If you got here without reading the original thread (though this issue has re-surfaced a number of times either here or on the CardiffCity message board over the course of the game) and are wondering what's going on - this is the link:

 http://footballacademyevo.activeboard.com/index.spark?aBID=112202&p=3&topicID=36160952

Though possible deleted by now! So for info: refers to sniping comments from a number of managers, two most recently, that I (and the Valladolid manager) have some advantage over other managers in the game. Also a statement by another player that the Juventus youth system in the game is unrealistically enhanced in relation to other teams.

I have no particular issue with sledging and it can be a very entertaining part of any game. Once when Shane Warne was getting ready to bowl, one of the England team tried to put him off by asking why he was so fat. He responded by saying - because each time I sleep with your wife she gives me a biscuit! But there is a difference between sledging and the sniping - which is once again appearing on here.

 This is going to be a very long post which is why I have moved it to this separate thread. Frankly given the nonsense that started up yesterday on here (again) I was not going to allow myself to be pulled back into the ridiculous favoritism argument that off and on raises its ugly head on the message board. But as Gareth had decided to re-ignite things I reckon that ignoring it just makes it sound as if there is some substance to it. The fact that this issue keeps coming back clearly indicates that some people at least think there is something to it, and trying to later laugh it off as a joke is not good enough so either put up or shut up. This is not having a go at Gareth particularly - I have no issue with the guy and would prefer to think that he was just supporting his (albeit misguided) mates comment rather than really believing there is something underhand going on. So his name is only here because his post tipped the balance and I have also (below) corrected some of his supposed facts about the real life Juventus youth set-up.

 This also is not on behalf of Richard or Simon - what they do is up to them - I am old enough and ugly enough to talk just for myself so Richard and Simon may not agree with what I have to say. I mention this because there seems to be an obsession with some people who think of us as the Jenkins rather than three people.

 So if you are not interested in this particular gripe just stop reading here. If on the other hand you are:

·     one of the people who seem obsessed with sniping about the fact that two of the people playing the game are related to the person running the game and / or

·     have read these peoples stuff and thought there may be something in it.

Please read on (and perversely you may also pick up some tips to help you become a better FA manager!).

 Any success I have had in this version of the game and the earlier version is probably for the following reasons:

• I have a plan for my team and I develop that plan over time (talk to other managers who have been successful and I am sure you will find they also fit into this category - Stu Price and Jamie Walker come to mind).
• I do not chuck the plan out just because something goes wrong, I look at what is not working and try to figure out how to put it right.
• I dont get stuck on some ridiculous fad that one season is bonuses are best, and another season anything less than a stat of  7 is rubbish, and this season only youth players are worth having or skill is the key thing or talent figures below 3 are useless (if the cap fits you know who you are).
• I develop a balanced team and squad so that I have tactical options all over the pitch and look for long term development rather than short term gain.
• In FA version one I stuck with the same team for the whole game. In this version I kept that team for the first season and a bit and then moved to a new challenge. I joined my first team when they were in the bottom league and my second team when they had just got promoted but had an aging and unbalanced squad. I have stayed at this new team for the remainder of the game. So I have put in the time to build a team and squad the way I want them.
• I do not move teams all the time just because there is no instant success and I cant be bothered to be there for the long haul (if the cap fits you know who you are).
• I do not move into a team and burn out the aging high stat squad just to win something that season and then leave them ruined for someone else to have to spend three seasons re-building from the ruins (if the cap fits you know who you are).
• I dont constantly bang on about investment, I sell my players and raise money in order to buy the players I want - which is why until this year I have constantly been operating on a tiny squad. My current squad only still has two players who have come through my youth set-up and two who were there when I took over the club. All the others I have had to buy or trade.
• I do not have insider knowledge but I do have a top rated youth coach and I knew that before I went to Juventus. If you want the same insider knowledge as me heres a secret:

     http://www.famanager.net/staff.htm (yes its the link to the page in FA that tells you

      which coach you have!).

• I try not to let people down on transfers and loans and am impatient with those who do so for no good reason. I am organized and if others arent then I prefer not to deal with them. I know which players I want and I know how much I am willing to pay for them. I know which players I need to sell and I know how much I want for them.
• Sometimes I want a players from an unmanaged club and yes I have to pay Richard an outrageous sum of money for them just the same as any of you do when you go after an unmanaged player!

I reckon this whole favoritism thing is disrespectful to Richard and the effort he puts into running the game and is an easy route for people to explain their own failings rather than accepting that some people are good at the game or have worked hard to get where they are. I contribute money to the game just the same as some of you and to be honest Richard is harsher with both Simon and I on some issues just because of the family link. My record in this game speaks for itself, but I have also been playing fantasy football in one form or another for longer than many managers in this game have been alive. In the last year alone I have won my works fantasy league, in my last job I finished in the top three of the works fantasy league every year for ten years and won it outright for seven of those. In the FA Evo Texaco Championship Football sub league set up by JD this season I was second (ahead of Gareth), and Simon also beat him and neither of us are related to any of the owners of Texaco. So that would have to be luck or skill or both rather than anything else!

Simon has also done well in his own right and, though clearly not as talented as me , doesn't deserve to have his own efforts undermined. 

Anyway. Thats the in-game stuff but - as people also insist on chucking in a lot of vague general stuff based on a superficial knowledge of the game and pretending its fact - I thought I would add the following as a sort of potted soccer history lesson for Gareth to clarify the Juventus youth system as it operates in real life. Just because when he says he is sure in his earlier post, that stuff just is not correct and adds apparent weight to an already spurious argument that is presented as fact when it is actually opinion.

 It is interesting he mentions Ajax (although as he says - they are not in the game) as Juventus and Ajax organize their youth set-ups in a similar way and are (perhaps because of this) reckoned to have the two best youth programmes in the world as they are essentially football factories for youth talent based on a series of soccer satellite camps at all youth levels - a system they have run for a very long time.

They also have football initiatives like the Juventus University, the first Football University in the world (run by the University of Turin). Like the Ajax setup, Juventus maintains soccer schools and satelite clubs and camps in Italy, Mexico and elsewhere for boys 8 - 16. And the Juventus National Academy, launched to create an expanding network of Juventus football academies throughout Italy (for boys aged 8 to 12 ).

Juventus doesnt just use a youth scout it has a national network of scouts across Italy and abroad territory and scouts abroad. If you want a historical example the Italian National Team, coached by Bearzot since in the 1970s and 1980s, was mainly composed by young Juventus players who formed the backbone of the Italian squad. For example Bettega and Furino - two of the five Juventus players with the most international appearances and also who have won the most Scudetti. Also Paolo Rossi, who won the Adidas Golden Boot, Adidas Golden Ball  and was in the winning Italian international team in 1982 and European Footballer of the Year in the same year. These were all former members at the Juventus youth program.

In the past ten years, the Juventus Youth set-up has developed talented individuals like Palladino, Nocerino, Giovinco, and Marchisio (who has not actually appeared from my youth pool yet - but look him up and be very afraid), Mirante and Paro, all of whom are playing or have played for top flight clubs. All were former youth internationals and Palladino, Nocerino and Marchisio have been capped at senior level, and others such as Maniero at under 21 level.

There are six youth squads at Juventus but the main one is the Primavera - for players between 15 and 20 who are seen as major prospects for future first team status. Many of these are already registered and have a first team number so that they can move straight into Serie A if required during the season.

The team currently competes in the Italian Primavera Championship and hold numerous titles and records including the record for Italian Youth Super Cup titles. The Juventus youth team also competes in the Viareggio World Tournament, one of the most prestigious U-20 championships in the world. In that competition, they are the record holders for the number of consecutives titles won with 3 and also reached a record 4 finals in row. They have played in twelve titles since the competition began and have won it seven times. They also hold the record of the most De Cecco Memorial titles won with 3 wins in four appearances.

The difference is that both Juventus and Ajax run this year in year out whereas most clubs rely on stumbling across talent or occasionally hitting a lucky run (West Ham ten years ago) which they rarely repeat.

So anyway - if you have read this far and are not achieving what you want to in this game (or any game) then try harder and get better or get out, rather than looking for excuses. This is a good game because its different to most others out there. Make the most of it. That human element is a strength, do not turn it into a weakness.

Steve

Juventus