The In-Game Editor is a great tool that can be used to alter a wide variety of aspects of your save ‘on the fly’. From editing player Attributes and viewing all of their hidden stats to boosting your finances during a transfer window, it gives you the flexibility to customise your save as you want it, when you want it. In this respect it differs from the Pre-Game Editor, which focuses more on competition rules and requires you to think about your changes before you play. The IGE gives you the freedom to truly make your save yours.

The tweaks you can make aren’t limited to just yourself or your squad. You can also tweak information, get an advanced look at the Attributes of a potential signing before your scouts are finished or amend the abilities of your staff. Jordan Millward provides a brief run through some of the things you can do.

If you’re anything like us, we know you love jumping into a new save as soon as the Winter Update drops so you can get your hands on the latest squads. 

So, this window wasn't the best for big money moves... or even average money moves. That said, there's still plenty to get excited about in the Main Winter Update though as we've tweaked a number of players' attributes based on their real-life performances through the first half of the season. We’ve gone through the list and picked out our favourites, so here are the 12 improved players YOU should be getting your scouts to track.

If you were asked to name the most important part of a car, what would your answer be? The colour? The size? The interior? The bodywork?

No - you would (or at least should) answer with the correct response: the engine. While a car can be big, small, fast, shiny or stylish, ultimately the key determining factor in a car’s performance and longevity is the engine, and while often the more aesthetically pleasing aspects of a car get the most attention, it is, of course, what’s under the hood that counts.

The same can often be said for football teams. Usually the players grabbing the headlines are the flashy, stylish or more creative players that contribute crowd-pleasing stats such as goals, assists, clear-cut chances, or a high xG. It’s always much more exciting to watch or analyse a player that catches the limelight through their skill, goalscoring or technical ability, right? However, such rose-tinted spectacles often lead to one of the most important positions/roles being overlooked or underestimated (both in real life and in Football Manager), and if history has taught us anything, it’s that often the strongest individuals are not those who show strength in front of us, but those who win the battles we know nothing about.

Let’s see if we can change this shall we? Today, MaddFM has come to The Byline to look at the four defensive midfield roles available in Football Manager - the Ball Winning Midfielder, the Anchor Man, the Half Back and the Defensive Midfielder. These are the unsung/unappreciated roles which, on the surface, might be considered boring or unattractive (how many kids want a DMC’s name on the back of their shirt?) but in actual fact are often the engine of a midfield and the driving force behind a team’s performance. They can be the difference between success or failure in executing a well-balanced playing style as you attempt to conquer all in your latest FM save. 

One of FM21's headline features is the Recruitment Meeting - a handy addition that allows you to harness your backroom staff’s knowledge and experience. As well as the now-familiar Scouting Centre, Recruitment Meetings give you an opportunity to fine-tune your club's transfer policy and plan for the long-term. Correctly using these meetings is an effective way to focus your Scouts on priority areas. Hopefully this article will help you understand the full potential of the Recruitment Meeting.

We’ve been crunching the stats at Football Manager HQ to illustrate your collective FM20 journeys by the numbers - how many of you played the game, how many goals you scored, the number of trophies won and, sadly, how many of you got asked to attend that dreaded board meeting at some point over the last nine months. Let’s break down those numbers in more detail.

Football Manager 2020 comes in all shapes and sizes. The desktop game is available on PC, Mac and Google Stadia, while we also produce Football Manager Touch for PC, Mac, Android, iOS and Nintendo Switch and Football Manager Mobile is available on Android and iOS.