In Football Manager, we can identify 4 attributes that define a good Captain: Influence, Determination, Work Rate and Team Work.

Influence

Influence is the player’s ability to affect events or other players without any intentional effort. Players with high influence will be leaders on the pitch and team-mates will tend to rally around these players.

In my opinion, this is the most important of those 4 attributes. A player with high influence (18 or more) can be considered a natural leader, an example for his teammates.

Determination

High determination can be understood as a commitment to succeed. A determined player will give everything in order to win. As you can see, any good captain needs determination.

Work Rate

This reflects the player’s mental drive to work hard. A high rating will ensure a player wants to work his socks off from start to finish, but he will need the necessary physical attributes to actually be able to pull it off. Nonetheless, it is an admirable trait to have in your team.

Team Work

How well the player follows tactical instructions and works for and alongside his team-mates. A team full of players with a high rating here will work better as a unit. Players with lower ratings will slack off and not ‘buy in’ to the team ethos. You can guess that your captain needs to work well with his partners, so high team work is a requisite.

Examples of great Captains

In both Football Manager and real world soccer, you can identify John Terry, Steven Gerrard and Fabio Cannavaro as top class captains.

This was a guest article written by Ruderic To read more of Ruderic’s Football Manager stuff checkout Football Manager Debot.

Related posts:

1. Scout Hiring Guide
2. Don’t Underestimate the Need for Good Backroom Staff
3. FM2010 Tactic 4-2-3-1

The main use I give to my scouts is the search for young promising players, also known as wonderkids. That is what I need several scouts with different areas of knowledge. I usually have 4 or 5 of them traveling around the globe looking for hot prospects.

Also, I usually get report cards from them before signing a new player. That way, I can read more things about the players, like their personality and if they are likely to adapt fast to my team.

Scout Attributes

When it comes to hire new scouts, you have to pay special attention to 2 key attributes, Judging Player Potential and Judging Player Ability. As you can guess, they indicate how good he is to judge player’s ability and potential.

However, those 2 attributes are not the only ones you have to pay attention to. A good scout also needs high mental ones, like Determination and Adaptability. A scout with good adaptability will aquire faster knowledge about an unknown country.

Recommended Scouts

The scouts I am posting here can be signed for free. If you are managing a small club, maybe they will not accept a contract from you. Feel free to leave a comment indicating wich scout has done a good job in your game.

• Oliver Bierhoff
• Andrea Pastorello
• Paolo Berrettini
• Txema Noriega
• Ed van Stijn
• Vlada Stosic
• Horst-Dietter Hottges
• Joop Lensen

This was a guest article written by Ruderic To read more of Ruderic’s Football Manager stuff checkout Football Manager Debot.

Related posts:

1. Football Manager 2008 – Staff Hiring Guide
2. How to choose a Captain
3. Don’t Underestimate the Need for Good Backroom Staff

I really like attacking teams in Football Manager 2010 so I created this tactic. This gives you that we score lots of goals, but can be susceptible to conceding too.

Team Instructions

Philosophy: Fluid
Starting Strat: Attacking.

Passing: Shorter
Closing Down: Press More
Crosses: Drill

The rest are default.

Playmaker is the CM
Target Man: The left striker.
Target Man Supply: Mixed

I have made a few advanced changes there.

Defensive line is dropped deeper
The team plays wider.

Player Instructions

Keeper:
Set to be a basic keeper. The one I have has a weakness that means he isnt great at coming off his line to sweep up the ball.

Full Backs:
Set to support. I like my fullbacks to get forward, but I also like them to choose when to. I feel the support option offers this.
They will look to support the winger, get crosses into the box and be involved.

Centre Backs:
Both set to defend, not ball playing not limited. Just run of the mill centre halves. Not scared to play the ball, but not looking to be beckenbauer back there.

NOTE: the right sided centre half needs to be the one who is the best in the air. The set peices are built around him. For me this is David Wheater, big, tall, strong and good in the air. He scored 13 goals last season, so get someone with good delivery. 34 in six seasons. I know its the wrong way there. was soon changed after our first attacking set piece

Defensive Midfielder:
He is there to defend and defend only. He sits infront of the back line offering more cover there in front of the central defenders. will score very few, but will chip in with a few assists if they have good passing ability.

NOTE: When playing teams with a devastating AMC (liverpool and Gerrard), set him to man mark him.

Centre Midfielder:
Box to Box player what you have here. All rounded, can contribute at both ends. He is set to take long shots “sometimes” as the man playing there for me does not have a favourable long shot attribute. Change it for someone had and he can be devastating, the man I had in me previous game was.

Right and Left Attacking Midfielder:
Both are out and out wingers. Set to attack. They are pushed on for a reason, to keep the fullback deep. When you break, more often than not it will be these players in behind the full back and whipping the ball across the box for a finish.

They dont need to be pacey, O’Neill of Middlesbrough did the job for me with great effect for 5 years, 28 assits in our first season. They will create a lot of chances. Finishing ability is a benefit.

Right Sided Striker:
I have this man set to “advanced forward”, but should you have a pacey striker who is a great finisher (defoe was amazing for me) then change to poacher. Both have been amazing for me. Last season my player here scored 18 and assisted 12.

Left Sided striker:
Your “target man”, he will score, he will assist and do everything. But for me, its mostly score.

Season 1: Leroy Lita 35 (Championship)
Season 2: Mido 18
Season 3: Mido 15
Season 4: Leroy Lita 20
Season 5: Jonothan Franks 24
Season 6: Andy Stewart 32

Thats how we have gone for the man in that position. Lita losing out and regaining from Mido as Mido had the better attributes for it.

In Game instructions
Set exploit the flanks.

Should you go behind, do not be scared to go overload. Especially in games you believe you should be winning. It creates a lot of chances.

Success

I got middlesbrough promoted from the Championship first season through the play offs after having 10 points deducted.

4 seasons of stead improvement in the premier league saw me end up winning it in the 5th season, along with the league cup.

Download

Related posts:

1. FM2010 Tactic 4-2-3-1
2. FM2010 – Free Transfer Deals & Steals
3. How to choose a Captain

Use this schedule and you can be pretty sure you’ll see an increase in a number of stats for your squad even after just the one season.

There are individual schedules for:

• Goalkeepers
• Full Backs
• Centre Backs
• Defensive Midfielders
• Wingers
• Attack Midfielders
• Strikers

As always I’d love to know your thoughts and how it has worked out for you.

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Football Manager - Ultimate Training Schedule (5925)
What are you waiting for, install it!

Related posts:

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It essentially revolves around a short quick passing game and pressing the opposition to force errors.

The basic formation is a 4-2-3-1 like this:

Player Attributes

FB – Normal full back stats. Bonus attributes are first touch & passing
CB – Normal centre back stats. Bonus acceleration & pace
DMC – These are the main boys in the team so make sure you have some good players. You really want for these boys good passing, first touch, stamina, teamwork & tackling. Bonus would be concentration & positioning.
WG – What you’d expect dribbling, pace & crossing.
AC – Key really but think creativity, pace, passing & finishing.
ST – He will be your lone big dog up front so think heading, finishing, team work, acceleration & composure.

Team Instructions

So that’s about it. Feel free to ask questions and let me know how you get on.

Download

Related posts:

1. FM2010 Tactic 4-1-1-2-2
2. Football Manager Ultimate Training Schedule
3. Football Manager 2008 – Random Hints and Tips

Over the last few months, the most asked question of us on Twitter and Facebook has been “when is Football Manager coming to iPhone/iPod?”, and we’ve confidently pointed out that it wasn’t coming.

When people have asked “when is Football Manager Handheld coming to iPhone/iPod” we’ve been very quiet.

But now we are beyond excited to be able to announce today that FMH2010 is coming to iPhone and iPod touch. And even more excited to be able to announce that what has been our best kept secret ever, it’s coming out in the next 48 hours!

We expect it will be live in the iTunes Store within the next 48 hours!

FMH2010 on the iPhone/iPod touch reviewed

What do the pundits say? Some very lucky few journalists who received limited edition Football Manager Handheld iPod touches (engraved by the people who engrave the FA Cup!) with the game pre-installed on it, expect the game to be a big winner:

Videogamer: “you’ve got all you need to get heavily involved in yet another quest for football glory”

Koku Gamer: “Football Manager Handheld is the perfect app for football managerial fans, it will not disappoint.”

Look out for our competition announcement later in the week when we’ll be giving one lucky fan the chance to win the game along with one of our limited edition devices to play it on!

What a start to the week!

Pretty cool news indeed, more to come!

Features list:

• Manage across the globe – take charge of any team from 34 leagues from nations including England, Scotland, France, Spain, Italy, Germany, Belgium, Holland, Portugal, Brazil and Australia.
• A real football world – Buy and sell over 20,000 real world stars from the legendary Football Manager database, fully up-to-date with the dealings from the 2010 January transfer window.
• Build your squad – buy, sell and loan players for your squad of up to 36 players, trying to keep them all happy and performing at the top of their game.
• Feel the buzz of matchdays – get all the stats on your opponents in the match preview and then watch the action unfold making subs and tactical changes to give your team the edge over your rivals.
• Get the most from your backroom staff – get the opinion of your assistant manager on the state of your squad and his suggested improvements, and ask coaches and scouts for reports on players in your squad or future transfer targets.
• Keep the board happy – Set your expectations for the club, manage your transfer and wage budgets and make board requests in your quest for success.
• Handle the media – experience the pressure of the press as they quiz you about transfer rumours, and potential job offers.
• Become a legend – chart the progress of your career through the profile screen and hall of fame; plus gain rewards for your success by unlocking new features and managerial abilities.
• Designed for the iPhone / iPod – with a specific user-friendly skin and functionalities, and club logos for all licensed leagues. Plus; listen to your favourite music while your manage your team!

Link to the article at the official website http://bit.ly/cW3HLB

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1. Football Manager Ultimate Training Schedule

Attackers

David Conolly – ST, age 32: Great little signing for League 1 clubs

Rune Lange – ST,  age 32: Effective target man at mid to low Championship level and below

Michael Mifsud – ST, 28: Will do a great job at League 1 level

Ebi Smolarek - ST, age 28: Very effective in the Championship and lower end Premiership sides

Midfielders

Dietmar Hamann – DM/MD, age 35: GREAT signing for Championship sides although might only sign for some of the bigger ones

Ivan Campo – DM/MC, age 35: Like Hamann will do a great job in the Championship

Matty Holland - DM/MC, age 35: Good signing in League 1 and maybe at the lower end of the Championship

David Noble – AMC, age 27: Good for League 1 but probably not higher

Defenders

Sol Campbell – DC, age 36: Won’t cut the mustard in the Premiership but very effective in the Championship.

Lauren – DR , age 32: Good solid right back for Championship sides

Related posts:

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3. Lulinha – Player Profile

I just thought I’d share share a couple of the things that I do that get some decent results.

• Set though balls to often for all players.
• Increase the amount of players making forward runs.
• Set team mentality to ‘all out attack’.
• Up all mentalities by a few clicks.
• Move creativity three quarters of the way to the top NOT right to the top. That gets too messy.
• Set tempo to fast.

If you get the goal you are after make sure you revert back to your original tactics because you’ll leave yourself way open at the back.

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FOOTBALL MANAGER™ 2010 DATED FOR OCTOBER 30th

Sports Interactive listen to consumer feedback to create the best Football Manager in the series yet

LONDON (August 12^th, 2009) – Sports Interactive & SEGA Europe Ltd. can today announce that Football Manager™ 2010 for PC and Apple Macintosh, and Football Manager™ Handheld 2010 for Sony PSP will be released on October 30^th.

Football Manager 2009 is the most successful in the Football Manager series to date, clocking up 22 weeks at No.1 in the UK (PC charts) and selling in excess of 1 million copies worldwide, as well as being voted the 2^nd best video game of all time in a recent Radio 1 poll. According to data gathered from Football Manager 2009, people played the game for an average of 240 hours each. However, developer Sports Interactive has been made aware via the vibrant Football Manager community that the addition of big new features in the last few releases has come at the expense of attention to existing areas of the game and solving long standing issues.

With this in mind, Sports Interactive has spent the last year working closely with consumers and the Football Manager community to implement key improvements to this year’s game. Football Manager 2010 features new tools and changes across the board including some big additions to improve ease of use, navigation and feedback from the game with the introduction of a brand new match tactics system, the debut of a Match Analysis tool, a completely new look and new User Interface among other features.

“We have worked very hard with the Football Manager community to target not only the areas of the game that needed re-working but also what we could add to improve what’s already there. We’ve also conducted extensive usability studies which has led us to overhaul the whole presentation of the game, which we’re really excited about,” said Miles Jacobson, Studio Director at Sports Interactive. “There has been a lot of polish to existing areas of the game but it’s also driven us to introduce changes to answer some of the feedback. We’re very confident that having done that we will deliver the very best Football Manager to date in October.”

The introduction of a Tactics Creator makes it easier to instruct the team to play the way the manager wants, alongside the introduction of touchline ‘shouts’ and quick tactic changes for instantly altering your team’s playing style during the match. Working with coaches from various levels of football, alongside some of the Football Manager communities most respected independent tacticians, the game now has an extensive array of pre-set tactical options allowing the user to select a player’s role in the team (such as ‘Ball winning midfielder’ or ‘Deep lying playmaker’), however the option to use the old ‘slider’ controls remains.

Feedback from matches has been improved to give the user better insight into where their team is going wrong, or right. A new Match Analysis tool lets players see where shots, passes, crosses, headers, tackles, fouls and interceptions have been made on the field for all players on the pitch. Managers can view this analysis both live in-game and post match, allowing them to pinpoint the strengths and weaknesses of both their team and their opponent’s and adjust their tactics accordingly.

Football Manager 2010 features a brand new User Interface, with a light and a dark skin to choose from as part of a vibrant new look and has undergone a complete navigational overhaul. The side bar navigation of previous years has been replaced by an intuitive tab system at the top of the screen, making Football Manager’s famed depth easier to navigate and will make the game more accessible to new players.

A brand new Data Editor will allow the addition of new divisions to existing leagues and of entirely new leagues as well as making it easier than ever to keep the game up to date, and do so for free. The delivery of information to the manager has been refined with users now able to sign up to the News Centre, an in-game subscription based newspaper that lets you get the news that you want about the football world and filter out the stories that you do not need, making the football world as immersive as you want it to be.

Following the debut of a 3D match view in Football Manager 2009, this year’s release sees a revamp with improved AI, over 100 new animations for the 3D pitch view, new stadiums, crowds, realistic pitch degradation and better lighting, creating an even more realistic match experience.

Further new features will be announced via a series of blogs in the months leading up to the game’s October 30^th release date which will ensure that Football Manager retains its position as the most realistic, most played, highest reviewed and best selling football management simulation in the world.

Football Manager Handheld 2010 also has a host of new features and improvements, including a brand new skin for the game and improved match engine AI.

For further information please go to www.sigames.com or www.footballmanager.com.

Related posts:

1. Football Manager 2010 – Wishlist
2. Football Manager 2009 – New Features
3. Football Manager 2009 – Wishlist