Football Manager 2008 [PC/Mac]

[Wellzy]

In my Derby County game, I'm exceeding expectations :tongue:, just brushing relegation zone, which is great for Derby. I've had two outstanding wins, 4-1 against both Bolton and Sunderland! Ive got a striker from Bayer Leverkusen on loan, Michal Papadopoulos, who is scoring a fair bit. Plus the financial state of the club is extremely good at the moment.

 

[Dan]

I'm currently at Birmingham on my game. They've just been promoted to the England League and are eleven million in debt. :/ I left Everton fifth in the league in April, I also saved them from certain relegation the season before, but I needed a team that I can build and call my own.

Team is bloody gash, but I beat Bolton on the opening day 2-0. The board expect me to challenge for the premiership in 3 years. :/ Be lucky to finish 19th tbh.

 

[Nifty1Pound50]

My striker finally scored. Sergio van Dijk, dubbed Emmen's star player, ended his goal drought under my management at the 14th attempt. He bagged two in a 2-2 draw.

The Dutch First Division structure and schedule is quite strange. I'm not 100% getting it, to be honest - there's an overall league, simple enough.

There's also six "periods" comprising of six games each. These contribute somehow towards the teams that qualify for the end-of-season playoffs. Considering my team's shite, I'm not really bothered - although I guess winning one of these six game periods would be a really piss-easy way to get promoted.

I'm not quite sure, either, which games don't count towards the periods, or whether the periods happen in order, or anything. Six periods of six games makes 36 fixtures - league comprises of 38. So two don't count. Which ones? Possibly the last two, as check this out:

I don't understand the qualification for the playoffs really, either. In the first period, the winners qualify. In the second period, top two. Third, top three - and so on. Theoretically, this allows 21 spots from which to qualify for the playoffs via the six phases - i.e. every team in the league?

Barry must explain.

More pressing matters are the fact that I have a wage budget that every single member of my senior squad exceeds as an individual, although I've done a bit of Bosman wheeling 'n' dealing nice and early, and have hopes of a decent go at this league next season.

 

[Sweey]

Nifty, its something like this: think of the 30 games in the division as five "mini-championships" of six games each. At the end of each of those "mini-championships", the best performing team (in the designated six games ONLY) is automatically entered into the end of season play-offs. If a team has already qualified for the play-offs and finishes top again, I believe the team directly behind them in the present mini-championship secure play-off qualification.

At the end of the season, the team which wins the league - regardless of whether they won such a "mini-championship" - are automatically promoted and somehow six further teams are entered into the play-offs (the five other "mini-championship" winners along with, I'm guessing, the highest placed other team).

 

[Nifty1Pound50]

Actually, yeah - that makes entire sense, especially as I took the care to just check the status of the playoff games happening at the moment.

The champions are automatically promoted, and the bottom team in the top division replace them. 16th and 17th enter the relegation playoffs with the six phase winners.

Sounds like a great way to get promoted. Win 6 games on the trot, fuck the rest of the season, and then win the playoffs.

EDIT: Take that back, I'm confused again.

There appears to be 8 teams in the playoffs from the First Division, as well as the two that finished near the bottom of the Dutch Eredivisie.

 

[Diao]

I just avoid the Dutch league TBH :tongue:

All these talks of play offs etc etc is confusing haha

 

[Sweey]

Actually, yeah - that makes entire sense, especially as I took the care to just check the status of the playoff games happening at the moment.

The champions are automatically promoted, and the bottom team in the top division replace them. 16th and 17th enter the relegation playoffs with the six phase winners.

Sounds like a great way to get promoted. Win 6 games on the trot, fuck the rest of the season, and then win the playoffs.

EDIT: Take that back, I'm confused again.

There appears to be 8 teams in the playoffs from the First Division, as well as the two that finished near the bottom of the Dutch Eredivisie.

:mellow: Only eight in total usually as you had at the start of the post I'm quoting. What month are you in? If there are no league winners yet, it may be calculating the whole "if this team wins the title, this team enters the play-offs but if this one wins the title, this other one enters the play-offs".

 

[Nifty1Pound50]

Tail-end of April - all league games have been played (38 fixtures). Den Bosch have been crowned champions (labelled with a C), and AGOVV, Veendam, Helmond, ADO Den Haag, Dordrecht, Go Ahead, Volendam, and Stormvogels Telstar BT O2 Orange Vodafone Communications (yes, I made most of that up) have all been labelled for playoffs (Pl).

Stormvogels vs. Dordrecht and Volendam vs. Go Ahead have just been played, which are the "Relegation Playoff First Round First Leg" ties.

I can't work out why these teams are playing what I can only assume is an additional game, before the Relegation Playoff proper.

These confusing leagues are great fun, Rafa.

 

[Top Gun]

Finished my first season with Villa, finished 7th in the league which just gained me UEFA Cup qualification thanks to Chelsea winning the Champions League. Agbonlahor was the top scorer and Scott Carson got the highest average rating. I got to the Semi-Finals of both domestic cup competitions, losing to Chelsea in both.

My squad was way too small last season and I've had massive changes to it in the summer, so far I've sold,

Stilian Petrov
Olof Mellberg
Wilfred Bouma
Shaun Maloney
Stuart Taylor
Martin Laursen
Marlon Harewood

All for a total of about £10,500,000. While I've brought in,

Curtis Davies (£10m)
Justin Hoyte (£2.5m)
Fabio Aurelio (£2.3m)
Tomasz Kuszczak (£4.3m)
Stijn Schaars (£7m)
Manuel Da Costa (£4.5m)
Ever Banega (£4.4m)

And I'm close to signing Park-Ji Sung as a back-up left midfielder to Ashley Young.

 

[Wan]

That's a bargain for Banega.
10m for Curtis Davies. :huh:

 

[Top Gun]

I know. But it's already a done deal when you start the game and you can't negotiate it, although he is worth £10,000,000 now so hopefully he can step up.

Just beat Man Utd at Old Trafford, 1-0 in my opening game. They played a really weak side for some reason.

 

[50!]

I know. But it's already a done deal when you start the game and you can't negotiate it, although he is worth £10,000,000 now so hopefully he can step up.

Players valuations are always their transfer fee for the first few months and then it usually starts to decline unless you've bought a bargain.

 

[Ghost]

Players valuations are always their transfer fee for the first few months and then it usually starts to decline unless you've bought a bargain.

That really pisses me off. I bought Kerlon for 11M euros in January, and in April his value was already 4.6M euros. I think it only happens with smaller teams though.

 

[Nifty1Pound50]

That really pisses me off. I bought Kerlon for 11M euros in January, and in April his value was already 4.6M euros. I think it only happens with smaller teams though.

It's moderately irrelevant, though, as it's highly unlikely a player will ever be sold for equal-to or less than his "value" if he's an established member of any squad.

 

[Preki-USA]

So I'm in the beginning of my second season as a manager. After being fired by Middlesbrough depsite avoiding the drop, I took over at Celta and got them promoted. Now in La Liga I have done a ton of work on my squad, especially since they gave me a 20 million transfer kitty.

Players bought:
Prager
Vitolo
Cleber Santana
Cafu
David Vaughn
Celestine Babayaro
Ivica Dragutinovic
Mista

I thought that my squad was decent but would struggle...then on the last day of the window I signed loan deals for the following players:

Royston Drenthe
Marek Jankulovski
Nani
Yossi Benayoun
Claudio Pizzaro
Mattieu Flamini
some young RB from Lyon

Completely changed my squad. Now my first XI is as follows:

--------------Pinto------------------
-Jank-----Lequi---Drago----Drenthe--
-------------------------------------
------Santana-Flamini-Vitolo----------
-------------------------------------
----------------Nani------------------
-----------Pizarro---Mista-------------

Main Subs: Oubina, Skoubo, Contreras, Roberto, Prager


We've been on fire since the new loans, scoring 6 in 2 matches. I'm at work, I'll post some screens later.

Do you guys think all the first team loanees will effect my chemistry in the long run? Will I be screwed after this season?

 

[Ghost]

If you pay attention to the expire date of some players' contracts, you'll be alright. In my Brescia game I'd 20 loanees in one season, and in January I started to offer contracts to about 40 different players, and most of them accepted. Now I've over 50 players and I don't know what to do :huh:

 

[Diao]

:huh:

 

[Nifty1Pound50]

I've sold/released a total of 19 players, and I am still £14k over my wage budget.

I now have a first-team squad that consists of a goalkeeper and Njazi Kuqi - my only signing so far. I do have 4 players coming in within the next week or so on free transfers. Unfortunately, each one of these single-handedly exceeds my wage budget about three-fold. These players, therefore, will likely be sold before even playing a game for my club.

The nearest thing I've got to a half-decent player is Joos van Barneveld - and, to be honest, he's shit and the only reason I consider him half-decent is because he shares a surname with a great darts player.

I hope you all enjoy your transfer kitties (what's one of those?) and the ability to offer your players more than two bottles of Corona a week.

Great fun, though.

 

[Yossi]

I don't think there are any merchandising feeder clubs left in my game Should got there earlier

 

[Fab]

Hello there, long time no see, I see the place is still running smoothly without me although I did prefer the name 'PESInsight'.

Anyway, I downloaded the demo and really got into it, does anyone know if I buy the full game if I can continue with my current game?

Thanks