Promoted to Championship, Now What?

I am currently playing as Brentford and have just finished my first season. In my first season I signed one player on a free transfer but relied heavily on loans to add quality and depth to my squad. I finished 2nd and gained promotion to the Championship.

I have been given a transfer budget of 9k and have 10k of my wage budget available. I plan to take full advantage of the 4 long-term loans players you are allowed and will probably sign another 2 players on short term loans. However, in my opinion this will no suffice to keep me in the Championship.

So, my plan was to make a few signings - due to my low transfer budget I expect these all to be free transfers. I have approached a considerable amount of players with reasonable wages, however, their agents want excessive amounts and my budget just doesn't meet the requirements. Due to this I have been unable to sign anyone and make important improvements to my squad. I worry that if I cannot overcome this problem I will simply end up straight back in League 1 by the end of the season.

What would you suggest I do in this scenario?

I'd say hope for the best with loan signings and work hard with what you have already at your disposal. It will be hard but with the right tactic's, loan signings and a good squad morale you can stay up and maybe the budget will increase at the end of the season or in January if your lucky. Barring that there isn't much you can do unless you have a gem in the team which you can sell for big money that you can pump into both the wage and transfer budgets to give you a better chance.

Trawl through the free transfers released by Premier League, Championship, SPL, Scandinavian etc clubs. There will inevitably be a good amount of players who will be improvements to your current squad.

Some of them won't want to join you, some of them will go elsewhere, some of them will want the moon and the earth, and the stars as a signing on fee, but some of them can be persuaded to sign.

It's inevitable, however, that you will have to pay signing-on fees to them and their agents, which is where you have to use your judgement and hand-pick the ones which you think are best in all considerations (ability, age, resale value, wages, signing-on fees etc). It's eminently possible to get safety - if anything, I think it's easier than irl. Not that I've had experience of the latter, mind you

Do you have a large database and many leagues loaded? If not I can see it would be difficult to get good players cheaply. Try scouting France (I am sure you can do this now - if not request it from the board) and Scandinavia. Try to find younger players - they require less money.

Thanks for the comments, i'll definately give scouting Scandinavia a try, don't know if the board will allow it though.

Anymore tips?

You might have a hard time with loans in the Championship as most clubs will want you to pay a loan fee and at least 50% of the wages for the play in question. Best bet it to look for players who have just been released, scout players from Europe mainly the eastern European players. Other then that just keep your players morale up to get the best out of the players you have already

I had the same problem when i started as Doncaster Rovers in the Championship. I started with something like 28k transfer budget and less than 10k wages left. I brought in 1 or 2 free transfers, but couldn't find any loans that would come or I could afford. I got myself a Parent Club "Arsenal" and they sent me 1 player which helped a bit. I just did my best and chose the right team talks and by January I was 6 points clear of relegation, "Predicted 23rd" and I was around 18th place. In January, because the bank balance was decent at around 2mil, the chairman decided to give me around "800k" to spend. I move the budget to wage budget, signed some free players, couple of loan signings, "1 from Man Utd who have decent loans". Then, I went to the "Championship" screen, clicked "Stats", clicked "Players" and then clicked on "AVMR". This brings up the best players in the league and if you filter it to the position you are looking for, start clicking each individual player to see how much they are worth and you will eventually come across someone of low value, who is ripping the league up. I bid 400k for this right back who was doing great and I never looked back and thought "I wish I hadn't", because he was great.

Also, the "Transfer List" is good to look at, if you get given extra money, because some players request transfers, who are top class.

Come the end of the season, I had beaten a lot of top teams in the league and was starting to consistently win and finished 10th.

I would advise going to World > Transfers > England > Released Players

France, Denmark, Norway, Sweden are other good bets at that level.

Don't sign young players, sign experienced players from lower reputation leagues like Swedish, Swiss and Finish.

As you will be aware my scouting knowledge of these nations is null and therefore no players show up in my searches. Also, players in the national under's squads all have clubs. Is there any way to find the likes of scandanavian players available on a free from my club?

I'd search the lower leagues of othe nations for gems that can be got for cheap money. Unless you are playing LLM, just look through these clubs and try and find some players.

Another tip is, you won't be able to loan many players. The reason is, alot of the Premiership clubs want fees or all wages paid, and alot of the loan listed players are on high wages. I'd look to get yourself a feeder a club. If you can get one of the big teams, they'll often pay £100k a season/year which is useful. They'll also loan you a player for free, if you haven't maxed out your under 23 loans.

Without wanting to sound harsh, but I'd expect to go down. Prepare your side so that you don't concede many goals and try and nick a goal a game if you can. I'd keep checking the free agents list as well. Take a couple of hours searching through that and nations at the start of the transfer window and add any players who look like they could add something to your team. Whilst a lot of them will join new clubs, some won't and come Christmas time, if they're still without a club, they may be more willing to join you for less wages. Pester the board too. You've just got promotion and whilst what you have in wages is good, just ask them to increase it if you can, whether that be wage budget or transfer budget. I'd also look to try and improve your scouting network and how many scouts you can have. The more scouts you have, in theory should mean the more players they find. If they can find one or two players that can help then that's great. With the player searching, you should be looking at more obscure nations. I know alot have said this and that's because it's true. Have a look at the lower leagues, even if it takes a few hours and can be a bit boring. If you find that one gem who can be sold on after a few seasons then it's great. If you can get someone to get you goals then it all helps.

I'd also say, don't be afraid to sell any of your current team if the offer is right. It could help you stregthen the team a little more.

Thanks again for the additional comments. I currently have Man Utd as a parent club, however, this is purely a financial link. I am allowed to exchange this affiliation for a loan link. I've never had a loan link parent club before though so I dont know much about its activities. For example, am i guaranteed to have a couple of players given to me on loan by them. If not maybe I should consider just keeping my link with Man Utd (currently receive 75k per year).

Also, the board won't allow me to increase my budgets. Buying players is simply not an option, the 9k transfer budget will have to be used to pay signing on fees and agent fees.

A question to anyone who has been in a similar position - if I do manage to stay up are my finances likely to improve fairly significantly and will I have at least a considerable amount more to spend next season?

You'll get one loan player free. I didn't even know there was different types of loan links. I've always been offered players by my parent club, round the middle of August.

You'll get one loan player free. I didn't even know there was different types of loan links. I've always been offered players by my parent club, round the middle of August.

Just the one? Or can it vary?

I've only ever got one loan player. On FM11 if you rejected it that was it. On FM12 when I was Forest, they offered me a keeper(United) and I rejected it. They then offered me Paul Pogba after. I don't think being offered another player after will happen all the time.

I'm thinking that maybe just going for specific loans of my own is the best way forward then and just keep the financial link with Man Utd. Unless the affilated loan player does not count towards loan rules (however I doubt this is the case) can anybody clarify?

I was able to get a couple of good players on loan last season in League 1 (3 of them from Man Utd) - Matt James and Ravel Morrison and Ben Amos. Matt James features largely but Morrison and Amos were brought in to cover injuries etc. I reckon I should be able to pick up 4 long term decent loans without any fees and a couple of short term loans. I currently have 3 players in my first team i believe to be of Championship standard so that leaves around 3 players (excluding back-up) that i need to find in order to provide a decent challenge in the relegation battle.

Additional question - League 1 has loan rules whereby no more than 5 players from clubs in the same nation can feature in your first team, is this the same with the Championship and are there any additional loan rules?

The Championship has the same rules as League One and League Two. If Man United send you a loan player it will count towards the 4 under 23 players you're allowed. Or the 4 over 23 players you're allowed. In total you can get 8 long term loans. Although 5 can only be in the squad at one time.

The Championship has the same rules as League One and League Two. If Man United send you a loan player it will count towards the 4 under 23 players you're allowed. Or the 4 over 23 players you're allowed. In total you can get 8 long term loans. Although 5 can only be in the squad at one time.

Ah this is helpful, i was under the impression that i could only get a maximum of 4 long term loans no matter what the age of the player was.

Do you think it would be a good idea to take 8 players out on long term loans, this would mean relying heavily on 5 regular loan starters and having the other 3 as back-up and different styles for different opposition. Or is this relying too much on loans?

Also, a question about the 5 loan player rule. I was under the impression that this only affected players from clubs in the same nations. So for example, I thought I could play 5 loan players based in England and also play like 2 players based in Spain. Is this incorrect?

Look through the U21-U19 squads of the national teams, bound to be a few gems on frees

Look through the U21-U19 squads of the national teams, bound to be a few gems on frees

I've looked through some but have yet to find any free agents. From experience could you name a few nations which may provide what I'm looking for?

I've looked through some but have yet to find any free agents. From experience could you name a few nations which may provide what I'm looking for?

You should expect to pay a few thousand for players under contract. I doubt there will be any free agents on a national team.

Ah this is helpful, i was under the impression that i could only get a maximum of 4 long term loans no matter what the age of the player was.

Do you think it would be a good idea to take 8 players out on long term loans, this would mean relying heavily on 5 regular loan starters and having the other 3 as back-up and different styles for different opposition. Or is this relying too much on loans?

Also, a question about the 5 loan player rule. I was under the impression that this only affected players from clubs in the same nations. So for example, I thought I could play 5 loan players based in England and also play like 2 players based in Spain. Is this incorrect?

You'll find it quite difficult getting 8 loan players from England because most clubs ask for fees for players over 23. I'm not sure on your last point but it should say on the tactics screen when choosing your team.

I found in season 1 i was able to loan some good quality players for no fee. Now, however, i can't seem to find a player who doesn't require me to pay a fee. Clubs want hundreds of thousands and i just cant afford to pay that.

On a more positive note, I loaded Belgium, Switzerland, Ukraine and Denmark and found a few players. Ukraine and Denamrk proved to be pretty pointless, however, I managed to sign 4 players for Belgium and Switzerland.

3 of them cost me under 5k and 1 of them cost me nothing. They all have pretty decent stats, the only downside I'd say is there physical attributes (not terrible but could be a lot better).

So now I am just left with finding another striker, possibly a right back and a bit of cover. Who knows if we'll stay up but I guess there's only one way to find out.

You should really only go for players that are "Good Championship"-quality or better, according to your scout. Looking at attributes only could deceive you, but so could looking only at CA/PA and star rating.

Mental attributes > physical > technical

You should really only go for players that are "Good Championship"-quality or better, according to your scout. Looking at attributes only could deceive you, but so could looking only at CA/PA and star rating.

Mental attributes > physical > technical

My scouts tell me that almost everyone i scout is a definite purchase to be honest. I think that is largely down to the low reputation of the club.

I feel like I', just going to have to give this season a go and see how it turns out. I can only hope to stay up and hopefully have a bit more cash next year.

If I do stay up what kind of funds do you think I will be given?

My scouts tell me that almost everyone i scout is a definite purchase to be honest. I think that is largely down to the low reputation of the club.

I feel like I', just going to have to give this season a go and see how it turns out. I can only hope to stay up and hopefully have a bit more cash next year.

If I do stay up what kind of funds do you think I will be given?

Probably not much more, unless you make money.

Probably not much more, unless you make money.

I've made a decent amount this summer through sponsors, affilated club fee, tv rights and a few big friendlies. I only get 35% of any players I sell too which makes things a bit more tricky, hopefully this will increase next year if I stay up.

A couple of the players I have just signed also wanted release clauses for high division clubs so I'm anticipating losing them in maybe 1 or 2 seasons. This has been a real challenge for me so far and I am excited to see how the rest of the season unfolds.

You should really only go for players that are "Good Championship"-quality or better, according to your scout. Looking at attributes only could deceive you, but so could looking only at CA/PA and star rating.

Mental attributes > physical > technical

I don't always go on CA and PA. Infact, I'd say, I'd use more of the attributes I need for a certain role. So if a striker, has decent stats for a poacher, but his CA/PA aren't that good, I still give him a deal and see how he does. It could make you some money in the long run.

My scouts tell me that almost everyone i scout is a definite purchase to be honest. I think that is largely down to the low reputation of the club.

I feel like I', just going to have to give this season a go and see how it turns out. I can only hope to stay up and hopefully have a bit more cash next year.

If I do stay up what kind of funds do you think I will be given?

If you do stay up, you probably won't get much more unless you make a serious profit. How much are you currently spending on wages?

I'm currently spending around 35k on wages, I have around 11k wage budget left after signing a couple of players and letting a few go.

One way which is a small thing and simple is, any players on a free you fancy but know that you don't have the funds is, put them on your shortlist leave it a month or two then sometimes you will get news of them sacking their agent as they have been on a free for a while (this won't obviously happen if he gets signed) then this will help in reducing costs!

Hope this helps in any way

One way which is a small thing and simple is, any players on a free you fancy but know that you don't have the funds is, put them on your shortlist leave it a month or two then sometimes you will get news of them sacking their agent as they have been on a free for a while (this won't obviously happen if he gets signed) then this will help in reducing costs!

Hope this helps in any way

This is interesting, i'll definately give this a try. I've only really noticed a few sackings so could you confirm if this happens quite often?

Also, if there a simple way of finding players who do not have agents? That way I can only focus on players I know I can afford to acquire.

This is interesting, i'll definately give this a try. I've only really noticed a few sackings so could you confirm if this happens quite often?

Also, if there a simple way of finding players who do not have agents? That way I can only focus on players I know I can afford to acquire.

It did indifferently on fm11 and have a couple of times on fm12, but as I have not been in that situation too often on fm12 I don't know fully if this works to a T. All I know is it does happen sometimes and can get very lucky with some really good frees but it also depends how long they have been on a free.

I believe so but can't remember exactly how though sorry!

Well, 2 games into the season and things are going much better than I anticipated.

Won both games, with my star defender (signed for £0) scoring in the first. Won the second convincingly too much to my suprise. Just lost my main striker to injury though (out for 8 weeks) so shall see how I fair in his absence.

Good luck with this, keep us informed. I find it much more exciting to manage on your wits like you are than to edit everything to give yourself super money or reputation as some do

Good luck with this, keep us informed. I find it much more exciting to manage on your wits like you are than to edit everything to give yourself super money or reputation as some do

Yeah, i played as Brentford in the 2 previous games and it has added a whole new dimension to the game for me.

Prior to FM 2010 I always played as Man Utd, but I found it boring becauase everything is pretty much already set up for success. Playing as a League 1 team lets you physically see the growth of the club and manually alter the dynamics of the club.

I'm apprehensive after the good start, I'm getting a sense of to good to be true. I feel like it's going to be downhill from here on but I'll just have to wait and see I suppose

So, after a cracking start to the season with 2 wins out of 2 where I never expected to win I seem to have been brought back to reality. I lost my next 2 games by a considerable amount and am now sitting mid table with a GD of -12. As a result, I decided I needed to bring in a couple of extra players. I've brought in a DR and a back-up ST. Hopefully, the team will start to perform well together in the coming weeks and my position in the league will increase.