Playing Football Manager is a wonderfully unique and personable way of escaping the pressures of real life. You have the opportunity to sculpt a trophy winning behemoth out of your local non-league side or to continue the dynasty of your favourite La Liga galácticos. Players can adopt a ‘Journeyman’ approach, jumping from job to job in different nations or they could look to emulate the career path of a managerial icon such as Sir Alex Ferguson.

These different ways to plays allow the would-be manager the opportunity to escape into their own virtual word in whatever way they see fit. One YouTuber who is showcasing a certain way to play this year’s edition is Daniel (LoadFM) with his Head Coach series. Attracting over 17,000 views in his first video this year, Daniel’s FM22 career has seen him take charge of Cefn Druids, Dover, Sheffield Wednesday, Bristol City, Crystal Palace and on a lesser note, Man U. I sat down with Daniel recently to discuss the Head Coach, it’s rules and regulations and of course how he feels when he takes on his beloved Luton Town in game.

Hi Daniel, thanks for speaking with me! Firstly, could you give a brief description of the Head Coach challenge?

The Head Coach challenge is a simple one on paper really. The aim is to start as an unemployed manager with no coaching badges, only Sunday League football experience and make it through a journeyman career to the top of World Football. The obstacles, working strictly under a Director of Football model with no say in transfers, contracts or staffing. This must all be assigned to your DoF, although at many lower league clubs you’ll have to set your chairman to hire one first.

What are the most frustrating aspects of the challenge? 

This challenge exposes the AI transfer/recruitment system more than any other, so you better be prepared for frustration and less than ideal tactical changes after every transfer window. At low reputation clubs, you can start the season without a full squad of senior players or any players at all in certain key positions. With a poor DoF, early sackings are often on the cards. It teaches you patience and perseverance though, so there is that!

This is your third year of The Head Coach, do you have any stand out memories or moments?

There’s plenty of these moments both in the years before the YouTube version and since. The very best memories probably come from early in the FM21 edition though. Firstly, Pat Nevin was employed as our DoF at Brechin City. He went on to deliver incredible signings and become one of the saves greatest ever heroes. We also saw an early meteoric rise through the Scottish pyramid, culminating in an incredible moment for Carlton Morris with Dundee against an Old Firm giant in a cup final. This saw us reach European football in record time, with Scottish football producing the most memorable of starts to a Head Coach series.

Okay, let’s name and shame. Who has been your favourite Director of Football and why?

I can’t say anything other than Pat Nevin. The surprise of him turning up at Brechin City in my first job. The signings he managed to bring to a relatively small side in Scotland’s fourth tier and his ability to keep our squad competitive compared to the average Director of Football at a low reputation club, make him an absolute legend in my eyes! I should give a mention to Kevin Wilkin at Dover Athletic in the FM22 edition though, as he was great for similar reasons.

Well then, who has been the worst?

Another easy answer, Chris Caspar. As luck would have it, he’s the only DoF I’ve ever encountered in 2 different editions of The Head Coach. On both occasions he was lazy, slow and left me with a threadbare squad. In the FM22 edition, we crossed paths at Sheffield Wednesday. He left me with only 1 GK (who was terrible) and just sat on a pile of remaining transfer and wage budget, doing no work to help our chances.

What was the inspiration behind the challenge in the first place? 

My desire is always to add little rules to make the save more realistic and difficult. For example, I don’t use the player or staff search screens in any long term save (even when I’m in charge of transfers). A Director of Football style challenge also works really well if you find yourself getting exhausted by transfers and squad management. For me, it works perfectly when rotating 2 long term stories on YouTube. I have one series each year where I’ll manage everything on and off the pitch, then in The Head Coach I can fly through summers without taking any action in the transfer window.

As you mention on your channel you are a big Luton Town fan. How do you feel when you take them on in Football Manager?

I’m a Luton Town fan and season ticket holder, so watch the team play every week. This leads to massive problems when managing them on Football Manager. I’m too loyal to my players as it is and this isn’t helped when managing players I already have a strong opinion of in the real world. As a result, I just can’t manage Luton in a long term story, or it’d end in tears!

Finally, do you have any words of advice for someone looking to take on the challenge?

Be adaptable! If you’re the type of FM player who likes to pick a tactic and fit your team around it, then you’re going to learn something very different here. If you’re lucky enough to ride the early storm and overachieve at low reputation clubs then this save can be incredibly rewarding. Finally and most importantly, check the Director of Football is not Chris Caspar before accepting a job offer at any club!

You can check out Daniel’s progress for yourself by visiting his YouTube channel Load FM! – YouTube and watching his Head Coach challenges from the past 3 editions of the game. Let me know in the comments below if you have taken on any similar challenges.