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[FM11] Back on the Tribute Trail - DodgeeD's Second World Tour


DodgeeD

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Back on the Tribute Trail...

Game: FM11 (11.1 patch)

Database Edits: Several additional leagues (see below for details)

Time to get my FM11 career on the road!

Following on from the double award-winning This is a Tribute career, I've decided to yet again go down the journeyman path. There are a few differences this time though:

  1. This time, I am also taking part in Acid Burn's Continental Dominance Challenge meaning I have the goal of winning the equivalent of the Champions League on every continent.
  2. In order to achieve this, I have added some .xml files to activate the New Zealand leagues & O-League as well as to give me more options in Asia, Africa and the Americas.
  3. I have decided to give myself a full break from the norm so I have only loaded leagues I have never played a full season in before on any version of FM! (note: that's leagues I've never played a full season in, I may have loaded them in previous games or even dabbled for a half a season or so)

That means the following leagues have been loaded (* denotes an additional league):

Africa

Angola (top division only)*

Egypt (top two divisions)*

Tunisia (top division only)*

Asia

China (all divisions)

India (top division)

South Korea (all divisions)

UAE (top division only)*

Europe

Croatia (all divisions)

France (all divisions)

Holland (all divisions)

Russia (all divisions)

North America

Costa Rica (top two divisions)*

Guatemala (top division only)*

Honduras (top two divisions)*

Jamaica (top two divisions)*

Oceania

New Zealand (top division only)*

South America

Brazil (all divisions)

Chile (all divisions)

Colombia (all divisions)

Uruguay (all divisions)

Obviously, my self-imposed new leagues only rule means the challenge will be tougher, especially with the CONCACAF Champions League as I have previously played long-term games in the Mexican leagues and the MLS. Time to bring one of the central American nations up!

Following Acid Burn's rules, I've started unemployed and I've chosen to give myself a Sunday League rep. I'm now set to apply for jobs and take one of the first two offers that comes along.

Let the journey begin!!!

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The Story So Far...

For those of you new to the thread who don't fancy reading through every comment, you can catch up quickly with the following summary (links to end of season reports included :)):

Club History

[font=courier new]Season  | Club           | Nation   | Division    | Position | Achievements
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6246756&viewfull=1#post6246756"]2010-11[/url] | Koroum         | Egypt    | 1st (North) | 3rd      | N/A
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6268443&viewfull=1#post6268443"]2011-12[/url] | Koroum         | Egypt    | 1st (North) | 1st      | Promoted as champions
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6320745&viewfull=1#post6320745"]2012-13[/url] | Koroum         | Egypt    | Premier     | 13th     | Survived
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6336522&viewfull=1#post6336522"]2013-14[/url] | Wanderers      | Uruguay  | Primera     | 5th      | N/A
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6361293&viewfull=1#post6361293"]2014-15[/url] | Wanderers      | Uruguay  | Primera     | 3rd      | Opening Stage Champions; Liguilla winners
2015-16 | Wanderers      | Uruguay  | Primera     | N/A      | Left in Jan 2016
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6424535&viewfull=1#post6424535"]2015-16[/url] | Club Africain  | Tunisia  | CLP-1       | 5th      | Cup winners
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6455066&viewfull=1#post6455066"]2016-17[/url] | Club Africain  | Tunisia  | CLP-1       | 1st      | League Champions; CAF Champions League winners
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6478932&viewfull=1#post6478932"]2017[/url]    | Suwon          | S. Korea | K-League    | 1st      | Play-off finalists; Peace Cup winners
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6834055&viewfull=1#post6834055"]2018[/url]    | Suwon          | S. Korea | K-League    | 1st      | Play-off winners; KFA Cup winners; ACL winners
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6836084&viewfull=1#post6836084"]2019[/url]    | Flamengo       | Brazil   | Serie A     | 7th      | Rio State runners-up
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6855836&viewfull=1#post6855836"]2020[/url]    | Flamengo       | Brazil   | Serie A     | 1st      | League Champions; Rio State Champions
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6879870&viewfull=1#post6879870"]2021[/url]    | Flamengo       | Brazil   | Serie A     | 2nd      | Rio State  Champions; Copa Libertadores Winners; Club World Champions
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6901902&viewfull=1#post6901902"]2022[/url]    | Flamengo       | Brazil   | Serie A     | 2nd      | Rio State Champions; Copa Libertadores Winners; Recopa Winners
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6902047&viewfull=1#post6902047"]2023[/url]    | Flamengo       | Brazil   | Serie A     | 1st      | League Champions; Rio State Champions
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6902925&viewfull=1#post6902925"]2024[/url]    | Flamengo       | Brazil   | Serie A     | 1st      | League Champions; Rio State Champions
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6937123&viewfull=1#post6937123"]2025[/url]    | Spartak Moscow | Russia   | Premier     | 1st      | League Champions
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6974845&viewfull=1#post6974845"]2026[/url]    | Spartak Moscow | Russia   | Premier     | 1st      | League Champions; Cup Winners; Super Cup Winners[/font]

International History

[font=courier new]Season | Team               | Competiton    | Achievements
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

2011   | -                  | -             | -
2012   | -                  | -             | -
2013   | -                  | -             | -
2014   | -                  | -             | -
2015   | -                  | -             | -
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2016   | South Africa U20s  | -             | Qualified for African U20 Championship
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6478873&viewfull=1#post6478873"]2017[/url]   | South Africa U20s  | U20 World Cup | African U20 Champions; World U20 2nd Round    
2018   | -                  | -             | -
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6836821&viewfull=1#post6836821"]2019[/url]   | Paraguay           | Copa America  | Eliminated in Group Stage
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2020   | Argentina U20s     | -             | -    
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6878937&viewfull=1#post6878937"]2021[/url]   | Argentina U20s     | U20 World Cup | South American U20 Champions; U20 World Cup Winners    
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6887943&viewfull=1#post6887943"]2022[/url]   | Colombia           | World Cup     | Eliminated in Group Stage    
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6902799&viewfull=1#post6902799"]2023[/url]   | Argentina          | Copa America  | Finalists
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6902954&viewfull=1#post6902954"]2024[/url]   | Argentina U23s     | Olympics      | Quarter-finalists
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6938446&viewfull=1#post6938446"]2025[/url]   | Argentina          | WCQ           | Qualified in 1st place
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/241740-Back-on-the-Tribute-Trail-DodgeeD-s-Second-World-Tour?p=6974983&viewfull=1#post6974983"]2026[/url]   | Argentina          | World Cup     | World Champions![/font]

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Aaargh! I holidayed through a couple of seasons yesterday with no crashes but didn't look at the detail of the game. I've just spend a couple of hours finding players and testing tactics for a second tier New Zealand team and somehow we've been drawn in the O-League :confused:

Obviously a bug so I'll have to find a different New Zealand download and start again....

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Thanks rancer. :thup:

I tried the other New Zealand file but I've got the same issue - two teams from the regional leagues, Stop Out Sports Club and Team Wellington Reserves, are being entered into the O-League even though those leagues are not active... Anyone else having this problem?

After this week, I've got a lot of study to do so, hard as it is to wait, I might hold off on my new career for the time being until some more additional leagues are out... Or I might have to opt out of the Oceania part. :(

EDIT: Hmm, in the second season, the O-League has the right teams in it. If it's just a 1st season issue then it's not a big problem for me

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Part 1: A Career with Koroum

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DavidDodgsonNews_Inbox-2.png

And so it begins...

I decided to break the mould and not apply to Auckland City, instead starting in the Egyptian 1st Division North. Koroum are a professional side from Alexandria and play at this municipal stadium.

They have no real history of note and a trophy cabinet waiting to be filled apparently.

An initial look at the squad reveals a complete overhaul is needed so a busy pre-season of scouting awaits. At least my assistant manager seems like a fighter. ;)

Here goes nothing!

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Koroum: 2010/11 Season Preview

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Egyptian 1st Division North

Media Prediction: 3rd

Board Expectations: Respectable league position; Cup 1st round

Season Ticket Holders: 4,265

Stadium Capacity: 19,676 (all-seater)

Training facilities: Adequate

Youth faciliites: Adequate

Youth Recruitment: Fairly basic

Affiliated Clubs: -

Transfer Budget: -

Wage Limit: 8,250 p/w

Transfers

Too numerous to list here as I rebuilt the entire squad, only retaining a goalkeeper, a centre back and a midfielder from the first team squad I inherited. Luckily, I was well under the wage budget when I took over so there was plenty of room to bring new faces in. I mainly picked up unattached players for free but I also got a couple of loan signings from Premier Division clubs as well as a couple of free transfer deals. New players came in for every position!

Key Players

These guys look set to be key to any success will may have this season:

Ali Ashour (M/AM, RLC) - picked up as a free agent and rated as the top midfielder at the club. His versatility of being able to play anywhere in midfield will be key.

Kuagica (DM/MC) - one of my scouts kindly volunteered to send himself to Angola on a scouting trip and turned up this guy. To my delight, even though he wasn't transfer listed, I was able to sign him on a free and he will be our anchor in central midfield.

Lassina Traoré (ST) - I signed this Ivorian striker on a free. A good thing too as my only other decent dtrikers are in their late 30s! If his early season form is anything to go by, he'll be a hit at this level.

Pre-Season Friendlies

There were a series of friendlies lined up before I took the job, all against Premier League sides. We started with a tough one against Al-Ahly in which my players impressed by making it tough for Egypt's biggest side and only losing 1-0. We had mixed results after that with some encouraging wins and some expected defeats. All in all, there were positives to build on and we look set to focus on a 4-4-2 formation this season. :thup:

Where we will finish is hard to judge. Most of the division is filled with amateur teams with only ourselves, Olympic Alexandria and Baladiya as professional teams. I expect promotion (only 1 spot available) will come down to the fixtures between us 3!

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Koroum: Dec 2010 Update

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1st Division North

It quickly became clear how this season would go: rack up the points against the amateur teams and try to beat Baladiya and Olympic Alexandria to top spot. The first part has gone to plan as we have only dropped 4 points against the amateurs to date, as have our rivals. Alas, this all gave me a false impression of where my team is at and we got soundly beaten by both our promotion rivals. At the halfway stage we are 2nd, ahead of Baladiya on goal difference and 6 points behind leaders Olympic Alexandria. To stand any chance of grabbing that sole promotion slot, we need to beat both of those teams in the second half of the season. At least we get to play them at home...

Table (after 15 games)

Egyptian Cup

We were drawn against fellow 1st Division North sides in the two qualifying rounds and won easily despite playing away. The first round proper handed us a tough draw though as we travlled to face Premier League side Petrojet. We couldn't avoid the inevitable loss but gave them a good game, going down 2-1.

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Koroum 2010/11 Season Review

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Egpytian 1st Division (North): 3rd

Egyptian Cup: 1st Round

League: We started out well but it soon became clear that the level of competition in the league was low with the 3 pro teams immediately pulling away and the amateur teams lagging behind. With only the top team promoted, we soon knew we wouldn't be going up as we picked up just 1 point from our 4 games with the other pro team, Olympic Alexandria and Baladiya. However, 3rd was a good start and I'll be looking for a promotion push next season.

Cup: A breeze through the qualifying rounds but we came unstuck when drawn away to a Premier League side in the 1st Round.

Squad: I cobbled together a squad from free transfers who did the job required but strengthening and some younger players will be needed next season. Lassina Traoré and Nabil Abou Zeid provided most of our goals but also highlight the need for youth in the sqaud. Mohamed was another oldie but goodie in defence.

Finances: We lost money each month but have now cut a huge burden off the wage bill by releasing a bunch of useless reserve and U21 players. However, an encouraging sign has been our steadily increasing attendances. With an average of 4,500 we were easily the best attended side in the division and we were pulling in 9,000+ for the last few home games.

The season ahead: I hope to find a parent club (the board had previously refused but have now said they will look into it) and bring in some younger players. We need improvements in defence and some more pace up front.

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Slowly plodding through the pre-season as I scour the country for new players and replacement staff (let my lumbering assistant and useless scout go at the end of their contracts). A good bit of progress though as we now have Al-Ahly as our parent club as well as semi-por second division outfit Goldi as our feeder club.

Also, no pro team relegated from the Premier Division was placed into the 1st Division North, leaving just us and Baladiya as heavy favourites for that sole promotion spot!

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Koroum: 2011/12 Season Preview

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Egyptian 1st Division North

Media Prediction: 2nd

Board Expectations: Win the division; Cup 1st round

Season Ticket Holders: 3,625 (down 440 from last season)

Stadium Capacity: 19,676 (all-seater)

Training facilities: Adequate

Youth faciliites: Adequate

Youth Recruitment: Fairly basic

Affiliated Clubs: Al-Ahly (parent); Goldi (feeder)

Transfer Budget: -

Wage Limit: 8,500 p/w

Pre-Season/Transfers

A good pre-season saw us earn a couple of wins and suffer a couple of defeats against Premier League sides. We also got easy victories over a few amateur teams before rounding things off with a tournament, the Koroum Cup, with 3 other pro 1st Division sides. That went well as we won all 3 matches to take our own cup. :)

I released a lot of reserve and youth players at the end of their contracts and brought in several free transfers along with a few loan signings from new parent club Al-Ahly. The major signings of the summer were: Losseni Kamoura, a Burkina Faso international who should add some depth to midfield; Cherif Touré, a Togolese international whose experience and versatility in midfield will be vital; and Mohamed Ateya, another Egyptian the wrong side of 30 but one with plenty of experience from the Premier Division. Unfortunately, the signings of Kamoura and Touré took me over the foreigner limit so I made the tough decision to sell last season's star man Lassina Traoré. He probably would have left anyway due to a non-promotion release clause and interest from Premier League sides plus he was our top earner so his departure helped bring the wage budget under control.

Transfer summary

Start of the season

The Egyptian Cup 1st Qualifying Round draw was tough on us as we were paired with Telecom Egpyt, 2nd in the 1st Division Cario section last season. A 0-0 result led to penalties and luck was not on our side as we crashed out, much to the annoyance of the board. We responded well with a cracking start in the şeague though. After 5 games, we have a 100% record and are two points ahead of our main threat this season, Baladiya. Any points dropped against the lesser teams could be crucial in deciding who goes up at the end of the season.

Table after 5 games

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Thanks for reading deadfncat. :thup: The 12 month injury was a blow, especially as I now only have a loanee signing and a 39 year-old capable of playing on the left wing. However, all is going well as you'll see below:

Mid-Season Update (Jan 2012)

Well, more like two-thirds season update as we've now played 20 out of 30 league games but all is goin according to plan. We spent much of the first half of the season swopping places with Baladiya at the top of the table, usually on the basis of who had banged more goals past their opponents that weekend and therefore had a better goal difference. The match between us predictably finished 1-1, a bit disappointing as we were at home. However, from there on we maintained our form with just two other draws to mean only 6 points dropped from a possible 60 so far. Our early cup exit may have been a blessing in disguise as Baladiya have made it all the way to the semis but their league form has suffered just before and after those cup ties and they have now lost a couple of games, allowing us to open an 8 point gap. :) Avoiding defeat to them when we meet in a few games time will pretty much assure us of top spot I think. :thup:

1st Division North (after 20 games)

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Koroum 2011/12 Season Review

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Egpytian 1st Division (North): [/url]Champions!

Egyptian Cup: 1st Qualifying Round

League: In the end, it was easy as we took top spot, the title and promotion to the Premier League by 12 points. However, Baladiya did put pressure on us towards the end the season as they inflicted upon us our only loss of the season to close the gap to 5 points with 4 games left. Thankfully, we won our next three while they imploded and won only one more match after our head-to-head clash.

Cup: Less said about this the better! Annoying though that our early exit hung over my head for the rest of the season with the media constantly speculating that one bad result would see me sacked.

Squad: We relied on loan players quite a bit, especially in goal and up front. Out of our own squad, Mohamed Ateya was one of the top performers with a number of goals and assists but he's 34 now. Losséni Kamara was also a creative force in midfield and Rami Sabri was our most consistent performer at right-back.

Finances: We are heavily in debt (600K in the red!) but that's hardly surprising as we were over the wage budget all season.

The season ahead: Not sure what to do next... All of our loanees are back at their clubs and findsing replacements may be difficult now we are divisional rivals to them. We've also lost depth with several of our older players retiring and have no transfer or wage budget to speak of. My contract is up on July 1st so it's tempting to see where else I could get a job...

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Nice title win DodgeeD :thup:. You needed that or I suspect you'd have got the boot. Sounds like it's gonna be tough next year though in a higher division with all of your loanees back at their club. I guess your only aim is survival next season?

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Thanks Raware.

No goal beyond survival! I thought I would suffer with all the pay increases that came with promotion but luckily, the retirements and players released at the end of their contracts gave me plenty of room in the wage budget to bring some new faces in. I've signed a one-year deal so we'll see how it goes. I can always jump ship if we're really struggling ;)

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Koroum: 2012/13 Season Preview

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Egyptian Premier League

Media Prediction: 15th

Board Expectations: Fight bravely against relegation; Cup 1st round

Season Ticket Holders: 5,210 (up 1,575 from last season)

Stadium Capacity: 19,676 (all-seater)

Training facilities: Adequate

Youth faciliites: Adequate

Youth Recruitment: Fairly basic

Affiliated Clubs: Goldi (feeder - Cairo Division)

Transfer Budget: -

Wage Limit: 13,500 p/w (up 5k from last season)

Pre-Season

I tried to get as many games against EPL sides as possible to see how much work needed to be done. The results were a mix of wins and defeats but enough wins and good performances to make me believe survival is possible this season. Unfortunately, 3 of our pre-season defeats came in the second edition of the Koroum Cup as we came rock bottom in our own competition...

Transfers

Plenty of movement in and out as I overhauled the squad once again. Several of our older players retired over the summer and on top of that, we lost 4 more as thier contracts expired and the board refused to meet their demands. The main loss was that of right back Rami Sabri but he was aking for 1.5k p/w and there was no way the club was going to sanction that. We also lost last season's topscorer Ateya but as he was 34, I wasn't too concerned as long as we could replace him...

No fewer than 13 players came in as my scouts scoured the free transfer market. The three biggest signings were as folows: George Owu, a Ghanian keeper with 15 caps to his name - a great deal for us as a goalkeeper was desperately needed; Ahmed Samir, who can play anywhere down the right but will mainly be our replacement for Sabri; and Nana Eshun, another Ghanian who will hopefully provide us with a solid defence. In midifield and up front, I'll be relying on younger players who will hopefully make the grade.

Transfer summary

I'm also taking part in Neppo's Youth Player Project again this year and you can find details of my first Youth Project over there.

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Thanks for the comments DSYoungEsq and Saxonaitor :thup:

I am indeed just about hanging on thiss eason. Funny thing is, last season I was in 1st place nearly the entire time and constantly saw news items about how my job was under threat and my contract wouldn't be renewed. Now, we're just above the relegation places, shipping goals, losing from winning positions and I get news items saying the board are 'concerned' I may NOT sign a contract extension at the end of the season. :confused:

Funny ol' game! :p

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Thanks GioGio85. Survival is the only aim for this season.

2012-13 Mid-season update

We've just passed the halfway point in the season and, as expected, weare in the thick of a relegation battle. Despite an early win, the season started badly with several defeats made worse by the fact that we were often giving up goals late on when in a position to either win or get a point. Injuries and suspensions have also exposed the lack of depth in the team. However, we managed to find some form in Novemerb and December getting 3 wins and 2 draws in 5 games, lifting us out of the bottom three. We've also been helped by fellow newly-promoted sides Aluminium and Suez Cement being in poor form coupled with Border Guards and Army Vanguards in crisis with mis-managed squads (both well over the 3 foreign player limit) and managerial changes that haven't worked out. Hopefully, our form can carry into the second half of the season. I'd say 30 points will be the minimum for safety.

Jan 2013 Table (after 16 games)

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Koroum 2012/13 Season Review

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Egpytian Premier Division: 13th (survived)

Egyptian Cup: 1st Round

League: We missed our target of 30 points amssing only 28 but it turned out to be enough as poor seasons from Suez Cement, Aluminium and Border Guards meant we secured our top flight status with 2 games to go. It was a tough season though as we struggled to get any kind of form going. We especially struggled against the mid-table sides but curiously not so much against the biggest teams as we picked up points from each of the top 3 of Al-Ahly, Ismaily and Zamalek - vital in helping us stay up.

Cup: As a Premier League team, we were seeded straight into the 1st Round but that's as far as we got as we got a tough tie away to eventual runners-up Al Maqaoloun.

Squad: We suffered with injuries a lot but there simply wasn't the money to support a large squad. We lacked quality up front most of all with the 3 new strikers I signed last summer managing a mere 7 goals between them. Luckily, youngster Ahmed Galal showed why my coaches rate him so highly as he became our topscorer with 7, despite not being a regular starter. The Fans' Player of the Year was George Owu, who often kept us in games with fine saves and has attracted interest from clubs in Portugal and Holland.

Finances: Despite increased attendances and TV revenue from our elevation to the Premier League, we continued to lose money each month finishing the season nearly 1 million pounds in debt.

The season ahead: Once again, my contract is up for renewal. A new deal was offered as soon as we were safe from relegation but I delayed until the end of the season. There are interesting jobs coming up as teams around the footballing world assess thier end of season position so we'll see what comes up...

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Not sure what will happen if I stay... Finances are pretty bad so limited chances to bring in new players.

As for a new job: I wonder if a mid-table side might take me on (I noticed a couple of them are displaying their manager's jobs as 'insecure' at present). If that doesn't work out, I'm always keen to get to the Americas. ;) A stint in India or the UAE could be fun as well!

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Not sure what will happen if I stay... Finances are pretty bad so limited chances to bring in new players.

As for a new job: I wonder if a mid-table side might take me on (I noticed a couple of them are displaying their manager's jobs as 'insecure' at present). If that doesn't work out, I'm always keen to get to the Americas. ;) A stint in India or the UAE could be fun as well!

As someone who's spent a lot of (FM) time in India, I can vouch for the fact that it's a lot of fun - though a major step down in quality from the Egyptian league! :thup:

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Survival! That was the only aim wasn't it? Well done on achieving that.

So...maybe a new job next year then? Or an attempt at progression? It'll be tough considering how much debt you're in.

Cheers Raware - survival was the aim indeed. Happy to have stayed up but I feel my work here is done. Job news coming up ;)

Kind of appropos that "Suez Cement" ended up rooted to the bottom, eh?

I'm hoping you get a better job. :)

LOL - Suez Cement just sank to the bottom, Aluminium got recycled back down to the 1st Division and the Border Guards strayed to the wrong side of the line :p

As someone who's spent a lot of (FM) time in India, I can vouch for the fact that it's a lot of fun - though a major step down in quality from the Egyptian league!

India in general may be a step down from Egypt but I'm not sure it would be a step down from Koroum! The Mohun Bagan job did come up as they finished off the pace in 4th but I got a better offer from elsewhere... ;)

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Part 2: The Wanderer Returns

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Having delayed contract talks with Koroum till the end of the season, I decided to shop around and thought I'd test the board's patience by declaring interest in a couple of jobs. I was described as 'ideal' for jobs in Jamaica and India but generally got laughed off elsewhere (including other clubs in Egypt)! It was to my great surprise them when Uruguayan Primera Division side Wanderers F.C. said they would consider me then promptly sacked their manager and offered me a job. :) (Made all the more surprising by the fact that I was not considered a realistic contender for a couple of Segunda Division clubs...) Anyway, here I am in the homeland of Cristoval Alvarez ready for a new challenge!

Wanderers are clearly an underperforming team. They have just finished the 2012/13 season 14th in the overall table, only avoiding relegation due to the accumulated points system, which counts points from the last two seasons. That presents me with an immediate problem as we start the new season at a disadvantage with a lot of ground to make up to avoid the drop... Ah, the joys of South America!

Generally, I'm happy with the set up at the club though. The squad looks better than the league table suggests so I'm hoping I can whip them into shape without too much upheaval. A pair of full-backs will be a priority and a decent budget (compared to Koroum at least) of 1.4 million pounds should help. Time to get my scouts to work!

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Nice work getting a new job in South America...good luck. Accumulated points is a challenge but I reckon you should do ok and survive. There's always Asia to manage in if something goes wrong. :p
India is the back up plan in case it all goes awry ;)
Great Move! Will be interesting to see how you do there. Kind of a screwy set-up they have. :)
It's always a bit screwed up in this part of the world - great once you're a big club though as it would take 2 or 3 bad seasons to get relegated!
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Wanderers: 2013/14 Season Preview

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Club Information

Season Ticket Holders: 609

Stadium Capacity: 7,420 (all-seater)

Training facilities: Good (upgraded)

Youth faciliites: Average (+ Youth Academy)

Youth Recruitment: Above average

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Primera Division Profesional de Uruguay

Media Prediction: 9th

Board Expectations: Top half finish (opening & closing stage)

Transfer Budget: 1.4 million pounds

Wage Limit: 21,000 p/w

Squad & Transfers

I was pleasantly surprised by the squad when I arrived as there was plenty of depth and a number of decent players. It was clear that the team had been underperforming and needed to be whipped into shape rather than rebuilt entirely. Unfortunately, the star striker (a 21 year-old with a 4 and a half star rating by the name of Marcelo Cabrera) had already agreed a deal to leave the club before I arrived leaving Maximiliano Rodriguez (not to be confused with the Liverpool player :p) as one of the better players at the club. We have a bright future too with a number of hot prospects in the youth team ranks. The best of them all is a 17 year-old goalkeeper already entrusted with first team duties, Javier Guedes.

The squad was definitely lacking on the flanks though with no quality full backs and just one natural winger so my focus in the transfer market was to fill those slots: Alejandro Silva was brought in as a right back but can cover for the left side as well; Alexis Navarro was a bit pricey at 450k but can become my first choice left back; Santiago Lopez will provide some much needed width to the right side of midfield; and I also added some experience to central midfield through 31 year old Daniel Hernandez, plucked from a non-league side on the cheap but rated as a 'leading star' in the Primera Division. The other players to come in were squad players or ones for the future.

Transfer overview

Don't forget to check out my youth player report over in CSE!

Start of the season

The close of the transfer window brought us to the end of August with 3 games played. We got off to a flier with a 4-1 win over Central Espanol and a 3-1 away win at newly-promoted Juventud. Alas, we lost the last game of the month but as it was away to Nacional, that's understandable. A promising start nonetheless and I think we can match the board's expectations with too much trouble.

Current standings

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Nice move! On behalf of Cristoval Alvarez, I'd like to welcome you to Montevideo! :D

Wanderers have always struck me as a really interesting club to manage, though somehow I've never gotten around to it. Legends of the amateur era, but have gone through some harder times more recently - and one of only three teams to have won the Uruguayan title with an unbeaten season (along with the traditional big two of Penarol and Nacional). Think you can match that, DodgeeD? :p

Sounds like you've got a good foundation to build on and they're definitely a team with a huge amount of potential - I'm really looking forward to seeing how you get on! :thup:

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