Football Manager – Arsenal

By: Tom | 1 Comment

As the season picks up again, so I come storming back into the world of Football Manager. It has been an age since my last post, which you’ll have to forgive – I’ve been busy moving house and moving country at the same time. I’m back in a time zone where I can watch football at a reasonable hour once more. Hallelujah! Read the rest of this entry »

By: Tom | 3 Comments

It’s a measure of the progress we’ve made since last season that I felt comfortable in sending out the youngsters and the fringe players in the League Cup this season. Not because I felt confident that they would win the tie necessarily, but merely because getting knocked out at this stage wouldn’t be the end of the world. This stage last year, out of the Champions League already and well off the pace in the league, this competition was something to be taken more seriously, and represented one of our only real chances for success. I’m glad to be able to say that expectations and prospects have changed since then. Read the rest of this entry »

By: Tom | 3 Comments

In the course of this little experiment in Englishness, I’ve got to thinking about how much I, as an Arsenal fan in real life, actually care about having English players. The answer now would be, not very much. Read the rest of this entry »

By: Tom | 5 Comments

The addictive properties of Football Manager are well documented. We all know the “just one more game” syndrome. When you get on a good run it’s incredibly difficult to stop playing. If you then have to blog about it all, you’re forced to play some serious catch up. Hence the large number of games covered here. Apologies. I’ll try to keep it brief.

But I HAVE been on a good run lately. Read the rest of this entry »

By: Tom | 5 Comments

At the start of my summer transfer dealings I identified Gabby Agbonlahor as my key target. Here was a pacy young Englishman that I foresaw becoming the focal point of this brave new Arsenal for years to come. I’d had one failed experiment with England’s past in the shape of Michael Owen, so it was time to look to England’s future. I signed him.

So far, it’s not happened. Read the rest of this entry »

By: Tom | 7 Comments

I promised you an update on my formation and line-up for the coming year, but the prolonged transfer saga of Ashley Young was very dragged out, and injuries to key players in the squad meant that I couldn’t really start making changes just yet. The first few games of the season have seen the same 4-2-3-1 shape then, and have gone very well. Read the rest of this entry »

By: Tom | 1 Comment

In my last post I debated the rights and wrongs of signing a non-English player, thereby going against the spirit, although not the rules, of my original Arsenal vision. Ultimately, I thought that as long as it didn’t affect my ability to reach my season-on-season targets in terms of numbers of English players fielded, I’d be OK with it. I left the final decision with you, however. Read the rest of this entry »

By: Tom | 15 Comments

For all it’s faults, the transfer window can make for some exciting times when it does come around. I get giddy as a school girl at the possibilities. Particularly when I’ve been handed a £72 million war chest. Let’s have a look at the comings and goings then.

First, those unlucky few who are leaving behind the hallowed turf of the Emirates. Read the rest of this entry »

By: Tom | 4 Comments

It’s always nice to end the season on a high, and with the players off on their summer holidays celebrating an FA Cup winner’s medal to add to the League Cup one they picked up earlier this year, that’s what’s happened. However, that isn’t enough to paper over the cracks of what has, in other major areas, been a fairly disappointing first season in charge.

Putting aside the individual performances of my players and my new signings, and focusing on the bigger picture, it’s quite apparent that a failure to reach the Champions League proper and a fourth place finish in the league is just not good enough for a team like Arsenal. My job status at the end of the season was ‘Insecure’. Read the rest of this entry »

By: Tom | 1 Comment

I’ve been away from the world of Football Managing for quite a while, and for that I apologise. There’s no better way to get back into the swing of things then with an FA Cup final however! Read the rest of this entry »