DMVian

In my journeyman save, for the first time ever I took an Irish job: Sligo Rovers. I was getting turned down by EF League 2 and Vanarama sides even after taking semi-pro Alloa to a playoff loss short of the Scottish top flight, so I thought pro job in Ireland was some progress. Having a great time of it, but scouting is confusing me. Sligo has an affiliate relationship with Everton that mentions merchandising and sharing scouting knowledge, which is part of the reason I took the job. Scouting the entire UK is prohibitively expensive for an Irish side, so the idea of getting an EPL's scouting network was great! But when I search for players, it is only Irish players. I have seem to have no scouting knowledge beyond the League of Ireland. Do I need to pay for the UK or worldwide package to have the benefit of Everton's scouting? I've never been the smaller club in a scouting network affiliate setup, so this is new to me.

During the Beta, I read a lot of posts praising the processing speed, making saves go quicker. Even 10-20% faster would be nice. Has anyone had positive thoughts on save speed in full game? Wondering how bold I should be dropping performance speed down to 3* versus 3.5*-4*.

This is a great thread. I'm about to start my journeyman with a semi-pro Scottish third tier side, so getting back into my counterattacking ways since for realism I can't have my squad playing a high press, possession style when half or more of opponents will be professional. I like a 4-2-4. One W, one IF, with my DL and DR having their roles set at WB/FB based on ability and the winger they're behind. In midfield, I go with a BWM and a CM on support. I love DLPs, but in a low block, counter scheme I want the ball going forward and don't want risk of an uncreative semi-pro sitting on ball with DLP instructions. My big question is the strikers. I always go with a pressing forward (S or D) for one spot and like to recruit a high energy FW who can run around pressing without needing to do more. In the other spot, I always go with a TF on attack. I like to imagine a strong forward who can win aerial battles and be coached to stay in the box with their back to goal. And with my current squad have a bunch of fast wingers who can run and not much else, it feels like a well made group to hoof balls forward and have my TF or PF flick the ball to wingers for a run at the defense. I've had success with this in the past. You won't find creative TFs in lower leagues, but if my GK or DEF bombs it forward to a TF who can bring it down and control the ball, I feel good with the defense not set and the ball in the opposition third with wingers running forward. But I read on reddit TF are bad at this because they hold up on the ball too long. I've not had this experience in the past, but it's possible since I just watch "extended highlights" I'm not seeing a bunch of possessions where my TF gets the ball and stands around while the defense gets set. If I'm playing more possession, I'm happy with a TF dwell on the ball. From the eye test, in a counter attack, it feels like the TF is smart enough to know to distribute to a winger running forward in a good position. Is my eye test accurate or is the game just not showing me wasted possessions where my TF wastes an advantage?

That is beautiful. I never would even think to add increased processing speed as a requested feature. I don't know if I would say that is dramatically faster, but it is certainly noticeably faster. Can't wait to boot it up after the first patch.

Scotland is a weird save for FM. Most saves I've done since first buying FM22, Rangers collapse right out of the gate. and they rarely get it back. During a Kilmarnock save, I actually save scummed for Rangers right before the split when I saw they dropped to #7 and I just couldn't have a realism breaking result like that. They'll have the occasional top class season when they get a wonderkid loan striker from Liverpool or Man City, but usually they're getting bullied. And prices are way off in the Scotland market. You can easily sell players for multiple millions of pounds while bidding the same for them. In real life, outside of the OF, Hearts, Aberdeen, and Hibs are excited for signings in the mid-6 figures and the occasional player with a 7 figure sell valuation is a big deal. I guess that is way more fun as an FM player than a realistic approach of managing a non-OF Scottish club in European contention but having finances where you run the risk of getting beat to a signing by a midtable League 1 club.

Seeing a lot of notes on Reddit about game speed seemingly improved. If that wish casting or is that possibly real? Game speed between matches improving even 10% would be the best possible thing I could ask for in a new game. With the real meat of the game being years into a save, this would be a huge boost.

I mean as far as in-game development and pace of attribute progress. If I remember accurately, last year upon release there were some serious FM gamers who reported into game’s future years, progress was too slow and player quality dropped wildly, so SI had to do a tweak slightly and increase pace of progression for immersion’s sake.

What is everyone's guess on first patch date? This new FM looks great. Yet I expect after hundreds of thousands of users stress test the system, there will be some needed edits to player developments. I'd like to start my first career after that patch. FM23 was only my second FM, so I don't have much experience on patches.

The club must have went broke and sold the training ground. If you look at finances, there was probably a recent spike that looks like a huge injection of cash. The good news is the initial training ground investments are very cheap and fast. Bad news is it will take you a few years to get them even average. If you request an affiliate club, the board will likely give you an option to set up an affiliation with a club whose training facilities you can share. Probably will only be a level 6 or 7 facility, but that'll help dull the pain while you rebuild. Had to deal with it in a Bolton save where they went broke in League 1 and dropped back to back to Vanarama. I do wish there was some more of an option there on how to handle training facilities. I took over Bolton which had a ton of cash on hand from selling the training facility and was in the black after immediately taking them up midseason from the Vanarama through the playoffs and having two quality homegrown 19 year olds demand transfers (they were nuking the dressing room even after promotion, I almost rage quit the career) and selling them for combined ~1.5 million, plus add-ons and incentives, to Championship clubs. I think the engine could handle giving you an option for a "significant" new investment training facilities up to the 7 or 8 range, versus just level 3. And that feels more realistic than piecemeal improvements. The board wasn't even fighting me as I asked for improvements to salaries, youth level, revenue percentage, etc.

About 5 years into a Scotland save, I noticed Bolton job was open and they were all the way down in the Vanarama. Some intriguing newgens, still total shambles. But a big club in the lower leagues that realistically could be drug back into the top flight over a long time. They’re 11th but only five points outside playoff, so getting back into league football right away is possible. In other words, the perfect rebuild! The only problem is they at same point sold their training ground and it is now just a “1”. I did an interview and the Bolton board agreed to an improvement of their training facilities. Since starting from zero, is it possible they may jump up to a 6 or 8? Or would it likely be just 1 to 3 meaning it would take years just to get to average?

I became hooked on this game when in my first season of my first career my vice captain asked for wages I couldn't begin to match so I shrugged, asked him to fire his agent and he did and took little more than half as much money. A couple seasons later, that was my player and after a Europa league group stage appearance got a contract well above his original ask. I like to think that virtual agent hates me to this day. First and last time that ever worked for me. Convinced it was a SI move to get me hooked on the game before never letting me pull that stunt again!

In my PAOK career, I pull lots of of good talent out of Croatia and Serbia. And dropped a couple good scouts into Portugal. The big three clubs have lots of youth who want playing time but have no route to it, meaning you can pick up good players for affordable salaries. I have also had luck in Italy looking for rejects from their big clubs who don't make the cut. Argentina and Brazil clearly the easiest but for realism I try to avoid it. I just don't think elite 18 year olds would bypass mega club scouts for an upstart continental Greek side. If you're not looking for Champions League ready talent, you can scout US/Canada and find a good amount of talented regens in academy/reserve leagues for free transfers. Not cheap on wages but good talents.

250 hours now into the game. Overall, I still very much like this game. My big issue remains loans. In my Scotland save as Hearts with a couple Euro Conference runs, I cannot get player languishing on bench to accept loans to Championship sides promising important playtime. They would jump on a EFL League 2 offer from a small club like Crawley or Walsall promising regular starter, but Kilmarnock in a promotion fight promising "Important" would never go through in January. And rarely would Scottish Prem or Champ clubs even come around for my players, even when wages are set at 0%. I've had more English Champ clubs sniffing for loans than Scotland clubs, which isn't totally unrealisti. In a Greece save, I have PAOK into a European contender a few years in. In second season, had a lucky run early into Champions League past group stages, since then next couple seasons out of group stage and Europa. My bench players consistently refuse loans to affiliate clubs top-flight Feirense and European regular Rijeka. Even players I recruit from those nations who are mad about lack of playing time say "no" to affiliate loans. At least other Greek top flight clubs are wild to pick up my loans. Transfers make sense. Player values seem to correlate with the league and success in Europe. High level players in the Big 6 leagues are tough to pull but a cheap player from for example Hungary rises in value fast. The issue is loans. And I don't know if the issue is I just fail to understand that part of the game or if this is FM's way of keeping players from hording talent.

Stealing from a tweet or Reddit post I can’t find to source… Haaland has turned FM23 EPL into the sports game version of a story mode with Haaland as the big boss villain.

Second teams don't make much sense to me in this game. In my Greece save, I love my B team. Can move players back and forth as needed and hire the coaches. If I can't find a good top flight loan for a young talent, off to the Greek second league. It's like playing FM on easy mode. To the point in the future I'm not managing in Greece because it makes it so simple. I quit a Belgium save because interacting with it was such a hassle. I couldn't post adverts for openings on the "B team" staff. I couldn't make a first teamer "available" for a lower league manager, but I could use lower league players in my first team. And issues like that. Maybe I just didn't understand the rules for eligibility of players, but no way should I not be able to post adverts for B team position but I can go to a coach and offer them a spot on B team.

Good question. In my first season, I somehow added Feirense in Portugal as an affiliate with the youth option. They have pretty solid youth facilities, recruiting, etc. they then managed to get promoted in season 1 after I locked in affiliate status. In my second season, I got to the Greek youth intake window and had zero Portugese players. But I got one or two Czech newgens, which is location of one of my other affiliate. I'm wondering if that is just plain poor luck, or if the game, maybe realistically, has said young Feirense youth would rather play in Portugal than Greece.

Release clauses are the devil. Pay extra to keep them off. In this specific case, if you're a League 1 club and a Premiership club calls, for realism's sake you probably need to let the player go. I can't imagine a real scenario where a young star in the making would not one to move on up to an EPL side. Also on realism, if you're a League One club, even one on a meteoric rise, you have to take the $25 million. That is a club changing amount of money for pretty much any club in Europe outside the top clubs in the top flight of the top 7 or 8 leagues. I have no idea how you got that awesome a player through youth. Well done.

I've never had this happen in my game. If it is rare for you, I don't see the problem. I've seen in real life a goalkeeper and defender get confused and a pressing player take advantage for a goal. It is a rare blunder, but it happens.

If my HOYD doesn't manage the U18 or B team, does working with youngsters matter? I like working in smaller leagues where even multiple good years in a row and begging for staff wage increases still doesn't let you sign well rounded HOYD. I usually punt HOYD and focus on personality, then formation, then judging ability. Then after that youth. I have thought about being less focused on determination and personality. It isn't to hard to find youth coaches with good personalities and I think (someone can confirm) if your club has a determined personality and your youth coaches are determined, youngster will naturally slowly improve even before you can put them in mentor groups or fine them ruthlessly. In my U18, I also keep around lesser prospects with no shot at being first teamers but have great personalities to rub off on them.

I have a horrible time loaning players in this game. One of my few issues with this game. I have a Scotland save where I've taken Hearts into Europa group stage back-to-back season with some backups my reports list as "fringe Premiership". But only small Scottish League 2 clubs want to touch my players. I get more offers from EFL League 1 sides than any Scottish sides. If Rotherham or Wycombe is promising regular starter playing time to one of my players in the midst of a promotion push, it makes no sense that Scottish Championship sides and even some Premiership sides shouldn't be falling over to pick up that young Scottish player. Does it help to proactively offer to pick up salary? Or are those sides scared my player will turn down the move?

I like FM23 game because I can play low or medium block and not feel terrified that my defense will fall apart late in a match. I think the scouting needs some refining, but assigning scouts to a focus is such a smarter approach than giving every individual scout individual focuses. I had a Greece save I loved in FM22. I should have not played FM23 until I was done with it. Now I try to go back to FM22 for it and the old scouting approach and feeling like I need to high press for a full 90 minutes had me back to FM23.

Brilliant video. I'm now completely sold on OIs for defense. I think the standard team rules are simple and sufficient, but I liked his mid-block with OI press much more. And it actually played out like a real football tactic.

Greece, Serbia, and Croatia are wonderful places, but I imagine after a couple years away my scout misses his family back in Denmark. Alas, someone with his combination of adaptability and determination at a low price point means he is never returning from southeastern Europe.

Some lower league clubs have no reserves or youth systems. They're big costs and, like Premier League clubs vacuuming up League talent, League 1 and 2 clubs will vacuum up Vanarama and below talent. Have you checked the club's real life website to see if they have reserve teams? If so and they're not in game, it's a bug or you're not looking in the right place. I had the latter issue early before I downloaded a familiar skin.

I scout all positions with 1.5 star current ability, 3.5 star potential ability and a transfer value max about 5x what I have. I'm in England, so I have one scout focused on league 2 and Vanarama, one on League 1 and championship, and one with England as a whole. I also have one scout doing nations of Ireland and Scotland. I had zero recommendations for a couple months and then one day it spit out 90+ names at me. Since then I upped the minimums. I did early on switch from "Ongoing" to "Standard". I have no idea if that played a role or not. I think the difference is in previous games they'd put in your inbox partially scouted players. Now they don't report until a full recommendation.