Football Manager 2013

[stokeriño]

During my mass team-restructuring I seem to have inadvertently signed both a keeper with the surname Elliot (one T) and a striker with the surname Elliott (two Ts).

For no obvious reason, I sense this is going to annoy me forever.

[rocksta]

In my 4th year with Tottenham. Just drew Barcelona in the semi finals of the champion's league. Just like I drew them the last two times around. At this point I'd be content just getting to the finals or just losing to someone else. They've won the last 3 Champions leagues and the La Liga consecutively. Please FM gods let me just win.

Or alternatively rule out Bale, Bale's cover and my best defender due to injury.

:@@@

Edited January 13, 2013 by rocksta

[TCO]

I'm fighting for the last Champions League spot, my heart doesn't need this sort of shit.

[Herr Matzat]

I wish i could incorporate some of the classic mode stuff into the main game. Press conferences with only one question are so much better to handle in a game instead of the realistic millions of questions over and over again you get in the main game.

[The Quasi Juice]

Just have your assistant go to the press conferences?

I've switched to 2D Classic and I might be wrong here, but it seems like it fixes the match engine somewhat. I went from struggling with Coventry City in League One first few games to winning most of my matches and I'm now leading the table which makes sense considering my squad.

[stokeriño]

Even full press conferences can be done on auto-pilot these days anyway.

[TCO]

Missed out on the Champions League by 4 points and lost 3-2 in the FA Cup Final to fucking Hull of all people, after knocking out Man Utd, Arsenal and Chelsea along the way.

Big squad overhaul time though, Ba and Cisse are both 29 and worth a lot so there on their way out. Ba went to Chelsea for £17mil and Cisse is in talks with Juventus over a £30mil deal. Brought in Luuk De Jong for £22mil to take Ba's role and I'll have a decent chunk of cash to replace Cisse as soon as he goes. I wanted to bring Carroll in for the agreed fee of 3.4mil but this happens every time

Nice one Andy, piss off back to the Liverpool reserves now while we're playing in Europe, cunt.

[jack95]

I think 2D classic definitely helps with the match-engine bugs. I've been cycling through careers quite quickly so far losing interest as my players repeatedly fire wide from 30 yards, but since experimenting at Norwich in 2D things have become a lot more realistic. Even if I'm still not doing particularly well.

[Herr Matzat]

Just have your assistant go to the press conferences?

I tended to do that, yeah. But just like team talk it might have negative effects on the game if he is an idiot and your trainer rating suffers a bit.

[brenchill]

How far into a game do you get when you think there are just far too many regens?

I'm in 2023 and the world's top 10 players are regens. It just never feels right when it gets to that stage for me. I may start up a new career game with a League 2 side.

[TCO]

I like regens. I find I get attached to them. Was cool to see a player come in a s 15 year old on £55 a week and a decade later he was my captain and I signed him to a £110k a week deal. I always get immersed in the new world anyway

[brenchill]

Sao Paolo regularly produce world-class players on my game.

I've started a new game, with Portsmouth of all teams. £0 transfer budget and -£5k wage budget. Awesome.

[TCO]

There's a few academies that always produce superstars. From the 20+ year game I had in FM 2012 I remember Lyon, Leverkusen and Feyonoord being the major ones in Europe.

[Baddar]

Carried on my United game this afternoon;

6-1 vs. Birmingham
5-1 vs. Arsenal
5-0 vs. Fulham
2-0 vs. Leverkusen (won 2-1 on Agg to make CL quarters)

3-0 vs. Sunderland

Good session! I'm now level on points with Spurs, with 8 games to go. They do have to play one more than me though.

[stokeriño]

Good start at Notts County. W4 D4 L0 in the league, although out of the COC to Sheff Wed. I think the main thing I appreciate after managing Athlone Town is having a fixed, fully professional squad rather than an ever-ballooning collection of pay-per-play amateur or non-contract riff raff. *cries*

My ethnic cleansing left me with three main problems:

1) No goalkeepers

2) No strikers

3) No wingers (AMR/L for the 4-3-3 I wished to play)

On the first two fronts I think I did pretty well. My first-choice keeper is now Rob Elliot, signed from Watford for £120k, whilst backup (or, according to his contract, 'rotation') comes in the form of Stuart Taylor, still only 33 years old in 2014 but nonetheless ditched by Reading for a mere £70k. The fact that he's still on the bench in League 1 says it all, really.

My main striker purchase was Stephen Elliott, formerly of Sunderland, Wolves...and many, many more...who had just spent a year at Doncaster before coming to me for a chunky £300k. He only scored 13 league goals in 36 for Rovers (also League 1) last year, but so far he's scored 5 in 7 for me. I have other striker purchases, like a guy called Fergus Bell who cost £70k...but frankly, I don't know who any of them are.

Still a bit shifty on the winger front and am relying on two loanees and one 18 year old sprig. The only one I managed to bring in properly was a left winger called Aaron Doran (initially from Blackburn but mainly exiled north of the border) for £100k, who seems solid if not spectacular.

Otherwise I have few complaints about most of the team. I have Matty Upson in defence and a top midfielder in Jeff Hughes (who, as vice-captain, is captain by default because my actual captain is too shit to make the team...but he's retiring this season so I thought "hey, why make a fuss").

The best, most entertaining thing about this Notts County setup though?

Say hello to my Director of Football:

("Calm down, calm down")

[brenchill]

So I started up a new game and decided to go with Crewe Alexandra. First thing I did was sign Krystian Pearce who is the Olof Mellberg of the lower leagues. He has been an absolute beast.

It's November and I'm top playing a 4-1-3-2-1 formation.

[MJB]

Yeah, I use the 4-1-3-2-1 aswell although I do find that I concede quite a lot.

[Baddar]

It's Bayern in the semi's, but I play them at home first. :/

Barcelona and Real Madrid in the other.

[brenchill]

I'm finding it very difficult to play in League 1. The games come around so quickly, I never seem to have a fully fit squad and never seems to effect my opponents as much as it does me.

[Baddar]

This is mental.

Penultimate game of the season, I'm 3-1 down against Spurs, and manage to claw it back to draw 3-3. It still means they're three clear going into the final game. I play Aston Villa (18th, home), they've got Stoke (17th, away). 64 minutes in...

Never expected this to happen, at all. Still biting my nails here!

...but if they go on to bag three late goals to salvage a draw, fair play to them.

EDIT: FT!