SnakeXe Posted December 31, 2010 Author Share Posted December 31, 2010 So here it is, the big one. The possible title-decider. We both need a win, so it should be a good one. It started slowly, both teams feeling each other out. Yellow cards were flying, we lost both Aguero and Arguelles to suspension for our final game - shouldn't be a problem against lowly Portosummaga, but it's far from ideal. We got to half time with the closest chance going our way, Arguelles hitting the post from close-range. Then just after half time, Juve's Gordienko picked up a second yellow for a foul on Aguero! Advantage Messina, and we made subtle changes to press home the advantage. We probed forward time and time again, but always had to be wary of the Juve threat on the counter. Time ticked on, and we threw more and more men forward. We couldn't break through. 0-0. Palermo sauntered to a 3-0 win over already-relegated Atalanta to take 2nd place from us, with Juve top on head-to-heads over them. In the final game, Palermo face AC Milan in the San Siro, not quite as daunting a trip as it once was, but a tricky one nonetheless. Juve also face a road trip, to 11th placed Bari. All we can do is put Portosummaga to the sword and hope. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted December 31, 2010 Author Share Posted December 31, 2010 Well, just played the final round of matches. Unbelievable scenes, Jeff. Still can't quite believe it. Update coming soon. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattSpurs94 Posted December 31, 2010 Share Posted December 31, 2010 Feeling the tension.................... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted December 31, 2010 Author Share Posted December 31, 2010 SnakeXe's Messina - Season 17 - 2027/28 Story of the Season: Serie A - 3rd, Qualified for Champions League We started well, with an unbeaten streak lasting til the end of October, a disappointing 2-0 loss to bottom-half side Napoli ending it. We lost just twice more before Xmas to end the year just one point off the top of the table. We mostly kept up the pace in the second half, one slightly ropey piece of form "inspired" by having to use reserve keeper Pedersoli for 3 games (during which he conceded 6) as Martin was injured. The run-in was incredibly close, with us just 1 point from the top with 4 games to go. We won our next game against Mantova comfortably, but so did Juve and Palermo. We then missed an opportunity, drawing with Udinese at home after Juve had drawn their early kickoff. Luckily Palermo also failed to win against Roma. Then it was the big one. Away against Juve. It started gingerly, as you'd expect in such an important game, as both sides felt each other out. We got to half time at 0-0, the nearest miss being Arguelles' shot against the post for us. Just after half time, the game swung towards us, as Juve had a man sent off. We couldn't capitalise though, the game ending goalless. Palermo won their game comfortably to take 2nd from us. All this meant we needed to win on the final day, and rely on Palermo and Juve both dropping points to win the title. We were at home against 15th placed Portosummaga, whilst Juve were away to Bari and Palermo were in the San Siro against AC Milan. Slightly favourable fixtures for us, but still a tall order. We started well, club legend Abel Petrillo opening the scoring to make light of the suspensions of top-scorers Aguero and Arguelles. Portosummaga equalised soon after, comedy defending from us the culprit as both Egger and Da Silva decided to leave the opposition's dangerman Pace the freedom of the penalty area to fire home. Cavalli got himself sent off for Portosummaga to make things even easier for us, but we couldn't find another goal before half time. A quick check of the other matches gave us hope, both were still 0-0. The second half wore on, us labouring in trying to score again. I don't know what's wrong with Sergio Real because his stats look great, but on the pitch he's utterly shambolic. So many moves ended with the ball bouncing off his arse or his first touch landing 10 yards away from him. With 10 minutes to go, Juve were still drawing, and Palermo were even a goal down. Surely we could find a winner? No. We couldn't. Palermo equalised, but neither they or Juve found a winner either. A pretty damp squib to end a fascinating season. I doubt we'll get another chance as good as that to win our first title. Gutting. Coppa Italia - 1st Round It was AlbinoLeffe again in the 1st Round. We played awfully and lost. Champions League - 1st Knockout Round Typical piece-of-**** qualifier against lowly opposition was negotiated easily, this year's victims being Fenerbahce. Don't know why I was so worried about them before. A return to familiar territory in the group stage saw us picked with English giants Arsenal. Montpellier and Spartak Moscow rounded out the group. We ended the group unbeaten for the second year running, but far too many draws (including 2 ridiculous last-minute equalisers for Arsenal in our games against them) meant we finished second to Montpellier, despite taking 4 points off them. Our punishment was Real Madrid in the next round. Would we face the Real of last season's group, or the Real of the season before's Semi Final? The answer was somewhere inbetween - they were like the Real of the group phase, but ridiculously lucky. At home, they took the lead through a ridiculous 40 yard strike, before we equalised. We were pushing for a winner and they scored again. From similar distance. Away they scored twice in the opening 10 minutes to put the tie to bed. We fought back to equalise in the dying seconds to salvage some pride. Guess who won this season's Champions League? Actually it was Lyon, Madrid lost to them in the final. Is it that beating us inspires a team to go on to the final, or is it just that we keep getting drawn against the best teams in the competition no matter whether we win the group or come second? Either way, I've had enough of it. Results 1 - Results 2 - Results 3 - Squad Transfers - £35.5m Profit Daniel Martin and Da Silva were both bargain free transfers coming in, and we sold a lot of the fluff from around the edges of the squad to make a healthy profit. 5 Most Important Players: 5. Philipp Egger - DC - The Austrian makes his debut on this list thanks to his amazing eye for goal this season. Pity he was injured so often. 4. Filippo Vitone - AMRC - Goals and assists from out wide made him an integral part of the team. 3. Jon Pagola - AMLC - Ditto Vitone but on the other side. 2. Walter Aguero - AM/ST - Assisted even more than he scored, one of his best seasons for us. 1. Joaquin Arguelles - AM/ST - Top scorer for us again, although he fell short of winning the Capocannoniere this year. History: Season League Position Achievements ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2011/12 Serie C2/C 2nd Serie C Cup Runners Up, Playoff Finalists 2012/13 Serie C2/C 1st Serie C2/C Champions, Promoted 2013/14 Serie C1/B 5th Playoff Semi-Finalists 2014/15 Serie C1/B 2nd Playoff Winners, Promoted 2015/15 Serie B 12th 2016/17 Serie B 2nd Promoted 2017/18 Serie A 20th Relegated 2018/19 Serie B 2nd Promoted 2019/20 Serie A 7th Qualified for Europa League 2020/21 Serie A 6th Qualified for Europa League 2021/22 Serie A 9th 2022/23 Serie A 5th Qualified for Europa League 2023/24 Serie A 3rd Qualified for Champions League, Coppa Italia Runners Up 2024/25 Serie A 4th Qualified for Champions League, Coppa Italia Runners Up 2025/26 Serie A 4th Qualified for Champions League 2026/27 Serie A 4th Qualified for Champions League 2027/28 Serie A 3rd Qualified for Champions League Messina 100 Club: A list of those Messina players who make 100 or more appearances for the club under my management. Name Pos Era Apps Goals AvR -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Victor Amoruso MC 2018-Present 360 33 6.98 Abel Petrillo ST 2016-Present 339 145 7.13 Rene Kooiman DC 2019-Present 358 31 7.08 Filippo Vitone AMRC 2018-Present 343 66 7.09 Jon Pagola AMLC 2019-Present 322 61 7.20 Mauro Quiroga DM/MC 2019-Present 311 14 6.96 Stefano Tulino D/DM/MRC 2019-Present 269 16 7.12 Jose A. Loureiro DR 2020-Present 269 2 7.11 Walter Aguero ST 2021-Present 266 86 7.01 Mauro Vigorito GK 2011-2023 217 0 6.82 Juan Jose Godoy GK 2023-2027 207 0 6.96 Patxi Rodriguez DM/MC 2017-2026 203 14 6.87 Nenad Lukic MLC 2021-2026 188 23 6.98 Mauricio Martin D/DM/MC 2020-2027 187 9 6.96 Nicolas Amodio DM/MC 2012-2018 183 12 6.93 Remi Thouvenin DL 2021-2026 181 0 7.06 Antonio Marino DLC 2013-2021 180 5 6.88 Adem Ljajic AMRLC 2019-2027 170 26 6.91 Mario Ortiz DM/MC 2013-2021 169 5 6.83 Nicola Ravaglia GK 2018-2025 164 0 6.90 Enzo Scorza ST 2012-2018 159 82 7.24 Nicolas D/DM/MC 2015-2022 159 5 6.85 Rosario Licata D/WB/ML 2011-2016 146 3 6.92 Francesc Alcalde AMLC/ST 2014-2020 145 45 6.98 Luca Tedeschi DC 2012-2018 139 8 7.09 Mogi DRC 2017-2022 134 0 6.76 Sergio Real ST 2024-Present 129 22 6.83 Diego Farias AMRLC 2015-2019 126 19 6.90 Gonzalo Valdez ST 2022-2026 126 34 6.87 Davide Testa AM/ST 2011-2015 121 40 7.04 Yohann Sallaberry AMLC 2021-2028 117 10 7.01 Ruben AML 2015-2019 103 7 6.86 Fausto Rossi AML 2016-2021 102 18 6.97 Next Season: Well I wanted a title challenge, and I got one, admittedly an ultimately more-than-disappointing one. The main problem (I think) was our backup strikers. They were all awful (Petrillo perhaps excepted), especially Sergio Real, and I think I need to either motivate them better or replace them if we're to score enough goals over the entire season. So next season I need to sort out some alternatives to Aguero and Arguelles, and make another crack at the title. It'd be nice to actually get past the 1st Round in the Champions League as well. Forza Messina! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattSpurs94 Posted December 31, 2010 Share Posted December 31, 2010 Oh dear...... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GioGio85 Posted December 31, 2010 Share Posted December 31, 2010 Ah no, that is annoying. Sounds like a season of progress a least. Reckon you will keep your backup strikers or look to replace them? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted December 31, 2010 Author Share Posted December 31, 2010 Real and O'Donnell are both leading Serie A quality, so they should be good enough. I've had a look around and there's noone obviously better I could buy, so I'm going to stick with them and try and utilise them better. Perhaps they need more games, or different roles/tactical approaches? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattSpurs94 Posted December 31, 2010 Share Posted December 31, 2010 next season is your, for sure! have a good new year guys, this is my last post of 2010 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ImOnFire15 Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 WOW. Still can't win. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GioGio85 Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 When it comes it will be worth the wait I'm sure Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonnyCurrie Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Cracking career so far SnakeXe! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 2, 2011 Author Share Posted January 2, 2011 The Squad: 2028 Goalkeepers Daniel Martin - GK - Argentina - On paper he's top class, and he had some great games last year, but we conceded so many from 30-plus yards that I'm slightly worried whether it's something to do with him. A positioning stat of 18 would suggest it's not, but I never noticed it as much with Godoy. Juan Carlos - GK - Spain - Finally a proper backup! Defenders Jose Alberto Loureiro - DR - Italy - One of our three regular Italy internationals with Vitone and Aguero. Rocco Signore - D/WBR - Italy - Very decent backup. Jose - D/WB/ML - Spain - Much better last year than in his debut season. Jose Maria - DL - Spain - Excellent prospect, the reason I sold Jorgensen on. Rene Kooiman - DC - Holland - Still the big dog at the back. Won his first caps for Holland. Stefano Tulino - D/DM/MRC - Italy - Getting towards the end of his career now. Philipp Egger - DC - Austria - A great scoring record from set-pieces last season won him his place in the side. Da Silva - DC - Brazil - Started the season in the team then lost it to Egger. Midfielders Filippo Vitone - AMRC - Italy - On paper Javier looks slightly better, but Vitone always comes up with the goods. Javier - AMR - Spain - Needs to start delivering on that potential. Jon Pagola - AMLC - Spain - Maybe 2 seasons left in him now. Walter Gonzalez - AMLC - Argentina - Surprised he's not classed as a wonderkid really. Mario Quiroga - DM/MC - Argentina - His injury prompted Oueslati's signing. Celso - DM/MC - Brazil - Getting on now, will need replacing soon. Sebastien Oueslati - D/DM/MC - France - Cheap signing to cover for Quiroga's 3 months out, he promptly suffered the same injury. Victor Amoruso - MC - Argentina - When Arnautovic was injured towards the end of last season he stepped up to the plate really well. Nenad Arnautovic - MC - Serbia - Quality player. Jose Luis Vega - M/AMC - Spain - Bargain prospect who was transfer listed at Real Madrid. Forwards Abel Petrillo - ST - Italy - Came into the team a little more towards the end of the season, scoring crucial goals. Walter Aguero - AMC/ST - Italy - His outstanding international scoring record suggests I'm probably wasting him as a deep lying forward. Sergio Real - ST - Argentina - Worse than useless for the last 18 months, needs to buck his ideas up or I'll have to sell him. Joaquin Arguelles - AMC/ST - Spain - Sometimes looks like the only player we have that can get a goal. Tom O'Donnell - ST - England - Another one who needs to start reaching his potential. Leavers Filippo Pedersoli - GK - Italy - Juan Carlos' signing made him redundant. Henrik Jorgensen - DL - Denmark - Great player for us, but Jose Maria will (hopefully) be better. Gianmarco Di Donato - AMR/ST - Italy - Out on loan. Yohan Sallaberry - AMLC - France - Was in a lull for about 2 years so I thought I'd better let him go for the sake of his career. Albert Negrin - MC - Spain - Didn't get as much first team football as I'd hoped last year so out on loan again. Overall Slight improvements in the squad here and there should give us an edge over last season's team. Will it be enough for the title? Who knows. Forza Messina! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 ^ sums it up pretty well And I was right with Juventus beating Palermo by having the better record against them and Messina only a point behind. Next year Snake..? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 2, 2011 Author Share Posted January 2, 2011 I hope so, every season seems to go exactly the same no matter what I try. We do really well for long periods, then have a few games where we just forget how to score or ship some ridiculous goals and it screws us for the whole season. It's within reach, but we just seem to find a way to shoot ourselves in the foot every time. Reminds me of Newcastle in the mid 90's/early 00's. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 2, 2011 Author Share Posted January 2, 2011 Season 18: Winter Break Update Another solid start was curtailed when we lost 3-1 away to Bologna in Round 3 (although looking at the table at half-way, perhaps not such an embarrassment). We bounced back, going on a good run, before our next loss occurred away to Juventus. Our form spluttered a bit after that, before imploding with consecutive 1-0 losses against AC Milan and Roma. Luckily a vintage performance from Jon Pagola rescued our half-season, battling to a 2-1 away win over Napoli. We're in a good position, just 2 points from top, but it could have been so much better. A bad injury to Joaquin Arguelles really hurt us - having finally broken into the Spanish team he tore his calf muscle towards the end of his 3rd cap against Cyprus. That meant he played just 7 games before Xmas. I also reached 800 games in management, a 3-1 win over Inter at San Filippo. In the Champions League, we avoided the qualifiers this time, going straight into a very tricky group - Atletico Madrid, Manchester City and Standard Liege is probably harder than we ever encountered when we were 3rd seeds - speaking of which, we're now the highest ranked of the 2nd seeds, so a decent performance this year should see us finally become top seeds next year. A 5-0 demolition of Standard away was a great way to open the phase, and a backs-to-the-wall 1-0 home win over Atletico cemented our good start. A late equaliser then earned us a point in Manchester, before a come-from-behind 2-1 win in the return all but assured qualification. A shambolic performance to lose 1-0 to Standard at home put us in doubt, but a last-minute winner from O'Donnell in Madrid put Atletico out and won us the group. Celtic are the opposition in the next round, they should (touch wood) be slightly easier to overcome than the last few knockout round opponents we've faced. Results 1 - Results 2 - League Table - Squad Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 2, 2011 Author Share Posted January 2, 2011 How tight would you describe this as, Nobby? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattSpurs94 Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 O_O Thats tight..... I've just started my first journeyman career, hoping it doesn't completely collapse on me *cough*[/blatantplug]*cough* Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 How tight would you describe this as, Nobby? She's lost her virginity but he had a small ****. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 3 games to go, and our victory over Roma coupled with Juve losing puts us top for the first time this season. We have: AC Milan (11th) A Napoli (6th) H Grosseto (4th) A Juve have: Grosseto (4th) A Cosenza (17th) H Fiorentina (12th) A So we have a pretty horrendous fixture list, but only one of the games is significantly harder than what Juve face, and it's a home match anyway. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 Due to our continued involvement in the Italian Cup, we played a day earlier than Juve. A vintage performance gave us a 2-0 win over AC Milan (could have been 6 or 7) - meaning a win for Grosseto would put us in the position of needing just 1 win from our remaining 2 games to take the title. The newly-promoted side had been flying high all season, confounding expectations in picking up points again and again against bigger, better sides. Could they do it one more time? Yes they could! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GioGio85 Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Beat Europa League chasing Napoli and the titles yours...best of luck! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 Well that was ridiculous. We took the lead, Arguelles smashing home after a great through ball from Aguero, but then we absolutely fell apart, ended up losing 3-1. But weirdly enough, Parma lost and Juve drew. Pressure's getting to everyone! So we need a point against Grosseto (who we also face in the Italian Cup Final) to take the title. This is so stressful! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattSpurs94 Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 Come on Messina! just 1 point! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 SnakeXe's Messina - Season 18 - 2028/29 Story of the Season: Serie A - 1st, Champions For the third season running we started with a win, this one against Fiorentina at home. We first lost in Round 3, a disappointing 3-1 beating away to Bologna (although they did end up sustaining a title challenge into the New Year before falling away, so perhaps not so terrible). Our form picked back up again, only losing away to Juve before hitting a terrible run in December where we forgot how to score. A home draw with relegation-threatened Sampdoria was compounded by successive losses to AC Milan and Roma. Thankfully we were able to dig deep, and Jon Pagola inspired us to a gritty away win in Naples to avoid going into the winter break adrift. 2 points was the gap, and we set about closing it with an 8 game winning streak in all competitions, not dropping a single point in the month of January. February was worse though, as we suffered successive losses for the second time this season, at home to Lazio and away to Inter. Things picked up again, though, and we were sustaining the title challenge, matching Juve point for point, until finally they slipped up with 3 games to go. We were top for the first time all season, albeit by just a solitary point, before Grosseto did us a huge favour by beating Juve at home. That meant just one win in the last two games would secure us the first Serie A title of the club's history, in this incarnation or any other. We faced Napoli at home, followed by Grosseto away. Napoli were challenging for a Europa League place, and were a tough team, but we were confident of picking up the result we needed. How wrong we were. It started well enough, with Arguelles smashing in an opener, but Napoli absolutely passed us to death, running out 3-1 winners. Inexplicably though, Parma lost, putting themselves out of the title race, and Juve drew, meaning we needed just a point from Grosseto to take the title. The small Tuscan club had worked miracles that season, the newly promoted side sustaining a Champions League qualification charge until the very last few games, and taking a spot in the Italian Cup Final as well. We lined up in a cautious 4-5-1 formation, knowing their propensity for hitting sides with rapid counter attacks. Juve were away at 12th placed Fiorentina, not an easy game, but one they'd expect to win. The early exchanges were nervy, but we fashioned some great chances for lone striker Arguelles. Unfortunately, the previously unflappable marksman missed them all. Half time came, and we got word that Juve were a goal up against Fiorentina. We were still on top, but could not afford a single slip-up. The match continued in a similar vein for the next 25 minutes, us creating the odd clear cut chance but fluffing it, and Grosseto threatening occasionally from long range. As a dipping 30-yarder arrowed narrowly over our crossbar, I decided we had to go for it. Off went midfielder Vega, on came Sergio Real to partner Arguelles up front. This had the desired effect, penning Grosseto back, but we still couldn't find a goal to steady our nerves. As the game entered injury time, we dropped nervously deeper and deeper, the opposition swarming outside our penalty area. The seconds ticked by. The referee blew the final whistle. We had done it! Coppa Italia - Runners Up AC Milan were overcome easily enough in the first round by our reserves, who did the same job to Bari in the Quarter Final. Palermo were slightly trickier opposition, and as one of our rivals I couldn't allow us to be blown away by them. A great defensive job in the away leg brought a 0-0 back to San Filippo. Disastrously, they took the lead, and we laboured to respond. Suddenly, everything clicked, and Aguero fed Arguelles twice in quick succession to put us in charge. Incredibly, we conceded again to make it 2-2 at half time, Palermo with the advantage on away goals. We were the better side in the second half, dominating possession and chances. We just couldn't grab the crucial third, until Palermo's two-goal hero Daniel fouled Aguero in the box to concede a penalty! The adopted Italian international dusted himself off and calmly dispatched the penalty to regain the lead. Palermo came at us like a train, and we nearly buckled under the pressure, before a wonderful breakaway culminated in substitute Sergio Real stroking home a decisive fourth! Grosseto awaited in the final, who as you know had had a fine season, but were a club we really should beat. We went 4-4-2 this time, hoping to take the game to our opponents, and it worked quite well, apart from the whole scoring goals thing. Without the suspended Arguelles we just didn't have the nous to break them down, and when they scored with their only shot on target, we knew it wasn't our day. Gutting. Champions League - Quarter Final Our 3rd placed finish last year meant no qualifier this time round, and we went straight into the hardest group we've ever faced, even when we were 3rd seeds. Standard Liege weren't up to much, but Manchester City and Atletico Madrid were both seasoned European campaigners, with excellent teams. A 5-0 destruction of Standard in Belgium was the best way to start, and we followed that up with a superb 1-0 win over Atletico at home. A late equaliser earned a point in Manchester, before a come-from-behind 2-1 victory put us in charge of the group in the return match. An utterly inexplicably bad performance saw us lose 2-1 to Standard at home - not only their only points of the round, but their only goals as well. This meant we absolutely needed a result in Madrid to go through, let alone win the group. Luckily we held them at bay, before an injury time winner was snatched by O'Donnell to win our group for the second time ever. Finally we faced some slightly easier opposition in the form of Celtic, and we made it look easy, a measured 2-0 win in Scotland followed up by a 3-0 home victory. Man Utd awaited us in the Quarter Final, a very tricky proposition indeed. An absolutely abject first half performance at home left us lucky to be only 1-0 down, but a half-time shift to 4-5-1 bore much better results, and we equalised to give us some hope going to Old Trafford. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough, as we missed a couple of early chances before being absolutely steamrollered, with the 2-0 loss flattering us. Results 1 - Results 2 - Results 3 - Results 4 - Squad Transfers - £17.6m Loss Jorgensen and Pedersoli left as squad players no longer required, and I sent some of our promising young'uns out on loan. Coming in were some prospects in Vega, Incontri and Jose Maria, veteran cover in Oueslati, and first team material in Antonio Gola. Juan Carlos was finally a back-up keeper who wasn't rubbish, at my favourite price - £0. 5 Most Important Players: 5. Rene Kooiman - DC - Has been such a great player for us over the years. 4. Walter Aguero - AM/ST - Not his best season, but had to cope with the pressure of leading the line mostly singlehandedly due to Arguelles' injury troubles. 3. Jose Alberto Loureiro - DR - Another great campaign from the adopted Italian. 2. Javier - AMR - 14 assists tells its own story. Reminds me of Arshavin - not much use except for the final ball, which is fine by me. 1. Joaquin Arguelles - AM/ST - That he was our top scorer despite missing around 5 months of the season tells you all about our other strikers. History: Season League Position Achievements ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ 2011/12 Serie C2/C 2nd Serie C Cup Runners Up, Playoff Finalists 2012/13 Serie C2/C 1st Serie C2/C Champions, Promoted 2013/14 Serie C1/B 5th Playoff Semi-Finalists 2014/15 Serie C1/B 2nd Playoff Winners, Promoted 2015/15 Serie B 12th 2016/17 Serie B 2nd Promoted 2017/18 Serie A 20th Relegated 2018/19 Serie B 2nd Promoted 2019/20 Serie A 7th Qualified for Europa League 2020/21 Serie A 6th Qualified for Europa League 2021/22 Serie A 9th 2022/23 Serie A 5th Qualified for Europa League 2023/24 Serie A 3rd Qualified for Champions League, Coppa Italia Runners Up 2024/25 Serie A 4th Qualified for Champions League, Coppa Italia Runners Up 2025/26 Serie A 4th Qualified for Champions League 2026/27 Serie A 4th Qualified for Champions League 2027/28 Serie A 3rd Qualified for Champions League 2028/29 Serie A 1st Champions, Coppa Italia Runners Up Messina 100 Club: A list of those Messina players who make 100 or more appearances for the club under my management. Name Pos Era Apps Goals AvR -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Rene Kooiman DC 2019-Present 406 36 7.10 Victor Amoruso MC 2018-Present 380 33 6.98 Filippo Vitone AMRC 2018-Present 375 73 7.09 Abel Petrillo AML/ST 2016-Present 358 151 7.13 Jon Pagola AMLC 2019-Present 356 70 7.20 Mauro Quiroga DM/MC 2019-Present 323 14 6.96 Jose A. Loureiro DR 2020-Present 308 2 7.13 Walter Aguero AM/ST 2021-Present 300 96 7.01 Stefano Tulino D/DM/MRC 2019-Present 274 17 7.12 Mauro Vigorito GK 2011-2023 217 0 6.82 Juan Jose Godoy GK 2023-2027 207 0 6.96 Patxi Rodriguez DM/MC 2017-2026 203 14 6.87 Nenad Lukic MLC 2021-2026 188 23 6.98 Mauricio Martin D/DM/MC 2020-2027 187 9 6.96 Nicolas Amodio DM/MC 2012-2018 183 12 6.93 Remi Thouvenin DL 2021-2026 181 0 7.06 Antonio Marino DLC 2013-2021 180 5 6.88 Adem Ljajic AMRLC 2019-2027 170 26 6.91 Mario Ortiz DM/MC 2013-2021 169 5 6.83 Nicola Ravaglia GK 2018-2025 164 0 6.90 Enzo Scorza ST 2012-2018 159 82 7.24 Nicolas D/DM/MC 2015-2022 159 5 6.85 Rosario Licata D/WB/ML 2011-2016 146 3 6.92 Francesc Alcalde AMLC/ST 2014-2020 145 45 6.98 Luca Tedeschi DC 2012-2018 139 8 7.09 Nenad Arnautovic MC 2025-Present 137 18 6.96 Mogi DRC 2017-2022 134 0 6.76 Sergio Real ST 2024-Present 167 30 6.87 Celso DM/MC 2025-Present 129 9 6.94 Diego Farias AMRLC 2015-2019 126 19 6.90 Gonzalo Valdez ST 2022-2026 126 34 6.87 Philipp Egger DC 2023-Present 125 16 7.15 Javier AMR 2025-Present 124 10 6.93 Davide Testa AM/ST 2011-2015 121 40 7.04 Jose D/WB/M/AML 2026-Present 118 1 6.95 Yohann Sallaberry AMLC 2021-2028 117 10 7.01 Joaquin Arguelles AM/ST 2025-Present 111 73 7.33 Ruben AML 2015-2019 103 7 6.86 Fausto Rossi AML 2016-2021 102 18 6.97 Next Season: We'll probably have to be significantly better if we want to take the title again, as it's surely just a matter of time before one of Juve or Palermo get their behind in gear and punch out an 80+ point season. With this in mind, I'll set ourselves a points target of 80 for next season, along with finally winning the Italian Cup, and making the Semi Final of the Champions League again. Forza Messina! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattSpurs94 Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO! ahem.... congratz on finally winning the title, Snake. It's the least you deserve Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 3, 2011 Author Share Posted January 3, 2011 Cheers Matt, it's one hell of a relief! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Forza Snake! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SelectX Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Its been an awesome read. I hope you can continue your success and maybe get the Champions League and Italian cup next season. I've started with Russian first division team Irtysh Omsk, not sure if to blog it though. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichG Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Congrats on winning the title mate. That was a real long haul to get there. Lets hope you can win back to back titles now. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GioGio85 Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Big congrats....well worth the wait...but what next for the might Messina? World domination I hope Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
crouchaldinho Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Congratulations on the title win SnakeXe! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
EdSB Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Well done! This has been a great read from the start - now all you need to do is create a team that can win the Champo League and Serie A season after season. No pressure Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 4, 2011 Author Share Posted January 4, 2011 Thanks for all the kind words gents, and SelectX, please do post up your progress, I'd be interested in reading it! What next for Messina? Well, now we're champions of Italy, we've got to conquer Europe, and finally the World, muahahahaha I'm actually finding it hard to start back on the save now, after all that tension at the end of last season. I'm sure that'll change when I settle down in front of Fulham v West Brom later Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GioGio85 Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 I'm actually finding it hard to start back on the save now, after all that tension at the end of last season. I'm sure that'll change when I settle down in front of Fulham v West Brom later That feeling will soon pass Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
hrbfcrule Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Congratulations finally. :thup: Very unlucky in the Italian Cup final though. Now for the Champions League Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Romanista1994 Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 You won it. Awesome. My two season prediction was somewhat off though. And Roma finished 13. :'( Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SelectX Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Thanks for all the kind words gents, and SelectX, please do post up your progress, I'd be interested in reading it! I've quit the Russian club looking at somewhere in Italy to manage. Could post first update in an hour or two. Cheers & Good luck for next season ! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 4, 2011 Author Share Posted January 4, 2011 Thanks all Roma are a weird one, they have some absolutely fantastic players who'd walk into my team, but they just can't build a team. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Romanista1994 Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Screenshots of the best to further twist the knife in the wound? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 Screenshots of the best to further twist the knife in the wound? Just had a look and they've actually had quite a few of the ones I was thinking of decline badly/retire recently (which explains the poor performance), but here's Juan Iglesias, who is still incredible, and Pascal Poirier, who they sold in the summer. I've tried quite a few times to sign Iglesias, but you're paying him so much I can't afford his demands Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flamers Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Well done Flamers Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Romanista1994 Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Just had a look and they've actually had quite a few of the ones I was thinking of decline badly/retire recently (which explains the poor performance), but here's Juan Iglesias, who is still incredible, and Pascal Poirier, who they sold in the summer.I've tried quite a few times to sign Iglesias, but you're paying him so much I can't afford his demands Iglesias is . Explains why Arguelles has so few caps. Bad transfer dealing selling that other guy for only £8.5 million. :/ Ah well, good luck for next season! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 Getting a bit ahead of myself here as I haven't had the chance to write up the squad review, but I just played AC Milan at home - they were top of the table, undefeated, 1 goal conceded all season. The result? See for yourself. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flamers Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Anyone else think that hacks exist? Flamers Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
GioGio85 Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Getting a bit ahead of myself here as I haven't had the chance to write up the squad review, but I just played AC Milan at home - they were top of the table, undefeated, 1 goal conceded all season.The result? See for yourself. Wow what a result! I am assuming by that result that your pre-season enabled you to keep a good squad of players! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 The Squad: 2029 Goalkeepers Daniel Martin - GK - Argentina - Kept out Juan Carlos for almost all of last season, probably fairly comfortable in his number 1 jersey. Wants to leave at the moment, but with 2 years on his contract I'll keep trying to persuade him to stay a little while longer yet. Juan Carlos - GK - Spain - Did alright when required, I'll try and give him a little more action this year. Defenders Jose Alberto Loureiro - DR - Italy - I'm not looking forward to replacing him. It's going to be expensive. Rocco Signore - D/WBR - Italy - Solid. Jose - D/WB/M/AML - Spain - Jose Maria is probably better than him as a full-back, but Jose is another class going forward. Jose Maria - DL - Spain - Progressed very nicely last year, deserves more football. Rene Kooiman - DC - Holland - Him and Da Silva were excellent at the end of last season. Stefano Tulino - D/DM/MRC - Italy - His contract's up at the end of the season and it's his last with us. Great player for us down the seasons, but sadly no longer. Philipp Egger - DC - Austria - A bit of a poor year last season, back to 3rd choice. Da Silva - DC - Brazil - Regained his place after Egger's shoddy form. Nauzet Martinez Gonzalez - DC - Spain - Tulino's intended replacement, a bargain £2.7m from Barcelona. Midfielders Filippo Vitone - AMRC - Italy - I'll look to him for some towering far post headers in our new formation. Javier - AMR - Spain - Topped our assists chart last season without ever actually playing that well. Jon Pagola - AMLC - Spain - This might be his last season with Gonzalez and Juarez nipping at his heels. Great servant. Walter Gonzalez - AMLC - Argentina - Getting to the age when he needs to crack the first team now. Julian Juarez - AML - Spain - Another Barca bargain, £3.2m for this guy. Pagola's long term replacement. Mario Quiroga - DM/MC - Argentina - His passing from deep will really help us in the new system. Celso - DM/MC - Brazil - Definitely on the wane these days. Sebastien Oueslati - D/DM/MC - France - Didn't play all that much last season, kept him on because I couldn't find any DMs for a reasonable price in the summer. Antonio Gola - DM/MC - Italy - Signed last January, I needed a long-term replacement for Celso, and couldn't turn down a chance to add a much needed home-grown player to the squad, even if he was a little overpriced at £11.5m. Nenad Arnautovic - MC - Serbia - Bit of a rubbish season last year, am retraining him to DM. Jose Luis Vega - M/AMC - Spain - Didn't perform too well at MC last year, I think AM will definitely suit him better. Has the attributes to be a world-class player. Igor Mikhailov - M/AMC - Russia - Fantastic little player with room to improve, broke my transfer record to sign him at £15m. Forwards Abel Petrillo - AML/ST - Italy - Retrained as an AML he makes a cracking inside forward with Jose bombing down the line. Still useful up top too. Walter Aguero - AMC/ST - Italy - I really need to ask the Italy manager what he's doing, cause he gets so much more out of him at the moment. Sergio Real - ST - Argentina - Really impressed me last season by becoming a useful player for us again, should enjoy a lone strikers role. Joaquin Arguelles - AMC/ST - Spain - Injured far too often last season, hopefully he'll stay fit this time, cause we need him. Leavers Gianmarco Di Donato - AMR/ST - Italy - Out on loan again. Albert Negrin - MC - Spain - Loaned again, probably will sell him soon as he's not progressed. Shame. Victor Amoruso - MC - Argentina - Decided he'd achieved all he could with us, which is admittedly a lot! Not sure what he thinks he can do at West Ham, but it's his career. One of my favourite players on this save. Tom O'Donnell - ST - England - Never really performed for us, when I decided on a 1 striker formation and he had 1 year left on his contract he was an obvious casualty. Got £15m for him, which is very nice indeed. Piero Incontri - ST - Italy - Signed from Inter last season for a small fee, good potential. Overall The new formation I hinted at in the player reviews is a 4-2-3-1 in a similar style to Germany at the World Cup or Real Madrid under Mourinho. I'll have attacking fullbacks (Jose and Loureiro), one destroyer (Gola/Celso) and one passer (Arnautovic/Quiroga) deep in midfield, a playmaker (Vega or Mikhailov) higher, then two wingers and a striker. I changed things around from the title-winning 4-4-2 because it is apparent that we simply can't get away with playing 2 strikers away in the latter rounds Europe unless we significantly improve the side (not got the budget unfortunately). I hope this shape will prove versatile enough to break down teams that sit back and also provide enough men behind the ball to eke out results away in Europe, and I think we just about have the players to make it work on both counts. Forza Messina! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flamers Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Oh god, 19's... If any of my players had a 19 in ANY technical skill they would destroy any team... Good luck Flamers Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 Anyone else think that hacks exist? Flamers It's not even my best result against AC on this save Wow what a result! I am assuming by that result that your pre-season enabled you to keep a good squad of players! Yeah we added one first teamer, a couple of good prospects, and held on to everyone important. Just what we needed! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SnakeXe Posted January 5, 2011 Author Share Posted January 5, 2011 Oh god, 19's... If any of my players had a 19 in ANY technical skill they would destroy any team...Good luck Flamers I've been meaning to read your new thread! I will do now Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flamers Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Haha thanks I think you now see what I mean... max technical skill is 13 in my division and they are on loan... Flamers Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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