Tomtuck's First FM Career Adventure

[tomtuck01]

An Apology

I'd just like to take a moment to say sorry to those of you who have PM'ed asking about updates. I've been quite busy over the last few days, and have also been concerntrating on a thread i have posted in the Tactics Forum.

Normality should return by the weekend.

[cerud]

No worries Love the career and look forward to you continuing when you're able to.

[tomtuck01]

Thomas Lewis' Career - Preseason - 2021/22 - Manchester City

Transfers



This summer did see us cut back massively on the transfer spending. Over the last three years millions has been spent overhauling the squad, and before this summer the club had a net transfer spend of £208million during my first three years at the club. This time around there was no need. I feel a squad has been built that can really win the prize we covert most; the European Cup.

In fact had we not made such a huge investment on youngster Gregg Morton, then we would actually made a profit of over £10million this summer!

Of the players that were sold, a couple I wouldn't have minded keeping around; Martin Trgovcevic and Yoann Le Moal. With Trgovcevic it was a simple decision; he had a year left on his deal and was wanting to increase his wages from £55,000 p/w to £135,000 p/w. No chance of that, and his agent wouldn't go lower than £100,000. Transfer listed, and bye bye. With Le Moal it was harder. He wasn't a great player but could always be relied upon to perform in either fullback spot when a first choice was missing. However, Deportivo said "name your price", and when they actually came back with the offer I decided it was too good to turn down for a back-up player.

Vladimir Markovic
What a player this man looks like - at only 21 he is fanatastic already and has 4* potential. The fee was rather sizeable, but only £2.5million of it was upfront, with the rest being spread over 48 months.

Danny Welbeck
He was superb for us last term after joining on loan for the second half of the season. He was reliable for me with both Swansea and England, and although he won't be first choice here, I'm sure he can make a decent little contribution.

Hugh Durrant
For such a good young player I'm surpried he was available so cheap. He has good technical stats and some decent mentals, and with the right training and tutoring could reach his 3 and 1/2* potential.

Marco Passaretti
Another with 3 and 1/2* potential. Dosen't look great going foward, but defensively looks very solid. A few games here and there will certainly aid his development.

Necati Yildiz
Wow. I only noticed him when I started looking around for a striker when Trgovcevic, and amazingly he was leaving Barcelona on a bosman. Easily my best bit of business of the summer.

Mattia Arcari
A very good find. He's got 3* potential, meaning he can be a handy player for us. A bargain at £2.5million.

Luis Maciel
Looks excellent for one so young. The fee was just compensation, and he has years to develop. He'll spend this season at feeder club Swindon.

GreggMorton
He has cost an absolute fortune, (£19.5million rising to £24.million), but what a player this boy could be. He has 4* potential, and in my opinion i the future of this club.

Alot of good buiness ver this summer. In terms of players who could have left the club this summer but were given new ne year contracts, there is Vincent Kompany (35) and Scott Sinclair (32). Bother are only listed as "back-up" players, but even at their respected ages they are good back-up.


Lef tof the squad list are a few who are in the reserves and are very unlikely to get any frist team action this season for various reasons; Mattia Acari, Marco Pasaretti, Junior Cearense, Hugh Durrant, (all need to develop a bit), and Josh McEachran (unwanted).

Yes the squad is big, but there are alot of players in it who are in the teens/early twenties who are there for the experience.

[tomtuck01]

Preseason 2021/22 Continued

Preseason Friendlies



Some good workouts for the boys, with many of the games not actually quite as easy as they look as I tried out some different things with my new formation. The Hearts game was to do with the fact that we had the Community Shield against Spurs three days later, and I rested the side we were going to start with in that game.

Community Shield



Not a great performance, despite what the 3-0 scoreline suggets. We'll need to do much better when the season kicks off if we want to win a fourth title in a row, nevermind conquer Europe.

Time to crack on with the league campaign, and first up is a trip to Wolves.

[Lenzar]

How do Hart's attributes look like in 2021?

Is he still England #1?

[tomtuck01]

How do Hart's attributes look like in 2021?

Is he still England #1?

He isn't England goalkeeper anymore - retiring from international duty in 2020 i think.

I'll check for certain later and post a screenie when i'm home from work.

[SRL88]

Necati Yildiz .

[JackJCFC]

Bought in some great players there. Preseason gone well too so you look set for a great start.

[tomtuck01]

Necati Yildiz .

He's easily my best free transfef on any FM for a long time.

Bought in some great players there. Preseason gone well too so you look set for a great start.

Cheer dude. Hopefully we can get a good lead built up so we can concerntrate on the Champions League.

[tomtuck01]

Thomas Lewis' Career - August 2021 - Manchester City

Premier League





A great start to the season for us, with three wins from three. We opened with a 3-0 win away at Wolves - a game we totally dominated and could have won by more had our finishing ben better. Spurs were next at home, and it was really as cmfortable as it looks. However, it was annoying that we couldn't open them up from open play - all three of our goals came from set pieces. The month ended with a comfortable win against newly promoted Huddersfield.

Next up is a trip to Everton.

[cerud]

Can't argue with that start!

[tomtuck01]

Can't argue with that start!

Well, we conceded a goal - something I loathe to do.

[tomtuck01]

Champions League Group Stage Draw

The poor showings from City in Europe before I took over have finally caught up with us, as this year we were relegated to the second set of seeds for the Champions League group stage draw.



In all honesty it could have been worse, and I would expect us to go through as group winners to be honest. On our day we're stronger than Milan.

[SRL88]

Not the easiest of groups on paper, but like you say, you should top it.

Excellent start in the league .

[Cleon]

Atleast you didn't get group H

[deltablue]

Just be glad it's not my Milan Definitely got a good chance of winning.

[tomtuck01]

Not the easiest of groups on paper, but like you say, you should top it.

Excellent start in the league .

I think Milan away is the nly game we really need to be concerned about, and that is the sixth group game so I would expect us to be through by then!

Atleast you didn't get group H

Indeed! Dortmund have just ended Bayern's winning Bundesliga title record, (they had won nine titles in a row until last term), and Juventus have become the first Italian side to win two Serie A titles in a row on my save. Crazy league!

Just be glad it's not my Milan Definitely got a good chance of winning.

Haha I definitely am! This Milan arent a patch on yours!

[SRL88]

Indeed! Dortmund have just ended Bayern's winning Bundesliga title record, (they had won nine titles in a row until last term), and Juventus have become the first Italian side to win two Serie A titles in a row on my save. Crazy league!

Pffft....and you said my save was boring .

[tomtuck01]

Pffft....and you said my save was boring .

It has very much been mirrored in Germany.

[tomtuck01]

Thomas Lewis' Career - September 2021 - Manchester City

Premier League





I can't complain about September really. A good win at Everton was followed up by a dominant performance against West Brom - though we couldn't finish and squaeaked through 1-0. After the international break we drew 0-0 at Chelsea, which despite their league position are always a tough match.

League Cup - 3rd Roound



A very performance, and what a way for Necati Yildiz to announce himself to the supporters. Hopefully it is a sign of things to come from him. In the next round we face Newcaste at the Etihad.

[tomtuck01]

September 2021 Continued

Champions League





A superb start to this seasons Champions League campaign sees us take pole position going into a double header against Anderlecht. Jason Malpass has also showed his quality in the early games - lets hope he can keep it up!

[B.W.G]

Good start to the season and relatively straight forward group in the CL.Good luck in your attempted conquest of the CL

[tomtuck01]

Good start to the season and relatively straight forward group in the CL.Good luck in your attempted conquest of the CL

Cheers dude. Hopefully it will be our year.

[cerud]

Great start to the Champions League

[tomtuck01]

Great start to the Champions League

Thanks alot. Hopefully we will be through before the return against Milan on matchday six.

[tomtuck01]

How do Hart's attributes look like in 2021?

Is he still England #1?

He isn't England goalkeeper anymore - retiring from international duty in 2020 i think.

I'll check for certain later and post a screenie when i'm home from work.

Sorry I forgot to post a screenie of him earlier; clicky!

As I thought, he did retire from international football after 2020 European Championhips.

[SRL88]

Cracking start in Europe .

[tomtuck01]

Cracking start in Europe .

Thank you muchly.

[tomtuck01]

Thomas Lewis' Career - October 2021 - Manchester City

Premier League





A really terrific month to be honest. It started with a god win against Lancashire rivals Bolton, with Necati Yildiz getting his firt league goal for the club. We followed that with two 1-0 wins in a row at Swansea and Newcastle. We may have had to rely on centre backs scoring, (and no, both of them werem't headers from corners), but winning 1-0 away from home is becoming a habit. We rounded off the month by tonking six past Leicester. Our lead at the top is now up to six points after United had a sloppy month.

The good form this month also saw me win the Manager Of The Month award, my first of the season. Up next is Arsenal at the Etihad, and then the Manchester derby at Old Trafford.

League Cup - 4th Round



Poor performance from the side. I rotated things and we were struggling, thankfully the regulars on the bench came on to get us through. Watford away in the quarter finals is our reward.

[tomtuck01]

October 2021 Continued

Champions League





Awful performance, and we were lucky to get away with a draw as Joe Hart had to pull off a great save in the last few minutes to keep it at 0-0. I expect better when they travel to the Etihad on matchday four.

[SRL88]

Another League Cup on the way?

Some nice results in the league to .

[tomtuck01]

Another League Cup on the way?

Some nice results in the league to .

Well I wouldn't mind equalling the record of four in a row.

[Akkarin]

Like SRL88's thread, this is also a stunning read... Love the look of Necati Yildiz, look like he could start firing any moment.

What's your long-term plan? Will you stay at City?

[tomtuck01]

Like SRL88's thread, this is also a stunning read... Love the look of Necati Yildiz, look like he could start firing any moment.

What's your long-term plan? Will you stay at City?

For starters, thank you for the kind of words. As I addressed in my opening post the idea for such a thread, and indeed save came after reading SRL88's magnificent thread - a friend of mine on the boards for sometime.

Long term? Well I don't know. I want to win the Champions League before leaving City, but I have also become far too attached to Jaon Malpass. I'm extremely tempted to stay with them just so I can remain manager of him. Sad I know, but I've nutured him for so long now I don't wan't to let him go!

[SRL88]

For starters, thank you for the kind of words. As I addressed in my opening post the idea for such a thread, and indeed save came after reading SRL88's magnificent thread - a friend of mine on the boards for sometime.

Long term? Well I don't know. I want to win the Champions League before leaving City, but I have also become far too attached to Jaon Malpass. I'm extremely tempted to stay with them just so I can remain manager of him. Sad I know, but I've nutured him for so long now I don't wan't to let him go!

The bold deserves a .

The second part is completely understandable. I half didnt want to resign from Liverpool just so I could continue to play Chris Ord until he broke our goalscoring record.

[buzz2k7]

Tom u have to let the baby bird out of the nest so it can spread its wings

[tomtuck01]

The second part is completely understandable. I half didnt want to resign from Liverpool just so I could continue to play Chris Ord until he broke our goalscoring record.

I suppose the difference is the word "our". In terms of the club, I have no interest in City whatsoever, it's purely Malpass who I'm interested in!

Tom u have to let the baby bird out of the nest so it can spread its wings

But I don't want to.

[tomtuck01]

Why does this always come up in mid-season when I'm in the middle of something!!

[cerud]

I can understand the attachment to a player, especially if he's grown up with the club. Tough to leave.

[SRL88]

But I don't want to.

But Sirrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr r, I dont want to .

I understand the annoyance at the Real link, but you have set your ambitions to win the Champions League with Man City. You have to achieve that first surely?

[tomtuck01]

I can understand the attachment to a player, especially if he's grown up with the club. Tough to leave.

Not even grown up with City - he started at United!

It's just I bought him at Swansea, nutured him into an internatinal legend with England, then spent ages getting him to City! I feel like he's mine.

[tomtuck01]

I understand the annoyance at the Real link, but you have set your ambitions to win the Champions League with Man City. You have to achieve that first surely?

Oh hell yeah.

Look back at my career; I never walk away from a job without achieving my objective.

[tomtuck01]

Thomas Lewis' Career - November 2021 - Manchester City

Premier League





Well before the month tarted I would have taken even points from thee three games, but after winning the first two I was a little disappointed not to round it off with a win againt Liverpool. If the win at home to Arsenal was excellent, then the win at Old Trafford was simply outstanding. We took the lead after just a minute, and then just stopped them from playing. We even missed a penalty, but it didn't matter in the end. The draw against Liverpol was harsh - we were very good, just suffered after poor finishing. Still, a good month and I'm delighted with the position we're in.

Next up in the league is a trip to Villa Park.

[tomtuck01]

November 2021 Continued

Champions League





A couple of solid wins have meant that we go into matchday six in Milan knowing a draw will mean we top the group. It wasn't great against Anderlecht, but we got the job done. And then against Galatasary a rotated side put in a good performance, with Necati Yildiz the star man against his countrymen.

[SRL88]

Cant be complaining at this stage. Going pretty much perfect really.

[tomtuck01]

Cant be complaining at this stage. Going pretty much perfect really.

Not complaining at all. I'm thrilled with how we've been going along this term.

[tomtuck01]

So after recently declining the opportunity to take over at Real Mardid, (I was offered a staggering transfer budget of £486million!!), I reached another milestone at City;



I could have gone to Madrid, but instead I'd rather be away at Wigan in the rain on Boxing Day.

[SRL88]

You would miss England if you went to Madrid at this stage of your career anyway .

[deltablue]

I could have gone to Madrid, but instead I'd rather be away at Wigan in the rain on Boxing Day.

Who wouldn't?

[tomtuck01]

You would miss England if you went to Madrid at this stage of your career anyway .

Oh without a doubt. I can't leave my homeland just yet.

Who wouldn't?

Haha quite so!

[tomtuck01]

Thomas Lewis' Career - December 2021 - Manchester City

Premier League





What an excellent month; six wins from six, fifteen goals scored, and just two conceded. We opened up with a tricky game at Villa, which we won very late thanks to Mr.Reliable. We follwed that up by crushing Fulham and then comfortably beating Watford. Over Christmas the schedule went crazy, but using the squad to its fullest, with came away with three wins, and some top performances from my old Swansea boys.

Super month, and our lead at the top was stretched to eight points.

League Cup - Quarter Finals



Comfortable win, which saw Neymar finally end his goal drought which went back all the way to August! Our opponents in the semi finals..........Manchester United.

[tomtuck01]

December 2021 Continued

Champions League





A good result, but I was a touch diappinted to concede an equalier so late in the day. Still, an excellent group phase from us. In the next round we have been drawn against CSKA Moscow, dodging a few potentially tricky sides.

[deltablue]

Good job winning the group.

[cerud]

NIce job winning the group. CSKA Moscow would be handled well by you too.

[Akkarin]

Turning down 486m? Respect! They should hand you a nice pay-rise! Unbeatable start to the season - really looks like you could do a clean sweep this season... Should have no troubles with CSKA

[chile_paul]

Good to see Swansea make it through the group stages - CSKA shouldn't cause you any problems

[cswalk08]

Great work! You could always go to another club and buy Malpass!

[SRL88]

Halfway through the season and unbeaten. Good job .

Also, a nice bit of luck in the Champions League draw. Avoiding the likes of PSG and Napoli always results in a good draw.

[JackJCFC]

Good work to win the group and go unbeaten. You've got a strong lead in the league too, clearly the right choice to turn down Real.

[tomtuck01]

Good job winning the group.

Thanking you.

NIce job winning the group. CSKA Moscow would be handled well by you too.

Cheers. I agree, it should be relatively comfortable.

Turning down 486m? Respect! They should hand you a nice pay-rise! Unbeatable start to the season - really looks like you could do a clean sweep this season... Should have no troubles with CSKA

Well I'm not bothered abot a payrise, just want the glory.

Good to see Swansea make it through the group stages - CSKA shouldn't cause you any problems

The Swans are propersing under Quique Flores - they're well in the mix to finish in the tp four again this term.

Great work! You could always go to another club and buy Malpass!

My only worry is that he would cost an absolute fortune.

Halfway through the season and unbeaten. Good job .

Also, a nice bit of luck in the Champions League draw. Avoiding the likes of PSG and Napoli always results in a good draw.

Thaks dude. And yeah I quite agree, PSG especially would have been a bit of a worry.

Good work to win the group and go unbeaten. You've got a strong lead in the league too, clearly the right choice to turn down Real.

I quite agree, not at all the right time to move just yet.

[tomtuck01]

Thomas Lewis' Career - January 2022 - Manchester City

Premier League





Not a bad month, but the defeat against Spurs could prove costly come the end of the season. Prior to that we put in a very good performance against Wolves, but against Spurs they simply matched us and got a bit of fortune when Mauro Vasquez bundled in an own goal. We bounced back though with a comfortable win at Hudderfield, before tearing Everton to pieces.

Next us is West Brom away from home.

FA Cup - 3rd And 4th Rounds



The Stockport game was hugely frutrating. We took the lead in the 9th minute, but then it took us until the 80th minute to grab the second. An annoying performance to say the least. The draw for the fourth round was massive, and the game didn't disappoint. We dominated possession, they had more chances - all in all a draw was the correct result, and nw we look forward to the repla at the Eithad.

[tomtuck01]

January 2022 Continued

League Cup - Semi Final



Not good enough in either leg. We now have to beat them in the FA Cup replay to resore pride across the city and keep our neighbours quiet.

Transfer Activity

Just one deal of any kind this winter, and it was a signing of a youngster from Germany;

Dirk Leschinski
Offered to me by his agent, he had become unhappy at Leverkusen and was available for just £1.8million. He's another very good young CB to add to the collection. He has just recently turned 19 and already looks decent and his 3* potential means he has a fair bit f improving to do yet.

[SRL88]

Blasted Spurs .

[tomtuck01]

Blasted Spurs .

Indeed! They're proving a thorn in my side!

[cswalk08]

Awww man. Great work other than that game though!

[Akkarin]

Tough going against Utd, and Spurs has actually out-scored you...! CL is going smoothly though.

Imagine how much glory you could buy for 486m! Fully supportive of rejecting RM though, you need to complete the project at Man City before moving on

[tomtuck01]

Awww man. Great work other than that game though!

Was hoping to go the league season unbeaten.

Tough going against Utd, and Spurs has actually out-scored you...! CL is going smoothly though.

Imagine how much glory you could buy for 486m! Fully supportive of rejecting RM though, you need to complete the project at Man City before moving on

I usually get out scored by two or three teams to be honest. I always make it a priority to be good at the back.

As for Real, then money never came into it, just like it didn't with City.

[JackJCFC]

Tough luck against Man United, its only the league cup though, you've got bigger fish to fry.

[tomtuck01]

Tough luck against Man United, its only the league cup though, you've got bigger fish to fry.

While that is true, it is still a bit disappointing - this will be my first club season since my year at Boston in which i haven't won the League Cup.

[B.W.G]

Doing very well in the league and looking good in Europe.Shame about the exit to Utd in the league but hope you beat them in the replay in the FA Cup.

[Reedy_1988]

Unlucky on not making the final of the Thomas Lewis Cup ;-)

[tomtuck01]

Doing very well in the league and looking good in Europe.Shame about the exit to Utd in the league but hope you beat them in the replay in the FA Cup.

Revenge must be ours after the poor showing in the League Cup.

Unlucky on not making the final of the Thomas Lewis Cup ;-)

If I'm at City next term I will make sure we win it!

[deltablue]

You should still go on and do the league.

[tomtuck01]

You should still go on and do the league.

Without a doubt. It would take a monumental collapse not to win it from here.

[DBurns]

Great career so far, didn't take too long rising to the top of the English leagues!

How long do you see yourself staying with City, and in England as well?

[CrD]

Great career you have here Tom, quick question though as I am interested in making a journeyman save, how long did it take you to get n 2021?

[tomtuck01]

Great career so far, didn't take too long rising to the top of the English leagues!

How long do you see yourself staying with City, and in England as well?

Thanks alot. I can't blieve how it's gone to be honest. Way back when I was Boston manager I was amazed to be offered the job at Swansea! I thank them for where I am now.

With City I just want to get the European Cup won. After that I'm sure where I'm going to head or what I want to do. As I have said already, there is the tempatation to stay at Cit because of Jason Malpass though.

[tomtuck01]

Great career you have here Tom, quick question though as I am interested in making a journeyman save, how long did it take you to get n 2021?

Thanks alot dude.

It has taken me a while - I started the save back in mid January! I suppose though it would depend on how you play the game. I personally take alot of time over training, and do most of the press conferences myself, etc. Whereas some people aren't that fussed about training, and send their assistant to do the press conferences/never reply to media stories.

[CrD]

Thanks alot dude.

It has taken me a while - I started the save back in mid January! I suppose though it would depend on how you play the game. I personally take alot of time over training, and do most of the press conferences myself, etc. Whereas some people aren't that fussed about training, and send their assistant to do the press conferences/never reply to media stories.

I'd won't to do it all myself like I usually do so by the sounds of it I would never get as far as you lol, Looking forward to your next update keep up the good work

[tomtuck01]

I'd won't to do it all myself like I usually do so by the sounds of it I would never get as far as you lol, Looking forward to your next update keep up the good work

It depends whether you feel you can stick it out or not. I mean there were times early on when I couldn't be bothered - like when I was unemployed for a few months after leaving Seoul, it was getting really frustrating.

But after I joined Boston after the short stint with Bristol Rovers, I was hooked, and from then on and I've never looked back.

[cerud]

Tough beat from Man Utd in the League Cup. Put them back in their place in the FA Cup! They can't have both

[tomtuck01]

Tough beat from Man Utd in the League Cup. Put them back in their place in the FA Cup! They can't have both

Indeed, can't have our biggest rivals dumping us out of both domestic cup competitions!

[tomtuck01]

Thomas Lewis' Career - February 2022 - Manchester City

Premier League





An excellent month for us, with two good away wins and two important wins at home. We opened the month away at Andre Villas-Boas Wet Brom side, and scored a comfortable 2-0 win, Neymar getting a rare goal this term. A Lancashire derby followed against Bolton, and a tight game was won thanks Jason Malpass who scored on the hour mark. Chelsea then came to the Etihad and we put them to sword, racing to a 3-0 lead before halftime. Chelsea pulled one back late on, but the result was never in doubt. Our last league game of the month was a hard fought victory over former club Swansea, Malpass again getting the crucial strike.

With four wins from four, I was awarded the Manager Of The Month for February, my third monthly award of the campaign.

FA Cup 4th Round Replay And 5th Round



Super performance in the replay against United. We bossed possession, and even though at one point they equalised to make it 1-1, we never really looked in trouble. We frustrated them keeping the ball in the second period, meaning they recieved five bookings and a red card as we aw the game out comfortably. Swansea weren't at their best in the next round, and we cmfortably beat them 2-0.

In the quarter finals we face either Arsenal or Blackpool at the Etihad.

[tomtuck01]

February 2022 Continued

Champions League - 1st Knockout Round, 1st Leg



An excellent win in Moscow, making us strong favourites to go through with the return leg to come at the Etihad. Necati Yildiz put in another good performance in the CL yet again.

[SRL88]

Two excellent results in the FA Cup over two big sides (feels weird saying that about Swansea ).

[Akkarin]

Malpass is really firing, I can see why you might have grown attached to him! Good win to get back at ManU (it pains me to say) - and excellent performance against CSKA

[tomtuck01]

Two excellent results in the FA Cup over two big sides (feels weird saying that about Swansea ).

Swansea are a massive club...............nothing to do with me of course.

Malpass is really firing, I can see why you might have grown attached to him! Good win to get back at ManU (it pains me to say) - and excellent performance against CSKA

Thanks alot.

[B.W.G]

Good performances so far,long may it continue.Very impressive wins in the FA Cup against top class sides.

[tomtuck01]

Good performances so far,long may it continue.Very impressive wins in the FA Cup against top class sides.

Cheers dude......hopefully we can keep it up and pick up some trophies.

[tomtuck01]

Thomas Lewis' Career - March 2022 - Manchester City

Premier League





Because of Arsenal and Blackpool having their FA Cup replay postponed twice because of a waterlogged pitch, our league fixtures were thrown into chaos. Only two league games were possible this month, both of them were wins thanks to Necati Yildiz scoring all of our goals in a 1-0 and 3-0 win.

At the start of April we face Liverpool, the start of a gruellng schedule until the end of the season.

FA Cup - Quarter Final



Disappointing to say the least. We twice took the lead and surrendered it almost immediately. Also we weren't that effective when it came to creating chances, hence us having to reply on two set piece goals from a center back.

If we get through the replay, we will face Chelsea in the semi final.

[tomtuck01]

March 2022 Continued

Champions League - 1st Knockout Round, 2nd Leg
and Quarter Final, 1st Leg



We put in a solid performance to finish CSKA Moscow off in the round of last sixteen, completing a 3-0 aggregate win. The draw for the quarters was relatively kind, though not at all easy. We grinded out another 1-0 away leg win, this time thanks to Jason Malpass, to put us in control ahead of the second leg.

[DBurns]

Thanks alot. I can't blieve how it's gone to be honest. Way back when I was Boston manager I was amazed to be offered the job at Swansea! I thank them for where I am now.

With City I just want to get the European Cup won. After that I'm sure where I'm going to head or what I want to do. As I have said already, there is the tempatation to stay at Cit because of Jason Malpass though.

I meant to say to you about Malpass, don't know how I forgot!

It seems like you're very attached to him, understandably so and I'd say your next club would have to be mega rich if you were to buy him!

[tomtuck01]

I meant to say to you about Malpass, don't know how I forgot!

It seems like you're very attached to him, understandably so and I'd say your next club would have to be mega rich if you were to buy him!

Exactly, hence why at the moment I would be a touch reluctant to leave.

But of course I'm attatched to him - he practically won me the World Cup on his own!

[SRL88]

Cracking results in Europe. Well done . This could be your year!!

[tomtuck01]

Cracking results in Europe. Well done . This could be your year!!

Ssshhh, don't jinx it!

[tomtuck01]

Thomas Lewis' Career - April 2022 - Manchester City

Premier League





Well the month didn't start well, as we suffered just our second league defeat of the season away to Liverpool. However, we bounced back in style by thrashing Aston Villa 6-0, with Jason Malpass in great form. After that we had a weird little run, starting with the game at Fulham which wame just two days after a Champions Leagu game. With a much changed team a draw was a good result. Just another two days past before played Wigan, and the 2-1 scoreline shows it was close, but it was anything but as we had more than 70% of the possession! We rounded off the month with a 1-0 win at Watford, meaning we need just a point from our last four games to secure the title.

Our next game is at home to Ipswich, and I would expect us to wrap up the title then.

FA Cup - Qtr Final Replay and Semi Final



What a mamouth game against Arsenal! The game went this way and that, yet somehow no goals were scored over 120 minutes! The shootout was torturous; 13 penalties each, sme missed, smoe saved, others flying in off the post. Jason Malpass, who had missed his first attempt, scored his second, before Joe Hart saved to send us through to the semi final.

We met Chelsea in the semi, the team who knocked us out at the same stage last season. We took the lead just before the hour, but they hit back straight away. Vincent Kompany hit a screamer to put us back ahead, before Malpass scored a goal on the counter late on.

In the final we face West Brom.

[tomtuck01]

April 2022 Continued

Champions League - Quarter Final 2nd Leg
And Semi Final 1st and 2nd Leg



Well, we got through the Marseille game in most unconvincing style. They were excellent in the second leg and probably deserved to go through. The semi saw u face Real Madrid, and in the first leg we played very well, or more precisely we defended excellently and broke away three times, twice winning penalties which Jason Malpass converted. In the second we just defended deep in a bid t contain them, and actually it worked, (some tactical analysis here if you want to see). They did however take the lead just before the break, but we broke clear with 15mins to go and Jason Malpass rounded off a good move to send us through 4-1 on aggregate.

For those of you who have followed my career, you will understand why the draw for the Champions League Final is a bit weird.

[SRL88]

Finally got City into the Champions League Final. That will be a bit weird indeed.

Everything all but wrapped up in the league and you should put WBA away in the FA Cup Final.

[DBurns]

League is pretty much over, favourites for the FA Cup final and into the final of the Champions League - the makings of a great season! Bound to have mixed feelings about playing Swansea though - odds on Malpass scoring the winner?

Good luck for the next month!

[tomtuck01]

Finally got City into the Champions League Final. That will be a bit weird indeed.

Everything all but wrapped up in the league and you should put WBA away in the FA Cup Final.

Finally? It's only our third season in the Champions League during my management!

And yes we should beat West Brom, but they have done pretty well since Villas-Boas took over earlier in the campaign.