Mookham(?) A Football Manager 14 AAR

[BanzaiCat]

KyzBP, you said the keeper was complaining about not being played? Is that really an in-game function? Do the players' abilities get affected by being pissy little nancy boys complaining about not having enough pitch time?

Absolutely!  If you promise them that they'll be a key player and then bench them they start bugging you about it, even demanding to move on if you're not using them.  If they are a popular player at the club then their poor morale becomes contagious.  I usually try not to set anyone as a Key Player but some guys won't sign without it.  They are a bunch of little divas.

That's interesting, because I would think at the low levels they'd just be happy to be associated with a club, even if as a back-up. I would think if you cut Randy "Pint" Watson who's more apt at guarding a beer stein than a goal, he'd have nowhere to go. Then again if this was the Premier League, ol' Randy would have to be top-notch to compete at that level and therefore the whining would be louder - because Randy knows if he leaves some other team will scoop him up in a heartbeat. Not so much at the Abdullah Takeout IX level. ;)

[KyzBP]

In World Cup 2014 News:

GROUP A
England
Brazil
Mexico
Ukraine

GROUP G
USA
Peru
France
Spain

I would say that England will move out of the Group stage while the US will be heading home.

That depends on which version of Ukraine shows up.  If you're playing 5-6 years ago, and Schevchenko and Timoschenko are still running about, they're very dangerous.

Similarly, if the "players mutiny of 2010" version of France show up - or the 2002-we-lost-to-Senegal-to-open-our-title-defense - then the US is in pretty good shape.  Remember that they knocked off Spain in 2009 at the Confederations Cup in one of the most stunning international upsets in a decade (or more).  That Spain team was worth probably a half billion dollars on the open market (yes, "billion" with a "b") and any one of them would likely command a larger transfer fee than the entire US lineup combined, and the US beat 'em.  It wasn't a fluke; they flat out beat Spain with a better game plan, solid discipline, and a great counterattack.

That's all very true.  Anything can happen.  I'll pull up the save and see how it ended up.  Once I got canned I kind of forgot to check the World Cup.

[undercovergeek]

again, again!!!!

[KyzBP]

In World Cup 2014 News:

GROUP A
England
Brazil
Mexico
Ukraine

GROUP G
USA
Peru
France
Spain

I would say that England will move out of the Group stage while the US will be heading home.

That depends on which version of Ukraine shows up.  If you're playing 5-6 years ago, and Schevchenko and Timoschenko are still running about, they're very dangerous.

Similarly, if the "players mutiny of 2010" version of France show up - or the 2002-we-lost-to-Senegal-to-open-our-title-defense - then the US is in pretty good shape.  Remember that they knocked off Spain in 2009 at the Confederations Cup in one of the most stunning international upsets in a decade (or more).  That Spain team was worth probably a half billion dollars on the open market (yes, "billion" with a "b") and any one of them would likely command a larger transfer fee than the entire US lineup combined, and the US beat 'em.  It wasn't a fluke; they flat out beat Spain with a better game plan, solid discipline, and a great counterattack.

That's all very true.  Anything can happen.  I'll pull up the save and see how it ended up.  Once I got canned I kind of forgot to check the World Cup.

Spain beat Argentina 2-0 to win the Cup.

[KyzBP]

Seriously fellas, Thanks for reading and commenting on this.  I'd never done one before and was a bit intimidated.  I also learned that I need to pay more attention to my kid's grammar lessons because mine is atrocious. 

As for doing another, it may be awhile.  These things are way harder to do than it looks.  I sincerely commend anyone who does these things on a regular basis.

Thanks again to everyone and feel free to ask questions about the game.   

[BanzaiCat]

As for doing another, it may be awhile.  These things are way harder to do than it looks.  I sincerely commend anyone who does these things on a regular basis.

Ain't that the truth...I have two out there I haven't continued in a while... :-[

[KyzBP]

As for doing another, it may be awhile.  These things are way harder to do than it looks.  I sincerely commend anyone who does these things on a regular basis.

Ain't that the truth...I have two out there I haven't continued in a while... :-[

I'm hoping you'll redo the Covert Action one.  I loved that game.

[BanzaiCat]

Thanks! I'll try to get to it by this weekend.

FYI I bought FM 2014 for my iPad. I have no idea what I'm doing so I just jumped in and created a team in the lower end Skrill South - Cheesefaire FC.

Managed to get through two friendlies  (those are basically scrimmages/warm ups/preseason games right?) and won both, then went on to tie 3-3 in my first 'real' game. That puts them at 6th in Skrill South.

I'm just kind of screwing around to see what's up..I don't even fully understand the positions nor the signing/trade system (nobody in Skrill South will let me sign anyone, I don't understand as I thought there were free agents floating around).

Does the PC version do the status board during games that changes time of possession and such then switch over to a top down view of the pitch when a shot on goal is about to be taken?

[KyzBP]

Thanks! I'll try to get to it by this weekend.

FYI I bought FM 2014 for my iPad. I have no idea what I'm doing so I just jumped in and created a team in the lower end Skrill South - Cheesefaire FC.

Managed to get through two friendlies  (those are basically scrimmages/warm ups/preseason games right?) and won both, then went on to tie 3-3 in my first 'real' game. That puts them at 6th in Skrill South.

I'm just kind of screwing around to see what's up..I don't even fully understand the positions nor the signing/trade system (nobody in Skrill South will let me sign anyone, I don't understand as I thought there were free agents floating around).

Does the PC version do the status board during games that changes time of possession and such then switch over to a top down view of the pitch when a shot on goal is about to be taken?

Congrats on taking the plunge!  I don't know how much the Ipad version differs from the PC but you should be able to sign players.  If you can navigate your way to the Player List, try using the filter to only show players who's contracts are Expired or Are available for Free Transfer.  Next, look for a box that says "Have Assistant Coach remove unrealistic targets" or something like that and check that box.  What remains are the players who will most likely sign with you.  If you have Transfer Funds available you can change the filter to include "Transfer Listed Players".  Those are players that belong to a team but the team either a. Doesn't want/need them anymore or b. The team is looking to make money from the sale of the player.  Those moves are a little trickier because first the club has to agree on the purchase price and then the player has to agree to your contract offer.  At the lower levels I sign most of my players by free transfer.

You can also bring players in on Loan from other teams.  Use the filter again and reconfigure it to display "Available For Loan" or, again, something like that.  Those will be players other clubs still want be don't have a place for at the moment.  They'll usually send them down to a lower level club to gain experience and then bring them back to the club after a few months or longer.

The game screen on the PC is fully customizable.  You can set it anywhere from just showing highlights to showing full matches.  You can set it up to watch the game from multiple angles and show replays.  Usually if your just watching highlights, you'll get  that screen that pops up in between highlights.  You can adjust the game speed so the games go as quickly as you want.
Good luck to Cheesefaire!

I look forward to the Covert Action.

[MetalDog]

Thanks for doing this KyzBP!  I enjoyed it.

[bayonetbrant]

I enjoyed the AAR, and the narrative elements you worked into it.  Great read, amigo!

[BanzaiCat]

Brant...I don't think I can sit through a soccer game without wanting to hang myself, but this game I can get into. I guess that's a start, right?

[bayonetbrant]

Sure.

Just don't expect me to reciprocate with golf ;)

[BanzaiCat]

LOL.

Well, we can agree to golf. I can play that (Tiger Woods PGA Tour 2012), but as for actually going outside to play it, or heaven forbid watch it on TV...shudder.

[KyzBP]

Thanks MetalDog and Bryant!  I appreciate you guys reading it and the feedback.