FC United of Manchester - Following the footsteps of the Red Devils

Jordan Street

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FC United of Manchester - Following in the footsteps of the real Red Devils

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A Background

For those of you that don't know, FC United of Manchester are a football club that were formed in 2005 by supporters who opposed the Glazer takeover. The club entered the North West Counties Football League division two in 2005, winning the league in their inaugural season. The following season FC United won the North West Countries Football League division one, making it back-to-back league titles.

In their third year, they gained promotion from the Northern Premier League Division One North by finishing second in the league and then winning the play-offs. Since then the club has been stuck in the Northern Premier League Premier Division, coming clue to promotion on numerous occasions, including losing in play-off final last year.

They play their home games at Bury's Gigg Lane Stadium, however in October 2011 FC United gained permission to build their own stadium in Moston (right near my house), and work has now begun on that stadium. The club hope to move into their new home in-time for the 2014-15 season.

MY GOALS

Immediate


  • Improve the clubs youth facilities and training facilties
  • Move into a new stadium as soon as possible
  • Improve the clubs finances
  • Become a fully professional football club
  • Have a good cup run and grow in stature
  • Get promoted to the Football League

Long term

  • Earn promotion to the Premier League as quickly as possible
  • Use the FC United youth system (similar to Manchester United)
  • Eventually overtake Manchester United at the top of the Premier League
  • Become a force in European football
  • Win more trophies than Manchester United
  • Take over Manchester United in the rich list, eventually overtaking the Glazers and proving that bad owners who leach clubs can be overhauled by the power of the fans.
This will be a long-term save, and I plan to take FC United right to the top, following in the footsteps of Manchester United and earning our success properly.

The first update will follow shortly. if you think this is a good idea and you are interested in following, please let me know!
 
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Jordan Street takes FC United job! Karl Marginson, who has been manager since the club were born in 2005 was sacked due to a halt in progress. The FC United board have opted for a relatively unknown manager in the hope that he can guide the club to professional football in the not too distant future.

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Season Expectations

We are expected to finish fourth and the club is currently spending 2.7k/week on wages.
The board offered me a 24k transfer budget and a 2.9k wage budget for a top-half finish, and a nice 35k transfer budget and 3.5k wage budget for a title win. However we opted for the option in the middle (title challenge) with a 30k transfer budget and 3.3k wage budget.

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Facilities

This is an area that needs a lot of work - and quickly. The club has poor training facilities and basic youth facilities, and if we want to produce our own players on a regular basis this is something we must push on with. We also have basic junior coaching and basic youth recruitment.

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Finances

The clubs finances are looking pretty healthy, and over the course of the season are expected to break even near enough. We hope this will change as we climb the leagues and hopefully have a few decent cup runs.

Its also worth noting that the club generate a nice ?15k (5% of the clubs total worth) every year through membership fees. This shows that the club already has a huge fan base that'll only increase.

Two sponsorship deals worth 25k and 10k respectively finish at the end of the season. Hopefully we'll be able to earn bigger deals in a years time.


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The Squad

First of all, have a look at the team report below:


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We're looking quite strong in terms of centre-backs, strikers and attacking midfielders. However we're definitely going to need to bring in a backup keeper, and possibly a left-back. Any other improvements in any area that can be made without putting the club in financial danger will also prove helpful.

Key Players:

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Charlie Raglan

He can play all across the back four but I'll be using him at right-back. He has great potential at 20-years old but is already certain for a spot in the starting XI

Sergio

The defensive midfielder has some pretty solid looking stats, and at just 22-years old he can certainly improve a lot. He's out of contract, so we'll be looking to sort that out straight away.

Greg Daniels


His best position is up front, but I'll be looking to utilise him in the AMC role. That 17 flair looks awesome.

Matty Wolfenden

FC United's best player in real life. He's approaching his peak at 25-years old, and looks like he'll score goals for fun at this level. Look at that 16 finishing!

Tactics, transfers and pre-season will come in the next update!
 
I love FCUM, always play a save with them since FM 2012. Got them into PL in 9 years, hope you will do the same, if not a bit faster...
 
I love FCUM, always play a save with them since FM 2012. Got them into PL in 9 years, hope you will do the same, if not a bit faster...

This is my first save with them. Nine years is quick! Hoping for back-to-back-to-back promotions into the football league then we'll see where we go from there.
 
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Tactics

We've opted for the 4-2-3-1 formation with wingers. We'll be using the control mentality whilst playing fluid football. We want to get our lads playing nice football now, so they're used to it before they hit the Football League.


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Philosophies

We had a meeting with the board and discussed some philosophies. We'll have to play possession football, and also use our youth system to develop players.

We've already lost a couple of players as they were on non-contracts and teams from higher leagues offered them bigger wages than we could afford. Jerome Wright and Matthew Tierney left for North Ferriby and Worksop respectively.

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Our squad is only sixteen-men strong now, and whilst trawling through our U21s squad to see if there's anyone I could let go to free up some much-needed wage space, I found 27-year old Adam Jones who is easily the clubs best defender. However he is out injured with tendon damage, and he'll be sidelined for SEVEN months. I'm unsure as to whether to terminate his ?220/week contract to free up some space as he's the best defender we have.

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Pre-season results

FC United 0-0 Southport

Our first result was a boring 0-0 draw against a team from the division above. An average start.

FC United 2-1 Middlesborough U21s
Pearson, Daniels

An excellent result. Boro U21s were overwhelming favourites but they couldn't deal with the trickery of Greg Daniels.

FC United 3-4 Blackpool U21s
Norton (2), Raglan (pen)

Norton played very well. He'll be used as a backup striker for the most part but its nice to see him scoring.

For some reason we only had three pre-season games planned before the new season starts. We also had two friendlies in the middle of the season, but we've cancelled one of those. The other against AFC Wimbledon must be played as it is contractual.


Transfers

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We've brought in a fair few free transfers, and they'll definitely be more to come in the next few months. Heres the pick of the players:

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We still have ?400/week wages left to spend which is enough to bring in another couple of players.

Next time we'll bring you our results from August as we finally get our season underway!
 
Be an interesting read this, will deffo keep my eye on this one, good luck.
 
I'm playing my only career in FM2014 with United, currently my second season in premier league - battling for title at half-season.
In my debuting season we finished fourth in premier league. The greatest achievement was winning the FA CUP during the Championship season. The biggest challange was after turning professional, the first season in League 2 - we're close to relegation.
Apart from that season it was promotion after promotion.

Daniels is a beast, however I'd recommend him as a striker. He scored almost 30 goals for me in the first season on the left when his contract ended because I forgot about renewal. I managed to get him back for League 2 season and then he stayed with the team until Championship.

Giggs is also amazing for the first season

I played 442 almost all seasons, I find it the best formation for any of the english teams or leagues

The most difficult thing for me is keeping the finances fluid, and it's also hard to get the facilities improved.

Whish you good luck mate, hope you have as much fun as I have playing my career.
 
Thanks for the help mate. Really enjoying this save so far despite only just starting it. I hope you follow!
 
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July/August - Match fitness eventually catches up on us.

First of all we managed to persuade the board to upgrade our training facilities! This work is scheduled to be completed by October of 2014, so in just over a years time. It'll cost around ?160k to complete.

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We encountered a problem straight away, due to the lack of pre-season fixtures we played our squad's match fitness was suffering badly. Throughout the month the players weren't in a good condition whatsoever, so the results sort of reflect that.

FC United 1-1 Stocksbridge
Taylor

A decent performance in the circumstances. Tommy Taylor (aptly named after one of the Busby Babes) scored the only goal.

Barwell 0-0 FC United

A bore draw with no chances. Not a game that'll be fondly remembered by any.

FC United 2-1 Trafford
Taylor, Sergio

Our first win! Taylor again the standout performer. Sergio's goal was a cracker!

FC United 0-1 AFC Wimbledon (Friendly)

A loss against a much better side. They should've scored at least three or four more.

Skelmersdale 1-1 FC United
Wolfenden

Wolfenden scores his first goal of the season with a super finish. However we struggled to hold on and Skelmersdale were worthy of their point.

Worksop 1-2 FC United
Wolfenden, Pearson

A last gasp winner from a corner secured all three points.

FC United 0-2 Matlock

A poor result. We were second best throughout and Matlock deserved the win.

League table


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We sit in 14th with a game in-hand on all the teams above us. We could move up to eighth if we win.

Player of the month: Tommy Taylor

The FC United new-boy did well from the LW position. However no player really put in a string of good performances.

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Transfer in:

Rico Gomes - An 19-year old Portuguese AMR has signed on wages of ?220/week. We were very short on that area so hopefully he can come in and make an immediate impact.

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Transfer out:

We lost David Birch, a solid central midfielder, to Vauxhall motors. He was another player who was on a none-contract and we couldn't afford to keep him sadly.

Finances


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Our finances look healthy. We'll be hoping for a good cup run when that starts up.
 
Anyone know why my pound signs keep coming up as question marks? I'm on a mac.
 
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September

A month full of cup games and a gradual rise up the league. Our finances improved slightly too!

We decided to change our formation to a simple 4-4-2 halfway through the month, and that paid off straight away as we managed to string a few wins together finally.

Tommy Taylor picked up an injury that'll keep him out for six weeks. Gutted.

FC United 1-1 Witton
Norton

A late Norton equaliser rescued a point. The striker has been in excellent form at the moment.

FC United 1-1 Ilkeston
Stott

A headed goal once again gave us a come-from-behind draw at home.

FC United 2-2 North Greenford (FA Cup 1st qualifying round) FC United win on pens
Stott, Wolfenden

This victory gave us a nice ?7.5k, but the fact that it took penalties was rather worrying.

FC United
2-1 Chorley (Northern League Cup second round)
Giggs (2)

Another cup win, and Rhodri Giggs stole the show with two super finishes.

Buxton 1-2 FC United
Norton, Gomes

Gomes scored his first ever FC United goal to seal another late result. This is becoming a familiar habit!

FC United 3-1 Blyth (Northern League Cup third round)
Tobin (o.g), Walwyn, Norton

Three points picked up against a tough Blyth side. Matty Wolfenden picked up a knock that'll keep him out for a few days.

Bamber Bridge 2-2 FC United (Fa Cup 2nd qualifying round) FC United win on pens
Walywn, Giggs

Two shootout wins in two games, and another ?8.5k picked up for the win. The balance sheet is ticking over nicely.

Player of the Month - Mike Norton

The striker scored two important goals for us. It was a close call between him and Rhodri Giggs.

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League table

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Finances

Our money situation has improved slightly. Hopefully a promotion awaits at the end of the season, and we'll gather more fans and season ticket holders.

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We still have a game in hand, which if we win we could move up as high as second place! We need to keep winning and hopefully take over that top spot. Histon await us in the third qualifying round of the FA Cup, so hopefully we can progress and find a place in the first round proper.
 
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October

An unbeaten month sees us progress into the first proper round of the FA Cup. We've also crawled up to sixth in the league, but sit some way behind leaders Matlock FC.

We let this young right-back leave the club as he wasn't playing and was taking a hefty ?220 a week on our wage budget.

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Rico Gomes, who has been putting in some impressive performances of late sadly picked up a knee injury that'll keep him sidelined for the next month or so. Gutted!

Results

FC United 1-1 Stamford
Norton

FC United 2-2 Blyth
Wolfenden, Giggs

Marine 0-2 FC United
Daniels, Worsley

FC United 2-1 Histon (FA Cup third qualifying round)
Raglan (x2 penalties)

FC United 2-0 Eastwood (Northern League cup fourth round)
Norton, Jones O.G

FC United 2-0 Grantham
Wolfenden x2

Nantwich 0-1 FC United
Norton

Nuneaton 1-3 FC United (FA Cup fourth qualifying round)
Giggs, Davis O.G

Rushall 2-2 FC United
Daniels, Wolfenden

A super month all-in all. I would've liked a win away to Rushall in the last game as it would have propelled us up the table even further. We'll face Oxford at home in the FA Cup first round next month, and hopefully we'll see a bumper crowd at our stadium.

League table

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Player of the Month - Rhodri Giggs

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Finances

Our finances improved once again, which is certainly down to the good run we've had in the cup competitions. We'll keep building and try to persuade the board to invest in youth facilities before next season.

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November

A mixed month where we managed to keep up our run in the league. However we were dumped out of two cup competitions, making it a month of mixed emotions.

I tried to persuade the board to build a new stadium, but as I expected, they couldn't find the funds to do so at the present time :(


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Anyway? onto the results!

Kings Lynn 2-2 FC United
Wolfenden, Norton

Chorley 0-2 FC United
Raglan, Daniels

FC United 1-4 Oxford United (FA Cup first round)
Giggs

FC United 2-0 Ashton United
Wolfenden x2

Histon 3-2 FC United (FA Trophy third qualifying round)
Norton x2

AFC Fylde 0-2 FC United
Giggs, Taylor

Droylsden 2-2 FC United
Daniels, Wolfenden

FC United 1-0 Whitby
Murray

League table

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Player of the Month: Matty Wolfenden

Matty finally found some form. He added four goals in four appearances and grabbed a couple of assists too.

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Finances

They continued to improve in excellent fashion. However I expect them to start a decline now as we'll get next to no little funding from the cup competitions.

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December

A short month in terms of games rather oddly, and not the best where results are concerned either.

At the start of the month we were hit with the killer blow that we'd lose Rhodri Giggs to Darlington as he was another of those on a non-contract and we were helpless.

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FC United 3-1 Frickley (Giggs' last game)
Giggs x2, Sergio

Stocksbridge 0-1 FC United
Brownhill

FC United 0-0 Barwell

FC United 0-2 Stafford

League table

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Despite poor results we still sit top of the table.

Player of the Month - Sergio

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He proved to be a real driving force in our side this month, despite the fact our unbeaten run came to an abrupt end. We also signed him up to a new contract, meaning he'll be a key part of the team next year too.

We finally replaced Rhodri Giggs with a familiar face in Delroy Facey. He has Premier League experience under his belt, but has recently been involved in the match-fixing scandal! So hopefully he can fix a few results for us ;)


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Finances


Our finances took a 20k hit over the month which was disappointing. That'll probably get worse as the season goes on.

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January

Another fairly straightforward month. We progress to the semi-final of the Northern League cup too.

Results

Trafford 2-3 FC United
Wolfenden, Norton x2

Rushall 1-2 FC United (Northern League Cup quarter-final)
Daniels x2

FC United 0-2 Skelmersdale

FC United 1-1 Worksop
Wolfenden

Matlock 1-2 FC United
Daniels x2

This result against Matlock was superb. We were 1-0 down at half-time and Greg Daniels scored two wonder goals to turn the game around.

League table:

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Player of the Month: Greg Daniels

Greg had a super month up front finally! He scored the two goals in the come-from-behind win against Matlock town to put us on top of the pile.

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Finances

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Our finances continue to deteriorate. Hopefully we can keep attracting big crowds and keep the money rolling in.
 
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February

A mixed month in the league, and we were hit with a huge blow when we lost one of our star names to a bigger club!

Matty Wolfenden joins Stockport for a mere 3,000 pound!

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He refused to sign a new deal, so we decided to accept Stockport's offer now so we could get a fee for him at least. Anyone have ay ideas for a replacement?

Results

Witton 0-0 FC United

Wakefield 1-3 FC United (Northern League Cup semi final)
Wolfenden, Norton, Stott

FC United 0-2 Nantwich

Ilkeston 1-1 FC United
Norton

FC United 1-1 Marine
Norton

FC United
3-2 Buxton
Daniels, Worsley, Gomes

League table


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We've dropped back down to fourth in the league after some poor results.

Player of the Month: Sergio

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Commanded the midfield once again. Super player.

Finances:

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And our board decided to upgrade our youth facilities!

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We have a cup final to look forward to next month, although its at the City of Manchester Stadium. We take on Marine.
 
If you ask me, it is a mistake to upgrade youth or training facilities at this level. It cost money and it will not be very productive for you. I got to PL and then asked board for first upgrades. You really should focus on bringing the best possible players in, there will be time later for youth development ;)
 
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