We're mixing things up a little this week.For the first time in a while, we've managed to get some games under our respective belts this week before we actually press record. Remember when we used to do this before season 12? Recognising that last week segued into all manner of discussion, we're getting into the action early this week as we navigate the last sixteen of the UEFA Champions League before getting in some Premier League action.We're wrapping up things up this week with two live games as Liverpool head to the City Ground to take on Nottingham Forest while Man City head to St. James' Park to meet fifth-placed Newcastle in a must-win clash if they're to preserve their 10-point lead at the top of the table.It'll be squeaky-bum time soon enough though as we approach the point of the final ten games of the season, our last ten games in English football's top flight and likely our last ten games in England before moving on to pastures new after two rather long seasons.Be warned though, next week we're going for a doozy of an episode, the first time we'll have done something like it. Get all the details this week.Contains strong language.Follow Ken, Shane or the podcast on X/Twitter. Get in touch by email, podcast@fmfshow.com or visit fmfshow.com for more. 

It's been a busy week at FMFShow towers, and a crazy week in the world of Football Manager.Before it gets patched (presuming it gets patched anyway), we put the latest 'no money down' transfer moves into play to see if you really can lure some of the biggest players in the game to greener shores for little to no cash. We've got two must-win games in the Premier League, Ken's off to the Amex to take on Brighton in the FA Cup and we're cracking into the last 16 of the Champions League with a super-tasty draw made off the back of the competition's new format.And just how magical are Jack Grealish's calves? We'll find out in this week's episode of The Football Manager Football Show!Follow Ken on XFollow Shane on XFollow the podcast on XOr get in touch via email to podcast@fmfshow.comContains strong language.

This week seeks the January transfer window slam shut, Liverpool continue their FA Cup journey and February's league games start with trips to Sheffield United and Chelsea.With 13 games left in the league, every point counts and with our next league destination pretty much in the bag, it's time to throw caution to the wind at all costs meaning there's a bit of shuffling for our last Premier League transfer window.But are we talking big money moves, or shrewd loans to seal the cracks? Let's rock and roll for this week and start the countdown to the business end of the season.Contains strong language.Follow Ken @tacticalmanagerFollow Shane @sirsok1Follow the podcast on XEmail us - podcast@fmfshow.com or check out the website at any stage for all back episodes and blog posts, fmfshow.com.

With three years of weekly Football Manager podcasts behind us, year four begins with Liverpool and Man City arriving at the end of January, a crunch time for any Premier League duo.There's the small matter of needing to win in the last game in the Champions League new table stage to seal automatic progress to the knockouts. There's also the small matter of the January transfer window looming only, instead of it being in January, it's the second of February. Oh, and while Shane goes up against his old boys Wolves, Ken's off to London to take on Arsenal and they're intent on playing by their own rules.If you listen just hard enough, you may hear the sound of Ken's heart breaking as the realisation drops that the 2025/26 Premier League title may be heading to Manchester after all...Oh, and when you're done, there's also a new episode of the Wrestling Fan Wrestling Show streaming while Ken's got more from the Ken On Food podcast out every Sunday.Contains strong language.Ken's on X: @tacticalmanager / @kenmcguireShane's on X: @sirsok1The Podcast's on X: @fmfshowOr email us, podcast@fmfshow.com.

Happy birthday to us.Three years on, working our way towards a million podcast streams, two Irish lads who love Football Manager are celebrating three years talking about just that... Football Manager.Sure, Covid has been and gone, work life has stepped up, live comedy is on the rise, we've had the launch of The Wrestling Fan Wrestling Show and Ken On Food, but there's still important business to attend to as we get back in the Champions League swing of things this week while Shane's been busy in the transfer market.The biggest takeaway this week, the one lesson that can be taken away from it all, is that mocking is catching. That, and once you think you have the game figured out, you're likely to get caught by surprise and done dirty. But that's life, and it's Football Manager.So, whether you've been with us for three years, you join us week to week for a few laughs and a chat about the greatest of games, or you're dropping in now and again to see how we're doing, thanks for joining us, thanks for listening, and thanks for keeping us going.Follow Ken on Twitter @tacticalmanager, Shane on Twitter @sirsok1 and the podcast at @fmfshow or, alternatively, email podcast@fmfshow.com

It's episode 155 of The Football Manager Football Show and this week we've got a mix of FA Cup, League Cup and Premier League drama to unfold while the January transfer window is very much open for business in 2026. So much so, that some of the Saudi Arabian heavy hitters are coming in strong for key names for both City and Liverpool, causing ructions in one dressing room in particular as the cracks look like they're beginning to show - or are they?As a pre-cursor, there is added soccer, wrestling and food talk this week before we settle in for some Football Manager action with spin off productions The Wrestling Fan Wrestling Show and Ken On Food now streaming. As we reach the middle of January, there's some Champions League business to plan for with the closing two games of the new group-stage format and January wouldn't be January without some incoming transfers. But when there's lots of money at play, why won't players just move?Hear all about it when you press play.Contains strong language.Follow Ken on X @tacticalmanager, Shane @sirsok1 and the podcast @fmfshow. You can also hear Shane every Sunday on the Wrestling Fan Wrestling Show with Ken hear on Ken On Food.

There are three things certain in this life.Death.Taxes.And if you play FM, getting properly Football Managered. If you've experienced it, you'll know exactly what we mean. Last-minute highlights, out of nowhere, breaking your heart, no chance to bounce back. It's a win that turns to a draw. It's a draw that turns into a hopeless defeat. It's taken a while, but it finally happens.This week on the podcast we've got two helpings of Premier League action plus the first round of our respective Carabao Cup semi-finals as the January transfer window opens for business with Saudi Arabia coming calling for everyone. With 10 games in all for both Liverpool and Man City to get through in January there will be exits, rotations and plenty of contracts coming up for renewal. Do we smell a revolt in Manchester? Will Salah and VVD walk from Anfield? Let's get stuck into this week's episode.Contains strong language. Follow the podcast, Ken and Shane on Twitter/X, and get new episodes every Friday wherever you do your podcast listening.

Happy New Year, Happy New Year, may we all have our hopes, our will to try, if we don't we might as well lay down and die. So say Abba, but there's no sense of laying down and dying this weather as we finally get to close out another calendar year of fixtures and brace ourselves for the ridiculous onslaught of January.This week, with the last of the Christmas holiday days upon us, we're recording on release day with Ken at home, Shane in the office and Liverpool and Man City still jockeying it out for top dog spot in the Premier League. To take us up to the end of the year, Shane's entertaining Forest, Newcastle and Wolves while Ken also gets a crack at Forest along with Fulham and Arsenal. Spolier alert from last week - the Carabao Cup quarter-final against Spurs did get played albeit only this morning.Liverpool are being hit by injuries and contract demands, City are still being hit by positional demands and may need reinforcements in the January window with Shane already busy scouting away.So for the first time this year, welcome to 2024, to another weekly helping of The Football Manager Football Show, and more madness from the world of Football Manager! Follow Ken, Shane and the podcast on X. Contains strong language. Email us at any stage too, it's podcast@fmfshowcom. 

On this week's podcast, we're winding out 2023 with a return to the Champions League, Premier League and the Carabao Cup as the January transfer window beckons.Shane's on air, Ken's still remote and on holiday and plans for the post-Premier League era begin to take shape as we wonder if there's a potential Football Manager challenge to be had by following the career paths of Ian Holloway, Dennis Wise, Joe Kinnear and the mysterious one himself, Alan Curbishly. Also, why is Sam Allardyce not in our Football Manager universe? Can Liverpool redeem themselves after last week's loss to Man City? With automatic knockout places up for grabs in the Champions League, can City redeem themselves against Lazio or will Ken's first return to Frankfurt since his season 10 departure make for a happy new year or further dampen Liverpool's European spirits?Find out in the latest of our live episodes, recorded on release day for Friday 29 December 2023.To all who've joined us on this year's adventure and with Christmas behind us, we say "happy new year", here's to 2024 and all that it brings! Hopefully, you're finding some time for FM over the holidays and we'll talk again next Friday! 

It's tiiiiiiiiime.Recorded on release day (22 December), we're squeezing in an episode just in time for Christmas, that lovely time of year that we hope sees everyone get a proper rattle at FM24, or you get to drag your FM23 season kicking and screaming into the New Year.We've still got another episode to go this year but this week we've the important bit of business in Liverpool's hosting of Man City for the first league meeting of Ken and Shane this term. Shane gets a warmup in against 16th-placed Leeds while Ken has to navigate a 2nd-placed Newcastle at St. James Park while Leicester and Southampton make up the remainder of this week's games.Whether you've just joined us and this is your first episode, or you've hung in all year, or you've been with us since day one, we hope you've a great Christmas or holiday break and thanks for choosing to spend a bit of time with us this year. We hope you've enjoyed things as much as we have and the good news is that we've a long way to go yet!It's time to get stuck into this week's episode of The Football Manager Football Show.Contains strong language. Catch up on Twitter/X via @fmfshow, @tacticalmanager or @sirsok1. New episodes available every Friday wherever you do your podcast listening. 

One minute you're cruising, the next you're running into obstacles at the most inopportune time.On this week's helping of The Football Manager Football Show we're back for some lunchtime FM action, rolling tape as Liverpool and Man City jet off to Europe to take on the mighty giants that are Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. Before that we've got some league action with Leicester, Bournemouth, Brentford and West Ham all rearing their heads, producing some mixed results and another mare in the goalkeeping department for the defending league champions.Of course, it's all in preparation for next week where we get the first league taste of host v host. If you're paying attention this week you'll have heard that we're experimenting with some cameras for the podcast. They're not a permanent fixture yet but keep an eye out for some clips on the socials - we'll tell you where and when in good time.If you've got an update to share at any stage or you'd like to get in touch, email podcast@fmfshow.com or follow us on Twitter/x here. Contains strong language. 

Another week rolls around in our weird, wild and wonderful world of Football Manager 2024 and this week we're in Premier League, League Cup and Champions League action.A few things are starting to happen. Haaland's misfiring. Liverpool may be hitting an injury crisis, not helped by the lack of suitable cover registered for Europe with a whole bunch of games still to play in the new format Champions League. Plus, after dropping €100m on him for Man City, is Yeremi Pino turning out to be a busted flush for the boys in blue? Leicester are beating Wolves, the digs are flying, there's no let up in the goals as we get November off to a winning start. Looking ahead to the fixtures though, the tougher battles are on the horizon with Madrid, Munich and more all waiting in the wings.Have a listen to this week's episode and we'll see you on the other side.Get in touch by emailing podcast@fmfshow.com. Contains strong language.

Hello December!We're into the final month of the year and it's a fast-paced episode of The Football Manager Football Show this week as we continue to get to grips with Football Manager 2024. The upgrade is done, the next big update is out and between Man City and Liverpool, the battle for the top spot in the Premier League is well underway with Champions League football also on the cards this week.Grumpy footballers are getting sold off, Ken's aggressive play is starting to leak goals, Haaland is under-performing and injuries over the international break look like they may play havoc with Liverpool in Europe.Also this week we're taking a look at Spotify Wrapped for 2023 with regular listeners sending in some of their stats from this year. If you've got a screenshot to share, tag us on X/Twitter @fmfshow or email podcast@fmfshow.com so we can shower you in compliments and just say thanks!As always, contains some saucy language. X.

Finally.While Ken's got a month of Football Manager 2024 under his belt, Shane's finally ponied up and bought his upgrade. Farewell Football Manager 2023, you were class, but we're all in on FM24.Not only that, but thanks to one of the best features to hit Football Manager in its history, you can finally port games from the previous year's version into this version meaning our Football Manager 2023 universe is making the leap into 2024 and now we've to figure out what - if anything - has changed as we plug our FM23 straight into FM24.We've got more Premier League action and the next round of Champions League football and all is not as rosy as it seems.

Football Manager 2024 is in the wild, wonderkids are on the move and it turns out Shane's already got one or two on his bench.While our Champions League journey got underway last week, we've got some league and League Cup action this week. While Shane's Man City side get a plum draw against Walsall, Ken's bringing Liverpool to London to take on Chelsea in the third round.It turns out Shane's also getting FM'd in real life and we get an update from listeners on how their early FM24 saves are progressing.Spoiler alert: This is definitely, absolutely, positively (and has been rectified post-recording) the FINAL Football Manager 2023 podcast. From next week out, everyone's on the FM24 boat.Much love x

E145: Football Manager 2024 is out, David Ginola's hair, Ken's Liverpool meltdown and other FM stories [Live Episode]In what's one of our most whirlwind episodes to date, we're back for our last game in Football Manager 2023 thanks to the official release of Football Manager 2024 this past Monday.Yes, it's out now, if you haven't gotten a copy already, grab links from FootballManager.com.So what does David Ginola's hair have to do with this week's episode? Quite a lot as it happens. If anything, it provides a brief respite from the chaos as we navigate transfer deadline day in the Premier League and get our respective Champions League campaigns underway.This is also (likely) the last of our Football Manager 2023-flavoured podcasts, now that the full game is out we'll be porting this save into the FM24 universe in time for next week's recording. Listen on to find out how things are going.If you want to get in touch, you'll find the podcast on Twitter / X as @fmfshow, Ken is @kenmcguire and Shane is @sirsok1. Contains strong language from the outset.

With less cans of Monster and cups of tea than in previous weeks, we're finally back in the studio and find ourselves just days away from the official release of Football Manager 2024.Ken's been getting to grips with Rochdale during #FM24EarlyAccess but in Football Manager 2023 land, the Premier League is underway as Liverpool and City take on West Ham, Chelsea, Chelsea and Sheffield United. As in, they get two games each and both end up playing Chelsea.IRL, Castlewarren are winning matches, we get some more community thoughts on FM24 but we're finally, officially, underway in the Premier League once more.If you've not gotten your hands on it yet, Football Manager 2024 drops officially on Monday 6 November at 4 pm in all good stores with the mobile version also wrapped up in Netflix for existing Netflix customers. Apple Arcade has been confirmed too and there are loads of Switch and console updates that have dropped in the past week which you'll find at footballmanager.com.Tweet us with your thoughts at @fmfshow, @tacticalmanager or @sirsok1 and email us, any time, podcast@fmfshow.com. Get the archive online at fmfshow.com with new episodes streaming wherever you get your podcasts every Friday. 

The Football Manager 2024 beta - aka Early Access - is here.Ken's on holiday for this one so while he's away we've managed to get a remote link to do the podcast this week and it all builds to just one match before we make the jump to Football Manager 2024.It's the biggest game of the pre-season. All the preparation comes down to this - the FA Community Shield (nee the much-loved Charity Shield) as Liverpool and Man City lock horns for the first time this season. Liverpool have made two additional signings ahead of the game, City have Haaland pulling the strings up top and Wembley provides the backdrop with bragging rights on the line.Shane's also sharing his predictions for the season (despite being tipped by the media to win all around him), how Castlewarren are getting on in their new former League of Ireland home and for some reason, Chasing Abbey's Oh My Johnny comes into play. Find the video link below.We'll be back in the studio next week with normal service resumed so for now, soak in the charity shield and pick your side for the season ahead!Watch: Chasing Abbey - Oh My Johnny (referenced)Follow: @fmfshow on X, @tacticalmanager (Ken), @sirsok1 (Shane) or email podcast@fmfshow.com. 

With the Club World Cup behind us (and another trophy in the bag for Liverpool), Shane's bound for Singapore where he's intent on making an example of the locals. The sprawling extent of Liverpool's finances are revealed as the lads effectively draw a line under their transfer activity well ahead of the closing of the window. And it's the last game in the save before the FM24 beta gets released - though if we're right, it will have been released on the day of recording, i.e. yesterday.More on FM24 in an official "yes, we've gotten to play it" capacity next week. For now, it's onward for FM23 and season 12 of The Football Manager Football Show: Liverpool v Man City.You can follow Ken @tacticalmanager, Shane @sirsok1, the podcast @fmfshow and you can email us at any stage - podcast@fmfshow.com

This week on the podcast it's a fly-on-the-wall approach to our Club World Cup journey with Liverpool and Man City facing heavy opposition in the form of PSG and Bayern.Recorded over a lunchtime sandwich, you'll get a feel for how our live plays for Football Manager 2023 are getting somewhat frustrating, with a whole season yet to come and a Premier League campaign that we need to rip through once our transfer business is complete.Let's get to some games - all very sweary - and get stuck into this week's FM23 action. 

As we begin our fourth and final season in the Football Manager 2023 universe we find ourselves in new territory - the FIFA Club World Cup.What's managed to escape us in recent years because, well, we weren't winning Premier League titles or Champions League titles or FA Cups or anything like that, both Liverpool and Man City are in the FIFA Club World Cup. That means we've packed our bags to head to Japan for a few weeks in lieu of the regular pre-season to try get our hands on the first piece of silverware of the season.Ok, technically, since it's now a summer competition and not a winter competition, it's a bit more last the last possible bit of silverware of the previous season but you see where we're going with this one.As a result, this week we're navigating the Club World Cup while trying to crack the rest of our summer transfer business before the calendar swings into July. You might notice that we're also a month away from the official release of Football Manager 2024, meaning we're probably 2-3 weeks away from getting our hands on the beta version / early access, which also means thanks to the feature set for FM24, we might just have to carry on our FM23 journey and hope for the best - no pressure.With both Liverpool and Man City among the favourites for the competition, let's see how things get underway over a rainy day lunchbreak in October...