[FM18] Uncle Jimbo's Icelandic Sound Explosion, (featuring other Countries, hopefully, if I get lucky, maybe). (You know, if there is an award for the longest thread title I have a sneaking suspicion that I might just be in with a chance of a nomination).

[Jimbokav1971]

Progress. HK. Aug 2025.

A bid for one of our players of £1.4M is no great surprise, but a bid from another (ISL) club of £1.4M is astonishing. 

It shows not just how far we have come, but also how far our rivals have come too. 

[Edit]

I don't really have an issue with the board accepting this new increased bid, other than the fact that he has gone to an Icelandic club who are our rivals.

The previous highest transfer involving an (ISL) club was the deal for £375,000 that saw (22a) Ísak Ör (L.H)  (2022) * leave us and move to FH.

It's progress in terms of how players and (ISL) teams are developing, if not quite the development of our own club as we have strengthened our rivals with these transfers. 

The only real positives here is that we are now back in credit at the bank, (to the tune of £770,000), and FH have overpaid for a domestic transfer. 

Edited January 22, 2018 by Jimbokav1971

[Deisler26]

 

[Jimbokav1971]

Record fee received Smashed! HK. Aug 2025.

Inter have come in with a straight £2.5M offer for young left back (23a) Frans (Pro) (2023) *. I'm not keen at all to sell, (and I'm delighted that the board didn't accept), because he has 4 years left on his contract and also of course because there was no add-ons involved.  

[Deisler26]

 

[Jimbokav1971]

Protest. HK. Aug 2025. 

[Deisler26]

 

[Reggiana]

I wish there was an option where rather than protest a transfer you could tell the board how badly structured the deal was. There is so much money there that is dependent on him actually playing for Inter.

[Jimbokav1971]

1 hour ago, Reggiana said:

I wish there was an option where rather than protest a transfer you could tell the board how badly structured the deal was. There is so much money there that is dependent on him actually playing for Inter.

Exactly. While not my only gripe. It is certain;y something which I think it should be possible to "fix".

[Jimbokav1971]

No Son of mine. Youth Intake Day. HK. Aug 2025.

"Kriss" (25a) Bergþór (Unamb) (2025) *.

So who wants to be the 1st person to tell me the link between the Genesis song and this post? 

[Deisler26]

Oh, Tomas...

[Reggiana]

You appear to have a son, but sadly he's terrible. He's also really small.

[Jimbokav1971]

(25p) Tómas O'Kav (Unamb).

This is my 3rd son in FM. Every one of them has been absolute garbage!  

 

[Deisler26]

 

[Jimbokav1971]

I want to take a look at how our domestic rivals have done in Europe. HK. Aug 2025.

FH.

That's a pretty special results from FH, and their relative success perhaps explains how they are able to splash quite so much cash about. 3 Group stages on the bounce from a little Icelandic club is amazing. 

Edited January 22, 2018 by Jimbokav1971

[Jimbokav1971]

Pressure. End of Season. HK. Sep 2025.

The thing with having such a young squad is that the pressure can often get to them at the business end of the season. .

Taking 3 points from a possible 12 right at the end of the season when it came to the crunch just wasn't good enough and it ultimately cost us. 

Not only did we miss out on the title, but we also snoozed on 2nd place and only just sneaked 3rd in the end. Missing out on Europe completely would have been an absolute disaster. The Group stages of the Europa league are worth approx £2.5M just for getting there, and then we have the receipts and individual prize money to add on after that.

We were still strong going forward, (and set new records for team goals scored in the league), but it was obviously at the other end where we struggled in the absence of our 3 big sales who all play at that end of the pitch in a GK, DR & DC. We just couldn't cope with the loss of all 3. We have decent young GK's coming through, (an 18yo and an even better 17yo), and some decent centre-backs, but when I choose to prioritse Europe ahead of the League campaign, (it's too much money to ignore, especially when our rivals our getting to the Group Stages), our centre-backs are not good enough, (and we need 3 of them of course). Right back was a slight problem, (and the DoF brought in a loan as a stop-gap), but after we got 2 good prospects through this intake, I immediately sent him back and have thrown the kids straight in. 

Cup. 

Summary. 

We are still moving in the right direction, but because of the improvement in our rivals, (more about that in an up-coming post), we are not dominating domestically. With the tactic needing 3 at the back and 3 up front, it stretches us beyond our capability right now when we need to rotate as a result of fixture congestion and/or International call-ups or injury.

Finances.

We make a loss if we do not get at least to the Group stage of European competition, and even then we probably need to sell players too. This season we have made the Group stages of something, (more about that when our European campaign finishes), which earns us £2.5M prize money, but we have also received £2.8M in player sales this season. To only have £3M in the bank after raking in £5.3M in this way is possibly concerning. 

This might make a difference to our income, but of course we will have to speculate to accumulate.

 

[Jimbokav1971]

Jimbokav Junior watch. HK. Sep 2025.

(25p) Tómas O'Kav (Unamb) may not be very good, but he has played 4 competitive games and won 4 competitive games. 

 

[Jimbokav1971]

Rivals. HK. Oct 2025.

FH are our biggest domestic rivals and as a result of 3 Europa League Group stage campaigns, they have earned money to make them a powerful force.

They have 4 players currently valued at £1M+. 

Henen (BEL) (Driven) is an absolute beast at this level as 26 league goals in 18 league appearances suggest. I can only be thankful that at 29 years old he is at his peak and is not going to improve further and will actually, (hopefully), decline. It's galling that FH were able to sign him on a free from Everton, but also interesting that although he has scored consistently in his FH career, this is the 1st time he has really hit these spectacular heights. 

Ejuke (NIG) (Bal) is another who FH were able to sign on a free, and he has made an immediate impact in his 1st season at the club. Whoever was responsible for these signings has done well indeed. 

(18b) Daði Björg (Bal) * is our home-produced GK who was signed by FH during the season for a fee of £1.3M. He was a significant loss to us and has given them a significant boost. 

Oli Sigurjón (Amb) is yet another who has been signed on a free. He actually doesn't look great, (I have better), but he is still valued at £1M+.

They also have (22a) Ísak Ör (L.H)  (2022) * in their ranks, a £375,00 steal from us, (thanks to our eegit Chairman).

If they keep up their recent tactic of signing high PA young Icelandic talent, then they could indeed be a tough nut to crack.

 

[abulezz]

I have yet to get a son in all my 20 years of playing FM!

[nie jem frytek]

Maybe it's time to find a new club?

 

[Jimbokav1971]

I would love to move to an other club, but it has to be the right club, (and can't be an (ISL) club). 

I was recently favourite to take over our rivals FH, (the Manager retired), but I have won the League, won the Cup, won the League Cup and won the Champions Cup, (Community Shield), and UEFA Youth League, so I think it's time to move on now. 

These are the current jobs available. 

I'm not really interested in a move to England yet, (I want a Championship job at least when I go there), so that just leaves wme with Norway and Denmark. 

AC Horsens are in the top league in Denmark and that's an option, but I wonder if I hang on a little, (I am still in Europe), then something better might present itself. 

Levanger FK are in the 3rd tier in Norway and I think I'b better than that. 

The Viking FK job in the Norway top tier might becoming available and I would consider applying for that, but even that is below where we are with HK in Iceland right now, (but with more potential for advancement). 

OB at the top level in Denmark might also become available. Watch this space. 

I've just noticed that Exeter are in the Championship and the job is available, but I wonder if that might be a bit of a struggle. I would prefer a big club when I move to England. 

We have a Fairly Good reputation at the moment.

If I'm right in thinking that I should be looking for a job at a club with a similar reputation to my own, (please correct me if that's wrong), then I'm looking for a 3.0 star club. 

[Edit]

These are the leagues I currently have loaded, and I have just queued up the top 2 leagues in both Scotland and France, while removing Finland. 

Edited January 23, 2018 by Jimbokav1971

[Jimbokav1971]

Don't you want me? HK. Nov 2025. 

Southampton might be bottom of the Premier league, but who cares! Let's be honest, it's a match made in heaven. 

Birmingham and Bristol City are both Championship jobs, (which is more my level at the moment I think), but they are 19th and 20th, (of 24), in the League after 17 games. It's likely to be a slog with both sides. 

Aston Villa are a huge club, (in my mind), and they are languishing in League 1. 

Conservative expectations, and Superb Training Facilities make this an attractive opportunity. Last year they moved into the new Ron Saunders Stadium. I think I can work with this. 

I wonder what the squad is like, (ranked by value)?

The 1st thing that strikes me is that they are a very young squad, (just 2 players 30+), and just 2 more players over 35.

I'm going to go for this! 

[Edit]

They are giving the Caretaker a chance!  Don't they know who I am!!! 

[Edit2]

Oops. I've just realised that HK look like becoming the first (ISL) club in history to progress from the Group Stages of European competition. What have I done? 

Edited January 23, 2018 by Jimbokav1971

[Jimbokav1971]

Big Mistake? HK. Nov 2025. 

This was our 5th Group D match in the Europa League. 

Our last Group D Match is against Maccabi Tel Aviv and the table looks like this. 

[Jimbokav1971]

I really like You (Aston Villa). HK. 29th Nov 2025.

The previous permanent Manager was ex Barnet FC legend Nicky Bailey.

They sacked him after this run of form. 

The caretaker has managed 1 game so far.

Next up they have Ebbsfleet at home who are 15th, and then 2 Cup games at home before 6th placed Lincoln at home, (again).

 

[Jimbokav1971]

Caretaker Manager given Villa job on permanent basis after 2nd win. 

[Edit]

Edited January 23, 2018 by Jimbokav1971

[Deisler26]

10 minutes ago, Jimbokav1971 said:

 

The previous permanent Manager was ex Barnet FC legend Nicky Bailey.

 

BOOOOOOOO.

Ginger c*nt

Edited January 23, 2018 by Deisler26

[Jimbokav1971]

2 minutes ago, Deisler26 said:

BOOOOOOOO.

Ginger c*nt

How very dare you! 

[Jimbokav1971]

Southampton Don't wanna know. HK. Dec 2025.

Magnus Pehrsson is a Swede who won 4 league titles and 2 domestic Cups with Malmo, before managing Brighgton. He's got 4.0 rep stars compared to my 3.0 stars. He's also managed the  Estonian National Team.

[Jimbokav1971]

New Stadium Plans. HK. Dec 2025. 

I have never had a new stadium named after me, and I don't think I will this time either. It's come too early and I just haven't done enough. 

 

[Jimbokav1971]

Leading Candidate for Leicester job. HK. Dec 2025.

I actually haven't applied for the Leicester job yet. Leicester are 19th in the Premier League but I think are too big a club for me to get away with my Youth only style. I've actually applied for teh Cardiff job who are struggling in the Championship on the basis there is more scope for how I get the job done there. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Farewell (18c) Harald Skúlason (Amb) *. HK. Mar 2026.

46 league goals in 91 league appearances is decent when you consider that he has played as part of a front 3 in the last few years, but also more so when you consider that for the early stages of his career we were not challenging for the title. He's actually scored 99 goals and created 57 assists in 179(10) appearances. While with us he has also scored 3 Senior (ISL) goals in 6 appearances and 8 U21 goals in 9 appearances. 

[Edit]

Being pro-active in this sale when he has 18 months remaining on his contract means the end is near with regards to my time at HK. If I was staying, then In would have kept him and then let him leave on a free. The fact that he is going means that so am I. It just remains to be seen where I am going to.

Edited January 24, 2018 by Jimbokav1971

[Deisler26]

 

[Jimbokav1971]

Parting Gift. European Campaign. HK. Mar 2026. 

Although FH have got to the Group stages a few times, (and KR have made it too), we are the 1st (ISL) club who have managed to progress from a Group stage. It could be said that we were gifted an easy group, but the way I see it, we beat the Dutch Champions, (twice, absolutely hammering Feyenoord in Holland), beat another Dutch side over 2 legs in PSV, and then also came out on top against Celta of Spain.  We lost to Viktoria Plzen in the Champions League after a really poor 1st game, but also still made it through after a dominant return performance. We didn't really turn up in either tie against Malmo, and maybe that's just FM telling me that Magnus Pehrsson, (new Southampton Manager), was the right man for the job. 

 

[Deisler26]

 

[Jimbokav1971]

Another Protest. HK. Mar 2026.

 

[Deisler26]

 

[Jimbokav1971]

Oh, How The Mighty Have Fallen. HK. May 2026. 

I've been keeping an eye on the Job Security page, (but obviously not a close enough eye), as I recently missed the sacking of Gareth Ainsworth at Sunderland after he Managed the once Mighty Black-cats to relegation from League 1. They will join Wigan in League 2 and interestingly I have just spotted that Tranmere have just been relegated from Conference National. I really don't want to drop down that far at all, but the idea of rebuilding the likes of Tranmere is an attractive possibility

[Jimbokav1971]

Leaving? HK. Jun 2026.

[Jimbokav1971]

The Red and Black. Stade Rennais. Jul 2026.

• 3 Year contract.
• Youth development philosophy.
• £38.4M Transfer budget.
• Reasonable expectation.
• My wage has gone from £1,200 per week to £12,250 per nweek. 

[Edit]

I wanted to leave Iceland and this seemed to be too good to refuse. They approached me with an offer of an interview, and I was completely honest at said interview. As long as we don't under-perform, we should be a good match. I have never managed in France. Vive la France! 

[Edit2]

Almost forgot, this happened just before I left. 

Edited January 24, 2018 by Jimbokav1971

[Rikulec]

That's a great move.

[Jimbokav1971]

Time to Judge the CA and PA of new squad. Stade Rennais. Jul 2025.

I've had to appoint a new Ass Man so that I know what the hell is going on and can continue to do as little as possible.

Let's see how many 5.0 PA players he says we have at the club?

GK. x3

WBL.

WBR.

DC.

MC. x3.

SC. x3.

This suggests that we have less potential in the defensive areas than we do elsewhere.

We are not looking nearly as good in terms of CA.

What do we need immediately?

At 1st glance we need a centre-half and a centre-mid or even 2 actually.

 I am able to try an sell a few players. Wingers for example are not used in my currently preferred tactic). 

[Jimbokav1971]

3 hours ago, Rikulec said:

That's a great move.

It's better than I expected actually.

Despite that, there is still a fair bit of room for improvement in facilities.

[Jimbokav1971]

Personal Jesus Accomplishments. Stade Rennais. Jan 2027.

National Hotel Room Service. 

Simply Irresistible.

You're on fire.

Hometown Cup Glory.

Legendary child.

Plastic Fantastic Lover.

Champions.

Going Places.

The Comeback King of Wishful Thinking.

Eat My What a Goal.

Team Performance.

 

Edited January 25, 2018 by Jimbokav1971

[Jimbokav1971]

Young Thug. Bonjour. Stade Rennais. Mar 2027.

I've lost count of the number of Golden Generations I've had in this save now. (Is this 3 or 4 now?) In my experience this was under-cooked in FM17, (we didn't see it often enough), and it's over-cooked in FM18, (we see it too often). In my opinion it's the "value" of this Golden Generation that is the trigger, because where as I could understand it in Iceland, (we were producing good players for that Nation), my suspicion is that none of this "Golden Generation" are going to be amazing, (because there is still significant room for improvement in terms of both Facilities and Staff), so if this is a Golden Generation after I have been here less than 1 season, what sort of player are we going to be producing in a few seasons time?

In case I haven't mentioned it, I have a bit of a tick-list of things that I look for in a Youth Intake. 

• PA. Do we have a player with 5.0 PA rating? 
• CA. DO we have a player with good CA? (2.0+ is what I class as "good").
• Do we have any different nationalities or 2nd Nationalities? (I just love a 2nd Nationality and this was part of the reason I almost started the save in France and bow regret that I bottled it). 
• Do we have any Family relationships? The obvious one is a son for me, but I'm actually looking for any family relationship with anyone else in the game, (real or newgen). 
• Personality. This used to be all about Professionalism for me, but since the Determination revelations last year I must admit to feeling a little all at sea with regards to personality and I suppose it has affected my confidence as a result.
• Positions. For example I don't use wingers at the moment. (27f) might be great, but if I'm not going to play him then I will have to adapt or risk him stagnating. 
• Height. I really hate small centre-backs but other than that I don't mind, but it does help me to develop a "character" in my head about the player. 
• PA relative to existing players at the club. A 4.0 PA player might be FAR more valuable than a 5.0 PA player, if the 5.0 player plays in a position in which you already have significant depth, but where you are desperate for a player in the position that the 4.0 player plays in. 
• Media Description. Is the player labelled as "Promising"?

I've never managed in France before and I'm used to seeing 16 year olds come through the intake, so to see 14 year olds is a huge pleasing shock to the system. In France you can't play a player until he turns 16, so that's a significant amount of development time before you get an opportunity to play them. If we use this intake as an example, then we have 3 players here who were born in July 2012, so that means that they have 16 months to train then before they are eligible for Senior Football. That's a lot of development time and also significant when it comes to tutoring. I know that this year FM has introduced a sytem where exposure to Senior football too early might cause a hit to physical ability at the back end of a career, but it's still an opportunity to train in nothing else. 

[Edit]

"Kriss" (27a) Lemoine (F.Amb) (2027) *.

(27b) Mercier  (FRA) (Pro) *.

Edited January 25, 2018 by Jimbokav1971

[Jimbokav1971]

Overachievers. End of Season. Stade Rennais. May 2027.

Ligue 1 Fixtures.

Ligue 1 Table. Monaco won a tight Title race from PSG and OM and you would expect these 3 big guns toi be at the top, but we were close on their tails after a decent run of form at the end of the season and there was a gap of 11 points behind us and Lyon in 5th. We have followed for the Champions League at the 1st attempt which is way beyond my expectations. Will our form suffer by virtue of playing in the Champions League next season? Of course it will, but we had a massive cushion between us and 5th this season and we are only going to get better. Things are looking good.

Ligue 1 Graph.

League Cup.

French Cup.

Top Appearances. He played every second of all 42 matches this season. He's not brilliant, but he's 21 years old and has a 5.0 PA rating as well as having the best CA of our keepers. If he as good as I want? No. Is he good enough for the time-being? Absolutely. 

Top Goal-scorer. 28 goals & 14 assists in 37 appearances is brilliant. He has 2 more years left on his contract so although Bayern, Milan & Sevilla are all interested, (and I think PSG put in a sizeable bid), I will be keeping him for 1 more season and then try to cash in.

Joining us from HK in Iceland. 

(23a) Frans (Res) (2023) * joined in January in a £3.1M deal and you can see that his value has already risen.

(25p) Tómas O'Kav (Unamb) was always going to join us. He might be rubbish, but we won both of the Ligue 1 games he started in. That means that he is still unbeaten in career competitive fixtures.

Edited January 26, 2018 by Jimbokav1971

[Toffle]

Le 25/01/2018 à 00:14, Jimbokav1971 a dit :

It's better than I expected actually.

I'm glad to finally see you play in France Jimbo!

To be honest, we make a lot of fun of Stade Rennais in France because they never won anything except 2 Coupe de France. It is quite surprising for a city that big with the 7th richest French person on earth owning the club (and Kering). Their youth academy was recognised as the best one in France 7/8 years ago but it's only the 11th of the same ranking now.

If I had one more thing to add about Stade Rennais FC (which is probably the most important thing by the way), it is that you'll find Salma Hayek cheering for your team quite often. She's married to the owner..

Good luck!

Edit to stay on topic:

 

Edited January 26, 2018 by Toffle

[Reggiana]

Not seeing many signs of young Tómas improving!

A terrific run to finish the season, 11 unbeaten, makes you look in very good shape for next year.

[Jimbokav1971]

8 minutes ago, Reggiana said:

Not seeing many signs of young Tómas improving!

Even if If get Junior to his potential, he still isn't going to be any good. Not only does he have the worst PA in the squad, but he also has the worst  CA.  I had to bring him with me though. He;s my son! 

Edited January 26, 2018 by Jimbokav1971

[Jimbokav1971]

13 minutes ago, Reggiana said:

A terrific run to finish the season, 11 unbeaten, makes you look in very good shape for next year.

I was astonished by how we did actually. I would have been happy just meeting the board expectations of a mid-table finish and would have been delighted to sneak a Europa League spot. To get a Champions League spot and finish so close to huge clubs like Monaco and PSG is absolutely mental. 

Monaco beat us twice. 

We managed 1 draw against PSG.

We managed 1 draw against OM. 

My aim is to do better against the poorer teams this season. 

The only issue could be Champions League getting in the way, and I think I might prioritise the League this season. 

Edited January 26, 2018 by Jimbokav1971

[Reggiana]

Is France one of the top four ranked leagues so you go straight into the groups? Might be easier to decide what to prioritise once the groups have been drawn, if your top seed are from a weaker league then qualifying should be very possible.

[Jimbokav1971]

12 minutes ago, Reggiana said:

Is France one of the top four ranked leagues so you go straight into the groups? Might be easier to decide what to prioritise once the groups have been drawn, if your top seed are from a weaker league then qualifying should be very possible.

Oh. Good shout. 

Yes, they are ranked 3rd behind England and Spain. 

It's interesting though that when I look at the PSG fixtures, then the Champions League dates are entered, but our aren't...... Oh. They've just appeared. So yes, we are straight into the group stages.