FM2011 - Olympic Games

So it's the 3rd season, you have sorted out your first team squad for the beginning of the season. First game approaches, you're all excited to unleash some new, young, exciting players.....

Then you go to the squad screen and find more than half of the team is away on international duty and you have to fill in with either reserves or U18s, oh except you can't because the U18s played earlier that day and are ineligible.

I hope it's been addressed for the next version of the game, I really doubt the beginning of the football season clashes with the Olympic Games football competition next summer.

I'm guessing with you being in Canada you wont have read the papers over here regarding that, what your describing is exactly what is worrying the british club managers at the moment. There is also a chance a few games in Scotland will not go ahead during the common wealth games because of the rules attached.

I've just moved here from London 2 months ago.

I know it's a been a worry for a while, I wasn't aware of any proposed solution. I can't imagine they would let it go ahead as is, there would be some shifting around of the calendar like when a World Cup is approaching.

Who gives way, the Olympics, arguably the biggest sporting event in the world or the EPL arguably the biggest domestic club footballing competition in the world? I think thats the big issue to be sorted out. Remember the last olympics with the fuss Barca kicked up over Messi going to play and missing some of their games? It does happen, but in your situation i would image a the game would be moved because of the number of players you have lost, FM doesnt seem to move matches when you lose players for anything other than full internationals, thats perhaps what SI could look at for future versions.

It'll be the EPL because the Olympics is a one off event involving players from all over, not just the one league.

But yes, the game should be moved if you cannot field a full team. I was ok, just about, this time. Fielded Gallas and King (both retiring shortly) and only named 5 subs.

But the EPL is worth hundreds of millions of pounds, especially with Sky and ESPN both paying massive sums of money for TV rights, will they be happy not having games shown when they should to make way for the Olympics? It will be interesting to see what eventually happens, your most likely right the EPL will either shift start date for a season or teams will have to do without players but its going to be a battle whatever happens. Remember we dont usually deal with this as we never enter football teams into the Olympics, for some odd reason the OC seem to think we must have one this time because its in Britain........

Most Premier League clubs won't be affected. The players who go away are largely all U-23, and anyone over 23 can be withdrawn by their club manager. How many Premier League sides actually do have a side predominantly composed of U-23 players?

Most Premier League clubs won't be affected. The players who go away are largely all U-23, and anyone over 23 can be withdrawn by their club manager. How many Premier League sides actually do have a side predominantly composed of U-23 players?

Man Utd on Monday

Even then, the only players who Man Utd could do nothing about are De Gea, Jones, Smalling, Cleverley and Welbeck. Jones and Smalling arguably only played because of injuries, while Cleverley and Welbeck can be replaced by very decent more experienced players. IIRC, the ruling is that both sides must agree to a match postponement in the case of international call-ups.

So it's the 3rd season, you have sorted out your first team squad for the beginning of the season. First game approaches, you're all excited to unleash some new, young, exciting players.....

Then you go to the squad screen and find more than half of the team is away on international duty and you have to fill in with either reserves or U18s, oh except you can't because the U18s played earlier that day and are ineligible.

I hope it's been addressed for the next version of the game, I really doubt the beginning of the football season clashes with the Olympic Games football competition next summer.

To be honest, you should have thought of that before it happened. The date of the competition is visible well before it starts, the squads for each nation are available to view well before the tournament starts, and this would have allowed you to have planned for it. Either by brining in a few players that wouldn't be away, keeping a few players on for another few months before selling them, or just sucking it up and accepting that **** happens sometimes in football.

The problem you've got of having players away for the Olympics is a problem that teams all around the world will have next season due to the timing of the Olympics.

The calendar wasn't changed for the last Olympics, and I don't remember a delay for the 2004 ones either.

To be honest, you should have thought of that before it happened. The date of the competition is visible well before it starts, the squads for each nation are available to view well before the tournament starts, and this would have allowed you to have planned for it. Either by brining in a few players that wouldn't be away, keeping a few players on for another few months before selling them, or just sucking it up and accepting that **** happens sometimes in football.

The problem you've got of having players away for the Olympics is a problem that teams all around the world will have next season due to the timing of the Olympics.

Think you have the wrong end of the stick here. I am not moaning about my personal scenario, I won whichever game it was and am now in the 4th season anyway so it doesn't matter to me.

It's the concept. It will be an issue to everyone using FM2010 or FM2011, more so in FM2012 because it will be closer but maybe a decision will have already been made on what will actually happen - either by the first version of the game or a subsequent patch. Or if not, maybe SI can adjust the calendar to either have the Olympics earlier or some of the earlier seasons starting later.

The game doesn't change fixtures if you can't field a team. You have a team of greys and that's ok, should it be? Not so sure. Not talking about if they are all suspended, but on international duty somewhere. IRL you see U18 players put on the bench the next day for the full side, you see U21 players called up to both international squads (usually, in fairness, when someone else has been injured at short notice), and on these boards you see people talking about a fixture congestion where there are 2 games in 2 days. It will be an issue for some of the AI teams as well.

Perhaps it should be fixed.. that's all. Maybe easier, in this particular instance, when a decision has been made regarding the Olympic tournament.

Ah, i've just read that the olympic football is scheduled for 25 July - 11 August. The first game of my season that year was 18 August, the first league game was also before the Community Shield.

Who gives way, the Olympics, arguably the biggest sporting event in the world or the EPL arguably the biggest domestic club footballing competition in the world? I think thats the big issue to be sorted out. Remember the last olympics with the fuss Barca kicked up over Messi going to play and missing some of their games? It does happen, but in your situation i would image a the game would be moved because of the number of players you have lost, FM doesnt seem to move matches when you lose players for anything other than full internationals, thats perhaps what SI could look at for future versions.

It also moves them for U21 matches. (well, in FM10 it does)