Top Eleven is a football management game where you own the whole job, not just the team sheet. You create a club, choose its colours and emblem, and then take responsibility for everything around it: signings, training, tactics, facilities and the mood of the squad. Matches play out in a 3D engine you can watch live, so the decisions you made before kick-off — and the changes you make during it — are visible on the pitch.

Building the squad starts in real-time auctions, where you compete with other managers for players, and continues in the youth academy, where a young prospect can grow into a first-team regular. Training drills target attack, defence, possession and physical and mental attributes, and team play drills improve form faster. The idea is to shape players deliberately, rather than simply collecting the highest-rated names and hoping for the best.

A season lasts twenty-eight days and can include up to three competitions, so there is always another trophy to chase. Associations add a team element, with weekend tournaments against other groups of managers, and the campus feature lets you upgrade your stadium, training centre and treatment wing as the club grows. Tactics can be adjusted in real time, so a half-time deficit is a problem to solve, not a foregone conclusion.

Top Eleven is free to play, with optional purchases, and it needs an internet connection. It suits players who like checking in daily, planning over a season rather than a single match, and competing against real managers rather than only the computer. If you enjoy the business and strategy side of football — transfers, training and tactics — more than controlling players yourself, this is a natural fit.