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CLASSIC CHAMPIONSHIP MANAGER : INTERVIEWS
Champ Man & Me: Ally Bain In the build up to next week’s release of “The World According to CM9798” I will be posting some interviews undertaken by the book’s author, David Black. In the first one I am posting, David interviews our resident coach Ally Bain. These interviews first appeared on www.cm9798.co.uk – don’t forget, […]
Classic Championship Manager : New Book Coming Soon!
That’s right folks, our resident Champ Man writer David Black is getting himself into the book writing game. Next week will be launching “The Word According to Championship Manager 97/98”
Classic Championship Manager : And now for something completely different….
It’s 1997 and the English FA have found themselves penniless. Sky TV didn’t quite take off and it’s left the country’s football in tatters. Rich American benefactors have arrived to save the day – but there’s a catch. Every team’s ‘roster’ will be reset – every player is up for grabs. Each team is given […]
#FM16 : WHO THE FK ARE OBILIĆ? FINAL DAY FUN!
Welcome back folks, season two has come to an end. Back on FM15 I had some lovely final day glory, I recall the first three promotions with Clapton were sealed with results going our way on the last round of the season. I am sure at least one Jena promotion was clutched from the jaws […]
#FM16 : WHO THE FK ARE OBILIĆ? StS © v2.0 IN ACTION!
Welcome back guys. I did say in the last post I wasn’t sure when I would be writing again and here I am less than 6 hours later scribbling stuff down. I will be doing some recruiting in this post (hopefully, if the buggers decide to join me) and I want to walk you through […]
#FM16 : WHO THE FK ARE OBILIĆ?
I’m back folks and it is the end of the first season in Serbia. Why Serbia? Refresh your memory here and join me, hand-in-hand, as we walk through the daisy-filled fields of season one.
#FM16 : WHO THE FK ARE OBILIĆ?
I have lots of ideas over the course of a day. Some are stunningly awesome. Some not so much. Some are downright ludicrous. Deciding to take over FK Obilić in the 7th tier of Serbian football is certainly one of them.
#FM16 : WHO THE FK ARE OBILIĆ?
It has been settled. In a move that has rendered my previous post completely pointless, I have settled on my club for the launch of FM16 in the morning.
#FM16 : Where shall I take #TheArgentineStrikerless on Friday?
With Friday’s full release just round the corner, I have the standard major decision to make. Where am I going to start a full, long-term save? Honved has been fun, I have enjoyed updating my “Searching the Stats v2.0” model. #TheArgentineStrikerless seems in fine fettle and I am confident I am match fit for the […]
#FM16 : SEARCHING THE STATS © V2.0 – THE GOALKEEPER
Folks, I inadvertently lied to you in the last “StS” post – I said I had completed the profiles. I had not, I forgot the goalkeeper. Thanks to Ed from The Deep Lying Podcast for asking me to complete the set.
#FM16 : SEARCHING THE STATS © V2.0 – COMPLETING THE PROFILES
Firstly, thank you to everyone that has taken time to read and comment on the “SEARCHING THE STATS © V2.0” series so far. As FM16 unfolds, this will be a rolling series with a model that I aim to continuously evolve as the year goes on. Having covered my recruitment of a central defender and […]
CLASSIC CHAMPIONSHIP MANAGER : I HEAR THE KLIPP KLOPP OF TINY DORTMUND FEET PART TWO
Welcome back! In Part 1, I considered why Borussia Dortmund fell apart domestically in 1997/98 and came to the conclusion that I could do better – hypothetically speaking. I mean, I am using a management game that’s 18 years old.
#FM16 : #TheArgentineStrikerless – what is it?
Over the last couple of days I have been posting about my recruitment methodology that I am calling “Searching the Stats (c) v2.0” Today, I am going to tell you about the tactical set up that I am using – #TheArgentineStrikerless
#FM16 : Searching the Stats © v2.0 – Crikey, DM!
Yesterday I talked you through how I’m using my StS © v2.0 in FM16, looking at recruitment of a central defender. Today I will walk you through my successful recruitment of a defensive midfielder. Thrilling stuff for the stats geeks amongst us.
#FM16 : Searching the Stats © v2.0
With the FM16 BETA it is a two week pre-season for me to see what still works, what needs tweaking and what needs completely redoing.
#FM16 : A step in the right direction?
So the plan was to dabble with FM16 in BETA, get my head round it and then move back to FM15 and finish off the last season with Lazio. With only 12 games played Lazio were storming Serie A and looking like good shouts for the title, so I wanted to finish that career properly. […]
CLASSIC CHAMPIONSHIP MANAGER : I HEAR THE KLIPP KLOPP OF TINY DORTMUND FEET
Jurgen Klopp’s recent arrival in England led to me using everybody’s favourite research website to find out a little bit more about the former Borussia Dortmund manager. The work he did at Dortmund was incredible, re-building a forlorn club into Champions once more. Re-building. Why had the Dortmund house fallen down in the first place? […]
#FM15 : My Greatest XI
With FM15 very much in injury time at the end of the game, my thoughts have flicked into reflective mode. FM15 has been the first Football Manager I have been able to play since the game moved from the Championship Manager name. By play, I mean really play. None of that play it for a […]
#FM15 : #BuildingBoca : Adios, Argentina!
“I may regret the way we ended, but I will never regret what we had.” ― Drake
CLASSIC CHAMPIONSHIP MANAGER : JUST DON’T UPSET ROY…
Seeing as we’re in the midst of an International break, I’ve cracked CM01/02 out again. Inspired by Ireland’s heroic 1-0 win over world champions Germany, I’m going to try and guide the boys in green to World Cup 2002 – and then hopefully not fall out with Roy Keane. Qualification was a feat managed in […]
#FM15 : #BUILDINGBOCA : LOS INVINCIBLES
Step away from your Friday afternoon, make a coffee or a tea and catch up on the 2025 season…. In the end it was three matches too far for the Boca boys. 59 games into the 2025 season and we were still on for the absolute clean sweep, being Primera Division, Supacopa Argentina, Recopa Sudamericana, […]
CLASSIC CHAMPIONSHIP MANAGER : THE GREAT ESCAPE, AGAIN?
Welcome to another great escape attempt. I enjoyed keeping Fulham up so much I’ve given it another go, but who will need my help this time? Let’s fire it up and see.
COACHING CORNER : DAMNING DEFINITION
When we think about what we use to evaluate or define a manager it could be conceived that coaches of yester year were marked against a completely different code than their modern day counter parts.
CLASSIC CHAMPIONSHIP MANAGER : THE GREAT ESCAPE?
The great escape is a phrase thrown around every season it seems as various clubs find themselves rooted to the bottom of the table at Christmas only to miraculously turn it round in the later months. Whether it be a new manager, that lucky Christmas jumper or Nigel Pearson calling a press officer names, clubs […]
#FM15 #BuildingBoca : New Beginnings
“When the final whistle was blown, the Boca players sunk to their knees completely spent. The coaching staff all hugged and celebrated. Their manager, Chris Darwen, stood and took in the feeling around the stadium. Boca Juniors had just beaten Corinthians of Brazil 11-2 on aggregate in the Copa Sudamericana Final. It completed a historic […]
CLASSIC CHAMPIONSHIP MANAGER : WHAT A DIFFERENCE A DECADE MAKES (PART TWO)
Welcome back to our trip to CM4 Boulevard. If you missed part 1, I was delighted to find a 2d pitch but was underwhelmed by the lack of anything else new. By the end, I was ready to claw my eyes out. Be that as it may, you can review part 1 HERE. If you’ve […]
FM15 : BEATING BRIAN : THE END
Today is the final Beating Brian update – the more astute of you will note that it is ending one episode early! Why is that, at least one of you might ask? Well, today you will learn that I either crashed and burned in ninth season meaning I could not beat the great man or […]
CLASSIC CHAMPIONSHIP MANAGER : WHAT A DIFFERENCE A DECADE MAKES…
As the Premier League has slipped back into its unmistakable stride, we’ve reached a pivotal time in our journey through Championship Manager history. Having started way back with the first version of the game covering 1993, I’d like to bring you 10 years on from that to the Championship Manager 4 series. The series was […]
FM15 : BEATING BRIAN : LIFT IT, AND LIFT IT HIGH!
As the game entered injury time, Wolves fans could have been forgiven for casting their mind back two seasons. It was deep into injury time in the 2020 Champions League Final that Bayern Munich broke the golden hearts of Wolverhampton Wanderers by stealing a 2-1 win, Lewandowski scoring with the last header of the game. […]
COACHING CORNER : THE IDENTITY TRAP
It’s at this time of year that fans are whipped into frenzy about the start of a new season. In what felt like a heartbeat ago we were discussing the Champions League final and pouring over the season that had just past, yet in the blink of an eye the game re-incarnates & we start […]
FM15 : BEATING BRIAN : WILL HISTORY BE MADE?
In eleven days time, Old Trafford will be a mixture of gold and white as Wolverhampton Wanderers and Valencia head to Manchester for the 2022 UEFA Champions League Final, writes James Dunphy of The Telegraph.
REAL LIFE : THERE IS MORE TO CORBY THAN THE TROUSER PRESS…
AFC Corby Shamrock Reserve Team Assistant Manager, Callum Stewart, is back to tell us more about how pre-season as the season draws near…
COACHING CORNER : THE INTERNAL ASSISTANT COACH
At the time of writing this piece it has been reported that Jose Mourinho has relieved Chelsea’s club doctor, Eva Carniero, from her match day medical duties with the 1st team.
CLASSIC CHAMPIONSHIP MANAGER : THE NEW MILLENNIUM AND A WORK OF FICTION (PART TWO)
Welcome back! Last time out, I talked you through my love of CM01/02. My Newcastle team survived being stabbed in the back by Kieron Dyer to thrive in difficult circumstances, and with the help of To Madeira, have shot up to second. Some have called it the most exciting season since I played through 93/94 […]
FM15 : BEATING BRIAN : WOLVES GO ALL DOMESTIC
Not many sides have won the Premier League in it’s history. Stats fans will be able to tell you that, in fact, only six different teams have won it since it’s inception in the 1992/93 season. Of those six sides, until this season, only two had won back-to-back titles. Those teams were Manchester United and […]
FM15 : BEATING BRIAN : SOMETIMES YOU’VE GOT TO JUST BREAK THE RULES
When I look back to the first ever side I selected when I took over at Molineux, a 4-1 win over Cardiff, I see Carl Ikeme in goal, Tommy Rowe in central midfield, Bjorn Sigoarson playing as a false nine and Dominic Iorfa on the bench with Benik Afobe.
FM15 : BEATING BRIAN : WHO SAYS THE EUROPA LEAGUE IS MICKEY MOUSE?
Welcome to the first of three “Beating Brian” posts today as I aim to bring you right up to date with how the journey is going by the time you get to read what you all come here for really, some Classic Championship Manager!
REAL LIFE : THE TALE OF TORREVIEJA : TORREVIEJA MIGHTY AGAINST HERCULES
To quote a famous Portuguese manager who had just seen his team fail to win a single pre-season game, “the real football starts soon.” I doubt Jose Mourinho was really too bothered at Chelsea’s inability to claim a victory in their glorified exhibition matches and the CD Torrevieja coach, Pedreno, would be wise to follow […]
NFL NATTERINGS : IN ROBERT AND SCOTT WE TRUST : WASHINGTON SEASON PREVIEW
Folks, I am delighted to welcome another new writer to the team. I am also delighted to welcome another new sport in that game the American’s like to call Football. Things I like about American Football – Vince Lombardi, the plethora of awesome movies that have been made about the sport, the team names and […]
FM15 : BEATING BRIAN : GENTLEMEN, YOUR HOLIDAY IS OVER
My word readers, my word. How on earth do I go about summing a season that lasted 66 games? If I was asked to do it in one word I would pack up my things and walk out, I really would. This season, my fourth in charge at Molineux, was an monster but it ultimately […]
Classic Championship Manager : The New Millennium and a Work of Fiction
If you’ve not been reading the last few posts, how dare you enjoy the summer!? But allow me to catch you up.
Real Life : The Standard Preview of the Premier League.
You’d be disappointed if you didn’t get one, it’s just like an advent calendar! I plan to set it out in the style of Tony Pulis’ WBA – solid, structured, minimal imagination but get’s the job done. I could have embarked on a more Jose Mourinho style, offending everyone that I come into contact with, […]
Real Life : The Tale of Torrevieja : DRAW TOUGH TO TAKE FOR TORREVIEJA
In a hastily arranged fixture against Segunda B side Jumilla, CD Torrevieja grabbed a draw from the jaws of victory by conceding, once again, in the final minute of the game.
Classic Championship Manager : 1996 and all that…
Welcome back. If you were with us for Part 1, you’ll know that whilst the game has evolved into a much neater package, we are apparently in an era where goalkeepers are yet to learn to catch and Carling still lend themselves as the title sponsor to the Premier League. If you missed Part 1, […]
FM15 : Beating Brian : A year can be a long, long time…
Ironically, the longest season I have ever played on FM turns out to be one of the shortest written articles I have done. I would apologise, but I am still recovering. Let’s see how Wolves got on, shall we?
Classic Championship Manager : Beyond your wildest Reims…
Luke Davis is back for the next part of his already popular CM01/02 series…
Real Life : The Tale of Torrevieja : Torrevieja Cornered by Rampant Tigers
With ten minutes to go on Friday night, Torrevieja led Hull U21’s by two goals to one, with goals from Cesar and Juanfran, the second from the penalty spot.
Real Life : There is more to Corby than the trouser press…
AFC Corby Shamrock Reserve Team Assistant Manager, Callum Stewart, is back to tell us more about how pre-season training is progressing…
Coaching Corner : The Dreaded Month of July
Resident coach Ally Bain is back to tell us his feelings on pre-season training.
Real Life: The Tale of Torrevieja : Carlos causes Cordoba concern, briefly
Folks, welcome to a new feature on The Higher Tempo Press. As some of you maybe aware, I am also a director of a little Spanish football club called CD Torrevieja. I got involved back in February, predominantly to help them start getting fans coming through the gate – a decade ago the players would […]