forameuss Posted March 6, 2013 Author Share Posted March 6, 2013 forameuss' career - C.A. Penarol - Uruguayan Primera Division - 2060/61 - Clausura So what could we do after our apertura heroics? Oh dear. There's quite a break between the two parts of the season, but not that much of a break to cause such a collapse. And when I said we didn't really need the Clausura, I didn't mean they should react like this. We didn't just lose to Liverpool, like we would expect to, we also lost to lower teams. A terrible run of fifteen games, and we'll be glad to get to the play-offs and end the season. We'll play our nemesis Liverpool in the play-off, as they won the Clausura, and it seems that if we win this, we still need to win another game against the overall leaders in the league table. Or something. But anyway, it's Liverpool first. And that's that! The first leg was a bit hairy, and with that away goal I was pretty worried that Liverpool would have us in the away leg. Luckily we went to their ground and came home with a fantastic 1-0 win to take the overall title. So with that, we move into the Champions Playoff against Defensor Sporting. A two-legged tie against a team we really struggle to beat at times, for another trophy. Whether it's actually another trophy I don't know. I have yet to understand Uruguay. We did it. It wasn't easy, as we made it hard again with a 1-1 first leg draw. However, that was the away leg, and that 92nd minute strike from Gimenez turned out to be absolutely crucial. We strolled to a 2-0 victory in the second leg, and the trophy was ours. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dexter_Morgan Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 Clausura was shocking after a brilliant Apertura, but at least you managed to get the title Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 7, 2013 Author Share Posted March 7, 2013 Clausura was shocking after a brilliant Apertura, but at least you managed to get the title Yeah, quite pleased at that, but no idea why the Clausura was so bad. I have to admit, I quite like Uruguay as a structure - not too many games and pretty much four trophies to play for throughout the year - even if I haven't quite got attached to Penarol as a team yet. I intended to resign if I won the Champions Playoff, but I'll stick around for a while I think - see if I can make them truly dominant. I'd also like to make some kind of impact in the Sudamericana (unlikely) and the Libertadores (very unlikely). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 They weren't too impressed were they? Having been in Uruguay for a short while on FM 12, I don't think the individual stages count as trophy wins as they do in other countries. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 7, 2013 Author Share Posted March 7, 2013 They weren't too impressed were they? Having been in Uruguay for a short while on FM 12, I don't think the individual stages count as trophy wins as they do in other countries. Yeah, looking at the Hall of Fame, no points were added for winning that, although I think you do get a trophy in real life. Not sure though. EDIT: Seems like you do. You do in Argentina anyway, so I doubt it's much different for Uruguay, and there are articles on Yahoo (no longer accessible) that seem to point to you getting a trophy. But like you say, it doesn't count in FM, so the point is moot. Strangely though, FM counts the two play-off wins as separate trophies, and both count as domestic divisions. That's done my hall of fame total a great deal of good! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 7, 2013 Author Share Posted March 7, 2013 Another look at the history up to now. I intend to add an around the world look. Honestly. I mean it this time. |---------| | CAREER | |---------| |----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|----------| | Season | Team | League | Country | Pos. | Notes | Trophies | |----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|----------| | 2056 | Real Salt Lake | MLS | USA | 8th | W. Play-off Semis, US Open Cup Winners | 1 | | 2057 | Real Salt Lake | MLS | USA | 6th | W. Play-off Final, US Open Cup Winners, | | | | | | | | NACL Group Stage | 1 | | 2058 | Real Salt Lake | MLS | USA | 17th | | | | 2059* | Real Salt Lake | MLS | USA | - | NACL Quarter Finals, Resigned | | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2058/59+*| Treviso | Serie B | Italy | 20th | Relegated from Serie B, resigned | | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2059/60* | Juventud de las Piedras | Apertura | Uruguay | 13th | resigned | | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2059/60+ | C.A. Penarol | Apertura | Uruguay | 10th | | | | 2059/60 | C.A. Penarol | Clausura | Uruguay | 2nd | 4th overall | | | 2060/61 | C.A. Penarol | Apertura | Uruguay | 1st | Apertura Champions | 1 | | 2060/61 | C.A. Penarol | Clausura | Uruguay | 9th | Division Playoff winners | 1 | | | | | | | Champions Playoff winners | 1 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Total Trophies | 5 | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| * Left the club during the season + Arrived at the club during the season Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK22 Posted March 8, 2013 Share Posted March 8, 2013 Quite a mixed bag since I last dropped in here! Great job winning the Copa Libertadores with a team outside of Brazil/Argentina Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 9, 2013 Author Share Posted March 9, 2013 Quite a mixed bag since I last dropped in here! Great job winning the Copa Libertadores with a team outside of Brazil/Argentina It certainly would've been if I had won it! It's just the league titles in Uruguay I've managed to win I'm afraid. The continental competitions have eluded me. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 9, 2013 Author Share Posted March 9, 2013 forameuss' career - C.A. Penarol - Uruguayan Primera Division - 2061/62 Summer Team Report We're strong, that's for sure. Probably the best squad of all the Uruguayan teams, and it's easy to see why. Alexis Trigo is far and away our best player, and had almost double the number of assists as the closest rival in the league last season. A fantastic player, but one we may lose as his contract runs down next summer. Elsewhere, I'd probably say we're weakest in defence. Miguel Silveira is a rock at the heart of the defence, but we could be stronger elsewhere along the back-line. The right flank is also a bit of a problem. I've been flitting between having a right midfielder in a balanced 4-4-2 and an inside forward playing ahead of the other three midfielders, but I always prefer the balance. Summer Transfers It's a mixed bag, but I've mostly provided some backup at full back, with four signings spread across those two positions. I also brought in a young central midfielder who'll hopefully have a bright future at the club. Apertura Results We absolutely blitzed the competition, although we alsmost threw it away thanks to our defeat to Defensor Sporting and a number of draws. Danubio almost spoiled the party, as if we had lost, we would have been denied the trophy, but luckily we got a goal back and finished top. Defensor ended up level on points with us, and that was very lucky for us given the epic battle we had early in the season. They raced into a 3-0 lead, and suddenly there were visions of us losing our Apertura title. We somehow battled back to 3-3, but then lost a late goal to lose all three points. Luckily, that one didn't matter too much as Defensor lost elsewhere. We were Apertura Champions again. Copa Sudamericana Results We crashed out at the second round, making it one further than last year, and just as far as the board wanted us to go. I'm very disappointed though, as we absolutely collapsed in the second leg against Junior. Taking a 3-1 lead into that game should have been enough to send us into the 3rd round, but unfortunately it wasn't. We're absolutely miles away from any kind of win in this tournament. Winter Transfers In the Winter our parent club Bahia did their yearly round-up of their reserve squad and sent anyone they didn't like the look of off to our club. We've profited fairly well in the past, but who would we get this time? Well that's just lovely. Both players will slot straight into our team, but I have to say it is Salas that I'm most excited by. I love a pacy striker, and I'm sure he'll love it at this team in this league, where he'll get plenty of chances. I also added two free transfers to add some further depth to the team. Job Offer For some reason, AFC Wimbledon saw me as the man to lead them to future glory. Unfortunately, they were dead wrong. Certainly not the kind of job I want. Copa Libertadores Results Once again we crashed out of the Libertadores, although we at least put up a fight this time. We got our two "easiest" games out of the way first, getting full points, but I knew River would pose a problem. And so it proved. We played better in the away game, unlucky to get beat 3-1, but we were poor in the second game back at home. I wasn't too worried about that though, as I was confident we could beat both Pumas and Deportivo Petare. Unfortunately, Pumas didn't get that memo and absolutely tore us to shreds. "No problem" I thought - we're facing Deportivo and they've got River in the final game. We'll win and draw ahead of them on goal difference. Of course, best laid plans and all that...Pumas smashed River, and we relied on a second half comeback from 2-0 down to beat Deportivo. We were out, and deservedly so. I just don't think we're cut out for this competition Clausura Results So on we moved to the Clausura where we embarassed ourselves last year. I want this trophy, and as far as I can tell, if we do win it then we will face no play-offs, as we will be the undisputed champions of the country, topping all three of the apertura, clausura and overall league tables. That would be a fantastic achievement, and one I'm desperate for. It was oh so close all through the season as we contrived to drop points where we really shouldn't. It started so well, beating Nacional 1-0 on opening day. As the season went on, it was clear that they would be our main rivals, and when Wanderers beat us, they moved into pole position on goal difference. They then moved clear at the top when we dropped two points at Racing. From then on, we knew what we had to do. We had to win pretty much every single game until the end of the season and hope that Nacional couldn't match us. We almost did that, but eventually slipped up against Liverpool. Luckily for us, before that Nacional had had a nightmare two games, dropping five points with a loss and a draw to hand us the initiative. We took it with a 5-0 win against Fenix meaning that if we at least matched the Nacional result, we would be Champions. Luckily for us, Nacional crumbled in their game, losing 2-0, making our horrible 4-1 defeat at Danubio irrelevent. Undisputed Champions. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 9, 2013 Author Share Posted March 9, 2013 forameuss' career - C.A. Penarol - Uruguayan Primera Division - 2061/62 Confirmation there of our domination this season. We really were briliant, and completely deserve to have a long break with no play-offs. It's a good way to work it - would it be justice if one of the other sides beat us in the play-off and were crowned Champions after such a dominant season? But it has been so dominant that I have a decision to make. I'm now in the favoured personnel, and I've built Alexis Trigo into a club icon. We would have to drop form massively not to win at least one of the stages and have a chance of the title win in the play-off, but we're still miles away from competing in the Libertadores. That's a challenge that I'm not really up for I'm afraid. Onto pastures new. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 9, 2013 Author Share Posted March 9, 2013 forameuss' career - Summer 2062 Now a look at the Hall of Fame currently after my time at Penarol Of course I'm not bothering the top 10 yet, but I've improved my total a little thanks to three league titles. A long way to go before we even place on the World hall of fame. One thing to note though, I'm around 250 points away from reaching the top 10 in the Scottish Hall of Fame, and just one single point away from reaching the top 10 on the Uruguayan list. Maybe I'll return there sometime to move top... One other note about a manager on the hall of fame, and I was passed a news item saying that an old friend of mine was retiring. Lionel Roger was one of my best players when Stephen Smith was managing LA Galaxy, and after I left he moved to Lyon for the remainder of his career. He then moved from the pitch to the dugout, managing them to fantastic success, and himself to 4th position in the Hall of Fame. Fantastic to see, but at 63 he's deciding to call it a day. I've praised him, but unfortunately I doubt he'll make the connection between Stephen Smith, the man who remains on his favoured personnel list, and this young upstart... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 10, 2013 Author Share Posted March 10, 2013 forameuss' career - Summer 2062 - Beerschot AC - Jupiler Pro League I wasn't out of a job for long as I moved into Belgium, and Antwerp to be specific. Beerschot AC are a top flight team in the lovely little country of Belgium, and I've planned on getting a job here. There's a decent enough budget on offer too, although not much wiggle room in wages. Team Report on Arrival A pretty good squad I have to say. I'd probably say that at the back we are weakest, and to a lesser extent between the sticks. One thing you won't see on this page though is just how massive our squad is. As you'll see from the next screen, there is a very good reason to reduce this. Finances The money is plummeting, and we're scheduled to lose around 4 million if things stay as they are. We just have far too many players, with some absolutely awful ones earning a ridiculous wage just for being awful. I'll need to do something about that this summer. Transfers First things first, we need to see about getting some quality in to make this team my own. To be honest though, there weren't enough players leaving in my opinion. We haven't cut down the squad enough, but I was worried about completely decimating team confidence by letting people go willy nilly. A big decision was to let Kenneth Bruvang go - one of our best defenders, but three million pounds will go a long way to the financial security of this club. My only worry is that I haven't really replaced that quality. After Team Report Our defence is now weaker thanks to my leadership. Yass. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 10, 2013 Author Share Posted March 10, 2013 forameuss' career - Summer 2062 - Beerschot AC - Jupiler Pro League Here goes my first run of games with Beerschot. Quite a mixed bag as we head into the winter break. Seven wins, four draws and six losses put us comfortably mid-table, but that's not where we want to be. We are scoring pretty well though, which is something. Pity our defence is pretty weak. You know what though? I'm not enjoying Belgium very much. I intended to stick around for at least a season before moving on, but a very good job offer came up... I'm returning home to Scotland... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK22 Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 It certainly would've been if I had won it! It's just the league titles in Uruguay I've managed to win I'm afraid. The continental competitions have eluded me. Er, um, must be all the tablets I'm on causing hallucinations! Well done, nonetheless And good luck with Dundee Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 11, 2013 Author Share Posted March 11, 2013 forameuss' career - Summer 2062 - Dundee F.C. - Scottish Premier League This was not a move I thought I'd be making, but now that I am, I'm really looking forward to it. Dundee's manager decided he would seek employment elsewhere nad moved clubs, and I swooped in to grab the chance. Despite coming from Scotland, I haven't managed here in years, and always intended to at some point. However, I imagined that I would either be tempted by one of the two ugly sisters of Scotland (or the two cheeks of the same **** as they're more affectionately known) or dropped down and took control of two of Glasgow's less fashionable teams - Clyde or Partick Thistle. Geographically, Partick Thistle would be my "home-town-club" currently, with Clyde being closest to where I grew up. I may yet join them, but Dundee was an offer I couldn't turn down. First of all, they owe their current success to Chairman Roberto Alvarez, who happens to be a Tycoon. He took over in 2055, around the same time I started out in this save. I'd like to say he brought back the glory days to the club, but looking at the history, he seems to have only brought about the hiring and firing of many managers. They have only won two trophies since he arrived - the SPL and Scottish League Cup double last season - and have finished runner up on several occasions. At least I'm not joining a club who are dominating, but they really should be doing better than they are. As you can see, this lowly club has enjoyed a bit of a renaissance without the trophies to show for it. They are now classed as a rich club, which is great going for a club which has twice been plunged into administration in 2003 and then again in 2010. Luckily, I don't think there's a chance of that happening a third time thanks to our new chairman. Hopefully he sticks around. One thing I will be looking to change is our stay at Dens Park. The stadium, built in 1899, is not exactly state of the art, and although it is the historic home of Dee fans, I'll be looking to move into something more fitting of where I intend to take the club. If only to move that little bit further away from bitter rivals Dundee United's ground. As you can see in this aerial photo, the two grounds are comfortably the closest rival grounds, being just yards apart. Dundee isn't exactly a big city, so it's no wonder there is so much animosity and rivalry between the two teams. Expect all Dundee Derby matches in my tenure to be highly charged affairs. I've already covered the trophy situation - we need to add to it, plain and simple. Financially, we're yo-yoing a bit. I could do with more stability, so I intend to try and cut wages a little and bring through some British Youth (more on that later). I may have a Tycoon, but I have no interest in using his money to build a team that is collectively overpaid. Given his significant financial backing, it's no surprise the chairman expects big things. We're already out of the League Cup, but I see no issues in the rest of the requirements, apart from the league. The old manager leaves us in 6th position, just on the edge of the Championship group when it splits towards the end of the season. We're on our way in the Scottish Cup, and we've already qualified from our Champions League group, only facing a dead rubber against Inter in the final match. The league is now a massive priority - we have a squad capable of winning this league, as we proved last season, so we just need to get our heads down and make sure we don't embarrass ourselves. Team Report Quite happy with things here. Bozic is undoubtedly our number one, but I would like a third in there, perhaps a young British keeper who can compete in the long run. If you take our first choice back four, I would say I'm happy with our lot, but I'm worried about the quality that will step in when any of these four are injured. We're also pretty weak on the right. In fact, full-back positions are really not good in terms of depth - even if we do have club legend Craig Gordon at left back. We're a bit better served depth-wise in midfield. Anis Slama and Fred "The Lion King" N'Simba are particular stand-outs, and will probably be the first names on the team-sheet. Honourable mentions for the rest of our central players which make me confident that we can win most midfield battles. Unfortunately, we're again weak on the wings. Two good players for the first team, but nothing in the case of their injuries. Yusuf is also Nigerian, meaning he'll probably disappear off to the African Cup of Nations in January. Along with Slama. Boo. Again, pretty happy with what we have here. Up front is the one place we don't struggle for depth, as I will probably plan on playing two up front at most. One up front will be the ideal, so to have six who can play there gives us fantastic depth. Sklenar and McBride are probably first on the list for leaving the club, as ideally I'd be sitting with four forwards so as not to drain the wage budget too much. Overall Opinions It's a good squad, don't get me wrong, but I'm a little worried about the lack of Scottish players in the line-up. Maybe that's borne out of the current state of Scottish football, knowing that the majority of squads outside of Celtic will be predominantly Scottish. As a result, I plan on offloading as many foreigners as I can get away with gradually, and bring in British players, or Scottish preferably. That will be a problem though with the inflated prices, so we'll need to see. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 11, 2013 Author Share Posted March 11, 2013 forameuss' career - Dundee F.C. - Scottish Premier League - December 2062 A solid, if unspectacular start to life in Dundee. When we played Inverness Caledonian Thistle, I started to wonder just what I had on my hands. We were rampant, and were it not for the soft late goal we let in, it wouldve been the perfect performance. Unfortunately, Ross County brought us back down to Earth as they beat us 1-0. A terrible performance, and perhaps shows where this team has struggled this season. We should be at the top, but for a number of factors, we aren't. Maybe we had one eye on our glamour tie in Europe. Inter - scourge of Juventus so many times when Stephen Smith was there - visited Dens Park with pretty much nothing at stake. They didn't show it though, running out easy winners in the end. I wouldn't say it was the right result in the circumstances. We didn't deserve 4-0, but it's a show of strength from the Italians, and a definite sign that on the European stage there is much work to do. We managed six points against St Mirren and Hearts, but our first big match in the league against the Zombie Rangers ended in disappointment. They are probably favourites for the league at this stage, so to lose to them was a blow. 2063 can't come soon enough. We've improved from when I took over, and I have to say that it looks increasingly like a four-way battle for the title. I'll go on record now and say that that's slightly ambitious, and that we will be lucky to be that fourth horse. We have a lot of ground to make up. Following our group ending in the Champions League, we found out who we would face in the first knockout round. I have to say, looking at the teams I could face (PSG, Man Utd, Marseille, Juventus, Lyon, Milan and Bayern) I don't want any of them. If I was forced to choose, it would probably be either Marseille, Juve or United. A battle of Britain might bring out the best in us, and it would be nice to see Juve again. Marseille make it onto that list simply by not being as good as the others. I don't want Bayern or a rampant Lyon (current holders, and favourites for this year). Bugger. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted March 11, 2013 Share Posted March 11, 2013 Didn't like Belgium then? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK22 Posted March 11, 2013 Share Posted March 11, 2013 You've got a pretty good squad there already; one or two quality signings, and I'm sure you'll be right back on the heels of Rangers and co. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 12, 2013 Author Share Posted March 12, 2013 Didn't like Belgium then? Not really to be honest, although I probably didn't give it a good enough chance. I think my problem is that I put too much stock in the very little information you get given when a club offers you a job. If budgets look good, I'm happy, if they don't, I'm not. But they don't tell you much - a club could be offering terrible budgets, but have a great squad, or be the complete opposite. Beerschot offered me a good amount, but their squad needed a lot of work. I rushed through pre-season and my squad wasn't good enough when the window closed. The Dundee job became available and I was happy to jump. You've got a pretty good squad there already; one or two quality signings, and I'm sure you'll be right back on the heels of Rangers and co. They'll have to be quality it seems. Given it's a tycoon owner, he's not a nice "Sign High Profile Players" clause in my contract. It's disappointing, as that isn't the way I want to build this club up. Fair enough he wants high profile players, but given our budget, and the price of British players of that quality, we just don't have the funds to do that. I would much rather build a young, hungry, and most of all competitive British team, rather than resort to buying in overpaid foreigners. But needs must I suppose. I've got to find a balance between building the squad I want and making sure I don't get sacked... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 12, 2013 Author Share Posted March 12, 2013 forameuss' career - Dundee F.C. - Scottish Premier League - January 2063 A mostly positive month, but one that could've been so much better. We won four, drew one and lost three, and it can be just summed up by saying that all our poor results came against the teams we really can't afford to have poor results again. We managed a single point against the teams above us (Dundee United and Celtic) and three in the three games against Motherwell and Hibernian. That's just not good enough. As it is, we have a decent cushion over 5th and 6th, so we should be fine come the split, but we really need to be closer to the top three. Forgetting about the points, it was not the best result to only earn a single point in my first Dundee Derby at Tannadice. We'll have a chance in February to change that as they visit Dens Park. Nine points isn't a mountain to climb, but it's a sizeable task. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 12, 2013 Author Share Posted March 12, 2013 forameuss' career - Dundee F.C. - Scottish Premier League - March 2063 February and March saw the return to European action, and also saw us march towards the SPL split, still hoping for an unlikely title. It was also the month that Dundee turned up to the party. Starting off with a goalless draw at St Mirren wasn't ideal, but we followed that up with two very good wins against Ross County and Hearts. That was just the preparation we wanted in the lead up to our tie against Bayern Munich, and it looked like we might spring an upset when we took the lead. Unfortunately they nicked a goal back, and most importantly, it was an away goal. A massive blow, and I really couldn't see us going to Munich and managing to both score and keep them from scoring. What followed that match though was nothing short of fantastic. My first Dundee Derby at Dens Park and we absolutely smashed them. Barry Walters got his perfect 10 rating for his five goals, which was richly deserved, and United fans will be having nightmares about his performance for years to come. It also gave us a massive boost in the race for the title, which United were starting to grip tighter in the past weeks. After progressing into the Scottish Cup Semi Final at the expense of Clyde though, we went on a bit of a slump. We needed to beat Rangers to keep the pressure up at the top, but we could only manage a draw. Then we were predictably sent tumbling out of Europe thanks to a very efficient performance from the Germans. We didn't really have a sniff, and it was no surprise in the end. We rounded off March unable to grab all three points against Kilmarnock, and I think that might just about end our title challenge. It's still nine points of a gap, but it's a tall order to rein them in now. 3rd is now my realistic aim, with an outside chance of 2nd. I also received my youth intake this month, but it's hardly anything to write home about. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 12, 2013 Author Share Posted March 12, 2013 forameuss' career - Dundee F.C. - Scottish Premier League - April 2063 April saw our final two league games before the league splits in two, and also the small matter of a Scottish Cup Semi Final against the blue half of the Old Firm. Luckily, the squad has decided to heed my advice and pick up their form, leaving us unbeaten over these three games. Motherwell seem to be one of those teams for us at the moment, but a point at this stage is satisfactory. The match against Rangers was thoroughly professional, but then by the time we kicked off, we already knew our opponents for the final. Dundee United would meet us at Hampden for a final showdown in May, and that is one mouthwatering clash. The split is in, and we will face the top six once more to settle the European places. At least five of those teams should get a European place, so everything to play for. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 12, 2013 Author Share Posted March 12, 2013 forameuss' career - Dundee F.C. - Scottish Premier League - May 2063 May saw the climax of the league, and probably the extinguishing of any hope we had of finishing on top. But it certainly wasn't for want of trying. We started dreaming after three straight victories, including two over the teams at the top in Rangers and United, meaning that I'm now ahead on derby head-to-heads now since my arrival. Unfortunately, the team we really needed to beat - Celtic - got the better of us. That will really put our chances of 3rd or higher in jeopardy, and we could end up down in 4th depending on results on final day. Talking of final day... Relegation has been decided, and now it's a Super Sunday as the SPL reaches its conclusion. And what a conclusion it could be. Dundee United in pole position, and just need a win against Hibs to seal an unlikely title. There's a crunch Old Firm derby underway too though, and Rangers have to win to keep the pressure on Dundee United. We face bogey team Motherwell knowing that we need to match whatever Celtic do against Rangers to grab 3rd. So much still to play for. We did our bit. But if Celtic could really thump Rangers, they still had a chance. Unfortunately, for them, they didn't, only managing a 1-1 draw with their bitter rivals. That means Dundee United are crowned...oh, wait, they got beat by Hibs. Dundee United choke at the very last and hand another SPL title to the blue half of Glasgow. We finish only four points behind them in the end, which was pretty good going. I'm also very happy that morale should be sapped for next week's cup final... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 12, 2013 Author Share Posted March 12, 2013 forameuss' career - Dundee F.C. - Scottish Cup Final 2063 Scottish Cup Final 2063 vs It's Dundee versus Dundee. The City of discovery divided. Father against son. Friend against foe. Husband against wife. Dark blue against orange. Dundee United against Dundee FC. Got to say, this is the absolutely perfect final for us. We've got the better of Dundee United this season, so to face our greatest rivals in one of the biggest games of the Scottish season is what dreams are made of. Going by this, we should breeze this game. There's a lot more to it obviously than the stats on show there, but I'm confident. The mind-games began a few days before. Doesn't he know that I won three titles with Penarol?! Who does he think he is? But anyway, on to the game, and onto the hallowed Hampden turf... Oh. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted March 13, 2013 Share Posted March 13, 2013 Ouch Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 13, 2013 Author Share Posted March 13, 2013 Ouch You're telling me... An awful game, and one I have absolutely no idea what happened in. Perhaps I was too over-confident going into the game, thinking that if we just turned up, we would win. The second goal really killed it on the stroke of half-time, and when we went all out in the second, it seemed only a matter of time before they would nick a third. An evenly matched game apart from one thing - they finished their chances, we didn't. I really am enjoying my time in Dundee though - not sure if it's being in Scotland, but they're probably the club I've most got into managing on this save. Intend to be around for as long as the club want me. We can also look forward to a new stadium in a few years - I didn't even need to ask, and free-spending chairman Alvarez has submitted plans for the Dundee Stadium (that'll be getting renamed). Will actually be quite a shame to leave Dens behind really... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 13, 2013 Author Share Posted March 13, 2013 Around the Grounds Premiership - England |------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Relegated | |------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2062/63 | Man Utd | Arsenal | Coventry | Southampton | Leeds, Sheff Wed, Leicester | | 2061/62 | Man Utd | Man City | Chelsea | Newcastle | Blackburn, Crawley, Cardiff | | 2060/61 | Arsenal | Man City | Newcastle | Man Utd | Leyton Orient, Sheff Wed, Leicester | | 2059/60 | Man Utd | Arsenal | Man City | Chelsea | Leeds, Liverpool, Wolves | | 2058/59 | Arsenal | Man City | Man Utd | Chelsea | Leyton Orient, Derby, Southend | | 2057/58 | Chelsea | Everton | Newcastle | Man Utd | Bolton, MK Dons, Stoke | | 2056/57 | Man City | Man Utd | Arsenal | Chelsea | Birmingham, Wolves, M'brough | |------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| It's still very much a Manchester affair in England, although London have stolen three titles. It really is the Manc show though - on only one occasion have both clubs failed to finish in the top four. It was a fantastic season for both Coventry and Southampton last time out as they head into the Champions League. As for the relegation spots, there are some unfamilar names there with MK Dons, Leyton Orient, Southend and Crawley all slipping down after time in the big leagues. But it's probably the relegation of Liverpool that is the biggest shock. I actually might do a whole post on Liverpool's history, as they really have fallen on harsh times. They remain in the back of my mind as a future club to manage given their plight. Bundesliga - Germany |-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Relegated | |-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2062/63 | Stuttgart | Dortmund | FC Bayern | Schalke | Ingolstadt, Furth | | 2061/62 | Dortmund | Stuttgart | FC Bayern | Schalke | Duisburg, Mainz | | 2060/61 | Stuttgart | FC Bayern | Dortmund | Schalke | Furth, Rostock, Augsburg | | 2059/60 | Dortmund | Stuttgart | FC Bayern | Schalke | Aalen, Dusseldorf, Freiburg | | 2058/59 | FC Bayern | Dortmund | Schalke | Stuttgart | Rostock, Mainz | | 2057/58 | Stuttgart | FC Bayern | Dortmund | Hertha BSC | Ingolstadt, Aalen | | 2056/57 | FC Bayern | Dortmund | Stuttgart | Schalke | Ave, Furth, Gladbach | |-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| Germany's gotten interesting all of a sudden. Bayern are still up there, but their stranglehold on football in the country has pretty much gone. They haven't had a title in four seasons, and finished 3rd in the past two, only just making the Champions League. Tough times for them, as proved by them sacking their manager. But enough about falling giants. Stuttgart have stepped up and won three of the last seven titles, with Dortmund grabbing the two that Bayern didn't. It's actually looking quite exciting in the Bundesliga nowadays with the top three or four interchanging. Would be nice to see Schalke make the step up, but there's only one team I'd love to see kings of Germany - Hertha Berlin. One fourth position is not good enough, and I would love to return there at some point and continue Stephen Smith's work. Brasileiro - Brazil |------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Relegated | |------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2062 | Sao Paulo | Corinthians | Cruzeiro | Internacional | Guarani, Avai, Parana, Gremio | | 2061 | Sao Paulo | Cruzeiro | Flamengo | Corinthians | Sport Recife, Fortaleza, Ceara, Criciuma | |------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| I don't have much to say here - Brazil was only added a couple of seasons ago. Sao Paulo have won comfortably both times. Will I go back to Brazil at some point? Maybe for a season or two... Serie A - Italy |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Relegated | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2062/63 | Juventus | AC Milan | Fiorentina | Roma | Cesena, Modena, Catania | | 2061/62 | AC Milan | Juventus | Inter | Fiorentina | Grosseto, Viareggio, Lecce | | 2060/61 | AC Milan | Juventus | Inter | Roma | Udinese, Palermo, Cuneo | | 2059/60 | AC Milan | Inter | Juventus | Roma | Modena, Ascoli, Pisa | | 2058/59 | AC Milan | Inter | Juventus | Fiorentina | Lecce, Udinese, Chievo | | 2057/58 | AC Milan | Inter | Juventus | Roma | Genoa, Taranto, Albino | | 2056/57 | Inter | Juventus | Roma | AC Milan | Udinese, Lecce, Cuneo | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| It's still very much a tale of one city in Italy these days. Following on from their dominance in Smith's time at Juventus, the two Milan sides are pretty much unstoppable. Only Juventus have stopped one of them winning the title each sseason, and it was a close run thing last time out. Good to see Fiorentina and Roma getting in on the act too. Udinese are the only big-ish name to go down to Serie B. Scottish Premier League - Scotland |-----------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Relegated | |-----------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2062/63 | Rangers | Dundee Utd | Dundee | Celtic | Inverness CT | | 2061/62 | Dundee | Rangers | Celtic | Hibernian | St Johnstone | | 2060/61 | Celtic | Dundee | Rangers | Hibernian | St Mirren | | 2059/60 | Celtic | Rangers | Dundee | Hibernian | Falkirk | | 2058/59 | Hibernian | Celtic | Rangers | Dindee | Inverness CT | | 2057/58 | Celtic | Dundee | Dundee Utd | Rangers | Aberdeen | | 2056/57 | Celtic | Rangers | Inverness CT | Dundee Utd | Kilmarnock | |-----------------------------------------------------------------------------| My new local, and the table makes interesting reading. Always derided for being a two-horse race, and recently just the one horse, with the other falling at a fence and left crippled on the grass (poor analogy I know, it sounded better in my head), but in this alternate universe, things are a lot closer. Celtic were the dominant force though, and before 2056, they were far and away the best team. They've had a bit of a dip recently though, and the other clubs have gone a lot closer to them, as evidenced by their 3rd and 4th place finishes in the last two seasons. It's a fun place to be at the moment, even with the Old Firm restored. La Liga BBVA - Spain |----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Relegated | |----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2062/63 | R. Madrid | A. Madrid | Barcelona | Betis | Sporting, Hercules, Getafe | | 2061/62 | R. Madrid | A. Madrid | Barcelona | R. Sociedad | Valladolid, Las Palmas, Athletic | | 2060/61 | R. Madrid | A. Madrid | Barcelona | Valencia | Granada, Cordoba, Cadiz | | 2059/60 | R. Madrid | A. Madrid | Barcelona | Valencia | Celta, Valladolid, Las Palmas | | 2058/59 | R. Madrid | A. Madrid | Barcelona | Valencia | Athletic, Espanyol, Osasuna | | 2057/58 | R. Madrid | Barcelona | A. Madrid | Betis | Mallorca, Valladolid, Getafe | | 2056/57 | R. Madrid | A. Madrid | Barcelona | Villarreal | Osasuna, Elche, Racing | |----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| There seems to be a thing about one city in each country dominating, and in Spain that city is Madrid. Real are absolutely dominant. They haven't even tried really at times. Atletico have been the second best on all but one occasion recently, pushing out everyone's favourite masturbatory aid Barcelona down to 3rd, but take nothing away from Real - they are comfortably the best. Good to see Betis and Sociedad move closer to the duopoly though. At the other end, my limited knowledge of La Liga leads me to say that there are no massive surprises there. Biggest name seems to be Osasuna (twice) and Mallorca. And Espanyol maybe? I don't know. Allsvenskan - Sweden |----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | 2nd | 3rd | Relegated | |----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2062 | AIK | Djurgarden | Helsingsborg | GAIS, Hammarby | | 2061 | IFK Goteborg | AIK | Djurgarden | Orebro, Landskrona, Brommapojkarna | | 2060 | Kalmar | AIK | Helsingborg | Mjallby, Syrianska | | 2059 | Kalmar | IFK Goteborg | AIK | Landskrona, Brommapojkarna | | 2058 | IFK Goteborg | AIK | Helsingborg | Gefle, Halmstad | |----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| I don't know much about Sweden, but intend to go there at some point. Looks like I'll definitely be battling AIK, who have managed the top 3 in every season so far. Goteborb and Helsingborg may have something to say about that though. Major League Soccer - United States |------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | Runners Up | Supporters Shield | |------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2062 | San Jose | Philadelphia | Philadelphia | | 2061 | Los Angeles | Columbus | DC United | | 2060 | DC United | Real Salt Lake | Los Angeles | | 2059 | Sporting Kansas City | San Jose | San Jose | | 2058 | New York | Chivas USA | Chicago | | 2057 | Los Angeles | Chicago | DC United | |------------------------------------------------------------------| The MLS does what it does best and throws up five different winners of the MLS Cup and six different runners-up. It also manages to make sure that the best team in the league each year (winners of the Supporters Shield) end up managing to throw away the MLS Cup at the end of it. Only San Jose in 2059 even made it to the final. Strange, strange world over there. Uruguayan Premier Division - Uruguay |--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Apertura | Clausura | Champion | Relegated | |--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2062/63 | Nacional | Nacional | Nacional | Bella Vista, Progreso, El Tanque | | 2061/62 | Penarol | Penarol | Penarol | Cerro Largo, Miramar, Boston River | | 2060/61 | Penarol | Liverpool(URU) | Penarol | Deportivo, Atenas de San, El Tanque | | 2059/60 | Defensor Sporting | Liverpool(URU) | Defensor Sporting | Juventud, Huracan, Boston River | |--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| Nacional sweeped all before them the moment I left, and I have to say it was coming. I left Penarol with a lot of good players leaving on free transfers (blame my assistant for not deeming them worthy of a new contract, or me being lazy enough to put that responsibility on him) so looks like they've crumbled. Boston River were relegated twice but came back up, which is more than I can say for my old club Juventud. They've disappeared. European Champions League |------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner Up | |------------------------------| | 2063 | Lyon | Dortmund | | 2062 | Lyon | R. Madrid | | 2061 | Barcelona | Man Utd | | 2060 | R. Madrid | Lyon | | 2059 | Juventus | Lyon | | 2058 | Stuttgart | Marseille | | 2057 | Man Utd | Arsenal | | 2056 | PSG | Stuttgart | | 2055 | FC Bayern | Man City | | 2054 | FC Bayern | Inter | |------------------------------| A very familiar list, but it does show how good France have become recently. Lyon are comfortably the best team in Europe at the moment, and I wouldn't bet against them getting three in a row this year. Bayern were dominant with two titles, but they've fallen away now. Good to see Juve getting another title though Club World Cup |--------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | Third Place | |--------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2062 | Lyon | Chivas | Zamalek | | 2061 | Chivas | Central Coast Mariners | Barcelona | | 2060 | R. Madrid | Cruzeiro | Al-Sadd | | 2059 | Cerro Porteno | Juventus | America(MEX) | | 2058 | Stuttgart | Chivas | Cruzeiro | | 2057 | Man Utd | Tigres | Primeiro de Agosto | | 2056 | Corinthians | ES Tunis | Al-Gharrafa | | 2055 | Corinthians | Lekhwiya | FC Bayern | | 2054 | FC Bayern | Zamalek | Libertad | |--------------------------------------------------------------------| Not much to say here apart from the obvious shocks of Europe losing, but to see Central Coast Mariners end up runners-up in 2061 was amazing. Stephen Smith's very first club, and it's just a shame they couldn't win it outright. World Cup |----------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | 3rd | Host | |----------------------------------------------------------| | 2062 | Spain | Mexico | Italy | Qatar | | 2058 | France | Italy | Spain | Brazil | | 2054 | Scotland | Spain | Serbia | France | | 2050 | Netherlands | Mexico | Russia | USA | | 2046 | Spain | Russia | Portfugal | South Korea | |----------------------------------------------------------| European Championships |------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | Host | |------------------------------------------------------| | 2060 | Serbia | Italy | Russia | | 2056 | Spain | Russia | Norway | | 2052 | Netherlands | Spain | Ukraine/Poland | | 2048 | Portugal | Spain | Switzerland/Austria | | 2044 | England | Germany | Germany | |------------------------------------------------------| African Nations Cup |---------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | 3rd | Host | |---------------------------------------------------------| | 2063 | S. Africa | Nigeria | Algeria | S. Africa | | 2061 | Morocco | Egypt | Angola | Tunisia | | 2059 | Ivory Coast | Tunisia | Morocco | Morocco | | 2057 | Morocco | Ghana | Algeria | S. Africa | | 2055 | Egypt | Cameroon | Algeria | Tunisia | | 2053 | DR Congo | Egypt | Togo | Morocco | | 2051 | Algeria | Cameroon | Togo | S. Africa | |---------------------------------------------------------| Asian Cup |------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | 3rd | Host | |------------------------------------------------------------| | 2063 | Australia | Saudi Arabia | South Korea | Japan | | 2059 | Australia | Iran | Japan | Kuwait | | 2055 | Australia | South Korea | Saudi Arabia | China | | 2051 | Australia | Iran | Japan | Bahrain | | 2047 | South Korea | Australia | Saudi Arabia | Japan | | 2043 | Japan | Saudi Arabia | Iraq | Kuwait | |------------------------------------------------------------| Oceanic Nations Cup |------------------------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | Hosts | |------------------------------------------------| | 2060 | New Zealand | Tahiti | Fiji | | 2056 | New Zealand | Vanuatu | New Caledonia | | 2052 | New Zealand | Samoa | New Zealand | | 2048 | New Zealand | Samoa | Tahiti | | 2044 | New Zealand | Samoa | Fiji | |------------------------------------------------| Gold Cup |-------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | |-------------------------------| | 2061 | Honduras | Canada | | 2059 | Mexico | El Salvador | | 2057 | Mexico | Canada | | 2055 | USA | Canada | | 2053 | Mexico | USA | | 2051 | Jamaica | USA | | 2049 | Mexico | Costa Rica | |-------------------------------| Copa America |--------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | Third Place | Host | |--------------------------------------------------------| | 2059 | Argentina | Chile | Uruguay | Bolivia | | 2055 | Argentina | Chile | Brazil | Uruguay | | 2051 | Venezuela | Chile | Mexico | Bolivia | | 2047 | Argentina | Colombia | Brazil | Venezuela | | 2043 | Colombia | Mexico | Brazil | Peru | |--------------------------------------------------------| No real surprises anywhere in the international tournaments. Australia are dominating Asia in a big way, and have done for the past twelve years. New Zealand are also dominating, but then they have for about 450 years. I doubt anyone will ever topple them. Venezuela benefited from Argentina being nowhere to be seen in the Copa America in 2051 by winning it outright, but the Argie's returned with another two trophies from their next two attempts. Honduras repeated their heroics from when Stephen Smith managed them with a fantastic Gold Cup win in 2061. Africa and Europe keep up the spirit of competition by having a variety of winners - Serbia and DR Congo were probably the pick of the unexpecteds. Former Club Watch Real Salt Lake (left 2057) |-------------------------------------| | Year | League Position | Cup Result | |-------------------------------------| | 2058 | 17th | 4th Round | | 2059 | 2nd | Winners | | 2060 | 4th | 1/4 Final | | 2061 | 4th | 3rd Round | | 2062 | 10th | 3rd Round | |-------------------------------------| Treviso (left 2059) |--------------------------------------------------------| | Year | League | Position | Cup Result | |--------------------------------------------------------| | 2059/60 | Serie C1 | 1st | 2nd Q. Round/3rd Round | | 2060/61 | Serie B | 10th | 3rd Q. Round | | 2061/62 | Serie B | 12th | 3rd Q. Round | | 2062/63 | Serie B | 10th | 3rd Q. Round | |--------------------------------------------------------| Juventud de las Piedras (left 2059) |-----------------------------------------------| | Year | League | Position | |-----------------------------------------------| | 2059/60 | Primera Division | 14th (relegated) | | 2060/61 | Unplayable | --- | | 2061/62 | Unplayable | --- | | 2062/63 | Unplayable | --- | |-----------------------------------------------| Penarol (left 2059) |-----------------------------------------------| | Year | League | Position | |-----------------------------------------------| | 2062/63 | Primera Division | 12th | |-----------------------------------------------| Real Salt Lake have had their ups and downs since I left, but looked to have stabilised themselves following a terrible performance the year after I left. However, they finished outside the play-off positions last time out. Treviso are back to Serie B, having been promoted at the first time of asking. Comfortably mid-table over the past few seasons, but would like to see them make that step up. Juventud have literally disappeared off the face of the FM Earth. After relegation, they've dropped into the second tier of Uruguayan football, which is unplayable in my db. THey haven't appeared since. Penarol completely lost it following my resignation. They were nowhere in either of the stages and finished only just shy of relegation. Must do better. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 13, 2013 Author Share Posted March 13, 2013 Shameless bump, but I've added a bit of analysis (loosely termed) to the section in the previous post. Any other questions or requests for screenshots, let me know and I'll add them. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackJCFC Posted March 14, 2013 Share Posted March 14, 2013 Interesting to see the same clubs get relegated from the prem two season in a row Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 14, 2013 Author Share Posted March 14, 2013 Interesting to see the same clubs get relegated from the prem two season in a row Yeah, that was a strange one. I blame this guy. There was a protest of course, and after a lengthy court case, Blackburn, Crawley and Cardiff magically changed into Leeds, Sheff Wed, and Leicester. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 14, 2013 Author Share Posted March 14, 2013 forameuss' career - Dundee F.C. - Pre-season 2063/64 Like I mentioned, it's time for a new stadium in Dundee. Dens Park has been around forever, and we're selling it out regularly. Good news that we'll have a new stadium bringing in almost three times the money. Finances Transfers Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 14, 2013 Author Share Posted March 14, 2013 forameuss' career - Dundee F.C. - August 2063 Not too bad a start to the season generally. We moved into the group stages of the Europa League, but it wasn't exactly comfortable. For a long period, we were heading out against Radnicki 1923, but we eventually managed to win through with a 3-2 victory back at Dens Park. Elsewhere, our first big test of the domestic season was a big fail when we got beat by Celtic. We're already behind the pace, but there's a long way to go. And here's the draw for the Europa League. Apologies for the missing team in the final group, but they don't really matter. We face a tough task getting out of our group. Sampdoria should walk it, and we won't get any favours from Sevilla or FC Thun. I'm still confident we can get through though. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 15, 2013 Author Share Posted March 15, 2013 forameuss' career - Dundee F.C. - October 2063 Life is good in Dundee, but we're still dropping points we really shouldn't be. For the most part in the league, we looked extremely good. Hibs may have fallen on hard times recently, but to beat them 7-2 was a very good result. And beating reigning Champions Rangers wasn't too bad either. But then we have to go and spoil it by getting thumped by Kilmarnock (admittedly, Scotland's form team at the moment) and then narrowly losing the first derby of the season. That one is inexcusable. More distance being put between us and the top two, but to be in 3rd at this stage is good news. I may have described the result in the league against United as inexcusable, but this more than made up for it. The squad remember what they did to us in the Scottish Cup Final, and this was sweet revenge. We've been drawn against Falkirk in the semi-final, with the likeliest result being Rangers awaiting us in the final if we make it past the Bairns. Long way to go yet though. In Europe things are generally going to plan. We got the six points we really wanted against Sevilla and Thun, but predictably lost against Sampdoria. I'll be happy if we grab second spot though , and a place in the second round. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 15, 2013 Author Share Posted March 15, 2013 forameuss' career - Dundee F.C. - December 2063 Now is the winter of our discontent, made glorious summer by...well...nothing really. The full story behind what happened over these two months will be made apparent in my next update, but for this one, just revel at how awful we have been. I know it doesn't look too bad, but believe me, it is. The Kilmarnock and Celtic results were in the bracket of games that we were desperate to win, but games against the likes of Ross County and St Johnstone are ones we have to win. When we see our rivals making light work of these games while we struggle, it is very difficult to see us being crowned Champions this year. We need to pick ourselves up, but as you'll see next time out, there are mitigating circumstances for such a drop. Falling further behind again. Hearts are now breathing down our necks, and the gap to the teams below them is hardly massive. Luckily, we weren't awful everywhere. We went through to the next round of the Scottish Cup by finally getting the better of Kilmarnock on the 3rd attempt this season. Hearts await us in the 5th round, which will be played in February. In Europe we thought we had made a grave error with our draw in Seville We then produced a fantastic performance at Dens against Sampdoria to grab a point, meaning that we were through with a game to spare. We still went out against bottom side Thun and produced a very impressive and professional performance, running out 3-0 winners. The draw for the next two knockout rounds was made soon after... We could have got easier teams, no doubt, but it could have been far worse. I'm actually quite looking forward to the trip down to the North East of England for one of the less glamorous "Battles of Britain". Unfortunately, the draw for the round after was also made We may face old foes Bayern in the round after, and even though they're a shadow of what they once were, there's still a lot to fear. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 15, 2013 Author Share Posted March 15, 2013 forameuss' career - Dundee F.C. - February 2063 Remember last month I said that there were reasons for our slump? Well, let me give you thirteen reasons... This was taken in mid-January, but by the end of the month there were three more players cluttering up the physio's office. I say office, I've relegated the guy to a cupboard in the basement of Dens Park, because he's clearly the worst Physio ever to be employed. I know some of those injuries are short-term ones, and four of those players will be back within two weeks, but you have to look at it in the context of how important these players are. Psarris, Jalsovec, Garcia, N'Simba, Brazil, Slama, Kovcalija, Gordon and Ramsey are all pretty much stick on first-team starters. That's eight out of 11. When those starters get injured, you look to your bench and wider squad, but with the rest of our injuries being to important back-up players, we really are down to the bare bones. Brazil, Simba and Slama are the ones that really irk me. They are the spine of our team, and without them we would've been miles away from 3rd last season. Without them, we're shown up to be very poor - as you can see by December and January's results. Only SPL games in January, and as you can see, we choked in most. The year started off well with a win against Rangers, but then they are nowhere near the side they were last year. It was on the 16th of January that everything began to fall apart, but no game showed that more than the Dundee Derby. We went to Tannadice ravaged with injuries to key players, and when the 3rd and 4th goals went in, we were down to 9 men - 1 sent off and 1 injured after having made all our substitutions. I would say with certainty that it was one of the most bruising results I've had across both of my managers careers on this save. We could only muster a point against Ross County, and then Celtic rubbed it in at the end of the month. We are in trouble. Fourteen points off the top, and ten behind our bitter rivals thanks to that beating. Most worryingly though, we're only four ahead of 7th place. If they caught us up and passed us, we would be in the bottom half of the split, which would be absolutely disastrous. Looks like our season could have to be saved by other competitions. Of course, we could remedy all of this with a strong February. A strong February, yes. But not this. A league cup semi-final against Falkirk was the perfect opportunity I thought, but maybe the Hampden pitch brought back terrible memories of the cup final last summer. If they thought those memories were bad, then how about a 5-0 humbling by a mid-table side? I understandably read the riot act to the side, but the following Wednesday we dropped yet more points in a 3-2 thriller at Rugby Park. Hearts were the beneficiaries of a mini-revival in league and cup action as we moved into the quarter finals (where we would face Dundee United no less), and we also got a solid result against Newcastle in the Europa League. It'll be tough to head to St James' needing to score, but a challenge I'm willing to take on. Sandwiching the first and second legs was a league fixture in Falkirk. They had humbled us 5-0 just weeks before, and they did it again, this time by a narrow one goal. It's fine margins in football. A controversial goal cost us the match, but it cost me even more... Furious doesn't quite cover it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 15, 2013 Author Share Posted March 15, 2013 Around the Grounds Premiership - England |-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Relegated | FA Cup | League Cup | |-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2063/64 | Man City | Man Utd | Arsenal | Coventry | Stoke, Cardiff, Wolves | Everton | Arsenal | | 2062/63 | Man Utd | Arsenal | Coventry | Southampton | Blackburn, Crawley, Cardiff | Arsenal | Man City | | 2061/62 | Man Utd | Man City | Chelsea | Newcastle | Blackburn, Crawley, Cardiff | Everton | Newcastle | | 2060/61 | Arsenal | Man City | Newcastle | Man Utd | Leyton Orient, Sheff Wed, Leicester | S'hampton | Man Utd | | 2059/60 | Man Utd | Arsenal | Man City | Chelsea | Leeds, Liverpool, Wolves | Arsenal | Newcastle | | 2058/59 | Arsenal | Man City | Man Utd | Chelsea | Leyton Orient, Derby, Southend | Man City | Arsenal | | 2057/58 | Chelsea | Everton | Newcastle | Man Utd | Bolton, MK Dons, Stoke | Newcastle | Chelsea | | 2056/57 | Man City | Man Utd | Arsenal | Chelsea | Birmingham, Wolves, M'brough | Man City | Man Utd | |-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| Bundesliga - Germany |--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Relegated | DFB Pokal | |--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2063/64 | Dortmund | Stuttgart | Schalke | FC Bayern | St Pauli, Hannover | Stuttgart | | 2062/63 | Stuttgart | Dortmund | FC Bayern | Schalke | Ingolstadt, Furth | FC Bayern | | 2061/62 | Dortmund | Stuttgart | FC Bayern | Schalke | Duisburg, Mainz | HSV | | 2060/61 | Stuttgart | FC Bayern | Dortmund | Schalke | Furth, Rostock, Augsburg | Dortmund | | 2059/60 | Dortmund | Stuttgart | FC Bayern | Schalke | Aalen, Dusseldorf, Freiburg | Stuttgart | | 2058/59 | FC Bayern | Dortmund | Schalke | Stuttgart | Rostock, Mainz | Hertha BSC | | 2057/58 | Stuttgart | FC Bayern | Dortmund | Hertha BSC | Ingolstadt, Aalen | Stuttgart | | 2056/57 | FC Bayern | Dortmund | Stuttgart | Schalke | Ave, Furth, Gladbach | Leverkusen | |--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| Brasileiro - Brazil |------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Relegated | Copa do Brasil | |------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2063 | Cruzeiro | Gremio | Mineiro | Corinthians | Ceara, Paranaense, Sport Recife, Criciuma | Mineiro | | 2062 | Sao Paulo | Corinthians | Cruzeiro | Internacional | Guarani, Avai, Parana, Gremio | Palmeiras | | 2061 | Sao Paulo | Cruzeiro | Flamengo | Corinthians | Sport Recife, Fortaleza, Ceara, Criciuma | Sao Paulo | |------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| Serie A - Italy |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Relegated | TIM Cup | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2063/64 | Juventus | AC Milan | Inter | Sampdoria | Grosseto, Taranto, Lecce | Inter | | 2062/63 | Juventus | AC Milan | Fiorentina | Roma | Cesena, Modena, Catania | Sampdoria | | 2061/62 | AC Milan | Juventus | Inter | Fiorentina | Grosseto, Viareggio, Lecce | Roma | | 2060/61 | AC Milan | Juventus | Inter | Roma | Udinese, Palermo, Cuneo | Juventus | | 2059/60 | AC Milan | Inter | Juventus | Roma | Modena, Ascoli, Pisa | Juventus | | 2058/59 | AC Milan | Inter | Juventus | Fiorentina | Lecce, Udinese, Chievo | Juventus | | 2057/58 | AC Milan | Inter | Juventus | Roma | Genoa, Taranto, Albino | Roma | | 2056/57 | Inter | Juventus | Roma | AC Milan | Udinese, Lecce, Cuneo | Juventus | |---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| Scottish Premier League - Scotland |--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Relegated | Scottish Cup | |--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2063/64 | Celtic | Dundee Utd | Dundee | Rangers | Motherwell | Celtic | | 2062/63 | Rangers | Dundee Utd | Dundee | Celtic | Inverness CT | Dundee Utd | | 2061/62 | Dundee | Rangers | Celtic | Hibernian | St Johnstone | Falkirk | | 2060/61 | Celtic | Dundee | Rangers | Hibernian | St Mirren | Celtic | | 2059/60 | Celtic | Rangers | Dundee | Hibernian | Falkirk | Celtic | | 2058/59 | Hibernian | Celtic | Rangers | Dindee | Inverness CT | St Johnstone | | 2057/58 | Celtic | Dundee | Dundee Utd | Rangers | Aberdeen | Celtic | | 2056/57 | Celtic | Rangers | Inverness CT | Dundee Utd | Kilmarnock | Dundee Utd | |--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| La Liga BBVA - Spain |-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Relegated | Copa del Rey | |-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2063/64 | Barcelona | R. Madrid | Betis | Valencia | Athletic, Celta, Espanyol | Barcelona | | 2062/63 | R. Madrid | A. Madrid | Barcelona | Betis | Sporting, Hercules, Getafe | Levante | | 2061/62 | R. Madrid | A. Madrid | Barcelona | R. Sociedad | Valladolid, Las Palmas, Athletic | R. Madrid | | 2060/61 | R. Madrid | A. Madrid | Barcelona | Valencia | Granada, Cordoba, Cadiz | R. Madrid | | 2059/60 | R. Madrid | A. Madrid | Barcelona | Valencia | Celta, Valladolid, Las Palmas | Betis | | 2058/59 | R. Madrid | A. Madrid | Barcelona | Valencia | Athletic, Espanyol, Osasuna | R. Madrid | | 2057/58 | R. Madrid | Barcelona | A. Madrid | Betis | Mallorca, Valladolid, Getafe | Espanyol | | 2056/57 | R. Madrid | A. Madrid | Barcelona | Villarreal | Osasuna, Elche, Racing | Levante | |-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| Allsvenskan - Sweden |--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | 2nd | 3rd | Relegated | Svenska Cupen | |--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2063 | AIK | Helsingsborg | Malmo | Gefle, Mjallby, Sundsvall | Djurgarden | | 2062 | AIK | Djurgarden | Helsingsborg | GAIS, Hammarby | Helsingborg | | 2061 | IFK Goteborg | AIK | Djurgarden | Orebro, Landskrona, Brommapojkarna | Kalmar | | 2060 | Kalmar | AIK | Helsingborg | Mjallby, Syrianska | Djurgarden | | 2059 | Kalmar | IFK Goteborg | AIK | Landskrona, Brommapojkarna | AIK | | 2058 | IFK Goteborg | AIK | Helsingborg | Gefle, Halmstad | IFK Goteborg | |--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| Major League Soccer - United States |-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Champions | Runners Up | Supporters Shield | US Open Cup | |-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2063 | San Jose | Philadelphia | FC Dallas | Chicago | | 2062 | San Jose | Philadelphia | Philadelphia | Seattle | | 2061 | Los Angeles | Columbus | DC United | DC United | | 2060 | DC United | Real Salt Lake | Los Angeles | Los Angeles | | 2059 | Sporting Kansas City | San Jose | San Jose | Real Salt Lake | | 2058 | New York | Chivas USA | Chicago | Chicago | | 2057 | Los Angeles | Chicago | DC United | Real Salt Lake | |-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------| Uruguayan Premier Division - Uruguay |-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Apertura | Clausura | Champion | Relegated | |-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2063/64 | Danubio | Defensor Sporting | Nacional | Bella Vista, Progreso, El Tanque | | 2062/63 | Nacional | Nacional | Nacional | Bella Vista, Progreso, El Tanque | | 2061/62 | Penarol | Penarol | Penarol | Cerro Largo, Miramar, Boston River | | 2060/61 | Penarol | Liverpool(URU) | Penarol | Deportivo, Atenas de San, El Tanque | | 2059/60 | Defensor Sporting | Liverpool(URU) | Defensor Sporting | Juventud, Huracan, Boston River | |-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| European Champions League |--------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | CL Winner | CL Runner Up | EL Winner | EL Runner-up | |--------------------------------------------------------------| | 2063 | Dortmund | Marseille | PSG | Schalke | | 2063 | Lyon | Dortmund | Arsenal | R. Madrid | | 2062 | Lyon | R. Madrid | Dortmund | Coventry | | 2061 | Barcelona | Man Utd | Newcastle | R. Madrid | | 2060 | R. Madrid | Lyon | Stuttgart | Fiorentina | | 2059 | Juventus | Lyon | Man Utd | Fenerbahce | | 2058 | Stuttgart | Marseille | AS Monaco | Southend | | 2057 | Man Utd | Arsenal | S'Hampton | Fenerbahce | | 2056 | PSG | Stuttgart | Everton | At. Madrid | | 2055 | FC Bayern | Man City | Marseille | Coventry | | 2054 | FC Bayern | Inter | PSG | Bolton | |--------------------------------------------------------------| Club World Cup |--------------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | Third Place | |--------------------------------------------------------------------| | 2063 | River | Lyon | Ismaily | | 2062 | Lyon | Chivas | Zamalek | | 2061 | Chivas | Central Coast Mariners | Barcelona | | 2060 | R. Madrid | Cruzeiro | Al-Sadd | | 2059 | Cerro Porteno | Juventus | America(MEX) | | 2058 | Stuttgart | Chivas | Cruzeiro | | 2057 | Man Utd | Tigres | Primeiro de Agosto | | 2056 | Corinthians | ES Tunis | Al-Gharrafa | | 2055 | Corinthians | Lekhwiya | FC Bayern | | 2054 | FC Bayern | Zamalek | Libertad | |--------------------------------------------------------------------| World Cup |----------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | 3rd | Host | |----------------------------------------------------------| | 2062 | Spain | Mexico | Italy | Qatar | | 2058 | France | Italy | Spain | Brazil | | 2054 | Scotland | Spain | Serbia | France | | 2050 | Netherlands | Mexico | Russia | USA | | 2046 | Spain | Russia | Portfugal | South Korea | |----------------------------------------------------------| European Championships |------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | Host | |------------------------------------------------------| | 2064 | Portugal | Italy | England | | 2060 | Serbia | Italy | Russia | | 2056 | Spain | Russia | Norway | | 2052 | Netherlands | Spain | Ukraine/Poland | | 2048 | Portugal | Spain | Switzerland/Austria | | 2044 | England | Germany | Germany | |------------------------------------------------------| African Nations Cup |---------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | 3rd | Host | |---------------------------------------------------------| | 2063 | S. Africa | Nigeria | Algeria | S. Africa | | 2061 | Morocco | Egypt | Angola | Tunisia | | 2059 | Ivory Coast | Tunisia | Morocco | Morocco | | 2057 | Morocco | Ghana | Algeria | S. Africa | | 2055 | Egypt | Cameroon | Algeria | Tunisia | | 2053 | DR Congo | Egypt | Togo | Morocco | | 2051 | Algeria | Cameroon | Togo | S. Africa | |---------------------------------------------------------| Asian Cup |------------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | 3rd | Host | |------------------------------------------------------------| | 2063 | Australia | Saudi Arabia | South Korea | Japan | | 2059 | Australia | Iran | Japan | Kuwait | | 2055 | Australia | South Korea | Saudi Arabia | China | | 2051 | Australia | Iran | Japan | Bahrain | | 2047 | South Korea | Australia | Saudi Arabia | Japan | | 2043 | Japan | Saudi Arabia | Iraq | Kuwait | |------------------------------------------------------------| Oceanic Nations Cup |------------------------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | Hosts | |------------------------------------------------| | 2064 | New Zealand | Fiji | Tahiti | | 2060 | New Zealand | Tahiti | Fiji | | 2056 | New Zealand | Vanuatu | New Caledonia | | 2052 | New Zealand | Samoa | New Zealand | | 2048 | New Zealand | Samoa | Tahiti | | 2044 | New Zealand | Samoa | Fiji | |------------------------------------------------| Gold Cup |-------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | |-------------------------------| | 2061 | Honduras | Canada | | 2059 | Mexico | El Salvador | | 2057 | Mexico | Canada | | 2055 | USA | Canada | | 2053 | Mexico | USA | | 2051 | Jamaica | USA | | 2049 | Mexico | Costa Rica | |-------------------------------| Copa America |--------------------------------------------------------| | Year | Winner | Runner-up | Third Place | Host | |--------------------------------------------------------| | 2063 | Venezuela | Brazil | Peru | Uruguay | | 2059 | Argentina | Chile | Uruguay | Bolivia | | 2055 | Argentina | Chile | Brazil | Uruguay | | 2051 | Venezuela | Chile | Mexico | Bolivia | | 2047 | Argentina | Colombia | Brazil | Venezuela | | 2043 | Colombia | Mexico | Brazil | Peru | |--------------------------------------------------------| Former Club Watch Real Salt Lake (left 2057) |---------------------------------------------------------| | Year | League Position | Cup Result | Play-off Result | |---------------------------------------------------------| | 2058 | 17th | 4th Round | --- | | 2059 | 2nd | Winners | Western Semi | | 2060 | 4th | 1/4 Final | MLS Cup Runner-up | | 2061 | 4th | 3rd Round | Western Semi | | 2062 | 10th | 3rd Round | Western Semi | | 2063 | 10th | 3rd Round | Western Semi | |---------------------------------------------------------| Treviso (left 2059) |--------------------------------------------------------| | Year | League | Position | Cup Result | |--------------------------------------------------------| | 2059/60 | Serie C1 | 1st | 2nd Q. Round/3rd Round | | 2060/61 | Serie B | 10th | 3rd Q. Round | | 2061/62 | Serie B | 12th | 3rd Q. Round | | 2062/63 | Serie B | 10th | 3rd Q. Round | | 2063/64 | Serie B | 11th | 3rd Q. Round | |--------------------------------------------------------| Juventud de las Piedras (left 2059) |-----------------------------------------------| | Year | League | Position | |-----------------------------------------------| | 2059/60 | Primera Division | 14th (relegated) | | 2060/61 | Unplayable | --- | | 2061/62 | Unplayable | --- | | 2062/63 | Unplayable | --- | | 2063/64 | Primera Division | 15th (relegated) | |-----------------------------------------------| Penarol (left 2059) |-----------------------------------------------| | Year | League | Position | |-----------------------------------------------| | 2062/63 | Primera Division | 12th | | 2063/64 | Primera Division | 5th | |-----------------------------------------------| Dundee (Left 2063) |-------------------------------------------------------| | Year | League | Position | Cup Results | |-------------------------------------------------------| | 2063/64 | SPL | 3rd | Scottish Cup Runners-up | |-------------------------------------------------------| The customary look at my previous clubs. Real Salt Lake and Treviso are sticking right where they are with little improvement but not much un-improvement. Juventud finally made it back into the playable leagues, but promptly disappeared back down after one season. Penarol have had a bit of a recovery and finished up 5th overall. You could say Dundee recovered too, but I think I would have managed 3rd anyway. They were unlucky at Hampden once again,beaten on penalties by Celtic. They managed to get past Newcastle in the Europa League in their first match without me, but were easily dispatched by Bayern in the next round. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
EvilDave Posted March 16, 2013 Share Posted March 16, 2013 A very harsh sacking there, no manager could account for all those injuries! That's really tough going in Scotland, but I'm sure Mr Harvey will be able to prove them wrong at his next club... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackJCFC Posted March 16, 2013 Share Posted March 16, 2013 Shame about the injuries and drop in form. Made the job very hard, sacking was a bit unlucky. Lets see where you go next! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted March 16, 2013 Share Posted March 16, 2013 That was very harsh. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pricey687 Posted March 16, 2013 Share Posted March 16, 2013 where to now? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 16, 2013 Author Share Posted March 16, 2013 A very harsh sacking there, no manager could account for all those injuries! That's really tough going in Scotland, but I'm sure Mr Harvey will be able to prove them wrong at his next club... Shame about the injuries and drop in form. Made the job very hard, sacking was a bit unlucky. Lets see where you go next! That was very harsh. where to now? Cheers guys. Yeah, I thought it was pretty harsh. Especially the reason - apparently I had disagreements with my backroom staff. Is that even possible? The big minus was apparently that I didn't sign enough high profile players, but what they expected me to do with around 20 million in transfer funds, I'm not sure. We needed to build a decent base to our team, not spend stupid amounts of money on overpriced "stars". One thing's for sure though, I'll be making it my life's work to make sure Dundee regret that decision... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 18, 2013 Author Share Posted March 18, 2013 forameuss' career - April 2063 I didn't want to spend too much time out of the game, pretty much because I was desperate to get into a position where I could really hurt Dundee. This is not the job I hoped for. A League 2 side with modest budgets and one that is many, many seasons away from getting into Europe and making Dundee pay for their insolence. So a definite no to Nuneaton. After my short spell with Treviso, I don't think I fancy going back to Italy, especially with those budgets. I'm interested in revisiting the lower reaches of Italy with Como, but not with many other sides An Italian tour will be saved for later in this career. Then this offer came in. And what an offer. It's back to Belgium, a country I really wanted to succeed in before Dundee turned my head. Beerschot weren't for me, but Standard Liege are a true giant in their country, and a fantastic base for me work on. I've found my new job. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 18, 2013 Author Share Posted March 18, 2013 forameuss' career - Royal Standard de Liege - April 2063 So it's back to the lovely little country of Belgium for me, and to the Eastern part, near the borders with Holland and Germany. Finances Very healthy, although there is a worrying amount of loan debt that didn't disappear even after we were told this. I'm not overly worried though - it's one to keep an eye on. Facilities I'm stepping into a very good club. The Stade Maurice Defrasne is our stadium now, but we'll be moving into a new one in the summer, named after a club legend, who inexplicably does not want to rejoin the club, despite just being a lowly Under 19s manager at his new club. That new stadium will give us a better source of income, so that's something to look forward to. I also wasted no time in getting the board to improve the youth facilities and then the junior coaching budget. Good to know that the board is happy to support me at this stage. Remaining Fixtures I won't dwell on these too much, but I joined the club with the following fixtures still remaining... I've misplaced the results screenshot, but when the season ended, we sat in a decent second position, but quite a distance away from Champions STVV. This gets us Champions League football next season, provided we can navigate our way through two qualifying rounds, but we did have an outside shot of the title. Something to build on for next season. Team Report I'll do something more in depth in my next update, which will cover the off-season before my first full season in charge. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted March 18, 2013 Share Posted March 18, 2013 Better luck at Liege. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 19, 2013 Author Share Posted March 19, 2013 forameuss' career - Royal Standard de Liege - August 2064 Transfers It wasn't too busy a summer for us, as we already had a squad that was capable of challenging domestically. Whether we're good enough to do something in the Champions League or Europa League remains to be seen. Youth was for the most part the order of the day this summer as I looked to strengthen this sides fantastic home-grown totals. That's one thing I've always noticed teams struggle with later in saves - most I've taken over struggle to put together the four club-grown and eight nation-grown players that are needed for European competition. Standard are different, and we should comfortably have enough to field a full squad in Europe. I want to make sure that production line keeps rolling though. I'm particularly excited about Alex, who should mature into the perfect player for us. On a more short term basis, Helder is the standout signing. I wanted a forward who could play as a DLF, and one who could pass as well as score. Helder was my second choice, but his fellow Brazilian Thomas was far out of my price-range unfortunately. Helder will hopefully be just as good. Opening Fixtures Jupiler Pro League A steady start. We're not setting Belgium alight, but we're up there, and at this stage of the season, that's where we need to be. Champions League Thanks to our 2nd place finish last year, we had a shot at the Champions League - provided we could navigate our way through two qualifying rounds. And make it through we certainly did. I thought Fenerbahce was a tough draw (the side who ended up stealing the striker I had originally wanted) but after a great performance at home, we got a crucial away goal in Turkey to put us in a fantastic position. Of course, things didn't get easier in the next round as we were drawn against the very team I wanted to avoid. How Bayern Munich ended up there I have no idea, but we had to face them. A 1-0 win at home set us up fantastically once again, but I still feared a backlash in Munich. We provided an absolutely fantastically professional performance in Germany to draw 1-1 and head into the money-spinning group stages, sending Bayern into the Europa League. And what was my reward for such heroics? A group containing a Portuguese giant, a rising star in England (Coventry finished 4th last season) and the side who have won the competition in two of the last three years. Cheers FM... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 19, 2013 Author Share Posted March 19, 2013 forameuss' career - Royal Standard de Liege - November 2064 I open this month with a bit of trolling. I said I'd make sure DUndee paid, and this is my opening gambit. N'Simba, you may have noticed, is a club legend at Standard, achieving that status before moving to Dundee a year or so before I took over. He was easily the best player there, and when he got injured, my job went a bit off the rails. I can think of no better way to get one over on them than by Fabregas-ing their best player. I doubt it'll come off, but in all seriousness, I would love to have N'Simba back. Only so I can do this mind... Also this month, we had a good bit of facilities news... The board is very supportive for this kind of thing, and I want to make sure that th is club has the best facilities in the country while I'm here. Fixtures Jupiler Pro League It was all going so well until Gent ****ed it up. That loss sent us on a mini-spiral, losing an absolutely crucial game to Anderlecht in the process. They go clear at the top, and we'll have to play catch-up. Losing ground on the top two, but there's a long way to go. Cofidis Belgian Cup Safely through to the quarter finals thanks to our narrow victory on penalties over Anderlecht. With so many games coming thick and fast, we could have done without 120 minutes against the league leaders, but we came through. A domestic double is still on. Champions League Perhaps the biggest surprise of the first five games is that Benfica have been so poor. After the first three, it looked like we might go on and qualify in second thanks to our wins against Coventry and Benfica. Lyon smashed us, as everyone knew they would, but if we got positive results in those return games, we stood a good chance. Unfortunately, those two key games were away. We stumbled in Lisbon, only managing a point, meaning that we absolutely had to win back in England. We fell to a 2-1 defeat meaning that although we could still qualify, it would mean Benfica doing us a favour, and us beating the heavy favourites. On the bright side, if we go out, which we probably will, we'll be in the Europa League. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 19, 2013 Author Share Posted March 19, 2013 forameuss' career - Royal Standard de Liege - December 2064 Fixtures Jupiler Pro League Another mixed month. It's draws be damned as we record four 2-1 scorelines, two of them for us and two against. We added a narrow 1-0 victory against STVV to those. A good month, but could and should have been better. There's only eight games until the split and we're six points away from the top spot. When the split does happen though, the points reduce, so we don't have too much to worry about yet. Champions League We went into our final game with a very narrow chance of making the last sixteen, but we would have to beat Lyon to do that. We didn't disgrace ourselves, but even at the Bekking Stadium, we were always going to struggle. A good 2-0 win for the Frenchmen, and they move into the last 16 as group winners. In the end our result didn't matter - Coventry beat Benfica in the other game to go through with Lyon, leaving us to take the Europa League place. I'm happy with that - we're miles away from competing in the Champions League, but I think we could have an outside chance in the sister competition. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 19, 2013 Author Share Posted March 19, 2013 forameuss' career - Royal Standard de Liege - March 2065 Youth Intake Very average. We'll find a place for them though. Fixtures Jupiler Pro League We finished off the regular season with a good run of results, but we're still dropping points at the worst of times. For example, we smashed league leaders Anderlecht 4-1, and then lost to lowly Lierse. Luckily though, if all we can do is beat the top teams, we should look forward to the split - we face two games against everyone in the top six. Anderlecht finish six ahead of us, but that will be reduced to three come the split (don't ask me how it works...) Club Brugge just miss out on the Championship group, but they'll play-off for the last remaining Europa League place. A very tight league, and these final ten games will be very interesting for all involved. Cofidis Belgian Cup It was tight, but we moved into the semi-finals of the Belgian Cup on away goals. Aalst put up a very good fight, and there were several occasions in the second leg when it looked like we would go behind. We held on though, and we're now two matches away from the final. Europa League Our first knockout round was fairly kind, and we made short work of Greek side Panathanaikos. Our 1-0 win in Greece was just what we needed. THey would need to score in Belgium, and they did, but unfortunately for them, we scored four in return. Spartak Moscow awaited in the next round, and after the first leg we're in a pretty good position, having scored a priceless away goal. We travel home to finish the tie in front of our own fans. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 19, 2013 Author Share Posted March 19, 2013 forameuss' career - Royal Standard de Liege - March 2065 Fixtures Jupiler Pro League We put one hand on the trophy this month with our first five games after the split, winning three, drawing one and losing one. Once again though, we got the wins when it really mattered, and as you'll see from the table, that Anderlecht game REALLY mattered. With just five games to go, we're top for the first time this season. We're peaking at just the right time, and our destiny is well within our hands. Keep up our form, and we'll be lifting the trophy. And we did just that. The Genk result may look bad, but the four games before that sealed our title win. In fact, that last game against Anderlecht was the key, and we broke their hearts with a 2-0 win thanks to Helder's goals. The Genk game was just my second string getting their arses handed to them by superior opposition. We didn't need the points, and we had a cup final to look forward to anyway. Cofidis Belgian Cup A blitz of a first leg result means that we reach the final of the Cofidis Cup at the first time of asking in my managerial career. We'll face KV Mechelen, and it's a match we should win. Would be great to pick up the trophy, and make it a wonderful double for the season. Europa League We won through to the quarter finals thanks to a very professional 1-0 win at home against Spartak Moscow, but unfortunately Betis were just a step too far for us. It didn't look like it after the first leg though - we won 4-2 in what was a pulsating encounter. We would travel to Spain knowing we had a two goal advantage to protect. They had two away goals, and we would need to be careful, but I was confident. As you can see, I shouldn't have been. They absolutely tore us to shreds on a balmy night in Betis. THere were times in the game where we looked like we might get back into it, but realistically they were untouchable. It just wasn't meant to be, as we had the considerable incentive of the possibility of a semi-final clash with Dundee if we won. They had beaten Bayern Munich 3-1 in the first leg of their quarter final, but in the end they underwent the same humbling massacre in the second, Bayern winning that one 4-1. There's always next year. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
forameuss Posted March 19, 2013 Author Share Posted March 19, 2013 Cofidis Cup Final Standard vs KV Mechelen Road to the Final Standard KV Mechelen The Match Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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