Jogo Bonito

Yes, no complaints at all. Pleasing also that at this point in time there is only one player in the squad who is not an original - Gabriel Osho. And even he was a youth team graduate who joined Luton from us, and we were lucky enough to get him back for free in the summer. To keep this challenging, we'll probably continue the no-fees approach regardless of what league we are in next season. Unfortunately, Mark Bowen stepped in and renewed some player contracts that saw my self-imposed maximum wage of £6,000 per week surpassed. I'll have to live with it, but we would not have done so if it had been my decision.

Well, they might say you're a wily old manager

Season 2024/25 December 2024 started with Reading sat 4th in League 1, and still in the FA Cup The month was exceptional, with six league wins on the spin prior to defeat at home to Leyton Orient in the final fixture of the year January promised to be tougher, as we faced five consecutive away games including a trip to Tyneside to face Newcastle in FA Cup Round 3 A win at Lincoln set us up nicely for that one, and we were unlucky to lose to The Magpies right at the death after a superb backs-to-the-wall effort A scintillating 3-3 draw at league leaders Portsmouth was the highlight of the next four win-less games, but January was concluded with an overdue defeat of Walsall February saw the side find great form again, with five straight wins before a hard-fought 1-1 draw with Blackpool last time out This recent run has seen us open up a nice lead at the top as the nearest challengers play leapfrog with each other on a weekly basis For the last few months we've been using a new system which has three central defenders and two wing-backs as we had a surplus of quality centre-backs Ahead of them we have two defensive midfielders (anchor & regista), two shadow strikers and a DLF lone striker with attack duty 1st January 2025 New Years Day brought a different kind of headache as more work permit news was delivered by the Chairperson Despite now meeting the criteria for a new permit, Tyler Bindon was now unwilling to accept our new contract due to alleged broken promises The reality is he twice accepted our contracts but when the permit was refused, he chose not to renew and instead got unhappy that we had 'lied to him' And on the very same day, striker Duncan McGuire was also denied a work permit, even though we had a spare ESC slot to allocate him That meant that, like our home grown winger Mamadi Camara, he was also now unavailable for selection under any circumstances 2nd January 2025 A day later loan striker Divin Mubama was recalled by West Ham - no complaints really as we had chosen not to use him very often (we had tried to use McGuire when fit) Here are the stats for the two strikers who left the club in January 3rd January 2025 The next day winger Chaka Traore was also recalled by AC Milan - again we had chosen to barely use him so no complaints on this one either Here are the stats for the departing Traore 4th January 2025 WE discovered that Bindon was now going to join Wellington Phoenix at the end of his contract, and Tom Holmes was also going to be leaving in the summer So as we continue to only seek out free transfer signings, we made a move to sign Bayern Munich youngster Liam Morrison on a pre-contract deal for July 16th January 2025 Unable to select McGuire, we managed to sell him to Wigan for £80,000 on 16th January - leaving us bewildered how he can get a permit there but not with us 31st January 2025 Our 24-man squad had been reduced to 21 with the three departures, so we promoted one from the development squad to boost numbers On deadline day, we made a slightly ambitious move to lure forward Yakou Meite back to the club on loan from Cardiff but the numbers did not align The Yak is a big fans favourite and we might have another go at getting him in the summer, especially if his contract is not renewed in Wales Here is the rather empty summary of business done in the winter window, but we don't mind - except for the imminent loss of Bindon We now have nine league games to go out and earn that promotion back to the second tier, and we feel confident we can do it

Wow, what an amazing way to clinch a league title! Away to the top team, 2-0 down and coming back to snatch it in style - well done indeed! I'm late to the party but 100% support your decision to sign the new contract at Viking. It was the only choice to make. I like the 'agent chat' sequences, good to see that side continuing. I noticed that Diouf didn't play enough to get a winners medal, payback for the previous year sending off?!? Not your choice obviously, but must have given you a wry smile.... I've seen the bits about choosing the training camp destination in FM24, but it's not every time they give you options. Usually they do if you've proven yourself at a club, so surprised you weren't given a choice. I don't think you have any say in deciding when they make it, I'm quite sure dates are picked by the club.

Really enjoying the Italian flavour in here at the moment and this is another good story with a club that starts with some really interesting players in the squad. Very good progress with them so far, and although this year may not quite happen in Serie A, you're still in with a shout. Great result against PSG and best of luck for the 2nd leg too!

A nice read and you've done an impressive job of re-shaping the club from old boys to a slick, modern outfit. You're unlucky to have Slavia so dominant, but when that day comes, the taste of success from beating them will be even sweeter.

A fantastic season again, 3rd is very decent despite the 2nd of the previous year. Liking most of the new signings such as Monchu, Mendy and the super-saver Hedl. I tracked the latter quite closely on FM23 when managing in Germany and Austria. A strong start again this year, looking forward to seeing you keep up the challenge

Just catching up on this again! Making very good progress in my opinion and loving the view of the story as always. Keep up the great work!

I'm traditionally a defence-first kind of manager, but in recent years I've tried to reduce my natural tendencies and now happy with a more balanced focus (playing on positive mentality). I'd love to go for a defensive counter-attack approach but not many boards or fans seem keen on that, and it's a bit too under-powered to be effective. Wifi has indeed started to make a contribution, but has had to play second fiddle to fit-again (and first season disappointment) Sam Smith so often plays just behind the lone striker or from the bench. Interesting what you said about the FA Cup.... Elimination from the Trophy was a target I felt achievable and necessary! I've disliked that competition for many years. The work permits have been a headache and something seems wrong as those players in real life are settled at the club, and we had an extra ESC slot for the American striker. More on this to follow in the incoming update!

It keeps it interesting, in my opinion more enjoyable like that than a runaway success!

Season 2024/25 The second season of Reading in League 1 kicked off in good order with an unbeaten seven match run That saw four wins and a draw in the league, and progression in the first two rounds of the EFL Cup September was tougher as we only won one of four league games, losing one and drawing two We also exited the EFL Cup with a home defeat against Wolves, but better news came in the Bristol Street Motors Trophy After being losing finalists last year, it was decided that a 63-match season was not sensible so we need to exit that competition in the group stage this time The transfer window was quiet with a few departures, and the arrival of Gabriel Osho (free) and two loans Both of the loans were forced rather than 'wanted' with striker Divin Mubama first in when Duncan McGuire picked up a long-term injury in pre-season The other deal saw winger Chaka Traore loaned-in on deadline day as our own Mamadi Camara was not given a work permit despite being home grown at the club October started with a league loss at home to Plymouth, but we managed to achieve our exit from the BSMT after just two games We then embarked on a really good run of seven unbeaten league games - with our third and final Trophy match seeing us lose on penalties Exeter got revenge for us dumping them out of the FA Cup with an away-day smash and grab to end the league sequence, but we have reached FA Cup Round 3 There haven't been any stand-out performers this season, but the defence has improved and we are well-placed having played less games than our rivals The rest of the story so far this season surrounds work permits and contracts Central defender Tyler Bindon now has eight caps for New Zealand and keeps demanding a new contract We are desperate to do so, but his work permit is always rejected and he refuses to sign-on without a successful appeal being made He then moans about us breaking our promise to renew his contract and it's beginning to affect some of our team leaders 'manager opinion' At least Bindon is allowed to play, unlike Camara who isn't holding a current permit and has not been available for selection all season Despite this, now that McGuire is returning from injury, we'll be looking to have our two loan deals ended in the winter window (both have hardly been used)

In normal circumstances, 3rd would be a fantastic start to the season. But can also appreciate the drop-off must have been quite disappointing to see. Some interesting moves in the summer window. It appears that Ivan Azon hasn't really been firing like you hoped yet!

A solid season after promotion and laying a good foundation for next year. At least you got the ownership change in game, even if they haven't really chosen to invest.

A real battle for the title, unlucky to lose out but promotion is all that really matters. A great story and really loving the graphics and artistic representation so much. The best visuals I can recall seeing on here and the views of the city add a really strong Sicilian flavour to the save.