FM21 Global (Less England) Small Club to Big Club Challenge

[rlipscombe]

(note I know Australia is within Asia...  Best I could find!)

 

FM21 Global (Less England) Small Club to Big Club Challenge

 

Introduction

 

Welcome to a new season of the Small Club to Big Club Challenge, this time on a Global scale (less England obviously as we have Dafuges' challenge for that).  Whilst I have been delighted with the progress the European version of this challenge has gone over the last couple of editions, the take up of the challenge (and also looking at the reduced number of comments on Dafuges challenge also in comparison to previous editions) has fallen somewhat for FM20.  In an attempt to stimulate the challenge, as well as to fill in some gaping holes in terms of the challenge and the options available, I have decided to expand the thread onto a global scale.  A few years ago, I had an enjoyable save in South America, and there was no thread for the region for FM20.  There has also been threads on previous versions for Asia and the MLS which were missing for FM20.

 

In order to plug these gaps and offer some potential new options for FM21, I have expanded the thread to cover all nations on the game less England.

 

The premise of the challenge is simple, to start with a previously unplayable club and taking them all the way to a National Title and then on to winning the relevant Champions League (or regional equivalent). With a variety of leagues, styles of play, different rules, and many different locations for your clubs there can be a lot of variety throughout the thread, providing a great atmosphere and stories for our users to become immersed in. 

 

General Challenge Info

Possible Countries 

Europe

 

·         Austria

·         Belarus

·         Belgium

·         Bulgaria

·         Croatia

·         Czech Republic

·         Denmark

·         Finland

·         France  

·         Germany

·         Greece

·         Holland  

·         Hungary

·         Iceland

·         Ireland  

·         Israel

·         Italy  

·         N. Ireland  

·         Norway  

·         Poland

·         Portugal

·         Romania

·         Russia

·         Scotland

·         Serbia

·         Slovakia

·         Slovenia

·         Spain  

·         Sweden  

·         Switzerland

·         Turkey

·         Ukraine

·         Wales

 

South America

 

·         Argentina

.         Brazil

.         Chile

.         Colombia

.         Peru

.         Uruguay

 

North America

 

.        Canada

.        Mexico

.        U.S.A

 

Asia

 

.        Australia

.        China

.        Hong Kong (China P.R)

.        India

.        Indonesia

.        Malaysia

.        Singapore

.        South Korea

 

The Rules

 

A) Game Set-up

1) Load One Nation Only (All Available Divisions within your nation)

2) Your choice of Database Size (Large Recommended)

3) NO Edited Databases of any kind

4) Customising Database 

You can add players to the database up to a limit of 100,000 in total in order to add more depth to your save and also add more difficulty down the line.

Suggested Adds

Players from Top Clubs/Top Divisions (Europe or All Continents) - This increases the challenge at Continental Level

Players Based in your Nation - This can add up to 50% more players to your game

Players Based in your Region (Central Europe/East Europe/UK & Ireland) - This can add extra players likely to join your club

There will be a file correcting the club/competition names, I will advise use of this.

NO other additional customising is allowed.

5) Attribute Masking should be Enabled

6) Disable Ingame Editor (Please do this)

7) Optional Ticks

Add Key Staff (This will give you a Scout, Physio & Ass Man by generating them if your club is without)

Add Players in Playable Nations (This will ensure all clubs have a minimum number of players, generating them if needed)

The extra levels of detail that you can change while in the game are up to you, as they shouldn't make a difference.

 

B) Steps in the Game

1) Add an unemployed manager; you will not use this man to manage your club. I like "Unemployed Man or Holiday Man"

2) Go on holiday until the reset date of your chosen nation (Should take about an hour)

TIP -

Changing

Detail Level to None

will make it go faster. (Remember to change it back afterwards)

TIP - Saving on the day before this date may give you a better choice of teams by reloading the game then going on holiday for one day, I would strongly recommend trying this.

3) Add a new manager - Use yourself, or a created character to help build a story line

a) Personal Details

- Your Choice

b) Tracksuit vs. Trainer

- Your Choice

c) Past Experience lowest Possible (Generally Sunday League)

d) Coaching Licenses lowest Possible (None)

e) Other options are up to you

TIP - If you add the language of your country of choice it will make it easier at the beginning

TIP - Training now includes you at some level depending on your abilities.

4) Choose to take over any club which has been promoted to the bottom playable league of your nation.

TIP - Easiest way in FM20 to see this is on the "Season Review" screen, showing the "Promoted Clubs"

TIP - You can confirm your club by checking the Domestic History's page for not being at this level since start of game

5) Retire your unemployed manager.

6) Manage your club to National Title & European Champions League Victory

7) Completing the Challenge.

 

C) Signing of Players

1) You must be able to scout them

TIP - You don't actually have to scout them, just be able to

TIP - You can check your scouting range on the Scouting page

2) Alternatively (If you can't scout them), you must bring them on a trial first

3) You are able to sign anyone sent to you via Agent Offer

TIP - Make sure you screenshot the Agent offer

4) In later versions you can get your DoF to find players, he will bring in players not in Scouting Range, these are also allowed.

TIP - Grab a screenshot of your DoF signing them

 

D) Posting

1) Player naming is allowed. (This is a warning for those of you who do not wish to see this)

2) Discussion of tactics is allowed. (This is another warning for those of you who do not wish to see this)

 

Expected Updates

We have minimum expectations when it comes to a first up post and also in the end of season updates. The Bold pages are necessary for everyone; the others are some suggestions that will get others interested in your posts and following your club. All other screenshots are welcome and encouraged, but we please ask that the majority are posted as links, because lots of pictures can make the page very slow to load.

 

First Post:

 

Domestic Leagues History (Club)

Profile (Manager)

Overview (Club)

Squad (Club)

 

End of Season Updates:

Transfers (Club) - This is so we can see the ins & outs

League Table (Competition)

Squad (Club)

Information (Manager)

Profile (Manager)

Information (Club)

Profile (Players)

 

Progress of your club should be documented using this thread; we want to hear the story of your club all the way through. Please keep us updated, even if you are doing badly. If you title your end of season report in bold this makes it easier to identify. Everyone will be supportive, and really get into your game if you give more detail.

 

E) Other

1.        If you are Sacked

1.       You can Restart from the beginning or;

2.       Continue your game and pick a new club (Under Same Rules) at the end of the next season or;

3.       Add another League/Remove Current League, holiday a whole season and continue

1.       You can still only have one nation running at a time

2.       Once the league becomes active you MUST holiday a full season

3.       The club must be one of those unplayable from the beginning

2.       No Restrictions on Parent or Feeder Clubs

3.        International Management allowed (But you cannot start as an International Manager)

The use of any external utilities and editors (Such as Genie Scout or FMM) are prohibited. As of FM14 there are also unlockables, these are also prohibited, please don't use them. It would be appreciated if you also ticked the box at the start which prevents the use of the ingame editor.

 

How to Post a Screenshot

1) While in FM, press the 'Prt Sc' button (usually next to F12 on your keyboard).

2) Open an image editing program such as Paint and paste the image

3) Save the file as a JPEG or PNG

4) Upload the image to an image hosting website such as Photobucket or Imageshack

5) Post the direct URL to the image here.

Alternatively using ALT + F9 in game saves a screenshot to your user data folder. (You can also edit this in the shortcuts options)

 

The Global Nation Motivational

 

I would like to thank all of you who choose to participate in this thread this year, and to wish everyone taking on this challenge the best of luck on a long and hard journey to managerial success!  I have personally had a number of hugely enjoyable saves over the years, first in Gundos challenge and then latterly in the Big Euro Nation Challenge.  The atmosphere and support these threads have historically offered is key in making the thread, and your saves more enjoyable as I can testify to.  I and some of the other regulars of these threads are here to help for the new challengers and hope everybody that participates contributes considerably to the thread. There is nothing better than getting immersed not only in your own game but providing the encouragement to other people's attempts too. Remember we are all fighting the same battle - to defeat the AI (and uncover fabulous newgens!) - Therefore it goes without saying that any form of cheating will be severely chastised. Don't do it! I know that it is painful to lose a European Final or to lose the title on the final day (I have been there myself on more than one occasion) but eventual success down the line is all the sweeter for those defeats.

 

Good luck to all the participants – Here’s to a successful (and enjoyable) version!!

Edited November 12, 2020 by rlipscombe
formatting

[jmarchand]

For Europe, the save dates are here: 

Still haven't decided which country I'm heading to, will sleep a bit on it while I finish my last season at Campobasso. 

[DazRTaylor]

I spent a few hours getting accurate save dates for some European leagues for The Youth Challenge thread which @jmarchandhas kindly linked above.

As an aside, with these challenges now involving the whole world, I have always felt that to complete it, you must win the Club World Cup as some Champions Leagues are nowhere near as strong. 

[jmarchand]

@DazRTaylor Do you happen to have the date at which we get different clubs in Croatia?

[DazRTaylor]

Unfortunately not as haven’t used them.

Edited November 13, 2020 by DazRTaylor

[rlipscombe]

thanks for that @jmarchand.  will look to update the opening post with the dates at some point later today all being well.  @DazRTaylor - the Club World Cup, understand your point completely.  I guess that those that reach that point will naturally want to win the Club World Cup as well.  I think, personally (for now at least) we will leave that as an optional extra if you like

[Watson156]

Out of interest whats the theory of unplayable clubs in leagues where there isn't any relegation's like Canada, USA or Australia for example? 

[rlipscombe]

3 hours ago, Watson156 said:

Out of interest whats the theory of unplayable clubs in leagues where there isn't any relegation's like Canada, USA or Australia for example? 

For countries that don't have relegations (and thus promotions) I think it will have to be the team bottom of the league at the end of the first season (or in the case of the MLS for example one of the bottom teams with the different conferences).  Just show proof that they were bottom at the end of the season and that will be sufficient

[jmarchand]

I was thinking of maybe going to Portugal this time, but with the rules change in 2021, this is "fun". Essentially, the Portugal Championship is being introduced, with 60 teams, 40 of them coming from relegation from the Portuguese 3rd division.

Who should we approach this? Take any of the teams which were not available from the start? Go on Holiday one extra year? 

 

[rlipscombe]

13 minutes ago, jmarchand said:

I was thinking of maybe going to Portugal this time, but with the rules change in 2021, this is "fun". Essentially, the Portugal Championship is being introduced, with 60 teams, 40 of them coming from relegation from the Portuguese 3rd division.

Who should we approach this? Take any of the teams which were not available from the start? Go on Holiday one extra year? 

 

As per the rules of the challenge, any team not playable in the first season who gets promoted to the lowest playable league at the end of the first season.  As long as they weren't playable at the start then they are eligible.

[Watson156]

30 minutes ago, rlipscombe said:

For countries that don't have relegations (and thus promotions) I think it will have to be the team bottom of the league at the end of the first season (or in the case of the MLS for example one of the bottom teams with the different conferences).  Just show proof that they were bottom at the end of the season and that will be sufficient

Perfect thanks for the clarification.

Edited November 13, 2020 by Watson156

[jmarchand]

21 minutes ago, rlipscombe said:

As per the rules of the challenge, any team not playable in the first season who gets promoted to the lowest playable league at the end of the first season.  As long as they weren't playable at the start then they are eligible.

Spot-checked a few and they appear not to be playable from the start. Great. Lots of team to choose from then! 

[Biscotti]

As I said at the end of my last post in the FM20 thread, I shall be joining in here again. I think I know where I want to go, but I'm going to wait until after the full release in order that some of the main bugs in FM21 get squashed first.

[rlipscombe]

looking forwards to seeing where you go @Biscotti

[XuluBak]

Thought about doing this last year, but ended up getting myself pulled in the Ultimate FM Challenge instead, but really looking to do a long-term, single club save this year, so this aligns well with that. Just have to decide where and if I should wait until after full release to get started. 

Few random thoughts...

Spain is a mess with the restructure. I thought about going that route, but had no idea what was going on or who'd even be eligible. Maybe I'm missing something. 

For MLS, wouldn't starting 2021 with Austin FC (expansion team) be the closest equivalent?  Alternatively, FC Cincinnati is absolutely dreadful, worst team in MLS for both seasons of their existence and don't think you could argue it's even close. Just throwing out a couple thoughts, as an alternative to simulating a season without promotion. 

Also, didn't Mexico abandon promotion/relegation? Thought that was adopted for (at least) five years, with the possibility of becoming permanent, with the second tier as a "developmental league." 

Edited November 15, 2020 by XuluBak

[jmarchand]

I've been fooling around in Portugal, to get a feel for the game and I'm signing players to part-time contracts at 2€ p/w. That's going to make quite a bit of progress when we'll end up winning the Champions League. Not sure that's where I'll end up, but we'll see

[rlipscombe]

1 hour ago, XuluBak said:

Thought about doing this last year, but ended up getting myself pulled in the Ultimate FM Challenge instead, but really looking to do a long-term, single club save this year, so this aligns well with that. Just have to decide where and if I should wait until after full release to get started. 

Few random thoughts...

Spain is a mess with the restructure. I thought about going that route, but had no idea what was going on or who'd even be eligible. Maybe I'm missing something. 

For MLS, wouldn't starting 2021 with Austin FC (expansion team) be the closest equivalent?  Alternatively, FC Cincinnati is absolutely dreadful, worst team in MLS for both seasons of their existence and don't think you could argue it's even close. Just throwing out a couple thoughts, as an alternative to simulating a season without promotion. 

Also, didn't Mexico abandon promotion/relegation? Thought that was adopted for (at least) five years, with the possibility of becoming permanent, with the second tier as a "developmental league." 

To (try and) offer my thoughts:

 

Spain - I think Portugal is similar to this as per the post further up the thread.  As far as I am concerned, any club promoted to the bottom league that wasn't available to manage in the first season is eligible for this challenge.

MLS - I see what you mean about Austin - I would still keep it as specified however to try and increase the possibility of more clubs to manage.  As for FC Cincinnati, sounds like they may be one of the likely teams but we would have to see.

Mexico - I can't comment on this as I haven't seen it.  i guess we would have to see what happens in game and if there was any promotion or not.  If not, the eligible team would default to that finishing bottom of the lowest playable league.

 

I am more than happy to hear of any other thoughts on this however

[DazRTaylor]

I am having a blast in the youth only challenge but will also be trying this at some point.  I will go in both Germany and The Netherlands.

[Maikol]

Jippo Joensuu-Introduction

Ran in to some techinical problems with my Youth Academy run so ive put that on the backburner and try to do this one in the meantime. 

 

 

Edited November 23, 2020 by Maikol

[rlipscombe]

good luck guys... 

[jmarchand]

Finally decided to go to Croatia and, after holidaying for a bit, decided to go to NK GOSK Dubrovnik. Had a wonderful time when we went to Dubrovnik in 2005, so these are fond memories to me. The stadium, Lapad, was just next to our hotel, too. Reading about the club history, they played in the Croatian First League for 4 years in the 1990s when Yugoslavia broke up and then got relegated and have been in the Third Division or below since 2005. 

We have a pretty beat up 6000 all-seater, basic facilities and a somewhat crappy logo, that's how an FM game should start...! Go NK GOSK Dubrovnik! 

[Biscotti]

Great to see a few people jumping right in!

 

Francisco | Sestao River Club | Spain | Initial Post

News Story | League History

After taking on mid-tier nations for the last couple of years, I decided this time out I wanted to head to a somewhat larger nation. Generally speaking, the expectation would be that5 winning the Champions League should be easier, but the domestic title will not come as easily.

I've had a hankering to mess about with a Basque club for a number of years now but I've never really pulled the trigger. I did originally think it would be fun to try this in the Basque region of France, but setting up a game effectively in France seems like a complicated endeavour on the basis that the lowest league that can be loaded isn't actually playable. Maybe one I'll look at in future.

Anyway, to Spain I headed. First order of business was to do a little research and to decided which club I wanted to try and get. I like to feel some investment in my club early, so my criteria or picking a club are normally threefold: badge/kit, location, history. Two out of three is enough to pique my interest. 

Sestao River Club managed to catch my attention with quite a unique badge. Sestao is a town on the Bilbao River estuary with a population of approximately 27,500 and is part of the metropolitan area of Bilbao proper. Formerly a major industrial hub particularly specialising in steel, it has been undergoing redevelopment for the last couple of decades as the industry has largely gone away.

In terms of the club - originally Sestao Sport Club, founded in 1916, the club lasted until 1996 when it was folded due to financial problems. Sestao River Club was immediately formed as a phoenix club and despite the short official lifespan they still celebrate the 104 year combined history of their team. They play in green and black stripes, which seems to be an extremely uncommon colour combination throughout the world.

My initial squad looks a little thin, with only 11 players on the books, but the assistant thinks at least half of them are at least "leading players" for this level.

Just to add myself a little challenge to this one, I'm going to try and maintain a core of Basque nationality players. I'm not going to go full Bilbao on it, but I think if I reach the end of a season without at least 5 Basque players playing a reasonable part in our season I'll make a concerted effort to bring in some more.

[jmarchand]

Some people's standards are pretty low. I'm struggling to attract people here, even on loan, then this guy from Spain recommended by my DoF signs after a trial and states the following... 

He's an ex from El Ejido, so he has Champion League experience, right?

[Thebaker]

After a false start in Norway where the bottom level is loadable but not playable, i have started in Sweden.

I was going to go for Sleipner as they were once a big club but their huge stadium put me off. Instead i have gone for Malmo city who have no facilities.

Profile

[Vipertitan]

 

K.S.V. Oudenaarde-Eerste nationale Season 2021-22

Season Preview - Results 1 - Results 2

 

we were expected to finish in 11th place and priced at 25-1 for promotion this season, so I was looking forward to the challenge.

 

League Table - We some how managed to finish in second place finish and secured a promotion place spot.

Promotion Playoffs - We were decent but R Knokke FC beat us to top spot and were promoted. 

 

Beker van België- K Bilzerse Waltwilder beat us in a in a shoot out. 

 

Squad- Decent side start with .

 

Transfer History- One in One out add more option to my defence. 

 

Youth Candidates- Looks like a decent bunch players this year. 

 

Finances- I am a bit annoyed with myself  that not took much notice but hopefully  we can turn this around.

 

KEY PLAYERS PROFILE:

 

 

TOP SCORER- Kristof Verspeeten

MOST ASSIST- Lorenzo Heirwegh

MOST APPERANCES- Gillian Verbrugge

HIGHEST AVERAGE RATING- Abdoulaye Diaby

BEST YOUTH PROSPECT- Bert Willems

 

 

CAREER  OVERVIEW:

 

Season          Team              League                                     Position     Achievements
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2021-2022   K.S.V. Oudenaarde  Eerste nationale                               2             NONE

 

 

NEXT SEASON:

 

Hopefully to try and stay in the division and not to be bit more stable at the back. 

[Thebaker]

Squad | Table | Transfers

Started with 2 wins including a 5-1 away win but this turned out to be the high point of the season the team then only managed 1 win in 17. Finished the season with a few wins to end one position above the relegation playoff spot.

Finances are pretty poor at this level especially since i didn't get entered into the Swedish cup.

Most of the team is poor and midfield needs improving for next year. The standout players were the two up front in Jabang and Selden.

Season	League	Position	Swedish Cup	Europe	Top Scorer	Attendance	Training	Youth	Junior	Youth Rec	Notes
2022	2nd Div EG	11th	Not entered	N/A	Selden (20)	258	Poor	Poor	Basic	Limited

 

[XuluBak]

 

AS Santorini 2020 

 

 

Objective for the first season: stay up, drink wine. 

Edited December 1, 2020 by XuluBak

[jmarchand]

I kinda feel that the level for the Golden Generation is a bit lower than it used to be... 

[Biscotti]

Francisco | Sestao River Club | Spain | 2021/22 (Season 1)

Competitions | Transfers | Youth Intake

I've spent so much of the last year being a "top" team that I'd forgotten how much effort has to go into scratching around at the bottom. As my initial post stated, we were very thin on numbers although we did have a strong base to build upon. So in came floods of trialists. For the longest time, the only players who were remotely in a position to help us out were all 34yo+ players looking to play out their last season or two at an easy level. Turns out I forgot to keep my club vision in mind and pissed the board off a little by signing a fair few of these players when they wanted us to look to U23 players to bolster our ranks. Once I realised my mistake I moved to a much more focussed approach on younger players, but it was much harder to bring in players who didn't look like liabilities. And then I ran into the squad registration rules. No more than 22 players registered, of which only 20 can be outfield players. Oh, and only 16 over-23 players. Under 19s didn't need to be registered, but we didn't really have anyone that young who was going to be of use anyway. This turned into quite a logic puzzle for me, but fortunately the only players I ended up leaving out of the squad were on non-contract anyway.

We started off strongly with 4 wins on the bounce before we got knocked back with 4 without a win. Top 3 places made the promotion playoff, and we were there or thereabout the whole season, which was well above my targeted top-half finish. The board, by contrast, only needed me to finish mid-table. In the end we twice threw away a lead on the final day of the season to slump to 4th place but, in a Loki Doki kind of way, I hadn't checked the league rules - the best 4th placed team across this level would also secure a spot and it turns out we were comfortably ahead on that metric and snuck in. The semi-final saw us win the first leg 5-1 and step off the gas in the second to draw 4-4, putting us only one game away from a very unlikely promotion. Another dominating first-leg meant we coasted through 4-2 on aggregate and in spite of everything we were about to make the step to the professional division!

With my top-half target I was looking for my strike partnership to get 30+ between them, but Aritz Pascual went ahead and scored 29 on his own (even if the playoff matches aren't being properly recorded in his stats). His partner up front certainly was no slouch either, with Txema Pan netting 19 times himself. Pablo Fid played all but one game for me this season and at no point did I ever consider leaving him out of the team. At this level, I'm not sure a goalkeeper can ever really earn you points, but it's good to have someone you can feel confident in.

I'm not sure the youth intake had anyone to really celebrate this time, but José Antonio Esparza probably comes closest. If I'm to focus on a core of Basque players, my youth team will likely play a major part, so if/when we come into money our facilities will be high-priority.

[Watson156]

Does anybody by chance know what the MLS reset date is?

[Thebaker]

On 28/11/2020 at 03:34, jmarchand said:

I kinda feel that the level for the Golden Generation is a bit lower than it used to be... 

Mine had just 1 green comment - golden generation. Most of the yellow comment were about how poor the players in every position were. had 4 5star players and 2 4.5 players which considering the strength of my squad probably inst that good.

[DazRTaylor]

I start tomorrow in either The Netherlands or Germany.  Haven't decided which yet.

Edited November 30, 2020 by DazRTaylor

[DazRTaylor]

So I am going in The Netherlands.  The first season there is promotion is at the end of the 2023/24 season, so have holidayed until then and have taken over at VV IJsselmeervogels.  Which I think is a quite brilliant name.

Club Introduction

VV IJsselmeervogels

The Manager

This is me.

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

Club Facilities

Season     Training Facilities  Youth Facilities  Corporate Facilities  Junior Coaching  Youth Recruitment  Club Reputation
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At Start   Poor                 Poor              Fairly basic          Fairly basic     Basic              Regional   (1.50*)

Season Record

Season     Played     Won     Drawn     Lost     Goals For     Goals Against     Goal Difference
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Overall Career Record

After Season   Played     Won     Drawn     Lost     Goals For     Goals Against     Goal Difference     Time At Club
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Trophy Haul

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

Trophy Cabinet

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



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

Career Overview

Season     Champions League    Europa League    Europa Conference League             League                             Position     TOTO KNVB Beker                    Achievements
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Record Number of Appearances (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Appearances
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Record Goal Scorer (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Goals
---------------------------------------------------------------

Record Number of Assists (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Assists
-----------------------------------------------------------------

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

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Clean Sheets
----------------------------------------------------------------------

 

 

 

[XuluBak]

On 27/11/2020 at 12:15, XuluBak said:

AS Santorini 2020

Sadly, I couldn't really get into this save. Will try again later, in a bigger (footballing) nation, once there's some resolution to the newgen issue. 

[DazRTaylor]

Deleted.

Edited December 1, 2020 by DazRTaylor

[Biscotti]

@DazRTaylor are they based in or near Capelle aan den IJssel? Where I work we have a customer based there whom we ship to on a regular basis.

[DazRTaylor]

2 minutes ago, Biscotti said:

@DazRTaylor are they based in or near Capelle aan den IJssel? Where I work we have a customer based there whom we ship to on a regular basis.

According to Google maps, it isn't far from Almere.

[DazRTaylor]

My deleted post above was me starting in Germany.  I will start there again once the youth bug is fixed.  Should be in the next day or so as SI are treating it as a priority.

[DazRTaylor]

End of Season Review

Season 2024/25

VV IJsselmeervogels

League Table - A decent season and I am delighted we qualified for the promotion play offs.

Play Offs - Helmond Sport proved no match in the first round.  Unfortunately, six international call ups meant the squad was down to the bear bones for the second round tie against MVV Maastricht and we were well beaten, five two on aggregate, ending our season.

League Fixtures 1 & 2 - We were never in relegation trouble and even managed to snatch a promotion play off place towards to the end of the season.

TOTO KNVB Beker - One to forget, as we went out at the first time of asking, losing at home to top flight PEC Zwolle, in the second round.

Pre Season Friendlies - An excellent pre season campaign, with only one defeat, albeit a six nil thrashing by Feyenoord.

Squad - A lot will depend on whether I can retain the loanees.  The youngsters are getting better, but are not yet ready to start regularly.

Squad Dynamics - Very good, even though we have a lot of loans.

Transfers In 1, 2 & 3 - I brought in plenty of loans and young players on free transfers.

Transfers Out - Our young goalkeeper who has plenty of promise was sold to Real Madrid for £350,000 together with a 50% sell on clause.

Youth Candidates - Not very good at all and only Leandro Fernandez YP25A1 was offered a contract.

Finances - We made a profit throughout the season which has enabled improvements to be made to the academy.

Key Players

Enric Llansana - Signed on a free transfer, the centre back had a fantastic season.

Murphy Mbiyavanga - Belgian central defender who signed on a free transfer.  His partnership at the back with Llansana was exceptional.

Léon ter Horst - Striker who signed on a season long loan from FC Groningen.  His return of 29 goals in his 42 appearances will leave a big hole if we cannot renew his loan.

Gjivai Zechiël - Central midfielder who is on loan from Feyenoord.  Ran the show in the centre of the park and has already agreed to stay next season.

John Quinn - Irish right winger signed on loan from Arsenal.  Had a good year though can do better.  Also signed for another season.

Next Season

Another play off spot would be lovely.

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
2024/25    Minimal = (0.75*) ↑   National C ↑           5 ↑   5 ↑   2 ↑   1 =   1 =   1 =   5 ↑   5 ↑   5 ↑   4 =   1 =   5 ↑   5 ↑   5 ↑   5 ↑   5 ↑   5 ↑

Club Facilities

Season     Training Facilities  Youth Facilities  Corporate Facilities  Junior Coaching  Youth Recruitment  Club Reputation
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At Start   Poor                 Poor              Fairly basic          Fairly basic     Basic              Regional   (1.50*)
2024/25    Poor =               Poor =            Fairly basic =        Adequate ↑↑      Adequate ↑↑        Regional = (1.50*) =

Season Record

Season     Played     Won     Drawn     Lost     Goals For     Goals Against     Goal Difference
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2024/25      43        19       10       14          81              66                 +15

Overall Career Record

After Season   Played     Won     Drawn     Lost     Goals For     Goals Against     Goal Difference     Time At Club
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2024/25          43        19       10       14          81              66                 +15              324 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     TOTO KNVB Beker                    Achievements
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22           N/a               N/a                    N/a                       Keuken Kampioen Divisie               7th       Second round                       Lost in the second round of promotion play offs.

Record Number of Appearances (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Appearances
---------------------------------------------------------------------
2024/25    No one                                    0

Record Goal Scorer (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Goals
---------------------------------------------------------------
2024/25    No one                                 0

Record Number of Assists (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Assists
-----------------------------------------------------------------
2024/25    No one                                  0

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

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Clean Sheets
----------------------------------------------------------------------
2024/25    No one                                     0

 

 

 

[Muggert]

2 teams have won the Portuguese Championship outside the big three.... One of the teams are eligble this year.

Marco Oliveira (Former standout over 10 years with my Champions League winning Bedford team in FM12) will take the reigns of CF Os Belenenses.

Belenenses has amazing support a decent treputation and great facilities.

Never managed in Portugal more than half a year with a youth only save... Let's get it on!

Profile

 

 

Edited December 2, 2020 by Muggert

[DazRTaylor]

  The patch is out and the newgen bug has been fixed.  So here we go, in Germany.

Club Introduction

Rot-Weiss Essen

The Manager

This is me.

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

Club Facilities

Season     Training Facilities  Youth Facilities  Corporate Facilities  Junior Coaching  Youth Recruitment  Club Reputation
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At Start   Average              Average           Top                   Average          Adequate           National   (2.50*)

Season Record

Season     Played     Won     Drawn     Lost     Goals For     Goals Against     Goal Difference
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Overall Career Record

After Season   Played     Won     Drawn     Lost     Goals For     Goals Against     Goal Difference     Time At Club
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Trophy Haul

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

Trophy Cabinet

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



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

Career Overview

Season     Champions League    Europa League    Europa Conference League             League                             Position     DFB-Pokal                    Achievements
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Record Number of Appearances (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Appearances
---------------------------------------------------------------------

Record Goal Scorer (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Goals
---------------------------------------------------------------

Record Number of Assists (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Assists
-----------------------------------------------------------------

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

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Clean Sheets
----------------------------------------------------------------------

 

 

 

Edited December 11, 2020 by DazRTaylor

[rlipscombe]

10 hours ago, Muggert said:

2 teams have won the Portuguese Championship outside the big three.... One of the teams are eligble this year.

Marco Oliveira (Former standout over 10 years with my Champions League winning Bedford team in FM12) will take the reigns of CF Os Belenenses.

Belenenses has amazing support a decent treputation and great facilities.

Never managed in Portugal more than half a year with a youth only save... Let's get it on!

Profile

 

 

sounds like a great club to manage.  good luck!

[rlipscombe]

Good luck in Germany @DazRTaylor

[Muggert]

Belenenses - 21/22 - Campeonato de Portugal

Squad - Competitions - Finances - Transfers

A decent starting season. We're deep in the red but are collecting pieces to challenge for promotion. We changed formation midseason and are playing way better in our new formation.

Key players:

DL Friars - DMC Morais - AMR Fernandes

Outlook:

We'll keep improving the squad and are looking for another transision season before challenging for promotion. We have a couple of players joining from Porto and Benfica. They should strengthen the team!

Edited December 2, 2020 by Muggert

[Thebaker]

Table | Squad | Transfers

Started the season well and reached the halfway stage on top of the league,  but wasn't able to sustain it and was out of the promotion picture with 3 games to go. Wasn't entered in the swedish cup again.

Finances continue to fall in spite of barely spending any wages.

Selden was my main player along with with Jabang and Ottoson in defence. Gave a few games to youth players but none made any telling contributions.

Season	League	Position	Swedish Cup	Europe	Top Scorer	Attendance	Training	Youth	Junior	Youth Rec	Notes
2022	2nd Div EG	11th	Not entered	N/A	Selden (20)	258	Poor	Poor	Basic	Limited
2023	2nd Div EG	6th	Not entered	N/A	Selden (21)	289	Poor	Poor	Basic	Limited

 

 

[jmarchand]

Season 1 - 2021-2022 | Here we go again!

Squad | Transfers

Entering the Croatian Second League is GOSK Dubrovnik, with his unknown manager... I hoped to stay up in the division for the year, so we can build something for the future. Our kits are light blue and white, which makes for terrible reading in the game interface. I wish there was a way to change that easily, but as far as I can read, it requires the editor to change it. Meh. 

Transfers

I forgot to check the rules initially and was rather surprised by the fact that each match has to feature a minimum of 3 U21 players in (at least) the first half of each match. So some of the initial signings turned out to be a bit unhappy because they were not playing enough, as I had to get some youngsters in. 

Notable transfers are Tino Laus, on loan from Hajduk, an ever-present 19 year-old AMC. I've managed to extend his loan for next year, but he got 3 goals and 5 assists, a pretty good inaugural season. 

Boze Dulaj was signed as he was released from Second League side Junak. Our second-choice striker got 12 goals in 12 games and is improving well. With decent physical stats and a good finishing ability, he's lethal in front of the net at that level. I expect him to figure much more in the side next season. 

Finally, Stefan Cicmil was brought in mid-season to strengthen the defence. From there, he was ever-present in our defence and will be a good buliding block for next year. 

 

League Performance

Projected to finish 18th, dead last in the league, we started strong, almost never dropping out of the top 5. The end of the season was rockier though and we lost a few close and key matches and fell down to 7th place. Still, the performance was good and bodes well for next year. The top team (excluding Dinamo II and Osijek II) are promoted to the First League and the runner-ups enter a playoff with the 9th place in the First League. So, getting out of this division might be tricky, especially if we remain part-timers like this... 

 

Croatian Cup

Without much expectation, we beat Third League Varteks in the Preliminary round, scraping a 2-1 win in extra time, then bravely losing 1-2 to First Division Slaven Belupo in the First Round. One thing to note is that it's played quite early in the season, so we were still trying to figure stuff out during that time. Notably, Inter Zapresic, who finished 4th in the League, got all the way to the final. This actually is encouraging as there might not be too much of a gap when we'll eventually be promoted. 

 

Top Performers

- Baldo Cicijelj: Our best striker, playing sometimes up front, sometimes at AML, 20 goals in 25 games, xG of 14.22. Came in with the initial club players, doing pretty good. That includes a 5-goal game, which was pretty fun to watch...

 

Finances

Things are not looking bright, losing ~250 k€ over the course of the course of the season, despite spending less than half of my wage budget and scouting through trials... Now, the board is giving me two seasons to repair the club's financial damage... Meh, that's going to be hard... looks like I'll be running a really bare-bones squad next year... 

 

Other News

- Just after the first season, the club has decided to build a new stadium (!!) because the other one costed too high in maintenance and was old. Looking forward to see how this will turn out, it's been super long since any of the clubs I've managed got a new stadium like that...

- I've signed Marko Barisic, a defender which I remember signing as a promising youngster in my last game in Croatia, in FM11. Funny how things come around sometimes.  

- We have a few decent youth prospects coming up, but I expect to work to get the squad to progress faster than they can get to the first team, but they might come handy with the U21 limitation. 

 

Club History

Season  |    League      |  Position (media pred)  |   Croatian Cup   |    Europe     |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
21/22   |    2nd League  |       7th (18th)        |   First Round    |     N/A       |

 

Edited December 4, 2020 by jmarchand

[Muggert]

@jmarchand My team is also in the planning phase of a new stadium. Also after the first season. Because of the same reasons.

Even though we have a 25K stadium and only have an average of 5K attendance!

[jmarchand]

9 hours ago, Muggert said:

@jmarchand My team is also in the planning phase of a new stadium. Also after the first season. Because of the same reasons.

Even though we have a 25K stadium and only have an average of 5K attendance!

Ours is more modest, around 3000 seats, but our average attendance in the first season was something like 250 fans. And, they're doing that while they ask me to get the finances straight. Oh well, we'll play on and see, I guess

[Thebaker]

14 hours ago, Muggert said:

@jmarchand My team is also in the planning phase of a new stadium. Also after the first season. Because of the same reasons.

Even though we have a 25K stadium and only have an average of 5K attendance!

Is the stadium old? On FM20 in hungary my board replaced my ground after about 3 or 4 seasons with one half the size which i was nearly filling from the first game in the new stadium, justification was that the old stadium cost too much.

[DazRTaylor]

End of Season Review

Season 202021/22

Rot-Weiss Essen

League Table - We won the title comfortably and beating second placed Würzburger Kickers home and away went a long way to claiming first place.

League Fixtures 1 & 2 - We won fifteen consecutive matches from August through until December which set us up for the title win.

Pre Season Friendlies - Not many friendlies were possible and three defeats were concerning.

Squad - My squad is intentionally getting younger.  I just need them to fulfill their potential now.

Squad Dynamics - Cohesion could be better though I am happy with this, considering my lack of experience and the overhaul in playing personnel.

Transfers In 1 & 2 - Quite a few in, mainly loans and free transfers.

Transfers Out 1 & 2 - I overhauled the squad and quite a few left.

Youth Candidates - I was promised a group of players that were not very good and whilst I didn't get that bad an intake. it certainly wasn't the best.  Carsten Schneider YP22B2 looks like the player with the most potential.

Finances - Not good but at least we are guaranteed prize money of at least £7.15m next season.

Key Players

David Nemeth - Central defender signed on loan for the season from Mainz, he had a terrific season.

Dario Van Den Buijs - Centre back partner of Nemeth, also on a season long loan, though from Beerschot in Belgium, he was just as good as Nemeth.

Michele Di Gregorio - A free transfer signing in January, the Italian shot stopper had an ok time in the second half of the season though I expect big improvements.

Marky Delgado - Signed on a free transfer during pre season, the American central midfielder had a good time dictating games in the middle of the park.

Vassi - Young Spanish striker signed for a club record £200,000 from Real Madrid, I expect big things from him in the coming seasons.

Next Season

A safe mid table finish would be lovely.

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 = (1.00*) ↑   National C ↑           5 ↑   4 ↑   2 ↑   1 =   1 =   1 =   5 ↑   5 ↑   5 ↑   4 =   1 =   4 ↑   4 ↑   5 ↑   5 ↑   5 ↑   6 ↑

Club Facilities

Season     Training Facilities  Youth Facilities  Corporate Facilities  Junior Coaching  Youth Recruitment  Club Reputation
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
At Start   Average              Average           Top                   Average          Adequate           National   (2.50*)
2021/22    Average =            Average =         Top =                 Adequate ↑       Average ↑          National = (2.50*) =

Season Record

Season     Played     Won     Drawn     Lost     Goals For     Goals Against     Goal Difference
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22      38        27        7        4          79              28                 +51

Overall Career Record

After Season   Played     Won     Drawn     Lost     Goals For     Goals Against     Goal Difference     Time At Club
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22          38        27        7        4          79              28                 +51              328 days

Trophy Haul

Season     Competition Won
--------------------------
2021/22    3. Liga

Trophy Cabinet

League Titles
-------------
1 x 3. Liga (2021/22)


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

Career Overview

Season     Champions League    Europa League    Europa Conference League             League                             Position     DFB-Pokal                    Achievements
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22           N/a               N/a                    N/a                       3. Liga                               1st          N/a                       Promoted as champions.

Record Number of Appearances (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Appearances
---------------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22    No one                                    0

Record Goal Scorer (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Goals
---------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22    No one                                 0

Record Number of Assists (Players From The Academy Only)

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Assists
-----------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22    No one                                  0

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

Season     Player                    Cumulative Number of Clean Sheets
----------------------------------------------------------------------
2021/22    No one                                     0