[FM10] CowSimao's Boavista Resurrection

[CowSimao]

Boavista are a Portuguese club with some history and a nice 28,000 capacity stadium. But recently they've plummetted down the divisions due to a combination of corruption and huge financial problems.

Let's look at some recent events:

2000-2001 ~ Boavista win the Portuguese Liga. A huge accomplishement for a team in a league where the big 3 Porto, Benfica, and Sporting CP are usually dominant.

2002-2003 ~ Boavista make it to the UEFA Cup semifinals, and knocked out by Celtic.

2007-2008 ~ Boavista finish 9th, but are still relegated to the Liga Vitalis from involvement in the Apito Dourado corruption scandal.

2008-2009 ~ Boavista finish 15th in the Liga Vitalis, enough for relegation. But they seem to be saved, since higher placed Vizela must be relegated instead. Then relegation happened anyway because of financial debts.

Present Day ~ Boavista lie 13th in the II Liga North (3rd division).

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Here's where I come in. A club such as Boavista can't be allowed to rot in the 3rd division. My job is to bring them back up and restore the club back to former glory, and maybe even more.

The toughest part of the job will certainly be the club's finances. A lot of wheeling and dealing will need to be done. Free transfers, youth players, and loans must be taken advantage of. That's why they hired me , an inexperieced manager from the USA, but with Portuguese roots and an eye for free players.

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Leagues loaded: Portugal (3 divisions), England (2 div), Spain (1 div), Italy (1 div), Germany (View-Only), France (View-Only), Brazil (View-Only)

Database size used: Medium + top players loaded from Argentina, France, Germany, and some others + international players from some continents.

Edits: Liga Sagres update from myself. Attributes, player info, and stadiums were updated for a more authentic and challenging Portuguese league.

Other: No Transfer Budgets in 1st window

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I've already finished my 1st season in 2009/2010. Here's a short summary:

The squad I started with was small, but pretty good for a 3rd tier level. There were almost no wingers in the squad, so I had to go with a 4-1-2-1-2. Having a really low wage budget, I couldn't even sign decent players on frees. I was able to sign a few Spanish youths who were released: Castarnado, Javi Moreno, and Rafa Alcantara on youth contracts. Out of these 3, Rafa Alcantara was able to earn a rotation place toward the end of the season. He's a good playmaker and confident too.

There were no players on loan, so I brought in 4. Roderick Miranda, a Portguese DC from Benfica, made my defense really strong. Romeu, a Portuguese ST from Pacos Ferreira, was a bit inconsistent but contributed some important goals. Dinis, a MC from Guimaraes, organized my midfield.

And finally Fidel Martinez, an Ecuadorian AMC from Cruzeiro, who scored 28 goals! I expected him to be good, but wow. He made promotion A LOT easier.

Here's the final league table. A lot of credit goes to the defense and midfield for only conceding 15 goals. And of course Fidel Martinez for scoring almost half our goals.

Then the playoffs. With Uniao Madeira we shared the spoils of promotion. Again Fidel Martinez was crucial. In the 1st game he scored a hat trick.

Next up is the new season in Liga Vitalis! I've finished the preseason, so expect an update soon.