FM12 Big Euro Nation: Small Club to Big Club Challenge

[Aztekia]

I said surely I can't blow it, and I'm throwing it away, only 1 win in 5. Stupid forum curse.

[Aztekia]

AS Cannes End of Season Report 2012/2013

Predicted - 6th/Finished - 1st - Graph

Board Expectation - Win Promotion/Achieved - Champions

Transfers 1

Transfers 2

Squad 1

Squad 2

I decided to chop and change a lot of my squad, bringing in 16 players and releasing over 20. Cannes had the backbone of a decent side, but lacked that cutting edge and impact that I hoped my new signings would create in the sign. I signed a combination of experienced top league and international players, combined with players plying their trade in the lower echelons of the League system, and managed to find a working balance.

The League

League Table

Fixtures 1

Fixtures 2

The Media expected me to finish 6th, yet the board wanted immediate promotion. Therefore, I realistically aimed for 3rd place, yet surprised even myself by claiming first place early on in the season and staying their for the rest of the season. It started off a bit shaky, with only 1 win in 4 games, a comprehensive 3-0 win over FC Rouen. We stuttered until mid October, when he really raised out game. Starting with a 2-0 victory over FC Martigues, we went 17 games unbeaten, 12 wins and 5 draws. This propelled us to the top of the league and created a point buffer of over 10 points. Abdou Diaye had really reached his best and was firing on all cylinders, and his goals, along with some of the best defending in France, created a steely but lethal unit that sweeped most dies apart. After defeat to Orléans Loiret Football (Who did the double over me, 1-0 and 2-1), we began to struggle again, winning only 1 in 5 games. However, poor performances from the chasing pack enabled us to secure promotion after a 2-0 win over Paris FC and became Champions after a poor 1-1 draw away with Bescançon RC, who were on a really poor run. To succeed next season we need to improve our start and make sure we don't get complacent at the end. We can't afford for the squad to take time to gel together or we could be up a creek without a paddle very early on.

Coupe de la Ligue

Fixtures

This tournament was really not important to me or the board, especially when I was draw away to Boulogne, who are expected to be their or abouts for the title for the second division title. We had 2 shots (both on target, so that's something) to their 25 (6 on target, embarrassingly). When Mourad Badra was sent off in the 23rd minute, all hope was extinguished really. We lasted until the 55th minute when Juan Gonzalo Lorca scored, and their second, by Ovidy Karuru, did not come until injury time when I had set my side to be overwhelmingly attacking.

Coupe de France

Fixtures

I was expected to reach the 9th round, and that' just what I did. I swept the lower division sides away - US Feurs (5-0), La Vitréene (2-0), MDA Chasselay (1-0) - With Omani scoring in all 3 games, the only real thing he did.

The 9th round saw us drawn at home to Lorient, and it was one of the bets games of the season. Feel like doing a report on it. (My favourite match of the season will be match reported at the end of my season reports. If I remember).

Match Report - AS Cannes v FC Lorient, Coupe de France 9th Round

Cannes v Lorient Overview

Cannes v Lorient Stats

AS Cannes: Khedairia - Scotto, Fournier, Queudrue, Rambier - Pinaud (De Lucas 69), Ayasse, Neumann © (Luyindula 69), Moha - Ledy, Dieye

FC Lorient: Audard © - Koné Werley, Tavarès, Mareque - Jouffre (Sunu 90), Peñalba, Romao, Lansbury* (Dubarbier 86), Miyaichi (Le Lan 45) - Emeghara

The match started very evenly, with both sides sparring and not wanting to give an early goal away. Cannes showed a lot more attacking intent, which was surprising considering Lorient are a higher division club. Peñalba and Tavarès were their players that defender best and stopped Dieye or Ledy really getting involved. On the 41st minute, against the run of play, Lorient took the lead.

Lansbury picked up the ball at the edge of the D, and proceeded to run towards the corner flag, then turn as soon as he reached the edge of the box, beat Fournier and Ayasse as he ran towards the 6 yard box before laying across goal for Jouffre to poke in to an open goal. A brilliant assist to end the half. Dieye managed one more drive that went straight into the arms of Audard, and we went in 1-0 down.

Once again, we dominated the second half, especially the first 20 minutes, yet could not create a clear cut the chance. The first fell to Lorient on the 69th minute mark. A corner by Le Lan was cleared by Luyindula. The ball landed at the feet of Emeghara, who layed at back out to Le Lan and ran into the box. Le Lan guided the ball into the 6 yard box, where Emeghara put his free header wide of the post. It should have been a very undeserved 2-0 and game over, but we still had a chance.

In the 85th minute, we got the equaliser we had so richly deserved. Koné fouled Dieye near Lorient's left corner flag. Queudrue whipped in a dangerous free kick across the box, where Fournier met it with a brilliant header which went in off the bar. Agonisingly, Luyindula hit a great chance across goal when it was probably easier to finish in the 89th minute which would have meant a deserved win for us, but it was not to be. Extra time it was.

It got off to a terrible start. In only the second minute of extra time, Lorient took the lead again. Le Lan whipped in a corner from the left hand side, which was met by the head of Gilles Sunu at the corner of the 6-yard box. His header was deflected by the knee of Luyindula and went in. Despite the touch being very minor, it harshly went down as a Luyindula OG. Once again, I had to equalise.

5 minutes later, we deservedly pulled level. Luyindula cut in from the right wing and played a great pass to Dieye, who turned Koné with ease but his effort was caught by Audard. His throw was intercepted quickly and fell to Scotto, who found De Lucas, who passed to Ledy who dummied fantastically to find Dieye at the edge of the box. Dieye tried to run into the box but was tackled by Werley, and the ball fell to Ayasse who hit a stormer 25 yards out that thundered back off the crossbar and found its way back to Scotto on the right wing. Scotto delivered a fantastic pass to Ledy, who trapped it 8 yards out and slotted it under the keeper. 2-2. The rest of injury time was a nervous affair with both sides going close. The 120th minute, however, would decide the whole match.

Koné was found by Dubarbier on the right wing. He played the ball back to Romao, who frankly had to much space and ran to the corner of the box, before cutting it across to Peñalba. His shot deflected off 5 and fell to the feet of Le Lan. He took a touch, and as he was about to take a shot, with Khedairia running out, Scotto slid in and poked the ball under Khedairia and into his own net. 3-2, and there was only just enough time to restart. Two own goals cost us in a match that we really should have one, but it was a fantastic spectacle and learning curve nonetheless, and proof we can compete with the big boys in the higher leagues.

Squad Review

Keepers

Jérémy Gavanon - Key Player - Gavanon played much better than I thought he would. He did have the benefit of playing behind great central defenders, but pulled off great saves that enabled us to win tough matches and will still be in the squad next season.

Sofiane Khedairia - Signed for cover when Gavanon pulled his hamstring. He was intended to be only a backup, but a string of consistent and impressive performances meant he often rotated with Gavanon. Gavanon will keep the number 1 jersey, but Khedairia is a worthy backup.

Defenders

Adriano De Pierro - Key Player - Signed from Young Boys for 50K in January. He was intended to be part of a rotation system, but played so well with Fournier in central defence he established himself as first choice, and will definetely still be here next season.

Cédric Avinel - Not in Squad - Intended to be a first choice centre back, it didn't work out for him that way. For the first few league games he was first choice, but our struggling performances as well as better players coming in meant he soon dropped out of the squad and was released on a free.

Franck Queudrue - Signed for his experience along with Vigan and Luyindula, he proved he can still perform by putting in a sting of good showings, as well as being a deadly crosser of the ball. The performances of Fournier, De Pierro and Camille restricted his appearances.

Grégory Vignal - Like Queudrue, he was signed for his experience. He was intended to replace Camille as first choice Left Back, however, a torn hamstring ruled him out for 3 months, and when he returned he could not match Camille and proved to be second choice.

Julien Tournut - Not in Squad - Another of the original centrebacks who did not make the cut. He lasted longer than Avinel, and was first choice for the first 10 games. However, new defenders and poor results meant he, like Avinel, was soon released from his contract and the club.

Rémi Fournier - Key Player - The second best player on the team and undoubtedly one of the best defenders in the league this season. Signed at the last minute after he was offered by his agent, it resulted in the released of Tournut, but it was worth it. he made the centre back position his own, and was vital to the team's run in. His arrival coincided with the 17 match unbeaten run and proves his strength to the team. First choice next season no doubt. 29 appearances and 3 goals were his reward for his spirited performances.

Romain Rambier - Another first teamer early on, however his performances were impressive, just not as good as the other centre backs. He wasn' treleased from his contract, but may be sold in the summer to bring in a better replacement. He can play across the defence which may tempt me to keep him in case of an injury crisis.

Samuel Camille - Key Player - Much more solid and impressive than I thought. Vignal was brought in to replace him, and he was second choice until Vignal got injured. Camille, with a lot to prove, ripped apart opponents during many games and became a fan favourite. Could easily be first choice leftback next season.

Samuel Néva -Not at Club - Signed as a central defender but failed to impress and was released soon after

Thibault Scotto - Key Player - Scotto was already part of the squad when I joined, and I intended to replace him. However, like a true manager, forgot. Therefore he became my first choice right back, and really impressed and became a key player. A useful forgetting.

Midfielders

Benoît Leroy - More of a sub and used during an injury crisis. He was one of my least played midfielders and will soon be moved on.

David Biaou - The Benin Defensive Midfielder was a failure of a signing. Despite being a more than adequate player, he only made 3 appearances and was eclipsed by better performers. Tried to terminate his contract but the board won't let me due to compensation. Looking to sell in the summer.

Didier Neumann - The Captain of this season as the old captain left at the start of the season. Worked in the engine room and was first choice defensive mid. Carried out what was expected of him and nothing more, was sometimes anonymous. Will likely stay to captain the side next year, despite being 36. Made 29 appearances and can still perform/

Gauthier Pinaud - Key Player - My first-choice right winger, and a gem of a player. Played 35 games and only managed 2 goals, but that was not why he was playing. He's fast, can beat a man and an excellent crossed and passer of the ball. Can rally the troops when the going gets tough. Only actually managed 4 assists, which needs to improve, but he was involved in many goals. Like him to play next season for Cannes, since he is only 25 and still has a lot to offer.

Jonathan Roufosse - Key Player - A key midfielder when I took over and I never managed to bring in a player better than him. Despite being quite prone to injury, especially towards the mid-late part of the season, he managed 24 appearances from the center and occasionally left of midfield. Not as good as the season before, he will still be here next season, as long as I can keep teams away from him. I rejected a 28k bid from Monaco last season, and Monaco and Lorient are sniffing around him.

Kévin Gohiri - At the start of the season was first choice, but soon replaced by Moha. After Moha started to decline, he played more and started to get more influential, scoring and assisting key goals. Maybe not good enough to be first choice next season.

Moha - The Moroccan Leftback was signed by Spanish club Girona for 35K. At 35, he only managed 2 assists and no goals, yet was still important to the side, especially during the 17-match unbeaten run. However, he started to decline and I was informed he is no longer good enough. He was replaced as first choice by Gohiri towards the end of the season but still played some games. At 35, I would not be surprised if he retired. He will not be here at the start of next season.

Mourad Badra - Started as first choice but later became a sub after the performances of Ayasse, Neumann and Roufosse, he made a very impressive 25 caps and was a vital cog in the team. Not sure of his future.

Quique De Lucas - Signed from Celta da Vigo for 95K, the 34-year old did not live up to his billing, and only made 11 appearances after being signed in January. He often made us perform worse, and Pinaud was so much better. Announced he was retiring in the summer, which is the best thing for him.

Stephen Appiah - Not at Club - I always sign him on my saves and think he'll do better than he does. Signed to be in the heart of our midfield, he was nowhere near good enough, and, like Biaou, only made 3 appearances before dropping into the shadows and being released.

Thomas Ayasse - Key Player - Blew hot and cold, but more hot than cold. He made 26 appearances and scored 2 goals which came in consecutive games, one of which was a 25-yard screamer. Like Neumann, a lot of his work went unnoticed but played a vital part in the engine room. Will likely be here next season, likely as a substitute.

Forwards

Abdou Dieye - Key Player - The best player in my squad by a mile. Rated as the worst striker in my squad, he ripped apart opponents and won the awards for most Man of the Match awards and the Golden Boot after 21 goals in 37 games in all competitions. Without his goals there is no way we'd have won the league.

David Ledy - A very hot and cold player. When he's on form, he can't stop scoring. On the flip-side, he went on an incredible 16 hour goal drought, and as the supposed best striker in my squad, it wasn't good enough! Not sure if he'll be here next season. 12 goals in 35 games isn't an awful return.

Paulin Voavy - Not at club - The Madagascan striker who only played a few games, mainly as sub, before being released. The board were upset by this, but he wasn't really good enough.

Peguy Luyindula - The former PSG striker was signed to provide experience and to put the goals away. This didn't happen, and I should have guessed, since he was hardly what you would call prolific for PSG. 3 goals in 22 games isn't what I had hoped for, though he has never managed more than 6 goals in a league a season. Due to his advancing age, I imagine he won't play next season for me

Billel Omrani - Not at club - The French-Israeli 19 year old was loaned in from the Marseille under-19's, and was my first signing. He really didn't hit it off. Managing only 1 goal in the league, he scored in 3 consecutive cup games against lower-league sides, and soon was languishing on the bench and had his loan terminated early.

Next season, my main aim is to survive in Ligue 2. Wish me luck

Hope you like this. Took an absolute age!

[PRDH]

Nice update and great season Aztekia! Dieye's pace should be a real asset for Ligue 2. You look like you've got the makings of a decent squad already and with a couple of additions I can't see you having too much trouble consolidating in that league.

[rlipscombe]

Aztekia - lovely update - deserved the time it took! congrats on winning the title. good luck next season in Ligue 2. As PRDH says, a few additions and i am sure you'll consolidate in that league at least. good luck.

[Randy Palmer]

Aztekia - Well done, I am Cannes also and had Pinaud in my squad for the first season in Ligue 1. He is a good solid winger. I think you may surprise yourself and push for promotion first season.

Feel completely aggrieved by the referee in both legs of my Champions League qtr final v Chelsea two penalty decisons I criticised and the FA were silent over both of them which means I was right one for and one against. Net result would have been a win for us. C**ts

[Aztekia]

Cheers guys, top of Ligue 2 after 2 games with 4 points and 4-0 away thrashing of Tours. Looking good so far.

[Randy Palmer]

Just won the league woo hoo

[rlipscombe]

well done Randy...

[Gypsum]

Just beat my closest title rivals, Queen's park, 6-1 away. At the start of February my Annan side are now top of the Scottish third division by 6 points. Hopefully I can avoid the laste slump that we suffered last season!

[neushoorn70]

Season Review 2021/2022

League Table | Position Graph | Fixtures 1 | Fixtures 2

A season with two very different faces. We started the season off horribly with a 4-2 loss against promoted Aachen and after a 2-0 win over Stuttgart I thought things would pick up from there, but they didn't. We lost 2 easy games in a row and after a draw and our second win in 5 games, the season didn't wasn't going well. We only got four more wins in the first half of the season: 1-0 over Mainz, 4-0 over Nürnberg, a very lucky 1-0 win against Dormund (who had a horrific season) and a 2-0 against last-placed St. Pauli. The rest of the games were all lost in a similar way: We dominated possession but didn't create anything but the opponent could create plenty and would eventually score.

With some tweeks during the winter break, the second half started off much better than the first with 8 game winning run, we played some great football (especially at home) and were rising the table steadily towards the european places, the run only ended because our away form started to drop and we lost 2 games in a row against Mainz and Hoffenheim. 3 good wins followed but after failing to win three games in a row we still had to fight for european football as the table was agonizingly close. After the heavy away loss we had to win our last 2 games and needed Mainz to drop points to end 5th and get into europe again. We did our part of the deal, but on the last day Mainz succumbed to 5-0 win over Aachen and got the fifth place, and as 6th isn't enough anymore, we aren't playing in europe next season, off by a point again.

DFB-pokal - I hoped to make a bit of a run this season, but with the bad form in the league we couldn't get the best of Gladbach and again were out early.

UEFA Europa League - We started in the third qualifying round with an easy draw against Jagiellonia they were dispatched of easily enough to set up a place in the last round, in which we were drawn against Braga, A 2-2 draw at their place put us in a good position for the second leg, and we did it profesionally, which meant we would be in the group stage for the first time ever. We were drawn a winnable group against PSV, Besiktas and our feeder club FC RB Salzburg. We won the first three games, and even after we lost the second game to Salzburg, we still qualified for the first Knockout round. The other 2 games were a bit dissapointing with a loss against Besiktas and a drew at PSV, and that meant we finished the group in second place after the other Red Bull club from Austria.

In the knockout round I thought we got a easy draw against SK Sturm Graz, but because they scored a lot away goal we made it more difficult for ourselves than we should have, and in the lost 3-1 at their place, so the european adventure lasted shorter than I hoped.

Finances - The finances ar healthy enough with the prize money received at the end of the year, the only thing still keeping us from making a monthly profit are the low attendances.

Transfers - I brought in a lot of fresh blood this season for quite a bit of money, but they're all big prospects who had great seasons.

Squad 1 | Squad 2 - We have a very capable squad that should be able to qualify for europe on a yearly basis.

Top players:

5: Sabri Kasa - A great first season for the winger.

4: Stefan Kalpakov - A big improvement, and one of my best players.

3: Kola Opara - The young striker did great and is still developing expecting a lot from this guy.

2: Nicolas Levis - The potential star had a very good first season, only just fell short of the 20 goal mark.

1: Scott Brownlie - The explosive striker was again our topscorer, 1 goal short of the 20, but has a lot of competition from Opara.

[Babaginoosh]

Team Overview | Team Information | Squad

Manager Personal Page | Manager Profile

Objectives for 1st season:

1. Drop dead weight

2. Restructure coaching staff

3. Gain trust of Board to invest funds

4. Hopefully avoid relegation

Ill do introductions and team details at end of my season.

Figure i throw my hat in ring, wish me luck.

[rlipscombe]

welcome Babaginoosh and good luck in Russia. hopefully you manage all of your objectives.

As for me, my debut Bundesliga season is complete. i will try and get the review up in the next couple of days.

[PRDH]

Welcome aboard Babaginoosh. That's a really odd club logo! Is it two skunks fighting over a flaming ball?

[Swinburn]

C.D. Castellón - LIGA adelante - 2013/14

Breaking the Glass Ceiling

Club Information | League Table | Position Graph

Transfers (1) (2) | Squad (1) (2)

Finances | Confidence

The most mental of seasons. At the start, I thought it was just going to be a survival job, which turned into a nice mid-table position. Then everything seemed to click, and the players just changed. Up the table we went. The league win came on the final day of the season. A mix between a good win and very good luck, as 5 other teams could have won the league it was that tight. In the end though, we did, and La Liga awaits!

Key Players

Jorge Padilla | Hamed Al-Kubasi | Xabier Etxeita

In a season with few goals, the three standout players were two midfielders and a defender. Padilla was a steal! Signed on a free after his release from Spurs, he instantly jumped to 300k value. I've currently went a bit further into the game since taking these shots, and he's now worth 2.2m. I have a feeling he'll be with us for a while. Hamed Al-Kubasi was another one who shined. He's now worth 1.4m. Xabier Etxeita's fantastic season earned him interest from other clubs, and I needed the money, so he was sold to Cordoba early in the La Liga season, as you'll see in the next update.

Aims for Next Season

• Stay up
  
• Get the finances sorted
  
• Continue to keep the transfer fees low
  

Career Overview

Season          League                League Finish     Achievements
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/279094-FM12-Big-Euro-Nation-Small-Club-to-Big-Club-Challenge?p=7492464&viewfull=1#post7492464"]2012/13[/url]         Second Division B3    4th               Promoted - Playoffs 
[url="http://community.sigames.com/showthread.php/279094-FM12-Big-Euro-Nation-Small-Club-to-Big-Club-Challenge?p=7503582&viewfull=1#post7503582"]2013/14[/url]         LIGA adelante         1st               Promoted - Champions

[PRDH]

Great season Swinburn. Where do you think you can finish in La Liga?

As for me, well it's been a fairly poor start to the season. There's plenty of time to turn it around, but I'm not looking good at the moment.

[Swinburn]

Great season Swinburn. Where do you think you can finish in La Liga?

As for me, well it's been a fairly poor start to the season. There's plenty of time to turn it around, but I'm not looking good at the moment.

Anything above relegation is fine by me. I reckon about 16th/17th.

[Babaginoosh]

Thank you for the welcomes!!

Welcome aboard Babaginoosh. That's a really odd club logo! Is it two skunks fighting over a flaming ball?

I have been searching for information on the team but cant seem to find any. If i had to guess, they look like mink but they dont have a white front :confused:

[Lower Leagues Rule]

\I have been searching for information on the team but cant seem to find any. If i had to guess, they look like mink but they dont have a white front :confused:

Welcome aboard Babaginoosh and good luck in Russia...

Info to possibly help you: THeir website (History Page translated to English) - Nice to see a club that used to be at the top level heading back that way.

[Swinburn]

Castellon dream is on hold right now. I got crash dumped. Big style. Game won't go past the 30th June, no matter what I do. I've had to upload the save and see if it's fixable

[rlipscombe]

seriously unlucky Swinburn... really hope it can be fixed for you...

[Swinburn]

seriously unlucky Swinburn... really hope it can be fixed for you...

I've heard nothing yet, but it's only been a few hours. For now, I'm just going to restart and hope that something can be done and go back to it if I can.

[toonbalmy87]

Welcome aboard Babaginoosh. That's a really odd club logo! Is it two skunks fighting over a flaming ball?

they could of farted on it

[toonbalmy87]

i am in December on my club and i am ok with the big clubs but god id wish the mid table club would forkoff

[Gilbster]

I'm putting my Gundo attempt on hold for the moment and gonna give this a go, mainly because I need to figure out whether I've lost interest in my gundo save, or whether I have just had enough of football manager for the year.

edit: I was thinking about France, but the whole CFA not being playable but in the game just bugs me far too much, so I am now holidaying in Turkey. Given I tend to stick to Western Europe when managing FMs, this could be a radically different step for me, and there are more squad restrictions than I am generally comfortable with but I need to try something different.

If anyone has any tip for Turkey please let me know, probably wont pick the club til the morning.

[Gilbster]

Introducing the new manager of Afyonkarahisarspor in Turkey.

Club Info | Facilities | Club Overview

I am really excited to be managing in Turkey for probably my first time ever, and picked Afyon (no way am I using the ful name of a club I cant pronounce or spell!) mainly due to them playing in purple, and purple is my favourite colour. We are currently in Group A of the Turkish Second Division and have a trophy cabinet to be filled.

Afyonkarahisar is a city in western Turkey, the capital of Afyon Province. Afyon is in mountainous countryside inland from the Aegean coast, 250 km (155 mi) south-west of Ankara along the Akarçay River. The name Afyon Kara Hisar (lirerally opium black castle in Turkish), since opium was widely grown here and there is a castle on a black rock. Also known simply as Afyon.

We are a club that is moving into a 15,000 capacity stadium in January, and has average youth recruitment and minimal youth facilities which I am excited by as I am hoping it means once we start improving our finances we can improve and perhaps develop our own youth, something I havent managed at all in this version of FM yet.

With a media prediction of 17th out of 18, all we can realistically hope for is survival this season. I will hopefully be able to bring in some quality free transfers and hope we can stay up.

It looks as though my first signings will be back up Defence, a second good striker and just some more general depth to the squad, as well as some staff, as apart from a Assistant and a goalkeeping coach we have none.

[vikeologist]

Vikeologist’s 2022/2023 End of Season Report

[left]Season             League            Pos           Cups                      Europe     Achievements
2012/13            Sc Div 3          1st           No comment                n/a        Manager of the Year
2013/14            Sc Div 2          1st           Challenge Cup Finalists   n/a        Manager of the Year
2014/15            Sc Div 1          3rd           CC Winners & SC Final     qual       None
2015/16            Sc Div 1          2nd           CC & SC Winners, LC R/U   EC 3Q      Manager of the Year
2016/17            Sc Div 1          1st           Challenge Cup Winners     EC 4Q      Manager of the Year
2017/18            Sc Prem           5th           LC Final                  qual       None
2018/19            Sc Prem           7th           LC Winners                EC R2      Manager of the Year 
2019/20            Sc Prem           1st           SC Winners, LC R/U        n/a        Manager of the Year
2020/21            Sc Prem           1st           SC & LC Winners           EC Winners Manager of the Year
2021/22            Sc Prem           1st           SC Winners                cc Q/F     Manager of the Year
2022/23            Sc Prem           1st           LC R/U                    CC R1      Manager of the Year 
[/left]

Squad

Transfers

League – Was winning it by a mile (13 points), and giving some of the reserves a 1^st team run out in my customary complacent way until Celtic went on a great streak near the end and pulled within 5 points. We beat them in a title decider with 4 games to go, but then lost our next match. Upshot was that we didn’t secure the title until the penultimate game of the season, but it was never seriously in doubt.

Domestic Cups – Our reserves lost in the final of the league Cup, and the 1^st team managed to lose the semi-final against Hearts.

Champions League – We were in a tough group with Sporting Lisbon, Liverpool and some whipping boy who I’ve forgotten about, but we won the group quite easily with 5 wins out of 6. The in the first knock out round we were drawn against Barcelona who schooled us at the Nou Camp 3-0. (It would have been 4-0 if they hadn’t had an entirely legitimate goal ruled out, and the referee would have stopped the contest early if it was a boxing match). We needed a miracle back at the East Stirlingshire stadium, but the only miracle that transpired was some of the spectators managing to stay awake for the 0-0 snooze fest.

And that was it. We’re dominant in Scotland, but show no sign of being able to win the Champions League. This was only our third season in the competition but it looks as though we’re going backwards. I’ve spent a lot of money on transfers and paying the wages necessary to keep my best players, and we should take another small step towards peaking this season, but the board have reduced my wage budget (because we had a transfers deficit last season) so there’s little to no money to bring in new players. Nobody else seems to want to offer outrageous sums for my valuable and / or overpaid players, so I’m pretty much going to stick with my squad from last year for one more season and see if the 22/23 season was an aberration.

[rlipscombe]

welcome to the challenge Gilbster. good to have you here. good luck in Turkey.

[Swinburn]

Back in business! Turns out having 320 players on subscriptions isn't a good idea. Castellón are back!

[PRDH]

Back in business! Turns out having 320 players on subscriptions isn't a good idea. Castellón are back!

Great news!

[rlipscombe]

great news swinburn...

[roganp]

Italy - S.S.D. Teramo Calcio

Club Overview | Club Info | Facilities | The Manager

After taking a quick look at the squad, there was one player that stood out. 16 year old attacking midfielder, Tony Collela who is already rated as the clubs best player. I've already slapped on a £10M asking price on him to deter any bids and I will be offering him a new contract very soon.

In terms of the game setup, on top of the Italian leagues loaded on a large database, I also loaded players from top clubs in every continent and also all players based in Italy.

Stadium : Comunale

Capacity : 13,000(Although various sites say that it is 7,498)

[Babaginoosh]

Team Overview | Team Information | Squad

Manager Personal Page | Manager Profile

Winter break update:

Finance | Squad

First of all, I had no idea how brutal the league is with these 2-a-week games. It has taken a serious toll on my team with injuries, exhaustion, and morale. Thankfully the team was able to pull through and end up 6 points ahead of the 16^th place team which avoids relegation.

My goal all season, due to lack of funds and starting with a drastically inferior team compared to the rest of the league, is to stay up and chip off bad contracts. Unfortunately, the only way to do this is to bust my wage budget to make sure I stay up because of how bad the team is and how low my budget is compared to most of the teams.

I made 3 major signings which busted my budget, but has been worth it, so I snatched up a good GK, a boss of a CB, and a workhorse as my DM. I made a decision early to build from the back and surrender offense until the next year and so far it has worked. Im certain that I will be moving up even more now that the schedule has thinned out and hopefully ill finish mid table.

Notable signings:

GK - Aleksandrs Vlasovs - As solid as can between the pipes, Aleks has been a godsend. I purchased him on transfer for $14k and turned out to be a good signing, conceding 33 goals in 20 games.

CB - Mikhail Simonyan - Armenian brick wall who helped tremendously with his solid play. Unfortunately he is paired up a dreadful cover defender and isn’t playing to his full potential. Its an issue I will be addressing next season.

DM - Alexandr Onica - Alexandr had been my most productive player helping to solidify the lack of speed on defense and transitioning the team to counter attack whenever possible. My best signing by far and the main reason why we are doing so well due to his solid play and his fitness to play almost every game in that first half of the season before the break.

More info coming at the end of my season.

Objectives for 1st season:

1. Drop dead weight

2. Restructure coaching staff

3. Gain trust of Board to invest funds

4. Hopefully avoid relegation

[Liverbird93]

Just had my youth products through for this season. Along with the usual rubbish I got this guy potential to be SPL quality apparently

[Gypsum]

Just a quick update from me this time, as the forum keeps screwing up my posts.

Gypsum's Annan athletic - End of season update

Scottish third division - 2032/33 (Season 2)

Gypsum Fantastic: Manager profile / Information

League position: 1st / Position chart

Media prediction: 2nd

Transfers

Finances

Squad

Star players:

Simon Christie - AMR

Alan Moyes - DC

Andrew Byrne - ST

Year            Division                 Position                 Other achivements
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2031/32         Third division           2nd                      Playoff finalists
2032/33         Third division           1st                      Scottish cup 5th round

[Gypsum]

Just signed a new scout and he recommends this guy, Pat McDermott, straight away. Should be a bit useful at 2nd division level.

[rlipscombe]

roganp - welcome to the challenge and good luck with Teramo. looks a nice little stadium to see Serie A football in...

gypsum - well done on winning the title and promotion. McDermott looks like he should be very useful at that level and above. good pace and finishing ability always a bonus.

Liverbird93 - looks a good prospect does McKay. good luck nurturing him.

[rlipscombe]

SV Waldhof Mannheim – German Bundesliga – Season 2017/18

Season Review

League Finish: 12^th Graph Club Overview Club Information

The League

So, after all of the stressing with regards to surviving in the Bundesliga with the same players that had got us promoted, we managed it quite easily, finishing a creditable 12^th. So why aren’t I happier about it, after all all I wanted was survival…? If you look at the grapy it shows that towards the end of the season we tailed off and fell from 8^th to 12^th. What it also doesn’t show is that when we were 8^th we were in touching distance of Europe, only to fall away. I guess I am not too disheartened considering but it makes me wonder where we could have come had we had more money to spend. We had notable results during the season, the highlight of which was probably beating Dortmund at home something I would only have dreamed about 12 months previously. I guess we’ll see what the summer brings in terms of finances.

German Cup

A comfortable away win against Bamberg and then at home to Aachen saw us play Duisburg in the 3rd round. A weakened team misfired and we went out in the 3rd round again. need to make more of an impact in the competition next season.

The Players

Here’s a look at the players who handled the step up to the Bundesliga better than I could have hoped for:

Transfers

Squad 1 Squad 2

Goalkeepers

30. Niclas Heimann - I was a little concerned as to how Niclas would handle the step up but he did pretty well all things considered. Still his future may be uncertain depending on what I can do in the transfer market…

Full Backs

22. Andreas Schroder - Andreas became club captain and handled the step up with real aplomb. Real star of this team and deserves to play at this level.

2. Segun Agba - Segun just couldn’t make the RB spot his, but did ok again when called upon. Will leave the club this summer though.

33. Sahin Yamac - Sahin was once more first choice LB but he didn’t excel in the Bundesliga. Rafael has the chance to put pressure on him next season.

3. Rafael - Rafael was back-up once again though did get game time. I think Rafael is our long-term LB.

Centre Backs

6. Osmar - Osmar was a first team regular again and did ok but I have to be honest and say I maybe expected a little more from him. Will be a make or break season maybe next season for him.

15. Andrejus Birskys - Andrejus put Osmar in the shade this season and was our best CB. Highly courted now, I feel I may be fighting off the bids this summer for him.

55. Alexandr Kuznetsov - the young Belorussian came of age a bit this season and proved that I have a potential star on my hands. Will push hard next season to make the first team and I wouldn’t rule it out.

36. Vitaly Korolkov - Vitaly didn’t feature this season but he has his future still ahead of him, and it may well be at Mannheim..

Midfielders

4. Zafer Balikci - Zafer joined as one of only two signings and boy what a debut season. Justified fully my faith in him, he was an assist machine for us. Heavily courted again, keeping him this summer is a must.

7. Nicolas Ruiz - Nicolas was once more our first choice RM but I have to say he was another not to perform quite as well as I thought he might. Another for whom next season may be a big one in his future.

8. Nikolay Kolyadko - Nikolay failed to establish himself in the first team this season and is now a squad player.

11. Eoin Doherty - Eoin got plenty of game time this season and di ok when he played. Not as explosive as Nkusu Landu but a more reliable player.

14. Migen Toma - A breakthrough season for Toma, who took the step up in division in his stride and established himself alongside Balikci. Surprise package of the season.

18. Marino Kresic - Marino was once more a reserve and may well leave this summer as I juggle the squad.

21. Vladimir Sokolov - Vladimir became unhappy this season and I decided to relegate him to the shadows. Will hopefully leave this summer, if I can find a taker.

23. Mark Mainwaring - Mark was a squad player this season and is another whose future is in doubt.

24. Craig Hopkins - Craig was the main victim from the arrival of Balikci and found himself in and out of the team. Still a player of quality I want to keep.

72. Jaud Nkusu Landu - Jaud was somewhat back in favour this season and put in some good performances. Unfortunately he had some shockers too and so was in and out of the team.

78. Paulo Lemos - Paulo played his first few matches this season and did ok. Decent potential, he may feature more next season.

Strikers

10. Vladislav Scherbakov - Vladislav handled the step up pretty well and showed encouraging signs for the future. I am hopeful next season could see him hit the big time in Germany.

25. Yassine Hamdaoui - Yassine was the main support for Scherbakov and did ok, though he could have scored more goals. I feel this division may be a step too far though.

29. Edvin Topic - Edvin was another to get plenty of game time but too struggled a little for goals. Still has time to grow into the division however.

99. Gurami Enukidze - Gurami was very much a back up player, though he did a decent job when required. We will see what this summer brings for him.

17. Ciaran Bradley - Ciaran featured a couple of times but I think he may have reached a level where he will never be a Bundesliga player, which is a shame.

Finances

Finances improved greatly this summer thanks to prize money and also out tight arsed chairman. Hopefully he may let me spend a little of it next season, although I don’t hold my breath. Wheeler dealing may be required.

The Future

Having secured our position as a Bundesliga club, it is time to kick on a bit now and try and improve on our 12^th place finish. My target next season is a top-10 finish. Time will tell if I can manage it though I remain optimistic given our form this season.

Career History

Season      League        Pos.    German Cup  Europe     Achievements
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
2012/13   3rd Division    12th     N/A         N/A      
2013/14   3rd Division    2nd      N/A         N/A        Promotion
2014/15   2nd Division    3rd    1st Round     N/A        Lost in Play-offs
2015/16   2nd Division    3rd    3rd Round     N/A        Lost in Play-offs again
2016/17   2nd Division    2nd    3rd Round     N/A        Promotion
2017/18   Bundesliga      12th   3rd Round      N/A

[Lower Leagues Rule]

Des Tiny's AD Parla

Pre-Season 2017/18

Liga Adelante

September 10th Update

The Transfers

In Brief

In: 5 Players (€0)

Out: 10 Players (€168k)

Loans: 3 Players (€3k)

Wages Total: €29,679 (p/w)

Wage Budget: €31,799 (p/w)

Remaining Transfers: €538k

This offseason I have not made many signings at all, and also left my transfer budget there for now, it means there may be some changes coming in January depending on how the team goes early on.

New Signings

First Team

Ricardo (DL,Free) - He came in from Real Madrid's youth side, but he will step straight on the park for us and becomes our first signing from the big boys. I am hoping he can cement a spot as left back has been a bit weak for us in the history.

Simone Ravasi (GK,Free) - Brought in from Atalanta as a replacement for Cappellari, my squad was in need of a new spark at the back and I am hoping that Ravasi is the man to do that for us.

Denis Shelekov (ML,Free) - Adding a second Russian to my squad as further cover for the midfield, last season Delgado had to cover Cris down the left as there was no replacement left mid, this year Shelekov will provide that cover.

Tobias Wagner (DL,Free) - I ended up finding another solid left back in Wagner late in the window and he has joined the squad at the expense of Rebocho & Ivanic, looks like overall to be cover for Ricardo

Youth

Bartosz Gul (MC,Free) - The young Pole has been brought in as cover for my young centre midfield pairing, I am hoping to train him up into the third midfield superstar for Parla, but will watch his development first and see how he builds.

Overall I am pretty happy with the signings, I filled the obvious holes in defense and down the left side of the park. Added some further young depth to the squad as well and gave myself a better looking squad overall. Now just on the lookout for a young (16-17) striker with some potential.

Transfers Out

First Team

Roberto Cappellari --> Lecce €40k

Bruno Guillou --> SC Ashdod €100k

Federico Gigli --> Mostoles €28k

Matias Lopez --> Gernika Free

The Friendlies

Results

A series of large victories was finished with what I can only call an disaster, a 5-1 loss in a game we should've won with ease, and the form then carried over into the league as well.

Liga Adelante

27.08 vs Castilla 2:3

Briand (10,72)

Briand and Pogam exchanged goals through the game, but then an 82nd minute strike for Castilla saw it end for us, we had scored a pair of goals on opening night, but the end result was a loss not what we needed.

30.08 at Guadalajara 1:2

Paulinho (Pen 74)

This game was a weird one, the first half was all ours, but we couldn't put the ball in the back of the net. In the second half we started well, but once they got the goal against the run of play my boys seemed to give up and we managed to get a lucky penalty before they finished us off.

03.09 vs Valladolid 4:0

Herlein (25), Cris (36), Delgado (63), OG (88)

What a turnaround, my boys showed that they can score when they want too, and with three players getting on the score sheet with much needed goals I thought that it was a sign of things to come.

10.09 at Villareal "B" 0:3

The first half should've ended at nil all, but for a very late goal to Villareal, even me firing up a bit in the locker room at halftime didn't change the result, and then they managed to add a second, we pushed forward and forced a red card, but this just led to them scoring again and the game was over.

I was gutted by the start to the season, it sees us sitting in 20th overall so far. The squad needs to seriously look at itself and I am hoping a turn in form can see us climb back up the table through the season.

The Team

So without Further ado, here is the team I expect to lead Parla in the Liga Adelante this season:

GK: Ravasi

DR: Varela, DC: Perego & Ozlu, DL: Ricardo

MR: Lopez, MC: Delgado & Tretjakov, ML: Cris

ST: Herlein, Briand

Well the changes at the back saw Ravasi & Ricardo coming in from outside, while Perego has stepped up to replace Lopez because he failed to get Spanish citizenship in time for the deadline, he will be hoping to make it into the side again come January, he wasn't happy to miss the squad, but if it goes to plan I then have 4 top class central defenders. In the midfield Cris replaces the departed Taygun while a move to a flat 4-4-2 sees Tretjakov move in alongside Delgado and we will look to use these two youngsters to feed Herlein & Briand upfront.

Season tickets have climbed slightly to 2941 this season, but I am hoping to regularly fill the 6000 seat stadium, and then get another expansion by the end of the season. Our odds have shortened to 1000-1 this season, but I have decided there must be some sort of issue with the reputation because of the current playable clubs I am 5th to bottom on the rep list even after finishing 7th (27th best in Spain) last season. Ozgur Bayraktar did make it to the U20s World Cup with Turkey as he attempted to get himself a World Cup medal.

[Lower Leagues Rule]

Lower Leagues Rule's Motivating Update

Swinburn: Hard Luck, hopefully they can fix the game for you and you can get back to Castellon, incredible to see your progress. Excellent to see you back, can't wait to hear the rest of the tour in Spain.

Gilbster: Welcome back and good luck with The Afys, I had a go with them last season, but I got frustrated with the huge number of restrictions on my signings. Though turns out this is the case is in Spain as well. Best of Luck.

Vikeologist: Good to see some progress in Scotland, four league titles in a row is a good solid base, but disappointing to see the draw in the first round of the Champions League come up against Barca, what a tough match. Better luck in the next season.

RoganP: Welcome to the Big Euro Challenge, nice looking little club you have there, good luck in gaining some ground with Teramo.

Babaginoos: A reasonable start in the first season, I think the aim of absolutely everyone is to make sure they avoid the drop first season, achieve that and you set yourself in good stead to get ahead.

Liverbird: What is it going to cost to buy McKay off you? A damned good looking youth striker there, hopefully he can develop into a superstar for Elgin City and the big teams don't come knocking too early on.

Gypsum: A great second season there and good to see promotion, now its just a matter of climbing the ladder step by step, good luck with your boys making the step up.

Rlipscombe: That was a very impressive first season at the top level, delighted to see how successful your team was, now the question has to be whether you can take that form into a new season and get towards the European slots.

To everyone else, good luck in your seasons, I hope you get all the players you are hunting, you gain promotion, win your league or avoid relegation.

[Gypsum]

My team just had three penalties in a game, and we missed two of them! We still won though, so i'm not too angry.

Also, one of my players has just got a full international cap for Greece!

[rlipscombe]

Rlipscombe: That was a very impressive first season at the top level, delighted to see how successful your team was, now the question has to be whether you can take that form into a new season and get towards the European slots.

Cheers mate. i have to say that given how i was unable to strengthen the team i have to be pleased with our finish. Made it through pre-season and am fairly happy with my squad going into this season. time will tell what happens.

[Gilbster]

Afyon 2012/13 Turkish Second Division

Table | Transfers | Squad

What a tough first season. I atttempted to strengthen where possible but ultimately all I wanted was to be in the division for next season. And thanks to a last day of the season win, we secured our safety.

We had a run to the 4th round of the Turkish cup, where we lost to a Premier Division team, but I'm happy with making it past any rounds, when I was told to enjoy the competition.

I have enhanced my staff so that I am able to scout around the place but not sure how much use scouting a variety of countries is, when I can only sign Turkish players or those that count as turkish in this division.

We have already got a few new players coming in on bosmans for the new season, and I'm hoping I can keep control over the wages and just make do with what I have when I hit the budget instead of going over and over like I always do!

Aims:

Survive!

Strenghen

Steal more wins!

[Gypsum]

Congrats on the dramatic survival Glibster!

[neushoorn70]

Season review 2022/2023

League Table | Position Graph | Fixtures 1 | Fixtures 2

The season didn't start well for us with 2 1-0 losses against Schalke and Werder Bremen, so it looked we were in for another frustrating season. Things however picked up with 3 good wins in row, even though we lost three of our next 5 games, we then went on a 6 game winning streak, which led us to the european places, we didn't end well with a 1-2 loss against Leverkusen.

The second half of the season was a lot more inconsistent, with wins followed by losses or draws. We won 2 games against Schalke and Werder Bremen, but then lost 2 against Stuttgart and Wolfsburg, this was again followed by two wins. But after the lost game at 1860 München, form picked up as we then went 6 games unbeaten with just 2 draws. We lost our last game of the season at home to Mainz, we were still very much in the race for european football next sesaon and could even get champions league for the first time ever. We easily beat Nürnberg 3-0 in the first game, after that came the very difficult away game away Bayern München. We won the game with a lot luck and so all came down to the last game of the season. I was competing with Dortmund for the last CL spot. We played Leverkusen at home and the played HSV at home. They won in the last minute, and we were just the better team and also won, so their game didn't matter as we grabbed the CL spot, and will enter at the best-placed playoff.

DFB-pokal - We had more trouble with both Bochum and Wehen than we should have, and our awful cup form continued as we dissapointingly went out in the third round after a loss against Leverkusen.

Squad 1 | Squad 2 - We have a strong squad that can only get better over the coming years, especially with some smart investments.

Transfers - We bought some good players for the depth of the squad and it worked out well.

Top players:

5: Stefan Kalpakov - Again had a very good season for us, not as much goals as last season, but still did great.

4: Servet Taylan - Bought last season as a back-up for Caron, but performed very well and got himself a spot in the first team.

3: Jacob Gibbons - Has been at the club for 8 seasons now, and the faithful servant and a great player for us every season.

2: Nicolas Levis - Not as much goals as last season, but as he's only 21 and already has been called up a few teams for the national team.

1: Kola Opara - The young nigerian striker had a great season for us, missed some games due to the african nations, and still got in third on the top scorers list.

[DodgeeD]

FINALLY finished with my MA assignments and now have two weeks off work

Time to get this challenge back on track! I am actually 2 seasons behind report wise but, when taking a break from writing 6,500 words, felt like playing rather thean typing up reports. Expect an update or two tomorrow from Keçiörengücü - there has been progress

[ghostwriter]

Time for a return to this challenge. I never played FM11 but I will give it a whirl with this year's game. Decided on France as I have not played there for years and years.

I had a shortlist of several potential clubs and one came up quite quickly (although the CFA leagues in FM don't seem to be up-to-date for this season). So, please say hello to Jacques Christophe who is now the manager of the other club in France's 2nd city: Lyon-Duchère Association Sportive. First long-term aim is to become the best club within 10km, second is obviously to complete the challenge, something I have yet to be anywhere near doing in my previous attempts.

Here the squad that I have inherited. And yes, that is THE Laurent Robert. Not really too sure what he is doing here as I thought he had retired but he was signed up last Summer. In any case, as he is one of the worst 1st team players and his contract is up next month, I doubt he will stay very long...

They play in the Stade de Balmont which currently looks like this.

[toonbalmy87]

Россия и Европа завоеванном теперь большие пушки

Finances £-3Million

Value £150 Million (£15Million Loan)

Squad

Squad1

Transfers

Transfers

Media Prediction 8th

Finished 1st

Championnnnnss!!!!!! Well we started of really well and then we got into a bit of trouble around November and December but after Christmas was out of the way the guys rallied around and kept winning and CSKA felt the pressure and faltered and my boys turned the screw and pulled away in the league and had it won with to games to spare.

Fixtures

Fixtures

Fixtures

Player Stats

Team Stats

Cup Run got knocked out on penaltys even though i was winning 2-0 in ET but Benzema is made of glass and gets injured and i was down to 10 men and under pressure

Cup Run Europa League Champions played well beating 2 Russian teams on our way to become champions to put an even bigger stamp of our authority in the RPL

Final Match Formation

Match Stats

Player Stats

Key players

Luis - Bought him the summer after having a scouting trip at the French invitational cup thought he was going to be a squad player but went straight into the 1st team and never looked back

Sidibie - had an awesome season again scoring more goal than anybody in the Division amd so far he has gone under the radar of the so called big clubs

TheOx - got him on loan because i needed a RW and ii found one and now i signed him on a Free Transfers

Lavallen - This guy is my Anchor man of my Midfield he is a Beast

Pjanic - The Attacking menace of my midfield got him

Ushakov - My hown grown youngster still only 18 and he is one of my best Midfielders Bio

One to Watch

Insua - this guy will be a Star

Next Season Expectations Retain League Title win Euro Super Cup and Win Champions League

[rlipscombe]

toonbalmy87 - congrats on winning the league and the Europa League! got yourself some real quality players too. good luck in the CL next season.

ghostwriter - welcome and good luck with your game.

DodgeeD - looking forward to seeing your progress - sounds encouraging!!

[PRDH]

toonbalmy87 - That guy is already a star! Excellent season too.

ghostwriter - Bienvenue et bonne chance! I don't think I've ever seen a player valued as low as £85. That's harsh.

[toonbalmy87]

toonbalmy87 - That guy is already a star! Excellent season too.

um hes not a star at the moment only 2n1/2 or 3 stars and my main RW is 4 stars