A pair of newly released Football Manager 2018 videos take a look at the finer points of scouting and ‘dynamics’. The scouting video is from today, while the dynamics one appears to have gone on Sunday.
According to the video (posted below), scouting has had a “complete overhaul” in Football Manager 2018, to better reflect how modern clubs do their recruiting. So it’s out with the grumpy men in sheepskin coats watching a crap under-12s game on a waterlogged pitch, and in with Big Data. The Data Analysts will actually have more to do in this edition.
There’s a new scout rating score system in place (out of 100, and “more accurate” than the usual star rating system), which will fluctuate as a scout gains more knowledge about a given player. Scouting ‘focus’ can also be changed. You can give your set-up (rather than individuals) instructions to search on a ‘general’ level (indefinite search for players in broad categories) or ‘short term’ (much more immediate, specific position, and so on). All other scouting activity will cease if you order a short term action.
Scouting has its own budget now too, which can be adjusted in the Scouting Center screen (the hub for all player searching activities). This is required for the new Football Manager 2018 Player Search screen, which functions even more like a database than before. You can quite literally use your scouting budget on ‘packages’ that cover your local leagues, continental ones, and beyond (for a price).
As noted, Data Analysts actually get a role now. You can ask them to look at specific players, and they’ll return a report; the bulk of which will be statistical trends regarding player performance over the season. Things like whether they’ve been particularly good at passing, or particularly bad at headed interceptions. Data Analysis facilities can be upgraded at your club in the same way as prior facilities.
Dynamics, meanwhile, are all about player power and hierarchies in the club. You’ll now have to keep on top of ‘Match Cohesion’, ‘Dressing Room Atmosphere’ and ‘Managerial Support’. Have a look at this other video for more on those features.
