Squad Management

Squad Management is one of the most important areas in Football Manager 2013 to get right and to have a clear vision and plan to stick to as it can reap high rewards if done properly.

I use a 4-2-3-1 tactic with Chelsea so I like to have 2 players for each position, giving me a First Team squad of 22 players.  I also try to make sure I've got at least 2 youngsters for each position coming through the Reserves and Under 18's to move up whenever a spot opens up in the First Team.

Wage Budget

I personally stick to a maximum wage of £100,000 per week for the First Team and a maximum of £20,000 per week for youngsters coming through the Reserves or Under 18's.  Anyone that will break this is sold on for as much as possible, with a 25% sell-on if they're 27 years old or under.

Transfers

I try to get players at 15 years old or as young as possible as it gives me the time to tutor them, have them learn Player Preferred Moves to suit their position and role and to count as home-grown by the club before they move up into the First Team squad.

I will try to bring a young player through to replace someone who has moved on but I also make sure I have possible targets in mind when I need a key position in the First Team filled if no young player can make that jump up.

When the season is over and after recalling back anyone out on loan, I go through each squad of the club to check for players with only a year left on their contracts.

I will look to sell on anyone that's over 27 in the First Team, 22 or older in the Reserves and not good enough for the First Team or any young players who won't make the grade (including those with more than a year left on their contracts).

I will then look to offer new deals to the players I want to keep at the club, only selling anyone who breaks my self-imposed wage cap.

Loans

I will only loan a young player out if they've been tutored to get their personality as I want, learnt the PPM's I want them to and are classed as Home-Grown by the club.

Scouting

A well thought out scouting setup can reap big rewards in Football Manager 2013 and this is how I set mine up as manager of Chelsea.

These are the minimum attributes I look for in a scout, this can change depending on which level and team I'm currently managing.

Chief Scout

The Chief Scout is the most important scout as he gives second opinions on potential signings,  looks for potential English youth signings and provides tactical reports on upcoming opponents.

Adaptability 14+

Judging Player Ability 17+

Judging Player Potential 17+

Tactical Knowledge 14+

England

Scouted Potential Ability Is At Least Good

Age Is At Most 17

The scouting of England is for the youth intake every season on 13th March to keep an eye out for promising English players.

English Under 18's

Scouted Potential Ability Is At Least Good

Age Is At Most 17

This gives the Chief Scout something to do all season in between giving second opinions on players and is also good for spotting English players who can potentially be home-grown.

Next Opposition

Scouting the next opposition can really help to identify the strengths/weaknesses of opponents, which can be the difference between winning and losing.

Scouts

Regions

Adaptability 14+

Judging Player Ability 17+

Judging Player Potential 17+

UK and Ireland, Central Europe, Eastern Europe, South Europe, Scandinavia and South America

Scouted Current Ability Is At Least Very Good

Or Scouted Potential Ability Is At Least Good

Age Is At Most 27

These are the regions I scout on FM and I find it can also help to make sure you have some of the leagues in each region loaded as it increases the number of players found by my scouts.

Leagues

Adaptability 14+

Judging Player Ability 17+

Scouted Current Ability Is At Least Very Good

Age Is Between 18 and 27

Adaptability 14+

Judging Player Potential 17+

Scouted Potential Ability Is At Least Good

Age Is At Most 17

Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Portugal and Spain

This obviously depends on the leagues you've loaded but these are the ones I focus on, with a scout scouting both the top division in each of the countries and also the youth league in each of the countries.  I also get them to scout the nation they're assigned to on their youth intake days to help spot potential youngsters to bring into the club.

I don't scout the Premier League as i'm likely to know about them and the UK and Ireland scoout will probably find them anyway.

With the remaining scouts, I assign them to either World or New Talent scouting depending on their attributes.

World

Adaptability 14+

Judging Player Ability 17+

Scouted Current Ability Is At Least Very Good

Age Is Between 18 and 27

Youth

Adaptability 14+

Judging Player Potential 17+

New Talent

Scouted Potential Ability Is At Least Good

Age Is At Most 17

I shortlist anyone the scout finds, removing anyone that are both rated at most as Good and 18 or over.

That's how I setup my scouting network, nothing too complicated but may give you some pointers to help you spot more players to improve your team.