Hello dear friends, it’s time to move on to the actual business, the Football Manager 2011 pre-season with Vauxhall Motors FC. As you have read in the introductory post yesterday the club is rather poor, it’s reputation is the lowest among English clubs, so I had a huge task ahead of me in order to improve the squad. As you know I also enabled «player attribute masking» to make things even more difficult, let’s see what I managed to do.
You already know my style, I swept up the squad by releasing 23 players including a worthless bunch of kids from the youth squad. I only managed to bring in 12 new players, I would have wanted to get more but the low wage budget prevented me from further strengthening the squad.
Now, instead of just introducing the new signings I thought that it would be a lot better to present the whole squad, player by player. So let’s see who will wear the Motormen shirt during this season. Just a quick mention before that, I am going to use the same tactic that I employed in FM 2010, the Notts County 4-4-2 which should produce aggressive and attacking football. That’s at least in theory…
Goalkeepers
Well, I just have one goalie… I tried to bring in a better one but since I was already over the wage budget after signing the other players I had to surrender. My goalie is 26-year old Scott Tynan, a player that I found at the club when I arrived. He has some experience in League Two and Blue Square Premier and some decent goalkeeping attributes. What he doesn’t have is speed and that could well cost us quite a few goals… I just hope he won’t get injured, if he does I will have to use an amateur goalie.
Right Backs
I made no changes to this area of the squad, I was quite happy with the two right backs that were already at the club. My first choice should be 24-year old Andy Taylor, a determined lad that should do a decent job at this level.
Brian Moogan will be the backup right back but not only that, he should be a good utility player because of his good versatility. He can also provide cover as a right midfielder or as a central midfielder.
Left Backs
My first choice left back is a new signing, Joe Lamplough, a 20-year old player that was released by Hull City. He is a quite tall lad with some margin for progress.
The backup left back will be Lee Dames, a player that I found at the club. He is a hard working player that should provide great backup and maybe even challenge for a spot in the first eleven now and again.
Centre Backs
There was a lot of work to do in order to improve this area, I needed pacey defenders since I will use a high defensive line and the offside trap. I brought in three new centre backs and the best of them seems to be 20-year old Welsh defender Craig Tawton. He was released on a free by Sheffield Wednesday but he should do a good job for us. Unfortunately he missed most of the pre-season games due to an injury so I will have to be patient with him until he reaches a good level match fitness.
The man who should team up with Tawton at the heart of our defense is a well known player for those of you who followed the Dorchester story: Ryan Carolan. He was one of my favorite players in FM 2010, a born leader that should do a good job at this level. He came through the youth ranks at Crystal Palace but never got the chance to play in a competitive game before being sent on loan at Chelmsford last season.
Gerwyn Jones should provide good cover for the first two, he is a 19-year old Welsh prospect that could maybe achieve some progress along with the club. He was released by Tranmere in 2009 and didn’t manage to get a contract for a whole year, I hope he will understand that I gave him a big opportunity to come back into professional football.
Tom Hannigan is not really my type of centre back, he is much too slow, but I had to keep him as an emergency backup. He can also play as a central midfielder so he should be a good utility player. Go to the next page to see the rest of the squad.
Go to the next page to read the rest of the story.
mark
7 ноября, 2010 at 14:34
yeah first comment in your first post
anyway, good luck and i will keep on following your progress quietly like a silent assassin
Johnny Karp
7 ноября, 2010 at 15:02
Thanks for the comment Mark, I hope you won’t kill anybody while following the story :)
James-Cartwright
7 ноября, 2010 at 14:36
You should try and sign James Ashmore, he’s a free and signs for around £400 a week. He’s the best central midfielder you’re going to get, and he has good Free Kick and Corner taking abilities.
Johnny Karp
7 ноября, 2010 at 15:01
Thanks for the suggestion James, that’s a good player but 400 pounds a week is a huge wage considering that my whole wage budget is 2,500 per week!
Sears
7 ноября, 2010 at 14:42
Hey Johnny,
quite a productive pre season as usual. Lack of finances may hinder your progress, but that 5-0 win over Tranmare is extremely reassuring. I think you have enough quality to challenge for a play off spot. I’m sure your 4-4-2 tactic will serve you well again. Goodluck mate!
Johnny Karp
7 ноября, 2010 at 15:02
Thanks for the prediction Sears, I hope it will prove to be true.
Darren Smith
7 ноября, 2010 at 15:54
Hey Johnny, well done on a good pre-season. You have some quality players considering the league your in and Im quite confident for your chances. Goodluck and congrats on a great result against Tranmere
Johnny Karp
7 ноября, 2010 at 15:57
Thanks Darren. I’m not too sure of the quality of the players but I hope they’ll do a good job.
Callum
7 ноября, 2010 at 18:23
Looks like its going to be a hard season on account of finances. Ryan Carolan should grab a lot of goals from corners I would guess :) Good luck with the new story.
Johnny Karp
7 ноября, 2010 at 20:17
Thanks Callum, I hope that Carolan will score at least half of the goals he banged in at Dorchester.
Lewis
7 ноября, 2010 at 18:28
Looks good so far mate, i will be following keenly being the avid motors fan i am :D but hey, how are we the weakest team in England? :O we got a draw at hartlepool!
Johnny Karp
7 ноября, 2010 at 20:18
Thanks Lewis, great result at Hartlepool! I explained my choice in the first post: lowest reputation, poorest finances, predicted to finish last. The team might be better in real life but in FM 2011 it surely is the weakest in England :)
JonnySniper
7 ноября, 2010 at 18:58
That Tranmere result made me laugh. :P
cory berman
7 ноября, 2010 at 19:15
im sure it won’t happen but what does happen if you get relugated from the blue square north?
Johnny Karp
7 ноября, 2010 at 20:19
I guess I’ll get sacked Cory since the team will be in a non-playable division.
Rob
7 ноября, 2010 at 19:34
Hey Johnny, great pre-season and promising start to your career, im sure you’ll be able to bring success to Vauxhall, just wondering where can i download the notts co tactics your using for FM11, thanks :D
Rob :)
Rob
7 ноября, 2010 at 20:01
Hey, again sorry i’ve managed to find out how to get the tactic on now :D
Johnny Karp
7 ноября, 2010 at 20:19
Thanks Rob, I’m happy that you figured it out ;)
Kevin
7 ноября, 2010 at 20:20
Hi johnny
Glad to see Ryan Carolan is back and enjoyed the video as well :)
By the way is your team all on full time contracts as in some of your previous stories this one was one of your initial tasks?
Johnny Karp
7 ноября, 2010 at 20:22
I’m glad you enjoyed it Kevin. That’s right, I moved most of the players and staff on full time contracts.
Chris @ Chester
7 ноября, 2010 at 20:37
Nice to see you’ve started the new story posts so soon johnny, I believe that this may be a difficult one for you. I would put money on the play offs though.
Oh, one more thing, you really need a new AM
Johnny Karp
7 ноября, 2010 at 22:14
Thanks for the confidence Chris but I would advise against putting money on a play-off spot :) I have found a new assistant manager, I’m currently negotiating the contract with him :)
Laxeyman
7 ноября, 2010 at 20:52
Hi Johnny, sorry for missing your last few posts, I’ve been away. Having only just read the end of the Dorchester story I have to say well done, what you did with them was brilliant.
You’ve also brought in some good players for Vauxhall, your squad looks quite good, and I reckon you’ve got a decent chance of promotion. Good luck! Btw, I’m starting as Droylsden in FM11, they’re in the same league as Vauxhall, so it’ll be interesting to see how you get on compared to what I can do with them :)
Johnny Karp
7 ноября, 2010 at 22:16
Thanks Laxeyman, please keep us posted with your progress with Droylsden. By the way, did you start with «player attribute masking» enabled? Because that’s giving me quite a few headaches…
Laxeyman
8 ноября, 2010 at 18:04
Yeah I’ve enabled attriubute masking, it really makes signing players a challenge.
dami
8 ноября, 2010 at 00:28
Mahon goal was good and its good to see your relationship with Carolan growing…maybe you’ll get to meet him in real life someday…lol
I don’t think you’ll get any spot lower than 8th…and hopefully you don’t get any more injuries…
Goodluck…
Johnny Karp
8 ноября, 2010 at 06:33
Thanks Dami. Actually I was thinking about making an interview with Ryan Carolan :)
dami
9 ноября, 2010 at 07:57
Sounds good…Sometimes I wonder if real footballers play this game and then they try to sign themselves in the game and get rejected…
Johnny Karp
9 ноября, 2010 at 08:28
Unfortunately I couldn’t find a way to reach him. He’s out of contract at the moment so it’s quite tough to figure out a way to contact him.
David Wiggins
10 ноября, 2010 at 00:05
I remember a few years ago on the main FM forum I think that Danny Schofield who played for Huddersfield at the time was on there quite a lot. There were also a couple of guys who played for Perth Glory on there too!
Lye
8 ноября, 2010 at 07:29
Hi Johnny,
I am excited to see how you goes. Good 5-0 win against your parent club. Your team seems good to do. I will cheering for motormen. Good luck.
Johnny Karp
8 ноября, 2010 at 08:11
Thanks a lot for your support Lye, I hope we’ll give you something to cheer about at the end of the season :)
Mariano
8 ноября, 2010 at 09:08
I predict a play off spot, though the speed of the keeper might be a problem…….
The usual questions:):
1.Which method you used to sign your players?, board room advice?,sending your scouts out?, offering contracts to the players and checking what the AM had to say about him?
2.When you release your players for free, you do it all at once or gradually?
If you release so many players the same day, doesn´t it make it more difficult to sign players since the reputation of the team goes down drastically?
Johnny Karp
8 ноября, 2010 at 09:40
I’m still on the lookout for a new goalie… About signing the players, I have to send scouts to check them because with attribute masking enabled it would be almost impossible to judge a player’s quality before getting a scout report. The backroom advice has been helpful until now, a few of the new signings came from backroom staff suggestions. About releasing the players on a free, I don’t think that affects the team reputation. Even if it does, our reputation can’t be any lower than it is at the moment anyway :)
Mariano
8 ноября, 2010 at 09:09
Just saw the SS, you release them free all at once….
paine
8 ноября, 2010 at 10:17
Ehm.. what happened to poor Tranmere?
You literally destroyed them, I think you should have high hopes for your promotion race.
Johnny Karp
8 ноября, 2010 at 13:12
Something surely happen either to Tranmere or to my own lads. A few games before that we got beaten by a non-league team so I can’t say that I’m optimistic regarding the promotion chances.
Arjuna Kankipati
8 ноября, 2010 at 13:08
Fnatastic win again Tranmere Johnny. You should have no problem getting a top half finish, and you could even be in the running for promotion.
Arjuna
managerstoriesfootball.blogspot.com
Johnny Karp
8 ноября, 2010 at 13:12
Thanks Arjuna, we’ll see what we can do after a few competitive games.
Sayam Khan
8 ноября, 2010 at 18:11
Hi Johnny, you have bought soe good signings and i am confident you will get promoted.
Can you explain to me what is the definition on ‘player attribute masking’
Johnny Karp
8 ноября, 2010 at 20:09
This feature will prevent you from seeing a player’s full attributes if you don’t know him or if he wasn’t previously scouted by one of your staff.
Iain
8 ноября, 2010 at 18:38
hi, you’ve made a few good signings, in paticular your Somalian winger and Pallodino look like they will be decent for you this season. As for your keeper i would suggest trying to bring in Elliot Parish from Aston Villa on loan as he has been very good for me in my season with Macclesfield.
Johnny Karp
8 ноября, 2010 at 20:10
Thanks for the suggestion Iain. I know Parish, he could make a fabulous goalie at this level but unfortunately I can’t get even League Two players on loan because of the club’s low reputation :(
hils
8 ноября, 2010 at 18:41
Hi Johnny,some good signings there!!!!!!! I think you could get promoted!!!!!!!!!!!
Good Luck!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
(LIVERPOOL BEAT CHELSEA 2-0)!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Johnny Karp
8 ноября, 2010 at 20:12
Thanks for the optimism Hils. I know that you’re happy, I watched the game and I guess Liverpool deserved to win it after playing a great first half.
AndyTRFC
9 ноября, 2010 at 02:41
Hi mate great win against US Tranmere ha! , Im currently in 6th place in League One with Rovers and just beat Sheffield Wednesday 2-0 away from home!! , good luck mate i reckon play offs is probably a realistic chance , good luck.
Johnny Karp
9 ноября, 2010 at 04:56
Thanks Andy. It seems that you’re doing well with Rovers, good luck for promotion!
Ray
9 ноября, 2010 at 16:55
Hi Johnny,
I’m looking forward to reading your story about trying to bring success to such a small club. Glad you signed Carolan as he was such a great player for dorchester. Good Luck :)
afootymanager.blogspot.com
Even
11 ноября, 2010 at 10:07
How did you get the Vauxhall logo? It’s missing in my game:S
Johnny Karp
11 ноября, 2010 at 10:32
I’ll publish a post with the logo pack I’m using, I hope it will go live today.
Mariano
13 ноября, 2010 at 07:55
Hi Johnny,
Just started my first FM2011 game managing Havant and Waterlooville!
Do you have a training schedule to recommend?
Tks
Johnny Karp
13 ноября, 2010 at 08:56
I don’t have any training schedule to recommend, I have used the default one until now. I will be looking for a good schedule and probably post any findings here next week. Good luck with your career!
Mariano
13 ноября, 2010 at 09:35
I´ll share my first «discovery» in FM 2011.
I´m managing Havant at Blue square south, as soon as i started i fired all the staff, released or sold for 0$ all the players except for 4 of them, now i need staff and players. So how to buy a whole new team without blowing the wage budget?
I arrange from day 0, 4 away friendly games in a row for about 30kusd each while i´m trying to sign new playes.
This 4 games that i will play with non existant players will gibe 120k usd that i will use to:
a)offer higher signing fees to outbid other clubs
b)offer higher signing fees for the players to sign quickly so they can play as many friendly games together before the begining of the season.
So 4 days after the game has started i will have 120k usd to offer unrejectable contracts without paying high salaries.
Hope you find this idea helpful.
Johnny Karp
13 ноября, 2010 at 09:49
Sounds good Mariano, good luck in finding the right players to rebuild the squad.
Steve
24 ноября, 2010 at 15:32
Good signing Gerwyn Jones, I think hes now with DC United
Johnny Karp
24 ноября, 2010 at 15:53
He did well but I sold him at the end of the season after getting promoted to Blue Square Premier.
Sam Tynan
19 декабря, 2010 at 04:30
do you have scouts in the US
Johnny Karp
19 декабря, 2010 at 10:29
Nope, unfortunately we are only allowed to send the scouts in Europe at the moment.
Sam Tynan
22 декабря, 2010 at 02:14
at the moment?
Johnny Karp
22 декабря, 2010 at 07:49
Meanwhile I made a request to the board and now we can send the scouts all over the world. Actually I think that your comment pushed me to make that request again after it had been denied earlier :)