If you're looking to kick start your FM23 save with a challenge then we can help with that. We've picked out some of the best-fallen giants that you can manage and restore glory to in FM23.

England:

Nottingham Forest

In the first half of the 20th century, Nottingham Forest lost the FA Cup semi-finals and ended up finishing fourth in the 1900-01 Football League, the next season they placed even lower at fifth. Their decline seemed to continue at this time as they fell further down the table with each passing season. Over the next few decades they would reappear and then end up relegated yet again.

In 1975 Brian Clough took over manager Nottingham Forest when they were sat 13th place in English Football's second tier, by then end of the season, they finished 16th. At the end of Clough's first full season managing them, the club managed to place 8th, it was a slow climb but a huge improvement to last season. The club was heading in the right direction and in the 1977-78 season Forest won the Football League and League Cup. They would go on to defend and retain these titles a year later, something that would not be repeated again.

Nottingham Forest's time at the top quickly ended and they were yet again relegated, a tale as old as time for this club. Since then the club has managed to climb its way back up and currently plays in the Premier League but seem a long way off from a top 4 finish.

France:

Stade de Reims

Reims is, without argument, one of the most successful clubs in French football history with its history of incredible wins. However in recent years the club seems to have lost its spark and has been flitting between Ligue 2 and Championnat National until the 2020-2 season where they have climbed back into Ligue 1.

Reims remained an amateur club until 1935 when the club won Championnat de France amateur. In 1945-46 the club reached Division 1 for the first time. Three years later in 1949 they won their first Division 1 win. 1953 saw Reims winning the league for the second time and winning the Latin Cup - the first French football team to hold this honour. 1955 saw Reims win its 3rd title in six seasons. Despite losing it's best midfielder to Madrid, Reims went onto win the 1957-58 Division 1 Cup whilst also winning the Coup de France.

In 1979 Reims were relegated to Division 2 and didn't re-enter First Division French football for 33 years. Reims managed to try to pull things back and surprised fans by reaching the semi-finals of the Coup de France back-to-back in 1987 and 1988 seasons. As time went on, so did the clubs financial struggles and eventually they were relegated to Division 3 and finally in 1991 they underwent liquidation and changed their name to Stade de Reims Champagne FC. In the 2011-12 season they finally made it back into Ligue 1 after 33 years and it is where they remain currently, however briefly it may be.

Italy:

Pro Vercelli

Pro Vercelli are renowned as one of the most successful team in the early years of football in Italy. Between 1908 and 1922 the club managed to win 7 Italian Football Championships. Sadly over the years the club has declined with the introduction and rise of clubs from larger and more industrial and business cities. The season 1934-35 would be the last time this club would play in Serie A as they were ultimately relegated.

Pro Vercelli has hugely fallen from glory, ending up in Serie D - the amateur league- several times. In recent year Pro Vercelli has suffered with debt, preventing them from participating in the 2010-11 Lega Pro Seconda Divisione. Despite this Pro Vercelli managed to find some glimmer of hope and successfully made it back into Serie B after 64 years when they were promoted in the 2011-2012 Lega Pro Prima Divisione.

Sadly this hope of success didn't last very long and once again were relegated after finishing 21st out of 22 with a goal difference of -30, the worst in the league. After the 2017-18 season, Pro Vercelli found themselves back in Serie C where they remain to this day.

Spain:

Deportivo de La Coruña

Deportivo de La Coruña spent the first half of the 20th Century building themselves up after they were formed at the start of the 1900's. They had a rocky start to Spanish football and ended up finishing at the lower end of the leagues. In the 1948-49 season Deportivo finished tenth which was no surprise. However the next season would see their first major achievement as they finished as runners up one point behind Atletico Madrid.

This was the start of Deportivo's golden decade. During this decade Deportivo were able to remain at top tier status for the next nine consecutive seasons. In 1957 after such a strong run for nine years, they were relegated to the Segunda Division where they would stay for the next 5 seasons before being promoted back to the first tier. This began the long saga of a 'yo-yo' affect giving way to the name elevator team to the club. They achieved promotions in 1962, 1964, 1966, 1968 and 1971, with relegations occurring in 1963, 1965, 1967, 1970 and 1973. Financial difficulties during this time led to the club being forced to sell their better players in an attempt to manage their struggles. Their woes didn't end here as at the end of their 'yo-yo' era they were relegated.

The club has struggled to pull themselves back up to top tier football but fans saw a glimmer of hope when Deportivo won the La Liga Cup in 1999-2000. This hope of success had fans on the edge of their seats for the next 12 seasons with the club finishing near the top each time. Sadly in the past 10 years Deportivo have seen a big decline in their performance and have suffered multiple relegations and are currently sitting in the third-tier. Deportivo will need to be rebuilt if it wishes to see it's former glory days.

Germany:

FC Nurnberg

FC Nurnberg was founded in 1900 and won their first title in 1916 in the Southern German Championship and won their first German Championship 4 years later in 1920. Nurnberg emanated dominance in its early years, even achieving an unbeaten streak from July 1918 - February 1922, winning a total of 104 official matches. It seemed nothing could stop this powerhouse club from winning.

FCN won their last trophy of the era in 1927 and began a quick decline as the pace of football quickened and their play style couldn't keep up. They did manage to pull through and capture national titles just before and after World War 2 in 1936 and 1948. FCN found themselves again and managed to win the Oberliga Süd League 6 times until 1963. During this time they managed to pick up the National Championship. In the 1990's FCN suffered financial difficulties and their treasurer was convicted for fraud and misallocation of club finances. FCN's trouble was not over there as they were involved in a shock relegation.

Despite holding many regional wins, league wins and cup wins, in recent years FCN have been flirting with relegation nearly every season. In the 2020-21 season they finished 8th out of 18 in Bundesliga 2. Money management and bringing in new players should hopefully help re-build this fallen giant.