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Brexit Premier League: Part 1
Brexit We all know the story. Politics happened in 2016, and as a result everyone is banging on about Brexit. But while the country gets drawn into debate and speculation about the future of the European Union, our football world can be an escape from the hubbub, free from political influence. Except it might not […]
Appointing physios: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 47
One thing I can’t complain about at FC Saxan is clerical efficiency. The paperwork entailed in hiring and firing seems to get done remarkably swiftly. I suppose having a businessman as Chairman helps: Eugeniu Merciu seems to have imported into the club the businesslike approach he acquired whilst building his agricultural machinery company. If you […]
FM17 European Gigalo Challenge Episode 6: Redemption, history & celebration
Taking charge of a team so late in the season doesn’t make things easy for me at all and, to be honest, I would have probably preferred it if we just had an outside chance of making the play-offs. Instead, we’re tied with Brighton for the automatic promotion spot. My side is fairly good for […]
The Legend of Roger Milla Part XXX: Have I got the Roman numerals right?
I mean, that’s quite important. Initially I was double checking on Google but more recently I have got damn lazy with it. I think this is supposed to be episode 20. I think. Has a count. 30? Holy crap. That’s like a proper series. We’ve done alright over the last 30 pieces, and I am […]
The Young Lions: Tactical Analysis
We’ve actually had a solid defensive performance! We’ve had a few, but we’ve had one I am proud of. I’ve also pinpointed a goal which encapsulates a counter-attacking style we’ve been forced into trying. Defensive Performance Firstly, I have two images to talk through. Here is 0-0 after 41 minutes. Southampton, as expected, have been […]
1.24 Boeren, Boeren PSV: Eredivisie Match 12 – Ajax v PSV
Pre-Match The bookmakers are taking form very seriously today and PSV have been touted as favourites with odds of 6/4. Ajax are without Daley Sinkgraven and Jairo Riedewald today through injury. Jeroen Zoet and Andres Guardado continue to miss out through their own injuries today. The goalscoring ability of Kasper Dolberg cannot be ignored, he’ll […]
What about personality? Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 46
When I’m assessing a player, how much attention should I give to personality? And how should I think about it? My answer to the first question is, ‘A lot’. This view stems from my argument, given in my previous post, about attributes: that they do no more than indicate the limits of a player’s capabilities […]
To Dare Is To Do Episode 37
FM17 Tottenham Hotspur FC To Dare Is To Do | #37 Turkish Turmoil | Let’s Play Football Manager 2017 Welcome to a Football Manager series on my channel that’s right its Tottenham Hotspur. Today we take on Fenerbahce in the Champions League Group Stage after our good start to the group can we carry that […]
Under The Lens Part 4: Still a Few Creases to Iron Out
So we’re back in action in the Dominos Ligue 2 as we welcome 1st placed Havre Athletic Club to Stade Felix-Bolleart-Deleis. Going into the game Havre were understandable favourites going into the game and with them controlling the centre of the pitch in their last game I’ll be moving to a 3-4-1-2 to get more […]
1.23 Boeren, Boeren PSV: KNVB Beker Second Round – IJsselmeervogels v PSV
Pre-Match As expected PSV are the overwhelming favourites for this tie at odds of 1/20. There’s no significant team news given for the home side. PSV are without Jeroen Zoet and Andres Guardado for this one. The match plan will be to impose ourselves on this lower league side. We expect to win and win […]
What of attributes? Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 45
What, then, of attributes? How may they be used to assess a player? I think attributes can best be thought of as a record, in numerical form, of a player’s current capability. They’re particularly useful for comparative purposes. A player with a pace attribute of 10 is currently capable of running faster than one with […]
Where Eagles Dare Part 3: August ’16
Our opening fixtures are not easy. We will be facing FC Groningen, AZ, FC Utrecht, and Vitesse. These are sides who normally compete for European qualification and are much better than we are at this moment. I have little hope to get much from these matches. ADO Den Haag might give us a better chance […]
England international Tom Heaton issues advice on selecting captains
Selecting a new captain on Football Manager is perhaps one of the most daunting tasks you can face ahead of a new season, as the wrong choice can immediately shatter the squad morale and lead to some big issues. The standard practice is to normally keep the players that are already established at the club but […]
FM17 European Gigalo Challenge Episode 5: Leed-ing the way out of Schalke
Christ, this game. I thought I was gone. I could feel my P45 in my hand. I wondered where I’d go next. Then, Stambouli and Di Santo gave me a lifeline. It’s by no means over, I could be still unemployed, but I have a chance. The great escape is possible. Before a huge clash […]
1.22 Boeren, Boeren PSV: Eredivisie Match 11 – PSV v Groningen
Pre-Match In a 1st v 9th clash the bookmakers are calling PSV the overwhelming favourites. Odds are as short as 1/6 for the home side. The only casualty for PSV remains Jeroen Zoet who is expected to remain sidelined for a further 2 to 3 weeks. Meanwhile, Groningen have a full roster fit and available […]
Down by the Riverside – Part Two
Last time out I asked the question – how did this Middlesbrough side get relegated? By the time I’d reached November on CM2 (96/97) I had a pretty good idea. After 11 games, we were at least outside of the bottom three. Fast forward to Christmas and things were positively amazing – 13th, another 10 […]
Assessment of talent: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 44
In my role as manager of FC Saxan, I’m attempting to develop a systems engineering approach to football management. One of the systems involved in managing the club, is talent acquisition (TA). There are two ways to acquire new talent: through recruitment and through developing the talents of existing players. Recruitment entails a set of […]
The Land Down Under XVIII
G’day, mate! We’re back to check in on the Mighty Mariners! I left you all on a cliffhanger at the end of the last post. I usually completely finish a preseason before the preseason post comes in, but I stopped at the end of the first leg against Shanghai. We’re going to cover that result, […]
The Legend of Roger Milla Part XVIV: We need a fancy, clever announcement video
It’s a bit different out here in Africa. Frankly, Tonnerre KC don’t have the social media budget in place to do some kind of super cool, anthemic video announcing the fact that WE’VE ONLY BLOODY WELL WON THE LEAGUE! That’s right, season five and another big aim crossed off the list. I’d love to tell […]
Under The Lens Part 3: Mixed Fortunes
So, when I left you last time we had won every game we played so far, four wins in Ligue 2 and a win in the Coupe de la Ligue 1st round. That 1st round win sees us play against Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace next who we beat 2-0 on the opening day of […]
1.21 Boeren, Boeren PSV: Champions League Match 3 – Leicester v PSV
Pre-Match The bookmakers have taken note of our last result in Europe and Leicester are the favourites with odds of 4/5. Nampalys Mendy misses out through injury while Marc Albrighton is a doubt with a twisted ankle. Leonardo Ulloa and Daniel Amartey are also unavailable due to manager Juande Ramos’ decision not to register them […]
Rivalità Tra Fratelli, Episode 18 (Inter Milan Revisited)
This is the story of two brothers, a modern-day Cain versus Abel if you will, based in the northern powerhouse Italian city of Milan. 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 […]
Club recruitment system: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 43
In my role as manager of FC Saxan, I am attempting to develop a systems engineering approach to football management. In my previous post I identified five pertinent systems involved in managing the club, of which the first was talent acquisition. There are two ways to acquire new talent: through recruitment and through developing the […]
The Higher Tempo Press Goal of the Month: #2
Hey folks, we are back with another Goal of the Month competition. Today you can find out who won the first competition and that winner gets to claim their prize direct from the official Football Manager merchandise store! Then we have EIGHT of the best goals sent to us in the last few weeks for you […]
The Legend of Roger Milla Part XVIII: It’s been a while, how have you been?
Well hello. It’s been a while, hasn’t it? Don’t panic, the save hasn’t died, crashed or been forgotten about. I’ve been having a mini-break from playing it and writing about it, to try and keep myself fresh. And I think it worked, as when I fired Tonnerre KC back up last night it was like […]
The Land Down Under XVII
I’m starting to become convinced that the FFA Cup is cursed and that I am never going to be able to win it. I’m going to open up the blog by saying it and getting it out of the way… We lost to amateurs. There, I said it! We lost to a bunch of f*****g […]
To Dare Is To Do: Episode 36
FM17 Tottenham Hotspur FC To Dare Is To Do | #36 Black Cats| 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 Sunderland in the Premier League and after a good start for the Black Cats will they offer us a […]
Systems engineering and football: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 42
So what does a systems engineering approach to football management – especially the management of FC Saxan in the Moldovan top tier (Divizia Nationala) – look like? I don’t yet know – when, prior to being appointed, I floated the idea over dinner with the chairman, Eugeniu Merciu, I was talking off the top of […]
FM17 European Gigalo Challenge Episode 4: Schalke squirm & stumble
We’ve reached the winter break in the Bundesliga and I’ve managed to keep my job. Four wins in a row across all competitions saw us secure top-spot in our Europa League group and rise to just four points off the Champions League spots. About six weeks ago we were a point off the relegation zone, […]
Young Lions: A Tale of Success and Woe
With our struggles in defending, I realised it is probably best we avoid… defending. We aren’t very good at it, so why bother? The opposite of the growth mindset I so readily promote every day. We can’t not defend though. It isn’t possible to ignore this part of the beautiful game, but what if we […]
To Dare Is To Do Episode 35
FM17 Tottenham Hotspur FC To Dare Is To Do | #35 Revenge Mission | 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 a look at one last major signing for this summer, we also take a look at the Champions League […]
Next step towards engineering a football club: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 41
Eugeniu Merciu, FC Saxan’s chairman, offered me the managerial job on the understanding that I would approach the task of club management as if it were an engineering project. Specifically, I’ve undertaken to: Design and implement a series of protocols to govern the way we perform operations (such as acquiring players), ensuring quality control Develop […]
Potential to Legends: An FM Experiment
Football Manager has one of the most comprehensive player databases of any footballing organisation, including most clubs. They have hundreds of scouts, which means that every player on there has exceptionally accurate attributes and statistics. This means that when they scout a young player, they know better than almost anyone how that young player is […]
Southampton’s Black Box Part 7
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 […]
Under The Lens Part 2: Season Opener
So here we are, it’s the opening day of the Dominos Ligue 2 season and we face newly promoted Racing Club de Strasbourg Alsace. Going into the game we were 6-4 favourites and having not lost a game during pre-season I fancied our chances. Well, what a start that was! Not even two minutes into […]
Where Eagles Dare Part 2: Tactics, transfers, and pre-season
Now I analysed the club thoroughly I have a clear objective of where to go next. First off, I need to come up with a tactic that will allow us to remain in the Eredivisie. Next, I need to find players that fit the tactic and last of all, I need to survive pre-season with […]
The key to scouting for staff: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 40
In my previous post I introduced the notion of an Lp number. This is the maximum number of criteria that it is practical to use when scouting for a player. For example, I reckon the Lp number (‘L’ standing for league and ‘p’ standing for player) for Moldova’s top flight is 3: that is, when scouting […]
FM17 European Gigalo Challenge Episode 3: Schalke’s rollercoaster
October has not been good for us so far, we’ve won just once, and it’s extended a poor record that emerged towards the end of September. Our form at the start shows me this formation works though, as does my experience previously, so I’ve cracked my knuckles and intend on flushing out the issues. First […]
Classic Championship Manager: Down by the Riverside Part 1
Just how did this team get relegated? Well, two reasons. A quick look at the table shows us that whilst Boro outscored most of the division, they conceded more than anybody else. 60 times they were breached, that’s 1.5 times per game. So whilst Ravanelli, Junino and friends ran riot at one end, Steve Vickers […]
The key to scouting: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 39
Time to bring some players in to replace the folk-of-little-determination that I shifted off FC Saxan’s register. I need, at least, three full-backs, one defensive mid, and a 3rd choice goalie. Potentially, several hours of frustrating scouting lie ahead. But I figure I can minimise the time required by calculating the Moldovan top flight’s Lp […]
The Land Down Under XVI
We’re coming into the final minutes of the Grand Final against Perth Glory. Last season we failed to win it and defend our title, and we were up 1-0 and ready to pop the champagne bottles. Harry Ascroft and Sean Pratt were on each side of Andy Keogh closing him down as he made a […]
Under The Lens Part 1: A New Beginning
So, I’m back again with a new FM17 save, and hopefully this one goes better than the last. Rather than start in the non-league of England, this time I’ve decided to move across the Channel and begin proceedings in France’s Ligue 2 with Racing Club de Lens. Lens have been a side that of late […]
Rivalità Tra Fratelli, Episode 17
This is the story of two brothers, a modern-day Cain versus Abel if you will, based in the northern powerhouse Italian city of Milan. 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 […]
Hallelujah! Hallelujah, hallelujah, hallelujah! Hall-e-lu-jah! Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 38
As I explained in a previous post (‘Determination as leverage‘, 21 July 2017), the FC Saxan squad is besmirched by the presence of a number of players with low determination. Time to act. But how liquid will the Moldovan transfer market prove? Praise be! The answer is, pretty liquid. Of the seven players with a […]
Final Day Of The Season As Leiria Look To Steal The Title Away
The entire Portuguese second league season boils down to one final set of fixtures to decide who will become champions. Two teams are locked together at the top of the table, last seasons runners up Benfica B and long time leaders Leiria. Leiria has been taking the division by storm but one point from their […]
Tempo Tactics Episode 2: Recreating Zinedine Zidane’s Real Madrid
A couple of weeks ago Stuart Davidson wrote a fine, fine piece on recreating Zinedine Zidane’s tactics that have led Real Madrid to back-to-back UEFA Champions League titles, something that has never been done before. Zidane probably hasn’t been given the credit he deserves for this achievement, and he cannot have achieved it without some […]
The Land Down Under XV
G’day, mate! The regular season has come to an end and we’re getting ready for that Australian winter and our downtime for the year, so let’s get to work covering our regular season exploits. First off, I said in the previous post that I’d provide an update on the Australia situation. I was the favourite […]
Kit Download: 1860 Munich
It’s been a rough month or so for TSV 1860 Munich. Relegation to 3.Liga via the relegation play-offs at the end of the last season was the moment where their owner, Jordanian Hasan Abdullah Ismaik, decided enough was enough and refused to foot the €5m bill for the club to continue. With no license to remain […]
1.20 Boeren, Boeren PSV: Luuk de Jong
Profile Luuk de Jong signed for PSV in 2014/15 for £4.4m from Gladbach. The 26-year-old front man has 7 goals in 16 appearances for the Dutch national team and joint with Davy Propper leads the scoring for PSV this year with 6 goals. De Jong’s technical strengths are in the obvious areas of Finishing and […]
On acquiring defensive midfielders: Anglo-Saxan Chronicle 37
I wish to develop a protocol to regulate the way we acquire defensive midfielders. If I were managing at a higher level, that might prove a complex task. The roles in which a defensive midfielder can play are quite diverse. A ball-winner differs markedly from a half-back, who in turn is very different from a […]