Football Manager 2012

[Chairman Meow]

Doing pretty well in pre-season, beat a couple of Klasse A teams (second division).

It's weird though, because this whole level is amateur, it's easy to sign players, but also easy to lose them, got a pretty decent squad now though. There are no decent left backs whatsoever .

[Chairman Meow]

Doing well, in third, but s point behind top, going to load up some more leagues for the end of the season, and see where I can go.

[Señor Naranja]

I was making some quality progress with Tamworth last night and went 4 points clear at the top of the Blue Sq. Prem. I abandoned my narrow 4-3-3 for a more expansive 4-4-2 with wingers after realising that I'd discarded a really good conference level winger into my reserves simply because he didn't fit into my original tactic. Won five on the bounce and was dominating teams and then my short-sightedness struck again... two of my players contracts expired at the start of Jan and immediately signed with rivals because they can offer them full time deals whereas I'm still a part-time club until the end of the season! One of which was my skipper and key player as a ball winning centre midfielder.

Absolutely gutted and can't believe that a) I totally missed it, and b) my assistant didn't flag up that his contract was expiring. But then at least it happened at the start of the transfer window and it's freed up some of my wage budget to go bargain hunting so there's hopefully a silver lining to it!

[Chairman Meow]

Lost just 2 games with Hesselt, and sitting pretty in 1st on GD, just lost to second so level on points, but they have some semi-pro players and all mine are amateurs. Weirdly i have 3 internationals though, obviously for obscure countries.

It's piss easy in that league, been linked to Anderlecht in November, so declared my interest, see where it takes me.

[Santy]

Shaktar just knocked me out of the champions league, needed to draw to get through the group stages but as I lost to them even though its only a 3 point gap between us I can't now qualify.

Douglas Costa scored from a free kick about 30 yards out. Whoever mentioned him on here deserves shooting, I'm sure the two incidents are somehow related.

[Señor Naranja]

Actually I mentioned Douglas Costa, Alex Teixeira AND Willian so you were pretty much screwed! ;D

[Santy]

Saved up this morning with 5 games left. The table is for 1st - 5th:

Arsenal - 73 pts
Stoke - 73 pts
Man Utd - 73 pts
Man City - 73 pts
Liverpool - 73 pts

Closest run in I've ever had on one of my saves, Chelsea meanwhile are down in 16th place due to hiring Owen Coyle as manager.

[Señor Naranja]

Arsenal are absolute tosh on mine. They're lying in 8th but miles off the top, Chelsea are in 7th and are on the brink of sacking AVB. It can't help that I keep telling the media that he isn't the right man for the job ;D I've also managed to make Arsene Wenger severely dislike me. Excellent stuff.

[Santy]

Wenger went to manage France and then Arsenal began to improve dramatically on mine. They haven't won anything but they're more potent now. AVB is a championship manager on my game now I think. Every team he has taken over has been pretty poor, he was at West Brom for a while and got sacked lol.

Adebayor has been a beast for me this season though. Scoring over 30 goals, I regret the fact he's only on a 1 year deal, because in January he announced he wanted to leave on a free at the end of the season.

[Santy]

Won the prem and europa league last night. Little consolation after the Valencia game however.

Won it on the final day because Man Utd capitulated against already relegated Southampton and lost 2-0. They had just been savaged by my Stoke side 4-1 in the europa cup final a few days before though, that may have been the thing which knocked their morale low enough to end up losing the game.

[SamTheLost]

Thinking about starting a new game as Stoke manager. Also, on my save Vale have Steve Evans as manager.

[SuperRickyFuller]

Centre back for Blackburn has just scored two own goals and given away a penalty and still got a match rating of 6.2

What.The.Shit?

And I'm thinking of giving it until after the 2022 World Cup and then starting again at a BSN/BSS side

[Santy]

The only thing that disappoints with lower leagues is it just feels too easy. Pace at the front, strength at the back and you're successful. Old technical players can be effective but even if a 36/37 year old lampard dropped down to the conference he wouldn't be as useful as a player with 15+ pace.

I have mentioned numerous times that pace seems to compensate far too much in the game for a lack of technical ability.

[Chairman Meow]

Feb 18, 2012 12:54:20 GMT SuperRickyFuller said:

Centre back for Blackburn has just scored two own goals and given away a penalty and still got a match rating of 6.2

What.The.Shit?

And I'm thinking of giving it until after the 2022 World Cup and then starting again at a BSN/BSS side

Go for a journeyman career. I'm going to start again I think, start as sunday league footballer, with a load of leagues loaded, then go on holiday until I'm offered a job.

[SamTheLost]

Feb 18, 2012 12:59:44 GMT Santy said:

The only thing that disappoints with lower leagues is it just feels too easy. Pace at the front, strength at the back and you're successful. Old technical players can be effective but even if a 36/37 year old lampard dropped down to the conference he wouldn't be as useful as a player with 15+ pace.

I have mentioned numerous times that pace seems to compensate far too much in the game for a lack of technical ability.

So pretty realistic then? (see. Walcott)

[Chairman Meow]

I am currently Guranyi De Sobral, of the brazillian 3rd division.

Started with sunday league experience and got offered a job, thought I'd take it.

Scoring for fun and leaking goals. The tables are weird aswell, I joined half way through the season and I think I'm in the last group to get promoted.

3 out of 4 teams finished on 11 points in 2nd group, and I finished top on head to head results I think.

Brazillians are so fucking touchy, I subbed a player and he's thrown a strop, and another threw one just, cunts.

[Santy]

In some regards it is, but I just found it too easy to get out of those leagues. Even with rather shite sides. Pacey players do make a difference, but you can get a player who's had a career of failing at the lower levels even though he has pace and then turn him into a 30 - 40 goal striker on FM.

[SuperRickyFuller]

I'll probably just take a half decentish BSN/BSS team who look alright and turn them into worldbeaters. I think that'd take up my time because as immersive as this save game has been, it's just got a bit too easy

[Santy]

I actually prefer to go to the lower leagues in a game already 10+ years in. Some lower level sides have acquired good players who slipped through the net in the top leagues and have even produced some themselves.

Right now its practically impossible to see a player reach a CA of 110/120 in league two or below but in the future it does become a reality. The dynamics change as well as you get big teams still with some spending power and reputation able to get good players but also some who get lower level tycoons that add a challenge to it.

Then comes the best part of the challenge, overthrowing your own team

[Chairman Meow]

I quite my posts in Brazil after missing out on play offs, the final group was just too strong for me.

Went on holiday and applied for everything, eventually got an offer in March from Harrogate, in the BSN.

They were underachieving in about 17th when I started, only got them up to 13th though, but I haven't had a transfer window, and I haven't got any strikers with pace. Their morale is fucked though, I have won 2, drawn 3 and lost 2, when I win it goes up slightly, but as soon as I lose or concede late goals it goes to at least poor again


Oh well, I signed Akinbiyi ;D Shouldn't have done really he's got no pace, but I got sentimental and pressed offer contract before i realised what i was doing.