Football Manager 2011

[Matt]

Ever had a player just score a freakish amount of own goals? I've had it twice now in my journeyman game, once at a random Spanish Second Division B4 club and now at Lincoln, new signing in the summer, pretty decent player but he's scored about 5 own goals already and it's early November.

[Meacon Keaton]

I'm playing a game as the USA manager. We're currently in qualifying for the World Cup. Beat Mexico 1-0 at Estadio Azteca!

But struggled and almost lost to Grenada.

And England is terrible. They've dropped to like 27th in the World.

[Matt]

5 defeats. Win, draw, 3 wins. 6 defeats.

Consistency plz.

[Berober]

For 10 squad namings, the press said it was a shock that Heskey was left out of the squad

[stokeriño]

Nottingham Forest v Tottenham Hotspur

26th December 2015

00:00 Welbeck kicks off for Forest.

00:01 Ben Khailfa passes back to Stanojevic.

00:04 Stanojevic passes forward to Welbeck.

00:07 Welbeck advances a few yards inside the Tottenham half.

00:09 Welbeck shoots.

00:12 GOAL FOR NOTTINGHAM FOREST

[Colossus]

Doing the Pentagon Challange (win every Major Continental Club Competion) and just finished the 2020/2021 season in Levante

When I started here (in 2018/2019), they had just finished 16th place. Managed to get an Europa League berth finishing 6th and winning the Cup

In the 2nd season, finished in 4th place and won the Europa League

This season, with the young players finally settling in, with the Striker addition being huge (23 goals in 45 games) and with a great defense (36 goals against) won the Liga and the Champions League. Thinking about staying another season, to play in the WCC and to try to win the Euro SuperCup

[Pesci]

My Arsenal game is going too well. I'm top after 16 games, winning 14, drawing one and losing one to Chelsea. Chelsea are second, four points behind me. Then behind them are Everton, 12 points behind me and Man City are 13 behind. I'm 15 in front of Villa, 16 in front of Liverpool and 17 in front of Man Utd. Spurs are languishing down in 13th, 23 points behind me! I didn't really want to win the league in my first season, I wanted to slowly build up a team of good young players and then dominate for a number of years after. There's still a lot of the season to play obviously so I'll probably end up finishing 2nd, but still... there will be more pressure on me to mount a title challenge.

I don't even think I'm gonna sign David Ospina or Sergio Romero in January because Fabianski has been nothing short of amazing since I dropped Almunia for him early on. Miralem Pjanic was another target of mine but I doubt I'll need him now because Rosicky, Wilshere, Vela and Diaby are doing a good job of competing for the third attacking midfielder spot (Nasri and Arshavin have two for themselves obviously) and supersub Theo Walcott has scored three in eight sub appearances from AMC, which I'm currently retraining him as. Fabregas has been a little non-existant (two assists and no goals in like twenty games) but he's awesome at keeping possession and moving the ball forward - still, I could sell him and I think Ramsey will be able to do the same just fine. Song has been awesome as a tough-tackling central midfielder and the back four have been consistently brilliant - Koscielny in particular who's also scored eight goals and always seems to threaten with a couple of chances - we've become set piece specialists strangely. We also pick up about 5-6 bookings per game. Wenger would be spinning in his grave local job centre! Oh and RVP has 18 in 20 games but sadly he's injured for a large part of December so he'll miss a few games. Chamakh seems to have played alright when given the chance though.

And Van Persie missed another penalty

[Benji]

Getting a bit bored of the Leicester save at the moment. Think I'll start up a new one, but I can't decide what to do. Help me decide...

* Take a team from the Blue Square North/South to Premier League (if so, which team?)

* Go on a european journeyman game (start with lowest reputation and get as high as I can as a manager with minimal club dedication)

* Go on a continental (manage on every continent) journey man game

* Play as an established club and try and just win as much as possible (I'd probably go with Liverpool on this one, since they're my favourite Premier League team, but suggestions welcome)

[therockbox]

Does anyone know if resigning affects how likely you are to get another job? I remember in a previous save I had I resigned from the England job after about four seasons, and despite my reputation being the highest you could get it and having won the World Cup before I resigned the only jobs I could get were in the Championship, or right at the bottom of La Liga/Ligue 1 etc. Was that just a coincidence, or is there some sort of hidden stat that the AI takes into account when you go for a job?

[Bobfoc]

Boston United in the Blue Square North could be an interesting challenge. You could try to get them back in the Football League and beyond, but without any of the corruption that tainted them under Steve Evans. You'd have to deal with a small budget and a team of semi-pro players, which should make things interesting from a financial standpoint.

[stokeriño]

Finances is one of those areas wherein every use of the word "interesting" is code for "frustrating".

[Twist]

I've found myself capping wages and making real efforts to make any club I'm at financially secure. It ensures a few season of shoddiness until your cheap youngsters come of age and your bank balance is over-flowing but it gets there eventually.

[stokeriño]

I tend to have this comfort zone of finances that I stick to. If I have too little than it annoys me, but when I have a lot I don't spend it. I'm probably going to make another £20m-£30m profit for Forest again this season, since even with a £35m budget I've only been buying 2 or 3 good 16-18 year olds for £4m each.

My only exception to this rule will be if I come across a good right-back, because goddamnit they just don't seem to exist.

[Gazz]

I tend to have this comfort zone of finances that I stick to. If I have too little than it annoys me, but when I have a lot I don't spend it. I'm probably going to make another £20m-£30m profit for Forest again this season, since even with a £35m budget I've only been buying 2 or 3 good 16-18 year olds for £4m each.

My only exception to this rule will be if I come across a good right-back, because goddamnit they just don't seem to exist.

Kyle Walker is a god amongst men.

I can't make any money as Newcastle, mainly the combined loan repayments are fucking me over and every time I decide to keep a bit of transfer budget left over, my scout gives me a report on some 16 year old bastard child of Maradona and Pele. :/

[stokeriño]

Is sending youth players out on loan worthwhile? I always seem to think when they come back from League 2 or wherever that they don't seem to have improved at all, whereas at least when they're sitting in my U18s/reserves I can see their stats improve...sort of. Any part of this may just be my own personal delusion.

And another thing: if I have a great 16 year old should I put him in the U18s because of his age, or in the reserves because he's better than the other U18s? Or doesn't it matter?

[Gazz]

I see it as a trade off, lower league teams have worse training facilities, so his technical attributes won't increase as fast as they would at your club, but getting regular first team football greatly increases mental attributes. If he doesn't get any first team football, then it's a complete waste of time.

I put my really great potential regens in the U18's till they are 16, then the reserves afterwards. You'll usually find though, if like me, you don't keep a large reserve squad, the U18's play reserve games anyway.

[The Quasi Juice]

I always find that sending players close to the age of 20/21 to 2 leagues lower doesn't help at all. They should be good enough at that age to (almost) play at the same level as the club. I prefer loaning my players out at the same level as my own club, and they don't even have to start every game, just as long as they get some experience they wouldn't get if they stay. That's the only time I really see significant change in players.

Edited June 16, 2011 by The Quasi Juice

[Thrilla]

My Bradford boys have clinched promotion with nine games to go. Norwood, who was canned by United at the start of this season, is now regularly getting called up for Northern Ireland (Along with Roy Carroll) and is the lynchpin of my team. Alex-Ray Harvey has been a sensation since joining from Burnley for 10k and Jamil Adam can not stop scoring. Looks like it is the end of the line for Andy van den Meyde as a starting player for us though, his stats just keep on dropping. Will keep him around next year for the experience off the bench though I think.

Also, for the second season running we got Chelsea in the fourth round of the FA Cup at Valley Parade. Last time we lost 4-0, this time we drew 0-0 and then lost 4-0 at Stamford Bridge, which is an improvement as in the second leg they actually named Lampard, Mikel, Malouda and Pivkovski (Who has gone from Blackburn U18 to Chelsea's third choice striker in a season) in the starting line up and not their reserves.

As for youngsters, if they haven't made the cut for the first team by 20, I figure they aren't going to make it. I'll loan out some of my U18s to lower league teams, but the better ones usually stick around in my reserves or come off the bench in games against weaker teams/matches we're already winning by a big margin.

[Gazz]

It was my home and away tactics, wasn't it?

[lanky316]

RE - loaning out youngsters.

If I'm a lower league club I'll let a lot of spares out on loan providing wages are covered. Every penny counts so will let them shop window and give them a year/two depending on default contract to see if they're likely to have assets I've missed or at least be flogged for a few quid. Not much.

At a high level you can pick up teams of a decent standard abroad so if I have a partnership I might do for a year. A lot of the time you can get partnerships with a side like Gent who though not in your league (presuming English Prem) with facilities and opponents might have a decent year competing for domestic honours and a little in Europe too which is more useful. Very rare for domestic loans.