FM22 Save Ideas - Heartbreaking Defeats

Welcome to the FM 22 save ideas series, where FM Llama tries to inspire your next Football Manager adventure. In this episode we're going to be looking at clubs that have yet to win a major honor, European or domestic, but have experienced the heartbreak of coming oh so close.

Let us know down in the comments which clubs you've managed in the past that you've guided to their first ever major trophy.

Club 1) Dethroning Spain’s big 3

Now let's dive in with our first suggestion. Winning a major trophy in a nation containing Real Madrid, Barcelona and Atletico Madrid is understandably difficult. On the rare occasions that all three of these spanish giants slip up other large clubs such as Valencia, Sevilla and Bilbao are usually on hand to pounce. For Spain's smaller clubs opportunities to win silverware are rare and when they come along they must be seized. Deportivo Alaves had just such an opportunity in 2017, having managed to avoid Madrid's two giants on route to the semi-finals a one-nil victory over Celta Vigo set up a final against Barcelona. A first-half strike by Lionel Messi put the favourites one nil up but just three minutes later a goal by Frenchman Theo Hernandez levelled the match for the Basque outfit. For a moment Alaves fans were allowed to dream, but goals by Neymar and Alcacer meant that the opportunity came and went.

Unfortunately for Alaves they did once come even closer to winning a major trophy without success. In 2001 a 9-2 aggregate victory over Kaiserslautern set up a Uefa Cup final against Liverpool. Goals by Babel, Gerrard and Mcallister gave the merseyside club a 3-1 half-time lead but Alaves fought back at the start of the second half to tie the game and despite Robbie Fowler restoring Liverpool's lead in the 88th minute Geordie Cruyff took the tie to extra time. With penalties looming it was heartbreak for Alaves once more as they scored an own goal just minutes from the end of the match to lose 5-4.

Opportunities to win a major trophy don't come along too often for Alaves but with you at their helm maybe they could become a force in Spanish football and go on to secure European honours as well.

Alaves are a club in a top division that are yet to lift their first piece of silverware but what if you want to start a little bit lower down in fm 22. Well our next suggestion drops us down to the English Championship. The longer you wait for a first major honour the sweeter it will finally taste london-based Fulham FC’s wait will surely be very sweet then after waiting 142 years. Whilst the club have experienced the joys of winning England's second tier as well as being one of the three winners of the 2002 Intertoto Cup a major trophy has so far eluded The Cottagers but in 1975 the club had the chance to win the FA Cup.

Club 2) A cabinet filled with non major trophies

Fulham seemingly did the hard work in the semi-finals they took midlands giant Birmingham City to a replay before defeating everybody's them 1-0 with a goal in the last minute of extra time. This set up an all London final against West Ham and the chance for Bobby Moore to face his former club. But two second-half goals by Alan Taylor were hammer blows that Fulham couldn't recover from and so the club remained trophy-less. In 2010 Fulham unexpectedly made it to the Europa League quarter finals where they were drawn against Juventus in the round of 16. Progression seemed even more unlikely after they suffered a 3-1 defeat in Turin but one of the greatest evenings Craven Cottage has witnessed culminated in Fulham overturning the first leg deficit to defeat the Italians 5-4 on aggregate. In the final Fulham faced an Atletico Madrid side featuring De Gea, Aguero and Forlan. Despite going behind, a goal by Welshman Simon Davies took the title to extra time. Unfortunately four minutes from the end of the game Atletico's Uruguayan marksman Diego Forlan decided the trophy and Roy Hodgson's side were left empty-handed.

But in FM22 you could take charge of this side that are now back in England's second tier. Are you good enough to win promotion back to the Premier League and assemble a squad capable of winning silverware for Fulham?

Club 3) Four time German Cup losers

If you're a fan of lower league management, well we still have one more suggestion left and this time we could go down to the lowest playable division in the nation in FM 22. If you're looking for a lower league challenge at a club that has come close to winning a major domestic honour without success MSV Duisburg might fit the bill. Duisburg lies in the west of Germany in the shadow of several successful footballing cities such as Dortmund, Mönchengladbach and Koln. The Zebras have come close to winning a major trophy several times but as yet their only triumphs have come in regional cups in the German Lower Leagues. But their history could have been so different. Duisburg have reached the final of the German Cup no fewer than four times losing in the final on each occasion.

In 1966 they were tied with Bayern Munich with 13 minutes remaining only for Bayern to convert a penalty before Franz Beckenbauer put the result beyond doubt. In 1975 the scoreline was even tighter with Duisburg losing by a single goal to Eintracht Frankfurt. Finally in 1998 Duisburg seemingly had their first major trophy within their grasp, they stunned Bayern Munich by taking the lead in the 20th minute only for Markes Babbel to equalise after 70 minutes, before Mario Basler broke Duisburg hearts two minutes from time. Their most recent cup final appearance in 2011 was a day to forget with Klaas-Jan Huntelaar on the scoresheet as Schalke routed Duisburg 5-0.

This series of near-misses might be considered enough to warrant taking over Duisburg in FM 22, but the club have even faced Bundesliga heartbreak as well! Duisburg were almost crowned the inaugural winners of the competition in 1964 only to finish second and to add insult to injury participation in European competition was by invite rather than through league position and second place Duisburg missed out, whilst 14th place Hertha Berlin were admitted.

But could you take over a club that now finds themself in Germany's third tier and win them promotions back to the Bundesliga before finally putting a major piece of silverware in the trophy cabinet.

Team Comparison

Compare all 3 teams