Breakdown: Football Manager 2023 Headline Features

Football Manager always has a lot to offer and this year is no exception. The feature reveal dropped last night and it was certainly worth the wait with 5 major areas seeing improvement and focus. Managers this year will have more tools at their disposal for a more realistic and in depth experience. We were promised more value for money and we are certainly getting it this year. Let's take a look at the new features we will be seeing in FM23.

Recruitment

This year there has been a huge focus on revamping recruitment. Football Manager 2023 recruiting will be more realistic which will be good news for lots of people. The team has spent time gathering data behind the scenes in the football world so they can apply it to Football Manager and improve your experience. Managers will see improvements in three areas and a fantastic new tool to bring everything together.

Squad Planner

This is arguably the most exciting news that we have been given as it will completely change the way you map your squad. The squad Planner will allow you to visualise how a player will look within your team based on your own tactic. This works by going into the Squad Planner where you will be able to see your tactic laid out. Once you click on a position you can rank your players to show who will perform the best and where you are weak. This not only works with your current players but with your youth players and anyone on your shortlist. The ability to visualise and analyse a team is massive.  

The Squad Planner is your 'secret, safe space' because it's for you and your staff. Which is great news if you rank your key striker further down because he wont get upset as he will never know. The only people who will know are your staff who can then make suggestions based on what your planner looks like. The Squad Planner not only allows you to plan for the current season, but the next season and the season after. You can map out your long term team and goals all with this handy new tool which is something very special.

Scouting

Say goodbye to assignments and hello to Recruitment Focus. Your inbox will no longer be flooded by your scouts. You can now set in-depth parameters for your scouts to use whilst scouting, so if you want a specific area, age, position, ability score and loan type, you can now request it. Your scouts will then show you players that fit your criteria and near misses, making it much easier to find the player you need. Essentially scouts will take a large group of players who fit your parameters and then whittle it down until they provide you with extensive reports on a select few who hit everything you need.

The idea is to make scouting more deliberate and clear so once that message hits your inbox you can take clear action on it as you will know exactly how far along the scouting process you are, instead of waiting for the knowledge percentage to increase and wondering how much longer you need to wait. Now you'll be given a clear message of where you are on the scouting journey so you can take action immediately. All this comes with a nice new revamp of the scouting centre.

Agents

In a bid to make Football Manager more realistic over the years, agents have become more and more important and their influence is seen even more in FM23. Now you can bat back against them and their normally unrealistic expectations. You'll be able to have a more back and forth conversation in a bid to negotiate the terms.

This functionality is not only available for trying to obtain new players but can also be used with your current players. You can talk to their agent and try to negotiate a better deal. Nothing is set in stone anymore and it allows you to get a better feel of how the player will react and whether they will be likely to accept. It allows for a more push-pull feeling which is much needed.

Recruitment Meetings

Meetings in general are boring, especially those without a focus and without an actionable conclusion. In your first Recruitment meeting it will be bespoke for the season you're in. In this you'll be shown the Squad Planner to see if you're happy with it and if you want to tinker with it and the last part is staff advising on what they think you should be focusing on and then they'll action any decisions made, over the next few weeks. This makes it easier to come into a job as you aren't bombarded in the first few days and you can ease into the role a bit more.

Next you'll get a review meeting to show what has been done since the previous meeting, such as players sold and general updates. The last meeting will be deadline day to look at what you still haven't achieved and what you have. Perhaps you haven't sold the players you needed to, or haven't signed for new positions. You can review what is missing from your focuses so when deadline day comes around you can sit back nicely.

Match AI and Animation

Match AI and Animation is a huge part of Football Manager, it's the way FM players experience the game and the club that they manage, allowing them to immerse themselves in such an in-depth experience. Football Manger 2023 has shown some much needed love to this area and this cycle has been mostly spent on improving AI Managers.

AI Managers

At Football Manager they've look at every football manger across the world using their impressive collection of 1000 scouts, to look at the different data points for them. This is to ensure that different play styles and tactics are all represented within the game making the AI managers feel more realistic, challenging and intelligent. The AI managers are essentially all of the managers across the world and how they are represented within the game and AI system. AI managers will be able to select the right formation and play style in order to challenge you.

Defence

This is an area that has been long overdue and overhaul and we have finally got it. You'll now be able to sit in the low block, soak up pressure and counter attack more effectively. Special attention has been focused on how team soak up pressure and then turn on transition and attack. You'll also have more instructions available for the defensive side of play. You'll be able to see are the lines of engagement and the terminology used have been simplified but also made more 'football' like so its terms you'll be used to hearing with real football. Defensive strategies will finally be more rewarding.

Goalkeepers

Goalkeepers now have the ability to do K blocks and spread blocks which they haven't had the ability to do before. Goalkeepers will now look bigger and more intimidating in one-on-ones. They will now feel more natural and play like those world class keepers you're used to seeing. They've been made better with the ball at their feet and their set ups for goal kick, long and short have had a lot of adjustments and improvements.

Midfield

This year Football Manager has captured the chaos of the midfield, not just the prettiness of it. The biggest change FM managers will see in this area is probably defensive players being able to defend more within the air and how they adjust their body positions for headers. Players will be able to seek out interceptions and make the best choices of how to deal with the ball. Pressing angles and tackles have also seen an improvement. and decision making on the pitch has been improved.

Animation Engine

Last year there was lots of excitement around the animation engine as it was the foundation for moving forward and this year they've overhauled all of their on ball selection criteria for every single action you have in the game. This is anything and everything from incoming and outgoing speed to where the ball is coming from and where it needs to go.

UEFA Licensing

This year for the first time, Football Manager has UEFA competition licensing. This opens up a whole new competitive world for FM managers to conquer. The UEFA license will join around 600 other club licenses and 50 competition licenses. FM managers will be able to see new kits, logos, match balls, perimeter boards and many other things, covered in the UEFA logo. The player walkouts and trophy lifts will also feel like the real thing and will incorporate the actions you see within UEFA games. Dynamically changing sleeve patches have also been added and will change depending on the competition you're in, including the Championship winners sleeve.

This year we're also getting full screen experience cup draws to make it even more exciting. This will include a lot more narrative moments to connect it to the rest of your game and save, preventing it from being a click away moment and make it something really special, of course you'll still be able to click past it if you want to. It's something that will reflect your journey from where you've started and where you've ended up to help establish a greater sense of history.

Supporter Confidence

Where would a club be without its supporters? In previous years supporters haven't really held much weight or voice but that's something that has been changed this year. Supporter Confidence is a representation of the fans and making sure they have a direct impact on game play and your choices as a manager.

When choosing a club you'll be able to see the breakdown of club supporters and see the proportion of the different types of fans from casual to hardcore. You'll be able to see the fan base change over time as you progress in your game so this seems to be something to keep an eye on. But that's not all, depending on the club will depend on how much influence the fans have and even your job security. It's the fans time to be heard.

Dynamic Manager Timelines

This is a visual addition to the game, so we get to see more pretty graphics from the Football Manager team. Dynamic Manager Timeline is basically reframing the milestones and important moments such as winning cups but also adding in subjective elements as those are what really define each managers story. You'll be able to experience this at the end of a season review. So whether you've signed an exciting new player or integrated someone from the youth team, they'll be given a physical representation. Nostalgia is the aim here, to highlight those special unique moments in your save to make the game more personal.

It seems we are being treated to be a very special Football Manager edition this year with all the new above additions that will create a more immersive, realistic and personal feel to the game.