FM21: The English Football League thread

[Ronaldo Beckham]

1 hour ago, karanhsingh said:

 @Ronaldo Beckham I feel like you are either doing youth only or changing half the squad each summer - there is no in between!

I'd have powered through - you should get a skin with the IR button - useful for the final few games when things are pretty much decided.

I just like to keep you all on your toes lol. 

8 hours ago, warlock said:

Well, I'm thinking 442 with Bowman as TM and Ajose as a poacher in a first-choice strike partnership. All part of the fun.

But I really need to call it a night... got a plumber coming round in the morning - 8am to 11am window, which means he'll probably arrive at 10.50am but I need to be up at 7.50am just in case 

Ben Seymour done well for me in my recent Exeter save. Ajose is decent as back up as well.

[Ronaldo Beckham]

Bristol City Season 1 Review Part 1

Impact Of New Arrivals

Stand out players signed were Ronaldo Damus, Christian Ramirez, Maximillano Urruti, Elias Abouchbaka and on loan players Taylor Harwood-Bellis.

Competitions

I ended the season 8th in the league which was pretty good. I was just 3 points away from the Playoffs. I got plenty of room to improve and build on.

Antoine Semenyo was my overal best player with 16 goals scored for the season. Definitely a player I want to build my team around if I can keep him.

Antoine Semenyo

My Overall Best 11

 

 

 

[Ronaldo Beckham]

Bristol City Season 1 Review Part 2

The Accolades

I got just over £4m to spend on players for next season. I got a few in mind to help improve the squad.

I managed to improve my transfer budget by cashing on a clause from the Lloyd Kelly transfer.

This all depends on if I keep my job as I failed to make the Play Offs so I will see what happens.

I have managed to convince the board to improve the Training and Youth facilities.

 

 

[BCFC_Mike]

Back at work a bit more lately so progress is a bit slow - However just coming to the end of the transfer window back in the premier league - I feel confident enough we can stay up this time. I've decided to actually spend some bank this time (Last season we spent 15 million on new signings, receiving 55million on outgoing players.) 

Most noticeable signed;

 

 

Signings Overview

 

State of current squad. Tactic shown is used when underdogs, so most of the time. 

 

Can't complain with how we've started the season - our star striker Ovando was ruled out earlier so missed the openers. But Marcus Forss has stepped in well from the wing as temporary cover. 

 

(Sorry about all the edits, post was originally a mess. Can convert back to spoilers if anyone has any complaints)

Edited December 23, 2020 by BCFC_Mike

[warlock]

14 hours ago, Ronaldo Beckham said:

This all depends on if I keep my job as I failed to make the Play Offs

Sacking would be harsh, I think, but some boards are less patient than others. Hope you've got a good one!

5 hours ago, BCFC_Mike said:

Can't complain with how we've started the season

An away draw at Arsenal was a good start, and no shame in losses to Liverpool and Leicester. Onwards and upwards 

[BCFC_Mike]

18 hours ago, Ronaldo Beckham said:

Bristol City Season 1 Review Part 1

Antoine Semenyo was my overal best player with 16 goals scored for the season. Definitely a player I want to build my team around if I can keep him.

Antoine Semenyo

Things you like to see. Glad hes done well for you and developing, didn't give the lad anywhere near enough chances in my first season 😔

[Ronaldo Beckham]

Just now, BCFC_Mike said:

Things you like to see. Glad hes done well for you and developing, didn't give the lad anywhere near enough chances in my first season 😔

Semenyo was injured a bit and I rotate a bit to help with fitness.

He is doing better this season with 9 goals in 12 games. He is my main guy up front. He has healthy competition as I have signed Lukas Nmecha on a free transfer and he has got 11 goals in 13 games. I also have Liam Delap on loan who has got 8 goals in 9 games and I also have Harvey Elliot on loan.

 I play with 3 strikers so I have a fair few strikers to choose from.

Here are my striker options this season lol.

 

[Ronaldo Beckham]

Bristol City Season 2 So Far

Transfers

I wont go on about all my transfers as I would have to do numerous posts and it would bore everyone. Here is an overview of my highest paid transfers in and out.

Here are some of the players coming in I am mostly excited about.

Przemyslaw Wisniewski - 23 year old Polish Central Defender - £2.7m from Gornik Zabzre

Noah Powder - 22 year Trinbagonian International Left Back - £375k from Real Salt Lake

Alexander Alvarado - 22 year old Ecuadorian International Winger

Lukas Nmecha - 22 year old German Striker - Signed on a Free transfer - A Goal Machine so far with 11 goals in 13 games

Matias Moya - 23 year old Argentinian Attacking Midfielder - Signed on a free tranfer from River Plate

Josh Knight - 24 year English Centre Back - Signed on a free transfer from Leicester

I have signed a few American and Canadian players but sent them out on loan. I will post on here if any of them do well on loan.

My aim is to have a mix of English, American, Canadian players mixed with good loan signings. I want to try make profit off players and that is the reason why I have signed players like Lukas Nmecha to eventually sell for profit. Nmecha's value is already £12.5m. 

Competitions Progress

After 15 games played in the league I am currently top with 31 points, 3 points ahead of 2nd place Norwich. I also through to the 4th round of the Carabao Cup and have Preston in the 4th round.

[Jogo Bonito]

@Ronaldo Beckhamand @BCFC_Mike good work with Bristol City.

Well it's fair to say that the opening game in April didn't go well as Bristol Rovers won 3-0 and deservedly retained the EFL Trophy in the Final at Wembley

However my team bounced back at Port Vale, with a 3-0 triumph on the road clinching promotion to League 1

And next time out, promotion-chasing Plymouth were edged out with a 1-0 win to lift the League 2 title

The remaining three games were played out under no pressure, but Elijah Adebayo continued to justify the small fee I paid for him at the end of January

And here is the end of season review

The performance graph shows near-domination with the majority of the season seeing my side in top spot

Sam Winnall ended with 29 goals in all competitions, but as he had 26 of those by Boxing Day it could have been so much better

Left wing-back Thomas O'Connor won the fans player of the year award, it was just a shame that a serious injury curtailed his season on 9th March

One hard-earned point at Scunthorpe on the final day of the season saw the 100 point target achieved right at the death

In the end, I fell short of 100 goals with 94 being recorded in 46 league games

Here are the player stats across all competitions - not including Matty Taylor who had scored 18 and assisted 12 from his 38 games before leaving for good in January

A special mention to Adebayo (the only player I paid a fee for) who scored 10 goals for me in his 14 league games

Combining that with his good form at Walsall before the transfer to Oxford, he ended up as League 2 leading scorer with 27 goals in 32 (7) league appearances 

My parting gift to Oxford (not that I will continue this BETA save) are the free transfer signings of two youngsters released by Premier League clubs

Thanks for reading this one-season tale of my time at Kassam Stadium

[collisonmullan]

So unfortunately my Reading save will no longer load up. Which means I am having to start over. 
 

It has however given me an idea. I had begun to sign former Reading players or former academy players. 
 

So with the new save I am going to essentially be doing a youth only challenge but with a twist. I can only sign former club/academy players. 
 

This also gives me the chance to offer a new contract to Olise and get rid of the £8million clause. 
 

Going into the save these are the former players I will be able to sign at some point that will improve the squad. Ranked from realistic to a few years time. 
 

Jake Cooper

Danny Loader

Jack Stacey

Shane Long

Alex McCarthy

Gylfi Sigurdsson 

Bynoe-Gittens

 

Realistically, it will be about keeping hold of the best academy products such as Olise and important current squad members such as Swift. I think once I do make the Premier League it will be interesting to see how long it takes for me and players to progress quick enough to compete for a European spot. 
 

 

[Ronaldo Beckham]

37 minutes ago, Jogo Bonito said:

@Ronaldo Beckhamand @BCFC_Mike good work with Bristol City.

Well it's fair to say that the opening game in April didn't go well as Bristol Rovers won 3-0 and deservedly retained the EFL Trophy in the Final at Wembley

However my team bounced back at Port Vale, with a 3-0 triumph on the road clinching promotion to League 1

And next time out, promotion-chasing Plymouth were edged out with a 1-0 win to lift the League 2 title

The remaining three games were played out under no pressure, but Elijah Adebayo continued to justify the small fee I paid for him at the end of January

And here is the end of season review

The performance graph shows near-domination with the majority of the season seeing my side in top spot

Sam Winnall ended with 29 goals in all competitions, but as he had 26 of those by Boxing Day it could have been so much better

Left wing-back Thomas O'Connor won the fans player of the year award, it was just a shame that a serious injury curtailed his season on 9th March

One hard-earned point at Scunthorpe on the final day of the season saw the 100 point target achieved right at the death

In the end, I fell short of 100 goals with 94 being recorded in 46 league games

Here are the player stats across all competitions - not including Matty Taylor who had scored 18 and assisted 12 from his 38 games before leaving for good in January

A special mention to Adebayo (the only player I paid a fee for) who scored 10 goals for me in his 14 league games

Combining that with his good form at Walsall before the transfer to Oxford, he ended up as League 2 leading scorer with 27 goals in 32 (7) league appearances 

My parting gift to Oxford (not that I will continue this BETA save) are the free transfer signings of two youngsters released by Premier League clubs

Thanks for reading this one-season tale of my time at Kassam Stadium

Your strikers know how to bang the goals in don't they. Shame you aint carrying on with this save but I look forward to seeing who you manage next.

Awesome logos by the way @Jogo Bonito

17 minutes ago, collisonmullan said:

So unfortunately my Reading save will no longer load up. Which means I am having to start over. 
 

It has however given me an idea. I had begun to sign former Reading players or former academy players. 
 

So with the new save I am going to essentially be doing a youth only challenge but with a twist. I can only sign former club/academy players. 
 

This also gives me the chance to offer a new contract to Olise and get rid of the £8million clause. 
 

Going into the save these are the former players I will be able to sign at some point that will improve the squad. Ranked from realistic to a few years time. 
 

Jake Cooper

Danny Loader

Jack Stacey

Shane Long

Alex McCarthy

Gylfi Sigurdsson 

Bynoe-Gittens

 

Realistically, it will be about keeping hold of the best academy products such as Olise and important current squad members such as Swift. I think once I do make the Premier League it will be interesting to see how long it takes for me and players to progress quick enough to compete for a European spot. 
 

 

I look forward to seeing your 2nd save with Reading. I did a youth only save with them on FM2020 after Jogo's reccomendation and I really enjoyed it. I hope you manage to sign some of the former players. 

I did something similar with Coventry in FM2020 and I managed to sign Callum Wilson and James Maddison.

[collisonmullan]

2 hours ago, collisonmullan said:

So unfortunately my Reading save will no longer load up. Which means I am having to start over. 
 

It has however given me an idea. I had begun to sign former Reading players or former academy players. 
 

So with the new save I am going to essentially be doing a youth only challenge but with a twist. I can only sign former club/academy players. 
 

This also gives me the chance to offer a new contract to Olise and get rid of the £8million clause. 
 

Going into the save these are the former players I will be able to sign at some point that will improve the squad. Ranked from realistic to a few years time. 
 

Jake Cooper

Danny Loader

Jack Stacey

Shane Long

Alex McCarthy

Gylfi Sigurdsson 

Bynoe-Gittens

 

Realistically, it will be about keeping hold of the best academy products such as Olise and important current squad members such as Swift. I think once I do make the Premier League it will be interesting to see how long it takes for me and players to progress quick enough to compete for a European spot. 
 

 

Having started the new homegrown save I have managed to tie Olise down to a new contract which got rid of the release clause so I will at least be able to keep hold of him for now. I did sell some ‘key players’ who didn’t fit into my plans or requirements, Rafael, Meite and Jaoa. 
 

With the money from selling the above players it meant I could bring back Jake Cooper in the first window. Costing the club just under £4 million. I also signed young right back Josh Brooking from Chelsea for around 500k. He is a former academy player with great potential. 
 

With these signings and promoting a number of youngsters, it means that the squad looks like this. 
 

GK - CBC

RB - Yiadom / Brooking

CB - Moore / Holmes / Dorsett

CB - Cooper / McIntyre / Abbey 

LB - Richards / Samuels

CM - Rhinomhota / Laurent

CM - Swift / Tetek

AMR - Nevers / Sackey

AMC - Olise

AML -  Ejaria / Bristow

ST - Puscas / Melvin-Lambert

The starting XI is very good and I am really happy with how it looks  Great players all over the pitch  

In terms of cover, defensively we are sorted, good depth beyond the starting XI which I am happy with. The same can be said of the central midfield positions, the front end of the pitch is where I think we are really short.

If one of Olise, Ejaria or Puscas get injured we could really struggle going forward, so I will be trying my best to keep them as fresh and fit as possible.

Will try and post a January update tomorrow. 

[warlock]

3 hours ago, Jogo Bonito said:

One hard-earned point at Scunthorpe on the final day of the season saw the 100 point target achieved

Always good to leave on a high. Terrific season 

[Jogo Bonito]

1 hour ago, warlock said:

Always good to leave on a high. Terrific season 

Cheers, are you liking Devon?

@collisonmullan Good luck on version 2.

[collisonmullan]

12 hours ago, collisonmullan said:

Having started the new homegrown save I have managed to tie Olise down to a new contract which got rid of the release clause so I will at least be able to keep hold of him for now. I did sell some ‘key players’ who didn’t fit into my plans or requirements, Rafael, Meite and Jaoa. 
 

With the money from selling the above players it meant I could bring back Jake Cooper in the first window. Costing the club just under £4 million. I also signed young right back Josh Brooking from Chelsea for around 500k. He is a former academy player with great potential. 
 

With these signings and promoting a number of youngsters, it means that the squad looks like this. 
 

GK - CBC

RB - Yiadom / Brooking

CB - Moore / Holmes / Dorsett

CB - Cooper / McIntyre / Abbey 

LB - Richards / Samuels

CM - Rhinomhota / Laurent

CM - Swift / Tetek

AMR - Nevers / Sackey

AMC - Olise

AML -  Ejaria / Bristow

ST - Puscas / Melvin-Lambert

The starting XI is very good and I am really happy with how it looks  Great players all over the pitch  

In terms of cover, defensively we are sorted, good depth beyond the starting XI which I am happy with. The same can be said of the central midfield positions, the front end of the pitch is where I think we are really short.

If one of Olise, Ejaria or Puscas get injured we could really struggle going forward, so I will be trying my best to keep them as fresh and fit as possible.

Will try and post a January update tomorrow. 

 

Reading FC 2020/21

January Update

Considering I thought it would be difficult to replicate how well I done in my previous save which I lost. I have been pleasantly surprised and would say we have done even better. Straight away the first thing to mention is that my decision to sell Jaoa and focus on Puscas has been rewarded as he has been in great form. The other special mention has to go to Michael Olise, having managed to sign him down to a new contract I have built the team around him really and he has provided the goods.

We find ourselves top of the league at January, lots of football still to be played but having only lost 1 game, with a rotated team against QPR, I cannot see us dropping unless something seriously goes wrong. I think it is testament to how well the season is going that we are the competitions top goalscorers and also have the best defence, this is just the perfect recipe for success. At the halfway point of the season we sit on 54 points, if we can replicate our form in the second half of the season we will be on course to beat our own record of 106 points.

George Puscas has managed 21 goals in 26 games, 18 of those in the league and he has spearheaded our attack and has been a key reason we sit top of the league. Puscas has been lethal infront of goal, he is currently wanted by Bournemouth, but I am not concerned about losing him to them.

The young frenchman has been ridiculous. From the attacking midfield position he has managed 16 goals and 7 assists in 25 games in all competitions which is just incredible at any level. He is currently wanted by PSG, however he doesn't seem to be forcing anything which is good. I might have to offer him another new deal to deter the interest.

Special mentions have to go to CBC who has kept 12 clean sheets in 23 league games, Jake Cooper who has contributed to this great defence as well as popping up with 3 goals. Finally, John Swift who has managed 4 goals and 8 assists as the clubs new Vice-Captain.

As well as we have been doing, my biggest concern has been an injury to any of the attacking players, as the only cover we have is youngsters. So I managed to arrange for Danny Loader to return to Reading on a loan until the end of the season, and I have even managed to put in a future fee of £3.88 million. He currently wouldn't be interested in joining, however I am sure if we get promoted he will be happy to return. I am very happy to have been able to sign another former Reading player as well as adding to a weaker area of the squad. 

 

So going into the second half of the season the squad now looks a bit thicker, and with a number of the youngsters improving we are in good shape. I have also recalled Sam Smith back from his loan as I think he is a good option upfront for us.

 

Squad

GK - CBC / Southwood

RB - Yiadom / Brooking.          CB - Moore / Holmes / Dorsett                      CB - Cooper / McIntyre / Abbey               LB - Richards / Samuels

CM - Rhinomhota / Laurent                                    CM - Swift / Tetek

AMR - Nevers / Sackey                                                                             AMC - Olise                                                             AML -  Ejaria / Loader / Bristow

ST - Puscas / Smith / Melvin-Lambert

 

The youth recruitment this year isn't looking like much will come from it. So I am not expecting to have anyone to add to this squad from within. If the season continues as it has been, I will be looking to add Jack Stacey from Bournemouth, I could potentially get him now, but he wants way too much in wages, so hopefully if we get promoted he may reduce his demands as he will have more interest in joining. I would like to add Shane Long and Alex McCarthy but with both being in their 30's and both earning over 50k a week, I don't see the board being very happy with those deals.

 

Ones to Watch 

Thierry Nevers has benefited from the lack of depth in the attacking positions. He has been my starting AMR and has played well considering his age and is really developing well. 

Dejan Tetek, who is British-Serbian is currently tipped to be the next Paul Ince. He has not long turned 18 and is getting plenty of game time both starting and coming off the bench. He is really starting to look like he will be an important player in a season or 2. He is very well-rounded and can cover all centre midfield roles. He does strike me as an old school centre midfielder who can do everything and really get around the pitch and affect the game in both boxes.

 

Edited December 24, 2020 by collisonmullan
mistake

[Cooke]

I will keep it rather short and simple: There is an awesome story behind this pic. If you take a look at the screenshot it looks like a normal promotion but it was everything but that. I want you to focus for a moment on the club who is sitting 3rd, Southampton (AI). We both just had the most awesome run ever. The thing you need to know is that I took over QPR after 19 matches played on the 22nd place with 20 points. In this very moment Southampton, coached by Van Bommel, did not much better only a few places above us with 27 points. My aim was just to avoid relegation and stabilize the team. However, I was just coming from an unbeaten run in the Norwegian Premier Division with Viking Stavanger. This one was already a surprise to me since I do all my tactics myself and by now never found one that works so great. Hence I decided to implementate this tactic with QPR too, especially since the squad was a decent fit for it. Success soon came up at QPR too and I was slowly but steadily crawling up the table towards those playoff places. Needless to say I meanwhile had the ambition to reach those at the end of the season. Except for one really devastating performance in which we lost hopelessly 0-5 to Watford I only lost in the FA Cup against Hull (more or less intentional, complete rotation). Just a few games before the end of the season I finally found myself sitting at 2nd with Southampton, Middlesborough and Crystal Palace chasing me. Yeah, you heard right, Southampton also worked its way up the table, actually these ****ers did not lose one single league game since November, including a 2-2 against me in December. They only drew a little more often than I did but else they were completely flawless. The last few match days were very tedious with no team doing any missstep. Therefore at the last match day actually all four teams had the chance to finish 2nd. And guess what the last fixture for me was? Southampton - Queens Park Rangers. The maths were easy on this one: If we drew or if I won I was safe second, if we lost I had to play in the playoffs. So the two seemingly invincible teams went into one last battle against each other and this was just awesome, a hell of a game with many chances on both sides. We were two times in front but they would come back any time. The last minuites I was just praying we could get away with the draw. And after an (from my perspective) unreasonable long additional time we finally did it, 2-2 and promotion! This journey gave me such chills. I really hope that Southampton wins in the playoffs now, I wanna battle on with them in the Premier League. Have a nice Christmas everyone!

[Jogo Bonito]

@Cooke Great story, an epic run and a fantastic clash with Southampton to round it off. 

Happy Xmas to all.

[warlock]

Just popped in for a flying visit, so Merry Christmas everyone. See you on the other side 

[Ronaldo Beckham]

First of all Merry Xmas everyone.

So I am playing my Bristol City save while I wait for my family to get ready and I am finishing up the season and here are a few possible scenarios to what might happen.

1.) Promotion to the Prem through the Play Offs and also Europa League football due to my FA Cup victory over Leicester.

2.) No promotion but I get Europa League football even as a Championship team.

3.) Promotion to the Prem but no Europa League football.

4.) No promotion, no FA Cup victory.

Let's hope scenario 4 doesn't happen.

Here is the league table before the Play Offs

I don't fancy my chances of getting promoted after my terrible form in April.

I got Brentford in the Play Off Semi's

I will keep you all posted and do a season review later.

[Ronaldo Beckham]

The first Play Off Semi ends 0-0 which I am happy with. I just hope I can push on in the home leg of the Semis.

[Ronaldo Beckham]

I beat Brentford 3-0 in the 2nd leg. I am happy as I am going to Wembley twice now.

I got Cardiff in the Playoff Final.

I got Leicester in the FA Cup final first.

Wish me luck.

[Ronaldo Beckham]

I only gone and won the FA Cup with a Championship team and without cheating as well.

It was a nervy game as I was 3-0 up and then Leicester got 2 goals but luckily it ended 3-2.

I swear there was a team in the Championship that won the League Cup or FA Cup before but I can't think who. I got Birmingham or Wigan in my head. If anyone wants to clarify it then please say.

European Football beckons for Bristol City.

Imagine if I won the Europa League while still in the Championship.

Has there ever been a English Championship team that played Champions League football lol.

Next stop is Wembley again for the Play Off Final.

 

[Ronaldo Beckham]

Well this is just bulls..t all cos I didn't play a few youth players. I didn't even get to play the Play Off Final.

This needs to be sorted as it is runing the game for me.

I win them the FA Cup. Get them in the Play Off Final and yet they sack me.

I am leaving English saves for a bit. I am going to start a save with Rapid Wien and Austria national team manager cos of Yusuf Demir who is highly rated and I want to try build a team around him or at least sell him for big money to re-invest. 

I will come back to the English Leagues at some point.

Edited December 25, 2020 by Ronaldo Beckham

[Jogo Bonito]

@Ronaldo BeckhamThat really is unbelievable on two sides. Firstly, you had a fantastic season winning the FA Cup and reaching the PO Final too.  But unbelievable in a bad way due to the sacking! That is absolutely bonkers and must be in need of a re-set by the makers? It can't be working like that intentionally even if the club vision says to do it.

Edited December 25, 2020 by Jogo Bonito

[Ronaldo Beckham]

20 minutes ago, Jogo Bonito said:

@Ronaldo BeckhamThat really is unbelievable on two sides. Firstly, you had a fantastic season winning the FA Cup and reaching the PO Final too.  But unbelievable in a bad way due to the sacking! That is absolutely bonkers and must be in need of a re-set by the makers? It can't be working like that intentionally even if the club vision says to do it.

Yeah it is my fault as I asked them to improve the youth recruitment and they said they would if I gave the youngsters some game time and I did play them in a few cup and league games but I didn't realize it would be added to my club objectives and that I would get sacked if I did. 

I am honestly gutted as I was really enjoying the save. I could of retired the manager and just added a new manager and kept going but it just felt tarnished and decided to leave it.

[BCFC_Mike]

Just spotted this
; 

Made Max O'Leary available for the U23's (He's my 3rd choice GK), the U23's manager only went and played him outfield...

[causticgrip]

Finished my 3rd season (2nd in the PL) with Bournemouth and it was a tough one. Massive fixture congestion because of the 2022 WC and advancing in cup competitions and my small young ended up limping over the line. I don't think one of the recent updates helped either, started really struggling with my existing tactic and then trying to adapt it...

(Brewster was appearing on the previous seasons transfer section for some reason)

Spent big for the first time, paying a premium for young English talent. Apart from Brewster who luckily was transfer listed. Quite pleased to sell Karius for 17m, seeing as he was a free transfer and getting in Ramsdale who is England's No.1 was fantastic.

All but 3 players are British. Start of the season average age of the squad was 24, oldest first team player Lerma at 27 and only one over 30 in the squad (Milner) 2nd lowest wage budget in the league too.

Impressed with Armstrong tbh- he got injured and didn't figure much last season but scored lots of important goals this time. Solanke did really well too. Also, I really need to figure out a way to score from set pieces...

Did noticeably worse in the league this year, dropping 3 places, loads of points and a much worse GD. As I said before, fixture congestion did me in. Europa League quarters is a decent achievement I think, did beat a strong Inter team along the way. 

My first trophy! Not the easiest path to the final and I beat a ridiculous Liverpool side with the likes of Lautaro Martinez, Odegaard, Szoboszlai and Skriniar added to their already stacked team.  Armstrong scored on the counter and then I closed shop. Did actually beat them home and away in the league too so its not the biggest of shocks but still, was a definite underdog! 

Aims for next season are to qualify for the CL and try to win at least 1 trophy again. I'm gonna have a good transfer budget and as there are a couple of players I can shift for some good money, I should be in the position to bring in some top English players and also get in a few of the youngsters in that i've missed out on so far.

Edited December 26, 2020 by causticgrip

[Plainlayzee]

Santa delivered the goods and I've got the game installed and ready to go. 

Struggling to pick a team to start as so might start it up in December (using the brazillian leagues) and pick a team in relegation trouble to start myself off. 

Saw about the sacking from Bristol, surely that's a bug? Seem's very harsh/bizarre 

[Jogo Bonito]

44 minutes ago, Plainlayzee said:

Santa delivered the goods and I've got the game installed and ready to go. 

Struggling to pick a team to start as so might start it up in December (using the brazillian leagues) and pick a team in relegation trouble to start myself off. 

Saw about the sacking from Bristol, surely that's a bug? Seem's very harsh/bizarre 

Great news, well done Santa.

Obviously the calendar is all messed up now (can't remember why that is ) but it used to be possible to start in January by loading Ireland too. I thought you fancied Tranmere?

Anyway, I'm trying to sort out my first save on the full game after two seasons on the BETA. Looking at a few clubs in each of the leagues, but I think I'm going to start in League 2 (with a couple of changes to data and some additional rules in place). Last time I heard, @warlock was also going to try League 2 but he may have changed his mind. 

[Plainlayzee]

League two is my plan too, Tranmere, Salford, someone like that I think. 

Although I have just started it in December and got Ipswich doing dreadful in League one so that's a bit tempting. 

When you say changes and additional rules? 

[Jogo Bonito]

24 minutes ago, Plainlayzee said:

League two is my plan too, Tranmere, Salford, someone like that I think. 

Although I have just started it in December and got Ipswich doing dreadful in League one so that's a bit tempting. 

When you say changes and additional rules? 

Ipswich in trouble would be a good one. I managed them in FM20 for 1.5 seasons before killing my laptop. If it wasn't for the fact they have virtually the same players (which makes it boring for me) I'd definitely manage that club again.

In FM20, I dabbled a bit with Create A Club mode to try and just get rid of some players I didn't want at my clubs (rarely added players). This year I have dabbled a bit with the pre-game editor - PGE - again mainly for the same reasons and not to make the club overpowered. I've done that with my likely League 2 club in order to terminate all the loans, release a few players and put a few club legends and icons back in the staff. I'm such a slow player that I just like starting with something that I don't have to 'endure' for a season.

Extra rules are things I will make myself adhere to. Like only signing player who played for a club in the region or were born there. And prevent myself from paying any transfer fees. No parent club etc.

I did also have a lower Championship club in mind and wanted to start them on -12 points but I don't understand the PGE enough to do that. I could put them in administration but didn't want to do that as I prefer the current owners to stay. If anybody knows how I can add a points deduction please let me know!

Edited December 27, 2020 by Jogo Bonito

[dozzie]

I've just finished my second season as Cambridge Utd following my promotion from League 2 and I'm as surprised as anyone...

I really don't know how I managed to win the division. I never felt I found a settled tactic, switching from 442, to 4411, to 4231 and occasionally 532. And I didn't have a standout goalscorer either. Not like the previous season where Knibbs went crazy and got 30+. I had a great spell in November and December where I only lost one game and kept loads of clean sheets and striker Ben Worman from my youth team who never got a look in in League 2 was forced into action and hit a real hot streak. Aside from that my form seemed patchy and the wheels very nearly came off after the January transfer window when I let Guenouche and McGhee go for a combined £1m - seemed like the right thing to do. But some decent free transfer signings throughout the season kept me just about on track. Notably ex-West Ham product Tunji Akinola at CB, winger Josh Bowler, left-sided all-rounder Luke Garbutt and most importantly Daniel Grimshaw, my first choice keeper for the season and a former Man City prospect.

My most exciting signings though were loans. Rhys Williams, CB from Liverpool who finished the season with the top AVR in the league and was the rock my team was built upon (much like Malachi Walcott was in League 2 when I loaned him from Spurs.

And my top scorer for the season; Julio Vinicius, a Brazilian I miraculously loaned from Gent despite all the Brexit work permit limitations (probably because he was a regular (and top scorer) at the U20 World Cup). He never hit the heights I hoped for a truly iconic signing, but he was effective as a Second Striker and just shaded it as my top scorer for the season.

 

Onward to the Championship. Really not sure how that's going to go, my squad will need some serious work to compete.

[warlock]

36 minutes ago, Jogo Bonito said:

but he may have changed his mind.

As if. Iron-willed, I am. Steadfast. Resolute. Sometimes.

But L2 it is, with Exeter. I was going to post my usual introductory update when I reached the end of the transfer window, but I've just realised I'm already in to the middle of October. Must be having fun .

So here's where we are. Not much transfer business, partly because it's a pretty good squad and doesn't need much. But largely because I've been playing late at night over the festive period under the influence of alcohol and have struggled to make sense of a difficult squad. My best LM is also the best CM and best RM; my best RB is also my best CB, and so on. Regardless of who played where, we seemed to be short of defenders, so when Cole Dasilva offered his services he was quickly offered a trial and then a contract. By the same route, former Norwich youngster Charlie Gilmour was signed to give us some better cover in central midfield. And by the time we were getting into competitive fixtures I realised I needed better cover at RB, so Southampton's Kayne Ramsey was brought in on loan.

I had no plans to sell anyone, but star winger Randell Williams was getting a lot of attention and demanded a transfer. Eventually OGC Nice won his signature in a deal nominally worth around £1m, but only about £250k made it into my transfer budget because of a raft of stupidly generous sell-on clauses. Then MR Jake Taylor threw his toys over the Williams sale, so he was quickly shown the door.

Regardless of those little problems, we've started the season pretty well, an early exit from the League Cup at the hands of Oxford notwithstanding (and despite my best efforts, we have been unable to repeat that performance in the John Player, Johnstone's Paint or whatever the JPT is called these days).

Unbeaten in our first 5 league games and playing some nice football - an old-fashioned 442 with attacking wingers and a target man/poacher strike partnership. Nicky Ajose in the poacher role is our best player by miles - top scorer, most PoM awards, highest average rating. But I'm not sure the system gets the best out of Ryan Bowman in the TM role so I may experiment a little there.

Can only hope that goalless draw at a rubbish Southend doesn't mark a turning point.

[Jogo Bonito]

So here we go then, a first dip in to life in the full version of FM21

Snappy title right? Maybe I should make a documentary about it...

Nah, nobody would want to watch or pay for that surely. 

Anyway, in other news Roy Race is the newly-appointed manager of League 2 side Walsall Football Club

Club Information

Club Rules - Players

All existing loans have been terminated (3)

A number of unwanted players have been released on free transfers (3)

And I have added free agent Andy King (ex-Leicester) to the squad on a one-year contract only - at more than double the wage of my previous highest earner

Club Rules - Transfer Policy

No transfer fees can be paid during my time in League 2

No players can be brought in on loan during my time in League 2

No parent club affiliate link can be set up

Only players who have played for a club in the Midlands region or born in the region can be signed (in any league)

I will always work within the wage budget

Club Rules - Staff

Some changes have been made to the staff in the PGE - most notably those listed below

Ex-manager Darrell Clarke has been appointed as my Assistant Manager and Player/Coach Mat Sadler has been retired and given the job as U23 Manager

A handful of club icons, and former players have been added to the staff

Club Finances & Facilities

No changes made to the data

The transfer budget was £25k but has increased to £100k purely as a result of taking the lower competition bonus option

The wage budget is just over £27k per week which is inside the League 2 cap of £29k per week (not all of that goes in to the cap either due to existing higher contracts)

The club balance is around £600k although £1.2 million of loans remain (repayments have just started)

Edited December 28, 2020 by Jogo Bonito

[Jogo Bonito]

13 minutes ago, warlock said:

As if. Iron-willed, I am. Steadfast. Resolute. Sometimes.

But L2 it is, with Exeter. I was going to post my usual introductory update when I reached the end of the transfer window, but I've just realised I'm already in to the middle of October. Must be having fun .

Unbeaten in our first 5 league games and playing some nice football - an old-fashioned 442 with attacking wingers and a target man/poacher strike partnership. Nicky Ajose in the poacher role is our best player by miles - top scorer, most PoM awards, highest average rating. But I'm not sure the system gets the best out of Ryan Bowman in the TM role so I may experiment a little there.

Can only hope that goalless draw at a rubbish Southend doesn't mark a turning point.

Great to hear. I'm also in League 2 now. And also starting with 442.

Very nice start for you, although sorry to see you have already lost Williams and Taylor as they would have been two key components I think (IRL at least).

Any points dropped against Southend is shameful. I fear the worst 

[warlock]

Just now, Jogo Bonito said:

I'm also in League 2 now.

Yes, good luck with the Saddlers 

Just now, Jogo Bonito said:

sorry to see you have already lost Williams and Taylor

Me too! Once he'd signed the deal it became obvious why Williams was so keen to go - some muppet had promised him 40% of the fee . 

[Jogo Bonito]

2 minutes ago, warlock said:

Yes, good luck with the Saddlers 

Me too! Once he'd signed the deal it became obvious why Williams was so keen to go - some muppet had promised him 40% of the fee . 

Cheers, let the League 2 battle commence. 

Exeter are normally pretty smart on contract terms. That sounds like a muppets Xmas special...

 

Edited December 27, 2020 by Jogo Bonito

[Jogo Bonito]

So, pre-season is done and my long overdue return to 442 seems to be going OK so far

I only have three senior strikers at the club (which could be an issue with 442) but they have all grabbed some goals in pre-season

And here are the League 2 fixtures, kicking off with a nice clash on a personal level as I am hosting one of my old clubs Grimsby Town

But before that, there are two Cup games to get out of the way - one against Brentford and then the Pointless Pizza Trophy group opener 

Despite somehow reaching the final of that with Oxford during my BETA save, it's a competition in which I will be extremely determined to lose 

And here is my 21-man senior squad for the gruelling campaign ahead

There are no changes to my goalkeeping pool, but in defence I have signed left-back Sam Habergham (28) and ex-Wolves centre-back Ed Francis (20) on free transfers

In midfield I released Guthrie, Sinclair and Nolan and added the experienced former Leicester & Wales man Andy King (31) on a one year deal

King was willing to join as he didn't have to move house and wanted to play for one more season

I also signed free agents Regan Booty (22) and former Aston Villa winger Jordan Cox (21)

The strikers have not been supplemented, although I did cut short two loans in this position and I might be one man light there  

 

Edited December 28, 2020 by Jogo Bonito

[Ronaldo Beckham]

1 hour ago, Jogo Bonito said:

So here we go then, a first dip in to life in the full version of FM21

Snappy title right? Maybe I should make a documentary about it...

Nah, nobody would want to watch or pay for that surely. 

Anyway, in other news Roy Race is the newly-appointed manager of League 2 side Walsall Football Club

Club Information

Club Rules - Players

All existing loans have been terminated (3)

A number of unwanted players have been released on free transfers (3)

And I have added free agent Andy King (ex-Leicester) to the squad on a one-year contract only - at more than double the wage of my previous highest earner

Club Rules - Transfer Policy

No transfer fees can be paid during my time in League 2

No players can be brought in on loan during my time in League 2

No parent club affiliate link can be set up

Only players who have played for a club in the Midlands region or born in the region can be signed (in any league)

I will always work within the wage budget

Club Rules - Staff

Some changes have been made to the staff in the PGE - most notably those listed below

Ex-manager Darrell Clarke has been appointed as my Assistant Manager and Player/Coach Mat Sadler has been retired and given the job as U23 Manager

A handful of club icons, and former players have been added to the staff

Club Finances & Facilities

No changes made to the data

The transfer budget was £25k but has increased to £100k purely as a result of taking the lower competition bonus option

The wage budget is just over £27k per week which is inside the League 2 cap of £29k per week (not all of that goes in to the cap either due to existing higher contracts)

The club balance is around £600k although £1.2 million of loans remain (repayments have just started)

Looking forward to seeing how you do with Walsall. Walsall aint far from where I live buddy so good luck to you.

Do Walsall still have a transfer clause on Rico Henry. If Brentford sell him I think Walsall get 50%.

 

[robterrace]

So.

Had an issue with a save corruption on my Stevenage one.

Here we go.

Take 2. This time..

We've got a transfer ban until 2021, so it means that we have to make do with what we have for the first half of the season.

[dozzie]

My Championship season with Cambridge does not look promising. I had high hopes of signing up lots of great free agents dropped from Premier League clubs but no one wants to know. Chong, Gazzaniga, Ojo and many others just aren’t interested and despite good pre-season results so far (just beat most of Spurs’ first team 1-0) the season is fast approaching and I haven’t strengthened at all really. Aside from securing Rhys Williams permanently for a bargain £100k I’m struggling to find anyone of proven Championship level that’s interested. 

[Plainlayzee]

So, after started myself on December 21st (Brazil pre season), I found Oldham sitting 21st in League two, well well below their expected league position

A club that, according to another thread, haven't finished in the top half of any league for just over 10 years!!  - Talk about a tough watch. 

In real life, their controversial owner has a habit of interfering with first team affairs, hence Paul Scholes's short stint at the club recently. 

I've only just fired this up so I will update more once I properly have a look round, but overall we don't look in great shape. 4 points above the relegation zone, 14 points off the play-offs and a pretty poor playing squad, I am going to have to find a quick fix tactic that puts some points on the board, We also only 400k in the bank, with the club losing around 140k a month according to the expenditure sheet. No transfer budget, just over 1k in the wage budget, I don't think we will be able to do much in the market. 

Wish me luck, I am off for an hour of research to see what I have to work with!  

 

[Ronaldo Beckham]

So after getting over the disappointing end of my Bristol City career and having a break from the EFL I am now back and picked a team close to where I live

I also decided to be a former manager of this certain team and he is a character.

You can't keep a good man down!!!!

 

 

Edited December 28, 2020 by Ronaldo Beckham

[Dong21]

27 minutes ago, Plainlayzee said:

A club that, according to another thread, haven't finished in the top half of any league for just over 10 years!!  - Talk about a tough watch. 

Thanks for checking out my thread @Plainlayzee. I’ve certainly found the Latics a fun and interesting challenge and it will be even harder for you starting in 21st position. Good luck - I’ll be following how you get on with intrigue! 

[Jogo Bonito]

Welcome to the latest manager of Oldham (good luck) and the latest chapter of the RB merry-go-round 

Hang in there at Cambridge, you're way ahead of schedule.

And good luck at Southend, possibly the only EFL club less inspiring than Stevenage 

Edited December 28, 2020 by Jogo Bonito

[Ronaldo Beckham]

5 minutes ago, Jogo Bonito said:

Welcome to the latest manager of Oldham (good luck) and the latest chapter of the RB merry-go-round 

Lets hope I don't get sacked for winning a trophy this time lol.

[Ronaldo Beckham]

Here is the legend that is Barry Fry as an avatar lol

I am going to try manage as much as Barry Fry who loved to buy players from the English lower leagues. 

I will be selling the foreign players at Birmingham and bringing in British players from the EFL.

My aim is to buy cheap and sell high if possible. Also try bring through some young players.

I will also try bring back former Birmingham youth players like Che Adams and Jude Bellingham, Demarai Gray etc.

The players highlighted below are all for sale. Some I wont be able to move straight away as they have only just joined the club.

Edited December 28, 2020 by Ronaldo Beckham

[Ronaldo Beckham]

Well I surprised myself as I didn't think I would be able to clear many of the foreign players out of the club but I actually did very well.

Transfers Out

Lukas Jutkiewicz - £2m - Swansea

Maikel Kieftenbeld - £250k - Willem II

Jeremie Bela - £3.8m - AA Gent

Alen Halilovic - £500k - Schalke

Mikel San Jose - £4.5m - Villareal

Ivan Sanchez - £5m - Cadiz

Maxime Colin - £2.5m - Burnley

Kristian Pedersen - £3m - Frankfurt

Jon Toral - £1m - Brest

Andres Prieto - £500k - Reims

Ivan Sunjic - £1.5m - Nimes

I managed to get £23m plus from these transfers.

I will post my transfers in later.  

 

[karanhsingh]

Step away for a week and everyone is at a new club 

I just caught up with all the updates - great stuff all !! 

Shout out to @Ronaldo Beckham for the most ridiculous sacking I have possibly ever seen on FM - they need to get that fixed.

[karanhsingh]

BTW wanted to check - is anyone facing a big issue with the player ratings? I haven't played in over a week, and my friend said it was ruining the game for him.