Morning all,

After finishing 4th with my promotion chasing Oldham team on 89 points and then losing in the playoffs, I thought... I'm going to go onto the FM forum and bemoan all that's bad about the game (shots to goals ratio, super keepers etc..), however I always seem to moan so I have changed my stance, the game has it's faults, as do all games and the forum can get a little negative at times, but we all keep on playing, why??? that's your reason and your reason only, for me is that I have a hectic job and Bryan Robson is destroying my football team in real life, so FM gives me a few hours escape from reality.

So my question is... what do you love most about the game, even if it's the most minute detail.

If you think this post is pathetic and boring, then I apologise.

I will get us started, I love it when I bring a youth player into the first team and he starts scoring, I also love it for that matter to see my new striker score on his debut...

I love FM for giving me something to do while the missus watches absolute rubbish on telly. With the PC in the front room and FM on auto-continue every-one's happy!

I love the fact Fulham are relatively successful in the game. It's the only chance we'll ever have to play in the Champions League!

CM & FM have also made me look rather learned on world football and up and coming players for years now! It has a geeky attraction to it!

fulham arent ever that good on mine! they are officially a yo yo team for the prem

I love how all consuming the game can become.

You sit there at work, with a blank look on your face, because, as someone is asking you where that report is they wanted an hour ago, you are busy thinking about who you could buy to replace your ageing left back

It's great when I watch an early round european game and come out with a comment like "such and such is an amazing player" without ever actually having seen him play for real, I base my comment on the fact that I once bought him for Rushden and Diamonds for 50k and he scored 40 goals per season.

I love that when I take a job with a team in another country, my in-game personna learns the language so easily.

I meant successful when I'm in charge! So in conclusion I should be offered the job in real life?!

And therein lies another gem - we con ourselves into thinking we could actually do better job then the real life managers!

I love it that it's really difficult to get promoted.

Playing at Wakehurst in NI2, I've had so many teams poach my players and there's not a thing I can do about it because my budget can't accomodate the increased salary demands. I'm already 22K over budget and 2nd in the table and my players are leaving for better contracts, not staying for the championship run...my board's disgusted with my financial control, my developing players (who are still carp) won't sign for anything less than 5K a year, my starters and key players want to play for reputable teams...

Now I'm finally starting to understand how Bolton feels about Anelka, Tottenham with Berbatov, Sunderland trying to get anyone worthwhile, and Watford with King.

I love the fact that my players have depth and character: rather than just being a collection of numbers, they react to the same events in different ways, which makes them feel like people to me.

I get more into seeing how long a veteran can hold on, or how a youngster is going to develop, than I do into the results on the pitch!

That, and how intense the game feels in "must-win" matches, such as finals and "last game of the season" showdowns.