BenArsenal

I generally tend to agree too. I haven't bought an FM since 19, and haven't played in months, nor have had a serious career game in a long while. That said, I came across a mobile game app called Soccer Manager (yeah no **** ) which functions much the same as FM but doesn't have the same level of depth, detail or realism, which makes it quite good for an easy casual play. Like, sometimes you just want something that's relatively straightforward to play out of the box, and not have to spend hours setting up your tactics each time.

Oof. Tough luck there.

Ooh, captain! You lot better behave now, or else...

Oh dear. Sounds rough. Take care mate.

Take care mate.

Jesus Christ, who the hell would have predicted C.Ronaldo returning to Man U? What crazy, crazy times.

Hi guys. I'm gonna do Mark's job for him a little bit here. But if you can, do please vote in the FMS Awards. I know it's been a lot quieter around these parts, but there are some genuinely great stories in contention and I hope we can do them justice by rewarding them for their efforts.

Vote sent and claimed. This was genuinely hard. Let's just say that Mark might not sweep all the awards this time round...

Championes!

I didn't realise there were so many stories. It just felt so quiet around these parts. Will take some time to browse through and I'll send my votes along soon.

Me too actually. I've actually bought the mobile version for playing on the phone, but the experience just isn't quite the same.

I'm not sure either, but it'll be a shame if this place disappears. Are people no longer interested in FM now? But I still see stories getting updated every now and then, so there's definitely some visitors and activity still.

Man, this place has really died on its a*se hasn't it? Anyway, the new season is upon us again. We used to do this every year so I'd thought I'll try to inject some life back here again with our annual Premier League predictions. Always a good laugh to see how much we get wrong at the end of the season... 1. Manchester City - If they get Kane then they'll be essentially unstoppable. But even if they don't, they're still a formidable force. Short of a major catastrophe, hard to see them relinquishing their crown really. 2. Chelsea - Seems to be everybody's second favourite. If Lukaku gets firing then I reckon Chelsea can run City pretty close. Tuchel is a canny manager, and he'll pull off some good results. Hopefully they'll give City something to think about. 3. Manchester United - Ugh. Hard to admit it, but they've done pretty well with their transfer business. Sancho is an excellent get, and Varane brings plenty of quality to the backline. Probably won't get close to the top two but will be comfortably top four. 4. Liverpool - Arguably hard done by with injuries last season, and yet still managed to finish third. With Van Dijk back they should be more solid, but they've not really progressed elsewhere otherwise. Should still be top four though. 5. Arsenal - No European games should hopefully be an advantage, but that's only in theory, and God knows how Arsenal can have the ability to really screw things up. Still, I live in hope. Haha. Could finish anywhere from top four to mid-table. 6. Tottenham Hotspur - Best case scenario is if they lose Kane on transfer deadline day and have no time to get a replacement, heh heh heh. But in all seriousness, Spurs are a team in transition, and it'll be interesting to see how they recover from the era of Jose 7. Leicester City - Will the Brendan Rodgers bubble burst? Hard to say. Honestly if there's any team right now that has the capability to truly disrupt the Big Six, then the Foxes are it. Seventh for now but I won't be surprised if they end up higher. 8. Leeds United - Bielsa and Leeds did well in their first season back, and I think they'll do well to build on that and consolidate their position in the top flight. From there they can begin to progress upwards. Slowly and steady does it. 9. Aston Villa - Much will depend on how Villa reinvest their Grealish money (Ings is a solid purchase though), but I reckon they'll do well enough to challenge for an upper mid-table position. Europe will be a bit of a stretch, but they'll give more than a few big teams problems. 10. Everton - Benitez is a good manager, and can often get a team to perform greater than the sum of its parts. But he's obviously unpopular, and it remains to be seen what effect that will have on the team 11. West Ham United - Last season was arguably brilliant, but was it a one-off, or can Moyes bring the Hammers to new heights? I'm thinking the former, and that West Ham will soon settle back into their natural position of mid-table 12. Wolverhampton Wanderers - A season of change for Wolves, with Nuno now gone. The team has quality, and if everything clicks together then they have the potential to really finish much higher. Much will depend on how Lage gets on, and also their luck with injuries (which have been bad). 13. Brentford - They're obviously a bit of an unknown, but I'd want them to do well, if only for the novelty value. If they make it into Europe it'll be hella entertaining, but I doubt that'll happen so it'll just be mid-table for the Bees then. 14. Burnley - They've done well to consolidate their top flight status, and I expect much of the same from Dyche's team. Mid-table and clear of a relegation dogfight should count as a success for the Clarets. 15. Newcastle United - It's hard to be positive with this team, what with all the drama surrounding them. Newcastle should really aim for higher, but in recent times they've mostly flattered to deceive. They really need new owners and a better manager to progress. 16. Southampton - Things don't look good on the south coast. They've lost their main scorer Ings, and apparently Vestergaard is on his way too. If they don't strengthen significantly I could see a season of pain for the Saints. 17. Brighton & Hove Albion - They couldn't score goals for toffee last season, and I can't see how things will improve this time round. They'll struggle, and might just survive on the incompetence of others, but equally I can also see them going down. 18. Crystal Palace - As much as I like Patrick Vieira, there's just too much upheaval at Palace this season, and it'll be very hard to get some team cohesion together. They'll go down, but I hope Vieira sticks around, if only to gain some valuable managerial experience. 19. Norwich City - Norwich will probably give a right go at it, but I reckon they'll just fall short. Pukki should get some goals, but I doubt his ability as a top quality striker for the top flight. The Championship is his level. 20. Watford - I think they'll put up a valiant fight, but I can't see them having the quality to stay up to be honest. With trigger-happy owners at the helm, Xisco might not last beyond the first patch of bad form, and then things will spiral from that point on.

Ooh, you've changed your avatar! Nice!

So then, Euro 2020 Final tonight! Who's excited?