FM13 - LOSC Lille Métropole - Allez les Dogues!

Welcome to the LOSC Lille Metropole thread for Football Manager 2013

History – founding and early years

LOSC Lille Métropole was formed on 23 September 1944 as a result of a merger between professional clubs Olympique Lillois and SC Fives. Lillois had been in the process of negotiating with Fives as early as 1939. After failing to agree to a merger with Fives, Lillois merged with local club Iris Club Lillois to form Olympique Iris Club Lillois. However, due to World War II and the abolishing of professional football under the Vichy Regime, the club spent most of its existence playing in the amateur war leagues. In 1944, Fives finally agreed to a merger. However, the section of Olympique Iris Club Lillois officials who were representing Iris Club Lillois refused the merger as it meant the club would have to turn professional. The disagreement between Olympique Lillois and Iris Club led to the first merger dissolving. As a result, the original incarnation of Lillois merged with Fives. The club was initially named Stade Lillois and played under the name in two friendly matches ahead of the 1944–45 war championship season. On 10 November 1944, after a directors' meeting, the club changed its name to Lille Olympique Sporting Club. The name pays tribute to Olympique Lillois by retaining the Lille Olympique title and pays tribute to SC Fives by retaining the SC acronym. The club, subsequently, adopted the red and white colors of Lillois as its home kit and took Fives' blue colors as its away kit. Former Fives president Louis Henno was named as the club's first president.

After the war, Lille returned to professional football and was inserted into Division 1. Henno brought in the Englishman George Berry to lead the team. Henno also successfully recruited several former players of both Fives and Lillois. The influence of this set of players led to Lille reaching the final of the Coupe de France in 1945. In the final, Lille faced a more experienced Racing Club de France team who humbled the Northerners 3–0 at the Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir in Colombes. In Lille's inaugural season in Division 1, the club surprised many by not only winning the league, but also winning the Coupe de France. The team, which was nicknamed the "war machine" by local newspapers, won the league by only one point over Saint-Étienne and were led by René Bihel who scored 28 goals in 26 matches. In the Coupe de France, Lille defeated Red Star Olympique 4–2. After the season, Berry departed the club due to constant interference by Henno and he was replaced by André Cheuva.

Despite the departure of Berry, Lille maintained its form under the leadership of Cheuva. The club finished 4th in its second season in Division 1, but compensated for its league performance by winning the Coupe de France for the second consecutive season. The team defeated Strasbourg 2–0 in the final. In the 1947–48 season, Lille finished runner-up to Marseille in the league. However, Lille again remained strong in the Coupe de France winning the competition for the third consecutive season against rivals Lens. As a result, Lille became the second team in French football history, the other being Red Star, to win the Coupe de France in three consecutive seasons. In the next four seasons, Lille regularly finished in the top three in the league. In the 1950–51 season, Lille reached the final of the Latin Cup and were defeated by Italian club Milan. Several big name departures limited the club somewhat, but Lille were still able to capture its fourth and fifth Coupe de France titles in 1953 and 1955. The 1955 cup title would be Lille's last major domestic trophy for many years.

Cor van der Hart – Lille’s star player in the early 50’s.

After losing some key players the club's reputation on and off the field was severely depleted. In the 1955–56 season, just two years after winning the Coupe de France, Lille finished in 16th place in the league, which resulted in relegation to Division 2 for the first time in the club's history. The club returned to Division 1 after one season, but after two seasons of top flight play, was relegated back to Division 2 in 1959. That same year, Henno left his post as president and Cheuva resigned as manager. The second relegation led to the club enduring financial problems, which resulted in Lille selling many of its best players, most notably Jean Vincent to Stade de Reims for a then-French record of ₣19 million. From 1959–1978, Lille spent the majority of its life rotating between Division 1 and Division 2. In 1969, the club reverted to amateur status and playing in the Championnat de France amateur. Despite finishing in 10th place out of 15 teams, Lille were administratively promoted back to Division 2 by the French Football Federation and the Ligue de Football Professionnel. In 1978, Lille returned to Division 1 and maintained stability by remaining in the league for the next 19 seasons. The club's best finish during the stint was a 6th place finish, which occurred on two occasions; in the club's first season back in 1978 and in 1991.

History – recent years

In 1994, the club was taken over by Bernard Lecomte who saved the club from falling victim to the DNCG's financial regulations. Under Lecomte, Lille reverted from buying expensive talent and began putting emphasis on developing players through the club's youth system, which led to the recruitment of the Cheyrou brothers and many other youth talents. In 1997, Lille were relegated back to Division 2.

Lille returned to Division 1 in 2000 under the Bosnian manager Vahid Halilhodžić. In January 2002, influential movie producer Michel Seydoux purchased shares in the club and became a minor shareholder. That same summer, former Monaco coach Claude Puel was named manager. In January 2004, Seydoux became the majority shareholder and was, subsequently, installed as the club's president. In his first full season of presidency, Lille stunned many French football enthusiasts by finishing runner-up in the league behind Lyon and ahead of the likes of Monaco and Marseille. The club also reached the Round of 16 in the UEFA Cup. The second place position resulted in Lille qualifying for the UEFA Champions League for the first time in its history. In the ensuing season, Lille kept its consistency by finishing in third place in the league. On 2 November 2005, the club recorded one of the greatest results in its history by defeating Manchester United in the UEFA Champions League group phase.

Claude Puel – Lille manager 2002-2008

In the 2006–07 Ligue 1 season, due to focusing its efforts on four competitions, Lille finished 10th in the league. The club did reach the knockout stage of the Champions League for the first time, but were eliminated by Manchester United. In the next season, Lille formed a talented core of players that helped the team to a 7th place finish in the league. Between 2007–2009, Lille sold several of its core players, most notably Michel Bastos, Jean II Makoun, and Kevin Mirallas. The club's further potential was hampered by the departure of Claude Puel in 2009. President Seydoux sought to eliminate the idea that Lille was a selling club by recruiting Gervinho, Florent Balmont, Rio Mavuba, and Pierre-Alain Frau to compensate for the loss of the departures. New manager Rudi Garcia also inserted the talented youngster Adil Rami as a starter and promoted the club's Belgian youth starlet Eden Hazard to the senior team. The signings and changes immediately paid off with Garcia creating an impressive attacking style of play, which resulted in the club scoring a league-leading 72 goals and finishing in 4th place in the 2009–10 season.

The club's success continued into the 2010–11 season when they were crowned Ligue 1 champions for the third time in club history and the first time since 1954. Furthermore, they again finished at the top of the league with 68 goals and striker Moussa Sow was the top individual scorer with 25 goals of his own.

In the following winter Sow departed the club for Fenerbahce of the Turkish league. His goals were missed as they failed to defend their league title finishing in third place behind surprise champions Montpellier Herault and oil-rich Paris Saint-Germain under the new ownership of Qatari tycoons. Lille still managed to qualify for the Champions League but were resigned to losing star player Eden Hazard as he moved to Chelsea FC for a fee of £32 million pounds after one of the longest transfer saga’s ever.

Eden Hazard during his unveiling at Chelsea FC after leaving Lille.

Notable former players

Yohan Cabaye (now at Newcastle United)

Benoît Cheyrou (now at Olympique Marseille)

Bruno Cheyrou (unattached)

Adil Rami (now at Valencia)

Eden Hazard (now at Chelsea)

Michel Bastos (now at Olympique Lyonnias)

Jean II Makoun (now at Stade Rennais)

Gervinho (now at Arsenal)

Ludovic Obraniak (now at Bordeaux)

Moussa Sow (now at Fenerbahce)

Dante (now at Bayern Munich)

Kevin Mirallas (now at Everton)

City of Lille

Lille is one of the northernmost cities in France, it is situated on the Deûle river near the border with Belgium. It has a population of approximately 230,000 inhabitants and its main industries are mechanical, food and textile manufacturing. Some of the main sights and points of interest include the Lille Cathedral, the Port de Lille and the EuraLille shopping plaza. The city is twinned with several other cities around the world including: Buffalo, Cologne, Leeds, Shanghai and Turin.

Lille in FM13

Here is some basic information about the club in FM13 as well as the kits and previous honours. As you can see the clubs main rival is RC Lens in which they contest the Nord Derby, a rivalry which exists due to the two clubs close geographical proximity, however this tie is no longer a regular occurrence due to Lens’ relegation at the end of last season. I would also suggest that teams such as Lyon, Marseille & PSG could be considered competitive rivals.

This next graphic shows the trophies that Lille have won throughout their history. The 3 league titles were won in the years 1946, 1954 and most recently 2011. They have had most success in the French cup (Coupe de France).

Affiliated clubs

FC Bourget – France – Lille has first option on players.

Diambars – Senegal – Lille has first option on players and allows youth players to train at their facilities.

AS Marsouins – Reunion - Lille has first option on players and allows youth players to train at their facilities.

Zulte Waregem – Belgium – Lille may send players on loan to gain experience

Toucoing FC – France – Lille has first option on players.

Mouscron-Peruwelz – Belgium - Lille has first option on players and allows youth players to train at their facilities. Lille may send players on loan to gain experience.

Recent league positions

Over the past couple of decades there have been many ups and downs in Lille’s league placings but more recently there has been a steady improvement culminating in being crowned champions in the 2010/2011 season. Only once in recent times have they been relegated to Ligue 2, this occurred in the late 90’s but 3 years later they were promoted back to Ligue 1.

Finances

At the start of the game Lille’s bank balance is £6,959,695. Given the current incomings and outgoings this total is projected to almost double by the end of the season, depending on how much is spent on new players. The main kit sponsorship runs until 2016 and is worth £1.74m per season. The current wage bill is £535,167 per week.

Season expectations

In the initial meeting with chairman Michel Seydoux he suggests that a reasonable target for the league season would be to finish in a Europa League qualifying place (4th or 5th position in Ligue 1). I agree that this is a reasonable target however you will be allowed to alter this based on your ambition and the board will give you their full backing by providing extra funds. He does not give any extra conditions you should meet with the way you play or transfer policies but given the lack of funds and good youth facilities I would suggest trying to develop some academy players. Here you can see the budgets depending on your targets:

An extra £1.5m for Champions league qualification is quite tempting and it is a realistic target but bear in mind that if you fail to do so then your job may be quite insecure. Despite being given a good transfer budget the wages are an issue as they are already higher than what is being offered. This leaves you with two options; either offload some players to get the wage bill down or adjust the budgets by taking some out of the transfers and putting it into wages.

Facilities

At the end of last season Lille moved into their new stadium, the Grand Stade Lille Metropole. It is situated in the Villeneuve-d’Ascq region and has an all-seater capacity of 50186. It is the only stadium in France that has a roof, therefore guaranteeing no games will be called off due to adverse weather conditions. The pitch is 104m by 67m and has a natural grass surface but does not have undersoil heating, although this is not as important because of the roof.

Here is a summary of the other facilities:

Training facilities – top training facilities

Youth facilities – top youth facilities

Youth stadium – Complexe sportif de Loos, Loos

Training ground – Domaine de Luchin, Camphin-en-Pevele

Corporate facilities – Adequete corporate facilities

Junior coaching – average junior coaching

Youth recruitment – Above average youth recruitment

Staff Analysis

Good staff

Jean-Michel Vandamme – Director of Football – this is a new staff role for FM13 and if you have played as Lille on previous versions you may remember this man as a scout. He has good stats for judging ability and potential and excellent man management skills. He also has low wages compared to other people who could fill this role.

Rachid Chihab – Reserves manager – Very well rounded mental stats, good technical coaching and excellent at working with youngsters. He will do a great job nurturing youth players.

Claude Fichaux – Assistant manager – He doesn’t have outstanding stats but is fairly solid in all the necessary areas. I will be keeping him on but some players may consider bringing in a replacement.

Benoit Delavel – Coach – Not a brilliant coach but good at coaching fitness. If a better option isn’t available I would consider offering him a new contract as a fitness coach.

Franck Lefevre – Coach – Similar story to Delavel, apart from he is slightly better and specialises in goalkeeping coaching. If the board will allow you to have two GK coaches I would offer him a new contract as that, if not keep him around on his current contract.

Jean-Pierre Mottet – Goalkeeping coach – Excellent goalkeeping and man management stats as well as very good working with youngsters makes this man a brilliant coach and should be kept for many years.

Marc Cuvelier – Head physio – He isn’t the best physiotherapist in the world but certainly good enough to remain at the club unless someone much better comes along.

Anthony Gillot – Scout – Starts off with 13 for judging ability and 16 for judging potential but considering he is only 29 years of age these stats will likely increase quite a lot making him a very good scout.

Potential sackings

Orlando Silvestri – Under 19’s manager – His working with youngsters and tactical knowledge stats are not good enough for this role and he also doesn’t offer much in the coaching department. I believe there will be much better members of staff to hire for this position.

Frederic Bompard – Coach – Has some decent stats but doesn’t really excel in a specific field so I would relinquish him from his duties and bring in a replacement.

Stephane Adam – Under 19’s coach – good at working with youngsters but his best coaching stat is 13 for attacking. If there are better options available I would suggest replacing him.

Alain Wallyn – Under 19’s coach – No good stats at all so he should be replaced.

Gregory Dupont – Fitness coach – Only has 11 for fitness coaching so is nowhere near good enough therefore must be replaced by someone better.

Karim Boukrouh – Under 19’s goalkeeping coach – His stats aren’t too bad so if there are no better coaches to replace him with then he is worth keeping but if there is than I would bring them in.

Stephane Grebert – Physio – This one could have gone in either section. He has 15 for physiotherapy which is not bad by any means but some players may want to find someone better.

Christophe Demougeot – Chief Scout – In my opinion the chief scout must have better judging stats than 14 in both ability and potential.

Georges Heylens – Scout – Really poor stats for a scout and the only good thing is that he is from Belgium as there are many great youngsters coming from there at the moment. I would suggest that you do try to find a Belgian scout but there must be one better than this.

Cherif Oudjani – Scout – Similar situation as the previous scout as he has Moroccan nationality but his stats are just not good enough.

Maxime Tyteca – Scout – Another scout who is simply not good enough.

Squad List

1 - Mickaël Landreau – France – GK – Experienced and solid goalkeeper but getting quite old now and a replacement should be found after 1 or 2 seasons. Rating: 7/10

2 – Mathieu Debuchy (vice-captain) – France – D/WB ® – Been at the club his whole career and almost left in the summer for pastures new. An excellent full back and recently forced his way into French national team. One of the first names on the team sheet. Rating: 8/10

3 – Lucas Digne – France – D/WB (L) – The biggest talent to come through the youth system since Eden Hazard. Play him in easy games and cup games, have him tutored by Beria or Debuchy and he will soon become first choice. Rating: 8/10

4 – Florent Balmont – France – DM, M © – At 32 years old he doesn’t have many years left but will work very hard when he plays and has a lot of experience. Rating: 6/10

5 – Idrissa Gueye – Senegal – DM, M © – A good young player with excellent work rate. He will provide good back up for Mavuba and could potentially be a starter in the future. Rating: 7/10

6 – Pape Souare (out on loan) – Senegal – D (LC), WB (L) – Out on loan for the first season but depending on his development he could be good backup when he returns. Rating: 5/10

7 – Dimitri Payet – France – AM (RL) – A good winger that can play on either wing and is two footed, will be first choice on one of the flanks. Rating: 7/10

8 – Salomon Kalou – Ivory Coast – AM (RL), ST – Arrived in the summer on a free transfer from Chelsea. Can play in any of the attacking positions and is capable of moments of brilliance. Unfortunately he is equally capable of making you wonder how he became a professional footballer, some might say he is a poor man’s Nani. Rating: 7/10

9 – Túlio de Melo – Brazil – ST – Very good in the air so provides a different option to the other strikers at the club. Could be a good impact substitute. Rating: 6/10

10 – Marvin Martin – France – M/AM © – The marquee signing of the summer, he cost around 10 million euros from Sochaux. Due to his very good creativity he will be the main playmaker for the team and is equally adept at playing in central midfield or in a slightly more advanced role. Rating: 8/10

11 – Ryan Mendes da Graca – Cape Verde – AM ® – Another new signing this summer, he still has a lot of room to improve before reaching his potential and should be given the chance to do so. Rating: 7/10

12 – Jerry Vandam – Ghana – D/WB ® – Recently returned from a loan spell and could be decent backup for Debuchy but will never be good enough to be first choice. Could be sold to raise funds depending on the future of Bonnart and Sidibe. Rating: 5/10

13 – Adama Soumaoro – France – D ©, DM – Starts off in the reserves as he is still quite young. Given that Lille are a bit short at centre back he could be decent backup or he could be sent on loan to see how he develops. Rating: 5/10

14 – David Rozehnal – Czech Republic – D ©, DM – Seems to have been downgraded from last year and is no longer good enough to be anything more than backup. I would suggest keeping him considering the lack of options in his position, at least until a replacement or two have been brought in. Rating: 4/10

15 - Djibril Sidibé – France – D/WB ® – Another summer signing who looks to have fantastic potential considering he still has 3 stars to fill and his stats already look decent. I would suggest either sending him on loan to a team where he will play regularly or try and give him cup games whilst being tutored by Debuchy. Rating: 8/10

16 – Steeve Elana – France – GK – Arrived in the summer from Brest and will be very good backup for Landreau. Give him a few games in the cups to keep him happy. Rating: 6/10

17 - Benoît Pedretti – France – DM, M © – A very good passer of the ball and would be perfect for a deep lying playmaker role. The wrong side of 30 now so won’t have too many seasons left in him. Rating: 7/10

18 - Franck Béria – France – D (RLC), WB (RL) – An excellent player to have due to his versatility. He can play anywhere in the back four but his natural position is left back and that is where you should play in. He can cover the already thin centre back position if there is an injury crisis, allowing Digne to get more game time. Rating: 7/10

19 – Gianni Bruno – Belgium – ST – Talented youngster that came through the academy. Depending on how many strikers you plan to use it might be a good idea to send him out on loan for some first team experience. Zulte Waregem could be a good location seeing as they are a feeder club from his home country of Belgium. Rating: 7/10

20 – Ronny Rodelin – France – ST – For a 22 year old he looks really poor. Roux, Tulio and Bruno are all better so I would strongly consider offloading him to raise funds for other positions. Rating: 4/10

21 – Laurent Bonnart – France – D/WB (RL) – Not the best player but the fact he can cover both full back positions is a valuable asset. He is in the last year of his contract so I would keep him for the first season but not offer him an extension. Rating: 5/10

22 - Aurélien Chedjou – Cameroon – D ©, DM – An excellent defender and one of the clubs best players. Should be kept at all costs and be one of the first names on the teamsheet. Rating: 8/10

24 – Rio Mavuba (captain) – France – DM, M © – Club captain and a great professional. Sit him in front of the back four and he will break up plenty of attacks. He forms a solid core of the team along with Chedjou, Debuchy and Martin. You should look to build the team around these 4. Rating: 8/10

25 - Marko Baša – Montenegro – D © – A solid defender and should be first choice alongside Chedjou. He isn’t the youngest so will need replaced at some point. Rating: 6/10

26 – Nolan Roux – France – AM ®, ST – A good hardworking striker who has decent pace and movement. I would suggest putting him on a training regime to improve his finishing as it is too low at 12. He will be first choice unless someone else is brought in. Rating 7/10

28 - Viktor Klonaridis – Belgium – AM (RL) – Another new signing in the summer, doesn’t look very good at the moment but has a lot of potential still to fill. I would suggest sending him out on loan for a season, perhaps to Zulte Waregem along with Gianni Bruno to see how he develops. Rating 7/10

29 – John Jairo Ruiz (out on loan) – Costa Rica – AM ® – Youngster out on loan at feeder club Mouscron. Looks to have some potential so re-evaluate when he returns. Rating 6/10

30 – Barel Mouko – Congo – GK – 3rd choice and nothing more. Keep him for more but let him go if Crimi develops well or if Enyeama is kept when he returns from loan. Rating 3/10

?? – Vincent Enyeama (out on loan) – Nigeria – GK – About the same level as Elana so could be a good 2nd choice when he returns from loan. Rating 5/10

Squad Assessment

In this section I shall assess the strength of the squad in each different position including the reserves and youth team players. I will also discuss whether there is any need to purchase players in each area.

Goalkeepers

First choice in this position is Landreau. Elana provides good back up and Mouko is decent third choice. In the reserves there is Enyeama who spends the first season out on loan but when he returns he could become a good backup. Also out on loan is Oukidja who has the potential to be slightly better than Mouko. There is also Salvatore Crimi who I would recommend sending out on loan to see how he develops. In the youth team there is Mollet who has some potential and Goncalves who will never be good enough for the first team.

In my opinion there is no need to strengthen in this area for a season or two until Landreau begins to decline. Position rating: 6.5/10

Mathieu Debuchy

Right backs

The main man here is undoubtedly Debuchy who is one of the best in Europe. Vandam & Bonnart provide adequate back up although you may want to sell one of them if you think two is enough. Sidibe[/b] has potential to be a starter in a few years’ time so I would look to develop him either by tutoring and game time or finding a suitable club to loan him to. Beria can also cover here. In the reserves there is Adrien Rizzi but I would look to sell him. There is no one in this position in the youth team.

I don’t think there is any need to purchase here as you have the present and future in Debuchy and Sidibe as well as good backup. Position rating: 8/10

Left backs

Frank Beria is your starter here and you should have him tutor Lucas Digne who with his massive potential will be good enough to take over as first choice in 1 or 2 seasons. Bonnart can provide extra cover here. In the reserves there is Pape Souare who is out on loan, when he returns he can be a decent backup or can be sold to raise funds. Steeven Willems is another reserve player but he has no future at the club and should be sold. There are 4 left back in the under 19’s; Fofana, Lherbier, Tchany & Boussebaine; the latter of which looks to be the only one worth keeping.

No need to strengthen here as Digne should be your starter for years to come and there are enough backup options. Position rating: 7.5/10

Aurelien Chedjou

Centre backs

Your main man here is Chedjou as he is one of the best players at the club and should be partnered by Marko Basa. Rozehnal is the backup option although I wouldn’t trust him in any big games, in fact it would probably be better to use Beria here in an injury crisis. At reserve level there is Souare who can cover and Soumaoro who you may want to promote to the first team to boost the numbers or send out on loan to see how he develops. There is also El-Mourabet, Jean & Mendy but I don’t think any of them have the potential to be first teamers so feel free to raise funds with their sales. The only centre back in the youth team is Florian Petitpretz who could develop into decent backup so is worth keeping an eye on.

If you were to make one signing in the first window it would be here. I think there are just not enough players to cover if there is an injury crisis. Whether you purchase someone to partner Chedjou or just another backup or two is up to you but a new signing is a must. Position rating: 6/10

Rio Antonio Mavuba

Defensive Midfielders

The captain Rio Mavuba is your first choice here but Idrissa Gueye is also a good player so if your formation includes 2 defensive midfielders these 2 will be very good together. Balmont, Pedretti & Rozehnal can also play here but are better suited to their natural positions. Martial Riff & Lacolley are reserve options but I don’t think either are good enough to make the step up and could be sold. In the youth team there is Pavard who could develop well and Mfulu who isn’t quite as good.

No need for purchases here as Mavuba is excellent and Gueye is still very young. Position rating: 7.5/10

Central Midfielders

This is a position that doesn’t actually pick itself and its personnel is really dependant on your formation. The best player is Marvin Martin who will be the creative force in the team but may play more advanced. The other main options are Pedretti & Balmont who are both good enough to start. In the reserves there is Michel & Gherardi but neither are good enough for the first team and should probably be sold.

I don’t think there is any need to purchase here considering the defensive midfielders could also play here if necessary. I would only purchase in the first season if you use 3 CM’s and want another player to cover, otherwise I would wait until the 2nd season as Pedretti and Balmont are both in their 30’s so will need to be replaced eventually. Position rating: 7.5/10

Marvin Martin

Attacking Midfielders

If you use an AMC then Martin is the man for the job, he has great passing and creativity so will set up a lot of chances for the other attackers. In the reserves you have Pennacchio & Debordeaux but neither are very good so could be sold for funds. In the under 19’s you have Alan Richard who is quite highly rated by the coaches so it might be worth getting him tutored and maybe some minutes in cup games. Other options are Mbemba & Kylian Hazard (younger brother of Eden & Thorgan), unfortunately he doesn’t look as good as his brothers but it might be worth giving him a chance.

Whether you purchase here really depends on your formation as the only good player here is Martin. Position rating: 7/10

Wingers

I have decided to group left and right as most the players in these positions can play both. The two standout players are Kalou & Payet so they are the starters. Ryan Mendes can provide backup on the right and could develop into a starting option. Klonaridis is there also but he needs regular football to develop so it would make sense to send him on loan. Roux can also cover. Badri is the only reserve winger and he doesn’t appear good enough to make the step up. John Ruiz, Ennafati & Decis of the youth team all have a bit of potential so keep an eye on their progress.

Along with the centre back I feel this is the other area of the team where they are a bit short. I would recommend bringing someone in that can play on either wing or if you have the funds then get one for each. Position rating: 6/10

Strikers

There are several options here, the two most notable being Nolan Roux & Tulio de Melo. Roux should be first choice but de Melo gives a very different option and depending on formation they could form a good partnership. Other options are Rodelin & Bruno, personally I think Rodelin is not good enough and sould be sold whereas Bruno would benefit from a loan deal. Kalou can also play here. In the reserves there is Damessi, Regnier & De Araujo but they are all awful and should be sold. In the youth team there is Samb, Varez, Defrancq & Origi the latter of which is the only one worth looking at.

Once again it depends on formation with this as I believe there are enough options if you play with one up top, however if you use 2 strikers then you might want to bring in another. Position rating: 6.5/10

Formations

The first formation would be my recommendation. Mavuba as the anchor man will break up attacks and give Martin more freedom in the playmaker role. Balmont’s work rate makes him good for the box-to-box role as he will support both defensive and attacking movements. Kalou and Payet both seem better suited to being inside forwards as opposed to wingers and this will give more movement through the middles and allow Debuchy and Beria to supply the width. In the 2nd formation it has 2 defensive midfielders so will be more solid at the back but will be less fluid in build-up play leaving a lot of responsibility on Martin.

Here are some more options that you could use. The first is just a variation of the one higher up, I would only recommend using it against much inferior teams as it could leave you vulnerable at the back. The 2nd is for those who want to try out the big man, little man combination up front (Roux is hardly little but you know what I mean). The differences between the two suggest they could work well together so it might be worth a try.

Transfer targets

Raul Albiol – D © – Real Madrid – Transfer listed at the start of the game so could be picked up for cheap or on loan. Wages might be a problem but if a deal can be struck I think he would make a great partner for Chedjou.

Nicosur Stanciu – AM (RLC), ST – FC Vaslui – Looks to have great potential and can be picked up really cheaply. Given the lack of depth in the attacking midfield areas his versatility could be incredibly valuable.

Alan Dzagoev – AM © – CSKA Moscow – Can be signed on a free transfer in January and would provide strong competition for Martin in the attacking midfield role, he would also be capable of covering on the wings and up front.

Valentin Roberge – D © – Maritimo – If you can’t afford another first choice centre back then you will still need another back up. This lad looks quite well rounded and would provide adequate cover for the starters. He can be picked up for around £1m and he is French.

Enzo Perez – AM (RC) – Benfica – A good right winger that could be a starter if you aren’t keen on Payet or Kalou there. He can also play behind the striker and can be picked up for around £2m.

Christian Atsu – AM (L) – Porto - A quick and skilful winger that still has some potential to fill but can be taken on loan with no fee if you require some cover but lack the funds.

John Mensah – D © – free agent – Probably around the same level as Rozehnal but if funds are tight then he is good enough to come in as a backup option for a year or two.

Royston Drenthe – AM (L) – free agent – A good player to pick up at no cost and considering the wings are a thin area or the squad I think it makes sense to give him a chance even if it’s just a short term contract.

Alex de Souza - AM © - free agent - Quite old at 34 but still has amazing stats and won't ask for high wages so surely worth the risk.

Lisandro Lopez - D © - Arsenal de Sarandi - Excellent centre back that could be the perfect partner for Chedjou, he could cost around £5-7m.

This concludes the guide, if you feel I have missed something or have any other questions please feel free to ask.

Thank you for reading and good luck.

Allez les Dogues!