The Football Manager Football Show

As The Football Manager Football Show hits episode 30, we've dug deep for this week and our first podcast giveaway.

Yes, hilarity may ensue, but we've got an exclusive, still-sealed-in-the-plastic-wrapper copy of the one and only Football Manager 2017 to give away! No Steam codes here, straight up hard copy!

How do you get your hands on this most epic of prizes? You'll find out in the opening few minutes of this week's podcast!

Also this week we're figuring out where we are in pre-season, settling in to tactics, bemoaning the opportunities not being afforded, cleaning house and trimming the fat off the squad, slashing wage budgets, discovering potential Spanish wonderkids, hitting China, the US, Germany and more all to warm up for our first (and possibly only) season in La Liga.

As nearly-always, you'll find some strong language throughout as the clock ticks down on the transfer window.

If you like what you hear or fancy becoming part of the conversation, tweet us at any time - @FMFShow. 

Season 4 has kicked off!

Between the jigs and the reels of the working world, we've managed to start Season 4 of The Football Manager Football Show this week and we've got a feeling it's going to be all about heroes and villains this time out.

Our Premier League journey has come to an end and it's time to move on to pastures new so we're off to the continent, while we had our entire season planned out for stint in Italy, it turns out we got on the wrong plane and ended up in a different league altogether.

Instantly, it's a tale of the upper class and the working class, there's big money transfers, some fantasy dealings (know that FM22 will be along in a matter of months) and we're both taking on two clubs in question for the very first time.

When it comes to Football Manager, does money really matter? Will the "working class" rise up and topple the giants of European football, or is it all a soft sell to create a false sense of security?

We'll recap what went wrong at Wolves and Leicester, explain how we ended up not moving to Italy and walk through the first six weeks of the transfer window as we attempt to put our mark on La Liga. At least one of us has prior experience there.

If you like what you hear (or don't), let us know by joining the conversation on Twitter @FMFShow.

Onward!   

Warning: This episode contains strong language, as per usual.

It's the end of season 3. Seven games remain to decide the path of the Premier League trophy with Wolves in pole position. Can they hold on? Can Leicester cause an upset? Or did the wheels really come off last week?

As far as opponents go, we've found ourselves in a situation where our mutual run-ins include the likes of Chelsea, Man City, Liverpool, Leeds, West Ham, Norwich and Arsenal.

Strikers are underperforming, VAR is getting ugly, tempers are flaring and with the highest honour in English football on the line, there's so much at stake.

We've got more injuries and red cards than we can shake a stick at, but more importantly, we've got Leicester and Wolves in a top of the table clash that could decide the outcome of the league title, who gets European football or not, and ultimately shape the next season of the podcast.

Somewhere in the mix there's a goal of the year contender and we're going right down to the wire.

Join us as we close out our third season of The Football Manager Football Show!

Please note this episode contains strong language from the start.

It's episode 27 of The Football Manager Football Show and if things were heating up last week, the wheels may well be coming off this week.

Between Ken forgetting he's still manager of Germany, to both Wolves and Leicester dropping points in key fixtures, players who can't find the net at club level smashing them in during the international break to FA cup upsets and more, there's plenty to be happy and furious about in equal measures this week.

Make it to the end and you'll hear how our run-in is looking as we might well yet hit the end of the season in next week's episode!

If ever there was a squeaky-bum time, it's right now.

Want to chat about anything on the podcast or just say hi? Tweet us any time @FMFShow or visit scoreline.ie/fm/ for the full archive.   

We've got FA Cup, League Cup and top-of-the-table league action this week as Leicester, Wolves, Man City and Man United all jockey for position with ten games to play.

It's also been a busy week in Football Manager land with the news that women's football is set for representation within the FM world, a move that can only do wonders for the sport. PES too is changing as Konami kill off the legendary brand in favour of eFootball.

In our world, we're moving through February and March with a League Cup final, the FA Cup fifth round and big games featuring Chelsea, Everton, Tottenham and Man Utd.

Thomas Tuchel also makes his first appearance in the Premier League and our arch-nemesis is making headlines.

It's the Football Manager Football Show and, as a word of warning, this show starts with a bang. By that we mean it gets very sweary very early.

Tweet the show @fmfshow if you've been listening along and say hi!

As we get a quarter-way to 100 episodes (we've got targets you know), we've got plenty to chat about this week.

We'll start with a look at Castlewarren Celtic's cup adventure in the real world before breaking into a run of four games in February. 

Just when he thought he had things sewn up early in the season, are Leicester closing the gap on Wolves? It's already looking like Adeyemi could finish top scorer in the league based on his current rate of return but can Iheanacho spring to life and reclaim his pre-World Cup form?

With a couple of high-profile games around the top-end of the table, there's still everything to play for.

If you like what you hear, leave a little review of the podcast wherever you do your listening, or better still, drop us a line on Twitter @fmfshow and say hello! This episode contains strong language.

It's 2023, we're blitzing a January transfer window, navigating a crazy post-World Cup schedule and one former United and Arsenal player is causing headaches.

There's a whole rake of things happening this week as injuries are piling up for Leicester, there are big games against Man City and Liverpool along with cup days with both the Carabao Cup and FA Cup to put up with.

We're talking player relationships, trimming the fat off our squads, burning through Chinese money and handling red cards on and off the pitch. 

As for  Danny "F%$king" Welbeck, oh he's a different story altogether now, isn't he! 

Note, this episode contains strong language from the beginning.

The World Cup is done and we're back to the league. 

This week we're arranging some pre-Christmas friendlies to warm up the legs by destroying local opposition while getting ready for a little bit of window shopping in January.

The Chinese, PSG and more are all sniffing around Wolves and Leicester but will anyone be shown the door?

Are player relationships and certain player traits the keys to unlocking others, particularly when it comes to a certain striker?

When you're riding high and the board prompt you to change your end-of-season expectations, how should you react?

And when it comes to the first Premier League round of the King Of The Snow Forest, somebody's getting smoked and getting a wake-up call.

We've got some high scoring games, a bucket full of injuries but it's good to be back on the sidelines for some Premier League football all over again. 

Follow the podcast on Twitter, it's @FMFshow.

This week's Football Manager Football Show is a 2022 FIFA World Cup special.

Yes, the boys are off to Qatar having recently taken over as the managers of Germany and France respectively.

Ken (Germany) draws Denmark, Mexico and Egypt in his group while Shane (France) pulls South Korea, DR Congo and Italy.

Minnows will rise. Big names will fall. Ultimately, we'll have two nights of craic at the World Cup as the winter break lands for the Premier League. As Wolves and Leicester take a back seat for a week, things are about to get heated for two players who haven't managed at international level in over 15 years.

The World Cup awaits.

As we were working out the episode structure for the next few weeks and what we could cram in across Wednesday and Thursday night, we came to the realisation that episode 22 would land in 2022 in time for the World Cup in Qatar.

How apt.

But this is episode 21, which means we're all about warming up for the World Cup and getting to grips with international management.

Last week, we revealed we'd be taking the winter gap in the Premier League and turning our attention to life on the international stage. Plus, the Euros are on and it's hard to get away from international football in real life for the next few weeks.

As such, I'm (Ken) taking over from Jogi Loew at Germany, beaten quarter-finalists at the European Championships, while Shane takes over the talent-rich defending World Cup champions, France.

That means this week we've got our first international break, including the final two group games from the Nations League (those glorified friendlies) along with our final four Premier League games ahead of the winter break.

There's dropped points, ridiculous goals from the half-way line, mounting injuries, potential murder charges, and that's just league.

When it comes to the international stage, we've got to pick squads for the World Cup, head to games to scout players and check on progress, and make enemies with some of the biggest names in world football.

If you like what you hear and you want more, follow @FMFshow on Twitter to keep an eye on what's happening when we're playing live.