The Higher Tempo Press
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1.43 Boeren, Boeren PSV: N.E.C. Nijmegen v PSV
Pre-Match The pre-match talk is all about PSV yet again, 14th placed Nijmegen aren’t given much hope as PSV are odds on favourites at 1/3. NEC will go to field without Julian von Haacke and Maurice Multhaup because of injury, there’s also no Robin Buwalda after a suspension. Santiago Arias is suspended for PSV – […]
Porto’s win in final group game sets up second round tie with Kyiv
A 2-0 win at home against Zorya was enough for Porto to top their group and progress to the knockout stages. The Dragões avoided the bigger sides in the draw and will travel to Ukraine to face league champions Dynamo Kyiv before returning home for the second leg. Porto went into the game in second […]
Failing the big test: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 69
After our shock win over Sheriff, the trip up north to play Zaria Balti looked set to provide a stiff test of our a capacity to build. How would our more confident-looking defence react to the welcome experience of having kept a clean sheet? By falling apart, that’s how. Four down after 27. I think it’s […]
The Wandering Eagle Part 3: December ’16
Looking at the schedule, I don’t have an easy run toward the end of the year. We face Millwall (2nd), Bradford City (8th), and Bolton (5th). That’s a bit of a downer since I really hoped to get this team firing immediately. With our position the way it is, we need to get some points […]
FM17 European Gigalo Challenge Episode 15: Gunning with Gladbach
There’s eight games to go until the end of the Bundesliga season and I can’t fault my players, even if we’ve slipped four points behind Bayern Munich in the title race. Overall, we’re overachieving and the gap I’m looking at isn’t between us and the top, it’s between us and third-place. We’re currently 11 points […]
1.42 Boeren, Boeren PSV: Eredivisie Match 24 – FC Utrecht v PSV
Pre-Match Despite sitting nicely in 3rd place, Utrecht have lost two of their last three matches. PSV’s hot run continues and they are rightly put out as evens favourites for this match. Utrecht’s top goalscorer Nacer Barazite is out injured as is defender Ramon Leeuwin. PSV see another defensive suspension as Hector Moreno misses out, […]
In which the big city slickers come undone in the deep south: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 68
I knew we were in with a chance when the Sheriff coach arrived. It had air conditioning in places that our coach doesn’t have places. They’re the 11-4 favourites for the title. Would it even occur to them that they might not win? It would not. We needed to capitalise on their complacency. They helped […]
To Dare Is To Do Episode 47
FM17 Tottenham Hotspur FC To Dare Is To Do | #47 Kaneing | Let’s Play Football Manager 2017 Welcome to a Football Manager series on my channel; that’s right it’s Tottenham Hotspur. Today we take on Arsenal at the White Hart Lane in the second leg of the Champions League quarter finals, with a lead […]
1.41: Boeren, Boeren PSV: Eredivisie Match 23 – PSV v Willem II
Pre-Match PSV are on a run of 14 league games since their last defeat, meanwhile their counterparts Willem II have not tasted victory in their 4 previous matches – and without a goal in any of those four fixtures. PSV’s pre-match odds of 4/6 reflect both teams’ current form. The concern for PSV is that […]
Scouting For Midget Gems
Well, I never actually thought that I would be back writing about Football Manager so soon. Not in the traditional blog post sense at least. As with so many people that play Football Manager 17 however I often find myself inspired to play the game by something that I have read, and I tend to […]
Rivalità Tra Fratelli Episode 23: August ‘19
This is the story of two brothers, a modern-day Cain versus Abel if you will, now based in the Allianz Stadium. If you’d like to replicate this challenge, we’re using the updated medium database with the following leagues: England (Premier League, Championship, League One & League Two), Italy (Serie A & Serie B), Spain (La […]
Narrow-minded tactics: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 67
I keep playing a narrow diamond: a libero; a back three, an anchor, two in the middle; an advanced playmaker; and two up front. I don’t actually like it — the formation feels very constrained, like playing in a corset — but without wide players I don’t know what else to do. We’ve also been training […]
Porto face qualifier against Rangers after impressive preseason
The new Porto boss has had a summer to adjust to his surroundings now and things look to be turning a corner. After finishing 5th last season, their lowest in a number of years, Porto were forced to qualify for the Europa League. After beating Swedish side Hammarby IF in the last round they must […]
To Dare Is To Do Episode 46
FM17 Tottenham Hotspur FC To Dare Is To Do | #46 Gooner Do It | Let’s Play Football Manager 2017 Welcome to a Football Manager series on my channel thats right its Tottenham Hotspur. Today we take on Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium in the first leg of the Champions League Quarter Finals can we […]
Under The Lens Part 11: Welcome to Ligue 1
We’re finally here, it’s the opening day of the Ligue 1 season and we might not be in for the best of welcomes. We have a trip to Nantes who are obviously favourites for the game and managed to get themselves a 4th place finish last year. Going into this game we have a couple […]
Brexit Premier League: Part 5
Bouncing Back Against Tottenham Last week was a difficult one. Some decent performances, but all in all, a disappointing month. So, the plan this week was to use the international break to really prepare for the game away at Tottenham, to avoid the sort of disaster we experienced at Anfield a few weeks back. Erik […]
At least we made them work for it: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 66
In the event, our third league game of the season finished FC Saxan 0 Zimbru 1. In an uneventful first half, we matched them. But once they went ahead after the break, it was difficult to see how we were going to get back into it. My instruction to work the ball into the box is […]
FM17 European Gigalo Challenge Episode 14: Glad to be Bach in Germany
I was very pleased with my time at Marseille but it was time to move on. After being overlooked by Arsenal, who appointed Arsene Wenger back as manager after his brief stint as Director of Football, I’m back in Germany with the ultimate scrabble football team; Borussia Monchengladbach. The team I inherit is ageing, unhappy […]
Slack FC: Season 3
They say the best things come in threes, and here we are in the third season of the Slack FC save. When we left you last time, nearly all of the lads had made their first move away from the club, whilst those that remained behind helped Slack reach the Football League in their second […]
Big day for the boy Goncharov: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 65
When I brought Artem Goncharov in on a free, it was very much as a contingency measure. I wanted a third goalie in case something happened to the other two; and it needed to be a youngster so we could keep him match fit in the U19s. I hadn’t really reckoned on playing him in […]
FM Graphics: Czech Fantasy kit pack
Good graphics add-ons are essential of Football Manager for many years. It’s very important to me to have kits, faces or logos in the game correctly and during previous years I was also a member of some teams who create add-ons to the game. During the FM17 I edited these graphics add-ons just mainly for […]
Technical v Mental Attributes: An Experiment
For years playing Football Manager I have scouted and searched players, seen so many come and go through each team I create over the past editions. More often than not the players fail to live up to mine, and my scouts, expectations. Years of battling away at a lower level club, trying to build them […]
You can’t win things with kids but can they at least keep you up? Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 64
We need, absolutely need, to bring in a centre-back. But our database of players is small; most of the players on it are terrible (yes, even worse than Gulberdiyev); the ones who aren’t terrible cost too much or want too much money – so the best we can do is bring in a kid. Enter, […]
The Wandering Eagle Part 2: Introducing The Iron
Scunthorpe United are 21st in the table, but only one point from safety: A good run of results could see us climb up the table relatively fast, which would be right up the board’s alley as they want me to avoid relegation. Squad assessment Just like I did when I started my ill-fated reign at […]
FM17 European Gigalo Challenge Episode 13: Motoring with Marseille
It’s January 2020. I’m in the knock-out stages of the Champions League with Marseille and my reputation is on the rise. The target: finish the season successfully, move to a new club and continue my journey. The key there is finish the season, which makes it difficult to turn down Sevilla. Patience, I tell myself. […]
Nightmare debut: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 63
23 July 2017 brought my first competitive match as manager of FC Saxan — at home against Petrocub (who are predicted to finish mid-table). The fans will be hoping the result is not a sign of things to come. 1-4. A glance at the match stats might suggest that the scoreline flattered them. The teams […]
To Dare Is To Do Episode 45
FM17 Tottenham Hotspur FC To Dare Is To Do | #45 Closing In | Let’s Play Football Manager 2017 Welcome to a Football Manager series on my channel, that’s right it’s Tottenham Hotspur. Today we take on Manchester United in the Premier League, can we get one over on Jose and United after the EFL Cup […]
Rivalità Tra Fratelli, Episode 22 (Juventus 2019/20 Pre-Season)
This is the story of two brothers, a modern-day Cain versus Abel if you will, based now in the Allianz Stadium. If you’d like to replicate this challenge, we’re using the updated medium database with the following leagues: England (Premier League, Championship, League One & League Two), Italy (Serie A & Serie B), Spain (La […]
The problem at centre-back: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 62
For our final friendlies of my first pre-season at FC Saxan, we hosted the July Trophy. Though a meaningless competition, it had two kinds of value for us. First, it helped us get pretty well everyone match fit. Second, it produced a learning point — if an unwelcome one. It confirmed my suspicion that Gulberdiyev, […]
Porto unveil new boss but look set to miss out on Champions League football
FC Porto fans have had a few games now to get to know their new manager but it hasn’t been the best of starts. The former Leiria boss joined last month but has failed to have an immediate impact and the club is now only likely to qualify for the Europa League next season. After […]
Classic Championship Manager: Scotland on the Road to Euro 2004 Part V
Greetings! It’s the summer of 2003 and in a time long before Andy Murray was making Scotland proud, Scottish sports fans are still clinging to the fact that this bunch of idiots were World Cup runners up in 2002. However, we’re now passing 12 months since that happened and our form has started to deteriorate. […]
To Dare Is To Do Episode 44
FM17 Tottenham Hotspur FC To Dare Is To Do | #44 No Guts No Glory | Let’s Play Football Manager 2017 Welcome to a Football Manager series on my channel thats right its Tottenham Hotspur. Today we take on Bayern Munich in the 2nd leg of our Champions League 1st knockout round tie after losing […]
To Dare Is To Do Episode 43
FM17 Tottenham Hotspur FC To Dare Is To Do | #43 Final Countdown | Let’s Play Football Manager 2017 Welcome to a Football Manager series on my channel that’s right it’s Tottenham Hotspur. Today we take on Manchester United in the EFL Cup Final, its brings me head to head with Jose again can we […]
The Land Down Under Epilogue
GOSFORD, NSW – The Central Coast Mariners board of directors has announced today that their head coach, American manager Damon McKnight, has resigned from the club after five years on the job, breaking a recently signed contract to stay on with the club. Mr. McKnight will long be remembered at the Central Coast Stadium, and […]
1.40 Boeren, Boeren PSV: Eredivisie Match 22 – SC Herenveen v PSV
Pre-Match PSV are heavy favourites away from home with odds of 2/5. Herenveen are without the injured midfielder Stijn Schaars. PSV have a full roster available and Marco van Ginkel will rejoin the starting XI. The teams: First Half Herenveen dominate the opening 15 minutes of the game and it almost pays off when Martin […]
Brexit Premier League: Part 4
The EFL Cup When you’ve had a tough time of it on Football Manager, the best thing to do is forget about it, and on the next session start brightly. Last week we had an awful time, losing all but one of the games, and conceding way too many goals in the process. The plan […]
Work ball into box: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 61
The next few friendlies in my first pre-season with FC Saxan — all against lower domestic opposition — taught me one thing: at least while we play with a narrow diamond, we’re going to have to concentrate on working the ball into the box. The positive argument for that is that we have some strikers […]
FM17 European Gigalo Challenge Episode 12: The Champions League
My first full season with Marseille was certainly successful, as we finished way above expectations by coming runners-up in both the league and the Coupe de la League- and our reward is my first season in the Champions League. My squad needs more depth to cope with the European involvement and I’ve been prepped; Brendan […]
1.39 Boeren, Boeren PSV: Eredivisie Match 21 – Feyenoord v PSV
Pre-Match Today’s match is a close one to call for the bookmakers. PSV just shade things based on current form with odds of 4/5 for the away side. Karim El Ahmadi is on international duty with Morocco while Feyenoord have a further four players injured: Kenneth Vermeer, Renato Tapia, Miquel Nelom and Nicolai Jorgenson. Marco […]
Flat back four: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 60
My second match in charge at FC Saxan was a pre-season friendly to a Moldovan third-tier club. We lost 1-0, which doesn’t greatly concern me. The goal was from a set piece: I hope we can devote time to practising how to defend those better. We continued with the narrow diamond but, having temporarily bolstered our […]
To Dare Is To Do Episode 42
Today we take on the ultimate challenge that is Bayern Munich in the Allianz Arena! It’s the 1st leg of the 1st Champions League knockout round, so can we get a decent result to give us a chance in the second leg of knocking out one of the favourites for the converted European Cup trophy? […]
Southampton’s Black Box: Part 9
Welcome back to ‘Southampton’s Black Box’: a story focused on the organised success of the club known for their over-achievement. As the title implies, the save will be highlighting and representing the recruitment strategy by Southampton. I will be compiling a large database of players in the game to assist me in my FM17 successes, as well as […]
Under The Lens Part 10: A Summer of Preparation
So, we’re almost there, Ligue 1 football is getting even closer to Racing Club de Lens. Since you last heard from me though there has been a pretty eventful summer. Firstly, here’s how we played in preparation for the season. Overall I’m quite pleased with how our pre-season went. Out the five matches we continued […]
1.38 Boeren, Boeren PSV: KNVB Beker Quarter Final – Go Ahead Eagles v PSV
Pre-Match PSV are the favourites for this cup tie being touted at odds of 4/5 away from home. Go Ahead come into this fixture with a depleted squad. Elvis Manu is on international duty with Ghana, Achenteh and Schenk are suspended while Antonia and Rexhepia are both injured. Guardado remains out for PSV, McNair will […]
Adapting the diamond: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 59
My first match in charge of FC Saxan was a pre-season friendly away to a fourth-tier Romanian team. We won 3-1, not that that matters. The lack of wide players at the club constrained my choice of formation. I went for a narrow diamond, with a midfield of anchor + two central mids + an advanced […]
The Wandering Eagle Part 1: A New Job
The first thing everyone does after resigning a job or being fired is to check the job centre. I’m happy to see there are 26 clubs looking for a new manager. But I’ll have to be realistic. Of course, I can take a chance and apply for the vacant managerial position at AA Gent or Malmö […]
Test Tempo: Can the Seagulls soar to 35 points?
Well, you can’t really blame Chris Hughton from walking away can you? In that real world thing that some of you readers will dabble in from time to time, Brighton are yet to score a Premier League goal, meaning they share a dubious honour with Harry Kane in the fact they have not netted in […]
FM17 European Gigalo Challenge Episode 11: Our season ends
Our fantastic unbeaten run of ten games across all competitions, nine of which were victories, came to an end against Lyon and it’s put us back in the battle for a top-three spot. We’re third, one point behind Monaco and six ahead of Lyon. Thankfully a ten-point cushion over Montpellier means we’re almost guaranteed to […]
1.37 Boeren, Boeren PSV: Eredivisie Match 20 – PSV v Roda JC
Pre-Match It’s the first match after our transfer dealings and the odds remain in our favour, maybe even strengthened so, with odds of 1/6 as the home side today. Andres Guardado remains a few days away from a return to full training but Sebastian Haller is in line for his starting debut with McNair and […]
The Land Down Under XXIV
G’day! The celebrations are still ongoing in Gosford as I write this end-of-season update. You will recall from the previous update that we capped off the 2020 calendar year by winning the Club World Cup in our competition debut! I’ve since run through the remainder of the season, and I’m here to provide an update […]