Pre-Season Advice - Questioning my management ability!

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CMPUNK1

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Hi.

I am after some general advice. I have been having some difficult times at the moment on Football Manager 2013 and I have started to doubt my Management ability. So I have decided to go back to basics, back to the drawing board and ask some serious questions about how I approach the game. I do use the games features in depth and don't just monster through a season trying to get to the end. I know I have potential as I managed on Football Manager 2012 to get Dover promoted from the Blue Square South to the Premiership in 9 seasons.

I was however hoping to get some advice off you and compare and contrast how you set up your season and how I set up my season. This is so I can judge where I am going right and where I am going wrong and address my areas of weakness. So if you could give me some general advice on the points I raise below it would be very helpful.

Obviously Football Manager is a very personal experience and there are so many variables and stipulations that run through the game depending on each manager. Do not reveal your routine if you do not want to, Im not after completely ripping off someones playing style but instead what to compare and contrast my management ability.

I know it is a lot of information to talk about and each point raised could have a thread of its own but a short general answer would be great or just what ever you feel is important?

Thanks :)


Assuming you are managing a Premiership Club.


Pre-Season

- How do you go about pre season fixtures? Make your own? How Many? What level teams?

- How do you rotate your squad in pre season fixtures? How many minutes?

- How do you approach Training? What routines? Intensity? Week by week? Individual?

- Do you make any requests to the board?

- Hire or Fire any staff?

- Scouting- Send any scouts out? What countries? What current? What Potential?

- Set up affiliations with other clubs?

- How do you approach the reserves and the U-18? How do you utilise them? How do you judge ability? How often do you use them? Control them? How are they utilised in your game?

- Transfers - How do you judge what players the team needs?
How do you decide between loan or transfer? How do you go about finding these transfers(especially at the start of the game when long term scouting isn't possible.)? How do make sure you get the best deal available and make sure you don't pay over the odds on transfer fee and wages?

- How do you go about getting rid of players you consider to be surplus to requirements? How do you make sure you get the best price?

- Tactics - How do you find out what players play best where in pre season? How do you go about testing out new formations? How do you decide what role each player should play?

- How do you watch the match (settings/speed etc)? How do you judge how well the players have performed and whether they deserve to be in the team?

- Any additional things you add to the game like add ons- face packs, logos and skins etc that just make the experience a whole lot more immersive for you?

- Any other information you feel necessary when in pre season that you usually set up?

- Finances- How do you ensure you are still making a lot of money? keeping out of the red? brining in funds?
 
Pre-season. *** man arranges, I cancel and remake where I feel team I'm to play is too weak/of no competitive value.
generally second last pre-season game Vs a big team (a test), last pre-season game Vs small team (win big, moral boost)
Pre-season rotation. Generally players needing most match fitness picked first. Subbed at 60/70 physical condition.
Training. Pre-season fitness/tactics/cohesion. I'm not to concerned with being fully fluid for first game of season, accomplished with a fully fit & cohesive team is my aim.
Season training proper, for me is attacking/def positioning average to low. (two clicks left of extreme right) of course than can change depending on fixtures and current results.
Board requests. All the time, more more more. If we have to budget ofc.
Staff. Always looking for better staff. Specially for under 18's.
Scouting. I leave that to DoF and head scouts.
U18's/reserves. They are the future, I use some 17/18 year old's and breakthrough players in early rounds of Capitol one cup/ F.A cup and as subs for some low-key Premiership games. Perfect time to rest key players who may not indicate they need resting.
Transfers. I'm in the Mourinho school of thought here. 22/24 man squad, two teams of one system, each player doubled.
Selling. DoF does it. Give him the player set price at double and work down 500k a time. If it gets too low and takes too long I either loan him or place in reserves if window closes. (tell the player though)
Tactics. I cannot condense topic to a simple answer (I'm a bit thick) bast I can do is this, although written for FM10 it still has some relevance today TACTICAL THEOREMS
The match. I do start on full match and if things are going as I expected then I goto comprehensive. Camera is main stand, basically a camera where I can see the full team shape and see if/where its being warped/tested/broken.
If a player is playing bad there are two reasons, his attitude or he is getting nuked by the opposition. If his attitude is wrong wrong then I'm gonna straighten him out. If he is getting nuked by the opposition then I need to address my tactics.
If a player is continually at odds with me and I don't just mean once or twice but continually, I show him the door.
Skins. Love the Scorpio skins by DazS8, face packs = No, Logo's = yes, Stadiums = yes.
Finances. Buy low sell high. Stick to what you know is right for the club.
 
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Well thats an easy question.
1. Dont ever leave friendly matches and preseason match preperation to the ***. manager. Take control.
2. Very high fitness training, untill you recieve coaching advise that some player doesnt like his training schedule. Then reduce to high untill you recieve the same message from coaching advise. Then move to average and general training.
3. Meanwhile, put more match training. In friendly matches rotate the whole team at halftime. This is very important and you will notice how quickly your players adopt the tactics this way.
4. put allways three different tactics in match preparation.
5. when the tactics are almost adapted, change staff responisbility and let assist. manager to take control of match preparation during season.
6. Have a good ***. manager in tactical knowledge. If he is good in motivating, let him give the teamtalks too.
 
- How do you go about pre season fixtures? Make your own? How Many? What level teams?

I make my own. I usually have 4-5 weeks. Minimum time four days after the previous, maximum time seven days after the previous. Mostly weaker teams with one simillar and one big name in the middle.

- How do you rotate your squad in pre season fixtures? How many minutes?

In the first friendly I field the expected starting eleven. No subs unless fitness come below 60%. I repeat until players start to have 100% match fitness, then change to players who are still low. Before I used to sub everyone at half time, but I've found this way builds the match fitness much faster. I still tend to reach the start of the season with a few players lacking match fitness, but they're many less than before and now they're always bench players.

- How do you approach Training? What routines? Intensity? Week by week? Individual?

This is a part that I've not given as much attention in FM13 as I used to in previous versions. Fitness first and then team cohesion during preseason, then balanced. Match preparation, tactics only at first, then whatever seems the weaker part of the tactic.

- Do you make any requests to the board?

Around each three-six months I check finances and try to get them to improve training facilities, coaching, etc.

- Hire or Fire any staff?

All by myself. Get staff to the maximum allowed by the board and trying to have two assigned to each category: one coach/one task and then a couple extra to train as many as needed as to have two in each category.

- Scouting- Send any scouts out? What countries? What current? What Potential?

I mostly scout regions, because I know I would end forgetting to change settings often enough. Three actual, four potential, but I'm sure that's not a good idea.

- Set up affiliations with other clubs?

Some ends of season I consider if I would have use for affiliated/parent clubs and then ask for it. If I manage a top team, then affiliates at second level if I don't have any to send players to. I would say to have a few at least would be good. If in lower league I tend to neglect affiliates and just look for a parent to loan players from.

- How do you approach the reserves and the U-18? How do you utilise them? How do you judge ability? How often do you use them? Control them? How are they utilised in your game?

Best staff member takes control. Each start of season and youth income day I check the team. See if there's any specially good that I might give a few mins in the first team when the season nears the end or maybe could be loaned to a decent side.

- Transfers - How do you judge what players the team needs?
How do you decide between loan or transfer? How do you go about finding these transfers(especially at the start of the game when long term scouting isn't possible.)? How do make sure you get the best deal available and make sure you don't pay over the odds on transfer fee and wages?

I see what positions have the least quality of players or if I don't trust the second choice.

Loan or buying depends on remaining budgets, if I can buy I go for the buy.

With transfers I'm less aggresive than with wages; I lower the offer quite a bit, like 10-20%, then start going up, say 5% towards his new demands, until say 5% lower, then I lower again, if that fails start to raise again. Often it works to get a much better contract accepted than the initial demand.

- How do you go about getting rid of players you consider to be surplus to requirements? How do you make sure you get the best price?

I offer them for 150% of their value, transfer listing them without changing squad status, then 100%, then 75%, then 50% then it depends on why I wanted to get rid of them and how badly. I may just give up and keep them without first team time, give them away for nothing or even release them.

- Tactics - How do you find out what players play best where in pre season? How do you go about testing out new formations? How do you decide what role each player should play?

I choose tactic according to player positions available and quality: if I have only one DM and he's not great I will not use a tactic with DMs; if he's very good but reported mediocre as MC, then I consider bringing a rotation option. Then I assign roles depending on what I think I want to see from the formation, not minding much recommendation from players. Then observe behavior in matches and tweak sliders as approppriate.

- How do you watch the match (settings/speed etc)? How do you judge how well the players have performed and whether they deserve to be in the team?

Full or comprehensive, depending on mood and time available.

Player rating plus what I've seen them doing. Have they made mistakes?. The players who I used in such position... who looked better? Who made more accurate passes? Who moved how I want? Who created/avoided more threats?

- Any additional things you add to the game like add ons- face packs, logos and skins etc that just make the experience a whole lot more immersive for you?

Facepack, logo pack and skin. Scorpio is very good.

- Any other information you feel necessary when in pre season that you usually set up?

I used to create three tactics. Now I created my expected main, when it's very good I set the second and when both are well known the third. This way seems much faster.

- Finances- How do you ensure you are still making a lot of money? keeping out of the red? brining in funds?

I try to avoid letting stars in reports carry me away and don't sign ***** nilly. I am very rarely willing to pay €10+M for any player or pay €50+Kp/w. If finances aren't very good, any player I see with minimum chance of playing is sold/loaned out.


EDITED: In preseason subs aren't made when players drop below 70% condition, but below 60%
 
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