I hope you enjoy reading about my approach to the game and how I use the FM Arena learnings in playing the game. This first post will be the ideology. Future posts will cover results in 6 month increments with some commentary around whats happened, how we got there and the approach and thinking behind my choices.
WHO TO MANAGE
Firstly, I need to select a team to manage. Over the last dozen or so years I have generally started my saves with either St Albans in Vanarama South (which is the town my sister moved to from Australia) or with Scunthorpe, who have been my lower league side to follow for around 50 years.
For FM24 I decided on Scunthorpe, who have dropped from Sky Championship in 2011 to Vanarama North in 2023, and who have had major financial issues over the past few seasons. Seemed like it would be a challenge, with the finances and the expectations of automatic promotion ie win the league.
Clearly FM Arena provides best tactics to use and attributes for selecting players. However we also have my testing of set piece routines and FM Genie Scout ratings files. In addition we have training schedule recommendations.
TACTICS
So let’s get this show on the road. In terms of tactics I always look for 3 different formations that you can easily move between. Early on the preferred tactics were the 424 Deformation tactics with an AMC instead of one of the wingers, the Brazilian Box, and then we had the 424 and 4231 tactics taking over, and also a stint where the Quad Wave 4114 had a good run. So I had different versions where all these tactics were involved at different stages. Currently I am in my 3rd year and the current tactics are the 4 best plug and play tactics. The main tactic being a 424, then a 424 deformation and a 4231. I also sparingly use a 4th, which is the best defensive tactic being a 343. I don’t train the 343, just load it during the match when I think I need it
So let’s have a quick look how to move between my current tactics. The main tactic has 2 strikers, 2 wingers, 2 DMs, 2 DCs and 2 full backs. To move to the 424 deformation it is one winger moving to AMC. To move to the 4231 it is one striker moving to AMC. To move to the 343 it is one striker mover to DC and the full backs moving up to wing backs. All these are pretty easy moves.
A few rules I have for tactics, firstly never use more than two tactics in one match. If you move to another tactic and it is not working either persevere or return to the first tactic. The second relates to some research I did on playing against the different best AI formations. I try and use one of the top 2 tactics from my research that is best against the AI tactic I am up against. For 433 I use 424 deformation or 4231. For 4231 I use also use 424 deformation or 4231. A quick note, I think there is a case for using 343 against 4231 and I have played with this with reasonable results. For 523 I use 424 or 4231. For all other tactics I use 424. I think the 4231 is the best swap to tactic as it creates more opportunities for the AMC but drags defenders out. It is also the best for goal scoring. The 424 and deformation are more stable so better to start with.
Game discipline, as soon as I get a yellow card I put ease off tackles on all the defensive players including the DMs. Any attacking players that get I card I put ease off tackles. I also reduce the team tackling to neutral. When the second card comes I move the team tackling to stay on feet. If we are playing a hard team or have gone in front by 2 goals I drop the defensive line to mid block. If we need a goal late I increase this back to the higher level. If we lead with 10 minutes to go I drop tempo and pressing to standard, remove pass into space, drop defensive line back to mid block and remove the counter and counter press. With 5 minutes to go and leading I try and drop everything back to neutral on team settings and think about dropping one of the DMs back to defend instead of support.
SET PIECES
I use the Blue routines and leave the set piece takers to the Assistant Manager. I do have a look to make sure there aren’t any glaring anomalies but this doesn’t seem to happen even with lower league teams.
SHOUTS AND TALKS/b]
Pre game and post game I usually go with the Assistant Manager recommendation. Pre game if there aren’t at least half the players with positive responses I tell all players individually that I have faith. Half time I use the top talk ie not good enough if we lead by one goal or not winning. If we are 2 or more up I use well done keep it up. If any responses are negative I tell them individually that they haven’t been that bad and I know they can do better in the second half. At the end of the game give individual talks, excellent with a rating of 9.0 or higher, done very well for a rating of 8.0 or higher, and not good enough for any 6.2 or below.
I don’t give any shouts in the first 15 minutes. If we are leading after 15 minutes then praise otherwise encourage. Praise after each goal we score after. If we go down by 2 demand more. Try and keep the morale positive. If we leading by 2 or more and the players are getting complacent, then praise again.
TRAINING
I take control of most training. I set the individual training to the position and role they would play in the 424 tactic. I set the individual additional focus for GK to reactions, DC to final third, full backs to attacking movement, DMs to defensive positioning, Wingers to crossing and Strikers to Shooting or Ball Control. Any outfield players who are 26 or older I set to agility and balance.
If I receive feedback from training staff that they are now proficient or it isn’t improving I set the additional focus to Quickness or Aerial. When they have had a run at those I cycle through the other positional additional attributes.
I take advice from Assistant Manager on mentoring groups but try and have a strong personality trait as the mentoring leader eg Model Citizen, Fair Determined.
I use the superrest training schedule posted by @pixar. It seems to not be too bad in terms of injuries and players tend to develop well when using it in conjunction with the individual training.
I also set the training rest settings to those suggested by @zaz that is No Pitch or Gym Work for all player conditions except for Excellent where I use Normal Intensity.
FINDING PLAYERS
After my testing a few years back with Genie Scout Ratings files and my recent rebalancing of my ratings file I am using MDW24 ratings file to find players.
To start with I look at the player ratings at least each quarter, generally aligning with the transfer window of 1 January. That is 1 January, 1 April, 1 July and 1 October. I also look at the team ratings for each English Division taking note of the highest lowest and mid point ratings for each league. At the start of the season I try and get players that have their current ability at the mid point level or higher for the League I am in with a potential to be at the mid point of the League above. If at the transfer window in January I think I will get promoted I start trying to get players with a current ability at the mid point for the League above.
I look for pace above average for the league for strikers, wingers and full backs. I look for height and jumping reach for central defenders. I try to buy players under 21 for lower leagues with plenty of scope for improvement.
I also try and sell players whose potential and current ability are under the mid point I am aiming for. I look to have 22-26 players in the first squad so that I can rotate players. I want at least one back up for each position. Generally to cover the 3 tactics I need 24 players, 22 to cover the 424 plus another 2 to cover the AMC used in the other 2 tactics.
At Scunthorpe I have U21 and U18 teams. So I look to have at least 11 in each of these squads. The better potential players from these I have in the Main squad and just make them available for the relevant squad below. This allows them to train with the main group and be involved in the mentoring.
My starting wage budget was around the $27k mark. The wage split for a 2 squad system ie Main plus backup plus U18s would be 30% for 4 Star/Important players or around $2000 each, 30% for 7 regular starters or $1200 each, 30% for 11 Backup/Squad players or $700 each and 10% for the Youth players or $200 each.
With the each 11 players for the U21 squad I went with 25% for 4 Star/Important $1700 each, 25% for regular starters $1000 each, 25% for 11 Backup/Squad players $600 each, 15% for 11 U21 players $400 each and 10% for 11 Youth players $200 each. These are only guidelines and when you can make savings in some areas you can bolster other areas. Be careful of annual pay rises that can very quickly move players wages up. It is ok if you get promotions but watch where players sit in the hierarchy and try and move players on that are on too much money for the role that they are performing.
I recently had a player in this category. Had been our best winger for a couple of years. His wage had gone beyond what I could afford, he didn’t meet the criteria for having a rating high enough for our next promotion and his potential had topped out. I sold him for $260k which did not make fans happy. But I was confident I had cover that would surpass his rating by the commencement of the following season.
You do need to also watch how players improvement is going. Some players do not go anywhere near improving to meet their potential, and when this becomes apparent they can also be moved on.
Halfway through the first season in VNN. My transfers start on 3 July 2023.
The side is going well with us leading the comp well.
Finances are suffering but I think with promotion we can get that back under control.
We have relied mostly on 2 tactics through the first half of the season.
We have a good mix of youth and experience and morale is high.
We have plenty of potential and squad is close to what we need to be competitive next season in the Vanarama National League. Very please with the progress so far.
Great post! Thanks for all your hard work over the years, I've been a big fan.
I have a question about Genie Scout ratings that's been on my mind. They consider all attributes, right? But something I don't quite understand is your preference for strikers with higher pace even if their overall rating is lower. For example, picking an 88% striker with 17 pace/acc over a 93% striker with 14 pace/acc. Isn't pace already factored into the overall rating?
On another note, totally agree about center backs. My save has tons rated over 90% but with jumping reach below 14-15, which seems low for set pieces.
Also, could you please explain the logic behind the individual focus training? I was following Zaz's recommendations from a couple of years ago with Quickness for everybody, except the DMs and FBs which were assigned Endurance.
kvasir said: Great post! Thanks for all your hard work over the years, I've been a big fan.
I have a question about Genie Scout ratings that's been on my mind. They consider all attributes, right? But something I don't quite understand is your preference for strikers with higher pace even if their overall rating is lower. For example, picking an 88% striker with 17 pace/acc over a 93% striker with 14 pace/acc. Isn't pace already factored into the overall rating?
On another note, totally agree about center backs. My save has tons rated over 90% but with jumping reach below 14-15, which seems low for set pieces.
Also, could you please explain the logic behind the individual focus training? I was following Zaz's recommendations from a couple of years ago with Quickness for everybody, except the DMs and FBs which were assigned Endurance. Expand
Thanks for your support.
I tend to use pace as a decider not preferring players with lower ratings. But yes i do like fast strikers. Similarly i prefer centre backs with good jumping reach. Again i use it as a decider.
In the end i go with the ratings.
I did research the best additional focus by position a few years back. I looked at the attributes that would make the best impact for the cheapest attribute cost. And the ones above are the ones.
It is the view for my data download. It has potential ratings for all positions as well and the Unique ID so that I can link these to all the attributes I download from FMRTE
End of season 1 and we easily win promotion to the Vanarama National League. A quick analysis and our players are looking pretty good for a mid table finish next year.
I feel like if some of our young players fulfill their potential we will have a few of them for quite a few years as we move up through the Divisions. Analysis currently indicates the ratings required for mid field positions is around 62% in VNL, 66% in L2, 70% in L1 and 75% in Sky Championship.
Some of the players I have picked up look like they can get through to at least League One.
I will need to fill a few places before the season starts especially Centre Backs
Hi All
I hope you enjoy reading about my approach to the game and how I use the FM Arena learnings in playing the game. This first post will be the ideology. Future posts will cover results in 6 month increments with some commentary around whats happened, how we got there and the approach and thinking behind my choices.
WHO TO MANAGE
Firstly, I need to select a team to manage. Over the last dozen or so years I have generally started my saves with either St Albans in Vanarama South (which is the town my sister moved to from Australia) or with Scunthorpe, who have been my lower league side to follow for around 50 years.
For FM24 I decided on Scunthorpe, who have dropped from Sky Championship in 2011 to Vanarama North in 2023, and who have had major financial issues over the past few seasons. Seemed like it would be a challenge, with the finances and the expectations of automatic promotion ie win the league.
Clearly FM Arena provides best tactics to use and attributes for selecting players. However we also have my testing of set piece routines and FM Genie Scout ratings files. In addition we have training schedule recommendations.
TACTICS
So let’s get this show on the road. In terms of tactics I always look for 3 different formations that you can easily move between. Early on the preferred tactics were the 424 Deformation tactics with an AMC instead of one of the wingers, the Brazilian Box, and then we had the 424 and 4231 tactics taking over, and also a stint where the Quad Wave 4114 had a good run. So I had different versions where all these tactics were involved at different stages. Currently I am in my 3rd year and the current tactics are the 4 best plug and play tactics. The main tactic being a 424, then a 424 deformation and a 4231. I also sparingly use a 4th, which is the best defensive tactic being a 343. I don’t train the 343, just load it during the match when I think I need it
So let’s have a quick look how to move between my current tactics. The main tactic has 2 strikers, 2 wingers, 2 DMs, 2 DCs and 2 full backs. To move to the 424 deformation it is one winger moving to AMC. To move to the 4231 it is one striker moving to AMC. To move to the 343 it is one striker mover to DC and the full backs moving up to wing backs. All these are pretty easy moves.
A few rules I have for tactics, firstly never use more than two tactics in one match. If you move to another tactic and it is not working either persevere or return to the first tactic. The second relates to some research I did on playing against the different best AI formations. I try and use one of the top 2 tactics from my research that is best against the AI tactic I am up against. For 433 I use 424 deformation or 4231. For 4231 I use also use 424 deformation or 4231. A quick note, I think there is a case for using 343 against 4231 and I have played with this with reasonable results. For 523 I use 424 or 4231. For all other tactics I use 424. I think the 4231 is the best swap to tactic as it creates more opportunities for the AMC but drags defenders out. It is also the best for goal scoring. The 424 and deformation are more stable so better to start with.
Game discipline, as soon as I get a yellow card I put ease off tackles on all the defensive players including the DMs. Any attacking players that get I card I put ease off tackles. I also reduce the team tackling to neutral. When the second card comes I move the team tackling to stay on feet. If we are playing a hard team or have gone in front by 2 goals I drop the defensive line to mid block. If we need a goal late I increase this back to the higher level. If we lead with 10 minutes to go I drop tempo and pressing to standard, remove pass into space, drop defensive line back to mid block and remove the counter and counter press. With 5 minutes to go and leading I try and drop everything back to neutral on team settings and think about dropping one of the DMs back to defend instead of support.
SET PIECES
I use the Blue routines and leave the set piece takers to the Assistant Manager. I do have a look to make sure there aren’t any glaring anomalies but this doesn’t seem to happen even with lower league teams.
SHOUTS AND TALKS/b]
Pre game and post game I usually go with the Assistant Manager recommendation. Pre game if there aren’t at least half the players with positive responses I tell all players individually that I have faith. Half time I use the top talk ie not good enough if we lead by one goal or not winning. If we are 2 or more up I use well done keep it up. If any responses are negative I tell them individually that they haven’t been that bad and I know they can do better in the second half. At the end of the game give individual talks, excellent with a rating of 9.0 or higher, done very well for a rating of 8.0 or higher, and not good enough for any 6.2 or below.
I don’t give any shouts in the first 15 minutes. If we are leading after 15 minutes then praise otherwise encourage. Praise after each goal we score after. If we go down by 2 demand more. Try and keep the morale positive. If we leading by 2 or more and the players are getting complacent, then praise again.
TRAINING
I take control of most training. I set the individual training to the position and role they would play in the 424 tactic. I set the individual additional focus for GK to reactions, DC to final third, full backs to attacking movement, DMs to defensive positioning, Wingers to crossing and Strikers to Shooting or Ball Control. Any outfield players who are 26 or older I set to agility and balance.
If I receive feedback from training staff that they are now proficient or it isn’t improving I set the additional focus to Quickness or Aerial. When they have had a run at those I cycle through the other positional additional attributes.
I take advice from Assistant Manager on mentoring groups but try and have a strong personality trait as the mentoring leader eg Model Citizen, Fair Determined.
I use the superrest training schedule posted by @pixar. It seems to not be too bad in terms of injuries and players tend to develop well when using it in conjunction with the individual training.
I also set the training rest settings to those suggested by @zaz that is No Pitch or Gym Work for all player conditions except for Excellent where I use Normal Intensity.
FINDING PLAYERS
After my testing a few years back with Genie Scout Ratings files and my recent rebalancing of my ratings file I am using MDW24 ratings file to find players.
To start with I look at the player ratings at least each quarter, generally aligning with the transfer window of 1 January. That is 1 January, 1 April, 1 July and 1 October. I also look at the team ratings for each English Division taking note of the highest lowest and mid point ratings for each league. At the start of the season I try and get players that have their current ability at the mid point level or higher for the League I am in with a potential to be at the mid point of the League above. If at the transfer window in January I think I will get promoted I start trying to get players with a current ability at the mid point for the League above.
I look for pace above average for the league for strikers, wingers and full backs. I look for height and jumping reach for central defenders. I try to buy players under 21 for lower leagues with plenty of scope for improvement.
I also try and sell players whose potential and current ability are under the mid point I am aiming for. I look to have 22-26 players in the first squad so that I can rotate players. I want at least one back up for each position. Generally to cover the 3 tactics I need 24 players, 22 to cover the 424 plus another 2 to cover the AMC used in the other 2 tactics.
At Scunthorpe I have U21 and U18 teams. So I look to have at least 11 in each of these squads. The better potential players from these I have in the Main squad and just make them available for the relevant squad below. This allows them to train with the main group and be involved in the mentoring.
My starting wage budget was around the $27k mark. The wage split for a 2 squad system ie Main plus backup plus U18s would be 30% for 4 Star/Important players or around $2000 each, 30% for 7 regular starters or $1200 each, 30% for 11 Backup/Squad players or $700 each and 10% for the Youth players or $200 each.
With the each 11 players for the U21 squad I went with 25% for 4 Star/Important $1700 each, 25% for regular starters $1000 each, 25% for 11 Backup/Squad players $600 each, 15% for 11 U21 players $400 each and 10% for 11 Youth players $200 each. These are only guidelines and when you can make savings in some areas you can bolster other areas. Be careful of annual pay rises that can very quickly move players wages up. It is ok if you get promotions but watch where players sit in the hierarchy and try and move players on that are on too much money for the role that they are performing.
I recently had a player in this category. Had been our best winger for a couple of years. His wage had gone beyond what I could afford, he didn’t meet the criteria for having a rating high enough for our next promotion and his potential had topped out. I sold him for $260k which did not make fans happy. But I was confident I had cover that would surpass his rating by the commencement of the following season.
You do need to also watch how players improvement is going. Some players do not go anywhere near improving to meet their potential, and when this becomes apparent they can also be moved on.
Halfway through the first season in VNN. My transfers start on 3 July 2023.
The side is going well with us leading the comp well.
Finances are suffering but I think with promotion we can get that back under control.
We have relied mostly on 2 tactics through the first half of the season.
We have a good mix of youth and experience and morale is high.
We have plenty of potential and squad is close to what we need to be competitive next season in the Vanarama National League. Very please with the progress so far.
Great post! Thanks for all your hard work over the years, I've been a big fan.
I have a question about Genie Scout ratings that's been on my mind. They consider all attributes, right? But something I don't quite understand is your preference for strikers with higher pace even if their overall rating is lower. For example, picking an 88% striker with 17 pace/acc over a 93% striker with 14 pace/acc. Isn't pace already factored into the overall rating?
On another note, totally agree about center backs. My save has tons rated over 90% but with jumping reach below 14-15, which seems low for set pieces.
Also, could you please explain the logic behind the individual focus training? I was following Zaz's recommendations from a couple of years ago with Quickness for everybody, except the DMs and FBs which were assigned Endurance.
kvasir said: Great post! Thanks for all your hard work over the years, I've been a big fan.
I have a question about Genie Scout ratings that's been on my mind. They consider all attributes, right? But something I don't quite understand is your preference for strikers with higher pace even if their overall rating is lower. For example, picking an 88% striker with 17 pace/acc over a 93% striker with 14 pace/acc. Isn't pace already factored into the overall rating?
On another note, totally agree about center backs. My save has tons rated over 90% but with jumping reach below 14-15, which seems low for set pieces.
Also, could you please explain the logic behind the individual focus training? I was following Zaz's recommendations from a couple of years ago with Quickness for everybody, except the DMs and FBs which were assigned Endurance.
Thanks for your support.
I tend to use pace as a decider not preferring players with lower ratings. But yes i do like fast strikers. Similarly i prefer centre backs with good jumping reach. Again i use it as a decider.
In the end i go with the ratings.
I did research the best additional focus by position a few years back. I looked at the attributes that would make the best impact for the cheapest attribute cost. And the ones above are the ones.
Hey @Mark , great fun to follow along with.
Would you mind sharing your GS view? I only found the one u use back in 2022 but that doesnt work anymore!
Kyroz said: Hey @Mark , great fun to follow along with.
Would you mind sharing your GS view? I only found the one u use back in 2022 but that doesnt work anymore!
The link is here
It is the view for my data download. It has potential ratings for all positions as well and the Unique ID so that I can link these to all the attributes I download from FMRTE
End of season 1 and we easily win promotion to the Vanarama National League. A quick analysis and our players are looking pretty good for a mid table finish next year.
I feel like if some of our young players fulfill their potential we will have a few of them for quite a few years as we move up through the Divisions. Analysis currently indicates the ratings required for mid field positions is around 62% in VNL, 66% in L2, 70% in L1 and 75% in Sky Championship.
Some of the players I have picked up look like they can get through to at least League One.
I will need to fill a few places before the season starts especially Centre Backs
Competition results
Fixture results from 1 January
Finances
Transfers
Board vision
Squad
VNL expectations