football manager scores big time for the past decade or so the virtual football fans among us will have become used to the annual helping of championship manager (cm). indeed  it seems like there has been a cm game for as many years as there have been pcs.  however  last year was the final time that developers sports interactive (si) and publishers eidos would work together. they decided to go their separate ways  and each kept a piece of the franchise. si kept the game s code and database  and eidos retained rights to the cm brand  and the look and feel of the game. so at the beginning of this year  fans faced a new situation. eidos announced the next cm game  with a new team to develop it from scratch  whilst si developed the existing code further to be released  with new publishers sega  under the name football manager. so what does this mean  well  football manager is the spiritual successor to the cm series  and it has been released earlier than expected. at this point cm5 looks like it will ship early next year. but given that football manager 2005 is by and large the game that everybody knows and loves  how does this new version shape up   a game like fm2005 could blind you with statistics. it has an obscene number of playable leagues  an obscene number of manageable teams and a really obscene number of players and staff from around the world in the database  with stats faithfully researched and compiled by a loyal army of fans. but that does not do justice to the game really. what we are talking about is the most realistic and satisfying football management game to ever grace the earth.  you begin by picking the nations and leagues you want to manage teams from  for instance england and scotland. that will give you a choice not just of the four main scottish leagues  but the english premiership all the way down to the conference north and south. of course you might be looking for european glory  or to get hold of abramovich s millions  in which case you can take control at chelsea  or even barcelona  real madrid  ac milan ... the list goes on a very long way. once in a team you will be told by the board what they expect of you. sometimes it is promotion  or a place in europe  sometimes it is consolidation or a brave relegation battle. it might even be a case of champions or else. obviously the expectations are linked to the team you choose  so choose wisely. then it is time to look at your squad  work out your tactics  seeing how much cash  if any  you have got to splash  having a look at the transfer market  sorting out the training schedule and making sure your backroom staff are up to it. then bring on the matches  which are once more available in the ever-improving top down 2d view. with the exception of the improved user interface on the surface  not much else seems to have changed.  however  there have been a lot of changes under the bonnet as well - things like the manager mind-games  which let you talk to the media about the opposition bosses. the match engine is also much improved  and it is more of a joy than ever to watch. in fact just about every area of the game has been tweaked  and it leads to an ever more immersive experience.  with a game that is so complex and so open-ended  there are of course a few glitches  but nowhere near the sorts of problems that have blighted previous releases. with so many calculations to perform the game can take some time to process in between matches  though there have been improvements in this area. and a sport like football  which is so high profile and unpredictable itself  can never be modelled quite to everybody s satisfaction. but this time around a great deal of hard work has been put in to ensure that any oddities that do crop up are cosmetic only  and do not affect gameplay. and if there are problems further down the line  sports interactive have indicated their usual willingness to support and develop the game as far as possible. in all there are many more tweaks and improvements. if you were a fan of the previous cm games  then fm2005 might make you forget there was anything else before it. if you are new to the genre but like the idea of trying to take margate into the premiership  spurs into europe  or even putting rangers back on the top of the tree  fm2005 could be the best purchase you ever made. just be warned that the family might not see you much at christmas.  football manager 2005 out now for the pc and the mac