Football Manager 2011

[Thrilla]

I prefer a flat back four but one of the centre backs (or both if neither are particularly creative) set as limited defenders, that way they just get rid and stick to their main tasks. Sweepers give too much risk of leaving people onside and fall foul of being outnumbered by fast breaking teams.

[Pesci]

Yeah, it all depends on the team. For a team like Stoke I can imagine setting them as limited defenders would be ideal. For Arsenal, who I'm managing at the moment, you don't really want to be punting the ball up field the whole time when your players are sure to get dominated in the air. I've just got my centre backs as normal centre backs at the moment but might even experiment with Vermaelen as a ball-playing defender soon.

I think this game may be a keeper. Only played three Prem games so far but I've won all three and two of them were away. I think the 4-2-3-1 is the key to unleashing Van Persie - he's been an absolute monster. 4 goals in 3 games so far and last game he had 10 shots with 7 on target and 2 goals. But if (when) he gets injured, I don't think Chamakh will be able to pick up the slack. May even go with Arshavin up front. Fabregas is well in his element as well, so I'm getting the most out of my two best players. Not sure what to do with Walcott though. I'll train him as an AMC so he at least gets to play some of the time, but I doubt he'll take to the role very well - could part with him for a nice wedge of cash in January to facilitate the Pjanic signing.

[Jimmy]

Decided to go with a Tottenham game and I'm already pleasantly suprised with my transfer activity. But for once, it's actually selling players. I'm usually pretty awful at letting players go, but all this talk of creating a financially secure team and managing budgets and such has kind of inspired me. Plus, there are area's of the Tottenham team which need boosting; preferably I'd quite like two new full backs, a keeper and a striker. So far, I've agreed to sell Bassong for 9.25mil to Bayern and Jenas to Man City for 7mil. Neither of these players were really in my plans and will both go towards buying new squad players. Could be a fun little transfer window.

I've got a feeling finding the right striker could prove difficult, though.

[Thrilla]

If I transfer my saved game files onto a USB pen and onto my new laptop will they work? While I've been able to set up my old Steam account on my new laptop the saved games don't appear to have made the journey.

[Pesci]

Should do. I've done it before, albeit not since FM 09.

[Gazz]

If I transfer my saved game files onto a USB pen and onto my new laptop will they work? While I've been able to set up my old Steam account on my new laptop the saved games don't appear to have made the journey.

As long as you use the same database and patch version, you should be ok.

[Thrilla]

I just download whatever Steam gives me, I think its the January update >_>

[Gazz]

The latest patch is 11.3, but if you started the game on 11.2, it won't work.

[Thrilla]

Gotcha, will check that then. Although, its only for my Bradford game, I may just start a new game up.

[Pesci]

I see this game has implemented Didier Drogba's knack for superhuman performances against Arsenal. Fuck that guy. At least we saved the penalty to deny his hattrick. Ha!

[The Quasi Juice]

For some reason I'm tempted to start a Man Utd or Lyon game, despite just starting a Crystal Palace game 2 days ago

[Liam]

For those who have got a little bit further into their games, how have Jack Grimmer, Fraser Fyvie and Martin Galvan ended up doing. I've been known to pick these guys up, but just wondering what their progress might have been like in other games.

[Berober]

Due to having to keep my better players around, I've had to lower my wages below the budget before I go for a crazy all-in-one-offer-new-contract gamble. I didn't think it would be this hard to have to ask people to terminate their contract

[stokeriño]

Stupid centre-backs all getting injured at the same time. Have to play crap reserve centre-backs who aren't match fit, thereby making them doubly crap. Boooo the lot of them.

[Black Majik]

Managed to guide Gateshead FC to the League 2 in my first full season in the game. Won the league on Goal Difference, the rest of the teams in the top five were far better than me, but dropped points against the bottom of the table. Hooray.

Sadly I did what led to me quitting others half way through by realizing I need a center back, but instead of getting one I buy six strikers who have neat stats and a good scout report.. My strike force now consists of Samuel Ameobi, Calvin Zola, Guylain Ndumbu-Nsungu, Alex McDonald, Gary Mulligan, Danny Mills, Flavio Maestri, Nathan Koranteng and Julio Santa Cruz. And the only position other position any of them can play is Right Mid. At least I have a decent striker rotation?

[edcq]

I finally started playing this even though I purchased it when it first came out (I was still playing FM2009 lol) Anyway, started a journeyman game and somehow ended up in the Swedish 2nd North Division at Teg. My highest paid player gets paid 75 quid a week.

Not bad so far, I drew my first game then won the next 3 rather easily. We were expected to end up 10th out of 12 teams, but we're sitting nicely in 3rd. I took over after the team had already played 11, so apparently the board isn't judging me on my performance in the league. >_<

[Jimmy]

Brought in Neymar as my solution for a striker. Expensive, but he's already starting to pay it off with two goals in the opening game. Recieved a 10mil bid for Ledley King, which was just too good to refuse. At 29, and injury prone, I thought it was a great price. Used that 10mil to fund a big for Leighton Baines who will replace AEK, I hope. Going to loan in Chris Smalling to play back-up to Gallas and Dawson, alongside Kaboul. Beat Blackburn 2-1 in the opening game so I'm hoping for a good season with 8.8 mil left to spend.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

Wahey beat Lyon in the French charity shield which is called something grand like the "Champions Trophy of Kings" or something like that. Much happiness abounds around the club. I let my new signing Nicky Southall play just so that he'd become Monaco's oldest ever player at 40 (2754 days older than the next oldest!) I finally got him over to France for £5k with sneaky plans to offer him a coach/player contract next year and bring him into my coaching staff just cos he was my favourite Gillingham player for years!

I checked his favoured personnel and one of them was Andrew Crofts, former Gillingham player (with Southall) and moved onto Norwich (with Simeon Jackson) so I picked him up for about a million - he's actually pretty good - so that Crofts, Southall and Jackson can chill out together as back-up and reminisce about the old times with trips up to Scunthorpe.

[Berober]

It took a year longer than it should have, but Dresden are promoted

And then I look at the news and Wigan are unhappy with Martinez, and my name was a possible candidate if they sack him. Choices...

[DavidMarrio]

Finished my 2nd season:

1st: Man.U 93pts

2nd: Liverpool 79pts

3rd: Man City 79pts

4th: Chelsea 73pts

5th: Tottenham 72pts

6th: Arsenal 69pts

While I finished a place better and 4 points better than last season I still finished quite abit behind Man Utd (14pts this season, 15 last season). My overall record this season was 23 wins, 10 draws, 5 losses and not finishing games cost me dearly.

Atleast I've managed to win something this year beating Utd on pens in the Carling Cup. But a 5th round finish in the FA Cup (A silly loss to Preston 1-0) and getting knocked out in the Champions League 1st knockout round to Madrid the season hasn't been the best, I should be challenging for the title but I'm not finishing game enough. I've got a really good squad but it's going to be a summer of rethinking where I should be playing people, maybe a change of formation perhaps.

Oh well hopefully I can focus away from Liverpool and concentrate on Nigeria over the summer by having 4 matches in World Cup qualifying in the space of a month Already beat Ethiopia 6-0 got Swaziland, Togo and Ethiopia again.

Edited June 10, 2011 by davidmarrio