Improving Morale after a Drop?

[xinsomniacboix]

On both of my saves, I seem to start off just winning winning and winning, until a few months in, when the obligatory striker goal drought or freak defeat occurs, and then morale starts to tank, starting a vicious cycle.

Do you guys have any tips for getting morale way back up after some losses?

[SpartyOn]

A team meeting is the best way.

I try to call them before an easier spot in the schedule so that the team can keep building on the morale boost with a few wins.

[Auqakuh]

Different tactics and good team talks.

I have a "low morale" tactic - a very narrow formation, packed centrally, designed entirely to stifle opposing teams and let us grab a win. Used it recently after getting a man sent off against Borussia Dortmund and beat them 2-0, despite everyone being fairly depressed at half-time (the sending off occurred on 42 minutes, and we lost 1-0 against Dortmund in the preceding CL match.)

If your morale is low, just pretend your team is rubbish and act accordingly. Also, encouraging, passionately delivered team-talks at half time can do wonders for morale.

I also ALWAYS make sure my FIRST individual team talk (regardless of pre-match, half-time, or fulltime) is to my captain. Any positive effect you can have on him is passed through your entire team, since the more motivated he is, the more he'll give everyone a boot up the backside out on the pitch. Plus - I'm not sure if this is true but it seems to be - players respond to influential players responding well in the dressing room. They tend to all switch to "Listened keenly" right after I have an inspirational effect on the team captain, at any rate.

If you're building a certain player's morale back up over time, be sure to praise him directly before the next match, not directly after the one he played well in. This ensure his morale is as high as possible going into the next match, and hopefully will help him get another good performance, boosting his morale higher still.

Another, sneakier way of going about building individual morale: drop him to the bench for your next game, then only bring him on in the last 10-15 minutes if you're playing well. He still gets a boost from the team performance.

Less sure if it works, for team morale: set team cohesion for a week, and set tactical focus to teamwork for your next match. I see this as a more "light-hearted" approach to training, temporarily, which enhances how well they work together (permanently, too, not just temporarily), and gets them working together happily. I have no idea if it's true, but my teams always have great team blend, and that always helps in the long run.

[phnompenhandy]

If the whole team's morale is crashing, one option is to find a free midweek spot and arrange a friendly against opponents you can slaughter - especially your striker in a drought.

[phnompenhandy]

If the whole team's morale is crashing, one option is to find a free midweek spot and arrange a friendly against opponents you can slaughter - especially your striker in a drought.