As I've said before, this one is also about a game. But in all probabilities it is the last one on the subject. Last because of two reasons. Firstly, I have stopped playing Fifa, haven't played for the last 3 months or so. Secondly, I might not want to write about other games (I don't play that many...really). This post, unlike the ones before, is like a guide.
So welcome to the world of Electronic Football.
Junkie's guide to Fifa '09 Manager Mode:Manager mode is absolutely different from tournament mode and is perhaps the most challenging one in the game. It tests not just your fingers/operational skill (playing a match, in case you were wandering off somewhere else), but also your ability to manage the finances, keep the board happy, keep the fans happy and keep the players motivated! In short, the complete fantasy of a a football fan, to be the man in charge of his favourite club.
After many mistakes, much tinkering around, endless discussions with another junkie and spending hours per day before finally uninstalling the game, I've completed multiple manager careers successfully. Thus the qualification to write this guide. This is mostly about which players to buy. I'll also include some tips on other things, but will concentrate on players. All money figures are in Euros.
First of all, choose a good team with a good budget and most of the staff already at level 9 or 10. The reason is that with a strong start, you can buy good players before their market price shoots through the sky in future seasons. Also, good players are likely to prefer big clubs during transfer. I prefer Arsenal not only because I am a gooner, but also because of the following reasons:
Why Arsenal?1> 90+ Players:A whole host of players in the default squad of Arsenal reach an OVR of 90+. Take a look:
Cesc Fabregas 94
Robin Van Persie 92*
Samir Nasri 92*
Denilson 90*
Carlos Vela 95
Gael Clichy 91*
* The OVR is inclusive of 1 that the player gets after completing 100 Match XP. Sometimes in the first completion, sometimes later. In a unique case, Clichy got 1 extra point after one defender skill training (affected his attributes).
2> 80+ Players:A slew of players in the default squad who are already 80+ or will reach 80+, in hardly a couple of seasons in some cases. Thomas Rosicky, Eduardo, Kolo Toure, Emmanuel Adebayor, Alex Song, William Gallas, Theo Walcott, Nicklas Bendtner, Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshere, Fran Merida, Randall, Bakary Sagna, Abou Diaby, Emmanuel Eboue..phew..I don't think I can remember whether Bischoff reaches 80, I think he doesn't. In fact, it is much easier to list players who won't reach 80+: Sylvestre, Almunia, Fabianski (I don't remember if Vito Mannone is in the 2009 squad)
3> Youth BrigadeMany players in the Arsenal squad are young and growing, and will remain at their peak till the last season (15th season is the last season in manager mode). Few will even be the best available in their position when they reach their peak till the very end. The last list includes Carlos Vela (ST, 95), Aaron Ramsey (CM, 89), Fabregas (CM, 94), Wilshere (LM, I think 88). I think even Denilson makes the cut. In any case, many players remain at their peak for the majority of the manager mode. E.g. Bendtner (84), Walcott (85)
4> Pace Attack!Clichy on the left wing and Walcott on the right possess inhuman speed in this game. Exploit it to score. I discovered that beating Manchester United in the later seasons is very very easy when you attack from right (or pass from left to right in the Gunners style). I've scored many hat tricks with Walcott, some even in the Professional level.
Why Not Arsenal?The biggest curse being a Gunner Manager in Fifa 09 is the loss of few really good players due to Rivalry. Arsenal's default Rivals in the game are Tottenham, Chelsea and Manchester United. You won't be able to buy few young and really tremendous players like Tottenham's Giovani Dos Santos (ST, 97) & Gareth Bale (LB, 90) and ManUtd's Fabio and Rafael (LWB, RWB, around 86). The last two and Giovani are the best in their category when it comes to the last seasons. I am not counting the 90+ overhyped and over priced stars in the game like Ronaldo, Rooney, Terry, Lampard etc as they age later and their OVR declines later on.
Other good teams to start with are: Barcelona, Real Madrid, Bayern Munich, Roma, Juventus, and the remaining top 4 of BPL. I haven't tried with AC Milan but it doesn't seem right with so many aging players. Apart from these "star" teams (4.5-5 stars by default), I have tried Valencia, Porto, Ajax and Lyon. They are average, nothing great about their squad or staff apart from a couple of gems of players like Villa (92) or Silva (92) or Huntelaar (92).
Right, so you have chosen your team. Now comes the big question. Which Players to buy? I'll list the players according to their position. Only those who are the best in the game. Based on two facts:
1> They are young. They would start with crap OVR when compared to stars, but they will beat them eventually as the seasons progress.
2> They get the max OVR in their category in the last seasons. Last because a fanatic like me would like to play the whole 15 seasons of the manager mode career and would like to retire in style, winning all trophies even after 7 or 8 seasons.
Buying these players when they are young will help you avoid paying insane amounts once they become stars. They will also mean a super low wage bill for the first 5 years (if you offer them contracts for 5 years. Or extend it to 5 on their first salary). You can use the money saved from these low wage bills to upgrade your other staff, especially the super expensive in the short run, stadium manager. So buy them as soon as you start your first season. They are the best. The only ones who beat them are a few freak players who come out of youth squad. Their presence is unpredictable anyways, so buy the ones listed here.
Always remember to watch the player growth of your squad in the team management section. As a rule of thumb, I keep players who will reach 80+ in the graph, and sell players (from initial squad and from those coming from youth squad) who won't or are in the last season of their peak (usually happens when they are 28-32).
Players:Goalkeepers:Sell all your goalkeepers and buy these two:
1> V Fiorillo (94)
2> Sergio Asenjo (90)
If you want to buy a third one, buy Rui Patricio (87)
In the earlier seasons you may like to flirt around the idea of having Buffon, Casillas, Cech, Adler, Neuer, Lloris, but they are damn expensive (both Transfer fees and Wages) and within a few seasons will start to decline. Thus they have no resale value and will unnecessarily inflate your wage bill.
Sergio Asenjo will reach 90 pretty quickly, then Fiorillo will overtake him. And in the end (around last 3 seasons) they will both decline from their peak OVR but still will be the best. So don't sell them ever. In the last season Fiorillo will still be at 90 OVR.
Defenders:Fullbacks (LB/RB): (Since playing on either full back position is the same in the game)
D Gosling (RB, 90)
Thimothee Kolodzieczak (LB, 88)
Fabio
Rafael
I don't remember the exact OVR but it is around 86 for both. These Brazilian, wing-back, Da-Silva twins who are in ManUtd's default squad are the best in their category in the last seasons.
Other players (who are not at their peak in the last season but are still awesome in many seasons) are: Sergio Ramos (RWB, 91), Emiliano Insua (LWB, 88), Gael Clichy (LWB, 91), Philip Lahm (RWB, 90 I think), Gareth Bale (LB, 90). Ramos has a perfect finish, so you can even use him for free kicks/penalties/corners. Clichy and Lahm have blistering speed so you can use them as wing-backs. Out of these Insua and Bale remain at their peak for the longest.
Central Defenders (CB):
Breno (92)
Micah Richards (93)
Miguel Vitor (89)
Midfielders:Good midfielders are very rare and 80+ midfielders become near extinct as the seasons progress. Hence I recommend a 4-3-3 over a 4-4-2, as there are more good Forwards in the game than midfielders. Besides, it is much more fun to attack from all sides and score goals isn't it ;)
Defensive midfielders (CDM):
Moussa Sissoko (91)
Jack Rodwell (91)
Central Midfielders (CM):
Francesc Fabregas (94)
Denilson (90)
Aaron Ramsey (89)
Attacking Midfielders (CAM)
M Pjanic (95!)
Anderson (97)
M Hamsik (92)
Anderson and Hamsik will decline in the late stages. You can use these as your wingers, as in the game a CAM can play without losing his OVR in the following positions: LWM/RWM/LM/RM/CAM/RCAM/LCAM
Winger (LWM/RWM)
Lionel Messi (98!)
Not many good wingers in the game. You can use a CAM as a winger.
Forwards (ST/CF/LF/RF):Giovanni Dos Santos (97!)
Alexander Pato (96)
Jose Baxter (96)
Carlos Vela (95)
Stevan Jovetic (93)
Diogo (92)
Sergio Aguero (92)
Victor Moses (90)
Bojan Krkic (90)
M Balotelli Barwuah (90)
Messi can play as a Forward at 96.
Buy Micah Richards, Anderson (if you have a formation that has a CAM), Jovetic, Pato and Diogo as early as possible. These guys start with a 80+ OVR in the very first season (Jovetic and Diogo reach 85 in the summer of 2009!) hence are more expensive than others who are late bloomers. Remaining are very cheap and you can wait till the second transfer window (or even second season). Starlets like Messi, Benzema (93, but not till the end), Bojan and Barwuah are expensive right from the beginning and I don't recommend buying them until you have stable finances. In fact I don't recommend you to buy them at all. You don't need so many forwards any ways. If any of these starlets becomes a free agent only then it makes sense to get him, like any other good free agent. So keep hunting for free agents throughout the transfer windows, especially in summer.
On a side note, there are many players in the game who play equally well as a forward as their respective midfield positions. E.g. Denilson, Walcott, Nasri (hardly loses 1 OVR as a forward). Same principle applies to CDM/CB. A few players like Miguel Veloso can play equally well in those 2 positions. Porto's Marquinhos plays at 87 whether he is a RF, ST, CF, RWM or RM. I am sure he will play at 87 even at LM, LWM & LF.
Finance:1> In the transfer window, buy good free agents then sell them for a fee.
2> Always sign a sponsor that gives you the most variable on a match win.
E.g. Don't sign with a sponsor who gives you a fixed 1.7 million sponsorship per match when you have a sponsor who gives you a 1.4 million plus a 33% win bonus. With more matches, this small amount makes a large difference to the bank balance in the end of the season (in this case, with just 38 league matches it means a neat 6.33 million extra, and that is excluding cup wins). Avoid sponsors that pay less but promise a high sum if you win with an "undefeated season" or "maximum clean sheets" unless you plan to play each and every match.
3> Play the matches (and win) in the first season instead of doing quick sim. This way you make use of the win bonus of the sponsor money. It also helps after you've won the two trophies in the first season, as the next season the sponsors will be ready to give you much more money. Once you reach a stage where your team's Morale and chemistry are very high, then u can do quick sims for most of the matches. I still like to play against rivals even with a 99 everything (1st screenshot).
4> Always keep the ticket prices as high. Always.
5> Whenever you sign a youth player, immediately check his growth. If he is going to reach 80+, immediately extend his contract to 5 years at the same wage. Then keep loaning him out till he reaches 80. Then you can either keep him or sell him if you have better players at his position. If he is not going to reach 80, you can sell him immediately (without extending contract).
6> Always invite teams for friendlies. All 4 possible. This gives you 4 extra matchday money (sponsor if it is at home, win bonus in any case and ticket split if it is away). This also gives you more chances to play with the transfer window. It also improves team chemistry and morale.
Concentrate on building your squad in the first season. Don't buy many players, but only enough for 2 full fledged squad, with subs. The reason is that in the first season you are likely to play only 2 tournaments, the league and the domestic cup. The only exception is the English League, where you have an additional Carling cup to handle. But even then you will only play max 2 matches per week in the first season. Upgrade your staff apart from Stadium manager in your first season. Stadium manager upgrades cost very much and are best left to season 3 and beyond. Upgrading your scouting staff is the most essential to make money in the transfer window (explained later). Upgrading your other coaches ensure that players recover from fatigue more quickly. So midfield coach and Scout upgrades are the first on the list.
Sell your star players as soon as the first transfer window if they are already on a decline. E.g. if you've started with Real Madrid, sell Raul and Van Nistelrooy in the winter transfer window. There is no point in paying high wages when other equally good players are available for a lower wage. Also, these players lose their market value every season as their OVR reduces and age increases. The worst is that they can announce retirement, making it impossible to sell them. So again, check your squad's growth as soon as you start the season.
The biggest tip for building Finance is to make the most of the transfer windows by buying free agents and selling them for a fee. This is where a good scout helps. Not only you get to see more free agents in your search, you also get to negotiate with them more easily. First go for 80+ agents. They will charge a high fees no doubt (between 50,000 to 100,000), but after just one match you can sell them for 15 million or even more. When you run out of them (in the earlier seasons the no of such free agents is practically 0, and increases only slowly every season) then target 75-80 ones. Then 70-75. Don't accumulate a large no of free agents as the last day of the transfer window is very unpredictable. You might end up with no demands for these high wages players and get into negative bank balance! It has happened with me once. So as soon as you sign a free agent, place him on the transfer list. Don't worry much about not getting more money if his morale could be improved by playing him more. Just get rid of him if he is not in the list.
Contract Extension:When you buy these players, most will agree to a 5 year contract. If they don't, transfer them for the duration that they agree with, then as soon as they are in the squad, extend their contract on the same wage for 5 years.
Never ever extend their contract till they are over. You will end up paying a much higher wage than the current contract for the duration remaining on the original contract. Instead wait patiently till their contract runs out. Then as soon as the 5th season ends, you get an automatic contract toggle alert. These contracts are automatically extended at lowest market price. I think the scout plays a role here too.
Formation:It is entirely your call, but with my experience I've seen that the game favours a 4-4-3 and 4-5-1 over a 4-4-2. As there are more quality forwards and strikers in the game than midfielders. Also, instead of simple full backs, the game has better wing backs.
If you like the wings and would like to take a risk, you can even try a 4-2-2-2. Works well if you have quality CAM/LM in your original squad, such as Real Madrid (Robben, Van der Vaart, Sneijder).
Miscellaneous:Put the players of lower stamina from the same position in the sub list (of the first team). For the players I've mentioned above, they are Aguero and Diogo.
Ensure your sub list reflects your formation. E.g. for my 4-3-3 my subs were 1 GK, 1 CB, 1 LB/RB, 1 CM, 3 CF/ST, and I used to sub a CM and 2 CFs. As I used to run my forwards very much from the half line instead of running my midfield too much.
Keep a minimum of 2 goalkeepers. A friend had only one, who was called on an international friendly. The game stuck and he couldn't proceed with his profile.
After playing a while, you'll get an idea as to which players from your squad are frequently called for international friendlies. I've noticed that most of 90+ players are called, but only a few countries have international matches, viz England, Mexico, Argentina, Spain, Italy, Portugal, France, Germany. So whenever these dates are announced, ensure that the player likely to play is rotated in such a way that he definitely plays just before the international. This way you don't over exhaust the substitute for the player during the break. The international friendly happens on 3rd Matchday from the day of announcement. (For the stupid English FA cup, the day on which FA cup happens there is always another league match happening, so that day is technically 2 match days, a really stupid concept of the game in my opinion...where in real world does the same team have two different matches on the same day?)
