Moneyball + Bristol City + Football Manager

[BCFC_Dan]

Apologies if this has been posted but I haven't seen it anywhere.

 

Someone decided to see if it was possible to succeed at Football Manager by adhering strictly to the principles of Moneyball & Soccernomics. He chose to do this by playing as Bristol City.

 

The first two parts of the article have been posted up so far:

 

http://thesetpieces.com/features/football-manager-meets-moneyball-pt-1/

http://thesetpieces.com/features/football-manager-meets-moneyball-pt-2/

 

Obviously Football Manager isn't real and there is at least one glaring aspect in which this tale diverges from reality, but it's interesting to see that he adopts very similar tactics to those of Steve Cotterill (because that's what the squad is set up for) and promising that things seem to turn out rather well (as opposed to when I tried playing the game and took City swiftly into the relegation zone).

[Roe]

Interesting. If we don't finish on 110 points, Cotterill should be sacked imo.

 

I started playing the latest football manager game a few weeks ago and tried to do it as if I was Steve Cotterill (ie picking his team and trying to replicate tactics etc) I started out pretty well from what I remember but haven't played since.

[Pickle Rick]

How the **** does Wes Burns end up with 30+ goals?!

[Chairman Mao]

Freeman is clearly Prem quality going by FM, 10 year contract please!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Maybe 9 because we all know how 10 year contracts turn out.. 

[marcofisher]

I've found City such an enjoyable club to manage on football manager, always been stable and so easy to build a squad.

 

I'm in the fifth season, Implemented the 4-2-3-1 wide tactic i usually use. First season quite easily finished champions of League 1 on 89 points (Orient finished 2nd on 82) JET player of the season in the hole with an average rating of 7.27. Kieran Agard and Joe Bryan scored 18 goals each off the left and right wings respectively!

 

Second season after hovering about above the relegation zone around 18th for the majority but a late run finished about 11th, JET player of the year again with 7.44 Average rating!

 

Third season was where it really clicked ended up finishing 4th but unfortunately after winning 2-0 at Turf Moor in the play off semi final, an awful 4-1 collapse at Ashton Gate we were in the Championship for another year (which could've been a blessing!)

 

Fourth season had to be the season, my squad had developed into leading championship players, with the addition of some premier league standard youngsters on loan it had to work! Despite this it didn't click straight away and we floated in mid-table for most of it. At the end though we pulled it together and finished 5th just about! Stoke were dismissed 3-2 on aggregate thanks to a 3-1 second leg win at the gate! And then at Wembley Oldham had a man off after 30 minutes! Which means after a banger in the 60th minute we ended up running out 3-0 champions! Luke Freeman having scored 20 goals in 27 matches for the season!!

 

What is so good about playing as city in Football Manager is the potential of the current squad! Ayling, Cunningham, Williams, Bryan, Smith, Reid, Freeman & JET have been ever present in every season and now have developed into Premier League standard players and still feature for me! Osbourne and Agard were also always present until the prem and are now on the transfer list!

 

Freeman is also tearing it up in the premier league still in 13 games has scored 8 Assisted 2 3 Man of the matches with an average rating of 7.51!

 

Most enjoyable football manager to play as with city! No ridiculous aging players, all young players for the future who develop very well!