Amazing Friendly Result!

I don't usually pay much attention to friendlies, usually playing a few away games against lower league teams and one or two home games against similar reputation foreign sides. However, having finished fourth with my Stoke side in 2014 and qualifying for the Champions League for the first time, I wanted to play a top quality team to see how I might get on in the competition. I arranged a home game against Real Madrid and this happened. I think my first foray into Europe's top competition is going to be an interesting one!

What a match.

Do it in the Champions League and I'll be impressed.

hugely off topic but...does anyone keep track of BBC sports football coverage, if so....

Ronaldo now HAS done it on a wet monday night at stoke

hugely off topic but...does anyone keep track of BBC sports football coverage, if so....

Ronaldo now HAS done it on a wet monday night at stoke

Still wasn't enough though

that isn't stoke. it has decent players O.O

wilfried and sanogo combo is still good then i see.

That wilfried

something seems a bit fishy there with that result. results like that simply don't happen, ever

oh they do

already beaten liverpool and arsenal 6-0 and the above result was with half the team traveling from the olympic final

something seems a bit fishy there with that result. results like that simply don't happen, ever

I love it when you have a great, unexpected, high scoring result and somebody automatically assumes there's something wrong. How about:

Man Utd 9-0 Ipswich

Man Utd 1-6 Man City

Portsmouth 7-4 Reading

Chelsea 3-5 Arsenal

Man Utd 8-2 Arsenal

Tottenham 9-1 Wigan

Chelsea 7-0 Stoke

They're just the examples of real life high scoring games I can think of off the top of my head. So it seems results do like that do happen, strange that.

Not many teams use 'Super Tactics' in real life though. Not wanting to dismiss any ones achievements but I'm always suspicious when I see big wins where one striker has scored 4+ goals. They're usually using some downloaded tactic such as the Mr Hough ones etc

Not many teams use 'Super Tactics' in real life though. Not wanting to dismiss any ones achievements but I'm always suspicious when I see big wins where one striker has scored 4+ goals. They're usually using some downloaded tactic such as the Mr Hough ones etc

Nope, no downloaded tactics. I've come up with my own tactic and made some good signings. It's called management which I thought was the point of the game. If I was getting this kind of resut all the time I wouldn't have bothered posting it. I wanted to share it as it was such a freak match that I thought was interesting, that's all. Also, it wouldn't be such a great tactic if I was conceding five at home, even against Real Madrid.

Not looking for an argument, well done you're enjoying your game. Just to point out though that you don't need to have downloaded a tactic to have found one that exploits issues with the ME. Just for example, tonnes of people on this forum have had huge success with Wilfried and Sanogo due to their physical stats. It's okay to point out the rare examples where this happens in real life, but in my game I get results like these nearly every other week, which would never happen in real world football.

if you have ever used wilfried he will score 4 goals.

i had hernadez banging in 5 in a couple of matches on the older database.

Weezer - I'm not looking for an arguement either, in fact I agree with you. I'm not sure I follow you though. I'm not using a downloaded tactic as I like to come up with my own. Surely, when I do this, I AM looking to exploit issues with the ME (whether I mean to or not) in order to create a successful tactic. Is that what you mean? Do you think that is just as 'wrong' (for want of a better word) as using a downloaded tactic?

For a start I wasn't just referring to you, but also the Man Utd screen shots and the many other pics of implausibly dominant wins on this forum. I was referring more to the people who defend these results by bringing up the rare times these results happen in real life when they happen dozens of times a season in Football Manager. Players like Wilfried and Hernandez get bags of goals because of the weighting of pace in the ME and it is exacerbated when players find a tactic that magnifies these traits and exploits a flaw in the ME. It's not really that interesting or rare to me to see a team with such a player in the side winning heavily because I see it all the time and don't actually think its that rare. Sorry to **** on any ones bonfire

you dont need a tactic to make pace work, just set em as poacher.

btw neymar was a winger in that match, rooney was DLF and tony V on other wing.

Great result fella. I think it's a real shame on these forums that when someone gets any sort of success that is pretty spectacular some put it down as they are only exploiting flaws in the ME!!

What in gods name do Man United do IRL every week, they find flaws in the way the opposition plays, weaknesses that good players like Rooney and co can exploit, that's football. In FM too often if you are struggling "It's your tactics" or if you are winning "Your tactics must use an exploit".

Good on the OP for developing a good tactic and strengthening his squad with top players, that's what FM is meant to be about is it not?!

What in gods name do Man United do IRL every week, they find flaws in the way the opposition plays, weaknesses that good players like Rooney and co can exploit, that's football. In FM too often if you are struggling "It's your tactics" or if you are winning "Your tactics must use an exploit".

I'm not saying everybody, or even that the OP does it but it's generally true yes. Man Utd do not win by a hatful of goals every other week. And teams like Everton or Stoke certainly don't. Like it or not FM is a game, it's not like real football. Find a tactic that exploits the ME and you can consistently win the league with anyone, not just Man Utd. Irl nobody outside the current top 5 is going to win the Prem for at least 5 years, probably more yet in FM players can win the league with almost anyone. If I start a game as Fulham and buy Wilfried and Sanogo I'd win the league within 2 years, probably in the 1st season using my tactic. And I'm not boasting, anybody could if they downloaded or created the right tactic. That's why applying real life examples will never work with FM. And it's why I get tired of people bringing up the same examples and why I'm not particularly impressed by people posting supposedly freak results or heavy wins that to me aren't that rare at all in the game.

Are you going to accuse the AI of exploiting the ME?

well they usualy do

Not sure what those 3 pictures prove? Or what you're trying to say?

Not sure what those 3 pictures prove? Or what you're trying to say?

You said:

Not wanting to dismiss any ones achievements but I'm always suspicious when I see big wins where one striker has scored 4+ goals.

Well, two of those screenshots show that the AI managed to win matches with a player getting 4+ goals.

Are you going to accuse the AI of exploiting the ME?

No because you haven't beaten any decent club there with such a high score

I'll agree with the statement that pace and acceleration are quite OP...at least thats how it used to be. It appears much hasn't change in that regard.

Here's the thing though, I don't think most people who play this game go out of their way to exploit the ME so lets not jump on people's backs when they have a little success ok?

very nice result fella.. i love it when a plan comes together

Did you play the friendly or did your Assistant take control?

Great resuly by the way, even better as I am a massive Stoke fan and a season ticket holder.

No because you haven't beaten any decent club there with such a high score