happen with the season on the whole, 3 places higher than the previous. 13 points and 36 goal difference better too, so my new players made a good impact. Eighth gives me a good platform to build on trying to qualify for Europe next season.

Then, three weeks into the Summer, my players are off in Majorca on their holidays, and I get email stating "Reading qualify for Euro Cup". Turns out Tottenham won the Europa League and thus meant that an extra qualification place went to England, in which I was the recipient. I should be pleased with this but my team is not ready at all. Decent strength, but no depth. Extra games i'm not prepared for and wasn't expecting. My players may as well stay in Majorca, as I could be playing my third qualifying round match their..

Very solid team performance earlier. New players came in well, and the younger ones really started to develop into good Prem players.

I'm about half way through the Summer now, and it has been very difficult. Board gave me a £2m transfer budget, to strengthen and deepen the team for Europe... Then Darder and Roberts, possibly my two best players, had their release clauses matched by Man City and went off. So i'm now trying to completely rebuild the team, on limited funds, ready for more games. Going to be an interesting season..

 

[yellow]

Hate it when you know it's going tits up and there is nothing you can do. It gets to the point where I almost stop trying.

Yup. Player power has come and almost single-handedly wrecked my campaign. My captain (been at the club for seven years) is all of a sudden "unsettled". I say I try to get a fellow countrymen in, fail, and the whole squad kicks off. Morale goes through the floor and out of nowhere we can't score in a brothel.

6 without a win, the wheels are spectacularly coming off.

& Pyeman I agree! Silly error.

 

[Luke Imp]

44 players. Fourty-frickin-four. Unbelievable. How can a previous manager have such a big squad?! I've signed four (two freebie loans and two permanent with an outlay of £700/week). One hell of a struggle trying to get rid of people, some of which are contracted beyond this season.

Mid-January, 3 points off the PO's with a game in hand. Can't take all the credit because the previous manager did sign a couple of good strikers on loan who are doing the trick.

 

[Luke Imp]

Promoted with two games to spare and finished 2nd.

Still a clear-out needed because I'll not get above lower mid-table in L1 otherwise. Coventry straight back down.

 

[smat]

Mutiny at the Emirates. I sold a really crap 21-year-old defender to League 2 Notts County and my players are up in arms. Apparently the debacle resulted in losing the trust of a whole bunch of them. Idiots, he was rubbish. Think I've steadied the ship now (and managed to get two of the unhappy players signed up to new contracts).

Spend around £30m on nine new players in preparation for the first season back in the Premier League. Went 4-0 down at home to United on the opening day, which didn't inspire confidence (lost 4-2), but we've since won 2-1 at Chelsea, drawn 1-1 at Everton, and beaten Sunderland 2-0 at the Emirates. Solid enough start. I want to finish top half, board expectation is midtable.

 

[EricSabin]

Got Stevenage up in my 2nd season, finishing second in League 2. Quit in January with them just above the relegation zone in League 1 and applied for a few jobs. Took me until May to get one though, as Cameroon approached me. Came 3rd in the Confederations Cup, and now face a shit or bust 2018 World Cup match against Russia. Will probably quit after the ACN 2019 and return to England looking for a different job.

 

[Mr Elmo]

I played a few more games, and now after 30 we have 66 points with Barnet. We are about 16 points clear of 4th, so if I don't get promoted now...

 

[EricSabin]

Won against Russia to get through my WC group. Beat England 2-1, then France 2-0 to set up a semi final against Germany which the brave Cameroonians sadly lost on pennos. Also lost the third placed play off to Italy. Roll on the African Cup of Nations, which I'm in to win!

 

[Madejski]

Darder gone to Man City for £20m. Roberts joins him for £38m. Babacar gone to Real Madrid for £24m. Balanta is starting a player revolt as he wants to go now. With still a few others who have interest from bigger clubs. Feeling like Southampton did last Summer with all of the main players leaving. After 8th place and Europe last season i'll be happy with avoiding any relegation battles this.

Not many signings in yet, Deulofeu and Carrasco in, failed at outlandish attempt at Gotze, but i'm still struggling to get a defensive midfielder. Thought £20m wasn't too bad value for Darder but it's proving next to impossible to get a replacement in for less than that.

 

[yellow]

So..hows this for a story. My angry posts in here the other day came after I'd just been smacked 3-0 in the derby by Preston. A slight tweak of tactics for the final 11 games saw us go unbeaten. On the final day promotion was effectively sealed (three points clear of Tranmere in 4th with +12GD). Gillingham were two points clear of me. They had Wrexham away, I hosted Crawley.

Gills go 2-0 up while I lead 1-0. Wrexham score two in the final 10 minutes, I score a second in the 90th minute to win the title by a goal.

Two promotions, two TITLES.

 

[SamScfc]

This game is ridculous. The amount of injuries you get is a joke, it's the fact that they all come at the same time takes the piss. Spent £17m on a striker, injured in his 2nd game.

 

[Luke Imp]

Let's have a look at your training. That's usually the main contributor.

 

[SamScfc]

Don't know how to get screenshots but my intensity level is very high. I assume that must be it.

 

[smat]

Don't know how to get screenshots but my intensity level is very high. I assume that must be it.

Defo!

 

[Madejski]

Yea... my players hate when my training is set to the middle setting! Some even moan when I go low intensity..

 

[Pyeman]

Does anyone have any advice as to how to get my star striker firing again?

He hasn't scored in something like 15 games and it's killing me. Before his drought we were in the top 4; since he stopped scoring we've dropped down to 8th place and are 6 points off the play-offs. None of my other strikers are anywhere near his standard so without him scoring we're really struggling.

 

[smat]

Does anyone have any advice as to how to get my star striker firing again?

He hasn't scored in something like 15 games and it's killing me. Before his drought we were in the top 4; since he stopped scoring we've dropped down to 8th place and are 6 points off the play-offs. None of my other strikers are anywhere near his standard so without him scoring we're really struggling.

Had a private chat with him about his goals? Stuck him in the reserves for a game or two to get his confidence back up? Both worth trying.

 

[Pyeman]

I've had a chat, but not thought about reserves. I'll give it a shot now cheers!

 

[Pyeman]

I've just lost in the southern final of the JPT too! Really annoying because I was the only League 1 team left in the competition.

 

[EricSabin]

CAMEROON WIN THE AFRICAN CUP OF NATIONS! 5-4 on pennos against the Ivory Coast. Sailed through my group and then beat Angola 4-1 and then Nigeria 3-1 to get to the final.

Applied for the Sunderland job who are currently in the Championship. Time for me to leave the Cameroon squad in February 2019.

 

[RavenBish]

Darder gone to Man City for £20m. Roberts joins him for £38m. Babacar gone to Real Madrid for £24m. Balanta is starting a player revolt as he wants to go now. With still a few others who have interest from bigger clubs. Feeling like Southampton did last Summer with all of the main players leaving. After 8th place and Europe last season i'll be happy with avoiding any relegation battles this.

Not many signings in yet, Deulofeu and Carrasco in, failed at outlandish attempt at Gotze, but i'm still struggling to get a defensive midfielder. Thought £20m wasn't too bad value for Darder but it's proving next to impossible to get a replacement in for less than that.

Are you on the patch? You're the second person I've seen have Roberts turn into a world class player but on mine I'm in January 2018 and he's on loan at Bolton from Fulham.

 

[Madejski]

Nope. I'm on the original (beta) database. I thought his potential got reduced in the January patch slightly?

I was fortunate that he played a number of games for Fulham in the first season (though not very well) which will have quickened his development.

On FM I rightly or wrongly, go with potential over current ability - to a point. So Roberts had played in 74/76 league games for me in the Prem, despite not necessarily being first 11 quality in relation to the rest of my squad for large parts of that period. First season he was very average, 6 goals, 5 assists in 36. Second season he got 19 goals, 12 assists in 38.

Did help that I played a formation suited for wingers to cut in, as I couldn't find many traditional wingers available. Also trained him specifically to be an inside forward right winger, right attributes and tactics, trying to make the next Robben. Looks like he was on his way to getting to that level.

 

[Pyeman]

I've taken a drastic decision. I've left Luton and taken a job in charge of Mali.

I noticed the Mali job available and so thought I'd apply, originally with the intention of doing both jobs. However, my season with Luton was fizzling out fast, with the play-offs looking increasingly unlikely, and it was my intention to leave at the end of the year anyway. So I thought why wait?

 

[yellow]

I also nearly left Blackpool. My contract was running out and they "couldn't afford to give me a new one" so I applied for Blackburn, failed, and the Blackpool offered me another year.

Expected to reach the PO's (playoffs, smat) in my first season back in L1 though, which is going to be…interesting.

Wrexham also got promoted to continue to progression I kickstarted, which is quite cool.