Bromley FC (...And the Rest of the World)

[abulezz]

EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP 2016 - FRANCE

Quarter-Finals

Bosnia vs. Belgium

Paris Community Arena, Paris: Bosnia had been an offensive force going into this match, led by Edin Dzeko’s 6 goals, but they were stopped short by an impressive Belgian side that had conceded only three goals. They controlled the match, and kept Bosnia’s strikers under control, winning the game 1-0 and advancing to the Semi-Finals. Bosnia’s head coach, the 61 year Safet Susic, was hailed for the progress his small nation had made, and for the style of football they displayed in the tournament.
Belgium: 1 (Lukaku) – Yoni Buyens, Standard Leige (1 Assist, 8.4)
Bosnia: 0




Spain vs. France

Stade de Lumieres, Lyon: This was the match of the Quarter-Finals, as two of Europe’s heavyweights went toe to toe. The two time defending champions were able to come out on top against the hosts, beating them 3-1, with Fernando Llorente scoring a brace that took his tally to 7 goals in the competition, just one goal off of France’s Michele Platini’s 8 goals. In truth, it was a very even match, but Spain took their chances while France had to wait until the 84th minute to finally score a consolation goal. Spain advanced to the Semi-Finals for the third straight time.
Spain: 3 (Llorente (2), Mata) – Santi Cazorla, Arsenal (2 Assists, 8.8)
France: 1 (Bocaly)





Russia vs. Portugal

Stade de France, Paris: A match that could possibly be the contender for most boring game of the tournament, there was very little happening from beginning to end. The Portuguese again looked uninspired and unimpressive, but this time, they were not gifted anything – the Russians scored in the 74th minute and never looked back, beating their opponents 1-0. Although the match itself was dire, nothing could be taken away from the Russians’ achievement, who made the Semi-Finals for the first time as the country of Russia (and not the Soviet Union.)
Russia: 1 (Berezutskiy) – Vasily Berezutskiy, CSKA Moscow (1 Goal, 8.4)
Portugal: 0





Wales vs. Italy

Stade de le Borne de l’Espoir, Villeneuve-d’Ascq: One of the biggest upsets in the history of the competition, Wales were able to hold the Italians to a goalless draw and finally won the game on penalties, advancing to the Semi-Finals in glorious fashion. The Italians dominated the match, and Wales did not have single shot on goal to threaten Italian GK Salvatore Sirigu, but at the other end, their defense held strong and kept the Italian offense at bay. Wales, who are coached by former Chelsea manager Tony Pulis, are ranked 40th in the world, but that meant nothing as they advanced to the next stage for the first time in their history.
Wales: 0 – Won on Penalties 6-5 – Adam Matthews, Villareal (7.8)
Italy: 0

[deltablue]

Fairly surprising semi lineup.

[abulezz]

EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP 2016 - FRANCE

Semi-Finals

Wales vs. Belgium

Stade de Lumieres, Lyon: Since losing their first match of the tournament against England, Wales had recorded upset after upset. Manager Tony Pulis had done a sensational job of leading the small nation to their first ever Semi-Finals appearance, and Inter Milan midfielder Jack Collison (6 Aps, 1 Goal, 3 Assists, 3 MotM, 7.90) was having a brilliant tournament. Belgium, managed by Jose Riga, had won all their matches save for a tie against the Czech Republic, and although they had no stand out performers, they were led by the likes of Marouane Fellaini, Eden Hazard, and Rumelo Lukaku, their leading goalscorer. In typical Wales fashion, this match had more drama and excitement than can be recorded, with plenty of chances on goal and a late game equalizer by the Welsh that sent the game into extra-time. Alas, Belgium were simply the stronger team, and Lukaku scored his 3rd goal of the tournament in the first extra-time, giving Belgium the victory and sending the team to their second ever European Championship Finals in their history – their first was in 1980, where they lost to the West Germans in Italy.
Belgium: 3 (Nyatanga O.G., Mirallas, Lukaku) – Rumelo Lukaku, Chelsea (1 Goal, 1 Assist, 8.3)
Wales: 2 (Church, Evans)




Spain vs. Russia

Paris Community Arena, Paris: The Spanish team had lost or drawn a single game since the tournament began, and despite conceding an astounding 9 goals, they had scored 16 goals in their 5 games. Their defense was disappointing, but Fernando Llorente was simply a beast upfront for them, scoring 7 goals. Russia, who many expected to do well during the tournament, rose beyond everyone’s expectation and, conceding in only one game against Switzerland. The match was a very tight affair, but Spain was clearly the better team, and for the first time in the competition, the defending champions did not concede a goal. They only scored one goal, but it was enough to get them through to a record third straight Finals against Belgium. No other team in the history of the competition had ever three straight Finals, and Spain was looking to become the first nation to not only win the competition three times in a row, but also the first nation to win it four times total.
Spain: 1 (Jose Angel) – Jose Angel, Sevilla (1 Goal, 8.2)
Russia: 0

[abulezz]

Fairly surprising semi lineup.

Looking at the young talent at Belgium and Russia's disposal, I figured they had a good chance to advance to the latter stages. Wales, however, was the shocker! They truly deserved it, though, and Jack Collison just became one of the most sought after players in the world I would presume.

[abulezz]

EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP 2016 - FRANCE



Finals

Spain vs. Belgium

Stade de France, Paris: Spain had won all six of their matches going into the match, while Belgium were almost just as impressive, winning five of their six matches. Fernando Llorente was one goal from equaling Michele Platini’s record of 8 goals scored at the Euro 1984, and Cesc Fabregas (6 Aps, 2 Asts, 7.72), Juan Mata (6 Aps, 2 Gls, 4 Asts), and Santi Cazorla (6 Aps, 1 Goal, 3 Asts) were dominating every midfied they stepped on. For Belgium, their best performers coming into the match was Marouane Fellaini, Eden Hazard, their defensive lineup for Vincent Kompany and Dedryck Boyata, and their leading goalscorer Rumelo Lukaku. Spain were looking to win a record fourth title, as well as a third straight title, while Belgium had only been in the Finals once before, in 1980, where they lost to West Germany in Italy.

After heavy pressure in the initial stages of the match, Spanish captain Gerard Pique scored in the 19th minute, deflecting a header from a corner kick and putting the defending champions ahead. The scoreline would stay the same throughout the half, as both teams took turns taking chances at one another’s goal. It was not an especially fun half to watch, nor was there any especially good football being played.

A mediocre first half turned into an even worse second half, with both teams playing more nervy than anything. Attractive football was not to be seen in the Finals today, and it looked like Spain were going to take it – until the 94th minute and very final attack of the match. Belgium had one more chance and the referee was already preparing to blow his whistle when Rumelo Lukaku poached an incredible equalizer. The referee blew his whistle, but it was not to end the match, but instead to announce the goal – after 90 minutes of painfully slow and unimpressive football, the match as headed to extra-time in dramatic circumstances.

The two extra-times provided more entertainment in their thirty minutes than the entirety of the regulation time’s ninety minutes did. In the 108th minute, Spanish right back Sergio Ramos, once considered the finest in the world, lined up a free-kick and converted it into a goal with a phenomenally take shot, giving Spain the 2-1 lead, and inevitably, the victory. Although Belgium tried to return the favor, they could not break through the Spanish defense, and it ended with Spain lifting its record third straight, and fourth overall, European Championship title. For the second Finals in a row, captain Gerard Pique won the MotM, leading his nation to victory.
Spain: 2 (Pique, Ramos) – Gerard Pique, Barcelona (1 Goal, 7.8)
Belgium: 1 (Lukaku)

Awards

Best Player
Juan Mata – 7 Aps, 2 Goals, 5 Assists, 7.66: The 28 year old Juventus midfielder just beat out Jack Collison, who many thought deserved the award, but nothing can be taken away from Spain’s main man in the middle of the park. He played consistent all tournament long, and really shone in the knockout stages, leading his team and the tournament as a whole in assists. Career Stats.

Jack Collison – 6 Aps, 1 Goal, 3 Assists, 7.90: The leader of one the most surprising teams in the history of the competition, the 27 year old Inter Milan midfielder was undoubtedly one of the finest players at the tournament. The Welshman was the main reason his nation got as far as it did, and he won 3 MotM in six of the matches he played. Career Stats.


Golden Boot (Top Goalscorer)
Fernando Llorente – 7 Aps, 7 Goals, 7.67: He was only one goal off of equalizing Michele Platini’s eight goals scored in the 1984 tournament, but it was still a fantastic effort by the Spanish striker. His goals were vital in his team’s progress, and although he could not find the net in the final two games. Career Stats.

[abulezz]

Top Managers Quit After Euro 2016

July 10th, 2016: A day after Spain lifted the European Championship trophy for a record fourth time, their manager, Josep Guardiola, led an exodus of managers leaving their high profile posts as national team head coaches. Guardiola had previously led Spain the Finals of the World Cup 2014 before losing to Brazil, and with Barcelona prior to that, he had won numerous titles and cups. Viewed as one of the best managers of all-time, the Spaniard is the most successful manager of the century. His next destination is as of yet unknown.

Joining him were England’s Stuart Pearce, who took over in 2013 after the nation failed to qualify for the World Cup 2014 and sacked manager Carlo Ancelotti, failed to live up to the expectations set to him, getting knocked out in the Second Round of the Euro 2016 by Portugal. German head coach Matthias Sammer, who took over from Jurgen Klopp after they were knocked out of the World Cup 2014 by Chile, failed to lead his country past the Second Round of the Euro 2016, getting knocked out by Italy. Prior to his stint as German head coach, Sammer had led Dortmund to two Bundesliga titles (2002, 2014). Massimiliano Allegri quit his post as head coach of Italy after leading them to the Quarter-Finals of the Euro 2016 despite some very unimpressive performances. The former AC Milan manager, who won the Serie A title in 2011, his first year with the club, and the Europa League in 2012, took over the Italian job from the retired Marcelo Lippi in 2013, leading Italy to the Semi-Finals of the World Cup 2014. The last high profile name to quit his post was French head coach Remi Garde, who led the host nation to the Quarter-Finals of the Euro 2016 before getting knocked out by eventual champions Spain. He took over from Arsene Wenger, who retired after the World Cup 2014, having led them to the Quarter-Finals of that tournament. Prior to that, Garde served as Lyonnais head coach from 2011 till 2014, winning three consecutive French Ligue 1 titles (2012, 2013, 2014) with the team.

[abulezz]

2015/2016 Season Review

npower Championship: 12th Place
FA Cup: Third Round, lost to Norwich 3-0
League Cup: Second Round, lost to Reading 3-1


Season Review

After strolling through the lower leagues in my first four seasons in charge of the club, we ran into a brick wall in 2015/16, truly meeting our match. The good news is we survived without ever having really gotten into a relegation battle. We were placed in the mid-table throughout the year, never falling to the lower positions but never threatening for a play-off spot, either. Our defense was tied for best in the league, conceding only 43 goals, but we had serious issues offensively.

We went through the usual batches of good and bad form, and by January, I had realized that the squad just was not good enough upfront in terms of talent in comparison to the rest of the league. Our captain, and Bromley’s finest player ever, Elliot Law did not have a pleasant season, scoring only 5 league goals, bringing me to the painful conclusion that he simply was not good enough anymore. I tried to make a few signings, bringing in a couple of strikers on Free Transfer, and save for some late season braces, neither Emanuel Gigliotti or Nadir Bendahmane produced much in terms of goals.

As the season drew to close, I was relieved we had survived our first year in the Championship intact. I had spent our entire transfer budget, which left us in the red, but I had bought quality, especially in 17 year old defender Jesper Alberts. Our cup runs both ended prematurely to clubs that were in the Championship, but I was not too worried about that. Overall, the media had us finishing dead last, but we ended up in 12th place, and by all accounts, that should be viewed as a success.


Key Players:

Porvaldur Magnusson – 41 Aps, 2 Goals, 9 Assists, 4 MotM, 7.04: The 20 year midfielder was our Player of the Year for 2015/2016 and the Championship Young Player of the Year, as well. He was undeniably our most consistent performer, and even featured regularly for the English youth sides, committing his international future to his adopted home instead of Iceland. He was not the goalscoring threat that he was last season, but he was still the foundation of our team. Our most talented player, bar none.

Nikolay Nakov – 33 Aps, 0 Goals, 1 Assists, 1 MotM, 6.93: The 20 year old Bulgarian was arguably our best defender this campaign, although he was hampered by injuries for a good amount of the season. He was named the Championship Young Player of the Month twice early in the season, and provided stability in the back.

Ben Amos – 44 Aps, 40 Conceded, 19 Clean Sheets, 4 MotM, 7.06: Not only was he one of the best players on our team, but he was also ranked as one of the top GKs in the Championship. The 26 year old, despite his apparent unhappiness and desire to move to a bigger club, was a model professional, giving in one fantastic performance after the other.

Kevin Long – 41 Aps, 1 Goals, 0 Assists, 2 MotM, 6.96: The 25 year old Irish defender was bought for £55k in 2015, and almost immediately became our vice-captain due to his professionalism and sporting behavior. He was part the most important part of the back four that conceded a league low 43 goals, and showed remarkable improvement in his ability throughout the season.

Jesper Alberts – 20 Aps, 2 Goals, 0 Assists, 0 MotM, 7.11: Brought in for a Bromley record of £1 million in the January transfer window, there was little doubt about his ability – he was the team’s best player in terms of average rating in the second part of the season. He is the future of our defensive line, and will be heavily relied on next season.

Elliot Law – 29 Aps, 5 Goals, 4 Assists, 0 MotM, 6.81: This was our 22 year old captain’s most frustrating season of his career, scoring only 5 league goals in a year he was hampered by injuries throughout. That being said, none of the offensive unit did much, so Law has a lot of company. He did have flashes here and there, but he needs to prove he can play at this level.

Notable Youths:

Jesper Alberts – 20 Aps, 2 Goals, 0 Assists, 0 MotM, 7.11: Brought in for a Bromley record of £1 million in the January transfer window, there was little doubt about his ability – he was the team’s best player in terms of average rating in the second part of the season. He is the future of our defensive line, and will be heavily relied on next season.

Matthew Morgan – 38 Aps, 0 Goals, 2 Assists, 0 MotM, 6.97: The 19 year old left back was a Free Transfer pickup, and became our starter by default. He performed admirably, however – so well that I decided I did not need to look for a left back in the January window. His development has been noticeable, as well, and continues to improve rapidly.






Transfers

We spent a record £1.7 million on transfers this season, with £1 million being spent on Jesper Alberts alone. Previously, I had spent £625k on Nikolay Nakov, so I broke the Bromley transfer record twice in one season! Other than that, there was a lot of free transfer pickups, and another £55k to bring in Kevin Long. Free transfer signing Lewis Jones lasted six months at the club before I sold him for £300k, turning a tidy profit on him. Lucas Correa also left for £40k, and the rest were all free transfer let gos that I had no use for.

[abulezz]

Team Acquisitions

April 2nd, 2016: The Aston Villa takeover was finally completed today, as London-based businessman Brendan Flood bought the club from former owner Randy Lerner. In his first press conference, Flood announced his first priority was to get the club back into sound financial footing, a tough task considering the current debt of £44.5 million still owed by the club.

April 16th, 2016: Hannover 96 were acquired by Carsten Bertram in an internal takeover today, as chairman Stefan Mertesacker announced the deal had been finalized followed by his resignation. Bertram released a statement stating that he was relishing the opportunity to develop the club and take it further. The club is currently worth £25 million, and had a loan debt yet to be repaid of £29 million. It is currently in 9th place in the German Bundesliga.

April 30th, 2016: In the third club acquisition this month, Alberto Vallefuoco bought the club of Napoli from Aurelio De Laurentiis in what was described as a takeover from within the team. The club is worth £33.5 million, but has a massive loan debt of £117 million which will surely be the first obstacle Vallefuoco will have to take care of. The new chairman said he can’t wait to begin overseeing the club, whom is currently in 10th place in the Serie A as the season draws closer to its end.

May 2nd 2016: Olga Matalobus Diaz, a wealthy businessman from eastern Spain, completed his acquisition of Valencia today, bringing to an end a prolonged period of failed sales and taking over from outgoing owner Manuel Llorente. The club, which has been struggling the past few years, saw two previous bids fall apart before Diaz successfully bought it and its massive £167 million debt. Valencia, which is currently in 9th place with two more games to go in the season, is worth almost £100 million.

May 11th, 2016: Just a few days before participating in its first ever Champions League Finals, Tottenham were acquired by London-based tycoon Thomas Jones, successfully buying the club from Daniel Levy. The club is currently in great shape, having just finished runners-up in the Premier League in addition to being the world’s most prestigious club competition’s Finals against Barcelona. The club is worth £217 million, with outstanding debt standing at £74 million.

[Diesel16]

Could Nakov not agree terms with Celtic? You must be happy with that one.

[abulezz]

Could Nakov not agree terms with Celtic? You must be happy with that one.

He already did, jumping on the opportunity very quickly. There has been some major reshuffling - its been quite the preseason (report should be up soon).

[Diesel16]

He already did, jumping on the opportunity very quickly. There has been some major reshuffling - its been quite the preseason (report should be up soon).

Was thinking you might get off on that one because Celtics/SPLs finances aren't so great in this FM, hope his replacement didn't hurt the finances too much.

[abulezz]

I spent my transfer budget (£700k) on Emanuel Musah - his replacement will either be someone already at the club or one of my free transfer youth signings!

[abulezz]

Ashley Cole – Player Profile

Born in London on December 20th, 1980, Ashley Cole can be described as the best English left back of his generation, and possibly of all-time. He played his first competitive game for the club that brought him into football, Arsenal, during the 1998/99 season, and was awarded his first English cap in March of 2001. He went on to represent his country 121 times, scoring one goal for England in the process. He retired in June of 2016 after eighteen years as a player, with no plans to continue on in the game.

The 2000/01 season was the first that Cole really cemented himself as Arsenal’s starting left back, showing attacking prowess as well as great defensive ability. With Arsenal, he went on to win the Premier League twice (2002, 2004), and the FA Cup also three times (2002, 2003, 2005). He was also one of the club’s primary players when they advanced to their only Champions League Finals, losing out to Barcelona in 2006.

The summer of 2006 was one marked in controversy for Cole, as left his boyhood club to London rivals Chelsea in an exchange that involved William Gallas. It was at Chelsea that the left back really made himself known as one of the finest left backs on the planet, and without question the best England had. He played with Chelsea from 2006 until his retirement in 2016, winning the FA Cup a further three times (2007, 2009, 2010) and the Premier League twice (2010, 2014). Unfortunately, his second trip to the Champions League Finals ended in heartbreak as Chelsea lost to Manchester United on penalties in 2008. He was in his prime when England reached the Finals of the Euro 2012, losing to defending champions Spain, and he participated in the 2002, 2006, and 2010 World Cups with his nation as their starting left back.

Exceptionally quick with equally devastating attacking and defending skills, Ashley Cole will be remembered as perhaps the finest English left back of all time, and one of the finest in the world during his generation.

[abulezz]

David Villa – Player Profile

Born in Tuilla, Spain on December 1st, 1981, David Villa began his career with local club U.P. Langreo, but was quickly sold to Sporting for an undisclosed fee. It was with Sporting, in the Liga Adelante where he displayed his goalscoring ability, and in 2003, Real Zaragoza bought him for £950,000, his first venture into the Spanish La Liga, at the age of 22.

He wasted no time getting used to one of the top leagues of the world, scoring 17 goals in 2003/04 and 15 goals in 2004/2005. He was touted as Spain’s most promising young striker, and in the summer of 2005, Valencia acquired him for £8,250,000, becoming the starting striker at one of Spain and Europe’s top clubs.

His reputation took off at Valencia, scoring a fantastic 25 goals in 2005/06 and capturing the first of his three Spanish Player of Year he managed to win during his career (2006, 2008, 2013). He spent five seasons at Valencia, highlighted by his 2008/09 and 2009/10 seasons, where he scored 28 and 21 goals, respectively. In the summer of 2010, after a fantastic performance in the 2010 World Cup, he was bought by Barcelona for £35,500,000, and he would have the opportunity to be the main striker in what has been called the greatest club side ever assembled.

At Barcelona, we would lead the club’s frontline as they capture the Spanish La Liga title five times (2011, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016) and the Champions League an incredible four times (2011, 2012, 2013, 2016), which included a historic run in the competition where they won it three times in a row. He captured the last of his three Spanish Player of the Year in 2013 with the club, and was also the Spanish La Liga Top Goalscorer in 2013 with 24 goals. He was voted to the La Liga Team of the Year in 2013, and was also named as a substitute in 2012. He was named in the World Team of the Year as a substitute on three occasions (2011, 2012, 2013). Although his role for the club dwindled in his final two seasons, he was still involved and managed to find himself some goals. He retired as a footballer in June 2016 at the age of 34 years old, getting his coaching badge shortly thereafter.

His performances for Spain rank him as one of the nation’s all-time top strikers, if not the best in their history. He earned 109 caps for his nation, and is Spain’s all-time goalscorer with 56 goals. He was their main striker when they won the Euro 2008 and Euro 2012, winning the Top Goalscorer award in the former. He was also their leading goalscorer in their World Cup 2010 winning squad, where he was joint Top Goalscorer with 5 goals, coming in third in the Best Player award during the tournament. He also was part of the World Cup 2014 team that reached the Finals of the tournament, losing out to Brazil.

The striker was never the biggest, fastest, or strongest player on the pitch, but he had freakish technical ability and great finishing skills. A legend for his nation, he retired an Icon for both Valencia and Barcelona. The finest Spanish striker of his generation, and possibly of all-time, he was also one of the most successful and talented strikers in the world during his generation.

[abulezz]

Maicon – Player Profile

Born in Novo Hamburgo, Brazil on July 26th, 1981, Maicon began his career with Brazilian club Cruzeiro in 2001, at the age of 20. He spent three years with the four years with the club, winning the Brazilian First Division title in 2003. After developing as a defender, French club AS Monaco acquired him for £2,000,000 in 2004.

He spent two years in France with Monaco as their starting right back, before moving to Inter Milan for £4,800,000 in 2006. In the nine years he spent with the Italian club, Maicon went from promising defender to the finest right back in the world during the early 2010s – simply put, there was no one better at his position. He won the Serie A title five times (2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013), and was a huge part of the squad that won the Champions League title in 2010 under then manager Jose Mourinho. In a stretch from 2010 till 2013, he was arguably the finest defender on the planet, let alone right back. He won the Serie A Defender of the Year twice (2012, 2013), the Serie A Fans Player of the Year in 2013, and was named to the Serie A Team of the Year in 2013. He was named to the World Team of the Year twice (2012, 2013). After an epic stretch of form, his star started to fade in the 2013/14, and in 2014/15, he only appeared once for Inter Milan. He ended his career with Barcelona after joining them on free transfer, winning the Spanish La Liga in 2016, ending his career on a high, and was pronounced as an Icon for Inter Milan for the nine years he served with the club.

His career with Brazil was equally as impressive as his club career – he won the World Cup 2014 with them, the Copa America twice (2004, 2007), and the Confederations Cup (2005, 2009, 2013), getting named Brazil’s Best Europe-Based Player three times (2010, 2012, 2013), and Brazil’s Olympic Committee Player of the Year twice (2012, 2013). He ended with 89 caps for his country and 6 goals.

While Cafu is widely considered the best right back in the history of Brazilian football, from 2011 till 2013, Maicon was not only the best right back in the world, but was arguably playing the best football any right back in history had ever played. In fact, there are those who suggest that his stretch in those three years were that that compared to almost any footballer on the planet. His records in the Serie A for Highest Average Rating (8.10 in 2012/13) and Most Man of the Matches (15 MotM in 2012/13) still stand, and are unlikely to be broken any time soon. There was no aspect of his game that was lacking – he was equally as comfortable going forward as he was defending, and was great at both. He retired in June 2016, and currently is accepting offers as a scout with hopes of getting into management later in his career.

[CityAndColour]

Are these retirements or new signings? Either way you forgot to mention that Cole will also go down as one of the most arrogant twats of his generation too.

[abulezz]

Are these retirements or new signings? Either way you forgot to mention that Cole will also go down as one of the most arrogant twats of his generation too.

LOL! These are retirements - at the end of every season, I will write up profiles on retiring superstars who have made an impact on the game. It will get interesting once newgens start retiring

[CityAndColour]

Yeah I just realised the biographies mentioned retirement!

[hursty2]

A few seasons of building towards the Premier League will be good for you.

[abulezz]

Yeah I just realised the biographies mentioned retirement!

Hope it helps you and other reads really immerse themselves in the world of my save.

A few seasons of building towards the Premier League will be good for you.

The Championship was a tough challenge, and after the preseason I had, the Premier League might be some ways off still.

[Deisler26]

12th is a good start. You can certainly build from
there to make an assault on the PL

[abulezz]

12th is a good start. You can certainly build from
there to make an assault on the PL

Absolutely - but given the fact the board have been very stingy with transfer and wage budgets, and Ive had two of my top player sold while releasing several others to meet a DECREASED wage budget, leaving some glaring holes in my team, it definitely does not look like it will be this season.

[Deisler26]

Absolutely - but given the fact the board have been very stingy with transfer and wage budgets, and Ive had two of my top player sold while releasing several others to meet a DECREASED wage budget, leaving some glaring holes in my team, it definitely does not look like it will be this season.

I know that feeling well!

[abulezz]

ENGLISH PREMIER LEAGUE REVIEW 2015/2016

Overview

Footballer of the Year: Sergio Aguero, Chelsea (27 Aps, 10 Goals, 9 Assists, 7.76)
Player’s Player of the Year: Aaron Ramsey, Arsenal (36 Aps, 9 Goals, 12 Assists, 7.74)
Young Player of the Year: Vegar Eggen Hedenstad (35 Aps, 1 Goal, 13 Assists, 7.58)
Best Goalkeeper of the Year: David De Gea, Manchester United (37 Aps, 28 Conceded, 14 Clean Sheets, 7.12)
Manager of the Year: Alan Shearer (Champions)




Manchester City: Ever since Manchester City was bought by its oil rich owner from Abu Dhabi and Tottenham managed to win the 2011 Premier League, the formerly Big Four of Premier League club has become a Top Six, and in 2015/2016, the two newcomers to the upper echelon of English football where the ones that performed the best.

Alan Shearer had his first managerial role with Newcastle in 2009, where he failed to save the club from relegation after taking over in the middle of the season. In 2012, he was rehired by the club, and again he saw them relegated, but this time, he stuck around and saw them back into the Premier League, before heading off to Manchester City in 2013 to replace the Roberto Mancini. Since then, he led Man City to two consecutive 3rd Place finishes, which finally culminated in an impressive Premier League title in 2016, Man City’s first in forty-eight years.

The reason Alan Shearer is being given full credit for the title run is because he managed to find a way to motivate underachieving players and an underachieving team, turning them into one of the best clubs in the world within a short three year span. Before Shearer arrived, the club had finished 4th Place in 2012/13 and 6th Place in 2011/2012, and did not look like a team capable of challenging for the Premier League title. One of Man City’s most important players the past three years has been Carlos Tevez, and although his contribution during the 2015/2016 was substantially less than the previous two seasons, he stands as a testament to Shearer’s success. Having been frozen out by former manager Mancini for two years, he turned into one of the most impressive players, again, in the Premier League once Shearer took over.

Of course, critics will point to Shearer spending £90,000,000 in 2015/2016 on new signings as the reason he was able to lead the club to the title, as opposed to his tactical know-how, but let us put things into perspective. Hulk, who came for £31,500,000 from Chelsea, was the World Cup 2014 Best Player award winner, and is a unique talent that was seemingly being misused at his old club. While his stats do not suggest much difference in his first year with Man City, there was little doubt that his contributions to his new club were far more substantial than with Chelsea. His two other big signings, Mauricio Isla (£21,500,000) and Arturo Vidal (£14,250,000), both Chilean, played major roles in their title win and lived up to their sizable transfer fees, with the former having his best season as a professional by a large margin. Yes, there was a lot of money being spent, but it was put to good use – in other words, Shearer’s buys were all hits, and none misses, which also says much about his ability to identify players that worked as opposed to just buying the biggest name out there. In fact, so impressive was Isla’s first season with Manchester City that he was voted the clubs Player of the Year for 2015/2016.

Shearer had a foundation already laid out, one that had come close to capturing the Premier League title the previous two seasons – a centerpiece of that foundation was Edin Dzeko. The Bosnian striker was not a Shearer acquisition, but his stats before 2013 speak for themselves. He scored 21 goals in 2014/2015 and in 2015/2016, leading the club in the category during the latter. Joe Hart, England’s first choice GK, had his finest season to date in his career, conceding only 34 goals in his 36 appearances – his form between the posts provided the team with confidence knowing that their goal was safe. Vincent Kompany and Gael Clichy joined Isla in maintaining a rock solid defense, and in the midfield, Samir Nasri returned to form after injuries ravaged his 2014/2015 season. Dzeko’s frontline partner, Ezequiel Lavezzi, who was a £14,000,000 signing in 2014, contributed 14 goals of his own. Alan Shearer, predictably, won the Premier League Manager of the Year, and the three defenders mentioned above were chosen to be in the 2016 Premier League Select – Hart, Hulk, and Dzeko were chosen as substitutes. With seemingly infinite amount of money at their disposal, and a team with all of its main players still in their prime, it is tough to see how anyone can challenge them now that they’ve become the top team in the country. In addition, they have one of the brightest and most talented managers in the game today in Alan Shearer, who proved his merit by leading his team to the Premier League title and the Champions League Semi-Finals in 2016.



Arsenal: Under manager Andre Villas-Boas, Arsenal won their first Premier League title in eleven years when they captured it from Chelsea in 2015. Although they only recorded one point less in 2015/2016 than their title winning season, they just could not keep Man City beneath them, and ended up finishing Runners-Up, giving up their title to their northern rivals. Still, it was not a season that was considered a disappointment, despite having spent £68,000,000 on new players during the campaign, the most expensive of which was Uruguayan striker Abel Hernandez, who came for £21,500,000 from Serie A outfit Palermo. Although he scored 12 goals, Hernandez did not exactly light the Premier League on fire, and here laid the difference between Arsenal and Manchester City – while the latter spent more on less players, they bought players that contributed immensely to their cause. Arsenal, however, could not claim the same – in fact, they inexplicably spent £16,250,000 on Fernando, a 29 year old Brazilian midfielder who had rarely played for Marseille since they bought him three years ago from Real Sociedad. He made 10 appearances for Arsenal, and was underwhelming in nearly every one of them. The most baffling acquisition, however, was Matias Fernandez – the Chilean international was bought for £10,500,000 in 2015 after a sensational season with Sporting Lisbon, but failed to appear once for Arsenal, instead being subjected to reserve matches three cup ties. The one signing that did work out for them, however, was Craig Dawson(Stats) – the 26 year old central defender came for £8,250,000 from Sunderland (who had bought him from West Brom a year earlier), and became an immediate starter for the club. The 2015/2016 season was not Villas-Boas’ finest in the transfer market, and that was perhaps the reason they lost their title – Man City got better while Arsenal made little improvement to its squad.

Still, this was a team good enough to finish second in the toughest league in the world, and that was mainly due to the performances of young players who had made the step up and had become some of the world’s finest footballers – namely, Aaron Ramsey. Not only was the 25 year old Welsh midfielder Arsenal’s 2015/2016 Player of the Year, but he was also the 2016 English Players’ Player of the Year, as well as being selected to the 2016 Premier League Select. His season culminated with a fantastic showing by his home nation at the Euro 2016, where they advanced to the Semi-Finals, just losing out to Belgium. His performances during Arsenal’s Premier League title winning squad in 2014/2015 earned him a spot on the 2016 World Team of the Year. It is safe to say that without him, Arsenal would not be the position they were this season, nor would they have been able to capture the Premier League title in 2015. He is Arsenal’s most important player, the heart of the team. His partner in the midfield, Belgian Marouane Fellaini, compliments his teammate perfectly – while Ramsey oozes attacking talent and creativity, Fellaini is a defensive minded beast of a midfielder who averaged 3.96 Tackles per Game during the 2015/2016 season. Indeed, Arsenal’s strength lays in its midfield, as they also feature world class talents such as Marek Hamsik and Antoine Greizmann, both of whom contributed immensely to their club’s campaign. The former has been sort of an unsung hero for Arsenal the last few years, as he has delivered one fantastic season after the next. The 29 year old Czech had possibly his finest individual season in 2015/2016, scoring 7 goals and delivering a team high 15 assists. Leighton Baines remains the cornerstone of Arsenal’s back four at left back, continuing to deliver quality campaigns despite his increasing age, but it was Laurent Koscielny who was the team’s most impressive defender this season, partnering up with new signing Dawson in the center of the defense. Up front, Arsenal once again lacked a real goalscorer, as Hernandez was not so impressive in his debut season with the club. To be able to compete with Man City, they will need to get better contribution up front, and while their midfield is the best in England, and possibly the world, they will tweak and increase the talent level they have across the pitch.



Tottenham: After their surprisingly winning the Premier League in 2011 under Harry Redknapp, Tottenham shifted back to familiar territory, finishing 5th, 6th, and 4th in 2013, 2014, and 2015, respectively. During the summer of 2015, Martin Jol replaced Manuel Pellegrini, his second stint with the club, and led them to 3rd Place in the Premier League and all the way to the Champions League Finals. They had one big signing, Belgian defender Dedryk Boyata, who came for £17,500,000 from Palermo and slotted in nicely in a central defensive role. The strength of this time, however, lay in its attacking force and its support. Edison Cavani had another spectacular season, getting named Tottenham’s Player of the Year for 2015/2016 after scoring 19 goals. He was also named in the 2016 World Team of the Year, and was the second leading scorer in the Champions League, driving his team to the Finals against Barcelona. The Premier League Top Goalscorer, however, was his partner up front, Venezuelan Salomon Rondon. The 26 year old managed to score 25 goals in the Premier League for the club, shining alongside his Uruguayan teammate on his way to winning the 2015/2016 European Golden Boot for most goals scored. He also was named in the 2016 Premier League Select for his goalscoring exploits.

Of course, none of this would have been possible if Tottenham’s midfield did not provide the chances for its strikers, and the Tottenham midfield features one of the best left wingers in the world in Gareth Bale. After a historic 2011/2012 season, where he seemingly led Tottenham to the Premier League title single handedly, Bale experienced good but not great campaigns the following years. In 2015/2016, however, he achieved career highs in goals scored (14) and assists (14), as he captured that form that he him considered the best at his position during his best season. The 27 year old Welshman, who also advanced to the Semi-Finals of the Euro 2016 with his nation in the summer, was voted as Runners-Up to Sergio Aguero in the 2016 English Footballer of the Year award, and also made the 2016 Premier League Select. The club’s Player of the Year in 2013 and 2015, Luka Modric, again had the club’s highest Average Rating (7.81) – he has consistently been one of the finest midfielders in the world the past few years, and this season was no different. He was selected to the 2016 Premier League Select, his fourth selection in five years, and was also selected to the 2016 World Team of the Year, which was the second time he had been chosen for that. The 30 year old Croat has been the picture of health, rarely succumbing to injury, and he will need to stay that way if Tottenham is to compete on all fronts in the coming season. Bale and Modric found the perfect support in Sandro, who won the World Cup 2014 and the Olympics 2016 with his nation, Brazil. The 27 year old defensive midfielder allowed his more flamboyant midfield partners the space to be their creative best, anchoring the midfield and doing the dirty work. Tottenham certainly have the talent to compete for the Premier League talent, perhaps only finding a bit of a weakness in their back four, which conceded 42 goals – what they don’t lack is offensive firepower, scoring a league leading 80 goals in 2015/2016. With a bit more solidity in the back, Tottenham can and should give Manchester City a run for their title.



Manchester United: After finishing 5th Place in 2014/2015 in Martin Jol’s second year in charge, their worst finish since 1991, they sacked him and hired Manuel Pellegrini, who led them back into a Champions League spot, finishing in 4th Place. Their only big signing of the season, Lee Hodson, cost Pellegrini £17,250,000, appeared for the club 4 times, and was subsequently sold to Villareal for £9,250,000 after less than a season at the club – a horrible piece of business. What they do have, however, is Eden Hazard, who has been spectacular for his club since coming from Lille for £34,000,000 in 2013, and this season, his 7.84 AR was the highest in the Premier League. He was Manchester United’s Player of the Year for 2015/2016, and in the summer, featured in Belgium’s squad that advanced to the Finals of the Euro 2016 in France. He was selected for his second straight World Team of the Year in 2016. Playing in front of Hazard was club legend Wayne Rooney, who led the league in assists with 17. The 30 year old striker was and will never be a goalscorer in the pure sense of the word, but his contributions to his team this season and in past years cannot be underestimated or understated. Simply put, he remains the heart of the Man United’s team, and if the club has any hopes of competing for the title next year, he needs to put forth another great season. His partner, however, is a true goal poacher – Javier Hernandez won the 2015 European Golden Boot and was the 2015 Premier League Top Goalscorer. Although he scored a decent 16 goals in 2015/2016, it was some way off the 28 goals he scored the season before.

At the other of the pitch for Manchester United was the 2016 Premier League Select GK David De Gea. He was the main reason why the club conceded a league leading 28 goals in 2015/2016, and the 25 year old is now considered to be one of the top goalkeepers in the world. In front of him was Phil Jones and Chris Smallings, both of whom are England internationals, and both of whom were amongst the best defenders in the Premier League. Their form remains central to Man United’s hopes of recapturing the Premier League, and they will be hoping that the midfield, which has been wildly inconsistent the past few years, will start to put forth the type of performance that can bring back the title to Old Trafford.



Liverpool: The most disappointing team in the Premier League during 2015/2016 were Liverpool, who had finished as runners-up to Arsenal just one season before – this year, however, they fell back down to 5th place, leading to the sacking of Mauricio Pochettino at the end of the season and the hiring of Malky Mackay. Their 2016 Player of the Year was Jack Robinson (Stats) – the left back has become an England international, and was the club’s most consistent performer during the year. Their star striker, Luis Suarez, had a disappointing season by his standards, scoring only 9 goals, his lowest total since joining the club. Their £16,750,000 signing, English right back Kyle Walker, failed to leave up to his transfer fee, and will be looking to produce better performances in the upcoming season.



Chelsea: Perhaps just as disappointing as Liverpool were Chelsea, as the 2014 Premier League champions finished in 6th Place for the second season in a row, despite a new manager (Huub Stevens, who was sacked at the end of the season), and £79,000,000 being spent on new transfer signings. Their biggest signing, Youssef Mulumbo, who came for £18,500,000 from West Bromwich Albion, had a decent seasons, but more was expected after such a large transfer fee. What was worse was the £11,750,000 acquisition of Victor Moses, who failed to play a single match for Chelsea in the 2015/2016 season. The one signing that did work out was Etienne Capoue, who came from AC Milan for £12,000,000 and was one of the only midfield players that really contributed anything for the team. The club does have the 2014 and 2016 English Footballer of the Year, Sergio Aguero, who is amongst the best players on the planet. He was selected to his third Premier League Select (2013, 2014, 2016), and was also crowned the Best Player in Europe for 2015/2016. He was selected to the 2016 World Team of the Year, the second time he had been chosen, and of course was Chelsea’s Player of the Year for the third consecutive season. The two aging Chelsea legends, John Terry and Frank Lampard, who are 35 and 38 years old, respectively, continued to produce, but can no longer be relied on to submit world class performances game in and game out. Chelsea is in desperate need of upgrading its squad and replacing its aging squad – most importantly, it needs to surround Aguero with the type of quality that can bring them back into prominence.

Overall Team of the Year

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SPANISH LA LIGA REVIEW 2015/2016

Overview

Footballer of the Year: Alan Dzagoev, Barcelona (26 Aps, 9 Goals, 9 Assists, 7.78)
Goalkeeper of the Year: Victor Valdes, Barcelona (34 Aps, 26 Conceded, 17 Clean Sheets, 7.17)
Manager of the Year: Roberto Mancini, Barcelona (Champions)



Barcelona: The great club ever assembled continued their world dominance in 2015/2016, winning the Spanish La Liga for the 3rd time in a row (and the 7th time in eight years), as well as reclaiming the Champions League title, making it the 7th time they have won that competition (and the 6th time in 10 years). To put it in simpler terms, they were, once again, the best team in the world. The era of Barcelona started under Josep Guardiola, and has continued under Roberto Mancini, who took over in June 2013 after Guardiola left to manage the Spanish national team. Since then, Mancini has won the La Liga 3 times, and finally won the Champions League title this season.

They made one big signing this season, paying CSKA Moscow £22,000,000 for Russian midfielder Alan Dzagoev. The 26 year old was ever present for his new club all season long, and led Russia to the Semi-Finals of the Euro 2016 competition in the summer. He was so impressive during his first year in Spain he was crowned the 2016 Spanish League Player of the Year. The Barcelona Player of the Year went to the club’s big signing in 2014, however, the Iceland international Gylfi Sigurdsson. He cost them £18,250,000 from Russian side Anji in 2014, and delivered a fine season this year, getting named runner-up to his teammate in the Spanish Player of the Year and was named in the 2016 La Liga Team of the Year. With the retirement of club and football legend Xavi coming at the end the 2015/2016 season, the club know that they’re midfield is in safe hands.

The center of the Barcelona squad remains the best player in world, and potentially the greatest of all time, Lionel Messi. Injuries have hampered him in recent years, and in 2015/2016, he played his lowest number of games since becoming a starter for the club in 2006. When he did play, however, he was still at his sublime best, delivering some great performances in the league, and lifting the squad to the Champions League title with an absolutely storming performance in the Finals against Tottenham. Partnering him was Alexis Sanchez, who once again scored some of the most important goals for his side on their repeat quest of football domination. He was named to his second consecutive World Team of the Year in 2016, and was named to the 2016 La Liga Team of the Season for the third time (2012, 2013, 2016) – he made the team in 2014 and 2015 as a substitute.

The creative force behind the recent Barcelona teams has been its midfield, and this year was no difference, with Dzagoev, Sigurdsson, Cesc Fabregas, and club legend Andres Iniesta. Fabregas won the 2016 Spanish Player of the Year, and Iniesta came in as a runner-up behind him. Between them, they controlled the midfield for both their club side, and their Euro 2016 winning national side, with Spain becoming the first team to ever win three European Championships in a row, as well as the first nation to win the competition four times. Behind them was another club legend, the 29 year old club captain and the man widely considered the best defender in the world, Gerard Pique. He simply has no equal at his position, and he was named to his fourth La Liga Team of the Year (2012, 2013, 2015, 2016), as well as his fourth World Team of the Year (2012, 2013, 2015, 2016). At the very back, Spain’s finest goalkeeper Victor Valdes claimed his record ninth Spanish League Goalkeeper of the Year, which was his astounding eighth time he did so in a row.

This Barcelona team has continued to be the best team on the planet, and it does not look like anyone can stop them, not in their domestic league or on the continent. They continue to improve their team, signing one or two major players each season, and replacing aging or retiring superstars with fresh, younger versions. Roberto Mancini has continued to live up to Guardiola’s legacy, and the era of Barcelona has no end in sight.



Villareal: Never has a club in recent memory overachieved so much with so little, but Villareal again found themselves in a position they had no business being in, finishing in 2nd Place in the La Liga, ahead of number of more famous and more expensive teams. Full credit has to be given to their manager of six years, Juan Carlos Garrido – the man has continuously defied the odds and led his squad to top positions despite small stadium and a small wage budget. The fact that they almost finished top of the La Liga before a late season Barcelona surge adds more merit to the accomplishments of their manager, who is now considered one of the most talented managers in the world.

The team did not feature any superstars in the true essence of the word, nor did they have any signings of note in the 2015/2016 – they did, however, have Andrea Poli, the 26 year old Italian international. Playing in the center of the midfield, Poli delivered the finest season of his career, setting personal highs in goals (8) and assists (9). He was crowned Villareal’s Player of the Year for 2015/2016, and deservedly so. The highest profile name on the team, Giuseppe Rossi, failed to score in double figures for the first time since joining the club in 2007, in what was his weakest season in ten years. Still, the 29 year old Italian international is in the prime of his career, and remains Villareal’s primary threat up front. Their leading goalscorer this year was Korean Son Heung-Min, who scored 12 goals for his club in the league.

The captain of the squad, Spanish midfielder Bruno, again led the squad in Average Rating (7.34). Despite turning 32 years old and losing most of his pace, he remains the heart of the team. The club’s starting left back, Natxo Monreal, who joined the club for £10,500,000 in 2012, delivered a typically stellar season, the type that has earned him 16 caps with Spain.

The club’s is not known for big signings, and yet they continue to achieve success, mostly down to their manager and the team spirit he imposes on the squad. Rossi has potential to deliver spectacular seasons, and if he can get scoring again, there is no reason to assume that the team cannot grab another Champions League spot.




Real Madrid: By all accounts, 2015/2016 was a disappointing season for Real Madrid and its legendary manager, Jose Mourinho. Not only were they unable to recapture the La Liga title from bitter rivals Barcelona (as they did in 2013), but they managed to fall out of their customary top two position, slipping to 3rd Place behind a team a fraction of its size, Villareal. What was even more disturbing for Real Madrid and its fans is that this season actually represented an improvement over their 2014/2015, where they finished in 4th Place behind Atletico Madrid and Sevilla. Mourinho, who’s tenure at Real Madrid has lasted six years and counting (the longest he has served at one club in his entire career), and the credentials of the man are undeniable, having won the Champions League with three teams (Porto in 2002, Inter Milan in 2010, and Real Madrid in 2014), and has won domestic titles with four teams (Porto, Chelsea, Inter Milan, and Real Madrid). But he has had the misfortune of joining the self-proclaimed biggest club in the world during the ‘Barcelona Era’, which began in 2006 and has continued till this day. He has only managed one La Liga title in his six years in Spain – a failure in the eyes of a club and its fans that expect a title every year.

In an attempt to bolster up his defense (they ended up conceded a disappointing 41 goals), Mourinho spent £15,250,000 to bring 26 year old Brazilian central defender Manoel from Roma, his only major signing of the season. Unfortunately, he had some trouble adapting to life in Madrid, and did not put forward the greatest of seasons, averaging 6.82 AR and just generally delivering inconsistent performances.

Perhaps the biggest reason for their underachievement in 2015/2016 was the fact that their star, Cristiano Ronaldo, only played in 16 league games due to several injuries over the course of the season. The 31 year old Portuguese faced his first injury-plagued season in his career, and although he was his usual best when he played, the fact that he spent more than half the season looking from the sidelines was enough to sink Real Madrid. The world’s most expensive footballer of all-time has begun to ever so slightly lose a bit of his pace, but his technical ability is still second to none, and he will once again be the club’s most important player in the upcoming seasons. For the first team in five years, he failed to win the Real Madrid Player of the Year – that award went to his Portuguese teammate, Fabio Coentrao. When he was acquired from Benfica in 2011 for £25,500,000, a lot of eyebrows were raised, but each season he has delivered since then has been better than the last, culminating with a fantastic 2015/2016 season where he was named in the 2016 World Team of the Year. He has developed into possibly the finest left back in the world, but has become equally as dangerous playing on the left wing. His development has been remarkable, and at the age of 28, he has just entered the prime of his career.

Unfortunately, the only other consistent player in the back four for Real Madrid was Sergio Ramos. He delivered another typical season as a right back, and the Spanish international remains one of the most important players on the team. There was a point in his career, during the late 2000s and the early 2010s, where he was considered one of the top right backs on the planet. He still is, to this day, a fine player, and still has several years of football at the top level, having only turned 30 years old. Behind him, as always, was and is club legend Iker Casillas, the captain of the squad. He has lost out on nearly every personal award to his rival Victor Valdes, but maintains his position as Spain’s captain and first choice goalkeeper. He had another stellar season – nothing less than that is expected from the 35 year old, and he has continued to deliver the same great product for almost twenty years now.

In the midfield, Real Madrid were softer this year than usual, with only its four starters delivering any semblance of a good season. Their backups were non-existent, leaving no room for error and injury, which as the problem for this team. Marcelo, playing mostly on the left wing, led the team in assists with 13 in the league. In the middle, Kwadwo Asamoah turned out a quality season in his fourth year with the club since coming for £16,250,000 in 2013, while Mesut Ozil delivered another solid season. Both players are 27 years old, and both have turned into one of the best central midfielders in the world. On the right wing was the ever present Angel Di Maria, who continues to shine in that role despite his frail thin appearance. Once one of them fell to injury, however, there was gaping holes wherever they used to play, something Mourinho will have to address in the upcoming season.

With Ronaldo out, the team turned to the obvious choice for goals – its most dangerous threat the past few years, Argentine Gonzalo Higuan. However, he had injury problems of his own, which left him scoring only 14 league goals in 2015/2016, his lowest tally since 2011, which was simply not good enough. Still, he is only 28 years old, and is in the prime of his career – he has scored 20+ goals five times during his career, and three of the past five years, as well. He knows how to put the goal in the net, something which will be needed from Mourinho’s side if they are to compete with Barcelona in 2016/2017. Their lack of depth remains a worry, and it will have to be another focal point of Mourinho’s improvisation strategy.




Malaga: When Qatari royal Abdullah Al-Thani acquired Malaga in 2011, he stated that he wanted to develop the club in a proper, healthy way – six years later, he is on the verge of accomplishing that mission. It was not until manager Roberto Donadoni took over, however, that improvements really started showing – in his two years with the club since joining in 2014, they have finished 5th Place and a record high 4th Place in 2015 and 2016, respectively. For the first time in their history, Malaga will compete in Champions League football, and credit has to go to Donadoni for really maximizing the potential and talent available on his team.

Over the years, the club has not spent obscene amounts of money despite the infinite wealth of their owner, instead focusing on making the club’s finances healthy and profitable. In 2015/2016, their biggest signing was Facundo Ferreyra – the 25 year old Argentine came from Shalke for £7,750,000, and immediately started scoring goals, ended with 12 goals in half a season. Needless to say, big things will be expected from the striker after the stellar start he delivered in his debut season for Malaga.

It was their other striker, Park Chu-Young who won the club’s Player of the Year, leading them in scoring. In the three years he has been at the club (he spend the 2013/14 season with Malaga on loan, and then was bought at the beginning of the 2014/15 season from Valencia for £2,700,000), he has scored 45 league goals. Although he turned 31 years old, he still remains a central figure for the club. Behind him in the midfield is Zdravko Kuzmanovic, the heart of the Malaga squad since coming for £8,750,000 in 2011 from Stuttgart. This season was no different – the 28 year old Serbian delivered 4 goals and 6 assists in helping the club to their finest ever finish in the La Liga.

Roberto Donadoni has proven his class, taking Malaga to the Champions League, where they will be hoping to continue to upset the order of things and make some progress. It is tough to see them retain their position in the top four of the La Liga with further help, however. Donadoni will have to pull off a few more successful signings to ensure they can remain competitive on the domestic front.




Atletico Madrid: After finishing Runner-Up to Barcelona in 2015, Enrique Cerezo sold the club to Lazaro Albarracin in an internal takeover in late May, 2015, but much to the dismay of the new owner, the club fell to 5th Place in 2015/2016, losing their Champions League spot to surprising Malaga. Their Player of the Year was Mexican Carlos Vela, and his striking partner, Colombian Falcao, led the team in scoring. GK Sergio Asenjo had another solid season, but manager Hector Cuper, who was hired in 2013, will go into the next season with his job on the line.




Espanyol: After sinking to a lowly 17th Place in 2014, Mauricio Pochettino was fired and Vincenzo Montella was hired in his place. Since then, the Italian has led the club to 11th Place in 2015 and 6th Place in 2016, gaining a Europa League spot this season. Their 29 year old Spanish left winger Dani Benitez was crowned their Player of the Year for the second consecutive season.




Sevilla: After three straight 3rd Place finishes, Sevilla sunk to 7th Place in 2015/2016, leading to the sacking of Carlo Ancelotti in the middle of the season and the hiring of Quique Flores. Alvaro Negredo once again delivered a good season, scoring 19 league goals, but it was left back Jose Angel who was crowned Sevilla’s Player of the Year. No doubt this squad underachieved in a big way, and Flores will be looking to lead them back into Champions League football next season.




Other Notables: Valencia finished in 10th Place, up from 15th Place in 2014/2015, mainly thanks to the stellar play of Pablo Piatti…Atletic Bilbao continued to sink, finishing 16th Place. They have progressively gotten worse since finishing in 4th Place in 2013, despite the talents of Iker Muniain and Fernando Llorente.

Overall Team of the Year

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SERIE A REVIEW 2015/2016

Footballer of the Year: Mauro Formica, Inter Milan
Foreign Player of the Year: Mauro Formica, Inter Milan
Italian Player of the Year: Francesco Bolzoni, Catania
Fans’ Player of the Year: Stevan Jovetic, Fiorentina
Goalkeeper of the Year: Maarten Stekelenburg, Roma
Defender of the Year: Loic Nego, Roma
Young Player of the Year: Coutinho, Inter Milan
Manager of the Year: Vodolfo Vanoli, Lecce


Inter Milan: When Inter Milan won the title in 2014/15, one could argue that Roma and Fiorentina were the better teams, but in 2015/16, there was no doubt – they defended their title successfully and left no doubt who the best team in Italy was, beating their closest opponent (Fiorentina) by nine points. Manager Nicolo Frustalupi replaced Giuseppe Baresi in December 2013, after being his assistant manager for a year and a half. It is his first managerial job, and since then, he has won the Serie A twice. Only 40 years old, he has become one of the hottest properties in football – amazingly, he has not won the Serie A Manager of the Year award in either of his title winning seasons. Regardless, Frustalupi is widely considered the finest in the Serie A, and has had success large with the squad that was already at Milan when he took over. He added Jack Collison (34 Aps, 5 Gls, 5 Asts, 7.31) in 2014, and his only major signing in 2015 was Rafael Toloi (26 Aps, 1 Goal, 3 Asts, 7.10) for £8,750,000 from Porto.

Under Frustalupi’s tutelage, Jack Collison developed into a world class midfielder, playing a central figure in Inter Milan’s back to back titles. Up front, Inter’s three headed attack, led by Africans Yannick Ndjeng (22 Aps, 10 Gls) and Seydou Doumbia (33 Aps, 13 Gls) and supported by club icon Giampaolo Pazzini (25 Aps, 8 Gls), split the goals, with no outstanding performer but consistent play from all three strikers. The latter, who turned 31 years old at the beginning of the season, has seen his goal tally dwindle the past few seasons, but remained a key figure in the locker room.

The key figure in the team was Mauro Formica (35 Aps, 8 Gls, 12 Asts, 11 MotM, 7.73), Inter Milan’s Player of the Year in 2015 and 2016. The 28 year old Argentine right winger was also the Serie A Player of the Year in 2015 and 2016, the Serie A Foreign Player of the Year in 2015 and 2016, and the Serie A Fans’ Player of the Year in 2016. He was also named in the Serie A Team of the Year in 2015 and 2016 – in other words, he has been the best player in the league the past two years, leading Inter Milan to its back to back titles. His partner in the midfield, other than Collison, was Brazilian Coutinho (32 Aps, 6 Gls, 13 Asts, 4 MotM, 7.50) – the 24 year old Brazilian stepped up in a big way this season, captivating fans and was named in the 2016 Serie A Team of the Year.

In the back, in addition to Toloi, Inter Milan relied on the talents of Andrea Ranocchia (27 Aps, 2 Asts, 5.19 TpG, 7.15), who was named to the Serie A Team of the Year for the first time in his career, and South African Eric Mathoho (24 Aps, 2 Gls, 2 Asts, 4.20 TpG, 7.13) – those three allowed the squad to concede only 34 goals, the lowest in the Serie A. Behind them sat Italian international GK Emiliano Viviano, who was named the Serie A Goalkeeper of the Year for the second time (2012, 2016), as well as being named to the Serie A Team of the Year for the first time in his career.

The most well-rounded team in Italy, Inter Milan are also led by one of the world’s most talented managers, and that has brought two consecutive titles to the club. The foundation is strong, and every aspect of the squad shines with talent. Frustalupi kept all of his three main strikers happy, and relied on the strength of the midfield to provide goals and score them as well. In Formica, the squad have the best player in the league the past couple of years, and he is in the prime of his career. Coupled with the emergence of Coutinho and Collison, it is tough to see this team not making it three in a row.


Fiorentina: Fiorentina will forever be associated with its fantastic 2014 Champions League title winning squad, but their performance in the Serie A the past couple of years has proven that the club is no one hit wonder. Finishing 2nd Place to Inter Milan, Fiorentina finished a full eight points ahead of its closest competitors, Roma, leaving no doubt they were the second best team in Italy. It all starts with their manager, Marcelo Biesla – since taking over in November 2014, the club has made staggering improvements. This season, he invested a total of £33,500,000 in new players, the most expensive of which was Guido Marilungo (31 Aps, 11 Gls, 7.13), an Italian striker signed for £10,500,000 from Catania. For Emirati midfielder Amer Abdulrahman (17 Aps, 2 Gls, 8 Asts, 7.49), who came in the middle of the season from St. Pauli, he managed an absolute steal, playing only £2,200,000 to get him. His forays in the transfer market were not all successful, though - £8,500,000 was wasted on Luca Antonelli, bought from Roma, who only appeared 6 times.

For the third year in a row, Stevan Jovetic (31 Aps, 14 Gls, 5 Asts, 7 MotM, 7.57) won Fiorentina’s Player of the Year. The Montenegrin striker has become an absolute legend at the club, and was named in the Serie A Team of the Year for the third time (2014, 2015, 2016). Arguably no single player is more important to his team than Jovetic is to Fiorentina – he is the heart and soul of the squad. Their success has hinged on his form, which has rarely been anything over than phenomenal. He had some help upfront from Senegal-born Italian striker Khouma Babacar (27 Aps, 9 Gls), though perhaps not as much as Biesla would’ve liked from the strong striker. Another club legend, the 34 year old Alberto Gilardino (23 Aps, 9 Gls) also contributed when needed, although his time a full-time starter had come to an end. Fiorentina’s second leading scorer, however, was [b]Manolo Gabbiandini (20 Aps, 10 Gls), who took a more prominent role this year after being signed on Free Transfer in 2014.

Fiorentina did not have any other stand-outs except for Andrea Masiello (32 Aps, 4.59 TpG, 7.08), the 31 year old Italian international defender. This just makes Biesla’s accomplishments even more surprising, considering he has only Jovetic and few other capable players to work with. Regardless, this summer should see the manager add more pieces to the squad in his attempt to bring the Serie A title to Florence.


Roma: Under Delio Rossi, who was hired in early 2013, Roma were able to capture the Serie A title in 2014, and since then, have finished 2nd Place in 2015, and 3rd Place in 2015/16. Rossi remains in charge, and despite falling a position lower in the league, he remains a fan favorite due to winning the Serie A title. Andrea Bertolacci (30 Aps, 2 Gls, 8 Asts, 5 MotM, 7.44) was named Roma’s Player of the Year for the second time (2014, 2016), and was also named in the Serie A Team of the Year for the second time (2014, 2016). Just as important as Bertolacci was Miralem Pjanic (31 Aps, 6 Gls, 5 Asts, 5 MotM, 7.28) – the Bosnian midfielder, who is just entering the prime of his career at 26 years old, has become one of the hottest midfield commodities on the planet.

Up front, Adrian Ramos (24 Aps, 14 Gls) led the team in scoring, with Daniel Osvaldo (16 Aps, 6 Gls) having a poor season in comparison to the past few years. Playing just in front of the defense was club legend Daniele De Rossi (26 Aps, 2 Asts, 4.59 TpG, 7.12), who despite his age, continued to be the team’s anchorman. Roma’s prospects are not as positive as the two teams that finished ahead of it, but it also has some solid players in Bertolacci and Pjanic to build a team around.


Sampdoria: Since getting promoted in 2012, the club has finished 14th Place in 2013, 3rd Place in 2014, and 4th Place in 2015 and 2015/16. All of this was done under manager Gianluca Atzori, who has been at the club since 2011. For each of the past five years, Angelo Palombo (32 Aps, 7 Asts, 7 MotM, 7.40) has been the club’s Player of the Year. Having spent almost his entire career with Sampdoria, many suggest that he is perhaps the best player in the club’s history. The 34 year old midfielder continued to prove his age wrong by once again delivering a fantastic season. Their wingers, Aexandru Chipciu (22 Aps, 3 Gls, 7 Asts, 7.18) and Giacomo Bonaventura (30 Aps, 1 Goal, 9 Asts, 7.07) were the other strong points of this Sampdoria team.

The Rest: Cagliari surprised everyone by finishing 5th Place, led by GK Alberto Pelagotti and defender Davide Astori…AC Milan disappointingly finished in 8th Place, and Juventus in 9th Place…Napoli finished in 7th Place, led by Serie A Top Goalscorer Billel Omrani.

Overall Team of the Year

[abulezz]

French Ligue 1 2015/2016

Player of the Year: Jordan Ayew, Marseille (33 Aps, 14 Goals, 7 Assists, 5 MotM, 7.29)
GK of the Year: Hugo Lloris, Lyonnais (34 Aps, 41 Conceded, 11 Clean Sheets, 6.99)
Foreign Player of the Year: Javier Pastore, Paris Saint-Germain (31 Aps, 7 Goals, 9 Assists, 4 MotM, 7.53)
Most Promising Player: Juan Hernandez, Bordeaux (30 Aps, 0 Goals, 1 Assists, 2 MotM, 6.83)
Manager of the Year: Didier Deschamps, Marseille (Champions)





Ligue 1 Best Team of All-Time

[abulezz]

German Bundesliga 2015/2016

Player of the Year: Kevin Strootman, Bayern Munich (26 Aps, 2 Goals, 7 Assists,5 MotM, 7.40)
GK of the Year: Manuel Neuer, Bayern Munich (32 Aps, 33 Conceded, 12 Clean Sheets, 7.06)
Defender of the Year: Alex Sandro, Wolfsburg (28 Aps, 0 Goals, 6 Assists, 3 MotM, 7.38)
Midfielder of the Year: Mario Gotze, Dortmund (28 Aps, 0 Goals, 16 Assists, 8 MotM, 7.68)
Striker of the Year: Mario Mandzukic, Wolfsburg (27 Aps, 10 Goals,7 Assists, 3 MotM, 6.98)
Manager of the Year: John van den Brom, Hoffenheim (3rd Place)





Bundesliga Team of All-Time

[City2000]

Nice season in the Championship, gives you something to build from.

And great job on the world updates, made for some great reading. Not sure i'm going to be a fan of the new European Championships structure in the future though, too many teams qualifying with just one win for me. Although interesting to see England, Wales and Scotland all getting out of the group with Wales producing a nice run to the semis.

[abulezz]

Nice season in the Championship, gives you something to build from.

And great job on the world updates, made for some great reading. Not sure i'm going to be a fan of the new European Championships structure in the future though, too many teams qualifying with just one win for me. Although interesting to see England, Wales and Scotland all getting out of the group with Wales producing a nice run to the semis.

It was quite an exciting group, with England Scotland and Wales - but what the Welsh accomplished was phenomenal.

I really hope you enjoyed the League reviews as well

[hursty2]

Amazing depth of updates here, so much time and effort goes towards producing them by the looks of it.

[abulezz]

Amazing depth of updates here, so much time and effort goes towards producing them by the looks of it.

Yes, lots of time, but its worth it if people are enjoying reading them I do enjoy writing them and immersing myself in my save's world

[abulezz]

Bromley 2016/2017 Preview


Overview

Media Expectation: 22nd Place, Relegation
Board Expectation: Mid-Table Finish
Transfer Budget: £720,000 (Remaining: £0)
Wage Budget: £52,125 (Current: £45,195)

Last season was definitely a learning experience for us, and we did well avoiding a relegation fight and ending in 12th Place, a solid mid-table position. We had our ups and downs, but by the end of the season, our goal of survival was achieved. Our defense was tied for best in the npower Championship, but we had real problems offensively.

The offseason brought it with plenty of activity off the pitch – both good and bad. The season had barely drawn to a close when the board announced that they accepted a £775,000 bid from Celtic for our star 19 year old central defender Nikolay Nakov. Not only was he our best defender currently, his young meant his potential for improvement was vast – he had even earned himself a cap for Bulgaria. I was prepping him to head our defense for years to come, and even if at some point we were promoted to the Premier League, I believed he had enough talent to shine at the top level. Why the board decided a measly sum when we could have gotten at least three or four times that is beyond that. Unfortunately, I had no say, and Nakov was in Scotland just a few days after.

A few days before the sale, the board announced they had acquired a permit that allowed them to begin construction on a new stadium, originally called the Bromley Stadium. This was certainly welcome news, as Hayes Lane (5,000 attendance) was much too small for us. The new stadium was expected to fit just under 17,000 people, and despite a heavy loan being taken out from the bank (£18,000,000 – with monthly payments of around £100,000), it was well worth it. The aftermath, however, was tough to deal with – I presume the Nakov sale was a quick way to bring some cash in, and it did not stop there. My transfer budget was less than last year, and most surprisingly, the board decided to decrease my wage budget. Exactly how I was expected to build a better squad on reduced wages, I do not know, but somehow, the board decided it was logical to do so. Around the same time as all this was happening, the Bromley brass announced the formation of a link with Turkish giants Galatasaray. It seemed they had lost their minds.

Anyway, so it was an offseason that resembled a circus. I sold our star GK Ben Amos to Blackburn for £2,000,000 – this was not a sale I was particularly looking forward to, but his discontent was getting noisier and was adamant he wanted to join a bigger club. The money we got for him was a record sale for the club, and put the club in the black. We also got rid of our highest wage earner, left winger Billy Knott – he was a good player, but simply not worth the £11,000 we were paying him each time he turned out for us, which was every game. I also got rid of a few other wage drainers, and brought down our spending to below the budget given. It was not without cost, however, because there was glaring holes left in our squad.

Perhaps the most pleasing news of the offseason, however, was crowning me the very first legend of the club, although I would have liked to see Elliot Law join me. Sure, he did not have his best season last year and the npower Championship was probably a step too high up for his talent, but there is no way we would have gotten to where we are without him.

As for the upcoming season, the media has us fighting relegation again – this, of course, will not do. But I cannot say I am confident in this team as there are some glaring holes that we could not address. If we can pull off another mid-table finish, I will be happy. I am under no impression that we will once again be the best defensive team in the league, not after the sale of Amos and Nakov, but hopefully, we’ll be able to score more goals with the addition of Emmanuel Musah.

Transfers

Youth was the focus of our transfer policy this season, with seven of our nine signings under the age of nineteen. Our most important signing, Emmanuel Musah (scouted by a scout of mine while he was in Germany), did not come easy due to the board’s refusal to allow me to offer him his reasonable wage demands. In the end, though, we got our man for £700,000 – I consider that more than a bargain, and I expect big things for him. The only other player we paid a sum for this season was Scott Caldwell, who came for £9,000. Patrick Bantamoi, our replacement for Amos and Sierra Leonean international, was picked up on free transfer, and will be relied on heavily this year. The rest of the players coming in this season were: Ivica Soljic (19 year old midfielder), Aaron Horne (18 year old defender), Christian Lehmann (18 year old striker), Petar Skocibusic (16 year old midfielder), Moha (18 year old left back), Tim Foulkes (19 year old left midfielder).

Leaving the club was our star GK for the past couple of years, Ben Amos. Signed on as a free transfer, we turned a nice profit, selling him for £2,000,000. His incessant nagging and growing discontent gave me no choice but to cash in, and I was happy with the free which I got – a Bromley record. The board were responsible for our quite ludicrous £775,000 sale of Nikolay Nakov, a sum I believe was way below what we should have gotten for him if we were forced to sell. Leicester inexplicably offered us £375,000 for Ant Stevens, a youngster I had signed from our 2016 youth intake, and I jumped on the opportunity to make the club some more money. Finally, Billy Knott, our highest wage earner at £6,000 + £5,250 per appearance, was sold for £120,000 – I was more than glad to get rid of his inflated salary. Offering him that contract was not one of my smarter moves. The rest of the players were either sold for nothing or let go on Free Transfer for the sole purpose of reducing the clubs wage bill to meet the board’s new budget.

Players

GOALKEEPERS

Patrick Bantamoi – Stats: Signed this season on Free Transfer to replace Ben Amos, much will be expected of him after the team conceded the least goals in the Championship during the prior season. The 30 year old Sierra Leonean was the starting GK for NEC in the Eredivisie before moving to Bromley, so he has the ability to play at the top level.
Andy Dixon: The 20 year old signed a new contract in the offseason that will see him at the club till 2020. He remains the No.2 GK for the squad after Amos left and Bantamoi joined. Development: 2015 – 2016.


DEFENDERS

DL : Matthew Morgan: The 19 year old performed well enough in his debut season for the club that I did not go looking for a left back this offseason. He appeared 39 times, and gave out 2 assists while averaging 6.93 AR. He has improved a lot since joining the club, and further improvement will be expected. Development: 2015 – 2016.
DC : Kevin Long: Almost immediately became the club’s vice-captain in his debut season last year, such was the 25 year old Irishman’s importance to the club. Appeared in 41 league games, and averaged 6.96 AR. He was one of our best defenders, and remains so this year.
DC : Jesper Alberts: The club’s record signing, he came in the January 2016 window for £1,000,000. His contributions were immediate, and ended the season as the club’s leader in Average Rating (7.11). Still only 18 years old, his is the heart of our defense and one of the most talented players on the team. Development: January 2016 – August 2016.
DR : Steven Saunders: He gets the starting position by default, although there is not much confidence in him. Still, the 25 year old Scotsman is serviceable on his day, although he is prone to days when he is just torrid.
S : Aaron Horne: The 18 year old will be the first name off the bench for the defense, and will likely get quite a few matches due to the lack of depth plaguing the squad. He came up through Liverpool’s youth system before being signed on Free Transfer this season.



MIDFIELDERS

ML : Ebby Harwood: The 17 year old left winger has begun to show signs of developing into a capable winger, and he will get the opportunity to prove himself this season. There was not enough in the wage budget to go after a left winger, so the youngster is the starter by default, moving past Glen Baker in the pecking order. Development: 2015 – 2016.
MC : Porvaldur Magnusson: Bromley’s Player of the Year for 2015/16, he is the club’s most talented player, winning the npower Championship Young Player of the Year last season. His ability is unquestioned, but he continues to develop them at a remarkable rate. Unfortunately, he continues to hild out on contract talks with the club, despite having less than twelve months left on his contract. Development: 2015 – 2016.
MC : Petar Skocibusic: The 16 year old Free Transfer signing will find himself as a start in his debut season with the club simply because there is the best of a mediocre bunch of central midfielders left in the club. He has decent ability, but the important thing will be his development throughout the year – if he can show some good improvement, then he might prove to be a capable midfielder at this level.
MR : Aaron Mooy: The 25 year old Australian put forward a decent campaign in his second year with the club, and continues to be the club’s starting right winger. He has the pace, and although his assists went down from 12 in 2014/15 to 4 last year, with better strikers, perhaps he will be able to show that he is capable of double figures in the category this year.
S : Wayne Routledge: The 31 year old was a Free Transfer signing last year, and served the club well, filling in either wing position. He still has the pace to cause some danger, and will be relied upon to spot on both the left and right wings.
S : Ivica Soljic: The 19 year old Croatian midfielder came this season on Free Transfer. He possesses great technical ability, and will be the first name off the bench in the center of the midfield.



FORWARDS

F : Elliot Law: The Bromley captain is also the club’s all-time leading goalscorer and holds the record for most league appearances. He did not have a good first season in the Championship, scoring only five goals, but confidence has been maintained in him, with hopes that he will be better adjusted this season. Development: 2015 – 2016.
F : Emmanuel Musa: It took a while this offseason to get the club’s main target, but the deal finally went through for £700,000. Potentially the most gifted player to ever play for the club if he lives up to his promised ability, the 19 year on Ghanaian will be given the task to bring the goals that the club so sorely lacked last season.
S : Nadir Bendahmane: The 24 year old Algerian will be the club’s third choice striker this year, after a less than impressive debut campaign for the club last season. He joined on Free Transfer, but only managed to score 8 goals in 33 appearances for Bromley. He will be hoping to do better than that goal ratio this year.

[abulezz]

[ShyBaldBuddhist]

Thats some offer from Leicester for Ant Stevens. Any add on clauses in the deal or just £375k? Not long till you get the new stadium. Should improve the finances with bigger gates and hopefully help you make the next step up.

[City2000]

Although you have lost some key players and had a smaller budget I have to say I think it will be worth it in the long run as you desperately needed that new stadium if you were going to compete higher up.

Looking at your squad, you have some fantastic young players, great looking DMC to help defensively (although will you have to sell him now he wont sign a new deal?) and looks like plenty of goals in the forwards. I reckon you could find yoursleves competing for a playoff place this year.

[abulezz]

Thats some offer from Leicester for Ant Stevens. Any add on clauses in the deal or just £375k? Not long till you get the new stadium. Should improve the finances with bigger gates and hopefully help you make the next step up.

The deal was £150,000, with the rest paid over 12 months. Ther is also 20% sale clause where I get that amount from any future sale (it was originally from profit, but I negotiated to 20% from the sale). It was a great deal for us as I cant see him turning out to be a meaninful player. The new stadium is certainly great news - at the very least, we'll be able to offer what should be reasonable wages to players that deserve it!

Although you have lost some key players and had a smaller budget I have to say I think it will be worth it in the long run as you desperately needed that new stadium if you were going to compete higher up.

Looking at your squad, you have some fantastic young players, great looking DMC to help defensively (although will you have to sell him now he wont sign a new deal?) and looks like plenty of goals in the forwards. I reckon you could find yoursleves competing for a playoff place this year.

The new stadium is the bare minimum we are going to need if we are to be competitive in the Championship, nevermind the Premier League. I do agree that I have some fantastic talent - namely Emmanuel Musah and Magnusson, but the latter wont re-sign....I was actually thinking of keeping him and losing him on free as opposed to cashing in on £1-1.5m that we would get for him - he might be worth more than that for only the one season he plays for us. I would love to be competing for a playoff spot, but it might be too far off for us!

[abulezz]

Bromley September Update 2016/2017











Overview

After picking up a draw in my season opener against Burnley and losing to Derby in my second game, I figured we were going to be in for a tough season. I certainly did not expect what happened after that – for some reason, the team just clicked and won seven games out of eight in the npower Championship, including the last six in a row. Emmanuel Musah won the Championship Player of the Month (he scored 6 goals in 4 appearances), Porvaldur Magnusson won the Championship Young Player of the Month, and I scooped up the Championship Manager of the Month.

Before the outstanding 4-0 victory over Blackpool, I signed Italian GK Rafaele Di Gennaro. I know we have a capable GK in Patrick Bantamoi, but Di Gennaro is slightly better across the board and is only 22 years old, leaving a lot of room for improvement. What was a huge question mark after the sale of Ben Amos has now turned into our deepest position, and potentially one of our strongest. I would even go far as to suggest that we have not lost anything after selling Amos and picking up those two in terms of ability between the posts.

So now we find ourselves 2nd in the Champions, three points back from Reading. In 10 games, we have scored 21 goals and conceded 10 goals – the first stat is especially noteworthy because 46 games last season, we only scored 49 goals. At this rate, we will need only 24 games to score the same amount this year. Amongst the worst teams offensively last year, we are now leading the Championship in goals scored. There have been two reasons for this, the most obvious of which is the addition of Musah to the team. The second, however, is not so obvious – in the offseason, at the age of 22, our captain Elliot Law, perhaps sensing that his ability no longer could hold its own against the level of competition in this league, improved drastically. He has started the season with a bang, scoring 4 leagues in 8 appearances – last season, he scored 5 league goals total.

So there you have it, a phenomenal start to the season, one that I could not have expected – whether we maintain it or not, I have no way of knowing. But given how well the team is clicking right now, in the midst of a six game winning streak, I would not mind seeing us stay fighting for a promotion spot as the season drags on. I do not want to get my hopes up, but we have gotten some great results against some very good teams. We ended the month of September with our captain and vice-captain, Kevin Long, both signing new contracts that will see them at the club until 2020.

[ShyBaldBuddhist]

Thats a great start. Good to see Musah is performing after a large outlay. Magnusson looks to be doing well to setting a few up, must say it's not a very English sounding name though

[Deisler26]

Wow! Great start!

[abulezz]

Thats a great start. Good to see Musah is performing after a large outlay. Magnusson looks to be doing well to setting a few up, must say it's not a very English sounding name though

Yes, Musah has had a great start to his Bromley career, and Magnusson is having a typically great season! He's Icelandic, but holds an English second nationality, and I guess he decided he wanted to represent his adopted home

Wow! Great start!

Indeed! Although we just got hammered by Blackburn


On the bright side:

[abulezz]

Bromley October Update 2016/2017











Overview

We started the month off against Norwich – a team we had played three times in the past (all in 2015/16), and had lost to three times. In fact, we had only managed to score one goal against them, while we had conceded seven, so I was a bit pessimistic going into the match. Elliot Law’s 5th league goal of the season gave us a 1-0 victory and three points that sent us top of the league, and I pulled off my first ever victory against the Canaries. Rafaele Di Gennaro recorded his second clean sheet in his fourth game since joining the club – I was especially happy with that.

A few days into October, Porvaldur Magnusson sprained his wrist in training, ruling him out for at least two weeks – very bad news in deed, but thankfully, it was not worse. He would miss, at most, two games, against Blackburn and away to Cardiff. The ongoing contract negotiations with him were very stagnant – I was offering the maximum I could in everything, but his agent would immediately walk away, claiming my best offer was so far off what he was looking for that it was not even worth talking about.

After the prolonged international break, we finally got back to club football on October 15th, against Blackburn. Our opponents, who are amongst the biggest clubs in the Championship both in terms of value and salary spending, were favorites to be promoted to the Premier League last year, but they fell short. This year, they are struggling in 13th Place, and while they no longer have the largest wage bill in the division (that honor goes to Sunderland with £33,510,000), they are still third with £22,550,000. Bromley, by contrast, are spending £2,510,000 – second lowest in the division, with only newly promoted Preston behind us. We had played them twice in my career (both in 2015/16), and had come away with a loss and a draw, so I was looking forward to getting a result against them, despite playing away from home. We were on a seven game winning streak, and I wanted to continue that momentum. Unfortunately for us, Elliot Law picked up a knock very early in the game – it was especially disappointing because he had been in such great form. Shortly afterwards, they scored, which put us behind 1-0. The second half was not much better, and following our captain’s injury, our vice-captain, Kevin Long, picked up a knock of his own. Blackburn scored two more goals, and we lost 3-0, abruptly ending our seven game winning streak. I let the team have it in the dressing room afterwards, aggressively telling them they were pure rubbish.

After the match, we got the news that Elliot Law was going to be out for six weeks with a pulled hamstring, and Long was to be out for two weeks with a bruised rib. A terrible match overall, and I wanted to quickly put it behind us and concentrate on the upcoming match against Cardiff. Before that, however, I decided to meet with the board and ask for further investment in our Junior Coaching, and to my surprise, they accepted, raising our level to Excellent! As for the Cardiff match, it was a disappointment as we could not muster up any goals, ending in 0-0 with a team that looked weaker than ours. Emmanuel Musah picked up a dead leg injury, but will only be ruled out for one week.

I noticed that there was interest in our young defender Scott Williams, so I offered him to clubs for his value (£350,000) with a 20% sale clause, and a couple of days later, Huddersfield responded by accepting our offer, albeit with £0 upfront and the sum spread over 48 months. Still, it was better than letting him go on free, which was inevitably going to happen had he stayed at the club, so I gladly accepted the sale. I don’t know what teams are seeing in my youth intake, but so far, I had sold two players (Ant Stevens was the other) for a combined £725,000 – good money for players I was never likely to use.

Our next match was away to the current leaders of the Championship, Peterborough. This was another team he had not beaten in the two games we had played them, coming away with a loss and a draw. We were without three of our most important players – Law, Musah, and Long, all out due to injuries. Although we played a good game, Peterborough found the net with thirteen minutes left in the match, defeating us 1-0 and pushing our winless streak to three games. Without our starting strike force, we could not finish some decent opportunities, reminding me of our struggles from last year.

A few days after the match, Lovro Scrbec’s agent sent a message to my desk saying that he was looking for a club, so after some back and forth, we agreed on a £2,700 wage for the striker and he became our latest signing. With Law out for another month, I planned on throwing him directly into the starting lineup. Our final game of the month was at home to Hull, and with all my best players back (save for Law) in the starting lineup, I was expecting to pick up three points against them. We managed to pull off a tough 1-0 victory, with Musah scoring the goal, and we ended the month in 3rd Place in the table.

We have a rough schedule coming up in November, with three straight away games. We didn’t have the best October – our winning streak came to a painful end, and we had quite a bit of injuries to contend with. Our offense brought back memories of last season, when we could not buy a goal to save our lives. Hopefully, with the return of Musah, and our new signing Scrbec, we can start finding the goals we need to score in order to keep competing for a playoff spot.

[deltablue]

Good to see a return to a promotion push.

[abulezz]

Good to see a return to a promotion push.

Yes, its been a fantastic start to the season, we've been flying high! Here's hoping we dont fall!

[abulezz]

Bromley November Update 2016/2017











Overview

The month started off at home against Crystal Palace, and our squad player Nadir Bendahmane, who had not been impressive so far this season, scored a brace in 4-0 win. Porvaldur Magnusson continued to tease with his performances, playing out of his mind and yet refusing to talk about a new contract. New signing Lovro Scrbec scored his first goal for the club – we were back in a big way. This was exactly the sort of performance I was looking for, and the boys duly delivered.

Next up, we had the most expensive side in the Championship, Sunderland. I was hoping for a draw, but I would not have been upset with my team had they lost – shame on me for underestimating my boys again. They won 2-1, and our new signing Scrbec winning the MotM. This was a fantastic win for us, even though our first goalscorer, and star defender, Jesper Alberts picked up concussion that will rule him out for two weeks. Our own Bromley product, left winger Ebby Harwood, scored his third goal of the season – honestly, he has been my most surprising player this season. The 18 year old has made the left wing position his own, and has shown drastic improvements in his ability. Seventeen games in the season, we were in 2nd Place, one point behind Peterborough and six points ahead of 6th Place Sheffield Wednesday, placing us very well in the promotion battle.

If I had any illusions about being one of the better teams in the Championship, those were quickly put to bed in our away match against Reading. They destroyed us 4-0, pushed past us into 2nd Place, dropping us to 3rd Place, and made me start doubting our new GK, Rafaele Di Gennaro. They say numbers don’t lie – if that is the case, Patrick Bantamoi, who was dropped in favor of the Italian when I signed him, was playing much better than Di Gennaro is now. I had some thinking to do before the next to match in terms of who to start between the sticks.

When the match against Leicester came around, I decided to keep faith in Di Gennaro, and the same starting lineup that was embarrassed at Reading lined up again. The first half ended in 0-0 draw, though we had a goal ruled offside. Obviously, this result made me happier than my counterpart, and I was desperate for the team to keep up the intensity in the second half, so I assertively told them that they were playing well and to keep it up. My speech must have worked, as Musah scored the only goal of the game, giving us a fantastic 1-0 away victory. The faith I kept in Di Gennaro paid off, as he played fantastic and kept a clean sheet for us. Once again, it was Magnusson who won the MotM, with another great performance in the midfield.

Our final match of in the month of November was against Nottingham Forest, a team that finished 14th Place in 2015/16, but was one spot behind us this season, in 4th Place. This was a promotion battle in the truest sense of the word, and I wanted Hayes Lane to be rocking game time. We had sold out all of our home games so far this season – not a hard feat considering Hayes Lane could only seat 5,000. We started out pressuring them, and we never let our foot of the gas. They were playing dirty – I had to remove Musah and Magnusson from the game around the 65th minute because they kept hacking away at them and I was afraid they might get injured. Musah had scored earlier in the second half, his 10th league goal of the season, and that’s how the game ended – another 1-0 victory, but another stellar performance. The clean sheets were back – it seemed Di Gennaro noticed my disappointment in him after the 4-0 loss against Reading and decided to buck up. With 20 games played, this win pushed us into 1st Place in the Championship, one point ahead of Reading!

As we head into December, we are deep enough into the season where we can longer discredit our position in the league as “good start” – we have to start believing we can push for a promotion spot. Before we started the season, I did not believe we had the talent across the board to compete – I felt we had too many weak spots. My boys, however, have proven my wrong, and there is no turning back now. Mid-table will not do anymore, not after these three months. In fact, I will go as far as to say that being in the position we are now, if we do not give ourselves at least a fighting chance for promotion, I will be disappointed come the end of the season. December will not be so hectic – we only have five games, albeit one of them being a tough home game against Bolton. We need to keep the results coming, and in order to do so, we need twelve points from our five matches.

Football News

November 27th, 2016: Fiorentina manager Marcelo Biesla resigned from his post today and took up the vacant Sevilla manager job in a shock move that has made headlines in the football world. Considered one of the top managers in the world after leading Fiorentina to their historic first ever Champions League title in 2014, he also led the club to 3rd Place in 2014 and 2nd Place in 2015. The club is in 6th Place currently, nine points off the top and not playing so well. Sevilla had sacked Quique Flores, ironically the man Biesla replaced at Fiorentina, a week ago, despite the club currently being in 2nd Place. After three consecutive 3rd Place finishes, the team dropped to 7th Place in 2015/16 under Flores, and it seems the board were just waiting for the right man to come along before replacing him.

[AK22]

Wow, looking good for promotion to the Premier League this season.

Oh, and well done to Wales in the Euros; best of the Home Nations

[abulezz]

Wow, looking good for promotion to the Premier League this season.

Oh, and well done to Wales in the Euros; best of the Home Nations

The way my season started very much surprised me - but now, I feel that if Im not competing atleast for a playoff spot, I will be disappointed. All credit goes to Alberts, Magnusson, and Musah, theyve done great!

As for Wales, that was an incredible run - Collison and Bale have really become top international talents.

[deltablue]

Excellent, hope you manage to stay there.

[abulezz]

Excellent, hope you manage to stay there.

Thanks, me too!

[Sunndaihann]

Fantastic. Did similar with Luton Town on the Unemployment challenge. Was quite easy, and having been an LLM veteran of sorts for a few years now, breezed through the leagues comfortable. Just a 2 year stint in the Championship being the only blip in my staggering ascent through the leagues. ( in hindsight, it was a blessing in disguise )

NB : although it may seem a bit redundant now, i set my best players at a million or two over what most teams would wanna bit and set to "reject lower offers" , seems to deter bids somehow.

[ArsenalMetro]

Wow, great start to the season! Hopefully you can maintain this form and get into the Premier League next season.

Also, it's funny how one player's career can go so differently from save to save. The Manoel of your game just got bought by Madrid for a huge fee and has been capped multiple times by Brazil. Mine, on the other hand, was a €2 million signing who's going back to Brazil at age 29 for €5 million. And to be honest, I don't think their attributes are all that different.

abulezz's Manoel
ArsenalMetro's Manoel

[abulezz]

Fantastic. Did similar with Luton Town on the Unemployment challenge. Was quite easy, and having been an LLM veteran of sorts for a few years now, breezed through the leagues comfortable. Just a 2 year stint in the Championship being the only blip in my staggering ascent through the leagues. ( in hindsight, it was a blessing in disguise )

NB : although it may seem a bit redundant now, i set my best players at a million or two over what most teams would wanna bit and set to "reject lower offers" , seems to deter bids somehow.

Thanks for commenting! Ive been playing the game for the past 14 years - in FM09 I decided to try my hand at taking over a small club as opposed to Premier League clubs, and set about turning Gateshead into footballing giants It took a few years, but I got them up to the Premier League and then the CL. A very enjoyable save overall. In FM10, I took over Bromley and immediately fell in love with the club - I did fantastic, getting promoted every year until I reached the Premier League, and won it within 5 years of being in the top division. This save has been slightly more challenging, but just as enjoyable nonetheless! As for the pricing of players, I've recently been told about that tactic, and I've utilized it on my best players, and will do so again with Magnusson!

Wow, great start to the season! Hopefully you can maintain this form and get into the Premier League next season.

Also, it's funny how one player's career can go so differently from save to save. The Manoel of your game just got bought by Madrid for a huge fee and has been capped multiple times by Brazil. Mine, on the other hand, was a €2 million signing who's going back to Brazil at age 29 for €5 million. And to be honest, I don't think their attributes are all that different.

abulezz's Manoel
ArsenalMetro's Manoel

I think one of THE most interesting parts about the game is seeing how players develop in everyone's saves, as well as the newgen and the careers they end up having. You are right, they are pretty much the same player - I have no idea why Real Madrid paid so much for him, really!

[noikeee]

Had a look this afternoon through the whole 4 pages, superb performance (looking good for 5th promotion in 6 years) and lots of work done in those world updates. I get myself very immersed in the game world like you, even get "attached" to some regens who don't even play for my team, but don't have the time to go to that length in the updates.

I hope Spain don't become as good as they've been in your save, I mean another 3 finals and 2 trophies...

[abulezz]

Had a look this afternoon through the whole 4 pages, superb performance (looking good for 5th promotion in 6 years) and lots of work done in those world updates. I get myself very immersed in the game world like you, even get "attached" to some regens who don't even play for my team, but don't have the time to go to that length in the updates.

I hope Spain don't become as good as they've been in your save, I mean another 3 finals and 2 trophies...

Thanks! The updates do take alot of time to prepare, but I enjoy doing it, so its all good I do hope that people enjoy reading them, though! Its very easy for me to get lost in the game world - I dont know if Im the only crazie here, but sometimes I find myself announcing the matches to myself!

Spain have been very good, but Brazil ruined them in the Word Cup 2014 Finals, and despite their torrid performance in the Copa America, in terms of pure talent, they are currently the best team in my save by miles. All the new great looking newgens seem to be coming from Brazil and France, too!

[abulezz]

Bromley December Update 2016/2017











Overview

If we had any sort of defensive awareness, it was thrown out the window in our first game in December away to Preston North End. We conceded 2 goals in the first half alone – the good news was we scored 4 of our own, with Emmanuel Musah hitting a brace. Elliot Law and Kevin Long scored the other two goals, and of course, Porvaldur Magnusson was fantastic in the midfield. The second half, however, was as bad as it could get – we conceded another two goals, and Musah picked up an injury. After the game, upon further review, it was announced he had a pulled hamstring and was ruled out for six weeks, a huge blow considering he had scored 12 leagues goals in 20 appearances for us.

Our next match was at home against Bolton, a game I had penciled in as being the toughest of the month for the squad. Unfortunately, the team played with absolutely no urgency, and we lost the match 2-0 – a hugely disappointing result for us considering we just did not even try. Our offense was terrible, the defense made mistake after mistake, and there was simply no team play. We retained our position in 2nd Place, two points ahead of Peterborough and four points back from Reading, but I could not hide my disgust and I let the team have it in the dressing room after the match. We drew away to home 2-2 against Ipswich, which pushed our winless streak to three games. A few days after the match, Jesper Alberts strained his wrist and got ruled out for two weeks.

We ended our winless streak against Burnley away from home with a great 1-0 win, despite missing Musah and Alberts. During the game, Lovro Scrbec got injured, but thankfully, it was not serious and he was cleared afterwards. We had one more match before the end of the season against Derby at home, so I was hoping we could make it two wins in a row and end the year on a good note. Magnusson recorded his tenth assist of the season, good enough for third best in the league. Against Derby, we won 3-1, with our captain Law getting a brace, taking his tally to 9 goals in the league. It was a fantastic way to end the year, and we continued to hold our place in the table.

January is going to bring more the same – a couple of tough away matches mixed with some winnable home games. The big one, however, is the Manchester City game in the FA Cup 3rd Round at the City of Manchester Stadium. We get to face the Premier League champions and really get to test ourselves against the best team in the country. No matter what the result, I am excited to see where we stand against the best. The best part to the end of the year was finally getting our star midfielder Magnusson to agree to terms – he will be payed £6,750 base salary + another £6,250 per appearance. The only thing I really did not want but the agent kept insisting on was the £2,500,000 minimum release clause, but he would not sign the deal without it. Hopefully, no one will try to scoop him up.

[ShyBaldBuddhist]

Going well. Hope you can keep it up in the final stretch. Law looks to have upped his game this year after a poor return last season

[abulezz]

Going well. Hope you can keep it up in the final stretch. Law looks to have upped his game this year after a poor return last season

Yes, he has and the main reason is that he simply got better - take a look at his attributes over a stretch of a year and a half: 2015 – 2016 - January 2017

[City2000]

Going really well so far, looks like it's going to be an exciting second half of the season.

Great news on getting Magnusson to sign a new deal although obviously with a £2.5m release fee you may struggle to keep him long term, heres hoping no-one comes in for him.

[powells_red_army]

Well done on the season so far hopefully promotion awaits

[abulezz]

Going really well so far, looks like it's going to be an exciting second half of the season.

Great news on getting Magnusson to sign a new deal although obviously with a £2.5m release fee you may struggle to keep him long term, heres hoping no-one comes in for him.

Thanks! Honestly, I hate including minimum release clauses in my contract, and £2.5m is so low for a player of his calibur. Im hoping I'll be able to offer him a new contract in the summer without one!

Well done on the season so far hopefully promotion awaits

I hope so, too! Athough Im not sure how a 5,000 stadium will handle Premier Leaguee football!

[AK22]

You can almost smell the Premier League Keep it up!

[abulezz]

You can almost smell the Premier League Keep it up!

Indeed I can! The team isnt letting up - Im just hoping we wont hit a wall, we need to keep this form up.

[cerud]

Bromley in the Premiership sounding good!

[abulezz]

Bromley in the Premiership sounding good!

Thanks! Its getting more and more likely as the season gets closer to its end and Im still in the Top Two!

[abulezz]

Bromley January Update 2016/2017











Overview

The January opened up in a frenzy of activity for us, with our new Brazilian signing Alexandre joining the club on Free Transfer from Atletico Mineiro on £4,300 per week wages. The 18 year old central defender was the replacement ton Nikolay Nakov, currently doing squat all for Celtic - I was really looking forward to seeing this boy in action. At the other end of the transfer market, we let go of Ketil Tajet (young Norwegian defender who has not amounted to anything) for £100,000, and also sold unhappy Patrick Bantamoi, initially bought in the summer to the man the goal before the signing of Rafaele Di Gennaro, for £40,000 to Italian Serie B outfit Nocerina. Tom Parkes and Moha also made their exit from the club, both for £0. I needed to get wages off of my books, and they were unhappy with the lack of first team football.

We won a fantastic 2-1 away victory over Huddersfield Town, keeping our promotion hopes very much alive with a three point advantage on Sunderland. Our FA Cup matchup against Manchester City was an expected loss, but I was honestly very proud of my boys. We held our own for most of the match, and they only beat us 1-0. The result was one I held my head up high about, and I felt it was good omen that we were able to contain the Premier League champions to just one goal at their home ground.

Our next game against Rotherham United was a lot closer than the scoreline suggested – we won 3-1, but it was our opponents who pressured us for most of the match. Still, it was another three points picked up at home, where we had lost once all season. Goals from Law and Scrbec, who was MotM, and two assists from Magnusson did the trick for us, and we managed it at the end. The game was not without incident, though – our captain, Elliot Law, was ruled out for the next couple of weeks after stubbing his toe in the match. Just a few days after the match, we signed Paul Black for £250,000 from Oldham, with weekly wages of £4,000. He will rotate with Matthew Morgan at the left back position, giving us further depth in our defense. Just after, we battled to a 1-1 draw away to Sheffield Wednesday, a result I was relatively satisfied with, leaving us in 2nd Place, five points behind Reading.

Our last match of the season was on January 31st, home to Watford. However, we were hit with bad news a few days before the game – Musah pulled his groin muscle in training, and was ruled out for the next five weeks, a huge blow for the squad. When the date arrived, it was announce that the match was postponed due to a water-logged pitch at Hayes Lane, thus ending our month with the fans and I further anticipating the construction of the new Bromley Stadium. It really can’t come quick enough.

Football News

January 1st, 2017: The January transfer window kicked off with Paris Saint-Germain (1st in Ligue 1) acquiring Billel Omrani from Napoli for £11,750,000. The 23 year old French striker was bought by the Italian club in 2015 for £2,900,000, and has scored 27 league goals in 51 appearanes for the club since then. In 2015/16, he was named the Serie A Top Goalscorer with 18 goals, and was called to the 2016 Serie A Team of the Year. Paris Saint-Germain will be paying him £44,500 a week.

January 5th, 2017: Luis Ramirez, who was one of Venezuela’s best players in the World Cup 2014 at the age of 19, made the switch from Espanyol to Shakhtar for £13,500,000. The midfielder had spent just half a year at the Spanish club, joining in the summer of 2016 from Deportivo Tachira of Venezuela for £2,700,000. Development: 2014 – 2017.

January 7th, 2017: Inter Milan, in its quest to retain the Serie A title for a third straight time, acquired two young stars on the same day, signing Stefan Bell from Mainz for £17,250,000, and signing Ruben Yttergard Jenssen from Udinese for £21,500,000. Bell had been arguably Mainz’s finest player the past few years, winning their 2016 Player of the Year (the third straight year he had won it), and getting named to the 2016 Bundesliga Team of the Year for the second time in a row. Unfortunately, the club had been relegated at the end of 2016 and were now languishing in the German 2nd Division, prompting the sale of their finest talent. Jenssen has become one of the best midfielders in the Serie A since joining Udinese in 2013 from Bayern Munich, winning the Udinese Player of the Year three times (2014, 2015, 2016), and getting named to the 2016 Serie A Team of the Year. He was also crowned the 2016 Serie A Fans Player of the Year, and won the Norwegian Player of the Year three times (2014, 2015, 2016).

January 11th, 2017: Although the English clubs were uncharacteristically quiet this transfer window, Manchester City still pulled off its second biggest signing, acquiring 26 year old English right back Martin Kelly from Liverpool for £22,500,000. This was a very surprising transfer, and many felt that Man City had overpaid for the English international. A product of Liverpool’s youth academy, he had spent his entire career with them before his move, but had never won any personal awards of note. He was part of the Liverpool squad that lifted the back to back in 2013 and 2014.

January 21st, 2017: Sevilla signed Greek midfielder Kostas Fortounis from Kaiserslautern for £13,250,000, bolstering its rank with a winger in its quest win back a Champions League spot. The 24 year was the German club’s Player of the Year in 2014, and is considered to be the Greek’s national team most talented member.

January 30th, 2017: The biggest transfer of the window was left to the final day, and most peculiarly, featured Manchester City selling a player instead of buying. Real Madrid acquired Mauricio Isla for £23,500,000, just one and a half years after Man City paid Tottenham £21,500,000 for him. Isla was a big part of Man City’s Premier League winning squad in 2016, and was subsequently named their 2016 Player of the Year and called to the 2016 Premier League Select.

[abulezz]

Olympics 2016 – Brazil

After winning the Olympics for the first time in their history in 2012, the defending champions Mexico crashed out in the Group Stages, gathering a measly two points. They were beat out by Spain and surprising South Korea, but their left back, Jose Luis Ortega, was one of the best performers at the tournament. In Group C, Brazil and Ecuador (the latter led by Henry Quintero) qualified, while Mali and Ivory Coast topped their respective groups, joined by Belarus and Switzerland in 2nd Place.

Ivory Coast made it all the way to the Finals, beating Switzerland and the tournament’s Cinderella story Belarus on its way. Lacina Troare and Seydou Doumbia were the team’s best players, and they led them to their showdown with Brazil. The South Americans, and hosts, defeated South Korea and Spain before meeting up with the Ivory Coast, and in the Finals, their star Xaropinho scored a brace to give the Brazilians their first ever Olympics title. The striker set the record for highest Average Rating, getting 8.45 AR over 6 matches, and led the tournament with 6 goals.

[ShyBaldBuddhist]

Still going well and just need to keep it up for the final stretch. Only losing 1-0 to City and giving a good account of yourself is a great sign of how far you have come.

[abulezz]

Still going well and just need to keep it up for the final stretch. Only losing 1-0 to City and giving a good account of yourself is a great sign of how far you have come.

By all means, I was proud of my result away to Man City, current Premier League champs. Hopefully, we'll be playing them alot more next year

[abulezz]

AFRICAN CUP OF NATIONS 2017 – LIBYA

GROUP A

Ivory Coast: 2 (L. Traore, I. Toure)
Mali: 0

Burkina Faso: 1 (K. Traore)
Central African Republic: 1 (Zuma)

Ivory Coast: 3 (S. Coulibaly (2), Doumbia)
Central African Republic: 0

Burkina Faso: 2 (Sanou, Kabore)
Mali: 1 (Soukouna)

Ivory Coast: 0
Burkina Faso: 0

Mali: 2 (Soukouna, A. Keita)
Central African Republic: 1 (Dopekoulouyen)

OVERVIEW: Mali, who had been one of the most impressive African teams this decade, making the World Cup 2014 Second Round and advancing to the ANC 2012 Finals, crashed out in the Group Stages this time around. Instead, it was Ivory Coast and a talented young Burkinabe team that beat qualified out of the group, while the Central African Republic, in their first major tournament this decade, finished in last place, managing to gain only one point in three games.



GROUP B

Libya: 0
Ghana: 2 (J. Ayew, Boateng)

Sierra Leone: 1
Nigeria: 2 (Okonronkwo (2) )

Libya: 0
Nigeria: 4 (Ideye (2), Okoronkwo (2) )

Ghana: 0
Sierra Leone: 0

Nigeria: 1 (Ideye)
Ghana: 2 (Boateng, J. Ayew)

Libya: 2 (Benali, Al Haasy)
Sierra Leone: 3 (M Bangura (2), Koroma)

OVERVIEW: Group B featured the hosts, one of Africa’s most accomplished teams of the decade, and possibly their most underachieving team of the decade. Sierra Leone, who had a magical run in 2013 when they lost out in the Semi-Finals (defeating then defending champions Ghana in the Quarter-Finals), finished 3rd in the group, ahead of the hosts (with former Bromley player Ahmed Benali), who managed to gain zero points. Africa’s most underachieving team, Nigeria, finished 2nd Place to Ghana, thanks to Obinna Okoronkwo’s 4 goals and Brown Ideye’s 3 goals. Ghana topped the group, with Jordan Ayew playing especially well.





GROUP C

Senegal: 1 (Diouf)
South Africa: 1 (Jayiya)

Morocco: 3 (Belhanda, El Arabi, El Hamdaoui)
Cameroon: 0

Morocco: 2 (Assaidi, Guezoui)
Senegal: 1 (Diouf)

Cameroon: 2 (Ndjeng, Mbarga)
South Africa: 3 (Erasmus (2), Jayiya)

Morocco: 2 (Chamakh, Guezoui)
South Africa: 2 (Ndulula, Jayiya)

Cameroon: 2 (Mbarga, Bong)
Senegal: 1 (Pouye)

OVERVIEW: The obvious group of death in this year’s version of the African Nations Cup, Group C featured four of the heavyweights of African football, including the last two champions, Cameroon (2015) and South Africa (2013). Morocco, who played hosts in 2015, were still considered one of the top teams in Africa despite underachieving in recent tournaments, and Senegal were Quarter-Finalists in 2015, losing to eventual Finalists Ivory Coast. There was no underachieving from the Moroccan team this year, however, as they topped the group – they were joined in the Quarter-Finals by South Africa, who had fantastic performances from Shalke striker Bhongolwethu Jayiya, who scored 3 goals for them. Cameroon crashed out due to a 3-2 loss to South Africa and an embarrassing 3-0 defeat to Morocco.





GROUP D

Egypt: 4 (Kamel, Gedo, Hosny, Farag)
Cape Verdie: 0

Algeria: 5 (Ziaya (2), Mahaya (2), Belhadj)
Angola: 0

Algeria: 1 (Belhadj)
Egypt: 0

Angola: 1 (Rafael)
Cape Verde: 2 (Djaniny, Ze Luis)

Algeria: 2 (Medjani, Belhadj)
Cape Verde: 1 (Ze Luis)

Angola: 1 (Geraldo
Egypt: 0

OVERVIEW: Bitter rivals Algeria and Egypt were grouped together in Group D, and they both ended up qualifying to the Quarter-Finals, although the latter just made it through. While Algeria won all three of its games, the other three teams all had three points, and the North Africans went through on goal difference.

Quarter-Finals

Morocco vs. Egypt
Al Bayda Community Stadium, Al Bayda: The two North African rivals both had been underachievers this decade, save for Egypt’s trip to the Semi-Finals in the ANC 2015, but a trip to the Semi-Finals this year would change all that. It was Morocco who would pull of a 3-2 victory in a very entertaining match, thanks to Marouane Chamakh’s brace. Four of the goals came in the first half, save for the Chamakh’s second goal, which came at the beginning of the second half. His performance crowned him the MotM.
Morocco: 3 (Chamakh (2), El Kaoutari)
Egypt: 2 (Hosny, Ragab)




Ghana vs. Ivory Coast
Misurata Community Stadium: The ANC 2015 Finalists and World Cup 2014 Semi-Finalists, Ivory Coast, took on their eastern neighbors Ghana in a much that promised much. However, it did not live up to its billings – instead of the free flowing, strong attacking football that was expected, it was dull, one sided affair. Ivory Coast won the game 1-0, but they were the much better team. Ghana, for all its talent, could not get it together. Ivory Coast’s goalscorer, Salomon Kalou, won the MotM.
Ivory Coast: 1 (Kalou)
Ghana: 0



Burkina Faso vs. Nigeria
Hugo Chavez Stadium, Benina: On one side, you had Africa’s most populous nation and one of its most storied footballing nations – on the other, there was a very young team that was steadily improving and had made the Semi-Finals of the ANC 2015 in Morocco. What happened was perhaps the most surprising result in the history of the competition, as Burkina Faso defeated Nigeria an amazing 5-1. All credit had to go to their Portuguese head coach, Paulo Duarte, who had been with the team throughout the decade, and has overseen the vast improvement the nation had made. Koh Traore scored a brace, but the MotM went to midfielder Mamadou Kebe, who delivered 2 assists.
Burkina Faso: 5 (K. Traore (2), Sanou, Kabore, Kierna)
Nigeria: 1 (Okoronkwo)



Algeria vs. South Africa
11 June Stadium, Tripoli: The ANC 2013 champions South Africa made very short work of their opponents in this Quarter-Finals clash, with its two best players of the tournament thus far each scoring a brace. Bhongowelthu Jayiya hit two goals in the second half while Kermit Erasmus scored two goals in the first half. It was Jayiya who won the MotM, as he had provided Erasmus with both assists and finished with a 9.5 AR.
South Africa: 4 (Erasmus (2), Jayiya (2) )
Algeria: 0

Semi-Finals

South Africa vs. Ivory Coast
Al Bayda Community Stadium, Al Bayda: Perhaps the two most impressive teams in this year’s edition of the African Nations Cup, it was the West Africans who defeated the 2013 champions 3-1, marking their second straight Finals appearance in a row (they lost to Cameroon in 2015). Ivory Coast were clearly the better team on the day, and would have had a clean sheet if it wasn’t for a late own goal in the dying seconds of the match. Striker Lacina Traore won the MotM after scoring a goal and recording an assist, finishing with 8.8 AR.
Ivory Coast: 3 (L. Traore, Gradel, Doumbia)
South Africa: 1 (Konate O.G)




Morocco vs. Burkina Faso
11 June Stadium, Tripoli: Burkina Faso were the surprise team of the tournament, and Morocco featured its best player, Younes Belhanda. Unfortunately for the North African team, the tournament’s finest player was out of this match with a bruised rib, and the Burkinabe team took full advantage of that, winning the match 2-1 and advancing to their first ever ANC Finals. Left winger Jonathan Pitroipa won the MotM, and it was going to be a rematch of not only the Group A matchup earlier in the tournament (which ended 0-0), but it was a chance to redeem the ANC 2015 loss Ivory Coast handed their northern neighbors in the Semi-Finals of the ANC 2015.
Burkina Faso: 2 (A. Traore, Pitroipa)
Morocco: 1 (Guezoui)

Finals

Burkina Faso vs. Ivory Coast
11 June Stadium, Tripoli: This was Ivory Coast’s second straight Finals appearance (and third of all-time), and they were fighting to win their second title in their history (their first was in 1992 in Senegal). Burkina Faso were enjoying their first ever trip to the Finals, and under the tutelage of long time head coach Paulo Duarte, the team had made incredible progress and featured some of the best young talent on the continent. On this day, however, experience trumped youth, as Ivory Coast won the match 2-1. Truth be told, it was not the most entertaining of matches – not a lot of shots on goal and a lot of back and forth play in the midfield made this one of the duller Finals in recent memory. Gervinho won the MotM, delivering both assists to the goals and finishing with 7.9 AR. Ivory Coast were African champions for the second time in their history, and further solidified their position as the best team on the continent during this decade.
Ivory Coast: 2 (Doumbia, Kalou)
Burkina Faso: 1 (K. Traore)

[abulezz]

Awards

Best Player
Younes Belhanda, Morocco (4 Appearances, 1 Goal, 3 Assists, 2 MotM, 8.20): The 26 year Marseille midfielder was the best player in the tournament bar none going into the Semi-Finals, but a bruised rib kept him out of the eventual shock loss to Burkina Faso. Morocco would come in 4th in the tournament, but there was no denying Belhanda’s brilliance. A French Ligue 1 champion with his club, he has also been one of Africa’s top players the past few years, and is currently one of the most important players at Marseille.

Best Goalkeeper
Landry Kaba, Ivory Coast (5 Appearances, 2 Goals Conceded, 3 Clean Sheets, 7.00): The unsung hero of Ivory Coast’s squad, the 23 year old Dinamo Bucharest goalkeeper took over the reigns from Vincent de Paul Angban, who had been the nation’s start for the past few years. Kaba did a fantastic job between the posts for the champions, conceding only two goals and maintaining the stability needed in the back that allowed the team to go all the way and win the title.

Top Goalscorer
Obinna Okoronkwo, Nigeria (4 Appearances, 5 Goals, 1 MotM, 7.65): The 23 year old Young Boys (Switzerland) striker took the tournament by storm, scoring 5 goals and becoming one of the hottest young talents to come out of the continent. He possesses fantastic pace and is a good finisher – the fact that he is only 23 should have suitors lining up offers for him come the offseason.

[abulezz]

CHAMPIONS CUP 2016/2017

Group A: Manchester United surprised no one by topping the group after an one year absence from the competition, but it was Turkish champions Trabzonspor who shocked Roma and qualified alongside them. Young Boys stayed competitive, but followed Roma to an early exit, as well.

Group B: One of the strongest teams in Europe the past few year, Lyonnais topped a fairly straight forward group, and were joined in the Second Round by PAOK Salonika, the new Greek champions. Anderlecht and Benfica, who were favorites to finish second in the group, were knocked out.

Group C: German giants Bayern Munich finished topped of the group, winning a perfect six games and conceding only two goals. Tottenham qualified in 2nd Place, just barely beating out Spanish upstarts Malaga, who did well in their first Champions League campaign. Zeljeznicar Sarajevo of Bosnia did well to reach this stage, but finished bottom of the group.

Group D: The 2014 champions Real Madrid and 2013 Finalists CSKA Moscow finished 1st and 2nd in the group, knocking out 2015 champions and Semi-Finalists last year, Fiorentina. Vitesse of Holland finished last in this competitive group.

Group E: French champions Marseille have been wildly impressive in the group stages of the competition the past few years, and this season was no different, topping the group by winning five of their six games. They were joined by Spanish club Villareal, knocking out Standard Liege and Sparta Prague.

Group F: For English Premier League champions Arsenal topped this competitive group, while Sampdoria finished 2nd Place. Shakhtar disappointingly finished third, and Fenerbahce finished in last place, both getting knocked out in the process.

Group G: Defending champions Barcelona topped the group, finishing ahead of Italian Serie A champions Inter Milan. Celtic and Lech were knocked out, as was expected at the beginning of the draw.

Group H: Premier League champions Manchester City were very impressive, topping the group with five wins out of the six games. They were joined by FC Porto – once again, German champions Dortmund were hugely disappointing, failing to qualify to the Second Round and actually finishing in last place. Dinamo Bucharest finished third and was also knocked out.

[abulezz]

Bromley February Update 2016/2017











Overview

Our first match of the month was against struggling Swindon, and I was expecting to come away with three points even though we were playing at their ground. Andy Dixon, my 20 year second choice keeper (and Bromley youth product), spoke to me in January about wanting to be more involved in the first team, so I had given him the past few starts. He was to have another go today, possibly his last in this stretch before starting our first choice goalkeeper Rafaele Di Gennaro again, and he did not disappoint, although the rest of the team. While Dixon won the MotM for his performance, the rest of the team failed miserably, and we ended up drawing 0-0. The fact that our GK won the MotM was a telling sign on how the game went, with chance after chance being wasted by our opponents. Bluntly said, we were terrible and I let my squad know it. We were lucky to come away with a point when we deserved to lose.

We did not play any better at home against Charlton, drawing 0-0 while showing no initiative or ambition. It just seemed the last couple of matches that the players were tuned off, and there was no urgency. The draw sent us down to 3rd Place, three points behind Sunderland, who had overtaken us. I kept Andy Dixon in goal for one more match, and he earned his second clean sheet in four matches. I felt it was time for a team meeting – somehow, one wrong response led to another, and we finalized the meeting with a grand total of zero good reactions and a mind-boggling TWENTY-SIX negative reactions! Oh boy…

Up next we had another home again, this time against 18th Place Wigan. They were in terrible form, having lost their last five games, and this seemed like the perfect game for us to regain our confidence and undo the damage I had done in our last team meeting. That is exactly what happened as we ran 4-0 winners, with Lovro Scrbec scoring a brace for us. Steven Saunders picked up yet another injury, ruling himself out of competition for six weeks with a groin strain, but it was still an exciting day. We were still in 3rd Place, yes, and still three points behind Sunderland, but we were a safe nine points ahead of Peterborough, who were in 4th Place. Just after the match, I sat with Ebby Harwood’s agent and offered the player a new contract, ending in 2020, for £2,000 a week. He thoroughly deserved it.

Blackpool was our next opponents – they were 15th Place, so I did not think it was unreasonable to expect us to beat them, even if it was away from home. I decided to keep young Dixon in goal, as he was in top form. What followed was possibly the worst half of football I had ever seen from my team. How we only went into halftime down 1-0 is beyond me, but we were awful. We did not have a single meaningful chance on goal, and spent the entire half desperately trying to contain onslaught after onslaught. The second half, however, we seemed to pull together, and even though Blackpool remained the better team, they had no answer for our counter-attacks. Twice we caught them, and twice we scored. Our captain, Elliot Law, put the match away with a late penalty kick, and we somehow won the match 3-1. Go figure.

We ended the month going away to Norwich, and I was happy to come away with a 2-2 draw at Carrow Road. Musah picked up yet another injury, however, twisting his knee and getting ruled out for another month. It was very frustrating, as he has been our main attacking threat, but such was life as a manager. We were still in 3rd Place, but only goal difference separated us from Sunderland in 2nd Place, and we were just three points off of Reading at the top of the table. By contrast, we had built a ten point lead on Peterborough, who were in 4th Place.

For the upcoming month, I was looking for more of the same from the squad. We have six games, and we need gain at least 12 points. We finish off march with a huge home game against Sunderland, so we need to make sure we stay in the picture up till then.

Football News

February 26th, 2017: Blackburn Rovers were finally bought today by a consortium led by Graham Baker, replacing former owner and chairman Anuradha Desai. Baker said in his statement the group had big plans for the club much sooner than later, hinting at possible investments into the club. The club is currently in 10th Place in the Championship and are managed by David Moyes.

[deltablue]

Hang in there, looks tight.

[noikeee]

C'mon Brom in the Prem! Any other thread I'd mention failing to get promotion could be a blessing in disguise as your side really isn't fully ready, but at your amazing rate of progress can't picture you suddenly getting caught out in a relegation battle, even with tiny Bromley in the huge Premiership.

Interesting African Cup of Nations, nice to see Burkina Faso coming good under the helm of Paulo Duarte.

[City2000]

Certainly does look like a tight nervy finish on the cards, good luck!

[CityAndColour]

Burkina Faso used to produce incredible newgens for me on FM11.

[abulezz]

C'mon Brom in the Prem! Any other thread I'd mention failing to get promotion could be a blessing in disguise as your side really isn't fully ready, but at your amazing rate of progress can't picture you suddenly getting caught out in a relegation battle, even with tiny Bromley in the huge Premiership.

Interesting African Cup of Nations, nice to see Burkina Faso coming good under the helm of Paulo Duarte.

Certainly does look like a tight nervy finish on the cards, good luck!

Burkina Faso used to produce incredible newgens for me on FM11.

Hang in there, looks tight.

Thanks guys! My team just wont let up - its fantastic! They refuse to lose, and it seems to me that the Premiership dream is just a few short weeks away! I just want to point out that there has been no cheating or "lose and reload" tactics, no editors or editing of any kind, or importing of any type of tactics or training - Ive done everything manually. There has been a couple of occasions Ive given my Ass Man a chance (holidayed for a day), but they have been very winnable cup ties, nothing major. So in light of that - GO BROMLEY! I believe in my boys, theyve been superb

Burkina Faso continue to develop quickly, and theyve got some world class defenders coming through their ranks.

[h0rn3r]

MASSIVE month coming up!! Cardiff, Peter'boro & Sunderland....make or break time. Good look pal.

[abulezz]

MASSIVE month coming up!! Cardiff, Peter'boro & Sunderland....make or break time. Good look pal.

Well, we've already beaten cardiff and Peterborough, so we've gotten ourselves to a good start

[abulezz]

Youth Intake 2017

The youth intake is in for the season, and I think this is my best crop yet. Kieran Holland (5*) is a gem at right back – he’s going to be special. Kevin Long currently occupies the spot, and has proven to be quite capable, but Holland will certainly be given chances and the opportunity to develop.

All the 4.5* look to be capable players, although I don’t see anyone of them turning out to be a bonafide star. Matt Saunders looks to be the best of that bunch, but he is also a right back, so he might find chances limited behind Long and Holland. Looking at his attributes, I will be looking to retrain him into a central defender, where he will be of more use. Charalobos Misailidis (half Greek) is 6’8 (!!), and looks to be quite capable of becoming a squad player. His aerial ability is already fantastic, and he should get some runs in cup ties and what not. Finally, there is GK Garry Walters – I don’t see him ever developing into a starting GK for us, but he could prove to be quite a capable backup. Sudanese GK Noureldin Al-Mahi gets a 4.5* but I don’t really see it.

There is one more intriguing prospect – my backroom don’t seem to be big fans, but Aboobakar Boodhun of Mauritius looks to me like he could develop into something useful. I will offer him a contract and give him some runs, and hopefully, my instinct will prove correct!

[ShyBaldBuddhist]

Going great guns there. keep it up.

Holland is definitely a star in the making there. Already has excellent attributes for his age and that 20 for determination will help him to progress. Hope you get him tied down on a long term deal.

[deltablue]

Great batch of youngsters.

[abulezz]

CHAMPIONS CUP 2016/2017



Second Round

Tottenham vs. Barcelona (5-1)

First Leg – White Hart Lane, London (Att: 36,310): This was a rematch of the 2016 Finals, with Tottenham looking to exact revenge on Barcelona for beating them, which was exactly what they did. Tottenham came out 4-0 winners in an epic match, handing the defending champions one of their worst defeats in recent memory. Edison Cavani, the Champions League’s Best Player in 2016, hit an outstanding hat-trick, with Gareth Bale contributing a goal and two assists. The latter won the MotM with a 9.9 AR, playing the perfect game, and Barcelona were left dumbfounded over what had happened. They were going to need a small miracle at the Nou Camp to turn this tie around.
Tottenham: 4 (Cavani (3), Bale)
Barcelona: 0

Second Leg – Nou Camp, Barcelona (Att: 86,586): After Tottenham’s spectacular victory in London and Barcelona’s struggles on the domestic front, there was a lot of talk about the “Era of Barcelona” coming to end. This match only further fueled that talk, and it became the first time the team did not make the Semi-Finals in seven years. Not only did they lose the tie, but they could not even gather themselves to win at home, drawing 1-1. Cavani scored his 6th goal of the campaign, and despite his MotM performance, Lionel Messi could not carry his team this time around.
Barcelona: 1 (Messi)
Tottenham: 1 (Cavani)





Trabzonspor vs. Arsenal (1-6)

First Leg – Huseyin Avni Aker, Trabzon (Att: 25,249): The Turkish champions, playing at home, were no match for Arsenal, as the English club ran out 3-1 winners in a match that they dominated. Jack Wilshere captured the MotM, scoring a brace and recording a 9.6 AR. Arsenal were widely expected to ease through this tie, and did nothing to dispel those expectations.
Trabzonspor: 1 (Del Valle)
Arsenal: 3 (Wilshere (2), Hernandez)

Second Leg – Emirates Stadium, London (Att: 59,535): It was another good performance by Arsenal, with another goal by Wilshere. This time, however, Aaron Ramsey won the MotM, scoring a goal, as well. Trabzonspor were, again, unimpressive – they simply were no match for Arsenal’s skill and talent.
Arsenal: 3 (Wilshere, Hernandez, Ramsey)
Trabzonspor: 0




Sampdoria vs. Manchester City (4-2)

First Leg – Luigi Ferraris, Genoa (Att: 36,348): Surprisingly, the English Premier League champions, Manchester City, were the second best team in this match, as Sampdoria won 2-1 at home, playing a more solid game than their opponents. In fact, it was a Hulk 86th minute goal that saved the English their blushes, after Sampdoria had taken a two goal lead. South Korean striker Ji Dong-Won won the MotM, having scored the Italians’ second goal and generally giving the Man City defense all game.
Sampdoria: 2 (Pozzi, Ji Dong-Won)
Manchester City: 1 (Hulk)

Second Leg – City of Manchester Stadium, Manchester (Att:47,405): This was Alan Shearer’s last game in charge, and the one that was considered the final straw, as Manchester City lost at home against the Italians 2-1. Shortly after the match, Man City announced the sacking of the manager that had led them to the Premier League title in 2016. The current English champions looked completely uninspired, and even the goalscorer Ezequiel Lavezzi looked like he had done so by mistake. The MotM was Sampdoria’s Romanian midfielder Alexandru Chipciu, who had 2 assists and an 8.5 AR.
Manchester City: 1 (Lavezzi)
Sampdoria: 2 (Pozzi, Klose)




Villareal vs. Bayern Munich (2-4)

First Leg – El Madrigal, Villareal (Att: 23,000): Bayern Munich have not had the best of decades, and in fact, had not the German Bundesliga since 2010. They had advanced to the Quarter-Finals of the tournament once since reaching the Finals in 2010, in 2012, and had not gotten out of the Group Stages since then. This season, however, it seemed they meant business, defeating Villareal in Spain 2-0 in a most convincing manner. Albin Ekdal took the MotM, delivering an assist and scoring a goal. Villareal, who had done well in the domestic league in 2015/16 finishing 2nd Place to Barcelona, were currently in 3rd Place, but they were no match for the Germans – they would face an extremely tough game in Munich, one that was not likely to end well for them given their performance on this day.
Villareal: 0
Bayern Munich: 2 (Ideye, Ekdal)

Second Leg – Allianz Arena, Munich (Att: 63,825): Villareal put up a good fight in Germany, but the talent Bayern Munich have at their disposal was too much for the Spanish club to handle. The game ended in a 2-2 draw, and the Germans comfortably advanced to the Quarter-Finals. Kevin Strootman was the MotM, recording an assist and a 7.9 AR.
Bayern Munich: 2 (Muller, Kroos)
Villareal: 2 (Heung-Min, Johansen)




Porto vs. Lyonnais (4-3)

First Leg – Estadio Do Dragao, Porto (Att: 50,948): The Portuguese league Runners-Up had not gotten to this stage in the Champions League in three years, and were ready to challenge Lyonnais for the right to participate in the Quarter-Finals. Italian striker Fabio Borini hit an outstanding hat-trick as the home squad defeated the French 4-2, despite the match itself being relatively even. Borini took the MotM in what was a very entertaining matchup in Porto.
Porto: 4 (Borini (3), Jonsson)
Lyonnais: 2 (Belfodil, Kleber)

Second Leg – Stade de Lumieres, Lyon (Att: 61,556): Despite playing a fine game at home, Lyonnais were sent packing the Second Round by underdogs Porto after only managing to win 1-0, with Garry Bocaly scoring the only goal of the game. Porto did not look anything like the team that scored four goals in Portugal, playing uninventive and lacking any real urgency. Neuton, Lyonnais’ Brazilian defender, won the MotM.
Lyonnais: 1 (Bocaly)
Porto: 0





PAOK vs. Manchester United (0-6)

First Leg – Toumba, Salonika (Att: 28,701): Manchester United were not the team that had reached four Champions League Finals in five times in seven years from 2008 to 2014, but they were still one of Europe’s top sides. PAOK were newcomers at this stage in recent times, and it showed, as Man Utd came out 4-0 winners in Greece. Youngster Joaquim Sousa hit a brace, while [b]Eden Hazard captured the MotM, scoring a goal and recording an 8.8 AR.
PAOK: 0
Manchester United: 4 (Sousa, Rafael, Hazard)

Second Leg – Old Trafford, Manchester (84,333): After a comfortable win in Greece, Manchester United took their foot of the gas at home and still ran out 2-0 winners. Javier Hernandez, continuously one of the top scorers in the competition season after season, nailed a brace to give his squad the victory. He was also the MotM as Man Utd qualified to the Quarter-Finals.
Manchester United: 2 (Hernandez (2) )
PAOK: 0







CSKA Moscow vs. Marseille (2-0)

First Leg – CSKA-Peschanoye, Moscow (Att: 35,000): Marseille had been one of the most impressive teams the past couple of years in the Champions League, advancing to the Semi-Finals in 2016 before losing to eventual champions, Barcelona. It was not their day in Russia, however, as CSKA Moscow, led by club legend Vagner Love, defeated them convincingly 2-0. It was not an entertaining match, with relatively few chances, but Moscow will be happy with the end result. Their midfielder Sekou Oliseh won the MotM.
CSKA Moscow: 2 (Love, Rat)
Marseille: 0

Second Leg – Stade Velodrome, Marseille (Att: 60,650): CSKA Moscow redefined the meaning of buckling down and playing with a ten man defense, doing it to perfection against Marseille in France in the second leg of this tie. The French had 15 shots compared to Moscow’s 2 shots, but they barely threatened Akinfeev’s goal. The end result was a 0-0 draw, much to Marseille’s frustration, with defender Willy Boly winning the MotM for CSKA Moscow.
Marseille: 0
CSKA Moscow: 0




Real Madrid vs. Inter Milan (4-1)

First Leg – San Siro, Milan (Att: 80,018): The Serie A champions had done some shopping in the January window and had reinforced their squad, but it was Real Madrid, through a Fabio Coentrao goal, who took the victory 1-0 in this tightly contested affair. Inter were very disappointing, failing to score a single goal at home, while Sergio Ramos took home the MotM award after getting an assist and recording an 8.7 AR.
Inter Milan: 0
Real Madrid: 1 (Coentrao)

Second Leg – Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid (Att: 74,730): The biggest matchup of the Second Round did not end up living up to its billing, as Real Madrid ran out 3-1 winners over Inter Milan, thanks to Gonzalo Higuan scoring a brace. Inter Milan, as they were at home, were disappointing, failing to threaten Madrid. The MotM was Higuan, who was glad to have delivered such a fine performance in the midst of a very disappointing personal season.
Real Madrid: 3 (Higuan (2), Ronaldo)
Inter Milan: 1 (Doumbia)

[abulezz]

Bromley March Update 2016/2017











Overview

To start the month off, we had three games in seven days – two straight home games against Watford and Blackburn, and an away game to Cardiff. We pulled off a great result against Watford, beating them 2-0, but by the time the Blackburn game came around, my team’s physical condition was not the best. We had an answer from the heavens, however – the game was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch at Hayes Lane, and the match was pushed for further this month. This left us away to Cardiff a few days later, and despite a tough game, we managed to come away with a 2-1 victory. We had not lost in the Championship in thirteen games, and were three points behind Reading for the top spot, but with a game at hand.

We faced Peterborough next, who were in 4th Place fighting to keep their playoff place. It was a very tight match, but we managed to pull off a 1-0 victory in front of the home fans. We were not able to repeat that feat against Blackburn, however – to our disappointment, we only managed a 0-0 draw, meaning we had to try and get points away to Hull, not the easiest of feats. I called up my new youth academy signing Kieran Holland and named him to the bench. We fought hard and strong, and in the second half, Elliot Law found the net for us, as he had done all season in tight situations. Holland made his debut, and the plan is to bring him in as often as possible in order to help aid his development. The win put us in First Place, three points ahead of Reading, with just eight more games to go.

The game against Sunderland was the last of the month, and one of our most important matches this season. We needed a good result, not only to keep us in First Place, but to also put further distance between us and our opponents, who were in 3rd Place. Our captain Elliot Law again delivered an important goal to give us a 2-0 victory, even though Lovro Scrbec got injured with a twisted knee, ruling him out for five weeks. Emmanuel Musah made his comeback, as well, coming on as a substitute for the injured Scrbec. Lose one striker, gain another, it seems. The important thing was, however, we pulled off a victory that made us that much closer to an automatic promotion to the Premier League.

We now have at least a play-off spot confirmed, but I need that automatic promotion! That’s the aim, and given how many points are between us and Sunderland in 3rd Place, we have a great chance of achieving that. We’ve got a rough schedule in April, including a big match against Reading at home. That could be the match that wins it for us or sees us in 2nd Place (hopefully we will not fall past that!)

Football News

Manchester City finally sacked Alan Shearer today, March 7th, after slipping to 5th Place in the Premier League. Shearer led the club to their first title in 48 years in 2016, but fell out of favor with the owners after a slow start to the season. Shearer is the current Premier League Manager of the Year, and his sacking has been met with criticism for not giving him enough time to turn his team around after achieving the goal set out for him last season. His last game in charge was a home loss to Sampdoria which knocked them out of the Champions League, and was widely considered the last straw by the owners.

In an previously odd twist that has become all too common, Arsenal manager Andre Villas-Boas announced his resignation from the club and joined Manchester City as their new manager, getting paid a ridiculous £70,000 a week. Just three days after that, on March 17th, Arsenal announced Alan Shearer as their new manager – the teams effectively swapped managers.

[deltablue]

Yes!!!! Automatic promotion almost assured now.

[abulezz]

Yes!!!! Automatic promotion almost assured now.

Yes indeed I can almost taste it!

In other news:

Everton Takeover Completed

[abulezz]

[deltablue]

Awesome, the Premier League awaits, you'll probably win it in a couple of years.

[ArsenalMetro]

Great promotion! Best of luck in the Premier League.

[abulezz]

Awesome, the Premier League awaits, you'll probably win it in a couple of years.

Great promotion! Best of luck in the Premier League.

Thanks! I highly doubt I'll win the Premiership in a couple of years - with all the high spenders, its a very tough league to crack even the Top Six. Its been a fntastic ride though - Five Promotions in Six years!

[City2000]

And there was me thinking at the start of the season you would end up in the playoffs, happy to be wrong

[abulezz]

[ShyBaldBuddhist]

Brilliant news. I think you'll suprise a few teams and be quite competitive next year.

[abulezz]

And there was me thinking at the start of the season you would end up in the playoffs, happy to be wrong

Brilliant news. I think you'll suprise a few teams and be quite competitive next year.

Thanks! Its been a greaat season - Im desperate to stay up in the Premier League once I finally do get there

[abulezz]

CHAMPIONS CUP 2016/2017




QUARTER-FINALS

CSKA Moscow vs. Sampdoria (3-2)

First Leg – CSKA-Peschanoye, Moscow (Att: 35,000): The Russians’ defense was at it again, not allowing their opponents a single goal in the first leg. Sampdoria certainly did not lack the effort, but CSKA Moscow’s defense has proven to be one of the stingiest in the competition this season. They scored two goals of their own, with Vagner Love securing the MotM for his performance up front.
CSKA Moscow: 2 (Ponedelnik, Necid)
Sampdoria: 0

Second Leg – Luigi Ferraris, Genoa (Att: 36,348): Moscow struck first through their young striker Nikolay Ponedelnik, leaving Sampdoria having to score four goals in order to win. It was a feat too large, as they only got halfway – they won the match 2-1, but lost the tie, as CSKA Moscow made its second ever trip to the Semi-Finals (the first was in 2013, when they lost to Barcelona in the Finals).
Sampdoria: 2 (de Jong, Dong-Won)
CSKA Moscow: 1 (Ponedelnik)





Porto vs. Tottenham (2-3)

First Leg – Estadio Do Dragao, Porto (Att: 50,948): This was not an entertaining game by any stretch, and the only goal of the game was gifted to Porto by Tottenham’s defender Dedryk Boyata through an own goal. Tottenham especially would be very disappointed with their performance and lack of ingenuity – a total of nine shots between both teams were taken, and only three were on target. Such was the dullness of this first leg.
Porto: 1 (Boyata O.G.)
Tottenham: 0

Second Leg – White Hart Lane, London (Att: 36,310): This was another drab affair that did not find any excitement until extra-time, when those thirty minutes made up for the one hundred and eighty minutes before it. Gareth Bale scored in normal time, and the match went into extra-time, where Tim Matavz scored in the 108th minute, seemingly giving Tottenham the victory. However, in the 118th minute, Tom Huddlestone scored an own goal, which meant Porto was going through. Frantically, Tottenham pushed forward, and they broke through in the dying seconds of the game, again through Matavz, who nailed his second goal and pushed Tottenham through to the Semi-Finals in heartbreaking fashion for Porto.
Tottenham: 3 (Matavz (2), Bale)
Porto: 1 (Huddlestone O.G.)




Arsenal vs. Manchester United (2-0)

First Leg – Emirates Stadium, London (Att: 60,631): The All English Quarter-Finals matchup was a mouth-watering draw, but it failed to live up to expectations, ending in a 0-0 draw in London. Arsenal GK Wojciech Szczesny won the MotM – without his heroics, Arsenal would have surely lost to their rivals at home.
Arsenal: 0
Manchester United: 0

Second Leg – Old Trafford, Manchester (Att: 94,746): They did not perform at home, but Arsenal managed to outplay and outhustle their rivals in Manchester, winning the match 2-0 and advancing to the Semi-Finals at their expense. Manchester United were expected to win this match, and considering they were First in the Premier League, many thought of them as the better team. However, Arsenal had other plans, and Abel Hernandez won the MotM, scoring a goal in the process.
Manchester United: 0
Arsenal: 2 (Hernandez, Chamakh)




Bayern Munich vs. Real Madrid (1-4)

First Leg – Allianz Arena, Munich (Att: 66,000): The biggest tie of the Quarter-Finals promised much, but failed to deliver in its first leg, with the match ending 0-0 in Munich. The German club, who are close to sealing the Bundesliga, were saved by their GK Manuel Neuer, who won the MotM for his performance. Real Madrid returned to Spain having held their opponents to zero goals at home.
Bayern Munich: 0
Real Madrid: 0

Second Leg – Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid (Att: 74,730): This was more like it, although Bayern Munich would disagree. Real Madrid, who look set to win the La Liga title this year, dominated this game from start to finish, ending with a 4-1 victory that propelled them to the Semi-Finals for the first time since 2014. Angel Di Maria played a fantastic game, scoring a brace and collecting the MotM – at the other end, Bayern Munich simply had no answer to Real Madrid.
Real Madrid: 4 (Di Maria (2), Higuan, Ozil)
Bayern Munich: 1 (Ideye)

SEMI-FINALS

Real Madrid vs. Arsenal (5-1)

First Leg – Emirates Stadium, London (Att: 60,361): These two teams faced each other in 2015 in the Second Round, when Real Madrid were defending champions. It was Arsenal who knocked them out, thanks mostly to a 3-0 victory in London. This season, Arsenal had yet to lose a single match, and had only conceded 4 goals in their 10 matches. Abel Hernandez had scored 6 goals in 8 appearances, and, along with Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere, they were the team’s best performers. Real Madrid had lost two matches, but in the Group Stages, but had convincingly overcame Inter Milan and Bayern Munich on their way to the Semi-Finals. Cristiano Ronaldo, again, was their best performer, and they have had solid contributions from captain Iker Casillas as well.

An exciting first half came to a climactic finish when Mesut Ozil converted a beautiful free kick, giving Real Madrid the lead heading into the second half. It took just six minutes into the second half for Marouane Chamakh to equalize the match, but thirteen minutes later, Gonzalo Higuan gave his squad the lead again. The match was put beyond any doubt when Nicolas Nkoulou scored a screamer from outside the box, giving Real Madrid a 3-1 victory, putting one foot in the door for the 2014 Champions League winners. Arsenal were extremely wasteful, and paid the price. Despite losing, Chamakh’s performance earned him the MotM, but sadly for them, he was the only bright spot on the team.
Arsenal: 1 (Chamakh)
Real Madrid: 3 (Ozil, Higuan, Nkoulou)

Second Leg – Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid (Att: 74,730): In truth, after the result in London, this tie was over before the second leg had begun, and nothing changed after it was done. Real Madrid came away 2-0 winners thanks to a Gonzalo Higuan brace, giving him 6 goals total in the competition. Real Madrid were headed to the Finals in hopes of recapturing the Champions League title as they did in 2014.
Real Madrid: 2 (Higuan (2) )
Arsenal: 0




Tottenham vs. CSKA Moscow (2-1)

First Leg – White Hart Lane, London (Att: 36,310): The beaten Finalists last year went into this match missing two of their most important players – Gareth Bale was injured and was possibly out of the second leg as well, while Salomon Rondon was serving a suspension. They had not been very impressive during this run, but had somehow found themselves in the Semi-Finals thanks to the brilliance of Edison Cavani, who had scored 6 goals in 9 games, as well as the missing players. For CSKA Moscow, who made the Finals in 2013, their path had been slightly less dramatic, but were a surprising addition to this stage, nonetheless. Nikolay Ponedelnik was their leading goalscorer, and GK Igor Akinfeev and club legend Vagner Love were both amongst the mai contributors.

It took exactly 20 seconds for Cavani to find his 7th goal of the tournament, giving Tottenham a dream start in front of their home fans. Just 14 minutes afterwards, he converted his second goal off of Youssef Msakni cross, and Tottenham had a 2-0 lead in the first fifteen minutes. That is the way the first half ended, but the English club were clearly the better team going into the second half. The last forty-five minutes of the game came with plenty of chances and exciting football, but there were no more goals to be had. Cavani finished as MotM thanks to his fantastic brace.
Tottenham: 2 (Cavani (2) )
CSKA Moscow: 0

Second Leg – CSKA Peschanoye, Moscow (Att: 35,000): There was no goals conceded early in the match by CSKA Moscow this time around, but they also could not find the net themselves in the first half. It was not from a lack of chances, but more because of some great goalkeeping by Fernando Muslera. Cavani did not have a good half, and was very much contained by the Moscow defense. In the second half, with time slowly disappearing, Vagner Love converted a superb cross into Moscow’s first goal in the 66th minute. They needed just one more goal to even up the score with Tottenham. At the end, despite being wasteful up front and shaky in the back, Tottenham held on to win on aggregate, advancing to their second consecutive Finals in a row.
CSKA Moscow: 1 (Love)
Tottenham: 0

[abulezz]

FC Lorient Takeover Completed

FC Lorient was bought by Mercel Le Mentec in an internal takeover today, May 6th, 2017, ending the acquisition saga that had started more than six months ago when Mentec attempted to buy the club the second time. Before that, Mentec had attempted to buy the club from Loic Ferry in late 2015, but the two could not come to an agreement. Two other buyers tried but could not come to terms with Ferry between Mentec's first and second attempts in 2016, and in August 2015, there was yet another buyer who could not agree with Ferry on the specifics.

Now that the club has put nearly two years of chaos behind it, the hope is Mentec will be able to guide the club further than its mid-table mediocrity. The current manager is Jean Louis Garcia, who has been at the club for just over six months. The club is currently worth £16,500,000.

[abulezz]

Bromley April Update 2016/2017




(Charlton, Swindon, and Preston were relegated)


Overview

Crystal Palace were one of the worst teams in the league, while we currently were on top of it, so naturally, we got totally dominated and lost the match 3-0. It was just painful to watch – we couldn’t put two passes together, and we got run over down the wings over and over again all game long. This just made our upcoming match against Reading that much more important. The match was the debut of youth academy product Aboobakar Boodhun – he did alright, nothing spectacular, but he was not the worst player on the field.

We lined up against Leicester at home next, and we came away with a 1-0 victory, bringing us closer to our dream of the playing in the Premier League next season. It was not without a big price, however, with Raffaele Di Gennaro straining his knee ligaments, ruling him out for three months, and the rest of the season. Andy Dixon would be our starting goalkeeper for the final stretch of the season. He did not fail, and in our biggest game of the season, Dixon won the MotM in our 1-0 home victory against Reading. Musah scored the only goal of the game, and it put us seven points ahead of our opponents with four games to go. Most importantly, however, the three points we gained qualified us for automatic promotion to the Premier League! Our incredible season was drawing to an incredible close, and not only were we about to head to the Premier League automatically, but we were going to do so as champions of the Championship!

Nottingham Forest was next, and we were still riding the wave of excitement knowing Premier League football awaited us next season, scoring three games, with Musah grabbing a brace. However, we also conceded three, which left us with a 3-3 draw. However, at home to Preston, the team did awful – it seemed just because we sealed our promotion, they took their foot of the gas and no longer felt the need to try to win. We drew 1-1, but young Holland, my star youth intake right back, showed his immaturity and grabbed a straight red card in the dying seconds of the match. Reading were now only three points behind us with two games to go.

We sealed the npower Championship title at Bolton, defeating them 2-1 in a match where we were clearly the superior team. They had a late consolation goal, but through the game, we were better. Not only did we fight our way to automatic promotion, but we did so in style, winning the league along the way. This was an amazing feat – I honestly thought, looking at my team at the beginning of the season, we would be good for another mid-table finish, but the development of the boys, I think, played a big part in leading to such a successful season. We finished off the season with a 1-1 draw against Ipswich at home, but I was not too concerned. Let the Premier League party begin!

[City2000]

That table really makes great reading

Looking forward to seeing what you do with your squad over the summer to prepare for life with the big boys.

[abulezz]

That table really makes great reading

Looking forward to seeing what you do with your squad over the summer to prepare for life with the big boys.

The squad is going to need heavy work - board permitting, ofcourse. They made my job he last summer, Im hoping they wont do the same again!

[abulezz]

Rayo Takeover Completed

May 19th, 2017: The ownership of Rayo Vallencano changed hands today, with Pablo Sanchez Paniagua, a local businessman, acquiring the club from Raul Martin Presa. The transaction went through without too many issues, and was resolved in a reasonably quick manner. The Madrid club was relegated from the Spanish Primera Liga in 2013, but under manager Paco Herrera, managed to win promotion in 2015. They have been in the La Liga since, finishing in 17th Place twice in a row.

The club is currently estimated to be worth £16,500,000, but has a loan debt of £14,500,000. Its finances are known to be secure under the new ownership.