FM10: Argentine Football Thread.

Welcome to the home of the APD

Feel free to post anything regarding your adventures in the Argentine Primera Division.

Info

Two English immigrants Thomas and James Hogg organised a meeting on May 9, 1867 in Buenos Aires where the Buenos Aires Football Club was founded. The club was given permission by Buenos Aires Cricket Club to make use of the cricket field which was located in Parque Tres de Febrero in Palermo on the site now occupied by the Galileo Galilei planetarium. The first recorded football match in Argentina took place on this pitch on 20 June 1867. The game was played between two teams of British merchants, the White Caps and the Red Caps.

* First team: Thomas Hogg, James Hogg, William Forrester, T.B. Smith, J.W. Bond, E.S. Smith, J. Rabsbottom and N.H. Smith.

* Second team: William Heald, T.R. Best, U. Smith, H.J. Barge, H. Willmont, R.M. Ramsay, J. Simpson and W. Boschetti.

The so-called "father of Argentine football" was a Glaswegian schoolteacher, Alexander Watson Hutton, who first taught football at St Andrew's School in Buenos Aires in the early 1880s. On 4 February 1884 he founded the Buenos Aires English High School where he continued to instruct the pupils in the game. In 1891 Hutton established the Association Argentine Football League, the first football league outside of the British Isles. Five clubs competed but only one season was ever played.

In this early period a number of football clubs were set up by the employees of the various British-owned railway companies in Argentina, a number of these teams have survived to the present including Ferro Carril Oeste, Club Ferrocarril Midland, Rosario Central and Talleres de Córdoba.

The early years of the 20th Century saw a huge number of new clubs formed, by 1907 there were over 300 teams in Argentina. Most of the major clubs were created around this period; they played in the national amateur tournament or in local championships. By this time matches had a considerable attendance and as the popularity of the game increased the British influence on the game waned. In 1911 Alumni folded and by 1912 the Association was renamed in Spanish as the Asociación Argentina de Football, although the tradition of giving the clubs English names continued for many years.

Following two seasons of disrupted play due to mass cancellation and suspension of matches and the mid-season withdrawal of teams in the 1929 and 1930, 18 teams decided to form a breakaway professional league for the 1931 season. The amateur league carried on in parallel until it folded in 1934 with many of the teams joining the new professional second division The creation of the professional league helped curb the exodus of Argentine talent to high paying European football clubs. The 1934 FIFA World Cup Italian national team championship side featured Oriundo in the squad composed of Argentine born players such as Raimundo Orsi, Enrique Guaita, and Luis Monti who also played for Argentina in the 1930 FIFA World Cup.

In 1964 Independiente became the first Argentine club to win the Copa Libertadores, Argentine clubs have won the competition a total of 21 times, Brazil clubs have the second most with 13.

In 1967 Racing Club became the first Argentine team to win the Intercontinental Cup. Argentine clubs have won the tournament a record nine times.

In 1978 Argentina hosted the FIFA World Cup, they beat Holland 3-1 After extra time to win their first World Cup. They won their second World Cup 1986.

In 1979 a young Diego Maradona was part of the Argentina under-20 team that won the FIFA Under-20 World Cup. Argentina have gone on to win a record six U-20 World Cups.

In 2004 the Argentina Olympic football team won Gold at the Athens Olympic games, they defended their title in 2008 to become the first team to defend the Olympic football title since Hungary in 1968..

League Structure

Around 400 registered football clubs play in the Argentine Football Association league system which is divided into a pyramid of eight leagues, divided at the third tier between the Greater Buenos Aires conurbation and the rest of the country (Interior). Below this level there are a further 249 regional leagues which are affiliated with AFA and compete for the right to enter the league system at the lowest tier.

The Primera División is the highest level of club football in Argentina. it is divided into the Apertura and Clausura championships consisting of two leagues of 19 games each per season. At the end of each season the most successful teams qualify to play in the Copa Libertadores and the Copa Sudamericana and the least successful are relegated to the second tier; Primera B Nacional which is the only other league which is organised at national level.

As the second division is the lowest we can go on FM10 their is little point on expanding on how the lower league are structured.

Since the prosessionalisation of the Primera División in 1931 a total of 15 teams have been champions of Argentina, River Plate have the most championships with 33. Between 1931 and 1967 the only winners of the Primera División Argentina were the so called "big five" (Boca Juniors, Independiente, Racing, River Plate and San Lorenzo). This dominance was finally broken in 1967 by Estudiantes de La Plata, since then nine of other teams have won the championship. The only teams outside the Greater Buenos Aires connurbation to have won the championship are Rosario Central and Newell's Old Boys of Rosario and Estudiantes from La Plata.

Teams

As of the beggining of FM10, the teams are thus;

Argentinos

Arsenal De Sarandi

Atletico Tucman

Banfield

Boca Juniors

Central

Chacarita

Colon

Estudiantes

GimnasiaLP

Godoy Cruz

Huracan

Independiente

Lanus

Newells

Racing

River Plate

San Lorenzo

Tigre

Velez Sarsfield

Personally I am a Boca fan, but Independiente, Banfied, River, Velez are all good starting options.

Key Players

Juan Roman Riquelme just an absolute god on this game has been for years, toned down for this version but still awesome.

Diego Buonanotte young River prospect has attracted lots of attention, good little player.

Juan Sebastian Veron aged but still great.

These are just a couple of real standouts, but their are many others; Otamendi, Cristaldo, Gaitan, Battaglia, Insua, Benitez and a good chance of producing some fantastic youngsters.

Players to buy?

**FREEBIES**

Sebastian Nayar is worth a shout, Amaral also, and for a forward option Ivan Kaviedes.

**200K ish**

Carranza, Cabrera, and Cejas are decent options.

**<500K**

Walter Garcia, Walter Jimenez, Luis Ibanez, Fuentes(if loaned)

**£1Mil and on**

Bassanta, Pisculichi, Salcedo, Alejandro Gomez, Erviti, Acosta, Osmar Ferreyra.

**Young Propects**

Torren, Caraglio, Defederico, Otamendi, Cristaldo, Munoz, Pacheco, Pastore.

Here is a shortlist created by batty1.

Challenges and Reasons to play

I personally feel that with the unique nature of the APD, it provides many challenges. For instance as your league is split into two 19 game seasons, slip ups or dips in form are extremely hazardous to your title aspirations. Finances aswell are something to be looked at, tax is high and success in your finances will come down to grooming and selling young talent, which in its self is a challenge, add to that a constant need to rebuild succesful teams it becomes very challenging. The youth in Argentina is at a r.easonably high level so Newgens should be good, especially if you upgrade your facilities. The strength in depth of the league is also great, their are literally half a dozen+ teams that could go on to win it. Two Continental competitions per year, so your Hall of Fame entry should go up very quickly. Its also a very good starting place for people wishing to do journeyman careers, or to start your managment career before heading to Europe.

The bad side i that the research is a little lacking, and lots of stats are set to 0. But I fully expect this will be rectified in the post January patch.

So why not give it a bash, it is just as much fun as any European League, andd if you are not familiar with South American Football, it is a good learning expereince.

Exisiting Club Threads

Boca

Lanus

River

mate.

Will put it in the links thread.

Good thread. Will definitly try it a game out this year. Any tip for a midtable club that might be fun to play?

Unfortunately, that would be River if going by this season's results

Tigre or San Lorenzo have squads that could be considered mid-table, but with a bit work can challenge for the title.

Great opener lawd, I was hoping this would be a South American thread though not just Argentina though.

Absolute cracking thread

Very good OP. May start a career there when the final patch comes out.

Well I thought that with the new patch coming out I'd start a new game with Boca. Brought in Amaral, Nayar on frees and Roberto Marangoni for 26k. Odd start to the season first 3 games won 1, drew 1, and lost 1, but really had my strikers been more ruthless I should have won all 3. However I'm on a nice little run of form at the moment and have gained top spot, Palermo and Mouche combine well and Riquelme is, well, Riquelme,an assist machine who scores some absolute screamers.

Had to upload this match to show you Riquelme's first goal.

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=3OV462TQ

I'm just about to start as Lanus.

Went to both La Bombonera and Estadio Monumental in 2007 and WOW what an atmosphere.

Boca Juniors certainly have the most passionate fans ive ever seen.

Will manage an Argentine team after im bored of my Spurs game

The end of the transfer window has come and I have signed -

Sebastian Nayar - Free

Rodrigo Marangoni - £60k

I also hold a 3-2 first leg lead against Boca in the preliminary Copa Sudamericana rounds after an amazing comeback. \o/

This thread has inspired me but in a different way, im going to start a game with an international team, simething I have never done

Can I post here or is this just about the club league?

The Argentinian national team comes under 'Argentine Football', so I can't think of any reason why you couldn't post here.

That Marangoni is really very good value for money stats wise, he just got his first goal for me, a 30 yarder, curled straight into the top corner. Lanus are very good, they always give me a tough time.

Yeah he's been playing very well, especially in the Copa Sudamericana. He tends to lose possession alot though, and he struggles against stronger teams.

I've not been having the best of times at Lanus, I've only lost one game, but I've drawn about 6.

Great OP. I was going to start a South African game but I didn't know what leagues to load, but this thread has got me wanting to play in a different South!

Just a quick question, what leagues do you recommend loading so you don't need to worry about work permits? I didn't get anywhere with this with my South Africa save so it put me off... I just feel the more leagues which are sensible for the game will make it a better experience

Edit: Nevermind my query... Just looked at the South American continent on the league screen

I have created a Lanús thread for anybody interested.

I'll Add the club specific threads to the OP. Nice to see interest being generated in the Argentine League, good to see people venturing out of the popular European leagues.

Thank you Lawd.

I was just wondering if you can think of any improvements for my Lanús first eleven. I am obviously quite unfamiliar with the Argentinian leagues and players, so any help would be very appreciated. My first eleven is -

               Caranta

Grana      Viera       Hoyos    Velazquez 

         Pelletieri   Fritzler


Salvio          Marangoni          Blanco

                Salcedo

Fuentes is good option on Loan for CB. Fullbacks are notoriuolsy hard to find in Argentina, best bet is to look at Brazil, though if memory serves Velasquez is class. Your front line sems about as solid as anyones to be fair. Pineda is a great utility player but may be too pricey, if Boca don't sign Medal I'd recommend him he is awesome.

On a side note Faustino Asprilla, of Newcatle Utd fame, is a really good scout and will come to just about any team, I have him scouting the U20 tournament to find new stars.

I have scouted Medal, and he looks like a very good player. Strangely, he isn't getting many games for Boca. Velazquez is sensational yeah, I was offered £10m for him by Lokomotiv Moskow, and the board accepted. Thankfully, I offered him a new contract and he rejected Lokomotiv.

And ah, Asprilla! I am a Newcastle fan, so I'm especially happy to have found him!

Thank you for your help lawd.

Lol shame I'm a Sunderland fan, and we got of to such a pleasent start lol.

I couldn't match Asprilla's wage demands.

And ahh, I did wonder if you supported Newcastle or Sunderland as your location says 'North East'. I guess I don't have to wonder anymore. !

I need to ask this question here because it's driving me crazy.

An Argentine defender, was very good on FM08/09 (one of them or maybe both). Played CB/LB and was pretty quick, was young'ish (early twenties, late teens) and I think he eventually moved to a Dutch/Belgian side, I can't remember, though. HELP ME!!!

It's alright, I've figured it out, it was Cahais. Anyone seen him on FM10 yet? Not loaded on any of my games yet, maybe those with the Argie league loaded had seen him? Any good?

He's out on loan in the first season iirc, with a view to a permanent move. If he doesn't join the team he's on loan too I'll keep an eye out for him, and see how he is doing.

He was at Racing Club on loan and played very well. He played in every single game scoring 2 goals and an average rating of 7.09.

I thought I'd post my Lanús end of season update in here, as it could potentially help others who are playing in the APD.

End of Season Update

Opening Stage

I was really lucky here. I played extremely poor and I was tenth all throughout until the final few games.

Closing Stage

I was doing really well, and was even top for a while. But the wheels fell off, and I finished a disappointing 5th.

Final League Table

So overall, I came a respectable 5th. The board was delighted as they only expected a top-half finish, but I am quite disappointed. The squad I have is easily capable of challenging for the title, and I think it's more down to my tactics tbh.

Manager Awards

Player of the Season

Santiago Salcedo - although he may not of always played exceptionally well, he did always score the goals. Without his goals we would of probably been in a relegation battle. Finished the season with 19 goals in 31 matches, making 4 assists and an average rating of 7.29.

Young Player of the Season

Eduardo Salvio - this was a very tough choice between Salvio and Blanco, but I chose Salvio due to the fact he covered the striking position brilliantly when Salcedo was injured. He has alot of clubs after him and I doubt I'll be able to keep hold of him. Finished the season with 9 goals, 5 assists and an average rating of 7.26.

Signing of the Season

Rodrigo Marangoni - well this wasn't a very hard choice, as my only other signing made just 4 sub appearances, but that shouldn't take nothing away from Marangoni - he was sublime. Signed for just £60k he carried me through games. He is 32 now so unfortunately he is past his peak. I may take the money I can get for him now tbh.

The New Season

My aims for this season are simple - win a trophy. I believe the Copa Sudamericana is a trophy I can win with the right tactics, and it will be a great achievement for me if I can win it. I also want to try and keep hold of all my first 11 players as they have all been exceptional. I think it may be time to review my tactics and go back to the drawing board. There are no positions that are crying out to be strengthened, but if the right player comes along for the right price I will consider it.

Juan Pablo Cruz

I have to say, I am very excited about this regen. My coaches say he has the potential to be better than Blanco so I'm definately going to keep hold of him. I will probably play him in a few easier games this year just so he can get the experience.

Apertura Season

Well this is how the Apertura finished;

Well I am delighted that we won, and with the amount of goals we scored, though I am disappointed with the games we drew, in all of them I felt we were the better team and should have won.

Only brought in 3 players in Nayar, Amaral and Maragoni, who have failed to establish themselves as threats to the first team, but they are solid squad playes.

Most pleasing was my results against the big teams in the league which were exceptional, amd some high scoring games;

Copa Sudamerican

Well I qualified well beating San Lorenzo, but it was a struggle at times throughout the tournament. But I managed to make the final against Internacional, and really surprised myself with the ease in which I overcame them.

Areas to Improve

We seem to concede a few but I am not overly concerened as we score so many, my defence lacks back up with only Bonilla (who I dont rate) to really provide any cover. I am begrudged to by though, as I have Roncaglia and Cahais out on loan, who are both excellent so I may just go for a loan, Fuentes or the like.

I did find this regen in studiantes' U20 squad, who looks amazing, but they want 5mil!! for him which I just cant afford, may try to swap a couple of fringe players for him.

All in all, rather pleased looking forward to the Clausura.

Great season lawd.

The screenshots are hard to see though?

Screenies should be fine now.

Excellent season lawd

That regen looks fb! and he's two footed. I would seriously try and sign him lawd.

5mil though for a 16yrold is steep.

But the amount you'll be able to get for him in a few years...

yeah ya right. I am trying some offers with,1mil upfront Villafane and Pratto, and 4mil after 1 international appearance

yeah ya right. I am trying some offers with,1mil upfront Villafane and Pratto, and 4mil after 1 international appearance

Good luck in signing him.

Found this guy aswell, was going to go in for him but Real Madrid of all teams have bid for him, might try anyway.

Oh managed to unsettle that other lad enough to put in a transfer request. I would have tried to raise the 5mil, but they asked for 9 in my second bid!!! Anyway he is now mine mwahaha, needs to be retrained to play AMC as I don't use wingers.

You're getting such good regens

Well played on the unsettling

They both look fb! hope you get the second guy aswell.

Ner he went to madrid. brought Schiavi in on loan though to back up the defence great stats for a 37 yr old. only on 2.4k per week and fee is 200k so nice bit of business for the rest of the season, plus I think I will use him to mentor Munoz and Sauro, both great youngsters.

Well aint been on FM for a few days with xmas etc, but had some tim on it today, started my Clausura wining 5 out of 5 scoring 19gls conceding 1 and I get a crash dump message, merry christmas eh lol.

Finished my Clausura campaign after fixing my crash dump problems.

Clausura Campign

Happy that I didn't gt beaten but the amount of draws at the end of the season, but we ended up winning it rather convincingly.

Very pleased that we only lost once, and very happy to score over 100 lge gls. Riquelme was my stand out player with loads of gls and assists, but Martin Palermo at 36 scored 42 goals in 44 starts which is amazing.

Copa Libertadores

Good campign, made it to the finla where I drew with America 0-0 away, and was winning 2-0 at home. Until some suicidal defending and world class finishing (from an average stat player) took it to extra time, where Lucas Viatri banged a 3rd in and we took the trophy.

New Season

Well I haven't been massivley busy in the transfer markt, trid to raise a little money and knock some of my debt off,

The youth that has come in this year is outtanding I have 2 four star prospects a left back and this lad,

I am very excited to see how he will turn out, could be a real star.

Season highlight was doing the double over River, and in some style, in the 2 league games I scored 8 and conceded 1.

Riquelme and Palermo

Copa Libertadores Final

Certainly an all action final.

so, its the year 2014 and im about to take over boca juniors on the 1st june. ive never really played the argentine leagues much, so does anybody have any tips on formations, tactics and type of players? im thinking of bringing some of my blackburn players to boca with me but arent sure what they'd be like

so, its the year 2014 and im about to take over boca juniors on the 1st june. ive never really played the argentine leagues much, so does anybody have any tips on formations, tactics and type of players? im thinking of bringing some of my blackburn players to boca with me but arent sure what they'd be like

In the very 1st post of this thread there is a shortlist by batty1 which could be helpful

Will anybody be doing (or have I missed) a collective thread for this year?

As Soon as I download FM11 (should be tonight) I will be doing one.