Off-Field – FM2020 Challenges
With footballs return unlikely for the next few months at least, millions of us around the world are trying somehow to find that football fix, something to get us on the edge of our seat and bring all the trials and tribulations of a 3pm kick-off. So what better way than to live out some football fantasies through, in my opinion, the best football video game franchise on the market.
As a child, I quickly realised becoming a footballer was not going to happen, however a small part of me thought becoming a manager could be a genuine possibility. Lets face it, the only other alternative would have been becoming a ref, and that’s just asking for people to hate you. So when I first got my hands on championship manager, and then subsequently football manager, I finally had my chance to become the boss. To hire and fire anyone I pleased and win everything with dream teams. I admit the power often went to my head, demanding that every club I managed would sign Edwin Van Der Sar for reasons I still cannot remember. Even to this day, I still can find myself putting in hours and days into the footballing management sim to finally clinch a promotion, or go on a magical mid-season cup run. Particularly during this unusual time we find ourselves in, I find myself resorting frequently to the safety of football manager 2020 and looking for fresh challenges.
So this article will cover some of my favourite football manager challenges for anyone starting out in the game, or for experienced players who are looking for that new save but can’t quite think where to start. Admittedly, some of these clubs/options will be more challenging and time consuming than others. But if you’re looking for that challenge, or just a little way to pass a bit of time then hopefully these ideas will spark some inspiration. So good luck in the brutal world of football management, and don’t forget to have bathroom mirror press interviews and wear your best suit for the cup final.
Your Favourite Club
What better club to start with really. It’s the most obvious suggestion of course, but who can deny that finally taking complete control over the club you support doesn’t feel fantastic. You can make that big money transfer you’ve been tweeting @ your club to sign for months, you can try out the new formation which pushes the wing backs forward because you’re convinced it will work. Most importantly though, you can lead your team to glory, whether that involves climbing up the divisions, finally clinching the title or a European adventure, it’s the most satisfying starting point for a football manager journey.
This choice does however come with risk. With a couple of bad results and decisions against your team, the board will put the pressure on to you and this is tough to hear from the actual chairman of your beloved club. Meanwhile, having personal/professional conflicts with your favourite player can be heart-breaking. It’s tough to hear that your star player doesn’t like you and your managerial style, and even tougher if this is one of your actual favourite players in real life. There are many players who, even to this day I hold a real life grudge against due to their inability to put a shift in during training. Finally, losing a cup final, facing relegation or even getting fired again hurts that little bit more when you then have to watch the team play for real.
Despite this, the success is also increased with managing your favourite team and you walk into the role with a passion you would not have for other clubs. You’ll no doubt know the club inside and out before even selecting your first team and that has to give you an advantage. Just don’t be too disappointed if your football manager results don’t convert to actual success.
My advice, is give this a go for at least a few seasons. Then when you’re next shouting from the stands to your manager, you’ll have the facts and stats to back your opinions.
Unemployment
Get yourself to the job centre and take whatever’s on offer. This is in my opinion the most challenging yet also most satisfying option when starting football manager. By doing this, you start the game without a club and the lowest coaching badges/experience possible. Then once the game has loaded you apply for everything and take the first offer that comes through. With zero reputation and experience you’ve got no chance at a top job and so you will literally be starting from the bottom. That is where the challenge comes from, putting in the time and effort to immerse yourself into a most probably struggling bottom division club. However, this also offers the most realistic way of playing, as unless you are Klopp or Guardiola, you’re probably not gonna walk into a top job straight away. Instead, you need to earn the top jobs by working our way through the ranks. Could you take the starting club all the way to the top, or would you jump between jobs so that you can personally reach the big time.
As mentioned, this is for those looking for the ultimate football manager challenge, but if you’re gonna put in a good few seasons of game time, this is the ideal challenge. Who knows, you might find yourself making the trip to actually watch the club in real life at some point, or emailing them your CV.
*Don’t forget to have the bottom divisions as playable leagues, otherwise you might be waiting for the job offers to be coming through.*
The Wanderer
To my knowledge, no manager has ever led a team to win all five top European leagues (England, Italy, Spain, Germany, France). Carlo Ancelotti has won leagues in England, Italy, France and Germany, Mourinho and Guardiola have won three and potentially could someday complete the lot. However, you could be the first. This challenge will require at least five seasons worth of game time, and may require a bit of luck with the job offers that become available, but if you can prove your worth across all five ‘big European leagues’ you could create history. If successful, this is the closest you could come to claiming you’ve actually ‘completed’ the game.
This challenge again brings it’s own choices for you to make. Which league do you start with, what club do you pick to give yourself a good shot at winning the league and how long do you spend in each country once the league trophy is yours. There’s a lot to consider and a lot of high profile jobs you need to bring top management to, but if you can commit to this challenge you are guaranteeing a lot of success. Just try not to become bored of winning everything.
Of course this is one way to approach the ‘Journeyman’ challenge, other alternatives could be to explore the most leagues possible. Could you take a job in as many countries in a set time limit. There are over 100 playable leagues in football manager 2020 so go and explore the footballing world from the comfort of your own home.
Winning trophies has made me put on weight.
Rafa Benitez
Athletic Bilbao
Athletic Bilbao are a massively unique club, and provide one of the most challenging but most refreshing career options in the game. In their over 100 year history, Bilbao have kept an unwritten policy towards their operations, only bringing in and playing with players native to the Basque region.
This is where the challenge comes in. Given the clubs unique approach to transfers and youth system, you will need to work with your youth system to ensure that the club are finding their next big stars from within their own system. You don’t have the option to bring in a huge big-money signing and instead have to put your faith in the players at your disposal and at times put trust in the young players in your club.
Add in to this, the fact that the club have never been relegated from Spain’s top-flight, and you are having to compete with some of the biggest clubs and biggest players in the world each week and you’re in for a serious challenge. This one is certainly not for the light-hearted and will appeal to the football traditionalists for sure. If making major transfers is your thing, Bilbao are not for you, but if you want to uncover the next big thing in your youth setup, then give this a go.
Salford City
Salford City are probably one of England’s most controversial clubs, with their ownership split between a billionaire and the class of 92. They are possibly the only club to exist where their owners are more well known than the actual players themselves. This has led them to dominating the lower leagues of English football both on-field and off-field.
Now in League 2, you can come in and continue their progression up the ranks of English football. They certainly have the financial backing to make key signings as you move through the leagues, and an existing squad with some quality players for the division they are in. However, the job also brings pressure of success and a high expectation of where the club should be reaching.
If you want to have the financial power of a top division club in a League 2 setting, then Salford City will be the club for you. Certainly not an easy job but generous resources and a strong existing squad can bring success.
We know it will be tough but we will be committed to this from the start and have some very exciting plans going forward.
Paul Scholes
Forest Green Rovers
I have a strange affinity toward Forest Green Rovers and I thoroughly enjoy hearing about the unique management of the club as a whole. They seem to work well in their community, very eco-conscious and listed as the worlds first vegan football club. This has lead many to refer to them as a ‘hippie club’ but they certainly have a plan both on and off the field which is leading them to their most successful period with their 5th place 2018-2019 league finish.
So with their solid foundations, you can walk into the club and take them forward and lead the quinoa revolution all the way to the Premier League. They have a striking kit which with your leadership would look fantastic on the Champions League stage, but to get there, you have to bring them up through England’s 4 top divisions which certainly isn’t an easy task. But if you’re looking for a proper football manager challenge, stick your tie-dye shirt on, settle down with a bowl of Quorn and lead the Rovers to the top.
PSG/Manchester City
Okay, I admit the ‘challenge’ aspect of managing one of the richest clubs in the world isn’t particularly daunting. However, if you are wanting a reasonably short challenge then PSG or Manchester City may be an option for one/two seasons. The main aspect of managing either of these clubs is to bring European success, almost instantly, whilst retaining the league titles. Essentially, you will need to win everything possible with the club. These two clubs always appear to fall short in Europe and this means you could potentially be the manager to unlock this final piece of the trophy jigsaw for the clubs.
Of course you have a pretty desirable starting point with the existing squads, but both have defensive weaknesses that need reinforcing and you will of course be needing good man-management with star players. In a club of that size, you will need to keep everyone happy to ensure success off-field. If you choose to carry on for a few seasons, the challenge of managing these clubs continues as the board will expect nothing but success across the board, while City may need a rebuilding structure with some young fresh talent, and PSG may struggle to hold on to those key players. There will be no acceptance from the board of a poor run of form or disappointing performances.
As mentioned, this is one for a fairly short playthrough but quite a pleasant challenge to take on. Just don’t let the money go to your head.
Sunderland A.F.C
Sunderland’s fall from the top has been quite substantial and dramatic to say the least, and for a club of their size and stature they should not be in the position they currently are. Therefore, this can be your opportunity to take the club back to the big time and beyond. With a squad of top quality players already at your disposal, and a fairly substantial budget to work with for a League 1 club, this is a rebuilding job with freedom and resources to create the squad you want.
Winning the league in your first season will be a requirement of the job and so you will quickly need to establish your squad and gel the players with your tactical style. From personal experience, be warned that signing an entire squad of players does not necessarily guarantee success and the board do not accept a poor run of form. However, as mentioned, the club have significant resources to bring in some quality players and their reputation can make negotiations in the market a lot easier than other clubs in the division. This is a challenge which will certainly become a long term project, and the difficulty will undoubtedly increase as you progress through the leagues. But you can be the person to turn the club around and provide the stability that the club haven’t seen for years.
As a little bonus to taking the reigns at Sunderland, you have the option to watch their Netflix documentary in the background and compare your management to the real thing.
Hopefully you’ll have a better transfer negotiation strategy.
American Dream
The MLS always seems to feel like a league ‘on-the-verge’ of becoming something big in the footballing world, but never quite reaching that worldwide interest and reputation of the European leagues. However, when it comes to football manager, it opens up a new realm of possible options for management. With superstar names like Rooney and Ibrahimović rolling back the years during recent spells in the states, it certainly has resources available to provide an entertaining challenge, and the chance for you to bring the big superstar names to the league and create an American dynasty.
You could look to 2019 Supporters shield champions Los Angeles FC with Carlos Vela banging in goals for fun, their LA rivals LA Galaxy who are one of the leagues most successful and most globally recognised teams thanks to several mega-star names who’ve played for the over the years. Alternatively, you could move towards the brainchild of one of galaxy’s former players David Beckham and his Inter Miami CF who are the MLS’ new boys ready to take the league by storm. Wherever you end up, this league provides a different challenge and an alternative league format for you to try out with tonnes of potential to have fun with.
Additionally, you could choose to go for an alternative North American adventure in the recently formed Canadian Premier League, or go further South to areas such as Brazil and Argentina where the leagues are brimming with talent. This part of the world certainly can provide a unique alternative to the standard European management options.
International
International management is at times a completely different game. Fans of clubs spend most of the year slagging off everyone else’s footballing opinions until international competition rolls around and a country becomes united as one for a brief period. Whether your country has international success, or always just crumbles when it matters most (England), there’s just something unique about the optimism and passion towards international football.
When it comes to football manager, this for some is seen as a side-quest to the game. Many will ignore this part most of the time and focus on the club game where transfers and weekly matches provide a more appealing challenge. But football manager also provides an option to dual-manage a club side and international side at the same time. So what better challenge than to take on additional responsibility and expectations of a whole nation. There are many routes to take with international management in the game, and the additional restriction of only being able to select the eligible players to put on the shirt. So you could choose to finally break that 50+ year craving for a England world cup win, take Scotland all the way to an international trophy or explore further afield with the AFCON tournament, or Copa America.
There are so many adventures you can take on in football manager no matter how you want to play the game. So go out there and find a club that suits you. A club where you can create a legacy, create a dream team, and just maybe someday they’ll give you a call up for the real thing. Maybe.
We have top players and, sorry if I’m arrogant, we have a top manager.
José Mourinho (Me in my bathroom mirror)