Eidos must be pretty annoyed right now. 2009 is the year in which Championship Manager makes its glorious comeback after all; ending that barren run of defeats with a brand-new interface, reworked match engine and renewed focus on detail. And yet, it's not to be.

Last year, Football Manager received its most significant and obvious innovation in some time: the introduction of a three-dimensional match engine. Sadly, the engine was a little rough around the edges, and the rest of the game wasn't innovative enough to make it a must-buy for fans of the series.

Compelling gameplay; Astonishing breadth of players; staff; and teams; Improved match engine; Clearer backroom staff advice; Option to change tactics from the touchline is great

Match engine is still ugly; Audio options are limited

The air is turning cold, England fans are already anticipating World Cup victory and Alex Ferguson's moaning at referees. Yep, the football season is well underway, which can mean only one thing - the latest version of Football Manager will soon be hitting the terraces.

With the battle for the best football management simulation game getting a lot tougher this year mostly thanks to Championship Manager 2010 that raised from the ashes like a Phoenix, everybody is probably wondering if Sports Interactive still have what it takes to win the battle and get the crown...

I used to spend most of my waking hours in front of Football Manager, attempting to turn perennial mid-tablers Spurs into title contenders. Hours would fly by. I'd become so engrossed that my virtual team would spill over into real life, causing confusion.

There are those who say I shouldn't be reviewing this.. I don't like football and never have but one thing I can give you is an outsiders perspective.... I was handling all the stats trying to get things ready and then expecting to be able to watch a match and guide from the sides... what do I get?

Last year's instalment of Football Manager was on the whole just about as good as it was expected to be. It did however have its problems. Firstly with the activation issues that just about everyone, including myself, had a problem with.

Improved 3d match engine; game editor remains; massive game database; a lot quicker to process

Some bugs remain; match engine doesn't look as good as its rival

series have certainly lived up to the term 'beautiful game'. Providing the most authentic management simulation on the market, the series has always been one for the purists.

As huge football fan, I've always had a passion for football manager games. This is by far the best on the market. The depth of this games is outstanding. The game allows you to select the teams and players you want to use from the data base.

The game is a very good buy, but it can be improved in area which have been describe by people below. This is my first time playing, but i still think LMA manager is better, but i play this because LMA is out of production. So this is now the best football manager game out!!