AI Experiment - what would happen if?

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Okay folks, the report will come very shortly, just putting together the final touches.

It's quite a long one, and hopefully you'll like the extra few bits I've got in there.

[Dreaded Walrus]

Hooray!

This is literally the best 9:45AM all week!

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Season 2039-40

Club report

2006-07, English Conference South - 1st, FA Trophy - Winners

2007-08, English National Conference - 7th, FA Trophy - Final

2008-09, English National Conference – 7th

2009-10, English National Conference – 9th

2010-11, English National Conference – 6th

2011-12, English National Conference – 18th

2012-13, English National Conference – 5th

2013-14, English National Conference – 1st

2014-15, English League Two – 21st

2015-16, English League Two – 21st

2016-17, English League Two – 6th

2017-18, English League Two – 6th

2018-19, English League Two – 7th

2019-20, English League Two – 6th, Johnstone’s Paint Trophy – South Semi Final

2020-21, English League Two – 10th

2021-22, English League Two – 1st, Johnstone’s Paint Trophy - Final

2022-23, English League One – 13th, Johnstone’s Paint Trophy – South Semi Final

2023-24, English League One – 11th, League Cup – Final

2024-25, English League One – 11th, League Cup – Semi-Final

2025-26, English League One – 18th

2026-27, English League One – 17th

2027-28, English League One – 14th

2028-29, English League One – 20th

2029-30, English League One – 1st

2030-31, English Championship – 14th

2031-32, English Championship – 10th, League Cup – Final

2032-33, English Championship – 12th

2033-34, English Championship – 8th

2034-35, English Championship – 21st

2035-36

English Championship: (Pos 2), P 46, W 21, D 11, L 14, F 64, A 49, GD +15, Pts 74

(Media Prediction: 21st)

FA Cup: 3rd Round

League Cup: Quarter-Final

2036-37

English Premiership: (Pos 17), P 38, W 12, D 4, L 22, F 42, A 72, GD -30, Pts 40

(Media Prediction: 20th)

FA Cup: 3rd Round

League Cup: 3rd Round

2037-38

English Premiership: (Pos 12), P 38, W 11, D 15, L 12, F 56, A 63, GD -7, Pts 48

(Media Prediction: 20th)

FA Cup: Quarter-Final

League Cup: 2nd Round

2038-39

English Premiership: (Pos 15), P 38, W 13, D 7, L 18, F 45, A 61, GD -16, Pts 46

(Media Prediction: 19th)

FA Cup: Semi-Final

League Cup: 2nd Round

2039-40

English Premiership: (Pos 11), P 38, W 13, D 9, L 16, F 50, A 61, GD -11, Pts 48

(Media Prediction: 18th)

League

FA Cup: 3rd Round

League Cup: 3rd Round

The summer was full of action as Phil Edwards retired from football, giving the Bandits’ fans fresh optimism as they waved goodbye to a manager unlikely to ever take them forward.

Unfortunately for them the replacement was arguably even worse. Ben Clayton is 46, with 93 CA and PA, and doesn’t look in the slightest bit spectacular. The fans were worried. That worry only intensified when Clayton decided that he did not need to spend much money, splashing out only 15m on players in his first season, which given their coffers, and the fact that he sold players for more than this, is a bit strange. This is no time to be making a transfer profit.

But the season itself started spectacularly. For much of the season, the Bandits were around eighth, and as February turned into March, they surged up to fifth. With ten games to go, Europe looked like a real possibility.

But then it all went badly wrong. An eight game losing streak saw them slowly slide down the league, and they ended the season by gaining just two points from their final eleven games, an appalling run that saw them drop out of the top half entirely. With European qualification just ten points ahead of them, this run ended up being extremely costly.

The cups ended quickly, as the Bandits were handed tough draws, but the league position is the most important at the moment.

There would’ve been two benefits of not having such an appalling run at the end of the season. Firstly, a European place would’ve seen the Bandits’ stock rise considerably, and European football might attract more players. Secondly, and perhaps even more importantly, the expectation level would’ve risen, and a poor start to next season would see Clayton slung out. Now, to get sacked, he needs to start so badly that the Bandits may be unable to avoid relegation.

What do we want now – success next season or enough failure to see this manager gone? He had a good season this time around, but with their form for the last couple of months of the season, and his unwillingness to spend, they will still be amongst the favourites for the drop come August.

Position Graph

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Player reports

Goalkeeper 1 – Retired from playing 03/07/2032

2032-, Sunderland (scout), CA 170, PA 170

2033-2034, Liverpool (scout), CA 170, PA 170

2034-, West Ham (assistant manager), CA 170, PA 170

Remains West Ham assistant manager, as they have a very up and down season. As Premiership champions, they go on a run in the Champions League, ending up losing in the final, but it distracts them from the league, where they finish an awful 14th.

Goalkeeper 2 – Retired from playing 27/06/2032

2032-, Tottenham (scout), CA 170, PA 170

2033-2034, Birmingham (assistant manager), CA 170, PA 170

2034-, Leeds (assistant manager), CA 169, PA 170

Still content to be an assistant manager, Leeds continue to struggle in 12th.

Left Back 1 – Retired from playing 30/06/2030

2030-2031, Scunthorpe (fitness coach), CA 110, PA 110

2031-2034, Tottenham (assistant manager), CA 110, PA 110

2034-2035, Tottenham (coach), CA 110, PA 110

2035-, Tottenham (assistant manager), CA 110, PA 110

Has a glorious season as Spurs manager as they win the Premiership.

Right Mid 1 – Retired from playing 25/04/2026

2026-2027, Aston Villa (youth coach), CA 130, PA 130

2027-2035, Chelsea (assistant manager), CA 130, PA 130

2035-2037, Chelsea (manager), CA 130, PA 130

2037-2038, Roma (manager), CA 130, PA 130

2038-, Chelsea (manager), CA 130, PA 130

Improves Chelsea slightly as they rise back up to fourth, but is still unable to help them claim a trophy.

Centre Mid 1 – Retired from playing 02/07/2030

2030-2032, Liverpool (youth coach), CA 110, PA 110

2032-2039, Reading (coach), CA 109, PA 110

2039-, No Club, CA 108, PA 110

Left Reading last summer, and has yet to find work since. Will he join his favoured Bandits now he is out of a job?

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Other stats

England qualified for the European Championships in style, winning all eight qualifying games without conceding a goal, to continue their amazing record in qualifiers. They haven’t dropped points or conceded a goal in decades.

In the summer, they will face an awkward group of Poland, Germany and Sweden, and will hope to fare better than in their disastrous World Cup campaign from two years ago. Ryan Morley is still captain and star of the team and needs a better tournament this time around.

Spurs won the league for the first time in 79 years, beating their North London rivals Arsenal into second. The three promoted sides went straight back down again, with the nearest big side to joining them being Liverpool, who struggled once again.

But no big club is struggling as much as Man Utd, who ended 18th in the Championship, with their value dropping to 88m, way below their debt of 138m. Their transfer budget is still huge, the vast majority of their value, so there is potential for escape, but they need to manage it sooner rather than later.

The Bandits extended their own Premiership average attendance record this season to 96703 on their way to their best position of eleventh.

Sunderland beat Sheff Wed in the FA Cup, while no team from outside the Premiership made it to the quarter finals, while Championship Birmingham went on an incredible run to eventually beat Arsenal on penalties in the League Cup final. No records were broken in either competition.

Milan retained the Champions League, with a narrow extra time victory over West Ham, while Sevilla beat Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Cup.

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English Teams and Managers

Premiership

1. Tottenham (+8), Tore Reginiussen (54, 130/130)

2. Arsenal (+1), Michael Brookfield (50, 168/168) (new manager)

3. Man City (-), Turgay Tufan (45, 156/156)

4. Chelsea (+2), Right Mid 1 (50, 130/130)

5. Derby (+12), Charlie Taylor (64, 108/129)

6. Sheff Wed (+10), Neil Angus (53, 137/137) (new manager)

7. Sunderland (-3), Chris Sedgwick (60, 100/113)

8. Reading (+2), Lewis Flanagan (48, 138/138) (new manager)

9. Scunthorpe (-2), Wayne Heard (46, 120/120) (new manager)

10. QPR (-8), Andy Mason (64, 78/120)

11. Bandits (+4), Ben Clayton (46, 93/93) (new manager)

12. Leeds (-), Peter Flynn (65, 92/118)

13. Newcastle (-2), Adam Pearson (51, 109/109) (new manager)

14. West Ham (-13), no manager

15. Liverpool (-7), Paul Moore (57, 118/120) (new manager)

16. Chesterfield (-3), Eric May (40, 120/120)

17. Stoke (-3), Stuart Davies (57, 100/113)

18. Coventry (P), Roland Kirn (46, 185/185) (new manager)

19. Charlton (P), Mickey Ricketts (38, 141/141) (new manager)

20. Aston Villa (P), Curtis Davies (55, 107/108)

There is definitely a correlation between manager ability and team performance this season. The top four teams are managed by decent managers, and Arsenal especially should recapture their glory days if Brookfield remains in charge.

Further down the list, Neil Angus has turned Sheff Wed around, while Flanagan is keeping Reading strong on a shoestring budget. In the other direction, Andy Mason is destroying a once strong QPR, while Leeds can’t get back to their best under Flynn.

West Ham have suffered the most dramatic fall, from champions to 14th, and currently have no manager, while the relegation picture is especially interesting. The three sides that came up went straight back down, but two of them hired excellent young managers towards the end of the season. If they can hold on to them, they will surely bounce straight back. Kirn, the Coventry boss, is at 185 CA, the best manager in the world.

Promoted from Championship

1. Morecambe (+10), Oliver Norwood (49, 107/107)

2. Leicester (P), Joel Lynch (52, 113/113)

3. West Brom ®, Danny Gamble (53, 116/120)

Joel Lynch is establishing himself as a legend at Leicester – having gained them promotion from League One last season, he has achieved another promotion to take them to the big time. Danny Gamble also returns to the Premiership, while Norwood and Morecambe, despite going up as champions, are likely to struggle.

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Summary

The Bandits had an above average season despite the lack of signings made by new manager Ben Clayton, but their form in the last couple of months, where they claimed just two points from eleven games, bodes very badly for next season.

Hopefully with a final position of 11th, the media and board will expect something closer to mid table than I do, so that when Clayton drops the team into the relegation zone, which I am convinced he will do, he will get sacked before it is too late for the replacement to save them.

An analysis will come later of the average ability of the Premiership, which may go some way to determining roughly where the Bandits should be finishing. Wherever that turns out, expect a worse result with such a poor manager in charge. Other clubs in the top flight are outperforming expectations thanks to a decent manager, it is time the Bandits hired well.

Spurs won their first top flight league in many decades, pipping their North London rivals to the title – can they stay up there? Arsenal have a superb manager now so will be aiming for the trophy next season. Can West Ham start to challenge again after their awful season?

Down in the Championship, Man Utd’s value continues to drop faster than their loan deficit. They still draw 60k crowds, so from that point of view they are fine, and they have plenty of cash in the bank. However, the debt is greater than that, and will require Premiership status to pay it off. Can they ever make it back, or are more problems ahead?

Bandit’s former manager watch

Justin Edinburgh has retired.

Steve Brackstone has retired

67 year old Gary Perry has been out of work for three years but is yet to retire.

Dean Glover has retired.

Martin Lawton has retired.

Danny Gamble bounced West Brom straight back from their relegation last season, finishing third in the Championship and winning the playoffs.

Phil Edwards has retired.

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Bandits squad

General

Stats

Transfers In

Transfers Out

Finance Overview

Interested Players

The interested players count went back up this season, from last season’s total of 8294 to 8458, but this is still some way below the record of 8655.

Top 20 in Squad (sorted by CA)

Name, Pos, Age, CA-PA

Wade, GK, 28, 162-164 (+2)

Morgan, DC, 27, 160-173 (+5)

Ivic, AM L, 27, 160-161 (+2)

Grosjean, MC, 28, 158-158 (0)

Nunez, DC, 28, 158-158 (0)

Ellis, AM/F C, 29, 157-157 (0)

Spicer, ST, 24, 156-156 (+1)

Stephenson, DR, 27, 154-161 (+1)

Dyke, DC, 29, 154-156 (0)

Holmes, D LC, 28, 154-155 (-1)

Luckett, AM RL, 26, 153-172 (0)

Gibbs, M LC, 24, 153-158 (+4)

White, AM R, 26, 152-152 (+2)

Jolly, AM RL, ST, 23, 149-154 – new signing

T O’Neill, GK, 22, 148-157 (+3) – re-entry in top 20

Paris, GK, 23, 148-156 – new signing

Todd, D RLC, 23, 148-156 – new signing

R O’Neill, ST, 30, 148-148 (0)

Small, DC, DM, 23, 147-167 (+1)

Walker, MC, 23, 147-157 – new signing

Players in last season’s top 20 who have left the club:

Horton, MC, 27, 158-159

Leroy, AM L, 28, 156-156

Avery, MC, 28, 154-154

M Nicholson, DC, 28, 148-153

Dudley, AM/F C, 22, 146-157

Players in last season’s top 20 who have dropped out of the top 20:

None

The problem with Ben Clayton is neatly illustrated by the above listing of the top twenty players in the squad. Under former managers, there were always a group of signings near or at the top of the list, enhancing what is already in the squad. This time, the best thirteen players at the club were there when he joined the club. In addition, he has sold five players who all now have a CA that would enhance that top 20. Overall, I don’t believe he is making the squad any stronger. It is simply a year older.

CA of X or above:

190 : 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0

180 : 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0

170 : 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0

160 : 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 3

150 : 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 3, 2, 3, 3, 3, 6, 10, 13, 15, 13

140 : 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 5, 5, 6, 10, 9, 9, 14, 19, 27, 25

130 : 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 1, 1, 1, 1, 5, 8, 10, 13, 10, 11, 22, 28, 32, 31

120 : 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 0, 1, 1, 0, 1, 1, 1, 0, 1, 2, 2, 6, 6, 7, 5, 5, 12, 13, 14, 18, 16, 15, 29, 37, 38, 36

110 : 0, 2, 2, 3, 2, 6, 7, 6, 6, 7, 8, 7, 7, 9, 10, 10, 12, 12, 13, 13, 16, 23, 25, 23, 24, 21, 22, 39, 42, 39, 36

100 : 2, 4, 7, 7, 6, 13, 13, 12, 13, 13, 16, 12, 12, 12, 16, 16, 19, 21, 20, 18, 24, 31, 32, 28, 30, 29, 27, 43, 45, 40, 36

90 : 7, 11, 10, 9, 10, 16, 17, 15, 15, 20, 22, 16, 15, 17, 20, 22, 29, 33, 26, 24, 29, 32, 36, 31, 33, 31, 28, 46, 51, 44, 39

80 : 13, 14, 13, 13, 16, 21, 21, 18, 16, 21, 26, 20, 22, 21, 26, 26, 34, 36, 32, 31, 33, 40, 40, 33, 34, 33, 30, 50, 53, 47, 43

70 : 19, 22, 21, 20, 22, 27, 25, 19, 23, 25, 30, 23, 25, 27, 28, 30, 35, 39, 38, 35, 37, 42, 43, 36, 37, 36, 33, 55, 57, 50, 48

60 : 26, 26, 25, 23, 24, 32, 30, 24, 26, 30, 32, 26, 28, 28, 38, 33, 40, 44, 41, 37, 40, 45, 45, 38, 43, 37, 38, 60, 60, 53, 52

50 : 30, 31, 31, 26, 26, 35, 33, 28, 32, 34, 35, 30, 32, 34, 42, 37, 43, 46, 43, 42, 44, 49, 49, 45, 47, 43, 42, 62, 61, 56, 54

The top bracket, of 160+ players, appears to have dramatically improved, but that is a little deceptive. All that has actually happened is that two players have got slightly better to hit the 160 mark exactly – these are not new signings or dramatic improvements.

Below that the squad is thinner, and from 110+ down I’m not too worried about that, as the squad at this level was unnecessarily deep. But there are less players around 140-160 than there were before, and these make up the bulk of the first team squad. Add to that the fact that those players are now a year older, and that Clayton seems happy to sell a bunch of them, and you have the makings of a weakening squad. These are worrying times for the Bandits.

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Bandits staff

Andrew Wilson (chairman) – 57, 66/142

Matthew Bolder (director), 38, 44/44

Danny Nurse (director), 37, 96/96

Ben Clayton (manager), 46, 93/93

Phillip Lewis (assistant manager) – 62, 99/113

Dylan Dryden (coach) – 45, 107/107

Jack Slade (coach), 58, 135/135

Gordon Harty (youth coach), 42, 134/134

Lee Neville (youth coach), 48, 99/99

Chris Lewington (fitness coach), 36, 91/91

Paul Dyke (gk coach), 42, 124/124

Gary McDermott (physio), 47, 170/171

Bradley Vine (physio), 62, 70/113

Billy Ball (scout), 73, 65/65

James Blunt (scout), 70, 120/120

Chris Miller (scout), 72, 75/75

Kris White (scout), 70, 66/66

Andrew Wilson is still in charge of the club, supported by his two jokers he calls directors. The manager isn’t much better and the assistant doesn’t even add much. There are some decent coaches and an absolutely outstanding physio in Gary McDermott, but the staff situation at the Bandits is very poor.

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Best and Worst

New records:

Highest Position: 11th in Premiership (previous: 12th in Premiership)

Most Games Lost in Row: 8

Total Transfer Income: 21.5m (previous: 18.25m)

This season:

Best player – Wade, 7.35

Top scorer – Ellis, 18

Worst player – Ivic, 6.58

The Bandits remain third in the rich list:

Rich Clubs

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The ‘Ryan Morley’s of the world

29 year old Ryan Morley’s CA dropped from 182 to 179, but otherwise should now be at his peak, as he captains England to the European Championships this summer.

He will be looking to improve his astonishing international record, which now stands at 70 goals in only 63 caps, after he added another 14 goals in eight matches this season. His record is better than many of the ex-Bandit stars.

For Chelsea he managed another 29 goals at an average of 7.71, finishing as joint Premiership top scorer as he helped his team finish fourth. He also came third in English Footballer of the Year again.

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Team analysis

Goalkeepers

James Wade (28, 162/164) continues to improve and keep his place as first choice stopper, while new signing Owen Paris (23, 148/156) provides admirable backup.

Behind them, Tommy O’Neill (22, 148/157) seems likely to leave – his contract is up, and young Carl Bowden (21, 122/147) is improving fast.

Summary: Plenty of keepers with age on their side.

Genie Scout’s Suggestion: Tommy O’Neill (GK)

Defenders

Ricky Holmes (28, 154/155) remains first choice left back, and is playing reasonably, while Paul Todd (23, 148/156) provides backup on both flanks. Carl Hedge (23, 134/153) is another option.

At right back, Matt Stephenson (27, 154/161) continued as first choice after rejoining last season, and has some measure of cover in Todd, but absolutely no-one else.

German Nunez (28, 158/158) and Charlie Morgan (27, 160/173) continued their excellent partnership in the centre, backed up by Matt Dyke (29, 154/156) and the excellent up and coming Gary Small (23, 147/167), who can also play in midfield. Another option are supplied by Alan Walsh (20, 142/159), to add to the competition for places.

Summary: At left back and in the centre they have a good set of options, but on the right they are woefully short, with only Stephenson a credible option.

Genie Scout’s Suggestion: Ricky Holmes (LB), Matt Stephenson (RB), Gary Small (CB, Charlie Morgan (CB)

Midfielders

Danijel Ivic (27, 160/161) remains the first choice left winger, but hasn’t been playing particularly well this season, while cover is provided by Tyrone Small (20, 126/147) and Mark Jolly (23, 149/154) who can play on either wing.

On the right, Ross White (26, 152/153) managed to push himself into the first team and stay there, backed up by last season’s first choice, Darren Luckett (26, 153/172) and Jolly.

In the middle, Adrien Grosjean (28, 158/158) and Shaun Gibbs (24, 153/158) continued their partnership, while backup is provided by the defensive midfield prospect Peter Challinor (21, 143/164), and further forward Ian Walker (23, 147/157) and Shane Corbett (22, 132/154).

Summary: They’re pretty well covered in all positions now, except that in the centre they are short of true central midfielders, which could be rectified by a change in formation.

Genie Scout’s Suggestion: Danijel Ivic (LM), Darren Luckett (RM), Shaun Gibbs (CM), Adrien Grosjean (CM)

Strikers

Ross Ellis (29, 157/157) added another 18 goals to his Bandits tally this season, partnered again by Paul Spicer (24, 156/156) who added 13 of his own.

Behind them, Paul Dove (19, 145/171) showed his immense potential by scoring at nearly a goal a game as reserve, while Rob O’Neill (30, 148/148) remains waiting in the wings.

Summary: The most important thing to do is hang on to Paul Dove, who is a tremendous prospect.

Genie Scout’s Suggestion: Ross Ellis (ST), Paul Dove (ST)

Last season’s shopping list:

Left Back – not signed

Star Players – not signed

They need cover at right back now after the emergence of a couple of left backs, and probably a central midfielder too.

Summer shopping list: Right Back, Central Midfielder, Young 170+ PA players

We need stars!!!

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First XI Summary

GK: Wade (28, 162/164) – 7.35

LB: Holmes (28, 154/155) – 6.80

CB: Nunez (28, 158/158) – 7.16

CB: Morgan (27, 160/173) – 6.94

RB: Stephenson (27, 154/161) – 6.86

LM: Ivic (27, 160/161) – 6.58

CM: Grosjean (27, 158/158) – 7.14

CM: Gibbs (23, 149/158) – 6.86

RM: White (26, 152/152) – 7.03

ST: Spicer (24, 156/156) – 7.29

ST: Ellis (29, 157/157) – 7.34

Average age – 26.7 (up from last year’s 25.9)

Average CA – 156.4 (up from last year’s 155.5)

Average rating – 7.03 (up from last year’s 6.94)

The most notable thing about the first team this year is the lack of change – only Ross White pushed his way into the team and he was already around the squad, so not one new signing broke into the team.

Having said that, the performance average topped seven, and the ability did rise slightly, although the team is now as good as a year older.

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Premiership Analysis

It’s time for a new series of sections. Now that the Bandits are hopefully establishing themselves as a Premiership side (watch that kiss of death), I’m introducing an analysis of the league that they will hopefully spend the rest of their lifetime in. The aim is to examine exactly where they stand in big league, by virtue of reputation and player ability.

Year on year, it will examine the ups and downs of each of the stats it examines, and attempt to explain what has happened in the year that has affected them, and vice versa.

Reputation

(league position in bold)

1. West Ham (14) – 8390

2. Arsenal (2) – 8327

3. Chelsea (4) – 8158

4. Tottenham (1) – 8102

5. Sunderland (7) – 8017

6. QPR (10) – 8012

7. Man City (3) – 7931

8. Chesterfield (16) – 7519

9. Scunthorpe (9) – 7351

10. Leeds (12) – 7313

11. Reading (8) – 7307

12. Liverpool (15) – 7235

13. Newcastle (13) – 7086

14. Derby (5) – 6982

15. Sheff Wed (6) – 6774

16. Stoke (17) – 6694

17. Bandits (11) – 6425

18. Coventry (18) – 5981

19. Aston Villa (20) – 5961

20. Charlton (19) – 5757

Promoted sides

Morecambe – 5432

Leicester - 5396

West Brom – 6866

Interesting start. The three sides that have gone down have by far the worst reputation in the league, which makes sense, but next come the Bandits. They actually finished 11th, which in reputation terms is about 900 points higher than they should’ve done, so what does this mean?

Firstly, it explains why the Bandits just can’t make those star signings – who wants to come to the 17th most reputable club in the Premiership? There are so many better options out there. That said, they can probably still sign better players than those teams just above them, e.g. Stoke and Sheff Wed, who cannot match the Bandits’ clout in either transfer fee or wages.

This does go some way in explaining why the club is struggling to move forward. It’ll be interesting to analyse this over the coming years.

The top seven look especially difficult to break into, while coming up from the Championship, West Brom have a good shout at survival, with their huge reputation for the Championship (997 higher than the next side, Portsmouth, who didn’t even get promoted) but Morecambe and Leicester will struggle to bring in the players.

As of right now, the Bandits are 18th in the Premiership by reputation. That is not good.

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Premiership Analysis – Team Ability

FM Genie Scout provides a rough estimate, based upon a multitude of factors, of a squad’s overall quality. This is based upon the best matchday squad they can put out, and their suitability for the position they play.

So, squad balance affects the rating, as players are required for every position. It should provide a decent estimate of how good each squad is.

I will include this for at least a couple of seasons before deciding whether it is a valuable and accurate source of information.

(league position in bold)

1. Arsenal (2) – 75.02

2. Chelsea (4) – 74.25

3. Man City (3) – 73.37

4. West Ham (14) – 72.45

5. Liverpool (15) – 71.02

6. Newcastle (13) – 70.87

7. Leeds (12) – 70.43

8. Derby (5) – 70.17

9. Bandits (11) – 69.38

10. Tottenham (1) – 69.22

11. Sunderland (7) – 69.10

12. Sheff Wed (6) – 69.07

13. QPR (10) – 68.94

14. Reading (8) – 68.23

15. Coventry (18) – 68.19

16. Scunthorpe (9) – 67.98

17. Stoke (17) – 67.04

18. Aston Villa (20) – 66.71

19. Chesterfield (16) – 66.67

20. Charlton (19) – 66.19

Promoted sides

Morecambe – 60.47

Leicester – 62.99

West Brom – 69.43

As suggested in the distribution of world talent, later, Arsenal and Chelsea have two fantastic squads, but this list shows that the Bandits’ squad is capable of a regular mid table finish as they currently stand.

I am not yet convinced by the quality of the percentile rating, as it has the Bandits having a better squad than champions Spurs, who have two 170+ players (to the Bandits’ zero), eight at 160+ (to the Bandits’ two), and seventeen at 150+ (to the Bandits’ thirteen). Whichever way you look at it, I can’t see how Spurs come below them here, unless somehow those players just aren’t suited to the positions they play.

However, the reputation chart is vital – this shows exactly what level of player the Bandits can sign relative to everyone else in the league. And right now, they are right near the bottom, so they still need a decent manager to push them up with the squad they have.

[kipfizh]

Man Utd watch

Having finished 18th in the Championship, I thought it might be a good idea to see where Man Utd fit into their league, and how likely it is that they’ll get out of trouble anytime soon.

Reputation – 4954 (14th in Championship)

This isn’t helping – their status has dropped to the extent that they are in the bottom half of the Championship by reputation. Youngsters growing up outside the UK simply wouldn’t know who United are anymore.

FM Genie Scout Rating – 65.67% (3rd)

Their squad is still amongst the strongest in the league, so they should be up there. But such is their dramatic fall from grace that they consistently have a squad who want to move on to bigger and better things.

Finances – 44.3m balance (1st), 39.7m transfer fund (1st)

Despite their plight, this is still a dream job for a manager, because their financial situation is still strong. Their club debt of 140m is still a massive worry, but there are still a good number of years left before this’ll plunge them into financial strife.

[kipfizh]

Ones to watch

Your annual guide to the stars of tomorrow:

Henrik Berg (17, 85/188) is a product of the Brann youth academy in Norway, and has already broken into the national under 21 team. The left winger has superb technical ability.

Luke Hallett (17, 87/184) is a centre back or central midfielder struggling in Bolton’s reserves. He is one for the future.

Previous tips

Carlo Lupo (24, 193/198) is a world star, winning World Player of the Year and World Footballer of the Year, while averaging 7.93 running Milan’s defence.

Toni Halonen (24, 182/187), the Finnish centre back, is still struggling to play well for Chelsea.

Patrick Schmidt (23, 184/184) the right sided player, is still playing well for Valencia and Germany.

Marian Badea (23, 160/189), moved from Reading to join Schmidt at Valencia, and the left sided Romanian has settled in very well.

Pereira (23, 187/187), the Portuguese defensive midfielder, is starring for Bayern Munich and Portugal.

Aleksandras Stazys (22, 175/186), Lithuania’s left back, is playing appallingly for Arsenal.

Tony Allison (20, 157/192), the winger and forward, is rapidly improving, and remains at West Ham, where he is struggling.

Barry Low (21, 143/195) is yet to make any impact at West Ham, who are collecting talented youngsters.

Ronnie Blundell (19, 144/195), the central midfielder, made his move from Derby to Arsenal, but is yet to make his debut for the Gunners.

Like Slim Sellami before him, Seydou Kamara (20, 132/194), the Ivory Coast central midfielder, has disappeared from the game after finding no team, despite already playing six times for his country. What is going on?

Hugues Guichard (18, 117/195), the French striker, rose 23 points of CA this season, but has yet to start a game for Marseille.

Bjorn Strand (17, 127/193), the Norwegian striker, rose an immense 42 points of CA this season, and has broken into his hometown club Tromso’s first team, scoring six times in eleven games. A real prospect.

Ante Bacic (18, 138/189) the Croatian central defender, rose 26 points of CA and remains at Varteks, where he is playing superbly.

[kipfizh]

World beaters

Gerardo Robles (29, 197/197) is the best player in the world for the fourth consecutive season. The Mexican striker remains at Inter, scoring an astonishing 39 goals, and adding many more individual awards to his glittering cabinet.

Gerardo Robles

Former tip Carlo Lupo (24, 193/198), Milan’s Italian central defender, closes the gap to four points, and has the potential to lead the pile within a couple of years, and he dominates the defence for club and country. The Milan derby must be tasty when Lupo attempts to mark Robles out of the game.

Carlo Lupo

Richard Taylor (26, 192/192) ensures that an Englishmen sits in the top three. Arsenal’s creative midfielder plays well for club and country, but isn’t the world star he should be. An example of this is the fact that in 54 caps for England, he is yet to score.

Richard Taylor

The rest of the 190+ brigade are made up of the same trio as last season, with Max Trehkopf (30, 191/191), Barcelona’s German keeper who barely ever concedes a goal, Ruben Camara (28, 191/191), his Spanish counterpart at Arsenal, and Meng Tao (28, 191/191), Arsenal’s Chinese striker who is a legend at the Emirates.

Max Trehkopf

Ruben Camara

Meng Tao

[kipfizh]

Distribution of 180+ CA players

The clubs

Arsenal – 8 (+1) (192, 191, 191, 189, 184, 181, 180, 180)

Chelsea – 6 (-) (183, 183, 182, 181, 181, 180)

Real Madrid – 4 (-) (188, 186, 183, 180)

Inter – 3 (-) (197, 187, 183)

Milan – 3 (-1) (193, 186, 181)

Barcelona – 3 (+1) (191, 184, 182)

Bayern Munich – 1 (+1) (187)

Juventus – 1 (-) (185)

Valencia – 2 (-1) (184, 183)

Benfica – 1 (-) (183)

Roma – 1 (-) (182)

Total – 33 (-1)

Man City and Lyon lose their one player each, and Arsenal manage to raise their total to an astonishing eight, without winning a trophy. Only two English clubs now own 180+ CA players, but they have fourteen between them.

The leagues

England – 14 (-)

Spain – 9 (-)

Italy – 8 (-1)

Germany – 1 (+1)

Portugal – 1 (-)

France – 0 (-1)

Total – 33 (-1)

Arsenal and Chelsea have no excuse for winning nothing with the players at their disposal. The big three leagues now contain all but two of the best players.

The nationalities

France – 4 (-2)

Italy – 3 (-)

England – 3 (-1)

Spain – 3 (-1)

Germany – 3 (+1)

Portugal – 3 (+1)

Belgium – 2 (+1)

Brazil – 2 (-)

Mexico – 1 (-1)

China – 1 (-)

Argentina – 1 (-1)

Holland – 1 (-)

Serbia – 1 (-)

Croatia – 1 (-)

Turkey – 1 (-)

Paraguay – 1 (+1)

Finland – 1 (-)

Denmark – 1 (+1)

Total – 33 (-1)

Now only six of the 33 are from outside Europe, and the usual countries can be expected to challenge for the European Championships this summer.

[kipfizh]

Distribution of 180+ PA Under 21 players

The clubs

West Ham – 4

Lens – 2

Chelsea – 2

Boca - 2

Arsenal , Marseille, Tromso, Varteks, Real Madrid, Liverpool, Brann, Le Mans, Ajax, Raja Casablanca, Rosenborg, Porto, Slovan Liberec, Bolton, Derby, Leeds, Rapid, Man City, Birmingham, Colo Colo, Nantes, Auxerre, Spartak Moscow, Motherwell, Diwang Zibo, Sunderland, Fluminense, Espanyol - 1

No Club - 2

Total – 40

The spread of players with a high level of PA is a lot wider than those players that have already made it. West Ham are concentrating on youth, but as a manager looking to the future there are plenty of starlets at small clubs available to be shipped in.

This is encouraging as it shows that the best young prospects aren’t always at the top clubs. Two are even unattached.

The leagues

England – 14

France – 6

Norway – 3

Argentina – 2

Spain – 2

Croatia - 1

Holland – 1

Morocco – 1

Portugal – 1

Czech Republic – 1

Romania – 1

Chile - 1

Russia – 1

Scotland – 1

China – 1

Brazil - 1

None – 2

Total – 40

Again, the spread is very wide – England, as the detailed league, hold 14/40 players, which amounts to 35%, while the rest are spread all around the clubs.

Europe holds 32/40, which still amounts to 80%, a very high proportion of these players, but with the strength of the European leagues this is probably realistic. By the time these players hit 180 PA, the earlier section suggests that they will all be plying their trade in a big European league.

The nationalities

England – 8

France – 6

Scotland – 3

Norway – 2

Spain – 2

Croatia – 1

Holland – 1

Israel – 1

Morocco – 1

Nigeria – 1

Portugal – 1

Czech Republic – 1

Germany – 1

Romania – 1

Wales – 1

Chile – 1

Peru – 1

Serbia – 1

Argentina – 1

China – 1

Ireland – 1

Brazil – 1

Tunisia – 1

Belgium – 1

Total – 40

Slightly disappointingly, the number of players from countries outside Europe is still very small, with just eight out the forty (20%) being non-European. Throughout the countries it is well spread, and with England on high detail their advantage makes sense.

[kipfizh]

Phew, that was a biggie! Right, now to answer an earlier request:

History of Premiership winners:

Premiership History

[5ergio]

Awesome update as usual Kip. No wonder why Bandits hired such a talented(!) manager with that board room. I think they need a good board change as well with the manager and some backroom staff also. I loved the addon of the 180+ PA youngsters section. Great work mate.

[BenArsenal]

I think I can explain why the two talented Africans werent'picked up.

Because you've only run the English league, they will most probably prefer to go to English clubs. However, English clubs don't want to pick them up due to work permit problems. Hence nobody signs them.

It seems that if you only run one country, the game treats that country as the centre of the universe, and seemingly ignores all other leagues.

[5ergio]

Originally posted by BenArsenal:

I think I can explain why the two talented Africans werent'picked up.

Because you've only run the English league, they will most probably prefer to go to English clubs. However, English clubs don't want to pick them up due to work permit problems. Hence nobody signs them.

It seems that if you only run one country, the game treats that country as the centre of the universe, and seemingly ignores all other leagues.

Along with this, being young and unkown in world, those Africans don't have the chance to attract any club other then English ones. For example, if we run French league along with English, then I assume we could have seen these starlets in some lower French clubs and then making their way up to bigger clubs and so on. Also running only English leagues makes the 180+ youngesters reside mostly in Europe (%80). But running a long experiment like this in a crowded league formation with details could hamper the speed and also the report quality I guess. So no hesitations on this aspect. We can see even more of these young pals just get deleted in the future years

[Flinkers]

An outstanding thread as usual Kip. I was just wondering if the chairman of the club is still the same person you created all those years ago. If he is he must be getting on a bit now.

If he retires and is replaced by someone of greater ambition surely the club would start realising its undoubted potential.

[Wegason]

Originally posted by Meitheisman:

To me your experience is as far away from Kipfizh's as is a McDonald's to a French high class restaurant... they're both food but what else is comparable?

A nice attempt at a cutting remark that unfortunately failed.

Seems I accidentally deleted a paragraph in just before my last paragraph (still getting used to this forum software, very different from the invision power board, simple machines forum, and phpBB I am used to.

That paragraph should have read:

"I then create another team, fill them with young superstars committed to the club, give them a fairly ambitious and talented manager and chairman, a £10 million bank balance and a decent ground and let the AI control them and see what happens to them, compared to what I do with my team."

In that way, what Kip is doing is similar to what I do, except I play as well with a different team, however, I do have a team full of young superstars loyal to the club who are all friends (usually based on my friends, sad I know) and see what happens, almost all move to big clubs within two to three years even though they have long contracts and are paid well at the club i created.

[Meitheisman]

You are right actually, it's very similar to Kipfizh's... now go start your own thread and if you get anywhere near this one gimme a ring, until then I will still consider your experience as very different and not quite as interesting.

Anyway, back to our beloved Bandits.

Glad to see they finished 11th at first but then a little disappointed when I saw how their season finished

Also I'll agree with 5ergio, the back room staff is absolutely horrible and it perfectly explain why the Bandits don't hire a more talented manager - simply because the chairman cannot make the difference between Sir Alex Ferguson and any of us who's really good at FM

What I'm hoping now is that the scouts will retire soon (they're all at least 70!) and that a few more talented youth scouts will come in and help the manager find talent around the world. More than 1 scout with a CA above 100 is definitely needed in the EPL.

Finally I have a question, what exactly is that "Team Ability" number? Is it out of 100? Do you have access to the formula the computer uses to calculate this number? Is it based of the first 11 or the entire squad?

Basically I have no idea what this number is or where it comes from since I never used Genie Scout but I'm really intrigued by it, an explanation would be very appreciated.

[Meitheisman]

Oh I almost forgot, congrats on the new section Kipfizh they're awesome, just like the rest of the update. KUTGW

[Taunton]

Brilliant update!!

[5ergio]

Originally posted by Meitheisman:

Finally I have a question, what exactly is that "Team Ability" number? Is it out of 100? Do you have access to the formula the computer uses to calculate this number? Is it based of the first 11 or the entire squad?

Basically I have no idea what this number is or where it comes from since I never used Genie Scout but I'm really intrigued by it, an explanation would be very appreciated.

As I know the team ability is calculated for the most effective 11 players of a club given the most effective tactic possible. It's mainly calculated on CA of the 11 players that are given the most rating for their playing positions. As we see lie 9th with 69.38 but if the manager is using the tactic that Genuine Scout calculates as the best or even is he using the players the program chooses remains unknown. Also as I stated this is mainly on CA, so developing players or declining ones alter this team ability nearly every month or so. Hope this helps Meitheisman. I remembered the day I spent reading whole pages and every post for this and it is getting better and better. Great work again Kip.

[AB-forever]

Great update as always!

Could I see the Danish +180CA player please?

[Meitheisman]

So based on what you said I suppose every player in the starting 11 has a rating on 100 and then the average will be the team's rating. Correct?

If so, how does a player get a rating assigned to him, like what are the coefficients for each position? (I'm assuming that tacking and marking are more important for a CB than for a Striker for instance) Do you know where I could find this information please?

[5ergio]

Well Meitheisman, I don't really know much about the program itself but CA and the point over 20 for a given position seems like the key points for the rating. As you expected, it's over 100. I don't even know which attributes effect the rating for a particular position but you will most probably see a 90CA/90PA footballer having a higher rating than a 70CA/200PA. I guess every attribute has some standard weights for every position, such as marking and tackling effects DC for a proportion of %20 but %1 for ST. (Btw percentages are all made up.) I really have no idea which attribute effects which positions rating but CA is more important than the attributes as I see throughout my observations and some experiments with the Genuine Scout. A comment from someone more interested in this aspect of the program will help us a lot imo.

[waz_nufc_awk]

Originally posted by Meitheisman:

You are right actually, it's very similar to Kipfizh's... now go start your own thread and if you get anywhere near this one gimme a ring, until then I will still consider your experience as very different and not quite as interesting.

Anyway, back to our beloved Bandits.

Glad to see they finished 11th at first but then a little disappointed when I saw how their season finished

Also I'll agree with 5ergio, the back room staff is absolutely horrible and it perfectly explain why the Bandits don't hire a more talented manager - simply because the chairman cannot make the difference between Sir Alex Ferguson and any of us who's really good at FM

What I'm hoping now is that the scouts will retire soon (they're all at least 70!) and that a few more talented youth scouts will come in and help the manager find talent around the world. More than 1 scout with a CA above 100 is definitely needed in the EPL.

Finally I have a question, what exactly is that "Team Ability" number? Is it out of 100? Do you have access to the formula the computer uses to calculate this number? Is it based of the first 11 or the entire squad?

Basically I have no idea what this number is or where it comes from since I never used Genie Scout but I'm really intrigued by it, an explanation would be very appreciated.

GenieScout takes the best 11 players by Scout Rating of CA in the positions in the formation of your choice (I'm assuming Kip uses 4-4-2). It then uses their scout rating (%) in that position based on their CA, add all 11 up then get the average % by dividing again by 11.

I think...

[ShaunO1]

Great Update

KUTGW

[Tempelman]

Originally posted by waz_nufc_awk:

GenieScout takes the best 11 players by Scout Rating of CA in the positions in the formation of your choice (I'm assuming Kip uses 4-4-2). It then uses their scout rating (%) in that position based on their CA, add all 11 up then get the average % by dividing again by 11.

I think...

That's about it yeah, it calculates the best formation based on player's ratings, which are coming from attributes rather than CA. In theory this means that players with lower CA than other players can still have a better rating because their attributes in the right place could be higher, which results in a better rating.

Perfect example of my own game:

A right winger in my team has a CA of 179, and another right winger has a CA of 188. Still the player with the lower CA was higher rated than the winger with more CA. Because his attributes are better distributed.

Great update again Kip, I have followed this from the start on, and always enjoy reading it.

Could you show me that 180+ PA Dutch player from Ajax?

[Tempelman]

Forgot to mention that Genie Scout only calculates formations, and not tactics, that's something you'll have to figure out yourself.

[foxmad]

The new sections are fab

And I'm predicting UEFA Cup next season

[ZJ]

Great work Kip, keep it up. This thread keeps me alive at work sometime!

Meitheisman: I read a threat about how FM Scout calculates ratings somewhere but can't find again. Will have another go at finding it but it might have been at another forum

From what I remember from it basically does what people has said. It calculates the "effectiveness" of any given player at a certain position based on attributes and not CA. Some attributes is weighed more than others for some position - pace and acceleration for example.

I think this rating is what is the background to the ingame scouts rating of "he'll be a good signing for a premiership team" etc. Thats why you can have someone with relative low CA but still be able to perform at a high level.

[1Unit1]

Time for an AI experiment. It's something I've always been interested in - how does the AI respond under extreme circumstances?

Let me explain. I've created a scenario, which is obviously completely unrealistic, but designed to test the boundaries of the game's AI. It is as follows:

Fisher Athletic, the worst ranked side in the Conference South, have been replaced by 'The Bandits', who have been given a tidy bank balance of 25m, a stadium with a capacity of 80k which they regularly fill, and a chairman who as a sugar daddy would look to see the club rise up the divisions. They were also given a top notch youth academy.

They've also had their entire squad replaced by 22 perfect youth players. With 200 CA and PA, but only 1 reputation around the world, they are unheralded masters of the game. 20s in everything, except dirtiness (1) and injury proneness (1), and mentally ambition (1) and controversy (1). They all turn 17 on the day the game starts, with birthdates 1st July 1989. They also love the Bandits as a club, making them the most professional, loyal and talented players you could ever wish to manage. There are two for each position of a standard 4-4-2, and they are all masters of the free role (barring the keepers).

Note: All these players were adjusted by the game on startup - loads of attributes were dropped to around 15, and the CA was dropped to 172-174, although the PA remained at 200, so given that they are all only 17, they have plenty of time to reach their potential. And they're still way too good for Conference South.

So that's one side of the coin - what would happen to club and players?

Then, it was time to add a couple of spanners into the works. Two more players were created along the same lines - 200 CA (adjusted down as before), 200 PA, 20s across the board (adjusted down on startup to 15), 17 year olds.....

...with a few differences. Mentally they were the reverse. Adaptability, determination, loyalty, pressure, professionalism, sportmanship and temperament were all set to 1, with ambition and controversy 20. Dirtiness was raised to 20, and teamwork and work rate dropped to 1. Talented world-beaters these players might be, but they are also complete lazy egotistical wrecks.

In addition, they were given a few preferred moves. Winds up opponents, argues with officials, plays way out of trouble, tries tricks, gets crowd going, dives into tackles, and beats man repeatedly.

The final touch was to block their potential career. You'd expect such players to move around the top clubs with their amazing talent but lack of being able to settle, wouldn't you? Well, what if they hated the top clubs? Both players were set to hate Man Utd, Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal, Milan, Inter, Lazio, Roma, Juventus, Bayern, Real Madrid, Barcelona and valencia. The highest reputation clubs they don't hate are Lyon and Porto. Kinda cuts down their career options!

These two players were left unattached. So what would happen?

OH my God ...who cares ???

[Seagulls Forever]

One in every village.

[ZJ]

1Unit1: Look in the "views" column of this thread.

I care more about the hard work of Kip than I do of the majority of illiterate people who complain about the game.

Meitheisman: Forgot to mention, in terms of general rating, it would make sense that the attributes given more weight are those the game hint and tips suggests for each position. Obviously its not completely dependent on those, but they form a important part of it.

This seem to make sense in-game as well. I had a LB who my assistant man and scouts rated as crap, yet he had a 7.4 average in the top league in the country over a 42 game season. Most likely he just had a good rating for the fullback position despite having low CA (hence the crap ratings from the assistant etc).

[brambleten]

Originally posted by 1Unit1:

Time for an AI experiment. It's something I've always been interested in - how does the AI respond under extreme circumstances?

Let me explain. I've created a scenario, which is obviously completely unrealistic, but designed to test the boundaries of the game's AI. It is as follows:

Fisher Athletic, the worst ranked side in the Conference South, have been replaced by 'The Bandits', who have been given a tidy bank balance of 25m, a stadium with a capacity of 80k which they regularly fill, and a chairman who as a sugar daddy would look to see the club rise up the divisions. They were also given a top notch youth academy.

They've also had their entire squad replaced by 22 perfect youth players. With 200 CA and PA, but only 1 reputation around the world, they are unheralded masters of the game. 20s in everything, except dirtiness (1) and injury proneness (1), and mentally ambition (1) and controversy (1). They all turn 17 on the day the game starts, with birthdates 1st July 1989. They also love the Bandits as a club, making them the most professional, loyal and talented players you could ever wish to manage. There are two for each position of a standard 4-4-2, and they are all masters of the free role (barring the keepers).

Note: All these players were adjusted by the game on startup - loads of attributes were dropped to around 15, and the CA was dropped to 172-174, although the PA remained at 200, so given that they are all only 17, they have plenty of time to reach their potential. And they're still way too good for Conference South.

So that's one side of the coin - what would happen to club and players?

Then, it was time to add a couple of spanners into the works. Two more players were created along the same lines - 200 CA (adjusted down as before), 200 PA, 20s across the board (adjusted down on startup to 15), 17 year olds.....

...with a few differences. Mentally they were the reverse. Adaptability, determination, loyalty, pressure, professionalism, sportmanship and temperament were all set to 1, with ambition and controversy 20. Dirtiness was raised to 20, and teamwork and work rate dropped to 1. Talented world-beaters these players might be, but they are also complete lazy egotistical wrecks.

In addition, they were given a few preferred moves. Winds up opponents, argues with officials, plays way out of trouble, tries tricks, gets crowd going, dives into tackles, and beats man repeatedly.

The final touch was to block their potential career. You'd expect such players to move around the top clubs with their amazing talent but lack of being able to settle, wouldn't you? Well, what if they hated the top clubs? Both players were set to hate Man Utd, Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal, Milan, Inter, Lazio, Roma, Juventus, Bayern, Real Madrid, Barcelona and valencia. The highest reputation clubs they don't hate are Lyon and Porto. Kinda cuts down their career options!

These two players were left unattached. So what would happen?

OH my God ...who cares ???

obviously you care, as you are argueing about it. lets not spoil kips thread with stupid comments. great work as ever kip

[Meitheisman]

Thanks for the clarification guys (5ergio, waz_nufc_awk, Temelman and ZJ)

It does make sense, at least now I have an idea of what this is. I searched the forums for a little bit and couldn't find any thread detailing the calculations Genie Scouts goes through before giving a rating to a player according to his position, does anybody know where I can find this info please?

[BamaToon]

I've been silently following this one for a while, and it has inspired me to fool around with the editor myself a little. I'm doing a little experiment game of my own now partially thanks to this thread.

[kipfizh]

re : the genie scout calculation.

I think this has now been covered, but I thought I'd add my two cents as to what I'd observed.

In Genie Scout you can lean the importance of every attribute, for every position, from 0% to 100%.

So, if you set a target striker's leanings as follows:

Finishing : 100%

Jumping : 100%

Heading : 80%

Pace : 50%

and everything else to 0%, then a calulation would be made on these four attributes alone.

(Sum percentage - 330%)

Suppose you had a striker with 8 finishing, 10 jumping, 12 heading, and 14 pace.

The effectiveness would be:

(8 * 100) + (10 * 100) + (12 * 80) + (14 * 50)

all divided by 330.

= 10.48 (/20 - the maximum stat)

This means that the striker has, on average, an attribute of 10.48 for all the useful stats (bearing in mind that some are more important than others).

Converted to a percentage, this would give the player a rating of 52.42% as a target striker.

To get 100%, you would need a 20 in every ability rated with an importance greater than 0%.

Does that make sense?

All the importances are configurable, and highly complicated (taking a look through, they seem pretty spot on as well), so the calculation is actually far more difficult that this example.

[kipfizh]

As another addendum, the team rating is then calculated by picking the best possible 11 for a standard formation, and averaging their ratings (I believe).

So, if left wingers need pace, and no-one in the squad has pace, the chosen left winger will have a lower rating and bring the whole team rating down, which neatly covers squad balance.

Hope that calculation made sense, it made my head hurt on a Friday afternoon!

[Meitheisman]

That's what I understood Kipfizh but my next question was where can I actually find these coefficient? (Finishing 100%, Jumping 100%...)

[kipfizh]

Originally posted by Meitheisman:

That's what I understood Kipfizh but my next question was where can I actually find these coefficient? (Finishing 100%, Jumping 100%...)

Ah, sorry, beer at lunchtime never did help my concentration....

If you download the latest version of FM Genie Scout, and go to Rating -> Edit Player Rating, you'll see the full list for each position, for example, a target striker is defined as follows:

Target Striker

[Wheeler-Dealer]

Just finished reading all the way through, and thought I'd add my thanks for an incredibly interesting but also time consuming project. It has been time consuming enough for me to read it, let alone for you to simulate and write it.

I must add also how pleased I am to see Tore Reginussen do well, he is someone I always try and sign as a Top Championship or low Premier League club and a very competent defender.

I am glad that he has made it as a manager with such success.

Not as glad as I will be when the Bandits pip Chelsea to the Premiership on the last day of the season, and stop Real Madrid winning the Champions League after a 5-4 AET win.

We can but hope!