My Greatest Challenge: Knocking Fergie Right Off His ****ing Perch. And You Can Print That

[AK22]

Congrats on winning promotion

Congratulations on promotion

Good job AK22.

Now all the best playing Galatasaray, Fenerbahce et al.

Thanks chaps! Next season should be interesting, although I'm reasonably optimistic that we won't struggle too badly.

[P O\'D]

Well done mate, How many turkish promotions and titles has Fergie? 4290 is only a small gap.

[Alkkari]

Congrats on the first title!

[AK22]

Şanlıurfa Spor Kulübü - Pre-Season 2019/20

Going into our first season in the top flight, I'm feeling quite optimistic about our chances of staying up; not that this is shared across the footballing fraternity, mind, with the media predicting us to finish 16th and the bookies making us extreme long shots for the title (2000-1). In fact, even my own board aren't giving us much chance, with them just hoping for us to avoid relegation; this means, for the season ahead, a transfer budget of £1.9m and a wage budget of £78.43k per week. That said, they're obviously happy for me to stick around for a while yet, as they've just offered me a new three year deal (which I've accepted), upping my wages to £4k per week. That's my highest weekly wage so far!

I've decided that I'll continue with my 4-5-1 formation in the new division, although we'll probably need to change to a more counter attacking mentality at times, especially when playing the likes of Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe. However, asides from maybe four or five other teams, I really do think we'll be able to take points off the other sides in this league, and exceed everyone's low expectations; there's really not much difference between a lower Super Lig club, and an upper 1. Lig side.

The restrictions are slightly different in the Super Lig; it's still only five non-Turkish foreigners in the match-day 18, but I can now have up to eight in the squad. This does give me slightly more room to manoeuvre, but still, I've had to focus on signing as many Turks as possible. Mostly, I'll be sticking with the players who got us here, although I'm expecting the new signings of Kraljevic and Pierazzi to give us some quality through the centre of our team; I'm thinking that keeping the side as settled as possible is the best approach for our first season in the top tier.

Sasa Kraljevic - Our big money signing, who I hope has brought his shooting boots from Croatia with him! Should be a handful for many defences.

Jean-Baptiste Pierazzi - Will be a quality holding midfielder, who should protect the back four nicely.

Eddie Bouvier - A winger with great pace, if little else.

Dusko Tosic - Starting to age, but still should provide decent cover at the back.

[AK22]

Well done mate' date=' How many turkish promotions and titles has Fergie? 4290 is only a small gap.[/quote']

Cheers! I like your optimism

And yes, it's a fact, I'm a better manager in Turkey than SAF

Congrats on the first title!

Thanks Alkkari

[cerud]

Great promotion! Bouvier looks like he could be quality.

[AK22]

Şanlıurfa Spor Kulübü - August 2019

What a start! And what a debut from Sasa Kraljevic too, announcing himself to Turkish football with a terrific hat-trick in our opening day win over Gaziantepspor! Then to follow this up with a stunning victory away to Besiktas, was beyond my wildest dreams; a totally mindblowing performance against one of the best teams in the country. We also gave defending champions, Fenerbahçe, a huge scare too, with them needing a late goal to take the points; even I didn't think we would start this well!

Two wins out of three, and we're already sitting in a Champions League place! I know it won't last for long, so I'm going to enjoy it while I can.

Next Time

* We'll play another one of the big guns, with a trip to Istanbul to play Galatasaray. I'll be hoping to make a dent in their 100% record!

[AK22]

Well done on that silverware.

Great promotion! Bouvier looks like he could be quality.

Thanks Bouvier's not an automatic starter, but should still see plenty of game-time over the course of the season.

[AK22]

Şanlıurfa Spor Kulübü - September 2019

Time for a reality check! Kraljevic may have continued the electric start to his career in Turkey, adding four more goals this month, but it's the overall team results that really matter, and at times, we've fallen a little bit short. Four points is a fair return, I suppose, but I would have liked to have seen a bit more spirit against Kayserispor, where we were never at the races.

Fenerbahçe are still leading the way, but it's all quite tight in the top half, with many teams all within striking distance. Looking down the table, I'm surprised to see Besiktas only one point outside of the relegation zone, after a poor start that's included just the solitary victory, as well as Trabzonspor only one place off the bottom; these two sides should be doing a lot better than they are!

Next Time

* I'll be looking to keep Kraljevic in the goals, as well as trying to pick up some victories in the four league games we'll play. One of the fixtures we'll contest will be at home to Akhisar, the side we pipped to the 1. Lig championship last season; I'm sure they'll be looking for some revenge!

[DazRTaylor]

A solid start and a cracking way to return to form after three successive defeats.

[JackJCFC]

Good start to the season, scoring plenty.

[DazRTaylor]

Just noticed how awful the starts are by both Trabzonspor and Besiktas. Has the Turkish league become more competitive in recent years in your save AK?

[cerud]

While the last month may have been a reality check, it's still a great start for a newly promoted club

[deltablue]

Not a bad Super League debut so far.

[CarltonBanks]

Great stuff in Turkey so far! Already have 3 more wins in the Turkish top level than Fergie!

[SRL88]

Cracking work so far in Turkey.

[AK22]

Şanlıurfa Spor Kulübü - October 2019

What a bizarre month this has been! Chalk and cheese! Never did it cross my mind that we would win a game 7-0 this season, let alone do it away to a team sitting second in the Süper Lig table! The result against Mersin ranks up as the best performance I've seen on FM13 so far; it was the perfect team display, with every attack looking as if it would result in another goal. Of course, the rest of the month has been a bit of a disaster, with three more defeats, but even still, that game will live in my memory for a long time to come!

Kraljevic now has thirteen goals, and is leading the Süper Lig's goal-scoring chart; what a signing he's been! If only we could tighten up at the back, then we'd really be laughing. Talking of laughing, I'm delighted to have single-handedly destroyed Mersin's goal difference as a result of our epic victory!

Next Time

* We'll kick-off our Turkish Cup effort, with a tricky trip to Kassimpasa. In addition to this, we have a big league fixture against Adana, another of the sides promoted with us last season; they're doing really well, so I'm not expecting an easy ride.

[AK22]

A solid start and a cracking way to return to form after three successive defeats.

Good start to the season, scoring plenty.

Cheers guys! And another nine goals this month too

Just noticed how awful the starts are by both Trabzonspor and Besiktas. Has the Turkish league become more competitive in recent years in your save AK?

Not really. Fenerbahçe and Galatasaray are still the big guns, and have won all the league titles in the save so far. Besiktas have always been up there too, so it's really surprising to see them languishing near the bottom. It's definitely only a blip, as they really are too good to be fighting relegation, and will probably finish in the top five come the end of the season.

While the last month may have been a reality check, it's still a great start for a newly promoted club

Not a bad Super League debut so far.

Great stuff in Turkey so far! Already have 3 more wins in the Turkish top level than Fergie!

Cracking work so far in Turkey.

Thanks all. It's been a bit of a mixed bag this season, so far, but we're still on course to stay clear of the drop, and that's all that matters. Of course, I'd take a few more 7-0 wins if they come our way

[B.W.G]

Very good debut season in the Süper Lig so far.

[AK22]

Şanlıurfa Spor Kulübü - November 2019

Mmm, despite some obvious positives so far, it's apparent we need to buck up our ideas a bit now; two wins in eleven is relegation form, so we definitely need to turn the tide. To make matters worse, we've lost Kraljevic to injury, who's done his calf muscle and won't be back until well into the new year; it's time for others to step-up, and take on the goalscoring mantle, although we're really struggling in this department right now, and may need to sign someone in the winter transfer window.

And we're really sliding down the table now too, with the relegation zone only two places, and three points, below us. That said, if we can get out of this rut and stack racking up a few wins again, we can quite easily establish ourselves as a mid-table side. Fenerbahçe are still leading the way at the top, having now opened up a seven point advantage. And they've only conceded three goals so far, too! Tight!

Next Time

* We must return to winning ways in December. No excuses. Unfortunately, none of the fixtures we'll play are what I would call 'bankers', but I'm hoping we can at least win one of our home matches (against Orduspor and Kasimpasa).

[AK22]

Very good debut season in the Süper Lig so far.

Not doing so well now, though

[AK22]

Şanlıurfa Spor Kulübü - December 2019

That's better, an unbeaten month! Since Kraljevic picked up his injury, I've reinstated Sylvestr as the spearhead of our attack, and after taking a couple of games to find his feet again, he's come up trumps again over recent matches; it's good to see that last year's hero still has that eye for goal. The rest of the team have really upped their game too, and although we could count ourselves lucky to pick up a point against Orduspor, the three following victories were extremely well deserved.

We're back moving in the right direction again now, and actually go into the winter break nestled in the top half of the Süper Lig table, just two points behind a revitalised Besiktas. If we're still in the same position come June, I'll be absolutely ecstatic!

Next Time

* Not much happens in Turkey in January, with us only scheduled to play the two league fixtures. I may delve into the transfer market when the window opens, but with little money to spend, it would really need to offer exceptional value for me to do so; I am after another striker, though, so I could be persuaded if the deal is right.

[AcidBurn]

Good to see you win a few in a row, hopefully it'll boost morale and help you push on a bit.

[Nobby_McDonald]

Doing a very good well giving out some stuffings.

[snootyjim]

Just caught up with this - top stuff! Was a bit concerned after your November update - very easy to get lulled into a false sense of security in a new league, but looks like you're back on track.

[noikeee]

Beating Besiktas away was a cracking way to announce yourself to the Süper Lig! It went steeply downhill after that, but the December points were a huge boost and you now should be more than safe thanks to those results alone.

[JackJCFC]

Good start in the Super Lig, might even be able to make europe with a good run of form.

[B.W.G]

Very good run of form,hopefully you can keep it continuing and that you can find the right players in the transfer market to help your squad.

[john1]

Cracking start to the season Hope you get decent finish.

[AK22]

Şanlıurfa Spor Kulübü - January 2020

As I said earlier, nothing really happens in Turkey in January. That said, beating Besiktas again was a pretty special moment for everyone at the club; that's the double, this season, we've done over the third best team in the country.

Despite the board donating £850k to my transfer fund, I was unable to attract any suitable candidates to the club in the January window, and will now have to make do until the summer; we should be ok, though, as unless we have a terrible few months, we should have enough in the current ranks to see us through the remainder of the season. And Kraljevic is back in a couple of weeks too, so he'll be like a new signing, anyway.

That win over Besiktas has now consolidated us above them in the table, and well out of the way of danger; we're nine points clear of the relegation zone, and have some clear breathing space to operate in.

Next Time

* We'll host the two biggest names in Turkish football, Galatasaray and Fenerbahçe, next month, which should see us accumulate our biggest attendance since my arrival; I'm expecting two full houses, in addition to the financial benefits that such games bring.

[AK22]

Good to see you win a few in a row, hopefully it'll boost morale and help you push on a bit.

Doing a very good well giving out some stuffings.

Just caught up with this - top stuff! Was a bit concerned after your November update - very easy to get lulled into a false sense of security in a new league, but looks like you're back on track.

Thanks chaps! All is looking rosy again; if we can finish in the top half, I'd be thrilled.

Beating Besiktas away was a cracking way to announce yourself to the Süper Lig! It went steeply downhill after that, but the December points were a huge boost and you now should be more than safe thanks to those results alone.

Good start in the Super Lig, might even be able to make europe with a good run of form.

Cheers! Europe is probably unlikely, though, as it's the top five only that qualify. I know we're still in contention now, but I'm not convinced we'll be anywhere near there come May.

Very good run of form,hopefully you can keep it continuing and that you can find the right players in the transfer market to help your squad.

Cracking start to the season Hope you get decent finish.

Thanks! No new signings, I'm afraid; everyone too expensive or too old

[AK22]

Şanlıurfa Spor Kulübü - February 2020

That's right baby, we've only gone and beaten Galatarasay! And it was well deserved too. We were actually 0-1 down before Kraljevic announced his return to the first team with a well-timed equaliser; following this was a spectacular second half display, which culminated with three goals in the last sixteen minutes of the game. I'm not ashamed to say I did a little dance!

Having Kraljevic back is huge relief, and should guarantee us a decent goals return from the remaining fixtures; whether that will be enough to see us push for a European spot is yet to be seen, but I'm feeling reasonably confident that we'll hold on for a top half finish at least.

Next Time

* Next month, we'll play five league games, including the return fixture against Mersin. Now, I'm not saying we'll win 7-0 again, but I'm not ruling it out completely!

[P O\'D]

flying now and 3rd is not out of reach

[AK22]

Şanlıurfa Spor Kulübü - March 2020

Everyone loves a draw, right? It's been a strange month, where at times we've played extremely well, and probably deserved more than a point, whereas in other matches, we've been thoroughly outclassed and been lucky to finish on even terms; I would have no arguments if we had won two and lost three (and we'd be a point better off). My main concern is that the goals have dried up again; we've lost topscorer, Kraljevic, to injury again, so it's no coincidence that we're struggling to find the net. He's out for the rest of the season, so it will have to be Plan B for the remaining games (I'm not sure what Plan B is yet, though!!).

Any ambitions we had regarding European qualification have seriously fallen by the wayside this month, as we now only have the six games remaining to close the gap on the top five. I know it's only five points, but it's still probably too much of an advantage. But at least we're nearly mathematically safe from relegation, and that was the main aim for the season.

Next Time

* I'll be hoping to end the run of draws! Hopefully, we'll score a few more goals too! Of course, this will be reliant on me finding someone to fill Kraljevic's boot for the last couple of months; no easy task!

We've also had a bit of good news from the chairman...

[AK22]

flying now and 3rd is not out of reach

I appreciate your optimism! Although, it may be slightly missed-place!

[AK22]

Şanlıurfa Spor Kulübü - April 2020

A sixth draw in a row! That's how we roll Thankfully, we then went and comfortably beat Bursapor to bring the run to an end. I'm also pleased to see that we're back in the goals again, with Haugen and Karaman, from the centre of our midfield, making late penetrating runs into the box and finding themselves with the ball at their feet at the right time.

Of course, I can't say I was pleased to concede five against Orduspor, especially as they've now gone above us in the table, but with the season nearly over, I'm not surprised that my defenders are starting to run out of steam; the back four have played virtually every game this season so far, without rest, so they're bound to be a bit cream-crackered now.

Next Time

* The Süper Lig season will come to an end, and we'll be looking to take as many points as we can and finish as high up the table as possible; we've got to play Istanbul BBSK, Kasimpasa and Göztepe, so I reckon we've got a good chance of a couple of wins there.

[ollie laaaaaaaad]

Going brilliant AK, fantastic 1st season in the super league

[deltablue]

Looking like great progress made in Turkey.

[B.W.G]

Very good first season in Süper Lig.Congrats on staying up

[Paolo Willenté]

Good to see you doing well somewhere a bit different. KUTGW!

[AK22]

Şanlıurfa Spor Kulübü - May 2020

We did start to run out of steam over the last couple of games, but I'm still pleased enough to pick up four points from the month. Goals have been a bit of a struggle, still, so we'll need to do a bit of business of the summer to try and strengthen the strike-force; in particular, we need to find a suitable deputy for Kraljevic, who is sorely missed when injured.

On balance, an eighth place finish is a terrific result for us, and a lot higher than we could have hoped for at the start of the year. My initial gut feeling was that we would be too good to go down, which was correct, but I was expecting to be more a mid-to-lower table side, rather than one finishing just two points off Europa League qualification (and just the one behind Besiktas!). European qualification would have been great, but probably would have crucified my small squad; better to have another side of building before dipping our toes into Europa League action, me thinks.

End of Season Summary 2019/20

It's been a thoroughly enjoyable first season in the top tier with plenty of highlights. For me, the 7-0 thrashing of Mersin sticks out the most, but the 4-1 victory over Galatasaray, as well as the double over Besiktas, deserve a mention too; next year will have to go some to beat this!

Finances are still extremely stable, with the club making a small profit over the course of the season, but we're nowhere near capable of matching the clout of some of the big boys. In fact, we had the second lowest wage bill, so this makes our top half finish even more impressive.

Süper Lig - 8th

Türkiye Kupasi - 2nd Qualifying Round (lost to Kasimpasa)

Finances | Transfer Summary

Topscorer - Sasa Kraljevic (17 goals)

Most Assists - Akif Aydogdu/ Tonia Tisdell (6 assists)

Highest Average Rating - Sasa Kraljevic (7.32)

Fans Player of the Year - Sasa Kraljevic

The first choice XI is easily good enough to maintain us as a midtable team, but the rest of the playing squad are, at most, average 1. Lig players. Due to this, when injuries strike, we struggle big time, especially on the goal-scoring front, so I'll be looking to bring in at least half a dozen new faces over the summer, all of which are good enough to act as solid rotational players at this level.

[P O\'D]

good season. Top half is a good finish.

[AK22]

The board are pleased! I'm going to frame this! They even mentioned the word 'fantastic'! Of course, they've also used phrases which have included 'adequate' and 'acceptable', so I shan't get too far ahead of myself.

There's no further trophies this season, so, unfortunately, my Hall of Fame points do not increase...

... so Fergie's pretty happy! (Nice hat )

Season     Team              League                     Finish    Cups                             
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2013       FK Vidar          Oddsenligaen Avdeling 3    4th       Cupen 1st Round
2014       FK Vidar          Oddsenligaen Avdeling 3    2nd       Cupen 2nd Round
2014/15    Taranto FC 1927   2nd Divisione Girone A     4th       N/A
2015/16    Taranto FC 1927   1st Divisione Girone B     6th       TIM Cup 1st QR, Coppa Italia Lega Pro SF
2016/17    Taranto FC 1927   1st Divisione Girone B     4th       TIM Cup 1st QR, Coppa Italia Lega Pro 2nd Round
2017/18    Taranto FC 1927   1st Divisione Girone B     N/A*      * Resigned 14/12/17
          Tigre             Primera B Nacional         11th      Sacked 26/05/18
2018/19    S. Urfaspor       1. Lig                     1st       Türkiye Kupasi 2nd QR
2019/20    S. Urfaspor       Süper Lig                  8th       Türkiye Kupasi 2nd QR

[AK22]

Going brilliant AK, fantastic 1st season in the super league

Looking like great progress made in Turkey.

Very good first season in Süper Lig.Congrats on staying up

Good to see you doing well somewhere a bit different. KUTGW!

good season. Top half is a good finish.

Thanks all. I'm delighted with how the season panned out in the end; even with a couple of dodgy periods, we've still done exceptionally well to finish in the top half.

[AK22]

Şanlıurfa Spor Kulübü - Pre-Season 2020/21

By finishing 8th last year, we majorly overachieved, even though no-one could argue that we didn't deserve it. For this season, the board expect us to achieve a mid-table finish, which I feel is spot on the money for where we'll be; the media predict a 12th place finish, and that's sound about right to me. Of course, there is the potential to do a bit better, and if you fancy a flutter, we're 150-1 to win the league (that's dropped a lot from last year, when we were 2000-1), but realistically we're looking at a season of consolidation.

If we are going to have a successful season, it will be key to take points off all the other mid-table teams. I know we did well against the likes of Galatasaray and Besiktas last year, but they are bonus results, so shouldn't bank on these going forward; at times, last year, we dropped too many careless points against teams lower in the table than us, so this is something to improve on this season.

I feel we've had a great summer in the transfer market, making big improvements to the playing squad, and should be able to cope with the vigour of Turkish Süper Lig football a lot better this time around. We may have only spent less than quarter of million pounds, but we've still managed to unearth some gems who will all help to consolidate us in this league.

Kaan Ayhan - Solid defensive midfielder, who will come straight into the first eleven.

Mustafa Gonca - Brought in to deputise for Kraljevic, when needed. He's Turkish, too, which is a bonus.

Firat Aras - A beanpole of a striker, who will be our 'Plan B' when we need to just hoof it forward.

Sener Yildirim - Another young Turkish talent.

Damián Martínez - Perhaps the signing of the summer; a top class 'keeper.

Zhou Feng - It's nice to have some international quality in the squad, even if it's just a China international!

[AK22]

Şanlıurfa Spor Kulübü - September 2020

It's been a terrific few weeks for the club, with us winning our opening four matches, and remaining unbeaten for the first six. In all honesty, we were very lucky to take all three points against Gaziantepspor, needing two late own goals to seal the victory, but following that, we've been full value for the results we've secured. You'll also notice that Kraljevic is yet to open his account for the season, so I'm delighted to see us still picking up the wins without his goals; we're no longer a one-man team!!

Take a picture of this, now! Top of the table Of course, there's still a very long season ahead of us, and we haven't played any of the big three yet, but it's good to see us leading the pack.

Next Time

* I'll be looking to keep our good run going in the three league fixtures we'll play in October. The improvements to the training and youth facilities should be complete by then, too.

[JackJCFC]

Wow, great start to the season so far!

[deltablue]

Good signings and a fantastic start!

[Rikulec]

I've just read this whole thread which looks like a fantastic career, I hope you'll achieve your aim!

[DazRTaylor]

Great start mate. KUTGW!