FM15: Arsenal FC

[RTHerringbone]

The World Club Championship (we won ) means that we have slipped down to third, with Liverpool continuing their rich run of form. A great win on our return at the Etihad keeps us in contention, but it's odd to be chasing the lead.

EDIT - The match after those images was a really comfortable 2-0 at Anfield to close the gap at the top. I'm actually slightly annoyed to be going out in town tonight instead of carrying on with this save :o

[KingLara]

FM15 Season 3 – January

Premier League

ARSENAL 6

Bernard 1 Sanchez 24 69 75(pen) Vilhena 28 Balanta 57

HUDDERSFIELD 0

A good start to the year. It was only two days after the previous game so quite a few players were unfit. The likes of Gibbs Cazorla and Chambers didn’t feature.

FA Cup 3rd Round

MAN UNITED 2

Mata 75 Blind 90

ARSENAL 2

Aboubakar 14 90

I played a full strength team (including keeper) hoping to at least get the draw. Khedira was back on the bench. We started brightly and after taking the lead through Aboubakar controlled the game and didn’t look in danger. Then the poor Ramsey gave away a free kick with 15 minutes to go and Mata did the rest. As the game ticked past 90 blind gave United the lead and I held my head in my hands. But from kick off Aboubakar smashed a neat Cazorla pass past De Gea and keep us in the cup. Due to the nature of the game Khedira was unused.

Fa Cup 4th Round draw – QPR vs Manchester United or Arsenal

Man City host Chelsea in the big tie of the round.

Premier League

STOKE 1

Wilson 17

ARSENAL 4

Romero 4 Walcott 30 35 52

Aboubakar left for the African nations so Walcott started upfront. He smashed a very good hat-trick as we easily saw off Stoke. They only had three attempts. This time I was able to bring on Khedira for some playing time. But this was Theo’s day.

Premier League

MAN CITY 1

Hulk 33

ARSENAL 4

Vezo o.g 20 Mertesacker 50 Ozil 74 Walcott 90

Back to back 4-1 wins but this was much more impressive. We did a real number on City and they had no answers to the questions we set. Hart had to pull off two or three fine saves and the Hulk goal was offside. It all but ended City’s title hopes while United drew at Swansea meaning we are 3 points clear having played a game less. After a slow start we have now scored 64 goals in 21 games. 111 the target from last season.

FA Cup 3rd round replay

ARSENAL 2

Ozil 24(pen) Cazorla 103

MAN UNITED 1

Mata 42

[After Extra-Time]

We progressed past United after another hard fought game. Ozil gave us the lead from the spot but again we were undone by Juan Mata this time a sweet volley. Maybe I’ll just buy him. We dominated the second half with United only having a paltry two attempts. The game went to extra-time and our free kick king Santi Cazrola stepped up to bury it beyond De Gea. Welbeck should’ve added a third but was denied by a brilliant save. A big hurdle jumped but a trip to QPR beckons in three days time.

FA Cup 4th Round

QPR 2

Harnik 28 Arteta 70

ARSENAL 5

Welbeck 4 24 57 90 Bernard 15

I only made two changes from the United game. Ospina in for Szczesny and Cazorla for the rested Ozil. It meant Khedira still hasn’t started a game since his return. Having not shone brightly against United Welbeck responded with a four goal haul. Happy to get through and pleased we played so well. After over two months out Chamberlain made a late appearance off the bench. City and Chelsea drew 4-4 and will replay. City came from 3-1 down to lead 4-3 before Oscar snatched an 88th minute equaliser.

League Cup Semi Final 1st Leg

ARSENAL 4

Ozil 3 48 Sanchez 21 Walcott 79

HUDDERSFIELD 0

We had already beaten Huddersfield 6-0 and 4-0 in the League. It was another 4 without reply in a very easy win. In the other semi-final both legs were already played before we started. Liverpool winning 4-2 at Anfield and 3-1 at Stamford Bridge.

Premier League

ARSENAL 5

Ozil 18(pen) Welbeck 24 25 84 Balanta 32

WEST HAM 2

Noble 56(pen) Valencia 82 Simao s/o 71

We had 30 attempts on goal they had 2. Welbeck scored a fourth but it was wrongly rules out for offside. We also should’ve had a second penalty and hit the woodwork 4 times.

League Cup Semi Final 2nd Leg

ARSENAL 1

Bernard 15 Costa 86

HUDDERSFIELD 1

Lynch 42

With the distractions of deadline day I really didn’t focus too much on the game. 4-0 up from the first leg it wasn’t really required. Bernard put us ahead before Lynch levelled. In the second half a first goal for Costa gave us another win.

League Table

Chelsea remain 6. They are 5 points off City who in January lost 3 out of 4 and dropped from 3rd to 5th.

1. Arsenal Played 22 Points 57 GD 52

2. Man United Played 24 Points 57 GD 37

3. Tottenham Played 23 Points 50 GD 34

4. Liverpool Played 23 Points 47 GD 25

5. Man City Played 23 Points 46 GD 12

Transfer Window

A little bit of business. I sold Debuchy which meant I needed a right back to cover Chambers. I was offered Aurier for 3.3 million and wasn’t going to turn it down. He will have to wait a while to make his debut though as he is injured for around 6 weeks. I also signed another young defender. Not much potential there but will see what I can do with him. Ronaldo was available for 50 million but only has a year to run on his contract so I’m waiting for the summer. Talking of which we Signed Gotze on a pre contract. I decided to let Podolski go who hadn’t had many games. Cazorla despite playing regualy more recently still wanted to leave and left for Inter.

IN

Serge Aurier 3.3m

Dion Conroy – Free

OUT

Lucas Podolski – 5m

Santi Cazorla – 2.9m

Debiuchy – 2.2m

Elsewhere there wasn’t a lot of movement. Begic, Lamela and Remy all left to go abroad. Liam Bridcutt joined Man City (no really!) and Zarate went to Southampton.

Other News

FA Cup 5th Round Draw – Scunthorpe vs Arsenal

A decent draw.

League Cup Semi Finals – Huddersfield vs Arsenal / Chelsea vs Liverpool

Best possible draw. Could be another Liverpool clash in the final.

Ozil won player of the month. Sam Gallagher won young player while after 19 goals in four league games I scooped the manager award.

Still poor in the League both our youth sides are in the Semi Finals of the Youth Cup.

In the African Nations it has nearly reached the knock out stages. Cammeroon and Aboubakar are still in. He had 4 goals from 2 games.

February fixtures

PL – Chelsea (H)

FAC – Scunthorpe (A}

CL – Galatasaray (A)

PL – Crystal Palace (A)

PL – Aston Villa (H)

LC – Liverpool (N)

[RTHerringbone]

Our form is excellent. Since the City game, we have only dropped a couple of points. The season was front-ended, in the sense that we have played all of our tough away games, so whilst we aren't top at the moment, we'll get there soon enough. Of our remaining fixtures, I'm only mildly concerned about trips to Spurs and Everton. We're playing brilliant stuff. Chelsea still prefer Cech over Courtois and I'm really keen to renew my attempts to sign him in the summer.

EDIT - Just beat Man U 6-0 at The Emirates They had Wanyama sent off on 11 minutes, but we were already 2-0 up and cruising

[RTHerringbone]

It took a while to top the table, but we are there at last. Some excellent results en route to the summit and our tactics are simply stifling our opponents. In general terms, we have 60-65% possession in most games and are consistently forcing the AI pass completion below 65%. Against Hull, we were 1-0 up when Gabriel was sent off for a professional foul; no problem - Sanchez completed a hat trick as we performed even better after the dismissal.

[Spiegel]

Finally got my man, Hojberg arrives to add some physicality to my midfield. It's set me back £25mill, but considering they initially wanted £40+, it should hopefully be a bargain.

Concluded the summer with the addition of versatile defender Micah Richards on a free. He's very much a back up player, but he was happy enough to accept that. Looking out for him as he became the cornerstone of many of my FM07-09 defences!

Season's got off to a reasonable start. We won the Community Shield on penalties after a 2-2 draw against Chelsea. Lost 3-2 to Barca in the Super Cup, probably a bit much to ask given we had two days in between (and some of the squad disappeared for U21 International Duty...)

Beat Norwich 3-0, Newcastle 3-0 and Swansea 5-1 to open the season. Sanchez is destroying teams from Cazorla's old ML slot, same with Ozil in the F9 slot (Natural Striker now!)

[Suggy33]

How do you guys get on with the reserves/youth from the start?

I always keep an eye on the AI development when I play as other teams. On my Maribor save, there was a couple of interesting players who look very decent who I hadn't seen develop before. These are from 2021 under AI:

[Spiegel]

How do you guys get on with the reserves/youth from the start?

I always keep an eye on the AI development when I play as other teams. On my Maribor save, there was a couple of interesting players who look very decent who I hadn't seen develop before. These are from 2021 under AI:

I've made a conscious effort to develop youth in my save.

I like the look of Bielik, Maitland Niles, Crowley, Zelalem and Bellerin on this save. Obviously Gnarby too, but I sold him.

[RTHerringbone]

Balls. First real set back of the save so far, and it happens in the CL Semi-Final 2nd leg:

We really cocked up at home and drew 2-2. After going 2-0 down at Camp Nou I pretty much gave up, but then we hauled ourselves level, only to concede to the last kick of the game

[llama3]

How's the chances of an invincible season looking?

[arsenalthebest]

Balls. First real set back of the save so far, and it happens in the CL Semi-Final 2nd leg:

We really cocked up at home and drew 2-2. After going 2-0 down at Camp Nou I pretty much gave up, but then we hauled ourselves level, only to concede to the last kick of the game

How frustrating

[RTHerringbone]

How's the chances of an invincible season looking?

Two home games from it happening - West Ham now and then Fulham in the last match. Title secured with those two games to go

Everyone except Ozil is fit, so I think it should happen. Overall a great season with that one Barca disappointment, but they're quite a special club so I can deal with that! Stan Kroenke is "retiring" as owner of the club - I don't know what to expect as a result of him leaving.

EDIT - job done

FA Cup against United to go, and then the season will be over. Will be nice to win that considering we lost the final last season. In the summer break, I'll be interested to see what the change of ownership will bring. I'm still keen to upgrade our keepers and Giroud is getting closer to my 30 years of age kicking out date.

EDIT 2 - Walk in the park in the Cup Final.

EDIT 3 - Not really sure what the future holds:

EDIT 4 - They have decided to keep me, but then pulled the upgrade of the training facilities

EDIT 5 - Deal one of the summer is the one I wanted! £18.25m plus he took a £10k p/w reduction from his Chelsea wage. Ospina will be shown the door.

[arsenalthebest]

January Report

01/01/19 | Barclays Premier League | White Hart Lane

STARTING FORMATION/TEAM: GK: Romero© 6.9 RB: Chambers 6.9 RCB: Oliveira 8.2 LCB: Paulo Sérgio 6.9( Kutyauripo 76) LB: Taylor 7.2 MCR: Wilshere 6.4( Pintinho 45) MCL: Assis 6.5( Mangólia 76) AMR: Malcom 7 AMC: Munir 9(MoM) AML: Sterling6.7 STC: Giroud 6.8

Arsenal 2 ( Pintinho 51 , Munir 84 | Assts: Oliveira x1 , Munir x1 )

Tottenham 1 ( Chadli 76)

05/01/19 | F.A Cup( Third Round) | Emirates

STARTING FORMATION/TEAM: GK: Milankovic Savic 6.9 RB: Márcio Vicente 7 RCB: Woodward 7.7 LCB: Sestrem 6.9 LB: Taylor 6.7 MCR: Pintinho© 8.2( Wilshere 45/6.9) MCL: Assis 6.6 AMR: Elana 8.4(MoM - J.Long 75/6.7) AMC: Law 6.9( Giroud 75/6.7) AML: Bauer 6.5 STC: Rosa 7.4

Arsenal 3 ( Elana PEN 8 , Rosa 12 , Pintinho 39 | Assts: Elana x1 , Law x2)

Luton Town 1 ( Martin 56)

09/01/19 | Barclays Premier League | Etihad

STARTING FORMATION/TEAM: GK: Koval 7.4 RB: Chambers 6.4 RCB: Stones 6.9 LCB: Koscielny© 8.4( Kalas 80/7.3) LB: Yenga 6.6 MCR: Wilshere 6.5( Ruben Neves 45/6.7) MCL: McCarthy 6.8 AMR: Oxlade-Chamberlain 7.7 AMC: L.Long 6.7 AML: Sterling 6.8 STC: Munir 6.5( Lukaku 42/6.9)

Arsenal 2 ( Lukaku 43 , Kalas 85 , L.Long Inj 89 | Assts: Oxlade-Chamberlain x1 , Sterling x1)

Man City 2 ( Agüero 15 , Pogba 53)

12/01/19 | Barclays Premier League | Emirates

STARTING FORMATION/TEAM: GK: Milankovic Savic 6.9 RB: Camara 6.8( Kalas 41/6.6) RCB: Paulo Sérgio 6.9 LCB: Oliveira 6.9 LB: Yenga 6.9( Hearn 41/6.4) MCR: Kauè Caetano 6.7 MCL: McCarthy 7.9 AMR: Oxlade-Chamberlain 7.2 AMC: L.Long 7.5 AML: Sterling© 9(MoM) STC: Rosa 7.1( Lukaku 45/7.1)

Arsenal 3( Rosa 7 , Sterling 29 , Lukaku 46 | Assts: Oxlade-Chamberlian x1 , L.Long x1 , Sterling x1)

Watford 2 ( Murray 44 , Coquelin S/O 58 , Lewis 64 , Galloway S/O 72)

16/01/19 | Barclays Premier League | Emirates

STARTING FORMATION/TEAM: GK: Milankovic Savic 7 RB: Márcio Vicente 7.2 RCB: Oliveira 7.7 LCB: Paulo Sérgio 7.2( Kalas 72.6.7) LB: Yenga 7.7 MCR: Kauê Cartano 7.1( Ruben Neves 67/6.7) MCL: McCarthy 7.2 AMR: Oxlade-Chamberlain 9.2(MoM) AMC: L.Long 8.5 AML: Sterling© 8.2 STC: Ings 8.4( Malcom 67/6.6)

Arsenal 3 ( L.Long 4 , Oxlade-Chamberlain 11 , Ings 22 | Assts: Oxlade0Chamberlain x2 , Ings x1)

Leeds 0

19/01/19 | Barclays Premier League | Madejski

STARTING FORMATION/TEAM: GK: Milankovic Savic 6.9 RB: Stones 7 RCB: Kalas 6.8( Doria 71/6.8) LCB: Chsmbers 8.4 LB:Taylor 7 MCR: Law 6.9( Barry 82) MCL: Ruben Neves 7.3 AMR: Oxlade_Chamberlain 8.8(MoM) AMC: Bäron 8.4 AML: Munir 6.2 STC: Lukaku 6.5

Arsenal 1 ( Bäron 9 | Asst: Oxlade-Chamberlain x1)

Reading 0

22/01/19 | Capital One Cup (Sem-Final Leg 1) | Emirates

STARTING FORMATION/TEAM: GK: Koval 7.1 RB: Chambers 7.5 RCB: Kosicelny 6.6( Stones 77) LCB: Doria 7.8 LB: Yenga 7.1 MCR: McCarthy 7.1 MCL: Wilshere 7.6 AMR: Rui Miguel 8.1 AMC: Bäron 9(MoM) AML: Sterling 7.5( Oxlade-Chamberlain 77/7.3) STC: Munir 8.3( Malcom 66/6.7)

Arsenal 4 ( Munir 20 , Sterling 23 , Bäron 42 , Oxlade-Chamberlan 86 | Assts: Wilshere x1 , Bäron x1 , Rui Miguel x2)

Liverpool 1 ( Ballotelli Pen 30)

26/01/19 | Barclays Premier League | Emirates

STARTING FORMATION/TEAM: GK: Milankovic Savic 6.9 RB: Camara 7.1 RCB: Woodward( Dória 74/6.8) LCB: Oliveira 7.5 LB: Yenga 7.8 MCR: Law 7.8 MCL: Ruben Neves 6.9 AMR: Malcom 9(MoM) AMC: Bäron 7.1 AML: Buaer 6.8 STC: Ings 8.1( Lukaku 80)

Arsenal 2 ( Ings 6 , Malcom 74 | Asst: Ings x1)

Sheffield Wednesday 0

29/01/19 | Cpaital One Cup( Semi-Final Leg 2) | Anfield

STARTING FORMATION/TEAM: GK: Koval 6.8 RB: Chambers 6.7( Doria 62/6.9 - To LCB 62) RCB: Koscielny© 7.5 LCB: Stones 6.9( To RB 62) LB: Yenga 6.9 MCR: Wilshere 6.9 MCL: McCarthy 6.8 AMR: Oxlade-Chamberlain 6.9( Rui Miiguel 69/6.8) AMC: L.Long 6.8( Baron 69/6.7) AML: Sterling 6.8 STC: Munir 8.6

Arsenal 2(6) ( Munir PEN 26 & 62 | Assts: Sterling x1 , Oxlade-Chamberlain x1)

Liverpool 1(2) ( Pendrey 70)

[KingLara]

FM Season 3 – February

Premier League

ARSENAL 3

Ramsey 43 Bernard 62 Ozil 74(pen)

CHELSEA 1

Costa 1

With the situation of the league even a draw wouldn’t be the end of the world. We were behind though inside 15 seconds. A lump upfield saw szczesny rush out of his goal to be lobbed by Costa. However we responded well. Courtois made an extraordinary save from Welbeck before Ramseys controlled volley from the edge of the area got us level. Courtois made another fine save in the second half before Bernard and then on the spot Ozil gave us a good win

FA Cup 5th Round

SCUNTHORPE 0

Leigertwood s/o 87

ARSENAL 8

Ozil 5 Chamberlain 12 28 71 Walcott 33 Sanchez 49 62 88(pen)

I expected a comfortable win but maybe not quite like this. 4-0 in each half. We were missing Welbeck and Costa who were both injured. Costas will keep him out for six weeks. Due to injuries I named two youngsters on the bench as well. Chamberlain and Sanchez the stand outs although Walcott with a goal and 4 assists worth at least a mention. We also hit the woodwork three times. I’ll have tougher games. I only realised after that the Galatasaray game was a few days away. Otherwise I would’ve played an even weaker team and not only made 1 sub. Khedira the unfortunate casualty and would miss 2 weeks.

Champions League 1st Knockout Round 1st Leg

GALATASARAY 2

Yilmaz 36 Inan 90

ARSENAL 5

Ozil 31(pen) 48 Walcott 63 74 Balanta 78

We backed up an 8-0 win at Scunthorpe with an even better display at Galatasaray. Yilmaz somehow won a header against Chambers Koscielny and Szczesny to give the turks the lead. Ozil scored another penalty (he is 7/7 this season) as we went into half time on top. I would’ve settled for the 1-1 but we were rampant in the second half. A fine brace from Walcott and Balanta. They scored with the last kick of the fame. Could see it coming a mile off. Aboubakar was back after International duty but needed rest so stayed on the bench. Welbeck also unused after injury.

Premier League

CRYSTAL PALACE 0

ARSENAL 1

Walcott 59

Not often do the other side have more shots (16/13), clear cut chances (3/2) and possession (51/49). But palace did. It may not have been by the margins we usually are but they still had the better of the game. Szczesny was excellent not that his match rating of 6.9 did him any justice. Walcott flicking home near the hour for the winner. Aboubakar made his return from the African cup of nations but hardly made an impact.

Premier League

ARSENAL 6

Koscielny 6 27 Walcott 16 Aboubakar 43 45 Trippier o.g 80

ASTON VILLA 1

Agbonlahor 90

Chambers and Vilhena were both out as I played them in the Under 21’s semi-final the same day It meant with no Costa or Aurier I had no right backs in the squad. All this meaning I was forced to play a 3-5-2 formation with Chamberlain as a wing back. I would’ve forgiven the team for scraping a win or even drawing due to the changes. Instead we enjoyed an eye watering 71% possession and won the game easily. We also hit the woodwork four times. Villa were better in the second half but nowhere near good enough. With 13 games to go we have 79 league goals. We hit 111 last season so that is the target. 32 from 13 certainly seems doable. Especially as we only scored 13 in the last 9 games last season.

League Cup FInal

ARSENAL 1

Ramsey 83

LIVERPOOL 2

El Shaaarway 4(pen) Origi 73

Match Stats Possession 53/47 Shots 11(4)/14(7) Corners 10/2 Fouls 10/17 CCC 1/3 WW 0/0 YC 0/1 Passes 310/304

Man of the Match- Aaron Ramsey (8.4) / Jason Murillo (7.6)

Arsenal – Ospina Gibbs Chambers Balanta Koscielny Ramsey Romero (Bernard 74) Chamberlain Welbeck (Sanchez 67) Ozil Walcott

(Aboubakar 67)

Subs Not Used: Szczesny Vilhena Mertesacker Khedira

Liverpool – Mignolet Enrique Johnson Sakho Murillo Can Barrada Allen (Jorginho 53) Sterling (Courtinho 61) Markovic El Shaaraway (Origi 71)

Subs Not Used: Amos Lovren Moreno Flannagan

Liverpool denied us a 2nd League Cup as they battled to the win at Wembley. They hadn’t been in the best of form but took an early lead from an awful decision by Marriner. The game was quite even but we couldn’t make the most of anything. I threw on Aboubakar, Sanchez and Bernard but although man of the match Ramsey pulled one back we never looked like getting the second. The Reds have now beaten us in both domestic finals.

League Table

Fair play to United who are keeping in touching distance.

1. Man Utd Played 28 Points 67 GD 43

2. Arsenal Played 25 Points 66 GD 60

3. Man City Played 28 Points 56 GD 15

4. Tottenham Played 37 Points 55 GD 36

5. Liverpool Played 26 Points 51 GD 26

Other News

FA Cup 5th Round draw

Nottingham Forrest vs ARSENAL

Depay was player of the month. Stoke’s Ojo won young player while Swansea boss Roberto Di Matteo won manager of the month.

Jack Wilshere resumed full training after 5 months out. He should return to first team action at some point next month. Aurier should also make his debut.

The Under 21’s beat Chelsea 3-1 in the semi final of the youth cup. As

mentioned before I played Chambers and Vilhena. Man City await in the final. The under 18’s lost 2-1 at Leicester in the quarters.

March preview

Of course as they always do the regens dominate. With upgraded youth facilities we should see a better crop. Fixtures wise we play the first North London derby of the season on the 15th. There should be other games added to this fixture list.

FAC – Notttingham Forrest (A)

CL – Galatasaray (H)

PL – Burnley (A)

PL – Tottenham (H)

PL – Sunderland (H)

PL – Southampton (H)

PL – Liverpool (A)

England

WCQ – Kazakhstan (A)

[llama3]

EDIT 3 - Not really sure what the future holds:

EDIT 4 - They have decided to keep me, but then pulled the upgrade of the training facilities

Glad you've escaped the axe. Would have been ridiculously harsh!

[arsenalthebest]

Pre-Season/August Report

IN

Louis Reed - Sheff Utd - £225k , Max Kruse - Monchengladbach - £9m , John Ruddy - Norwich - £7.5m , Josh Brownhill - Preston - £975k , Neil Taylor - Swansea - £8.25m , Sam Howes - West Ham - £500k , Federico Bonazzoli - Sampdoria - £900k , David Pavelka - Slovan Liberec - £1.5m , Carlos Fierro - Chivas - £5.25m , Dedé - Cruzeiro - £12m , Radja Nainggolan - Cagilari/Roma - £5.5m/£6.25m , Kevin De Bruyne - Wolfsburg - £40m , Muhamed Besic - Everton - £7.5m , Nathan - Atlético Paranaense - £7.5m , Timo Horn - Köln - £6.75m , Malcom - Corinthians £6.75m (Joins 01/07/2015)

OUT

Santi Cazorla - PSG - £30m , Per Mertesacker - Chelsea - £20m , Mattieu Flamini - A.C. Milan - 4.1m , Mikel Arteta- Shakhtar - £2m

Pre-Season Friendlies

Rubin(H) Won 3-0(Oxlade-Chamberlain x2 , Kruse x1) , FC Twente(A) Lost 3-2( Alexis & Giroud x1) , Preston(A) Won 2-1( Chambers & Walcott x1) , Brighton(A) Won 3-1( Own Goal x1 , Alexis & Oxlade-Chamberlain x1) , Wycombe(A) Won 4-0( Oxlade-Chamberlain & Giroud & Ramsey & Koscielny x1) , Montpellier(A) Won 2-0( Oxlade-Chamberlain & Alexis x1) , Porto(H) Won 5-1( Own Goal x1 , Oxlade-Chamberlain & Arteta x1 , Kruse x2) , Community Shield(N) Lost 4-2( Giroud x1 , Own Goal x1)

16/08/14 | Barclays Premier League | Emirates

Arsenal 2 ( Lloris O/G 11 , Koscielny 90+2)

Tottenham 2 ( Lamella 27 , Kane 45+2)

20/08/14 | UEFA Champions League (Best Place Play-Off Leg 1) | Emirates

Arsenal 3 ( Alexis 12 , Walcott 41 & 45+1)

Lille 0

23/08/14 | Barclays Premier League | The Circle

Arsenal 3 ( Giroud 7 , Pavelka Inj 59 , Alexis 74 & 90+1)

Hull 0

26/08/14 | UEFA Champions League (Best Place Play-Off Leg 2) | Stade Pierre Mauroy

Arsenal 1(4) ( Welbeck 34)

Lille 1(1) ( Origi 60)

30/08/18 | Barclays Premier League | Emirates

Arsenal 1 ( Paulista 76)

Swansea 0

Champions League Group - I have Schalke(Germany) , Napoli(Italy) & Slovan Bratislava( Slovakia - which happens to be the country of one of my work colleagues) finally I know this not to do with FM but I could resist posting a link

[RTHerringbone]

Minor update - I haven't had much time on FM in the past few days. Transfer business in preseason of Season Two is concluded. In come Courtois (£18.25m) and Ruben Neves (£31m) - I had been set to sign Koke from Atletico but the fee was huge (£55m) and I felt it was just too much. Neves is talented, 5 years younger and potentially can reach Koke's level. Outgoing are Ospina (Roma for £13m), Gnabry to Q.P.R. for £6.25m whilst Bellerin joins Villa for £4m.

Rest of the squad remains more than competitive, so I expect to challenge on all fronts domestically and hopefully we can get to the CL Final this year.

EDIT - Played a few matches after the Juve vs. Madrid match last night. The perils of assembling a young squad soon became apparent. With 2016 being an Olympic year, a large number of players were called up:

Gaya

Digne

Gil Romero

Romero

Kranevitter

Barbosa

Marquinhos

Gabriel

When you consider that the semi-finalists included Brazil, Argentina and France, you can see our problem!

Considering our squad only has 24 senior players, and that I have sold peripheral players like Gnabry and Bellerin, we were frankly screwed for the Community Shield and first three league matches. We lost the Community Shield (12-13 on penalties ), but fortunately the league fixtures included Sunderland, Villa and Norwich, which we navigated safely with a full complement of points.

All players have now returned from the Olympics, most of whom are "Match Fit but getting jaded", so I have given them all a week off. Hopefully that, plus our rotation policy from match to match will sort them out. Latest signing Ruben Neves arrived with a 7 week achilles injury, so is still a few weeks away from playing.

[arsenalthebest]

September Report

13/09/14 | Barclays Premier League | King Power

Arsenal 2 ( Oxlade-Chamberlain 22 , Kruse 80)

Leicester 0

16/09/14 | UEFA Champions League | Veltins-Arena

Arsenal 3 ( Kruse 47 , Welbeck 57 & 63)

Schalke 1 ( Meyer 18)

20/09/14 | Barclays Premier League | Emirates

Arsenal 4 ( Welbeck 20 , Kruse 49 , Alexis 58 , Kruse 79)

Man City 2 ( Demichelis 54 , Koscielny O/G 70 , Nasri Inj 78)

23/09/14 | Capital One Cup( 3rd Round) | Emirates

Arsenal 4 ( Kruse 3 , De Bruyne 68 , Giroud 79 , De Bruyne 88)

West Brom 2 ( Mulumbu 37 , Dorrans 82)

27/09/14 | Barclays Premier League | Emirates

Arsenal 4 ( De Bruyne 23 , Alexis 32 , Welbeck 44 , Taylor 60)

Sunderland 0

[dannyxx20]

Minor update - I haven't had much time on FM in the past few days. Transfer business in preseason of Season Two is concluded. In come Courtois (£18.25m) and Ruben Neves (£31m) - I had been set to sign Koke from Atletico but the fee was huge (£55m) and I felt it was just too much. Neves is talented, 5 years younger and potentially can reach Koke's level. Outgoing are Ospina (Roma for £13m), Gnabry to Q.P.R. for £6.25m whilst Bellerin joins Villa for £4m.

Rest of the squad remains more than competitive, so I expect to challenge on all fronts domestically and hopefully we can get to the CL Final this year.

EDIT - Played a few matches after the Juve vs. Madrid match last night. The perils of assembling a young squad soon became apparent. With 2016 being an Olympic year, a large number of players were called up:

Gaya

Digne

Gil Romero

Romero

Kranevitter

Barbosa

Marquinhos

Gabriel

When you consider that the semi-finalists included Brazil, Argentina and France, you can see our problem!

Considering our squad only has 24 senior players, and that I have sold peripheral players like Gnabry and Bellerin, we were frankly screwed for the Community Shield and first three league matches. We lost the Community Shield (12-13 on penalties ), but fortunately the league fixtures included Sunderland, Villa and Norwich, which we navigated safely with a full complement of points.

All players have now returned from the Olympics, most of whom are "Match Fit but getting jaded", so I have given them all a week off. Hopefully that, plus our rotation policy from match to match will sort them out. Latest signing Ruben Neves arrived with a 7 week achilles injury, so is still a few weeks away from playing.

I found in this years FM, as Lazio in Serie A, International football, after the Olympics, especially for the South Americans, really knackers them out, so they might need 2 weeks holiday and definitely lots of rotation.

[KingLara]

Fm15 update march

FA Cup 5th Round

NOTTINGHAM FORREST 1

Burns 83

ARSENAL 3

Ozil 38 Bernard 39 Aboubakar 45

We were always in control and the three goals in 7 minutes at the end of the first half made sure we would be in the hat for the quarters. In the second half we just relaxed and Forrest got their token consolation through Burns.

Champions League 1st Knockout Round 2nd Leg

ARSENAL 2

Ozil 6 Vilhena 84 Romero s/o 56

GALATASARAY 2

Yilmaz 59 Sneijder 69

I made two mistakes. Firstly I forgot to change my goalkeeper so Ospina he started. We played well in the first half and I was happy. However my second mistake came when I pressed the wrong button and told my players I was disappointed with them. In the second half we were woeful and only had a pitiful 2 attempts. One though was the equaliser. A fabulous free kick from Vilhena. Usually I wouldn’t be happy with a draw at home. In this case I was delighted.

Premier League

BURNLEY 0

ARSENAL 3

Walcott 4 Chamberlain 17 Ozil 75

We kept our winning run going with another easy win. We had 9 clear cut chances during the game. Tom Heaton in the Burnley goal was nothing short of outstanding. Wilshere made his comeback in the under 21’s. I could’ve stuck him on the bench but thought I’ll give him another under 21 game. Aurier not far away either. United lost at home to City. We are 2 points clear having played 3 less games.

Premier League

ARSENAL 1

Ozil 56

TOTTENHAM 1

Dembele 69(pen)

I set up without a defensive midfielder so had to counter spurs by playing a more defensive minded game. Ozil gave us the lead in the second half and I was happy but then Bernard gave away a penalty and Spurs levelled. Chamberlain had a couple of chances but lloris made the saves. Spurs had only one shot on target.

Premier League

ARSENAL 8

Walcott 3 20 28 41 49 Ozil 19 30 Ramsey 38

SUNDERLAND 0

What do you say? 7-0 up at half time. Walcott earned a match rating of 10. Wilshere made his return late on as well.

Premier League

ARSENAL 4

Chamberlain 4 Van Aanholt o.g 36 Ramsey 38 Welbeck 84

SOUTHAMPTON 0

For the second time this season I was without a right back. Chambers twisted his ankle and Aurier was with Aboubakar on international duty. I stuck Koscielny at right back and he did ok. It was another excellent win before the international break. Ramsey with the best goal a nice curler from 25 yards. The saints never looked the threatening.

Premier League

LIVERPOOL 0

ARSENAL 0

We were missing Sanchez, Bernard, Ospina, Balanta and Romero who were all traveling back after internatonal games. Chambers was also still out so Aurier made his debut. I named a very young bench and an injury to Mertesacker meant Warner got on to also make his debut. The game itself wasn’t a classic. Liverpool had the two best chances but I was happy with the draw given the circumstances.

League Table

Chelsea 6th with 55. In the Relegation battle Palace and Sunderland have 17. Watford 21 and Huddersfield 22. Next is West Brom on 26.The rest should be safe.

1. Arsenal Played 30 Points 77 GD 75

2. Man Utd Played 30 Points 68 GD 42

3. Man City Played 30 Points 62 GD 22

4. Tottenham Played 30 Points 57 GD 35

5. Liverpool Played 30 Points 57 GD 28

England

Just like the game at Wembley against Kazakhstan we ran out easy 5-0 winners. Harry Kane made his England debut.

Other News

Champions League Quarter-Final draw – Arsenal vs Juventus

Four English clubs all separated. United face Barcelona, Chelsea vs Inter and Spurs up against Dortmund. I’m happy with the draw. Played Juve In the semis of my first season. Won 7-4 on aggregate winning both legs.

FA Cup semi final draw – Stoke vs Arsenal

Should be ok. West Brom vs City is the other semi.

Ramsey won goal of the month for his curler against Southampton. Depay again was player of the month. Ozil second and Chamberlain 3rd. Grealish won young player while Rijkaard won manager for two wins from two games. Odd.

The regens came in and to be honest all over europe and elsewhere were complete pants. The best were at the superpowers and weren’t negotiating while the rest weren’t great. Our own batch wasn’t the brightest.

Apr preview

No rest for the wicked. A packed schedule.

PL – Watford (A)

PL – Man Utd (H)

CLqf – Juventus (H)

FAsf – Stoke(N)

CLqf – Juventus (A)

PL – Everton (H)

PL – West Brom (A)

PL – Tottenham (A)

[RTHerringbone]

Season Two progress:

The United match was a bit of a ****-up, which we were lucky to get away with. They were also 4-3-1-2, and I changed my WB (A) DL/Rs to WB (D) instead, to really shore us up at the back. In the event, it just negated our balance and even when I ramped them to WB (S), it was like United had too strong a foothold to overcome.

The Olympic fitness shambles is long gone, but we are picking up quite a few injuries at the moment, hindered further by injuries sustained on international duty. Currently unavailable are:

Sanchez

Ramsey

Balanta

Musacchio

Courtois

Neves

[llama3]

Ruben Neves looks a top talent. Good addition.

[RTHerringbone]

Ruben Neves looks a top talent. Good addition.

He's the sort of player who can cover a few positions for me, because I'm not especially particular about getting a perfect mix of attributes for a Role. FM regards him as an Anchor at the moment, and my CM Roles are BBM, BWM (S) and CM (D), so he's defensively aware enough to cover the core stuff of what I want to achieve in midfield. He also has a fair level of creative and technical ability, so he'll end up being a bit like Krychowiak, Romero, Kranevitter and Gil Romero for me - he'll flick between the CM (D) and BWM slots.

Still stunned by Arsenal's financial might in FM15. I guess the fact that we are receiving transfer instalments every month is a big factor behind that, plus the increase in the EPL TV deal.

[RTHerringbone]

The second season has become a rampage

I always set a personal target of scoring an average of three per game over the course of a seaosn (have only managed it 2 or three times on FM15), 50%+ shots on target per match, 85+% pass completion per match, and we're on target for most of that. In our most dominant matches, we're completely smothering the opposition and it's rather nice to see. Quite like a 4-3-1-2 and I might have to resurrect my Saints save at some point to use that system with them.

[arsenalthebest]

n

The second season has become a rampage

I always set a personal target of scoring an average of three per game over the course of a seaosn (have only managed it 2 or three times on FM15), 50%+ shots on target per match, 85+% pass completion per match, and we're on target for most of that. In our most dominant matches, we're completely smothering the opposition and it's rather nice to see. Quite like a 4-3-1-2 and I might have to resurrect my Saints save at some point to use that system with them.

can you post a screenshot of your tactic please

[RTHerringbone]

n can you post a screenshot of your tactic please

A whole article about it was in an earlier post:

https://whenseagullsfollowthetrawler.wordpress.com/2015/04/29/pressing-issues-redefining-arsenal/#more-1972

I actually tried to use it with an excellent Saints squad I assembled on another save, and it wasn't as effective as that squad was assembled to play a completely different system.

[carrunion22]

Hey all

Been following this thread a while and thought I'd chip in. Done a few files with Arsenal and got a few seasons in with different systems, but was inspired by RTHerringbone's updates to kick up FMC for the first time. Bear with me as having screenshot troubles, will give a brief overview of things so far.

First season was a relative success- took the League and the League Cup. FA Cup we got to the final for the team not to show up and lose 0-1 to Southampton. In the CL, we got through the group easy enough to be drawn against Barca. Lost 0-4 at the Nou Camp, with an Ozil hat trick pulling us back into the second leg before Messi tucked away an away goal and we had no chance. First half of the season we were unstoppable, with results like 6-2 against Man City and 4-1 against Chelsea, both at the Emirates. Lost the Community Shield and then went through unbeaten to December before finally losing to Spurs. Best moment was when Man United came to the Emirates - 0-1 and then 1-2 down, Wilshere smashed one in from way out in the 84th, before Giroud turned home the winner 30 seconds from time.

We were way out in front most of the season before results slipped towards the end and Man United got right back into it. Second last game of the season I thought we were going to lose it when Giroud struck in the 92nd minute (again) to give us a 2-1 win against Liverpool which all but secured it.

Used a 4-1DM-2-1-1 Wide (according to tactics), high press possession based as you would expect. Brought in Gaya, Balanta, and Lucas Romero for first team squad places, and on deadline day brought in Andrea Poli for 1.7m to add depth in the middle - he became a revelation with 13 goals and 8 assists from 27 starts, mostly as CM(A). Ozil on the right as an IF(A) weighed in with 21 goals and 14 assists from 33 starts, Sanchez got 19 goals and 18 assists in 36 starts on the left as IF(S), and Giroud with 29 goals and 9 assists up top as CF(S). Rotation options of Welbeck up front and Cazorla and Ox on the wings also made great contributions.

The rest of first season transfers involved Monreal to Newcastle for 10m and Coquelin to Fulham for 7.25m. Then some building for the future...signed up Bonazzoli to arrive a the start of next season, brought in Ruben Neves and loaned him out for the season, and the same with Jesus Vallejo. Finally signed up Felix Passlack from Dortmund - look him up, will not be disappointed. At 16 his stats are already outrageous, and he's only been in the reserves (youth contract, couldn't loan out).

Currently figuring out the direction and targets for start of season 2, the board threw 120m at me as a transfer budget (had over 20m left from season 1) but I don't want to go over 25 with signings and I'd like to stick to 1 marquee signing per season.

Will do thoughts and targets for next season in a separate post later.

[RTHerringbone]

was inspired by RTHerringbone's updates to kick up FMC for the first time.

First time on FMC? Will be interested to hear how you find it

We're still ticking along nicely:

Upcoming fixtures:

Table:

[carrunion22]

First time on FMC? Will be interested to hear how you find it

Enjoying it overall. The speed is great, and the look is much brighter - it feels much less stressful! I do miss the scouting and training depth, I had been enjoying finding staff and getting my training ratings up, but on the other hand it was a big task starting up a new game and setting all that up.

Currently deciding between a 4-2-3-1 and a 4-3-2-1, with thoughts of how the Milan midfield with Kaka at his peak worked, as I loved watching them. With sales of players I'm up to around 160m in transfer funds and have no idea where to start.

[billysafc]

long time reader, not often poster but started an arsenal game the other day because they are my second favourite team and Ive never managed them before. doing ok so far, in the champions league I got beaten by Atletico 4-1 away as wilshere got sent off early doors. second leg came around and I achieved my biggest come back.

go on danny boy smashing in a double hattrick. chuffed with this.

[arsenalthebest]

long time reader, not often poster but started an arsenal game the other day because they are my second favourite team and Ive never managed them before. doing ok so far, in the champions league I got beaten by Atletico 4-1 away as wilshere got sent off early doors. second leg came around and I achieved my biggest come back.

go on danny boy smashing in a double hattrick. chuffed with this.

Go Danny Go! Go! Danny Score Goals!

[arsenalthebest]

October Report

01/10/14 | UEFA Champions League | Emirates

Arsenal 3 ( Wilshere 14 , Giroud 22 , Alexis 88)

Napoli 1 ( Inler 7)

04/10/14 | Barclays Premier League | Emirates

Arsenal 1 ( Dedé 50)

Chelsea 1 ( Oscar 39)

18/10/14 | Barclays Premier League | Goodison Park

Arsenal 7 ( Giroud 2 & 4 & 13 , Kruse 29 , Welbeck 53 , Gnabry 66 , Welbeck 69)

Everton 4 ( McCarthy 60 , Coleman 67 , Barry 78 , McCarthy 89)

22/10/14 | UEFA Champions League | Pasienky

Arsenal 3 ( Dedé 31 , Pavelka 44 , Alexis 56)

Slovan Bratislava 0

25/10/14 | Barclays Premier League | Emirates

Arsenal 2 ( Giroud 2 , Delph O/G 13 , Wilshere Inj 45+2)

Aston Villa 0

28/10/14 | Capital One Cup( 4th Round) | Old Trafford

Arsenal 2 ( Welbeck 25 , Oxlade-Chamberlain 33)

Man Utd 4 ( Powell 46 , Herrera 83 , Powell 92 , Mata 113)

[RTHerringbone]

What happened in that Everton game?

[arsenalthebest]

What happened in that Everton game?

I have no idea Guess we both thought 'aah screw it lets go for this'

[KingLara]

FM15 Season 3 April update

Premier League

WATFORD 1

Tamas 15

ARSENAL 5

Walcott 28 39 62 Bernard 35 Welbeck 77

We had most of our players back. I rested Ramsey so Wilshere started his first game since October. Exactly 6 months. The first half score-line flattered us. Watford had 5 clear cut chances but were wasteful. In the second half after a tactical tweak it was all us. Welbeck hit our 100th League goal of the season at Match 31. Walcott now moved above Aboubakar with 33 for the season. Next up United at the Emirates.

Premier League

ARSENAL 2

Walcott 10 Chamberlain 33

MAN UTD 1

Rooney 51

We weren’t at our fluid best but got the better of United and pretty much secured the Premier League title for the third year in a row. Worryingly United had 5 clear cut chances with Falcao twice through on goal. Something to work on in the training ground before Juventus.

Champions League Quarter-Final 1st Leg

ARSENAL 3

Ozil 12(pen) 16 Koscielny 19

JUVENTUS 0

|I was worried about how the defence would cope with Tevez and Berardi. I needn’t have worried. The attack did their jobs with Walcott winning the penalty and then Ozil stabbing in Khedira’s cutback. Juve only had three attempts on goal. A wonderful defensive display and we should be through.

FA Cup Semi-Final

STOKE 0

ARSENAL 4

Aboubakar 4 34 44(pen) Bernard 7

If only all semi finals were really this easy. Aboubakar preferred to Walcott and Welbeck hitting a first half hat-trick. He went off at half time with a slight knock. Stoke had two attempts in the first half. They weren’t much better in the second either. One blow was an ankle strain for Khedira who would miss 5 weeks. A final against Man City awaits. They beat West Brom 2-0. A brace by Hulk.

Champions League Quarter-Final 2nd Leg

JUVENTUS 2

Tevez 14 Berardi 90

ARSENAL 2

Aboubakar 29 78

3-0 up from the first leg I was taking nothing for granted. A scramble fell to Tevez who lashed home and Juve were one third their way to the comeback. But Aboubakar tapped home the equaliser and at that point Juve would’ve needed another 4 goals. I kept things tight until the last 15 minutes when I felt we could go back to our usual style. Aboubakar did put us ahead but Chambers went off with bruised ribs after I had used all three subs and Berardi scored with the last kick of the game. Dortmund came from 4-1 down to draw 4-4 with spurs but lost on penalties. United and Chelsea also won meaning an all four English semi final.

Premier League

ARSENAL 5

Sanchez 4 15 16 61 Aboubakar 63

EVERTON 0

A good win over struggling Everton. Sanchez made his first start in a month and hit four goals. Aboubakar adding a fifth. All five assists from the boot of Mezut Ozil. Unbelievable. It means we need a point from the next game at West Brom to win the league.

Premier League

WEST BROM 0

ARSENAL 3

Aboubakar 25 Ozil 43(pen) Bernard 45

A comfortable win that sealed the premier league crown. We controlled the game and the baggies barely had a shot.

Premier League

TOTTENHAM 1

Townsend 46

ARSENAL 1

Aboubakar 83

Three days before we played them at the Emirates in the Champions League semi final we faced Spurs at White Hart Lane. I rested the likes of Ozil meaning even Welbeck got a game. We were under the cosh in the first half but survived. 45 seconds into the second we were behind. After that though we were better and Aboubakar levelled with his 40th of the season. I had already brought on my three attacking subs so the game ended with Chamberlain at left back, Aurier Centre Back , Romero right back and a central midfield pair of Bernard and Sanchez. Still, as per usual Spurs would be left disappointed and unable to take advantage.

League Table

Would love a 100 goal difference but unlikely now. Chelsea moved above Liverpool but are level on points with only a 3 goal difference

1. Arsenal Played 35 Points 90 GD 88

2. Man Utd Played 35 Points 77 GD 44

3. Man City Played 35 Points 75 GD 33

4. Tottenham Played 35 Points 64 GD 33

5. Chelsea Played 35 Points 62 GD 31

Other News

Champions League Semi-Final draw – Arsenal vs Tottenham

Not something I ever expected to write. A champions league semi-final with our neighbours. United or Chelsea await in the final. First leg at Chelsea.

FA Cup Final – Man City vs Arsenal

Third month in a row the player award went to Depay. Makes me think why didn’t I bid for him. Sam Gallagher won young player while I scooped manager of the month.

The relegation battle is interesting. Palace Watford and Huddersfield separated by two points. Sunderland more or less already gone but host west ham who need a point to guarantee safety.

We arranged friendlies with France and Poland in June.

Newcastle and Hull will be back in the premier league next season. Derby Fulham Wolves and Leicester make up the play offs.

The under 21’s fought valiantly but lost in the cup final to Manchester City.

May preview

The champions League semi-finals plus the Fa Cup final. Need 12 goals for a goal difference of +100. The three games could’ve been much worse.

CLsf – Tottenham (H)

PL – Swansea(A)

CLsf – Tottenham (A)

PL – QPR (H)

PL – Nottingham Forrest (H)

FAf – Man City (N)

[billysafc]

just an update to show you how danny has done in europe,

this is my route to the final and eventual winners. some crazy results there

overall im happy with how the season went, obviously I would have preferred to have done better in the league but im content with second for now

[carrunion22]

So after finally taking the time to join the thread, I go and accidentally wipe my save. Starting over...

[KingLara]

Wow. 21 champions league goals in a season is very impressive!

[billysafc]

i know, i was very surprised, he bagged 6 in one game and a few hattricks. madness

[RTHerringbone]

Nineteen wins in a row now

We have a 12 point lead over Chelsea, who have a game in hand, after 17 matches

£50m transfer budget but no real need to change anyone. There is an excellent newgen at Juventus who could play as a right sided Wing Back, but they're after silly money at the moment.

[arsenalthebest]

Nineteen wins in a row now

We have a 12 point lead over Chelsea, who have a game in hand, after 17 matches

£50m transfer budget but no real need to change anyone. There is an excellent newgen at Juventus who could play as a right sided Wing Back, but they're after silly money at the moment.

can you post a screenshot of your tactic looks great

[RTHerringbone]

can you post a screenshot of your tactic looks great

I posted a link a day or two ago to a whole article I wrote about it!

[arsenalthebest]

November Report

01/11/14 | Barclays Premier League | St Mary's

Arsenal 2 ( Welbeck 8 , Pavelka 49)

Southampton 1 ( Mané 32)

04/11/14 | UEFA Champions League | Emirates

Arsenal 5 ( Oxlade-Chamberlain 6 , Alexis 34 , Nainggolan S/O 56 , Chambers 74 , Wlbeck 87 , Alexis 88)

Slovan Bratislava 1 ( Holosko 21)

08/11/14 | Barclays Premier League | Selhurst Park

Arsenal 2 ( Kruse 17 , Welbeck 83)

Crystal Palace 0 ( McArthur S/O 72)

22/11/14 | Barclays Premiership | Emirates

Arsenal 2 ( Oxlade-Chamberlain 70 & 85 , Besic S/O 90+1)

Stoke 0 ( Wilson S/O 87)

26/11/14 | UEFA Champions League(Group Stage)

Arsenal 3 ( De Bruyne 2 , Kosicelny 51 , Coquelin 60)

Schalke 0

29/11/14 | Barclays Premier League | Turf Moor

Arsenal 3 ( Welbeck 37 , Alexis 70 , Welbeck 74)

Burnley 1 ( Jones PEN 51)

[carrunion22]

Nineteen wins in a row now

How are you finding BWM Support? I'm quite eager to use one but can't figure out exactly how I want to set up my midfield

[RTHerringbone]

How are you finding BWM Support? I'm quite eager to use one but can't figure out exactly how I want to set up my midfield

It works well in the system we have, and the players we have, because the CM (D) covers his defensive forays. When we attack, the BWM is deeper than the BBM but still gets far enough up field to ensure that he can recycle the ball if he needs to, and to keep a bit of pressure on the AI if we lose the ball high up the pitch.

[carrunion22]

It works well in the system we have, and the players we have, because the CM (D) covers his defensive forays. When we attack, the BWM is deeper than the BBM but still gets far enough up field to ensure that he can recycle the ball if he needs to, and to keep a bit of pressure on the AI if we lose the ball high up the pitch.

I've found using the 4-1-2-2-1 most successful for me, couldn't get 4-2-3-1 to work (although I wanted to use BWM(S) and DLP(D) in a Gattuso/Pirlo sort of way). I've also had great success with Ozil on the right as an IF(A). I like using wide AML/R as it allows me to use the Ox to his best, even if he wouldn't necessarily be in my 'best eleven' for a big game, but his development and the fact he's home-grown make him invaluable. Hence I'm not convinced 4-3-1-2 or 4-3-2-1 is for me. I had a career mode file where I swapped and changed the DM role until I gave Regista a go, and blew the league away using it behind AP(S) and CM(A) in CM. Quite a dynamic centre, with all 3 providing defensive support and getting forward. I just like the thought of having a bit more bite, even if the team was strong defensively...

[KingLara]

FM15 update May

Champions League Semi-Final 1st Leg

ARSENAL 6

Walcott 3 90 Aboubakar 4 44 Romero 40 Ramsey 78(pen) Gibbs s/o 45 Romero s/o 58

TOTTENHAM 1

Suso 65

Welcome to the Champions League semis Tottenham! Ozil hit the post in the first minute and we were 2-0 up inside 5. It was similar tactics to the Juventus game where I tried to blitz them in the first 20 and then sit back. It took longer to get the third and then Aboubakar lashed in a fourth. The game turned slightly when first Gibbs and then Romero were sent off by a horribly biased referee Rocchi. Suso pulled it back to 4-1 and there were gitters. But then a penalty made it 5 and Walcott on the counter chipped in a fine sixth. Chelsea beat United 3-1 in the first leg of the other semi.

Premier League

SWANSEA 1

Bony 81

ARSENAL 2

Bernard 3 Wilshere 45

I handed a first League start to highly rated young centre back Seb Warner. We played ok. Wasn’t a classic but nice to win.

Champions League Semi-Final 2nd Leg

TOTTENHAM 1

Holtby 69

ARSENAL 2

Walcott 47 Kosicelny 62

We eased into our third consequtive Champions League final. A 6-1 aggregate lead from the home leg was never tested and Walcott and Kosicelny put us 2-0 up on the night before poor defence allowed Holtby to pull one back. Welbeck had a goal wrongly ruled out and we eased into the final. United fought back brilliantly and won 4-0 in the second leg and would meet us in the final.

Premier League

ARSENAL 6

Ozil 16 68 Bernard 31 Aboubakar 56 Wilshere 63 Walcott 77

QPR 0

A comfortable win in the penultimate league game of the season. +95 goal difference with one game left. A first clean sheet in five games was also very welcome.

Premier League

ARSENAL 4

Ozil 42 Walcott 45 Aboubakar 90 90

NOTTINGHAM FORREST 0

We needed 5 goals for a goal difference of 100. Unfortunately we could only manage four. We had enough attempts and chances but couldn’t quite make it. Aboubakar scored twice in stoppage time to give us a sniff but we couldn’t get it.

FA CUP FINAL

MAN CITY 4

Silva 24 Ayew 27(pen) 99 Aguero 68

ARSENAL 4

Bernard 56 Aboubakar 62 Sanchez 86 Ozil 93(pen)

[Arsenal win 4-3 on penalties]

Match Stats Possession 46/54 Shots 22(12)/27(16) Corners 2/13 Fouls 10/18 CCC 7/4 WW 1/0 YC 0/3 Passes 361/445[/b]

In my first season we beat Liverpool 5-4 in a crazy game. That was the League Cup final though this was the FA Cup. For the second consecutive year we won on penalties but not after falling 2-0 down early on. I probably made a mistake in pairing Ramsey and Wilshere in midfield and not playing tighter. We were wide open and that’s told in the fact City had 7 clear cut chances. I threw on Sanchez and Welbeck and the former slammed a shot into the roof of the net to make it 3-3. I thought Ozil had won it but then Ayew scored again. Our defensive has been much improved and it was the first time we had conceded more than 2 goals all season. Happy to win it again and at least it wasn’t like the penalties from last year where it was 16-15.

Man of the Match- Sergio Aguero 9.0 (Bernard 8.7)

Man City – Hart Rodriguez Zabalteta Maicon (Vezo 79) Mangala Fernando Ayew Silva (Nasri 87) Depay (Keita 62) Hulk Aguero

Subs Not Used: Caballero Insua Dzeko Bishop®

Arsenal – Szczesny Gibbs (Sanchez 81) Chambers Balanta Koscielny Wilshere (Welbeck 81) Ramsey Bernard Walcott (Romero 117) Ozil Aboubakar

Subs Not Used: Ospina Vilhena Chamberlain Khedira

Ozil Aboubakar Ramsey Bernard Romero

Ayew Rodriguez Fernandinho Aguero Hulk

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL

MAN UNITED 0

ARSENAL 1

Aboubakar 28

Match Stats Possession 51/49 Shots 14(4)/13(7) Corners 3/7 Fouls 17/10 CCC 3/3 WW 0/0 YC 5/3 Passes 395/306[/b]

If our defence had been truly shambolic against City it was absolutely fantastic against United. Aboubakar gave us the lead from a wonderful Gibbs cross. From there the boys did everything I asked for. We were quite open to start with and I had to replace Ramsey for Romero at half time. However we hardly gave United a sniff in the second half and although we only had 2 more shots more importantly we restricted them to just 5. An excellent display and a wonderful way to end a magical season and a third Champions League win in a row.

Man of the Match- Kieron Gibbs 7.8 (Juan Mata 7.3)

Man United – De Gea Shaw Jones (Vrsaljko 77) Martinez Evans (Vertonghen 77) Herraira Strootman Mata Di Maria Falcao (Wilson 71) Rooney

Subs Not Used: Ferraira Januzaj Blind Fellaini

Arsenal – Szczesny Gibbs Chambers Balanta Koscielny Wilshere Ramsey (Romero 45) Bernard Walcott (Khedira 90) Ozil (Chamberlain 72) Aboubakar

Subs Not Used: Ospina Mertesacker Sanchez Welbeck

Bits and Pieces

Full review comes in the season review.

Ozil named footballer of the year (twice in a row)

Depay players player

Sterling young player

Szczesny golden gloves

KingLara manager of the year

Huddersfield Crystal Palace and Sunderland were relegated.

Leicester beat Fulham 1-0 in the championship play off final.

Everton and Liverpool sacked Martinez and Rodgers.

I acted swiftly and signed Youri Tielemans for 13 million after he started negotiating a new deal at Anderlect.

The Emirates Cup will be between Barcelona, Ajax and Juventus. We play Ajax in the semi final.

James Wilson won player of the month, Ozil third. Aaron Kuhl won young player while Mourinho got manager. I like Ozil came third.

End of Season review coming soon

[RTHerringbone]

At last, we have endured a few defeats; knocked out of the FA Cup by Spurs in a game where we should never have lost, whilst an aggregate 4-3 win in the Capital One Cup (which we won) took the edge off the Man U defeat. Chelsea narrowly beat us in the league at Stamford Bridge but then lost 3-1 at Saints to negate that result.

Boringly, the CL QF draws us against Chelsea, which will be a big challenge (we beat them 3-0 at The Emirates in the league, before the recent 1-0 at their place.) I'm keen to get into the final this year. A trip to Liverpool and games at home to City and Spurs are the main remaining hurdles in the EPL, so we should sew that up soon.

[RTHerringbone]

A few more matches out of the way, before Chelsea in the CL sandwich a match at Bolton:

Still can't quite believe how defensively secure we are. At Stamford Bridge, the aim is just to reduce the Duty of the full backs and try to lose by no more than one goal.

EDIT - got an away goal, so happy with that, but less so with losing the lead.

EDIT2 - a fractious game at The Emirates looked set to be easy when Ramires was sent marching for a second yellow after just 9 minutes. Gaya cut inside and put us one up and ahead on away goals and we were coasting. Then Ruben Neves lunged in on Moutinho with a horrific challenge to make it a ten vs. ten game. Our 4-3-1-1 held out against a narrow 4-1-2-1-1 and we cantered through in the end.

We face Porto in the semi whilst Paris-SG and Real contest the other fixture - we should make it through.

[RTHerringbone]

Porto results were a 1-0 away win in Portugal, followed by a comprehensive 4-0 home win at the Emirates The second leg was an absolute footballing lesson for Porto, I'll try to remember to paste a screenshot later - we had something like 67% possession, with 28 shots compared to their 2.

Our target of reaching the final has been achieved. I exited the game as soon as that match was over last night, so have no idea who we face in the final. It's all well and good saying that I've reached my target, but it would be horrific not to win the trophy now! Currently we have a fully fit squad to select from, so I'll give it everything to win. We have just one or two more league games to negotiate and no FA Cup commitments, so we should be fresh.

A potential bit of summer transfer activity is lined up too. I've been looking to replace Giroud (now 30) for a while and a certain Harry Kane, now at Newcastle (!) looks a good bet. I've actually had the fee agreed (£19m) and he has accepted the contract offer, but I just delayed confirming the deal for a week. He'll turn 24 just before the third season so has 6 years on Giroud and a glance at his stats implied that he's an almost perfect like-for-like replacement.

EDIT - the humbling of Porto is depicted here:

[thomit]

Finally started a new save with the updated database. Three players in the first window; Juan Jesus, Maximilian Meyer and managed to persuade B. München to sell me Javi Martinez. I'm particularly excited about that, he seems to be something of a ultimate holding midfielder. I sold Walcott straight away, since I know I would be going to do that pretty soon anyway. He's a little too injury prone, and not worth the wages he will be demanding when I need to renew his contract. By experience ... I'm quite sure that haven't changed with the new database?