The Higher Tempo Press
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Classic Championship Manager: Scotland on the Road to Euro 2004 Part VIII
In a time approximately 2 years ago when the Higher Tempo Press was basically just Chris and I retweeting each other for a laugh, I started a journey. Chris will tell you it was a spiritual one between two men and a love of a video game, but in reality it was the beginning of […]
Letou Decide: Apol. Limassol Friendly Review
Last night we played our first March friendly on our Cyprus tour as we visited Apol. Limassol. The formation chosen was a variation on the 5-3-2 we played once earlier in the season as an emergency measure during an injury crisis. I have to give Apol credit, if it had been me welcoming Premier League […]
5 Things To Check To Help You Win More FM18 Matches
No matter how we choose to play Football Manager 2018 only one thing counts at the end of the day, results. Fine margins can be the difference between success and failure, so how can you maximise your chances of winning before you even take to the field? Knowledge is power so try to learn everything you […]
Cherry Picking: AFC Bournemouth Episode Seven
I can’t quite believe it, but somehow Bournemouth have made it to Wembley. The glorious expanse of the national team’s stadium is soon to be graced with our players in the Carabao Cup final; the very same players tipped to narrowly avoid relegation at the start of the season. Composed passing football, defensive solidarity and […]
Letou Decide: England Squad News
Later today Swansea City play Apol. Limassol in a friendly match to keep our fitness levels up during this international break but I wanted to spend today having a look at the England squad for the two friendlies taking place over the next few days. It’s the one job we all think we can do, […]
Farewell to Pittodrie #1: An Introduction
FM18 has been an interesting one so far. There’s been bucket loads of enjoyment and effort with no real silverware or longevity. This is partly due to my obsessions/ projects of tracking players’ statistics or keeping a meticulous eye on finances, which are very time-consuming. However, for this game I’ll be primarily focusing on youth […]
Letou Decide: Mlog 21st March
Check your passport and pack your bags, no, I’ve not been sacked before you asked. That’s about as ridiculous as Mourinho being dismissed. We’re in 10th in the Premier League and I’ve just led the Swans to the FA Cup Semi-Final! No, it’s not that. Although I won’t lie, if I get offered a better […]
Tempo 10: On A Role
Mike and Samo are back, but they’re still in mourning for Mike’s laptop. Luckily Samo brings some good news in his much anticipated save update section. This week the daring pairing pick their all-time reliable player roles. This pod is dedicated to those who like to keep things simple. 4-4-2, big-man-little-man strike partnership and they […]
One Vision Part II: The Teams
Welcome back to my guilty pleasure save as I have turned back time (kinda) and will be having a crack at the 1995/96 season on FM18 thanks to a database compiled by Stoltze89Mafia and then further edited by myself. Today you can join me as I spend a fair bit of time musing over which […]
Canary Corner – Part 16
Welcome to season 6! Things are slowly turning for Norwich, after a few seasons of treading water we enjoyed a run to the Champions League semi-finals and an FA Cup win. Although there’ll be no Champions League football this term, we now have top class Youth Facilities and the board have agreed to expand the […]
Beating Nuno – Chapter Seven: Present Day
Here we are once more. This one is an interesting chapter. Of course, I’m going to say that, I’m writing it. Anyway, enough of the talking to myself. Sign of insanity that is, don’t you know? Yeah, I did actually. ENOUGH. Last time out, an impressive February meant that I finished winter five points ahead […]
Letou Decide: FA Cup Semi Final Draw
The FA Cup draw was made last night on @TheHigherTempo and it did not disappoint! First, let’s take a look at the four teams who have made it this far. Gerardo Martino’s Everton were the first to qualify, surprising nobody as they defeated Colchester United of League Two by five goals to one. The game […]
Scars And Stripes Episode 24: Preparing for a new challenge
You heard it last time folks, the end is nigh. I’ve named the date where the Atlanta save comes to an end, post World Cup 2022. In all honesty, I feel I’ve done pretty much all I can and I want a new, fresh and, frankly, unpredictable challenge. Anyway, it’s all going swimmingly in MLS […]
Parità dei sessi 3: We’re in the cup final!
We’re on a mission of gender equality. The women’s team at ASD Torres have won seven Italian championships, eight Coppa Italia titles and seven Supercoppa Italiana wins. The men have achieved nothing. That needs to change. Stay tuned for history in the making. Click here for the prologue and index of chapters. Felice anno nuovo! It’s […]
One Vision: Part I
If you believe Sky Sports, football spent the first 104 years just warming up for its proper launch – the conception of the Premier League. The 1990’s was a decade that changed the face of football forever – some bits were for the best, others not so much. But it was also the decade that […]
Earning Our Stripes Teil 4: Ein Blick auf die Mannschaft
Guten tag! Welcome back to Dirk van Oortveld’s quest to take MSV Duisburg into the Bundesliga and get into the upper echelons of European football teams! If you want to catch up on what’s happened previously, check out this link here. We’ve made it to the end of December in the week since we last […]
Letou Decide: Swansea City vs. Reading Match Review
Never in doubt, was it? Well, not until Jordan Ayew opened the scoring on eight minutes with what I thought was a near post tap-in after getting across the front of his defender but was actually an improvised stooping header according to the match report. Jordan Ayew is one of the real positives I’ve found […]
Inept International Manager: Ep. 9
Click here to find previous episodes of the Inept International Manager It’s the World Cup draw this week on the Inept International Manager and Louis Henrik’s Australia have been placed, unsurprisingly, in pot four alongside the likes of Algeria, Iran, Honduras and Saudi Arabia. Pot three is a strange place to be, Bosnia & Herzegovina […]
Beating Nuno: Chapter Six: Twelve Unbeaten & Counting
Good day to one and all and welcome back to the latest chapter of ‘Beating Nuno’, by now you should all know what’s going on and what this all about, however, if you are a new reader of this book (that’s right, a book), let me refer you to the prologue which will explain everything. […]
Chronicles of a Chancer: Part 7 New Season Ahoy
Bronze-Wig Making a Mountain out of a Mole Hill: Season 2 ‘If we were sat here back in July and I was to tell you, as manager of Braunschweig, you’d be sat top of the table, one point above Bayern Munich, with one game to play, what would you say?’ I stared at the smiling […]
Letou Decide: Swansea City vs. Reading Preview
You could have been very mean to me this week, but alas you were kind. Thank you. At the heart of the #LetouDecide project has been interaction and the journey of a season with Swansea City, so to have votes taking place each day this week was something of an unprecedented move but you the […]
The Deep Lying Podcast #127: GrassNRoots Management (LLM)
This week on the Deep Lying Podcast, James Jones of footballfancast.com quizzes Chris Darwen of thehighertempopress.com about what it makes to be a good FM18 Lower League Manager. Considering Chris’ recent exploits with AS Cannes, he might not be the right person to ask. The guys also give you nice long list of very cool […]
Scars And Stripes Episode 23: The End Is Nigh
Look at that title, daunting isn’t it? Indeed, the end is nigh but it’s not as negative as it sounds. Basically, I’ve made a decision on my future with Atlanta United and it’s going to come to a close – this is my last full season. I think I’ve done fairly well, haven’t I? Well, […]
Letou Decide: Mlog 16th March
It’s been a good week in the world of #LetouDecide with all the polls and Swans fans casting their votes. The team is set now but look over that tomorrow in the preview, today it’s the traditional pre-match press conference. Apparently, there are 13 journalists in the room so here’s hoping for some decent questions. […]
FM18: 5 Things to Do to Assess your Squad
It’s quite well known that squad building is one of my favourite aspects of our beloved game. How you do this is ultimately personal preference though, but one aspect is always consistent – assessing the current playing staff. How can you do this though? Well, it’s not too hard if you know what you’re doing. […]
Cherry Picking – AFC Bournemouth Episode Six
Welcome back to Cherry Picking, where I will be attempting to turn AFC Bournemouth into something slightly more than ‘that plucky south coast side’. If you’ve been following the series so far, then you’ll probably be sharing a mutual feeling with me: one of complete and utter astonishment. Not only have I pulled the side […]
Letou Decide: Forward March
This week we’ve been through the goalkeepers, the Swansea defence and the midfield. That leaves just the forward line. In all honesty, it’s the area of the team I’m least concerned with because we do have quality options. Each one of our strikers has at least 12 goals this season, whichever partnership wins the vote […]
Vive la Révolution Part XVII: Je suis un échec
“Oui, je suis un échec” I found myself saying to the microphone in my last press conference at AS Cannes. And it was true. I had failed, therefore I am a failure. When I rocked up on the French Riviera I was young, full of hope. I promised Ligue 1 football, that was a given. After a while, […]
Making Blackburn Great Again – Episode #4
When I first heard that we were due to hit by the ‘Beast from the East’ last week, I thought Pavel Pogrebnyak was coming to town. But it turned out that it was just a bit of snow. A full 6 inches at my door meant I was homebound on Wednesday, with minimal food in […]
Letou Decide: Deep In The Midfield
Welcome back to #LetouDecide and the choice for today as we prepare to meet Reading on Sunday is for the midfield combination. We’ll lay four across the middle of the park but the personnel is very much up to your call. As we have eight players to consider, this will be an image-centric edition of […]
Tempo 10 – Creative Forces
With the announcement of the Tempo10 receiving its own listing on iTunes, SoundCloud, Acast and almost everywhere else the boys are back excited to talk Number 10s. In what some may call a 10/10 Tempo10 with a top 10 listing in Denmark, the guys discuss the whos, whats and hows when it comes to setting […]
Canary Corner – Part 15
Welcome back. It’s the end of season 5 and we’ve still got a lot to play for. Our Champions League campaign has a chance of continuing after a win over Milan in group stage 2, the upcoming double header with Lille will be pivotal to our progress there. We’re in the FA Cup 5th round, […]
Beating Nuno – Chapter Five: Up For The Cup
Welcome back to one and all to another edition of ‘Beating Nuno’. With Wolves sitting pretty at the top of the table in the second-tier of English football, I felt it would be suitable to pit my wits against Nuno Espirito Santo to see whether he was doing a really, really good job or it […]
Letou Decide: A Case For The Defence
As discussed yesterday, this week the power is in your hands. This weekend we face Reading on Sunday in the FA Cup Quarter Final in the most significant game of our season. Win and we head to Wembley for an FA Cup Semi Final, lose and we just have tenth spot in the Premier League […]
Scars And Stripes Episode 22: Where Are They Now?
Welcome back to the United States, where I’m a couple of months into my fifth season with Atlanta United. Unfortunately, I bring bad news in the form of the North American Champions League. After winning back-to-back titles, we were knocked out by Queretaro in the quarter-finals this time around. Anyway, that’s not why I’m here. […]
Parità dei sessi 2: The marvellous injury and the two-stroke lightning
We’re on a mission of gender equality. The women’s team at ASD Torres have won seven Italian championships, eight Coppa Italia titles and seven Supercoppa Italiana wins. The men have achieved nothing. That needs to change. This is the first season and we’re playing in the 5th tier, the Eccellenza Sardegna. Click here for the […]
Earning Our Stripes Teil 3: Lass uns ein bisschen Fußball spielen!
Guten tag! Welcome back to Dirk van Oortveld’s quest to take MSV Duisburg into the Bundesliga and get into the upper echelons of European football teams! If you want to catch up on what’s happened previously, check out this link here. Before I get into the meat of this post, I need to disclaim that […]
Letou Decide: Swansea City vs. Brighton and Hove Albion Match Review
Thank you to those who joined us on @TheHigherTempo for live coverage of our game on Saturday against Chris Hughton’s Brighton & Hove Albion. You were treated to news of six goals and another huge win for the Swans. One thing I would like to ask, exactly when did Brighton become the Barcelona of the […]
Inept International Manager: Ep. 8
Click here to find previous episodes of the Inept International Manager I know what you’re thinking, is it really that time of the week again? Time for us to check back in with the most hapless international manager in world football. When we last left Louis Henrik, his celebrations for qualifying for the World Cup […]
The FM Pundits
There was quite a fun chat going on in #fmslack last night over in the #fmadventure channel. In fact, it was about the only decent thing to have happened in that channel for months so it must have been mere coincidence. Following Matt having, shall we say, a tricky spell in FM management it was […]
Beating Nuno – Chapter Four: In The Bleak Midwinter
Just as the chapter before it, this one begins with a Midlands derby. It was one of the games last month where I lost ground on Nuno, this time, however, things would be different. Before we come onto that, let me tell you how all of this works. Nuno’s Wolves are one of the best […]
Chronicles of a Chancer: Part 6
Bronze-Wig Making a Mountain out of a Mole Hill: Part 3 Our third and final instalment of my first season at Braunschweig. Things have been ticking over nicely and currently we are sat 11th in the league, with safety all but secured and 15 league games and the Quarter-final of the German Cup to go. […]
Letou Decide: Swansea City vs. Brighton and Hove Albion Preview
I don’t want to start today’s piece by complaining but last night’s Friday football was West Ham United at Turf Moor to play Burnley and the Lancashire side won a thrilling game 3 – 2. How could Burnley perform so well and score three goals, I don’t think they had three shots when they played […]
Vive la Révolution Part XVI: N’est-il pas ironique ?
Sod starting today’s post with a make-believe conversation. I’m leaving it to Alanis. Er, we decided to not go pro. I felt we could do better than last season and get right back in the Ligue 2 promotion mix. After three games I filed the request to turn pro next season as I felt we’d be […]
Stars And Stripes Episode 21: The World Stage Once Again
Not that I want to rub it in or anything, especially to Charlie Tango who admits he struggles in the MLS, but I’m in the Club World Cup yet again. Y’know, the competition for the best teams in the world? Yeah, that one. So then, who’s with me this year? Well, Auckland City lost to […]
Letou Decide: Mlog 9th February
Roll up, roll up, it’s press conference time. I love a press conference really, the opportunity to pit your wits as a Football Manager against the best the press core have to offer. There’s just a very quick diversion to say that all those youth players have signed deals with the club including Tom Wallis’ […]
Tactics Tested: Man Utd
Ultra Defensive Manchester United get a lot of stick, particularly under Mourinho, for being a naturally defensive side. Indeed, United have conceded the fewest goals in the league this season, but at the expense of scoring goals themselves, with the second-fewest out of the current top-6. This is what puzzles many fans, seeing that they […]
The Deep Lying Podcast #EP126 | Arsenal and Arsene Wenger: How to manage your way out of an FM slump
Chris Darwen (@tenpotatoesfm) and James Jones (@byjamesjones) return for their first “proper” podcast. Everyone has a managerial slump, especially on FM so the chat is around what you can do to get yourself out of it and turn things around. How have Chris and James managed these tricky moments themselves? What did the community come […]
Cherry Picking: AFC Bournemouth Episode Five
Welcome back to the south coast, the home of AFC Bournemouth – perhaps one of the Premier League’s greatest success stories. The Cherries have risen dramatically through the English Football League pyramid under Eddie Howe, with successive seasons in the Premier League ending in relative comfort and escape from relegation. But this season, things are […]
Letou Decide: Medical Update
Time for a medical update and the news is gradually getting better, which is a blessed relief. At this point I’m fairly sure I’ll have to put some of this squad down. Luciano Narsingh will return from his twisted ankle in 1-4 days but I doubt will be match fit to take on Brighton & […]