The FM21 Youth Academy Challenge

[VillaSmith]

Season 7 - 2027/28 - Sky Bet League Two

League Table - Fixtures 1/Fixtures 2/Fixtures 3 - Squad 1/Squad 2 - Best XI - Transfers

League - I went in to this season expecting to really struggle, which I did at first, but I managed to scramble out of the relegation zone after a few games. Then something just clicked in December and I flew up the league., eventually landing in the play-offs which I wouldn't have dreamt of at the start of the season. I think it was a mix of players like Miller, Nwachucku, Njoku and Bengue developing in to key starting players, and younger players like Hogg, Bell, Taylor and Riddell really kicking on as well and breaking in to the first team, which meant I ended up sidelining players that weren't really good enough for League 2 but were my only option. Unofrtunately Colchester were too good for me in the playoffs, but I wasn't expecting to go up really, I was just happy to confirm survival. I've got some really good youngsters coming through, so hopefully I can solidify in League Two for now, but I am also losing a few this summer which is a pain.

Cups - Knocked out by Championship Sunderland in the EFL Cup and an awful crowd at the Stadium of Light, so not even a windfall as compensation... we ran them fairly close though, losing 3-2 and missing a penalty, I wouldn't have minded a slightly easier tie for my first EFL Cup game though. Then in the FA Cup I was knocked out by League One Preston, again away with another poor attendance so not a money spinner either, but with the form I was in at the time, I was happy to not have the distraction whilst trying to turn things around. Also my first foray in to the PJT, but despite two penalty wins, I couldn't get out of the group.

Finances - As seen in my Transfers screenshot, I let 3 big players go this season, Njoku was agreed at the start of the season to go through the following summer, even with promotion there was no convincing him, and although I got slightly less than I wanted, £150k was still a record fee and hopefully the sell on fee will bring some more cash in later down the line. Then by January, Miller and Bengue were both set on leaving, so I decided to let them go as some decent teams were in for them, and like Njoku I arranged for the deals to go through in the summer. Miller was first, for £1m to Brentford in League One, and then Bengue followed soon after for £1.3m to Forest in the Championship. Disappointed to lose them, but an injection of £2.45m is massive (not shown on finances screenie as they've not officially happened yet). Straight away the money was put in to further improvements of the Youth Facilities, so hopefully them leaving will pave the way for future stars!

 

Youth Intake

Dan Farley [28A] - Kallum Warburton [28B] - Ben Peate [28C] - Craig Gent [28D] - Glenn Dunn [28E] - Danny Johnson [28F]

Talking of future stars, let me introduce to you Dan Farley! It's hard to say if he's quite as good as Sofokleous was, but it's another far too good for me player right out of the gates. My first thought was that he's locked down my LB position for the next 15 years, realistically I need to tie him down for as long as possible then sell in 2-3 years time. Wade has done an good job for me so far, but Farley was obviously straight in to the first team. Warburton looks a good prospect too, and I think I may actually retrain him as a RB as he seems to have some of the key attributes for it. Peate is another interesting one, although he's mainly a striker I think I'll move him to CM. The rest of the cohort looks decent, another GK off the production line, and a decent winger in Gent, but I could do with some more left footed wingers and right footed CBs if I was being picky.

[XaW]

10 hours ago, _JHTB_ said:

It's all very confusing..

I'm guessing AMR vs MR

[XaW]

FC Amberg - Season 2023/24 (Season 3) Review - Bayernliga Nord

Table | Squad | Transfers | Finances

This season was kind of a "more of the same" feel. We are continuing to improve the youngsters, while at the same time phasing out the poorest of the original squad. I had really high hopes for Philipp Gaiser 23i this season, but he was too young to play for most of it, and then when he got matches, he really didn't do all that great. I hope he learned from it though, and will improve. Helmut Weidinger 22g also had his first real impact on the team this season. He is versatile and can fit into a few roles. A few others also have roles to play for the team as we keep improving. I have hopes we can push for more next season.

In the Bayerische Pokal we beat Aystetten before losing to Bayern Hof in the 2nd round.

Still no improvements, but I got the Continental A licence, and the board also approved me starting on the Continental Pro as well.

Youth

Another really good intake with some very nice players for next season.

,

With Ingo Dexl 24a in the squad, I hope I can finally switch out a few of the poor defenders in my first team.

Statistics:

Spoiler

The list keeps filling out and this season we added Albania, Austria, Colombia, Romania, Iran, and Morocco.

Trophy cabinet:

German Landesliga Bavaria/Staffel Central - 2021/22

[markkkkk]

This has definitely been answered before, but what is the best personality? Perfectionist or Model citizen?

[XaW]

2 hours ago, markkkkk said:

This has definitely been answered before, but what is the best personality? Perfectionist or Model citizen?

Either is excellent. They are similar, but Model Citizen has more attributes (12-20 in Pro, Det, Amb, Loy, Spo, Pre, Tmp) high while Perfectionist have higher in the ones that matter most (14+ in Amb, Det, Pro).

I consider them similar enough, that I would look at the visible attributes at that point.

[Padders]

He's still going

[Padders]

Season #96 - 2117/18

Another really poor season

Abandoned the 4-3-1-2 formation and went back to a 4-4-2

Started well and was sitting 4th end of October

Then the dreaded run came with 2 wins in the next 17!

Working on a 3-5-2 for the new season

[libbyshuss]

21 hours ago, JLAB said:

I just realised I'm spending £1,456,072 a year on my affiliate links at Siena...

 

I've only got 6 - i need more!

[libbyshuss]

2052/53 - Season 32

Premier League - 13th

Season Summary

Felt like a real step backwards after the last few seasons....

League - well, if I wanted to know how important Pierce Considine 43A was to our team I found out this season. He broke his ankle in the 3rd game of the season and was out for 4 months. By mid-December, when he returned, we were 18th. I wasn't too worried though, as for the first time ever our actual goals were way below our xG when it's usually the other way round and I knew Considine would rectify that. He did, and we started to pull away but he struggled a bit and couldn't quite hit the heights of previous seasons and we finished frutratingly mid-table

 

FA Cup - we got Wolves at home in the third round. At the minute, wolves are awesome, always challenging for the title. They beat us 3-1

Europa League - last time we finished mid-table the Europa League was our backdoor into the champions league. Could we do it again? Well, we breezed thr group stage easy peasy

 

We then beat PSV, FC Kobenhavn and Benfica to reach our second final in three years. Only Arsenal stood between us and Champions League football again. Could we do it?

Spoiler

Could we hell

 

Players

So, a disappointing season all round really. Our best XI

Not all bad, some signs for optimism. Adrian Turcsik looks like he could be real deal, 7 caps for Hungary already, and Abdoul Boga 43B had our best season yet for us. At 26 though he's coming into his prime years and I need to get back into Europe to get the best from him

Basil Affolter 45A is on borrowed time. He lost his place to Jose Fernandez 49C and only got it back towads the end of the season. He's really versatile though, his future may be in midfield if not up front. For a wonderkid Jonathan Clark 49E didn't really show the improvements I was hoping for and worryingly I'm already getting the playing at close to his full potential message.

The saddest story though is my Golden boy winner Leonard Alberg 49A. He was abysmal, so much so I sent him out on loan in January where he continued to underperorm and flatter to decieve in the championship for Middlesbrough. He's still only 19 as well!

My best prospects

Richard Warde 51B looks like he could be good, he'll be getting a few more games next season. Jose Fernandez 49C was ridiculously good in his first few games then faded. But he's definitely one for the future and may even start ahead of Affolter next season

 

Youth

Exciting preview! my first Colombian as a  result of my affilliation with Envigado FC!

The intake looked ok, if not brilliant. Really I'd love 6 or 7 4 star prospects but at this stage I'm lucky to get just 1

 

Looks like I might have another reason to hate Manchester United!

 

Career

 

[thomas_e]

For me, this picture sums up the joy of this challenge. We are predicted to finish bottom and up against top side Atalanta. Gabriele Praino, 21 year old striker from the academy plays to a 10,0 rating, scoring 4 goals as we absolutely crush Atalanta. 

When climbing through the leagues on this challenge you sit through so many defeats along the way. Matches like this makes up for it! 

 

 

 

EDIT: followed up pretty nicely in the next game....

 

Edited September 1, 2021 by thomas_e

[JLAB]

It's taken me 26 seasons, but we will have our first ever cup final with Siena. It's just a shame that our league form has taken a bit of a hit this season as a result of the fixture congestion and international competitions hitting us all at once.

[OlivierL]

1 minute ago, JLAB said:

It's taken me 26 seasons, but we will have our first ever cup final with Siena. It's just a shame that our league form has taken a bit of a hit this season as a result of the fixture congestion and international competitions hitting us all at once.

Good luck !

[OlivierL]

Addes a new partnership with VVV venlo and saw the message ' VVV may send academy players to train at RW Essen...' but didn't saw this at the partnership with U Cluj. 

Didn't know we could re negotiate our partnership :

 

 

[XaW]

1 minute ago, OlivierL said:

Addes a new partnership with VVV venlo and saw the message ' VVV may send academy players to train at RW Essen...' but didn't saw this at the partnership with U Cluj. 

Didn't know we could re negotiate our partnership :

 

 

Yeah, I try to renegotiate in that clause for every foreign affiliate I get. Increases the chances of getting foreign youth players from that nation, so I especially do it if the nation has a high youth rating.

[JLAB]

11 minutes ago, OlivierL said:

Addes a new partnership with VVV venlo and saw the message ' VVV may send academy players to train at RW Essen...' but didn't saw this at the partnership with U Cluj. 

Didn't know we could re negotiate our partnership :

 

 

It's how I've gotten all of my foreign clubs to given me academy players over the years for Siena and how I convinced my board to get the merchandising link added to my deals with Western Sydney Wanderers and Suwon Bluewings from Australia and South Korea respectively.

[toshimitzou1]

OMG, I am officially rich!!!

I might be able to pay my top players more than 10k a week!! I really need to keep hold of this guy:

For the past 18 months I have been trying to initiate contract talks. To - date, he has steadfastly refused to even entertain negotiations, stating 'he does not feel we can match his ambition etc.' 

I have just appointed him captain at the tender age of 21 in the hope this will persuade him to stay before he can be approached on a 'Free" by other clubs in January. This, in conjunction with increased financial clout, might be enough to get the deal done. Fingers crossed.

[toshimitzou1]

3 hours ago, libbyshuss said:

Could we hell

Tough break. Still, great to be in a EURO Cup final!

[toshimitzou1]

10 hours ago, markkkkk said:

This has definitely been answered before, but what is the best personality? Perfectionist or Model citizen?

 

7 hours ago, XaW said:

I consider them similar enough, that I would look at the visible attributes at that point.

Fair point. There is one aspect I would look out for though: A Perfectionist can turn out to have quite a detrimental personality when considering squad harmony.

Where both a Perfectionist and Model Citizen will have similar values for Professionalism, Ambition and Determination, it is possible that a Perfectionist could have quite dismal ratings for Controversy and Temperament. A player of this type can be extremely difficult to manage. The best way to spot if you have either a Temperamental or Controversial Perfectionist is to view his media handling style. If this reads as any of: Volatile, Confrontational, Outspoken or Short - Tempered, then you have a player who could prove tough to manage.

 

[dkouv]

Xerez – Season 7 (2027/28)

Primera RFEF Grupo II We were in a three-way promotion race with Cordoba and Valencia B, and kept up with them for most of the season, even sneaking into 2nd place in February. But then injuries hit, our form collapsed and we finished some 14 points behind them in 3rd. To be honest our squad is quite far away from matching the 79 points of 2nd placed Valencia B, so I think I have to wait for a season where the top teams are less consistent to have a chance of promotion.

Players: Most of our first teamers are stagnating and still short of good standard for the league, but we are filling in some of the problem positions with Ruben Mendoza 04a looking promising at right back and Samuel Moreno 05b developing nicely at left wing. The star performer was Clement Nwachukwu 05a who had a great season up front, scoring 19 in 27 before his season was cut short by injury in February. On the other hand, our usual star attacker Miquel 01d had an absolute shocker of a season, I hope he picks it up next year. 

The most worrying position is centre back where our two regulars are too old and I have absolutely no promising youngsters (last intake’s centre back prospect turned out to be a dud).

Youth intake [preview]: Not great, again - no centre backs and not much talent, but we do have a reasonably promising winger from Bishop's Stortford, go figure!

 

Facilities: youth facilities downgraded, ouch… On the other hand, our intakes could hardly get much worse.

Finances: the board helped us out with a massive £325k cash injection which kept our deficit down to a measly 500k ))

Transfers: no ins and no major outs

Season    |  League               | Pos. |     Europe     |   Best player                   |  Notes
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22   | Segunda B Grupo IV.   |  4   |     n/a        |  Lolo Garrido (AMC)             |
2022/23   | Segunda B Grupo IV    |  11  |     n/a        |  Miquel 01d (AMC)               |
2023/24   | Segunda B Grupo IV    |  5   |     n/a        |  Lolo Garrido (AMC)             |
2024/25   | Segunda B Grupo IV    |  3   |     n/a        |  Lucas Correa (DC)              | Lost in playoff final
2025/26   | Segunda B Grupo IV    |  1   |     n/a        |  Javi Gomez (MC)                | Promotion via playoffs
2026/27   | Primera RFEF Grupo II |  6   |     n/a        |  Miquel 01d (AMC)               |
2027/28   | Primera RFEF Grupo II |  3   |     n/a        |  Clement Nwachukwu 05a (AMC/ST) |

Facilities
----------
Season    |  Coaching     |  Recruitment      | Training Fac.  | Youth Fac.      |  Stadium
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22   |  Fairly basic |  Fairly basic     | Adequate       |  Adequate       |  800
2022/23   |  Fairly basic |  Fairly basic     | Adequate       |  Adequate       |  800
2023/24   |  Fairly basic |  Adequate         | Adequate       |  Adequate       |  800
2024/25   |  Fairly basic |  Average          | Adequate       |  Adequate       |  800
2025/26   |  Fairly basic |  Average          | Below average  |  Adequate       |  800
2026/27   |  Fairly basic |  Average          | Below average  |  Adequate       |  800
2027/28   |  Fairly basic |  Average          | Below average  |  Below average  |  800

 

[toshimitzou1]

Attention all!!!

Tired of your youth prospects wanting to leave before they become half - decent?

Cannot offer a contract to a player as your squad is 'not strong enough to match their ambitions?

Fear not! Toshimitzou1 has managed to operate a work around.

Phase 1: View Squad Reports Screen Showing Current Ability:

Phase 2: Move all low ability players (in my squad, each player from Stelios Daras up to Theofanis Konstantinidis) to the U19, Reserve Squad or similar variant. Just ensure they are not in the senior squad.

Phase 3: Advance 1 day.

Phase 4: Attempt again to offer the player in question a contract renewal:

 

HEY PRESTO!!

What has happened here is that by removing players with lower current ability from the fist team squad, the overall ability of the squad is higher. 

There are a few caveats to consider here:

1. Do not remove so many players as to leave the player to be offered a contract to be questioning positional squad depth.
2. The players you move to the lesser squads may complain. DO NOT move them back until the player you are trying to renew has not only agreed to terms, but has also confirmed the contract renewal in your inbox.
3. The expectations of the player may be so high that you can not adjust your squad roster to fit his expectations.

I hope this can help others keep one or two young stars before the big boys take them away.

[Perre8]

On 31/08/2021 at 00:46, OlivierL said:

Intro | S1 | S2 | S3 | S4

Rot-Weiss Essen -  Season 5 Review - 2025-2026 - Bundesliga - Qualified for Europe

Squad | Transfers | Finances | Fixtures 1 | Fixtures 2

I had hoped to finish a few places higher but at the start of the season I really couldn't say which teams we would leave behind. We were even in 4th place for a while, but after a difficult program we started the last match day in 7th place (European qualification). At home against Bielefeld we had to succeed and a win could even bring us up to place 5, a loss up to place 9.
With a 1 1 score we got a red card. Still half an hour to play and I was virtually 7th, if I would lose we would end up 9th. In injury time, our reserve winger scored the 2 1 and we qualified for European football. Frankfurt finally won at Bayern (otherwise we would have been 6th) and so Dortmund is champion which is also very punishing.  European football is fine, still I want another quiet season next year , our squad is not ready for more yet.

We ended in the quarter final this time and lost in extra time at M'Gladbach in the DFB-Pokal.

Our second team didn't play in any  league system and our U19 finished the A-Junioren-Bundesliga West on the 4th place.

Key Players

    
Same three as last season. Golz confirmed that he is our first choice goalkeeper. Pronichev scored 24 bundesliga goals (last season 23) and finished again second in the topscorer list behind Moukoko. Weber is a key player from the first season till now.

Academy graduate with most Appearances (This season)

Golley 22 claims this spot for the first time. He is our first choice at the AMC spot.

Youth Intake 2026

A very good intake, our best till now. A lot of good personalities and three or four players that could be promoted next season. The only thing that i didn't get in five intakes is a striker. I sign everyone but not the striker .. 

 

If have to show two players this time. Radcliffe 26 has potential but Lunow 26 is our best youth intake player , he will be our future AMR.

Academy graduates promoted to the first team (Next Season)

      

I will promote 7 players, i could have promoted 10/11 but i think that above seven are ready to play a part in the first team. i'll have to transferlist some of the real senior players but it is time for the next step.

Weber 24 will be retrained into a DC. Fofana 23 could challenge for the DL spot, Gabrielli 25 and Gamberini 25 are our new MC potential stars. Albust 24 could be a good AMC candidate and with Lunow 26 and Dold 25 i have two really good wingers.

Miscellaneous

Getting our final upgrade for Youth facilities to State of the Art. And our Training facilities to great .

Season Facts

 

what a great season! grab the uefa moneeeey!

[toshimitzou1]

First season in the Champions League and we have started admirably in what is quite a  tough group:

Our youngsters have really been turning up. If we can secure a point from our home game versus OM we should go through. For me, I could not be more pleased. Half of our players are still classed as 'Superleague 2 level' in coach reports and I have been using a fully rotated XI as I was apportioning this season's foray as a learning curve. Based on our success in the EURO Cup II two season ago, I may have to shift my expectations.

I am still using variants of the 4411 2DM and the Secundo Volante is proving more and more instrumental. In the wins over OM and A. Madrid I had set up in pre season a far more conservative approach, using a medium block with a lower defensive line to protect the space in behind:

The narrow width and shorter passing was chosen to supplement a more secure defensive approach with the idea being when we lost possession, our players were closer together and faster to regroup into a solid defensive shell. When we had possession i did not want to force any unnecessary  turnovers. Against A. Madrid it worked a treat, with both goals coming from the SS after small periods of safe possession:

For the win against Ajax and the draw against OM, I deployed one of two variants that are more expansive and are chosen depending on the shape of the opposition: The first is when we are facing a CAM and the second is when we are facing a flat central midfield or a DM:

In both variants, the, roles and duties, in possession and in transition instructions are the same. It is adjusting  the Line of Engagement and Defensive Line that has proved critical. The first variant  is used against a CAM often looking to find pockets of space I have compressed the space between our Defence and Midfield, restricting the opportunity for the opponents CAM and indeed wide AM/Wingers to play in.

In the second variant I have flipped this, raising the line of engagement, asking my SS to Man Mark any DM and allowing my wide players to take care of any AM's out wide. With an opposition Flat midfield, we are trying to move our midfield closer to our attacking unit, allowing more control over proceedings whilst pressuring the opposition higher up the pitch where they tend too have more players.

Can we win the CL this season? Almost certainly not, but you never know.....

Updated 25.11.2037

Progression secured with a game in-hand! Dominant performance against OM, using the second variant tactic, who should really be smashing us:

The overall results we are gaining are really pleasing, more so considering the low ability of the players on display. As an example, here is my CB, Secundo Volante and Right MF:

If I can develop some quality from within where my players are hitting 15/20 in key attributes, I really feel this tactical approach can lead to CL glory!

Edited September 2, 2021 by toshimitzou1
Champions League Group Progression

[vikeologist]

14 hours ago, toshimitzou1 said:

 

Fair point. There is one aspect I would look out for though: A Perfectionist can turn out to have quite a detrimental personality when considering squad harmony.

Where both a Perfectionist and Model Citizen will have similar values for Professionalism, Ambition and Determination, it is possible that a Perfectionist could have quite dismal ratings for Controversy and Temperament. A player of this type can be extremely difficult to manage. The best way to spot if you have either a Temperamental or Controversial Perfectionist is to view his media handling style. If this reads as any of: Volatile, Confrontational, Outspoken or Short - Tempered, then you have a player who could prove tough to manage.

 

One of my top prospects a couple of years back had (and indeed still has) a Temperamental personality and media handling of Volatile / Media Friendly. I gave him the nickname 'Kid Gloves' and prepared myself for the thunderstorms ahead.

But he's an absolute dream. Has never complained about being fined. Gets on with all the other players. Has progressed really well. In fact, has probably progressed the best of almost any player in recent history, though that may be to do with playing at a higher level because we were promoted last season.

My understanding is that a Temperamental player can have at most a professionalism of 10, and given that his personality hasn't changed even though he's being mentored by a 'professional' I doubt it was very near the 10 when he emerged.

I, as much as anyone else, pay a lot of attention to personalities, and there's no doubt that the players who progress usually have high professionalism, but maybe there's a danger of placing too much emphasis on it. I've now removed the 'Kid Gloves' moniker from him.

I think that the danger of over-emphasising personalities may be particularly relevant to HoYDs. I kept on a Model Citizen HoYD for far too long despite his poor JPA/P and coaching stats. Part of the problem was that even though I recognised that he was no good for me, and I need to wash that man out of my hair, I didn't want to trade him in for anything less than a Model Pro (which I now have) or Perfectionist. 

 

Edited September 2, 2021 by vikeologist

[libbyshuss]

12 hours ago, toshimitzou1 said:

HEY PRESTO!!

What has happened here is that by removing players with lower current ability from the fist team squad, the overall ability of the squad is higher.

oooo, that is interesting! I'll definitely bear that in mind on the next save, i was losing players willy nilly earlier!

[XaW]

 

FC Amberg - Season 2024/25 (Season 4) Review - Bayernliga Nord

Table | Squad | Transfers | Finances

So close to promotion! As usual we were part of the top of the league where we fought against Euerbach, Donaustauf, Würzburg II, and Würzburger FV. The battle was close throughout the season, with rarely a team pulling away much. Euerback did a bit in the latter half, but had a poor finish and we nearly caught them. So only a single point behind the top spot, we went into the playoff. Here we faced Eltersdorf, who had finished 3rd last in the Regionalliga Bayern, the tier above us. We were closely matches, but we lost 2-1 away and could only draw 1-1 at home, so we have to stay here for another season. On the more positive side, the youngsters are taking over the team now, and only 1 of the original squad is left in what I'd say is the first 11. Utku Tekin 24f took over as first choice goalkeeper this season, and has had a great development. Niklas Ellmer 24e was planned to be a versatile rotation option, but did well and took over a starting spot in the centre of defence. He does get used other places regularly though because he can do well in multiple positions. Steve Hansen 22j has been a sub option for a while, but this season, he took over a starting spot up top and showed he can score.

In the Bayerische Pokal we beat Türkspor/Cagrispor before losing to Rain in the 2nd round.

Finished the Continental Pro licence this season, but no other developments due to finances.

Youth

A bit let down by this intake, but at least we got a promising winger.

,

Florian Brink 25a is not an excellent winger, but should be decent enough.

Statistics:

Spoiler

Everyone localborn, but we got Russia and Spain ticked off the list.

Trophy cabinet:

German Landesliga Bavaria/Staffel Central - 2021/22

[toshimitzou1]

9 minutes ago, vikeologist said:

but maybe there's a danger of placing too much emphasis on it.

Hi, 

That could well be true. However, for me , focusing on positive personalities lends another aspect to a game that can become repetitive and lacking difficulty as seasons progress (more so in a regular save). I quite enjoy the ongoing process of 'mentoring away' those negative personalities and will often discard a player whom may have developed wonderfully but has not adjusted a negative personality. 

With regards to the Youth Academy Challenge, I place even more emphasis on positive personalities for a couple of reasons:

• For much of the challenge, our team will be comparatively inferior in their playing attributes and this can be compensated to some degree by capitalising on positive personalities that can assist a player through the tougher times of a league season and i crucial moments of a match.
• Players cannot be purchased! In a regular save, If a couple of players were highly influential with negative personalities, this could be offset with player acquisition in the transfer market. This is not available in the Youth Academy Challenge; if a negative personality became a Team Leader, over the course of three or four seasons you would see this heavily erode the mental strengths of the younger players coming through.

I take this even further within my playthrough: My current Vice - Captain has assumed this role four the last four seasons and is a player whom is classed as Determined. He only received that moniker after disciplining him for a poor performance that raised his personality from unambitious. I use him to mentor players that I deem to be too Ambitious as long as I feel they possess sufficient levels of Professionalism. As you can see, whilst I agree that Ambition has a purely positive effect on player development, when building a squad from the ground up it can make it very difficult to hold onto players at contract renewal.

Forgive me if I have waffled on. In summary, whilst playing the Youth Academy Challenge, I believe until you have reached the higher echelons of your relevant nation's league, that player personality is more important than player ability due to the fact that:

1. It can mask ability deficiencies, making the earlier part of the challenge more manageable.
2. It can reduce the time scale it can take to complete the challenge (if used in such a way) by facilitating squad members whom are likely to stay at the club for longer.
3. Where a long - term save is in play, having established Team Leaders with positive personalities will positively affect in - game performance of your squad, improving results and decreasing the difficulty of the challenge.

This does does not mean that a player with a negative personality cannot become a superstar or a great team member. It is however something that should be considered within the wider context of the challenge rather than as part of a couple of seasons of relative success.

Disclaimer: This is my own opinion and should not be taken as fact. I deny any responsibility for the actions of those reading this whom may follow my advice.

[Pieyanthikos]

Club Atlético Los Andes

2025 - 2026
9th place

League | League positions | Squad | Profile: Quintana | Talent: Casadei | Youth intake

[Padders]

Season #97 - 2118/19

Really poor season.

Tried a new 5-3-2, more defensive, won 1 game in the first 9!

Tried a new 4-1-2-1-2 and that didn't work either

So went back to 4-4-2

Due to the poor start Sean Carey really struggled and only scored two goals in the first ten, ended up with only 28 goals

New board upgraded training facilities themselves

Also got Youth Recruitment updated

Council blocked new stadium

 

 

Edited September 2, 2021 by Padders

[Sn00gle]

 

Odra Wodzisław - 2021/22

Squad - League - Finances - Transfers - Manager

Another atempt on funbase with tier 4 in Poland. This time with Odra Wodzisław which was playing in top tier from 1996-2010. We have good squad with nice facilities. Wodzisław Śląski is city which is near border with Czech Republic so mby some intake luck. Good squad allow me to fight from start from promotion. Was close but unlucky 4 last matches in season went terible. We lost top striker as he wanted to change club very fast to Chrobry but still manage to end at 4th place. Compare to our facilities intake is very poor even if this is golden generation. Kuźma is our best this time but the player which got the most time to play is Grabara. If I will be able to change hes personatily mby he will reach something. Finances are good Im able to get new licenses and was able in this season after great run tu double upgreat both JC and YR. Hope for great intake next year.

 

Spoiler

 

 

 
 

Edited September 3, 2021 by Sn00gle

[Sn00gle]

What just happened?

Edited September 2, 2021 by Sn00gle

[vikeologist]

Vikeologist's 37th Folkestone Intake Report and 33rd Intake Review 

In the last year I changed my HoYD from a Model Citizen to a Model Pro for a few reasons. The new guy is a much better coach and has better JPA/P. Most of all though because his preferred formation is 442 which is what I use. So, of course, this intake has more top players who can’t play in that formation than any previous intake. I actually think this might be due to the previous guy because the regens are actually there for a couple of years before they appear.

Some quite good regens, but apart from the goalie (who is going to have problems supplanting my starter) I’m not sure they’ll ever fit into my tactics. Going to have to export everything to a spreadsheet to see what position they’d actually be best at, because looking at their size and attributes it’s far from clear.

Spoiler

 

Marios Michail 37a – I’ve made him the top prospect only because he’s a goalie, and so will actually be playing in his preferred position, if at all. I haven’t had a promising goalie in a few seasons actually, since my starter who’s now 21.

Spoiler

Trey Chambers 37b – A defensive midfielder who I’d normally retrain as a central defender or a central midfielder. I’ve crunched the stats in a spreadsheet and he isn’t sneaky good in any position in a 442. So, even though he’s my joint top prospect in supposed potential, I think he’s just going to go to waste. I’ll put him on defensive midfield training and just let my U18 manager play him where he likes.

 

Spoiler

 

Robert Essomba 37c- My HoYD singled him out as the top prospect, and he’s one of those guys that demands a really high salary from that start. His attributes do look better than Chambers’ in pretty much every position. 

He doesn’t fit into my formation, but it’s pretty clear that I need to nurture him as a winger.

YP33 Review

Here’s what I wrote at the time;

Quote

 

For the first time ever  I think in this save, I have a youth come In with amazing current ability.

Everybody else looks mamahuhu, but I’d rather have just 1 really promising kid than my usual intakes of lots of good but not great.

Gareth Kelleher 33i is interesting. Normally wouldn’t even offer him a contract with that assessment of his CA/PA, but he scores quite highly on the general attributes I look for in players. 3^rd highest of the intake in fact, behind only Kargbo and Ari Thorleifsson 33c.

 

 

Mohamed Kargbo 33a – As was immediately apparent, the best player to ever come through the intakes and my first wonderkid. Has been my best player for a while and has 3 years left on his contract which he won’t re-up. Hopefully in the next couple of years we can improve the club reputation sufficiently that he’ll want to stay.

Harrison Potter-Rusoke 33b – Currently starting as a striker. Maybe he’s only the 4^th best striker, but our top striker went out with a major injury and the 3^rd stringer wasn’t scoring much. Harrison’s minutes per goal is fantastic, as it was last year. Not sure he’s either a fantastic all round player or going to improve much more, but you can’t argue with someone putting them away in the Premier League. 7 goals in 7 starts, so it’s a relatively small sample size, but not nothing.

Incidentally I haven’t had a good striker come through in ages, and we are a little thin on the ground in that position, so Harrison should continue to get matches for the foreseeable future.

Ari Thorleifsson 33c – On that subject, Ari is our 5^th string striker, and scores for fun in the Junior teams. I’ve recently promoted him to the first team squad, but he hasn’t made an appearance on the first team yet. Spent a year on loan in League 2 a couple of seasons ago where he din;t score much, but that might not have been his fault.

 

So, despite his supposed current and potential ability, was Gareth Kelleher 33i a hidden gem?

No,

But I have offered an unpromising player from the latest intake, Josh Waring, a contract because his attributes are quite good even though he’s only supposed to have 2.5 star potential. Coincidentally, that makes him 37i, so the same letter as Kelleher. Hopefully this will be a different story.

[Padders]

@vikeologisti read somewhere that can take up to 6 years for a new HOYD to have an impact!

[vikeologist]

1 minute ago, Padders said:

@vikeologisti read somewhere that can take up to 6 years for a new HOYD to have an impact!

Yes. It just seemed ironic that having changed HoYD so I'd get players that fit into my 442 formation, I had an intake that was disastrous in that regard.

Why do you say 6 years though? I'd have thought that there was only about a 2 year lead in into our intakes. When players are poached, it seems to be when they are 13 or 14.

[Padders]

3 minutes ago, vikeologist said:

Yes. It just seemed ironic that having changed HoYD so I'd get players that fit into my 442 formation, I had an intake that was disastrous in that regard.

Why do you say 6 years though? I'd have thought that there was only about a 2 year lead in into our intakes. When players are poached, it seems to be when they are 13 or 14.

Not sure where I read it. MIght have been on here........

[JLAB]

I like to think that my link with Académica Coimbra has been bearing fruit with my players on loan to them doing really well.

Whether or not the club is actually helping my player develop remains to be seen, so on one hand it's good for the experience, but on the other hand I'm not sure if he's developing as well as I want him to be. Food for thought though.

[Morpheus13]

I will give this another try, after I have given up in the Chinese League. My chosen country is Italy and I will take over ACR Messina 1947

The Club

The origins of the team go back to 1900, when Messina F.C. was founded in the city. The club has spent most of its existence in the lower Italian football leagues. They last competed in Serie B in 2007–08, which followed three consecutive seasons in Serie A. In July 2008, Messina were excluded from professional football due to financial issues, being later registered into amateur Serie D.

The Stadium

The former club Football Club Messina Peloro have played their home matches in the new Stadio Comunale San Filippo since the 2004–05 to 2008–09 season. Since the season 2009–10 plays here the current team of A.C. Riunite Messina 1947.

The capacity of the stadium is 37,895 seats. It is named after the part of the city in which it is located.

The Facilities

Adequate Training Facilities and below average youth facilities go with average junior coaching and fairly basic youth recruitement.

The Squad

We start with a fairly deep Squad, so the aim is to survive this first season

The Manager

The Italian and former Messina Player Alberto Orlando takes over Messina

 

[toshimitzou1]

Urgh. First choice Right Midfielder gone!!

[libbyshuss]

I've finally run out of patience with Hitchin. i think a 3-0 loss at home to league 1 Bradford in the FA Cup was the final nail in the coffin

 

So where to next? I had fun in Denmark a couple of years back so maybe somewhere like Belgium? Portugal? Croatia? Holland?  

Anyway, I'll be back!

 

[libbyshuss]

So I decided to head to belgium, cos why not! Hoogstraten HVV were tempting, not least because they have pretty good facilities already, which makes life a little easier!

 

I like the look of that advice!

(it says last season 4th in Eerste Nationale, but they really weren't. They are fourth in alphabetical order)

[Padders]

1 hour ago, libbyshuss said:

I've finally run out of patience with Hitchin. i think a 3-0 loss at home to league 1 Bradford in the FA Cup was the final nail in the coffin

 

So where to next? I had fun in Denmark a couple of years back so maybe somewhere like Belgium? Portugal? Croatia? Holland?  

Anyway, I'll be back!

 

Oh no, done so well and some serious grafting!

[libbyshuss]

3 minutes ago, Padders said:

Oh no, done so well and some serious grafting!

i know, but they were annoying me and we were slowly sliding backwards. I'd probably have been relegated in a season or two.

[_JHTB_]

A first game against us for one of my sold youth prospects, safe to say he had the better time of it

[Zeldster]

Shaoxing Keqiao

Season 7

Squad | Transfers | Finances

League: Survived by the skin of our teeth, was out of our hands before the games kicked off. We picked up our 3 points and had to hope either Bj BSU in 14th or Wuhan in 13th lost. Although we finished just above relegation, when comparing our stats against the previous two years - we was only 7 and 3 points behind our two 10th place finishes.

 

Cup: Another year, another poor cup run.

 

NewGens:

Huang Tingfeng 01b: Last year was the only year he failed to hit double figures in goals. He's returned to his old boots and picked up the Local Top Goalscorer again with 14 goals. (Chinese only players)

Wu Lei 06c: Picked up 6 goals throughout the season playing as a winger or striker. First real season so hoping for him to kick on again next season.

Xu Bo 06b: Only half good CAM I have at the club, 3 goals and 4 assists - looking for him to improve on this next season.

 

Youth Intake:

Got a new HOYD in Indian legend; Sunil Chetri. Hoping his model citizen personality encourages a few good personas. My last HOYD's tactical style was route one with a long playing style and I felt the players he was bringing through had no technical ability. Sunil Chetri prefers a Fluid Counter Attack with standard stlye, hoping it brings through a few CM's who can pick a pass. Another promised golden generation, think I've had one every year since I took over. My top 3 picks;

 

Summary: 

Felt like it was just a unlucky season, kept conceding late goals - need to perfect a shut-up shop tactic for grinding out them last few minutes. Highest rated player wants a move to a bigger club. Will be looking to cash in on him as he enters the last year of his contract as don't want a repeat of Mingtian leaving on a free.

 

 

[Padders]

3 hours ago, libbyshuss said:

i know, but they were annoying me and we were slowly sliding backwards. I'd probably have been relegated in a season or two.

I'm in the that decline stage also

The dreaded cycle of awful intakes

[Padders]

Season #98 - 2119/20

Yet another awful season.

Stuck with a 3-5-2 formation all season

Just awful

[shaunvamos]

 

 

 

It was a bit nervy for my liking, but we're safe once more. We hit a nice run of form in the last 10 or so games of the season, and that lifted us out of the relegation spots. I think it was a bit of a transitional season, as the academy products are slowly but surely infiltrating into the first team. 8 of our 12 subs are academy products, so I expect them to have some nice development next season.

 

Youth Intake

 

 

 

Enrico Gabrielli 3A  -  Roberto Michielan 3B*  -  Maurizio De Santis 3C

 

 

Another strong intake, supposedly a golden generation and I can see why they think that. However, no one is immediately ready to make an impact. But keep an eye out for 3F keeper Semenzato. He's already our backup keeper, so he could be in with a shout at some first team appearances next season. Rossi 3K also broke a record for youngest Montebelluna player as well, so these guys could definitely be something.

 

Best XI

 

Daniele Santoro  -  Antonio Lukanovic  -  Gabriele Bardini

 

 

 

 

 

Record Breakers

 

 

Transfers

 

Progress

 

[OlivierL]

19 hours ago, libbyshuss said:

So I decided to head to belgium, cos why not! Hoogstraten HVV were tempting, not least because they have pretty good facilities already, which makes life a little easier!

 

I like the look of that advice!

(it says last season 4th in Eerste Nationale, but they really weren't. They are fourth in alphabetical order)

Good luck. not far from my home town.

[JLAB]

Was going through my clauses and just realised that Inter Milan poached this guy from my youth academy. I would have loved to have had this guy in my academy.

[libbyshuss]

19 minutes ago, OlivierL said:

Good luck. not far from my home town.

I'll try and make you proud!

[JLAB]

ACN Siena 1904 – Season 26 – 2046/47 Youth Intake

So we've had our latest youth intake and things look promising, even if the appearance of the really exciting Belgian midfielder was a welcome surprise.

Mickael Beckers was the most exciting talent that we were presented with in the latest youth intake. His personality is not ideal, but I have put him in a mentoring group to try and sort that out in the future.

Gianluca Invernizzi is a great looking talent that can play on the wings, but is also being recommended to be played as an attacking midfielder.

Korey Eames was the talent that I was promised, and he doesn't disappoint. I see him being someone I would train as a DM or a Box to Box Midfielder.

However, the talent that I was happy to see turn up was the goalkeeper Mattia Magni, someone that I could see being the first-choice goalkeeper in the future.

With our form being mixed between the youth intake preview and the youth intake itself, I had to wonder what to expect. Our February was so congested that I was almost scared by how much I had to rotate the squad due to how many games we were playing during that month. The fact we reached the Coppa Italia final was great, but we could have been in the Europa Conference League Quarter Final if we didn't get Schalke of all teams, who have become my European nemesis in this save.

As for the league table, we're in 12th place. We're expected to be getting a top-half finish, which is still on the cards. We've never finished in the top eight in a season we've been playing in Europe, so hopefully this could be a first time ever for us.