FM21: The English Football League thread

[warlock]

2 hours ago, Dave92 said:

The best possible start I could hope for

Not much wrong with your recruitment there 

1 hour ago, dastrokes88 said:

So I decided to go back to Portsmouth

Good luck... but it doesn't look like luck has much to do with it. Tearing it up 

1 hour ago, Jogo Bonito said:

Meanwhile I have set-up again as another League 2 club

Looking forward to it!

First day in ages I haven't managed to play... got dragged  out for a 6 mile walk today, pleasant enough but a waste of good FM time. But I should have an update on the Peterborough Rescue Mission tomorrow sometime.

[Jogo Bonito]

6 minutes ago, warlock said:

First day in ages I haven't managed to play... got dragged  out for a 6 mile walk today, pleasant enough but a waste of good FM time. But I should have an update on the Peterborough Rescue Mission tomorrow sometime.

I have no doubt that the walk will have done you much more good than a day managing Posh! Looking forward to your update though.

Yeah the club I have ended up with isn't the same as the one that crashed. It may only be a season-long effort as the clubs I really wanted to manage are in League 1 or above. I need to give them more thought though, as I will need to be a bit creative.

[warlock]

1 minute ago, Jogo Bonito said:

the walk will have done you much more good

That's what my wife said, but my knees beg to differ .

[robterrace]

So.

Middle of the night, and I'm bored watching a movie.

Spent a few hours trying to get a few transfers done on FM as well.

Areas that needed strengthening were both full backs, and up front.

The striking option was taken care of first.

Jayden Braaf would also return on loan for the season, providing versatility to play on both wings, as well as through the centre.

17 year old Turkish international, Ozgur Sahindere had agreed to join us 18 months ago, and would complete his move in the summer. He had developed really well at Trabzonspor.

Backing up Arp next season, would be Tommy Rich.

The 18 year old had spent the last couple of months on loan at Doncaster, scoring 7 goals in that time, and causing trouble for defences in League One.

I'd still need a more 'battering ram' option for the attacking side, but, hopefully, that will be sorted soon.

[robterrace]

Big deal, but, he'll score essential goals

 

[robterrace]

 Another signing, one I've been tracking for a couple of seasons. Technically good, and will run the channels.

For £5.5m, he will be a decent signing.

[Jogo Bonito]

@robterrace Funny that. I have been keeping an eye on Bilic for Parma but he never got further than my shortlist.

[smplfc123]

16 hours ago, Jogo Bonito said:

Must be Plymouth then. Because I can only think of Bristol Rovers & Swindon on that side and they don't really feel like mid-table. Maybe Oxford at a push. 

Meanwhile I have set-up again as another League 2 club, have saved this one just in case of a crash. Somebody else has managed them in here much better than me though.

Ah, I went off the Season Preview predictions, which does indeed have Bristol Rovers in 13th (on my game anyway). The board want top-half, but I'd have them down as somewhere between 12th and 20th.

Anyway, they do have a few decent players in the squad, but it's not the greatest as to be expected and it looks like it may force me in to playing a 5 at the back formation, something I've never really used.

Looking forward to see your first update.

[Jogo Bonito]

1 hour ago, smplfc123 said:

Ah, I went off the Season Preview predictions, which does indeed have Bristol Rovers in 13th (on my game anyway). The board want top-half, but I'd have them down as somewhere between 12th and 20th. Anyway, they do have a few decent players in the squad, but it's not the greatest as to be expected and it looks like it may force me in to playing a 5 at the back formation, something I've never really used.

Looking forward to see your first update.

Ah, brilliant. I managed Bristol Rovers back at the start of FM20. Only played a season but loved it, definitely a club who can be taken further. Not sure about the strengths and weaknesses on the current squad, but I played a narrow 4312 or 4132. Best of luck my friend.

[Jogo Bonito]

OK, well my first club on 21.4 was inspired by @oakesypvfcas a result of me slating the home kit they had created this season. Between us we managed to design some new kits, in particular a fresh home kit that doesn't make my eyes bleed or create a sick feeling in my stomach every time I see it.

The second obstacle was that I didn't really like most of their players. So I have made some changes to the squad by doing some extensive housework and removing a surplus of players. In their place, I have added a number of replacements - but much less quantity than those discarded - and made my own loan signings instead of the ones they had sorted themselves. I feel the new players are realistic as they proved in a test that they would be willing to join on a permanent transfer or they would accept a loan. One exception to the test was Paddy Madden, but having just dropped two levels from Fleetwood to Stockport since the 21.4 database was locked, it seemed fair to believe he would accept a drop of just one level to play in League 2. And hey-presto, here we are at League 2 side Port Vale.

The new manager will be Ron Judge, a name inspired by club legend and current DOF John Rudge, who was in charge during arguably their most impressive seasons in the past

I also appointed club icon (player & manager) Martin Foyle as the new Chief Scout - a role he was holding at Motherwell

What do you think about the kits we came up with? 

All credit for the skill and work on them goes to Oakesy, I just gave some ideas and after some tweaks he came up with the end product 

I have never managed Port Vale before, the media prediction is 8th and I have a task to match the success of @Dave92

And here is the 21-man first team squad I have to work with (including the three loan men added)

Former Vale loan man Clark will start mainly at left-back but can play his natural right-back role if Gibbons is missing

Penney can play anywhere down the left including defence, but is earmarked as my preference for left-midfield 

Hughes is expected to start the season next to my new captain Smith at the heart of defence

Kigbu and George were available on free transfers whilst Tol was plucked from the Dutch second division for a nominal fee

The new strikers Johnson (from Orient) and Madden look likely to be a good partnership in attack

And here is the Under 23 squad, which has a handful of promising younger players like Campbell-Gordon, Hurst & Agho

Crookes could also fill in if the seniors need him, and ex-Nottingham Forest (and Hereford on loan) striker Sodeinde was brought in on a free transfer

Pre-season started really poorly with a loss at home to Dundalk and a laboured victory over Newcastle Town (managed by ex-Vale favourite Robin van der Laan

But after that the form improved greatly and now the season opener is here (with two Cup games against Wigan)

The formation? Mike Basset's 4-4-bloody 2 of course

 

 

 

[oakesypvfc]

Yayyyy, Vale, but with a twist it seems, very interesting! What did you do with Tom Pope, if got rid, you must try and get in as staff at some point!

Did you make the changes in the editor or sign them?

Love the kits, I do have some alternatives that I made quite a while back with the normal colour scheme if you wanted them at some point? Hope this save keeps you going a good while, best of luck @Jogo Bonito 

[Jogo Bonito]

13 minutes ago, oakesypvfc said:

Yayyyy, Vale, but with a twist it seems, very interesting! What did you do with Tom Pope, if got rid, you must try and get in as staff at some point!

Did you make the changes in the editor or sign them?

Love the kits, I do have some alternatives that I made quite a while back with the normal colour scheme if you wanted them at some point? Hope this save keeps you going a good while, best of luck @Jogo Bonito 

Cheers, I do love these kits. I did use the editor to get rid of the people I really didn't want to be managing and to sort Madden, Johnson and the loans (after I had tested them properly for realism). I messed up the loans though and didn't spot that all three would be cup-tied - only just found that out for the first game of the season 

I obviously respect Pope but he was well past his best. I find most retiring pros have really bad coaching stats, but I would like to add him sometime if he is even half-decent.

I used the editor to add Foyle as Chief Scout and demote McClelland to a regular Scout. I also dropped Pugh to a Coach. The rest of the staff was done by natural means once I started so I paid some termination fees etc. And I messed up on Griffith completely, ending up incorrectly with him as my First Team Assistant Manager and of course then I could not get him back to his actual role. Unfortunately that meant I had to terminate him too, which hadn't been the plan. I brought in Kevin Summerfield as my Assistant Manager, and welcomed back George Pilkington as U23 Coach. Tried hard to get David Kemp and Lee Glover for some roles but couldn't quite manage it.

 

[oakesypvfc]

Big Kev <3 I've only just now got rid of him, he was with me at Sheffield Wed for about 6 years and has followed me through the FM's it seems.

Should have kept Pope as a mentor  

[robterrace]

So, I've moved away from the ChilledMoose faces, and am now using the Zealand ones..

I'd strengthened up front, and young centre back Michael Robson was returning from a season at Sunderland, and in the England youth setup, with great improvements being made in all areas for him. He would be in with a chance at being in the starting rotation alongside Rodrigo Caio.

In front of the back 4, Zuculini was beginning to show signs of being left behind in terms of ability, and club captain, Ben Whiteman was probably heading the same way.

Going through my scout reports, meant heading to Austria, and RB Salzburg, where 21 year old Nigerian midfielder, Samson Tijani, was plying his trade. As per most deals with RB teams, it wasn't going to be cheap, and for a fee that will go to £19m, he joins on a 4 year deal.

Also in need of some depth, was the goalkeepers, as Cian Broaders is a couple of seasons away from first team football, and I'm not convinced about either Hoyas or Sivera for the long term.

A trip to Ligue 1 in France was sufficient, and Paul Bernardoni from Angers was picked out, and for a fee of £3.5m, he joins on a deal to 2027.

The intention is within the next couple of seasons, to start bleeding youth players into first team football, as we try to establish ourselves in the Premier League.

[Jogo Bonito]

2 minutes ago, oakesypvfc said:

Big Kev <3 I've only just now got rid of him, he was with me at Sheffield Wed for about 6 years and has followed me through the FM's it seems.

Should have kept Pope as a mentor  

Yeah Summerfield is always a good AM option in FM for League 1 & 2 clubs. I've tried to pick staff with some sort of local connections where possible. Iyseden Christie is just coming in as U18 Coach too.

Ron Judge can mentor anybody

[Ronaldo Beckham]

Norwich City Season 3 Review

Competitions

A complete reversal of last season with the player working hard together and getting some good results. A nice 7th place finish and European football for Norwich next season.

Transfers

So I went againt my word of not signing anyone but the signings I made were very significant upgrades with Dominic Calvert-Lewin joining for £27.5m and Jack Harrison who I signed on a free but he is a one season wonder as Hoffenheim come in with a £31.5m bid for him that was accepted due to it being his minimun fee release clause and he was off. £31.5 million profit will help with the finances.

I also signed talented English central defender Haydon Roberts from Brighton for £29m and he was awesome for me.

My other major signing was Dru Yearwood who I signed from New York Red Bulls for £5m and was a very capable defensive midfielder giving extra protection to my defense.

I did also sign former Norwich players Jacob and Joshua Murphy on free transfers for nostalgia purposes but they didn't do much and I moved them on in January.

I also managed to get talented French player Michael Olise on loan for the season and he performed very well with 4 goals and 14 assists. I can't convince Spurs to let me loan him in for another season and his creativity will be sorely missed.

Micheal Olise

Dominic Calvert-Lewin

Haydon Roberts

Dru Yearwood

Squad Analysis

Main players in the team other then who I have mentioned already was ever present Goalie that is Nathan Baxter who has had another outstanding season with 13 clean sheets and an average rating of 7.01.

Nathan Baxter

Another Nathan that shone was Nathan Collins who had a good season in the centre of defense forming a good partnership with Haydon Roberts. Collins also contributed with 6 goals. 

Nathan Collins

Max Aarons had another good season and was very dependable. He vastly improved in training as well.

Max Aarons

Keane Lewis-Potter was my top scorer with 11 goals which isn't the best but as my team spread out the goals he was a big contribution to the cause of getting us into 7th place.

Keane Lewis-Potter

Adam Idah didn't play much this season due to DLC taking over upfront. I also think that Ricky Jade Jones is better then Idah so I think Idah will be my 3rd placed striker for the season but I still think he will come good again especially as I know he is capable of scoring in the Prem as he did score 17 last season.

Season Review

Games To Remember

Best Overall 11

Accolades

 

 

 

[Jogo Bonito]

@Ronaldo BeckhamA great season, and well done for picking up DCL. Even more congrats for taking Michael Olise on loan 

Edited March 28, 2021 by Jogo Bonito

[warlock]

Peterborough, March 2021

It seems odd to be posting my first season update in March, but there it is. My first 10 games in charge at Posh completed and we've accomplished a pretty good turnaround in form, and climbed some way above the 19th place we occupied when I arrived.

The Lincoln game was my first and it marked the beginning of an 8-game unbeaten run that saw us steadily climb away from the relegation battle. The defeat to Plymouth was a kick in the teeth:

A 95th minute winner for Argyle. A draw would have perhaps been a fairer result, but our finishing was woeful.

Our only business in the January window was the inbound loan of Burnley CB Richard Nartey - there were only two natural CBs in the squad. After I started with a 4231 system, we were looking shaky at both ends of the pitch so I've pulled the wide forwards back to the midfield line in an attempt to make us a bit more secure. Can't say it's worked but I'm wary of switching again so we'll see how it goes.

We're now up to mid-table and, while we're not quite beyond a relegation battle if things turn worse, we're looking good for now. Students of FM might care to note that GK Christy Pym had racked up no fewer than 8 yellow cards before my arrival... I have no idea what kind of system ex-manager Darren Ferguson was playing, but it wasn't working on so many levels.

[Ronaldo Beckham]

1 hour ago, Jogo Bonito said:

@Ronaldo BeckhamA great season, and well done for picking up DLC. Even more congrats for taking Michael Olise on loan 

Yeah I made some good signings that season that really paid off. I am hoping DLC scores a few more this season and I am gutted I can't get Olise on loan for another season. I tried to sign him but Spurs wanted £97m.

[Jogo Bonito]

24 minutes ago, warlock said:

Peterborough, March 2021

It seems odd to be posting my first season update in March, but there it is. My first 10 games in charge at Posh completed and we've accomplished a pretty good turnaround in form, and climbed some way above the 19th place we occupied when I arrived. We're now up to mid-table and, while we're not quite beyond a relegation battle if things turn worse, we're looking good for now. Students of FM might care to note that GK Christy Pym had racked up no fewer than 8 yellow cards before my arrival... I have no idea what kind of system ex-manager Darren Ferguson was playing, but it wasn't working on so many levels.

Good form, steering them to safety as would be expected really. So much attacking strength there.

Crazy stats on Pym, never seen anything like that before. Just noticed Thompson's four red cards too - never seen that either 

P.S. Look at Ipswich. Fancy that job? 

Edited March 28, 2021 by Jogo Bonito

[warlock]

12 minutes ago, Jogo Bonito said:

Fancy that job? 

Nah... they'll come unstuck eventually 

[robterrace]

1 hour ago, warlock said:

GK Christy Pym had racked up no fewer than 8 yellow cards before my arrival... I have no idea what kind of system ex-manager Darren Ferguson was playing, but it wasn't working on so many levels.

Was it based on kung fu?

[warlock]

1 hour ago, robterrace said:

Was it based on kung fu?

[smplfc123]

17 hours ago, Jogo Bonito said:

Ah, brilliant. I managed Bristol Rovers back at the start of FM20. Only played a season but loved it, definitely a club who can be taken further. Not sure about the strengths and weaknesses on the current squad, but I played a narrow 4312 or 4132. Best of luck my friend.

If my first competitive game is anything to go by, I think I'm going to enjoy them too!!!

[smplfc123]

Oh my, we somehow topped that result in the next round 

[warlock]

11 minutes ago, smplfc123 said:

we somehow topped that result

Game's too easy 

[Jogo Bonito]

@smplfc123Tremendous Cup results there! Cooking on gas...

[smplfc123]

1 minute ago, warlock said:

Game's too easy 

Ironically, we've lost both of our league games so far, although to be fair, they were against Sunderland and Ipswich.

I've got Man Utd at home in the cup next, so I think the fairy-tale run will well and truly end there!

[Jogo Bonito]

1 minute ago, smplfc123 said:

Ironically, we've lost both of our league games so far, although to be fair, they were against Sunderland and Ipswich.

I've got Man Utd at home in the cup next, so I think the fairy-tale run will well and truly end there!

Strange contrasts between league and cup then.

You're right, it may only be 1-0 or 2-0 to Rovers 

[warlock]

3 minutes ago, smplfc123 said:

Ironically, we've lost both of our league games

Funny game, football. Logic does not apply 

[warlock]

Peterborough, May 2021

Amazing what a good manager can accomplish 

We've been bouncing between various 442-ish shapes, depending on who was injured, but I think the 4411 will be our settled system to get the best out of AMC Sammy Smodics, while offering a bit more defensive solidity than the 4231. And after that run of form we've achieved what seemed unthinkable when I took over:

Posh are in the playoffs 

We were speaking about the lack of logic in the game... In the derby match against Northampton, at home, we were a complete shambles and 0-3 down with barely 30 minutes played. We followed that with four wins in a row, scoring 15 goals and conceding only 4. When we went to Charlton they were top of the table and our victory there handed the title to Ipswich.

We're up against Oxford in the playoffs, and we lost home and away to them this season; we're second in the form table with Oxford 3rd; and they're undefeated in 16 games. I'm expecting another season in L1 

[hasdgfas]

Hey folks!

Sorry about the month-long disappearance, but real life happens sometimes. Coming back with some Blyth updates soon, now that we're in the Championship. It is a...I can't actually say "rebuilding year" the season we go up to the Championship, but "building year" seems appropriate. Had a lot of players who were nowhere near good enough for our level and had to let them go and replace them. And with this being like a dozen+ players it's kind of exhausting.

 

But I'm spending some amount of the money I acquired through youth player sales. With an 11 million pound balance in the Championship, I should be ok as long as I don't go too crazy. And I don't intend to go too crazy. I'm assuming I'm going right back down to League One after a season, and maybe the rep increase will let me broaden my player horizons moving forward.

[warlock]

Well, I was wrong...

We battered Oxford in the home leg but couldn't find a way past their keeper. The away tie wasn't even a contest - we got off to a flying start and never let up. Similar story in the final as Joe Ward was scythed down in the penalty area and JCH give us another early lead from the spot kick; Donny had a couple of goals ruled out for offside and we ended up with a comfortable win. (Tactical tip: "Run at defence" has won us a lot of penalties as defenders panicked against our wingers and attacking fullbacks.)

We led the division for goals scored, and JCH was top scorer with 24. We were 2nd best for possession, although only 4th for passes completed. We were less impressive defensively, 14th for goals conceded and only 15th for clean sheets with 11 for the season. Defence and GK will be key areas for improvement in the summer.

The board have given me a generous transfer budget of £4m (although some of that will have to go towards wages), and key players like JCH, Siriki Dembele, Szmodics and RJJ are tied to long-term contracts. Many of the rest I'll be happy to keep as backups but I'd hope to find better first-choice players in a lot of positions.

[warlock]

4 minutes ago, hasdgfas said:

real life happens sometimes

Indeed it does! Welcome back, and will look forward to hearing about Blyth in the Championship 

[dastrokes88]

@warlock Nice job getting the promotion, what a turnaround, the league position trend is beautiful 

[Jogo Bonito]

Great job @warlock

I saw the PO places were not far away when you posted your first update, but didn't want to jinx it for you. Well done indeed, that must have been great fun. And you'll be better placed than Ipswich when you got them up. Which means after promotion next year....

 

[warlock]

6 minutes ago, Jogo Bonito said:

Great job

Cheers mate 

[hasdgfas]

Ah, the perils of a newly-promoted team:

 

Here's me spending 53k per week, meanwhile, West Brom spent 71M on transfers this window.

[oakesypvfc]

Congrats on the promotion @warlockBest of luck building for the championship, horrible league 😂

Welcome back @hasdgfas, look forward to your Blyth updates! 

[hasdgfas]

About a third of the way through the season and...maybe I should stop doubting my team:

Just lost to Shrewsbury to stop a 9 game unbeaten run, but this is massive success. 9th place(although yes, it's the Championship, it's really tight top to bottom. We're 4 points off second and also 4 points from 14th), Carabao Cup quarterfinals, and I'm feeling good about the direction of the season. I can't go on a massive winless run here, but I don't really expect to with how we've played so far this season.

[oakesypvfc]

That's a cracking start, looking like a real good foundation for you to build on for championship life! 

[smplfc123]

Congratulations on the promotion @warlock! Be interesting to see what you do in the summer, although from the outside looking in you seem to have a few players there that should be able to cope in The Championship. Where did Bristol Rovers finish on your save?

[warlock]

26 minutes ago, smplfc123 said:

Congratulations on the promotion

Thanks! You're right - there's quite a few players who can probably make the step up, probably a bit better than half the first-choice 11. Many of the rest are probably OK for backup/rotation roles. Which is just as well because it's proving to be a real struggle to find or attract anyone better. My shopping list includes a backup GK, better rotation options at both fullback positions, decent cover for Dembele on the left-wing, and hopefully a better first-choice right-winger (Joe Ward and Idris Kanu are OK but neither have done enough to nail down the starter position). I also have questions about Louis Reed in central midfield - lots of potential but is taking a worrying length of time to show actual improvements.

I think we'll have enough about us to avoid the relegation battle everyone expects.

As for Rovers, they narrowly avoided relegation and finished in 19th place - I have no doubt you'll do much better than that 

[hasdgfas]

Excuse me? 3 matches in 4 days?

[warlock]

23 minutes ago, hasdgfas said:

3 matches in 4 days?

Twas Christmas week in the workhouse...  I had 4 games in a week once, but I don't think i've ever seeen matches on consecutive days before.

[hasdgfas]

Late January, about two-thirds of the way through the season, and yes, we did hit our expected rough patch:

Down to 13th and out of both cups. But honestly? 13th is great. We're still 15 points clear of the relegation zone, which is further away than we are from the playoffs, which we're 9 points away from. Hopefully we can keep this up and end comfortably mid-table. I'd snap that off if you offered it to me at the beginning of the season. I would now too, honestly.

 

We did get to face our old star youth prospect Mustafa Eroglu in the Carabao Cup. Man City threw him on for a half-our against us in the 7-0 drubbing. It was nice to see him again.

[Welshace]

Anybody happen to know off hand what teams in the leagues have the best budgets? i'm looking for teams other than Norwich that I can build a team from basically scratch.... it might include teams that have plenty of saleable assets to increase my budget or whatever..

[warlock]

45 minutes ago, Welshace said:

what teams in the leagues have the best budgets?

I haven't looked at all of them but, assuming that the Championship clubs are likely to have the most money, I think Norwich has the biggest budget at £5m, but excluding them Brentford with £3m and Forest with £2.5m are next in line.

Edit: In case you were wondering, Bournemouth and Watford start with nothing.

Edited March 30, 2021 by warlock

[Welshace]

17 minutes ago, warlock said:

I haven't looked at all of them but, assuming that the Championship clubs are likely to have the most money, I think Norwich has the biggest budget at £5m, but excluding them Brentford with £3m and Forest with £2.5m are next in line.

Edit: In case you were wondering, Bournemouth and Watford start with nothing.

Forest is an interesting prospect.. not too interested in Norwich or Brentford given they already have close to Prem standard squads already imo, so an overhaul would be superfluous....

 

Bournemouth might be feasible given the saleable assets there ... 

Any league one sides with decent budgets?

 

(Appreciate the reply btw)

[warlock]

6 minutes ago, Welshace said:

Any league one sides

Well, by L1 standards  Charlton, Peterborough and Sunderland have £200k, which are the biggest. Portsmouth have £100k, I don't think there's much below that.