Heart vs head dilemma

[Suddenly Susan]

After 2 years at Man City and winning the league back to back I resigned in order to take over at my beloved West Ham who, as ever, were having a torrid time after relegation to the Championship. I wanted to wait a bit so they wouldn't be hampered by any compensation to City, but in the meantime Real Madrid sacked Mourinho (who had finished 2nd behind Barca twice in a row and had Real sitting 4th) and offered me the job!

I've now been there just over a year having hauled them up and finishing within a point of Barca I now sit first by 6 points and am undefeated in 51 games.

Meantime West Ham have sacked another manager, are in the prem and have Mark Hughes as their manager, but are rock bottom.

At Real I have Ronaldo, Neymar, Munian, Zouma, Varane, Vadillo plus all the other crown jewels (Iker, Ramos, Benzema, Higuain etc)

West Ham still have Carlton Cole as their main striker ...

Hughes will almost certainly get sacked very soon if he carries on as only Hughes can

So my dilemma is obvious - should I stay or should I go - swapping life at the biggest club in the world who make £7 million profit every month, where I have spent £230 million or go to skint FC who need an entire squad overall with a budget of 20 pence and a pickled egg?

My head says nooooooooooooooo

My heart says write a long rambling post on this forum asking for advice ...

[Kenco]

IRL you would stay with Real. In game, you should go back to West Ham. Winning endless trophies with the biggest team in the world is hardly a challenge and will get boring quickly but if you can get your beloved club to the top it will be a lot more satisfying.

You could even create a new save file just before applying for the job, so if things don't work out at West Ham you can always re-load the Madrid game and continue winning easily.

[PinkSpeedos]

MOVE TO WEST HAM. Im sitting in my 7th season with my beloved Leeds, ive dragged them from the mid table championship side they were when this game was released to champions league football and its very satisfying. You've no doubt won big competitions with Real so take that winning formula to West Ham and make them the team you want them to be.

Aside from it being highly satisfying to watch your team succeed its a much bigger and better challenge

[Welshace]

After 2 years at Man City and winning the league back to back I resigned in order to take over at my beloved West Ham who, as ever, were having a torrid time after relegation to the Championship. I wanted to wait a bit so they wouldn't be hampered by any compensation to City, but in the meantime Real Madrid sacked Mourinho (who had finished 2nd behind Barca twice in a row and had Real sitting 4th) and offered me the job!

I've now been there just over a year having hauled them up and finishing within a point of Barca I now sit first by 6 points and am undefeated in 51 games.

Meantime West Ham have sacked another manager, are in the prem and have Mark Hughes as their manager, but are rock bottom.

At Real I have Ronaldo, Neymar, Munian, Zouma, Varane, Vadillo plus all the other crown jewels (Iker, Ramos, Benzema, Higuain etc)

West Ham still have Carlton Cole as their main striker ...

Hughes will almost certainly get sacked very soon if he carries on as only Hughes can

So my dilemma is obvious - should I stay or should I go - swapping life at the biggest club in the world who make £7 million profit every month, where I have spent £230 million or go to skint FC who need an entire squad overall with a budget of 20 pence and a pickled egg?

My head says nooooooooooooooo

My heart says write a long rambling post on this forum asking for advice ...

beautiful story,

the romantic in me says go with your heart and save west ham, a challenge is what its all about.

my head says.... just save to a seperate file and play both...

[Gundo]

Go. Sounds like a great challenge to take on with the Hammers, if you get the opportunity.

[Opps]

I say wait till FM13, then give the Hammers a go.

[Unknown Hacker]

I'd do both. As has probably already been said, simply make a backup of your save and if West Ham are beyond repair then Real Madrid are just 2 clicks away.

[SRL88]

If I was being honest, I would say that you have jumped around quite a bit already so stay with Real....but the overall challenge of West Ham is very intruiging, especially considering the fact that I consider Real to be quite an easy save. If you do decide to go back to the Hammers, then at least stay there for a good few seasons .

[Suddenly Susan]

thanks guys - sterling advice!

I think I'll go - the only player I'll really miss is Iker Munian, but he's only 21 so if a miracle occurs and I do turn around the god-awful Hammers I will make it my aim to bring over to Green Street (probably when he's 35!).

btw Mark Hughes has lost his first 5 games, so it looks like he'll be gone before too long and I'll probably be picking West Ham up in the Champs ...

If I get myself fired by Real (I'm sure I can find a way) and then get the West Ham job will Real be due compensation - does anyone know? It seems to be capped at £2 million in this game, but I still rather avoid this?

Thanks again guys

[deltablue]

Good idea, when your club calls, you need to answer.

[TacticalGenius]

thanks guys - sterling advice!

I think I'll go - the only player I'll really miss is Iker Munian, but he's only 21 so if a miracle occurs and I do turn around the god-awful Hammers I will make it my aim to bring over to Green Street (probably when he's 35!).

btw Mark Hughes has lost his first 5 games, so it looks like he'll be gone before too long and I'll probably be picking West Ham up in the Champs ...

If I get myself fired by Real (I'm sure I can find a way) and then get the West Ham job will Real be due compensation - does anyone know? It seems to be capped at £2 million in this game, but I still rather avoid this?

Thanks again guys

If you resign at Real before you apply for the Wet Spam job, you should be fine.

As your rep is probably very high now you've won things at big clubs, you probably won't get the WHU job if you apply while still with RM because A) they won't expect you to drop down, B) maybe would be scared off by your current wages, C) they would probably take an unemployed manager because of the lack of compensation due.

So when the WHU job becomes available, that would be the time to save (in case something goes wrong), resign from RM, then apply for the job.

[Suddenly Susan]

thanks tg -

re wages - it was a bit strange but im not actually on very much (comparatively) at Real - £43,000. At Man City I was on £95,000 having signed a new 5 year contract after my 2nd prem champion win. Mourinho took my job at City and is on £175,000!

Even West Ham would find me cheap by comparison.

[rich10]

Of course you realise this means you'll have to keep us updated on how your new job goes.

For what its worth, I don't think you should make a save in case things go pear-shaped at West Ham, decisions and consequences are what this game is all about...otherwise I'd be reloading every time I missed out on Sharbel Touma in FM10 which definitely didn't happen many times.

[Ryknow]

Stay with Real Madrid until you get bored. In this time try and get West Ham as a feeder club, then take the West Ham job when it next opens up.

[Suddenly Susan]

I have been thinking about this some more and I think I'm going to see out a full season at Real and hopefully win the league for them for the first time in 6 years(!) plus I've got Liverppol in the 2nd round of the champans league so that's a shoeing :o.

The added bonus might be that by then West Ham will either have survived relegation (highly unlikely) or be back in he championship (far more likely) and I can clear out all the deadwood and start the long, painful (but ultimately fun) process of rebuilding!

Ryknow - I like the feeder club idea - I haven't been there long enough yet, but as soon as I have I'll try this - hopefully this will still be in place when I leave and I can reap the rewards of all the jewels I've bought Real's youth team.

I'm hoping that this weekend's good weather won't get in the way of a mighty session - my aim is to get as near to finishing this season as possible!

[Suddenly Susan]

Well it took me slightly longer than I thought to finish the season (kids, work: my so-called 'real life'), but finish it I did last night and it was worth it as we beat Barca to the title (on the last day after letting a 7 point lead slip :o) for the first time in 6 years (in my first full season), scoring 104 goals along the way and got to the SF of the champans losing to Chelsea.

I won manager of the year, Muniain won player of the year, Vadillo won young player of the year and Ronaldo, Higuan, Neymar and Muniain all scored 20 goals each. I'm shipping out stroppy, low-scoring Benzema to man u for 30 mill, an inconsistent Ozil to Dortmund for 18.25 mill and am about to get rid of Silva, Pepe, Khedira and Sahin; I should then have around 100 million for a little light squad strengthening during the summer (I'm thinking of going Spanish - it's only proper).

Meanwhile, back on cockney shores, West Ham were relegated ... Carlton Cole was top goal scorer with 7 goals ... the squad is a threadbare, demoralised mess - the club are massively in debt with very little saleable talent and Mark Hughes is still the incumbant manager.

If I stay at Real I get to win a lot of matches against mostly massively inferior teams (I really like winning matches), barca are on the wain (Xavi is 35, Puyol is 106, Messi is, surprisingly, really injury-prone and they have put Busquets on the transfer list) - unless they strengthen this summer I can see Real winning the league for quite a few years to come.

West Ham have got Carlton Cole ...

So I've decided - head rules heart - sod West Ham: if they are stupid enough to give Mark Hughes a job and then not fire him when he get's them relegated then they are welcome to whatever mess they are in.

As suggested above I've finally been allowed to chose my own feeder team and it will be West Ham and so I've decided that I will manage them remotely; filling them with the talent they are too poor or too badly run to buy; and the first thing I will do is to send Viniegra (my Argentinian striking sensation) down to the Bolelyn to knock CFC on his mis-firing backside - followed by Sahin, Silva and Pepe - that way I get to have my cake and eat it surely?

[hugo_rune]

When I'm playing a computer game, I like to go with my heart every time.

[stevie_G_32201]

Make a seperate save where you take the west ham post and keep the current one as well that way you can have both.

[BiggusD]

Well, I don't get this "career" nonsense. Clearly, if you took over City and won everything and Real wants you you started as an International footballer. Who gives a c*** about your biography! Just retire that dude and take over whatever club in the world you want to manage!

Endless continue in the hope of having an unpredictable AI sack the manager and give you the job... why? If you want to manage West Ham, then manage West Ham - what is there to lose?

/end rant.

[Things Could Get Messi]

Never had this dilemma but I am currently doing a long term save with my beloved Leicester for the 1st time in over 12 years of playing CM/FM. I love this save probably more than any other I have done and I have done some good things in my time. I recommend to everyone to manage the club they support at some point, just remember not to let your real life loyalties to the players to control your decisions!

[Luckz]

I recommend to everyone to manage the club they support at some point

A sizable amount of people now "support" PSG

[larryman24]

The West Ham situation sounds so much more interesting. Chuck the Real job, head down to the Boleyn Ground and get stuck in. In the Championship you will win loads of games, so what's the problem? You've won the league with Real, its going to get boring doing the same thing over and over again. I did the opposite and started with West Ham. We won the Championship, slowly progressed up the Premiership and are now perennial title contenders. I made a separate save when Barca came in offering a £200m transfer budget, don't think I'll go back to it...

There's nothing better than building a club up, give it a go

[poola21]

Real all the way

[av3ry]

Always follow your head.

[noikeee]

I would've stayed too but for the sole reason you were well into the way of winning the title.

[Suddenly Susan]

Thanks guys - just a short update for those that care:

I'm now 10 games into the new season and Real are (real)ly cooking - Barcelona are, as predicted, awful: rock bottom of their champions league group and 5th in la liga. They bought precisely no one during the summer while I bought Rodrigo (11 caps 7 goals) back to Spain from Inter, as well as a handful of tasty young 'uns. Real are top by 4 points, and West Ham are 2nd in the champ with the 7 guys I sent them are all contributing. None of my big guys wanted to go - no Sahin (he stayed), no Pepe (he went to AC Milan), no Silva (he went to Dortmund) and Viniegra hit a hatrick in the first leg of the super cup and I decided to keep him (he wouldn't have gone anyway).

I did, however, send a clutch of very promising youngsters, including my Columbian 19-year-old wing sensation Gaitain and my Argentinian cm Bergese both of whom are performing well but not as well as a 16 year old french cb (Herkat, a regen) who is averaging 8 and looks amazing!

My aim (alongside helping West ham back into the Prem) is to create real succession in all positions at Real and win the league oh and the champs league too ...

Alonso is still great, but he's 34, Ronaldo is 30, as is Ramos and cassillas is 34 - the last three have quite a few years left in them, but I'd love to establish the new breed of Real madrid superstars - Muniain is only 22 but is simply amazing (even though Spain never call him up - prefering 36 year old Xavi (who started just 5 games for barca last season) at times and at others silva who spent the whole of last season in my feeder team Castilla!) Neymar is also 22 and almost as good and we have Zouma and Varane at the back.

Onwards!

[Onyewu]

beautiful story,

the romantic in me says go with your heart and save west ham, a challenge is what its all about.

my head says.... just save to a seperate file and play both...

I'm with welshace..............why choose one when you can choose both....it's your universe!!

[Onyewu]

A sizable amount of people now "support" PSG

And for the record...I've been playing PSG since FM05..........now I don't feel so unique........maybe I should give St. Etienne a whirl on FM13?? Although I'd actually like to win something at PSG, so this year may be my best chance.

[Gandy]

I've only ever been able to play with West Ham.