While FM22’s release is still a few weeks away, we’re sure that you’re already plotting your first saves. You know the players you’re looking forward to using, or signing, and have some idea of the tactics you’re planning to implement. 

As a team, we love poring over the goings on of the summer transfer window, assessing both the big, headline moves and those under-the-radar deals that could eventually prove to be real hit signings. Here are 10 of our favourite recent transfers; which of these players are you most excited to manage in FM22?

One of the most appealing aspects of Football Manager is when the fictional players known as Newgens join your universe. For many players, that means scouring the globe for the wonderkids through the Player Search menu or trawling through the hundreds of international youth squads. For others, it can be rewarding to work with what you get from your own internal intake. Build a team of local lads and inspire them to stardom, taking your club forward with every well-worked goal scored and bit of silverware won. 

Dan Gear and FM Grasshopper, co-hosts of the GrassNGear podcast, are here to give you some tips and food for thought when training your Newgens. To illustrate our advice, we’ve simulated five years into the future, exploring what we’d do with three players at our disposal and why.
 

You’ve seen it in real life - clubs losing a series of key players through injury or transfer deals and then struggling as they lack suitable backup in those areas. You’ll also have seen it in Football Manager, where you reach a pivotal point in a campaign only to suffer the ignominy of a mid-season injury crisis which can completely derail a good run of form or, worse still, your entire season. You feel these issues particularly when the transfer window is closed and/or you can’t afford to bring in like-for-like replacements. 

That ends here. MaddFM talks about the value of retraining players in new positions in FM21, explaining how it can assist your recruitment strategy and your overall player development in a longer-term save. Looking at different options and approaches will mean you’re maximising the impact each of your players can make. It’ll also ensure you’ve got sufficient Squad Depth, from first-choice starters to youngsters in your academy capable of providing cover.

We’ve all seen it a hundred times. We have all scratched our heads. 

The striker who scores a hatful of goals every year despite only having a Finishing attribute of 10. 

The defender with a Tackling attribute of 11 who always seems to nail that last-ditch slide at your striker’s feet in the 91st minute whenever you play against his team, meaning you don’t grab that late winner.

How does this happen? Is there more to it than luck or form? More importantly, if we have players in our own squads capable of ‘overperforming’ their Attributes like this, how can we identify them to get the best out of our playing squad when picking our starting line-up?

FM Stag has come to The Byline to provide an overview of how to dig beyond the attributes to get the best understanding of your squad in FM21. 

If you’re anything like us, we know you love jumping into a new save as soon as the Winter Update drops so you can get your hands on the latest squads. 

So, this window wasn't the best for big money moves... or even average money moves. That said, there's still plenty to get excited about in the Main Winter Update though as we've tweaked a number of players' attributes based on their real-life performances through the first half of the season. We’ve gone through the list and picked out our favourites, so here are the 12 improved players YOU should be getting your scouts to track.

We’ve all got stories of the Wonderkids that we discovered in Football Manager long before they’d made an impact in real-life. Those players that not only lift your team to new heights on the game but let you drop that ever so slightly smug ‘oh him, yeah I signed him on FM a couple of years ago’ into the group chat. It’s even more satisfying when the player has flown completely under the radar so that you seem like some kind of Wonderkid Nostradamus.

To help get you up to speed on the latest crop of emerging talent, we’ve put together a Matchday squad of the brightest young stars, including one player you definitely won’t have discovered in FM21 so far…

If you were asked to name the most important part of a car, what would your answer be? The colour? The size? The interior? The bodywork?

No - you would (or at least should) answer with the correct response: the engine. While a car can be big, small, fast, shiny or stylish, ultimately the key determining factor in a car’s performance and longevity is the engine, and while often the more aesthetically pleasing aspects of a car get the most attention, it is, of course, what’s under the hood that counts.

The same can often be said for football teams. Usually the players grabbing the headlines are the flashy, stylish or more creative players that contribute crowd-pleasing stats such as goals, assists, clear-cut chances, or a high xG. It’s always much more exciting to watch or analyse a player that catches the limelight through their skill, goalscoring or technical ability, right? However, such rose-tinted spectacles often lead to one of the most important positions/roles being overlooked or underestimated (both in real life and in Football Manager), and if history has taught us anything, it’s that often the strongest individuals are not those who show strength in front of us, but those who win the battles we know nothing about.

Let’s see if we can change this shall we? Today, MaddFM has come to The Byline to look at the four defensive midfield roles available in Football Manager - the Ball Winning Midfielder, the Anchor Man, the Half Back and the Defensive Midfielder. These are the unsung/unappreciated roles which, on the surface, might be considered boring or unattractive (how many kids want a DMC’s name on the back of their shirt?) but in actual fact are often the engine of a midfield and the driving force behind a team’s performance. They can be the difference between success or failure in executing a well-balanced playing style as you attempt to conquer all in your latest FM save. 

In this strangest of years, the global transfer market has looked a little different. Windows have been open at different times and clubs are keener than ever to find value. As always, we kept our eye on the comings and goings across the footballing world and here are nine transfers we’re excited about.

For me, player development is one of the most exciting and engaging aspects of a Football Manager save – that thrill of bringing a youngster from your academy through to the first team is hard to beat. It’s not just about the excitement, though, as the success of a long-term save often hinges on your ability to bring through and develop youth prospects.

FM20 gives us more control than ever over the development of our youngsters with Playing Time Pathways built into contracts and a very in-depth Development Centre which puts all the relevant information at our fingertips. This comes with more detailed advice and suggestions on training, mentoring and loan time than ever before.

This wealth of information can be overwhelming, especially if you've just taken over at a new club and are not as aware of the youth players as if you had been there for a couple of years.

In this blog post, FM blogger InvertedWingbacks gives you a more specific, in-depth example of how all the youth development tools work together in order to shape the youngsters in your squad.

Football is a game of fine margins, with split-second decisions often deciding promotion and relegation, or who wins the title and who finishes second. As said countless times before, history is written by the victors. 

This is no different in Football Manager and for this reason it’s vitally important to focus on the attributes of your young players. Ensuring that they are mentally strong, capable of remaining calm under pressure and able to make the right decisions at the right times could be the difference between scintillating success and disappointing defeats. Here, Dan Gear talks us through the key steps for developing the mental attributes of your young stars.

When looking at young players I imagine most focus on the Physical and Technical attributes. I’m the same - I usually glance at Mental attributes but I'd would never back out of buying a young player because these were poor if the rest of their profile looks good. We must remember physical attributes develop earliest, followed by technical then finally mental. In other words, a youth player has time on their side when it comes to developing their mental attributes.

Some words of wisdom from Dan Gear on bolstering the mental fortitude of your latest wonderkids. 

Much emphasis is placed on finding the next wonderkid in FM, through global scouting and leaving no stone unturned your pursuit of a rare discovery. That’s natural, football is a dynamic and rapidly changing sport, but I want to encourage you to adapt your approach by considering older players to complement your squad of fledgling talents.

These players have been around the block before. Their minds are strengthened by experience, and they have the knowledge, skill and ability to cope with pressure. Whether it’s a lengthy relegation scrap, or the crunch fixtures in a title challenge; don’t underestimate the older guy in a profession where men usually peak young. Here are five reasons why…

The Bundesliga is back.

This season has already been one of the most competitive and dramatic in years. Five teams in a battle for the title. Big names battling to beat the drop. Seven weeks to decide it all. 

The Bundesliga’s brand of pulsating, attacking football is punctuated with explosive young and developing talents who mix it up with the very best in the league. Those promising stars will have the chance to decide their team’s fate. 

With such an array of talent, we had the hard job of singling out the players who will have the biggest impact over the remaining fixtures. Some players narrowly missed the cut and we could’ve included multiple stars from some teams. In the end, we decided to go for one from teams at the top and bottom of the table. Here are the stars you won’t want to take your eyes off.