Boltman

Nope, there's no option regarding anything related to news or reports from reserve teams. Another infuriating issue with both U-20 and U18 teams - For the option 'play matches with this tactic', no matter how often I choose the tactic I want them to use and click 'confirm' it defaults back to '5 defender formations' within 24 hours every god damned time. It's fine if I select 'Use first team tactics', but this isn't adequate because I use three different tactics in the first team, whereas I want my youth sides to use the same specific tactic under all circumstances.

I'm not no, I have delegated responsibility for match control to their respective managers, but I've always done this in previous versions and still received news items whenever one of these players got an injury.

Just what the topic header says basically. Playing in Italy, don't think I've unticked any flags or anything, yet I never receive any notification when an U-18 or U-20 team player receives an injury. Why?

I suppose you're right, but anything resembling a 'player search' is anathema to me, especially when you can evidently filter by attributes etc.

I still play by old LLaMa rules, but the changes to the scouting system in FM18 have made it next to impossible. Send a scout out for six months and he comes back with one report

I've managed it with Dundee, but Scottish clubs are a bit of a cheat because the game has always had them produce far more high quality regens than they do in reality anyway. It's not unusual to see Scotland winning the European Championship or World Cup in FM when being managed by the AI, and not that far in the future either. I've seen a Gordon Strachan managed Scotland win the 2018 World Cup a couple of editions ago. In the game Scotland suffers from the exact same bias as England, i.e, mature players hugely overrated by researchers, and ridiculously unrealistic numbers of world class regens.

Cheers. Looks like swallowing my pride, parking the bus, and hoofing it/them...

Ok, how to mount some sort of resistance to this? I'll be cruising along, dominating opponents, then I run into an AI team, any team, that uses a base formation with three central strikers. They can be bottom of the league with garbage players, it doesn't matter, they run riot and make my previously rock solid defence look stupid. Tried, 3,4, & 5 man defences, 2 holding players, played wide, narrow, high, deep, tight marking, loose marking, high closing, no closing,...... nothing makes any difference. That AI team which hasn't won in months suddenly look like Brazil 1970. If I push up they punt it over the top, and my defenders stand and watch the AI strikers run onto it. If I drop deep, those AI players with single digit passing and technique start knocking it around like the tiki-taka Barca sides, and cut right through me without fail. Tips?

If this had been for keeps could easily see it being 4 or 5 to Belgium. Different level altogether when they bother.

Wee reminder there for the four people on the entire planet who will actually watch the final on ITV

Impossible for England to score from open play. Magic ball or something.

Commentator - 'surely it's not going to stay 1-0?' Well maybe if they play for a month England might score one from open play

Thierry Henry looks like he's just walked off the set of a 70's Blaxploitation movie

I have no idea, but I'm not having a go about the validity of that claim, I'm asking a genuine question. If you're genuinely in the position where those are the only two options, and both are a waste of time, why are you even persisting with the concept.