Milo's FM 2013 American Soccer Dynasty

[Milo]

I decided to start a new save in Football Manager 2013 using my fictional American Soccer Pyramid. Before I get into my actual play, a little background may be useful.

I created this database using the premise, “What if soccer was America’s dominant sport?” While simplistic in concept, it evolved into a massive project to create an entire landscape of soccer rather than just boost the reputations of twenty or so MLS teams.

The database in its current form consists of over 500 fictional teams with unique names, stadiums, and color schemes spread all across the United States. Every state from Maine to Hawaii is represented.

Each season over 300 of these teams compete somewhere in the nine playable tiers. At the top is the American Premier League, an 18-team competition between the best the country has to offer. These teams employ many of the best players in the world and play in massive stadiums, some that even seat over 100,000 people. At the very bottom of the pyramid is the USS Regional Leagues. Consisting of 8 independent regionally-based divisions, these leagues are semi-professional. Whereas a team like New York can expect near 70,000 people in attendance, the teams in this tier, like the mighty Appleton Foxes, may draw a few hundred.

For quick comparison, here are three teams from various tiers:

New York Empire (Tier 1)



Club Information
Facilities

Fort Worth Matadors (Tier 4)



Club Information
Facilities

Dearborn Mammoths (Tier 9)



Club Information
Facilities



The pyramid does implement promotion/relegation. So, in theory, a team from the top, like the Chicago Boxers, could fall all the way out of the pyramid while a team like the Scranton Beets could climb to the top. However, the massive gaps of money, facilities, and player quality between the tiers makes this very difficult.

There are many cups as well. The greatest of them all, the U.S. Open Cup, is a national competition where all 500+ teams compete.

There are also the tiered cups. For them, I divided into the nine league tiers into four groups and each each group has its own cup.

Each team also competes for a cup within its region. I divided the United States into eight separate regions and every year teams, from Dallas to San Angelo, will compete for the right to be champions of their region.

AND WE HAVE THE SOCCER BOWL!!!!(just a rip off of Ingerland’s Community shield)


So in summary, a team like New York will compete in the American Premier League(Tier 1), the U.S. Open, Cup, the Presidents Cup, the New England Cup every season.

A team in the 4[sup]th[/sup] tier(equivalent to upper-MLS/lower English Championship in quality) like the Birmingham Iron would compete in the NSA Championship East, the U.S. Open Cup, the Lamar Hunt Trophy, and the Dixie Cup every season.



Last, but not least, rather than have more unrealistic national youth leagues, I created customized state leagues. So, Massachusetts teams will only play other Massachusetts teams in their league games. The exception is the cups. Youth teams also compete for two cups(reserve teams do not)- a National Youth Cup(the u-18 equivalent of the U.S. Open Cup) and their regional league cup.

 

[Milo]

Quick outline of the leagues/cups:

Leagues

The Tiers are divided into this (# Divisions/ # Clubs in EACH division)*:
*Example: (2/16) = 32 clubs in that tier. Sixteen clubs divided into two divisions

American Premier League (1/18)
American National League (1/18)
American Federal League (1/18)
NSA Championship (2/16) East/West
NSA League One (2/16) East/West
NSA League Two (2/16) East/West
Patriot League Select (4/15) North/South/Central/West
Patriot League One (4/15) North/South/Central West
USS Regional Premier Leagues (8/9) Northeast/Mid-Atlantic/Southeast/Midwest/Great Plains/Southwest/West/Northwest

*Inactive Lower League feeds into Regional Premier (200+ clubs)

Cups

The National Cups (Clubs involved):
U.S. Open Cup (All created clubs, even in inactive feeder league)
Soccer Bowl (Pre-season one-off between U.S. Open Cup and American Premier League winners)
President's Cup (Tiers 1-3)
Lamar Hunt Trophy (Tiers 4-6)
Patriot League Invitational Cup (Tiers 7-8)
Federal Cup (Tier 9 + Inactive Leagues)

Regional Cups (Region):
New England Cup (Northeast)
Colonial Cup (Mid-Atlantic)
Dixie Cup (Southeast)
Great Lakes Trophy (Midwest)
Great Plains Cup (Great Plains)
Sun Belt Trophy (Southwest)
Rose Cup (West)
Cascadia Cup (Northwest)

 

[Milo]

I am starting this game in June of 2022. Outside of a few uninteresting technical reasons, the major reason was to add a bit of history to the save.

So a quick recap of the simmed years:

The United States is now ranked 3rd in the world and currently competing in the 2022 World Cup. At this point, they lead their group after two games and have clinched their spot into the next round. Their manager is the infallible Ben Olsen. They didn't make it out of their group in 2014 and were knocked out in the second round by Switzerland in 2018. Canada is also competing in the 2022 World Cup. They, like the United States, have a customized league to boost their reputation(Done in an effort to make CONCACAF more interesting).


According to the overview screen, this is the United States' attacking player with the highest reputation:



Originally a youth player for Providence, he now plays for New York.

The United States is loaded with talent. Their three top defenders play for Barcelona, Los Angeles, and Roma. Just to exemplify the amount of talent, this guy has only one cap:




For the major U.S. competitions, Phoenix has exceeded expectations:

American Premier League



U.S. Open Cup



Los Angeles has underperformed. Dallas, New York, and Los Angeles were deemed the super-clubs in creation and the latter is the only one to have not won the league. They haven't even finished in the top three.




That's enough of an introduction. I'll be starting my actual save in the next update. If you're interested in teams, players, competitions, states, etc, let me know. One of my favorite things about this set-up is diving into team histories.

 

[Milo]

I will be starting my career with the Springfield(MA) Muskets.



They are currently a semi-professional team in the ninth tier of the American pyramid, competing in the nine-team northeast regional division. The Muskets, in their brief history, have ranged from mediocre to bad. They started in the USS Northeast Premier in 2012. They were relegated twice but bounced back and they've never finished above 5th.

Their youth team has fared a bit better, finishing 2nd twice. Obviously Boston is the powerhouse of the Massachusetts teams; their youth team has lost three times nine seasons.

They currently play in a 3,200 capacity stadium(seats 1,500). Their average attendance is typically around 400.

This will be the league for the 2022/23 season:



Each team plays the other teams four times(32 total). First place earns promotion. Second and third will play in a play-off.

 

[goblue96]

I assume Albany (NY) is one of these shitty regional divisions?

 

[Milo]

Albany is actually in the division above Springfield right now(Tier 8); they were relegated last season. They started NSA League Two(Tier 6).

They've made it to the New England Cup quarters twice and the fourth round of the U.S. Open Cup once(knocked out by Phoenix).

They've actually played Springfield three times in friendlies. Beating Springfield 1-0(2016) and drawing twice 1-1('19, '20). When I was arranging friendlies, their payment required was $1.5k. As you will soon learn, that's way over my budget.

 

[Milo]

First off, I've been fucked.

The team is in massive debt. The Muskets are currently over $400,000 in the red.

The current payroll is $10,000 over budget. We have four defenders in the entire club, three of which have their contracts run out a week before the season starts.

If that wasn't a rude enough awakening, this guy has the nerve to claim he's "either-footed":

Actually, to be fair, it probably doesn't matter which foot he uses. Regardless, consider his ass cut, I don't do cheeky.




The rest of the roster:

Goalkeeper

Yes, goalkeeper. We have one. In the entire club. And he's eccentric(15).

Defenders

A 300% increase in the number of defenders compared to goalkeepers. I'm over the moon.

Four on the roster, three central defenders and a left-back. Only one is under contract through next season. The highest rated by my assistant is Mark Corona(2 stars).

However, Matthew Murphy(the only guy under contract through this season) may be decent despite his one star rating. He's big(6'4), strong(11), reasonably fast(7), and decent as a tackler(7) and in the air(8 heading, 12 jumping) for this level. At least I hope so.

Not much else to say about this group because I have no idea if any one outside of Murphy will be here when the season starts

Midfielders

Aww, hell yeah. We have a lot of midfielders. There's no chance for real quality, so quantity is nice. All the players worth a damn are signed through the season, too.

Lamont King is the most well-rounded:



Neil Burke is the other "standout". He's a great passer at this level(11), has good technique(10), and a great first touch(15!). Plus decent physical traits(all 7+).

Everyone else is underwhelming. Leobardo Tovar has some decent attributes to be a good ball-winning DM. He has great natural fitness(12), stamina(12), and tackling (10) but severe flaws like low bravery, anticipation, positioning, and marking that all but ruin him. I assume we plucked him off his high school's cross country team. If I can somehow harness his ability to run around like a madman but limit the damage of him, uh, running around like a madman, he could be useful.

We're screwed on the wings. My best candidate on the left is Jason Beasley. Beasley has good speed(12 acceleration, 11 pace) and is a decent crosser(8). Unfortunately, he can't lift a five pound weight(1 strength).

On the other side, my best candidate is 15-year-old Craig Peterson. He's quick enough (speed 11), but has almost no strength(2) and can't cross(5). Also, he has the terrible combination of high flair(15) and being awful at long shots(2).

Gutierrez should start packing his bags. Depth or not, he's out of here.


Forwards



My assistant is pretty high on Clark and Taylor. Paul Clark is well-rounded. No particular attributes stand out, but he's decent across the board.

Taylor looks average. His technical skills are pretty low(his highest is finishing, 8) and his physical skills are average. Certainly Clark is our best forward on paper.

The player I'm most intrigued about is Julian Melia. I've found in past versions of lower league management its better to be specialized in one skill than average across the board. Melia suits the former. I found him in the reserves. He's 6'3 and surprisingly athletic for his size(at this level). He has 9 pace and 8 acceleration which isn't bad. The key though is his jumping is at 12 and he has some good mental attributes(Bravery 15, Determination 12, Influence 13, Teamwork 12). Assuming I don't get lucky bargain hunting before the season, I'm certainly going to try him out.

Too bad only one player can cross.

Julian "Muttonchops" Melia:




I now have about a month and a half to fill out the squad. Obviously defenders will be a priority and it may be wise to sign another goalkeeper, but unfortunately the state of the club's finances will make this difficult. No idea what formations I'll run, completely depends on how this next month works out.



Sorry for the spam of long updates. I had some free time today and wanted to get all this stuff out of the way so I could start actually playing. The rest of my updates will be less frequent and hopefully more exciting than background information.

 

[NML]

God I wish I had the computer to handle this database. So badass

 

[OU11]

MOAR LONG UPDATES

 

[Yankee151]

Immersion at all time high

 

[Milo]

Preseason recap:

I was actually surprised at how well the team played against Lowell(Tier 7). I ran a 3-4-3 with Muttonchops leading the line. While he won't get credit for an assist, he played a key role in the goal. On the other side, the goal we gave up was certainly preventable, Beasley played an awful pass that resulted in a turnover deep in our half. For the most part, the backline stayed organized, albeit a little exposed at times with the flat midfield. Lowell did hit the post twice. Murphy also played well. Gutierrez did not play.



Beasley and Muttonchops


Tweaked my tactics a bit against New Haven(Tier 7) but still played a 3-4-3. The left-side of our defense looks like it will be a problem. We only have three central defenders and Bivens is super slow. Corona got beat in the air for a goal but Murphy looked all right. New Haven was just better than us, but the team kept fighting despite being down 3-1. Our new signing Seth Muller scored twice. Gutierrez did not play.

For some annoying reason the team was scheduled to play a league opponent in a preseason friendly(Meriden). We were due a rough game after two decent ones. Muttonchops did score(and also missed the net on a clean breakaway.) I still have not seen him head the ball. That is worrying. Had an injury late and opted to play a man down instead of using our last available sub. Gutierrez did not play.



The Good and the Bad of Muttonchops.


The Woonsocket game was the only game I personally scheduled. Typically, I hold an invitational cup which includes two other teams and my youth team. Unfortunately, I pulled my entire youth team up into the first team, so instead I scheduled non-league Woonsocket to hopefully get an easy win to boost the confidence of my players before the season opener. We really woonsock-it'ed to them. Muttonchops nabbed his second goal of the preseason. Gutierrez did not play.


Muttonchops had a great preseason(2 goals, 1 assist). As did Murphy. Both players my assistant has rated under one star. He can woon-suck it.

Other Preseason Business

Named Jose Fowler(my eccentric goalkeeper) captain. Lamont King will be my vice-captain.

Gave out numbers. Only specified two myself; Fowler got #13 instead of the typical #1 for a starting keeper and Muttonchops was given #99. Gutierrez did not receive a number.


Transfers

I was able to make a few transfers and I did somewhat sort out out my salary budget.

My major, and only true, signing was Seth Muller in on a free transfer. He's far and away the best rated player on the team:



It was a miracle I was able to sign him. No exaggeration, my non-unrealistic transfer list in the player search menu had four players on it. Total.

I was able to negotiate a few contracts down. Corona, our best rated centerback, did take a little pay-cut for an extra year. Would rather have just given him a one year deal, but had to sign him due to lack of other defensive options. Bivens was re-signed for the same reasons.

Made three loan signings, the best of the bunch is a DM, Edson Thompson(you can see him win the ball on the Mutton miss in the 2nd video). He'll allow me to tinker with a diamond formation. The others are a really bad goalkeeper that I hope never sees the field and a full-back that is now useless because I couldn't get a right-back.

Lost a few players that I wasn't too fussed about. Also wanted to personally announce that unfortunately the club is parting ways with Uzziel Gutierrez. We wish him the best in the future.

The window will remain open until the end of February for this division(each tier has its own windows, the lowest tier mostly stays open). I'm sure I'll make some moves here or there in the future, I have one more long-term and four more short-term loan spots available. I also have $10k left in my salary budget, but it seems unlikely I'll use it with the current interest shown in my club.

 

[joshuahuskers]

This is cool. Can you give a quick rundown of the team(s) in Nebraska?

 

[Milo]

This is cool. Can you give a quick rundown of the team(s) in Nebraska?

Just a rundown of the Nebraska teams. No save update.



Five teams from Nebraska: Omaha Prairie Dogs, Lincoln Marshals, Bellevue Bombers, Grand Island Otters, and the Kearney Bucks. Omaha and Lincoln are the only teams that started in the active pyramid. As of yet, the latter three have not made it into Tier 9.

Bizarrely, Lincoln and Omaha have never played at the first team level.


Omaha

Spoiler: Omaha

It just so happens Omaha had a really interesting first decade. They punched above their weight in the league:

The Prairie Dogs earned back-to-back promotions in their first two seasons. They yo-yo'd back into the APL, then spent the rest of the decade near the top of the American National League(Tier 2). Just to show how quickly things can change, they lost the promotion play-off final against Nashville in 2018/19; three seasons later they were relegated back to the division they started in.

As I mentioned in a previous post, the barriers of money and facilities really make it difficult for teams to maintain an elevated stature. Omaha's roughly 25,000 seat stadium is under half the size of the typical APL team.

Omaha's youth team had an incredible achievement. They won the U-18 National Youth Cup in 2021. So despite their recent first team troubles, their future may still be bright. They are only the second non-APL(at the time) team to do so(Minneapolis).

They've been good in the cups as well. Omaha reached the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open Cup in 2015/16 and reached multiple semis(13/14, 19/20) and quarters(15/16, 20/21, 21/22) in the Presidents' Cup. They are almost annual threats in the Great Plains Cup, but have yet to win it.

However, their youth team did win the 2022 U-18 Great Plains Cup.

(For some odd reason there was no U.S. Open Cup in the 20/21 season. This is a rare issue, but can happen when the dates, for whatever reason, stretch past the designated season dates. Don't mind the dates of the Great Plains Cup, the competition runs in the spring so SI deems it as a season later than when it actually takes place.)

Lincoln

Spoiler: Lincoln

In the league, Lincoln has, for the most part, maintained the status quo. They began in the NSA Championship and except for two brief spells in the division below, they've been typically middle of the pack in the fourth tier.

However, while Omaha has done well but technically never won anything, Lincoln has a few trophies to their name. They won the inaugural Great Plains Cup over Kansas City(and reached the finals again in 18/19, though Kansas City got their revenge). They also have two NSA League One(West) championships.

Their best run in the U.S. Open Cup was a fifth round loss to Boston. The deepest run in the Lamar Hunt Trophy Cup was a quarterfinal loss to Colorado Springs.

At the youth level, Lincoln has been more than a match for their state rivals. Despite Omaha's national success in 20/21, Lincoln has been the more consistent team at the u-18 level. They've won their youth league five times compared to Omaha's two. The Wichita Staggerwings (Kansas) have the other three championships.*

Lincoln and Omaha are tied on U-18 Great Plains Cups. Lincoln won the tournament in 2014 and were runner-ups in 2015.

*I put Kansas and Nebraska into the same reserve/youth league because I'm an antebellum nerd. When I was batting around the idea of unique division names for the youth leagues, I was absolutely going to name their league the Douglas Division(Kansas-Nebraska Act). Opted against all the work, but it's still the Douglas Division in my heart.

The Rest

Bellevue, Kearney, nor Grand Island have reached the playable tiers. The most accomplished of the teams is Kearney. The Bucks reached the Federal Cup final(Tier 9+Inactives Cup) in the 2018/19 season but were defeated by the Edison Bolts(NJ).

None of their first teams have reached it past the second round of the U.S. Open Cup nor the Great Plains Cup.

Both Grand Island and Kearney's youth teams have made it to the semi-finals of the U-18 Great Plains Cup. Grand Island lost to Colorado Springs in 2019/20 and Kearney was knocked out on penalties by Fort Collins in 2018/19.

 

[Travis7401]

GO FORT COLLINS!!! You know how I hate Nebraskans. In this hypothetical world I probably gave my intern (from Kearney) an atomic wedgy before the game, pulled his underwear straight over his head.

 

[joshuahuskers]

Love you too monkey.

 

[Milo]

Quarterly Report


Northeast Regional Premier

Results

Recap

It took us 55 minutes into our third game to score our first goal. Not exactly conducive to a strong start. While Trenton was the team's first win, the turning point was the second half of the following West Hartford game. West Hartford was a team I thought we should beat. At the time, they were in last place with one point. Naturally, they scored two early goals. In response, I, for the first time with the team, abandoned my calm, reassuring team talks and ripped into them. We fought our way back to 2-2 and missed a number of chances to win.

Side-note- I'm a little concerned about the mental makeup of the team. It seems like the only time I can get them "motivated" or "fired up" is after games. Mark Corona, AFTER ONLY 3 GAMES, dislikes me because of my talks. Appointing my eccentric goalkeeper may have also been a poor choice. After winning two of our first six games, he was already showing signs of overconfidence.

The second half of this quarter saw our offense start to click. Defense was still an issue(one clean sheet total), but we scored multiples goals in 5 of our last 6 games after stating the season with 1 in 3. While there was improvement, we did leave some points on the field that, in this tight league, may have a big impact in the future; Warwick won despite us taking a 1-0 lead into the last twenty minutes and we squandered a two goal halftime lead at Danbury.


First goal of the season:

Probably the nicest goal we'll score all season.

Our best players, according to match ratings, have been centerback Matthew Murphy(7.16, 1 assist, 2 PoM), forward Seth Muller(7.14, 4 goals, 2 assists, 3 PoM), and Muttonchops(7.08, 3 goals, 2 assists).

As the table shows, the league is very tight. Springfield is one point above the relegation zone and Meriden has a game in hand. However, Danbury, in first, has fourteen points, just five more than us. With 75% of the season to go, I'm not worried about our league position yet.

We also advanced twice in the Federal Cup. Sarasota (FL) is next.

Our opening draw in the U.S. Open Cup was also favorable. We drew USS Regional Lower Leagues(inactive Tier 10) Dover (NH).



Tactics

My formation evolved dramatically from the season opener to its current state. There was no massive overhaul, but rather tweaks from game-to-game.

I started the season with a flat 3-4-3 in an effort to keep my formation simple and balanced. However, I soon realized that due to my direct, long ball style, this was an ineffective set-up to get the best out of my talented midfielders. The ball was simply passing over the heads of players like Burke and King and the midfield was too slow in support of the forwards and the backline.

I am probably more cautious than I should be with playing players out of position and due to the lack of versatility in the team, I confined myself to only a few options. Two key components remained consistent:

1) Three Forwards

Seth Muller, Muttonchops, and Paul Clark make up my best unit. Louie Taylor is also a decent option off the bench. We want to play to our strengths and get our best players on the field. Playing with three forwards does just that.

2) Three-Man Backline

The same number as forwards for the opposite reasons. Limited by the number of defensive options in the squad, it was my only real choice if I wanted to avoid using players out of position.

It became clear very quickly that Bivens' speed was a liability and with a lack of options, I signed the only free agent centerback I could. I was lucky enough that he had decent speed(8 pace). While not much of an upgrade in other areas compared to Bivens, and significantly shorter(5'11), Matkin fills the role slightly better than Bivens. This also gives me a little more breathing room with four centerbacks in the squad. I also immediately started training Matkin as a right-back.

From Danbury to Danbury(League Game 1-8):

"3-4-3"
Starting Line-up, Formation in Season Opener against Danbury.

Spoiler

"The Wrath of Cod"*
Starting Line-up, Formation against Danbury(League Game 8).

Spoiler

As you can see, the right side of my defense is overloaded. The origin of this was an attempt to support Bivens, but it remained due to my backline's struggle to mark opponents coming down our right wing. There were many, many occasions when the opponent had a player unmarked in the box on that side.

Clark was shifted to an AML/IF because of spacing and defensive structure. Previously, the three forwards all up top were far too bunched up.

Peterson actually was dropped early in the season when I shifted to a narrow diamond. He recently began starting again due to the lack of options in his position. He's maybe too much of a winger for his current role, but right now I think he is my best option. However, I am currently training a back-up central midfielder, Cassius Wray, as a right midfielder. He was surprisingly effective when I was playing multiple central midfielders; he has a high work rate and good stamina, but also seems to play above his attributes.

Issues still remain. First, it's looking more likely that I won't be able to renew my loan deal for Edson Thomspon, the team's only defensive midfielder. This is a huge blow and would force some major adjustments.

The far-side marking on the right still creates problems for my team. I'm considering switching my left-sided centerback from a stopper. In his effort to close down players, he may very well be drawing my other centerbacks to far to his side.

Still not sure what to do with Lamont King. He's been playing fine, but I need to figure out how to increase his impact on games.



*(Yes, Springfield is in western Massachusetts, not near Cape Cod, but I liked the name).

 

[Travis7401]

Love dat asymmetric formation. It is actually pretty similar to mine!

 

[Milo]

Also, realized something neat last session. Seth Muller, my best forward, came through the Omaha youth academy AND played for Albany (NY). Small (fictional) world.

 

[Milo]

The U.S. won the World Cup.

Coasted out of their group(Iran, Portugal, Cameroon). Beat Argentina 3-2 in extra time and defending champions Belgium in the quarters(4-1, Riley hattrick). They edged past Brazil in the semis, an 88th minute penalty gave them a 3-2 win. Played Spain the final. Spain led most the way after scoring in the first ten minutes. Wiley equalized in the 77th and the USA went on to win on penalties.

Wiley ended up winning the tournament's best player award(6 goals, 2 assists, 8.52 rating in 8 games). Neymar won the Golden Boot(9 goals).

Three U.S. players named to the best eleven: Ryan Wiley(New York), Mike Guerrero(Bayern), Jeff Platnauer(Roma). Interestingly, both Wiley and Platnauer came out of non-APL youth systems(Providence, Greensboro). Guerrero came through the Chicago academy.

Ben Olsen, greatest manager ever.

 

[Travis7401]

What year was this in? I do not see Leroy Jenkins on the team? Love the Beast striker with almost all 17+ Physical stats and the 6'4 200lb central defender with 20 jumping though. ATHOLETES!

 

[Milo]

2022. Season I started playing. Actually surprised they won it this early, in most test sims it took them much longer(if at all).

You'd appreciate this Canadian player I found:

6'8 with 14 speed and 18 agility! 93 caps already. WHAT IF LEBRON WAS BORN IN CANADA AND PLAYED SOCCER INSTEAD OF HOCKEYBALL?


Canada did make it to this World Cup but didn't make it out of their group(France, Uruguay, Nigeria). They host in 2026.

 

[Travis7401]

Look at that magnificent bastard.

 

[OU11]

Change his name to Leroy

 

[OU11]

Lol nevermind, greg gorton is good too

 

[Milo]

Got a few games into the next quarter. Here's a preview:

 

[NML]

@Milo

 

[kella]

lol, that last goal happened to me in FIFA last night, FFFUUUUUUUU

 

[Milo]

@Milo

I think I have two or three more games left in this quarter. Should have an update this weekend.

 

[Milo]

Table

Sixteen league games to go.

Results

Recap

Oof. Had an "Iceberg right ahead!" Titanic clip queued up but disaster, for the moment, was diverted with the last game of the quarter. Going into that game, Springfield was in last place and in complete freefall. Nothing was going right. Our forwards either weren't getting the ball or taking speculative 30-yard shots with better options present. Our backline was all over the place and I was struggling to find the right amount of support for them in the midfield. I may have made some bad tweaks in terms of individual instructions that really hurt us in a few games as well. Though, it didn't seem to matter what adjustments I made, we kept letting in soft goals and weren't creating chances.

Went out in the Federal Cup to Sarasota(FL), they scored two quick goals on us. Advanced against Dover(NH) in the U.S. Open Cup, but Brandon(FL) knocked us out. We actually came back from 2-0 down, but only a few minutes after the equalizer Brandon scored again. They were the first active league team I played in one of the cups(Cotton League, Tier 9 Southeast). Now the only cup competition we have left is the New England Cup starting in 2023.

As I referenced, we lost four straight in the league. All the teams are pretty similar in skill level, so that run of games was really concerning. We weren't just unlucky, but were being beaten soundly and clearly the weaker team. The worst was against Warwick. They out-shot us 14-2 and 0-2 flattered us.

The performance against Burlington came out of nowhere. In fact, I had the crisis team talk before the Warwick game and it didn't seem to move the needle. We were at our lowest point yet somehow went up 3-0 in the first half. Made sure we weren't going to give it away in the second half and then got some players some much needed rest.



Dominguez(discussed below) to Muttonchops(2nd Goal). Finally exploiting his size.

I may have been guilty with tweaking too much during the losing streak and too little during the relatively decent patch of performances toward the end of the first quarter and this set of games. However, a few things went against us. As I predicted, Edson Thompson left the club when his loan ran up and he had too many suitors when we tried to get a new deal. Ended up at Manhattan(KS). His loss forced us make some significant alterations to the line-up due to having no other natural defensive midfielders in the squad(his last game was Bristol).

At first I moved "Muhammad Wrali"(Cassius Wray) into the midfield with Lamont King but the defense was left way too exposed. He hasn't been great. He was a good option off the bench when we had Thompson, but we are definitely a weaker team with him starting. That said, I pretty much glossed over him when I did my initial roster breakdown. He's contributed quite a bit over the course of the season(20 appearances, 2 goals). He hasn't been awful, and I guess that has to be good enough with my current options.

Did also have some injury issues. Luckily, none that were devastating. Bivens and Matkin traded a few weekly injuries, but with one healthy while the other was not, I had three natural central defenders at all times. Did play my loaned in left-back, Ruben Tapia, in a few games to give some defenders a rest. He now isn't barging into my office every week with a request to terminate his loan. Our loaned-in goalkeeper might as well sleep in the office, doe.

Going into the next quarter we have five injured players: Beasley(torn hamstring), Matkin(pulled hamstring), Tovar(torn calf muscle), Corona(gashed arm).

Unfortunately Matkin will be out for a couple weeks and Corona picked up his injury against Burlington. This means I'll have three available defenders(2 CBs, 1 LB) until one of them gets healthy. Corona should be back within a week.

Ivan Dominguez has been getting more time. I somehow missed that he had eight crossing. He is a natural central midfielder, but I have been using him more and more in the right midfield/Peterson spot. My assistant likes him more than Wrali as a midfielder, but his low mental attributes really make me reluctant to put him in that spot at the moment, especially with any defensive duty.

Been manically trying to find potential loans. Unfortunately, no one wants to join us. Winter is coming, they aren't stupid. Found a few decent forwards on the free transfer market, but their demands of A TEN OF A THOUSAND DOLLARS was too much for me to pull the trigger.

Did do a lot of contract work during this quarter. It donned on me that roughly 80% of my team wasn't signed through next season. At first, I was hesitant to sign anyone for an extra season in case I won promotion. With that very unlikely, I wanted to ensure I had a stable, cohesive group of players next season(if I don't get relegated and that's a big if). Surprisingly a number of players were willing to take paycuts, including Mark Corona. I was sure he would have no intention of returning. A lot of players took paycuts for an extra year and a promotion salary increase clause. With them only signing through the next season, that was a no-brainer.

My captain, Jose Fowler, was willing to resign for half the money he was making. I guess eccentricity can be a good thing, too. Burke took nearly $1000 less annually for a $50 loyalty bonus. FIFA 23 must have just come out.

Unfortunately, Lamont King, Paul Clark, and Matthew Murphy all look like they are going to be demanding too much money. All have been guaranteed starters when healthy. Murphy has been my best defender.

All the optimism after the first set of games was undermined by this really bad run. In case you don't know, if your team gets relegated into an inactive league, you are automatically fired. The board expects us to finish fifth, but at this level it's pretty rare they pull the trigger quickly(I hope this remains true if I manage to just stay up). So somehow I've not moved a single place up or down in the standings but my concern has completely flipped.

Half a season to go.

 

[Milo]

If the league is still tight after the third quarter of games(should be barring a miracle or disaster), I'll drop the large recaps for more instant reaction.

 

[Milo]

Table

Results

Look at those temperatures. Free handwarmers for the first 50 fans at our next home game.

Recap

Not exactly a miracle run, but pretty close. Better to be lucky than good, and we were the former for the beginning of the quarter despite some unfortunate moments(red cards). The soccer gods were looking out for us early and we capitalized on those fortunate results by playing well the rest of the way.

After roughly the first twenty games of the season, we received zero red cards. Two games into this quarter we had two. Paul Clark picked up two yellow cards in a two minute span(the second was for diving) and we played a man down for about sixty minutes against the best team in the league(Danbury). However, we almost completed an unlikely comeback. Down 3-0 going into the last ten minutes, we ended up losing 3-2(Muller and Taylor scored).

Seth Muller was sent off against Norwalk. Chasing down a loose ball in their half, he dove into the back of a defender. At that point we were up 1-0 in the 30th minute, I just assumed we would lose the game. In fact, I was more upset that Muller, our best player, would almost certainly miss upcoming key relegation games(Bristol, West Hartford) because it was obvious he was going to get extra games tacked onto his suspension(the tackle was awful). I unashamedly bunkered for the last 30 minutes with a four man backline and two defensive midfielders and we somehow pulled out the win.

The Bristol game(1-1) may be the most significant game of the season. While we only drew, it was such a lucky result and had we've lost, we could have been primed for another bad slide like the previous quarter(when we lost to West Hartford). How lucky were we?

Yes. No shots. The entire game. And we drew.

We went on a nice run after the Bristol game. Won four out our last five, losing only to Warwick(0-3 against them this season). Put four past Burlington again, this time in maybe the most exciting game of our season. New signing Mykell Larkins put us up 2-1 in the 70th minute. It was 3-2 going in the 88th when Muttonchops put the game away(4-2). There were many fist pumps to be had.

Our last transfer before the window closed was Mykell Larkins. While I was hesitant to sign anybody as I may have over-signed players through next season out of desperation, he was good fit at a good price. As mentioned in the previous post, Ivan Dominguez(now a starter if healthy) has become an important member of the team because of his crossing. For similar reasons, Larkins, a left-winger/striker, was signed. For most the season, we've been using our AML as an inside forward to maintain defensive shape while keeping our three forwards on the field. This has resulted in lukewarm success going forward and some troubles defensively(as much as I limit their closing down, they still over-commit to the fullback). What Larkins provides is the skill-set to play as a winger in that spot, thus limiting the cutting in, opening up more space for our forwards, and sending in more accurate crosses to take advantage of their size.

On only a $3,600 contract, I thought it was too good of a deal to pass up.



No cup games this quarter. We drew West Warwick(RI) in the New England Cup. Hopefully Warwick's ownership of our hindquarters does not carry over to West Warwick as well. We are wrecked financially. We need a big cup draw(if we advance).

Going into the final set of games, Muttonchops and Muller are tied with the most goals(10). Burke is third with eight. Muller leads the team in assists with nine, Taylor is second(8), and Burke is third(6).

With eight games to go, we are close to the comforting, yet unexciting, doldrums of mid-table safety. However, we are only six points out of the playoff spot. It's unlikely that we'll jump both Warwick(who owns us) and Norwalk, but I'll do more instant reaction until it's a certainty we can't.

 

[Milo]

Here's the rest of my schedule. Obviously, if we advance in the New England Cup, we'll have at least one more game.

(Might want to bring a coat to the West Warwick game.)

 

[kella]

You are only paying that guy 3.6k a year??

 

[Milo]

Yeah. The league-wide average salary is $8.5k.

We are semi-professional, very close to typical amateur level reputation. Our league is basically the equivalent of English county leagues. The lowest playable English league in FM(Blue Square N/S, tier 6) is higher in reputation than the league above us(45/35 out of 200).


Under the hood, starting league reputations(0-200) of tiers goes like this:

1 - APL, 190 (EPL 180)
2 - ANL, 155 (Ligue 1 155)
3 - AFL, 140 (Eredivise 134)
4 - NSAC, 120 (MLS 117, English Championship 125)
5 - NSA1, 100 (English league 1 100)
6 - NSA2, 75 (English league 2 80)
7 - Patriot Select, 50 (Blue Square N/S, 45)
8 - Patriot 1, 35 (English Tier 7, 35)
*9 - USS Regional Leagues, 30 (English county leagues 30)

10(Inactive) - US Regional Lower Leagues, 15

 

[kella]

Ah ok, for some reason I thought you had created some kind of American EPL full of stars a la Zeek and his ongoing 1998 winning eleven stuff

 

[Milo]

I did. I just started at the very bottom.

Plan to work my way up there. I'll almost certainly have to leave Springfield to do it, though.

Speaking of differences between the top and bottom, New York just beat the hell out of West Hartford(team in my league) 11-0 in the New England Cup. New York played almost all reserves, too. Despite the bad scoreline, that's great for West Hartford. They probably got a big payday playing at New York. (Yup, just over 50,000 in attendance, cut 50/50. They currently average 322 in attendance this season.)

 

[Milo]

Was planning on just including our cup games as footnotes unless something interesting happened. Then we went and got destroyed by an amateur team.

Named a weakened team because of the upcoming league games. Thought I could get away with it because West Warwick's amateur status. Rested Corona, Murphy, Muller, Dominguez, and Muttonchops(before realizing we would have 10 days off). Was down 5-1 at the half.




The Warwick curse continues. I blame their 5-3-2 puber tactics.



Last game of the weekend for me. Not sure how many I'll be able to get in this week. Only league games left, doe.

(And yes, you are all free to mock me for losing to an all-greyed out amateur team. Especially when their fullback has a hattrick.)

 

[WingedHelmet]

Am following.

 

[Milo]

Played Danbury last night. They are the best team in the league and we are 0-1-2 against them this season.

6 points back with 8 to go, I was prepping this as the game of the season. Before it started, I told my players they were underdogs and had nothing to lose! They all looked relaxed. Not exactly what I was looking for.

We started off strong. Their semi-professional keeper made the greatest save of all saves of all time in the history of all sports to deny a Muhammad Wrali freekick. They started to pin us back after that, but we had a few other good chances in the first half. Neil Burke tried a finesse shot from 35 yards out when he was clean through on goal and then, on our very next chance, he blasted one into the Boston Harbor from 6 yards out.

I was content, though. We went into halftime 0-0 and I had a great team talk lined up. I told them passionately, "THEY CAN WIN THIS!!!" They all look composed. Welp.

Not a lot of chances the next half. Warwick lost midweek and were losing in their game(Norwalk were off.) I began reassuring myself that a draw was a good result here.

Then in the 80th minute this happened:



Game finished 1-0.


Seven games to go. One point behind Warwick. Six behind Norwalk(they have a game in hand now.)

 

[kella]

Your keeper has been watching too much Pro Clubs, diving out of the way of an easy save Keith style

 

[Travis7401]

I love when Mr. Manager screams passionately and the players end up split 50/50 between confused and composed Just like reel life corching.

That goal, lawd.

Also, maybe switch ur highlights view to "close" camera? That's the only one I could pick where the players don't look like fleas when it gets uploaded to Youtube.

 

[Milo]

Hard to see, but Corona(defender) actually gets a touch on that goal.

Don't think I have a close/zoomed-in option in FM 13, may be just FM 14. May just abandon them if they are that hard to see. I personally have to change it to 1080p to make out anything.

 

[Travis7401]

Ah, I forgot you were on 13. I'd keep uploading them, I can still tell what is going on, was just thinking it could be easier to see if you had a close option.

 

[Milo]

He isn't even trying to clear the ball or make any sort of defensive play. The ball comes in slowly and he just drifts toward it(not marking anyone). Rather than let it go past into Fowler's hands(fowler can't be trusted) or clear it, he just lets it bounce off his shoulder(?).

Honestly, I laughed when it happened. Still, Corona

 

[Orlando]

This is awesome.

 

[kella]

I led the Revs to a brutal 3-1 defeat at the hands of mighty Chivas in the first game. I suck.

There are like a billion options for everything. Is there a way to automate some of the management?

 

[Travis7401]

Lol, I think we should all just post our football manager tales in Milo's thread. You can do as much as as little as you like (you can just sim the games completely if you want). Go to the coaching duties page to set up other coaches to do shit, but as with most things in life if you want something done right you should do it urself.

For the basics with tactics, pick a formation where your best players are all in "green" spots that they can play well. Then for the player roles (target man, poacher, etc) one easy way to fit your team is just to see what player role fits that specific player best. You can click on the player and scroll through "roles" and see what stats are highlighted. Pick a role where the highlighted stats are all good. Then for the Support/Attack/Defend option, what I do is set them so I have some interplay between lines. If you run a 4-4-2 and you have both strikers set to "attack" and all 4 midfielders set to "defend" you are going to have very separated and isolated lines that can't pass or move the ball well.

 

[Milo]

MLS can be a tough starting point. While players and teams may be more familiar, the parity of the league, the relatively average abilities of the players, and the roster rules can make it more of a challenge.

You can delegate responsibilities to other staff members. Don't have it in front of me and haven't played much of 2014 lately, but there should be some options under your manager's drop down menu(Responsibilities, maybe?) that can automate most of the things you don't understand or don't care to micro-manage.

While the size and expectations of a top team, like Arsenal, may feel a bit overwhelming, the knowledge of the key players, their skills, and the advantage over lesser teams in their league may flatten the learning curve a bit. And, if you're not interested in training, tutoring, micro-managing the reserves and youths, you can just drop it on the lap of a staff member.

 

[Milo]

Just for clarification, FM 2014 removed the sliders from the tactics, right? It's just shouts now?

 

[Travis7401]

Yeah outside of the general formation, and attacking/fluidity controls you basically further tweak how the players behave through shouts (and on a more individual level, player roles and individual player instructions). I've kind of found "less is more" at times with the shouts, especially if I have a bunch of individual player instructions already dialed in. If you dial in your specific player instructions and then throw a contradictory "shout" over the top of that, it seems like your players struggle to decide what to do I only tweak or adjust them if I have a 2 goal lead, if I'm losing late in the game, or if I see a specific problem.

My ASS coach always panics about not having enough possession and shit and tries to get me to change the gameplan when he just doesn't understand what I'm doing.