[FM24] The Norseman

[Litmanen 10]

Just found this career update last night and I've so far only been able to read the first page. Have to say, though, that this is once again a fantastic thread and also close to my heart because it's written about our neighboring country's football. 

Will keep reading and hopefully will be up to date soon.

Keep up the good work! 

[Chris_ANZFM]

Taken a couple of lunch breaks to get myself all caught up again after the Christmas break, happy holidays and all that. 
 

Initially I was surprised to see you leave GIF but having been able to read the way that your thoughts/feelings developed over the following posts it looks to be the perfect move. 
 

Congrats on the title! First of many, eh? Whether that be here or further afield. 

[Slipky]

On 27/12/2023 at 19:13, _Ben_ said:

 

 

 

I take it this isn't found in-game?
Also, which skin are you using? Looks like a modified Mustermann skin?

OT: This thread is lovely and goes to insane amounts of in-depth FM analysis. Just the morning read I needed with my coffee before college. Thank you for that!

[_Ben_]

14 hours ago, Litmanen 10 said:

Just found this career update last night and I've so far only been able to read the first page. Have to say, though, that this is once again a fantastic thread and also close to my heart because it's written about our neighboring country's football. 

Will keep reading and hopefully will be up to date soon.

Keep up the good work! 

Thank you - hope you enjoy the rest of the read!

9 hours ago, Chris_ANZFM said:

Taken a couple of lunch breaks to get myself all caught up again after the Christmas break, happy holidays and all that. 
 

Initially I was surprised to see you leave GIF but having been able to read the way that your thoughts/feelings developed over the following posts it looks to be the perfect move. 
 

Congrats on the title! First of many, eh? Whether that be here or further afield. 

It was a tough choice but that ceiling felt like it’d take a few years to break down. Their new manager spent all of the money I raised last year and they didn’t improve, at all. 

Elfsborg has everything I had at GIF, with much more potential!

2 hours ago, Slipky said:

I take it this isn't found in-game?
Also, which skin are you using? Looks like a modified Mustermann skin?

OT: This thread is lovely and goes to insane amounts of in-depth FM analysis. Just the morning read I needed with my coffee before college. Thank you for that!

No - that’s Excel. I just use the same font and colour palette and in the skin, which is the Statman skin made by me! It’s in the download area if you wanted to have a look. 

Thanks for the kind words!

[_Ben_]

 

I wanted to start off the season with a tactical thought, inspired from some X browsing. The tweet, below, really made me think about the progression effectiveness of my squad, considering that we are now a team that does maintain possession a lot more than my pure counter attacking sides of the past. To create this metric, I have used a total of progressive passes per 90 and dribbles per 90 divided by possession lost per 90. This is not entirely accurate with how it is calculated in real life as I cannot measure progressive dribbles and include a dribble that, in game, may have not gone forwards at all. I do not know what the percentiles are compared with in the tweet, but, given that the Allsvenskan is now inside the top fifteen European leagues, I have decided to include them all, in order to get a broader picture. The author completed this for most teams but I felt that it was interesting to use the caption that talked about a low score - indicating that the player is in a lower percentile for successful ball progressions because I have three very different groupings within my team and you can see that Man City, from the right image, have almost two complete outliers, also.

KDB is an elite creator and I know that I have nobody that even can be compared to him but he is so high risk with the ball and his total outputs are going to be massively skewed by the times he loses the ball, trying to make that incisive pass. I feel that I have this really clearly demonstrated here: more risk = less ball progression. It is so clear that the three lowest ranked players - Brusberg, Noor Ouma and Okkels - are the three players within the squad who utilise the Attacking duty for their role (I am also aware that Okkels and Brusberg are the most advanced and, therefore, further progression is 'harder' too). Behind them, the three players on a Support duty - Soderberg, Ayari and Paulo Vitor - make up the three next places, with my Defend duties being the safest. They make up their numbers not through dribbles but through progressive passses and fewer balls lost, given the fact that I have, at minimum, four players ahead of them with at least one usually un-marked.

I just thought that it, to me, felt like a really clear way to demonstrate risk through role choice. An interesting bit of comparative work would be to change Noor Ouma from a CM(a) to a Mez(s), for example, utilising some player instructions to get him breaking into the box the same amount but, overall, playing with 'less risk' in his game. Likewise, if I reach a point whereby I want to slow progression down, a Lib(d) would surely increase Paulo Vitor's 'safety' whilst still allowing me to create attacking structures, just from a safer perspective. Our overall approach is already Positive so then I, again, wonder what extent this would be changed should it drop down to Balanced, for example.

   

With those thoughts also come a couple of ideas for different methods of build up - which is, essentially, what the end goal is here: achieve multiple effective methods of transitioning between defence and attack, giving ourselves the best opportunities to score, whilst not over committing players and becoming exposed defensively. The two newest ideas are a 2323 build up that utilises IWB(s) and DM(s) - but my issue here is that both full backs are naturally not great at build up play and both converted wingers are also not of that type. The narrow 343 box build up - with IWB(s), HB(d) and CAR(s) - alleviates one of the inverted wing backs and I can, probably, make that work but I was a little disappointed at how wide the double Carrilero middle went, hoping to create more of a trapeze rather than a very narrow box.

The aim is for me to now be able to spot these opportunities, mid game, where a slight change can help unlock a defence!

---

I have been busy in the transfer market, too, raising €7m in player sales: Baidoo went to Kortrijk for €1.2m, Riasco moved to Antwerp for €4m, Lahdo went to second tier Schalke for €1.5m, Karlsson moved to Famalicao for €190k and Berndtsson went to Kasimpasa for €115k. Additionally, several loan deals were procured to allow my youngsters to develop; particularly interestingly are the three, Wegermo, Persson and Boukama-Kaya, who all moved to second tier German side Osnabruck, a level actually on a par with our top tier. They all played a big part in Skovde's promotion as to the top flight last year and I'm excited to see how they do. All of the other deals were made once I had decided that I was able to improve the player. In the images below, the departing player is on the right with their replacement on the left:

Full profiles can be seen by clicking on thumbnails of both incoming and outgoing transfers, below.

 

First in was Isak Mulugeta, a man with the strangest trio of nationalities I've ever seen! At €1.4m, potentially rising to €1.7m from title rivals Djurgardens, he represents a fairly bit outlay, even if that is offset by Baidoo's sale. I felt that having a more creative player in the middle of the park would enable us to unlock more defences and create more chances, and that is just what Isak brings. Whilst, statistically, he's not performed amazingly well for the title chasers, he's demonstrated, both here attribute-wise and in-game, that he's far better on the ball than his replacement, who utilised his engine more often. As someone on the fringes of the Djurgardens squad, starting only four times last year and still only being twenty-one, he's certainly a player who came 'now' to avoid the 'later' additional costs and, with interest from Ajax at the same time, probable lack of interest from moving further afield. 

  

After an unsettled start to the transfer window with widespread interest in Brusberg, I felt reluctant to let Riasco leave. But, a new contract for last season's top scorer meant that I felt confident cashing in on the Venezuelan, who came in to the club for nothing. There was significant interest from the top clubs outside the big five leagues and it was Antwerp that offered the most, so I allowed him to leave. My shortlist for a replacement was quite vast but, in the end, I opted for a risky move - of a player who fits inside the recruitment policies of partially Swedish and returning from a spell abroad. The big 'issue' here is that Pontus Dahbo cannot, currently, operate as a striker. Much like Brusberg before him, my plan for the Trequartista role is to use a more creative, tehnical midfielder to link play. Knowing that he has a great first touch and is pretty nippy, as well as a liking for one-twos and killer balls makes me feel that he could be ideal in that role, should he retrain well. At 22, Napoli made a loss on him, selling him for €200k less than the €1.7m they purchased him for in 2025. Despite being on the fringes of the Napoli squad, I was able to watch U20 games that he was able to feature in (the rule is no more than five over-20 players, so he featured when the fixture wasn't used for rehabilitation purposes) and look back at his 2025 season with Hacken, where he fully broke into the first team, playing twenty times.

I realise that this goes very much again the fluidity grain that I'm trying to build and puts all my eggs into one type of striker basket but it certainly worked last summer with Brusberg and I hope it'll work again!

  

At a cost of €1.5m, Kai Ekroth brings Champions League experience and a two-footed option, who can operate a similar job on both flank. Karlsson, the outgoing full back was never deemed to be defensively secure for me - although the stat padding from easier appearances would suggest otherwise. I had identified both IFB(d) roles as needing an upgrade and I think that Ekroth could do that, as he is taller, more physical and stronger defensively. The most eye catching part of his build though is the fact that he's comfortable with both feet and is able to play competently on both sides of the defence. This provides me with a huge opportunity to rest the likes of Jeng, Mbacke and Paulo Vitor as the season goes on.

  

The FC Nordsjælland academy has been producing some amazing Swedish players, with Taha, Pettersson, Soderqvist and Strobeck all on my radar. However, it was Holmstrom who I went for in the end, as an upgrade on the physically-reliant Berndtsson in the centre back role, initially providing support for Eriksson, my summer arrival from Norrkoping. Despite the comfort of being able to play further forward, Daniel - in my eyes - does not yet possess the quality to do so and I will rely on the fact that he's an aerial and defensive upgrade on Kasper. He's had a bit of exposure to the first team in Denmark but, of all my incomings, in the furthest away from being ready to step up and was considered on ability for a man of his age and suitability for the role I want to use him in. At €1.2m, I hope he won't let me down!

All in all, €5.5m has us as the biggest spenders but we are still active in continental competition - thus receiving income - and have secured, at least, a playoff spot in the Champions League next year. What is more, I am now feeling more confident in the versatility in my team, as seen by the Venn diagrams, below:

   

      

Each area can - pretty easily - be split into three main positions or types with further analysis able to be conducted for those that, for example are: Right Back and Inverted Wing Back (D) or Right Back and Wing Back (S). I have the most versatility within the defensive areas, but most of that comes with the additions of Okkels and Bernhardsson, who can only play as really attacking wing backs. I really like that both IFB(d) options - Mbacke and Jeng are converted centre backs but I can then use Ekroth as a more progressive and risk taking passer without losing that presence. In midfield, I feel like I could be a little short, but the signing of Mulugeta will help in the creator role as Brusberg and Dahbo are, hopefully, going to be used elsewhere. Noor Ouma is really strong but that still only leaves me with three players for the two roles (including Ayari) as Ilunga and Soderberg occupy the deeper role unless we are facing tough opposition. Up top, again, I could break it down into roles: Kallander is more a creator, despite playing in the IW(s) role and could easily be an AP(s) out wide, whereas Okkels and Bernhardsson are very much inverted wingers, with focus on direct dribbling. After selling Lahdo and not replacing him directly, I'm hoping that there is enough cover - especially with JBK, Al-Ruwaili and Bashiru being out on loan, although all have joined central European clubs and, as such, will be back in July.

---

We've got a Svenska Cup competition to focus on as well as a Conference League double header with Famalicao on the horizon. The plan is to bed in the squad through friendlies and see if we are in a good enough position before the window shuts!

 

Edited January 11 by _Ben_

[Shrewnaldo]

Loving the venn diagrams.

I also like the 'progression effectiveness', with a but. My 'but' is how do you tell whether a player has low 'progression effectiveness' because of their role and the fact they are taking high risk passes, versus the player who has low 'progression effectiveness' because they aren't very good? I'm not sure how to read the players with high progression effectiveness - in the Man City example, are we to assume that Jack Grealish is far too safe with his possession and that is why he is ranked 99 for progression effectiveness? I guess I'm trying to get at the whole "information versus intelligence" angle here. It's definitely interesting information and you would never, ever look at something like this in isolation from which to draw conclusions - but I'm trying to see how you would pair it with something objective from which to draw conclusions, rather than searching for correlations from which to draw inferences?

This is not intended as a negative - I'm just interested in these sorts of conversations and how the thought process develops from the data available.

[_Ben_]

5 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Loving the venn diagrams.

I also like the 'progression effectiveness', with a but. My 'but' is how do you tell whether a player has low 'progression effectiveness' because of their role and the fact they are taking high risk passes, versus the player who has low 'progression effectiveness' because they aren't very good? I'm not sure how to read the players with high progression effectiveness - in the Man City example, are we to assume that Jack Grealish is far too safe with his possession and that is why he is ranked 99 for progression effectiveness? I guess I'm trying to get at the whole "information versus intelligence" angle here. It's definitely interesting information and you would never, ever look at something like this in isolation from which to draw conclusions - but I'm trying to see how you would pair it with something objective from which to draw conclusions, rather than searching for correlations from which to draw inferences?

This is not intended as a negative - I'm just interested in these sorts of conversations and how the thought process develops from the data available.

No offense taken, at all!

My intention - aside from this desire to recreate real life stuff within FM - is to really use this to categorise players within my intended style of play. As a manager who favours a counter attacking style, I have an inbuilt desire for my players to successfully progress the ball. However, I think that I can use these metrics, in combination with more generic ones to help fine tune my decisions, but, realistically, not use it as a tool for recruitment. My thoughts are that I can split the players into two categories:

• High percentile: The player is very safe, not losing the ball much or the player is good at progressing the ball and dribbling.
• Low percentile: The player very unsafe, losing the ball a lot through risky passes or the player is poor at progressing the ball and dribbling.

That information, alone, would make Brusberg my 'weakest' player, ranking in the 27th percentile. Yet, I can dig deeper and see that he contributed 2.16 dribbles per90 and lost the ball under nine times per game - very decent metrics. His issue, as a striker, is that he is unable to progress the ball and only records 1.36 per 90, which is poor. Therefore, in terms of that 'progressions per possession loss metric' he's decent at two of the three things that make it up. Yet, when you then add in that he's scored at 0.80 goals per 90, with an average shot xG of 0.17 and a 21% conversion ratio across a whole season, you'd then think that actually - for him - this stat isn't hugely important. 

Going back to real life and looking a little deeper at Grealish's outputs, below - with him in the 99th percentile overall - you can see that he makes up his numbers by progressive passes (50th percentile) and progressive carries (96th percentile) whilst then being pretty safe in possession with his 17.9% Tkld percentage (meaning the percentage of times he is tackled by a defender whilst attempting to take someone on) being inside the top 10 of all players in the premier league, and being the hardest to tackle forward by some distance on that list (Michael Olise is number 24 with 25% tackled percentage).

Does this make Jack good? It doesn't really say from the outset but I'd suggest he's still safe in possession - not because he's playing simple balls (maybe someone like Kilman and certainly Konsa is doing more so) but because he's hard to tackle when dribbling.

We obviously don't have this depth of data in FM but my takeaway, for my team, from that data I produced is that the duty selection is working pretty much as standard. My more aggressive players are more risky in possession rather than performing badly and thus scoring lower but a low rating in that and poor outcomes on the pitch may be the trigger to look into the suitability of both player and role. Additionally, my defenders are safe with the ball rather than excellent progressors but that'd be expected given the Defend duties.

[Shrewnaldo]

2 hours ago, _Ben_ said:

No offense taken, at all!

My intention - aside from this desire to recreate real life stuff within FM - is to really use this to categorise players within my intended style of play. As a manager who favours a counter attacking style, I have an inbuilt desire for my players to successfully progress the ball. However, I think that I can use these metrics, in combination with more generic ones to help fine tune my decisions, but, realistically, not use it as a tool for recruitment. My thoughts are that I can split the players into two categories:

• High percentile: The player is very safe, not losing the ball much or the player is good at progressing the ball and dribbling.
• Low percentile: The player very unsafe, losing the ball a lot through risky passes or the player is poor at progressing the ball and dribbling.

That information, alone, would make Brusberg my 'weakest' player, ranking in the 27th percentile. Yet, I can dig deeper and see that he contributed 2.16 dribbles per90 and lost the ball under nine times per game - very decent metrics. His issue, as a striker, is that he is unable to progress the ball and only records 1.36 per 90, which is poor. Therefore, in terms of that 'progressions per possession loss metric' he's decent at two of the three things that make it up. Yet, when you then add in that he's scored at 0.80 goals per 90, with an average shot xG of 0.17 and a 21% conversion ratio across a whole season, you'd then think that actually - for him - this stat isn't hugely important. 

Going back to real life and looking a little deeper at Grealish's outputs, below - with him in the 99th percentile overall - you can see that he makes up his numbers by progressive passes (50th percentile) and progressive carries (96th percentile) whilst then being pretty safe in possession with his 17.9% Tkld percentage (meaning the percentage of times he is tackled by a defender whilst attempting to take someone on) being inside the top 10 of all players in the premier league, and being the hardest to tackle forward by some distance on that list (Michael Olise is number 24 with 25% tackled percentage).

Does this make Jack good? It doesn't really say from the outset but I'd suggest he's still safe in possession - not because he's playing simple balls (maybe someone like Kilman and certainly Konsa is doing more so) but because he's hard to tackle when dribbling.

We obviously don't have this depth of data in FM but my takeaway, for my team, from that data I produced is that the duty selection is working pretty much as standard. My more aggressive players are more risky in possession rather than performing badly and thus scoring lower but a low rating in that and poor outcomes on the pitch may be the trigger to look into the suitability of both player and role. Additionally, my defenders are safe with the ball rather than excellent progressors but that'd be expected given the Defend duties.

Yeah that all makes sense and is aligned with what I was thinking - that's it's all about helping you put other statistics / metrics in context. I guess it might be useful in isolation if you had a reliable baseline for what was a mean level in your system. So if you knew that, over the last three seasons, your DM had a "progression effectiveness" score of, let's say, 70 then, ceteris paribus, you can tell if a new player coming in is better or worse - or, presuming your unders are playing the same system, you have a semi-reliable baseline with which to check your academy's players' progression effectiveness in the same role. But it's knowing what that baseline is, without any other complementary metrics, that is the difficult part. Too many variables.

[_Ben_]

12 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

you have a semi-reliable baseline with which to check your academy's players' progression effectiveness in the same role.

This little bit is, actually, the most interesting for me and one I hadn't hugely considered. Providing that the roles don't change, I can create a year-on-year comparison in this area with a benchmark value and, if the roles do change or the 'type' of player is significantly different, I can view the effectiveness of this change.

[_Ben_]

I've been reading a lot lately and that is usually a catalyst for thinking about my FM save, with this one being no different. The book in question is The Nowhere Men: The Unknown Story of Football's True Talent Spotters, tales of how scouts work and vast recruitment networks are built across big clubs. What is also interesting, for me, is that this book was written eleven years ago now, with a focus on Damien Comolli and his time at Liverpool. I know just how much technology and styles have moved on but I do feel that it's such an under-represented part of FM, particularly at the very early age group.. I don't want the say but I want to know what goes on at under 15 level and how that shapes the players I've got coming through: is it my local scouts that do that or do we have foreign based youth scouts that are picking up players from hotspots? What hotspots are they? The list goes on.

The other thing that I was interested in is the sheer amount of games watched and how that triggers the recruitment drive and not the other way round. I felt that this was something that I could interpret into FM but, to do that, needed a much bigger database. I have a decent laptop and have pushed the boundaries a little more anyway but my new setup gives me the stats, below:

The new intended league setup adds basically all of Europe's playable decent leagues so that I can continue to attend matches and push my scouts out there, building that database of players. Furthermore, adding South Africa and improving the detail level of the CAF Champions League means that I may now be able to do more than just guess on African imports, which have been a target of mine lately. My only concerns when doing this are those random over-aged newgens that are added, and a test save confirmed that they'd likely be some; I just find it really unrealistic to be signing a 27 year old who has no career history to date and, as such, no backstory or statistics to work with. With this though, my plan is to really develop hubs in certain countries - either here or further along my journey, where I can instruct my team to watch matches, learn about players and clubs and bring in the best quality. Since this screenshot, I've also increased the detail level, taking the game speed down to three and a half stars, ensuring I'm getting the most accurate statistics from the some of the loaded leagues.

In addition to that, and with absolute influence from @Shrewnaldo - I have created a filter that covers the 49 municipalities of  Västra Götaland County (Swedish: Västra Götalands län), an area covering the  western coast of Sweden. The county is the second most populous of Sweden's counties; Its population of 1,616,000 amounts to 17% of Sweden's population. The formal capital and seat of the governor of Västra Götaland County is Gothenburg. The political capital and seat of the Västra Götaland Regional Council is Vänersborg. With 23 players at the club currently from Vastra Gotaland, excluding loanees JBK, Collins Persson, Rahm and Wigermo, who all hail from Boras or nearby Goteborg, I really want to create a stronghold in our domestic game too - using our 'quicker than planned'  league title to push the credentials and assist in the development of Skovde - our ex-feeder team now at our level, third tier Norrby and second tier FC Trollhättan‎, all producers of this local talent.

However, before reaching this decision, I'd already made three more moves in the transfer market:

 

Atilla Zsigmund - a product of the Kalmar youth system, who had his breakout in the second tier, scoring five and creating another five in thirty appearances last term - comes in to fill a gap across several areas. I felt, through pre-season, that we were a little light with another runner in midfield but also a fourth or even fifth winger - given that Rapp, Okkels and Bernhardsson can all be utilised elsewhere, and would often need to be the case in my second string XI. Atilla, at just €700k, is a powerful ball progresser who can also finish his chances. Whilst he is a little rough around the edges, and I noticed this when watching back highlights of him: passing and first touch in particular, he represents a player pretty well suited to a number of the roles I use. He'll rotate in and out of the first team setup over the coming months.

Asael Ben-Sha’anan is the perfect example of why I want to beef up the game setup and load more leagues. He's plying his trade in Israel but, astoundingly, our scouting team found him before any of the bigger academies across the continent; surely this has something to do with the lack of a modelled Israeli league. The Hapoel Nir Ramat HaSharon man - a second tier club - has the most goals and assists for his side this season but there is very little other data to drive that. Of course, it's then also impossible to watch him play as the club have no schedule and are not willing to even entertain the thought of a friendly. So he was fully scouted and still was considered a top talent, forcing my hand and €240k from my pocket. It's peanuts, in the grand scheme of things, but it's one of those where - if I want to feel realistic - I don't make. The Libyan's I brought into my youth system were different - that's identification for academy purposes and I mould and develop from there but I wouldn't fancy my club signing a player who they've never watched play!

That being said...

...when an agent approaches you will a youngster from the Cook Islands, you kind of have to sit up and take notice, right? Harlem Strickland - at just 19 - is the first ever Cook Island international, I believe - to be on a contract that is not amateur and to play outside of Oceania. Their squad is entirely domestic players with a spattering of players who represent teams in the fifth, and lower, tier of New Zealand football, which is hardly the pinnacle of the Oceanic game! I think it goes without saying that I've never managed someone of this nationality before and, should he actually be any good, have no idea how often the international windows are but, credit where it is due, his agent got him in the shop window. He's a bit of a brute, to be honest and lacks in some pretty basic decision making but my staff feel that there is potential there than can be harnessed. He's good in the tackle, tall, two footed and naturally fit and I think something like a ball winning midfielder might allow him to make the most of that skillset.

A conveyor belt of talent is what is needed here. Players who can come in, develop for a short whilst and step into the first team. With interest in several first team players (Soderberg, Wester, Rapp, Ilunga, Brusberg, Kallander, Jeng and Ayari at time of writing), I need to accept that - if the likes of Leverkusen make a bid for Brusberg - he'll, realistically, have to go: you 'can't' keep a young Swedish international in Sweden when Germany is calling! That puts further pressure on my recruitment, my early development and my player pathway but that is one of the parts of the game that I love!

---

 

We are through twelve games of the 2028 season now and we are, quite frankly, making a mockery of the majority of our competition at the moment. Solid progress in the Svenska Cup has seen us reach the final, where we look to avenge last year's defeat to Hammarby as well as strong progress in Europe. Successful knockout tie wins over Famalicao and Dunajska Streda - of Slovenia - have seen us creep into the Semi Finals, where, inevitably, our dream will end as we didn't get the rub of the green with Lens or Gladbach and instead drew Chelsea. Our league season has started brightly, too, with eight goals and none conceded from the first three games.

It is, however, just the one game that I want to focus on here, rather than fully rounding up the fixture list.

I've thought, and posted, a lot about our in-possession shapes - trying to exploit spaces within opposition defences or overload weaker areas. However, I've rarely talked and, for that matter, thought, too much about our defensive organisation - beyond the movement between the 4231 shape that I employed earlier in the save and the 433 that I often use now. However, the screenshot below, in the 6-1 hammering of Malmo, demonstrates something I've been wanting to achieve for some time.

I decided on using two inverted wing backs to create  235 shape in transition, taking into account the fact that Malmo employed a double Mezzala in the middle and, as such, there would be significant amounts of space early in the build up. It was, however, not that which really impressed me. Analysing their team, it became obvious that one particular Mezzala - Kyprianou - was almost acting as a false playmaker and was much deeper than the other one. The ball often went through the DM to the Mezzala who looked to drive forward. To counter that, I set a very specific trap, pushing the player instructions for my centre mid - Noor Ouma - on to mark the space that the DM would employ, then asking Soderberg - my own DM - to push on and mark the space that the Mezzala would employ. This allowed a much better ball winner to be near to their danger man, without changing the way that we transitioned and kept my best ball carrier available. Here, Soderberg wins the ball and is higher up than Noor Ouma but, because I've committed an extra man to that, we are able to counter really quickly via the left sided IW and have a 5v5 going. Over the course of the game, he won the ball four times from the Malmo's Cypriot midfielder and was instrumental in the pre-assist pass as we repeatedly punished them on the counter.

A small change but a hugely effective one!

[Shrewnaldo]

Love little tweaks like that when they come off.

What detail level do you have set for your database? I'm similarly running most leagues in Europe (but with way fewer players) but I haven't beefed up the detail level because I'm worried about how much it'll slow my game down. I'm got a really decent machine but even so... it's a risk.

[_Ben_]

10 hours ago, Shrewnaldo said:

What detail level do you have set for your database? I'm similarly running most leagues in Europe (but with way fewer players) but I haven't beefed up the detail level because I'm worried about how much it'll slow my game down. I'm got a really decent machine but even so... it's a risk.

I've upped continental competitions to Main Stages from all across the world and have also set the top league of the Big 5 (with the goal that, eventually, I will manage there) to full detail as well as the top tiers of Denmark, Finland and Norway so that Scandinavia feels more 'complete' in terms of statistically gathering. I've also set the top two tiers of Sweden and the U19 league so that I can beef up my appraisals on the youngsters I bring in. Because I already had a lot of players loaded - circa 110,000 - adding the new leagues will likely mean that the game balances itself out at 180/190k players, which is more than I've ever used before, too.

I, too, am conscious of the drain that this will have: it has moved it from five stars down to three and a half. I'm not trying to rush through this save and find myself doing other things whilst the game progresses but I don't want it to grind to a halt!

[Shrewnaldo]

4 hours ago, _Ben_ said:

I've upped continental competitions to Main Stages from all across the world and have also set the top league of the Big 5 (with the goal that, eventually, I will manage there) to full detail as well as the top tiers of Denmark, Finland and Norway so that Scandinavia feels more 'complete' in terms of statistically gathering. I've also set the top two tiers of Sweden and the U19 league so that I can beef up my appraisals on the youngsters I bring in. Because I already had a lot of players loaded - circa 110,000 - adding the new leagues will likely mean that the game balances itself out at 180/190k players, which is more than I've ever used before, too.

I, too, am conscious of the drain that this will have: it has moved it from five stars down to three and a half. I'm not trying to rush through this save and find myself doing other things whilst the game progresses but I don't want it to grind to a halt!

It's interesting, I don't know how much faith to put in the star ratings. My current setup suggests one and a half star rating but it flies along and I very rarely have any genuine processing time. Certainly not enough time to go and do anything else - even browsing on another screen. I've been into the Detail Level screen and it suggests that I can add full detail to "all senior competitive matches" in all 22 loaded nations without any impact to the game speed whatsoever. That just doesn't make sense. I might just experiment for a while and see what happens. Don't want to derail your thread into a discussion on detail level :-D

[keeper#1]

I've found that the star ratings are pretty much useless when comes to that leagues/player screen.  I'm at 1* and rarely have an issue even on deadline day and new season day which, generally, take the longest to process.

[rich ruzzian]

Thanks for the reading tip @_Ben_  The Nowhere Men: The Unknown Story of Football's True Talent Spotters, 

Have you also read: Anatomy of a football scout? 

Edited January 16 by rich ruzzian

[_Ben_]

On 16/01/2024 at 18:20, rich ruzzian said:

Thanks for the reading tip @_Ben_  The Nowhere Men: The Unknown Story of Football's True Talent Spotters, 

Have you also read: Anatomy of a football scout? 

I haven't, yet! I ordered both at the same time but the latter was delayed by a day, therefore, it is now sitting on my bookshelf ready for an opportune moment to get into it. Nice to see that it's a recommended read, so should be decent!

[milenec11]

One of the most deep soccer analysis on what happen and why in soccer is …

The Football Code: The Science of Predicting the Beautiful Game by  James Tippett

i believe your work and analysis is awesome and accurate but I have a very big but about what truly those FM stats can help us enough to play the game using only stats . I believe that are inaccurate in a very serious level .

I give an example. 
I play with rakow using your skin ( statman 1.3 very sad that is still on 1.3) and I have look that on every game of my team the PPDA is for both teams between 3,4 to 7 , this is purely impossible the best teams in the world are near 6,5 and above.

I found that looking at player Average Ranking according the league he plays you have approximately the 90% of truth.

not to stack with that now …your analysis is amazing your writing also ….it give us new ideas to create new stats per position to search ,

I presume that your striker is ar Target man role in attack duty that why has poor progressive eff. 
I have created some excels by my self similar divided categories and in DLP at support duty a can say that PROG.EFF. is very satisfied.

never the less your work is amazing and hope that gives you some ideas to add new staff at your 1.4 version of your skin .

[Jimbokav1971]

On 19/11/2023 at 11:03, Shrewnaldo said:

Don't think I've ever seen a counter against a 'keeper coming up for the corner either. Great stuff. Maybe one of the additions to this year's game along with the animations 

Could you explain the yellow checks on the attribute bars? Not sure I'm understanding that one 

I have, (against me). 

My GK's have only been taking pens in FM24, (because of the way that the allocation of set-piece takers has changed in this issue of the game), but certainly in previous issues of the game I have conceded both from attacking free-kicks and attacking corners. Big GK's, (or any players), attacking the near post was OP in previous issues of the game, but I soon stopped that with my GK because it just didn't feel right, (unlike my GK's spanking the ball in from 30 yards when our best outfield players couldn't). 

It shows how far the game has come that it is now able to exploit things like this. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Can I just say what a brilliant read this thread is @_Ben_as usual. 

I read the 1st 2 pages this morning on my phone, but it really didn't do it justice so I am going through and re-reading it again now in proper detail. The threads I usually like are nowhere near as detailed as yours and I often skim-read a little as a take a tiny little break from my own game, but yours is different. It's immersive and you have to embrace the detail, (which is a good thing). Those who skim-read like me might not frequent your thread as much as we do others, (I'm just lazy for the most part), but it's definitely our loss. I love that your thread is basically you blurting out your thoughts and then arranging them into some cohesive order as you post. I make individual posts like this from time to time, (and love doing so), but to do the whole thread in this sort of detail really is impressive. 

Anyway, I'm off to catch up with the rest of the thread. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Your post about header investigation is my favourite one so far.  Absolutely love it for loads of different reasons. It's the best series of posts, (even though there isn't an absolute conclusion), that I have read in ages. The graphic with the Headers won/90 vs Header completion % is a thing of beauty and I completely get your frustration that you can't dial in more into the detail to see attacking/defensive headers, (or at the very least headers in both boxes). I have issues with short defenders in my save, (and playing Youth Only there is only so much I can do). I know everyone is using the term "height", (and I use it to), but when I use height I tend to mean a players ability to win a header, (which is not what height is at all, although it is certainly an indication of "things" and something I find it very hard to ignore). 

@MattyLewis11 then asks some really good questions and we see the examples of the DLC winning 0 headers in 2 games, (although also attempting none in one of them which raises a whole different question). What I expected to see from you, (and apologies if I have missed it), is a graphic showing where on the pitch the 7/7 missed headers were missed. (There are so many links it probably is there and I have missed it). (I appreciate that you have moved on by the way but couldn't help responding). 

@Shrewnaldo then brings up defensive set-pieces & this is something that I've noticed where a centre-half can be dominant in the air in open play, but a complete liability from corners and set-pieces where the calculation seems to be significantly different, (and not linked specifically to 1 attribute or a set of attributes that I could see). 

I would read a thread containing just info on headers.  (I may be laughing, but I am not joking). I remember back in FM.... maybe as long ago as FM13,  people were saying that TM were rubbish and you couldn't get them to win headers and I properly dug into it and got my TM on a run of 67 consecutively won headers. (Yes I remember how many because I put so much effort into it). 

@Shrewnaldo makes a point about Det and Concentration impacting late goals as well as sub quality, and I would also add condition/fatigue into the mix. I've seen huge benefits of players in peak physical condition coming in and performing at a level way above expectations simply because they are competing against fatigued opposition. Whether that be from the start of a game with a quick turnaround, or from the bench. They have to be in peak condition for it to work though, (and that's hard work to manage). 

Well done on your more recent successes, but if I'm you I'm looking back at that 1st European campaign with GIF and wondering if I should have stayed. Any regrets? 

Venn Diagrams by the way. 

This thread is a perfect example that in order to make a successful thread you don't write it for the reader. You write it for yourself and those who are interested by what you write will find it. Brilliant stuff. 

[milenec11]

@_Ben_   Is this possible this type o comparison in game or manually in excel 

and how to find leagues stats in this form?

Edited January 18 by milenec11

[_Ben_]

7 hours ago, milenec11 said:

One of the most deep soccer analysis on what happen and why in soccer is …

The Football Code: The Science of Predicting the Beautiful Game by  James Tippett

i believe your work and analysis is awesome and accurate but I have a very big but about what truly those FM stats can help us enough to play the game using only stats . I believe that are inaccurate in a very serious level .

I give an example. 
I play with rakow using your skin ( statman 1.3 very sad that is still on 1.3) and I have look that on every game of my team the PPDA is for both teams between 3,4 to 7 , this is purely impossible the best teams in the world are near 6,5 and above.

I found that looking at player Average Ranking according the league he plays you have approximately the 90% of truth.

not to stack with that now …your analysis is amazing your writing also ….it give us new ideas to create new stats per position to search ,

I presume that your striker is ar Target man role in attack duty that why has poor progressive eff. 
I have created some excels by my self similar divided categories and in DLP at support duty a can say that PROG.EFF. is very satisfied.

never the less your work is amazing and hope that gives you some ideas to add new staff at your 1.4 version of your skin .

I have never made a post stating that FM mirrors real life and I know that FM uses a different engine to calculate possession and, as such, OPPDA, so haven't calculated it in comparison: OPPDA calculation has nothing to do with my skin design. Secondly, my striker is a Trequartista and not a Target Forward - several posts have discussed his role as part of the third man run, rather than a playmaker who moves the ball forward. Lastly, a Statman v1.4 has been out for the best part of a month - this is not the forum for requests for that. 

1 hour ago, milenec11 said:

@_Ben_   Is this possible this type o comparison in game or manually in excel 

and how to find leagues stats in this form?

This is created in Microsoft Excel.

[milenec11]

1 minute ago, _Ben_ said:

I have never made a post stating that FM mirrors real life and I know that FM uses a different engine to calculate possession and, as such, OPPDA, so haven't calculated it in comparison: OPPDA calculation has nothing to do with my skin design. Secondly, my striker is a Trequartista and not a Target Forward - several posts have discussed his role as part of the third man run, rather than a playmaker who moves the ball forward. Lastly, a Statman v1.4 has been out for the best part of a month - this is not the forum for requests for that. 

This is created in Microsoft Excel.

and the league stats made or found by???

[_Ben_]

2 minutes ago, milenec11 said:

and the league stats made or found by???

Basic league stats are here:

However, to split positionally - I calculated by creating an average from a player search of players in this division.

[milenec11]

7 minutes ago, _Ben_ said:

I have never made a post stating that FM mirrors real life and I know that FM uses a different engine to calculate possession and, as such, OPPDA, so haven't calculated it in comparison: OPPDA calculation has nothing to do with my skin design. Secondly, my striker is a Trequartista and not a Target Forward - several posts have discussed his role as part of the third man run, rather than a playmaker who moves the ball forward. Lastly, a Statman v1.4 has been out for the best part of a month - this is not the forum for requests for that. 

This is created in Microsoft Excel.

and the league stats made or found by???

[_Ben_]

4 hours ago, Jimbokav1971 said:

This thread is a perfect example that in order to make a successful thread you don't write it for the reader. You write it for yourself and those who are interested by what you write will find it. Brilliant stuff. 

Thanks Jim! Some praise coming from the man whose Gibraltar save was my first inspiration into a different way of playing FM. I've no regrets at leaving Sundsvall as it opens up a new tier for us to operate at.

[milenec11]

one suggestion if i may (nor a topic to do it thought) this player with this attacking cotribution never seeyin ....

[_Ben_]

A little 'Do I?! Don't I?!' opportunity as I get to open the game for the first time in nearly a week...

Ok. Schalke. What a step up! Let's look at their league position...

Ok. Not to worry. The 2.Bundesliga is still on a par with the Allsvenskan. Oh, wait. Relegated from the 2.Bundesliga? The 3.Liga still has Dynamo Dresden, Ingolstadt, 1860 Munich and Arminia Bielefeld in it! Their top earner is on €40k per week and half of their Schalke 04 II team players earn more than my top earner.It feels like a huge step down - Champions League to German third tier but it feels like I get the chance to work at the highest of ceilings. I'd love some thoughts, please.

[Shrewnaldo]

31 minutes ago, _Ben_ said:

A little 'Do I?! Don't I?!' opportunity as I get to open the game for the first time in nearly a week...

Ok. Schalke. What a step up! Let's look at their league position...

Ok. Not to worry. The 2.Bundesliga is still on a par with the Allsvenskan. Oh, wait. Relegated from the 2.Bundesliga? The 3.Liga still has Dynamo Dresden, Ingolstadt, 1860 Munich and Arminia Bielefeld in it! Their top earner is on €40k per week and half of their Schalke 04 II team players earn more than my top earner.It feels like a huge step down - Champions League to German third tier but it feels like I get the chance to work at the highest of ceilings. I'd love some thoughts, please.

Intuitively it feels like it'd be an odd move to me. If I were to equate Allsvenskan with the Scottish Premier League, you saw Postecoglu move to Spurs. If he'd gone to Sunderland or Southampton when they were both down there, I think that would have been a very odd move. But does it make sense in terms of your game? Maybe.

Do you want to build towards a club where you're then going to stay for an extended period? Like Atalanta if I'm remembering correctly? In that case, I think this would be a good move. Would you have moved to Schalke if they'd been a 2.Bundesliga club? Because you're probably only one season away from that and should surely bounce back immediately. How much are they offering you personally per week? I know it means nothing in terms of the game but I tend to look at that to gauge some realism.

I went back to your original preview posts to check what you thought at the start of the save:

Quote

My aims for this save are simple: to venture through the Scandinavian countries, probably not starting at the lowest levels but with an eye on reaching the very top of the game here. Then, ideally, a move south to one of Europe’s elite leagues will be on the cards and I can continue the journey of the Norseman south. To do this, I’ve loaded a broad game world with a lot of extra players and leagues involved, should I wish to make any detours along the way

Depends if you feel you've met the first part of this. Feels like you've nothing else to achieve in Sweden. Could you do more if you got a move to the likes of Molde or Bodø/Glimt in Norway, or perhaps København in Denmark? Perhaps not unless you feel you want to 'tick off' the other leagues?

[Hootieleece]

I had fun with Schalke04 at the end of FM23 and ported over the save just to see if the feature worked.  I find that it would be a higher ceiling than your current club, but like many fallen giants from smaller cities the Ceiling would come into effect when you were actually battling against Bayern Munich for the title or trying to win Champions League. 

I see the ceiling closing in on me in my current team ASSE that I am currently playing.

[danielgear]

3 minutes ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Intuitively it feels like it'd be an odd move to me. If I were to equate Allsvenskan with the Scottish Premier League, you saw Postecoglu move to Spurs. If he'd gone to Sunderland or Southampton when they were both down there, I think that would have been a very odd move. But does it make sense in terms of your game? Maybe

I agree but I’d say Schalke would be more like moving to Spurs in the championship if they’d been relegated. 
Which such a move would make sense. 
 

For me I’d move as it’s also a club you can build more of a philosophy on and off the pitch as a manager. Ahead of any future move 

[Shrewnaldo]

11 minutes ago, danielgear said:

I agree but I’d say Schalke would be more like moving to Spurs in the championship if they’d been relegated. 
Which such a move would make sense. 
 

For me I’d move as it’s also a club you can build more of a philosophy on and off the pitch as a manager. Ahead of any future move 

Not for me. Having just been relegated to the second tier is quite different to having just been relegated to the third tier after (presumably) five(?) seasons of deterioration through the third-tier. Maybe more akin to Leeds when they were in League One and Gordon Strachan going there rather than 'Boro? Something which isn't beyond the realms. But, realistically, you're talking about at least three seasons before you're back in the top tier rather than one.

I agree with the second part, mind. It does feel like an opportunity to build a legacy and a proper fallen giant 

[danielgear]

1 minute ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Maybe more akin to Leeds when they were in League One and Gordon Strachan going there rather than 'Boro? Something which isn't beyond the realms.

Thats probably a fairer example. And even then Leeds were still a big draw. 
 

2 minutes ago, Shrewnaldo said:

I agree with the second part, mind. It does feel like an opportunity to build a legacy and a proper fallen giant 

This is what would sway me the most, It would also be interesting to see their finances because aren’t they in serious debt at game start? Has that got worst?

[_Ben_]

Thanks @danielgear, @Shrewnaldo and @Hootieleece!

It feels like a bit of a gut reaction after being away from the game for a little while (especially given the extended playing time over the Christmas break) and that does often make me feel like a change is needed. I think you've all made very valid points: the most pertinent being about the realism of the drop, despite the reputation holding. I see this akin to me naturally considering Bradford to be a 'big team' for their level, just because they played in the Premier League some time ago. Schalke haven't been back to the top flight since 2023 so they're just there as a name and, presumably, a huge pile of debt, too but it was their name that drew me in. Interestingly, both Brondby and Rosenberg jobs are insecure at the moment - two opportunities that I also believe are big clubs but neither of whom are any more reputable than Elfsborg. I think the move to either of those would just be more of the same - stabilise the club over a season whilst instilling my style and then pushing on for more titles. Yes, winning the Swedish, Norwegian and Danish titles may look good on my CV but doesn't give me that long term goal I want, and, with the speed I now play at, feels unreasonable in the timeframe.

I think that looking back at my initial intent was important - I haven't yet achieved it all here (saying that off the back of one of the worst ninety minutes I've had where I made every tactical mistake going!) and I haven't even been here long enough to see through the development of some of the youngster, a cornerstone of my gameplay. However, long term, I'd like a German job without a B Team, currently leaving me with Bundesliga sides Leverkusen, Wolfsburg (which is also insecure), Heidenheim, Leipzig, Union Berlin and 2.Bundesliga sides Osnabrück, Sandhausen, Wehen, Bochum and Darmstadt. I'm a huge fan of the through model of development - where I am solely in charge from 15 to 45 rather than offsetting to a B Team at a level that is probably poor with staff who also are.

I am enjoying my time here at Elfsborg and will look to continue to develop styles and players whilst creating a conveyor belt of talent but I would be short sighted not to keep, at least, an eye out for what is happening elsewhere...

[Deisler26]

1 hour ago, _Ben_ said:

A little 'Do I?! Don't I?!' opportunity as I get to open the game for the first time in nearly a week...

Ok. Schalke. What a step up! Let's look at their league position...

Ok. Not to worry. The 2.Bundesliga is still on a par with the Allsvenskan. Oh, wait. Relegated from the 2.Bundesliga? The 3.Liga still has Dynamo Dresden, Ingolstadt, 1860 Munich and Arminia Bielefeld in it! Their top earner is on €40k per week and half of their Schalke 04 II team players earn more than my top earner.It feels like a huge step down - Champions League to German third tier but it feels like I get the chance to work at the highest of ceilings. I'd love some thoughts, please.

My thoughts? Yes, the realism is not the biggest thing. But the PROJECT would be the biggest thing. When Al-Fayed took over our club, we had the likes of Mickey Adams as manager, but after we had Keegan in the Second Division and Jean Tigana in the First/Championship. I think if you approach the whole thing as a project in itself, the move is a good one and fun IMO

[keeper#1]

I think it's a project worth undertaking.  Think of this way, Schalke is now a club that any German manager wouldn't take because they have fallen so far.  As a result, the board is forced to look outside the country to bring in a successful manager that can rebuild the club and restore the club to its past glories as one of the top clubs in Germany.

[_Ben_]

12 hours ago, Deisler26 said:

My thoughts? Yes, the realism is not the biggest thing. But the PROJECT would be the biggest thing. When Al-Fayed took over our club, we had the likes of Mickey Adams as manager, but after we had Keegan in the Second Division and Jean Tigana in the First/Championship. I think if you approach the whole thing as a project in itself, the move is a good one and fun IMO

12 hours ago, keeper#1 said:

I think it's a project worth undertaking.  Think of this way, Schalke is now a club that any German manager wouldn't take because they have fallen so far.  As a result, the board is forced to look outside the country to bring in a successful manager that can rebuild the club and restore the club to its past glories as one of the top clubs in Germany.

I've slept on it and considered that I haven't actually yet finished the project I had here and, thus, would be failing to meet my own targets, let alone those of the board. For that reason, I'm no longer going to pursue interest in this job, instead hoping that my work in Sweden can land me - eventually - a job in the Bundesliga. If things - particularly domestically - become stale or too easy and I don't feel that I have the prerequisite of experience and quality, my journey to Germany could then go via a similar level club in Denmark or Norway or, even, the Netherlands.

[Deisler26]

That’s entirely fair, I think. I’ve certainly spent the last few FM’s thinking of saves as more projects than just idly picking a team and running with them.

I have another save in mind if I can win the CL and CWC on my current save and that’ll be a brilliant project

[Slipky]

This is probably the one of the few threads I'm regularly reading and coming back to this year, in order to get inspiration and learn more about "Analytical FM", rather than the regular, 1-20 stat FM I usually play.
This has also pushed me to using a similar skin, albeit not Statman, and giving it a shot myself. Thank you for the insanely informative posts and the depth you're going into - It makes understanding this style of FM so much easier.

[_Ben_]

7 hours ago, Slipky said:

This is probably the one of the few threads I'm regularly reading and coming back to this year, in order to get inspiration and learn more about "Analytical FM", rather than the regular, 1-20 stat FM I usually play.
This has also pushed me to using a similar skin, albeit not Statman, and giving it a shot myself. Thank you for the insanely informative posts and the depth you're going into - It makes understanding this style of FM so much easier.

Thank you! I always appreciate the kind words, especially when people are finding meaning in my ramblings and streams of consciousness about understanding what I've created or what I've found. Sadly, play time has massively been hit lately but still chugging along with my quest!

[SixPointer]

I think Schalke in liga three is the perfect fallen giant. A huge club, great fanbase great local derby. It ticks all the boxes. Have produced some great players down the years as well. Was it a step down perhaps but for me I think it would have been a great narrative and could lend itself to a realistic situation, due to the sheer size and potential!

Nevertheless you set yourself goals so it’s understandable you want to do reach them in Elfsborg

Edited January 26 by SixPointer

[_Ben_]

Wow. Life, eh? It's felt like I've barely picked up FM for a week or so now but, in realistic terms, I've actually just picked it up, half-focused on a game and then had to turn it off again. Fortunately, even at 50% energy, we're doing pretty well in the league and are well on course to record two league titles in two years.

That being said, in between those league games came an - expected - Europa League loss to Chelsea and a pretty shambolic performance, yet again, in the cup final to the hands of Hammarby, who are now back-to-back victors, against us. My policy of small rotations across games is working as we are fresh, not injured and morale is high as we are fighting for places. Seeing players like Okkels, who now has Zsigmond for company on the wings, score a hattrick against Varbergs as well as cameos from Rapp, Kallander and, more recently, a hattrick from Boukama-Kaya, is great and vindicates the 'squad' theory, where I'm using sixteen to seventeen key players who can cover a variety of positions, with the allowances for youngsters to step up where either needed or just wanted.

We are still unbeaten in the league since my arrival - a truly fantastic feat.

But, given the previous discussion with links to Germany, I do feel that my time here at Elfsborg is coming towards its natural end. I won't jump unless the appropriate thing comes up and, wisely, will not move on when my time is as limited as it is right now - given the huge undertaking of learning the ropes at a new club!

---

In transfer business, a Swedish record bid was tabled for Brusberg This, for me, is a fantastic bit of a business. I was getting concerned that, given his great record and international recognition, he'd be getting cold feet - so I used his agent to drum up some interest. Bids, initially, we around €2m - a measly amount for a player of his calibre and a tiny profit on the €1.7m investment on him. Using ultimatums and more and more offering out through negotiating to an acceptable deal then rejecting once a club usurped that meant I was soon looking at a deal of over €10m for a man, who, initially, was concerned at a high asking price at a mere third of that value. I continued, and, eventually, ended with €16m from Werder, where, honestly, I doubt he'll have a huge contribution. For me,that element is a shame but, at the end of the day, football is a business and a cut throat one at that! 

 The other sale was much easier! Mulugeta, despite being a recent signing, had become an absolute nightmare and I was pleased to see him move to Germany. Upon return from a couple of small injuries, he was a little behind in terms of match fitness and form but, for some reason, completely threw his toys out of the pram. Several of those telling interviews followed and his agent played a blinder in stirring up interest from other clubs. After rejecting one offer, trying to remedy the situation, I gave up and fought fire with fire - banishing him from the first team and securing a €2m move to Darmstadt.

 

Whilst not direct replacement, I was able to bring in both Sangaré and Ben-Sha'anan - as evidence of huge growth made in my scouting networks. The young Israeli, now eighteen, moves to pretty much like-for-like replace Mulugeta but, actually, is quite the upgrade on his playmaking and physical ability. I've toyed with using him as a Trequartista, given his good finishing but just felt he lacked a little in his overall ball carrying ability - yet, at such a young age - has the opportunity to grow. The Ivorian, a real coup for us, is the longer term solution to my Libero position, I believe. Whilst I must admit to an element of caution around a defender who lists Heading as a weakness, I think he's tall enough, strong enough and can position himself well enough to get by - maybe at the expense of a little attacking threat from corners.

 

These signings, as I said, mark a nice point in the continued development at looking at undervalued markets. Now I'm not, in any way, about to suggest that the Ivory Coast and, particularly, ASEC Mimosas, are unknown in the FM world, but the value here of the players I've brought in - which excludes Noor Ouma and Mbacke works out at around 3.3% of the income gained from the Brusberg sale. Again, I'm not going to say that these are all as good, nor will all be as good as he is, but - at this level - the conveyor belt of talent is a must.

Then, when that can be corroborated with FFP-free players, such as those from the academy, like JBK - below - the potential for profit margins and (of course), sentimental breakthroughs, are even higher. Junior returns from a second loan spell, this time at Osnabruck in the 2.Liga, where he has scored at nearly one in every three and led the line expertly in a team that, despite just earning promotion to the league, were one playoff game away from consecutive promotions. Again, I've toyed with my ideas for the role that he'll play but, given that there is a huge gap in my striker role, I think that's the one he'll fill! A hattrick in his return to the team against GAIS has already pretty much convinced me that this is what he'll do!

---

With fifteen games until the end of the season, I hope to be able to dig deeper into the tactical elements that are allowing us to continue our domination and, hopefully, sow some seeds for the next chapter of my career!

[Shrewnaldo]

At first I thought Werder Bremen were interested in you and I was rather comfused. That'd be a great move

Have you managed to set up any affiliate deals with African clubs? Like a pseudo-emulation of Right to Dream? Or even just to give you scouting knowledge? 

[_Ben_]

42 minutes ago, Shrewnaldo said:

At first I thought Werder Bremen were interested in you and I was rather comfused. That'd be a great move

Germany is coming soon, but I’ve got some thoughts on the locations and the journey I’d want to take - Bremen is not part of that!

43 minutes ago, Shrewnaldo said:

Have you managed to set up any affiliate deals with African clubs? Like a pseudo-emulation of Right to Dream? Or even just to give you scouting knowledge? 

No. Sadly, the board aren’t interested in engaging with that kind of thing, yet. Maybe our reputation isn’t high enough to allow non-European feeders. The move to Germany would, you’d assume, allow a foothold in both Sweden and Africa - so I expect that to be a key part of the recruitment strategy. 

[_Ben_]

My German journey, however, will not be including a visit to Schalke - of which I'd go as far as saying that I've dodged a massive bullet since my interest in their plight:

[milenec11]

i canot loan the some png sadly

[Deisler26]

4 hours ago, _Ben_ said:

My German journey, however, will not be including a visit to Schalke - of which I'd go as far as saying that I've dodged a massive bullet since my interest in their plight:

This would be a wonderful rebuilding save for me

[_Ben_]

33 minutes ago, Deisler26 said:

This would be a wonderful rebuilding save for me

Back in the day, I think it would be for me, too. They’ve literally been left with their youth side and, following a bit of unrealistic ‘add-manager-ing and reloading’ have upwards of €200m in debts at €1.5m a month. But with how I play the game now - a more tactically development regime without constant flow of players in and out, it’s not quite the route I want to take into Germany!

[Hootieleece]

I took up Schalke04 as the last club in my save last year and they were in debt and in Bundesliga2 but not so sad as in your save. They still had a youth team and had a few players to make it back to the Bundesliga straight away and then allow me to create at team of free transfers that competed for Europe before their Board went crazy and built a new Stadium adding to the debt and making it about $800M. I was spending $20M/month just servicing the debt even before the stadium.

The Programmers must know or think that Schalke's board is almost as unrealistic as Hertha's IRL. 

[RogerC]

Just finished catching up. Never disappoints! That Schalke situation would make for a great spin-off of your current story.