Jump to content

There and Back Again. A Football Manager's tale by SRL88


SRL88

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 2k
  • Created
  • Last Reply
I don't think it would be worth a move myself.
You're not that far from Pompey and with a much more interesting team. I'd stay with Birmingham!
If they pay you much more than Birmingham, go. Otherwise, stay.
Not the most enticing offer, although they are four whole points better off than you!

I'd probably stay.

I have followed your opinions and will stay.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Doing quite well with Birmingham,was the correct decision to reject Portsmouth.

Yeah I think so :).

I think Portsmouth job would be a interesting challenge with the finances state they are in :thup: But good to see you staying.

Things arent the same there now. They only have around £3m debt and the transfer budget on offer was nice. Have to think, I am a fair few season's in.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Birmingham-City-Football-Club_zps11aeb3ae.png

SRL88's Career - November 2018 - Birmingham City

Championship

BirminghamCity_FixturesSchedule_zps54163195.png

npowerFootballLeagueChampionship_OverviewStages_zps43456e53.png

An action packed month but one I am quite pleased with because we had a lot of tough fixtures. The month kicked off with a solid win over Notts County. We put in an brilliant performance away to Wolves and took the lead very early on. Although they levelled things in the second half we were by far the better team and could have easily won it, but an injury time goal defeated us. A solid draw at home to Portsmouth was followed up with a good win over Sheffield United. We then faced two tough away days, the first at Middlesbrough saw another solid draw before another draw on the south coast. We were trailing 1-0 but an

was enough for a draw. We weren't at our best against Watford and fell to a 2-1 defeat.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Your above Villa which is what I think most Birmingham fans would be concerned with!Been a good start to the season for your first season back in the Championship.Also seems like FM13 doesn't like Sunderland much :lol:

Link to post
Share on other sites

Not bad form considering the number of games you're playing, always tough with a small squad.

Pity you didn't stuff Portsmouth though :p

Cheers fella. Like you say, it was a good month for the number of games we played, and we have been struggling with injuries too.

Solid midtable and above Aston Villa, think it's been so far a good enough season back in the Championship to please the fans.

Cheers fella :thup:.

Agree, better to stay in Brum than move to Pompey. Looks like you would have had to dump players to get under the wage budget.

I will probably have to do the same here if I want to strengthen in January :D.

Your above Villa which is what I think most Birmingham fans would be concerned with!Been a good start to the season for your first season back in the Championship.Also seems like FM13 doesn't like Sunderland much :lol:

Haha it probably is to be fair :p.

I have noticed that Sunderland seem to be struggling on a few people's saves.

Not good month :( But what a awesome strike by McLaughlin :eek:

It was a good month to be honest. The only poor performance was against Watford and we had a lot of tough games so I am pleased.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Birmingham-City-Football-Club_zps11aeb3ae.png

SRL88's Career - December 2018 - Birmingham City

Championship

BirminghamCity_FixturesSchedule_zps628f08b1.png

npowerFootballLeagueChampionship_OverviewStages_zpsfa982628.png

Another month littered with fixtures, but one I am pleased with how we came through. We were poor against Derby in our only disappointing performance over the Christmas month and deservidly fell to a 2-0 defeat. We bounced back however with a tough game against Sunderland and we battled our way to a 2-1 win with Connor Wickham scoring the winner on the brink of half time. My 300th game in management saw us dominate Tranmere but fail to find the back of the net in a draw. This was followed up with an excellent performance away to Leicester and much like the performance away to Wolves we were undone by an injury time goal to beat us. An excellent performance followed as we smashed Millwall for four before a hard fought 2-0 win over Scunthorpe. We rounded the year off with a solid performance in Cardiff where we did more than enough for the win, but had to settle for a draw.

Link to post
Share on other sites

So they're good, the question that remains is - how good?

The right wing back is very good, certainly attacking wise. The left back is ok but will be a good asset to the squad.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Birmingham-City-Football-Club_zps11aeb3ae.png

SRL88's Career - January 2019 - Birmingham City

Championship

BirminghamCity_FixturesSchedule_zps3f652cba.png

npowerFootballLeagueChampionship_OverviewStages_zps2f7eb255.png

This was a pretty solid month on reflection. The new year got off to the worst possible start as we were battered at home to Peterborough, but they were a class above us. They played some lovely stuff and ripped us apart so all the credit has to go to them for that. We followed this up with a blinder of a game at the DW Stadium. In what was a topsy-turvey game, two quickfire goals in the final 20 minutes were enough for us to grab a 4-3 win. The month rounded off with a solid 1-0 win at home to West Ham in a very tight game.

FA Cup 3rd & 4th Rounds

BirminghamCity_FixturesSchedule-2_zpsfe1bf986.png

Two solid wins for us. The 3rd Round saw us knock West Ham out. 2-1 is probably flattering for them as we were by far the better team and should have won by more. This win set up a trip to Premiership side Reading as we caused a shock in claiming a massive 1-0 win. We were brilliant on the day and in the end it was a single goal which was enough for the win.

The 5th Round see's us travel to Premier League, and fellow Midlands side West Brom.

Transfers - In

Houssem Ben Belgacem - Loan - Sent to us on loan by Lyon. He is a solid player who adds another option to the squad.

Isidore Kudimbana - Loan - The second player sent to us by Lyon. He looks to be a very good attacking wing back who will slot perfectly into our system.

Dorian Carre - Loan - A player I went for to take the burden off Connor Wickham and George Green.

Transfers - Out

A few departures during the month. I allowed Louis Black to leave on loan to gain first team experience and match fitness as he has been struggling with injuries this season. The main departures were that of David Goodwillie who was sitting in the squad not doing much and rarely playing so I was happy to get his near £3k per week off the wage bill, and Tomislav Gomelt. He has been injured all season and with us changing formation to include wing backs and not wingers, he doesn't fit into the system anymore. I was pleased to get £50k for him with his contract expiring. That was also the reason I allowed Marco Pita to leave. Although a good player, and only signed in the summer, he doesn't fit into the new system so I felt it was best to allow him to get some football elsewhere.

Link to post
Share on other sites

The 5th Round see's us travel to Premier League, and fellow Midlands side West Brom.
A bit of a French (loan) revolution happening at Brum? Good month that, especially with the FA Cup run. Who do you have next?

Just saying that I did mention it :brock:.

It is nice having a French side as your parent club. Not only are they good players, but there are no limitations as to how many you can have in your matchday squad :D.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Birmingham-City-Football-Club_zps11aeb3ae.png

SRL88's Career - February 2019 - Birmingham City

Championship

BirminghamCity_FixturesSchedule_zps8b38e065.png

npowerFootballLeagueChampionship_OverviewStages_zpsef2f056e.png

A bit of a frustrating month to be honest. Two draws kicked February off but we were completely dominant in both games and really should have won. A tough game against Northampton followed who frustrated us for the most part, but we managed to grab the only goal of the game which gave us all three points. A poor first half against Hull cost us as we found ourselves 2-0 down at the interval. We played much better in the second half but it wasn't enough. We pulled a goal back late on but couldn't find a second. The month rounded off with a cracking tie against our bitter rivals. We flew out the blocks which was the main reason for victory. George Green grabbed two excellent goals which were added further to by Connor Wickham. We took a 3-0 lead into the break but Villa came back in the second half, grabbing two goals but we managed to hang on for a 3-2 win

FA Cup 5th Round

BirminghamCity_FixturesSchedule-2_zpsb67fddeb.png

There isnt much more I can say other than wow!!! We put in a truely magical performance against the Premiership side and just ripped them apart. We were on fire for the whole 90 minutes. Three second half goals were what sealed the game, but we were more than enough for victory, hammering them 4-0.

This excellent win see's us continue our brilliant run in the FA Cup, and now see's us face Premier League giant's Manchester City at St.Andrews in the Quater-Final.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Birmingham-City-Football-Club_zps11aeb3ae.png

SRL88's Career - March 2019 - Birmingham City

Championship

BirminghamCity_FixturesSchedule-3_zps6f2cc243.png

npowerFootballLeagueChampionship_OverviewStages-2_zps3228dc1f.png

There isnt to much room for complaint to be honest. The month kicked off with a pretty hard fought win over struggling Charlton, but in the end we got the job done. A fantastic performance away to Notts County followed as we breezed past them 3-0. The result against Portsmouth was solely down to poor defending from set pieces as all three goals came from corners. Other than that, it was an even game. A solid performance at home to table toppers Wolves rounded off the month as we ended with a solid point.

FA Cup Quater-Final

BirminghamCity_FixturesSchedule-4_zps26f4b139.png

I am really pleased with how the tie went. City were the better team no doubt, but that was expected. We more than held our own though and put City under some serious pressure and had some good chances. In the end though, I am pleased with a draw and it means we have a money spinning replay at Eastlands.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Still a pleasing season and you have a lot in place for a push next season.Also a good result against City and you should get more money from the replay!

Definitely. This has been a very positive season for the club. The FA Cup replay brought around £900k in for the club too.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Birmingham-City-Football-Club_zps11aeb3ae.png

SRL88's Career - April 2019 - Birmingham City

Championship

BirminghamCity_FixturesSchedule_zps818c33a7.png

npowerFootballLeagueChampionship_OverviewStages_zps66a68bf9.png

Excellent, just truely excellent. A brillaint month at just the right time. The month kicked off with a tricky trip to Sheffield and we put in a professional performance to control proceedings. Despite taking the lead, Sheffield United pegged us back thanks to a comical own-goal. Just before half time however, Craig Gardner powered the ball home and we managed to see the second half out for a massive three points. We followed this up with another hard fought three points at home to Middlesbrough. Another three points came with our second 1-0 win in a row at home to Brighton before a tough trip to Watford where we managed to hold firm for a big point. A majestic performance at the Stadium of Light followed with us knocking Sunderland for six in a 6-0 route. The month rounded off with a vital 2-1 win at home to Derby as we took the push for the play-off's all the way down to the wire.

FA Cup Quater-Final Replay

BirminghamCity_FixturesSchedule-2_zps2061091d.png

As expected really, but we gave it a good go. City controlled the first half and led 2-0, but we pulled one back with 20 minutes to go to make things interesting. As we were pushing for a second in the final 10 minutes, City picked us off on the counter to score a thrid and added another late on to seal the game.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Birmingham-City-Football-Club_zps11aeb3ae.png

SRL88's Career - May 2019 - Birmingham City

Championship

BirminghamCity_FixturesSchedule_zps6c808765.png

npowerFootballLeagueChampionship_OverviewStages_zps0b053dac.png

Just the one game obviously and we held our nerve as results elsewhere went our way for us to book our play-off spot in our first season back in the Championship. We were nervy which wasnt surprising at all, but we managed to battle on and two goals were enough to give us the win.

Results Elsewhere

Huddersfield 5-5 Wolves

Hull 2-4 Charlton

Peterborough 0-3 Sheffield United

West Ham 3-0 Portsmouth

Leicester 2-1 Derby

Play-Off Draw

npowerFootballLeagueChampionship_OverviewStages-2_zpsf72ac1b0.png

Link to post
Share on other sites

npower-championship_zps270e869c.jpg

Play-Off Final

BirminghamvPortsmouth_PitchSplit_zps0b69244c.png

Yesssssssss!!!!

What an unbelievable achievement for the club. Our first season back at this level and we have been promoted back to the Premiership. I really couldn't have asked for more.

We dominated the game and Portsmouth just didn't turn up. Birmingham boy Craig Gardner gave us the lead just past the half hour mark and from there we didn't look back. Connor Wickham added a second for us on the brink of half time to send us in at the break in complete control. Just 5 minutes into the second half we added a third and that killed the game off as a contest. We saw the rest of the game off comfortably to ensure promotion.

StevenLongstaff_NewsInbox_zpsc01d4fa1.png

StevenLongstaff_NewsInbox-2_zpsc9f4d3ad.png

StevenLongstaff_NewsInbox-3_zps90c7f6db.png

Link to post
Share on other sites

Awesome thread so far - it's been a very pleasant morning reading through it. Best of luck in the playoffs and hope you show Pompey what they missed :D

Cheers dude :).

As you can see, things went pretty well :thup:.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...