60 to One

[hamilton162]

I'm on holiday from the 19th of August until the 30th of August without internet access so i won't be able to post until i get back

[Martin_]

Can't believe I've still got 3 lives, still I suppose we only need to come 17th every year!

[weeeman27bob]

I regret to inform you that you will not be recieving any more updates from me. Although I realise that many of you have enjoyed this, it takes a lot of time and effort, time and effort which will shortly be taken up by school and school work. I thank you all for your praise and following throughout this sign up, but unfortunately it's not in my best interests to continue. Again I'm sorry that I can't continue, but sometimes real life has to come first.

[Ridleys]

What Weeeman said really. Having had a conversation prior to this evening, me and weeeman came to the conclusion that our involvement in this sign-up had to come to an end. School work is a priority for me. I thank you all for following this sign up.

[Lower Leagues Rule]

This is a sad thing to see, Great work to this point guys and thank you all for your work on it.

[canvey!!]

Writer's Notes: Given the circumstances, PaulHartman71 has now finished 60th in the sign-up.

Update 8 – canvey!!
Years: 0, Months: 8, Days: 236

Ah, February. One of this month’s most famous days is the feast of St. Valentine. As William Shakespeare wrote in “Twelth Night”, ‘If football be the food of love, play on.’ So we shall, except for three managers who join Jeremy English in having their opera cut short. We’ll move onto them in a short while, but for now let’s start with St. Valentine’s home country of Italy, where a certain Clark Aitken has been tearing up the place.

Not a scratch on the Canadian’s record this month, and perhaps that is why he is Secure. After wins against Torino and Chievo, a 4-1 drubbing of A.C. Milan was in order before rounding off the full house with victory over Lord Weeman’s Napoli. Not only this, but he set up a solid Champions League footing with a 2-1 win in the knockout round’s first leg in Portugal against Sporting.

Contrast this with Neppo Monster at Cagliari, having not won in 10 games and being Insecure. The team picked up two points last month with two home 1-1 draws, but only the most optimistic supporter of Cagliari and their English manager would say that things are looking up. Joining them in the relegation zone with 25 games played are Aitken’s triumphs this month: dafuge’s Torino and Mathias Brunckhorst’s Chievo.

Over in England, the FA Cup has begun to slow down its pace, but plenty has happened in the past 28 days. Chelsea and Andre da Conceiçao got through their Fourth Round Replay unscathed with a 3-0 win over Watford. They then tagged one onto this against Preston in the next round, while Tottenham beat Aston Villa and Arsenal beat Everton 2-0, home and away respectively. Zach Machios’s Portsmouth beat Barnsley, but narrowly, 3-2, and on the feast of St. Valentine itself, it might be some reason as to why he got fired at the end of the month.

18th in the league, though joint bottom on goal difference, there were no happy board members at Fratton Park. Four games, two losses, two draws this month, as well as that cup match. The 0-2 turning over by Leo Dodge’s Tottenham at White Hart Lane was the final straw and resulted in a P45 and a taxi for Machios. Unfortunately, a home FA Cup tie against bottom-placed Fréderico Canvey’s Stoke next might have built back his rapport with the board, but he doesn’t get the chance.

Arnold J. Rimmer’s Bolton were another side to win in the Cup, but it’s Robert Boyle at Blackburn who ousted big-spenders Manchester City, who have spent £158,000,000 in the season to date. A 1-0 win was slightly against the run of play but the game was not that interesting, and it marks out just one of many victories for Boyle this month. A trip to the Riverside was met with a 1-1 draw against Ricky Nakano’s team, but Tottenham and Bolton were seen off 2-1.

Moving over to Spain now and let’s start with the middle. Recreativo, under the control of Cristobal Blanco, sit 10th and they recovered well to win three of four games this month after losing 0-3 to Almería on the first. Mallorca and Joe Seddon’s Getafe were both overcome with a clean sheet to boot. In 11th are Espanyol, and Joe Gleeson’s team won one, drew two and lost one this month, not a bad return considering they also lost to Almería, yet drew with Real Madrid.

Almería did have a very good month, winning three games and losing at home to Real Madrid. Neilio is only Stable because his team is 14th, but a few more months like this and he could be very happy indeed. Málaga sit bottom, which is bad news for Sirus Lannock, and the closest he came to three points this month was a 1-1 draw with Jellybean Man’s Numancia.

As you know, European football took place this month, with the UEFA Cup’s First Knockout Round being played to completion. There were two ties involving two of our managers, and while Mark Cator’s Aston Villa won against Neji Hyuuga’s Deportivo, the other English side in Everton lost out to Ben Taylor’s Fiorentina. A.C. Milan won their tie, as did a number of Spanish sides, but Maz Armley’s Racing, Tottenham, Udinese and Sampdoria went home.

Back to England and it’s little surprise who are top of the Premier League, with an impressive seven-point lead. Maurice Jobson actually lost this month, a 1-3 defeat by money-boys and newly-reinforced rivals Manchester City. Yet Everton were despatched in a fine manner, so too were Tottenham, keeping the Red Devils on top. Their City counterparts have of course done fantastic with their new squad, defeating Liverpool, Man United, Aston Villa and Whoopy Dee’s West Ham although losing in the Cup. Although its no shame to do so, Dee’s lost to Man City saw him pushed out of the club on the 28th, making it two managers in one day in the Premier League, after the team sit 16th, with two wins and two losses this month.

As well as Roma, Ben Cee’s Inter have been top of the form books in the past month in Italy. They sit second and didn’t lose once, with a 2-1 away victory over Jonte Rhode’s Lazio being the least secure of the victories. With a 2-1 victory in Eindhoven for the Champions League first leg, things are looking peachy for Cee, who is Stable. Surprisingly, Lisa Jefferies’s Juventus failed dismally in this month, not winning all month and picking up only one point, again against Lazio. Chievo were pleased to beat the 5th-placed team, but so too were Tyler Burrows’s Udinese, who did it 2-1 at the Old Lady’s ground. With Brettney Joven’s Wigan in the relegation zone, the ladies aren’t doing too well.

The Spanish Cup played the first leg of its semi final this month, and Lucas Volman’s Real Madrid trashed Osasuna 4-0, and Villarreal did that 3-0 to Valladolid. Despite a 4-0 5-0 2-0 2-0 streak, drawing with Espanyol and losing 1-3 at Anfield were lowlights this month. That was in the Champions League Knockout Round 1st Leg, and England were doing the romping, with all of the English sides winning. Haowan Madridstas’s Barcelona won 4-1 against Celtic in Scotland, this went well with a great unbeaten month where they dropped only two points.

Yet Spain, the safest haven for our managers so far, is not all rosy, and experiences its first sacking. In 16th place, 5 places below expectations, you will find (or would find) David Machine and Athletic. A four-match unbeaten run, with a win and two draws this month, was ended by Lars Tommersen’s Villarreal, 0-2, and Athletic were at home, so Fernando García Macua felt it necessary to bring in Louis van Gaal as Machine’s successor. Italy takes the mantle as the safest country.

Wobill Luman’s Betis are in 15th place and lost every game this month, while Sporting, managed by Andy Morton, are 7th, and they won one, drew two and lost one this month, in fact beating Betis 4-1 away. In England, Leo Dodge’s West Brom are 12th, having lost two and won one this month, the win coming over West Ham who sacked their manager.

With 12 of our managers in danger, there’s plenty of fun to be had in March. As well as domestic league action, there’s the Carling Cup final and the FA Cup Sixth Round, the first leg of the Italian Cup semifinal, the conclusion of the Spanish Cup semifinal, as well as the Champions League and UEFA Cup. That’s every competition possible, other than Super Cups. Stay tuned!

Manager of the Update
It’s not particularly easy, but this month’s award goes to;

Robert Boyle, Blackburn

who went undefeated and knocked Manchester City out of the FA Cup. There was some high profile opposition vying for this award, with both Italian leaders Ben Cee and Clark Aitken having wins all month, and Barcelona dropping just two points. In the end, I gave this on compassionate grounds, and the fact that the money of Blackburn is significantly less, than that of these guys and than that of Manchester City, their best victims in this month. Everybody loves the underdog!

Job Securities

  Rank Username             Manager             Club        Security      Days   
   1st ScottT!              Scott Tysoe         Sunderland  Very Secure    236
     - IlikeJellybeans      Jellybean Man       Numancia    Very Secure    236
     - Greasy Chip Butty    Andy Morton         Sporting    Very Secure    236
     - Blanco               Cristobal Blanco    Recreativo  Very Secure    236
     - Walcott’s Wonderkids Brucie Bonus        West Brom   Very Secure    236
   6th clrkaitken           Clark Aitken        Roma        Secure         236
     - spartans5            Lawrence Lazewski   Valencia    Secure         236
     - ssestig              Theo Stigarakis     Catania     Secure         236
     - JSalter              James Salter        Reggina     Secure         236
     - ian_1982             Maurice Jobson      Man United  Secure         236
     - MikaelS              Mikael Schøler      Bologna     Secure         236
     - Martin_              Martin Bojangles    Hull        Secure         236
     - super_lampard        Super Lampard       Lecce       Secure         236
     - el sid               Cool Manager        At. Madrid  Secure         236
     - Almondo              Arnold J. Rimmer    Bolton      Secure         236
     - DiscoStu94           Da Hoover Man       Sampdoria   Secure         236
  17th hasdgfas             Tim Aubel           Fulham      Stable         236
     - Waghlon              Lars Tommersen      Villarreal  Stable         236
     - Jack Rudd            Lisa Jeffries       Juventus    Stable         236
     - tomsmith1989         Tom Smith           Arsenal     Stable         236
     - kashmirshazad        Shazad Ali          Newcastle   Stable         236
     - canvey!!             Fréderico Canvey    Stoke       Stable         236
     - Chimpos              Phill Ewles         Valladolid  Stable         236
     - hamilton162          Tom Hamilton        Mallorca    Stable         236
     - Ben Arsenal          Ben Cee             Inter       Stable         236
     - Haowan               Haowan Madridstas   Barcelona   Stable         236
     - conners              Sirus Lannock       Málaga      Stable         236
     - mikeytwigge          Mikey Twigge        Palermo     Stable         236
     - AtilasMiserly        Will de Mote        A.C. Milan  Stable         236
     - Neji                 Neji Hyuuga         Deportivo   Stable         236
     - PluckaDuck           Tyler Burrows       Udinese     Stable         236
     - weeeman27bob         Lord Weeman         Napoli      Stable         236
     - Romanista1994        Lucas Volman        Real Madrid Stable         236
     - ~Ian~                Bryan McGuinness    Everton     Stable         236
     - Cardiovascular       Cardio Vascular     Genoa       Stable         236
     - fergysafc            Liam Ferguson       Man City    Stable         236
     - Lower Leagues Rule   Jonte Rhodes        Lazio       Stable         236
     - TaylorB              Ben Taylor          Fiorentina  Stable         236
     - SCIAG                Leo Dodge           Tottenham   Stable         236
     - tadr                 Andre da Conceiçao  Chelsea     Stable         236
     - Robert_296           Robert Boyle        Blackburn   Stable         236
     - m1234566778          Maz Armley          Racing      Stable         236
     - Ridleys              James Ridley        Siena       Stable         236
     - JoeLatics            Joe Gleeson         Espanyol    Stable         236
     - Neilio               Neilio              Almería     Stable         236
  46th Swafe                Saul Goode          Osasuna     Insecure       236
     - pnefc22              Wobill Luman        Betis       Insecure       236
     - bermybhoy            bermybhoy           Atalanta    Insecure       236
     - markcator3006        Mark Cator          Aston Villa Insecure       236
     - NepentheZ            Neppo Monster       Cagliari    Insecure       236
     - corinthiano          Mathias Brunckhorst Chievo      Insecure       236
     - rancer890            Ricky Nakano        Middlesbro  Insecure       236
  53rd jack.browne          Jack Browne         Sevilla     Very Insecure  236
     - dafuge               dafuge              Torino      Very Insecure  236
     - TigerJoe             Joe Seddon          Getafe      Very Insecure  236
     - brettney1980         Brettney Joven      Wigan       Very Insecure  236
  57th KiddingChoc          Zach Machios        Portsmouth                 235
     - Whoopy D             Whoopy D            West Ham                   235
  59th d-machine            David Machine       Athletic                   229
  60th PaulHartman71        Jeremy English      Liverpool                  204

[MikaelS]

Nice update although I wasn't mentioned. Does this mean that the 60 to One has been reduced to 1 game or are this going to be closed?

[conners]

r.i.p this sign up

[tomsmith1989]

It's a real shame that you two, Ridleys and Weeeman, have to drop out. Sometimes real life doe shave to take over though, and we all understand.

Back to canveys update, I think i'll stay stable for sometime. Hopefully I can lie in wait for now, and then pounce when there are only a few managers left.

[Robert_296]

manager of the month \o/. It's a shame that Weeman and Ridleys won't continue though Your updates were fantastic.

[Whoopy D]

Sacked

Real shame about Ridleys and weeeman but as others have said, real life does get in the way.

What does the future hold for this sign-up canvey!!? Are you going to be looking for replacements or wil you just run your game?

[Swafe]

Shame about Ridleys and weeman, but we all understand, and i was doing so well in Ridleys

Is this over or will it continue?

[BenArsenal]

I hope it continues. I'm doing pretty well.

[Robert_296]

blody hell weeman and ridleys you should commitment to this sign up. someone upstanding (like me) would never stop doing it

It's getting boring now.

[PluckaDuck]

The two saves that I was doing the best in have been aborted

Hopefully this will keep going, It's a too good of an idea to stop this early!

[dafuge]

Shame to lose the two other games, especially since I was doing quite well in one of them.

I look set to finish in the bottom ten now

[Spleen!]

It's a shame for the other 2 games to go, but school is more important.

Secure in canvey!!'s, looking good at the moment.

[JB]

Shame that 2 of the games had to go, and im very insecure in the only one that remains!

[el sid]

Secure in canvey's game but disappoined to see ridleys and weeeman drop out

[coldkohmew]

still looking...

[super_lampard]

Still doing average enough not to get a mention and i'm sure if Ridleys and weeeman were still doing it i wouldn't have been mentioned in them Mr Satisfactory

[canvey!!]

Writer's Notes: Just to clarify what's going on - I will continue this as a solo effort.

Manager of the Update - Previous Winners

Update Winner, Club                
Jul 08 James Salter, Reggina
Aug 08 Lawrence Lazewski, Valencia
Sep 08 Clark Aitken, Roma
Oct 08 Clark Aitken, Roma 
Nov 08 Leo Dodge, Tottenham 
Dec 08 Maurice Jobson, Man United
Jan 09 Bryan McGuinness, Everton
Feb 09 Robert Boyle, Blackburn

[PaulHartman71]

Although I have been eliminated, we all know that I would have had a SAF-esque career in weeman's save game, so I'm the true winner.

[PluckaDuck]

Great to see this continuing!!

[Lower Leagues Rule]

YAY!!! At least there will still be some updates

[canvey!!]

Writer's Notes: From now on, you can expect updates every six days.

Update 9
Years: 0, Months: 9, Days: 267

And so a new month dawns in 60 to One – but two of our managers only witnessed the first day of it with their clubs. Italy has decided to depose two of its managers, and, after a 0-3 home defeat by Juventus, the Cagliari board decided that they had had enough of Neppo Monster and sacked the Englishman, who had won just four games during his tenure. On the same day, Lecce travelled to Olimpico, and a 2-0 win for Super Lampard’s team meant that Torino manager dafuge got his marching orders. Lampard went on to lose his next two games before a 2-1 win over Napoli.

Clark Aitken’s Roma are still top of Serie A, despite winning only one game this month. They won in their two cup competitions this month, both two-legged ties, but Ben Cee’s Inter, who won three and drew one this month, are gaining on them as the gap is slashed to seven points. There are nine games left and Aitken hopes to sustain some form in order to close out the season.

Meanwhile, of the three sides in the Italian drop zone, only one has its original manager. Mathias Brunckhorst lies in the middle of that mess, in 19th, and suffered two 1-3 defeats this month. However, they turned the score around in playing Tyler Burrows’s Udinese, and drew their final game 0-0. However, Brunckhorst is Insecure. Theo Stigarakis’s Catania sit just outside the relegation zone, with Pasquale Marino’s Torino two points behind.

Over in England, never mind the sackings of two managers, there was only one thing on people’s minds on March 1st. Maurice Jobson’s Manchester United faced Rafa Benítez’s Liverpool at Wembley for the League Cup crown. The Rwandan had already won two competitions and finished as runner-up in another, yet for Liverpool this was a matter of restoring pride after Jeremy English’s disastrous tenure. No goals came until extra time, when Cristiano Ronaldo put the Red Devils in front. However, Ryan Babel levelled through a penalty and Liverpool went on to win 5-4 on penalties. But Manchester United have the consolation of being 10 places higher in the league than Liverpool, 1st to the Reds’ 11th. With three wins out of four this month, Jobson soars towards the crown, and only a few more wins will be needed, surely.

Tom Smith’s Arsenal are in second place, and they played two games this month, both of which were won by one-goal margins. Ricky Nakano’s Middlesbrough visited The Emirates where they were given a 2-3 defeat. Arsenal also progressed in the Champions League, our next focus of attention.

There were eight spots in the next round, and ten of our managers competing for them. Three would have to drop out, at least, and the other seven would join either Bayern Munich or Dynamo Kiev in the next round. Andre da Conceiçao’s Chelsea secured a 4-1 aggregate victory over Lars Tommersen’s Villarreal, secured with a 2-0 win at Stamford Bridge. With two 1-0 wins, Maurice Jobson’s Manchester United knocked out Juventus, and Lucas Volman’s Real Madrid lost out to Benítez’s revitalised Liverpool. Italian champions Roma got through past Sporting CP, while Barcelona had the biggest win, 4-1 away and 4-0 at home against Celtic. Arsenal, Inter and Dynamo Kiev are also through to the next round.

In Spain, we lost another manager. Despite having been unbeaten in the month, a 1-1 draw away to Louis van Gaal’s Athletic was the end of the line for Jack Browne, whose contract was terminated after reports that the players had lost confidence in him. He had won just over half of his games at Sevilla, with a quarter lost and a quarter drawn, but sitting four places below their predicted position of 3rd with 11 games to go made the chairman pull the trigger.

Real Madrid lead the league by a whopping 10 points, and Lucas Volman won all four games this month, disregarding that Liverpool result in the Champions League. Behind him is Barcelona, and then Lars Tommersen’s Villarreal, who won three and drew one this month. They also progressed to the Spanish Cup final despite a second-leg defeat to Phill Ewles’s Valladolid, where they will face the titans of Real Madrid. Valencia, managed by Lawrence Lazewski, follow in fourth, but had an indifferent month but progressed in the UEFA Cup. Sirus Lannock’s Málaga are bottom, but it is where they are expected to finish and Lannock is Stable.

Over in England for the tale of Brucie Bonus, whose West Brom side sit eighth in the Premier League. This month they won all three games, including a 1-0 win over holders Manchester United.

In the FA Cup, the Sixth Round was a dull concoction. After claiming the scalp of Manchester City in the last round, Robert Boyle’s Blackburn did it again with a 2-1 victory over Manchester United, the only one to be decided without a replay. The other matches all ended 1-1, but Arsenal smashed their local rivals Tottenham 4-0 in the replay at the Emirates, while Chelsea knocked out Arnold J. Rimmer’s Bolton at Stamford Bridge. Fréderico Canvey’s Stoke were eliminated on penalties by Javier Aguirre’s Portsmouth in a match that saw three men sent off. In the end the result went the right way as Stoke had failed to threaten in the replay at the Britannia.

There was also some minimal cup action in Italy, as Inter beat Lord Weeman’s Napoli 2-0 away and Roma beat Lisa Jeffries’s Juventus 2-1. They will have to wait almost another month to conclude these two-legged ties. In the league, James Salter’s Reggina are 15th after a win, a draw and two losses this month, and Mikael Schøler’s Bologna are one place above them, failing to win this month. Genoa, managed by Cardio Vascular, are in 9th, with two wins, a draw and a loss this month, including a 2-0 victory over Da Hoover Man’s Sampdoria. Will de Mote’s A.C. Milan are chasing down the top two but are eight points adrift of Inter, yet they won three and lost one this month. They also progressed to the UEFA Cup’s Quarter Final, joined there by only one of our managers, Lawrence Lazewski’s Valencia, although Joaquín Caparrós’s Sevilla are also in the hat. Fiorentina and Cool Manager’s Atlético Madrid fell at the hurdle here, losing to Valencia and Benfica respectively. Valencia and A.C. Milan will meet in the next round, guaranteeing one and only one manager in the semis.

Saul Goode and Joe Seddon are trying to avoid relegation, at Osasuna and Getafe respectively. Osasuna won one game this month and Getafe won two, which gives some hope considering that their nearest competition, Louis van Gaal’s Athletic and Maz Armley’s Racing, failed to win this month. This time next month we may find some teams relegated already, so the next few games are critical. Nine of our managers are under pressure and could soon join the six already sacked. January saw one dismissal, February saw three and March saw three, so how many will be going next month? There’s only one way to find out.

Manager of the Update
The award this month goes to;

Brucie Bonus, West Brom

who won three games out of three. His fellow Englishman Tom Smith was also in the running after four wins with two cup progressions, but his month, unlike Bonus’s, was not perfect, and Bonus has the extra bow of having a Very Secure job, rather than simply Secure. Lucas Volman did well but lost in the Champions League and Inter had an unbeaten month. But a 100% record, job security and being nine places above expectation earn Bonus this bonus.

Job Securities

  Rank Username             Manager             Club        Security      Days   
   1st ScottT!              Scott Tysoe         Sunderland  Very Secure    267
     - IlikeJellybeans      Jellybean Man       Numancia    Very Secure    267
     - Greasy Chip Butty    Andy Morton         Sporting    Very Secure    267
     - Blanco               Cristobal Blanco    Recreativo  Very Secure    267
     - Walcott’s Wonderkids Brucie Bonus        West Brom   Very Secure    267
     - super_lampard        Super Lampard       Lecce       Very Secure    267
   7th clrkaitken           Clark Aitken        Roma        Secure         267
     - ssestig              Theo Stigarakis     Catania     Secure         267
     - JSalter              James Salter        Reggina     Secure         267
     - ian_1982             Maurice Jobson      Man United  Secure         267
     - Martin_              Martin Bojangles    Hull        Secure         267
     - el sid               Cool Manager        At. Madrid  Secure         267
     - Almondo              Arnold J. Rimmer    Bolton      Secure         267
     - DiscoStu94           Da Hoover Man       Sampdoria   Secure         267
     - Waghlon              Lars Tommersen      Villarreal  Secure         267
     - tomsmith1989         Tom Smith           Arsenal     Secure         267
     - Chimpos              Phill Ewles         Valladolid  Secure         267
  18th spartans5            Lawrence Lazewski   Valencia    Stable         267
     - MikaelS              Mikael Schøler      Bologna     Stable         267
     - hasdgfas             Tim Aubel           Fulham      Stable         267
     - Jack Rudd            Lisa Jeffries       Juventus    Stable         267
     - kashmirshazad        Shazad Ali          Newcastle   Stable         267
     - canvey!!             Fréderico Canvey    Stoke       Stable         267
     - Ben Arsenal          Ben Cee             Inter       Stable         267
     - Haowan               Haowan Madridstas   Barcelona   Stable         267
     - conners              Sirus Lannock       Málaga      Stable         267
     - mikeytwigge          Mikey Twigge        Palermo     Stable         267
     - AtilasMiserly        Will de Mote        A.C. Milan  Stable         267
     - Neji                 Neji Hyuuga         Deportivo   Stable         267
     - PluckaDuck           Tyler Burrows       Udinese     Stable         267
     - weeeman27bob         Lord Weeman         Napoli      Stable         267
     - Romanista1994        Lucas Volman        Real Madrid Stable         267
     - ~Ian~                Bryan McGuinness    Everton     Stable         267
     - Cardiovascular       Cardio Vascular     Genoa       Stable         267
     - fergysafc            Liam Ferguson       Man City    Stable         267
     - Lower Leagues Rule   Jonte Rhodes        Lazio       Stable         267
     - TaylorB              Ben Taylor          Fiorentina  Stable         267
     - SCIAG                Leo Dodge           Tottenham   Stable         267
     - tadr                 Andre da Conceiçao  Chelsea     Stable         267
     - Robert_296           Robert Boyle        Blackburn   Stable         267
     - JoeLatics            Joe Gleeson         Espanyol    Stable         267
     - Neilio               Neilio              Almería     Stable         267
     - pnefc22              Wobill Luman        Betis       Stable         267
     - bermybhoy            bermybhoy           Atalanta    Stable         267
     - rancer890            Ricky Nakano        Middlesbro  Stable         267
  46th hamilton162          Tom Hamilton        Mallorca    Insecure       267
     - m1234566778          Maz Armley          Racing      Insecure       267
     - Ridleys              James Ridley        Siena       Insecure       267
     - Swafe                Saul Goode          Osasuna     Insecure       267
     - markcator3006        Mark Cator          Aston Villa Insecure       267
     - corinthiano          Mathias Brunckhorst Chievo      Insecure       267
     - TigerJoe             Joe Seddon          Getafe      Insecure       267
     - brettney1980         Brettney Joven      Wigan       Insecure       267
  54th jack.browne          Jack Browne         Sevilla                    250
  55th NepentheZ            Neppo Monster       Cagliari                   236
     - dafuge               dafuge              Torino                     236
  57th KiddingChoc          Zach Machios        Portsmouth                 235
     - Whoopy D             Whoopy D            West Ham                   235
  59th d-machine            David Machine       Athletic                   229
  60th PaulHartman71        Jeremy English      Liverpool                  204

[hamilton162]

Down to insecure status Shame about Ridleys and Weeeman pulling out, but school must take priority

KUTGW canvey!!

[JB]

I lasted 250 days, not too bad at Sevilla. But I leave the competition. I shall continue to follow, KUTGW mate!

[TaylorB]

Only stable, quite worried for some reason .

Echo what everyone else has said about Weeeman and Ridleys, but school does take priority. KUTGW canvey!!.

[BenArsenal]

Still stable. Second in the league, but good form.

Come on Inter!

[ScottT!]

Still top

[corinthiano]

Surely I'll be out soon... never stood a chance with Chievo!!

[tomsmith1989]

Happy with second in the table, and nice to see me considered for Manager of the Update. A secure job status looks like I should be keeping my job for at least a little while longer, unless things go badly quickly.

kutgw

[super_lampard]

Very secure now, in joint top position

KUTGW canvey

[Lower Leagues Rule]

I am happy to keep stable at Lazio, don't want to make them expect more from me.

[Robert_296]

I'm stable Beat Man Utd in the quarter final's of the FA cup as well \o/ KUTGW canvey!!

[Spleen!]

15th in the league and a secure job, happy enough with that.

[canvey!!]

Manager of the Update - Previous Winners

Update Winner, Club                
Jul 08 James Salter, Reggina
Aug 08 Lawrence Lazewski, Valencia
Sep 08 Clark Aitken, Roma
Oct 08 Clark Aitken, Roma 
Nov 08 Leo Dodge, Tottenham 
Dec 08 Maurice Jobson, Man United
Jan 09 Bryan McGuinness, Everton
Feb 09 Robert Boyle, Blackburn
Mar 09 Brucie Bonus, West Brom

[dafuge]

Me and Nep both out

[PluckaDuck]

A stable position is a good position, Amazing to see the forums 'gods' being eliminated so early.

KUTGW Canvey!!

[DiscoStu94]

Secure

[spartans5]

Down to stable

[el sid]

Secure

[Martin_]

Still going strong somehow!

[Swafe]

Hopefully if we stave off relegation i shouldnt get sacked

[Neji]

I was wrecked in the other two games, so I'm glad it's canvey that has continued

Considering that, stable is not too shabby for Neji!

[canvey!!]

Update 10
Years: 0, Months: 10, Days: 297

May has rolled around and the summer is perilously close, with the conclusion of the football season even closer. Who knows, maybe we can get through this first season with fifty of our original sixty managers surviving? Numbers only went down by one in the month of April, leaving fifty-two. However, it is the end of the line for Joe Seddon, who parted company with his Getafe team leaving them 18th, four places below their predicted position and just inside the relegation zone. The club had only been out of the drop zone for three matches, and two of those were the opening two. A 1-2 loss at home to Sirus Lannock’s Málaga was the last straw for the Getafe board. He joins Jack Browne and David Machine as Spanish casualties of the sack race.

The remaining managers are just short of their 300th day in charge of their clubs, and in England, Maurice Jobson’s Manchester United are on the verge of a third successive title. Despite a somewhat bizarre 0-4 defeat to Wigan this month, the Rwandan manager’s team need just seven more points, at the most, to secure the title. But perhaps bigger news comes from across town, where Liam Ferguson’s Manchester City are looking to break into the top four, the first time that has been achieved by a non Big Four club in four years. It is all but guaranteed, and if it weren’t to happen, Tottenham would take the place anyway. They faced two difficult results this month, with two consecutive 1-2 away defeats, but they had started off the month with two wins, and ended it by defeating Arnold J. Rimmer’s Bolton 4-1, to keep title hopes too alive. Bolton are 17th, and precariously close to going down, yet Rimmer is Stable. His side failed to win this month, and could only draw 2-2 against Wigan, two places below them.

Throughout our three countries, cup finals are all set up and scheduled, and the two opponents are decided. In Italy for example, the Italian Cup Semi Final Second Leg took place this month, and it was little surprise which sides made it through to the big showdown. With a 2-1 away win over Lisa Jeffries’s Juventus, Roma secured a 4-2 aggregate win, and Inter defeated Napoli 3-0 on aggregate. Clark Aitken’s Roma are another title-chasing team who are just seven points from making it a reality. They struggled to two 1-1 draws in their first two games of this month, but it was not all bad news as the second was against Inter themselves. Finally, James Salter’s Reggina, who lie in fifteenth and won just the one game this month, against Super Lampard’s Lecce, were seen off 3-0.

Mikey Twigge’s Palermo had a decent and unbeaten month, with three draws and two wins. James Salter and Super Lampard were again involved, with Reggina beaten 2-1 and Lecce 3-2. Genoa, under the watchful eye of Scotsman Cardio Vascular, lost 0-1 (to Roma), won 1-0 (against Torino) and then followed it up with three 0-0 draws. Six points was a good return on this month was some tough fixtures, and the team sit in 9th. bermybhoy's Atalanta are in 12th and are doing pretty well. Bouncing back from a 0-3 defeat in March, they were unbeaten this month, with three 1-1 draws, one 0-0 and a 1-0 victory over Mikael Schøler’s Bologna.

While in England and Italy the gap between first and second is six points, in Spain, the position of Lucas Volman’s Real Madrid is a lot more secure. Although Barcelona have a game in hand, the Spanish Giants Real are 13 points clear. Just three more would make it inevitable, and whether that comes in their next game against Numancia, or by Barcelona squandering their game in hand, the Real Madrid fans won’t mind a third consecutive title. Just like English table-toppers Manchester United, Real Madrid suffered a 0-4 defeat this month, but with three wins and a draw too they managed a successful thirty days. Their close rivals Barcelona also lost, to Joaquín Caparrós’s Sevilla.

In European competition, the Champions League races towards in grand finale in Rome. This month, the Quarter Final and the first leg of the Semi Final took place, and Andre da Conceiçao’s Chelsea were sent packing in the round of eight by Rafa Benítez’s Liverpool, newly invigorated since the departure of Jeremy English. Maurice Jobson ousted a courageous Inter Milan side, who fought it to 2-3 before crashing out with a 0-2 defeat at Old Trafford. Tom Smith’s Arsenal saw off Italian leaders Roma 2-1 on aggregate, while the last remaining side not ever managed by one of our own, Dynamo Kiev, lost to Barcelona. Things are close, 1-1, between Manchester United and Liverpool in the Semi Final, and it looks set to be an all-English final, with Arsenal holding a 2-0 lead over Barcelona.

The UEFA Cup carried some hope of one of our greedy managers not winning it and, as was inevitable due to the draw, one of our managers was sent home in the Quarter Final. Will de Mote’s A.C. Milan, third in Serie A, went out 2-1 on aggregate to Lawrence Lazewski’s Valencia, third in La Liga. Yet Valencia are down 1-2 from the first leg of their Semi Final tie with Ajax, while Sevilla, free from the tyranny of Jack Browne, hold the same lead over Werder Bremen.

In England now, and Martin Bojangles’s Hull are looking to secure a position above the bottom three places of the English Premier League. Sadly, this month didn’t do it for them, as they lost four of their five matches, although they did beat second-placed Manchester City 2-1 to get their wins tally into double figures. The lowest team that are secure is Bryan McGuinness’s Everton, who are in 9th place having sold a lot of their big stars. Their only win this month was against Wigan, but they are guaranteed Premier League football next season. Tim Aubel’s Fulham cannot be so sure, as they are 18th and looking like a possible Championship team next season. But the Cottagers can take some hope out of two wins this month, over Sunderland and Blackburn, even though April started badly with losses to two of the EPL sides rejuvenated under new managers, West Ham and Portsmouth.

Moving up to the north-east, from the bottom up, Ricky Nakano’s Middlesbrough are in 14th place, and won two of their games this month, against Chelsea and Aston Villa no less. Nakano is currently Stable. Scott Tysoe’s Sunderland are in 7th, and they had a hot and cold month of April, losing two games heavily, but beating Everton, West Brom and Blackburn with comfort. Tysoe is Very Secure, no surprise considering his lofty position of eight places above Sunderland’s predicted position. Maybe it’s because he like strawberry ice cream! Or maybe not. His neighbour, Shazad Ali’s Newcastle, amassed twelve points this month, and sits above in 6th, losing once, but to Chelsea. They did it the hard way though, winning each of the four matches by one goal. Ali is currently Secure, and has the English Premier League Manager of the Month award to boot.

In the FA Cup this month, Robert Boyle’s Blackburn continued their sensational form, form that is not repeated in the Premier League, where they lost all four games this month. The Ewood Park team took their third top four scalp, with Chelsea this time the victims. However, the fourth and final member of the current top four awaits in the Final, as Tom Smith’s Arsenal beat Javier Aguirre’s Portsmouth to progress.

Moving back to Spain to bring the month of April to an end, and Tom Hamilton’s Mallorca find themselves marooned in 12th place in La Liga. They did win one game this month, 3-0 over Neilio’s Almería, but they lost a whole host more, including heavy 1-3 defeats to Málaga and Louis van Gaal’s Athletic. At Betis, Wobill Luman is Insecure as he fights to stave off relegation, and four draws and two losses this month has him in 14th place. Numancia, under the care of Jellybean Man, are 11th, with the highlight this month being the 2-0 victory, one of two, over Cristobal Blanco’s Recreativo.

But the real success story in Spain is from Riazor, the home of R.C. Deportivo de La Coruña S.A.D.. They are managed by Neji Hyuuga, and a 1-1 away draw to Getafe, whose manager Joe Seddon went on to be fired, was their only blip this month. They defeated high-flying Valencia 2-0 to open the month, and after that draw, Málaga and Numancia were seen off 1-0 to get back to winning ways. A sixteen-point haul was secured with wins over Athletic and Recreativo, 2-1s, and Deportivo are currently in 5th, two places above early media expectations.

But there is no failure without success, and perhaps the boards currently paying Brettney Joven, Mark Cator, Robert Boyle, Andre da Conceiçao, Neilio, Wobill Luman, Saul Goode and Maz Armley are just biding their time, waiting for the season to end before giving their managers the sack. Who knows, maybe relegation will hammer the nail in the coffin for some, but for others, winning or losing those important cup finals and semifinals that come up in the next month, may make or break them. No one has to go, but we all know someone will!

Manager of the Update
It’s been tough this month, but the award goes to;

Neji Hyuuga, Deportivo

for achieving his sixteen points more efficiently than Tom Smith. Smith struggled in domestic league fixtures, the only place where actual physical points could be picked up, although in his eight fixtures he did pick up the equivalent of sixteen points. Yet Hyuuga did it in six. Despite a cup final and a 2-0 first leg lead over Barcelona in the Champions League, much more could have been achieved by the Englishman whereas the Deportivo boss was at almost full efficiency. Shazad Ali, who lost just one game, and A.C. Milan’s Will de Mote were also in contention, as was bermybhoy, whose Atalanta team had a bizarre unbeaten month.

Job Securities

  Rank Username             Manager             Club        Security      Days   
   1st ScottT!              Scott Tysoe         Sunderland  Very Secure    297
     - IlikeJellybeans      Jellybean Man       Numancia    Very Secure    297
     - Greasy Chip Butty    Andy Morton         Sporting    Very Secure    297
     - Blanco               Cristobal Blanco    Recreativo  Very Secure    297
     - Walcott’s Wonderkids Brucie Bonus        West Brom   Very Secure    297
     - super_lampard        Super Lampard       Lecce       Very Secure    297
   7th clrkaitken           Clark Aitken        Roma        Secure         297
     - ssestig              Theo Stigarakis     Catania     Secure         297
     - JSalter              James Salter        Reggina     Secure         297
     - ian_1982             Maurice Jobson      Man United  Secure         297
     - Martin_              Martin Bojangles    Hull        Secure         297
     - el sid               Cool Manager        At. Madrid  Secure         297
     - DiscoStu94           Da Hoover Man       Sampdoria   Secure         297
     - Chimpos              Phill Ewles         Valladolid  Secure         297
     - spartans5            Lawrence Lazewski   Valencia    Secure         297
     - kashmirshazad        Shazad Ali          Newcastle   Secure         297
  17th Almondo              Arnold J. Rimmer    Bolton      Stable         297
     - Waghlon              Lars Tommersen      Villarreal  Stable         297
     - tomsmith1989         Tom Smith           Arsenal     Stable         297
     - MikaelS              Mikael Schøler      Bologna     Stable         297
     - hasdgfas             Tim Aubel           Fulham      Stable         297
     - Jack Rudd            Lisa Jeffries       Juventus    Stable         297
     - canvey!!             Fréderico Canvey    Stoke       Stable         297
     - Ben Arsenal          Ben Cee             Inter       Stable         297
     - Haowan               Haowan Madridstas   Barcelona   Stable         297
     - conners              Sirus Lannock       Málaga      Stable         297
     - mikeytwigge          Mikey Twigge        Palermo     Stable         297
     - AtilasMiserly        Will de Mote        A.C. Milan  Stable         297
     - Neji                 Neji Hyuuga         Deportivo   Stable         297
     - PluckaDuck           Tyler Burrows       Udinese     Stable         297
     - weeeman27bob         Lord Weeman         Napoli      Stable         297
     - Romanista1994        Lucas Volman        Real Madrid Stable         297
     - ~Ian~                Bryan McGuinness    Everton     Stable         297
     - Cardiovascular       Cardio Vascular     Genoa       Stable         297
     - fergysafc            Liam Ferguson       Man City    Stable         297
     - Lower Leagues Rule   Jonte Rhodes        Lazio       Stable         297
     - TaylorB              Ben Taylor          Fiorentina  Stable         297
     - SCIAG                Leo Dodge           Tottenham   Stable         297
     - JoeLatics            Joe Gleeson         Espanyol    Stable         297
     - bermybhoy            bermybhoy           Atalanta    Stable         297
     - rancer890            Ricky Nakano        Middlesbro  Stable         297
     - hamilton162          Tom Hamilton        Mallorca    Stable         297
     - Ridleys              James Ridley        Siena       Stable         297
     - corinthiano          Mathias Brunckhorst Chievo      Stable         297
  45th tadr                 Andre da Conceiçao  Chelsea     Insecure       297
     - Robert_296           Robert Boyle        Blackburn   Insecure       297
     - Neilio               Neilio              Almería     Insecure       297
     - pnefc22              Wobill Luman        Betis       Insecure       297
     - m1234566778          Maz Armley          Racing      Insecure       297
     - Swafe                Saul Goode          Osasuna     Insecure       297
     - markcator3006        Mark Cator          Aston Villa Insecure       297
  52nd brettney1980         Brettney Joven      Wigan       Very Insecure  297
  53rd TigerJoe             Joe Seddon          Getafe                     271
  54th jack.browne          Jack Browne         Sevilla                    250
  55th NepentheZ            Neppo Monster       Cagliari                   236
     - dafuge               dafuge              Torino                     236
  57th KiddingChoc          Zach Machios        Portsmouth                 235
     - Whoopy D             Whoopy D            West Ham                   235
  59th d-machine            David Machine       Athletic                   229
  60th PaulHartman71        Jeremy English      Liverpool                  204

[Martin_]

Still hanging in there

[hamilton162]

Back up to stable for Tom Hamilton and Mallorca, i've exceeded my expectations I thought i would have been fired by now!

Kutgw canvey!!

[BenArsenal]

No mention.

[tomsmith1989]

Final of the FA Cup, and possibly the final of the Champions League too. It's looking good for me so far. Considered for 'Manager of the Update' but let down by league form. Still, a good month.

[hasdgfas]

still Stable, but 18th

[corinthiano]

On stable now!! Maybe there is hope after all!!

[super_lampard]

Still very secure

[Lower Leagues Rule]

No mention and still Stable, the battle of Mid table continues.

[rancer890]

Nakano still stable.

Nice wins against Chelsea and Villa.

[Robert_296]

In the FA cup final yet insecure

[ScottT!]

Would love to finish the first season on top

[spartans5]

Back to secure, very nice

[el sid]

Not mentioned in the update, but still very happy with Secure

[Neji]

Manager of the Update!

[clrkaitken]

The dream of the treble comes to an end. KUTGW

[Spleen!]

Still secure, that will do

[canvey!!]

Manager of the Update - Previous Winners

Update Winner, Club                
Jul 08 James Salter, Reggina
Aug 08 Lawrence Lazewski, Valencia
Sep 08 Clark Aitken, Roma
Oct 08 Clark Aitken, Roma 
Nov 08 Leo Dodge, Tottenham 
Dec 08 Maurice Jobson, Man United
Jan 09 Bryan McGuinness, Everton
Feb 09 Robert Boyle, Blackburn
Mar 09 Brucie Bonus, West Brom
Apr 09 Neji Hyuuga, Deportivo

[canvey!!]

Update 11
Years: 0, Months: 11, Days: 328

It’s business time and there is no more faffing about for some of our managers if they want to stay in their jobs. With just a handful of games to go until the end of the season in England, Spain and Italy, results here are crucial. For some managers it determines how many trophies and medals they will have next season, for some it determines which league they will play in and for some it determines whether they will have a job at all.

We will start in Spain, where the first major event of the month occurred in the form of the bestowal of the Liga BBVA. With the foundations having been set over the previous months, all it would take for Lucas Volman in the first game of May was a win. His Real Madrid side were on the road to face Jellybean Man’s Numancia. Barcelona had a problem: time was running out to mount any attack on this Real Madrid side. They were at home to Neilio’s Almería, who faced their own problems: a rapidly disappearing place in the La Liga. Of course Volman and Los Galácticos won, 2-1, and despite Barcelona’s 3-1 victory over Almería, the championship would stay in Madrid. But before they could celebrate too much, there was work to do: they would face Lars Tommersen’s Villarreal in the Spanish Cup final the very next game.

The Road to the Final – Spanish Cup

The Fourth Round of the Spanish Cup is largely academic and pointless, for upper-end La Liga sides at least. Real Madrid, under the control of Lucas Volman, swept aside Fuerteventura 3-0 away and 5-0 at home. There was also a comfortable 6-1 aggregate win for Lars Tommersen and Villarreal, despite a first leg draw away to opponents Ejido. They faced Espanyol in the Fifth Round who they despatched 3-2, with a 3-0 victory in the first leg being marred by a 0-2 defeat in the second. Meanwhile Real Madrid had a calm but controlled 3-1 aggregate victory over Deportivo.

Real Madrid then went on to face Sevilla, where a 3-1 home win in the first leg was enough to get through with a 1-1 draw in the second, while Villarreal lost the second leg again, 1-2 to Atlético Madrid, but a 3-0 home victory in the first leg secured them passage. Way back in February and March, the Semi Final was played, and it was no surprise that Villarreal lost the second leg. But the scoreline was identical to their quarter final, 3-0 at home and 1-2 away to Valladolid, sending them to the final, while their opponents had beaten Osasuna in the other semi, virtually decided from the first leg, a 4-0 home victory for Real Madrid, tied up with a 1-1 away draw.

A 97,978 crowd packed the Nou Camp to witness the action, action which Real Madrid were expected to dominate. The match wasn’t extremely one sided, about 2 to 1 in Madrid’s favour, and Los Galácticos won 2-0, with goals from Fernando Gago and Raúl securing Lucas Volman’s second competition win. He finishes the month as Very Secure, with Lars Tommersen stable.

On the same day was the Italian Cup final, where virtual Serie A champions Roma, managed by Canadian Clark Aitken, would face their close league rivals, Ben Cee’s Inter. They had met three times in the season so far, with Inter winning the Super Cup in August and the two league games ending as stalemates.

The Road to the Final – Italian Cup

In Italy, there is a network of Qualifying Rounds meaning that there are no easy ties, even in the First Round, the entry point of our two teams. Clark Aitken’s Roma squeezed past Cagliari with a 1-0 win while Ben Cee’s Inter won 3-0 at home to Catania. Sampdoria were despatched by Inter in the Quarter Final, 1-0, while Roma beat Atalanta 2-1. Two 2-1 victories in the two-legged semifinal against Juventus saw Roma through to the final, and a slightly easier tie in the form of Napoli awaited Ben Cee, who progressed with ease, 3-0 on aggregate.

Of course Clark Aitken’s Roma would have the advantage in the final, traditionally held at the Olimpico, home of Lazio and Roma. Despite bossing possession and chances, Ben Cee’s Inter couldn’t get a breakthrough in front of the 81,171 crowd, and a Marco Cassetti goal in the fifth minute won the title for Aitken. No worries though, as they now each had one win from the two finals they had played against each other.

Roma would go on to win the Serie A title four days later with a 2-1 win over Cagliari, but not before Maurice Jobson and Manchester United could get their hands on the Premier League crown. A hattrick of titles was secured after thirty-seven games, with only Arsenal having been able to stop the Red Devils. But a 3-0 home victory over close rivals Manchester City tightened up the win, giving Jobson a third title in an already successful career at Manchester United after just one season.

After thirty-six La Liga games had been played, two of the three relegation spots had already been confirmed. Sirus Lannock’s Málaga went into that thiry-sixth game, against Wobill Luman’s Betis, knowing that a win would be essential if they were to hope for La Liga football next season. They didn’t get it, and neither did Saul Goode’s Osasuna, with both teams losing 1-2, the latter to Almería. They would end up meeting on the final day of the season, with Osasuna winning 2-1, but it would be scant consolation as both teams would be in the LIGA adelante next season.

And now an expedition into Europe, with the UEFA Cup Final. One of our managers was in it, meaning a manager of ours in the final of every European and domestic competition, and even the Club World Championship. Lawrence Lazewski took his Valencia team to face Thomas Schaaf’s Werder Bremen.

The Road to the Final – UEFA Cup

Lawrence Lazewski and Valencia would start off their UEFA Cup campaign in the First Round while Werder Bremen, under the control of Thomas Schaaf, entered the competition in a less conventional manner. Their journey starts in the Champions League, where they finished third in Group A behind Barcelona and Dinamo Kiev, staying ahead of Zenit St. Petersburg on goal difference. While this was happening, Valencia had beaten Romanians FC Vaslui 7-2 on aggregate in the First Round of the UEFA Cup, and then finished first in Group C ahead of other qualifiers Everton and Sparta Prague, and above Partizan Belgrade and Salzburg.

Valencia’s First Knockout Round draw saw them drawn to Turkey to face Besiktas. The travel didn’t put them off, as they secured a 3-0 away victory, sealed with an impressive 2-0 home win too. The Second Knockout Round was less secure but they still won away, 3-2 against Fiorentina, while drawing 1-1 at home to reach the Quarter Final. Meanwhile Werder Bremen, freshly deposited from the Champions League, beat Sampdoria 2-0 at home and 2-1 away, and then Aston Villa 2-1 on aggregate after a superb 0-0 performance at Villa Park.

Valencia would face yet more Italians in the Quarter Final, A.C. Milan, who were seen off despite a 0-1 away loss, the 2-0 home win making up for that. It looked like they might go out to Ajax in the semifinal after a 1-2 away defeat, but winning 3-1 at home set them up for the final. Bremen had meanwhile squeaked past Olympique Lyonnais on away goals, with no goals at home and one for each team in France, and then past another Spanish team in Sevilla, 3-2 after a 1-2 away defeat.

The Fenerbahçe Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium was the venue, packed with 50,508 fans. Valencia had taken the lead on 52 minutes with a Rubén Baraja strike, but their lead looked delicate when David Albelda was sent off with a second yellow in the eightieth minute. Sure enough, seven minutes later Werder Bremen equalised through Naldo. But Lawrence Lazewski’s team were not too keen on extra time or penalties, so wrapped up the win three minutes later with a goal from Miguel.

The English Premier League was going right down to the wire, at least in terms of the bottom three. There were four competing for the one place of safety, Tim Aubel and Fulham, Brettney Joven and Wigan, Fréderico Canvey and Stoke and Arnold J. Rimmer and Bolton. It would all be decided on the final day, 24th May, and Fulham had the toughest draw because they would face 3rd-placed Manchester City. Ironically, it was actually Fulham who won, 3-1, with Bolton losing 1-2 away to Hull and going down in 19th place, Stoke drawing 2-2 at home to Everton and going down in 18th place and Wigan drawing 0-0 at home to Sunderland and going down in 20th place. However, their manager wouldn’t be going down with them, as on that day Brettney Joven was given her marching orders to leave Lisa Jeffries as the last remaining female manager in the competition, although there were only two. These three teams would be replaced by Championship winners Ipswich, by Crystal Palace and by fifth-placed finishers Birmingham.

It’s back into Europe for the penultimate final of the season, and it may come as a shock to Maurice Jobson and Tom Smith who, at the last mention, had healthy opportunities to reach the final, but will find now that their teams are out. Haowan Madridstas’s Barcelona face up against another Spanish team in Rafa Benítez’s Liverpool.

The Road to the Final – Champions League

Both teams had to qualify and Haowan Madridstas’s Barcelona did it with ease with a 11-0 aggregate win over Wisla Krakow. The Jeremy English Liverpool win was not so dramatic but comfortable nonetheless, as Rapid Wien were seen off 2-0 in each leg. Liverpool then progressed through Group E ahead of Atlético Madrid and Rangers, but behind Roma. Barcelona lost two of their first three Group Stage games but progressed in first ahead of Dinamo Kiev, UEFA Cup Runners-up Werder Bremen and Zenit St. Petersburg.

The First Knockout Round saw Barcelona travelling to Scotland where Celtic were beaten 4-1. 4-0 was the home result in the second leg, summing up a comfortable victory for Madridstas’s team. By this point, Rafael Benítez had taken over Liverpool to knock out Real Madrid 4-1 on aggregate and then Chelsea on penalties in the Quarter Finals after two 2-0 results to the home team. Barcelona’s Quarter Final was against Dinamo Kiev from their group, who they beat 4-3 on aggregate after winning 2-0 at the Nou Camp but losing 2-3 in Ukraine. Arsenal looked to have sealed the fate of the Spanish Giants in the Semi Final after a 2-0 win at the Emirates, but a 4-0 return leg win sent Barcelona through to the final in Rome. Benítez’s Liverpool went through with a 3-1 aggregate win over Manchester United, winning 2-0 at Anfield.

81,193 packed Olimpico in Rome but the Liverpool half were mortified when the Reds were 0-2 down at half time, and 0-1 down after one minute, Thierry Henry netting first with a penalty and again in the 27th minute. To add insult to injury, Liverpool were playing against 10 men for the last 40 minutes after Haowan Madridstas had Carles Puyol sent off. But Daniel Alves scored in the 52nd minute, and Ryan Babel’s 57th-minute consolation was cancelled out as the three-goal lead was restored by Rodrigo Palacio in the 88th minute.

And we move on to the last final of the season, the English FA Cup Final, where Robert Boyle’s Blackburn would face Arsenal, whose manager Tom Smith was looking to nab a title after his disappointment in the Champions League and, to some extent, in the Premier League. Due to some poor league form, victory here could be just what Robert Boyle needs to keep his job.

The Road to the Final – FA Cup

Both teams entered in the Third Round of course, and both teams won 1-0. Robert Boyle’s Blackburn beat Leicester 1-0 at home, while it was a trip to St. Mary’s for Tom Smith and Arsenal. Blackburn were at home again in the Fourth Round, where Grimsby visited, leaving after a 4-0 thrashing from Boyle’s team. Arsenal beat Sheffield United 3-0 at the Emirates, setting up a Fifth Round tie against Everton. This was also won, 2-0 at Goodison, but the Blackburn result was more memorable as the team welcomed big spenders Manchester City to Ewood Park, and sent them away with a 1-0 victory. It was another big scalp in the Sixth Round for Blackburn, Manchester United beaten 2-1, while Arsenal struggled to a 1-1 draw at White Hart Lane. The 4-0 replay result was convincing though, as was the 3-0 victory over Portsmouth in the Semi Final, setting up the second Wembley trip against Blackburn, who beat Chelsea 2-0 in the other Semi Final.

One person had failed to make his or her way to Wembley for the final, where the attendance was 89,999. The whipping that Tom Smith’s Arsenal team gave Robert Boyle’s Blackburn was well deserved considering the stats, but it was surprisingly tight until the 50th minute, when the Mark Bunn floodgates opened. The Blackburn goalkeeper was first treated to a Cesc Fàbregas strike that gave the Gunners the lead, then an Emmanuel Adebayor goal, then an Eduardo goal and finally with one from Theo Walcott in just the 77th minute to wrap up the win. Those 17 minutes were probably the most torrid in Robert Boyle’s career, and maybe the most defining as the Blackburn board fired him before the Wembley turf was even cold.

But while that was the English season over and put away, there was still dramatic action to witness in Italy and Spain, more specifically around the relegation zones. In Spain, Osasuna and Málaga had already confirmed their LIGA adelante place next season and would be joined by any one from Getafe, Phill Ewles’s Valladolid, Maz Armley’s Racing, Neilio’s Almería, Athletic, Wobill Luman’s Betis or Jellybean Man’s Numancia. With several final-day wins for these teams, it was Neilio and Almería who finally ended up getting relegated after losing 0-1 at home to UEFA Cup Winners Valencia. To make matters worse, the English manager then found himself out of a job as the Almería board decided to fire him for finishing six places below expectations.

It was also the deciding day in Italy, where one team would join the two teams already relegated, Torino and Cagliari, who had already sacked their managers. James Ridley’s Siena had pulled safe just at the end, so it was a fight between Theo Stigarakis of Catania and Mathias Brunckhorst of Chievo to avoid that 18th place. Both teams lost, away, in the end, Catania to already relegated Torino, and Chievo to Da Hoover Man’s Sampdoria, and as the present occupiers of 18th place, Chievo went down, although they wouldn’t be taking Mathias Brunckhorst with them as the Brazilian was sacked following the match.

But just because the season is over doesn’t mean you are safe. There are still managers fearing for their jobs, including even Chelsea boss Andre da Conceiçao and Inter manager Ben Cee. Mark Cator of Aston Villa and Mikey Twigge of Palermo are two of the other seven managers who might not make it through one whole year of management.

Manager of the Update
There isn’t too much choice this month and this award goes to;

Lucas Volman, Real Madrid

for wrapping up two titles. May is about the dramatic climax to the season so if you had a winning streak that moves you up only one place to 10th, you’re out of luck for this award. Although other contenders included Tim Aubel, whose Fulham side beat a full-strenght Manchester City side away to secure survival, or Clark Aitken who also won two titles, and lost out only because he had already won two Manager of the Update awards to Volman’s zero.

Writer's Notes: The League Table Screenshots will be posted alongside the Manager of the Update Previous Winners

Job Securities

  Rank Username             Manager             Club        Security      Days   
   1st ScottT!              Scott Tysoe         Sunderland  Very Secure    328
     - IlikeJellybeans      Jellybean Man       Numancia    Very Secure    328
     - Greasy Chip Butty    Andy Morton         Sporting    Very Secure    328
     - Blanco               Cristobal Blanco    Recreativo  Very Secure    328
     - Walcott’s Wonderkids Brucie Bonus        West Brom   Very Secure    328
     - super_lampard        Super Lampard       Lecce       Very Secure    328
     - clrkaitken           Clark Aitken        Roma        Very Secure    328
     - JSalter              James Salter        Reggina     Very Secure    328
     - ian_1982             Maurice Jobson      Man United  Very Secure    328
     - Martin_              Martin Bojangles    Hull        Very Secure    328
     - spartans5            Lawrence Lazewski   Valencia    Very Secure    328
     - kashmirshazad        Shazad Ali          Newcastle   Very Secure    328
     - tomsmith1989         Tom Smith           Arsenal     Very Secure    328
     - AtilasMiserly        Will de Mote        A.C. Milan  Very Secure    328
     - Romanista1994        Lucas Volman        Real Madrid Very Secure    328
     - ~Ian~                Bryan McGuinness    Everton     Very Secure    328
     - SCIAG                Leo Dodge           Tottenham   Very Secure    328
     - rancer890            Ricky Nakano        Middlesbro  Very Secure    328
  19th ssestig              Theo Stigarakis     Catania     Secure         328
     - el sid               Cool Manager        At. Madrid  Secure         328
     - DiscoStu94           Da Hoover Man       Sampdoria   Secure         328
     - Chimpos              Phill Ewles         Valladolid  Secure         328
     - MikaelS              Mikael Schøler      Bologna     Secure         328
     - hasdgfas             Tim Aubel           Fulham      Secure         328
     - PluckaDuck           Tyler Burrows       Udinese     Secure         328
  26th Waghlon              Lars Tommersen      Villarreal  Stable         328
     - canvey!!             Fréderico Canvey    Stoke       Stable         328
     - Haowan               Haowan Madridstas   Barcelona   Stable         328
     - conners              Sirus Lannock       Málaga      Stable         328
     - Neji                 Neji Hyuuga         Deportivo   Stable         328
     - weeeman27bob         Lord Weeman         Napoli      Stable         328
     - Cardiovascular       Cardio Vascular     Genoa       Stable         328
     - fergysafc            Liam Ferguson       Man City    Stable         328
     - Lower Leagues Rule   Jonte Rhodes        Lazio       Stable         328
     - TaylorB              Ben Taylor          Fiorentina  Stable         328
     - JoeLatics            Joe Gleeson         Espanyol    Stable         328
     - bermybhoy            bermybhoy           Atalanta    Stable         328
     - hamilton162          Tom Hamilton        Mallorca    Stable         328
     - pnefc22              Wobill Luman        Betis       Stable         328
  40th Ben Arsenal          Ben Cee             Inter       Insecure       328
     - mikeytwigge          Mikey Twigge        Palermo     Insecure       328
     - m1234566778          Maz Armley          Racing      Insecure       328
  43rd Almondo              Arnold J. Rimmer    Bolton      Very Insecure  328
     - Jack Rudd            Lisa Jeffries       Juventus    Very Insecure  328
     - Ridleys              James Ridley        Siena       Very Insecure  328
     - tadr                 Andre da Conceiçao  Chelsea     Very Insecure  328
     - Swafe                Saul Goode          Osasuna     Very Insecure  328
     - markcator3006        Mark Cator          Aston Villa Very Insecure  328
  49th corinthiano          Mathias Brunckhorst Chievo                     327
     - Neilio               Neilio              Almería                    327
  51st Robert_296           Robert Boyle        Blackburn                  326
  52nd brettney1980         Brettney Joven      Wigan                      320
  53rd TigerJoe             Joe Seddon          Getafe                     271
  54th jack.browne          Jack Browne         Sevilla                    250
  55th NepentheZ            Neppo Monster       Cagliari                   236
     - dafuge               dafuge              Torino                     236
  57th KiddingChoc          Zach Machios        Portsmouth                 235
     - Whoopy D             Whoopy D            West Ham                   235
  59th d-machine            David Machine       Athletic                   229
  60th PaulHartman71        Jeremy English      Liverpool                  204

[spartans5]

Very Secure and a victory in the UEFA Cup

[hasdgfas]

woooooo, survival

also, there's a problem in this sentence:

Stoke drawing 2-2 at home to Everton and going down in 17th place

[canvey!!]

also, there's a problem in this sentence:

Thanks, fixed - although I'm Stoke () so I'm only entertaining false hope .

[ScottT!]

Season One Champion along with a few others, admittedly...

[super_lampard]

Very secure after a season

[Lower Leagues Rule]

Good to see we are still stable at Lazio, season two here we come

[PluckaDuck]

Secure at Udinese!!

A pretty good season by all acounts, KUTGW Canvey!!

[rancer890]

I'm joint 1st!

KUTGW canvey!!

[el sid]

Still Secure at Atletico Madrid Shame about the Spanish cup though.

KUTGW canvey

[BenArsenal]

Bummer. Lost out. Now I'm insecure.

I was unbeatable on the other two saves...

[hamilton162]

Stable Pleased to have survived the first season at least!

KUTGW canvey!!, fantastic update

[Robert_296]

Sacked

[canvey!!]

Manager of the Update - Previous Winners

Update Winner, Club                
Jul 08 James Salter, Reggina
Aug 08 Lawrence Lazewski, Valencia
Sep 08 Clark Aitken, Roma
Oct 08 Clark Aitken, Roma 
Nov 08 Leo Dodge, Tottenham 
Dec 08 Maurice Jobson, Man United
Jan 09 Bryan McGuinness, Everton
Feb 09 Robert Boyle, Blackburn
Mar 09 Brucie Bonus, West Brom
Apr 09 Neji Hyuuga, Deportivo
May 09 Lucas Volman, Real Madrid

English Premier League 2008-09
Spanish La Liga 2008-09
Italian Serie A 2008-09

Top Ten - Age (with each update I will do one of these based on different stats each time)

Pos Username        Manager           Club       Age
1st Cardiovascular  Cardio Vascular   Genoa       50
  - markcator3006   Mark Cator        Aston Villa 50
3rd IlikeJellybeans Jellybean Man     Numancia    49
  - Swafe           Saul Goode        Osasuna     49
5th Almondo         Arnold J. Rimmer  Bolton      48
  - Romanista1994   Lucas Volman      Real Madrid 48
  - AtilasMiserly   Will de Mote      A.C. Milan  48
8th SCIAG           Leo Dodge         Tottenham   47
  - Blanco          Cristobal Blanco  Recreativo  47
  - DiscoStu94      Da Hoover Man     Sampdoria   47
  - Haowan          Haowan Madridstas Barcelona   47

[Lower Leagues Rule]

Lazio have to be happy with 9th spot in the league, and we have clearly shown that we can hold mid-table and stability for my job, hopefully those who went to very secure by overachieving now have high expectations and fall apart in the new season

[tomsmith1989]

Wow, a surprise or two in there for me and Arsenal. Firstly, I was expecting to travel to the Nou Camp and lose 4-0. That'll teach me to almost 'expect' reaching a final before the second leg. The second surprise was the FA Cup final. It seemed relatively tight up to 50 minutes, then all of a sudden it became a huge win for us. Do I feel gulty about causing another managers demise? Naaaah.

Also happy with 2nd in the table really. Would've been nice to win it, but second will do. Moved up to very secure job status now. The best it's been yet. Things are looking quite good so far. Kutgw canvey!!(!)

[ssestig]

Secure still and still in Serie A
KUTGW Canvey!!

[DiscoStu94]

7th with Sampdoria

Good work canvey, keep it up.

[super_lampard]

12th with Leece, now I see why i am very secure in my job right now

[rancer890]

Boro finished 13th.

Just keep this up with them and I'm sure there won't be any fear of the sack.

[hamilton162]

9th for Hamilton and Mallorca

[corinthiano]

Relegated and sacked, what a stellar month for me... At least I wasn't last

[conners]

relegated and still in a job

[DiscoStu94]

When you say I'm in the top 10 for age, does that mean I'm one of the oldest in the game?

[canvey!!]

You are the joint eighth (in years, I haven't included it by days also) manager in terms of age of the ones still in their jobs.

[mikeytwigge]

insecure

[brettney1980]

Wigan Relegated, I lose my Job and finish 52nd in all. Poor really but hey what can you do when you draw Wigan.

[PluckaDuck]

Udinese finished 4th, A brilliant season!!!

[ScottT!]

Only just missed out on Europe with Sunderland. Seems like a great season!

[canvey!!]

Update 12
Years: 1, Months: 12, Days: 358

The close-season is usually quite a tedious place, with the action from the last season fully concluded and the action from the next yet to begin. In terms of actual football, fans could only really turn to international games for comfort during the month of June, and alongside the hosts, five nations have already qualified for the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, although only one is from our continent of interest. Asia have concluded the bulk of their qualification system, and Australia, Iran, Japan and Saudi Arabia join the Netherlands and South Africa in qualifying.

The other news in the back pages is of transfers, and there was only one really big news transfer this month, that being the move of Goran Pandev from Lazio to Clark Aitken’s Roma for £35M. Jonte Rhodes hasn’t yet done anything with the money but it should prove useful for the team’s aim to settle in or above that 9th-place predicted position. All other transfers were below £5M, with the largest of those being the £4.6M switch of Jorge Martínez from Da Hoover Man’s Sampdoria to Theo Stigarakis’s Catania.

Three of our teams took the step down from the English Premier League to the Coca-Cola Championship this month, although only two managers went down with them. Fréderico Canvey’s Stoke are predicted to finish in 3rd place, with Arnold J. Rimmer’s Bolton unsurprisingly expected to take 1st. Wigan are believed to finish 2nd and Reading, Charlton and Nottingham Forest are expected to be the sides completing the top six and making the playoffs.

Italy, Scotland and the Netherlands all seemed to see the bulk of this month’s transfers, and with Italy one of our leagues we will shift our focus there. But the transfer windows in Spain and England are soon to open and even bigger money deals will be tendered for sure. Meanwhile, Vincenzo Fiorillo moved from Lisa Jeffries’s Juventus to Sampdoria for a fee of £3.6M and Tyler Burrows raised £2.4M for Udinese by selling Nicola Pozzi to Empoli.

Da Hoover Man’s Sampdoria have been the most active club so far, and as well as buying Fiorillo from Juventus, they brought in a further three players totalling £4.1M. He of course tried to offset this with the transfer of Jorge Martínez to Catania. Maz Armley also generated £2M by selling Mohammed Tchité to Ajax and James Salter and Reggina got £75k for selling Benito Nicolas Viola to Torino. Premier League new boys Birmingham sold Artur Krysiak to Aberdeen for £20k, but will need more than that much cash in hand if they are to reach their predicted position of 16th and survive relegation.

They are joined by Crystal Palace and Ipswich in the Premier League and Ipswich are also expected to survive, with 17th place being their end-of-season position as touted by the media. Crystal Palace are expected to go down in 18th which means that two of the original Premier League sides are expected to finish bottom. Tim Aubel’s Fulham are believed to be the team that will finish 19th and, much like real life, Hull are expected to go down after surviving in season one, and they and manager Martin Bojangles are predicted bottom. It should also come as no surprise that Manchester United are expected to take a fourth consecutive title and finish first. Liam Ferguson’s Manchester City are expected to be the runners-up, which means that Rafa Benítez’s Liverpool are, the media feels, the Big Four club that will lose out on the top four once again.

Brescia, Livorno and Parma join the Serie A clubs this season and are expected to finish 16th, 15th and 13th respectively. This means that Mikel Schøler, James Ridley and Theo Stigarakis need to hold onto their hats as they are each expected to be relegated. The media don’t believe the title will be held by Clark Aitken’s Roma, and will travel to Ben Cee’s Inter instead, back to the team who won it three times back to back before Aitken interrupted that. With the reset date in Spain yet to occur, the media have yet to comment on the clubs there, but with the transfer windows opening, an influx of transfers is expected and certain, so let us see who will strengthen their squads and perhaps solidify their tenure for years to come.

Manager of the Update
It’s a very boring month but a manager of the update should be chosen and that is;

Jonte Rhodes, Lazio

for raising £34M selling Goran Pandev. We don’t know how that will pan out yet but it could lead to plenty of money for squad strengthening. Da Hoover Man was also a potential candidate because you could tell he was thinking and tinkering, but he made a loss despite some potentially good acquisitions.

Job Securities

  Rank Username             Manager             Club        Security      Days   
   1st IlikeJellybeans      Jellybean Man       Numancia    Very Secure    358
     - Greasy Chip Butty    Andy Morton         Sporting    Very Secure    358
     - Blanco               Cristobal Blanco    Recreativo  Very Secure    358
     - spartans5            Lawrence Lazewski   Valencia    Very Secure    358
     - Romanista1994        Lucas Volman        Real Madrid Very Secure    358
     - el sid               Cool Manager        At. Madrid  Very Secure    358
     - Chimpos              Phill Ewles         Valladolid  Very Secure    358
     - Neji                 Neji Hyuuga         Deportivo   Very Secure    358
     - JoeLatics            Joe Gleeson         Espanyol    Very Secure    358
     - hamilton162          Tom Hamilton        Mallorca    Very Secure    358
  11th clrkaitken           Clark Aitken        Roma        Secure         358
     - ian_1982             Maurice Jobson      Man United  Secure         358
  13th ScottT!              Scott Tysoe         Sunderland  Stable         358
     - Walcott’s Wonderkids Brucie Bonus        West Brom   Stable         358
     - super_lampard        Super Lampard       Lecce       Stable         358
     - JSalter              James Salter        Reggina     Stable         358
     - Martin_              Martin Bojangles    Hull        Stable         358
     - kashmirshazad        Shazad Ali          Newcastle   Stable         358
     - tomsmith1989         Tom Smith           Arsenal     Stable         358
     - AtilasMiserly        Will de Mote        A.C. Milan  Stable         358
     - ~Ian~                Bryan McGuinness    Everton     Stable         358
     - SCIAG                Leo Dodge           Tottenham   Stable         358
     - rancer890            Ricky Nakano        Middlesbro  Stable         358
     - ssestig              Theo Stigarakis     Catania     Stable         358
     - DiscoStu94           Da Hoover Man       Sampdoria   Stable         358
     - MikaelS              Mikael Schøler      Bologna     Stable         358
     - hasdgfas             Tim Aubel           Fulham      Stable         358
     - PluckaDuck           Tyler Burrows       Udinese     Stable         358
     - Waghlon              Lars Tommersen      Villarreal  Stable         358
     - canvey!!             Fréderico Canvey    Stoke       Stable         358
     - Haowan               Haowan Madridstas   Barcelona   Stable         358
     - conners              Sirus Lannock       Málaga      Stable         358
     - weeeman27bob         Lord Weeman         Napoli      Stable         358
     - Cardiovascular       Cardio Vascular     Genoa       Stable         358
     - fergysafc            Liam Ferguson       Man City    Stable         358
     - Lower Leagues Rule   Jonte Rhodes        Lazio       Stable         358
     - TaylorB              Ben Taylor          Fiorentina  Stable         358
     - bermybhoy            bermybhoy           Atalanta    Stable         358
     - Ben Arsenal          Ben Cee             Inter       Stable         358
     - mikeytwigge          Mikey Twigge        Palermo     Stable         358
     - Almondo              Arnold J. Rimmer    Bolton      Stable         358
     - Jack Rudd            Lisa Jeffries       Juventus    Stable         358
     - Ridleys              James Ridley        Siena       Stable         358
     - tadr                 Andre da Conceiçao  Chelsea     Stable         358
     - markcator3006        Mark Cator          Aston Villa Stable         358
  46th pnefc22              Wobill Luman        Betis       Very Insecure  358
     - m1234566778          Maz Armley          Racing      Very Insecure  358
     - Swafe                Saul Goode          Osasuna     Very Insecure  358
  49th corinthiano          Mathias Brunckhorst Chievo                     327
     - Neilio               Neilio              Almería                    327
  51st Robert_296           Robert Boyle        Blackburn                  326
  52nd brettney1980         Brettney Joven      Wigan                      320
  53rd TigerJoe             Joe Seddon          Getafe                     271
  54th jack.browne          Jack Browne         Sevilla                    250
  55th NepentheZ            Neppo Monster       Cagliari                   236
     - dafuge               dafuge              Torino                     236
  57th KiddingChoc          Zach Machios        Portsmouth                 235
     - Whoopy D             Whoopy D            West Ham                   235
  59th d-machine            David Machine       Athletic                   229
  60th PaulHartman71        Jeremy English      Liverpool                  204

Writer's Notes: Now that we're down to 50 managers, I think I'll speed up the pace to an update every five days. And once we get down to 40 managers I will probably crank it up to once every four days, three days for 30, two days for 20, every day for 10. I'm also slightly concerned about this thread dying mini-deaths in between each update!

[Lower Leagues Rule]

Jonte Rhodes comes bolting in to accept his award, "I'd like to thank the Lazio fans, the players, the chairman and the board, but most of all I wanna thank myself. A great piece of business here as we target going to a move of two places up the board. We are looking forward to a finish around 6th or 7th this season."

Looking good Canvey keep up the great work

[BenArsenal]

Back to stable.

Come on Inter!

[PluckaDuck]

Currently stable and done a good deal in selling that guy. He's been trash on my save!!

KUTGW Canvey!!

[tomsmith1989]

Down from very secure to stable without doing much. Not great. Hopefully this will not be the start of my demise.

[canvey!!]

Down from very secure to stable without doing much. Not great. Hopefully this will not be the start of my demise.

That's just the season reset date.

[el sid]

Very secure now at Atletico A top 20 finish would be good.
kutgw canvey