Blackpool FC

Let's be fair here, I know Blackpool shocked everybody by making it to the Premier League, but we've been doing alot better than other clubs in Premier League and and deserve more expectation than finishing in 20th position.

I think our results this season have proven how we're not "that little one-hit-wonder that will be back in the Championship by next season".

To be fair, Blackpool has been surprising. And they have looked very good. However, if you are talking about press predictions, I'd say that 20th is accurate for start of the season. After all, what else would be expected?

They are terrible in-game though, when in reality, they are not as terrible as how they are implemented in-game.

They are terrible in-game though, when in reality, they are not as terrible as how they are implemented in-game.

Really? I've been playing as liverpool and i'm in december now and blackpool have been around 15th the whole time. Seems pretty good to me.

They seem to be pretty realistic, they get some good results, even against top sides but will then get the odd thumping, Arsenal beat them 5-0 on my save and Chelsea beat them 3-0.

Personally i'm a bit more worried that Fulham seem to be overrated but losing Hangeland to Chelsea may have something to do with that.

As a Forest fan I didn't enjoy seeing us lose in the play-offs to B'Pool last year. However, I saw Blackpool a few times last year (and a couple of times this year) and they always played very good Football and even if they went a goal down they never gave up. Hopefully they'll stay up.

Personally i'm a bit more worried that Fulham seem to be overrated but losing Hangeland to Chelsea may have something to do with that.

Fulham are 20th and Hughes is about to lose his job on my save (in November).

20th is exactly what the media expectation should be, think back to before you kicked a ball in the premier league. That is exactly what was predicted.

exactly as everyone has said, stats and predictions etc are based on before the season starts, also while blackpool are doing ok now, it is a long old season mate, for all you know blackpool amy come 20th still and the prediction will be correct

I think we should avoid getting too hasty saying Blackpool should be rated better because of their current form. I reckon at the same time last year, some might say the same thing about Hull.

Blackpool will still go down this year. After Christmas is when teams seem to kick on properly and this is when I expect Blackpool to et beaten by most teams

I may be wrong here but I think the media predictions are based on the quality of the squads and I think it is pretty hard to argue against the idea that Blackpool have the weakest squad on paper. Of course, they may well exceed that expectation (as they currently are in real life) but if I was managing them I would want to be given the credit for getting them into 15th, not just feeling I've met the expectations.

Playing as Blackpool and trying to keep wages below 10k per week is one of the challenges I am really looking forward to in this years version.

They are terrible in-game though, when in reality, they are not as terrible as how they are implemented in-game.

Player ratings are pretty subjective, but, like for like, how many Blackpool players would get into different starting XIs in the league?

I think media predictions are a function of reputation (which arguably Blackpool is the lowest in the league) and squad strength (which again, arguably the worst in the league this time round).

The media predictions before the season started were for Blackpool to finish bottom.

They are playing way above their individual levels at the moment as a unit. Maybe down to team spirit, maybe down to the motivational abilities of Ian Holloway.

I don't know how you claim you aren't a one hit wonder in the Premiership when you're exactly 1 point above a relegation place (Burnley beat Man Utd and Everton early last season and still got relegated). Joint 3rd worse goal difference in the league, haven't won a home game.

before judge defenitely a team, you have to wait until february-march. i remember in Serie A 4 years ago an incredible Catania in 20 games was 4th, at the end of the season they didn't relegate at the last game of the season.

Fulham are 20th and Hughes is about to lose his job on my save (in November).

Exactly the same with me, and Blackpool are just above them.

The topic is not about Blackpool per se, but Blackpool in the demo (and thus, in the full game). In my game they don't seem to have the spirit they've demonstrated in real life so far. I'd like to see them more competitive.

Exactly the same with me, and Blackpool are just above them.

The topic is not about Blackpool per se, but Blackpool in the demo (and thus, in the full game). In my game they don't seem to have the spirit they've demonstrated in real life so far. I'd like to see them more competitive.

How is spirit represented in Football Manager?

B'pool are currently 14th with 9 games played, it's so early to say stats should be amended either way.

Blackpool could go down the same route as Hull, good first season, bad second. Currently 19th in the Championship.

Time will tell.

How is spirit represented in Football Manager?

Could be done through how well they are blending. I would say that they would probably try and do everything in their power to stay up. Maybe how well they are blending could be they are willing to die for each other. Or maybe one below that.

Mate look at Hull in their first season they beat the Gunners & it was plain sailing till Christmas & they only just survived then by one point or GD can't remember & Burnley last season beat United & were good till about Christmas then blew up so although well done to Blackpool despite good start to the season the odds are still against them.

Hindsight is a great thing but as already stated, the stats at game start are a reflection of the real life situation back in June/July.

Blackpool were favourite to go down hence the media prediction. Same reason for Gareth Bale not being as highly rated as he currently is which many have brought up.

tbf they could still get relegated. they have had a very good start to the season, but anything could happen 20th is a realistic prediction for a newly promoted team

According to these other post blackpool seem to be playing well and staying above the relegation zone. Im sure in other game Blackpool will get relegated. This is the nature of the game. When you take charge of Blackpool, then it becomes down to you to save them, not the AI. Its a tough challenge, but its do-able. Tbh its not really a failure if you do go down, i would take it on the chin, strengthen the team etc and then try n go right back up. Blackpool (on the game) have players in the squad which arent good enough to survive consecutive seasons in the prem, therefore they are lucky if they come 15th rather than relegated, its a 50/50 chance with the AI. If you go down, this is a chance for you to bring in new faces and strengthen your squad, therefore having a better chance of survival if you get promoted again.

They are terrible in-game though, when in reality, they are not as terrible as how they are implemented in-game.

In fairness 20th is right, and they probaby are, abilty wise, the worst in the premier. What they do have is a blooming good manager who is not afraid of the big league (if only Norwich did in 2005 instead of defend for 90 mins Worthington), so in effect if you are struggling it is because Olly is a better manager than you

It's hard not to admire their self-imposed 10k p/w limit on wages for players, even if they do go down they'll be fine financially unlike some others.

Could be done through how well they are blending. I would say that they would probably try and do everything in their power to stay up. Maybe how well they are blending could be they are willing to die for each other. Or maybe one below that.

Yes, that's what I mean. Also, in FM10 it was commonly noted that Arsenal seemed to be unfeasibly good. Miles eventually acknowledged that this was because in the game Wenger used tactics that maximised the ability of his players. This was unintentional, but it shows that SI can tweak the settings to make a team play above themselves. It would also mean that if the manager or key players left, the team would fall apart, which would be pretty realistic.

According to these other post blackpool seem to be playing well and staying above the relegation zone. Im sure in other game Blackpool will get relegated. This is the nature of the game. When you take charge of Blackpool, then it becomes down to you to save them, not the AI. Its a tough challenge, but its do-able. Tbh its not really a failure if you do go down, i would take it on the chin, strengthen the team etc and then try n go right back up. Blackpool (on the game) have players in the squad which arent good enough to survive consecutive seasons in the prem, therefore they are lucky if they come 15th rather than relegated, its a 50/50 chance with the AI. If you go down, this is a chance for you to bring in new faces and strengthen your squad, therefore having a better chance of survival if you get promoted again.

well b´pool were completly devastated in my saves,

e.g. http://s7.directupload.net/file/u/29426/y6nxwoyf_jpg.htm

hence why i said in other games Blackpool will get relegated ^^^

The data is based on last year's information, so it's accurate that the press would predict them for the drop. After all, isn't that what happened in real life? Only the hardest-core Blackpool fans even dreamed they would be even close to survival. Most on telly were saying they didn't expect to stay up, but would enjoy the ride.

Also, as others have said, it isn't even Christmas yet. Remember Hull's first season? They did incredibly well for the first half of the season top half all the way to Xmas, but in the end they were incredibly lucky not to go down, surviving only on the last day.

well b´pool were completly devastated in my saves,

e.g. http://s7.directupload.net/file/u/29426/y6nxwoyf_jpg.htm

Man City!

I'll reserve judgement on whether Blackpool can stay up till the end of the season. As others have said with Hull being an example. Teams won't take Blackpool lightly in the second half of the season and with more scouting opponents will be prepared for them.

Let's be fair here, I know Blackpool shocked everybody by making it to the Premier League, but we've been doing alot better than other clubs in Premier League and and deserve more expectation than finishing in 20th position.

I think our results this season have proven how we're not "that little one-hit-wonder that will be back in the Championship by next season".

Blackpool certainly are playing well this season without doubt, but as mentioned before, the researchers didnt know this until the season actually started. As for being expected to finish 20th, well, it seems fairly logical that the team getting promoted through the playoffs would, usually, be the weakest of the promoted teams hence why they finished outside the top 2. If Blackpool shouldn't be expected to finish 20th, then who should?

Okay, I agree that the media prediction of 20th is correct. But at the same time, they are clearly better than the stats they show in-game.

Below is an example. A team like Blackpool, who are doing well in real life, shouldn't be getting only 2 draws and the rest losses.

- http://s7.directupload.net/file/u/29426/y6nxwoyf_jpg.htm

You have had a great start just like my team Hull did in the first season in the Premiership and look what happened to us that season at the end, we only just stayed up as every other team had started to suss us out. Good luck to you but I do expect you will finish just above or in the relegation zones. Looking at the table now you have played 9 and are 15th, 1 point above relegation places, 20th is an accurate position for you as you are overachieving like we did

Okay, I agree that the media prediction of 20th is correct. But at the same time, they are clearly better than the stats they show in-game.

Below is an example. A team like Blackpool, who are doing well in real life, shouldn't be getting only 2 draws and the rest losses.

- http://s7.directupload.net/file/u/29426/y6nxwoyf_jpg.htm

Man City shouldn't be in the relegation zone either

Seriously though, despite their good start, Blackpool are still 8/15 favourites to be relegated and 11/8 favourites to finish bottom. Considering the data is supposed to be accurate for the start of the season, I wouldn't really expect them to be anything but the worst team in the league.

You may find that in another game they do get a few sneaky wins that gives them a good start, on the other hand you may find they get battered from the beginning.

You can't change a whole team of players based on 9 games. Blackpool have done well but when you consider that they are 15th and only one point above the relegation zone, it says a lot about their team. As pointed out, the year Hull came up and did well for a few months is similar and we all know how that ended up - they were clearly playing above themselves.

Blackpool will finish in 20th position IRL!

You can't change a whole team of players based on 9 games. Blackpool have done well but when you consider that they are 15th and only one point above the relegation zone, it says a lot about their team. As pointed out, the year Hull came up and did well for a few months is similar and we all know how that ended up - they were clearly playing above themselves.

Well said, I totally agree. On paper, Blackpool are the worst team in the Premiership..