[FM11] Forever Blue: The Final Journey

Hi guys. I’ve not had the smoothest FM time in recent months. I called an early halt to my FM 14 career, partly because of the many issues with it but also because it just didn’t feel like a game I could enjoy as much. Things have improved to a point since then with a return to my favourite version, FM 11, but an attempted multi-manager career wasn’t working. Even without all that going on, having been at my FM-playing peak for 2-3 years the magic was bound to wear off quite a bit soon anyway, so while I’ve recovered at least a bit of enthusiasm things probably can’t ever be quite the way they were before. There’s also the fact that I’ve remained a student for many years, leaving me with as much time and freedom as I need, and whatever else happens a proper working life is bound to start getting in the way before too long, a work experience period late last year showing that regular work days often leave me too tired to feel much like playing even when I had at least some time (it didn’t help that I was having a bad time personally for the entire autumn) so when I do get around to sorting that sort of thing out, FM is likely to remain only an occasional pastime at best, and certainly no more ‘proper’ careers, which are almost all I know.

For the past couple of months I’ve felt that my next major career is likely to be my last, and it looks like it’s about to come to pass. I’m hardly waving goodbye to the game yet, one of the reasons why I hold the ‘last career’ view is that I intend to make it last quite a while if need be, maybe over a year. When the time comes when I have to take at least partial FM retirement I want to go out on the back of a lot of fun and glory, after the sort of incredible journey that only FM can take me on, and I want to get started while I know I’ve still got plenty of time to do it, as well as banish the memory of two failed careers with something worthy of my two previous epics, ‘Deltablue Rising II: Delta’s Darlings’, and ‘Thunderbird Delta: International Footballing Rescue’.

This is going to be pretty carefree, which hopefully will help make it enjoyable. In the past I’ve stuck to specific aims or philosophies, as well as having had a ‘deadline’ with the next FM release. I’ll go back to starting at a bottom division club with Sunday league rep and trying to work my way up, but having had to spend a long time waiting to achieve anything in the past (which can be interesting, not being successful that easily but also frustrating waiting so long before anything of note happens) I’ve allowed myself a lot more leeway into picking a stronger starting club so hopefully I can achieve a lot more from earlier on. Other than the ‘slow burner’ thing, my two previous epics also had the problem of a lot of the success coming at one club (even if there were still a decent amount of trophies and the like spread around a handful of other clubs as well), and if I have one wish for this aside from it lasting, it’s that there’ll be at least a few teams that deliver the truly memorable moments.

Hopefully I've saved the best until last, only one way to find out...

Potential goals: I've never really gone for these but I thought I'd post a few 'would be nice' things.

-Win the CL with Ipswich once more.

-Finally go to Barcelona in a career save (and for the first time since FM06), Delta's Darlings rule applying.

-Go back to a few old favourites. I tried to make a list of all old clubs I could remember last year and it numbered well over 100, but AIK, Metalist, Aalesund, Braga (Going way back to FM05 there! I still remember the name of my Albanian star forward), Milan and maybe MTK and Michalovce stand out.

- Win the Libertadores (I'm not sure I've even played in it!)

- Rebuild the Magical Milan (a Milan side built with U21 signings only that rescued the club from years of mid-table mediocrity to the most dominant side I'd ever had)

- Beat my record of 8 league titles in a row (Metalist on FM10, might have been longer but I started messing about with tactics because at that point I was so bored I didn't mind losing it. The first Magical Milan was on 7 when I left because I needed a new challenge)

- Win a league title with a team after also getting them promoted ('Doing a Clough'), reasonably likely with Ipswich but would be nice to do it elsewhere.

-Managing multiple promotions with a team (while I've only ever managed three times, and that's not counting back-to-back which I have managed but only once)

-Reach a cup final with a lower league team (and preferably not lose 8-0 this time like with Hoffenheim last year ), which I actually only remember doing twice so that's probably the least likely.

- Win World Cup, rather obvious but I'm mostly club focused and I haven't won it for years so I might as well try for that again.

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2010-11, Chornomorets Odessa, First Division, 1st!
2011-12, Chornomorets Odessa, Premier Division, 7th. 
2012-13, Chornomorets Odessa, Premier Division, 5th.
2013-14, Chornomorets Odessa, Premier Division, 12th. 
2014-15, Chornomorets Odessa, Premier Division, 4th, cup finalists. 
2015-16, Chornomorets Odessa, Premier Division, 3rd, cup winners!
2016-17, Slavia Prague, Second Division, 1st!
2017-18, Slavia Prague, First Division, 5th.
2018-19, Slavia Prague, First Division, 1st, double winners!
2019-20, Slavia Prague, First Division, 3rd, cup winners. 
2020-21, Slavia Prague, First Division, 2nd, cup winners.
2021-22, Slavia Prague, First Division, 3rd. 
2022-23, Juventus, Serie A, 10th, Europa League finalists, arrived in Nov.
2023-24, Juventus, Serie A, 2nd.
2024-25, Juventus, Serie A, 7th, cup winners.
2025-26, Juventus, Serie A, 5th.
2026-27, Juventus, Serie A, 4th, Europa League winners!
2027-28, Juventus, Serie A, 2nd. 

Round 2
2017-18, Slavia Prague, First Division, 3rd, resumed in May.
2018-19, Slavia Prague, First Division, 5th, cup winners.
2019-20, Slavia Prague, First Division, 6th.
2020-21, Slavia Prague, First Division, 1st!
2021-22, Slavia Prague, First Division, 1st, double winners!
2022-23, Velez Sarsfield, Premier Division, 6th/7th, arrived in Dec.
2023-24, Velez Sarsfield, Premier Division, 11th, sacked in Nov. 
2024, Atletico Mineiro, First Division, 3rd.
2025, Atletico Mineiro, First Division, 4th.
2026, Atletico Mineiro, First Division, 14th, sacked in Aug
2026-27, Hellas Verona, Serie B, 13th, arrived in Nov.
2027-28, Hellas Verona, Serie B, 5th. 
2028-29, Hellas Verona, Serie B, 1st!
2029-30, Hellas Verona, Serie A, 16th. 
2030-31, Arsenal, Premier League, 4th, League Cup winners.
2031-32, Arsenal, Premier League, 3rd, League Cup finalists. 
2032-33, Arsenal, Premier League, 4th, cup double!

Trophy Cabinet
Chornomorets
Ukrainian First Division: 1 (2011)
Ukrainian Cup: 1 (2016)

Slavia Prague:
Second Division: 1 (2017)
Czech Cup: 3 (2019, 2020, 2021)
First Division: 1 (2019) 
Czech Super Cup: 3 (2019, 2020, 2021)
Czech Cup (Round 2): 2 (2019, 2022)
First Division (Round 2): 2 (2021, 2022)
Czech Super Cup (Round 2): 1 (2021)

Juventus 
Italian Cup: 1 (2025)
Europa League: 1 (2027)
European Super Cup: 1 (2027)

Atletico Mineiro
Minas Gerais State Championship: 2 (2025, 2026)

Verona
Serie B: 1 (2029)

Arsenal
League Cup: 2(2031, 2033)
FA Cup: 1 (2033)

Italy
European Championship: 1 (2028)

Internationals
Nigeria Feb 2021- Dec 2022
World Cup 2022 - 2nd Round. 

Italy July 2026-
Euro 2028 - Champions!
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a work experience period late last year showing that regular work days often leave me too tired to feel much like playing even when I had at least some time (it didn’t help that I was having a bad time personally for the entire autumn) so when I do get around to sorting that sort of thing out, FM is likely to remain only an occasional pastime at best, and certainly no more ‘proper’ careers, which are almost all I know.

It happens to many of us. I long for the halcyon days of my 30s when i was a student and could FM to my heart's content . But you may be surprised that after a break with work and responsibilities, you'll get the itch back, and I've also found that FM has become a great distraction from the daily crap. Anyway, whatever happens, I'm glad to see you jump in with a new career thread, and I'll be following right along

It happens to many of us. I long for the halcyon days of my 30s when i was a student and could FM to my heart's content . But you may be surprised that after a break with work and responsibilities, you'll get the itch back, and I've also found that FM has become a great distraction from the daily crap. Anyway, whatever happens, I'm glad to see you jump in with a new career thread, and I'll be following right along

Thanks, today should be a very good day to get the ball rolling so hopefully I can make the most of it. I couldn't have got a more promising starting club anyway...

Chapter 1: The Reign in Ukraine (Chornomorets Odessa)

This surprised me quite a bit. I was randomizing through the leagues looking at clubs that had a lot of potential for improvement and after only clicks, the Ukrainian First League came up and Chornomorets really weren’t a team I was expecting to see down there, as while they’re obviously far behind Dynamo and Shakhtar, I see them as at least being pretty similar in potential to the ‘best of the rest’ Metalist and Dnipro.

My previous Ukrainian experience was a few years ago, at Metalist and Shakhtar, so I have no real knowledge of the standard of the smaller Premier Division clubs, let alone the First Division, but from what I can see the squad is as strong as you’d expect to be from a club that clearly belongs at a higher level (well, a lot of the players aren’t that special, but those that are very strong should make up for it), as well as a good starting financial position, however it comes with the price of a board expectation to win the league, which means that while that’s pretty likely, there’s not much margin for error. If this works out then it could get things off to a very good start.

One of the other major bonuses is this guy I found in the youth team, who is likely to feature a lot from the start, and hopefully I'll get to stay a while and see how he develops...

Good luck with this

Just keep an eye out for the Russians...

I had a lot of fun at Chornomorets on FM13. Best of luck with this, hope this career works out for you

Good luck with this

Just keep an eye out for the Russians...

Indeed, I had been under the impression that Odessa was actually in the Crimea (it's actually a bit further west), but it's still strange thinking that I'll be facing a few teams that in real life are technically Russian now! If I'm back in the Ukraine later on (especially after FM 15 is released, as presumably Crimean clubs will switch leagues, though hopefully they'll complete this season otherwise that'll cause all sorts of chaos) then it's going to look odd to people that I'm playing clubs that are no longer Ukrainian and past FM's like this are going to look a bit outdated (which they already are slightly).

I had a lot of fun at Chornomorets on FM13. Best of luck with this, hope this career works out for you

Ah yes, I think I remember. Somehow I doubt I can mess up such a potentially strong start

Summer 2010

This summer was always going to be a relatively quiet one. We had a strong squad that didn’t need a lot of changing for the time being (which was just as well with less than 3 weeks before the first league game), as well as having 3 foreigners, the max we’re allowed on the pitch at any one time in the league, but only one seemed that good. My policy had been to just go for a few good Ukrainians if I could find them (especially as you can get local talent pretty cheaply in the Ukraine), and that actually didn’t change too much even if I was gradually more receptive to getting in foreigners.

Jul 2010

Energetyk Burshtyn 0-2 Chornomorets (UFL)

The season started at Energetyk Burshtyn, which was expected to be a comfortable win but it took us a long time to find our groove. Thankfully in the second-half we looked more like a side capable of winning the game and our 19yr old theoretical star forward Balashov delivered with 65th and 74th minute goals.

Chornomorets 3-1 Lviv (UFL)

Lviv were potential promotion rivals, and took the lead after 12 minutes, but our other forward Vasin equalized 10 minute later. Balashov scored a penalty to give us the lead before the break, and another penalty was converted by Vasin in the second-half as we comfortably won 3-1, meaning we were the only side to win both games so far.

Krymteplysya 1-2 Chornomorets (UFL)

A trip to Krymteplysya (yes I am having to keep checking those names) was an early top of the table clash. We were terrible in the first half as they had a goal disallowed after 20 minutes, soon took the lead anyway and should have had another. We improved somewhat in the second-half and equalized from Vasin in the 55th minute, snatching a winner from Balashov in the 79th minute, but while a draw would have been reasonably fair I felt we lucked out a bit.

Olkom 0-3 Chornomorets (UC)

We had an easy game at Olkom in the cup, sailing through with goals from young midfielder Gavrylenko in the 17th minute, Vasin and Balashov grabbing a goal each as we won 3-0.

Chornomorets 0-0 Zirka (UFL)

The games were being crammed in early on, and Zirka was our 5th match in a season only 2 weeks old. Unsurprisingly we were a little underwhelming, but still would have got all 3 points if more than 1 shot in 10 had been on target. Thankfully we’d mostly be playing on a weekly basis from now on.

Aug 2010

Bukovyna 0-2 Chornomorets (UFL)

We were pretty subdued for a lot of the game at Bukovyna, but Vasin gave us the lead just before the break. Brazilian full-back Matos added another in the 72nd minute but it was far from convincing.

Chornomorets 3-0 Zakarpattya (UFL)

We were much better against Zakarpattya, taking the lead from left-winger Politylo after 10 minutes, then a penalty from Balashov and defender Babych gave us a 3-0 lead for the first time in a league game this season. We sat back afterwards and they could have had at least a goal but we at least kept the comfortable margin.

Chornomorets 1-3 (aet) Arsenal Kiev (UC)

We played Arsenal Kiev in the next round of the cup, and took the lead after a couple of minutes from Balashov. They looked unimpressive but that changed later on and they equalized. We kept it level until extra-time when they took the lead in the 99th minute, soon getting a 3rd from an own-goal to knock us out.

Nyva Vinnitsya 0-2 Chornomorets (UFL)

We wore our away kit for the first time at Nyva Vinnytsya, which was confusing as they play in green and white! Balashov made the difference as he gave us the lead in the 32nd minute, then later got another despite having a knock which later turned into an injury for a couple of weeks.

Chornomorets 0-1 Tytan Armyansk (UFL)

Tytan Armyansk were 3 points behind us in 3rd. The first half was insanely dull, and the second-half was only a little better. We were clearly missing the injured Balashov while they won the game on the back of a brief period of pressure that led to the only goal of the game. The fact that there were only 4 and 5 shots respectively summed up a bore-fest.

Sept 2010

Stal Alchevsk 0-1 Chornomorets (UFL)

We partly made up for things at Stal Alchevsk, taking the lead from Politylo in the 22nd minute, but otherwise failed to impress and faced some late pressure, taking the win in a game just as awful as Tytan Armyansk.

Chornomorets 3-0 Yalta (UFL)

Balashov was back against Yalta (no I’m not attempting to spell their full name), and we definitely looked a lot better for it. New defender Kravchenko gave us an 18th minute lead, then Balashov had another disallowed, the ref ensuring justice was done by disallowing a Yalta goal as well. Balashov got an early second-half brace anyway as we won 3-0. Pleasingly Tytan had lost both games since beating us so we now had a 6-point margin over 3rd, as well as having moved back top.

Dnister 1-1 Chornomorets (UFL)

We went to feeder club Dnister and took a 5th minute lead from Balashov. We weren’t on top as much as we should have been and were punished with a 67th minute equalizer. We still managed to get an extra point clear of a defeated Naftovyk side but missed the chance to make it 4 points.

Chornomorets 4-2 Helios Kharkiv (UFL)

With Naftovyk losing I was hoping to take advantage and beat Helios Kharkiv. We went a man down when the Argentine Portillo got a straight red in the 26th minute but almost immediately took the lead from Vasin. He had been on a bit of a goal drought so it was good to see him score again in the 49th minute, within the next few minutes, Helios pulled a goal back but we went 3-1 up from Melnyk. Balashov made it 4-1 (taking him to 11 goals in 10 league games) before they got a consolation. Unfortunately Naftovyk came from 2-0 down to win 3-2, so the lead stayed at just 2 points but that was only a minor issue.

It's been a little disappointing dropping a few points, but otherwise 9 wins (and just 1 defeat) in 12 games looks like comfortable promotion form. Hopefully if we can keep it up our two main rivals will start dropping points a bit more and help us get a nice lead at the top. Given what heavy favourites were are this season it's hard to get too excited about being top by a couple of points (the 'Hey Everyone, this guy X... See, nobody cares' meme comes to mind) but being 1st is still a nice feeling, even without it being much of a challenge so far.

Oct 2010

Olexandrya 0-2 Chornomorets (UFL)

A trip to Olexandrya was potentially tricky but Taschy, the wonderkid I was keeping an eye on, got his first goal for the club in the 20th minute. We were poor up front which hampered our ability to get an otherwise deserved second, but we eventually got it from an 82nd minute own-goal.

Chornomorets 1-0 Prykarpattya (UFL)

Vasin gave us the lead against Prykarpattya in the 14th minute, but it didn’t look like it would be enough as we were occasionally under threat. Vasin had a late second disallowed but we didn’t need it anyway and extended our lead to 4 points.

Naftovyk-Ukrnafta 1-1 Chornomorets (UFL)

We went to second placed Naftovyk-Ukrnafta knowing we’d be top even if we lost, but I wanted to at least maintain the 4-point gap. Balashov gave us a 7th minute lead, but we failed to keep it for long. They had a goal disallowed on the stroke of half-time but otherwise I felt we were on top and while we kept up a 4 point lead, which was great, we looked like we could have made it 7.

Chornomorets 6-1 Arsenal Bila (UFL)

We had our best win yet against Arsenal Bila, starting off with a Vasin goal after 10 minutes. The floodgates opened in the second-half with another Vasin goal, Kravchenko, Balashov and Taschy. They scored a late penalty but there was still time for Vasin to complete a hat-trick and a 6-1 win. It was frustrating however to see Naftovyk come from behind to win again so still no extending the lead.

Nov 2010

Dynamo-2 Kiev 1-1 Chornomorets (UFL)

We went to Dynamo-2 Kiev and had a goal disallowed after 15 minutes. We did take the lead from Fedoriv after half an hour but being a reserve side meant they had easy access to some decent players and they equalized a few minutes into the second-half, and the draw cut the league lead to 2 points.

Chornomorets 0-0 Energetyk Burshtyn (UFL)

Thankfully it was back to 3 after we faced Burshtyn but only because Naftovyk lost. Vasin had a goal disallowed after 15 minutes and we were poor up front, failing to get more than a 0-0 draw.

Lviv 1-1 Chornomorets (UFL)

We went to Lviv and took the lead from Balashov a few minutes before half-time. Unfortunately we had to settle for yet another draw after a 63rd minute equalizer but yet again we added a point to our league lead.

Chornomorets 0-0 Krymteplytsya (UFL)

Portillo gave us the lead in the 10th minute against Krymteplytsya, but Balashov got sent off it ended up as yet another draw meaning we only went into the long winter break with just a 2 point lead.

Far too many draws creeping in (with 5 from the last 6 games), so while we've stayed top throughout we could easily be a lot more comfortable. Still we're well on course to go up and we can't ask for much more for the moment, so still can't complain really.

Heh, Borys Taschy. One of my many star CMs from my FM13 County save.

Solid enough start delta, keep it up.

Brilliant start Glad you decided to try another career, as i've said in the past I enjoy your your threads because you bring across your thoughts really well. I've been in a FM lull myself recently but getting the urge back slowly so understand how you feel.

Great start delta, interesting to see people using different versions FM13, CM03/04 etc.

Heh, Borys Taschy. One of my many star CMs from my FM13 County save.

It's always interesting recognizing a player from an FM save, be it real life or another career (someone else's or your own). I looked up how he was doing in real life, and it wasn't good. Sold to Dynamo Moscow in 2011 and currently on loan at what used to be Zakarpattya (FM10/11 is essentially my FM experience of Ukraine so I'm used to how teams were named and how they were doing from that time), but without playing a single game so far for either. Don't know what he's like in later games but it seems from this version that he has/had a lot of potential. It would be interesting to see a screenshot of him from a more recent version.

Solid enough start delta, keep it up.

Thanks, so far so good this time around.

Brilliant start Glad you decided to try another career, as i've said in the past I enjoy your your threads because you bring across your thoughts really well. I've been in a FM lull myself recently but getting the urge back slowly so understand how you feel.

Thanks, even when I was wondering whether the end might be approaching I knew I'd want to go out on an epic high, so I was always going to try something like this first, hopefully it'll work out very well.

Great start delta, interesting to see people using different versions FM13, CM03/04 etc.

I know, no doubt things will be a little different because of that, which some people might find odd, in terms of how teams/players are doing (in the case of Saturn, existing at all, and once FM 15 is released, some clubs still being Ukrainian rather than Russian), competition formats (again with Russia, when they still had a 'summer' season I think) and the like. Aside from it being the version I like best, It's old enough to be a bit different from how things likely go in an FM14 world but recent enough to be recognizable.

Mar/Apr 2011

Zirka 0-1 Chornomorets (UFL)

The league resumed in mid-March with a trip to Zirka, the first of a few games without the suspended Balashov, which didn’t help my confidence in our ability to get more regular wins after a lot of recent draws. Politylo gave us the lead after 10 minutes, the only goal of an unimpressive but still reasonably well-deserved win.

Chornomorets 2-1 Bukovyna (UFL)

We played Bukovyna and went behind in the 24th minute, but a goalmouth scrap allowed Melnyk to head an equalizer 10 minutes later. Our rivals were losing which kept the pressure off, and it was good to see Melnyk score again in the 63rd minute, giving us the edge in a very competitive game. Portillo got a late red card but we managed to hold on, going 4 points clear at the top, and now had a 8 point promotion safety margin.

Zakarpattya 2-2 Chornomorets (UFL)

2nd and 3rd played each other while we went to Zakarpattya. We had a hatful of chances from the start and though Matos gave us the lead in the 18th minute it seemed like a lot longer than that. The defence had a bit of a fail day and let them in to equalize just before the break. They even took the lead (much to my fury) in the 61st minute. Yakymenko (the forward in for the suspended Balashov) equalized 5 minutes later, and we survived another late red card. Status-quo was maintained in the league, which suited us, but I felt we really should have taken all 3 points.

Chornomorets 3-1 Nyva Vinniytsa (UFL)

We went behind after 10 minutes against Nyva Vinnytsa, but Balashov was back and gave us an equalizer 10 minutes later, soon followed by the first of a brace for his revitalized strike partner Vasin. Unfortunately the latter was our latest red card (though for two yellows, the others were generally straight reds) near the end of a match, and Naftovyk came from behind late on to win their game, denying us the chance to extend the lead, but it was otherwise a good result.

Tytan Armyansk 1-3 Chornomorets (UFL)

We went to 3rd placed Tytan Armyansk and struggled early on but Balashov gave us the lead in the 22nd minute, quickly followed by Yakymenko, and Politylo made it 3-0 at the break. They eventually scored with 20 minutes left and looked like they would attempt a comeback but too many wasted chances earlier meant it was too late.

Chornomorets 0-1 Stal Alchevsk (UFL)

The games were coming thick and fast once more (we had 8 between March 30th and April 30th) and Stal Alchevsk were next. We still had the energy to hit them with wave after wave of attacks from the start, but getting a goal out of it was a different matter, and we didn’t get anywhere. They actually got and scored a 78th minute penalty in what was a textbook example of ‘no way should we have lost that’. It was only our second league defeat of the season, in the 26th game, which wasn’t too bad, and Naftovyk lost as well.

Yalta 1-5 Chornomorets (UFL)

We went to bottom club Yalta and took an early 2-0 lead from Kravchenko and Balashov. They started making trouble and halved our lead but a quick brace from Rebenok after half an hour put paid to that. Vasin got our 5th in the 57th minute as we won 5-1 and now had a 6 point lead.

Chornomorets 3-1 Dnister (UFL0

We hoped to make amends for dropping points against feeder club Dnister in the autumn, and certainly showed them who was boss this time. Vasin gave us a 24th minute lead, followed by Melnyk 15 minutes later. The former scored again in the second-half as we cruised to a 3-1 win.

Helios Kharkiv 0-3 Chornomorets (UFL)

We had a rare midweek off before going to Helios Kharkiv, and took the lead from a trademark Melnyk header. We were far from comfortable but Vasin extended the lead early in the second-half. He went off injured but a penalty from Balashov (his 20th goal of the season, 18 in the league) finished off a 3-0 win, and we were now 8 points clear with 5 games left.

May 2011

Chormomorets 7-0 Olexandrya (UFL)

Rebenok gave us a 2nd minute lead against Olexandrya, and though Balashov got his second red of the season in the 17th minute, with Vasin out injured, the goals kept coming. Rebenok almost immediately made it 2-0, followed by an own-goal and Slinkin as it was 4-0 at the break. They had a goal disallowed early in the second-half but the goals kept coming. Melnyk scored a header while Rebenok scored twice more (the last in added time), with a couple of assists alongside his 4 goals helping him to a perfect 10 score as we won 7-0.

Prykarpattya 1-0 Chornomorets (UFL)

We had a makeshift front line at Prykarpattya, not helped by one of the forwards going off injured. We were still reasonably good going forward but not so much at the back and fell to a 33rd minute goal, though we still would have got at least a point with a bit more efficiency up front. It was a pity to lose twice in a month having only had one defeat all season before, however that paled in comparison to the fact that we still sealed promotion with 3 games left!

Chormomorets 3-1 Naftovyk-Ukrnafta (UFL)

Former rivals Naftovyk-Ukrnafta had dropped off the pace and looked like they might miss out on going up altogether. If we won and another result went our way we could secure the title but I wasn’t expecting it. We were still weakened up front (with an unfit Vasin having to play) as well as in midfield because Taschy was away on international duty, but we still had enough in the tank to pull through. Yakymenko gave us a welcome lead in the 42nd minute, with another later in the 77th minute. They scored but Rebenok finished off a 3-1 win deep in injury time, no title yet though as Krymteplytsya won as expected, sealing their promotion as well.

Arsenal Bila 1-0 Chormomorets (UFL)

We could seal the title with a win (maybe even with a draw) at Arsenal Bila. Unfortunately it was one of our least inspired performances of the season, and it looked like we’d get no more than a draw. We didn’t even get that as they got a winner with a few minutes left, with a very late Krymteplytsya goal in their game denying us the chance to clinch the title anyway.

Chornomorets 3-1 Dynamo-2 Kiev (UFL)

We had to finish things off on the last day against Dynamo-2 Kiev, but had no trouble. Balashov was back, and while he didn’t score I had noticed that his presence was what made Vasin tick, the latter giving us a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes. We were facing a much weaker side than earlier in the season (such is the changeable nature of reserve sides) but they still had one dangerous player who scored in the 52nd minute, and it looked like they might spoil the party and equalize, but Vasin popped up again in the 83rd minute to seal his hat-trick and our title.

Job done with little fuss. We went into the season as heavy favourites, so it’s hard to get too excited, but I’m still very pleased with how we went about it. We were consistently strong (though rarely that impressive) from the start, though a bunch of draws, especially just before the Winter break, meant that despite just a single defeat we were far from comfortable. In the Spring we were much better, gradually getting the comfortable promotion margin I was expecting, to the point that even with a tired and weakened team dropping off near the end of the season, and Krymteplytsya (who won their last 11 games, and after a bad start only dropped 9 points from mid-September) closing in fast on us I knew we had already just about done enough not to have too much to worry about.

Usually after promotion it’s all about whether we can survive or not. Just as I’ll rarely start a season (let alone a career) with a better chance of going up, we’re in a position when I can feel a lot more confident than I’d normally be about it, especially if we can fix a few weak spots (like in goal, left-back and one of the centre-midfield positions), and we’d probably have the opportunity to improve quite a bit elsewhere while I’m at it. I can’t get too carried away but hopefully I can continue to make progress here. Going up was the ‘easy’ part, certainly expected, it’s what happens from this point that will feel like I’ve actually achieved something, but easy or not it’s still a nice feeling getting things going with a league win and promotion, the first of what I hope will be many different competitions in my trophy cabinet.

Star player: Taschy wasn't the only excellent young player at my disposal, and I had high hopes from Balashov. He didn't disappoint, finishing level on overall goals (though was slightly behind in the league) with his strike partner Vasin (20 each) but with a far better all-round contribution, not least the fact that Vasin seemed to struggle when Balashov was suspended. Two straight red cards was a disappointment, and hopefully he'll behave himself next season as with the step up in standards he's going to be a lot more important in the Premier Division, as opposed to the First when we were easily strong enough to cope without him.

Well done on promotion Lets hope Balashov continues his form next year as he seems to be your most important player.

Well done on promotion Lets hope Balashov continues his form next year as he seems to be your most important player.

As long as he avoids getting suspended. You're quite right about his importance though, and thankfully he has had an excellent start to the season, grabbing 5 goals in the opening 3 games.

Summer 2011

The pre-season was desperately short, and I knew I’d be doing a lot of transfer business early on in the season. We had 2M to spend and over 27kpw wage budget (it was double that but given our wage bill was about 13kpw I knew I had had plenty of room to boost the transfer budget from its initial 1.2M. Early on it didn’t look like it would stretch very far but I rarely rush into things and while I made sure I got an early start to make us at least a little stronger by the opening day, soon bargains popped up on the horizon and I wasted no time in starting to get the deals rolling, and even if only two players were in by the opening day, a few more were being sorted out.

With 7 foreigners allowed on the pitch (we had 3 last season, one of whom never played and had been released), giving scope for a few more over that in the squad, I felt free to just go for it, with the inevitable handful of Brazilians, even if I’d have to be more cautious in later years, looking harder for local talent and with foreigners having to make way for others. The result was a very successful improvement of the team, though it would take time to see where precisely we stood in the league. I did feel we could be pretty comfortable in mid-table with a strong base to try and build further, but we’ll see.

Jul 2011

Chormomorets 3-1 Metalurg Zapor-whatever (UPL)

The season started against Metalurg Zapor…whatever (and yes that’s how I’m going to keep referring to them, I try my best to do it properly even with complicated names in countries like this but this is a name too far), with two signings under our belt so far. It was a decent chance to get a point or three. They had the better of things early on, having a disallowed 3rd minute goal, and when Balashov gave us the lead against the run of play they immediately equalized. Koloda restored the lead before the break however. Zapor-whatever pushed for a lot of the second-half, and I wouldn’t have been too disappointed with a 2-2 draw, but Balashov hit them on the break again to give us a an encouraging win.

Krymteplytsya 1-3 Chornomorets (UPL)

We had a trio of new Brazilians before we went to fellow promotees Krymteplytsya. An own-goal gave us the lead after a minute, and we looked like we’d get another before they equalized on the break in the 33rd minute. Balashov’s penalty quickly restored the lead, and his new Czech partner Ordos finished off a late 3-1 win.

Chornomorets 3-1 Vorskla (UPL)

Vorskla had an early red card which helped our chances of 3 wins from 3. Balashov gave us the lead in the 19th minute, with Fedoriv and another Balashov goal (his 5th goal of the season already) making it 3-0 by the break. Vorskla looked stronger in the second-half and got a consolation with 5 minutes left.

Illichivets 0-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

We went to Illichivets, who put up some stern resistance. Melnyk headed in a corner to give us the lead in the 38th minute. It was a bit lucky as they had more than enough chances to deserved a draw at least but it kept up a great start to the season, in fact we were the only team with a 100% record.

I wouldn't normally do such an early or short update but aside from the fact that I needed to start the season while getting a lot of transfer business sorted, I thought that our great start to the season was worth showing off while I was at it. It's easy to get carried away as we've only faced weaker sides (though Vorskla were 5th last year), though that ends with the next game which is at home to Shakhtar, which I'm really excited about and it will be interesting to see how much of a game we can give them. So far not really setting my sights higher than finishing in the top half but starting the season after a promotion with 4 wins from 4 is very encouraging.

Good start, I know you think it isn't a true reflection yet due to the sides you have played against not being too special but in terms of morale it must be great for the players and can only help when the bigger sides come calling

Seconded. It's a great start, and immediately keeps the pressure off. Should mean a good season

Fingers crossed this one sticks for you

Good start, I know you think it isn't a true reflection yet due to the sides you have played against not being too special but in terms of morale it must be great for the players and can only help when the bigger sides come calling

Seconded. It's a great start, and immediately keeps the pressure off. Should mean a good season

Thanks, unfortunately keeping it up was always going to be unrealistic, and so it's proved. Still nothing to worry about at this stage thanks to our start.

Aug 2011

Chornomorets 2-4 Shakhtar (UPL)

Shakhtar would be a far tougher test than any we’d faced so far, especially with over half their team earning more individually than our entire squad combined (28.5kpw). Special mention to Sissoko on 73kpw! Ordos gave us a 5th minute lead, we might have snatched another before they equalized. Ordos scored again to make it 2-1 after half an hour but it was 2-2 by the break and they dominated the second-half, soon taking the lead, then a 4th after a Matos injury reduced us to 10 men, but we had given them a good game just as I hoped.

Karpaty 2-0 Chornomorets (UPL)

The tougher games were now coming as we went to Karpaty, which was painfully one-sided. They took the lead after 15 minutes, with another in the 62nd minute as we were crashing back to reality.

Dnister 0-1 Chornomorets (UC)

We went to Dnister in the cup and found it a bit of a struggle. We were on the back foot quite a bit but we pulled through with a 54th minute Balashov goal.

Chornomorets 1-2 Arsenal Kiev (UPL)

I felt Arsenal Kiev was winnable and we took the lead from Taschy after half an hour. However we never had real control and it wasn’t surprising when they equalized early in the second-half. What was disappointing was to go behind in the 78th minute, and have a late equalizer disallowed as I felt a draw would have been the fairest result from the game.

Dynamo Kiev 3-0 Chornomorets (UPL)

A trip to Dynamo Kiev was set to be tough, and through we started off looking decent for the first time since the first-half against Shakhtar we didn’t have a single shot on target and they took the lead in the 25th minute, having no trouble in getting 2 more in the second-half.

Sept 2011

Metalist 2-4 Chornomorets (UC)

Metalist was a tough away tie in the cup. The first half was a disaster as everyone was terrible, we went 2-0 behind and missed a penalty. Balashov made it 2-1 after 50 minutes, giving us hope, and Vasin equalized in the 70th minute. An own-goal gave us the lead and while they looked to equalized, Balashov struck again to give us a 4-2 win that seemed impossible at half-time!

Zorya 0-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

A trip to bottom club Zorya was a chance to get going again in the league. They had just a single point so far and Balashov’s 14th minute goal ensured they wouldn’t get another this time. A failure to impress and get a second meant that they came very close to spoiling things however.

Chornomorets 1-4 Dnipro (UPL)

We played table-topping Dnipro and got torn apart. We went behind in the very 1st minute (from Shevchenko no less) and it was 3-0 after 18 minutes. They only got one more goal and it could have been even worse, with Ordos getting an extremely late consolation.

Volyn 1-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

Volyn were one of the weaker teams so we went to theirs hoping to get a win. Balashov’s 10th goal of the season gave us a 14th minute lead, but they started taking firm control of the game, a poor defence messing up again to give them an equalizer at the end of the half and we never looked likely to retake the lead.

Reality bites. Since that 100% first month we only have 4 points from 7. Admittedly we were very unlikely to get anything in over half of those, but we still should have done a lot better against Arsenal and maybe Volyn as well, and were unimpressive in easy wins against Dnister and Zorya. I'm only really happy with our first half against Shakhtar and our second against Metalist. However those little glimpses of promise show that if we can rouse ourselves from what's been a mediocre run of performances, we can still put up a very strong showing this season. Things are hardly looking too bad anyway. That opening month didn't fool me into thinking that we were that good yet, so I'd still be pleased with comfortable survival, which we're still looking very good for. Despite such bad form we're still up in 7th with over 1/3 of the season gone (I'd happily take 10th or above), we've got plenty of breathing space along with enough teams I think we can get wins against, we're in the cup quarter-finals and given we have Zorya at home I think we've got a very good chance of being in the Semis, so as things stand there's still plenty to potentially be pleased about and no real reason to worry.

Oct/Nov 2011

Chornomorets 1-1 Sevastopol (UPL)

We went behind in the first minute against Sevastopol, a winnable game we looked to be wasting. A poor first half was followed by a better second which saw an equalizer from Balashov after 50 minutes, and while they still threatened we pushed on and were unlucky not to get a winner.

Metalurg Donetsk 2-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

A trip to Metalurg Donetsk was expected to be a painful one, but we matched them blow for blow for a lot of the first half. They did start to take control and went ahead at the start of the second half. Yakymenko’s 55th minute penalty equalized it but they soon went 2-1 up to win just about deservedly.

Chornomorets 2-2 Metalist (UPL)

Metalist were the last of the tougher sides until after the winter break and like with Metalurg, we gave a decent account of ourselves from the start, even taking the lead from Balashov in the 57th minute. He soon took his league tally for the season to 10 (making him joint-top scorer), but I celebrated a bit too soon as they pulled a goal back with 5 minutes left and headed an equalizer deep in stoppage time.

Obolon 1-0 Chornomorets (UPL)

Balashov off injured early on at Obolon (and would be out for a month and a half, though we only had half that time until the winter break). Ordos roused from mediocrity to seemingly score at the start of the second half but it was disallowed, which was a bit mean. They snatched the win instead with a goal after an hour as we still couldn’t catch a break.

Chornomorets 4-2 (aet) Zorya (UC QF)

Zorya at home was a great chance to get into the cup semi-finals. Not for the first time, we were terrible in the first half, and they took the lead after 5 minutes. Ordos equalized after the break, and Rolle put us 2-1 up in the 53rd minute, but while it looked like they had done enough we were it with a stoppage time equalizer at the end of a difficult period of Zorya pressure. Yakymenko restored the lead in the 102nd minute with Ordos finishing off a 4-2 extra-time win. It was tougher than it should have been but I was glad to have made it in the end.

Zapor-whatever 2-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

The second-half of the season started at Zapor-whatever, and we were very lively despite the draining cup tie and lack of Balashov. Ordos gave us a deserved lead in the 28th minute, but the game turned when he had another disallowed at the start of the second-half. They headed in a free-kick to equalize after an hour, then went on to win with a 70th minute penalty. Seriously, what does a team have to do to catch a break these days?

Chornomorets 1-0 Krymteplytsya (UPL)

We looked disappointingly lacklustre against Krymteplytsya, but for once our luck held and Yakymenko gave us a winner with just 15 seconds left of added time, giving us just our second win since July, though we should have had at least a couple more in the past month or so.

Vorskla 2-0 Chornomorets (UPL)

Having been unlucky for ages, we were back to being terrible at Vorskla. They took the lead in the 10th minute and that pretty much ended the game. The final few minutes saw them get another, and we also had both Rolle and Matos go off injured. It never rains but it pours.

Chornomorets 1-1 Illichivets (UPL)

I hoped to get a win against Illichivets to go into the winter break, especially as they had lost their last 3 games (with only Krymteplytsya doing worse in that regard, with 7 defeats in a row). Vasin gave us the lead after 15 minutes, but we failed to build on it and had to settle for a disappointing 1-1.

Our poor form continued, as our only 2 wins since July have been at home to the bottom two. However we did look a bit better for the most part, still not that good but we definitely deserved wins in a few other games. We at least picked up a bunch of draws, helping keep us very comfortably in mid-table, which is what's important. We're also in the semi-finals of the cup, though facing Dnipro away we're very unlikely to get further, so while we're won't be making much of an impact for a while we're still doing fine.

Shame you couldn't keep your early season form up but at least you have a decent amount of points on the board, hopefully you can get a signing or 2 in to help you a little

Always frustrating when you start well then hit a bad run, but first season in the top flight is often like that. Mid-table would be good, anything else a bonus. Good luck in the cup.

Shame you couldn't keep your early season form up but at least you have a decent amount of points on the board, hopefully you can get a signing or 2 in to help you a little

That was unlikely, not only because it wasn't necessary but because I tend to get all my seasons' business done before the opening game if possible (which unfortunately it isn't in Ukraine), 7 new players seemed enough for one year, and we really didn't have much budgetary room for one anyway. As it was we were fine.

Always frustrating when you start well then hit a bad run, but first season in the top flight is often like that. Mid-table would be good, anything else a bonus. Good luck in the cup.

Thanks. I think we did very well this year, all things considered, with plenty of optimism for the future, even if I doubt we'll do much better in the short-term.

Feb/Mar 2012

Shakhtar 2-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

We emerged from the winter break with an impossible trip to Shakhtar. They took a 5th minute lead, but we managed to resist further goals and had an equalizer disallowed from Taschy. They were always going to be deserved winners and got another in the 74th minute. Ordos getting a consolation at least.

Chornomorets 1-2 Karpaty (UPL)

We went behind at the start against Karpaty, but we equalized from Ordos in the 14th minute and looked like going ahead, though Balashov had been really poor so far this year so we missed our chance. They dominated the second half and it was no surprise that they took the lead in the 80th minute, even then we would have got a point had Ordos’ stoppage time ‘goal’ been allowed to stand.

Arsenal Kiev 1-2 Chornomorets (UPL)

We were dominated from the start at Arsenal Kiev and it was to no one’s surprise that they took the lead in the 20th minute, after what seemed like at least 10 chances. They kept the pressure up but Rebenok snatched an equalizer on the break in the 40th minute, and Ordos gave us the lead after 50 minutes, which suddenly silenced them apart from a late scare.

Chornomorets 0-3 Dynamo Kiev (UPL)

I didn’t expect anything against Dynamo Kiev, and I wasn’t surprised. They took the lead in the 12th minute, finishing us off with 2 more in the first 10 minute of the second half.

Dnipro p2-2 Chornomorets (UC SF)

We faced back to back trips to Dnipro, starting in the cup. I expected them to beat us comfortably, but we fought hard and actually took the lead in the 32nd minute from Balashov. We were always going to have a tough time holding on, and they equalized from a penalty in the 76th minute, taking the tie to extra-time and then penalties. We both scored our opening two penalties but Ordos and Paparetto missed our 3rd and 4th to send us out, but I hadn’t really expected to win anyway so it wasn’t so bad.

Dnipro 0-2 Chornomorets (UPL)

We met again in the league, and again proved to be tough to beat. Balashov gave us the lead on the stroke of half-time. They had an equalizer disallowed in the 57th minute and we went on to get another from Ordos in the 70th minute.

Apr/May 2012

Chornomorets 1-1 Zorya (UPL)

We should have easily beaten a Zorya side heading for relegation, but were pretty lifeless. Vasin gave us the lead at the start of the second-half which should have been enough but they got a late equalizer.

Chornomorets 4-1 Volyn (UPL)

We looked better against Volyn, though it took 40 minutes for Balashov to give us the lead. After his injury and a slow return, he’d lost a lot of ground in the scoring charts but was very much making up for lost time now. A penalty in the 65th minute gave him another, followed by a 3rd just a couple of minutes later, and he even got a 4th as we ran out 4-1 winners.

Sevastopol 2-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

We were back to being poor at Sevastopol, but Vasin still gave us the lead in the 43rd minute just after coming on. Baggio fumbled a free-kick to give them an equalizer just before half-time, and they had no trouble getting a winner after 70 minutes. Matos got sent off later on, but surprisingly that was our first red of the season, given our poor record last year.

Chornomorets 1-0 Metalurg Donetsk (UPL)

Metalurg Donetsk looked tricky but Ordos gave us the lead in the 4th minute. We stayed firmly on top to claim the win.

Metalist 0-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

We got back to back wins for the first time since July at Metalist, which wasn’t easy. Again it was a close one thanks to an Ordos goal, with few chances for both sides but we actually got a couple of shots on target, which was beyond them.

Chornomorets 0-0 Obolon (UPL)

The final game was against Obolon, where we hoped to secure 7th having pretty much wrapped up a top-half finish. They had an early goal disallowed but we otherwise started the better. That soon faded as they were firmly on top for the rest of the match but we held on to 0-0 which was enough for 7th.

We certainly started brightly enough, and even when things suddenly dropped off we were still looking comfortable. We looked a bit better after the winter break, only narrowly going out of the cup to title-chasing Dnipro then beating them a few days later, showing that even at the bigger sides, we shouldn’t necessarily feel like we’re bound to lose badly. Even after July I felt ‘If we get top half at the end, I’ll be very happy’ so climbing back up to 7th and only being a shootout away from the cup final should definitely be considered a very good season. I’m not sure how much further we can go for now. There isn’t room for more than a couple more foreigners so I’m going to have to hunt for local talent this summer, plus we can only offer 2.5-3kpw to any player right now and obviously we’re going to need a lot more (thankfully we probably will as we get established in the Premier League) to be able to get a good enough side to expect top-half finished rather than just hoping for it, and I don’t think European qualification or a cup final will be realistic for a few years I think. Until then comfortable mid-table will do fine.

Star player: No real surprises here. From the start of the season Balashov showed that he could cope fine with getting goals at this level, and if it wan't for his injury (and a few minor poor patches, including after his Volyn masterclass) he'd have had a decent shot at being top scorer. He managed to stay out of trouble this season (after two straight reds last year) which was also promising. So far this career he has 39 goals in 57 games (the real Balashov's Chornomorets record so far is 10 in 83) and he should keep delivering for a while yet.

A really good season back at the top level. Maybe with a couple of additions you can make it into Europe next term.

Very good season delta. Balashov proving to be a reasonable success in the top flight too.

A really good season back at the top level. Maybe with a couple of additions you can make it into Europe next term.

I always get very worried when people get optimistic, things never seem to go well the following season

Europe is probably going to be a bit much. There was very little budget to play with and while I managed fine getting in a few players to improve the squad, we're no better in 'first 11' terms than last time, even if we do have a squad that's a bit more settled. We also have a tougher set of opening games so we're going to need to be more consistent rather than relying on a good start keeping us in a good position like we did for a lot of last year.

Very good season delta. Balashov proving to be a reasonable success in the top flight too.

It was indeed, but the pressure is now on to keep it going and finish in the top half again so we're going to need Balashov to keep delivering.

Summer 2012

Any realistic hopes of improving were dashed when I got the budget. The transfer budget was just 160k with virtually no room in the wage budget. I released a bunch of players I no longer needed which gave me enough room to get a little bit more money but it wouldn’t go far, and we had enough foreigners that I needed to focus on finding good enough Ukrainians within such a limited budget. One player was already on his way at the end of his contract, and a couple of other players were also available as free-agents, needing only one paid signing to achieve what I felt was as much as I could do this time around.

The board expect a repeat of a top-half finish, which is manageable but far from certain and I didn’t want to have that as the expectation quite yet. As I thought at the end of last season, consolidation rather than progression is likely to be the order of the day for a couple of years at least.

Yeah, I remember finances were tough when there was no European football. I seem to remember agreeing deals to bring players in on Bosman deals in the winter, rather than scratching around in just two or three weeks in the summer. That made player recruitment much easier, although obviously you won't know your budget for the new season, which can be awkward.

With five European spots though, you really aren't far away.

Much better end to the season and very comfortable for you Even just the same again next season will be good going because it means you are pretty much established after that, anything else will be a bonus for now.

Yeah, I remember finances were tough when there was no European football. I seem to remember agreeing deals to bring players in on Bosman deals in the winter, rather than scratching around in just two or three weeks in the summer. That made player recruitment much easier, although obviously you won't know your budget for the new season, which can be awkward.

With five European spots though, you really aren't far away.

I only barely had the wage budget room (which you need to be able to offer sufficient wages) to do it last year and won't this time. There is also a need to juggle foreigners with Ukrainians, and what appears to be a very small budget (I don't know what the standard is but 3kpw max per player looks far too small) doesn't help, though . We'll probably need European qualification to get much of a budgetary improvement, which is a long shot for now. I did have a lot to play with after promotion, over double the current wage budget, which I mostly sacrificed to get 2M for transfers not 1.2M, there's still over 1M in the bank so while obviously I've made quite a bit of investment already it's not like it's all been used up already. Maybe it will help that we moved stadium during last season (I don't know whether it was a new build for the Euros or whether we started the game in a much smaller one while the regular stadium was upgraded, probably the latter).

In terms of time, this season was a lot better in terms of getting my business done early enough. Partly because there wasn't as much we needed to do and what we could do, partly because the season started a week later (probably due to the Euros which have just passed, though not sure if it was last year needing to start earlier or this year later), and also the opening match was pushed back for whatever reason and is now up second so we had an extra week before we started our season, and I actually managed to get everything done before the first game as opposed to a few weeks in.

Much better end to the season and very comfortable for you Even just the same again next season will be good going because it means you are pretty much established after that, anything else will be a bonus for now.

Agreed, and that was what I was thinking all along, both regarding the comfortable season when we were still doing badly, and how a repeat would be fine even had I been able to improve the team more.

Anyway I've updated the OP with a list of 'career aims', though that's more a rather personal 'would be nice' list based on past experience and (rare) achievements to try and repeat, rather than any of them being a 'must do'.

Jul/Aug 2012

Metalurg Donetsk (1-3 Chornomorets (UPL)

We had a potentially tricky start to the season, opening at Metalurg Donetsk. We only had one red card in all of last season, coming in the Spring, but Ordos seemed determined to get himself in the record books for ‘quickest sending off in a season’, getting a straight red after just 3 minutes. Idiot. Despite that we still looked good, and Taschy gave us the lead in the 8th minute. Balashov had a few chances to make it 2-0 and did so in the 59th minute, before sadly becoming our second player to go off injured (after Galvao, who was out for 4-5 months though Balashov was thankfully fine). They pulled a goal back in the 74th minute and could have grabbed a point but Taschy scored again with a few minutes left for a good 3-1 win.

Chornomorets 2-1 Dnipro (UPL)

We looked solid for a while against Dnipro but we slipped up late on in the half and allowed them to take a 2-0 win. Balashov pulled a goal back in the 49th minute, and we looked like we might equalize. Unfortunately we eventually faded bit managed to avoid shipping a 3rd.

Vorskla 1-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

We had a goal disallowed after 10 minutes at Vorskla, but deservedly took the lead anyway from Balashov in the 50th minute. We were on the back foot for the rest of the match so while it was a little disappointing conceding an 83rd minute equalizer it was a fair and decent result.

Chornomorets 4-3 Metalist (UPL)

Metalist had been set to be our opening game before being pushed back. Things looked gloomy as they comfortably took a 2-0 lead in the first-half. Rebenok gave us a goal at the start of the second-half, then assisted an own-goal on the hour mark. Balashov gave us the lead in the 66th minute. It looked like they had snatched a point in stoppage time but there was still time for Balashov to give us the win anyway.

Illichivets 1-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

Roberto gave us the lead in the 1st minute at Illichivets, and we might have had another but they got back into the game and equalized before the break. They looked more likely to get the winner and even had a goal disallowed but we survived to get a point.

Nyva Ternopil 0-2 Chornomorets (UC)

We went to Nyva Ternopil in the cup, and took the lead from a Balashov penalty in the 18th minute. It wasn’t particularly impressive but we comfortably went through thanks to another Balashov goal with 10 minutes left.

Chornomorets 1-0 Olympic Donetsk (UPL)

We had a goal disallowed after 10 minutes against Olympic Donetsk. Ordos gave us the deserved win in the 48th minute, but Balashov was denied another disallowed goal.

Sept 2012

Obolon 1-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

Balashov was on international duty when we went to Obolon, but after being a little unlucky not to be ahead at the break, Vasin gave us a goal in the 54th minute but our main flaw had been not doing enough to keep 1-0 leads and sure enough they caught us out at a corner to equalize. We made a late push but it wasn’t enough.

Chornomorets 0-2 Karpaty (UPL)

We went behind after 5 minutes against Karpaty, but still had a lot of fight and came close a number of occasions to getting at least an equalizer. Unfortunately we were reduced to 9 men late on with both midfielders, Roberto and Rolle, went off injured and unsurprisingly they got a second in added time.

Sevastopol 1-2 Chornomorets (UPL)

We went behind at Sevastopol in the 18th minute. It seemed like an age before Melnyk’s 39th minute header. Balashov missed a second-half penalty but Vasin popped up just after to give us the win.

Chornomorets 1-3 Arsenal Kiev (UC)

We faced Arsenal Kiev in the cup. They hit us on the break after 15 minutes, and things got worse from there. Neuwirth got sent off and they were 3-0 up after 64 minutes. Roberto got a very late consolation as we went out despite having been at least their equals.

Chornomorets 0-3 Shakhtar (UPL)

I wasn’t looking forward to facing a Shakhtar side with a 100% record so far this year. It was the first time this season we had been clearly second-best, as they walked all over us for a 3-0 win. It was expected but as we dropped down a few places from 4th it was a bit disappointing as well.

Before I talk about stuff there is a bit of extra transfer news. Taschy was lost to Bayern for 1.6M, which was rather annoying. He had been in demand but I felt that if/when the chairman stepped in it would be for rather a lot more than that, and not only just over double his value. After 2 years of being decent but unimpressive he was looking like coming into his own this year and doesn't deserve being stuck in Bayern's reserve side. We can easily cope with his loss but that's not the point. Not enough of it went into the transfer budget to be worth trying to use so I gave us a bit of wage budget space, which I was going to leave until the new year but decided to take this guy as a free agent.

Anyway, I'm pretty happy with how things have gone so far, certainly it was better than I was expecting. Given how tight a lot of the table is and a couple of those draws could well have been wins we could easily be much higher up, in fact we were 4th before Shakhtar. We've been more consistent this time which is what we've needed and so far a top half finish looks rather comfortable. We've got a reasonable chance of grabbing a European place as well but I'm not getting too carried away about it so far.

Seems a more rounded start than last season where you were flying and then struggled for a bit, picking results in the way you are this year is probably better tbh because it doesn't mess with the morale as much.

What are your thoughts about going out of the cup (aside from the way the game went)? Do you feel that maybe playing a few games less could be better in terms of for this season or more of a potential wasted chance for a European spot?

Seems a more rounded start than last season where you were flying and then struggled for a bit, picking results in the way you are this year is probably better tbh because it doesn't mess with the morale as much.

What are your thoughts about going out of the cup (aside from the way the game went)? Do you feel that maybe playing a few games less could be better in terms of for this season or more of a potential wasted chance for a European spot?

You're probably right about the morale, sometimes I've seen my team start a bad run of results being very unlucky but then that turns unto just being genuinely terrible, and that includes the way we were for a lot of last season.

Funnily enough I was going to say something about the cup. Not too bothered about it really, partly because Arsenal are a pretty good side (at least on paper) so no shame in going out to them, and also because with a few clearly superior teams around who we couldn't avoid before the semis at least, trying to get a European spot though the cup alone was always going to be a very unlikely prospect. It doesn't save us that many games, even reaching the final would have only been 3 games more and it's only a 30-game league season with no other cups or European games so it's not like fixture congestion was ever going to be an issue.

Oct-Dec 2012

Metalurg Zapor-whatever 0-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

We went to Zapor-whatever, without Balashov (on international duty again, but he was about to get too old for youth internationals thankfully). We missed a few first-half chances, and found ourselves on the back foot in the second-half. We just about got away with it, and Melnyk even gave us a winner in stoppage time, but we had seriously ridden our luck half to death.

Chornomorets 0-2 Nyva Vinnytsya (UPL)

I expected us to beat win-less Nyva Vinnytsya but we were mediocre from the start and went 2-0 down, with Balashov having a goal disallowed before the break. We raced out of the block in the second-half but couldn’t even get a goal.

Arsenal Kiev 1-2 Chornomorets (UPL)

I was a little worried about going to Arsenal Kiev but we started brightly and took the lead from Rolle after 12 minutes. They generally had the better of things, but Rebenok made it 2-0 in the 58th minute. They pulled a goal back and I couldn’t have complained too much if they equalized but thankfully they didn’t. However we lost Balashov to injury for almost a month.

Chornomorets 3-4 Dynamo Kiev (UPL)

We went behind after just a few minutes against Dynamo Kiev, but in the absence of Balashov the other forwards did something for a change! Pleshavov equalized in the 7th minute and Ordos made it 2-1 after half an hour. I didn’t expect it to last but at the same time it was frustrating seeing the defence fail miserably as they equalized before the break and went 4-2 up by the hour mark. A late own-goal at least gave us a respectable 4-3 scoreline.

Volyn 1-2 Chornomorets (UPL)

We were firmly on top in the first half at Volyn but failed miserably to score, and had a penalty claim denied. On top of that, they suddenly took the lead on the stroke of half-time. They had a second disallowed which allowed us to finally take the game with goals from Rebenok and Roberto in the last 15 minutes, Vasin even having a 3rd disallowed.

Metalist 1-3 Chornomorets (UPL)

The trip to Metalist was a bit of a rearguard action but Paparetto headed us into the lead in the 17th minute. He repeated the trick in the 55th minute. Balashov was back and made it 3-0 from a 77th minute penalty, and despite having one full-back sent off and the other injured, I didn’t care as even with a consolation I knew we’d win.

Chornomorets 2-1 Metalurg Donetsk (UPL)

Rebenok gave us the lead in the 29th minute against Metalurg Donetsk, with Balashov getting another 5 minutes before the break. They scored in the 70th minute with was a bit of a warning but we pushed on and got a 3rd goal from Ordos.

I can't help but be a little bit annoyed that we gifted Nyva Vinnytsya their only win of the season so far, with things looking like they might be so close (even more so when the game was played, regarding the top half as well as Europe), that's 3 potentially costly points thrown away if ever I saw it. However with that out of the way, we've still managed to climb back up (admittedly with at least a couple of lucky wins on the way), getting a comfortable safety margin for our top-half minimum target and sit in 5th going into the 3-month winter break, only 2 points off 3rd even! (Damn you Vinnystya!) The battle for the Europa League places look like it's going to remain tough, and if we finished 6th I'd be reasonably happy, especially given in pre-season I was worried about even making the top-half and considered Europe to be beyond us for now, but it would be a shame to waste the opportunity if it's within reach in the spring.

Mar 2013

Dnipro 2-2 Chornomorets (UPL)

We still had to play the toughest sides away, starting at Dnipro. They took the lead in the 3rd minute but we fought back to equalize from Balashov in the 23rd minute. The defence looked shaky but Roberto headed us into a surprise lead in the 63rd minute. The rest of the game was nerve-wracking, and we couldn’t quite hold out but despite a stoppage time equalizer it was a point I was pleased with.

Chornomorets 3-1 Vorskla (UPL)

Vorskla were a rival side in the European hunt, so we hit them from the start and took the lead from Ordos in the 9th minute. Rolle made it 2-0 after 15 minutes, and it looked like we were going to take a win that would put us 5 points ahead of them. They pulled a goal back 10 minutes later and pushed hard to equalize but Ordos scored again to make it 3-1 before the break. They pushed hard for a spell in the second-half but we held on.

Chornomorets 3-3 Illichivets (UPL)

A penalty allowed Balashov to give us the lead after 15 minutes against Illichivets. They felt aggrieved by that and equalized a few minutes later but Balashov soon caught them on the break for 2-1, then scored another penalty for 3-1. The defence failed miserably as they fought back for 3-3 by half-time, and frustratingly we rarely look like retaking the lead in the second-half, having to settle for holding on.

Olympic Donetsk 4-2 Chornomorets (UPL)

Pleshakov gave us a 3rd minute lead at Olympic Donetsk, but Roncaglia got sent off which made it easy for them to equalize. Arzhanov restored the lead by the break but a poor second-half showing allowed them to come back and take a 4-2 win! That left us with 1 point from what should have been 6 in the last 2 games, and Metalist were just a point behind in the race for 5th, where we should be more comfortable. I wasn’t just going to throw the book at the Argentine, I was going to throw the while library!

Apr 2013

Chornomorets 4-1 Obolon (UPL)

Balashov went off injured after just 5 minutes against Obolon (though he’d only be out for a few days), but Pleshakov and Paparatto gave us a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes. Vasin made it 3-0 and though they scored just before half-time, Pleshakov sealed a 4-1 win.

Karpaty 2-3 Chornomorets (UPL)

We had to go to Karpaty, another rival in the European hunt, and with regret I left an unfit Balashov on the bench. It looked bad early on. They looked superior then took a quick 2-0 lead after 40 minutes. Roberto gave us a chance in stoppage time and Vasin snatched an equalizer in the 51st minute. We didn’t really have momentum, but a Vasin penalty gave us an unlikely win, coupled with a defeat for Vorskla at Olympic Donetsk. I was worried that Europe was going to slip away from us but we looked good again after this.

Chornomorets 0-0 Sevastapol (UPL)

We had Shakhtar coming up so we needed to make the most of a home gave with Sevastapol. Unfortunately we had chance after chance and wasted them all, though on the plus side it was a rare clean sheet.

Shakhtar 0-0 Chornomorets (UPL)

It’s fair to say I wasn’t expecting anything from a trip to Shakhtar, but surprisingly not only did we resist well, but we also had the occasional chance, and while still very much a point of luck it was a nice surprise. Pleasingly Metalist then lost against Shakhtar, keeping them 5 points behind with that many games left, though we also had to go to Dynamo. Metalist had to face them first, while we had a good chance to get even further ahead against Zapor-whatever.

Chornomorets 3-0 Metalurg Zapor-whatever (UPL)

We didn’t look convincing early on, and only took the lead from the 42nd minute from a Balashov penalty. We were lucky they were wasteful but Ordos and another Balashov penalty gave us a comfortable 3-0 win in the end.

May 2013

Nyva Vinnytsya 1-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

We went to Nyva Vinnystya and pushed hard from the start but found ourselves going behind instead in the 24th minute. Balashov equalized after half an hour, and the rest of the game was tense at both ends but we could afford to be happy with a point.

Arsenal Kiev 1-0 Chornomorets (UPL) 100th career game!

We could seal our European spot with a win against Arsenal Kiev, in what was my 100th career match. Unfortunately it was a mediocre showing. They went ahead in the 18th minute, having already had a goal disallowed, and they could have had another.

Dynamo Kiev 0-2 Chormomorets (UPL)

We went to Dynamo Kiev, hoping to repeat the Shakhtar draw, and ended up doing better. It was still pretty rearguard but Kravchenko gave us a 72nd minute headed lead. Balashov had relied on penalties for a lot of his goals and got another in the 80th minute as we somehow came away with a 2-0 win.

Chormomorets 2-2 Volyn (UPL)

5th was confirmed before the final day when we faced Volyn. Balashov had a goal disallowed in the 15th minute but gave us the lead anyway 10 minutes later. They equalized in the 63rd minute, and again in stoppage time after a 76th minute Paparatto header looked like giving us the win.

A very good season from start to finish I feel, though with a minor touch of ‘could be better’. Aside from a mini-slump after the first month or so we were pretty consistent, and while there were a bunch of dropped points that I felt could have given us a good shot at 4th at least, there were also some unexpected wins and draws to balance it out a bit. As it happened European qualification was easier than I expected. I spend almost the entire spring worrying about holding on to 5th spot at least, then checked late on that 5th would indeed be enough and found that there were actually 6 places instead, so no trouble there. Edit: Though thinking about it, it didn't make a difference this year as Illichivets being in the cup final meant 5th was needed to qualify for Europe anyway, just that it's a guaranteed spot without having to worry about other competitions, and 6th can still be enough otherwise depending on the cup final teams.

The league was a lot more competitive this year. Last year’s record, which gave us 7th, would only have been enough for 10th this time around, so while we were ‘only’ 2 places higher than last year, we were also 12 points better off. Not only was consistency a lot better but so was our competitiveness against the tougher teams, we often lost but still improved greatly from the walkovers of last year, and getting 4 points from the return games against Shakhtar and Dynamo (even though we were still clear second-best in both) was quite a surprise. Competing with them (and possibly Dnipro) seriously is going to be big ask for a while, so while I feel we might be able to get a cup or two and a title challenge eventually, this looks like the limit of our ambitions for now. I know that’s what I said last year but the difficulty curve is several times steeper now. Hopefully being in Europe will help improve the budgets and we can start bridging that gap.

Star player: Bit predicable this. Actually despite a storming start I don't think he was really at his best, with a lot of his goals being thanks to penalties. However his all-round contribution was very good, and he was one of only 2 non-Shakhtar/Dynamo players in the league's team of the year, not bad for a guy 'off-form'.

Unfortunately as I was just writing the summary bit up and continuing the game to the reset date, this came in my inbox...

Mr Chairman, you are a F*****g Moron!!!!!! The Taschy sale I could just about cope with, as we were easily able to cope with his loss and he went to another nation, but this is something far worse. Not only did he get 57 goals in 84 games but none of the other forwards have ever managed more than brief patches of goalscoring form, and Shakhtar are the last club I want to lose a player to. This isn't so much a step back as a dive off a cliff. This is the second time he's sold a player over my head for about double their value, which I think is far too low for chairman interference. Why is there never a Russian coup when you need one? So much about what I was saying about hoping to match the big boys before too long

Looking good so far - even if various budgets and sales keep pulling the rug out from under you

Edit - and there goes Bala too :(. Good luck picking it up next season!

Looking good so far - even if various budgets and sales keep pulling the rug out from under you

Edit - and there goes Bala too :(. Good luck picking it up next season!

Never mind the rug, I've just had the entire house pulled from under me! Plus often the fans unhappiness at a sale gets brought up as a negative in the monthly confidence report, even when it was the chairman's decision (though on balance I have seen a positive player sale reaction due to chairman interference feature as well)There's always a decent chance we could pick it up if I get lucky with his replacement or the others take the chance to shine, and I'd never resign for something like this like I've seen a few others do on here but I'm absolutely furious with the chairman right now. I was really happy with how everything had been going before now. Just got budgets in for next season and it's 1.5M for transfers (about 10x last year) and 47.kpw wages (currently spending 32.9kpw) so that's not too bad, hopefully I can get a few players who will help us hang on to the European places.

Just decided to see just how bad the goalscoring records of the other forwards were. 15 goals in 61 games combined last season, which gets worse if you remove Vasin (who is essentially a backup/sub), leaving 10 in 51 for the other two 'main' forwards. Doesn't fill me with great confidence.

Summer 2013

This summer we had two priorities. We needed to improve the Ukrainian presence at the club, as with a player arriving on a free we now had as many foreigners as we could realistically sustain, and we also needed a replacement for Balashov. We had 1.5M to spend but there were relatively few player who I felt would be good enough to sign of any nationality. A few did come up later on, including the much-needed new forward, the only new deal done before the opening day, and promisingly he scored on his debut. There were a couple of setbacks, aside from the lack of good options, a bid for a good young keeper from Metalist was delayed because he signed a new contract the first time and I had to re-bid, though he didn’t cost that much more than he would have done, another signing went elsewhere, a player expected to be cheap proved to be anything but so I had to pull out, but I felt that three signings (all done by the second match) was fine, as well as a very promising young Brazilian who’d arrive next August so despite the blow of losing Balashov, we still seemed in reasonable shape to survive without him. There was also plenty of budget left to put into wages in case any free agents came up and which I could put to good use at the start of January when securing frees for next year.

Koz'ban looks like he'll do a job - and I actually recognise the name of Gladstone, so that's always good!

Koz'ban looks like he'll do a job - and I actually recognise the name of Gladstone, so that's always good!

Well, they've both been alright but it's not been great so far from anyone.

July/Aug 2013

Chornomorets 1-0 Illichivets (UPL)

The opening game was against Illichivets. It was a poor match. They had few chances, we had a bit more but wasted them, but new forward Koz’ban gave us the win just before half-time.

Sevastopol 3-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

If we were mediocre against Illichivets, we were genuinely terrible at Sevastopol, who easily took a 2-0 lead in the first half. Paparatto’s header gave us something in the 68th minute, which triggered a good spell from us, but as well as failing to equalize, we conceded a 3rd right at the end of the match.

Chornomorets 0-1 Vorskla (UPL)

We conceded early again against Vorskla. We weren’t quite as bad as in the last game (which would have been some achievement) but were still on balance a little lucky they didn’t get another, even if later on we looked half-decent value for an equalizer.

Chornomorets 1-0 Teplice (EL)

In the Europa League, we played a Teplice side of similar strength to us. Like the opening day, we were the better of two sides playing badly and a Koz’ban shot was deflected in to give us a narrow lead from the home leg.

Shakhtar 4-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

I braced myself for a tough Shakhtar trip. There was no chance of a repeat of the 0-0 in the spring, and they were easily 2-0 up at the break. An own-goal made it 3 at the start of the second half, and a penalty made it 4-0. Rebenok scored a goal so meaningless he shouldn’t have bothered, while a penalty save from Denchuk at least spared us further humiliation.

Teplice 1-1 (1-2) Chornomorets (EL)

We went to Teplice, hoping to hold on, and saw Denchuk save another penalty after 20 minutes. We otherwise looked good for the first time this season, at least for the first half an hour, when Pleshakov gave us the lead on the night. They now needed 3 goals and certainly went for it, though only got one in the 55th minute.

Chornomorets 1-2 Dnipro (UPL)

Dnipro were also struggling early on, but were still as tough as ever. They had an 8th minute goal disallowed, but deservedly took the lead at the start of the second-half, getting another while Ordos gave us a consolation with 5 minutes left.

Tavria 0-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

I hoped we could get something at promoted Tavria, but again failed to impress, even though we just about deservedly snatched it from Vasin right at the end.

Chornomorets 1-0 Spartak Moscow (EL)

We a tough tie against Spartak Moscow in the Europa League. They looked far too strong for us but we kept them surprisingly quiet and even took the lead from Roberto after a hour! We might even have grabbed a second afterwards, and I doubted we could hold on in Moscow.

Arsenal Kiev 0-3 Chornomorets (UPL)

Koz’ban snatched the lead in the 43rd minute at Arsenal Kiev, but for most of the rest of the match we were lucky they didn’t equalize, indeed they had a goal disallowed. Late goals from Arzhanov and Gladstone gave us a 3-0 win but that gave us far too much credit.

Spartak Moscow 4-1 (4-2) Chornomorets (EL)

I knew we were facing a rearguard action at Spartak, and they took the lead as early in the 8th minute. Vasin scored in the 34th minute to give us a chance at going through but they got the two goals they needed before half-time, with a 4th coming in the second-half as their far superior quality showed.

As I feared, we haven't done too well without Balashov. We started so badly that I was starting to wonder how long I'd feel like staying, but we've at least improved from 'mediocre' to 'average'. It's not just the results, the performances have stayed a few gears below last season as well. The first half an hour at Teplice has been the longest of sadly few spells where we've actually looked good. I had been hoping to try and get into Europe again, even though that wasn't the expectation, but at the moment it seems to be about salvaging as much as we can, maybe getting into the top half. At least we did as expected in Europe. Having known we'd enter in the 3rd qualifying round I was expecting a potentially tricky (but still winnable depending on the team) tie, though that was also assuming we wouldn't be seeded, which it turned out we were, and chances were we'd get someone who was just far too strong for us if we managed that, even if for almost 3/4 of the tie we actually did a lot better than I thought against a very strong Spartak side.

I'll start with the praise for last season, 2 places and 12 points is quite a jump so well done on that even if you felt a slight bit disappointed over the course of the year.

This season hasn't been the greatest of starts but it was always going to be a bit more difficult getting used to life without Balashov (chairman is an idiot for letting him go so cheap). Spartak was a difficult tie in the Europa so hard to be too downbeat about that really, if anything not being in Europe may do you a favour for this season as your squad doesn't seem quite ready to cope with the extra fixtures just yet, but of course the problem is being in the group stages would have meant money for you to try and improve so it was a no win situation either way

I'll start with the praise for last season, 2 places and 12 points is quite a jump so well done on that even if you felt a slight bit disappointed over the course of the year.

This season hasn't been the greatest of starts but it was always going to be a bit more difficult getting used to life without Balashov (chairman is an idiot for letting him go so cheap). Spartak was a difficult tie in the Europa so hard to be too downbeat about that really, if anything not being in Europe may do you a favour for this season as your squad doesn't seem quite ready to cope with the extra fixtures just yet, but of course the problem is being in the group stages would have meant money for you to try and improve so it was a no win situation either way

Well on paper we're not really any weaker, just that Balashov happened to be pretty much the only player who has ever really performed on a consistent basis. It's not inevitable that things would end up going much worse without him, since we're still good enough in theory, but I knew that things would likely be different in practice. The fan response to his sale has actually been positive! Probably because since the promotion season he'd been occasionally asking for a move to a bigger club (inevitable really) so there was probably a sense of better squad harmony but he hadn't been that difficult about it. 4M was still a reasonable amount of money but that's the only thing the least bit positive about it, which just goes to show that fans are idiots just as much as chairmen and Ass Mans.

There are a couple of other things thrown into the mix. Buying an inexperienced young keeper and throwing him in as first-choice right away was always going to be a bit of a gamble in the short term. There have also been a few injuries and a bunch more occurring in-game only that have meant I've had to constantly shift players around, both for that so many poor games, mainly from defenders but also often from almost everyone else as well. Thankfully I have a lot of players who can play both in defence and midfield as I've had to use about 4 of them already in both positions.

I think Europe was actually a good thing, as looking a little more convincing there (which admittedly wasn't difficult) seemed to help us improve to get our first league wins since the opening day (even if they've all been a bit scrappy, even the Arsenal 3-0 which made us look a lot better than we were). We were able to win a tie, which was far from certain, put up a decent showing against a Spartak side who were good enough to have potentially comfortably beaten us in both legs, and had we reached the group stage we wouldn't have done well and a handful of mid-week defeats wouldn't have done much good. It's probably worked out as well as could be expected.

The goalkeeper certainly won't help much, I've found from FM10 onwards it seems to take quite a while for a foreign one to settle in. As you say you've also had injuries so possibly if you can get through this spell of them and have a run where you can put your strongest side out things should start looking up.

In terms of European places is FM11 the first one where there was dynamic rep or was that 12? I was just thinking if Shaktar and Kyiv did alright in Europe that would make things better for you if it was 11 where the rep started.

The goalkeeper certainly won't help much, I've found from FM10 onwards it seems to take quite a while for a foreign one to settle in. As you say you've also had injuries so possibly if you can get through this spell of them and have a run where you can put your strongest side out things should start looking up.

In terms of European places is FM11 the first one where there was dynamic rep or was that 12? I was just thinking if Shaktar and Kyiv did alright in Europe that would make things better for you if it was 11 where the rep started.

Yep, I have Dynamic Rep (One of the joys of FM11 is that it's recent enough that I still have a lot of things I like, especially that and live contract negotiation, with relatively little to miss, only add/remove, DoF and maybe the newer teamtalk system, as well as it running a lot quicker/smoother, even in contrast to FM12, and contracts are a lot more negotiable than later, especially in wages where players barely seem to budge in later versions. There are no really big reasons why I prefer FM11 but lots of smaller things, especially in comparison to FM14, that really add up to it being the version that's most like what I want it to be). I definitely remember that two of the most wanted features, that and add/remove league, were introduced in consecutive versions, though it's only a gradual effect so I'm not sure how much benefit it can really bring, especially as the Ukrainian league is pretty highly ranked already with 6 European places even at this early stage of the game.

The keeper is Ukrainian and in his 20's so not quite in nappies but he'd only played a handful of times before joining us so he's still in the process of getting some much-needed experience. He's been decent enough for the most part, with a couple of penalty saves to his credit already, so pretty low down the list of players who haven't delivered, but he'd still be worth a bunch of points if he could really start to do well. The 'proper' injuries have thankfully been restricted to a few players but even having to switch things around so often mid-match can't be helping. Hopefully well get a bit done later and see how things progress.

Well done scraping into Europe, although it appears your chairman has done you no favours by selling your best player - I think it's apparent that this has had some effect on your team.

Managers have walked for a lot less.

Sept 2013

Zorya 2-1 (aet) Chornomorets (UC)

We went to Zorya in the cup and went behind in the 23th minute. Rebenok had been one of the unsung heroes of the career and equalized a few minutes later, but no one else lived up to his example and we fell to a goal in extra-time.

Karpaty 4-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

We seemed to be throwing a decent August away and went behind at Karpaty in the 17th minute. Gladstone headed an equalizer in the 32nd minute, but they easily tore past a woeful defence in the second-half to win 4-1.

Chornomorets 0-1 Metalurg Zapor-whatever (UPL)

We had one of our brighter performances against Zapor-whatever, but somehow felt to a goal in the 14th minute, and were denied a penalty in our unluckiest defeat for a while.

Chornomorets 5-0 Volyn (UPL)

We had a great chance of getting something against Volyn, and very much took it. Rebenok was the architect as Kravchenko headed in a 4th minute corner to get us going. Pleshakov and Koz’ban scored a goal each before the break, before adding another as we won 5-0, the first time all year we’d looked good all game!

Poltava 1-3 Chornomorets (UPL)

We had a chance to build on it at promoted Poltava and took a 2-0 lead after 6 minutes from Pleshakov, which was enough to take him past his tally from all of last year! They pulled a goal back early in the second-half but Pleshakov completed his hat-trick and had a 4th disallowed in the last minute. Two good performances in a row, who knew we had it in us!

Oct 2013

Choromorets 1-1 Metalurg Donetsk (UPL)

We hoped to make it 3 in a row against Metalurg Donetsk, and took the lead when Arzhanov assisted Pleshakov in the 29th minute. Unfortunately we got a couple of injuries when we didn’t have enough subs and immediately shipped an equalizer but it was still a decent point from a pretty good showing.

Chornomorets 1-1 Olympic Donetsk (UPL)

We conceded a surprise goal in the 25th minute against Olympic Donetsk, but restored some pride from a Kravchenko equalizer in the 69th, and even though better finishing might have given us a win, we were now 4 matches unbeaten which was reasonably good given how dire we were looking early on.

Metalist 1-0 Chornomorets (UPL)

A trip to Metalist was a return to potentially trickier games. Luck was not on our side as an even game was decided by a 33rd minute Metalist penalty, while we were denied a good one of our own near the end.

Dynamo Kiev 3-0 Chornomorets (UPL)

Dynamo Kiev had been a bit under-par, and we made a good start in Kiev but couldn’t make the most of it and we were broke by penalty in the 39th minute, with 2 more goals coming in the second-half as we were comfortably brushed aside.

Nov 2013

Illichivets 3-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

We went behind in the 2nd minute at Illichivets, and even though Roberto equalized in the 12th minute, our bad luck continued and we lost an even game with a couple of second-half goals. I was worried that if we continued to be unlucky we’d soon turn back into being poor.

Chornomorets 1-1 Sevastopol (UPL)

We went behind against Sevastopol (who aren’t even Ukrainian anymore) in the 34th minute, and after huffing and puffing at least managed to snatch a deserved point from Ordos right at the end, though it could easily have been a win.

Vorskla 1-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

We looked set for disappointment at Vorskla, going behind in the 72nd minute, and admittedly with better finishing they’d have got another, but we were still decent value for a point and snatched it from Rebenok in stoppage time.

Chornomorets 1-1 Shakhtar (UPL)

We faced Shakhtar before the winter break, and surprisingly took the lead from Ordos after 12 minutes, having already had a goal disallowed from Rebenok. Even with 10 men they upped the pressure in the second-half and I could be too disappointed when they equalized in the 72nd minute, maintaining their unbeaten record in the league this season.

We've not been too bad, but a mixture of bad luck and being unable to really be that good either is costing us a bunch of points. Three 1-1's in a row (the first 2 achieved through very late but not undeserved equalizers) sort of sums up our season. doing just about alright in mid-table mediocrity, but without convincing enough to do much better for now. This looks like a season to survive rather than achieve but at the moment it looks like I'll be able to hang on in there (job security at 46% during the break) until we're able to start moving forward again, hopefully next year.

Mar 2014

Dnipro 5-2 Chornomorets (UPL)

We went to Dnipro and went behind in the 10th minute. Ordos equalized a few minutes later but we were otherwise firmly second-best, and it was no surprise to see them retake the lead 5 minutes before the break. They pushed on with a 3rd and another disallowed, and though Krasnopyorov somehow made it 3-2 in the 79th minute, there was still time for them to get two more goals, the last from a penalty.

Chornomorets 1-2 Tavria (UPL)

We hoped to break a run of 9 games without a win against Tavria, but couldn’t even do that. They took the lead in the 11th minute, and we didn’t look remotely convincing until Roberto’s 32nd minute equalizer. We both battered away to little effect but they stunned us with an 84th minute winner.

Chornomorets 1-1 Arsenal Kiev (UPL)

I moderated our tactical approach quite a bit to face Arsenal Kiev, and looked a lot more convincing but still went behind in the 48th minute. Koz’ban equalized after an hour and we were a little unlucky not to go on to claim that elusive win.

Volyn 0-2 Chornomorets (UPL)

We went to bottom club Volyn, who had just 6 points, and very much took our chance. Ordos gave us the lead after 20 minutes, and Kravchenko’s header on the hour mark gave us a deserved 2-0 win, our first win in 12!

Chornomorets 1-3 Karpaty (UPL)

Melnyk gave us the lead against 3rd placed Karpaty in the 17th minute. Unfortunately they soon equalized and took the lead just before the break. We pushed hard for an equalizer but were hit with a late 3rd.

Apr/May 2014

Metalurg Zapor-whatever 0-3 Chornomorets (UPL)

We finally had a great performance at Metalurg Zapor-whatever. Melnyk got us going in the 29th minute, with Ordos making it 2-0 in the 40th minute. Koz’ban finished off a 3-0 win with a couple of minutes left.

Chornomorets 1-0 Poltava (UPL)

We had a good chance of back-to-back wins for the first time since the summer, but didn’t seem to be making the most of it against Poltava. Koz’ban thankfully saw us through with a 50th minute goal.

Metalurg Donetsk 2-0 Chornomorets (UPL)

We were unlikely to make it 3 in a row at Metalurg Donetsk, and nor did we. We were reasonable enough but they were better and took the lead just before half-time, quickly sealing a 2-0 win.

Chornomorets 2-2 Metalist (UPL)

Ordos gave us the lead after 20 minutes against Metalist, but we had a tough time keeping hold of it and they equalized in the 38th minute. Melnyk restored the lead shortly afterwards but they grabbed a deserved share of the points late on.

Olympic Donetsk 1-1 Chornomorets (UPL)

We had a few injuries and suspensions when we went to Olympic Donetsk, resulting in a very dull first-half. Melnyk gave us the lead in the 70th minute, but like with Metalist, a draw was a fairer result and the opposition got it late on.

Chornomorets 0-4 Dynamo Kiev (UPL)

The last game was against Dynamo Kiev, and unfortunately completely failed to live up to extremely low expectations as they went 2-0 up after 18 minutes and had a 3rd before the break, going on to win 4-0.

Right, that was a season to forget. I kept zig-zagging on whether I wanted to stay or not. I had been thinking of leaving during the break if things looked really dire, but it wasn’t quite that bad. The way things started off in the spring sapped my motivation once more but we improved after the tactical switch (given our strong favourite status at the start of the career and the flat back 5 I had gone for something very ambitious, which had worked well enough in the Premier League as well but without Balashov to turn it into goals we were both impotent and vulnerable), and though we couldn’t pull ourselves up from 12th and we were still a pale shadow of last year, it kept the sack wolves from the door and gave me just about enough encouragement that we’d be able to cope as a decent mid-table team until things got better again. I had great ambitions after last year and though they’ve obviously been knocked back quite a bit the potential is still there and it would have been a shame to give up on it.

Star player: Thankfully a few players rose above the pit of relatively consistent mediocrity to have a bunch of good games. Rebenok has served us very well since the start of the career so it's no surprise that he managed to be reasonably good even this year, in contrast to most of his teammates.

Summer 2014

We found ourselves in the Europa League this season, due to the fair play table. That gave us a very early start to the season but also an easy one as we faced a side from Luxembourg! We already had a young Brazilian forward arriving late in the summer, in a deal made last year, as well as a free transfer sorted out in the New Year. There was one bright young talent available who I snapped up, along with a free-agent for depth reasons. The board expectations were merely mid-table this time, much to my relief, but if we didn’t really improve on last year’s ocean of mediocrity than I wasn’t sure I’d be too keen on staying.

(Signing for 450k)

Hello Fabinho! Pagligagliangu looks decent as well - good signings! How are you feeling about Odesa at the moment?