The FM21 Youth Academy Challenge

[Cheez3y]

6 hours ago, Cheez3y said:

First game in Ligue 2...

Yeah....great...

Ooohhhh sweet revenge.

Edited November 22, 2020 by Cheez3y

[Cheez3y]

GOAL FC - Season 2022/23

Half Season Update

Tough start, but once we sattled we started to play some football.

We got a nice 11 points gap to the relegation spots.

Lets bring it!

Also the first two youth players turned 16, so they are in the team.

Manafa is pretty ba.....fit!

Gerber could maybe a player for the feature, atleast as rotation option.

Edited November 22, 2020 by Cheez3y

[DazRTaylor]

End of Season Review

Season 2025/26

FC United of Manchester

League Table - We were more consistent than in recent years and comfortably qualified for the promotion play offs.

Play Offs - A comfortable win over Darlington in the first round saw the club travel to Chorley in the semi final, who proved far too strong and ended our season.

League Fixtures 1, 2 & 3 - We were threatening top spot until a poor run of form in November and December meant we were only ever going to obtain a play off place.

F. A. Cup - Again, for the fourth season running, we couldn't get past the fourth qualifying round.  York City hammering us at home putting paid to any hopes of a cup run.

F. A. Trophy - We made it through to the fourth round before losing to old foes Chorley in a replay.

Pre Season Friendlies - A much better pre season with only three defeats, all of them closely fought affairs.

Squad - The potential of some of these players is outstanding and they are starting to develop.

Squad Dynamics - As good as always.

Transfers In - None.

Transfers Out - Just the one permanent sale and one of my best players.  He wouldn't sign a contract though and we do have a 50% sell on clause.

Youth Candidates - Another intake oozing quality.  Roberto Santamaría YP26C67 looking like a real find.

Finances - We are close to even, so if any bids come in for any of my youngsters, I expect the board to accept them over my head.

Key Players

Andrew Camacho YP23D20 - The best defender at the club, he was exceptional all season.

Keith Phelan YP24F38 - Another goalscoring season from the Irishman.  He won't sign a new deal, so he may have to be sold.

Brian Prescott YP24H40 - A good season from the winger and striker.  He has signed a new two year contract.

Owen Carpenter YP24I41 - He has developed into a top midfielder for this level.  Ran the show on quite a few occasions this season.

Jeff Williams YP25E53 - Right back who has cemented his place in the fist team.

Next Season

We really do need to get out of this league, so the aim is promotion.  Somehow.

Personal Coaching Data

Season     Reputation            Qualifications       Att   Def   Fit   GkD   GkH   GkS   Tac   Tec   Men   WWY   Ada   Det   PlK   YoK   LoD   MaM   Mot
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At start   Minimal   (0.25*)     None                   1     1     1     1     1     1     1     1     1     4     1     1     1     4     1     1     1
2021/22    Minimal = (0.50*) ↑   None =                 4 ↑   4 ↑   1 =   1 =   2 ↑   1 =   4 ↑   4 ↑   4 ↑   6 ↑   1 =   4 ↑   4 ↑   5 ↑   1 =   4 ↑   4 ↑
2022/23    Minimal = (0.75*) ↑   National C ↑           6 ↑   6 ↑   3 ↑   2 ↑   4 ↑   2 ↑   6 ↑   6 ↑   6 ↑   6 =   1 =   5 ↑   5 ↑   6 ↑   5 ↑   7 ↑   7 ↑
2023/24    Nominal ↑ (1.25*) ↑   National B ↑           8 ↑   8 ↑   4 ↑   3 ↑   4 =   3 ↑   8 ↑   8 ↑   8 ↑   6 =   1 =   7 ↑   7 ↑   8 ↑  10 ↑  10 ↑   9 ↑
2024/25    Nominal = (1.50*) ↑   National A ↑           9 ↑  10 ↑   5 ↑   3 =   4 =   3 =  10 ↑   9 ↑   9 ↑   6 =   1 =   8 ↑   8 ↑   9 ↑  13 ↑  10 =  11 ↑
2025/26    Nominal = (1.50*) =   National A =          10 ↑  10 =   5 =   3 =   5 ↑   3 =  10 =   9 =  10 ↑   9 ↑   1 =   8 =   8 =   9 =  13 =  12 ↑  12 ↑

Club Facilities

3Season     Training Facilities  Youth Facilities  Youth Level  Corporate Facilities  Junior Coaching  Youth Recruitment  Club Reputation
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At Start   Basic                Basic                  4       Adequate              Average          Fairly basic       Local   (1.00*)
2021/22    Basic =              Basic =                4 =     Adequate =            Good ↑           Adequate ↑         Local = (1.00*) =
2022/23    Basic =              Below average ↑        4 =     Adequate =            Excellent ↑↑     Good ↑↑            Local = (1.00*) =
2023/24    Basic =              Below average =        4 =     Adequate =            Exceptional ↑    Exceptional ↑↑     Local = (1.00*) =
2024/25    Basic =              Below average =        4 =     Adequate =            Exceptional =    Exceptional =      Local = (1.00*) =
2025/26    Basic =              Below average =        4 =     Adequate =            Exceptional =    Exceptional =      Local = (1.00*) =

Season Record

Season     Played     Won     Drawn     Lost     Goals For     Goals Against     Goal Difference
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22      60        33       12       15         126              84                 +42
2022/23      51 ↓      22 ↓     11 ↓     18 ↑        89 ↓            77 ↓               +12 ↓
2023/24      51 =      24 ↑     13 ↑     14 ↓        97 ↑            84 ↑               +13 ↑
2024/25      52 ↑      25 ↑      9 ↓     20 ↑       105 ↑            89 ↑               +16 ↑
2025/26      56 ↑      31 ↑     12 ↑     13 ↓       127 ↑            82 ↓               +45 ↑

Overall Career Record

After Season   Played     Won     Drawn     Lost     Goals For     Goals Against     Goal Difference     Time At Club
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22          60        33       12       15         126              84                 +42              316 days
2022/23         111        55       23       33         215             161                 +54              673 days
2023/24         162        79       36       47         312             245                 +67            1,048 days
2024/25         214       104       43       67         417             334                 +83            1,408 days
2025/26         270       135       55       80         544             416                +128            1,780 days

Trophy Haul

Season     Competition Won
--------------------------

Trophy Cabinet

League Titles
-------------



Cup Competition Victories
-------------------------

Career Overview

Season     Champions League    Europa League    Europa Conference League             League                             Position     F.A. Cup                    League Cup        Achievements
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22           N/a               N/a                    N/a                       Vanarama National League North        3rd       Third round                     N/a           Lost in semi final of promotion play off.  Quarter final of the F. A. Trophy.
2022/23           N/a               N/a                    N/a                       Vanarama National League North       10th ↓     Fourth qualifying round ↓       N/a           Mid table mediocrity.  Third round of the F. A. Trophy.
2023/24           N/a               N/a                    N/a                       Vanarama National League North        6th ↑     Fourth qualifying round =       N/a           Lost in first round of promotion play off.  Second round of the F. A. Trophy.
2024/25           N/a               N/a                    N/a                       Vanarama National League North        8th ↓     Fourth qualifying round =       N/a           Missed out on promotion play offs on the last day.  Third round of the F. A. Trophy.
2025/26           N/a               N/a                    N/a                       Vanarama National League North        5th ↑     Fourth qualifying round =       N/a           Lost in semi final of promotion play off.  Fourth round of the F. A. Trophy.

Record Number of Appearances (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Appearances
---------------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22    Ross Holland YP22A1                       6
2022/23    Scott Jones YP22F6                       40
2023/24    Scott Jones YP22F6                       56
2024/25    Ryan McCormick YP23C19                   89
2025/26    Andrew Camacho YP23D20                  127

Record Goal Scorer (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Goals
---------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22    Scott Jones YP22F6                     1
2022/23    Scott Jones YP22F6                    13
2023/24    Scott Jones YP22F6                    14
           Ryan McCormick YP23C19                14
2024/25    Keith Phelan YP24F38                  29
2025/26    Keith Phelan YP24F38                  72

Record Number of Assists (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Assists
-----------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22    No one                                  0
2022/23    Scott Jones YP22F6                      1
           Tim Barker YP23L28                      1
2023/24    Ryan McCormick YP23C19                  5
2024/25    Ryan McCormick YP23C19                 15
2025/26    Brian Prescott YP24H20                 26

Record Number of Clean Sheets (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Clean Sheets
----------------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22    No one                                     0
2022/23    Scott Mason YP22G7                         1
2023/24    Scott Mason YP22G7                         5
2024/25    Johnny Connerton YP24J42                  11
2025/26    Johnny Connerton YP24J42                  15

 

 

 

[DazRTaylor]

Two points re the season I have just completed:

1)  Six home defeats cost the club the league title.  If two of those losses were wins we would of comfortably won the league.
2)  I hate Chorley.  That is all.

[danielclouston1]

Hey all, I'm going to start this challenge for the first time on Tuesday when the full release is out. First FM I've played since 2016 so could be on a hiding to nothing but I've played about 7 seasons worth of the beta so hope I've got to grips with the game. I've just got a couple questions before I start looking for the team I want take on.

 

1) Are you allowed to extend contracts of players already at the club?

2) Can you use instant results?

 

Cheers in advance 👍

[DazRTaylor]

12 minutes ago, danielclouston1 said:

Hey all, I'm going to start this challenge for the first time on Tuesday when the full release is out. First FM I've played since 2016 so could be on a hiding to nothing but I've played about 7 seasons worth of the beta so hope I've got to grips with the game. I've just got a couple questions before I start looking for the team I want take on.

 

1) Are you allowed to extend contracts of players already at the club?

2) Can you use instant results?

 

Cheers in advance 👍

1)  Yes.
2)  Yes.

Enjoy!

[Shankly84]

SEASON 7 - 2027/28 - ICELANDIC PREMIER DIVISION

LEAGUE TABLE - FIXTURES - FIXTURES- PLAYER STATS - TEAM STATS - COMPETITION REVIEW

MANAGER PROFILE - CHARACTERISTICS - ATTRIBUTES

CLUB PROFILE - GENERAL - FACILITIES - HONOURS - FINANCES - TRANSFERS

So, before this season started we get the news that we will no longer be run proffesionally and will be reverting to semi-proffesional, due to the financial issues.. I must admit, I was gutted by this. Last season we put a title challenge in and end up in 2nd place, with a cup win as well. Now we will struggle to keep hold of our more senior players when their current contracts are up. Hoping it doesn't set us back, but I have a bad feeling it will.

LEAGUE CUP

Time to build on last season and we make a great start in the league cup. Despite a 2-0 home loss to Vulur, we win 4 out of the 5 group games, with a 7-2, 6-1 and 7-0 in there for good measure. A decent 2-1 win over HK, puts us into the final for the second time in 2 years. We met last seasons champions, Vikingur R,  and didn't really put up much of a fight. A dissapointing 1-0 loss meant we were runners-up for the second year running.

CHAMPIONS CUP

Having won the cup in the previous season, we were to play in the Champions Cup against league champions. A drab 0-0 followed by a penalty shoot-out loss meant Vikingur R. had beat us to two trophies in the last two matches.

LEAGUE

The league started very inconsistently in a season were I was hoping we could build of the back of the last. 2 wins, 2 losses and a draw from the first 5, was enough evidence to prove we wouldn't be fighting for no title this season. Inconsistency reigned throughout and any consistency we did manage was bad form. After 11 games we were sat 4 points clear of the relegation zone, albeit with a game in hand. Not good though, considering last seasons title challenge. 1 win in 10 meant with 3 games remaining we were now just 3 points above the drop, although with a lot better goal difference than Fram. We reverted back to a more attacking formation for the final 3 games and it paid of with a 3-0 win over Starjnan and 6-1 win over HK on the final day. We limped in to an 8th place finish, but it was pretty dissapointing given last seasons performance, Will be interesting to see what next season brings.

ICELANDIC CUP

Going in as holders, I wanted us to put up a fight. In the third round a decent win away at HK, meant that we were up and running. We came out on top at home to FH, in a tricky tie that needed extra-time for a 1-0 win. Vikingur R. away in the quarter-final was a real test, having won the league last year and beaten us in the League Cup final and the Champions Cup. Against the run of play we snook through 1-0 with a penalty bringing the decisive goal. Despite our poor league form, we had reached the semi-final again, but this was the end of the road for this season, as we came unstuck 3-1 to Valur.

EURO CUP II

Back in Europe for the 2nd time since I took over we were drawn against Riga of Latvia. A comfortable 4-0 at home got us up and running and provided our record attendance and gate receipts. We could do with that more often!! 10 changes in the second leg, due to fatigue, meant we came away with a 1-1 draw, but a 5-1 aggregate win  more than impressive. Into the next round and it was Cracovia of Poland. We were never in with a chance, as they outclassed us in both legs. A 3-0 home defeat and 3-1 away defeat meant for a 6-1 aggregate loss and out at the same stage as our previous attempt.

THE PLAYERS

Aron Skuli Brynjarsson managed 15 goals but only 8 in 17 league games meant for the fist time he wasn't top goalscorer. Kristofer Henriksson built on his great first season and managed 24 in 32 games, including 14 in 20 in the league. Not bad for a converted right winger with 5 for finishing! Not much to write home about elsewhere, but Gylfi Sigurjonsson had another solid season at the back.

THE YOUTH INTAKE

Another decent intake. Hopefully be able to introduce Illugi Por Luovigsson in the next season.

OVERVIEW

I was hoping to build on the previous season's title challenge, but it was clear from the begining that we was going to be closer to the bottom than the top. I suppose it was my expectations being too high, rather than us underperforming, as the pre-season odds shown. At least we remain in the division, which has to be the main objective for the coming years.

An average attendance record of 2,112 is a good sign and if we do ever get consistently in Europe, the £100k gate receipts we took for the Riga game is a big bonus.

I also reached 200 games in management.

In some good news, we managed to convince the board to improve the youth recruitment at the end of the seaon and improve the academy coaching, which will hopefully help for next season.

Edited November 22, 2020 by Shankly84
Youth intake updated

[Vevi]

9 hours ago, Cheez3y said:

Yay finally, lets see how high I can get it before the next intake.

How look club finances? Can you show the graph?

[Cheez3y]

7 minutes ago, Vevi said:

How look club finances? Can you show the graph?

Its looking pretty decent.

[metallimuse]

Stepped away for a week as I was struggling to get into the challenge but back again and moved to Germany to take over at newly promoted side Chemnitzer FC, a historic club who were actually one of the founder side's of the German Football Association (DFB) in Leipzig in January 1900.

A good set up and for me a huge bonus that they are an East German side as this is a save I've wanted to do for a while.

Here's my profile and the game set up.

[keeper#1]

9 hours ago, scarp said:

@keeper#1 why do you rate fickle personality as negative one?

At this point of the save, it's a negative one.  Their determination is high so they develop (which is nice) but their loyalty is low (which isn't nice - I need good players to want to stay at the club).  The club doesn't have a strong enough squad personality to push him into a more loyal personality.  So, I'll develop him and like lose him either on a free or on a transfer that I hope I can work into my benefit.  Maybe later in the save, fickle will move to a more neutral or positive personality.  But right now, I view it as a negative.

[Cheez3y]

I guess I jinxed it......

[Braumiller]

Club Atletico Los Andes
Season 02 (2022/23)

On The Pitch - League Table

I was naturally nervous starting out in our first season in the top flight, but we were handed the perfect start.  2 home games to start with, the first of which against fellow newly promoted Estudiantes (LP).  We recorded two wins and two clean sheets, so perfect.  Next up away at powerhouse Boca Juniors....  And a 0-6 whooping!  We then notched 5 straights wins, the first 4 of those with cleans sheets as the cautious approach paid off!  We unbelievably hit top spot at this point.  Then, things fell apart when we lost 5 on the bounce without scoring a single goal!  Our very streaky form then went in the other direction and a very busy October saw 4 wins, 2 draws and a single loss.
We were exhausting, at least in respect to our yo-yo form.  Our tactical approach was a little boring.  We either ground out a result or our one dimensional approach was nullified and we were handily beaten.  It was also noticable that when I tried to bring in youngsters we suffered as our very structured approach meant that a weak link caused issues.

By the time the winter break and January had past, we were a comfortable mid table team and we began transforming our approach.  Switching to a more positive wide 433, which gave us more dimensions going forward and more bodies in the middle of the park.
P14 W7 D3 L4 and 3 of those losses were to the big boys (River Plate, Independiate & Velez), so happy to move forward as such
I was also able to more comfortably play more youth products, which is in the end what I need to do!

A final position of 9th was a fair reflection of our season and I am very pleased with our debut season.

The crazy amount of continental qualification spots mean we are in the Copa Sudemericana preliminary rounds next year.
Still waiting on final confirmations, but it appears 1st-6th got into the Copa Libertadores and 7th-12th into the Copa Sudamericana!

Off The Pitch
A lot more uneventful this year!  We sold a single first player, which neither really affected our first team squad or bank balance.  Hoping to make more sales this off season though.
The bank balance got healthier, halving our debt.  Despite promotion and most having small raises due to it, the wage bill was almost untouched., mainly due to a few contracts running out and folks leaving.

Youth Intake - screenshot
Another decent intake.  One player who has a chance to factor in the first team and good depth for the youth and reserves team as senior members leave.  Truth be told, I should have probably tagged the 4 start kids as well.  Hopefully one of them will prove me wrong by not doing so
Rodolfo Fuentes (02A) - A second high potential GK in two intakes.  Currently little path to the first team, so a loan might make sense.
Miguel Ojeda (02B) - A stereotypical Argentine defender?  Aggressive and determined, with decent attributes and potential to back it up.  I am starting to introduce him into first team teamsheets.  His starting body language in every changing room before games is Aggressive
Norterto Ybanez (02C) - A temperamental winger who has a lot of progression to make before being considered for the first team

Screenshots & Stats

Squad Stats

Transfers

Hoping to start bringing more youths into the first team set-up and consolidating as a dangerous mid table team.  Our starting XI currently has a 31 & 32 year old in it, so changes are a-coming!

Edited November 22, 2020 by Braumiller

[keeper#1]

South Shields 2022-23 Season Review

Fixtures 1, 2, 3, 4: We started out strong but faded down the stretch as the large number of games wrecked our small squad

League Table: A solid 9th place finish.  We scored 94 league goals (3rd best) but allowed 87 league goals (4th worst).  It's obvious what needs to be improved here

Playoff Tree: Notts County won the league and will be joined in League Two by Wrexham who beat Bolton 1-0 in the Playoff Final.

FA Cup: A great run into the 4th round where we finally lost to Everton.  But we had the leading goalscorer and we were the overachievers for the season.

FA Trophy: Rotated the squad heavily and we crashed out in our first game.  Not too worried about it.  It saved us from adding to our game load

Squad: Not a deep squad so I depended on a lot of these players for most of the matches.  Thankfully, reinforcements are coming.

Best XI: Jason Gilchrist and his 42 goals in all comps drove the offense.  I'd like to say there was a defensive rock but there wasn't one.  Just swinging gates.

Moments of the Season: Our highlights from year.

Awards: We pulled down a fair number of awards this season.

Transfers: No one into the club.  No one left.

Youth Intake: Another solid intake that will help the club with some rotation players in the short term and decent DNA as well

Finances: The FA Cup run really helped our bottom line this season

Manager: Earned my UEFA B license this season.  I'll have my UEFA A license by this time next season.

Junior Coaching: Hesitant to improve facilities but improved the junior coaching to "good"

The graph was updated before the junior coaching improvement.  Big improvement to the club balance.  Slight increase in attendance.  Four academy players scored a goal but none of them found the back of the net twice this season.  Rob Walters has the most academy appearances in the senior team because he was the "best" right back at the club and somebody needed to play there.

[OlivierL]

38 minutes ago, keeper#1 said:

South Shields 2022-23 Season Review

Fixtures 1, 2, 3, 4: We started out strong but faded down the stretch as the large number of games wrecked our small squad

League Table: A solid 9th place finish.  We scored 94 league goals (3rd best) but allowed 87 league goals (4th worst).  It's obvious what needs to be improved here

Playoff Tree: Notts County won the league and will be joined in League Two by Wrexham who beat Bolton 1-0 in the Playoff Final.

FA Cup: A great run into the 4th round where we finally lost to Everton.  But we had the leading goalscorer and we were the overachievers for the season.

FA Trophy: Rotated the squad heavily and we crashed out in our first game.  Not too worried about it.  It saved us from adding to our game load

Squad: Not a deep squad so I depended on a lot of these players for most of the matches.  Thankfully, reinforcements are coming.

Best XI: Jason Gilchrist and his 42 goals in all comps drove the offense.  I'd like to say there was a defensive rock but there wasn't one.  Just swinging gates.

Moments of the Season: Our highlights from year.

Awards: We pulled down a fair number of awards this season.

Transfers: No one into the club.  No one left.

Youth Intake: Another solid intake that will help the club with some rotation players in the short term and decent DNA as well

Finances: The FA Cup run really helped our bottom line this season

Manager: Earned my UEFA B license this season.  I'll have my UEFA A license by this time next season.

Junior Coaching: Hesitant to improve facilities but improved the junior coaching to "good"

The graph was updated before the junior coaching improvement.  Big improvement to the club balance.  Slight increase in attendance.  Four academy players scored a goal but none of them found the back of the net twice this season.  Rob Walters has the most academy appearances in the senior team because he was the "best" right back at the club and somebody needed to play there.

Joe Hunter any good ?

[benrollo]

2030 & 2031 Season Updates

Overview

We're still in the Eliteserien! It was tight in 2030 as we scraped our way to a 13th place finish. Thankfully the 3 teams below us were absolutely woeful! In 2031 we managed a much-improved 8th place, despite the fact that our cushion to the relegated sides was only 3 points better than in 2030.

Players

Departures and past players

Spoiler

 

Lars Erik Bergum Hansen has been on the move again. He's now at Djurgardens on Sweden, who he joined on a free after being released by Midtjylland. He still looks a decent player, and maybe the Allsvenskan is more his level.

Erik Fjeldstad appears to be stealing a living at Malmo. 6 seasons in the book without playing one game for the first team.

Lars Woien Sto managed 20 league games for Rosenborg, before being sold to Stromsgodset for over a million. Rosenborg made about £750k on the sale, and because our board are useless we didn't get a penny of it.

Christian Kvitblick looks to be heading towards a journeyman style career, as he's now on his 4th club. Rosenborg bought him from Hacken for £1.4m, gave him 5 appearances in the first team, and then sold him for a £500k profit to Valarenga. Apparently just by being associated with Rosenborg adds £500k to any transfer fee.

Sander Gronlien went to Napoli and increased his wages from £25 a week to £9k a week. He appeared in one league game for them (earning us £200k!), and then Spurs signed him for £3m. We are due a few hundred thousand in sell on fees which is better than nothing!

Hakon Nielsen was always going to be a tough player to keep hold of, and the board accepted a decent offer from Napoli (again) for him. There's another £3m in incentives, and £1.2m in 3 instalments to come in.

 

Key Graduates

Spoiler

 

Mentioned in the last update, both Kim Eriksen and Guttorm Kvale are both developing well, and are part of the first team squad. Keeper August Fredriksen has also stepped up to the plate and developed really nicely.

Soufiane Boukhriss and Indriði Áki Þorvaldsson led the way from the 2031 class, with Boukhriss already getting in the matchday squad a few times. Þorvaldsson bagged 39 goals in 24 youth appearances, so he's one to watch.

The 2031 class looks relatively weak aside from one player - English/Norwegian attacker Simon Wiseman. Got high hopes for this lad.

 

Top Performers

The talking points for these two seasons are really about the players we've lost.

Gronlien was such a solid player at the back, but as I noted last time there was no way he was sticking around. Napoli came in for him and the board accepted, and thankfully it was a pretty decent deal. Napoli also came in for Hakon Nielsen in a deal that could end up worth £6m. Both deals came at good times for us financially, although we're still pretty much always in the red.

Damir Ramic and Svein Kåre Bodøgård were the players who stepped in for Gronlien and Nielsen respectively, and both of them show up in the end of season summary for their performances, which is encouraging.

I still think we'll be flirting with relegation for a while yet. We have now begun constructing a new stadium which is cool, but its only 3.4k capacity, and we only averaged 1k this season in a rented stadium with 6k capacity. So the money just isn't going to be there for us for some time, in turn meaning we're going to struggle to get our facilities upgraded. We do have some good news on that front though which I'll cover below.

Facilities and Finance

As mentioned above, work has begun on a new stadium with a capacity of 3,406. Elsewhere, I did managed to convince the board to upgrade our youth recruitment to Exceptional after we sold Gronlien. I've also had the go ahead to improve the youth facilities, but after they were cancelled twice already due to the amount of money we lose every month, I'm not holding my breath.

Here's how our finances look right now. Our youth set-up is now costing £232k a month. I think the absolute most money we took from a home game last season was around £45k, so the numbers just don't add up. We need to keep selling players if we want to keep improving and moving forward.

I've at least had some success on the coaching badge front - I'm currently working on my Continental Pro License without any arguments from the board for the last few badges.

Here's how my history is looking right now.

[keeper#1]

45 minutes ago, OlivierL said:

Joe Hunter any good ?

This Joe Hunter? He looks he could stick around.

 

[OlivierL]

3 hours ago, Shankly84 said:

SEASON 7 - 2027/28 - ICELANDIC PREMIER DIVISION

LEAGUE TABLE - FIXTURES - FIXTURES- PLAYER STATS - TEAM STATS - COMPETITION REVIEW

MANAGER PROFILE - CHARACTERISTICS - ATTRIBUTES

CLUB PROFILE - GENERAL - FACILITIES - HONOURS - FINANCES - TRANSFERS

So, before this season started we get the news that we will no longer be run proffesionally and will be reverting to semi-proffesional, due to the financial issues.. I must admit, I was gutted by this. Last season we put a title challenge in and end up in 2nd place, with a cup win as well. Now we will struggle to keep hold of our more senior players when their current contracts are up. Hoping it doesn't set us back, but I have a bad feeling it will.

LEAGUE CUP

Time to build on last season and we make a great start in the league cup. Despite a 2-0 home loss to Vulur, we win 4 out of the 5 group games, with a 7-2, 6-1 and 7-0 in there for good measure. A decent 2-1 win over HK, puts us into the final for the second time in 2 years. We met last seasons champions, Vikingur R,  and didn't really put up much of a fight. A dissapointing 1-0 loss meant we were runners-up for the second year running.

CHAMPIONS CUP

Having won the cup in the previous season, we were to play in the Champions Cup against league champions. A drab 0-0 followed by a penalty shoot-out loss meant Vikingur R. had beat us to two trophies in the last two matches.

LEAGUE

The league started very inconsistently in a season were I was hoping we could build of the back of the last. 2 wins, 2 losses and a draw from the first 5, was enough evidence to prove we wouldn't be fighting for no title this season. Inconsistency reigned throughout and any consistency we did manage was bad form. After 11 games we were sat 4 points clear of the relegation zone, albeit with a game in hand. Not good though, considering last seasons title challenge. 1 win in 10 meant with 3 games remaining we were now just 3 points above the drop, although with a lot better goal difference than Fram. We reverted back to a more attacking formation for the final 3 games and it paid of with a 3-0 win over Starjnan and 6-1 win over HK on the final day. We limped in to an 8th place finish, but it was pretty dissapointing given last seasons performance, Will be interesting to see what next season brings.

ICELANDIC CUP

Going in as holders, I wanted us to put up a fight. In the third round a decent win away at HK, meant that we were up and running. We came out on top at home to FH, in a tricky tie that needed extra-time for a 1-0 win. Vikingur R. away in the quarter-final was a real test, having won the league last year and beaten us in the League Cup final and the Champions Cup. Against the run of play we snook through 1-0 with a penalty bringing the decisive goal. Despite our poor league form, we had reached the semi-final again, but this was the end of the road for this season, as we came unstuck 3-1 to Valur.

EURO CUP II

Back in Europe for the 2nd time since I took over we were drawn against Riga of Latvia. A comfortable 4-0 at home got us up and running and provided our record attendance and gate receipts. We could do with that more often!! 10 changes in the second leg, due to fatigue, meant we came away with a 1-1 draw, but a 5-1 aggregate win  more than impressive. Into the next round and it was Cracovia of Poland. We were never in with a chance, as they outclassed us in both legs. A 3-0 home defeat and 3-1 away defeat meant for a 6-1 aggregate loss and out at the same stage as our previous attempt.

THE PLAYERS

Aron Skuli Brynjarsson managed 15 goals but only 8 in 17 league games meant for the fist time he wasn't top goalscorer. Kristofer Henriksson built on his great first season and managed 24 in 32 games, including 14 in 20 in the league. Not bad for a converted right winger with 5 for finishing! Not much to write home about elsewhere, but Gylfi Sigurjonsson had another solid season at the back.

THE YOUTH INTAKE

Another decent intake. Hopefully be able to introduce Illugi Por Luovigsson in the next season.

OVERVIEW

I was hoping to build on the previous season's title challenge, but it was clear from the begining that we was going to be closer to the bottom than the top. I suppose it was my expectations being too high, rather than us underperforming, as the pre-season odds shown. At least we remain in the division, which has to be the main objective for the coming years.

An average attendance record of 2,112 is a good sign and if we do ever get consistently in Europe, the £100k gate receipts we took for the Riga game is a big bonus.

I also reached 200 games in management.

In some good news, we managed to convince the board to improve the youth recruitment at the end of the seaon and improve the academy coaching, which will hopefully help for next season.

Your youth intake screenshot is showing something about euro cup 

[Shankly84]

29 minutes ago, OlivierL said:

Your youth intake screenshot is showing something about euro cup 

Cheers, I put the wrong link in. Have updated now.

[OlivierL]

After being more active than ever in this topic (addictive) I have not started a third attempt after two failed attempts. Since it is almost the 24th, I am going to wait.
I hesitate between a beautiful club from Iceland (last year I did in this challenge , 8 seasons with IR and that went pretty well, but now I can and would go for another club). Or starting in Germany (prize money , good youth ) or England (extreme challenge at the beginning in the lowest series).

Tomorrow I will decide, the next day I hope to start. Will the full game come out tomorrow after 00h or only Tuesday evening ?

 

[Braumiller]

That last line kinda takes the wind out of your sails   Sounds like we are pinning our hopes on the striker being decent for season 3's intake and that's it?

Edited November 22, 2020 by Braumiller

[benrollo]

Cheers lads.

[filipefm20]

End of the fourth season in second division pro A, another mid table finish. Got a golden generation this time and the board sold my first player in an awful deal....

Best youngster: 

[darren1983]

1 hour ago, OlivierL said:

After being more active than ever in this topic (addictive) I have not started a third attempt after two failed attempts. Since it is almost the 24th, I am going to wait.
I hesitate between a beautiful club from Iceland (last year I did in this challenge , 8 seasons with IR and that went pretty well, but now I can and would go for another club). Or starting in Germany (prize money , good youth ) or England (extreme challenge at the beginning in the lowest series).

Tomorrow I will decide, the next day I hope to start. Will the full game come out tomorrow after 00h or only Tuesday evening ?

 

From memory, so I might be wrong, but think the full game will be out at midnight UK time. Not sure though so might be worth asking elsewhere. 

[Anners]

I hope that's the case the full game comes around at midnight. I'll be restarting my save with Canet once that happens - I feel like the National sides not being in the French Cup is too big of an issue for me to continue at the moment.

[OlivierL]

1 hour ago, darren1983 said:

From memory, so I might be wrong, but think the full game will be out at midnight UK time. Not sure though so might be worth asking elsewhere. 

Just checked, last year it was released at 20u40 (19u40 UK time) on the 18th november. Release date was 19th.

[shaunvamos]

Excelsior Maassluis 2022/23 Season Review

 

Kenny Lipman - Youri de Winter - Daan Blij

 

We had a bit of a sophomore slump, but we still did well enough to comfortably avoid relegation by 11 points. None of our youth products from the first intake really featured, and given how the second one turned out they may be bypassed completely. But I still think we are progressing nicely, with another JC upgrade. The one frustrating thing is that the board are refusing me to go and get coaching badges, because they're afraid I'll get poached. Don't they know I'm in it for the long haul?

Youth Intake

Pascal Altenfold 2A* - Moritz Durr 2B* - Donovan Zuiverloon 2C

 

I changed my HOYD to one with a professional personality, and he duly delivered. I think this was an excellent intake, and a few of these guys have already slotted in as first reserve for several of my positions. My only problem with this intake is that there were no strikers. But that's okay, we're still pretty deep there.

 

Transfers

 

Progress

 

Edited November 23, 2020 by shaunvamos

[yowg8ynwa]

Season 1- 2022 - Mid Season Review

Very excited for the first youth intake, since the U19s I had taken over had only 6 players who were not greyed out.  The squad I inherited also only had one centreback, so I am praying for some to be inducted so they can be fastracked into the team.

We are in mid-table right now, without any consistency but the players have yet to thrown me out of the dressing room, which is nice.  

 

 

[witticism]

2 hours ago, shaunvamos said:

 

If I am reading this correctly, the RWB had 1 starting appearance and 33 substitute appearances, who was starting all those games?!

Also, How's 3 at the back treating you?

[shaunvamos]

2 hours ago, witticism said:

If I am reading this correctly, the RWB had 1 starting appearance and 33 substitute appearances, who was starting all those games?!

Also, How's 3 at the back treating you?

Yeah for whatever reason the AM kept switching my starter out at half time every game. Maybe its time I look at my attribute formula again, or actually add him to the the RWB position players. 3 at the back seems to be doing okay, we're not getting flogged like we're supposed to I guess.

[Shankly84]

I take it the game changing over to the full version this week won’t have any effect on our saves? Really getting into this now, so don’t want to lose this save. 

[XaW]

5 minutes ago, Shankly84 said:

I take it the game changing over to the full version this week won’t have any effect on our saves? Really getting into this now, so don’t want to lose this save. 

It shouldn't have, but we do get the save compatible updates, such as a new ME version and all bug fixes and stuff. So there's always the potential for errors, but usually it works fine.

[scarp]

You will probably need to tweak out your tactic as the updates tend to ruin the working ones 

[metallimuse]

I just don't think I'm a good enough player for this challenge yet 

[holidaysong]

I am doing this challenge with FC United (inspired by @DazRTaylor thread doing the same one last year & also this year).

I am currently top of the table in my first season with 8 games left. Fingers crossed that when I get to my first season update, it'll be a successful one.

Just got my first youth intake  and it's not too bad and will add much needed squad depth. I need to change my HOYD though, as a lot of unambitious new gens in there.

Edited November 23, 2020 by holidaysong

[Padders]

Got a huge bug here that after 6 seasons could mean I get sacked and can't do anything about it

Meeting request about the finances

And won't let me click on attend meeting 

Gutting just as I got my highest finish

[lloyd_doyley]

Bonnyrigg Rose Athletic - 2025/6 - 5th season

 

Season

League

Finish

Scottish Cup

BetFred Cup

SPFL Trophy

Top Scorer

Most Assists

Highest Average

TF

YF

JC

YR

Average Attendance

2021/22

Scottish League 2

9

Second Round

Second Round

George Hunter - 21

Dean Brett - 10

George Huner - 6.97

Poor

Poor

Fairly Basic

Basic

400

2022/23

Scottish League 2

7

Second Round

Group Stage

First Round

Kevin Macleod 21b2 - 14

George Hunter - 8

Scott Gow 21d4 - 7.10

Poor

Poor

Fairly Basic

Basic

530

2023/24

Scottish League 2

8

Fourth Round

Group Stage

First Round

Kevin Macleod 21b2 - 36

Louis Sheerin 22a17 - 8

Mario Robustelli 21d4 - 7.16

Poor

Poor

Fairly Basic

Basic

515

2024/25

Scottish League 2

1

Fourth Round

Group Stage

First Round

Kevin Macleod 21b2 - 33

Luke Barcham 21a33 - 11

Scott Gow 21d4 - 7.19

Poor

Poor

Fairly Basic

Basic

586

2025/6

Scottish League 1

8

Third Round

Group Stage

Kevin Macleod21b2 - 22

Michael McCulloch 21g7 - 10

Scott Gow 21d4 - 6.88

Poor

Basic

Fairly Basic

Basic

759

 

We stayed up!! And starting to get a pretty settled side now with a decent enough balance. A poor youth intake this year though, not a single player looks like they will challenge for a first team place. Every single player on the books is now an academy graduate.

 

We are also starting to clock up some nice numbers for appearances, a few should pass 200 games this season for us.

 

Hopeful we will be safe this year again, and inherit some good youngsters to push us up to the top half.

 

[thomas_e]

4 hours ago, Shankly84 said:

I take it the game changing over to the full version this week won’t have any effect on our saves? Really getting into this now, so don’t want to lose this save. 

Usually there is no problem at all, I've never experienced any at least. But you will have to redo any real name fixes etc. 

[Cheez3y]

2 hours ago, metallimuse said:

I just don't think I'm a good enough player for this challenge yet 

Dont put the head in the sand.

This sh*t is tough, even for experienced players.

 

Im a chronic overarchiever and this bite me in the ass for this challenge.

Its great that I managed to get promoted in the first season from div 3 to div 2, but now I facing the downside.

My defense is at div 2 level I would think, but my attack is utter sh*t.

Well this will not change in the next seasons.

 

I will finish this season with GOAL FC later today and then I need to think a bit.

Edited November 23, 2020 by Cheez3y

[thomas_e]

2 hours ago, metallimuse said:

I just don't think I'm a good enough player for this challenge yet 

 

Keep your head up! This is one of the most difficult, if not the most difficult challenge there is on FM. And the toughest part is the first couple of seasons! Many will try the challenge 6-7 times before they get going! 

 

[JLAB]

From tomorrow onward I plan on joining you guys for my journey after the full release update happens. I haven't decided on what country I plan on managing in yet, but I'll try and give myself a few options to decide on.

How do you guys decide what country you want to manage in?

[XaW]

Season 2031 - Eliteserien (tier 1) - 10th season

We made it into Europe again next season, even if it looked hard at a point. Very up and down throughout the season, but we also had quite a lot of injuries this time around. The first 11 is good enough to fight at the top of the table, but once I get a few injuries, I'm having a hard time. Still, we had most back for the final games, and we had an easier route than a few others and we snatched that 4th place on the final day. The players also got their first taste of European football, but we didn't get very far. We beat Vardar Skopje in our first outing, but lost of Aberdeen the next round and missed the group stage. Hopefully next season we can go further.

Transfers | Youth Preview | Youth Intake

A decent intake, and finally we got a solid left back and I can leave the makeshifts behind for a while. Other than that it wasn't all that.

Key players: Max Ademaj 26b, Dan Osnes 26c & Lennart Baasnes-Telje 26f

[XaW]

1 minute ago, JLAB said:

From tomorrow onward I plan on joining you guys for my journey after the full release update happens. I haven't decided on what country I plan on managing in yet, but I'll try and give myself a few options to decide on.

How do you guys decide what country you want to manage in?

I'm managing my local club, so the easiest way to chose!

[Lexclub]

il y a 15 minutes, JLAB a dit :

From tomorrow onward I plan on joining you guys for my journey after the full release update happens. I haven't decided on what country I plan on managing in yet, but I'll try and give myself a few options to decide on.

How do you guys decide what country you want to manage in?

Often it's a city/region where I have been on holiday or a place where I would like to spend time. This is a good way to extend holidays and memories...

[Braumiller]

15 hours ago, Braumiller said:

That last line kinda takes the wind out of your sails   Sounds like we are pinning our hopes on the striker being decent for season 3's intake and that's it?

Sometimes I hate it when the preview is correct..... 

4 hours ago, scarp said:

You will probably need to tweak out your tactic as the updates tend to ruin the working ones 

This is today's worry.  Happy with my (very rare) self made tactic (and rarer still, a working one!) and hoping it is not affected negatively.

[Padders]

47 minutes ago, Braumiller said:

Sometimes I hate it when the preview is correct..... 

This is today's worry.  Happy with my (very rare) self made tactic (and rarer still, a working one!) and hoping it is not affected negatively.

What I've done in the past (I will do tonight) is not shut down game or laptop for a few weeks

Allows me to continue to play with the ME as it is and make tweaks without completely ruining my save

I am 7 season in and starting to make a little progress, don't want it blown up by ME changes that make my tactic unusable 

The bug above hasn't got me sacked (I holidayed for a day)

[DazRTaylor]

The next youth intake preview is in and it looks like another good one.  I really need a central midfielder though and those prospects don't look good.

[Braumiller]

What resources are you folks using for personality guides currently?  The two links I have in my favorites are from 2012 (very out of date) and 2019

 

In other news, always a concern for us all and I just got my first instance of it 

[scarp]

Brora Rangers - 2039/40

Another great season finish as we secure Europa Conference this time. We play well against teams below us but struggle against the better teams. If it was not for absolutely crazy schedule in February and March I believe we could finish higher. Miller played with us for another season but he's surely gonna leave now. Still does not want to renew his contract and he agreed with me to stay with us unless someone pays 9mil for him (when his release clause is 150k).  On the other hand I managed to sign Gerard Fox on another 5-year deal. Mike Fyffe scored 12 goals for us as CB. Paul Thomson might be the biggest surprise of the season as he managed to score 14 goals from the bench. In EURO Cup we finished 2nd in a tough group with Roma, Kobenhavn and Legia. In first KO round we beat Maccabi Haifa and in the next round we were beaten by Stuttgart. We managed to upgrade both youth and training facilities and board is now talking about a new stadium. Intake was meh and I will look for new HoYD.

Transfers | Youth in-take

Key players: Gerard Fox, James Miller & Mike Fyffe

Youth watch: Alan Beith, Jon Allan & Aidan Hendry

Academy graduates:

Spoiler

 

[OlivierL]

5 hours ago, JLAB said:

From tomorrow onward I plan on joining you guys for my journey after the full release update happens. I haven't decided on what country I plan on managing in yet, but I'll try and give myself a few options to decide on.

How do you guys decide what country you want to manage in?

I look for a great story( places where i love to go on holiday / citytrip or local city like Antwerp (Berchem Sport) but that was the wrong way for me.. u have to decide what u want to do , play fast ? play long ? are u going to use instant result or not? or a mix ? .

U can pick a short league to get many youth intakes/seasons but not a lot of money ? Start low with a small squad in England but after a few promotions u receive a lot of money. Start not that low with a big squad in Germany and get a lot of money if u get into Liga 2 . But promotion is hard.

I'm doubting between a new adventure in Iceland (fast league but getting into Europe is very hard. ) , Germany or England at the moment.

Edited November 23, 2020 by OlivierL