The Higher Tempo Press
Latest Posts
#FM17 | The Islanders VII
Hello from the Island of Okinawa. I have news my friends, I have news. The regular season is complete and I am sure you are al just dying to know how FC Ryukyu have fared in their second season under my control. No? Surely someone must be reading this wanting to know…. Despite having an […]
#FM17 | The Tempo Skin Update!
Hello folks – quite a few of you have downloaded the original Tempo skin for FM17. Well, the awesome @keysirensie has been hard at work collaborating with Emil Debski to fix the inbox screen to make it look even better. And this is what he has been able to do. And this is what it […]
#FM17 | Guides | A 101 on the Belgian Football League Structure
Everybody who has already managed a Belgian team on FM will have noticed that the football league structure is not a conventional one. I remember lots of questions on several boards about the structure whenever someone took over a Belgian club. With this piece, I try to give an overview about how the structure is […]
#FM17 plays Real Life | Who will Liverpool sign and sell in January?
Liverpool entered the January transfer window in second place, six points behind league leaders Chelsea. Jurgen Klopp spent big in the summer transfer period, but the Reds remained in profit after offloading the likes of Christian Benteke and Jordon Ibe for significant transfer fees. Liverpool have picked up the likes of Daniel Sturridge, Philippe Coutinho […]
#FM17 | Taste The Feeling Episode 15 | Part 1 20/21 Season
Before we get into the season, I noticed a flaw in the 5 year plan that I put forward in the last episode. This is the 5 year plan I suggested: Make Championship Group with Antwerp/Reach mid-table with Silkeborg – 19/20 – ACHIEVED Win the league with Antwerp/Make Europe with Silkeborg/Add a Portuguese team 20/21 […]
#FM17 : The Hapoel Hope 1.34 : Strikers
Rozental (my assistant manager here at Hapoel Ashkelon FC) and Kapeta (Chief Scout) are back in my office, seated once again at the round table that we use when we’re conferring. This time we’re joined by our Head of Youth Development, Avi Nimni. I respect Nimni, want to keep him involved. We’ve got one player […]
#FM17 | UPON THIS ROCK | The 3 T’s (Transfers, Tactics and The start of the season)
Hello everyone and welcome to the first episode of Upon this Rock. I am delighted to get this opportunity to write my adventures on FM17 on The HigherTempoPress and hopefully you guys enjoy what I am writing. I have decided to take the mighty Peterborough United from the lows of League One all the way […]
#FM17 | Crystal Palace | Consistently Inconsistent
Last episode was a bit of a mixed bag as we went out to Sunderland in the League Cup and got thrashed by Manchester United. However on the plus side we did beat Everton at home, despite having a man sent off. We’ve also got some injuries to contend with as well with both Wickham […]
#FM17 | The Porto Promise 2.0 | The First Prospects Report
On Football Manager 16 my blogging about the game was limited to my Ajax save where I was trying to achieve something similar to what I’m trying here with Porto. One of the more popular parts of the blog series was my regular prospect reports where I would highlight some of the most promising young […]
#FM17 : The Hapoel Hope 1.33 : Top Legend
Whenever a new edition of FM is published, the first thing I do is load up the Scottish 4th tier (Ladbrokes League 2). Why? Because Berwick Rangers play in that league. Why do I care about Berwick? Because our household legend plays for them and I want to check his attributes. So, ladies and […]
#FM17 : The Islanders VI
The tricky second season. Sometimes known as a syndrome. Someone should write a book on that. Considering I have self-butchered my squad following a semi-successful first season, how will I fare? I have no idea, and I doubt the bookies do either. Well, they have us at 66/1 to win it so our odds are […]
CM9798 “tackles” #FM17 : Part 5 : Whatever I said, whatever I did
Part 5! Welcome along to a series where I’m trying to learn a game I should be a lot better at than I am. So far, I’d give myself a C+. A strong pre-season and still unbeaten in the league…2 games in. Still, that 3-1 beating of Reading has got me feeling confident. Maybe I’ve […]
#FM17 : The Porto Promise Returns : 1.2 The End of Season Round Up
Well, it’s been a while, hasn’t it? Time is limited and I had moved on to play a couple of different saves within the game before being drawn back to the Porto save. That in turn means that I’m back to updating the save on The Higher Tempo Press. There are unconfirmed reports that […]
#FM17 | Celtic | A Squad Building Exercise | Part IV
A huge part of how successful this turns out will be down to the scouting team and how I utilise them. This is due to my reluctance to use the basic player search function, except for bosman deals and to see who is transfer listed. I play to expand the scouting department in phases. […]
Blades Of Glory #8 | Box It Man! | Let’s Play #FM17
Here’s another episode of “Blades of Glory” – remember the days when English teams used to “get it in the box?”
#FM17 : The Islanders V
It’s a bit of a two-parter this one folks. As I said in the previous post, I wasn’t too disappointed that we crashed and burned on the final day of the season. Considering that I was playing with practically a youth team we did well to even be in the hunt, and I am […]
#FM17 : One Hit Wonder in Athens : Tactics
Hello everybody and welcome to my guest piece on The Higher Tempo Press. Maybe some of you know me and my blog so you know my main save in FM17 is the save with Reading FC. During recent three weeks I played this save less and I decided to try something new. UPDATED 3/1/17 […]
#FM17 : Colo-Colo Club Guide
Full Name: Club Social y Deportes Colo-Colo Known as: Colo-Colo Nickname: El Cacique Colo-Colo are a Chilean football club based in Macul, Santiago. The club were formed in 1925 and have yet to be relegated from the Chilean top tier, a quite incredible feat for a club with that large a history. The club […]
#FM17 : The Hapoel Hope 1.32 : Exile in Kazakhstan
As I wrote previously, I have started to loathe our strikers at Hapoel Ashkelon FC. Their profligacy. Even worse, their lack of movement, which reignites the anger that I developed watching Izale McLeod play for Notts County. Izzie, we have showers in the changing room: it’s OK to break sweat, really. I get even […]
#FM17 : Forward Asia S2-2 : The First Half
The Halfway Point When we last left our heroes from Celebest FC, they were ready to begin their first season in the top tier of Indonesian football, trepidatious after an indifferent pre-season and firm favourites to finish 18th out of 18. So, halfway through the season, how are they doing? Indonesian Cup A reasonably […]
#FM17 : Celtic | A Squad Building Exercise | Part III
Philosophy As you will know from a previous post, we will be lining up with a 4-2-3-1 similar to the way you see Celtic at the moment. Focus will be on build from the back, win the ball back quickly and dominate possession. Very Fluid: This is important for me as it better describes the […]
#FM17 : Burnley: Bouncing Back : Season Two II
“I don’t measure a man success by how high he climbs, but by how high he bounces when he his bottom.” Last season we mastered the art of bouncing back and surviving. Now we need to master the art of not needing to recover from a bad start. September begins with Chelsea’s visit, a […]
#FM17 : The Islanders IV
Greetings, or as they say in Japan, 挨拶 (Aisatsu). I’ve achieved what I wanted to achieve in and around Christmas and that was to power through FC Ryukyu’s first season under my stewardship. As I said a couple of posts ago, it probably feels a little dry and lifeless at this early stage but […]
#FM17 : Pay Homage To A Costa Rican Genius (Who Incidentally Won Two Virtual World Cups)
The word genius is brandished a lot in football and football manager alike. If you were to believe the media and various pundits, “geniuses” are now a dime-a-dozen, along with “legends” and “great” players. For me, the very essence of a genius lies in his ability to provide a creative spark, an ungraspable, incomprehensible […]
#FM17 : The Hapoel Hope 1.31 : Our Jack’s guide to set pieces
One of my plans for FM17 is to develop a save based on set pieces. I will source players who are good at taking corners, free-kicks, penalties, and long throws. Plus players who can exploit those situations – for example, centre-backs who are big, strong, brave, and good at heading and can finish. Lots […]
#FM17 : The Islanders III : How to Balance the Books
People who have followed me for a while now will know that I typically like to balance the books when running a club. I have my own personal way of doing it, which I shared on FM16 where I like to keep a club’s wage expenditure smaller than its income from gate receipts. I […]
#FM17 : Crystal Palace : Back to Reality
Last episode was a very good one as a tactical switch from 4-2-4 to 4-3-3 propelled us up the table as we recorded 3 straight victories which was tremendously exciting. Before we go back to the Premier League we have the EFL Cup to worry about against Sunderland. Conor Wickham will be starting up front […]
#FM17 : The Hapoel Hope 1.30 : Charisma?
My first league match in charge of Hapoel Ashkelon FC, at home to Hapoel Haifa, ended two-all. I decided my line in public would be that it was good to get the first point on the board. Privately my main thought was, thank goodness we’ve actually put the ball in the net, after four […]
#FM17 #SwanseaProject 1.0 : Intro
Well, here goes. My Heerenveen save has become stale so I’m moving on. I’ve found that my time to be able to play the game has been limited, I’ve recently moved house and anyone that owns a house knows that there is always something that needs doing. The festive break has given me time to […]
#FM17 : The Islanders II
Welcome back to the second part in my new series, The Islanders. You can catch part one, the introductory piece, here. So as I rocked up on the island of Okinara I found what I expected. A bit of sunshine, a nice big stadium and no players or staff. Fortunately I had a couple […]
#FM17 : The Hapoel Hope 1.29 : Two Bobby Moores, only two Bobby Moores
We’ve got a 33 year-old player called Buzaglo. Whenever I pick the team, even for a friendly, I can never find a reason to bring him in. Physically, he’s in decline: ‘From bad to worse’ is how Weiss, the fitness coach, puts it. Miraculously, I find a way of getting him out: in desperation […]
CM9798 “tackles” #FM17 : Part 4 : Please can I stay?
I did not expect to get as far as a part 4. Welcome back! Last time out we had a surprisingly successful start to our tour of Holland. Yes, they are pre-season friendlies, but I’ll take any victory going. My to-do list is mounting though, with some positions to be bolstered and my assistant […]
#FM17 Celtic | A Squad Building Exercise | Part II
First glance of the squad was just as I expected. A bloated squad, more quantity than quality really in the first team. The u20s look like there’s a few gems to be polished. I plan on bleeding a few in at the end of the season. Goalkeepers We could improve here, however Craig Gordon […]
#FM17 : The Islanders
サッカーファンの皆様 Sakkāfan no minasama! If you are reading this then I presume you have forgiven me for bringing “The Boys of Bilbao” to an end. And what better way to replace it by starting a journey with a club you will have never, ever heard of before? If I were a different kind of […]
#FM17 : The Boys of Bilbao : El Fin
Kids, there’s always some bad news at Christmas. I mean, you watch the soaps I presume? Tell me, is Danny Dyer still in EastEnders? Anyway, before I completely go off on a tangent – bad news. I’ve decided to put the BoB save to rest. I know this will disappoint at least two people, […]
#FM17 : Forward Asia S2-1 : Oh To Be 14th
Indonesia is a hot mess. I knew this, subconsciously, in the first season, but didn’t bother to let the obvious oncoming problems get to me because I was having fun and things were going well. Now we’re preparing for a season in the Super League, and the great unfolding morass of mess is becoming […]
#FM17 : The Hapoel Hope 1.28 : Data analyst
I’ve been holding off bringing a data analyst into Hapoel Ashkelon FC until the start of the league season. I didn’t want to put a strain on the cash flow until necessary. I’m keen to develop a reputation for being good with money: I’ve found boards will be forgiving if you can do that. I […]
#FM17 : Taste The Feeling Episode 14 : Another New Club
According to our last 5 year plan, it’s time to add another club. We’re going for a club in Portugal, due to the lax home-grown rules, quality of the league and the generous (albeit hard to topple the “big” clubs) amount of European spots. So which club do we go for? Our job is made […]
#FM17 : Crystal Palace : Shout to the Top?
Last time out we lost both our opening games to Stoke and West Brom which was disheartening but at least we beat Northampton in the ‘all important’ EFL Cup. 4-2-4 just has not been working for us and our back line has been far too exposed so 4-3-3 is the order of the day. No […]
#FM17 : The Hapoel Hope 1.27 : Conceding
Hapoel Ashkelon didn’t have an easy draw for the group stage of the Premier League Toto Cup. The four other teams included Maccabi Tel-Aviv, predicted to finish top of the league, and Hapoel Be’er –Sheva, predicted to finish second. In the event, we drew 0-0 with FC Ashdod, lost 0-2 to Maccabi, drew 0-0 […]
#FM17 : Blades Of Glory # 7 | Up For The Cup | Let’s Play Football Manager 2017
The Blades are in FA Cup action in #7 of “Blades of Glory”
#FM17 : Hapoel Hope 1.26: Israel is Different
Israel, I find, is a foreign country. They do things differently here. Like starting the season with four cup games against other Premier League teams, in the group stage of something called the Premier League Toto Cup. Which I quite like, since it gives us, as a newly promoted team, the chance to measure […]
CLASSIC CHAMPIONSHIP MANAGER : Save Our Dons : EP1 : Pre-Season 01/02
In 2004, Wimbledon FC became Milton Keynes Dons after relocation in 2003. This relocation was announced by the Don’s board in August 2001. I must travel back in an alternate reality and stop this from happening. A lot had changed for Wimbledon by the time the 2001/2002 First Division season was to start. This would […]
#FM17 Celtic | A Squad Building Exercise | Part I
I have decided to document the process I go through building a squad, this will double as my annual Celtic save. It will be heavily focused on player and staff recruitment, stemming into how they fit into the philosophy I am trying to implement. I will try to touch on everything from scouting, loans, transfer […]
Blades Of Glory # 6 | Raining Goals | Let’s Play #FM17
Make sure you check out Episode 6 of Blades of Glory – it’s possibly the best so far!
#FM17: Hapoel Hope 1.25: Staying up?
So last game, we played with the sweeper system with two up top; at half time I replaced one of the strikers with an attacking midfielder; then late in the game we went strikerless, replacing the remaining striker with another attacking midfielder. This time, in our final friendly, at home to Antalyaspor of the […]
#FM17 : Taste The Feeling Episode 13 : The 19/20 Season
Transfers I covered a majority of this seasons transfers in EP12 but there was one more transfer that happened before pre-season that didn’t make it into last weeks’ episode: Frantisek Machala: We landed him for the bargain price of 350k (potentially rising to 450k). Looks like he should hopefully be a star in a few […]
CM9798 tackles #FM17 : Part 3 – You got good advice…
After the humiliation of thrashing our Under 23s 1-0, me and the lads are jetting off to Holland for a pre-season tour. I might have said it was France in a previous update, forgive me, not only am I tactically inept I also don’t know where I am. Speaking of the Dutch, Vernon Anita […]
#FMM17 : Christmas Competition! Giveaways!
Good morning folks – a little Christmas cheer for you FMM17 fans. We have 2 copies of FMM17 to giveaway with all premium downloadable content included. To enter, simply follow and RT the tweet below! Early Xmas presents from Tempo – I have 2 FMM17 keys to give away with ALL premium downloadable content. […]
#FM17 : The Boys of Bilbao 7.1 : Rejects and Regens
Well hello there. I didn’t expect to be writing anything “Boys of Bilbao” this side of Christmas but I have reached an opportune moment to update you all. Fingers crossed my other FM project will be happening in the New Year and with 90% of the prep work done I was able to reload […]