Jonners71

It never goes down well, a nobody thrown into the hot seat of a big club....you can almost feel the hostility of the fans...the chants of 'who are you?' as you walk to the bench for that first pre-season friendly.....but for those of us who long to put right (at least virtually) the wrongs blighting our beloved teams, FM gives us a tempting chance to indulge ourselves.

And so it began at Liverpool, the usual uncertainty, the daunting 2 year plan to win the title...the transfer budget that will only help so much. But it all started so well.....3 wins out of 3 in pre-season, such teams as Wrexham and Sailsbury falling in my wake....well, it felt like I was at least building up morale. Then of course the season begins...the first player goes down with food poisioning (just how bad are the restaraunts in FM world?) and 2 of the players have already fallen out with each other. My new Brazilian is missing the beaches of Rio and having trouble adjusting to the glamour of Birkinhead and Kirby....and the fans are already on my back for only drawing 0-0 at home on the opening day.

The temptation to 'quit without saving' takes hold, if I can just win my opening game it will give me a foothold....but no, wheres the challenge in that...so it's on we go.....another player moans because they want the same salary as the new Brazilian....someone else does thier face some damage after a robust challenge in training (I don't even want to know what the hell happened)...but it's onwards....a scrappy midweek win and all is good again....a welcome international break gives me the chance to bask in my unbeaten start to the season....even my new Brazillian is looking chirpier and morale remains reasonable....but its Liverpool...and a defeat is never far away when they catch you daring to dream....and so it begins....the widening gap, the dominated games that could not be won (what is it with the finishing in this game!!) and the game begins to depressingly mirror reality.

By mid-season I'm 6th, other teams seem as bad as me....a few key players string some form together, others feel the urge to move on....3 catch colds and some feel they are too good to go out on loan.....my Brazillian is now settled and threatening to re-pay his transfer fee with at least a decent shift on the pitch....the January transfer window sees my Chairman accept a pathetic bid for a wonderkid without consulting me and the whole season has an air of underachievement already....

February and it's the same old story...4th if we get a good run going....the odd stray egg thrown at my car after each unconvincing performance....players who 'don't appear to listen' to my team talks....a scout who seems to have gone missing in West Africa (one player reccomended in 3 months....where is he??)....it's already looking like another re-building season.....

By the end of it 4th was somehow managed....the board were less than impressed but even this game deems it too cruel to sack me so soon...and so, with hope in my heart....another go...."this time" I tell the media, as the fans roll thier eyes.