Can FM skills transfer to real life?

A few months back I was appointed player manager of the newly formed reserve team of the side I am playing for, at the tender age of 23. Having long fantasized about being a manager, even at such a low level, I jumped at the opportunity and wondered if my years of Champ Man/FM playing could prove useful in any way.

So far I'd have to say no - the biggest problem seems to be convincing young men to try different things from what they're used to, as they only seem to respond to tired old cliches ie. let's keep it simple lads, keep it on the ground, and of course 'there's not enough talking out there!'.

I think a large part of it may be respect (or lack of). Quite a few of the players are older than me, and while we get on ok, the atmosphere is too jokey. If you try to get them to try something truely revolutionary (along the lines of, over-lapping full-backs, or passing the ball backwards if it means keeping possession), then there's either mindless nodding or quiet chuckling - come kick-off it's hoofball all the way. Perhaps I need to ditch the 'arm round the shoulder' approach I've so far used and instead try the more imposing 'I'm the manager and you'll listen or you'll be out of my team'?

It hasn't helped that it's pretty much a completely new team, compiled of friends of friends and respondants to adverts, but I'm still hopeful that soon thing'll click and I'll be able to get them working together more efficiently.

My FM tactics? Depending on the team, I usually go the standard 4-4-2, with the wide players and full-backs pushing forward, with direct but not long-ball passing and a quick tempo. Oh, and flair. Unless I have a bunch of donkeys with two left feet I like my players to express themselves, as I really want my players to do IRL. We hold training sessions during the week and we do have players with talent - somehow though, come saturday it takes three touches to get the ball under control and then hoof! Maybe it's a confidence thing? One thing's for sure, it'll keep me from ever sending one of those joke applications to a real football club saying 'I'm dead good on FM!'

Think you should hold your horses with your "My team, My rules, My way or your out" statement! If my manager told me that i'd laugh in face then punch him probably! On the other side, are your players getting paid?

No, I fact they need to pay subs themselves! Strictly amatuer football. The thing is, they take it seriously in that they want to win and are upset when they lose, but they're not really interested in trying to change that by means other than 'we've just got to work harder'. Workrate's great, but I'd rather have a lazy guy distribute the ball calmly & efficiently than a headless chicken running in circles...

Perhaps you need to change your players? You cant play Arsenal type football with Burton Albions players! But its a vicious circle! In my local league, all the best players tend to go to one or two teams simply because they are winning everything now but it wasn't always like that! About 10 years ago, when i started playing these were both teams that were useless and played hoofball a similiar way to what your saying, but what changed was one lucky season where they won the local cup by playing the same football. Thats when players, slowly, started to go there thinking it may be possible to win again! Now they are miles ahead of everyone else and, being frustratingly humble, do play good football!

I guess what im trying to say, is start from the bottom up, a bit like an FM career game! If you start non league in game, the players attributes dont match playing a patient continental type of football, its more grit and balls! But as you adapt to that type of football and you start winning games and getting closer to the top you can attract the better players, and this process continues the further up the leagues you go.

Also, on a footnote, my team played these two top teams in the league 3 times and won twice so far with one game still to play against them! So it is possible!

No, I fact they need to pay subs themselves! Strictly amatuer football. The thing is, they take it seriously in that they want to win and are upset when they lose, but they're not really interested in trying to change that by means other than 'we've just got to work harder'. Workrate's great, but I'd rather have a lazy guy distribute the ball calmly & efficiently than a headless chicken running in circles...

That is a confidence thing I think. If you manage to show them somehow what could happen if they keep their calm then things would improve.

Perhaps a nice idea to invite an 'opponent' . ... you know ... that'll lose on purpose so your players might start thinking ... "Wait, we're actually pretty good".

P.S if you need a lazy guy to distribute, I'm your man lol!

Its all about atmosphere. Im a youth team coach for my local semi-professional team and the fact that i work with teenage kids helps as they are there to learn and adapt their style of play. Whereas i can imagine that trying to coach adults, some who are even older than you, will cause problems and resentment because you are effectively the young guy whos now in charge of them.

If the players (I suspect certain older, senior?) are chuckling at your requests then you need to tackle those people direct. Not on their own (they'll say one thing to you and tell their mates in the team how much of an idiot you are - even if its not true) but in front of the team. Just stop them in their tracks calmly and say something along the lines of...

'Joe Bloggs... you are one of our best players and you could be helping the team improve. If I'm asking too much from everyone and you dont want to take it so seriously then let me know... I dont want to lose against (insert team name) and have them take the **** out of us tonight'

Try to put players in a position whereby you are free to tell them what you want from them/what they are doing wrong whilst offering them a bandage. By that I mean...

You could be doing so much more! What are you playing at? = Please attack me for I've hurt your pride.

Instead...

Joe (make it personal), you could be doing a lot more out there. What is the problem? I've seen you play blinding games before = Not so painful.

Do not, under any circumstances tell them you've tried some tactics out on Footie Manager

If you know they are annoyed/ignoring you because you are the young guy. Mention it - bring it out into the open.

First of all, congratulations on your position. It'll be enjoyable and also unenviable at the same time.

I'll refrain from referring to transferring FM skills to your position because, frankly, I don't think there's any hope of that.

What I will advise you on, however, is from my own experience. I'm in a similar context, albeit with rugby (so it won't truly be coaching/tactical advice!). After having my knee operated on more times than Ledley King, I finally had to pack in playing this year and now walk with a permanent limp as a result, which is quite depressing at 23, but hey, I can walk, so that's good enough. I currently have a level 5 coaching badge for rugby and, with the director of rugby at our club wanting me to progress, gave me the chance to coach the 2nd string side. So, in that sense, we're quite similar.

What I now realise is, particularly with 2nd team players, is the mix of player you have. You may have youth or you may have the old pro/club legend. To put it simply, you will find it very hard to satisfy everyone with your coaching methods. People your age might respond to, for example, put player X through cones A-B, but the older generation simply weren't brought up and taught on these methods, and it's too much to ask them to adapt to them, as they're playing for the love of the game, remember.

Both football and rugby have evolved quite rapidly over recent years and, with both administrative associations seeing this and starting initiatives to get more coaches/officials in the game, as such, those coaches and referees have changed as well. A lot of the coaching methods now, in rugby, appear to be scenario based and adaptation, whereas it used to be more technical and improvisational.

I'm actually not a fan of the coaching techniques used in contemporary youth coaching, which is now spreading into the wider game. Therefore, I've made efforts to go to the Director of Rugby again, someone with around 40 years of coaching experience, to see how he goes about drills etc. With this in mind, I can try to apply it to the older generation of the 2nd team squad. It might be worth trying to do the same for your lads.

It might seem quite rich; me proclaiming your FM skills are non-transferable to real life and then transfering my rugby knowledge to your football acumen! But I've tried to show how important it is to adapt your coaching to your squad that you have right now, without being specific on methods (as obviously, different sports!) Coaching is an ever changing skill, but it doesn't always mean things from the past are abandoned. As it seems more common in the society as a whole, older things come back into fashion and you have to adapt to this. One year you might have a squad mix, then one which primarily feeds off contemporary coaching, but then it might change again to old school coaching next year.

To summarise, be sure to apply the coaching you know best to your sessions. Approach personell who have troubles with these methods and discuss it - and also seek advice from the more experienced people in the game as to how you might bring their 'older' methods, as it were, to help different kinds of players.

Coach or train is not an intransitive verb. You always coach players and train players.

And most of all, good luck with your career!

Tactical awareness translates but the art of man management is communicating in a way players can understand and respect. Very few people have the charisma and the inter personal skills to do that.

Imagine being a superior intelligence with high brow ideas and a strong tactical intuition having to communicate these concepts to someone with an IQ of 99 and no formal education (maybe a few GCSE's) and an ego the size of Watford.

Its why on the continent sophisticated technical managers do well and in England foul mouthed bullies like Redknapp, Ferguson and JFK still have a place in the modern game ..

FM is more about buying and selling players anyway.

If you want your team to play a certain way during a match, you can't just tell them to distribute the ball calmy or to backpass in order to keep possession. You need to train these things. For example, when you play a match you count the passes and when they score a goal they get points for each pass that preceded the goal. So if they disposses another player and immediately bore down on goal and score they'll only have one point. If they get 10 consecutive passes before scoring they get 10 points. Passes between two players back and forth don't count on the own half. While in football manager you just tell your players what to do, IRL you need to train your players in specific ways so that it becomes a habit.

I suspect the skill which is missing from your FM experience is the actual techniques of training individual attributes, especially mentally: Decisions, Team Work, Anticipation .. and of how to train a specific tactic, e.g., the overlapping fullbacks.

Those are the areas I'd be looking for a more experienced coach to help you develop. You have your ideas, but you need to learn how to communicate them and how to get your players to buy into them.

Walkthroughs instead of scrimmages, and the old "blow the whistle = freeze where you are" then talk through what you want people doing .. are the first things that come to mind for me.

However, if you have guys (especially veterans) who are laughing off your instructions full stop, then that's a very different issue which you need to resolve - as they are "teaching" the rest of the squad not to listen to you.

Tactical awareness translates but the art of man management is communicating in a way players can understand and respect. Very few people have the charisma and the inter personal skills to do that.

Imagine being a superior intelligence with high brow ideas and a strong tactical intuition having to communicate these concepts to someone with an IQ of 99 and no formal education (maybe a few GCSE's) and an ego the size of Watford.

Its why on the continent sophisticated technical managers do well and in England foul mouthed bullies like Redknapp, Ferguson and JFK still have a place in the modern game ..

Is it cold up there on your pedestal?

No, FM over complicates the tactical aspect of the game(they must otherwise the game would be really boring). In real football talent recruitment and physical/technical skill development are more important. For example the way you make players more confident on the ball is through drills and juggling. That way they can bring the ball under control with one touch and feel more comfortable on the ball. You can make them more confident passers by drilling them in proper passing technique. The reason they a not making those short passes is because they are unsure of themselves. A Manager can tell a player to do a something but if just getting the ball under control is a chore it won't matter because they are so uncomfortable on the ball. They will be scatter-brained and won't follow your directives.

I know it's a bit of a repeat of what has been said already but I thought I'd reply since I've managed at amateur levels before and have experienced similar situations. You can't climb everest with a toothpick so if you have a team of hoofers the best you can hope for is that you have a big guy up front who's good in the air. Otherwise you need to gradually bring some people to the club that will play football the way you would like it to be played.

You may find that one or two players will start to respond if you ask them to stop "belting it" and play it on the ground but a bit of success will be a big help. It's always easier to get players to listen if you are at the top of the league challenging for silverware. Morale can drop rapidly and with it interest especially when guys are paying subs fees to get beaten every week.

Stick with it and enjoy the challenge, if it doesn't work out you have lots of years ahead to put this experience down to your learning curve in the management game.