The FM20 Youth Academy Challenge

[DazRTaylor]

24 minutes ago, Rainbowz said:

  

WOOHOO!! This might be my greatest achievement in Football Manager. To get this side, predicted to be the 10th worst team out of 84 teams at the start of the season to the 2nd Division is nothing short of special. I couldn't care less about the final now, we're up and that's what matters.

We're going to get absolutely killed in the Second Division, but I don't care. The benefits it's going to have are huge and can allow me to get the club in a position to really start moving in the right direction. I'll also stop spamming the thread up now 

Well done mate.  That is one of the hardest leagues in FM to get out of.  Great achievement.  

[ATW]

2023/2024 End of Season Update - We Will Survive

Well we did it guys.  We had to do it through the playoffs but we have survived.  It was tough going, but we did it.  We go again.  As for the Cup, unfortunately the dream came to an end in the Semi Final...

We are also seen a changing up top, as striker, top goalscorer every year is leaving as he refused a new contract...

League Table

Cup

Transfers

At a Glance

[tomtom81]

New Manager here in Germany. Trying the challenge for the first time even though I'm playing FM for many years already.

I took over Memmingen. Media Prediction is worst team in the third german division...

 

[XaW]

Not bad for a player in the VNL!

[DazRTaylor]

Well, it has inevitably happened.  We lost our best player.  We did receive a whopping fee (for my league) for him, with a 50% sell on clause.

I looked into it more and am actually not as disappointed as I thought I would be.  If you look at his performances, he hasn't been as could as he should have been:

Edited April 19, 2020 by DazRTaylor

[XaW]

5 minutes ago, DazRTaylor said:

Well, it has inevitably happened.  We lost our best player.  We did receive a whopping fee (for my league) for him, with a 50% sell on clause.

I looked into it more and am actually not as disappointed as I thought I would be.  If you look at his performances, he hasn't been as could as he should have been:

Wow, that's some fee for that level!

[XaW]

EVERYONE, and their grandmother, are after Sinisa Fumic 26a!

[Padders]

After lots of tweaking I finally really thought I had a tactic to challenge for promotion for next season

Then boom

 

Edited April 19, 2020 by Padders

[Rainbowz]

3 hours ago, DazRTaylor said:

Brilliant stuff.  

Thanks!

 

3 hours ago, DazRTaylor said:

Well done mate.  That is one of the hardest leagues in FM to get out of.  Great achievement.  

Thank you, shame I'm likely going to be straight back in it!

[Nottingham Forest]

That’s a ridiculous fee that @DazRTaylor.

After what feels like a gazillion attempts at this challenge. I maybe ready to post. Two seasons completed with Tamworth.

[bpecanha]

Érdi Varosi | Hungarian II League

I'll start with Érdi Varosi, or simply Érd, in the Nemzeti Bajnokság II (Hungary second division). Team is predicted to finish 18th of 20 clubs, so I'm expecting a tough battle against relegation in this first season. Our squad has 20 players, but it's very unbalanced: three goalkeepers, four strikers and a lack of depth on other areas.

Manager Profile | Squad (1) | Squad (2) | Facilities | Finances

[DazRTaylor]

1 hour ago, Nottingham Forest said:

That’s a ridiculous fee that @DazRTaylor.

After what feels like a gazillion attempts at this challenge. I maybe ready to post. Two seasons completed with Tamworth.

Get it posted!

[Nottingham Forest]

Always wary of getting sacked. Thankfully not come close yet. Frustrating but enjoying it.

[dkouv]

Scarborough Athletic – Season 11 (2030/31)

Sky Bet Championship

 

League: Same as last season, more or less. We were not stellar but good enough to finish 4th. We reached the play-off final but completely blew it, losing 4-0 to Leeds. The Premiership saw some pretty mad action this year, with Wolves getting relegated and winning the Europa league (which puts them in the CL) at the same time. I don’t look forward to competing against them next season. Lucky Derby stayed up by the skin of their teeth with a measly 34 points.

    

Players: Mark Campbell 09b (AMLC/ST) came on leaps and bounds this year, starting off as backup and ending up as one of our better players. He finished joint top scorer with 21 goals in 47 apps. Kevin O’brien 08c (MC) and Russell JeEbbison 02c (DRC/DM) both had great seasons, too. The squad is stagnating a bit at the moment and there aren’t any great youngsters apart from Campbell, so I’m not sure how far I can push it over the next few years. But at least the money isn’t a problem so we don’t have to sell.

    

Youth intake: Rubbish again. I had some hope for Shane Young 11a (AML/ST) with his professional personality, but the first thing he did after signing for us was injuring himself for 4 months. Hywel Caprice-James 11b (MLC) could turn out to be decent, I guess. But I'm clutching at straws here.

    

Facilities: The money from some big cup ties and solidarity payments keeps us in the black, so we’ve upped youth recruitment, expanded the stadium and are upgrading youth and training facilities again.

Transfers: None but club legend Tony Webster (AMC/ST), who led our line for so many years, will be finally let go this year with a proud record of 183 goals in 412 league apps.

    

Season    |  League        | Pos. |   Europe  |     Notes
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2020/21   | Vanarama North |  7   |   n/a     | Lost in playoff semi final. FA cup first round
2021/22   | Vanarama North |  2   |   n/a     | Promotion through playoffs  
2022/23   | Vanarama Nat.  |  16  |   n/a     |
2023/24   | Vanarama Nat.  |  8   |   n/a     |
2024/25   | Vanarama Nat.  |  3   |   n/a     | Lost in playoff semi final
2025/26   | Vanarama Nat.  |  6   |   n/a     | Lost in playof final. FA cup 4th round
2026/27   | Vanarama Nat.  |  1   |   n/a     | Promotion
2027/28   | League 2       |  3   |   n/a     | Promotion
2028/29   | League 1       |  5   |   n/a     | Promotion through playoffs
2029/30   | Championship   |  5   |   n/a     | Lost in playoff final, in extra time
2030/31   | Championship   |  4   |   n/a     | Lost in playoff final
.
Season    |  Coaching     |  Recruitment      | Training Fac.  | Youth Fac.      |  Stadium
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2020/21   |  Adequate     |  Fairly Basic     | Below average  |  Basic          |  3208
2021/22   |  Excellent    |  Average          | Below average  |  Basic          |  3208
2022/23   |  Excellent    |  Average          | Below average  |  Below average  |  4000
2023/24   |  Excellent    |  Average          | Below average  |  Below average  |  4000
2024/25   |  Excellent    |  Average          | Below average  |  Below average  |  4000
2025/26   |  Excellent    |  Good             | Below average  |  Adequate       |  4000
2026/27   |  Exceptional  |  Good             | Adequate       |  Adequate       |  4000
2027/28   |  Exceptional  |  Good             | Adequate       |  Below average  |  5500
2028/29   |  Exceptional  |  Good             | Adequate       |  Adequate       |  5500
2029/30   |  Exceptional  |  Good             | Adequate       |  Adequate       |  5500
2030/31   |  Exceptional  |  Excellent        | Average        |  Average        |  8250

[XaW]

This will help out a lot fincancially!

But I'll expect to lose heavily!

Not too bad actually! I mean, they could have scored double, but I'll take that loss.

Edited April 20, 2020 by XaW

[DazRTaylor]

A very respectable scoreline.  Only 2-1 until the very end too!

[DazRTaylor]

I have used the money from Alan Benson to ask if we can turn professional.

[FlairRA]

I've never resigned so fast in my life 

Germany was a nice first start but I don't think I could take waiting up to 2 years for prospects like these, especially since I believe Germany has reduced the U-17 rule to U-16, so FM21 will probably be a far better game to do a German youth career in.

Currently a game into a France career with CS Sedan Ardennes, what's really great about managing in France is that the clubs in National 2 are as real as any other except they just aren't playable, so they already have one youth intake. Some decent players in there. Also the manager before me signed a player on a free before I'd added myself in, is that player fair game to use or no? I assume the answer is yes but haven't used him yet just in case.

Edited April 20, 2020 by FlairRA

[Makoto Nakamura]

2027/28 End of Season Review

Our joint best finish and points total!

Overall Best XI

2027/28 Best XI

Hwang Jin-Woo

Andrew Harris - Jason Surridge (YP2d) - Ollie Davenport (YP4c) - Alex Cooper (YP3e)

Ryan Harris (YP3h)

Michael Bennett (YP2b) - Tommy Benson (YP5a)

David Armbruster                                                                  Abdul Ofori

Jake Bunn

2028/29 End of Season Review

A dreadful end to the season but we still survived easily enough.

Overall Best XI

2028/29 Best XI

Hwang Jin-Woo

Tom Johnson (YP6d) - Jason Surridge (YP2d) - Leonardo Ferrante (YP6a) - Alex Cooper (YP3e)

David Armbruster - Jacobo Ruiz (YP2a) -Tommy Benson (YP5a) - Scott Sinclair

Jake Bunn - Luke Robson (YP6f)

[shaunvamos]

 

It seems exciting if you ignore the fact we nearly blew a 5-1 lead.

[fish18ish]

@Makoto Nakamura

You are flying through those seasons. How are you getting through them so quick? 

[Makoto Nakamura]

14 minutes ago, fish18ish said:

@Makoto Nakamura

You are flying through those seasons. How are you getting through them so quick? 

FM Touch and instant result.

[shaunvamos]

 

NK Podvinci - 2024/25 Season Review

|  Competitions |  Squad  |  Awards |  Overall Best Eleven  |  Transfers |

 

|  Zlatko Maucec 4H  |  Zoran Marinsek 2D  |  Luka Kotnik 1F  |

We survived, and we are looking more comfortable as the seasons pass. We even managed to win 2 games in the cup before falling to top division Celje. The team is looking a lot more well-rounded, and of course it helps to have a striker up front who can finish (something I had trouble with in Belarus). I don't think we're too far away from making a push for the top of the league. Maybe 5 or so years.

 

Youth Intake

 

|  Matej Zizek 5A  |  David Vidmar 5B  |  Jaka Balazic 5C  |

 

Whoa. Zizek is a freak for this level. He immediately makes everyone on this team look mediocre by comparison. Even without him our team is pretty mediocre. I need to lock him up for as long as possible ASAP.

 

 

Progress

 

 

[_JHTB_]

Oborishte Panagyurishte

2026/2027

Parva League 10th – Relegation Group 2nd 

Fixtures (1) -- Fixtures (2) -- Stats -- Awards -- Season Review -- Transfer -- Overall Best XI -- Key Player -- Hot Prospect -- Squad -- Finances

An incredibly frustrating season this year, though didn’t get relegated so every cloud, right? I did make a slight tactical tweak midway into the season which seemed to fix our impotence in front of goal but it was short lived as we returned to inconsistency leaving us in the relegation group for the second consecutive year where relatively our form returned. We didn’t manage to win the European Places playoff this year which I actually think is positive as the qualification games this season, up until getting knocked out by a strong SC Braga side, disrupted our early league games considerably. We yet again managed to get to the quarter finals of the cup before bowing out.

Our best players this year as determined by the player of the year awards:

Hristo Georgiev 1d: Georgiev 1d’s bet return for us but he’s not really a reliable goalscorer, 11 of his 17 league goals for the season came in just 4 matches meanining his remaining 6 came in 29 games which is not great. He is proving that he can score though, so hopefully he can improve his consistency going forward.

Radoslav Ivanov 1a: Consecutive 2^nd place finishes in the player of the year for Ivanov 1a, when fit he has the ball winning midfield spot on lockdown and is just a consistent performer for us. He has now become are all time record appearance holder in the league with 199. Because of the role he plays he doesn’t contribute massively in goals or assists but did get 2 assists in the league for us this season.

Kiril Peshev 5b:  Peshev 5b is the best defender at the club but only made his first team debut towards the back end of last season. This season he’s been a good player for us at centre back in spite us being less strong defensively this season. He’s improved a lot as the season has gone on so hopefully can continue that going forward and be a long term option in the centre back position.

Youth Intake

A pretty decent youth intake for us this year with two promising central defenders which is one of the areas of least quality throughout our squad. Unfortunately, the main areas of weakness – left back and striker – yet again did not get any upgrades in this years intake so I think we’re going to stagnate for few more years until one of each of them comes through. Georgiev 1d’s comprehensively improved goal tally this year makes waiting for a striker a little bit easy a burden but still irritating to see no new strikers come through.

 Youth intake 2026 – Ones to Watch

Yanko Vaselinov 7a: The first of the two promising centre backs to come through this year and he does look like a player who could develop really well for us, his mental attributes are incredible for us really with only positioning below 10 for the main attributes for a centre back. Technically and physically he does have some growth to do but I have faith he can do that.

Alex Peshov 7b: Where Vaselinov was stronger mentally Peshov is better technically for being a centre back however he also is a bit weak in terms of physicality and needs some improvement mentally, but two decent centre back options for sure.

Blagovest Petkov 7c: Yet another right winger with potential to come through our youth set up, where the early years were for defensive midfielders, the most recent have been for wingers, he has decent pace and acceleration but will need much improvement to be in and around the first team squad.

Ivaylo Lazarov 7d: Goalkeeper is a position we probably least need players as I’m happy with our two current ones and goalkeepers tend to stay in the team for years upon years, but that does give Lazarov plenty time to improve to play for us or be sent out on loan or sold on.

News/Looking Ahead

The board have agreed to improve our training facilities which should help a little, however, as of yet, have refused my requests to improve the youth facilities. And this year I managed to complete my coaching badges, good to get them done with really.

I feel I’m quite stubborn on tactics opting for a one tactic only, so I think next season I am going to try and utilise home and away tactics to try and improve our fortunes on the whole. This season I was hoping for Championship Group but next season I feel I need to temper my expectations as this is obviously going to be a long slog so I shouldn’t expect too much too soon.

 

EDIT: I didn't want improved training facilities anyway

Edited April 20, 2020 by _JHTB_

[Makoto Nakamura]

2029/30 End of Season Review

Just 4 wins in 2030 and despite having our joint lowest points total we still finish in 17th.

Overall Best XI

2029/30 Best XI

Hwang Jin-Woo

Tom Johnson (YP6d) - Jason Surridge (YP2d) - Leonardo Ferrante (YP6a) - Alex Cooper (YP3e)

David Armbruster - Michael Bennett (YP2b) -Tommy Benson (YP5a) - Scott Sinclair

Jake Bunn - Reynard Wheeler (YP3a)

2030/31 End of Season Review

Survival again, the bottom 4 were really poor so we finished 24 points clear!

Overall Best XI

2030/31 Best XI

Hwang Jin-Woo

Tom Johnson (YP6d) - Jason Surridge (YP2d) - Leonardo Ferrante (YP6a) - Alex Cooper (YP3e)

Jacobo Ruiz (YP2a) - Michael Bennett (YP2b) -Tommy Benson (YP5a) - Scott Sinclair

Jake Bunn - Reynard Wheeler (YP3a)

[Padders]

11 hours ago, DazRTaylor said:

I have used the money from Alan Benson to ask if we can turn professional.

Makes a Huge difference that

Did for me anyway 

[fish18ish]

@Makoto Nakamura

Does your goalkeeper take penalties? I know he's been around for a while but over a hundred goals scored in his career is insane

[Makoto Nakamura]

7 hours ago, fish18ish said:

@Makoto Nakamura

Does your goalkeeper take penalties? I know he's been around for a while but over a hundred goals scored in his career is insane

Yep, my goalkeeper takes free kicks and penalties, he's retiring now though at the age of 40.  

[Makoto Nakamura]

2031/32 End of Season Review

Another solid season in the lower half of the table.

Overall Best XI

2031/32 Best XI

Hwang Jin-Woo

Tom Johnson (YP6d) - Jason Surridge (YP2d) - Leonardo Ferrante (YP6a) - Alex Cooper (YP3e)

David Armbruster - Michael Bennett (YP2b) -Jacobo Ruiz (YP2a) - Connor Cronin (YP12b)

Simon Pedersen (YP11b) - Reynard Wheeler (YP3a)

[XaW]

XaW - Folkestone Invicta - 2027/28

Table | Squad | Transfers | Finances

After being close to the playoffs last season, we could have an outside chance of going up this season around. It came as a big blow when we lost Kyle Meaney 27b before the season started. He had only signed a youth contract, so Hereford took advantage and picked him up for pocket change. Not happy about that, and it hurt us. Still, we played much better this season, especially in defence. Granted we conceded a lot of goals this year as well, but fewer than last year, and I'll take all improvements. Chelmsford City got of to an early lead, but a lot of teams followed and we were in that group. Salford, Havant & Waterlooville, Hartlepool and Chester were out main competition. As the season went on we managed to lose a few teams, but not by much. However, we were safely in the playoffs going into the final parts. In the end we finished in 3rd place, behind Chelmsford City and Salford. In the playoff semi final we crushed Havant & Waterlooville 4-1, but we lost 2-1 to Salford in the playoff final after extra time where the ref clearly wanted to be in the spotlight. 14 yellow and one red card between the teams in a game that was far from as dirty as it appears. So close, but yet no cigar.

In the FA Cup we beat Oxford City, Spennymoor and Leyton Orient before losing to Arsenal in the 3rd round. I had hoped the windfall from that would be great, but we only got about £150k. I think someone screwed us over! In the FA Trophy we beat Torquay United, Yeovil Town, Darlington and Aldershot Town before losing to Ebbsfleet United in the semi finals.

We had another great youth intake this season. And yet another great striker in Mamadú Turé 28a. I slot him straight into the first team and he scored 7 goals in the 9 games he got before the season ended! We also had another striker in Graham Parkin 28b, but I see him as a right winger. I have no idea why the coaches think he is a striker, he is clearly a great prospect on the right wing. Quite a few of the others also had games, but that is mainly because the talents now are far better than most of the ones who have been the best up until now. So I expect a lot of regulars to leave us this summer. Players like Malte Eckardt 21a, Ronan Dolan 23a and Scott Riley 26i are suddenly among the poorest ones I have. Unfortunately, I can't be too kind with them if I want to keep pushing upwards.

Our youth team were in a league for the first time this season, and they played in the U18 Youth Alliance League South-East. Here they finished in a very decent 6th place (out of 15). They also played in the FA Youth Cup were they beat Bury Town, Stevenage, Torquay United and Chesham United before losing to Everton in the 3rd round. In addition to that they played in the U18 Youth Alliance Cup S. They finished 4th in their group and got knocked out.

Season    |  League           | Pos  |   Europe  |     Notes
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2020/21   | Vanarama South    |  2nd |   n/a     | Lost in playoff final
2021/22   | Vanarama South    |  4th |   n/a     | Lost in playoff semi final
2022/23   | Vanarama South    | 17th |   n/a     | Didn't get relegated
2023/24   | Vanarama South    | 14th |   n/a     | Mid-table
2024/25   | Vanarama South    |  5th |   n/a     | Promoted through playoffs
2025/26   | Vanarama National | 13th |   n/a     | Mid-table
2026/27   | Vanarama National | 11th |   n/a     | Just off playoff, won FA Trophy
2027/28   | Vanarama National |  3rd |   n/a     | Lost in playoff final

Season    |  Coaching     |  Recruitment      | Training Fac   | Youth Fac
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2020/21   |  Basic        |  Limited          | Poor           |  Poor
2021/22   |  Basic        |  Limited          | Poor           |  Poor
2022/23   |  Basic        |  Limited          | Poor           |  Poor
2023/24   |  Fairly Basic |  Basic            | Poor           |  Poor
2024/25   |  Adequate     |  Average          | Poor           |  Poor
2025/26   |  Good         |  Adequate         | Poor           |  Poor
2026/27   |  Exceptional  |  Adequate         | Poor           |  Basic
2027/28   |  Exceptional  |  Good             | Poor           |  Basic

Player statistics (youth only)
Most apps                   |  Malte Eckart 21a - 317
Most goals                  |  Sinisa Fumic 26a - 46
Biggest sale                |  Kyle Meaney 27b - £33k to Hereford
Most international apps     |  N/A
Most international goals    |  N/A
Most goals in a match       |  John Smith 22b - 4
Highest av rating           |  Alan Martin 26f - 7.67 (33 apps)
Youngest player             |  Sinisa Fumic 26a - 16 years 111 days
Youngest goalscorer         |  Sinisa Fumic 26a - 16 years 111 days
Oldest player               |  Malte Eckart 21a - 23 years 160 days
Oldest goalscorer           |  Matle Eckart 21a - 22 years 330 days

[shaunvamos]

 

NK Podvinci - 2025/26 Season Review

|  Competitions |  Squad  |  Awards |  Overall Best Eleven  |  Transfers |

 

|  Zlatko Maucec 4H  |  Luka Zizek 2G  |  Mario Krajnc 4D*  |

We reached an all time high of 8th in the league, which left me just shaking my head in disbelief every time the result showed us winning. Our youngsters are really beginning to develop and develop well, and that's pushing us up further than where we are supposed to be. That's not the full story though. We somehow defied everything and made it to the final of the cup, beating two Division 1 teams along the way, before facing Maribor. Much like life, this story did not have a happy ending, as Maribor cleaned us up 6-0. But we made the final, which shows the potential we have as a squad. Next season? Top 5 would be nice!

 

Youth Intake

 

|  Nebojsa Baskera 6A*  |  Matija Markic 6B  |  Saso Straus 6C  |

 

A very deep intake, with plenty of guys who could possibly feature during the back end of next season.

 

 

Progress

 

Edited April 22, 2020 by shaunvamos

[Winski]

End of season 2025/2026, start of 2026/2027

Although I had a really great start at Redditch United, I just couldn't stop playing with East Kilbride. I gave it a try to see if I could get the motivation back, and suddenly I was hooked. I did not made a lot of screenshots, so I'll try to give a brief overview of season 2025/2026. And from now on I'll give an update after I've finished a season.

As you can see we had a decent season in the league. We finished 7th, which is very good when you look at the quality of our players. The Scottish League Cup went terrible as we finished 4th in the group. We also lost in the 1th round of the Scottish Challenge Cup. In the Scottish Cup we had a decent run. We lost in the 5th round against Falkirk. We draw 1-1 at home, but in the replay they were too strong and we lost 2-1.

Star players this season were Mark McGinty 23b and Tony Neil 24b.

The youth intake of 2026 was not spectaculair, but there is one player who really stands out: Craig McAuley 26a. He is directly one of our best players and he's going to play on our AMC position.  As you can see, he already scored 4 goals in 13 matches.

There was one transfer at the start of 2026/2027 that finally brought in some money. Our left winger Chris Neil 25a has been sold to Aberdeen. He was the first and only player of us who has been capped (Scotland U19) and he was one of our best players. But I'm happy with the money, because our Finances are far from great. So 200k is very welcome.

This is how our facilities look like nowadays:

As you see we'll temporary playing at Showpark, because our own stadium will finally get an expansion!

I also hired a new HoYD, who's got a professional personality.

As we are still a semi-professional club, our progress is still very slow. I just hope that we stay in this division for a couple of years, be a stable Championship-club and hopefully earn some money so that we can finally get a professional status.

 

 

Edited April 21, 2020 by Winski

[DazRTaylor]

@XaWSo close!  Next year...

@WinskiI tried with East Kilbride but two bugs killed it for me.  1)  You are not in one of the cups first season and 2), you won't get a youth intake in the first season.  You get a preview, but not an intake.

[Winski]

2 minutes ago, DazRTaylor said:

 

@WinskiI tried with East Kilbride but two bugs killed it for me.  1)  You are not in one of the cups first season and 2), you won't get a youth intake in the first season.  You get a preview, but not an intake.

Thats weird, because I did not have those bugs. Strange. 

[XaW]

5 minutes ago, DazRTaylor said:

@XaWSo close!  Next year...

Yeah, losing it in extra time was painful, but I don't think we would have survived in League Two next season. But I'd like to have another go this season around.

[Padders]

As expected Conor Smith went for quite a large fee a few years later

Got a bit back with sell on clause

[XaW]

[XaW]

[_JHTB_]

It's finally happening - maybe..... Our intake preview suggests that we're finally going to get a good striker coming through even if nobody in any other position. 

 

Also this happened

[_JHTB_]

1 minute ago, XaW said:

Don't spend it all at once 

[XaW]

1 minute ago, _JHTB_ said:

Don't spend it all at once 

Yeah, massive payout!

[Rainbowz]

S.C Lourinhanense

2024-25 Season Preview

Media Prediction | Squad | Club Info | Finances

Manager's Notes

So, we're in the Second Division about 2 years ahead of my planned schedule. My team is being picked at by Primeira Liga clubs and development is spotty at best. That said, we're professional now! I'm hoping the increased finances from better attendances and a better league will allow further improvements to the youth coaching and recruitment. I'd also love to get a feeder team set up as there are some clubs in the lower reaches of Portugal with some excellent youth facilities. The main goal for this season, unsurprisingly, is to survive. The media have been generous with our 35-1 odds at promotion despite them thinking we'll finish bottom (I can only assume they missed the two 00s from the end). I think we have enough about us to beat the drop, but it'll be close.

Key Players (with fancy new faces)

Jorge Rosado - My goal machine last year with 33 goals in 37 games tore the league apart and I'm hoping he can be the difference in the higher tier. He's been unsettled by a few Primeira Liga teams bidding for him, but with our new found stature, I doubt we'll be strongarmed into selling. I'm hoping for a bit more development from him, especially in his shooting. I think he could be a star even at this level.

Igor Esgaio - The playmaking king from last year makes the step up, and I think he's more than ready. He's becoming a quite well-rounded playmaker and could shine with a bit more improvement in his passing. He'll be a key part of any success we have this season for sure.

Pedro Neves - A guy who came out of absolutely nowhere last season, I retrained Neves as a CM from a LW and he's absolutely shined. He's become the linchpin which holds the entire team together, linking defence to attack. If he can improve more, I think we may have a Primeira Liga level player on our hands. I definitely need him to step up once again this season.

[Makoto Nakamura]

2032/33 End of Season Review

Our best ever points total and we finished with a positive goal difference for the first time! 

Overall Best XI

2032/33 Best XI

Giorgos Lefkaritis (YP5d)

Tom Johnson (YP6d) - Jason Surridge (YP2d) - Leonardo Ferrante (YP6a) - Alex Cooper (YP3e)

David Armbruster - Michael Bennett (YP2b) -Jacobo Ruiz (YP2a) - Connor Cronin (YP12b)

Simon Pedersen (YP11b) - Reynard Wheeler (YP3a)

2033/34 End of Season Review

Our best ever league finish!!  

Overall Best XI

2033/34 Best XI

Giorgos Lefkaritis (YP5d)

Tom Johnson (YP6d) - Jason Surridge (YP2d) - Leonardo Ferrante (YP6a) - Alex Cooper (YP3e)

David Armbruster - Tommy Benson (YP5a) -Jacobo Ruiz (YP2a) - Connor Cronin (YP12b)

Simon Pedersen (YP11b) - Reynard Wheeler (YP3a)

[Chileris]

Hi all, long term lurker of this challenge and have been trying to complete it since discovering the forum in 2017.

The introduction of a lockdown has meant there is more time to have a real go at the challenge. I will admit I have never had much time for creating a tactic - always shamefully waited for one that works and then had a go (yes I know it defeats the point of the game!).

With the lockdown I thought it is about time I dive headlong in to creating a tactic, training the youth in that style and then reaping the rewards of my new found tactical knowledge. Well that all came crashing down today when 5 years in East Thurrocks 35 season ticket holders experienced relegation out of the Vanorama South so will need to re-start it seems.

Before I do I am hoping someone can point me to anything that will help tactics/training wise in identifying how to figure out what is best for my team? It is about time I learn how to play the game properly!

[Rainbowz]

No no no, please no no no. We're actually doomed if he leaves.

[XaW]

3 minutes ago, Chileris said:

Hi all, long term lurker of this challenge and have been trying to complete it since discovering the forum in 2017.

The introduction of a lockdown has meant there is more time to have a real go at the challenge. I will admit I have never had much time for creating a tactic - always shamefully waited for one that works and then had a go (yes I know it defeats the point of the game!).

With the lockdown I thought it is about time I dive headlong in to creating a tactic, training the youth in that style and then reaping the rewards of my new found tactical knowledge. Well that all came crashing down today when 5 years in East Thurrocks 35 season ticket holders experienced relegation out of the Vanorama South so will need to re-start it seems.

Before I do I am hoping someone can point me to anything that will help tactics/training wise in identifying how to figure out what is best for my team? It is about time I learn how to play the game properly!

Hi and welcome, first of all!

This challenge is probably one of the hardest one you can find, so expect to fail a few times, especially if you are a bit new to tactics and tweaking and such, but it's all part of it. Pretty much everyone posting in here have gotten the sack, or abandoned an attempt because it was impossible to improve, myself included!

This challenge is harder than most, simply because you can't buy your way out of problems. So if you have a tactic you like, but lack a good DM, you have to change the tactic (or retrain!) since you can't buy a good one.

Basic hints about tactics is mostly trial and error for me. I've failed so many times, so I try to learn what went wrong before trying again. Some quick tips from me are simply to keep it simple. And try to figure out why things are not working rather than change at once. Other things than tactics could be the issue, and especially in FM20 I've found morale to be a big thing. If morale tanks you'll struggle to win.

For training, I usually let the AM do the general one, and I'll only do individual myself. I like to train them in the broadest role for each position, except when I have something particular in mind for a player. But I also use spreadsheets and stuff to see if a youth player is more suited to retraining, so I might take the game a bit too seriously!

The best advise is simply give it a go. If you want a bit more of an easy start, find a team with good facilities, academy coaching and youth recruitment. That makes intakes much better and you'll have good intakes from the first season on.

Also, be prepared to spend a lot of seasons on this challenge. My first (possibly, I can't really remember, one of the first at least) was with Stratford Town. Spent 10 seasons in the regional Vanarama before getting relegated and fired...

[ATW]

 

 

2024/25 Season - The Russian Winter Break - Keep on slogging!

Well here we are again.  We've reached the winter break.  The league started of badly, but thankfully, after a bit of tweaking I have managed to stop the goals flying past the boys. Still not winning enough, or hell even drawing to keep us out of trouble but there are more 1-0, 2-1's than 4-1s, 5-1's or worse...  Meanwhile, in the Cup - we're still going strong, with the quarter final to come again non-league Frakel once we return from the winter break. 

League Table

Meanwhile as for squad management there will be a fair few youths released in the summer, although none of the named ones.  Speaking of named ones...

Alexander Frolov (20a), 20 - Continues to be a bit part player for the Club, but has filled in at RB, CB, DMC and MC. 

Vitaly Makeev (20c), 20 - Struggling for first team starts, but mainly due to those in front playing so well.  Big future at the club

Stanislav Votonov (21a), 20 - 115 appearances and 6 goals so far in his career.  Solid centre back and a main stay

Dmitry Grigorjev (21b), 20 - A loan to Nosta.  So far, it has not been successful

Renatas Janauskas (21c), 20 - Coming along, slower than I hoped but still a bit part player. 

Yury Smirnov (22a), 19 - Young right back on loan to Biolog.  A rather successful one at this time

Andrey Bykov (22b), 19 - Winger on loan at Leningradets

Kirill Polyakov (23a), 18 - Boy came from no where this season.  Been a mainstay in the midfield. 

Evgeny Ivanov (24a), 17 - Young winger on loan at Olimpia Volgograd.  Also managed 5 caps for Georgia Under 19's

Alexandr Zakharov (24b), 17 - Young striker playing U21's this season

Igor Kirichenko (24c), 17 - Young winger also on loan at Olimpia Volgograd

Alexandr Grishin (24d), 17  - Young central midfielder on loan at Olimpia Volgograd.

Now, what about the upcoming Youth?

[Rainbowz]

Literally came out of nowhere. Starting LB is gone. Chairman then rejects both an affiliate club and expanding the youth recruitment despite having nearly 1 million in finances.   I think I  hate him

[TheLutterworthFox]

Youth Intake 2023 - Karşıyaka Spor Kulübü

A quick update on my save seeing as I haven't updated for a while. My third youth intake of the save and my third "Golden Generation", this one is the best so far!

Taylan Kutlu - Right Wing

Aydin Aydin  - Right Wing

Berkay Fidan - Central Midfield

Hüseyin Seçgin - Striker

Arif Hadi Turan - Attacking Midfield

Alper Uyanik - Goalkeeper

Hasan Yilmaz - Left Wing

Süleyman Gülay - Central Midfield

Eventually a raft of attacking players which is much needed!

[Rainbowz]

Why does this happen when we've got 600k in the bank and are making profit? It's so frustrating.