[FM10] This is a Tribute - DodgeeD's World Tour

[Raware]

Good to see this save back up and running . As hamilton says, a good move to Cameroon and hopefully you can have more success than you did with Bolivia!

Good to see you bringing Mazzoni with you too

[DodgeeD]

Thanks Raware and nice to see you back on the boards as well.

Unfortunately, this save will have to take a backseat over the next few weeks as I have two MA assignments to get done by June 1st. After that, it's a summer of FM though!

[Raware]

Thanks Raware and nice to see you back on the boards as well.

Unfortunately, this save will have to take a backseat over the next few weeks as I have two MA assignments to get done by June 1st. After that, it's a summer of FM though!

Cheers DodgeeD . Been busy myself relocating back to the UK these past few months so not had much time for FM. Re-installed 10.2 as I wasn't impressed with 10.3 so hopefully i'll have a thread up.

[DodgeeD]

February 2019 San Lorenzo Update

Transfers

No activity in the transfer market in the end as the rumoured offers for Denilson and Meza never materialised (although both players now want to move on) and I couldn’t find any suitable domestic players available at a reasonable price.

Awards

There was some activity on the awards front, at least in the runners-up spots: Mazzoni placed 2nd in the Argentinian Young Player of the Year; Olimpo youth product Carlos Serrizuela fired himself into 2nd place in the Copa Sudamericana Golden Boot; and yours truly was voted in behind Juan Sebastian Veron in the Manager of the Year poll.

Primera Division Closing Stage

Results:

I feared for a tough start as we had Mazzoni and a couple of other squad players away at the South American U20 tournament and a few injuries picked up in the mid-season break as well. I needn’t have worried though as we had a great start with an impressive home win over Argentinos followed by well-earned away wins at Tigre and Godoy Cruz. The month finished with points dropped though as we couldn’t covert our domination over either Gimnasia or Estudiantes into wins.

v. Argentinos (h), 4-0 win

v. Tigre (a), 3-0 win

v. Godoy Cruz (a), 2-1 win

v. Gimnasia (LP) (h), 0-0

v. Estudiantes (LP) (a), 1-1

Clasura Standings – We have a game in hand which, if won, could see us top.

Copa Libertadores

Group Stage

After finishing 2nd in the apertura (or so I assume), we were entered straight into the Copa Libertadores group stage. A kind draw gave us Real Mamoré (Bolivia) and El Nacional (Ecuador) as opponents with our main challengers set to be fellow Argentinian team Central. The group started with the toughest fixture, Central away, but Cabral and Benitez ensured we got the desired win with two first half strikes. The rest of the group phase should be straighforward.

v. Central (a), 2-1 win

[DodgeeD]

March 2019 San Lorenzo Update

Primera Division Closing Stage

The month started with a throwback to my Olimpo days as we were involved in an-end to-end goalfest with both teams holding the lead. Eventually, Denilson salvaged a point for us after we had gone 4-3 down with a late goal to make it 4-4. Great entertainment though it was, it also meant three draws in a row. We had a chance to end that run with a schedule of 4 home games in a row. Easy wins came against Central, rivals Racing and Ferro with Cabral (3 goals and 1 assist), Denilson (3 goals and 2 assists) and Mazzoni (4 assists) on fire. We finished March with a tough double header as we played fierce rivals Velez and River with jus a day’s rest inbetween. Cabral and Denilson proved the heroes again against Velez as they supplied the goals in a narrow win before a classic game with River in which they had most of the play but we hit them on the counter to go 3-2 up. Alas, we couldn’t hold out for the win as our legs tired but I was happy with the point. Our arduous month wasn’t over yet though as we had a trip to Arsenal to negotiate. It seemed we had blown our chance for a win after missing a string of chances but we got a dramatic winner as 17 year-old sub Serrizuela controlled the ball on the edge of the area and scored with an exquisite chip – in the 6th minute of added on time too!

Results:

v. Lanus (a), 4-4

v. Central (h), 3-0 win

v. Racing Club (h), 4-0 win

v. Ferro (h), 4-1 win

v. Velez (h), 3-2 win

v. River (a), 3-3

v. Arsenal de Sarandi (a), 2-1 win

Clasura Standings – with Independiente losing, that last gasp goal put us top. It’s tight though and we still have to face Independiente and Boca in the run in.

Denilson’s fine form, both in scoring and creating goals, earned him the Player of the Month award while 17 points from 7 games got me the Manager of the Month bubbly.

Copa Libertadores

Group Stage

Despite an early sending off, my youngsters turned on the stayle to beat Bolivian side Real Mamoré with ease, youth product Maidana grabbing a brace either side of a Mazzoni strike. Another early sending off set us on the back foot against Ecuadorian outfit El Nacional. However, Mazzoni and Denilson made sure the points came our way. Hopefully, my youngsters can keep their cool better for the return games next month!

Results:

v. Real Mamoré (h), 3-1 win

v. El Nacional (h), 2-0 win

Group Table (after 3 games) – 5 points clear and qualificaiton for the 2nd round could be confirmed with a win in our next game at El Nacional.

[DodgeeD]

April 2019 San Lorenzo Update

Primera Division Closing Stage

We started the month with a good win away to Chacarita thanks to a couple of goals from Cabral (although a disappointing lapse of concentration in the latter period of the game allowed them to score a couple). We won by the same scoreline against my old club Olimpo with Mazzoni and Serrizuela netting against their old club to add to another Cabral brace. Bottom side Tucaman were then thrashed with a hat-trick from Serrizuela among the goals (but just one from Cabral this time ). Banfield were then stuffed (with Cabral back on form with a brace) to round off a free-scoring month in the league for us!

Results:

v. Chacarita (a), 4-2 win

v. Olimpo (h), 4-2 win

v. Atl. Tucaman (a), 6-0 win

v. Banfield (a), 5-2 win

Clasura Standings – only three games to go and we stand just one point ahead of Independiente, our next opponents.

Manager of the Month honours again for me and the Player of the Month award for who else but Cabral.

Copa Libertadores

Group Stage

We came into the game in Ecuador off a tough league schedule so I rested several first teamers and we played out an uneventful draw. We travelled to Bolivia after that but this time my back-up players found their scoring form and the 2-0 win was enough to secure our qualification for the next round. With Central already through in 2nd place, there was nothing much to play for in the last game and it showed as there were no goals despite Central having a man sent off.

Results:

v. El Nacional (a), 0-0

v. Real Mamoré (a), 2-0 win

v. Central (h), 0-0

Final Group Table – Top of the group but those dropped points meant we were the lowest ranked of the top teams and would therefore face the top ranked 2nd place team in the next round. That team is Velez with the games to take place in May.

[DodgeeD]

May 2019 San Lorenzo Update

Primera Division Closing Stage

A big, big clash to start the month as we faced 2nd placed Independiente, just a point behind and one of our main rivals to boot. The players were fired up (despite Cabral’s strange pre-match comments :confused:) and Cabral, Denilson and Gold Betig out us three up inside 20 minutes and after that we were cruising. Independiente pulled one back late on but were never really in it and we took a huge step towards the title. We cruised to victory in the enxt game over Newell’s. My youth players did the business with Maidano firing in two (a header and a tap-in) and Serrizuela setting up Denilson with a cheeky backheel before scoring himself. That win effectively secured the title as Lanus were the only team who could catch us but they were 3 points behind with a +21 goals difference compared to ours of +38. Boca weren’t interested much as theyw ere long out of the title picture and so Franco and Serrizuela fired us into a first half lead. Boca picked their game up after half-time and scored twice to level the game but no matter as we were crowned champions on our rivals’ home turf!

Results:

v. Independiente (h), 3-1 win

v. Newell’s (h), 4-1 win

v. Boca (a), 2-2

Final Clasura Standings – champions by a point then. We were also declared overall champions having topped the combined table of apertura and clasura standings.

Copa Libertadores

2nd Round

We had only a short trip across Buenos Aries for our second round, first leg tie with Velez. It proved to be a fiery affair with Velez scoring early while my DM Lawal was down on the floor having suffered a fractured cheekbone from a ‘stray’ elbow. We extracted revenge in the best way though as Cabral netted two before half-time and Baiano and Mazzoni turned it into a rout in the second half. That meant the return game was a formality and Serrizuela killed any slight chance of a Velez comeack with an earşy strike. Although Velez equalised before half-time, Denilson and Serrizuela (again) struck in the second half to send us through to the quarters with ease.

Quarter Final

Another local derby in the quarter finals as we faced rivals River Plate. The first leg was one fo our worst performances for a long time as we went a goal down early on and shoud have fallen further behind. A few choice words at half-time got the team going and Denilson and Cabral put us in front only for River to grab a late equaliser. That meant we had a lot to do away in the 2nd leg. Our task was made tougher when we went a goal down on 22 minutes. Denilson gave us some hope be equalising before the break but nobody could have expected what happened in the 2nd half: first Cabral gave us th elead before Serrizuela put us 3-1 up on the night. River then piled on the pressure and made it 3-2 on 73 minutes only for Denilson to score 2 minutes later. Moments after that, Serrizuela out us three goals clear before Beitez wrapped up a crazy minute period with another goal to make the scoreline 6-2 to us. River pulled one back again only for Gold Betig to restore our lead moments afterwards as we ran riot, 7-3 winners on the night, 9-5 winners on aggregate!

Results:

2nd Round, Leg 1 v. Velez (a), 4-1 win

2nd Round, Leg 2 v. Velez (h), 3-1 win (San Lorenzo advance 7-2 on aggregate)

QF, Leg 1 v. River (h), 2-2

QF, Leg 2 v. River (a), 7-3 win (San Lorenzo advance 9-5 on aggregate)

We play Palmerias in the semi-final, one of three Brazilian sides left in the competiton.

[DodgeeD]

Just got offered the Burnley job after manager Tomas Rosiscky () got the sack after Burnley 'only' finished 11th. I turned it down as their finances seem to be in a mess but it was nice to be linked to a Premier League club.

[DodgeeD]

June/July 2019 San Lorenzo Update

Copa Libertadores

Semi final

The semi final first leg was 21st continetal game of the season but only our 6th outside Argentina and it showed as Palmerias raced into a two goal lead and we seemed a bit over-awed. I gave the players a shoting at at half-time and, to their credit, they turned it around. The usual suspects Cabral and Denilson were the goalscorers as we came away with a credible draw. The home leg was a tight affair but, unfortunately for us, it was Palmerias who edged it, scoring with 20 minutes to go and holding on to their lead to advance to the final at our expense.

Results:

SF, Leg 1 v. Palmerias (a), 2-2

SF, Leg 2 v. Palmerias (h), 1-0 loss (Palmerias advance 3-2 on aggregate)

Recopa

But our season wasn’t quite over yet... As Copa Sudamericana 2018 winners, we had to play the Recopa (South American Super Cup) against the Copa Libertadores 2018 winners. That meant yet another two-legged tie with River Plate, the third time we had played them in a continental competition this season! We got off to a great start with Denilson scoring on 22 seconds. However, things went downhill after that as Denilson was taken off with a twisted ankle and River grabbed an equaliser before half-time. We were the better team in the second half but the game was settled by a blunder from our keeper as he came out for the ball but missed it, allowing River to take a 2-1 lead back to their place for the second leg. By the time of the return game, the Copa America had begun meaning we were without 5 players – Cayazaya (GK) and Quiroz (DM) both called up for Chile; Espinosa (MC) and Cabral (ST), both in Paraguay’s squad; and Franco (MC), in Argentina’s squad. However, River were worse hit with three players at the Copa America, 4 out injured and two of their key players, Belforti and Nwagou, having moved to Europe on July 1st. That gave us hope and Baiano (2), Garcia (2) and Maidano (1) converted the hope into another big win in River’s stadium, earning us our 4th trophy of a great season!

Results:

Leg 1 v. River (h), 2-1 loss

Leg 2 v. River (a), 5-1 win (San Lorenzo win 6-3 on aggregate)

A mammoth season that ran 11 months finally comes to an end with only the Copa Libertadores and apertura league title escaping our grasp. Round up to follow.

[DodgeeD]

2018/19 San Lorenzo Season Review

Competitions: Domestic

Opening Stage:

2nd

Closing Stage:

1st

Overall:

1st

Competitions: Continental

Copa Libertadores: Semis

Copa Sudameriana:

Winners

Recopa:

Winners

I expected to challenge for honours when I moved to Sa Lorenzo last summer but I never expected 4 trophies (although I’m not sure the overall title in Argentina is actually considered a seperate trophy). Boca’s dominance over the last few years domestically has been broken and we gave arch-rivals River a good stuffing in all three of the continental trophies we contested. Good stuff.

Key Players

Vava (DC) – signed by my predecessor and proved to be a key player. Only the foreigner limits prevented him from playing more.

Claus Gold Betig (DC) – a very solid performer at the back and a key part of our success.

Miguel Maidana (DC/MC) – came through the club’s youth system just before I arrived and turned out to be a very handy player both in defence and midfield. Definitely one to watch.

Obinna Festus (DL) – a very consistent season has led to a lot of inetrest from Europe but I intend to keep this one.

Carlos Franco (DMC/MC) – a real driving force in midfield. Forced his way into the Argentina set up and won a spot in their Copa America squad too.

Rodrigo Mazzoni (MC) – the first thing I did as San Lorenzo boss was to scout Mazzoni and enquire about his availability. He set about proving his worth at his new club, breaking the record for assists in a season and getting acknowledged as Fans’ Player of the Year by the end of it.

Denilson (AMC) –scored and created in plentiful amounts and attracted a lot of interest from clubs across Europe, as a result of which, h may not be with us for much longer.

Carlos Serrizuela (ST) – what a debut season! I raised a few eyebrows by paying ₤3.5mil to bring him with me from Olimpo but it was worth it. 22 goals in all competitions and with a long career ahead.

Arnaldo Cabral (ST) – played over 50 games and bagged over 40 goals. Amazing stuff! That form meant he was the Primera Division Topscorer as well as the Primera Division’s Player of the Year.

The Season Ahead...

After being linked with Burnley, I was also in the mix for the vacant Liverpool job and actually applied for it but they slapped me in the face by going for Paul Jewell instead. I also applied for the Mexico, Argentina and Brazil jobs when they came up after the various summer tournaments but was knocked back. I think I’ll see how it goes with San Lorenzo for one more year and have a crack at the African Cup of Nations with Cameroon before deciding where to head next.

[DodgeeD]

2019/20 Season Preview: San Lorenzo

Transfers

Notable departures:

Despite last season’s success, some players were still grumbling about ‘bigger clubs’ so I let some first teamers go to bring some money in. Cluas Gold Betig, Nahuel Bentiez and Fernando Meza all left for Genk, Udinese and Porto repectively, each deal bringing in ₤7-7.5 million. Then came the deal I didn’t want to make – Denilson. He felt it was time to move on. I was surprised by his choice of Murcia over Firoentina but with ₤12.5mil coming in, I thought it was a good deal. Felix Garcia, only a fringe layer and taking up a foreigner slot, left for Sao Paulo and there was alos time for one last big deal. Medrano, a hot prospect youngster, had been attracting a lot of interest. As a wide midifielder, he didn’t fit in with my tactics so I decided to out him on the transfer list and was pleasanty surprised when Spartak Moscow made a ₤13.5mil bid! That brought our pre-season income past the ₤50mil mark – time to spend some of it!

Summary (out):

[font=Courier New][size=2]| Date               | Person             | To                 | Fee                | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 2.7.2019           | Rodríguez, Luis    | Platense           | Loan               | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 20.7.2019          | Gold Betig, Claus  | Genk               | £7.5M              | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 20.7.2019          | Denilson           | Murcia             | £12.5M             | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 20.7.2019          | Benítez, Nahuel    | Udinese            | £7.5M              | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 20.7.2019          | Meza, Fernando     | Porto              | £7.25M             | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 1.8.2019           | García, Félix      | São Paulo          | £3M                | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 16.8.2019          | Medrano, Marcos    | Spartak Moscow     | £13.5M             | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
|                    | Total              |                    | £51M               | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------|[/size][/font] 

New arrivals:

The transer market iN Argentina is a tricky one to negoitiate though. I already had several foreigners in my squad so I was looking for domestic talent. The problem there is any half-decent player comes with a hefty price tag as the clubs look for European bidders. Therefore, we ended up bringing in mainly youngsters at fairly high prices. The following players arrived:

Claudio Cisneros (DC) – a name you may recognise from my Olimpo days. He kept coming up on my scouts’ reports so I decided to go with the familiar to bolster the back line.

Claudio Medina (DC) – one for the future and highly rated by my scouts. He’ll provide cover for now.

Marcelo (DR) – OK, so I did get one foreigner but he’s already been in Argentina for over a year so his nationality should come through quickly. A good right back with the potential to be better. I just hope he justifies the price tag.

Ismael Gomez (DC/DM/MC) – another one bought with a few seasons down the line in mind. His versatility should come in handy.

Juan Chaput (MC) – I missed out on this guy when I was Olimpo boss so I was glad to get another chance to sign him. I can now move Mazzoni up to AMC.

Diego (AMC) – will provide cover for Mazzoni in the attacking midfield role and looks a good prospect.

Cristian Gonzalez (ST) – I needed one more striker who had to be Argentinian and my scouts came back with this guy. Again, should develop into a very good player and will provide cover for now.

In addition to the above, a Peruvian left back, Ormeño, arrived. His transfer was arranged by the previous manager however, (didn't go through until now because he was under 18) and I don't think he's going to make the grade. I also signed a back-up goalie, Victor Fernandez, as he was decent and cheaply available and my current back-up will turn 39 soon!

Summary (in):

[font=Courier New][size=2]| Date               | Person             | From                 | Fee                | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 24.6.2019          | Ormeño, Víctor     | Universitario        | £525K              | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 7.7.2019           | Fernández, Víctor  | Chacarita            | £1.9M              | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 20.7.2019          | Chaput, Juan       | Universidad Católica | £3.4M              | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 25.7.2019          | Cisneros, Claudio  | Olimpo               | £5M                | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 31.7.2019          | Diego              | Arsenal de Sarandí   | £3.5M              | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 3.8.2019           | González, Cristian | Banfield             | £5.5M              | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 7.8.2019           | Marcelo            | Tigre                | £7.5M              | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 17.8.2019          | Gómez, Ismael      | Racing Club          | £3M                | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 17.8.2019          | Medina, Claudio    | Gimnasia (LP)        | £3.2M              | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
|                    | Total              |                      | £33.5M             | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|[/size][/font] 

Future Transfer:

I’m not entirely sure why this deal didn’t go through as I negotiated the contract on the morning of deadline day but then received a news item that it would go through in December. :confused:

Javier Figueroa (AMLC) – my scouts were drooling over this guy, who had just come through the Gimnasia (LP) youth system, giving him a 5* potential rating. His first ever game was for the Argentina U20 side, another good sign. Seems to me to have the makings of an advanced playmaker.

[DodgeeD]

Career Update: Where next?

It seems my time at San Lorenzo, and indeed Argentina, has come to an end. Although I experienced some success, I feel that I've been in Argentina too long and I just wasn't getting the same enjoyment I was at Olimpo. My eyes had started to drift to the jobs page more regularly and I made my choice when we were knocked out of the Copa Sudamericana by Atletico Minerio. The fans were devasted and got even more agitated when I refused to rule myself oout of the running for the Chelsea job. At that point, I decided I'd had enough and quit. I leave San Lorenzo clear at the top but it's time for me to move on.

But where? The Chelsea job fell through as the once great club opted for Phil Brown (yes, Hull's gardener ) but 4 options are available to me:

1. Vasco de Gama - currently 13th in Brazil's Serie A but should be doing better. Alex Teixera is thier star (a favourite of mine from FM08) which makes it tempting but I don't want to swap a leading Argentinian side for a mid-rate Brazilian one.

2. Aston Villa - a terrible start to the season sees them down in the relegation zone. A move to the Premier League would be welcome and the challenge of lifting Villa out of the duldrums would be a good one. Plus, I could bring Mazzoni and Serrizuela along for the ride.

3 & 4. MLS - two teams are managerless at present and after me: Seattle, who reached the play-offs but not the final, and..... (I wonder who would advise me to take this job)... Toronto FC. Bottom of the MLS this season but I believe that would get me a first draft pick and it could be a good challenge to turn them around.

Your suggestions are welcome!

[AcidBurn]

So just as I arrive in Argentina you leave. I think Villa would be a good choice would be great to try and lift them to the top. As you said no point leaving Argentina to go to a midtable Brazilian side, MLS could be good fun if you can get your head round the rules but personally I would go to Villa.

[DodgeeD]

Well, can't have too many threads based in the same place at once.

I've pretty much ruled out Vasco now so it comes down to MLS (although Johnathan Woodgate has also been linked with Seattle) or Villa. Since quitting, I've been linked with a couple of Mexican sides as well... I think I'll sleep on it and decide tomorrow.

[rancer890]

Erm, my post may shock you (okay not so much ), but I say...Toronto FC! (surprise surprise )

My Sales Pitch:

It's a wonderful city. And definitely a diverse city. Italians, Croatians, Serbs, you name a country outside of Africa, we probably have some of those nationalities living here! Toronto (and basically the Southern Ontario market) love their soccer, and we have the most passionate, and knowledge soccer fans in North America. Our club has been mired by mismanagement, the main culprit being Mo Johnston. John Carver and Chris Cummins haven't been great managers for the club either. Personally, our fans deserve better. Please take Toronto FC to greater heights and give Toronto our first professional league championship (outside of lacrosse...) in over 50 years!

As bad as the on field product is, the board does have sufficient resources for you to succeed.

-----

And besides, too many threads of people taking over an English club. I'm one of the rare few who gamble to take over an MLS side. And probably the only one that you know who stayed for 4 years.

[AcidBurn]

That pitch would have me sold on the MLS I think.

[DodgeeD]

Hmmm, still undecided but I have the game saved at a point where Villa have approached me and Toronto and Vasco are waiting for my answer. In the meantime, I was also linked to Tigre in Mexico and Deportivo in Spain.

Villa looks good because they have the players and resources to do better (I'd get 18mil to spend in January - cue the arrival of an Argentinian or two ), they are still in the Europa League and Carling Cup, and I'd have Adebayor as one of my scouts and Stevie G as one of my coaches! However, one reason the squad is in a mess is that there are no left backs at the club and only 3 forwards, one of whom is only 17.

Toronto also have gaps in their squad but their season has just finished so I get a chance to rebuild before the league starts. No designated player at the moment either so it would be interesting to see who I could find. And the Canadian Championship gives me an easy route to the CONCACAF Champions League.

I really should be using this SUnday to write up my MA assignment so I'll try to be a good student and decide after my work is done.

[MeLikeFM]

TFC TFC TFC !!!!!!!!!!

Toronto is an awesome game on FM, as a Canadian team in America you get more foreigner leeway I had a 10 year game there last year and TFC are on a good run of form IRL now, if that matters

[rancer890]

If Chad Barrett is not on the team, I'll say go for it. If he is, join the club anyways and waive him.

Yes, he scored yesterday, but he missed an open net! (nothing compares to Kei Kamara though... )

[AcidBurn]

This is cruel making us wait so long to find out where you end up lol.

[DodgeeD]

This is cruel making us wait so long to find out where you end up lol.

LOL. A day of assignment writing and head-scratching stopped me from that. I'll teace you a bit more now though with an international update.

International Update: Cameroon

I haven't reported much on my Cameroon career yet as there hasn't been much to report on! As reigning African champs, we were automatically entered into the 2020 competition and qualifying for the 2022 World Cup doesn't start until after that.

As a result we've just played friendlies, picking up wins over Congo, Bolivia, Hong Kong and Mali and drawing with Ivory Coast, Japan and Wales. We suffered one defeat away to Australia.

2019 Results

In Janauary, the 2020 Cup of Nations gets underway in Ghana and we've been drawn in Group B. We should get out of the group easily enough but we will have to wary of slip-up against Angola and Senegal.

If I stick around after the tournament, I'll be guiding the team through 2nd Round World Cup Qualifiying Group 4, which should be straight forward. I say if I stick around because I don't see much of a long-term future with Cameroon. Most of the squad are very old and the regen talent just isn't their to replace them. 2 of the better players in the squad have already reitred recently and 4 more will retire sometime between now and the end of the season. I'll have a crack at the Cup of Nations and then see what else is available I think.

[DodgeeD]

Tribute World Tour, Part 4: Lookin' For Trouble

Oh yes, I did turn down Aston Villa in favour of the bottom team in the 2019 MLS. Why? Well, after weighing up the options, I reminded myself what I started this thread for - a tribute to other memebrs of the SI Forums. I started with a tribute to Raware in Hong Kong but then drifted in an ode to no-one in Argentina (although Raware did have a good FM08 career there too ). Villa would be the same so I decided to get back on the tirbute trail - this one's for you rancer!

However, I did sort out a 1-year contract to give me a quick exit if needs be!

At the 'meet the press' event, I was asked why I had dropped down to such a small club. "To turn them into a big club" was my reply. I've got work to do though. The squad is weak in several areas, most notably goal, left-back, attacking midfield and upfront. Still, I have the off season to rebuild and my first job is to find a designated player who's willing to join! The Canadian players at the club are all rubbish (they have several caps for Canada though!) and most of them will be ushered out of the door. I recruited a scouting team, all of whom came back after 2 or 3 days of scouting Canada and told me to look elsewhere.

I recruited a few coaches who had left San Lorenzo at the same time as me (including Hernan Crespo!) and my ass man rejoins me as well.

There are a few bright sparks at the club though who we will build the new team around:

Philip Anderson (DC) - despite being just 19, he's rated as the top defender at the club with the potential to get even better.

Sam Cronin (DM/MC) - the most expeirenced player at the club and team captain as well.

Ryan Ryan (DM/MC) - Aussie international who must have parents with a strange sense of humour.

Let's see what the off-season brings!

[rancer890]

Yessssss. Go Reds and Good luck DodgeeD!!! :D

[AcidBurn]

I had a feeling you would got to Toronto, just to let you know on my save there is only LA higher in the richest clubs list and Toronto are 28th. So the potential is there.

[DodgeeD]

Only 7 days in and I've been linked with Atletico Madrid and Villareal. The press obviously aren't buying into me taking this job over one in Europe!

On the DP front, my ass man presented me with a huge list. 95% of whom were not interested. I'm currently negotitating with a Brazilan DM, Nilton, and Dutch winger Ibrahim Affelay.

[mag man]

Good luck in the MLS DodgeeD. Quite a journeyman career so far.

[DodgeeD]

Thanks mag man. As ever, the trasnfer system in MLS will take a bit of getting used to.

I got one decent prospect out of the draft but the other picks were rubbish - any way I can get rid of them? I've been picking up a few cheap foreign players and freebies since then but there was one American keeper (brilliantly named Dick Sargeant ) who was a free agent but whenever I offer him a deal I get a message saying only youth players can be signed after the draft (or something like that). I have been signing other players though. Any idea what that's about? rancer?

Anyway, just finished the Cup of Nations with Cameroon. Report coming up.

[DodgeeD]

2020 Africa Cup of Nations

Hosts: Ghana

Holders: Cameroon

My new national side had automatically qualified for Ghana 2020 as defending champions. However, the squad was aging with many players in their 30s, some who had only started playing for Cameroon in the last few seasons as bigger names retired from the game. Quality regens were scarce but I got some good news before the tournament: Yannick Mbamba, a player with dual German/cameroonian nationailty, answered my call up having previously stated he wanted to play for the German team.

Group Stage

In Group B, we got off to a strong start as we ran out 3-0 winners over The Gambia. Mbamba had the ball in the net on his debut within two minutes of the start but it was ruled out for offside. No matter as three minutes later he set up strike partner Ngwat Mahop for the opener. Mahop added anothe rbefore half-time and a second half penalty allowed Mbamba to get his debut goal and earn us a comfortable win.

Senegal were up next. I had anticipated they would be our main threat in the group and it proved the case as we started slowly and they took advantage with an early goal. We were then chasing the game but couldn't break down their stubborn defence and lost the match.

That meant the pressure was on for the final game against Angola but the team responded well, with veterans Bassong and Mbia giving us a two goal lead before the break. Mbamba picked up a knock so I took him off as a precaution and Peterborough striker Owana made a good impression as his replacement by adding a third. The win meant we qualified in 2nd behind Senegal, who picked up maximum points.

Group B Table

Knockout Rounds

DR Congo were our opponents in the quarter-finals but bad news came before the game: Mbamba's 'knock' turned out to be a twisted knee which would keep him out for the remainder of the tournament. However, Owana stepped up again and opened the scoring. He then set up two more as we ran riot, eventually winning 5-1.

South Africa, a side with a 100% record so far, were up next in the semis. Again, bad news hit us on the eve of the game as Ngwat Mahop was ruled out with a gashed leg, meaning my 3rd and 4th choice strikers, Owana and Aussenge, would lead the line. This time Aussenge stepped up admirably, bagging a brace before Owana and Mbia completed an emphatic 4-1 win.

Onto the final then where we would face Senegal once again. They were the form side having beaten us earlier in the tournament before knocking out Ivory Coast and Nigeria (7-1 in the other semi!). Alas, history repeated itself as they took an early lead and then sat back to protect it. We hit the post twice and Owana had a goal ruled out due to a foul in the build-up but it was not to be and we had to settle for second best.

Knockout Tree

The Cameronian FA were pleased that we had reached the final and sent words of encouragement after the game. However, I decided to call time on my spell as Cameroon boss. The lack of depth to the national pool was the deciding factor, especially as by the time of the next World Cup many more of the key players would have hung up thier boots. Now to concentrate on Toronto!

[rancer890]

Thanks mag man. As ever, the trasnfer system in MLS will take a bit of getting used to.

I got one decent prospect out of the draft but the other picks were rubbish - any way I can get rid of them? I've been picking up a few cheap foreign players and freebies since then but there was one American keeper (brilliantly named Dick Sargeant ) who was a free agent but whenever I offer him a deal I get a message saying only youth players can be signed after the draft (or something like that). I have been signing other players though. Any idea what that's about? rancer?

Anyway, just finished the Cup of Nations with Cameroon. Report coming up.

You can waive the guy and he'll be off your squad. You can't sign some youngsters because they have to be drafted. I hope you remember the foreigner limits at TFC and don't go crazy. Oh, and the salary cap. Don't go over that or bad things will happen.

[DodgeeD]

I think I navigated the drafts and player registration successfully (I'll post my pre-season overview later). I love the fact you can waive players though - I had four or five players who were old, rubbish or both and occupying spots in the squad but, just before the seaosn began I was able to let them all go without having to pay any mutual termination fees!

[rancer890]

I think I navigated the drafts and player registration successfully (I'll post my pre-season overview later). I love the fact you can waive players though - I had four or five players who were old, rubbish or both and occupying spots in the squad but, just before the seaosn began I was able to let them all go without having to pay any mutual termination fees!

Which will be a thing of the past in FM11. Players 24 years of age or with 3 years of MLS experience will have guaranteed contracts so keep free-spending for now because you can't when you get FM11.

[DodgeeD]

2020 MLS Season Preview: Toronto FC

Transfers

Naturally, I spent a large part of the pre-season trying to get my head around the transfer system: drafts, designated players, discovery players, generation addidias, developmental contracts etc were all new to me!

The draft didn’t produce much. My 1st round pick had 3* potential but I let him go (or waived him – see? Learning already ) before the season started as there wasn’t any room for him in squad.

After that, I set out to find a DP (designated player whose salary doesn’t count towards the cap). My ass man supplied me with a list of potential targets. I was surprised and excited to see such names as Andres Iniesta, Carlos Tevez, James Milner and Hatem Ben Arfa but, of course none of them were interested. I eventually lured Nilton, a 32 year-old Brazilian DM from Fenerbahce, across the Atlantic, only on a one-year deal though so I can cut my losses and fin someone else for next season if it doesn’t work out.

I trimmed my squad ahead of the waiver draft (a pre-season chance to pick players who have been cut from the ir respective squads). I had first pick but didn’t realise that I had to have free slots in my squad in order to pick another player... One to remember for next season.

I splashed a bit of cash to bring in a couple of young guns, most notably a Chilean AMC I’d been tracking since my Olimpo days and a Honduran left-back I’d first scouted while at San Lorenzo. I picked up some freebies too, bringing in an Italian duo to play up front and a right back waived by D.C. United as back-up.

Transfer summary:

[/font]
[font=Courier New][size=2]| Date               | Person             | From               | Fee                | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 15.1.2020          | Nílton             | Fenerbahçe         | £200K              | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 15.1.2020          | Romani, Francesco  | Free Transfer      | Free               | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 19.1.2020          | Avalos, Jesús      | Audax Italiano     | £850K              | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 24.1.2020          | Mejía, Carlos      | Partizan           | £1M                | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 2.2.2020           | De Luca, Luca      | Free Transfer      | Free               | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 13.3.2020          | Brady, James       | D.C. United        | Free               | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
|                    | Total              |                    | £2.1M              | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------|[/size]
[/font]
[font=Courier New]

Meet the new arrivals:

Nilton (DM) – our designated player. Should be a star in this league and provide excellent cover for the defence. Can play in defence or a more advanced role in case of injury crises too.

Carlos Mejia (DLC) – I first spotted this guy while at San Lorenzo but he opted for a move to Partizan Belgrade. That didn’t work out and so he jumped at the chance to join us. Cost ₤1million (haven’t switched to $ yet) but should be worth it.

Jesus Avalos (AMC) – a good AMC was always a key feature of my teams in Argentina so I needed one to grace BMO field as well. Looks good for this level with the potential to get better.

Francesco Romani (ST) – the first of my Italians. He’s had a strange career so far, spending 4 seasons at Inter and then 4 more at Burnley without ever playing a first team game. “Not godd enough for Burnley?” I said, “Then give the MLS a try!”

Luca De Luca (ST) – my other Italian is not so much of an unknown quantity, having played previously for Houston and San Jose. He has a good scoring record with 15+ goals per season for the last 5 years and has been a runner-up to the MVP twice. Unfortuantely, he got injured shortly into his debut the day after signing and will miss the start of the season...

The season starts with two tough games on the road: first, we travel to Chicago, one of our rivals, before facing our fiercest rivals Columbus Crew a week later. Time to find out if turning down Villa was the right thing to do or not!

[rancer890]

Actually between $300k and $400k counts (whatever the league maximum is) towards the cap for a DP player. But I'll let that slide because you're learning quite quickly about the league.

Good luck in the regular season. Let us to the playoffs!

[DodgeeD]

March/April 2020 Toronto Update

MLS Regular Season

March

A great start to my tenure in Canada as we beat two rival teams away from home. We recovered from a poor start against Chicago (when my keeper literally passed the ball from out wide straight to an opposition striker) to win thanks to goals from new boy Avalos and a second half winner from local boy Julian Lewis. Columbus were having a terrible time at the start of the season, losing 8-0 to LA on the opening day, and we compounded heir misery. Avalos was on target again with a brace, Romani showed Burnley what they were missing with a firs ever senior goal and Aussie midifielder Ryan Ryan and American defender Phillip Anderson completed the rout.

Results:

v. Chicago Fire (a), 2-1 win

v. Columbus Crew (a), 5-1 win

April

Our first home game came against last season’s champions San Jose. Luca De Luca marked his first start for the club with a goal but we failed to kill off our opponents and they equalised with 20 minutes to go and that’s how it stayed. A drab match to forget against Dallas followed before another home draw with Colarado. For the first time, the fans were not happy as we dominated but fell behind to an early goal and just managed to slavage the point with a Romani strike late on. Anderson scored an early goal aginst D.C. United in our final game of the month with Romani on target again to put the score beyond doubt. D.C. scored late on but never threatened to equalise. All in all, a solid start!

Results:

v. San Jose Earthquakes (h), 1-1

v. FC Dallas (a), 0-0

v. Colarado Rapids (h), 1-1

v. D.C. United (a) 2-1 win

MLS Standings – 2nd in the Eastern Conference with a game in hand over leaders Kansas. One of only two unbeaten teams left.

[rancer890]

Nice start so far DodgeeD! Keep it up!

[DodgeeD]

May 2020 Toronto Update

MLS Regular Season

A big, big win to start the month of May as we beat Western Conference leaders Chivas at home. Luca De Luca was the start, setting up both goals for Alvaro and Ryan to score respectively (Ryan’s was a curling screamer from 30 yards, Goal of the Week and an early contender for Goal of the Season). LA Galaxy, the league’s only other unbeaten side were our next visitors. It would be LA whose run came to an end as we picked up another 2-1 win, this time coming from behind to win with goals once again from Alavro and Ryan, set up by Romani. Our first defeat seemed to be coming in the next game at Seattle as Sam Cronin got sent off early on and the hosts scored soon after. However, we kept ourselves in it and Romani grabbed a deserved equaliser late on. An easy win against San Jose followed (despite another sending off, this time Brazilian striker Stefano) before a riproaring game against Kansas in which we had to come back from behind twice to draw 3-3. We were back to winning ways in the final game of the month though as we stuffed Chicago at a canter.

Results:

v. Chivas USA (h), 2-1 win

v. LA Galaxy (h), 2-1 win

v. Seattle Sounders FC (a), 1-1

v. San José Earthquakes (a), 3-1 win

v. Kansas City Wizards (a), 3-3

v. Chicago Fire (h), 3-0 win

MLS Standings – well clear at the top of the Eastern Conference and overall leaders too. Only two games next month but it will be tough... the downside of being Toronto manager shows itself as pretty much very fit Canadian player in my squad (even the crap ones) has been called up to the national side for World Cup Qualifiers, leaving us with hardly any players. Ryan is away with Australia and De Luca has been called up to the USA side too.

Canadian Championship

Just the one game as our annual triangular series with Vancouver and Montreal began. In the midst of a busy month in the MLS, I used the game against Vancouver as a chance to give some of th back-up players a game and that did the trick as we ran out comfortable 3-0 winners. The mini championship continues throughout June and July.

Result:

v. Vancouver Whitecaps (h), 3-0 win

[DodgeeD]

June 2020 Toronto Update

MLS Regular Season

Some good news ahead of the first game of the month: all my Canadian players were available as the national team didn’t have a game until the 6th of June, meaning we were only missing three first teamers. Pablo Williams, a youth product, used his chance to shine, scoring one and setting up two as we raced into a 3-0 half-time lead. Unfortunately, my players flagged in the 2nd half (this was their 5th game in 10 days) and New England got back in it with two quick goals. On 80 minutes, we won a penalty but left-back Mejia hit it straight at the keeper. Then, inevitabley, New England went straight up the other end and scored the equaliser. All the Canadians had gone for the rivals clash with Columbus, meaning I had to put 3 ‘greys’ on the pitch and 7 on the subs bench. As it was, we still played well and controlled most of the game. Columbus took the lead though before half-time but Stefano grabbed an equaliser early in the second half. We had chances to win after that but couldn’t take them.

Results:

v. New England Revolution (h), 3-3

v. Columbus Crew (a), 1-1

MLS Standings – A quiet month for us but the rest of the teams were quite active (apart from LA Galaxy) so New England have taken over at the top of the Eastern Conference. We are still unbeaten but need to start killing off games and turning wins into draws.

Canadian Championship

All of my players were back from international duty for this clash and, a couple of injuries aside, I had a full squad to choose from. I made the mistake of underestimating our opponents though as I picked an under-strength team, expecting them to still get the win. An early goal seemed to validate my approach but two quick goals from Montreal left us reeling. Stefano was the man to rescue a point again with a fine solo effort but th efans were understandably disappointed.

Result:

v. Montreal (a), 2-2

Current standings – Vancouver and Montreal beat each other this month so a win in our next game, home to Montreal, will see us crowned champions and earn us a place in the CONCACAF Champions League.

In other news, the board arranged a commercial affiliation with Porto. They will visit us for an annual friendly at BMO Field and pay us ₤2.51mil a year!

The transfer window is now open but, as all my slots in the squad are full, I won’t be recruiting. I pursued one player, a Chinese DM and quite possibly one of the best 16 year-olds I have seen in the game, but he opted for a pre-contract deal with Lyon to go through in January 2022, once he’s turned 18.

I’ve also been extending contracts at TFC and I’ve so far managed to persuade Anderson to sign a new deal despite his initial desire to move on. Nilton is playing hard ball on a new deal though so I may be in the market for a new DP soon. All of which leads me to...

MLS newbie question of the update for rancer (or anyone else who knows the system) - what’s the situation with players out of contract? Can they just leave the club or is there some kind of compensation deal in place?

[rancer890]

This is still FM10, so I'll go by last year's regulations...

They can leave the club without any compensation. However, waived players have limited rights within MLS and only the club that waived him can sign him if he isn't claimed.

EG. Brian Edwards waived by TFC. He clears waivers and TFC retains his MLS rights for a year. Other MLS clubs will have to acquire Edwards through a trade, but he is free to sign with a USL side.

[Raware]

This is still FM10, so I'll go by last year's regulations...

They can leave the club without any compensation. However, waived players have limited rights within MLS and only the club that waived him can sign him if he isn't claimed.

EG. Brian Edwards waived by TFC. He clears waivers and TFC retains his MLS rights for a year. Other MLS clubs will have to acquire Edwards through a trade, but he is free to sign with a USL side.

:confused::confused::confused:

All these MLS regulations! Why can't they make the rules simpler?!

[rancer890]

:confused:

All these MLS regulations! Why can't they make the rules simpler?!

It's kinda straightforward...waivers is basically a way of acquiring players on a free. Call it a free transfer without negotiating a new contract. I always thought the 'European' way of acquiring players for money is simple. Not sure why Europeans find our system so challenging. You guys even have trades. Ahem, I mean part-exchanges.

Wait till FM11, you get to participate in more drafts.

[DodgeeD]

July 2020 Toronto Update

MLS Regular Season

First game of the month was hosted by New York on the 4th of July and we came ready to supply the fireworks, stuffing 5 past the home team with Avalos, Romani and De Luca all in sesational form up front, scoring and suppliyng one each with Anderson and Stefano adding the others late on. We were in the midst of a mini injury crisis by the time our next game with Dallas came round: Romani (see below) and Anderson were out with long term injuries and we were missing Ryan as well. Stefano stepped in up front and scored one and won a penalty for the other, converted by debutant Abdul Razak (see further below) as we won 2-0. A tough game at Chivas, the form side in the league followed, and our unbeaten run finally came to an end. We were second best for most of the game and never looked like winning. We bounced back in style in the next game though as we thrashed D.C. United 5-1 with five different names on the scoresheet.

Results:

v. New York Red Bulls (a), 5-2 win

v. FC Dallas (h), 2-0 win

v. Chivas USA (a), 3-1 loss

v. D.C. United (h), 5-1 win

MLS Standings – Despite the loss, we still top our conference and the overall standings. Looking good for the play-offs.

Canadian Championship

Montreal had to win to stand any chance of taking the title and that made life easy for us as we exploited the gaps at the back and won easily with goals from Romani and Faucher (a young Canadian I signed from Montreal pre-season making his old cub regret the sale ). That result secured 1st place and a spot in the CONCACAF Champions League. Unfortunately, the good news was followed by bad as it was revealed that Romani had fractured his skull during the match and faced 3 months out. The final game against Vancouver was therefore a dead rubber. This time, my weakened team performed much better as we comfortably won 3-1.

Result:

v. Montreal Impact (h), 2-0 win

v. Vancouver Whitecaps (a), 3-1 win

Final standings – CONCACAF Champions League here we come! We will play Guatemalan side Marquense in the Preliminary Round.

Transfers

I did end up delving into the transfer market for a couple of deals:

Benjamin Abdul Razak (DR/L) – my scouts spotted him at Paraguayan club Libertad and said he would be available for ₤300k. Right back was one of the weak spots in the squad so he was snapped up.

Art Roberts (GK) – waived by New York after two seasons as their no. 1 keeper. We only had two keepers at the club (one of them being a 17 year-old) so Roberts will add some depth there.

[DodgeeD]

This is still FM10, so I'll go by last year's regulations...

They can leave the club without any compensation. However, waived players have limited rights within MLS and only the club that waived him can sign him if he isn't claimed.

EG. Brian Edwards waived by TFC. He clears waivers and TFC retains his MLS rights for a year. Other MLS clubs will have to acquire Edwards through a trade, but he is free to sign with a USL side.

Thanks for your help again rancer. I'm sure I'll have more MLS questions and queries for you soon enough (especially once we get to play-off time).

:confused::confused:

All these MLS regulations! Why can't they make the rules simpler?!

It's actually turned out to be more straightforward than I first expected. The main problem has been the frustration that a couple of really good out-of-contract young players I have found have been unable to sign for TFC... Also, other MLS clubs seem to think they can offer me nothing (no money, no clauses, no draft allocations) for my players! Hopefully, next season I can make some better deals.

[DodgeeD]

August 2020 Toronto Update

MLS Regular Season

A great start to the month as we recorded impressive wins over Houston and New England with Stefano scoring 4 goals in the two games. We came unstuck in the the next game at Colorado though as Hector Hughes got a red card for a stray elbow and, although Stefano later gave us the lead, we ended up losing 2-1. We bounced back in style, however, as we played out the month with three home games and three wins. Avalos was the driving force once again as he smashed a hat-trick past New York and grabbed the winner over Columbus.

Results:

v. Houston Dynamo (h), 3-1 win

v. New England Revolution (a), 5-1 win

v. Colorado Rapids (a), 2-1 loss

v. Real Salt Lake (h), 3-0 win

v. New York Red Bulls (h), 4-0 win

v. Columbus Crew (h), 2-1 win

MLS Standings – 6 games to go and we are well clear at the top of the Eastern Conference.

Stefano’s performances against Houston and New England earned him the Player of the Month accolade.

CONCACAF Champions League

Preliminary Round

It seemed all set for a big win in the first leg as reserve striker Faucher put us a goal up inside 3 minutes. Unfortunately, centre back Sukhotskyi got himself sent off moments later and we played 85 minutes with ten men. We protected our lead but couldn’t add to it and so headed to Guatemala with work still to do. In the 2nd leg, we got off to the perfect start as Faucher scored after just 20 seconds. Marquense were then reduced to ten men, effectively ending the contest with as both teams played out the rest of the game without further incident.

Results:

Leg 1 v. Marquense (h), 1-0 win

Leg 2 v. Marquense (a), 1-0 win (Toronto FC progress 2-0 on aggregate)

We have been drawn into Group A together with two Panamanian sides, Allianza and Arabe Unido, whom I would expect to beat, and Mexican side Chivas, who should be tougher to beat but will provide a good test.

[rancer890]

Thanks for your help again rancer. I'm sure I'll have more MLS questions and queries for you soon enough (especially once we get to play-off time).

It's actually turned out to be more straightforward than I first expected. The main problem has been the frustration that a couple of really good out-of-contract young players I have found have been unable to sign for TFC... Also, other MLS clubs seem to think they can offer me nothing (no money, no clauses, no draft allocations) for my players! Hopefully, next season I can make some better deals.

Erm, they're just inquiring to see what you're willing to get from them. You have to negotiate.

All youths, even out of contract ones, are draft protected so don't bother trying to sign them because it's impossible.

Good luck with the rest of the regular season and the NACL group stages mate.

[DodgeeD]

Well, after a couple of seasons on my African adventure, I've decided to fire up my Tribute Career once again. I've got some play-offs to win!

[DodgeeD]

September 2020 Toronto Update

MLS Regular Season

3 out of 3 this month as we brushed aside Houston and D.C. United thanks to inspired peformances from Stefano and Avalos. Youth product Pablo William also chipped in with a very encouraging goal in each game. A tougher match with Seattle rounded off the month. It seemed to be heading for a 1-1 draw until sub Faucher popped up to score an injury time winner.

Results:

v. Houston Dynamo (a), 2-0 win

v. D.C. United (h), 5-2 win

v. Seattle (h), 2-1 win

MLS Standings – We are now guaranteed a place in the play-offs.

Stefano was named MLS Player of the Month for the second time running.

CONCACAF Champions League

Group Stage

We started our continental campaign with a home tie against group favourites Chivas. A scintillating match ensued which we edged with a late, late winner (take a look at this screenie to see how dramatic the injury time was! ). Two trips to Panama followed with easy wins, especially against Arabe Unido who couldn’t even stop my 4th choice striker Faucher scoring a hat trick.

Results:

v. Chivas (h), 4-3 win

v. Allianze FC (a), 3-1 win

v. Arabe Unido (a), 7-0 win

Group A Table

[DodgeeD]

October 2020 Toronto Update

MLS Regular Season

With a play-off spot secured, we relaxed a bit too much and got surprised by two early goals from Salt Lake. We also fell behind against Chivas before an inspired half-time team talk turned things around with two Avalos goals only for our opponents to equalise with the last kick of the game. LA Galaxy helped us by getting a man sent off early as Avalos ran the show again and Kansas pressed the self-destruct button as my bit-part squad players ran riot with young Canadian striker Faucher bagging 4 goals.

Results:

v. Real Salt Lake (a), 2-1 loss

v. Chivas USA (h), 2-2

v. LA Galaxy (h), 3-0 win

v. Kansas City Wizards (h), 5-0 win

MLS Final Conference Standings | Play-off table – top of the eastern conference and overall standings. FC Dalla await in the Eastern Conference semi finals.

CONCACAF Champions League

Group Stage

Two easy games to finish off as we hosted the Panamanian teams at BMO Field. I used the chance to rest some key players and give run-outs to a couple of guys coming back from injury. Convincing wins came with back-up striker Kraus bagging 5 goals and the youngsters getting the rest.

Results:

v. Allianze FC (h), 6-0 win

v. Arabe Unido (h), 4-1 win

Group A Final Table – we top the group ahead of Chivas so I’m very pleased. The quarter final draw takes place in December with the matches themselves to be played next season.

[DodgeeD]

November 2020 Toronto Update

MLS Play-Offs

Eastern Conference Semi-final

Despite our impressive regular season, we got off to a nervy start in our first play-off game at Dallas and soon found ourselves a goal down. However, Avalos brought us level on the stroke of half-time and youth product Pablo William scored a late winner to give us a 2-1 lead to take to BMO Field. We were much more relaxed there and centre-back Anderson soon headed us into a 3-1 aggregate lead. Avalos put the tie beyond doubt with two goals before half-time and, although Dallas rallied with two goals of their own in the second half, the midfield mystero completed his hat-trick to send us sailing through to the conference final.

Results:

Leg 1 v. FC Dallas (a), 2-1 win

Leg 2 v. FC Dallas (h), 4-2 win (Toronto FC advance 6-3 on aggregate)

Eastern Conference Final

Rivals Chicago stood between us and a place in the MLS Final. The game itself was tense and quite even but we held our nerve to get the win with goals on the stroke of half-time and full time from Stefano and Ryan. A historic first final awaited us...

v. Chicago Fire (h), 2-0 win

MLS Final

And so on to Toronto’s first ever final to face Real Salt Lake, who had beaten us towards the end of the regular season. We had nothing to fear though with conidence high and the form book on our side. Sukhotskyi popped up for a corner to open the scoring on 17 mins with Stefanpo doubling our lead shortly afterwards. After that we were cruising and Real Salt Lake were never in it. Romani put the icing on the cake with a fine late volley from the edge of the area and we won the MLS Cup!

v. Real Salt Lake (n), 3-0 win

Season round-up to follow.

[DodgeeD]

2020 Season Review

Competitions: Domestic

MLS:

Winners

Canadian Championship:

Winners

Competitions: Continental

CONCACAF Champions League:

1st in Group A*

*To be concluded in 2021

Wow! What a debut season. I arrived in MLS not sure what to expect what with the transfer rules, squad system and league structure and one year on, my team has won everything! We rose to the top of the standings early on and never looked back and won every game in the play-offs to secure the first ever MLS Cup for Toronto. We also had an impressive showing in the CONCACAF Champions League as we beat Mexican powerhouse Chivas to 1st in the group and it will be interesting to see how far we go in the knockout rounds next season.

Key Players & Award Winners

Art Roberts (GK) – joined midway through the season after surprisingly being waived by New York. His combined performances there and for us earned him the Goalkeeper of the Year award.

Artem Sukhotskyi (DC) – I saw this guy as weak link when I first arrived but he rpoved me wrong with some solid defending and a couple of crucial goals, all of which meant he was voted Defender of the Year.

Philip Anderson (DC) – a fantastic young player and a real star for the future. Injury preventing him from playing towards the end of the season and deprived him of his first cap for the US national team too. Hopefully, he’ll stay fit and stay with us for next season.

Carlos Mejia (DL) – a great debut season in the league and broke into the Honduran national side too. Another one to watch.

Nilton (DM) – our DP marshalled the defence well and his experience was a great assett. Getting abit old though so I may trade him and try to get a new DP for next season.

Ryan Ryan (MC) – The Aussie midfielder ran the show from the centre of the park doing a great job linking defence and attack.

Jesus Avalos (AMC) –an attacking sensation as he topped the club’s goals and assists charts, came 3rd in the MLS Golden Boot and 2nd in the MVP award. A great signing even if I do say so myself.

Stefano (ST) – scored some great goals at crucial points in the season and could always be relied on when the other strikers were injured or out of form. Still, I was surprised he beat Avalos and De Luca to the Fans’ Player of the Year award but what do the Canadians know about football?.....

Luca De Luca (ST) – scored plenty but it was his unselfish play in laying on more assists than goals that really impressed me. Got a deserved call up to the US side as well.

In the other awards, I was named Coach of the Year and Roberts, Sukhotskyi and Avalos all made the MLS Best XI. Pablo William also deserves a mention for his fine form in our continental games and his 2nd place in the Rookie of the Year award.

The Season Ahead...

Expectations are higher now with the board wanting an appearance in the final again. We should be there or thereabouts but a lot depends on finding good American and Canadian players to add some new blood to the squad. We also have to compete on several fronts next season with the CONCACAF Champions League to be concluded and the Pan-Pacific Cup to be contested.

[DodgeeD]

2021 MLS Season Preview: Toronto FC

Pre-Season

Disappointment came early in pre-season as nothing fruitful came of this year’s youth intake and for the first time in FM, I got this message saying planned training and youth facilties upgrades had been cancelled due to lack of funds. To make it worse, a few days later, we received ₤1mil+ in sponsorship money, ₤3.9mil in transfer fees and a ₤3mil cash injection from the chairman. I asked for improvements again and was told they would be made.... in a year’s time.

That meant I was tempted a bit by speculation linking me with other jobs. The media heavily linked me with a January move to Atletico Madrid, who were languishing in the lower half the the La Liga table at the time and still in the Europa League. However, they never made a formal approach. Next up, I did actually get a direct offer from River Plate. At some point in this career, I would love to manage one of the big two in Argentina but it felt too soon to be heading back there so I turned it down, signing a new two-year deal with Toronto instead.

Transfers

The transfer market was frustrating as finding decent players at affordable rpices proved tough. A few reserve players were allowed to leave and I accepted bids for Nilton, as he was getting on a bit, and Romano as the ₤3.5mil was too good to turn down. Annoyingly though, we still only ended up with ₤600k in allocation funds despite those deals and the fact that the club has ₤6mil+ in the coffers.

Notable new arrivals

Alas, Nilton couldn’t be replaced with a new Designated Player as nobody worth having was willing to come. As it was, a few Canadian youngsters were signed and loaned out and a couple of players were added to the first team roster:

Claudiano (DM) – my replacement for Nilton. Transfer listed by Tottenham after failing to impress in 18 months there and a snip at ₤180k.

Marco Gordon (AMC/ST) – this one came about more by chance than anything else as San Jose surprisingly offered me the best Canadian player in the league in exchange for the aging Stefano. I gladly accepted and gained the adualtion of the fans by doing so.

There are still a few weeks of the transfer window left and I may yet be busy as I have an unfilled DP slot so I’ll either find an aging superstar or trade it for an MLS hotshot.

Pan-Pacific Championship

Our pre-season also included some competitive fixtures as we contested the Pan-Pacific Championship wth the champions of China, Japan and South Korea. I was a alittle annoyed by the foreigner rules all my American players were classed as foriegn (only 3 allowed in the matchday squad) even though we were representing the American league!

We were drawn with Chinese champions Shagdong in the semi-final match and they gave us a good even game. Pablo William gave us the lead with as fine header but our opponents got level before half-time. We just about edged it thanks to a Luca De Luca strike in the second half to set up a final against Korean champs FC Seoul. That game proved much more one-sided as we dominated from start to finish and ran out 5-0 winners, adding the Pan-Pacific Campionship to our MLS and Candian Championship titles from last season!

Results:

Semi-final v. Shandong (n), 2-1 win

Final v. FC Seoul (n), 5-0 win

CONCACAF Champions League

Quarter-final

The resumption of North America’s premier continental club competiton also gave us some competitive games ahead of the new MLS season. We faced fellow MLS side San Josei starting with a tricky looking trp to California. It proved to be anything but as we recovered from conceding early on to win 4-1. That made the second leg a formality and we won a low-key game 1-0 to reach the semis.

Results:

Leg 1 v. San Jose Earthquakes (a), 4-1 win

Leg 2 v. San Jose Earthquakes (h), 1-0 win (Toronto FC advance 5-1 on aggregate)

Semi-final

We were the only MLS representatives left by this stage with Atlas, Chivas and Cruz Azul making up the other semi-finalists. We were paired with Cruz Azul and it seemed our run had been ground to a halt as we ent down 2-0 at BMO Field (my first ever home defeat as TFC manager). To make matters worse, the second leg in Mexico City clashed with World Cup Qualifiers and we had 9 players away on international duty (Cruz Azul were missing just two). However, we turned in the most amazing performance ever as the Mexican side failed to cope with my 4-3-3 formation (used as it was the only option I has with the players available). Luca De Luca (thankfully not picked for the USA squad) bagged a brace either side of an own goal as we earned the most unlikely win to book our place in the final!

Results:

Leg 1 v. Cruz Azul (h), 2-0 loss

Leg 2 v. Cruz Azul (a), 3-0 win (Toronto FC advance 3-2 on aggregate)

We play Atlas over two legs in the final in April.