The Great San Marino Challenge

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kandersson said:
mine are great though I should say I'm in 2019, won Champions League three times, have great merchandising thanks to feeder clubs in Asia and just expanded the Olimpico to nearly 25,000 seats ;)


Also first time this has happened to me in FM:

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my biggest joy is managing NT though, here's latest update :p

http://www.fm-base.co.uk/forum/foot...-another-san-marino-story-11.html#post1467908
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i've never had that happen to me no matter what team i'm managing and not seen any threads about it here or on the si forums. is it a new feature?
 
sammyt said:
i've never had that happen to me no matter what team i'm managing and not seen any threads about it here or on the si forums. is it a new feature?
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could be, not sure as I don't have much experience managing top clubs in FM.
 
2017-2018 Season

Was in 3rd place with two games left and then tied and loss which dropped me to fifth place for the second straight year. Probably an overachieving year for me. I had a bunch of injuries and yet still won games that I probably shouldn't, but I didn't mind it.

Finances are in great shape since I still haven't bought anyone. Making money but sell off some of the older guys or guys who are wanted (if the price is right). I forgot to post it last year but I broke into the top 100 for richest clubs, and this year again I rose up in the standings.

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Also at the end of the year San Marino fired the national team coach and I applied and got it. Doubt that I will be able to break the top 100 in a year and a half. Especially with three players on my youth squad that would be amazing didn't want to play for my team. Oh well, I guess that is how it goes. However the new crop of intake players I already put them on the squad so they are locked in finally. Just hope they improve like the other three players I lost too. I lost to Italy 7-0 which I felt was a win in my eyes since the last time Italy played San Marino it was 11-0. I lost the two friendlies I played as well to teams that were 35 and 36 in the world and by the scores of 2-0 and 5-0. I did get a tie against the 100 ranked team in Macedonia as it was 1-1.

I probably will post my next season as well since it's been a break out year. My facilities are basically maxed out now, working on training facilities which will be maxed out. I only have a still poor networking for youth players, but that should be on the rise as well. I got some really good free's last year and finally getting the head coach for the national team I been trying to finish this season before work.

I did have an option in January to get Mesut Ozil on a free if I wanted to, but I didn't think it would be fair if I payed him like 125K when my team as a whole is around 220K. If not I will try to finish off the season after work tomorrow. Things are looking up finally.​
 
Well a successful year for the Titani, with a 15th place finish, a solid base to build on for the future.

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I wasn't impressed with our defence, but that's what you get when you build your own tactic for the first time ever I guess. Definitely things to work on there! And the inconsistency was hair-tearing at times, I thrashed Inter both times, the result I posted a couple of pages back, and then a 3-0 win as well, but couldn't beat any of the teams below me! Something to work on there!

Some silverware!!!

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Pescara were a frankly substandard opponent considering who I'd beaten on the way, Juve, Roma, etc.
With that win came European football for the first time ever, not that I'm holding my breath that we'll uproot any trees, but it's a nice start!

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Board have increased stadium size (about time, 18 stadium sellouts in Serie A!)

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And my youth facilities will be increased, alongside the training facilities upgrade I requested a few months back:

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Overall, I'm pleased with how the club has progressed.
Nothing interesting to report on NT-wise, I'm tempted to leave my AM to do the rest of the Euro quals matches this summer as I'm not really looking forward to sitting watching us get pounded 4/5/6-0 repeatedly.
I'll stick to the scouting and recruitment, thanks!
 
Domestic Double!

After finishing second in our second season in Serie A, we were able to push on in our third season and win Serie A and also retain the Italian Cup to win a domestic double. My first venture into Europe was also pretty successful, qualifying from a group containing three far more experienced opponents in Real Madrid, Lyon and Werder Bremen, but then getting knocked out by Manchester City in the second round. (This included a historic 2-1 victory over Real Madrid). I'm hoping next season we will be able to retain the Serie A title and improve on our performance in europe after yet another extremely busy transfer window, in which I aimed to improve the quality and depth of the squad.

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However............ The results of the national team are still showing no real sign of improvement, with my only half decent result being a 1-0 friendly victory over Samoa who were 40 places above us in ther world rankings.
I got another 2 pretty decent prospects from my youth take this year and they are both fully Sammannirese. I keep getting intrest from Spanish clubs for a few of my Sammannirese youngsters and I am tempted to sell them as they will then be getting the use of better training facillities, however I then worry that they may not get any game time or tutoring when they move which could affect their development. What do you all think?

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Safc-mad-scotty said:
I got another 2 pretty decent prospects from my youth take this year and they are both fully Sammannirese. I keep getting intrest from Spanish clubs for a few of my Sammannirese youngsters and I am tempted to sell them as they will then be getting the use of better training facillities, however I then worry that they may not get any game time or tutoring when they move which could affect their development. What do you all think?
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Depends what future you project for them at the club, personally I have a long term goal of playing only SM players at the club so I tend to keep them ;)

Anyway I'd never sell them before 18-19 as until then you can give them specific training and tutoring to: A) heavily improve their Determination attribute B) learn PPM's from veteran players C) train/re-train them according to your preferences and needs (position, role, attributes). Also when they turn 18 you should loan them out for a season to get first team experience and then evaluate the prospects again at the end of the year. You can now decide their fate: keep, send on loan another year or sell.

You're very lucky that your regens are 14 so you have plenty of time to develop them (mine are always 15-16). It's ok to keep them in U20 until they turn 18, they can still progress nicely esp with right tutoring. Then they'll need playing time (at your club or on loan) to keep improving. At 14, with those starting attributes and that PA (if your staff has good judging PA attributes) that striker of yours is wonderkid material and would NEVER think of selling him! Should be a beast at 19-20.
 
Right thanks for the advice :D Think I will try to keep hold of the majority of them then and maybe just sell one of my strikers to see how they get on, seeing as though I have got about 6 or 7 different regen strikers now who all have high potential. I'm also starting to get a few of my dual nationality players to accept call ups to the national side despite being showing no improvement whatsoever as a national team so far (All of the best ones are still refusing however and possibly the best of all the striker regens has been called up for the Italian under 21's team). Also, I never knew that regens came through at different ages for different people, every single player that has come out of my youth intakes so far have been 14 so I have to wait two years before using them in competitive games.
 
What have you done with the youth recruitment section? Mine is still basic. Is it worth improving as I presume it would regen more foreigners?
 
jordymakin said:
What have you done with the youth recruitment section? Mine is still basic. Is it worth improving as I presume it would regen more foreigners?
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improved that a lot in the years, now it's well established. Upgrading youth recruitment and junior coaching will be vital to produce more & better regens (they've been always Sammarinese or Italian for me).

As of 2020 we are arguably the best youth academy in Italy - and probably whole Europe - and we give plenty of players to Italy U19 and U21 (unfortunately this includes dual nationality players rejecting SM). Every year we have 3-4 prospects with very good Serie A potential and the occasional international class prospect.

Sometimes I have to wait until a prospect get the call up for Italy - thus being considered Italian by the game and compared to Italian legends - to realise how good he could be. For example this GK here has been compared to a decent keeper:

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next Gigi Buffon sounds good to me, wonder if he'll ever be available for SM though...
 
I have just got my 1st couple of promising youngsters and guess what there born in serravalle but reject the call! lol Not much passion for there country of birth. Now I know how them African countries feel when there players play for France!
 
jordymakin said:
I have just got my 1st couple of promising youngsters and guess what there born in serravalle but reject the call! lol Not much passion for there country of birth. Now I know how them African countries feel when there players play for France!
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yeah tbh this has kinda destroyed my motivation to go on I mean what's the point in having an elite SM academy if I can't use those players for NT or even for club (as they'd go straight to italy NT if I give them playing time at the club)? I have to freeze their careers for like 8-9 years before they give up Italy, it's getting hard to keep that kind of patience...
 
kandersson said:
yeah tbh this has kinda destroyed my motivation to go on I mean what's the point in having an elite SM academy if I can't use those players for NT or even for club (as they'd go straight to italy NT if I give them playing time at the club)? I have to freeze their careers for like 8-9 years before they give up Italy, it's getting hard to keep that kind of patience...
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look on the bright side, you'll only have to do it the once, as after the first lot accept you should get a new lot accepting every year.
 
sammyt said:
look on the bright side, you'll only have to do it the once, as after the first lot accept you should get a new lot accepting every year.
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true, but i'm still so far from that point... I have one - the original defector - who will turn 23 in august 2020 and SHOULD make himself available for SM at some point. From what I've seen players generally wait until they're 24 before committing to a "minor" NT (our very own Serge Aurier embraced Senegal at 24 after being a youth international for France).

I'd like to hold on until great attacking duo Paolone/Macina accept SM, so I can make them first choice for both club and country. The problem is they're still 20... not sure I can play 4-5 more seasons like this...
 
kandersson said:
true, but i'm still so far from that point... I have one - the original defector - who will turn 23 in august 2020 and SHOULD make himself available for SM at some point. From what I've seen players generally wait until they're 24 before committing to a "minor" NT (our very own Serge Aurier embraced Senegal at 24 after being a youth international for France).

I'd like to hold on until great attacking duo Paolone/Macina accept SM, so I can make them first choice for both club and country. The problem is they're still 20... not sure I can play 4-5 more seasons like this...
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at least when you get you're original defector back he will improve both teams and by the sounds of thinigs it could be as early as next year. hopefully you'll start getting players of this quality coming through the ranks as jsut SM soon to help bolster the squad, and if you're right about the attacking duo then imagine how great it will feel to qualify for teh next lot of euro's as rank outsiders only to have 2 of the greatest strikers join you just before it starts, the other nations won't know what'***** them.
 
tactics

Hey I'm about to start up the Challenge and I was wondering what kind of tactics you guys usually use with lower level teams like this. I mainly play with already established teams in the Premier League so I'm not sure if there's anything new I need to know or what. Any help would be appreciated!
 
gbpacker said:
Hey I'm about to start up the Challenge and I was wondering what kind of tactics you guys usually use with lower level teams like this. I mainly play with already established teams in the Premier League so I'm not sure if there's anything new I need to know or what. Any help would be appreciated!
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when you're playing at a lower level you need to keep things more simple and not allow as much creative freedom. i tend to find 4-4-2 and 4-5-1 as effective formations and sometimes a 4-4-2 diamond can work but it's slightly harder to find players that can play that formation.
 
gbpacker said:
Hey I'm about to start up the Challenge and I was wondering what kind of tactics you guys usually use with lower level teams like this. I mainly play with already established teams in the Premier League so I'm not sure if there's anything new I need to know or what. Any help would be appreciated!
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In my experience quality of players is always more important than tactics, and in lower leagues this is even more evident. If you can sign a few good free agents that would make your job much easier, good players beat great tactics any day of the week :). Also I'd say mental attributes might be more important than in british lower leagues, as slow tempo and veteran players are a typical trait of Italian LLM.

Finally I'd recommend you this EXCELLENT (...) guide http://www.fm-base.co.uk/forum/foot...ussion/85285-san-marino-guide-kandersson.html ;)


@sammyt: I'll do another cycle with the NT (World Cup quals 2020-2022) and start using some of the defectors at the club, we'll see what happens...
 
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