/ Dan Fitch / 25 November 2008 / 1

A destructive addiction like any other. To many lovers of the beautiful game, Football Manager has over the years been the scourge of long lasting relationships and countless employment opportunities, yet as Dan Fitch reveals, there is simply no escaping the realms of this particular football fantasy which for years has offered players a type of glory and self-fulfilment which has otherwise been truly hard to procure.

I've something to admit. I am in the grip of an addiction that has held sway over my life for over a decade now. I've tried to quit before. I've done the whole 'cold turkey' thing, but it's no use. Eventually I slip back into my old ways.

I'd recently managed to go clean for a month or so. It felt great. I started to spend more time with my wife and was really enjoying life again. But however hard I tried, I just couldn't silence those voices in the back of my head. Eventually I buckled and went out and bought what I craved. I returned home, knowing that when I opened the small plastic bag that contained my purchase, I would be under its thrall for the next few months. With my hands shaking, I pulled out Football Manager 2009 and installed it on my PC.

Yes, I am addicted to the Football Manager series, having moved onto the hard stuff from the Championship Manager series. Before that, as a young ZX Spectrum owner, I had been completely addicted to games such as Tracksuit Manager, The Double and the original Football Manager game, featuring the grinning Kevin Toms on the cassette box and made by the aptly titled, Addictive Games.

I would hate to know how many hours I have spent playing these games. One of the particularly cruel aspects of the Football Manager series is that when you continue your game, it displays the amount of time you have spent hunched over the computer in pursuit of virtual glory. Put it this way; had I used my time more productively, I could now be the author of several novels.

But I wouldn't have it any other way. I'm proud of all those Premier League and Champions League titles that I've won over the years. I still get a thrill from unearthing young players, who turn out to be world class.

Every incarnation of these games has a young player that you absolutely have to sign. Sometimes they get it right and that player becomes a world beater in real life. The 16 year old Fernando Torres was always a definite signing and had grown into the world class player that they game predicted he would be. Torres can now be backed at [9.8] to be the Premier League top scorer.

Another monster of a player was Morten Gamst Pederson. You could buy him from Tromso for a few thousand and within a season he would be scoring bucket loads of goals. I remember thinking that the scouts at Sports Interactive had got it right again, when he burst onto the English scene with Blackburn.

However, I couldn't help but feel sad while watching Pederson's performance at White Hart Lane on Sunday. Was this really the player that would get me 30 goals a season, playing just behind my front two? In his first couple of seasons at Blackburn there were rumours of a transfer to Liverpool or Manchester United and you feel that Pederson has missed his chance to push on in his career. Blackburn are currently just [5.1] to be relegated.

Still, at least Pederson has had a decent enough career. Spare a thought for those that were championed as wonder kids and have spent the rest of their careers trying to live up to Championship Manager's billing. Millwall's Cherno Samba was a brilliant striker in the game (imagine a fully functioning Emile Heskey). He now plays for FC Haka in Finland.

The greatest player of them all was possibly the amazing Tonton Zola Moukoko. The young Derby star was a must buy for any team, but a quick Google search will bring up pages devoted to his prowess on Championship Manager 00/01, rather than his achievements in the real world. I should imagine that he is one of the few players playing in the lower divisions of the Swedish league, to have a Facebook group devoted to them. The group currently has 305 members, including me.

Will the same fate befall Chelsea's Fabio Paim? The 14 year old Portuguese winger was straight in my first team on Championship Manager 4, so you can imagine my surprise when aged 20, he joined Chelsea in real life. Perhaps Big Phil is also a devotee of managerial simulations. If so, expect Chelsea to bring in the likes of Mike Duffand Serge Makofo before the season is out.

Anyway, I've been writing this for over an hour now and I'm starting to get withdrawal symptoms. I think I'll have a quick bash on FM09. Just for half an hour or so...

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1. Dave | 15 December 2008

   I. Am. Deleting. It. This. Evening.

   Enough! Such a time killer! Great game though :)

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