Mike7077 Posted December 22, 2012 Author Share Posted December 22, 2012 SEASON 2013 - JULY I messed up and accidentally played the first game of August, which means I'll include that game in July's update. The league table will actually be for after the first game of August rather than the end of July. This Month's Fixtures The team played one fixture this month before my arrival, a 2-0 home defeat to the league leaders. I really want to hit the ground running and believe that the rest of July offers points if we're up for it. This could actually be a crucial month. A few defeats and we'll be mired in a relegation battle. A few wins and we can start to look up and think about a play-off challenge. The league is tight and we wouldn't do ourselves any harm by making a good start to my tenure here. This Month's Results Sunday July 14th, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Tingvalla IP, Karlstad Karlstad BK 0-2 Hammarby Fotboll Struggling Karlstad held little threat as I made my managerial debut. The most frustrating thing was that we dominated from start to finished, peppered their goal with shots, hit the woodwork four times, and only won 2-0. I always felt like there was the possibility of being hurt on the break if weren't more clinical. As it happened, Karlstad had nothing to offer and we come away with a straightforward win. Losing three players to injury is a blow, though. att: 1,085 --------------- Sunday July 21st, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 0-0 Ljungskile SK I really expected us to win at home against the struggling part-timers of Ljungskile. And we really should have won. As with the Karlstad game, we created chances, but simply couldn't put them away. It's really not acceptable that we didn't win this and I'm left feeling very frustrated. That said, my personal unbeaten run now stretched all the way back to 18th May when my Frej side lost 1-0 to Eskilstuna. att: 7,092 --------------- Sunday July 28th, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 3-1 Degerfors IF A much more clinical display here. But that shouldn't be allowed to mask some deep flaws in our performance. We cruised into a 2-0 lead, but it's a feature of my sides that we slacken off at 2-0 and end up putting it in jeopardy. Degerfors hit back before half-time and spent much of the second half pressuring for an equaliser until we broke away and scored to make it 3-1. I was happy with how dangerous we finally looked in the final third, but we allowed them to have too much of the ball in the midfield. Plenty to work on. att: 7,132 --------------- Robin Palacios is a young Swedish midfielder who arrives from AIK. He was on loan at Frej last season and I liked the look of him, so I'll take a punt and see how he works out. An injury crisis means he'll probably start the next game, which I'd prefer him not to have to do. --------------- Sunday August 4th, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Stadsparksvallen, Jönköping Jönköpings Södra IF 3-2 Hammarby Fotboll Jönköping lie third in the table and have been playing well, and they completely outclassed us here. We've lost several key players to injury, and it showed. The scoreline suggests a tight, tense game, but it was never really so. Yes, he managed to hit back twice, but the better team won in the end. Despite the quality of the opposition, I was very disappointed with our performance. We just weren't at the races. att: 2,660 League Table Not a terrible start to life at my new club. Before the Jönköping defeat, we'd climbed to 6th and I was starting to get excited. But that defeat brought us back down to Earth and we've dropped back down to 8th. But it's really quite bunched up in the middle and a couple of wins could really boost our league position. I'd give us 6/10 for our start under me. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted December 22, 2012 Author Share Posted December 22, 2012 An interesting signing... His career has effectively been over for a while, but he's free, his wage demands are low and you never know, he might just add a little quality to our midfield. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AcidBurn Posted December 22, 2012 Share Posted December 22, 2012 Such is my negativity, the only thing I ever really strive to do is avoid the sack! I suppose in some ways that's the best way to look at any FM career. Any chance of a screenshot of the new players attributes? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted December 24, 2012 Author Share Posted December 24, 2012 I suppose in some ways that's the best way to look at any FM career. Any chance of a screenshot of the new players attributes? Seeing as you asked: In the case of Appiah, my assistant clearly thinks he's rubbish. I put that down to his fitness issues. I still think he looks a good player for the Swedish second tier. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
iHeadHunta x Posted December 24, 2012 Share Posted December 24, 2012 Nice layout! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted December 25, 2012 Author Share Posted December 25, 2012 Nice layout! Glad you like. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted December 25, 2012 Author Share Posted December 25, 2012 SEASON 2013 - AUGUST As mentioned previously, I'd already played the first game in August before getting screenshots of the final July table or the fixtures for August. So there is a game fewer in this update that there should be. This Month's Fixtures August should offer a decent points haul. While we've already suffered defeat to Jönköpings Södra, the other sides we face this month aren't pulling up any trees. It's especially interesting to note how much Halmstad are struggling. This is a side with continental pedigree. We also face a Swedish Cup tie away against a side flying high in their regional section of the division below. I'll rotate the squad for that, but I still expect a win. This Month's Results Sunday August 4th, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Stadsparksvallen, Jönköping Jönköpings Södra 3-2 Hammarby Fotboll see July update att: 2,660 --------------- Sunday August 11th, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 3-1 IK Brage Sometimes you have to dig out the result. Brage are clearly in a relegation battle, but they look to me to have plenty of fight in them. It took us until the 84th minute to get in front here. Brage actually took the lead after just nine minutes, and although I felt we controlled the game thereafter, I wasn't convinced we were showing enough to suggest we could turn it round. It looks like we probably do have more quality than the likes of Brage (as we should) and in the end it told. It does look like I have another Dragomir Draganov-type striker in Fredrik Jensen, by which I mean it looks like he will score goals pretty consistently. att: 7,821 --------------- NEW SIGNING: I've added another midfielder to the ranks. Young Algerian Abdelhakim Omrani arrives on a free transfer. I think he looks like a cracking player who could take the Swedish second tier by storm. This was a deal I simply had to make happen. --------------- Sunday August 18th, 2013 Swedish Cup: 2nd Round Malmö IP, Malmö IF Limhamn Bunkeflo 2007 0-4 Hammarby Fotboll The brilliantly-named Limhamn Bunkeflo are chasing promotion to our level of football, so I expected a tough fixture. I always think you need to rotate where possible, though. Even in a league with a smaller number of fixtures, a chance to rest players is crucial. The first half was pretty even - indeed, I'd say Limhamn shaded it. They looked like they wanted it more. I gave my players a rocket up their backsides at half-time and we duly outclassed them in the second half. It's very pleasing to progress so comfortably from a potential banana skin and we're into the next round. att: 642 --------------- Sunday August 21st, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 1-2 Halmstads BK Two own-goals in the first ten minutes set the tone for what was a disjointed, error-strewn game from both teams. That said, it was harsh on our 'keeper, who was deemed to have scored an own-goal after the ball thumped into his back after hitting the crossbar. Sadly for us, Halmstad have been on a decent run of late and appear to have their tails up. They're still miles off where they should be, but we never really looked like getting anything after they went back in front. We created a few chances and applied a bit of pressure, but this one of those games where you could just tell it wasn't going to happen for you. It didn't help that we were missing no fewer than three centre-back through injury and suspension, of course. On to the next one... att: 7,409 --------------- Sunday August 25th, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Landskrona IP, Landskrona Landskrona BoIS 0-2 Hammarby Fotboll A good response was so important here after the abject disappointment of the Halmstad match. Landskrona are part-timers and fighting to avoid the drop, so I always fancied us. But I would be the first to admit that, for 45 minutes, they were the better side. It took another of my patented half-time rollickings to get us going. The second half belonged to us as soon as new signing Omrani, making his first start for the club, slammed home a brilliant opener from 25 yards. att: 2,926 League Table Things really aren't going too badly. The club is already four places above where it was when I took over and we're responding well when we do lose. The board want us to finish in mid-table, and it does look like we should be able to do that. In terms of our performances, I'm not the happiest. We pass sloppily and look bereft of ideas when the opposition are in possession, whoever they happen to be. But we have goals in us, most of the time, and that's helping us. We're hitting the business end of the season now and I want us to try and build dome momentum to finish as high as we can. But it won't be easy. We still have fixtures against some of the strongest sides in the league to come. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted December 25, 2012 Share Posted December 25, 2012 Onwards and upwards in the table! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackJCFC Posted December 25, 2012 Share Posted December 25, 2012 Decent so far, 3rd place still do-able. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK22 Posted December 27, 2012 Share Posted December 27, 2012 Yeah, still in touching distance of third. It's a very good start! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AcidBurn Posted December 27, 2012 Share Posted December 27, 2012 Not far from third and Omrani looks like a very good signing. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 19, 2013 Author Share Posted January 19, 2013 SEASON 2013 - SEPTEMBER This Month's Fixtures The month really comes in two distinct stages this time out. We begin with three tough fixtures against sides near the top, all in good form. We follow that up with two matches against struggling sides. Anyone paying extremely close attention might remember that Akropolis win the First Division North last season while I was at Frej. They haven't done well that the higher level, so that is a game from which I really hope to take three points. I want at least four points from our first three games of the month, though. This Month's Results Sunday September 1st, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Nya Parken, Norrköping IFK Norrköping FK 0-3 Hammarby Fotboll A sensational away performance and result lifts us up one place and above today's opponents. It's extremely rare to cruise to an away win like this and to feel so comfortable for so much of the game. Norrköping had a little spell in the second half but didn't threaten us much and I always felt we would see it through. I don't think there can be too much of argument that I've made a decent impact since taking over. att: 4,691 --------------- Another new arrival Available on a free transfer, I saw no harm in adding Salim Kerkar to the squad. He looks a decent enough player and should be familiar to any Rangers fans following. He becomes the second Algerian to sign for me at Hammarby and although the squad is now probably a bit bigger than I'd like, he'll get a chance to show me what he can do. --------------- Sunday September 8th, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 1-2 GIF Sundsvall I anticipated a tough game against a team riding high, but it's still disappointing to be hit with a setback after a really good win in our previous match. We never really got going here and, if I'm honest, didn't look as if we knew how to take the initiative as the home side. In particular, we struggled against dead balls delivered into our box and it was no surprise that we lost the game to an own goal headed home from a free-kick. This game really showed up our weaknesses. att: 8,575 --------------- Sunday September 15th, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Södertälje Fotbollsarena, Södertälje Assyriska Föreningen 1-3 Hammarby Fotboll This was all about hat-trick hero Sinan Ayranci. The striker has generally played second fiddle to top scorer Fredrik Jensen, but he was on fire today. Assyriska are a good side and were third going into this, so it was fantastic to see us outclass them on their own patch. It's interesting to note how much better we look on the road than we do at home. It's also nice to respond to our home defeat by picking up a very tidy three points. att: 5,596 --------------- Sunday September 22nd, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 1-0 Akropolis IF Always the way, isn't it? You have your eye on the game against the side at the bottom that wins once every blue moon, and it turns into one of the hardest games of your season. Akropolis passed the ball better than we did, but had no cutting edge. What they did have was organisation. Every attack we launched seemed to break down when faced with two lines of white Akropolis shirts in the way. Abdelhakim Omrani's second goal since joining the club saw us home in the end, and up to fourth place. att: 8,936 --------------- Sunday September 29th, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Finnvedsvallen, Värnamo IFK Värnamo 0-1 Hammarby Fotboll And so we end the month with a fourth win out of five, which is not to be sniffed at. Värnamo are just above the relegation play-off zone, but they gave a good account of themselves. Again, I just felt we had a bit more quality, and it showed. I still think we could do more to trouble the opposition when they are in possession. At times we were a bit too accommodating and a better side might have hurt us, but in this case, the better side just about won. Dark horses for a promotion push..? att: 1,346 League Table You can't complain about a month like that one, really. Okay, we did suffer a home defeat, but four wins out of five never looks bad. We've gotten ourselves up into fourth with only a handful of games left to play. And not only that, we're right on the fringe of the promotion play-off spot. Just three points separate us from an automatic promotion place! Not bad considering the club was nowhere near the pace when I took over. I hope the board is happy with how I'm doing, because I certainly am! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 19, 2013 Author Share Posted January 19, 2013 Not far from third and Omrani looks like a very good signing. He's quickly established himself as first name on the teamsheet. Looks like he's going to be fantastic. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DazRTaylor Posted January 19, 2013 Share Posted January 19, 2013 All set for a nervous end to the season! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AcidBurn Posted January 19, 2013 Share Posted January 19, 2013 Should be an exciting end to the season, how do your fixtures compare to the teams above you? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 19, 2013 Author Share Posted January 19, 2013 All set for a nervous end to the season! With three games left, it looks like we'll outdo the board's demands when I took over, so I'm seeing this little promotion push as a bonus. Next season will probably be a more nervewracking one. I'm just enjoying this at the moment. Should be an exciting end to the season, how do your fixtures compare to the teams above you? Assyriska (2nd; 48pts) Falkenberg (3rd; 46pts) Hammarby (4th; 45pts) Sundsvall (1st; 52pts) It has transpired that all four sides have run-ins that look favourable. I would expect in-form leaders Sundsvall to win their games, while second place Assyriska also face three games you'd fancy them to win. That leaves ourselves and Falkenberg. They're the side in the worst form out of the four and have been leaking goals, surrending what looked like a comfortable lead at the top. That last game of the season between ourselves and them looks like it could be a big one! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AcidBurn Posted January 19, 2013 Share Posted January 19, 2013 That last game will be an interesting one, good luck. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 20, 2013 Author Share Posted January 20, 2013 SEASON 2013 - OCTOBER This Month's Fixtures Three big games, then. I'm thrilled that we face such a pivotal final month - when I took over we were nowhere near a promotion push. It's simple really - win all three games and we guarantee at least third place and a play-off against a side from the top flight. I certainly fancy us to win the first two games against a pair of also-rans, which makes our trip to Falkenberg on the final day look not just crucial, but decisive. Falkenberg are a small club getting vastly smaller crowds than the other sides up there, so they've already had a great season, but they were top for most of the season and have been sliding away only recently. I hope they're still showing that kind of form when we meet... This Month's Results Sunday October 6th, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Grimsta IP, Stockholm IF Brommapojkarna 2-1 Hammarby Fotboll What a galling way to start the month, defeated deservedly by a side who don't have anything special about them. I've only drawn once since taking over in July and once again, when not at our best, we fall to defeat. We pulled level through a late penalty but conceded a second straight away, which is hugely frustrating. But I don't begrudge Brommapojkarna their win. They were the better team. We've lost ground on the promotion places and the injuries and suspensions are mounting up. att: 6,305 --------------- Sunday October 13th, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 3-0 Örgryte IS This was just the response I was looking for. My Frej side had a habit of responding well to defeats and I think we also do that well at Hammarby. Today was all about Sinan Ayranci, the young striker who has really stepped up since I came in. His strike partner Fredrik Jensen isn't amongst the goals at the moment, but he teed up two goals and it was a devastating attacking display that could have resulted in an even bigger win. A word should also go to Abdelhakim Omrani, who scored his third goal since I brought him in in July, and what a goal it was! A beautiful turn and a great 25-yard strike demonstrating just how good he is. And we're now back in with a chance of promotion. It all comes down to what we can do next week... att: 9,016 --------------- Sunday October 20th, 2013 Swedish First Division Elite Falkenbergs IP, Falkenberg Falkenbergs FF 1-4 Hammarby Fotboll Assyriska's 5-1 win away at Degerfors means we miss out on the top two and automatic promotion, but we've sneaked into third and will face a play-off! I couldn't be happier about that. Falkenberg won 2-0 at our place in my second game in charge, but they look a different side now. They've been leaking goals and we took full advantage of their rapid decline. It didn't look like it would be going our way when they took the lead, though. But from then on, it was all Hammarby. We managed a whopping 28 shots, 12 of which were on target. Falkenberg could do nothing as we ripped them apart. Credit to them for having a very good season, but after being top for so long, they'll be gutted to end up in fifth. att: 1,504 League Table Now that we have a play-off to look forward to, the season isn't over, so a full season update is still to come. But October's league games followed a similar all-or-nothing pattern to September's. The defeat at Brommapojkarna left us with plenty to do and was just a huge disappointment. But we reacted by blowing two teams away and the manner of our win in the big one at Falkenberg was extremely pleasing. We're moving in the right direction. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AcidBurn Posted January 20, 2013 Share Posted January 20, 2013 Brilliant stuff, I'm guessing you play a team from the league above in the play-off? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 20, 2013 Author Share Posted January 20, 2013 Brilliant stuff, I'm guessing you play a team from the league above in the play-off? Indeed we do. It'll be a tough ask but I'm quietly confident. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DazRTaylor Posted January 20, 2013 Share Posted January 20, 2013 Go for it Mike! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 20, 2013 Author Share Posted January 20, 2013 Go for it Mike! Yessir! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 20, 2013 Author Share Posted January 20, 2013 SEASON 2013 - NOVEMBER This Month's Fixtures I didn't really fear any of the sides in the top flight's relegation mixer, but Ängelholm were the side I most wanted to play. They don't score many and have been conceding quite a lot of goals lately. If anything, with our tails up following a decent run of form, you might even make us slight favourites. Looking through the squads, I think ours is actually a bit stronger, and they definitely don't have anyone as good as Abdelkadim Omrani. But I don't want to overstate my confidence. Ängelholm play better quality opposition week-in, week-out, so we have to respect them. My intention is to go more attacking than I usually do in the first leg to try and catch them cold. A big couple of games coming up... This Month's Results Tuesday November 12th, 2013 Swedish Premier Division Playoff - First Leg Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 1-0 Ängelholms FF Well, we have something to take with us to the away leg. It's only a slender lead, but it will do. We were the better side here and dominated the first half in particular. I was surprised by just how limited Ängelholm were. True, they made a better fist of the second half, but they only threatened intermittently and, if anything, we looked the better organised, more savvy side. I would say we looked like the top flight team out of the two of us. In-form Sinan Ayranci scored the all-important goal and I honestly believe we'll score in the away leg. Oh, and what a turnout by the fans! att: 21,566 --------------- Talking Tactics I decided, with our slender advantage, to take a different to approach to the second leg than I normally take. My usual approach is a straightforward 4-4-2 with an emphasis on quick passing and the use of the wings. It works quite well, but I decided we needed to do our best to protect what we had. So I opted instead for a 4-1-4-1, playing less attacking than usual but with pacey wingers and an outright instruction to counterattack. The problem was that I was left with a tough decision - which striker to drop. Dropping Fredrik Jensen would normally seem anathema to me. He's our top scorer and the more experienced of my two main strikers. On the other hand, Sinan Ayranci is in much better form at the moment and is growing under my management. In the end, I went for form and promptly placed Jensen on the bench for the most important game of the season. Below is the starting XI and formation that went into the second leg... --------------- Wednesday November 27th, 2013 Swedish Premier Division Playoff - Second Leg Ängelholms IP, Ängelholm Ängelholms FF 1-2 Hammarby Fotboll - Hammarby win 3-1 on aggregate HAMMARBY ARE PROMOTED TO THE SWEDISH PREMIER DIVISION It worked like a charm! Sinan Ayranci scored a first half goal to settle any nerves and justify his selection, before Fredrik Jensen came off the bench to score the winner and remind me of what he can do. Brilliant. Ängelholm were even worse in this game than they were in the first leg. It was as if they were taken completely by surprise by my change of tactics and formation. They were stumped by it. Every attack they attempted was easily broken up. Their goal was total fluke, a ball from a corner bouncing in off my 'keeper, who'd actually made a good save. I don't normally blow my own trumpet, but I really feel I tactically outclassed my opposite number over both legs. I just got it bang on and the players did exactly what I wanted them to do. It was almost too easy! I never thought we'd be going up when I took over in July and again, when we lost to Brommapojkarna with just two games of the season to go, I thought our chance had gone. But here we are, heading back up to where we belong. You'll forgive me if I savour this moment for all its worth. att: 5,000 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AcidBurn Posted January 20, 2013 Share Posted January 20, 2013 Nice one! Lots of planning needed now for the next league. I didn't expect promotion when you first took over. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 20, 2013 Author Share Posted January 20, 2013 Nice one! Lots of planning needed now for the next league. I didn't expect promotion when you first took over. The only point at which the club was in the top three during the whole season was after the final game. That's how far we've had to come. It's a good squad, though. Should have been doing better before I came along. Cracking strikers. It's gonna be tough in the top flight. Losing money quite badly and I'm not sure the resources are there to strengthen as much as we need to. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AcidBurn Posted January 20, 2013 Share Posted January 20, 2013 The only point at which the club was in the top three during the whole season was after the final game. That's how far we've had to come. It's a good squad, though. Should have been doing better before I came along. Cracking strikers.It's gonna be tough in the top flight. Losing money quite badly and I'm not sure the resources are there to strengthen as much as we need to. Does that mean you'll be keeping an eye out something new? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 20, 2013 Author Share Posted January 20, 2013 Media Response to Promotion Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 20, 2013 Author Share Posted January 20, 2013 Does that mean you'll be keeping an eye out something new? Not at this stage. I'm not opposed to moving on but I'd like a crack at the Premier Division with Hammarby. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted January 20, 2013 Share Posted January 20, 2013 Well done winning both legs of the playoff. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AcidBurn Posted January 20, 2013 Share Posted January 20, 2013 Glad to hear it, it'll be interesting to see how you get on in the top flight. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 20, 2013 Author Share Posted January 20, 2013 SEASON 2013 - END OF SEASON REVIEW SWEDISH FIRST DIVISION ELITE - RESULTS - (NB - includes only results since I took over) SWEDISH FIRST DIVISION ELITE - FINAL STANDINGS I should be getting a reputation as a bit of a saviour in Sweden. I kept Frej up last season, then left them in 4th place before joining Hammarby. At Hammarby, I picked up one of Sweden's biggest clubs, floundering in the bottom half of the second tier, and managed to put together a run that saw us promoted via the playoff. In the process, I drew only once at my new club, which may well explain why we squeezed into third place - when we avoid defeat, we win. The squad was good and I managed to add a bit of quality to it and I suppose I shouldn't be too surprised by our good run. I'm not sure what was going on before I arrived. This should surely have given my reputation a bit of a boost. A really good, fun, enjoyable season. SWEDISH CUP - RESULTS The cup doesn't run at the same time as the league. The latter stages aren't played until the following season has begun, while the earlier rounds coincide with the end of the season. We won our one match under me against lower league opposition and will enter the group stage next season. I don't set too much stall by the cup, though. ---------------- END OF SEASON FINANCES The club was facing a financial black hole.... Then promotion happened and suddenly we've made a healthy profit and the balance isn't too bad. I dread to think how things would be looking had we not gone up. The club probably isn't viable for too long outside the top flight. But as you can see, things don't look too bad now. I never realised just how crucial this unlikely promotion would turn out to be. --------------- Key Players 18. Abdelkadim Omrani (M/AMC; Algeria) Apps: 12 -- Gls: 3 -- Avg Rating: 7.20 Omrani was available on a free when I arrived, so I snapped him up and then pretty much fell in love with him. He might just be the best player in the Swedish second tier. He made himself virtually the first name on the teamsheet with some eyecatching displays, including two fantastic goals. He reserved his two most lacklustre performances for the playoff games, but I can forgive that after his brilliant form during our good run into third place. A fantastic signing, he's yet to play for Algeria. I find it hard to believe they couldn't benefit from picking him and giving him a chance. Hopefully he can cut it in the top flight. 32. Fredrik Jensen (Striker; Sweden) Apps: 29 -- Gls: 19 -- Avg Rating: 7.20 Jensen is a really god striker at this level and has certainly earned himself the chance to have a crack in the top flight. He was scoring before I arrived and pretty much kept it up once I took charge. I always felt I could rely on Jensen - if he didn't score he was often still good for an assist and he struck up a good partnership with Sinan Ayranci. I also think he benefited from the arrival of Omrani, whose class seemed to create plenty of chances for Jensen. 11. Sinan Ayranci (Striker; Sweden) Apps: 26 -- Gls: 10 -- Avg Rating: 6.93 His average rating might not be much to write home about, but he had only a bit-part role before I came in. The young striker was on the bench most weeks and not firing when the chance came his way. I can't say I identified anything in him right away, but I had to utilise him as I like to play two up front. The form he found at the end of the season pretty much fired us to promotion, to the point where, when I decided I could go with only one striker in the second leg of the playoff, he was chosen ahead of Fredrik Jensen. He rewarded my decision with a goal. A bright prospect for the future, I feel. --------------- Plans for the Future Not a lot to say here, really. I don't intend to stay at Hammarby forever. No disrespect to Swedish football, but I have ambitions that go beyond what you can achieve here. But I do want to see how things go in the top flight and it might be nice to be here long enough to challenge for the title. But that's getting ahead of myself. I just need to focus on enhancing my reputation and then who knows where I might end up? This is a very open-ended career I'm embarking on. No set goals, no real plans. And that's the best career of all, I think. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 20, 2013 Author Share Posted January 20, 2013 Well done winning both legs of the playoff. Thank you! Easiest two games of my life. Glad to hear it, it'll be interesting to see how you get on in the top flight. Won't be easy, but I think we can at least stay up. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 21, 2013 Author Share Posted January 21, 2013 Timeline ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | Season | Team | League | Country | Pos. | Cup | Notes | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | 2012 | IK Frej | First Division Nth. | Sweden | 11th | 2nd Rd | Took over mid-season; saved from relegation | | 2013 | IK Frej | First Division Nth. | Sweden | n/a | n/a | Left in July with club in 3rd | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | 2013 | Hammarby | First Division Elite| Sweden | 3rd | n/a* | Promoted via playoff | *Knocked out of 2012/2013 cup competition before I arrived. We are still in the 2013/2014 competition. My Managerial Record ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Clubs Managed | Pld | W | D | L | F | A | [b]Pts[/b] | GD | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- | M. Kobylko | 2 | 46 | 25 | 9 | 12 | 85 | 54 | [b]84[/b] | 31 | Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 21, 2013 Author Share Posted January 21, 2013 FORMER CLUB WATCH IK Frej ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | Season | Division | Country | Pos. | Notes | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | 2013 | First Division North | Sweden | 6th | none | Frej can be proud of the season they had in the end. They may not have kept pace with the leaders, but they still managed a top-half finish, which is superb for a club on their budget still in their first ever spell at this level. I don't claim much of the credit - yes, we made a good start under me, but it wasn't my squad. The strongest XI while I was manager was made up entirely of players who were there the season before. I'm just pleased they had a good season. I enjoyed my time there, and they made no fuss about me applying for the Hammarby job, so fair play to them. Hope they can build from here. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 23, 2013 Author Share Posted January 23, 2013 SEASON 2014 - PRE-SEASON Board Expectations Swedish Premier Division: "Achieve a safe mid-table position". Swedish Cup: "Reach the quarter-final". My Expectations Swedish Premier Division: I don't get it. The club's financial position is remarkably steady. We're making a decent monthly profit and the board say they expect finances to continue to improve, which is fantastic. Yet, despite this, they've given me budgets that don't compare to what my predecessor was given in the division below. How on Earth can they expect a mid-table finish?! Crazy. Obviously I want to match that to make sure I keep my job, but I'd be happy just to stay up. Swedish Cup: We begin the season in the cup's group stage and I believe we can get through. The QF would do nicely. Might need to go a bit further than that to make sure I keep my job if we struggle in the league. --------------- Transfers There are a handful of notable departures worth mentioning. Mattias Adelstam was my back-up striker last season. He scored once. I don't think he is good enough for the top flight. He's landed on his feet, though, having been snapped up by Gefle, a solid top flight side. Monday James is an interesting case. The Nigerian was on the transfer list when I arrived, but my search for a centre-back pairing that worked meant he got his chance and ended up starting most of our games in the run-in. But I don't think he will be able to cut it in the top flight, and after nobody showed any interest in signing him, I terminated his contract. Robin Palacios is the midfielder who originally was on loan at Frej when I got that job, but wouldn't come back on loan at the start of last season. Once I arrived at Hammarby, I went in for him and signed him. He's young and I thought I'd be able to develop him, and he did okay. But again, I just don't think he has the ability to make it at this level, so he's gone back to the First Division Elite with Norrköping. Young left-back Elliot Käck is another player who did fine last season but doesn't strike me as good enough for the step up. Players in: Mica (DL/WBL/ML/AML; Luxembourg) - FREE 20 year-old Luxembourg international left-sided player of Brazilian origin, Mica is all about potential. He looks good already and will only get better. He's already playing international football, albeit only for Luxembourg, but he looks like someone who should grow into a very good defender at this level of football. How much playing time he gets this season will depend on injuries and the form of those ahead of him in the pecking order. Fredrik Björk (DC; Sweden) - LOAN (Gefle) With Monday James shown the door, I needed cover in the centre-back position. Björk is nothing special but he appears to offer enough for a back-up and he brings top-flight experience. Not to be confused with any volatile Icelandic songstresses. Jacob Egeris (DC/DR; Denmark) - FREE The young Dane offers me something else the squad needed - cover at right-back. I already have a decent young right-back in the squad who was acting as cover last season, but I don't know if I can rely on him following our step up. Egeris has played top flight football in Denmark and has plenty of developing still to do. I like the look of him. Eddie Johnson (Striker; United States) - FREE Yes, that one. This is a big signing, as the four-and-a-half star rating attests to. True, Johnson has never really popped outside of the US. His time at Fulham was unsuccessful, but he's a good player with international pedigree and has been doing well at Seattle Sounders. If we're going to stay up, it's important to have a striker we can rely on for goals, and while I can't guarantee Johnson will offer that, on paper he's the best striker we could possibly have signed. He needs to show his pedigree, especially as I've broken the bank to bring him in. Abel Lobatón (Striker; Peru) - FREE I tied this deal up last summer. Lobatón is 36 and leaves South America for the first time. Despite his age, I think he looks a class act. He certainly had a good pre-season. He is still no slouch and should have something to offer us. His advancing years mean he can't play every week, but he is still a good footballer and should have enough to do well in Swedish football, if he settles in. Jesper Manns (DR/DL/DC; Sweden) - £14k (Eskilstuna City) Manns is only 18 and signs from First Division North side Eskilstuna. The fee is all compensation. I doubt he will feature this season, but he should have a bright future if things work out. --------------- Pre-Season Results A win is a win, and we got plenty of those. But I'd be lying if I said we played well. We did play well in spells, but at times we conceded far too much possession to sides playing at lower levels than ourselves, even in the games we won comprehensively. It was too easy to find a route to our goal, and it was only the lack of quality in the opposition that meant we weren't punished. But the players' tails should be up following a string of wins. One thing is for sure, once we get the cup games out of the way, we couldn't face a much tougher start to life back in the Premier Division. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
withnail316 Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 Good career you've got going here, congrats on your two seasons so far. Good progress. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 23, 2013 Author Share Posted January 23, 2013 Good career you've got going here, congrats on your two seasons so far. Good progress. Thanks man. I'm enjoying life in Sweden. Looking forward to seeing where I end up next, though. I'm really into FM13 at the moment and find myself sat in work wishing the day would hurry up so I can get home and play it. How depressing is that? This comes after weeks of having no motivation to play (hence the slow progress of the career). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AK22 Posted January 23, 2013 Share Posted January 23, 2013 Despite the financial constraints, the friendly results look promising. I hope you can keep it going once the competitive fixtures start! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 23, 2013 Author Share Posted January 23, 2013 SEASON 2014 - MARCH This Month's Fixtures The season begins with the resumption of the Swedish Cup. It appears there is a group stage in which you play three matches and the group winner qualifies for the quarter-finals. If you're wondering how we got here, think back to our win right at the start of my tenure against a team called Limhamn Bunkeflo. Yeah, it was that long ago! Looking at our group, I fancy us to get through. We face one team from the Premier Division in Örebro, our friends from Falkenberg and also Umeå, who play three divisions below us. We certainly stand a good chance. The league campaign begins with games against arguably the two biggest sides in Sweden, IFK Göteborg and Helsingborg. I suppose it's good to get two such hard games out of the way, but I would have preferred something a little less tricky. Two points would be a good return. I wouldn't even complain if we only took one point. A baptism of fire on our return to the top flight, then. This Month's Results Sunday March 9th, 2014 Swedish Cup: Group 7 Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 2-0 Falkenbergs FF It was a 4-1 win at Falkenberg on the last day of last season that propelled us into the playoff place. On that day we outclassed them, but today it was different. While the scoreline looks comfortable and we got the right result, Falkenberg played well and looked much better in possession than we did. I found it very frustrating to watch us. Thankfully, Eddie Johnson came up with two late goals to send us top of the group, but we'll need to play much better if we're to get through. att: 6,401 --------------- Saturday March 15th, 2014 Swedish Cup: Group 7 Behrn Arena, Örebro Örebro SK 0-1 Hammarby Fotboll Again, it's the right result, but again, I'm not happy with how we played. Örebro are a top flight side so it's good to see us compete with them, but we were largely dominated and I want us to impose ourselves more on the opposition. Still, we're top of the group and now need just a point against minnows Umeå to win it and progress. The big blow is losing Eddie Johnson to injury for a few weeks. att: 5,684 --------------- Saturday March 22nd, 2014 Swedish Cup: Group 7 Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 3-0 Umeå FC My players seem determined to frustrate me at the moment. We raced into a 3-0 lead, but then spent the rest of the game spurning chances and shooting wastefully when a pass would be the better option. I was never worried about Umeå, who registered no shots, but we should have scored about six or seven and I want my players to look at this scoreline and feel disappointed, not pat themselves on the back. There was no ruthlessness about this display. At least we qualify, and without conceding. att: 6,376 --------------- BREAKING NEWS: Having won the group, Hammarby will be at home to league champions AIK in the quarter-finals. --------------- Wednesday March 26th, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 3-0 IFK Göteborg Well, I wasn't expecting this - a brilliant win against Sweden's most famous club. But we did it having had only 38% of possession. Crucially, both sides managed the same number of shots, suggesting that our possession is much more incisive and efficient. Göteborg dominated the first half and I was thrilled that Sebastian Castro-Tello's sensational volley meant we would take a 1-0 lead in with us. The second half was more even but they still shaded it, without being able to find a way through. We hit them twice on the break and to kick of the season in style. att: 11,320 --------------- Sunday March 30th, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Olympia, Helsingborg Helsingborgs IF 4-0 Hammarby Fotboll I have to take quite a lot of the blame for this. Things were going well. My compact away formation and tactic that got us through the playoff second leg was serving us well as Helsingborg dominated but couldn't get near our goal, instead peppering the stand behind with long range efforts. We looked comfortable after half-time too, until they eventually found a way through. I should have made a slight tweak to try and make us more of an attacking threat, but instead I reverted to our normal home setup which was much too adventurous and allowed Helsingborg to pick us off in a 13 minute spell that saw us concede another three goals. It was back down t Earth with a bump, but I honestly believe there were positives here and I won't let it worry me too much. Plenty of football to be played. att: 11,654 League Table Swedish Cup: Group 7 An interesting month with plenty of wins and one heavy defeat. If we finish where we are now, I'll keep my job and be relatively satisfied with our season. I'd prefer not to concede four goals too often, but it's also worth pointing out that we got a cracking win in our first league game against a top side who will probably be right up there this season. The cup was mostly straightforward, even if our play didn't impress me too much. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 23, 2013 Author Share Posted January 23, 2013 Despite the financial constraints, the friendly results look promising. I hope you can keep it going once the competitive fixtures start! Don't get why boards seem so often to cut back and yet expect more of you. Guess that's life! Think we've started okay, anyway. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 25, 2013 Author Share Posted January 25, 2013 SEASON 2014 - APRIL This Month's Fixtures April looks like it will test the fitness of our squad, with plenty of Wednesday-Saturday action. We don't face too many sides who are expected to challenge near the top, so this could be a good month to put some points on the board and demonstrate that we belong in this league. However, we do face league champions and cup holders AIK twice at the end of the month, first in the quarter-finals of the Swedish Cup, and then in the league. It should be noted that a win in the cup game would add another fixture to the month, prior to the second AIK game, which would be the semi-final of the cup. This Month's Results Wednesday April 2nd, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Nya Rambergsvallen, Göteborg BK Häcken 2-1 Hammarby Fotboll And so we fail to bounce back from that heavy defeat at Helsingborgs. It does look as if we might struggle away from home this season. The better side won, and I find myself concerned, not for the first time, with how poorly we deal with teams when not in possession. Häcken passed better than us and looked as if they knew how to see the game out once back in front. I don't understand their penalty, though. A crowd of players competed for a high ball, but it didn't look to me as if anyone on either side committed a foul. We're picking up injuries, which isn't helping. We really need to get Eddie Johnson fit. att: 4,353 ------------ Saturday April 5th, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 3-1 Assyriska Föreningen A comfortable home win here against the side that finished second in the First Division Elite last season, one place above ourselves. They look less well equipped for the step up than us at the moment and this was their fourth straight defeat. I'm happy with how we're doing at home. We look fine. But we need to start picking up some away points. We're also struggling for general fitness. The squad is being tested very early on. But it was the right result here. att: 10,660 --------------- Sunday April 13th, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Kopparvallen, Åtvidaberg Åtvidabergs FF 1-1 Hammarby Fotboll Åtvidaberg are another struggling opposition, so I fancied us to pick up our first away win here, but it wasn't to be. It was a dull game until the 71st minute when they took the lead. At this point I was rather worried - if we lose here then where exactly won't be lose? But three minutes later we were level. Åtvidaberg might well have a case that they shaded it, but I think a share of the spoils is just about fair. Another injury, though... att: 3,065 --------------- Saturday April 19th, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 1-0 Örebro SK Our second 1-0 win over Örebro, this time in the league, and a our good home form continues. Fantastic to have Eddie Johnson on the pitch and scoring. His goal was a beauty, though Sam Allardyce would have been proud of it. A long ball into the box headed down by 6ft 3in Sinan Ayranci for Johnson to fair crack it home on the half-volley. Superb. This looked to me like a game between two evenly-matched sides, but we always had a bit more quality going forward, as you'd expect with Eddie Johnson in your side. att: 9,827 --------------- Wednesday April 23rd, 2014 Swedish Cup: Quarter-Final Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 2-1 AIK Brilliant! And now Eddie Johnson is starting to look like money well spent! AIK are the league champions and they were the cup holders until tonight. They've made a poor start in the league and carried that form into this match. I wouldn't say we outclassed them but they didn't look right and it's us who go through to the semis thanks to a brace from my American striker. Johnson's opening goal came with the clock showing 18 seconds! It was a brilliant bit of skill, bring down a high punt forward on the edge of the box, turning away from two men and slamming it into the back of the net. I don't really care too much about the cup, but then you get this far and you just start to dream a little... att: 21,168 --------------- BREAKING NEWS: Following their 2-1 win over AIK in the quarter-finals, Hammarby will face another local rival in Djurgården in Wednesday's semi-final. It is Hammarby who will theoretically have home advantage in this clash between two sides who share the Tele2 Arena. A 30,000 sell-out is anticipated. --------------- Saturday April 26th, 2014 Swedish Cup: Semi-Final Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 2-1 Djurgårdens IF We've done it! We're in the final! Unbelievable! We fell behind and I thought the journey was coming to and end, but I didn't reckon with Eddie Johnson. Another brace from the American sees us through. We laboured at times, understandable with the amount of games and injuries we've been contending with, but we looked like the side that wanted it more. Eddie Johnson's impact has been huge since he got fit and started playing. Sides don't seem to be able to cope with him at the moment. I can't believe it.. I've guided a team to a final... Beautiful. att: 30,000 --------------- BREAKING NEWS: Next month's Swedish Cup Final will be contested between newly-promoted Hammarby and league-leaders Elfsborg. Elfsborg have made a strong start to their league campaign and are in good form, while Hammarby have made a solid start to life back in the top flight. A good game is in prospect. --------------- Wednesday April 30th, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Friends Arena, Stockholm AIK 0-1 Hammarby Fotboll AIK must be sick of us! And of Eddie Johnson. My 4-1-4-1 has done the trick again. I reverted to my defensive away tactic that I occasionally use when I feel we will need it, and it left AIK completely flummoxed. They couldn't find a way through, while we had Eddie Johnson at the other end to snatch us the win. He's on fire right now. We could even afford the luxury of a missed penalty from the usually reliable Sebastian Castro-Tello, won after a blatant trip on Johnson. I was once again left with the dilemma of which in-form striker to drop to allow me to play the one up top, but it wasn't much of a decision this time. Sinan Ayanci is playing very well and looks like he has a very bright future, but he's not banging them in like Johnson. We've beaten the league champions twice in a month. Fantastic. att: 38,080 League Table It's very early days and the season could easily turn sour, but for now, I'm going to enjoy our lofty position. We've been brilliant at times and iffy at others, but if we finish anywhere near fifth, it'll have been a superb campaign. There a big sides below us who I'm sure will put a run together sooner or later, so we have to anticipated tougher times ahead, but why not enjoy it while it lasts? Meanwhile, two narrow wins in the cup, thanks to goals from Eddie Johnson, see us through to the final next month. I never expected to get here, or even cared that much. Anything that happens in the final will be a bonus, but I can't help dreaming, just a little bit. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 25, 2013 Author Share Posted January 25, 2013 As mentioned above, I went for my patented 4-1-4-1 in that last game at AIK. Seems the media picked up on it: It won't always work (indeed, we lost 4-0 when I tried it at Helsingborg, although that has a lot to do with the changes I made at 1-0), but it's nice when I tactical decision pays off. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 25, 2013 Author Share Posted January 25, 2013 SEASON 2014 - MAY This Month's Fixtures It's all about the cup final this month. It won't be an easy game. Elfsborg have made such a good start to the season and will fancy themselves to beat us. As the underdog, we have nothing to lose. As for the league games, we're mostly up against also-rans this month. If we're going to make sure we stay up, a month like this could be crucial. We should be beating most of those sides. This Month's Results Monday May 5th, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Gamla Ullevi, Göteborg GAIS 2-1 Hammarby Fotboll At 0-0, this was an even game. When we edged in front early in the second half, I fancied us to take at least a point. But the truth is that a combination of injuries, a general lack of fitness and a send off allowed GAIS to pick us off, and we fall to defeat. It's disappointing to go away to a team like AIK and get such a good win, and then lose at GAIS. Maybe this result reflects what we are - a mid-table side at this level. att: 4,140 --------------- Thursday May 8th, 2014 Swedish Cup: Final Friends Arena, Stockholm HAMMARBY ARE BEATEN IN THE SWEDISH CUP FINAL Hammarby Fotboll 1-3 IF Elfsborg Hardly seems fair that we had to play on Monday just for TV when we had the bloody cup final on Thursday! My shattered players did me proud in terms of effort, but the quality wasn't there. We took the lead against the run of play and, although their equaliser only came about through a horrible error by our Canadian international Nikolas Ledgerwood, the best team on the day won. In the end, it was a bit of a day to forget, as we lost two more players to injury. So disappointing, but hopefully it won't be the last big day out I ever have in my career. Elfsborg were comfortably the best side we've faced this season. Well done to them. att: 50,000 --------------- Sunday May 11th, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 0-1 Gefle IF FF And then again on the Sunday... My squad just can't handle all this football. We're getting injuries in every game. It's really hurting us. We usually look like, at the very least, we have goals in us going forward, but today we looked like we could play for a week and not score. Gefle were nothing special but they took their chance when it came their way. These are the first points we've dropped at home so far this season, and I'm left with plenty to think about. att: 8,859 --------------- Saturday May 17th, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 1-0 Djurgårdens IF Another game against our friends from the same stadium, this time in the league, and again we are theoretically the home side. And again, we take a narrow win. I decided a team meeting was needed after the Gefle defeat and it appeared to do the trick. Djurgården are struggling and certainly didn't threaten us too much, but it was nice to take advantage of that. It was also nice for Eddie Johnson to get back on the scoresheet after a mini slump in form. This result saw my opposite number sacked - this being his second spell at the club having won them the league and cup double back in 2002. att: 17,339 --------------- Sunday May 25th, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Myresjöhus Arena, Växjö Östers IF 1-5 Hammarby Fotboll Amid all the fuss about Eddie Johnson, it's easy to forget I have another good striker at this club in Sinan Ayranci. Johnson gave us the lead, but after that, it became all about Ayranci, the young Swede of Turkish extraction. A four goal haul away from home is remarkable and he deserves all the plaudits. Statistically, the game looks relatively even. Indeed, Öster had more shots than us (23 to our 22) in a very open game. But they don't have strikers like Johnson and Ayranci. A brilliant result. att: 3,290 --------------- Wednesday May 28th, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 4-2 Mjällby AIF Mjällby have made a decent start and when they went in front, I thought we would probably struggle to get back into it. But I have two strikers playing really well at the moment, and Mjällby gave them plenty of space to operate in. Johnson and Ayranci made sure we got our noses in front and kept them there. I had a bit of a selection problem for this one. I like to play one attack-minded central midfielder and one more defensive-minded one. However, both of my more defensive central midfielders were unavailable, Andreas Dahl through suspension and Nikolas Ledgerwood having been called up to Canada's World Cup squad (why do Canada always seem to qualify?). In the end I had to play two central midfielders who offer little defensively, Abdelhakim Omrani and Sebastian Castro-Tello. It left us a little exposes perhaps, but we still got the right result. att: 9,766 League Table So we ended up losing the cup final, but we can be proud of our run, which began almost a year ago when we were not even a top flight team. We were outclassed, but I can't complain with the players' effort. In the league, we find ourselves in a lofty position, despite a month that saw us lose twice. I believe we are probably a safe, mid-table side, and that that will become clear eventually. But for now, we're up in the nosebleeds and I'm absolutely loving this save. Random fact - Since I took over almost a year ago, we have drawn just twice in all competitions. That's two draws from 36 games. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 26, 2013 Author Share Posted January 26, 2013 SEASON 2014 - JUNE This Month's Fixtures Just the one game this month, before we resume action in mid-July. My tired players could certainly use the break. In Malmö, we face a side lying second in the league, with a striker in even better form than any of mine. I don't find myself worrying too much about this match. Our season won't be defined by what we do at places like this. With my players still recovering physically from our previous fixture, I just want to make sure we don't disgrace ourselves. This Month's Results Sunday June 1st, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Swedbank Stadion, Malmö Malmö FF 2-0 Hammarby Fotboll Best just to forget about this one and move on. We worked hard, created the odd chance and didn't let anyone down, but we failed to deal with Daniel Larsson, the league's top scorer with 14 goals from 12 games. Even Eddie Johnson can't compete with that! I can't complain when a side that is clearly better than us goes on to brush us aside. att: 13,623 League Table Results elsewhere mean we have stayed in third place and head into the mid-season break in decent spirits. I certainly never anticipated we'd be this high up the table after 13 games, which is almost halfway in a 30-game division. Obviously you never enjoy defeat but I can move on from what happened this month. It's been a positive start. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 26, 2013 Author Share Posted January 26, 2013 Since joining Hammarby, I haven't been linked with a single job. Until now... This a really good offer. It puts my pathetic board at Hammarby to shame. Crystal Palace are about to embark on their second consecutive season in League One, having finished third last season, missing out on automatic promotion by three points. They kept faith with Dougie Freedman after relegation, but have just lost him as he moves to Middlesbrough. I wanted to be at Hammarby for a bit longer than just a year, but this offer sure is tempting. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 26, 2013 Author Share Posted January 26, 2013 I don't know whether there's something about my updating style or if my thread is just boring, but I notice I haven't been getting much comment lately. That's fine, but I'd love it if anyone who happens to be having a look could advise me on this latest dilemma. I can't guarantee I'll take your advice but it might help! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
AcidBurn Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 I'm not sure why this thread doesn't get more views I honestly think it's the best set out thread in here. I'd be very tempted to move that's a good budget for that level, what's their squad like? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DodgeeD Posted January 26, 2013 Share Posted January 26, 2013 The Crystal Palace offer seems tempting... A chance to restore them to former heights. However, things at Harmmaby are only just getting started - would be interesting to see how far you could go there. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 27, 2013 Author Share Posted January 27, 2013 SEASON 2014 - JULY I have asked for a week-long extension twice now from Crystal Palace regarding their job offer, which means I have been able to complete July. The next time their offer comes round, I'll make a decision one way or the other... This Month's Fixtures The break has done my players' fitness the world of good. With the exception of Andreas Dahl, all my key players are now nice and fit. At last! As for the fixtures this month, we face our friends from Sundsvall, who won the First Division Elite last season and turned us over 2-1 at the Tele2 Arena, and who started very well but are falling away now. Their form suggests to me that, with our eye for goal, we stand a great chance of picking up three points. The two other games are against league leaders Elfsborg, who beat us in the cup final, and the mighty Göteborg, both away. If we're ever going to draw any games, I'd be happy with it from those two. This Month's Results Saturday July 19th, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Tele2 Arena, Stockholm Hammarby Fotboll 4-2 GIF Sundsvall Twice they pegged us back, but we saw it through in the end. It's all about our goalscoring prowess at the moment. Another brace for Sinan Ayranci means he is our top scorer in the league, though not overall. I'd like us to be a bit more conservative at the back, but at least we look like we can outscore teams if we have to. Sundsvall actually saw more of the ball than us, but I always felt we were playing the better football and we created far more chances. att: 9,711 --------------- Sunday July 27th, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Borås Arena, Borås IF Elfsborg 3-4 Hammarby Fotboll Un-be-lievable. What a game! If you don't normally click the links I provide, I would urge you to do so for this one. We went 1-0 down, got ourselves 2-1 in front, then fell 3-2 behind before snatching it 4-3! Elfsborg were top going into this and brushed us aside with ease in the cup final, but their form has declined just a little of late. They still played well today and carried an attacking threat, as demonstrated by their three goals, although we were very accommodating in that department. But going forward, we continue to bang them in and we've come away with a stunning win from a stunning game of football. Today's two-goal hero is Eddie Johnson, But's about time Christoffer Carlsson got a mention. The young right winger is establishing himself this season and is continuing to grow. He bagged the winner here. att: 10,449 --------------- Wednesday July 30th, 2014 Swedish Premier Division Gamla Ullevi, Göteborg IFK Göteborg 1-0 Hammarby Fotboll There's no shame in losing to Göteborg. They're a big club, finally finding some form, and they were better than us for most of the match. However, I am still frustrated because, having been so devastating in front of goal, we laid siege to theirs for the final twenty minutes or so but couldn't quite grab an overdue draw. I can't complain about the result in so much as I was impressed with our opponents and concede that they ran the show for the first hour. But we should have made them work for their win by scoring at least once in that final period. I'm also annoyed that we keep giving away free-kicks on the edge of our box. Today we lost to a goal scored from one. att: 12,679 League Table On the whole, my players are doing everything in their power to convince me to stay. They're playing tidy, exciting football and working their socks off. We look like we truly belong at this level. Yes, we lost a match, but it was only a narrow defeat and another day we might have taken at least a point. We remain third, and every win we get is pushing us further away from the relegation zone. I'm fairly certain we don't need to worry about that anymore. The two wins we got were nervy, but we showed plenty of quality. I think we're a good team. Imagine where we'd be if a few of those losses had been draws. Time to decide what I'm doing about the Palace offer.. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike7077 Posted January 27, 2013 Author Share Posted January 27, 2013 I'm not sure why this thread doesn't get more views I honestly think it's the best set out thread in here. I'd be very tempted to move that's a good budget for that level, what's their squad like? Well, thank you for the compliment. Appreciate it. Their squad is Championship quality. Everything about the offer is appealing... except the timing. The Crystal Palace offer seems tempting... A chance to restore them to former heights.However, things at Harmmaby are only just getting started - would be interesting to see how far you could go there. You basically sum up my dilemma. Who wouldn't be tempted by the offer in my position? But as you say, I haven't really done anything with Hammarby yet, except lose a cup final. It would be nice to see out a whole season with one club for the first time. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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