[FM11] Forever Blue: The Final Journey

[deltablue]

May/Jun 2018

Slavia Prague 3-0 Hradec Kralove (CD1)

Juninho gave us the lead in the 29th minute against Hradec Kralove, but it was a very tight match until the half-time, and they very nearly equalized multiple times. We were more comfortable after the break. Juninho had a goal disallowed but Patras scored a penalty and assisted a Hubnik header for a 3-0 win.

Slavia Prague 2-3 Sparta Prague (CFC SF)

We faced Sparta in the cup semis, with the home leg first. They took the lead in the 7th minute and went 2-0 up 10 minutes later, just after Valasek had a goal disallowed, which is just taking the **** really. Valasek soon got a legit goal and an own-goal levelled it, after which we looked good for a while and might have got a winner but a terrible day for every single defender was capped off by a Srom own-goal.

Sigma Olomouc 0-3 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We thankfully had a far better time back in the league at Olomouc. Valasek gave us a 10th minute lead and had a hat-trick wrapped up by the 22nd minute.

Sparta Prague 1-2 (a4-4) Slavia Prague (CFC SF)

After the defence let us down miserably in the first leg again Sparta, it was the turn of the attacking players in the second-leg, getting a bunch of first-half chances to take the lead but failing to convert. Juninho gave us a breakthrough after 50 minutes, but away goals still counted against us and I didn’t expect us to get another. However we did from Oldoni in the 77th minute. Unfortunately they struck a few minutes later to squeak through but an away win against Sparta was still a promising sign for our ability to compete with them in the future.

Slavia Prague 0-2 Teplice (CD1)

Teplice were 4 points behind in the race for 3rd. We started well enough but collapsed just before the break, conceding a goal either side of half-time. Gerson even got sent off late on.

Slavia Prague 0-2 Slovan Liberec (CD1)

We couldn’t afford a repeat against Slovan Liberec but conceded in the 1st minute and had Guba get a straight red after 7. We still looked good enough to equalize but they put paid to that with a 59th minute goal with a 3rd disallowed. That dropped us to 5th though we’d get that at least.

Sparta Prague 1-0 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We looked bright for the first half-hour at Sparta but suddenly fell behind and they mostly had us under siege after that, though we held out to keep it to 1-0.

Slavia Prague 2-1 Viktoria Plzen (CD1)

We hoped to end the season on a positive note against Plzen, especially as with Liberec playing Sparta, we had a shot at 4th. Oldoni gave us the lead in the 22nd minute, and though we went down to 10 men just before half-time and they equalized, Oldoni struck again to give us the win, even though Liberec won also so we had to be content with 5th.

It was definitely a season to be very happy with. Tough games later on saw us drop out of what seemed like a likely European place but that’s the only real negative. We otherwise looked very competitive for a lot of the season, very much in the mix in the first half of the season, which I really wasn’t expecting. It was also good to reach the cup semi-finals and only go out to Sparta on away goals, the away leg win feeling great (even if it wasn’t enough) as it meant they didn’t beat us every time, and there was only 1 goal in the other derby games so we were still reasonably competitive against our dominant arch-rivals, a good sign even if competing with them isn’t going to be easy. I’d easily have taken 5th and a cup semi at the start of the season, especially as a newly promoted side, even if we were an unusually strong one.

One thing that was especially promising was that after having to rely on one or two players so far in this career (Balashov most obviously at Chornomorets, then Yakovenko, then the duo of Patras/Valasek last season), this was a side that performed all the way through, with 8 players covering most outfield positions getting a rating of at least 7.00 this season, and while Patras was still the main star there was still plenty of consistently positive contribution from a variety of players. I hope I’m not getting too far ahead of myself when I say that I think that after such a positive showing already, a title or two is a case of ‘when’ not ‘if’, though as I say Sparta won’t ever make it easy for us. I described the Slavia move as a minor gamble, and one that took a lot of consideration, but it looks like a great move now.

Star Player: There was never any doubt from the start that Patras was the main man, reaching 30 assists and getting into double figures for goals as well. Pity he's almost 30 so we'll only have a couple more seasons of him, and with Arzhanov even older it won't be easy replacing him when the time comes, however that's a bridge to cross when we come to it. For now we can enjoy having such a bright star on the side.

[Dexter_Morgan]

5th was a far from bad season for you but it must be gutting to know a win against either the sides directly above you (or 2 draws) would have seen you third As I say though, over the course of the season it was a really good effort and hopefully you come back stronger for it next year

[deltablue]

5th was a far from bad season for you but it must be gutting to know a win against either the sides directly above you (or 2 draws) would have seen you third As I say though, over the course of the season it was a really good effort and hopefully you come back stronger for it next year

I know, especially having played both sides at home near the end and lost both games We've made a really strong start again this time so hopefully we should do better.

Summer 2018

Annoyingly, another year saw another budget reduction, and with 3 players already set to arrive on frees it looked like I’d have even less to work with. As it happened, I followed up last year’s signing of Arzhanov with Neuwirth, yet another ‘free agent signing of an aging former Chornomorets player’ to help give us solidity (though sadly not dynamism) at our weak spot of right-back, though the loss of Gerson at the end of his contract left us weak in the defensive midfield position, with the best signing being a young Ukrainian with more PA that CA. Like last year, I managed more signings than I imagined, but also wondered whether I’d got at least a couple of unnecessary players in as well, which was at least better than the opposite. I also wanted to trim the squad of a few players with limited success, though with Vyskocil (who had been second choice for a year now) getting plenty of interest I was easily able to cash in on him, for almost 1M from Verona. While he would be likely to reclaim the No.1 shirt with his replacement Kamenar being 31 I felt the money was too important, and I had already found a decent young free agent to act as a backup anticipating his sale.

The board expected a top-half finish this time and though I was hoping to succeed where we narrowly failed and get Europe I accepted those terms (rarely will I increase expectations without being certain and/or with a proper budget benefit attached, especially as it’s backfired on me multiple times).

While I wouldn't normally do this, I thought I'd show you the table at the time of writing (with transfer activity overlapping with the start of the season), especially as it looks so positive.

Obviously far too early to mean anything but it's nice to get such a strong start. Oh and the next match will be the 300th of the career.

[ashton321]

Superb start so far this year mate, fingers crossed you can keep it going. Great to see a thread from you, some of your older attempts will go down as my favourite of all time.

[deltablue]

Superb start so far this year mate, fingers crossed you can keep it going. Great to see a thread from you, some of your older attempts will go down as my favourite of all time.

Thank you very much! I know that because they're a lot of effort to follow I don't get anywhere near as much commenting activity as many of the others so it's nice to see people still manage to enjoy them.

Jul/Aug 2018

Slavia Prague 3-0 Bohemians Prague (CD1)

We opened the season against Bohemians Prague, and we certainly had the pressure but goals seemed to be a long time coming. The young Nigerian Nwafor finally struck in the 85th minute, followed by an Oldoni brace for a very late 3-0 win.

Banik Ostrava 1-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

There was no shortage of chances at Banik Ostrava either, and we had a Nwafor goal disallowed but Oldoni finally scored in the 53rd minute. The new Ukrainian Kalinin also had a goal disallowed but justice was done with another Oldoni goal which was just as well as they got a stoppage time consolation.

Slavia Prague 2-0 Karvina (CD1)

We were surprisingly on the back foot for a lot of the game against Karvina (who had admittedly also won both their opening games) but Oldoni scored his 5th league game of the season already in the 63rd minute, and we also got a late own-goal to win 2-0 and make us the only side with a 100% record after 3 games.

Brno 0-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

The trip to Brno saw a steady exchange of chances at both ends, but nothing in the way of goals. However having gambled by using my 3rd sub on Arzhanov for a slightly underwhelming Patras (who was otherwise just about in ‘stay on pitch’ territory) it paid off when he headed in a 83rd minute free-kick as we squeaked the win.

Slavia Prague 3-0 Jablonec (CD1)

Jablonec would be a very tough top of the table-clash, and a serious test of our title-challenging credentials. They went down to 10 men in the 36th minute, but we couldn’t really take advantage of it and they still looked threatening, so it wasn’t the worst draw in the world by any means.

Hradec Kralove 2-3 Slavia Prague (CD1)

The first half at Hradec Kralove was very uninspired, but Patras gave us the lead in the 49th minute. This was followed by a debut goal for Bochorishvili, and Nwafor made it 3-0 after 70 minutes. They got two goals late on but we held out.

Sept 2018

Teplice 1-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We went behind in the 36th minute at Teplice, and we didn’t look much like coming back but another late Oldoni goal rescued a point.

Horovicko 0-5 Slavia Prague (CFC)

Patras gave us a 1st minute lead at Horovicko in the cup, getting another in first-half stoppage time with Juninho and an Oldoni brace coming in between as we won 5-0.

Slovan Liberec 2-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Slovan Liberec had made a great start and we failed to do much against them, going behind in the 22nd minute, and then 2-0 in the second-half. Oldoni could only give us a late consolation.

Slavia Prague 1-1 Sigma Olomouc (CD1)

We were without both defensive midfielders against Sigma Olomouc, and things got worse when Kamenar put the ball in his own net. Oldoni equalized with 15 minutes left but we didn’t quite do enough to get a winner.

Orlova 0-11 Slavia Prague (CFC)

We ran up the goals at Orlova in the cup. Juninho got the ball rolling after 5 minutes, followed 10 minutes later by the first of 6 goals for Oldoni and Hubnik made it 3-0 before 20 minutes were up. Vesely was our 4th goalscorer in the 24th minute, followed by 3 goals in 5 minutes from Oldoni, with a disallowed Patras goal in there somewhere, and Ogar made it 8-0 on the stroke of half-time. Hubnik got a second header in the 64th minute soon followed by the first of 2 more Oldoni goals as we won 11-0!

Slavia Prague 1-0 Sparta Prague (CD1)

A win-less month in the league wasn’t a great preparation for the home derby. However we looked pretty good and had a few chances that I felt might have taken the lead. It would have been a missed opportunity but Juninho clinched our first league win against our arch-rivals right at the end, a much needed win to stay close to the top.

Once again we made an excellent start to the season, but seemed to have dropped off the pace a lot earlier. An exciting young free agent (featured below) was the 9th signing of the season, adding to a large pool of inexperienced players so it's hardly surprising that we're not yet able to really perform to our potential on anything like a consistent level, not helped by Sparta looking like a very tough team to challenge over the course of a season. Thankfully expectations are still low and as long as we remain reasonably close to the top I won't be too disappointed for now.

Maybe one young signing too many in the short-term but beyond that he looks far too good to pass up on when offered as a free agent.

[Dexter_Morgan]

Someone as good as him isn't a signing too many IMO, really good for his age

Good win against Sparta there to keep you in it.

[deltablue]

Someone as good as him isn't a signing too many IMO, really good for his age

Good win against Sparta there to keep you in it.

I know, didn't expect to be able to get players like him in this league. It does leave us rather un-gelled, and the Sparta win was only scraped by a late goal, something we've relied on rather a lot this season. Even Patras has been relatively ordinary after 2 exceptional seasons. I think this season looks like a case of holding steady until we're gelled/more developed rather than doing much better than last year, we just don't look consistent or convincing enough.

[rodesire]

Things look rather good, delta. If you are doing this well with so many new guys, the second part of the season should really be cracking. Oussama looks class apart for this league, how on earth did you pick him up?

[deltablue]

Things look rather good, delta. If you are doing this well with so many new guys, the second part of the season should really be cracking. Oussama looks class apart for this league, how on earth did you pick him up?

I'm very surprised that we've able to continue being pretty strong despite a lot of changes. As for Boulabiar, he's already as good as anyone else in the league, and has done very well already. He was actually a free agent believe it or not! He was offered to me at the end of August and I couldn't believe my luck, wasting no time in snatching him up, with very little competition in seems. It's not often an opportunity like that crops up that's for sure.

Oct/Nov 2018

Viktoria Plzen 1-4 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Boulabiar gave us a 7th minute lead at Plzen but we had a quick double whammy of Zemlik being sent off and Oldini getting an injury (a cruciate ligament that would rule him out for 8-9 months! At the age of 33 that might be the end of his career, let alone a season that had delivered 16 goals in 13 games). They eventually equalized in the 59th minute but we had a storming last 10 minutes with Patras, Juninho and Bochorishvili giving us a 4-1 win that ended Diego Maradona’s spell as manager.

Slavia Prague 1-0 Opava (CD1)

We were hit with another ‘red card/injury’ combo against Opava after a frustrating first-half. However we again clinched it with a Kalinin header after 70 minutes, and were only a point off Sparta.

Most 0-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We had 11 men at Most but that didn’t seem to help as they were tough to break down. Thankfully Patras was back on form and he gave us the win in the 67th minute, which took us top!

Viktoria Plzen 0-4 Slavia Prague (CFC)

We went to Plzen in the cup, and although it was a 2-legged tie, we had it wrapped up early on. Juninho got a brace in just over 20 minutes, with a 3rd a long time coming which he got in the 70th minute. Valasek’s last minute goal gave us a 4-0 win and one foot in the quarter-finals.

Slavia Prague 2-0 Jihlava (CD1)

Kalinin had a goal disallowed in the first-half against Jihlava but he got a deserved goal anyway in the 49th minute. We were winning more convincingly than before and managed to get another from Bochorishvili.

Mlada Boleslav 2-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We went behind after 12 minutes at Mlada Boleslav and were lucky that they had another disallowed in a poor first-half. Nwafor equalized in the 56th minute and though Zemlik got sent off again, letting them score again with 5 minutes left, Nwafor scored again in stoppage time to give us a barely-deserved point.

Slavia Prague 3-0 (7-0) Viktoria Plzen (CFC)

We had a Patras goal disallowed in the second leg against Plzen, though we hardly needed anything. Neuwirth gave us the lead on the night anyway at the start of the second-half with an own-goal and one from Kalinin sealing a 7-0 aggregate win.

Bohemians Prague 0-3 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We went to Bohemians just before the break, and took a 2-0 lead just before the break from Zukanovic and Juninho. Hubnik’s 72nd minute header sealed a 3-0 win.

Things are definitely moving in the right direction now. In the last update we were only just getting a lot of points, with goals in the last 10 minutes being vital in most games, then we had a very poor September and looked like dropping down the top-half. However that massive cup win followed by yet another snatched win against Sparta seems to have got us back in our groove, as we went top for a while, and even though the Boleslav draw (the only game we didn't win) was enough to deny us top going into Christmas, we're now comfortably clear of everyone else and should hopefully get a top 3 finish at least, as long as we avoid a bad slump like we had in the spring. I'm relishing the idea of a potential title challenge, though we'd need to avoid defeat in the away derby to really be in with much of a chance. Sparta got knocked out of the cup very early so we have a good chance of challenging on that front as well in what's looking like a much more positive season than I was expecting when I last updated.

[deltablue]

Mar 2019

Slavia Prague 4-0 Brno (CD1)

We returned against Brno, knowing a win would take us back top with Sparta having played earlier and drawn. Hubnik gave us a 12th minute lead but they had an equalizer disallowed and kept pushing hard. Juninho scored on the stroke of half-time that seemed to break them, with Patras and an own-goal giving us a 4-0 win which was a little generous, which would have been even more so had Juninho’s ‘goal’ with 5 minutes left been allowed to stand.

Slavia Prague 0-3 Banik Ostrava (CD1)

Banik were a potential banana skin, and unfortunately while we had some good spells, they picked us off, taking the lead in the 36th minute with two more in the second half for a very poor 3-0 defeat.

Karvina 0-7 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Bochorishvili gave us the lead in the first minute at Karvina, a sign of the rout which was to come. Juninho got a brace to make it 3-0 after 30 minutes, completing a hat-trick at the start of the second half. This was quickly followed by a Hubnik header and another Bochorishvili goal, the Georgian getting a hat-trick from a late penalty as we won 7-0.

Jablonec 1-0 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Jablonec were our second-toughest trip and while we mostly kept it even, we were unlucky to fall to a goal in the 59th minute, which still kept us 4 points ahead in the race for 2nd.

Apr 2019

Slavia Prague 2-1 Hradec Kralove (CD1)

We were hoping for a big win against Hradec Kralove but went behind in the 30th minute. Juninho grabbed an equalizer before the break and Bochorishvili snatched the win in the 59th minute.

Sigma Olomouc 0-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Sigma Olomouc was a difficult trip, but we managed to do well despite both midfielders going off injured, and Bochorishvili again edged it for us with 15 minutes left.

Slavia Prague 1-0 Teplice (CD1)

We were disappointingly lacklustre against Teplice but managed to take the lead anyway in the 74th minute from Juninho, only just managing to hold on to it.

Slavia Prague 1-0 Hlucen (CFC QF)

Second Division Hlucen was a favourable quarter-final draw in the cup, and took the lead after 20 minutes from Bochorishvili after 20 minutes in the home leg. We otherwise looked weak and couldn’t add to it but it would still be a good result to take into an away leg against a far weaker side.

Slavia Prague 1-0 Slovan Liberec (CD1) 100th Slavia Match!!

I had my 100th Slavia game against Slovan Liberec, by no means an easy one. The first half saw a lot of end to end stuff, but the game turned in our favour after 55 minutes when in the space of 10 minutes they had a goal disallowed, a man sent off, and Nwafor scored to give us a 1-0 win, taking us back to within a point of Sparta (having been 5 points behind after Jablonec) with 6 games left.

Hlucin 1-0 (1-1p) Slavia Prague (CFC QF)

We ran into trouble at Hlucin in the cup, Guba going off injured right at the start, and they took the lead to level the tie in the 37th minute. Arzhanov also went off injured late on with no subs left so we limped on to penalties. All penalties were scored in the first 4 rounds aside from their 3rd which Kamenar saved. Hubnik missed the chance to put us though with our 5th but their last penalty hit the bar as we scraped past them anyway.

Opava 0-3 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We were tired and bruised from the Hlucin tie but still found it easy at Opava. Hubnik and Juninho scored after the 5th and 15th minutes respectively, and though we sustained yet another injury, to Kalinin, Bochorishvili sealed it with a stoppage time goal that secured a top 3 finish at least (with 2nd looking likely) with 5 games to spare.

May/June 2019

Sparta Prague 0-3 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Sparta remained ahead going into the away derby, which we couldn’t afford to lose. They had by far the better of things early on so it was surprising to see Juninho give us the lead in the 14th minute, and even more so when Bochorishvili made it 2-0 in the 20th! They kept pushing but started to back off and Juninho’s second goal a few minutes before the break would have been less surprising if it wasn’t for the size of the lead it gave us. Having been lucky in the first-half, we were now unlucky not to score in the second as we now were firmly on top. The win took us 2 points ahead of them with a goal difference advantage of 6 and one more goals scored. Surely we couldn’t go on and win it, could we?

Mlada Boleslav 0-4 Slavia Prague (CFC SF)

Mlada Boleslav were our cup semi-final opponents with the away leg first. Hubnik gave us a 25th minute lead, which was tough to hold on to for the rest of the half but we ran away with it after the break, goals from Bochorishvili, Juninho and Patras giving us one foot in the final. Sadly an injury ruled Vesely out for the rest of the season.

Slavia Prague 1-1 Viktoria Plzen (CD1)

We were appallingly subdued against Viktoria Plzen, but still took the lead from an own-goal in the 25th minute. They equalized right before the break and only wastefulness prevented them getting the win.

Slavia Prague 2-3 (6-3) Mlada Boleslav (CFC SF)

The pressure was off against Mlada Boleslav which was just as well as we had a lot of players unavailable for various reasons and the defenders were terrible. They scored at the end of the first-half, and went 2-0 up in the 62nd minute, which was still not enough. Kalinin was one of the few players performing well and he pulled a goal back, and though they made it 3-1 Bochorishvili ensured we were comfortably through to the final on aggregate.

Slavia Prague 2-1 Most (CD1)

Sparta were continuing to win in the league, keeping up the pressure as we played Most. We thankfully looked better than in the past couple of games, Juninho giving us the lead in the 33rd minute. The defence dropped yet another howler as they immediately equalized but we were otherwise on top and got the deserved win when Janek headed in a free-kick in the 52nd minute to keep us narrowly top with 2 games left.

Jihlava 1-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Unfortunately we lost Boulabiar for the last couple of weeks of the season before we went to Jihlava. Juninho and Kalinin gave us a 2-0 lead after 16 minutes but it was far from comfortable and they pulled a goal back after half an hour. We looked good value for a 3rd in the second-half but failure to get it meant a few scares. The big news was that Sparta had been held at Opava, considerably increasing our title chances going into the last round.

Slavia Prague 3-1 Jablonec (CFC Final)

Before our league fate was decided, we had a tricky cup final against Jablonec. We were clearly on the back foot in the first half-hour, but since when has that ever stopped us? Kalinin headed in a free-kick to give us the lead, followed quickly by Bochorishvili. They looked like mounting a second-half fightback but the Georgian scored again in the 59th minute from that point on I knew we had it, even if they got a goal with a few minutes left.

Slavia Prague 3-1 Mlada Boleslav (CD1)

The last day of the league saw us play Mlada Boleslav at home, while Sparta were also at home to Most. Their draw at Opava and our superior goal difference meant that we could afford to draw and still take the title as long as they didn’t win by 5 goals, and we could even lose as long as they didn’t win at all. Sparta went ahead in their game in the 8th minute, while we had a bunch of chances but no goals until a 26th minute Bochorishvili penalty. We could hardly rest easy as they equalized 6 minutes later while Sparta extended their lead. Just one slip-up would cost us, and we were under a lot of pressure in the second-half but yet again we pulled out yet another win late on with Patras scoring with just over 5 minutes left, quickly followed by a header from Hubnik (who had missed a few early on) and we even might have had a 4th! One thing was beyond doubt though, the title was heading to Eden (the name of the stadium) for the first time in a decade.

Wow, what a season! We started off getting the results but generally relying on late goals to get them, then came a poor September that left me rather pessimistic about our chances of being anywhere near the title. Generally those goals came from Oldoni whose season ended in October. However we suddenly improved considerably, but with Sparta going so strongly there was a massive difference between sticking close to them and actually passing them, and it looked like we had stumbled on one hurdle too many until the derby when an incredible win gave us the upper hand and we just about held on to it. Even in the cup we generally won comfortably but only got past the quarter-finals on penalties.

All this was despite a young, un-gelled team and a large number of injuries, especially in the spring. We also very nearly lost Bochorishvili who was on the verge of being sold during the winter break with the chairman having actually accepted an offer (which at 3x value I didn’t mind so much, in fact I’m almost hoping it’ll happen a couple of times to help keep finances steady as long as the price is good and the player isn’t too critical) but he rejected the club and ended up hitting a rich and vital vein of goal-scoring form in the spring. Amazing how such little things can end up being so important.

Remember that Slavia had just been relegated when I arrived (though it was a hard choice), and while I knew that the potential was very much still there I certainly wasn’t expecting to be celebrating a double just 3 years later, and with a team that I think is still very much a work in progress. I still intend to stay a while, hopefully getting some more trophies and seeing if I can get a run of titles going (even if I have to lose and regain it first as I still anticipate a tough challenge from Sparta), though there are 3 clubs I might just take if given a direct offer (and Ipswich aren’t one of them, especially as they wouldn’t be in a position to make a direct approach in the first place), depending on their situation and whether I’m in the middle of a season.

Star Player: It was a much closer field this time but Patras was still top tog, not only coming close to his assists tally from last year but getting the goal near the end of the last game that pretty much sealed the title.

[ashton321]

Amazing season mate well done. Fingers crossed you can establish your self as the number one team over there

[deltablue]

Amazing season mate well done. Fingers crossed you can establish your self as the number one team over there

Thanks. It was a bit of a surprise for sure, but it felt great just about pulling through on both fronts in the end. It's going to be tough to establish ourselves as the dominant side as Sparta are always very strong and Jablonec are no slouches either. We probably won't feel comfortably on top before we get another couple of titles.

Summer 2019

Being champions and in the CL qualifiers this year meant I had a little more money to play with, almost 1.5M for transfers and being able to offer up to 3kpw a player even with the budget slider close far in the ‘transfer’ end, about double what it was the past year or two even with a massive amount of spare budget, so it was nice to to be quite to tightly shackled by the board. We’d still need to use it with the squad being far from complete, and players like Oldoni, Arzhanov and Zemlik being released, the latter combined with Neuwirth being 34 (but still class and even getting big bids!) meaning a right-back was definitely a priority. We didn’t really have much room for non-eu players which is unfortunate, but we’ve managed fine with it before.

Unfortunately Boulabiar was off after just a season, the chairman accepting a 2.4M bid from Real Madrid. While it was frustrating losing him this way it was inevitable, and actually I was almost hoping for this to happen occasionally to keep us strong financially as long as the fee was reasonable, which I thought it was. There was also the case that despite a far wider range of players available, a truly convincing right-back was hard to find, and having come close to getting one in anyway I decided that Ogar (who was partly competent in that position and would be re-trained anyway) would suffice as a short-term solution.

However I had the opposite problem otherwise with the standard bar being raised considerably from a couple of years ago and had to be careful not to go for players who would have been good signings before but wouldn’t add much now, and indeed the two ‘bosman’ signings now seemed a little obsolete already. Thankfully there were still a few players good enough to go for without having to make tough decisions out of a long list of ‘possibles’ and get in more potentially unnecessary signings like last year. While I didn’t solve the right-back problem, I did sort long-term replacements for both Patras on the wing and Kamenar in goal.

The goal is obviously to try and retain the title, though it would hardly be a disaster if we fell short this time.

Transfers

Youth Graduates

Nothing like as good as Jurcik a couple of years back but they both look like they could still become useful players in the end.

[deltablue]

Jul 2019

Slavia Prague 1-3 Maribor (CL)

The season started in the CL against Maribor, who actually seemed to be roughly on our level. We made a very slow start to the season as we went behind after 12 minutes. Ogar equalized 5 minutes later but they scored either side of half-time to win 3-1, though we also had a Hubnik goal disallowed.

Slavia Prague 2-1 Sparta Prague (CSC)

We thankfully looked better early on against Sparta in the Super Cup. Zukanovic gave us a 2nd minute lead, and restored it in the 15th, a few minutes after they equalized. They dominated the rest of the half, but the best they managed was a disallowed goal. The pressure eased off in the second-half and Valasek clinched it after an hour.

Maribor 2-4 (5-5a) Slavia Prague (CL)

We had a tough task to turn the Maribor tie around, however no one told Valasek. After 2 year of being out of favour with so much competition up top he was restored to the team after the first leg and was very much making the most of it. He gave us the lead after 2 minutes, and though they equalized, Juninho and another Valasek goal levelled the tie after just 17 minutes. The game was pretty even until Valasek fired us ahead in the tie in the 35th minute. They went down to 10 men just before the break but despite dominating afterwards, we failed to convert many chances into another goal. They actually scored a disputable penalty in the 85th minute but away goals still saw us through.

Banik Ostrava 1-4 Slavia Prague (CD1)

The first league game was one of the tougher ones, at Banik Ostrava. Juninho gave us a 25th minute lead but we were far from comfortable and they equalized in the 45th minute, there was still enough time for Kalinin to restore the lead before the break. We were better afterwards with Valasek and Juninho giving us a 4-1 win.

Young Boys 0-2 Slavia Prague (CL)

Young Boys would be tough opponents in the next CL qualification round, and we went to Switzerland first. We managed to resist them well but there was major drama when they had a goal disallowed after 40 minutes followed a few minutes later by Juninho squeaking us into the lead. Ogar even gave us another in the 66th minute giving us a lucky 2-0 win.

Aug 2019

Slavia Prague 4-1 Teplice (CD1)

I had to swap a few players round to play Teplice due to tiredness. It didn’t seem to be paying off as they took the lead in the 29th minute but Nwafor equalized 5 minutes later and Valasek gave us the lead. They pushed hard at the start of the second-half but a brace from Godwin saw us cruise to another 4-1 win.

Slavia Prague 1-2 (aet) (3-2) Young Boys (CL)

We were in a great position ahead of the home leg with Young Boys but were hardly through yet, after all we’d pulled off a big away leg comeback ourselves against Maribor in the last round. Sure enough they took the lead in the 14th minute, and we looked very shaky. We seemed to stabilize a bit in the second-half but they still levelled the tie in the 79th minute, taking it to extra-time. We looked very much on the back foot but Guba gave us a vital goal in the 115th minute. I think another Young Boys goal would have given then an away goal win and they came really close to getting multiple times as we squeaked through.

Brno 2-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Things kept going wrong at Brno. Costanzo made his debut but picked up a knock, Juninho got sent off and we were sitting ducks as they went ahead, and made it 2-0 from a Hubnik own-goal. The defender scored in the right net before the break, and Godwin managed to equalize in the 66th minute to salvage a point, even if they missed a penalty later on.

Slavia Prague 3-2 Jablonec (CD1)

We were at least a little rested when we played Jablonec, and we took a 2-0 lead by the 15th minute from Valasek and Godwin. They scored early in the second-half and looked like equalizing but Godwin scored again in the 63rd minute. They still got another goal but it was in stoppage time and the win was ours.

Slavia Prague 1-4 Larisa (CL)

We had Larisa in the CL just 2 days after the Jablonec game, which was poor scheduling on the part of the Czech FA and/or UEFA. They got 2 penalties after a few minutes, missing the first and scoring the second. Godwin equalized in the 26th minute but they retook the lead in stoppage time. Srom got sent off in the 51st minute adding to another bad day and they got 2 late goals to win 4-1, and I doubted we would come back from this.

Ceske Budejovice 1-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We would thankfully play the second leg on a Wednesday but for some reason that just let our trip to Ceske Budejovice be scheduled on the Monday (which at least allowed for a bit of a rest before that)! We went behind after 10 minutes but clawed our way back with Valasek and Vesely giving us a 2-1 lead just before the break. We looked like getting a 3rd for most of the second half, though they nearly hit back and indeed had an equalizer disallowed.

Larisa 2-1 (6-2) Slavia Prague (CD1)

I had pretty much given up on the CL when we went to Greece, and sure enough they were firmly on top, though they didn’t score until the second-half. Hubnik’s own-goal gave them another, but we at least finished strongly with Valasek getting a goal and we came very close to getting a draw on the night. Still, into the Europa league we went. We got a tough group with Lazio and holders Sporting Gijon, though I hoped we could get something from Hajduk.

Slavia Prague 1-0 Sigma Olomouc (CD1)

There would still be no rest until the international break (with a midweek cup game coming before that) but we still kept going and comfortably saw off Sigma Olomouc, deserving to win by more than a 34th minute Valasek goal.

It's been a hectic start to the season to say the least. The midweek cup game we've got coming up will be the 14th in a season just 7 weeks old! We're not going to get much rest for a while either with the CL group games (though thankfully only 4 come before the domestic season goes into the winter break) and potentially 4 cup games (including a 2-legged last 16 tie) filling our midweeks. So far we've done admirably, especially given the young and inexperienced nature of the squad, and also given the European games were tough ones, scraping past Maribor on away goals and Young Boys in extra-time, as if they weren't draining enough. We might have been able to give Larisa a challenge as well if we hadn't had league games just 2 days before each leg, taking us beyond the limit of a side of a side that needed a few changes every game, which is something I rarely do(It's a bit disruptive, especially with a side that's working well) and gives you an indication of how bad tiredness was throughout August. Unfortunately we need to get a 2nd CL spot to get put in a later round, and that's still some way off so this is unfortunately going to be something we're going to keep facing.

We at least managed to get off to a very good start (Brno aside, and even then we still got a point) in the league despite everything going on in Europe. Unfortunately poor scheduling seems to be a Czech trait as aside from my gripes about our pre-Larisa league games, the Super Cup is apparently scheduled for the opening weekend of the season (!), and while Sparta started later in the EL and could play their rescheduled game in midweek, we couldn't because we had the second Maribor leg, hence the game in hand. It did at least mean we had our transfer business done just before we started in the league, which was nice. Sparta got off to a worryingly storming start, as if to say 'It seems we didn't quite set the bar high enough for you losers last time, lets see how you cope with this!' but a stumble at home to Jablonec in their last match stops them getting too far ahead. The way we've been going I'd say we can compete with them no matter how strongly they go, especially having beaten them in our last 3 encounters (and 4 of the last 5), at least as long as tiredness doesn't hold us back.

[Dexter_Morgan]

Well done on the double last season, had a feeling you'd at least win the cup

Shame about your CL defeat would have been good to get to at least the group stage but obviously not meant to be yet, got a feeling that Europa group isn't impossible to get out of though Your league form at least has been promising so far.

[King Costly]

Good start to the season. That Europa League group is tough but win your home games and you should be fine.

[ashton321]

Superb in Europe so far. Love the Africans you have brought in so far. Should do really well in that league

[deltablue]

Well done on the double last season, had a feeling you'd at least win the cup

Shame about your CL defeat would have been good to get to at least the group stage but obviously not meant to be yet, got a feeling that Europa group isn't impossible to get out of though Your league form at least has been promising so far.

Nope, in fact I'm happy enough with getting to the last qualifying round (especially having had to get past a superior Young Boys side who I didn't expect to beat) and being in the Europa League group stage. Getting to the CL group stage is hardly impossible, especially with even a little bit of improvement but even though we were seemingly seeds in every round it might require rather easier draws than we got this time around (and not playing a league game just 2 days before each leg, that'd be great), as even if we're almost always going to get a tricky opponent in the last round, not being so drained from earlier rounds might help a little. Having been bottom seeds for the Europa League group draw we can at least work towards improving that.

Good start to the season. That Europa League group is tough but win your home games and you should be fine.

We've lost all three European home games so far this season. If we couldn't do it against Maribor then I'm not getting my hopes up about Lazio

Superb in Europe so far. Love the Africans you have brought in so far. Should do really well in that league

Well, Godwin's been fantastic already (6 goals and 7 assists in 13 games and a rating of 7.62, 8.02 over 6 League games so far!). Much better than Patras on paper and already proving himself to be at least his equal in terms of form (which isn't easy at all). I was worried about how we'd do in the long-term with the Moldovan entering his 30's but it's clear we have nothing to worried about. In fact after a few years of being easily our most important player, Patras picked up a short-term injury in the Super Cup and hasn't featured since because of how strong Godwin has been in his place. Seydi (who thankfully has French as a second nationality, given the rules about only being able to play 3-non eu players at once) hasn't done so well so far (he can play in midfield but I think I dropped a massive clanger in the first leg against Larisa when I stuck him in there instead of sticking with Kalinin, who tired as he was would still have been a more reliable option, with Guba injured and unable to come in instead), but obviously he's still very young and it's early days.

Past experience has taught me the value of recruiting young talent directly from Africa (though neither signing this year qualifies) in these sorts of leagues (foreign player rules permitting), and the smaller Eastern European ones given you can often buy low (though some of my signings at Slavia haven't quite been that cheap) and I don't mind them being sold over my head occasionally (which has already happened once) because it often means strong profits, keeps finances healthy and replacements are easy to find. Nigerians seem to easily be the best at the moment. Ogar at left back is one of our most important players (and if I was more inclined to accept offers I could get a lot for him), Nwafor (who was signed for nothing) isn't necessarily first choice but often does very well, and a mixture of the number of non-eu players we already had and the fact none of them were likely to be important enough to be worth it stopped me from getting in at least one of a handful I was going for in the summer. While I can only have a small number at any one time they often make quite a bit of difference.

[DavidBeckham]

Solid last season and great start this season, keep going mate!

[deltablue]

Solid last season and great start this season, keep going mate!

A league and cup double (with an average of 2.37 points per game in the league) is rather more than 'solid'

Anyway sorry for not being active for a bit. Not been well for the past week (and it was my birthday at the weekend) with only one month played before today. Hopefully I can seriously cut down on those gaps of a few days or more for a while.

Sept 2019

Pardubice 0-4 Slavia Prague (CFC)

The cup defence started with an easy game at Pardubice, even as tired as we were. Valasek and Ildemar gave us a 2-0 lead after just 10 minutes, and though the former had a goal disallowed, he still got another in the 32nd minute, Nwafor finishing off a 4-0 win before the break.

Sokolov 2-3 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We were under a lot of pressure early on at Sokolov but still took the lead from Godwin in the 33rd minute. We were still unimpressive and they equalized just before half-time, then took the lead but Valasek equalized with a minute of the regular 90 left and Godwin scored again in stoppage time as we got a lucky 3-2 win.

Slavia Prague 2-3 Lazio (EL)

The first Europa league group game was at home to Lazio, unsurprisingly being in the back foot from the start and going behind after 10 minutes, but we somehow rallied and Zukanovic equalized 5 minutes later. The defence didn’t have a good day and they restored the lead before the break but Valasek snatched another equalizer at the start of the second-half. Again we were ill-equipped to hold on and went down to a 70th minute goal from Victor Moses, with a Lazio 4th disallowed near the end.

Slovan Liberec 3-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Again we had only one full day between a European game and a league game which didn’t make much difference at first as Valasek gave us a 21st minute lead at Slovan Liberec. Again the defence was useless as they took a 2-1 lead but Hubnik equalized before the break. They still got a winner with a second-half penalty. Poo.

Vlasim 0-4 Slavia Prague (CFC)

Vlasim were another easy cup opponent and Valasek put us ahead after 15 minutes. Seydi and Bochorishvili made it 3-0 by the half-hour mark, the Georgian getting another in the second-half.

Slavia Prague 0-3 Sparta Prague (CD1)

Again we had very little rest before the derby. They took the lead from a penalty after 20 minutes, and easily got 2 more in the second-half to go 8 points ahead of us, which even with a game in hand seemed like a lot. Ogar would be out until the Spring with a broken foot as well.

Oct 2019

Hajduk 1-0 Slavia Prague (EL)

We went to Hajduk on a potentially winnable European game, but were firmly on the back foot early on. Things gradually got better and it seemed that we’d survived the worst of it but they suddenly took the lead in the 63rd minute. We had a good go of it afterwards but failed to get an equalizer.

Viktoria Plzen 2-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

An own-goal from Vesely put us behind in the 1st minute at Plzen, and it didn’t look like our day would get any better even before they got another in the 52nd minute. However Valasek scored 20 minutes later with Godwin getting an equalizer in the 80th minute.

Slavia Prague 1-0 Bohemians Prague (CD1)

We finally played our ‘opening’ game against Bohemians and had little trouble against a side with just 3 points in 10 games, though could have been more convincing than 1-0 with an 18th minute Valasek strike.

Slavia Prague 2-0 Opava (CD1)

The International break gave us a nice rest before Opava. An own-goal gave us a 33rd minute lead with Godwin making it safe in the 69th minute, despite a sending off for Zukanovic.

Slavia Prague 1-0 Sporting Gijon (EL)

Sporting were the Europa League holders but you wouldn’t know it as Valasek gave us the lead and we mostly sat comfortably on it for the rest of the match.

Most 1-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We had none of the 4 players who could play left-back available to go to Most (Zukanovic suspended, the rest injured) and we struggled, going behind after 15 minutes and later getting a straight-red for Hubnik (filling in what was definitely a cursed position). However we still came out with a draw thanks to a very deep stoppage time equalizer from Valasek.

Trinec 0-0 Slavia Prague (CFC)

For the 5th time this season we had just one full day between games, in this case before a cup trip to Trinec. We unsurprisingly struggled and while far from life-less we couldn’t take control and would have to settle for 0-0 in what was mercifully just the first leg.

Nov/Dec 2019

Slavia Prague 1-1 Jihlava (CD1)

We underestimated Jihlava and went behind in the 4th minute, however managed to rally late on and Neuwirth gave us yet another rescued point.

Sporting Gijon 3-0 Slavia Prague (EL)

After our surprise win in Prague, Sporting taught us a lesson back in Spain, going 3-0 ahead by half-time. We also had Neuwirth going off injured. We at least managed to stop it getting worse in the second-half.

Mlada Boleslav 4-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

The trip to Mlada Boleslav was the last league game before the break (though there were 3 more after) and looked good early on with Costanzo giving us the lead in the 6th minute (then getting injured. You win some, you lose some) and Neuwirth making it 2-0 in the 18th. Unfortunately we cocked it up big time in the second-half. They scored in the 52nd minute, equalizing from a Zukanovic own-goal just 5 minutes later, sealing a 4-2 win by the 70th minute. Morons.

Slavia Prague 1-0 (1-0) Trinec (CFC)

We weren’t much more impressive against Trinec than we were last time, but Juninho sent us through at the start of the second-half.

Lazio 3-0 Slavia Prague (EL)

We just had the 2 European games left, starting in Rome. Luck wasn’t with us as we went behind, had Neuwurth sent off and Gallegos injured. All in the first 13 minutes. Surprisingly they only scored again in the second-half but we were condemned to finish bottom with a game to go.

Slavia Prague 1-1 Hajduk (EL)

We had nothing to play for against Hajduk. We were weakened and not really bothered, going behind from a Vesely own-goal in the 6th minute. Ildemar equalized but they were easily 3-1 up after half an hour. However Bochorishvili snatched a goal a few minutes before the break, and we got a stoppage time equalizer from Godwin to get a surprising if meaningless point.

It's not exactly been a great autumn, with tiredness undoubtedly being an issue (our only 2 league defeats before Mlada came just 2 days after other games), a tendency to have to rescue late points (not unique to this season admittedly) and a couple of long-term injuries for Ogar and (to a lesser extent) Valasek. The latter and Srom are also set to leave at the end of the season as our chances of retaining or regaining our title any time soon. Thankfully we should be better in the spring with players back, a long winter break to rest and no more European games but a serious title challenge still seems a long shot this year.

[Dexter_Morgan]

Bit of a tough period there, hopefully you can pick up when the league restarts

[DavidBeckham]

Yes deltablue I meant you had a terrific last season \o/

[rodesire]

Hopefully with the Europe out of the way you will start picking up the W's in the league.

[deltablue]

Yes deltablue I meant you had a terrific last season \o/

That's more like it

Bit of a tough period there, hopefully you can pick up when the league restarts

Hopefully with the Europe out of the way you will start picking up the W's in the league.

Thankfully we did but we could only rescue the season so much. Had another 'ill week' but finally did the second half of the season today, which I'll post tomorrow morning.

[deltablue]

Mar 2020

Bohemians Prague 1-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We went to Bohemians to start the spring, and disappointingly fell behind in the 9th minute to the league’s bottom side. We at least did enough to eventually equalize from Nwafor in the 82nd minute but didn’t deserve more than that.

Slavia Prague 3-1 Brno (CD1)

We were thankfully a lot more convincing against Brno, Godwin and Valasek being the stars with the former scoring in the 25th minute and setting up the latter for 2-0 after 40. They pulled a goal back with 5 minutes left but Valasek gave us a deserved 3rd in the final second of the standard 90 minutes, giving us a first league win in 5 games.

Slavia Prague 3-2 Banik Ostrava (CD1)

We took far too many chances to take the lead against Banik Ostrava, eventually managing it from Godwin in the 32nd minute, but we were punished with a quick equalizer. Hubnik gave us the lead before the break, and the now 17yr old Jurcik got his first goal for the club (in his 27th appearance) in the 82nd minute, which is probably just as well as they converted a stoppage time free-kick for 3-2 in the end.

Teplice 0-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We got a 3rd win in a row at Teplice, but only just. Bochorishvili scored the only goal just before half-time and only wastefulness from Teplice spared us an equalizer.

Jablonec 2-0 Slavia Prague (CD1)

A Jablonec trip would be tough, going behind in the 9th minute with another coming after 50 minutes as we were clearly second best.

Apr 2020

Slavia Prague 2-3 Ceske Budejovice (CD1)

Godwin gave us a 2nd minute lead against Ceske Budejovice, and we looked set for a good win but they equalized and somehow took a 3-1 lead in the 65th minute! Valasek pulled one back 5 minutes later but I couldn’t believe we lost that.

Sigma Olomouc 0-3 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We were thankfully fine at Sigma Olomouc. Godwin set up Juninho after 15 minutes and scored himself after 50. Juninho scored again to finish off a good 3-0 win.

Slavia Prague 0-0 Jablonec (CFC QF)

Jabonec was a tough cup draw. The first half of the home leg was very dull, and while we had some second-half chances we couldn’t make a breakthrough, which at least wasn’t as bad as Sparta being held to the same result by a non-league team.

Slavia Prague 4-1 Sokolov (CD1)

Juninho gave us a 15th minute lead against Sokolov, followed by Ogar in the 22nd. They scored in the 51st minute but Valasek and Juninho again gave us a 4-1 win.

Jablonec 0-2 (0-2) Slavia Prague (CFC QF)

An own-goal gave us a vital away goal against Jablonec and despite Godwin missing a penalty we seemed to hold on fine. Juninho pretty much sealed it in the 72nd minute and even though they had a late goal disallowed we they would have needed an unlikely 2 more. Best of all was the Sparta went out (to the aforementioned non-league side) with Jihlava the only other First Division side left.

Slavia Prague 1-1 Slovan Liberec (CD1)

The game against Slovan Liberec was very even affair with an own-goal giving us a 42nd minute lead but we gifted them an equalizer early in the second-half and that’s how it stayed.

May/June 2020

Sparta Prague 0-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

I wasn’t confident for the away derby but despite being on the back foot we seemed to be surviving. Juninho actually gave us the lead with 5 minutes left and there was enough time for Gallegos to give us a surprising 2-0 win.

Slavia Prague 2-1 Usti nad Labem (CFC SF)

We had an absurdly busy month ahead and now played Usti nad Labem in the cup. Patras gave is a 29th minute lead, but while we looked like getting more, a Srom own-goal equalized it in the 79th minute, despite them not having a shot on target. We still managed to sneak the win from Juninho in stoppage time. Unfortinately Ogar would be injured for the rest of the month.

Slavia Prague 1-0 Viktoria Plzen (CD1)

We got lucky against Plzen, who easily had more chances but were very wasteful and we grabbed a win from a stoppage time Juninho penalty.

Usti nad Labem 2-1 (3-3p) Slavia Prague (CFC SF)

We went behind in the 14th minute at Usti nad Labem, which actually gave them an away goals advantage. Juninho cancelled it out in the 28th minute but we were still shaky and they re-took the lead before the break. We had a good spell late on but couldn’t prevent it going to penalties. Godwin missed our first, which wasn’t a good start. Gallegos then missed our 3rd but they missed their next two to level it after 4 shots apiece. Kalinin scored our 5th and Gerasimenko (preferred over Kamenar in goal since late autumn, haing been signed to eventually replace the aging Slovak before long anyway) saved their last one as we squeaked through to the final.

Opava 0-3 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We still had plenty of energy at already relegated Opava, Ildemar giving us the lead in the 36th minute, and Valasek extending it just before half-time. An own-goal soon gave us a 3-0 win.

Slavia Prague 4-0 Most (CD1)

Valasek gave us a 10th minute lead against Most, with Bochorishvili coming on at the break and getting 2 more in the first 15 minutes. A last-minute Valasek lob sealed a 4-0 win, as well as setting a new club record for goals in a season.

Jihlava 0-3 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We went to Jihlava with very little to play for as we were almost certainly going to be 3rd. It was at least a good warm-up for the cup final with Bochorishvili giving us a 28th minute lead, Godwin extending it a few minutes from half-time and capping off a star performance in the 82nd minute.

Slavia Prague p0-0 Sezimovo Usti (CFC Final)

On paper the cup final against Sezimovo Usti should be easy as they weren’t even a Second Division side, but they would be the ‘home’ side as far as the game was concerned, would be in far better condition and had knocked out 3 of the other top 6 sides along the way including Sparta, adding a 4th First Division scalp against Jihlava in the semis. We had also struggled against lower league opposition multiple times during our own run, only beating Trinec 1-0 on aggregate in the last 16 and Usti nad Labem on penalties in the last round. In my experience these finals are rarely that easy even with a clearly superior side on paper.

As I feared, we struggled to get anywhere in the first-half, making them look threatening even without a single shot all match. We sort of got our act together in the second-half but couldn’t get a single shot on target out of 9 and yet again it went to penalties. Their first man hit the bar, and Gerasimenko saved their 3rd while Bochorishvili and Godwin scored but Patras missed our 3rd so we couldn’t celebrate quite yet, especially in light of our ‘comeback’ in the semi shootout. Thankfully Juninho made no mistake with our 4th and they hit the bar again with their 5th giving us the win. Aside from the fact that it gave us back-to-back cup wins it really wasn’t an occasion to remember, not just because of how unconvincing it was but also the lack of chances in the match with no shots on target between us and none at all for them, making for one of the worst finals of all time.

Slavia Prague 3-2 Mlada Boleslav (CD1)

We played Mlada Boleslav in the final league game, a repeat of last year’s title-winning final day. Bochorishvili gave us a 17th minute lead, but it seemed to go down-hill from there as a poor defence gave them a 2-1 lead at the break. Jurcik equalized in the 63rd minute and Juninho, master of the crucial stoppage time goal, struck yet again for all three points.

For the most part the season was rather disappointing, even if it got better in the end. We started well enough despite a very hectic start of the season, at least until the Europa League group stage started, but between then and the winter break our only league wins were at home against the 2 relegated sides. It looked like a major struggle to even get a top 3 finish (5th looking likely at one point) while Sparta were running away with it. Things thankfully looked a lot better as despite back-to-back defeats to Jablonec and Ceske Budejovice, we won 11 out of the other 13 games, making 3rd incredibly easy in the end, along with an admittedly scrappy cup win. Unfortunately we had lost far too much ground in the autumn, and a late collapse by Sparta led to a sense of what might have been, as we were ‘only’ 5 points behind eventual champions Jablonec, as opposed to miles behind a Sparta side that had looked too strong to realistically challenge anyway so in the end maybe a second title could well have been within our grasp after all with a slightly less disastrous autumn.

However the really strong second-half of the season (even with the last month being just as packed as the first couple) has given me fresh confidence about the future and the chances of being top again before too long. I must admit that I while I wouldn’t have left before the end of next season at the earliest, continued failure to at least challenge for another title would have got me seriously thinking about moving on at some point, especially as I was linked with a few clubs during the season (Werder Bremen, Panathenaikos and Dynamo Moscow in order of how tempting they were) that might I might have at least considered had they been offers made at the right time (as it stands I don’t see myself leaving during a season for a while), Cruzeiro in the close season adding another 'caught my eye but not now' moment, but an actual move doesn’t look like it’ll happen for the time being and there’s still a bit more I want to do in Prague. My ‘transfer status’ has moved from ‘no chance in the foreseeable future’ but only as far as ‘might happen in a few years if it’s the right club at the right time’.

Star Player: Godwin had a fantastic first season at Eden, leaving previous star man Patras on the bench for a lot of the year (I only play one winger), which wasn't easy but after the Moldovan got injured just 1 game into the season the Nigerian stepped up and stayed in the team on merit (aside from a poor spell in April/early May) with a great haul of both goals and assists, deservedly winning the league's player of the season award. Like with Gerasimenko in goal, he was bought as a long-term replacement for Patras (now 31) anyway and already showed that we had nothing to worry about.

[chickenbroncitis]

Well done on the cup final win and the European place. Things are looking good and the European money wont do you any wrong. Ive just moved onto FM2011 for the first time ever this week after playing FM2010 for far too long. Just doing a Brazil, France and Spain career and see how things go. Carry on like you are.

[Dexter_Morgan]

Well done with the cup win, at least that half of the season improved enough to give you some silverware and a European spot so it wasn't too bad all in.

[Raware]

Very good season delta and a nice bit of silverware too. Godwin looks like he's hit the ground running

[deltablue]

Well done on the cup final win and the European place. Things are looking good and the European money wont do you any wrong. Ive just moved onto FM2011 for the first time ever this week after playing FM2010 for far too long. Just doing a Brazil, France and Spain career and see how things go. Carry on like you are.

Well we got a decent bit of money to finish the year on 9M in the bank so we're in good shape financially at the moment.

Well done with the cup win, at least that half of the season improved enough to give you some silverware and a European spot so it wasn't too bad all in.

Thanks, it wasn't much to boast about but a trophy is a trophy and for the middle phase of the season I'd definitely have been delighted with 3rd in the end.

Very good season delta and a nice bit of silverware too. Godwin looks like he's hit the ground running

I know, unfortunately I had to accept a release clause to sign him and it was activated at the start of July so that's all we got to see of him at Eden

Summer 2020

We had an early blow in the summer when after losing top scorer Valasek on a free, Wolfsburg suddenly activated Godwin’s release clause, which was a bit of a blow even though we got almost 10x what we paid for him just a year ago. We already had no shortage of money, with a 5M transfer budget and over 50kpw (with about 40% spare) for wages. However that just meant I could push the boat out much further than before and I took full advantage. Even with a couple more sales I just about had enough for my summer business, taking advantage of a handful of better players on offer. Including a pretty much like for like replacement for Godwin (down to the ‘Nigerian signed from Bosnia’ bit).

There was just one teensy problem. For domestic games we’re only allowed 3 non-European players on the pitch and I sort of overdid it for those signings, only the last of the 6 being European taking us to 9 non-Europeans in the squad! In theory the squad was certainly stronger but team selection and substitutions would be a constant balancing act so it was far from certain how we’d do at less than full strength all year long, hopefully not too far off the title again.

[King Costly]

Good luck for the new season. I always found getting five Belgians in my match day squad tough enough so I don't envy you! Hopefully the European players you do have will be up to scratch. Tavares looks particularly tasty.

[DavidBeckham]

Some good signings there, good luck for the new season ahead! \o/

[deltablue]

Good luck for the new season. I always found getting five Belgians in my match day squad tough enough so I don't envy you! Hopefully the European players you do have will be up to scratch. Tavares looks particularly tasty.

Thankfully the rules aren't too bad as all Europeans count as EU and I have a few others with a second nationality which means the restriction has hardly ever been a problem before, so we could afford a couple more, though maybe not 5 at the same time. As usual the transfer activity overlapped with the start of the season and it was frustrating putting on relatively weak (but still decent) subs, especially for under-performing defenders because of the rules, something I'll have to get used to, but the signing of Esposito should help as well as the return of Srom who is currently injured. It's especially problematic up front with the underperforming Costanzo as the European forward and I can only realistically play one of the others at once.

El Tahir, Ogar and Tavares/Juninho are my preferred 3 non-Europeans at the start but Gerasimenko back in goal would open up another slot (probably for Yahia) and as long as Ogar is on the left Adenkule could be in luck as a direct replacement. Interestingly earlier that day I posted on Dexter's thread as he had signed a few foreigners and wanted to check with the rules to make sure he wasn't overdoing it and ended up doing just that myself! I did still look closely for good 'EU' players but there were hardly anyone of a similar quality around so just went for it. I always like to make sure my teams don't lack for depth and we certainly have that even if we're no stronger on the pitch. Juninho and Ogar are just one year away from being Czech nationals which'll hopefully make things a little easier but it's definitely going to be a frustrating juggling act this year at least.

Some good signings there, good luck for the new season ahead! \o/

Thanks, pity I can only play a few of them because of the rules but they're certainly a strong bunch of signings on the face of it.

[deltablue]

Jul 2020

Slavia Prague p1-1 Jablonec (CSC)

We started the season against Jablonec in the Super Cup. They took the lead in the 28th minute but new forward Tavares equalized 10 minutes later. We were generally on the back foot but held on all the way to penalties. Both the first penalties were missed, while the second ones were scored. New keeper El Tahir saved their 3rd which made the difference as all the rest were scored, Costanzo converting our 5th to keep up our good penalty shootout record for the year (3 wins from 3).

Slavia Prague 1-1 Mlada Boleslav (CD1)

The league season started the same way the last one ended, at home to Mlada Boleslav. Unfortunately we were slow out of the blocks and a collective defensive disaster gave them the lead in the 36th minute. They had a player sent off after 50 minutes but while we had some chances, none were on target and we fell to a deserved defeat.

Usti nad Labem 0-3 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We went to Usti nad Labem and took the lead from Gallegos after 22 minutes, almost immediately after coming on for the injured Ildemar. Patras and Tavares scored in the second-half give us a deserved 3-0 win.

BATE Borisov 1-0 Slavia Prague (EL)

We went to BATE first in Europe, weakened a lot by unavailable players, and went down just before the break. We deserved an equalizer in a better second-half but couldn’t get it.

Aug 2020

Slavia Prague 4-0 Banik Ostrava (CD1)

An Ogar penalty gave us a 5th minute lead against Banik. We looked unconvincing until a Tavares brace in the middle of the second-half and Patras sealed a slightly misleading 4-0 win. A 37th minute own-goal equalized the BATE tie, and Kalinin gave us the aggregate lead in the 48th minute.

Slavia Prague 3-0 (3-1) BATE Borisov (EL)

They were still one goal away from an away goals victory but Juninho put it beyond them with 15 minutes left.

Teplice 1-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Tavares gave us the lead just before half-time at Teplice. They equalized 5 minutes into the second-half but we deserved the win and got it from Esposito’s first goal for the club in the 82nd minute.

Slavia Prague 2-1 Brno (CD1)

Tavares kept up his ‘goal a game’ ratio in the league so far in the 38th minute against Brno. Costanzo gave us a deserved second in the 79th minute but a harsh penalty 6 minutes later made it look close in the end.

Slavia Prague 1-1 Zenit St. Petersburg (EL)

Zenit were expected to be far too tough in the Europa League. We looked very bright throughout and when Juninho scored in the 78th minute it looked like we’d be taking a deserved lead to Russia. However they got an away goal equalizer just a few minutes later and might have even snatched the win. Srom also got an injury that would rule him out for the entire autumn.

Jablonec 2-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We went to champions Jablonec between the Zenit legs, and it did not start well. The defence (and a few others) had a ‘mare and gave them a 2-0 lead after 22 minutes. It was one of those games when the league rules prevented me from making a couple of subs I wanted to, a price I gave to pay for over-loading with non-Europeans. Patras pulled a goal back on the stroke of half-time and Costanzo equalized in the 58th minute, giving us a point I was delighted to get.

Zenit St. Petersburg 1-0 (2-1) Slavia Prague (EL)

As expected, we were on the back foot in Russia, especially with a lack of central midfielders (Guba started the season injured and was just getting back to fitness, Ildemar was an early season injury and Gallegos was a casualty from Jablonec) and they went through with a goal after half an hour, and I was relieved it wasn’t a lot worse.

Slavia Prague 1-1 Ceske Budejovice (CD1)

Ceske Budejovice were surprise early league leaders, but we wasted some chances to teach them a lesson. Costanzo gave us the lead after 50 minutes but Seydi scored an own-goal (with Jurcik equally culpable) immediately afterwards and we failed to get going again after that, missing a great opportunity to go top.

I was slightly worried after that opening day defeat but we've been a lot better since then. A shortened run in Europe should help, as should the fact that no one has made a dominant start like Sparta last year, and while they're ahead of us as the main potential challengers in a 3-way tie at the head of a narrow pack they've had an easier start. Unlike last year we should be right in the mix this time with a decent chance of a second title.

A couple of games into the season I ended up being the favourite to take over at Spartak Moscow, who had some excellent players. I had already committed myself to stay this season but if I keep being linked with tempting clubs I might well decide to leave next summer, especially if I can crown it with a title or of we end up a bit off the pace. A close failure might convince me to have another shot but that's still a while away so we'll see how things go.

[DavidBeckham]

going nicely there, only two points behind and still in the mix. Keep it going mate!

[King Costly]

Tough defeat to Zenit but at least you can concentrate on the league. Decent start that you can build on.

[Dexter_Morgan]

Good start there, very tight at the minute though.

[deltablue]

going nicely there, only two points behind and still in the mix. Keep it going mate!

Tough defeat to Zenit but at least you can concentrate on the league. Decent start that you can build on.

Good start there, very tight at the minute though.

Thanks, unfortunately we often don't do well in early autumn and it was the same this year even though we were still able to get back in it.

Sept 2020

Horovicko 0-4 Slavia Prague (CFC)

We went to Horovicko for the annual ‘cup 2nd round walkover’. Seydi gave us the lead with Patras and Costanzo making it 3-0 at the break. Tavaras finished off a 4-0 win.

Hradec Kralove 0-0 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We were rather disappointing at Hradec Kralove, which should have been a comfortable win but we failed to turn superiority into a serious threat.

Slavia Prague 0-0 Sigma Olomouc (CD1)

Sigma had also started well and while we were just about better we couldn’t grab a goal, thankful that they didn’t snatch a winner either.

Uhersky Brod 0-3 Slavia Prague (CFC)

Uhersky Brod were another easy side early in the cup, though Tavares’ 4th minute goal was the only one in the first-half. He got another along for Costanzo early in the second-half to make it comfortable.

Slavia Prague 1-1 Sokolov (CD1)

Patras gave us a 12th minute lead at Sokolov with a penalty, but it wasn’t enough to stave off yet another frustrating draw due to an equalizer just before the break.

Oct 2020

Slovan Liberec 1-0 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We didn’t have any more luck at Slovan Liberec, going behind in a dire first half. We raced out of the blocks in the second-half and kept up the pressure for most of the match but inconceivably couldn’t even get an equalizer. It was our first league defeat for 10 games but we were on a run of 5 without a win.

Slavia Prague 2-1 Sparta Prague (CD1)

Our bad form didn’t bode well for the derby but an own-goal gave us the lead after 20 minutes. They equalized in first-half stoppage tome but Patras gave us the win early in the second-half, taking us to within 2 points of our arch-rivals. Ceske and Sigma were still just ahead with a game in hand but they were unlikely to keep it up all season long, it was the gap to Sparta which mattered to me.

Viktoria Plzen 1-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We seemed like failing to build on the Sparta win as a dull first half at Plzen was followed by going behind in the 53rd minute. Nwafor equalized with a penalty 4 minutes later then soon gave us the lead. They had an equalizer disallowed as we got another win to keep pace (somewhat) with the top.

Slavia Prague 1-1 Usti nad Labem (CFC)

We played Usti nad Labem in the cup and went behind in the 9th minute of the home leg. Juninho equalized in the 37th but Vesely was sent off, followed by Ildemar going off injured. Even with that we stayed on top and should have got the win.

Nov 2020

Slavia Prague 3-0 Most (CD1)

We looked convincing for the first time in ages against Most. Tavares gave us the lead in the 13th minute with Patras adding to it with a 40th minute penalty. Jurcik sealed it with a deserved 3rd with 5 minutes left.

Jihlava 1-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We looked set for another win when Tavares gave us a 20th minute lead at Jihlava. They caught us on the break in the 27th minute and I was worried we’d drop 2 silly points, especially when Adenkule had a goal disallowed but Ildemar gave us the deserved win with 10 minutes left.

Usti nad Labem 1-4 (2-5) Slavia Prague (CFC)

We went to Usti nad Labem for the away leg in the cup, easily making up for the first leg draw. Juninho gave us a 3rd minute lead, and an own-goal made it 2-0 in the 15th minute. They pulled a goal back before the break but quick goals from Costanzo and Jurcik finished off a 5-2 aggregate win.

Mlada Boleslav 1-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

I was worried about going to Mlada Boleslav after they beat us at home on the opening day, and indeed were lucky they had a goal disallowed in the 2nd minute. We otherwise had the better of things for a while but they took the lead after 50 minutes and we looked in disarray. Tavares still rescued a point but we slipped a little to 4 points behind Jablonec.

Once again a strong start to the season was followed by a poor September (which never seems to be a good month), going into October with a run of 5 games without a win as we were dropping far off the title chase. However we managed to pull a win out of the bag against Sparta, where it really mattered, the start of a run of 4 wins and a draw in the 5 games before the break. It's still a tough battle at the top but at least we're keeping ourselves in the mix. If we get pretty close I might decide to have one last crack at it but tempting clubs are circling.

[deltablue]

Two pieces of news from the Winter Break

The first is yet another case of 'player sold above my head', in this case Adenkule to Russia for 2.7M, admittedly not the worst loss in the world and a useful sum of money (which is why I almost count on it happening occasionally) but annoying after only half a season and for less than twice value (admittedly partly because there wasn't really much time to 'depreciate' from when I bought him).

The other news is that I'm now managing a national team.

[deltablue]

Erm...

I'm actually rather disappointed. We've not looked that great in the spring and having felt last year after Sparta messed it up that more consistency would have given us a title that seemed light-years away, it's happening to an even greater extent now. About 3 times now I've felt 'right, that's over' yet here we are. If we do somehow come out on top it will feel rather unimpressive and if we don't I'll feel it it would be a clear opportunity thrown away. I'm pretty much set on leaving at the end of the season now, especially with Nigeria to pass the time for a while if need be.

However whichever way you look at it, having such a tight table with 4 games left is exciting. Here is how the fixtures pan out...

Slavia:

Sparta (a)

Viktoria Plzen (h)

Most (a)

Jihlava (h)

Sparta:

Slavia (h)

Slovan Liberec (a)

Sokolov (h)

Viktoria Plzen (h)

Jablonec

Mlada Boleslav (a)

Usti nad Labem (h)

Banik Ostrava (a)

Teplice (h)

Sigma Olomouc

Viktoria Plzen (a)

Most (h)

Jihlava (a)

Mlada Boleslav (h)

That's an important derby to say the least! Otherwise we just about have the best set of fixtures, followed by Sparta, Sigma and Jablolec in gently descending order.

[SRL88]

Unbelievably tight at the top.

[deltablue]

Unbelievably tight at the top.

Indeed it was, it came down to the final day between 3 of us in the end.

Feb/Mar 2021

Slavia Prague 1-3 Usti nad Labem (CD1)

The spring started against Usti nad Labem, and did not go well. Seydi scored a 10th minute own-goal, followed by Jurcik and Srom going off injured, and we were 3-0 down at the break. Tavares pulled a goal back at the start of the second-half but Neuwirth became our 3rd injured defender and we couldn’t pull it back any more. It looked like the title would be a long shot now and that would mean ‘Goodbye Slavia’.

Banik Ostrava 2-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

It was Esposito’s turn to put us behind with an own-gal at Banik. Costanzo equalized at the start of the second-half and I thought we’d won it when Patras scored in the 82nd minute but Kalinin got sent off (I think the Russians might have annexed his home region) and they snatched a point in stoppage time.

Slavia Prague 4-2 Teplice (CD1)

We were thankfully on firmer ground against Teplice, with Tavares and a Juninho brace giving us a 3-0 lead after 33 minutes. However they pulled a goal back before the break, then had a goal disallowed and made it 3-2 from a penalty. A stoppage time Patras free-kick finally made it safe.

Brno 0-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

There was relatively little fuss at Brno. Ildemar gave us the lead in the 43rd minute Tavares giving us another and surprisingly we were back to 4 points off top.

DR Congo 1-3 Nigeria (WCQ)

I was dipping my toes into international management with Nigeria, who had finished bottom of what was admittedly a group of death (with Cameroon, Ivory Coast and Ghana) in the ACN. They were a little lacking in quality defenders but were very strong elsewhere. Now attentions turned to the last stage of the World Cup qualifiers, starting in DR Congo. The Arsenal forward Aneke gave us a 20th minute lead, followed by the 2 midfielders, Haruna of Milan and Marseille’s Kelechi. They scored before the break and pushed hard in the second-half for at least one more but we got the result we were looking for.

Slavia Prague 3-0 Jablonec (CD1)

Back in Prague we faced Jablonec, who we had to beat to give us a decent shot at the title. After an appallingly dull first-half, we took control in the second and Ogar gave us a 49th minute lead, and own-goal and Ildemar sealed a surprisingly comfortable 3-0 win against the reigning champions.

Apr 2021

Ceske Budejovice 2-0 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Our potential late title challenge crumbled at Ceske Budejovice who took the lead in the 17th minute. We looked good value for an equalizer but they hit us with another with 5 minutes left.

Slavia Prague 2-0 Hradec Kralove (CD1)

Costanzo gave us the lead after 5 minutes against Hradec Kralove. We failed for most of the match to turn pressure into a second and were very nearly punished but Esposito finally sealed it with a minute left.

Banik Ostrava 2-1 Slavia Prague (CFC QF)

Banik Ostrava were our cup quarter-final opponents, away leg first. Juninho gave us a 10th minute lead but they equalized in the 22nd minute. They kept pushing and snatched a late winner.

Sigma Olomouc 1-0 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We went to Sigma in a battle of 2nd v 3rd. They took the lead in the 23rd minute and while we had spells of pressure we were too wasteful to get anything.

Slavia Prague 2-0 (3-2) Banik Ostrava (CFC QF)

We managed to turn the tie around against Banik, Juninho giving us the lead on the night after 20 minutes and Costanzo on aggregate a few minutes before half-time. One goal for them would give us a 4th shootout within a year but while it was close, it thankfully didn’t come to that.

Slavia Prague 2-0 Sokolov (CD1)

We were rather flat for a lot of the game against Sokolov. We woke up eventually with Juninho giving us a 63rd minute lead and he soon got another as we won 2-0.

May/June 2021

Slavia Prague 1-0 Slovan Liberec (CD1)

I felt the league season was turning into a dead rubber, and it certainly felt like it against Slovan Liberec. Gallegos got a very late winner but that was nothing compared to the wakeup call that left us still in 4th but just 2 points off Sparta with 4 games left.

Ceske Budejovice 0-0 Slavia Prague (CFC SF) 200th Slavia game!

We went to Ceske Budejovice in the first leg of the cup semi, my 200th Slavia match, but despite a lot of effort (which we had the most of), neither of us could get a goal.

Sparta Prague 2-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

The away derby was crucial, and we drew first blood with a 3rd minute Seydi header. However we otherwise looked lightweight and they equalized in the 30th minute, looking set to go ahead. Juninho snuck us ahead in the 65th minute but we had a hard task holding onto it and we just about failed, an Ogar mistake gifting them an equalizer right at the death which was admittedly deserved but could cost us.

Slavia Prague 3-2 (3-2) Ceske Budejovice (CFC SF)

Seydi gave us the lead against Ceske Budejovice in the cup, and Patras made it 2-0 by half-time. It looked comfortable but El Tahir own-goaled to put them back in it and they equalized in the 82nd minute, looking like putting us out on away goals but Seydi’s second goal took us through to a Prague derby final.

Slavia Prague 1-0 Viktoria Plzen (CD1)

Sparta lost before we played Plzen but we didn’t look like making the most of it. We had few chances, mainly coming in the second-half and Tavares snatched a win, keeping us in contention, though we were 3 points behind Jablonec (and also behind Sigma).

Most 0-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We needed to beat bottom club Most away to stay in the hunt. Tavares gave us a 1st minute lead but soon went off injured, as did Esposito (the latest of a long line of defensive injuries in the spring). Costanzo sealed it after 50 minutes but with Jablonec and Sigma 3 and 1 points ahead respectively out chances were slim.

Slavia Prague p2-2 Sparta Prague (CFC Final

Before we had the final day we played the cup final against Sparta, hoping to get a 3rd cup win in a row. Costanzo gave us a 4th minute lead but otherwise they were firmly on top, equalizing in the 13th minute and taking the lead in the 32nd. Jurcik managed to head home an equalizer a couple of minutes before the break, and we were better in the second-half but couldn’t snatch a winner, even when they went down to 10 men and yet again it went to penalties. We were on a roll as far as shootouts (winning all 3 last year) were concerned but that meant the law of averages was strongly against us. Having to make all substitutions early, which meant some of our better takers were either taken off or left on the bench meant we were at far from full ‘penalty strength’.

Our first, from Ogar was saved but Gerasimenko caught their second while Gallegos scored to level it up after 2 rounds. The 3rd and 4th rounds saw both sides score, and I got excited when Gerasimenko pulled off another save in the 5th but Costanzo missed the chance to seal it, taking it to sudden death. Again, they missed and so did we in round 6, but Gerasimenko, already a penalty hero in all the previous shootouts, pulled off his 3rd save this time in the 7th round and finally Audu finished off a fantastic final and a hat-trick of cups.

Slavia Prague 4-1 Jihlava (CD1)

The last game was against Jihlava with an outside shot at the title but we’d need to win, hope Jablonec lose against relegated Teplice (unlikely especially as they had won their last 6) and Sigma also drop points against Mlada Boleslav (more likely but not enough on its own). It didn’t take long to start doing our part, Patras giving us a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes. Jablonec also went behind but at that point Sigma were ahead and would claim the title by a point if things stood. I didn’t expect the Jablonec score to stay that way but on the off chance it did, a single goal against Sigma would swing it for us. At the end of the first half, that’s precisely what happened as we found ourselves top (the only other time this season had been when we went ahead against Sparta), surely we couldn’t get lucky could we?

Jablonec had gone a second goal down (though they weren’t out yet), so it was mostly down to whether Sigma would get a winner or not, if they did then head-to-head results would give them the title even if Jablonec came back to draw. If not than our own head-to-head superiority over Jablonec would be enough for us. Patras completed a hat-trick after 70 minutes but by that point Sigma were ahead again against 10-man Mlada Boleslav and I knew it was over. Seydi had a goal disallowed but Costanzo made it 4 anyway and they got a late consolation. That left Sigma Olomouc as surprise champions, their first ever, and only once have they even been second. They’ve never even won the cup as far as the game is concerned (though they do have a real life win in 2012, on the flip side they’ve also just been relegated)

Nigeria 0-0 Mali (WCQ)

Nigeria still had a World Cup qualifier against Mali, benefiting from the return of a few players who were unavailable for my first squad. The first-half saw a bunch of unsuccessful chances, an injury to one of the forwards, a penalty claim denied and a goal disallowed, while they looked like snatching something on the break. The second-half was more of the same, with some quiet spells and another denied penalty, leaving us with a disappointing 0-0 draw.

Wow, what an epic end to the season! I had been set to leave but having said that a very close failure might just persuade me to stay on for one more season, I think I will. Even that might not be enough, and it was only that final day (had goal difference had priority over head-to-head results, it wouldn’t have been exciting and I’d be done) that changed my mind, along with the fact that Ogar and Juninho were on the verge of qualifying for Czech citizenship so we wouldn’t have all the trouble with the foreign player rules that held us back a bit this season. The excellent Yahia and Audu had barely got the chance to play (though Patras’ form played a major role in the latter case), El Tahir gave way to Gerasimenko after a while and often, especially early in the season, I had to leave an underperforming Costanzo in the pitch, ditto for defenders occasionally. Memo to self, resist the temptation to sign non-Europeans this year, no matter how hard. Well I might be able to get away with 1.

It hadn’t been a great season for the most part, as the failures of our rivals meant we stayed in the title race despite looking like we were going to be out of it about 5-6 times and even being close under any other circumstances wouldn’t have given me much confidence about what next season would bring. However along with the final league day came a fantastic cup final (in considerable contrast to last year). I’m still technically working my way up and far more tempting clubs (especially in Brazil) are giving me very itchy feet so having just about decided to stay now, I’ll definitely be off after next year, hopefully with a 2nd title and/or 4th cup in a row.

Star player: After being sidelined by Godwin for much of the previous season, the Nigerian's sale and the excess of non-Europeans in the squad paved the way for Patras to return as a key players and he didn't disappoint. Pity time looks like it'll soon catch up with him.

[King Costly]

Hopefully you can sign off in style. Not a bad season by any means though, cup win and second place isn't to be sniffed at. If you can improve and be more consistent next season the title should be yours.

[deltablue]

Hopefully you can sign off in style. Not a bad season by any means though, cup win and second place isn't to be sniffed at. If you can improve and be more consistent next season the title should be yours.

Thanks, though we were only briefly 2nd twice before the end of the season so it was more a last ditch rescue of a top 3 finish rather than looking like a side that deserved to finish there. In the cup as well we didn't really win any game convincingly after the formalities of the first couple of rounds, so a good end of the season makes us look better than we were throughout.

I've got a good feeling about this year. We've got probably the best side in the league, only made a few signings so we have a settled squad, when Juninho and Ogar get citizenship (both of which are pending in the early weeks of the season) it'll make it a lot easier to play 'full strength' sides within the limits of the rules, and we've started the season well enough. We easily beat champions Sigma 4-0 in the super cup and won both opening games (including getting revenge on Mlada Boleslav for beating us on the opening day last year), which admittedly doesn't mean much as we generally do start well (though with a few dropped points) and its the autumn (especially September) and early spring where we struggle, but it's promising nonetheless and on the evidence on the past couple of seasons, we'll comfortably be in pole position if we keep it up.

Summer 2021

The winter sale of Adenkule, release of Camara and upcoming naturalizations of Juninho and Ogar (which annoyingly wouldn’t quite have happened by the start of the season) reduced the number of non-Europeans to 5, much more manageable that last year, though definitely room for one more in the right position, and sure enough I used it to strengthen one of our weaker positions, defensive mid. Guba and Kalinin were decent enough players but I knew we could so a lot better. I had already signed a young Czech defender in a deal made in January, and aside from perhaps another ‘eu’ forward, there was little that really needed to be done leaving us with a much more settled side than in previous years. The lack of an outstanding side in the past couple of seasons gave me confidence that if we could improve on the previous year or two we’d have a very good chance of a second title.

[deltablue]

July 2021

Sigma Olomouc 0-4 Slavia Prague (CSC)

The seasons started against champions Sigma in the Super cup. Costanzo had come along in leaps and bounds in recent months and gave us a 29th minute lead, nearly getting another just a few minutes later. Patras extended the lead in the 49th minute, followed by a 60th minute own-goal. Patras sealed a 4-0 win in the 82nd minute that was a promising gesture of intent. I doubt their reign as champions will last very long.

Slavia Prague 2-1 Mlada Boleslav (CD1)

Mlada beat us on the opening day last year, which I was determined to pay them back for. Costanzo again gave us the lead, in the 8th minute, and deservedly extended it in the 58th minute. They pulled one back immediately after and then they got a penalty, but Gerasimenko added it to his growing collection of penalty saves and we got that winning start to the league season.

Usti nad Labem 1-3 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Juninho and Costanzo scored a quick double to give us a 2-0 lead after 12 minutes at Usti nad Labem. They scored in the 51st minute and we looked shaky for a while but Costanzo sealed a 3-1 win.

Slavia Prague 1-1 Gyor (EL)

Gyor were our European opponents, and we went behind in the 14th minute to a Taiwo own goal. We had no trouble coming back, to a point. Costanzo equalized in the 30th minute, just after having a goal disallowed, but we failed to get the winner we should have.

Aug 2021

Slavia Prague 0-0 Banik Ostrava (CD1)

We hit a bit of a brick wall against Banik, wasting a lot of chances and having to settle for a 0-0 that could even have been a 1-0 defeat.

Gyon 2-0 (3-1) Slavia Prague (EL)

Gerasimenko’s penalty-saving record continued in Hungary, but he couldn’t prevent Gyor taking a 35th minute lead. They scored again in the 68th minute, followed by a red card for Costanzo as we fell to an early exit in Europe, which at least kept us fresher for the league.

Karvina 0-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Audu gave us a 7th minute lead at promoted Karvina but we were on the back foot for the most part after that. Audu made it safer with another goal after an hour, before coming our second injury of the match (after Ildemar) and we had no trouble afterwards.

Slavia Prague 3-0 Brno (CD1)

The first half against Brno was a constant exchange of chances. They had a goal disallowed after 35 minutes but Tavares was luckier as he gave us the lead just before half-time. It got easier and Costanzo soon extended the lead, and despite going off injured, Novakovic came on and sealed it with his first goal for the club.

Jablonec 0-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

The trip to Jablonec was potentially the toughest yet. Tavares had a bunch of good chances that he failed to make the most of, and even after he was hauled off no one could do any better. Thankfully Jurcik headed in a corner in stoppage time to give us the deserved win.

Slavia Prague 1-0 Ceske Budejovice (CD1)

Like last year, Ceske Budejovice had started well but were already fading away. Novakovic gave us the win in the 44th minute but they still gave us a lot of trouble and only wastefulness spared us an equalizer.

Kraluv Dvur 0-3 Slavia Prague (CFC)

The first opponents in the cup were Kraluv Dvur. Nwafor had been near the bottom of the non-eu pecking order for a while and took his chance, giving us a 4th minute lead, unfortunately soon going off injured. Novakovic was our current in-form forward and scored again after 20 minutes, Gallegos sealing a 3-0 win just before the break.

Sept 2021

Mozambique 0-0 Nigeria (ANQ)

Nigeria faced a trio of qualifying games, starting at Mozambique in the ANC qualifiers. They had a few half-decent players but it was still disappointing to only get a 0-0 draw after battering away at them the entire match. We needed to do better in the World Cup qualifiers against the Congo’s.

Nigeria 2-0 Congo (WCQ)

It was much the same against ‘plain, simple’ Congo, including an early penalty claim waved away, so it was considerable relief in the 70th minute when Aneke gave us our first goal in what seemed like 100 chances over the past few games. We still couldn’t rest easy as they threatened for a while but Chibueze (a young forward coming on for only his second cap) got a late second.

Nigeria 3-0 DR Congo (WCQ)

We had a much easier time against DR Congo. Defender Adeleye headed us into the lead in the 9th minute, followed a few minutes later by Chibueze. Aneke sealed the win with 10 minutes left, keeping us just ahead of Mali on goal difference, giving us the potential advantage of being the side that only needed to draw when we played.

Hradec Kralove 1-0 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Domestic business resumed at Hradec Kralove and shockingly went behind in the 17th minute. As hard as we pushed we couldn’t get anything, even when they went down to 10 men, stinging us with our first league defeat in 14. We always seemed to stumble after the September international break and it seemed like it was happening again.

Slovan Liberec 0-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Novakovic gave us the lead in the 3rd minute of a potential banana-skin at Slovan Liberec, who were in 4th. We didn’t really look comfortable but managed to hold on to it well enough.

Ceska Lipo 0-2 Slavia Prague (CFC)

Our next cup opponents were Ceska Lipo, not quite as much of a formality as other opponents in these early stages but still easy enough. Taiwo gave us a 14th minute lead and we deserved far more, only getting another from Tavares in the 73rd minute.

Slavia Prague 2-0 Sigma Olomouc (CD1)

Sigma Olomouc had made a very good start in defending their title but having beaten them easily in the super cup I hoped we could do so again. They proved tougher this time, and Jurcik got sent off after half an hour but we still had plenty of attacking drive and it was a pity that Tavares was having another ‘wouldn’t score with 100 chances’ game. Thankfully Novakovic scored a quick brace after 70 minutes to take us 3 points ahead of them and 5 of Sparta.

Great start to the season, despite the early European exit, which I'm not bothered about one bit, and Kradec Kralove was a silly match to lose but we're still very much doing the business and we should be fine if we can keep it up.

[deltablue]

Oct/Nov 2021

Sokolov 2-0 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We went to Sokolov, another strong starter, and had a bit of a fail day. Esposito became our second straight red in as many games, followed immediately by Sokolov taking the lead. They got another in the 78th minute to seal a disappointing defeat.

Nigeria 4-0 Kenya (ANQ)

Nigeria went into another set of qualifiers with the defence, already our weakest area by far, being weakened even further by a couple of injuries. It was never likely to be a problem against Kenya. Adebayo and Kelechi put us 2-0 up after 18 minutes. Wolfsburg’s Igbodo made it 3-0 by the break and Chibueze’s bright start to his international career continued with the 4th in the 70th minute.

Mali 1-1 Nigeria (WCQ)

Far more critical would be the trip to Mali, as the winner would likely qualify for the World Cup, a draw leaving us needing to match their result in the last game to squeak through on goal difference. We started well, Adeleye giving us a 6th minute lead, but for the first time we were under serious pressure. Our record of penalties not being given continued early in the second half and they struck an equalizer in the 69th minute, also sustaining a couple of injuries.

Congo 2-2 Nigeria (WCQ)

It was all about how much we won by in Congo. We were helped by an early red card, and Aneke gave us the lead. After continuously missing out on being awarded penalties, Congo got given a soft one to equalize just before half-time (pity Gerasimenko isn’t Nigerian). As it happened Mali were losing their game so it didn’t seem to matter so much. Congo looks worryingly threatening in the second-half and took the lead in the 69th minute, followed by a Mali equalizer that took them ahead of us. My Nigeria reign seemed to be short lived but Haruna headed in a corner in the 4th minute of stoppage time to send us through to the World Cup, admittedly nowhere near as convincingly as it should have been.

Slavia Prague 2-1 Sparta Prague (CD1

There was yet another big game on my return to Prague with the home derby. It was a hectic match, but thankfully Tavares remembered his scoring boots and put us ahead in the 32nd minute. Novakovic gave us another with a penalty at the start of the second-half. They still looked threatening and quickly pulled a goal back but aside from the inevitable couple of last minute scares they didn’t trouble us too much in the end.

Viktoria Plzen 3-3 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We had the chance to go 4 points clear at Viktoria Plzen, and had some good fortune early on when they had an player sent off and a goal disallowed. Tavares gave us the lead in the 39th minute. Unfortunately Seydi’s own-goal in the 50th minute was quickly followed by Plzen taking the lead. Tavares soon scored again to equalize and Kalinin put us ahead in the 74th minute but we still managed to ship an equalizer (despite not being under that much pressure) in the last minute, as we seemed incapable of building up any sort of a comfortable lead.

Bohemians 1905 1-2 Slavia Prague (CFC)

We went to Bohemians 1905 in the cup and took a 12th minute lead from Kalinin. Taiwo extended it before the break but they got one back early in the second-half. We could easily have had a 3rd but still had a lead to take back to Eden.

Slavia Prague 4-1 Opava (CD1)

We were nice and comfortable against Opava, Novakovic giving us a 10th minute lead. Tavares gave us 2 more in the first 15 minutes of the second-half and though they pulled a goal back, though a Kalinin own-goal, Tavares finally (it took a few chances) completed a hat-trick in the last minute.

Jihlava 2-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We went to Jihlava for the final league game before the break, and they were a lot more troublesome than I expected. Jurcik and Taiwo both got sent off just before half-time, which didn’t help matters, and they took the lead in the 58th minute. Costanzo equalized almost immediately and we very nearly got a point, which would have been good under the circumstances, but they got a winner deep in stoppage time. Mercifully Sigma messed up as well so we stayed top at the half-way point.

Slavia Prague 3-0 (5-1) Bohemians 1905 (CFC)

We still had to deal with Bohemians in the cup before we could start our Christmas shopping. Jurcik gave us the lead after 12 minutes, followed by Kalinin in the 47th and Taiwo gave us a 3-0 win, givimg Jurcik and himself some sort of redemption for the Jihlava red cards.

We've been pretty much top all-season long, which is obviously excellent but we're making it hard for ourselves. We've won all the big games (admittedly mostly all at home) but a few slip-ups against other teams (the defeat against Hradec Kralove is still their only league win of the season so far!) mean that we should easily have a bigger lead than we do now. Not much to be too annoyed about for now I know but failing to get clear keeps the pressure on and means that all it takes is a bad result or two to cost us the title I really want to bow out with. Sparta and Sigma are already out of the cup (though not the other sides near the top of the table) which helps our chances of winning the cup for an excellent 4th time in a row. If we can get the title I won't mind too much if we can't do it though.

Also feel like Nigeria have been making it hard for themselves as well. The qualifying group wasn't necessarily a breeze but we should have been a lot more comfortable than a last gasp goal putting us though on goal-difference. Generally the problem was simply about not turning pressure into goals but we've been under threat a lot more in the past couple of games. Defence aside we have a very good team that depending on the draw could have a decent World Cup (Certainly Quarters with a bit of luck) but will definitely have to step up to get out of all but the easiest group draws, which I'm just waiting on...

That's actually not too bad. Italy will probably be far too good for us, Saudi's shouldn't pose too much of a problem, while Wales still have the excellent Ramsay and Bale as well as a few other decent players so will provide tough competition for 2nd (I reckon it's about 50:50 chance) but it definitely could be worse, a couple of the other groups probably are a little easier but (aside from A, which is skewed by Qatar being seeds) not by much. If we do beat the Welsh to get out of the group we'll likely play Portugal or Argentina (or USA) so the last 16 is very much the limit of our ambitions.

Group A

Serbia

South Africa

Chile

Qatar

Group B

France

Brazil

South Korea

Jamaica

Group C

Wales

Saudi Arabia

Nigeria

Italy

Group D

Portugal

USA

Argentina

Iran

Group E

Mexico

Croatia

Spain

Peru

Group F

Belgium

Uruguay

Angola

Belarus

Group G

Holland

Ghana

England

Australia

Group H

Poland

Senegal

Germany

Japan

[deltablue]

Feb/Mar 2022

Mlada Boleslav 1-0 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We had to hit the ground running at Mlada Boleslav, but went behind in the 9th minute. It was very much against the run of play but we failed to get an equalizer before the break or do anything at all in the second-half. I was worried that stumbles in games like this where we should have won would cost us the title and we couldn’t afford any more.

Slavia Prague 2-0 Usti nad Labem (CD1)

Tavares gave us the lead in the 24th minute against Usti nad Labem. We pushed to get another and deservedly got it from Juninho in an 82nd minute, remaining a point behind Sparta and Sigma though.

Banik Ostrava 0-2 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We managed to avoid awayday blues at Banik. Juninho and Tavares again got the goals in the 14th and 68th minutes respectively.

Slavia Prague 5-0 Karvina (CD1)

We were never going to have any trouble against Karvina. Costanzo gave us the lead in the 14th minute and Kalinin scored another before the break. Costanzo scored twice more in the second-half to complete a hat-trick by the 85th minute, with an own-goal soon following to give us a 5-0 win. Sparta and Sigma still weren’t dropping any points though.

Brno 3-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Our poor away form struck again at Brno. They took the lead in the 3rd minute and though Juninho equalized 10 minutes later a shocking defensive display late in the first-half saw them go 3-1 up and the best things got for us in the second-half was a 4th Brno goal disallowed, leaving us 4 points off Sparta.

Mauritius 0-5 Nigeria (ANQ)

I hoped Nigeria would go to town in Mauritius and it looked like it as Sheriff gave us the lead in the 4th minute followed by 2 Adeleye headers after 12 minutes. Aneke got a 4th in first-half stoppage time but the only other goal was a late Sheriff goal.

Apr 2022

Slavia Prague 0-0 Jablonec (CD1)

The game against Jablonec was full of wasted chances for both sides, and even a 0-0 did us no good at all as we fell 6 points behind Sparta.

Ceske Budejovice 0-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

Our away form looked to strike again at Ceske Budejovice but Juninho delivered with a 61st minute goal, vital as Sigma lost (putting us up to 2nd) and Sparta conceded a late equalizer at Brno allowing us to close the gap a bit.

Slavia Prague 5-1 Hlucin (CFC QF)

Hlucin were an easy cup quarter-final draw, with Juninho giving us a 10th minute lead and Costanzo making 2-0 after 15 minutes. Yahia headed a 3rd in the 27th minute and though they soon pulled a goal back, Costanzo scored a quick brace in the middle of the second-half to all but seal our place in the Semi’s already.

Slavia Prague 2-1 Hradec Kralove (CD1)

Juninho had a mixed time of things against Hradec Kralove. He scored a 7th minute penalty but received a straight red just 6 minutes later. Costanzo extended the lead after half an hour but they pulled goal back in the 50th minute followed by a second red card, this time for Taiwo. We still held on to win.

Hlucin 0-0 (1-5) Slavia Prague (CFC QF)

The away leg at Hlucin was a fairly uneventful game (though we still had the better of it), admittedly we didn’t need anything to happen with such a dominant home leg win and went through with a 0-0 draw.

Sigma Olomouc 2-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We went to Sigma knowing a defeat in the same fixture last year ended up costing us the title, we also had no fewer than 4 suspensions. Esposito got a questionable 15th minute red card, and they inevitably took the lead in the 27th minute. Patras managed to equalize in stoppage time but they still had time to get a winner.

May 2022

Slavia Prague 2-1 Sokolov (CD1)

We looked comfortable for a lot of the game against Sokolov, having a 2-0 lead at half-time from Seydi and Hubnik, but they scored in the 65th minute and we only narrowly escaped with the win.

Jablonec 1-0 Slavia Prague (CFC SF)

Jablonec would be tricky cup semi opponents, and we were away first, an uninspired performance giving us a 1-0 defeat from a 52nd minute goal.

Slavia Prague 2-2 Slovan Liberec (CD1)

The games were fast running out but when Tavares gave us the lead against Slovan Liberec in the 52nd minute it looked like we’d close to 3 points of Sparta, more so when Seydi made it 2-0 in the 78th minute. However they scored twice in the last few minutes to give us a sinking feeling.

Slavia Prague 3-2 (3-3a) Jablonec (CFC SF)

I hoped to turn the Jablonec tie around and it appeared to work a charm as Nwafor scored twice in the first 20 minutes, and Seydi made it 3-0 after half an hour. However they scored before half-time, getting another in the 56th minute to go through on away goals.

Sparta Prague 3-0 Slavia Prague (CD1)

If we failed to beat Sparta away the title race was all but over. Unfortunately it didn’t go well, they took a 25th minute lead and scored again on the stroke of half-time. A Taiwo injury added to our troubles and a poor performance gave them a 3-0 win that all but gave them the title.

Slavia Prague 0-0 Viktoria Plzen (CD1)

We mostly looked a spent force against Plzen, relying on their wastefulness to scrape a 0-0.

Opava 1-1 Slavia Prague (CD1)

We still had to chase 2nd and looked like we’d get it when Ogar gave us the lead shortly before half-time at Opava. Unfortunately luck really hadn’t been on our side and so it proved now. Neuwirth got sent off (an disappointing end to a great career under me both at Chornomorets and here, as he was retiring at age 37), following by Tavares having a goal disallowed and they got a point from a Gerasimenko own-goal.

Slavia Prague 2-0 Jihlava (CD1)

The final game was against Jihlava, and after a lot of effort (too much in fact for my liking) took the lead from Tavares just before half-time. A Nwafor penalty sealed the win but Jablonec got their own winner against Karvina denying us 2nd.

That was rather disappointing. We looked like potential champions for the first half of the season but failed to build a significant advantage by the winter break and the Mlada Boleslav defeat at the start of spring left us chasing, too many winnable points dropped (especially way) gradually sinking our chances. Losing a 2-goal aggregate lead to Jablonec also denied us a 4th cup final in a row (especially disappointing having just done the same in a league match) leaving us pretty much (the super cup means nothing on its own) empty handed after a season that promised so much early on. In a way it smooth’s my departure in a ‘well, we shot our bolt’ sort of way, still managing to get a title and the 3 consecutive cup wins in a very successful stint at the club.

‘Where next?’ is a very open question. I’ve been linked with top South American clubs for a while now and Brazil very much takes my fancy. Also likely to get a club in a very big league but not one of the stronger ones which makes South America more attractive right now. That said I wouldn’t be actively chasing a club side for a while so it was all down to getting offers and inbox messages which would no doubt very soon turn up something very tempting indeed.

Star player: The lack of a convincing second-half of the season meant no one really excelled in the end leaving Ogar (among my first signings) as our best player.

[deltablue]

June 2022

Nigeria 3-0 Mozambique (ANQ)

We had a World Cup to look forward to but first came a CAN qualifier against Mozambique. We win easily enough. Sheriff gave us the lead after 20 minutes, followed by an Adeleye header in the 32nd minute, both assisted by the Barcelona winger Adebayo. A second-half own-goal sealed a decent 3-0 win. We were mostly at full-strength going into the World Cup, but Chibueze got injured just before it started, denying us our ‘alternative’ forward option.

Nigeria 5-2 Saudi Arabia (WC)

We needed to win our opening game against Saudi Arabia to have a chance of getting out of the group. An Adebayo penalty gave us a 5th minute lead but after Sheriff made it 2-0 he got sent off, which was an especially big problem as my former Slavia winger Godwin (normally the other winger in the squad) was injured. For now though we enjoyed Aneke making it 3-0 in the 49th minute. Within 10 minutes 2 own-goals had made it 3-2 but another penalty and a second Aneke goal gave us a 5-2 win.

Nigeria 1-3 Italy (WC)

I wasn’t expecting anything against Italy, but each goal would count to see who would need a win when we played Wales. They took the lead in the 7th minute, and though Kelechi equalized in the 15th, a terrible spell saw them go 3-1up by half-time. They battered us in the second half (not helped by our best defensive mid Lawal going off injured) but we held on to maintain the goal difference advantage over the Welsh.

Nigeria 2-0 Wales (WC)

We only needed a draw against Wales to go through, a great relief over the other way around, and it ended up being easier than expected. Kelechi gave us the led just 5 minutes in, and they only occasionally threatened as Sheriff sealed it with a 75th minute goal.

Nigeria 1-2 Portugal (WC R2)

We got Portugal in the next round, which was certainly winnable but the injuries and suspensions were mounting up. Sheriff had a goal disallowed in the 37th minute, which I knew would be costly as they looked very dangerous indeed. They took the lead instead in the 53rd minute followed immediately by an own-goal for 2-0. Haruna pulled a goal back after 60 minutes and we pushed for an equalizer but couldn’t quite get it.

It was tough luck given it could easily have gone the other way (and we would have faced South Africa in the Quarters so could well have gone even further), and probably would have if we hadn’t had the injuries we had sustained, and Adebayo’s suspension. However I really hadn’t expected to get past this stage and felt uncertain about making it out of the group so this was still a decent showing.

[DavidBeckham]

Well done for progressing past the group stages, Roy Hodgson couldn't do what you did there!

[deltablue]

Well done for progressing past the group stages, Roy Hodgson couldn't do what you did there!

Thanks, Wales were pretty much our equal on paper (and in the world rankings) so it was hardly a foregone conclusion. Shame things didn't really to our way against Portugal.

Autumn 2022

Kenya 1-2 Nigeria (ANQ)

We had a couple of CAN qualifiers to see out the year, starting in Kenya. A win would give us qualification, and even a draw would keep us top with a home banker against Mauritius left. They took the lead after 5 minutes as we were rather poor for a while, but we kept up the pressure and Aneke equalized just before the break. It looked like we’d have to settle for that but Adebayo gave us a stoppage time winner.

Nigeria 4-0 Mauritius (ANC)

The only question against Mauritius was ‘how much’. Aneke started things off in the 3rd minute, Igbodo and Adebayo making it 3-0 after 20 minutes. They seemed to satisfy the players with an early second-half own-goal being the only other one.

Anyway I've now chosen a new club, and it's definitely an exciting one...

They're really not doing well this year, just a couple of points above the relegation zone in 16th! There's actually a sense of deja-vu here as they were the penultimate club in my FM10 career, and I took them over at pretty much the same point in the season in almost the same position (except they were 17th and only above the bottom 3 on GD), and it was great making them challengers again, winning the Europa League (the only European trophy in that career) and eventually winning the title even though it took ages with some very tough competition. It was one of my favourite sides even if I can only remember a few players. One player stands out among all others...

He was very much a consistent 'pretty much a goal a game' forward (as you can see above, taken in commemoration of his 100th goal for the club, which I even screenied the relevant section of the match report for!), and while obviously there's a lot of competition (especially up front) for my hypothetical 'best ever side' he's pretty much at the top of the list. I even took charge of the Hungarian national side some time after leaving Juventus to see out his career. He still scored genuinely brilliant goals until the end/

Anyway trip down memory lane over. I'm not short of budget, with 55M for transfers and 400kpw spare in a 1.9Mpw wage budget (with 'just' 30M in the bank I can't spend big beyond an initial spree). This is just the sort of thing I love best, being at a big club with all the potential but also in a poor enough state of underachievement that it actually will take some time and effort to be successful rather than just be in a position to challenge and win a bunch of trophies pretty much from day one. In fact just after leaving Slavia I was offered Napoli but as they had just finished 2nd I felt they were too strong to be of any interest to me (plus there would be a lot of pressure from the start), turning down Boca Juniors as well for the same reason and maybe (I can't remember whether I got an offer or not) Milan, who I'm certainly eager to return to and re-live the Magical Milan days but they were reigning Serie A champions so definitely were out for the time being.

[ashton321]

Good luck at Juventus pal, I look forward to you bringing a lot of great young players with potential to the club

[Dexter_Morgan]

Good luck at Juve, playing in Italy seems to bring out the best of you in FM terms usually so hopefully it will be the same here.