John Warrington: A Footballing Journey

John Warrington: A Footballing Journey

So here it is, my journey into the world of football (manager). To start with, I've created my pro as a player in FM20 with that player then going on to manage in FM21. For realism purposes, 2019/20 in FM20 will become the 1999/00 season with the aid of the FMRetroGroup 99/00 database.

I'm going to keep this opening post free to keep a record of my career.

Playing Career (League Matches)
1999/00 - - | Apps: 1 | Goals: 0 | Assists: 0 | POM: 0 | Average Rating: 5.80 |
2000/01 - - | Apps: 9 | Goals: 4 | Assists: 0 | POM: 0 | Average Rating: 7.10 |
2001/02 - - | Apps: 12 | Goals: 4 | Assists: 2 | POM: 0 | Average Rating: 7.20 |
2002/03 - - | Apps: 28 | Goals: 14 | Assists: 3 | POM: 2 | Average Rating: 7.34 |
2003/04 - - | Apps: 15 | Goals: 8 | Assists: 1 | POM: 2 | Average Rating: 7.28 |
2004/05 - - | Apps: 10 | Goals: 4 | Assists: 1 | POM: 0 | Average Rating: 7.39 |
2005/06 - - | Apps: 26 | Goals: 18 | Assists: 12 | POM: 7 | Average Rating: 8.13 |
2006/07 - - | Apps: 26 | Goals: 20 | Assists: 5 | POM: 6 | Average Rating: 8.04 |
2007/08 - - | Apps: 29 | Goals: 17 | Assists: 12 | POM: 4 | Average Rating: 7.99 |
2008/09 - - | Apps: 29 | Goals: 25 | Assists: 2 | POM: 6 | Average Rating: 7.71 |
2009/10 - - | Apps: 23| Goals: 19 | Assists: 4 | POM: 5 | Average Rating: 7.80 |
2010/11 - - | Apps: 26 | Goals: 23 | Assists: 5 | POM: 7 | Average Rating: 7.92 |
2011/12 - - | Apps: 29 | Goals: 24 | Assists: 5 | POM: 7 | Average Rating: 8.06 |
2012/13 - - | Apps: 26 | Goals: 20 | Assists: 4 | POM: 7 | Average Rating: 7.91 |
2013/14 - - | Apps: 17 | Goals: 13 | Assists: 2 | POM: 5 | Average Rating: 7.69 |
2014/15 - - | Apps: 11 | Goals: 7 | Assists: 1 | POM: 2 | Average Rating: 7.63 |
2015/16 - - | Apps: 4 | Goals: 0 | Assists: 0 | POM: 0 | Average Rating: 6.87 |
2016/17 - - | Apps: 5 | Goals: 0 | Assists: 0 | POM: 0 | Average Rating: 7.10 |

All-Time Record - | Apps: 326 | Goals: 220 | Assists: 59 | POM: 60 | Average Rating: 7.75

Managerial Career

2020/21 Season
National League North - 1st
FA Cup - 1st Round vs Scunthorpe
FA Trophy - Winners

2021/22 Season
National League - 1st
FA Cup - 3rd Round vs Bournemouth
FA Trophy - Winners

2022/23 Season
League 2 - 1st
FA Cup - Quarter Final vs West Ham
EFL Cup - 2nd Round vs Walsall
EFL Trophy - 3rd in Group B

2023/24 Season
League 1 - 1st
FA Cup - 4th Round vs Fulham
EFL Cup - 3rd Round vs Reading
EFL Trophy - Northern Section 2nd Round vs Leeds Under 23's

2024/25 Season
Championship - 1st
FA Cup - 5th Round vs Chelsea
EFL Cup - 4th Round vs Chelsea

2025/26 Season
Premier League - 5th
FA Cup - 4th Round vs Arsenal
EFL Cup - 3rd Round vs Arsenal

John Warrington - A Footballing Journey

The start of the Journey



Oh my word, is this even real life? After being at the club since the age of eleven, I've finally signed a professional deal at Premier League side Liverpool. I am now officially a professional footballer. The goal is to play in the Premier League for Liverpool and play for England in a World Cup but I know I've got a lot of hard work ahead of me to even get close to that.

With my signing a contract for Liverpool, I'm now included on Football Manager for the first time! How exciting. They've even given me wonderkid status which means I'm more likely to have a good career in the game. My mate Sheeny says I signed for Barca in 2005 which is outrageous. I just hope I can live up to the billing and have a great career. It's going to be an exciting ride, either way, bring it on.

Welcome back! Looking forward to this.

2020-11-08 20:12#278523 ScottT : Welcome back! Looking forward to this.

Thanks, I've been lurking for a while waiting for FM21. Just hoping this year save can be as good as Warrington last year.

This is a hugely interesting idea! Really love giving your player background as a manager by using FM. Will be really entertaining to see how your player ends up!

John Warrington: A Footballing Journey

1999/00 Season

League Position: 4th in the Premier League
FA Cup: Winners
League Cup: 4th Round vs Chelsea



So, my first full season in professional football and I'm reasonably happy with the way it went. In the league, we finished 4th whilst Man Utd won the league and we also won the FA Cup. During the season, I made my first professional appearance, though I'm still waiting for my first goal. For the U23's I scored 20 in 29 appearances. The objective for next season is to hopefully play a few more first-team games and score my first goal.

Career Milestones



Player Profile

Congratulations on making your senior debut. Your performances in non-competitive games will go a long way to aiding your case to making a few more appearances next season.

John Warrington: A Footballing Journey

2000/01 Season

League Position: 5th in the Premier League
FA Cup: Runners Up vs Arsenal
League Cup: Winners vs Chelsea
UEFA Cup: Runners Up vs Leeds



Merseyside Derby on the opening day and I score my first goal for Liverpool. What a proud moment. The season itself was a good one with me scoring 4 goals in 9 Premier League appearances as well as 4 goals in the UEFA Cup. It's especially good given that I lost two months of it due to a broken leg in October. Thankfully it's all healed up now but it's hard to break in with Robbie Fowler and Michael Owen playing so well. In the league, we came 5th with Leeds winning it. Leeds also beat us in the UEFA Cup final. We also finished as runners up in the FA Cup but we did manage to win the Worthington Cup.

Career Milestones



Player Profile



ScottT: Thanks. So far so good!

A pretty impressive season. Plenty of promise!

John Warrington: A Footballing Journey

2001/02 Season

League Position: 2nd in the Premier League
FA Cup: Quarter Final vs Leeds
League Cup: Quarter Final vs Tottenham
UEFA Cup: Winners v Newcastle



I'm not going to lie, I'm disappointed. I want to be playing more games than I am at the moment. I made 20 appearances in all competitions for the first team and scored 11 goals. For the U23's I scored 33 in 38 games. I've also scored 14 goals in 8 England U21 games, what do I need to do to get a fair shot. In terms of the season, we finished 2nd in the league behind Arsenal and won the UEFA cup.

Career Milestones



Player Profile

Have to agree that you're unfortunate not to be getting more minutes under your belt. I suppose that's the downside to playing alongside some real quality players.

John Warrington: A Footballing Journey

2002/03 Season

League Position: 3rd in the Premier League
FA Cup: Semi Final vs Man Utd
League Cup: 4th Round vs Man Utd
Champions League: Semi Final vs Real Madrid



This is more like it. I finally got a chance to show what I can do and ended up scoring 14 goals in 28 Premier League games along with 7 in 11 Champions League games. We were unlucky not to win any trophies this season, coming 3rd in the Premier League behind winners Man Utd and Arsenal and losing in the semi-finals of the Champions League and FA Cup.

Career Milestones



Player Profile

John Warrington: A Footballing Journey

2003/04 Season

League Position: 5th in the Premier League
FA Cup: 3rd Round vs Chelsea
League Cup: Semi Final vs Chelsea
Champions League: 1st Knockout Round vs Juventus



I don't know what to say. After last season I thought I was finally getting my chance to shine but then I only played 15 games this season. I did still score 8 goals mind you. I'm disappointed to be transfer listed but I think it's for the best, I need to be somewhere I can be appreciated. The big highlight of the season was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream by making my England debut and scoring. What an honour and I hope this is the start of a successful international career.

Career Milestones



Player Profile

Unfortunate to not quite get a break at Liverpool, let’s hope you get a chance somewhere new!

A pretty strange start to your career but making your England debut is something to be pleased with. I think a move elsewhere has been on the cards for a little while and that should bring about more regular first-team football to enable yourself to fully recognise your potential.