Football Manager 2021: A new one-club save

It was my intention that FM20 would be a one-club save with my beloved Motherwell Football Club but the Chairman had other ideas and sacked me in season 3. Not that I hold a grudge. Nor did it spoil my enjoyment of playing the game – but it did ruin the #narrative for this blog. Anyway, a new year, a new game [iteration] brings me to a new save and I am not straying too far from my roots. [Get on with it!] I am staying in Scotland, but this time starting at the bottom with the Blue Brazil themselves, Cowdenbeath FC in League Two.

But I am not playing this straight – Not content to be quite bad at this game, I thought I’d make things even more difficult by adding in a few Club Visions of my own even if the board aren’t fussed. As alluded to earlier, Cowdenbeath are most famous for their moniker the Blue Brazil – usually said with tongue stuck firmly in the cheek. My save’s twist is to take the nickname literally and limit myself to playing like Brazil. You’ve got to fake it, ’til you make it baby!

The Brazilian Way

It might not be the case in the modern Brazilian Mens national teams of Dunga as player then coach but I am going for the romantic notion of the Brazilian Way of playing football. Jogo Bonita at Central Park.

What is this in FM terms:

• Positive, attacking football – playing to win but to win in style.
• Skillful soccer – players with flair showcasing their bag of tricks to entertain the paying punters.
• The Number 10 – the star of the team has to follow in the footsteps of Pele, Zico, and, ahem, Neymar.

Brazilian Tactics

Over the years, the Brazil team has defined marked changes in the tactical landscape – usually catching the footballing world’s attention at the World Cup finals whether it be a new formation – like the 4-2-4 – or an eye-catching style of playing like the Class of 1982. And my Cowdenbeath are going to follow one of these tactical structures and see if we can successfully bring Brazil to lower league fitba.

This save will give me the chance to do a bit of retro-football analysis followed by clumsy attempts to recreate the tactics in Football Manager. I plan to blog each as individual articles so will not bore you with the details here. This is meant to be a tantalising teaser after all.

Cowdenbeath FC established 1882

Based at Central Park in the town that gave the club its name, Cowdenbeath FC are one of many clubs in the Kingdom of Fife who have plied their trade in the Scottish Football League pyramid without every threatening to conquer it. They are currently in the bottom tier of the SFL, League Two. In COVID hit 19/20 season they were fourth – long way behind winners Cove Rangers. The year before 6th, and dead last two years ago. So it’s hard to say how good/bad the initial squad will be.

It’s a community club from a small miners town surrounded by bigger, more successful, professional clubs so there’s little chance of a rich benefactor or multinational drinks and marketing firm taking us over. Success will need to be fought for and built organically.

These are the aims of the save for Cowdenbeath FC:

• Progress through the leagues via steady promotion. I don’t expect to be in the top tier, Scottish Premiership in four years after back to back promotions.
• Maintain sound financial plans to secure the club’s future
• Raise club to be biggest club in Fife.

That last aim is the final challenge for this Cowdenbeath save. I’m not daft enough to think I can overturn the ugly sisters of Glasgow so local bragging rights is my goal.

Let’s rule the Kingdom!

Dogma Part 2 The Tactical One

“I really don’t see what the issue is?”

I looked at Lasley again to see if he was going to crack into a smile but he remained grimly serious. 

“When I sat down and explained in great detail to you everything that I learned from the talk in Brazil, all the great tactical ideas pouring from a giant in our profession, surrounded by elite coaches known and revered across the world, all you took from it was this?” I asked.

“Aye.” he replied earnestly.

I picked up the industrial sized bottle of Veet.

“Brazilians all round, indeed.”

In Part One I looked at the costs of youth development and I touched upon the fact that we need to play systems that enhance our young stars performances as therefore their transfer value. Here in Part Two I look at our tactical set up for our first season in the Scottish Premiership.

Dogma No More – Part 1

“I think I’ve seen that film. With the two dopey guys and that Mexican lassie wi’ the big -“

“Dogmatic! I said I can’t be so dogmatic, Keith. Nothing to do with a film”

My exasperation came from trying to explain that with our budget and the club’s vision of youth development we had to be flexible with our tactics and our economics. To be more pragmatic and less fixated on my own tactical preference.

“Besides Mallrats is a much better film”