llama3 Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Update - May 2016 So the updates for the year are: Capital One Cup Round 3 exit away to Swansea, late goal for Barrow. Shame we didn't progress and give the youngsters a chance. Community Shield Winners 2-0 comfortably over Chelsea at Wembley. FA Cup Made hard work at times, but eventually won the competition. Won 2-1 at Norwich in a tight game at Carrow Road in round 3, before being held to a goalless draw at the Emirates in round 4 by Preston. Also went 1-0 down in the replay but forced an equaliser and the fresh legs pulled Preston apart in Extra time. Beat Aston Villa 2-0 in round 5 & West Ham in round 6 at Upton Park in another tight game, won 2-1. Faced Fulham in the semi finals, going 1-0 down, before eventually battling to a 2-1 win and finally played Newcastle in the final. Took the lead in the first half after a slow start, through a Giroud header, but was pegged back immediately by Sissoko. Welbeck gave me the lead with an excellent finish midway through the 2nd half and we scored 3 late goals in the last 10 minutes to win it. Champions League After getting through a group of Zenit, Lazio & Gladbach, I played Dynamo Kyiv in round of 16, but lost 2-1 away in a disappointing performance. We laboured to a 2-0 win at the Emirates to take us through to the Quarter Finals, where we played Man City. We were evenly matched in the first half at the Etihad before a Fernandinho header put City in front. We conceded again with 20 minutes to go, and as I went in search of a vital away goal, conceded 2 more to lost 4-0. We won the 2nd leg 1-0 at home, but it was too little too late. Premier League After losing in consecutive away games to Spurs and Man Utd in March - we were 12 points behind with 1 game in hand remaining. We then went on a determined run, grinding results. We won 7 on the bounce to take us to the penultimate game of the season, away to Man City, we went in 1 point ahead, but having played a game more. A win was essential - we went 1-0 up after 16 minutes after a great move by Ramsey, finished by Ozil. Fernandinho (again) scored from distance to level the match and both sides had chances to win it, but I could only come away with a point. Man City drew their game in hand 2-2 at home to Stoke, which put them ahead on goal difference (+4 better). Final day: Arsenal v Aston Villa and Swansea v Man City. I won 3-0, Bellerin's 12th minute goal settling nerves, and Cazorla's stunning long range effort put us in control, we were relying on Swansea to take something and they did thanks to former Gunner Lukasz Fabianski saving an early Toure penalty and drawing 0-0, enough to hand me the title! Awards PFA Player of the Year - Alexis Sanchez PFA Young Player of the Year - Hector Bellerin Manager of the Year - me Hector Bellerin won 5 Young Player of the Month awards, and the full award in December. A stunning campaign. I won Manager of the Month in October and January. Bellerin, Koscielny, Monreal & Alexis were in team of the year. As for the internal awards: Player of the Year - 1) Bellerin (72%), 2) Alexis (20%), 3) Koscielny (6%) Young Player of the Year - Bellerin Goal of the Season - Ozil v Lazio Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
carrunion22 Posted December 15, 2015 Share Posted December 15, 2015 Okay after a hefty week or two at work, I've managed to get myself a new file up and running, and made it through to January. Followed a fairly similar path to my first file in terms of signings, and did a big revamp with the staff. Transfers As mentioned, some similarities (Walcott out, Embolo etc.), with a couple of tweaks. Decided to just go for it with the money, spent big but net spend of around £50m is about right for a team wanting and expected to take a title - I'm thinking big spend at the start followed be shrewd business and profit building. I'm aiming to be in the black for transfer spend within a few seasons and to then keep it that way. Iturbe brings a bit of excitement to the AMR spot, and as for Morata...I wasn't planning on bringing in a CF but I got a bit into the last minute big deadline day signing and then it just happened. As well as those, Lincoln will join in January 2017 - not sure how I'm going to use him just yet (currently looking at a Raumdeuter on the left, With Barbosa to take over from Sanchez, and then have the 2 Brazilians for that side). Pre-season & Community Shield Routine pre-season, with the training camp taking place in the USA we played a few friendlies there before I took the team on a trip to Canada. The Community Shield was a bland affair, I hadn't settled on a tactical set-up and was just glad to get a trophy under the belt in the end. League Cup Fairly straightforward run so far, doing the usual of giving back-up and youth a chance, so the longer we're in it the more experience for them. Champions League This is where things get interesting. Pretty similar to real life, we were drawn into a group where we looked good for qualifying, with Juventus providing tough opposition. Similar to real life, we then fluffed our lines in the opening 2 fixtures before the back-to-back Juve games. We went to Turin set up to be more reserved and use the counter, and it worked devastatingly. Pogba put Juve 1 up in the 19th minute, before Ramsey equalised in the 29th. Oxlade-Chamberlain scored 2 in 2 minutes right before half time to set us on the way, so we spent the 2nd half holding the ball and soaking the pressure. Cuadrado got one back on 72 but we held out to turn our look. Morata's goal against his former club wasn't enough in the return tie at the Emirates, leaving qualification in the balance again. A winning goal from Jeff Reine-Adelaide in Belgium left us looking strong as we hosted Olympiakos. Mirroring real-life (aside from location), a 3-0 win took us through to a knockout tie with Zenit; delighted to avoid the big dogs, for now. Premier League In general, a strong campaign. The main hiccups coming away from home, with the 0-0 against Stoke the only time we've dropped points at the emirates - a game we finished with 9 men thanks to Coquelin and Koscielny going off the deep end. Clearly some tweaking of tactics away from home could still be needed, but I'm frequently tinkering and switching between 3 shapes, with similar styles in terms of TI's. The home wins to Man Utd and Chelsea were particularly pleasing. So at New Year, the table stands... Pretty tight! Any slips may well have a big impact, and a drop in form could be disastrous. We go to Old Trafford in the early part of January, and we also go to Stamford Bridge and White Hart Lane later in the season, so we need to get the away form in shape. In other news, Blackburn at home in the Fa Cup 3rd Round is a favourable draw, and a deal is agreed for Rulli to join for free in Summer. Reports are showing that Donnarumma could be available for peanuts, something I haven't seen on other files/test saves, so may have to jump at that chance. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JEinchy Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 I've resumed my game after the patch came out. The improved accuracy of shooting is making things a more enjoyable experience. We're into April and the big games have come thick and fast. We got through PSG in the CL round of 16 by winning 1-0 in Paris then 2-0 at home; we've now just got past Bayern in the quarter-finals, winning 1-0 at home in the first leg then coming from behind to win 2-1 in Germany. We could get Real Madrid, Man United or Barcelona/Juventus in the semi, so it won't get any easier. All the while, Alexis' future at the club depends on whether we win this competition or not, as he wants to move to Madrid for that very purpose. No pressure, then. Alexis has been brilliant recently, though. He's thriving in a new False 9 role in a 4-3-3 and scoring important goals. The league is tight. Eight games to go and United are top with 70 points, City are second with 68 and we're third with 66 having played a game less. Crucially we've already travelled to both Manchester clubs, Chelsea, Liverpool and Spurs and have a pretty decent run-in. I'm quietly fancying my chances of defending the title again. EDIT: We got Man Utd in the CL semi's. The other tie is Real Madrid vs Barcelona. Fantastic draw. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Llew_Arshavin23 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Welcome back JEinchy and carrunion22, plus congratulations llama3 on winning the league. Looking forward to following all of your saves. With the new patch out, I'm using it as an opportunity to manage in Europe for the first time on FM16, meaning I'm taking a welcome break from Arsenal. Saying that, my Arsenal save has been going well. I'm still top of the league with seven games to play and I'm in the UEFA Champions League semi-final against Chelsea. I'll probably pick it back up soon, though, especially with the improved match engine. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JEinchy Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Things are really getting tough now. We're into the final three games of the league season, four points off United with a game in. Due to some dodgey scheduling, we have to play Spurs on a Friday three days after our CL semi-final second leg, then travel to Leciester on the Sunday afterwards. This after we played a game every two days for the past two weeks due to the FA Cup semi-final. I've lost Walcott for five weeks with a rib injury, Ozil for four weeks and now Javi Martinez is out for three weeks. Zelalem, Gnabry and Akpom will be required to step-up big time. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
carrunion22 Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 Been busy for the day but checked the forums on my phone to discover the new patch - very excited to see how it plays as most of the ME based patch notes I've seen relate to issues I had. I was constantly tweaking and trying different things but could not get my shot ratios in line with what I was aiming for - I think my last game was at Norwich with a 4-3-3 (DM and AMR/L), which yielded plenty of possession and control but the last I remember 2 out of 17 shots on target I think (though this was MUCH worse than normal, usually found myself just below the 50% mark, but this was frustrating as I had specifically tried to improve this). We scored from a penalty (a miracle in itself, anyone else missing a lot of pens?) before finishing 1-1 from a lob over the top and some terrible defensive positioning. I was losing hope that I could eradicate these frequent things from my game with some tactical adjustments, and was at the point of just hoping we could see a game through whilst still being addicted and wanting to play as much as I could fit in. Now I'm excited to get my team clicking and moving forward. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JEinchy Posted December 16, 2015 Share Posted December 16, 2015 So far there seems to be more shots on target; not necessarily more shots yielding in goals but a lot less of those ridiculous shots that go several yards wide when a player with good finishing attributes is in a good position. I've actually had a couple of free-kicks go in, too. I think the full-back defending is a bit better, too, since I haven't been completely ruined by crossing like before (though keepers still concede too much at their near post). Sadly, we lost out on the title. In the end, having to play Friday-Sunday really screwed us over, as we had to play a Leicester team fighting to stay up with a half-fit squad, while United, fresh after five days rest, thumped Palace 4-1 at Selhurst Park to secure the title. If this were real life I'd be having a pop at the FA right about now. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
arsenalthebest Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 March Report 02/03/16 | Barclays Premier League | Brittania Arsenal 3 ( Giroud 50 & 54 , Oxlade-Chamberalin 55 | Assts: Walcott x2 , Oxlade-Chamberlain x1) Stoke 2 ( Diouf 68 , Arnautovic 75) 05/03/16 | Barclays Premier League | Emirates Arsenal 3 ( Özil 27 , Alexis 34 , Cazorla PEN 50 | Assts: Alex/Özil/Oxlade-Chamberlain x1) Watford 0 08/03/16 | UEFA Champions League 1st Knock-Out Round (2nd Leg) | Emirates Arsenal3(5) ( Afobe 64 , Saponara PEN 85 Welbeck 86 | Assts: Monreal x2 , Oxlade-Chamberlain x1) Sporting CP 0(1) 13/03/16 | F.A Cup (Otr-Final) | Emirates Arsenal 4 ( Welbeck 6 , Alexis 27 & 76 , Özil 89 | Assts: Giroud/Oxlade-Chamberlin/Bellerín x1) Fulham 1 ( Kacaniklic 69) 19/03/16 | Barclays Premier League | Emirates Arsenal0 ( Monreal Sent Off 69)) Man City 0 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Llew_Arshavin23 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 Things are really getting tough now. We're into the final three games of the league season, four points off United with a game in. Due to some dodgey scheduling, we have to play Spurs on a Friday three days after our CL semi-final second leg, then travel to Leciester on the Sunday afterwards. This after we played a game every two days for the past two weeks due to the FA Cup semi-final. I've lost Walcott for five weeks with a rib injury, Ozil for four weeks and now Javi Martinez is out for three weeks. Zelalem, Gnabry and Akpom will be required to step-up big time.Sadly, we lost out on the title. In the end, having to play Friday-Sunday really screwed us over, as we had to play a Leicester team fighting to stay up with a half-fit squad, while United, fresh after five days rest, thumped Palace 4-1 at Selhurst Park to secure the title. If this were real life I'd be having a pop at the FA right about now. I'm at a similar juncture in my season - although the schedule has been a bit (a lot) kinder to me! With two league games - Spurs away, Newcastle home - and a pivotal Champions League semi-final second leg against Chelsea to play, I'll hopefully get an end of season update up on here tomorrow. Unlucky on missing out on the title. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
carrunion22 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 So far there seems to be more shots on target; not necessarily more shots yielding in goals This is okay for me - I was in a position where I felt something was wrong every game due to my low number of shots on target, so I was fiddling constantly to little avail. Unlucky about the title, I remember having a run in like that on last years FM I think and was dragging the players through! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JEinchy Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 End of season update time: Premier League As mentioned last night, we missed out on the title. Looking back, that defeat away to Fulham was when our chances really took a hit, especially as United also lost on the same day at Southampton so we could have gone top. We were playing catch up all season, not topping the table at any stage, but in with a chance right until round 37 when the fixture congestion, injuries and a lack of quality depth ultimately handed over our title to Mourinho and Man Utd. The scheduling mishap I talked about happened because, for whatever reason, Spurs had played three or four games less than everyone else and needed to catch up. Going into that penultimate week, Spurs had played 34 games whereas everyone else had played 36; in our case, we had played 35. Ordinarily, we would play that game in hand in mid-week between rounds 37 and 38, but due to Spurs needing to play an extra game, and our game in hand being against Spurs, we needed to play it earlier. Of course, it couldn't be played on a Tuesday or Wednesday because we were in the Champions League semi-final, hence it was scheduled for the Friday. It proved to be a step too far for the squad, who had done brilliantly to play through an intense period of huge games, but couldn't muster up one final push against Leicester. A win would have taken the title race to the final day, but we struggled to create genuine chances, and Mammana conceded a penalty that would cost us the three points. Champions League Fortunately, our disappointment in the league was tempered by a fantastic run in the Champions League. It was tough from the beginning as we drawn in a group with three very good sides then, despite winning the group, getting PSG in the first knockout round. PSG have an excellent team, with Kondogbia, Veratti and Di Maria in midfield and a front line of Cavani, Pastore and Dybala. We escaped the first leg in Paris with a 1-0 win, which set-up a more comfortable second leg. Kondogbia scored an own goal in the first half, then Walcott rounded things off late on in the second half. Bayern in the quarter-finals was daunting on paper but from experience I've never found them particularly difficult to play against. Alexis put us ahead in the first leg after a lovely one-touch passing move sliced Bayern open, and we really should have taken a bigger lead to Germany. We almost regretted that as Bayern took the lead in the second leg and we were struggling a bit. I put Ramsey and Welbeck on at half-time, and the two would combine to score the equaliser and the vital away goal. Alexis then popped up at the back post to nod in a second goal and secure our passage through to the semi-finals. With Barcelona, Madrid and Man United as our potential opponents, things weren't going to get any easier. United came out the pot and I fancied my chances of reaching the final. The first leg at Old Trafford went according to plan - sit back, keep it tight, hope to nick an away goal - for 85 minutes until a mix-up at the back allowed Ander Herrera to steal in and give United the lead. We needed to two goals in the second leg and had to do so without Ozil or Walcott, two of our most dangerous players. It was a cagey game and when it was goalless going into the final ten minutes, it looked like we weren't going to turn things around, but then Mammana managed to scramble one in from a corner - his first ever goal for us. After that, it was wave after wave of attack from us, and eventually we got that second goal when Alexis pinched the ball in United's half, drove at the heart of their defence, left their centre backs reeling and coolly slotted past De Gea. Real Madrid in the final, then. Ronaldo, at 33, was in fearsome form, with 40 goals all season and 10 in the Champions League. Madrid had just won a third consecutive La Liga title and the Copa Del Rey, and were now looking to retain the Champions League. Needless to say they were favourites going into the final, and I was tempted to use my counter-attacking/bus parking tactic. But then I thought screw it and went with the usual 4-3-3, and in a close final we managed to come out on top thanks to a first half Chamberlain goal and a top performance from Timo Horn in goal. It took three seasons but we finally have the Champions League, and only had to beat the French champions, the German champions, the future English champions, and the Spanish champions/CL holders to do it. Can't get any more emphatic than that. FA Cup A fairly straight-forward cup win here, with the highly being the 2-1 win at Spurs where Akpom and Wilshere scored the goals for us; two homegrown lads putting Spurs to the sword was beautiful. United were abject in the semi-final was duly dismissed. City was a tougher opponent in the final but left themselves open on the counter which Chamberlain gleefully exploited with two goals (a week before he would go on to score the winner in the CL final). So that's now four FA Cups in five years for the club. I don't think anybody is surpassing us as record holders any time soon. Player Stats The Youngsters Here are some screenshots of a select number of young players. These are the players I'm now giving my full focus to developing, which means the other players I was working on will likely be moved on from the club. If people wish to see screenshots of Bielik, Crowley, Yassin Fortune or any other youngsters, just say so I'll get them up later. Emmanuel Mammana - Emerged as one-half of my first choice centre back pairing this season and has developed very nicely. His value being at £35 million makes him one of the most valuable defenders in the game currently and there's more to come. Gedion Zelalem - Performed well in an unfamiliar defensive midfielder role as cover for Martinez and looks a good creative midfielder now. Manchester City and Monaco have expressed major interest in him, so I'm considering selling for big money, especially as I'm not sure he'll get any better than this and I need to make room for this next guy... Vlad Dragomir - A good loan spell at Blackburn in the Premier League has done his development some good, and now it's time to give him a consistent run in the first team. Fantastic physical and mental stats, and improving technical stats. I can't wait to work with him. Ainsley Maitland-Niles - Also had a productive PL loan, with Leicester. He'll also be more heavily involved with the first team next season. His recent form has earned him a spot in England's World Cup squad too. Jeff Reine-Adelaide - The third "new signing" for next season. A productive season on loan at Valencia has seen him develop well and hopefully a season of regular football with us will really give those attributes a boost. Serge Gnabry - Performed very well as a backup player for me, but perhaps didn't play enough for their to be any significant attribute growth. Will be sold to make room for Niles and Jeff. Donyell Malen - I'm not sure why his attributes have gone down recently, but he's looking very promising. 11 goals for PSV is a good return. He'll likely go on loan again next season, simply because I won't have room in the first team to give him games, but all going well he'll be my long-term striking option. Chuba Akpom - Like Gnabry, performed well when I needed him to but didn't develop much, and will be sold. 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johnhughthom Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 Wow, that may be the toughest Champions League run I've ever seen! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Llew_Arshavin23 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 JEinchy - what an unbelievably tough European campaign that is. Well done on coming through it with the Champions League trophy! I'm sure winning the FA Cup and Champions League double makes up for missing out on the title. 2016 / 2017 - SEASON REVIEW Here's my update for the season just past, 2016-2017. If you've been following my updates, you'll know that it's been a relatively mixed but successful season to date. Here's how our tricky run-in went, as well as a brief overview of the season in its entirety... CUP COMPETITIONS - CAPITAL ONE CUP and EMIRATES FA CUP Last season, we exited both competitions prematurely. This season was no different. We lost comfortably to Chelsea in the third round. In the FA Cup - a competition the club has a glorious history in - we succumbed to lesser opposition once again. Having reached the fifth round, a trip to Wolves' Molineux Stadium was on the cards. Having beaten them the weekend prior, the 3-1 defeat was both frustrating and disappointing. But there's always next season. Board Expectations: Capital One Cup - Not Important (knocked out third round) | Emirates FA Cup - Reach Final (knocked out fifth round) UEFA CHAMPIONS LEAGUE Having drawn David Moyes' Atlético Madrid, a strong team in fine La Liga form, our European campaign stepped up a couple of notches in difficulty. Having progressed from a tough group and beaten Internazionale in the round of last sixteen, here's how our Champions League run culminated... Two very impressive results against Atlético Madrid, if I do say so myself. Their qualities were obvious in both legs: a resolute defence providing a firm footing for their technically-adept players, like Correa and Griezmann, providing top class quality in attack. But we managed to break through the former and contain the latter with relative ease. Alexis Sánchez, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Aaron Ramsey were exceptional over both legs. Our performances in Madrid and at the Emirates set-up a mouth-watering semi-final tie: Arsenal versus Chelsea, or indeed, Mourinho. In eight meetings with him, we've come out on top just once. Our clash was statistically won by us, but we didn't come out on top. Hazard's quality really pulled them through, earning them a vital away goal as half-time approached. Theo Walcott and Alexis missed big second-half chances, burgeoning us with a gigantic task at Stamford Bridge. The second-leg was far more even. Chelsea were more expansive, more proactive, where as we consciously set-up in a mindset worthy of the occasion. And it worked, as exemplified by Alexis' equalising goal (on aggregate) some twenty-minutes from time. Ramsey's reverse pass was collected and dispatched by the Chilean in one movement. We continued in similar style until Azpilicueta pounced upon a blocked shot and rasped one in, from twenty-odd yards, to make it 2-1. We couldn't find another goal which would've seen us through. But again, we've reached the semi-final of Europe's premier competition. That's good. Board Expectations: Reach First Knockout Round (knocked out in semi-final... again) BARCLAYS PREMIER LEAGUE We've been really good in the league this season. Unbeaten for so long and winning games against direct rivals, we've made considerable forward progress in comparison to last season's campaign - progress deserving of a better outcome! In my last update, you would have noticed that my unbeaten run stretched to over thirty games, but a tough run-in beckoned. Here's how it all went... We stumbled our way through a little run of four fixtures which we fully expected to win. Kramarić cancelled out Giroud's opener, Alexis completed a two-goal turnaround at home to Norwich, Sigurðsson's goal ten-minutes after Oxlade-Chamberlain's earned Swansea a deserved draw. The comfortable 3-1 away win to now-relegated Hull City bucked the three-game trend of struggle and strife. The two draws away to Leicester and Swansea were even more frustrating when we lost - our first loss of the entire Premier League season (thirty-three games) - to Manchester City, the side breathing down our necks in the chase for the title. We flipped the game to 1-2 after Agüero's fourth-minute goal, but his second really turned the tables. Kompany escaped the attention of Per Mertesacker five minutes from time to head in and win the game. That loss meant we couldn't afford any more defeats, or indeed too many draws, something easier said than done considering the quality of opposition. We were really good against Jogi Löw's Liverpool and our performance absolutely deserved the emphatic scoreline. It gave us a welcome shot in the arm ahead of our meeting with Chelsea; our first of three in eight days. Petr Čech was incredible and contributed massively to us leaving Stamford Bridge with a valuable point. The 1-0 scoreline against West Brom doesn't do our impressive dominance justice, but it did ensure that the 1-1 draw away to a very good Tottneham side didn't cost us the title. We approached the final day knowing that all we needed was a point to secure the title - our first in over twelve years. We got more than a point; scoring five wodnerful goals and really putting on a show for the fans. Héctor Bellerín opened the scoring, running rings around Newcastle's left-hand side before thumping one into the roof of the net. Mesut Özil was artistic and delightful, setting up two goals and scoring himself. Alexis' relentlessness earned him a goal. Theo Walcott added to his impressive goal tally and Olivier Giroud chipped in too, as he has done all season. It was a victory parade of wonderful style and class - and thoroughly deserved too. Barclays Premier League table; the final standings - 2016/2017 Final Word: A thoroughly enjoyable season. Progression needs to be made in the FA Cup. A fine Champions League run was curtailed at the semi-final stage, but our title win - the first for the club in twelve years - certainly made up for it. PLAYER STATISTICS - TOP FIVE *statistics = all competitions Appearances:- 1. Petr Čech - 47 appearances 2. Julian Weigl - 44 3. Héctor Bellerin - 43 4. Mesut Özil - 42 5. Laurent Koscielny - 41 Goals:- 1. Theo Walcott - 21 goals 2. Alexis Sánchez and Olivier Giroud - 16 3. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain - 9 4. Mesut Özil - 7 5. Aaron Ramsey and Jack Wilshere - 5 Assists:- 1. Mesut Özil - 12 assists 2. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain - 9 3. Héctor Bellerín - 8 4. Alexis Sánchez and Theo Walcott - 7 5. Nacho Monreal and Olivier Giroud - 6 Passes Completed:- 1. Julian Weigl - 2,288 passes completed 2. Héctor Bellerín - 2,148 3. Laurent Koscielny - 1,937 4. Nacho Monreal - 1,905 5. Mesut Özil - 1,665 Key Passes:- 1. Mesut Özil - 141 key passes 2. Héctor Bellerín - 123 3. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain - 101 4. Alexis Sánchez - 81 5. Aaron Ramsey - 80 Tackles:- 1. Laurent Koscielny - 174 tackles completed 2. Nacho Monreal - 171 3. Héctor Bellerín - 114 4. Julian Weigl - 104 5. Francis Coquelin - 96 Interceptions:- 1. Laurent Koscielny - 504 interceptions 2. Per Mertesacker - 435 3. Héctor Bellerín - 379 4. Nacho Monreal - 312 5. Gabriel - 289 Average Rating:- 1. Héctor Bellerín - 43 appearances; 7.71 average rating 2. Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain - 38 apps; 7.61 3. Nacho Monreal - 37 apps; 7.42 4. Alexis Sánchez - 40 apps; 7.37 5. Laurent Koscielny - 41 apps; 7.27 Full Statistics - All Competitions AWARD WINNERS AND RECOGNITION It is to be expected that when a collective achieves excellent results, a number of individuals will be picked out for their outstanding contributions. Nothing is different here. Two Arsenal players picked up prize awards and a number also received recognition. For the second season in-a-row, Eden Hazard won the FWA Writers' Player of the Year award, while Joe Hart won the Barclays Premier League Golden Glove. PFA Player of the Year winner - Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain PFA Young Player of the Year winner - Héctor BellerínPFA Players' Team of the Year - Héctor Bellerín, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Theo Walcott All awards were absolutely deserved. After starting the season as a rotational player, Alex Oxalde-Chamberlain's form from November onwards was nothing short of sensational. He scored goals, made goals and dove-tailed beautifully with Héctor Bellerín on our right-hand side. The latter also deserved his award, his second Young Player of the Year award in as many years. Theo Walcott also deserved his spot in the Team of the Year; he ended the season with eighteen league goals, trailing only Vardy (twenty-three goals) and Agüero (twenty-four) in the race for the Golden Boot. YOUTH DEVELOPMENT - PICK OF THE BUNCH I thought I'd update you, in true JEinchy style, on the development of some of my most talented youngsters. Ainsley Maitland-Niles (Wolves), Emi Martínez (Middlesbrough), Chris Willock and Dan Crowley (Hibernian) all enjoyed productive spells out on loan, playing the majority of their games. Chuba Akpom spent the season at West Brom, but didn't impress. Serge Gnabry's time at Sevilla was blighted by a traumatic leg break. Krystian Bielik - young Bielik's development has been very promising. He started against Chelsea in the League Cup as well as QPR and Chesterfield in the FA Cup. After much deliberation, I've decided he's best suited to becoming a centre-back. He is likely to be loaned out next season. Vlad Dragomir - the eighteen year-old looks to be on course to becoming an invaluable player for both club and country. His two goals on his full Arsenal debut, against QPR, were a tantalising glimpse of his potential. With tremendously mature physical and mental attributes, it's only a matter of time before he breaks into the first-team squad. A decision will have to be made regarding his immediate development. Donyell Malen - a very exciting prospect. Surpassing the unfortunate Fortune (who missed five months through injury) in terms of ability, I'm looking to develop Malen into a complete forward. He has the basic attributes to become a prolific striker, both in scoring and creating goals. A rather lengthy update, but one I hope you will all appreciate and enjoy... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gholliday87 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 Man City offer for Gibbs...GBP 19.25 upfront, GBP 8 mil over 12 months, GBP 7.58 after 10 international appearances...What to do?! I'm slightly worried that he won't make 10 international appearances! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinnabon09 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 Is Bellerin still as good since the last patch came out? Got a chance to sign him for 30 mill pounds Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBC#1 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 Must have started about three or four Arsenal saves and barring the first one where I finished second with 88 points, I've struggled each time, getting sacked a couple of times. It's almost like I can't bring myself to play with another team until i can figure this out. The main problem I have is scoring goals, I cannot score goals and when I get chances my strikers finishing is very poor. Anybody have similar problems with Arsenal, how did you solve them? Anybody with success, what did you do? I'm curious. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
arsenalthebest Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 End of season update time:Premier League As mentioned last night, we missed out on the title. Looking back, that defeat away to Fulham was when our chances really took a hit, especially as United also lost on the same day at Southampton so we could have gone top. We were playing catch up all season, not topping the table at any stage, but in with a chance right until round 37 when the fixture congestion, injuries and a lack of quality depth ultimately handed over our title to Mourinho and Man Utd. The scheduling mishap I talked about happened because, for whatever reason, Spurs had played three or four games less than everyone else and needed to catch up. Going into that penultimate week, Spurs had played 34 games whereas everyone else had played 36; in our case, we had played 35. Ordinarily, we would play that game in hand in mid-week between rounds 37 and 38, but due to Spurs needing to play an extra game, and our game in hand being against Spurs, we needed to play it earlier. Of course, it couldn't be played on a Tuesday or Wednesday because we were in the Champions League semi-final, hence it was scheduled for the Friday. It proved to be a step too far for the squad, who had done brilliantly to play through an intense period of huge games, but couldn't muster up one final push against Leicester. A win would have taken the title race to the final day, but we struggled to create genuine chances, and Mammana conceded a penalty that would cost us the three points. Champions League Fortunately, our disappointment in the league was tempered by a fantastic run in the Champions League. It was tough from the beginning as we drawn in a group with three very good sides then, despite winning the group, getting PSG in the first knockout round. PSG have an excellent team, with Kondogbia, Veratti and Di Maria in midfield and a front line of Cavani, Pastore and Dybala. We escaped the first leg in Paris with a 1-0 win, which set-up a more comfortable second leg. Kondogbia scored an own goal in the first half, then Walcott rounded things off late on in the second half. Bayern in the quarter-finals was daunting on paper but from experience I've never found them particularly difficult to play against. Alexis put us ahead in the first leg after a lovely one-touch passing move sliced Bayern open, and we really should have taken a bigger lead to Germany. We almost regretted that as Bayern took the lead in the second leg and we were struggling a bit. I put Ramsey and Welbeck on at half-time, and the two would combine to score the equaliser and the vital away goal. Alexis then popped up at the back post to nod in a second goal and secure our passage through to the semi-finals. With Barcelona, Madrid and Man United as our potential opponents, things weren't going to get any easier. United came out the pot and I fancied my chances of reaching the final. The first leg at Old Trafford went according to plan - sit back, keep it tight, hope to nick an away goal - for 85 minutes until a mix-up at the back allowed Ander Herrera to steal in and give United the lead. We needed to two goals in the second leg and had to do so without Ozil or Walcott, two of our most dangerous players. It was a cagey game and when it was goalless going into the final ten minutes, it looked like we weren't going to turn things around, but then Mammana managed to scramble one in from a corner - his first ever goal for us. After that, it was wave after wave of attack from us, and eventually we got that second goal when Alexis pinched the ball in United's half, drove at the heart of their defence, left their centre backs reeling and coolly slotted past De Gea. Real Madrid in the final, then. Ronaldo, at 33, was in fearsome form, with 40 goals all season and 10 in the Champions League. Madrid had just won a third consecutive La Liga title and the Copa Del Rey, and were now looking to retain the Champions League. Needless to say they were favourites going into the final, and I was tempted to use my counter-attacking/bus parking tactic. But then I thought screw it and went with the usual 4-3-3, and in a close final we managed to come out on top thanks to a first half Chamberlain goal and a top performance from Timo Horn in goal. It took three seasons but we finally have the Champions League, and only had to beat the French champions, the German champions, the future English champions, and the Spanish champions/CL holders to do it. Can't get any more emphatic than that. FA Cup A fairly straight-forward cup win here, with the highly being the 2-1 win at Spurs where Akpom and Wilshere scored the goals for us; two homegrown lads putting Spurs to the sword was beautiful. United were abject in the semi-final was duly dismissed. City was a tougher opponent in the final but left themselves open on the counter which Chamberlain gleefully exploited with two goals (a week before he would go on to score the winner in the CL final). So that's now four FA Cups in five years for the club. I don't think anybody is surpassing us as record holders any time soon. Player Stats The Youngsters Here are some screenshots of a select number of young players. These are the players I'm now giving my full focus to developing, which means the other players I was working on will likely be moved on from the club. If people wish to see screenshots of Bielik, Crowley, Yassin Fortune or any other youngsters, just say so I'll get them up later. Emmanuel Mammana - Emerged as one-half of my first choice centre back pairing this season and has developed very nicely. His value being at £35 million makes him one of the most valuable defenders in the game currently and there's more to come. Gedion Zelalem - Performed well in an unfamiliar defensive midfielder role as cover for Martinez and looks a good creative midfielder now. Manchester City and Monaco have expressed major interest in him, so I'm considering selling for big money, especially as I'm not sure he'll get any better than this and I need to make room for this next guy... Vlad Dragomir - A good loan spell at Blackburn in the Premier League has done his development some good, and now it's time to give him a consistent run in the first team. Fantastic physical and mental stats, and improving technical stats. I can't wait to work with him. Ainsley Maitland-Niles - Also had a productive PL loan, with Leicester. He'll also be more heavily involved with the first team next season. His recent form has earned him a spot in England's World Cup squad too. Jeff Reine-Adelaide - The third "new signing" for next season. A productive season on loan at Valencia has seen him develop well and hopefully a season of regular football with us will really give those attributes a boost. Serge Gnabry - Performed very well as a backup player for me, but perhaps didn't play enough for their to be any significant attribute growth. Will be sold to make room for Niles and Jeff. Donyell Malen - I'm not sure why his attributes have gone down recently, but he's looking very promising. 11 goals for PSV is a good return. He'll likely go on loan again next season, simply because I won't have room in the first team to give him games, but all going well he'll be my long-term striking option. Chuba Akpom - Like Gnabry, performed well when I needed him to but didn't develop much, and will be sold. What tactic are you using Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBC#1 Posted December 17, 2015 Share Posted December 17, 2015 Bloody well sacked again, I am finding Arsenal very difficult! Starting again now, it will not get the better of me... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
raeburn Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 End of Season Review: 2015/16 Premier League We won the league! Led by Olivier Giroud, who turned in a season reminiscent of Thierry Henry with 24 goals and 13 assists in the league (31/19 overall), we had it wrapped up by week 35. The main black mark was that the players definitely slacked off once they'd secured the title, only securing 1 point from their final 3 games against teams that ended up in the bottom 5. Champions League Our road to the final in the Champion's League got off to a familiar start when we drew Bayern Munich in the Round of 16. Two goals on the counter away from home allowed us to finish off the tie with a 0-0 draw at the Emirates, and we were on to the quarter finals. We squeaked past Manchester City, and then blew away Bayern Leverkusen, only to find ourselves facing a dominant Real Madrid team who had beaten Barcelona 5-0 on aggregate in the semis. When we conceded twice in quick succession mid-way through the first half, I thought we might be in for a beating. The players turned it around in the second half, however, and took it to extra-time 2-2. Giroud got his brace in the 99th minute, and we held on for what ended up being a deserved victory through 120 minutes. Awards Olivier Giroud was named EPL Player's Player of the Year for his tireless work up front, but that wasn't enough to win over the fans, who awarded Fan's Player of the Year to Hector Bellerin. Transfers We weren't too active in the January transfer market, only bringing in Reece Oxford for 4.2m from West Ham and Gianluigi Donnarumma from AC Milan for 5.75m. I was particularly happy to bring in Donnarumma, especially after Bartlomiej Dragowski went to Real Madrid. Cech was outstanding throughout the season. Looking forward to the summer, I am prioritizing investments across my back four. Both Debuchy and Gabriel want out after not playing enough for their tastes last season, and despite Nacho's outstanding season, he's quickly approaching the wrong side of 30. Gibbs has been a solid and uncomplaining backup, and I'm hoping that he will remain that even if I bring in an younger LB to start in front of him. I'm hoping to keep Gabriel and maybe sell Mertesacker instead, but it may not work out that way. Stats Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JEinchy Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 Llew_Arshavin23: Congrats on the league title - hard luck on not going the whole season unbeaten. Those results against Altetico are excellent, since I found them really difficult to beat. Also had to laugh at Nasri rocking up at Spurs. Keep up the good work. arsenalthebest: I'm using a 4-3-3 with the following roles: Goalkeeper (D); Wing Back (Support), Central Defender (D), Central Defender (D), Wing Back (Support): Defensive Midfielder (D), Central Midfielder (S), Central Midfielder (A); Inside Forward (A), False 9 (S), Inside Forward (A). Control/Structured. Team instructions: Shorter Passing, Play Out Of Defence, Work Ball Into Box, Play Wider, Push Higher Up, Close Down More, Tighter Marking. This is my main approach, but I use a completely different set-up for big away games and do change roles and instructions during games depending on the situation (for example if I want to keep the ball and see out the game I use more support roles and slower passing). JBC#1: I admire your perseverance. If you're having difficulty scoring goals or converting chances, it may be worth looking at the type of chances you're creating and if they're really goalscoring chances or if they're just half-chances. How the game distinguishes them isn't entirely accurate, from what I've seen. Simple bad finishing is a different issue that's harder to solve. I think in that situation you need to tighten up at the back and grind out the wins; it won't be pretty but at least you can keep your job that way. raeburn: Well done on the Premier League and Champions League double. Awesome way to win the CL, too. Happy to see Giroud playing so well for you as he's a very good striker who's easily dismissed. Keep us updated. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
billysafc Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 is anyone else struggling to get the best out of ozil? Never seems to perform that well for me. I play him as CM - AP (A) with roam from position. I would be interested to see how others play him Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnhughthom Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 Here is how he's done for me over four and a bit seasons as an AMC AP (s). I would never consider playing him in the CM strata, doesn't have the attributes for it in my view, if you don't use an AM it would probably be best getting rid of him. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
billysafc Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 Here is how he's done for me over four and a bit seasons as an AMC AP (s). I would never consider playing him in the CM strata, doesn't have the attributes for it in my view, if you don't use an AM it would probably be best getting rid of him. I do have a 4-2-3-1 tactic that has a AM but I cant get the balance and solidity right. I would really prefer not to get rid of him because I think he's a beautiful player really but I cannot translate that to fm. Could I post my tactic on here for you chaps to critique please? Give me some pointers to improve it. I dont feel like control the game enough and dont play as incisive as id like. Any tips are welcome. I have Ozil on roam from position and move into channels. Thank you Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnhughthom Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 I have him on support duty, with Hold Position, More Risky Passes and Shoot Less Often. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
billysafc Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 fair enough, does he do a good job for you?, stats dont seem that impressive but they dont tell the whole story. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
arsenalthebest Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 is anyone else finding it difficult to get performnces out of defensive Centre mids? I cant get and ave rating above 6.9 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnhughthom Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 Well, I think his role in the team is more to make the two wide players and the striker play better, which he does, than necessarily get a load of goals and assists. In saying that, his stats are still pretty good. I also have Gotze and Lincoln, neither have dislodged him yet. is anyone else finding it difficult to get performnces out of defensive Centre mids? I cant get and ave rating above 6.9 I think you need to think of the stability of the whole team when judging your defensive midfielder, even when they play well they don't necessarily rate highly. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JEinchy Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 I've had a ridiculously good start to the 18/19 season: Just about everything has come together perfectly so far, from stylish open play goals to fast counter attacks. If it remains like this throughout the whole season I may have to call it my last. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
arsenalthebest Posted December 18, 2015 Share Posted December 18, 2015 I've had a ridiculously good start to the 18/19 season: Just about everything has come together perfectly so far, from stylish open play goals to fast counter attacks. If it remains like this throughout the whole season I may have to call it my last. very nice is that your 4-3-3 tactic? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Llew_Arshavin23 Posted December 19, 2015 Share Posted December 19, 2015 Llew_Arshavin23: Congrats on the league title - hard luck on not going the whole season unbeaten. Those results against Altetico are excellent, since I found them really difficult to beat. Also had to laugh at Nasri rocking up at Spurs. Keep up the good work. Thanks! Really pleased with my season, to be fair. Progression needs to be made in the FA Cup, but another Champions League semi-final and our first league title in some years is a good platform to build upon. Having difficulty in deciding what to do this summer, particularly with my younger players. Nevertheless, signing a central midfielder, one preferably dynamic enough to play both as a box-to-box and a holder, is my priority. As for you season, that is some incredible form / performances. Instead of quitting the save, why not just quit Arsenal? Maybe go abroad and see what you can do there? is anyone else struggling to get the best out of ozil? Never seems to perform that well for me. I play him as CM - AP (A) with roam from position. I would be interested to see how others play him I tend to alternate roles with Mesut, depending on what I see in game. I usually start him as a Trequartista but if I feel he's being a bit too expansive (and wasteful), I tend to change him to an Attacking Midfielder - Support or Attack. It limits the amount of high-risk passes he makes and he controls games a lot more, and also becomes more of a goal threat. Just try different roles, with different instructions (maybe none at all) and see which one gives you the best results. is anyone else finding it difficult to get performnces out of defensive Centre mids? I cant get and ave rating above 6.9 As johnhughthom says, I think you have to base it on the overall performance of him and the team in-game. I'm not sure Football Manager's statistical algorithms are particularly kind to players in that kind of role, unless they get unsustainable high numbers in tackles or interceptions. Example: Julian Weigl's average rating in a title-winning season was 7.03, but on average he completed the most passes per game, had the highest pass completion percentage in my squad (90%) and made 2.5 tackles per-game and over 200 interceptions throughout the season. I'm very pleased with his contribution. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JEinchy Posted December 20, 2015 Share Posted December 20, 2015 This run is continuing, albeit the standard opposition isn't that high: I didn't foresee us starting the season this well, nevermind this ridiculous run of clean sheets we've got at the moment. It's not all been plain sailing - Bayern missed a decent number of chances, and we played with 10 men for 40 minutes against West Ham - but generally things have been very easy. We'll see how long this will last, especially once the fixtures become harder and my small squad (only 22 players) has to deal with the Christmas congestion. As for you season, that is some incredible form / performances. Instead of quitting the save, why not just quit Arsenal? Maybe go abroad and see what you can do there? I've considered this before. I always have reservations about doing so because I hate seeing a new manager come on and not give game time to the young players I brought through. My contract runs out at the end of the season, though (board hasn't offered me a new one yet despite them asking me if I wanted one). Maybe that would be a good time to move to another club, especially if we continue sweeping teams aside like it's nothing. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nonlondoner Posted December 20, 2015 Share Posted December 20, 2015 Is anyone else as sad as me and edits the kits every year? I've got my 2016/17 squad wearing the rumoured yellow & dark grey away kit already. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
arsenalthebest Posted December 20, 2015 Share Posted December 20, 2015 This run is continuing, albeit the standard opposition isn't that high: I didn't foresee us starting the season this well, nevermind this ridiculous run of clean sheets we've got at the moment. It's not all been plain sailing - Bayern missed a decent number of chances, and we played with 10 men for 40 minutes against West Ham - but generally things have been very easy. We'll see how long this will last, especially once the fixtures become harder and my small squad (only 22 players) has to deal with the Christmas congestion. I've considered this before. I always have reservations about doing so because I hate seeing a new manager come on and not give game time to the young players I brought through. My contract runs out at the end of the season, though (board hasn't offered me a new one yet despite them asking me if I wanted one). Maybe that would be a good time to move to another club, especially if we continue sweeping teams aside like it's nothing. what tactic you using the 4-3-3? if another can you post a screenie please? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JEinchy Posted December 20, 2015 Share Posted December 20, 2015 what tactic you using the 4-3-3? if another can you post a screenie please? Yes, it's the 4-3-3. The last month or so has been tougher on us: Our run of cleansheets came to an end thanks to an Andreas Cornelius header away to Norwich, while Ajax inflicted our first defeat of the season with a surprise win in the Champions League that cost us top spot in the group. The Liverpool game in the cup was by far our worse game of the season, where Dragomir conceded a penalty after 2 mins (before breaking his leg), we were 3-0 down after 15 and, just after we had gotten one back, Mammana made an awful mistake which lead to their fourth. Liverpool managed 5 shots all game, one of them being a penalty, yet converted four of them. That means no clean sweep of trophies this season. The Club World Championship was won without much fanfare, while in the league we're still unbeaten. Injuries are starting to mount, however. Dragomir will miss the rest of the season with a broken leg, while Ramsey, Ozil and Ox picked up 3-4 weeks injuries. With a small squad to begin with, this winter period has been quite the slog, and performances have dipped. Donyell Malen has been recalled from his loan at PSV and I'm hoping to bring in Angel Correa on loan from Atletico Madrid to bolster the squad a bit for the second half of the season. Meanwhile, I finally had a player win these damn awards: IIRC the last time one of my players won those was on FM11. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
arsenalthebest Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 really don't enjoy fm16 as much as fm15 I just don't feel the same motivation to play Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
arsenalthebest Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 May/End Of Season Report 03/05/16 | UEFA Champions League (Semi-Final - 2nd leg) | Emirates Arsenal 1(3) Meli 6 , Walcott Inj 84 | Asst: Alexis x1) Juventus 0(2) 05/05/16 | Barclays Premier League | Emirates Arsenal 1 ( Saponara PEN 22) Southampton 0 07/05/16 | Barclays Premier League | Emirates Arsenal 2 ( Welbeck 45 , Alexis 57 | Assts: Mandi/Gibbs x1) Norwich 0 11/05/16 | Barclays Premier League | Stamford Bridge Arsenal 2 ( Cazorla PEN 21 , Giroud 41 | Assts: Alexis/Oxlade-Chamberlain x1) Chelsea 1 ( Costa 46) 15/05/16 | Barclays Premier League | Dean Court Arsenal 4 ( Alexis 3 , Oxlade-Chamberlain 13 , Alexis 64 , Oxlade-Chamberlain 74 | Assts: Bellerín/Oxlade-Chamberlain x1) Bournemouth 1 ( Wilson 90+3) 21/05/16 | F.A Cup (Final) | Wembley Arsenal 4 ( Giroud 17 , Alexis 54 , Giroud 69 , Alexis 90+1 | Assts: Bellerín x1 , Alexis/Özil x1) Man City 3 ( Fernando 1 , Silva 36 & 45+2 , Bony Inj 90+4)) 28/05/16 | UEFA Champions League ( Final) | San Siro Arsenal 0 Bayern 2 ( Robben 17 , Lewandowski 54) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnhughthom Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 Good job breaking the 100 points mark. I've been on target a couple of times, but can never stop the post title won slump. A third of the way through season five and Spurs and United look like they might actually sustain a challenge this time (perhaps due to no Champions League football for either), I hope they do otherwise it's pointless to continue. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
arsenalthebest Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 Good job breaking the 100 points mark. I've been on target a couple of times, but can never stop the post title won slump. A third of the way through season five and Spurs and United look like they might actually sustain a challenge this time (perhaps due to no Champions League football for either), I hope they do otherwise it's pointless to continue. Are you talking to me if so my name's not mark Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
malikoi Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 Hi all, I need a bit of advise please. I have had a bid of £48,000,000 from PSG for Francis Coquelin, and I am not sure if to accept it or not. I have Ramsey/Bazoer to play instead of him please not entirely sure! Are you talking to me if so my name's not mark Lol.. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
johnhughthom Posted December 21, 2015 Share Posted December 21, 2015 I'd take it, Bazoer develops into a better holding midfielder in my opinion. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
arsenalthebest Posted December 22, 2015 Share Posted December 22, 2015 any ideas for a similar type of player to Coquelin? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mackem742 Posted December 23, 2015 Share Posted December 23, 2015 Really enjoying this save and I didnt think I would. Im into February in season 2 and whereas I had success in last seasons FA Cup and Champions League they have been more of a struggle this season, a 4th round exit away to Charlton was unexpected (lost 2-1) and Ive just drawn 1-1 at home to Porto in the Champions League 1st knockout round so getting through that tie is going to be a struggle. However im into the final of the League Cup against Cardiff and Im running away with the league, im 8 points clear of 2nd place Man Utd and I have THREE games in hand due to me competing in the Club World Championship. Icardi is playing incredibly for me. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
zakarakas Posted December 23, 2015 Share Posted December 23, 2015 A bit late to the party but I'll contribute what I can. Everyone was debating earlier as to which striker needs to be used, I took advantage of the HUGE budget and bought both Berardi + Morata alonside two extras. In: Morata: 15m + extras which totals to around 35 million, none of which will be given this season due to the sheer unlikeliness (e.g. 50 goals + 50 league apps) Berardi: 50m (25 + extras which were for this season e.g. 10 league apps + 15 goals) Andres Cubas: 4m Sergio Diaz: Free (impulse purchase as I loved him on FM15 + money for appearance + goals) Out: Debuchy: 11m (no regrets- always complains + lowers morale) TOTAL NET: -58 million I don't want to make anymore transfers and therefore moved the slider all the way to wages which will in turn make the board happy with wage expenditure + therefore more money later. My formation is a simple 4-3-3 / 4-1-2-3 GK: Cech/Ospina L CWB (A): Gibbs/ Monreal CD (D): Koscielny/Mertesacker/Gabriel/Chambers BPD (D): Mertesacker/Koscielny/Gabriel/Chambers R CWB (A): Bellerin/Moore/Chambers DM (D): Coquelin/Arteta/Cubas/Flamini/Bielik/Kamara AP (Su): Ramsay/Wilshere/Arteta/Rosicky/ AP (At): Cazorla/Ozil/AOC/Crowley/Zelalem L IF (A): Sanchez/Welbeck/Campbell/AOC/Adelaide F9 (Su): Morata/Giroud/Walcott/Berardi/Welbeck/Iwobi/Mavididi/Diaz R IF (A): Berardi/Walcott/AOC/Ozil/Adelaide/Welbeck/Ramsay Giroud nor Morata are natural F9's but are tearing it apart with the support of the two IF's. The Sanchez - Morata - Berardi partnership is unbeatable and even when playing weak teams the Welbeck-Giroud-Walcott trio is doing a good job. Evidently Ozil isn't really a vital member of the squad and has only come as an AMC when I play a 4-2-3-1 against super weak teams. I'm genuinely considering his place in the team as you can demand a ridiculous price for him. I'm not a huge fan of purging other teams youth so I like to develop the ones at Arsenal. Thus far Bielik, Adelaide, Crowley, Zelalem, Iwobi and Maitland Niles will warrant some starts despite their young age. Preseason fixture + results: Arsenal 2 - 1 Montreal Impact (Walcott + Sanchez Goals) The tactic wasn't fluid yet but very promising. Goal was as a result of Cech blasting the ball into the opponents back Arsenal 9 - 0 Cambridge (Mertesacker +Cazorla x2 + Walcott + Berardi x5) I played Berardi as the F9 with good success. This game was to boost confidence and morale as well as intorucing Berardi to the team. Sanchez made 4 assists. Feynoord 0 - 8 Arsenal (Coquelin + Ramsay +Sanchez x3 + Welbeck x3) I played Welbeck instead of Berardi because I wanted to sell him and get a few good appearances in. He impressed but still considering selling him. 415 completed passes + 60 Key passes) C.E. Sabadell 0 - 8 Arsenal (Koscielny + Berardi x3 + Morata x4) Morata was signed 2 days before the fixture and did not disappoint. Although against a very weak team the formation was played well. Ozil playing as the AP (At) assisted twice as well as Sanchez. Chelsea 0 - 2 Arsenal (Cazorla + Morata) 32 Key Passes and 375 passes completed. Disappointed with the 53% possession but we never looked like losing. Total Stats: Top goalscorers: Berardi: 8 Morata: 5 Sanchez: 4 Welbeck/Cazorla: 3 Assists: Sanchez: 7 Bellerin: 5 Gibbs: 4 These stats speak for themselves. Our strikeforce trio dominated the goals and the wingbacks took credit for many assists. Whilst the trio got their fair share of assists too. In all honesty we had some weak teams to play but I was mostly getting the team familiar with the formations which was successful. I will post screenshots of the season as it progresses because I see some serious potential here. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamMcM Posted December 23, 2015 Share Posted December 23, 2015 Is their any alternate to Morata. Hes been injured in pre-season with Juve and is out for about 9months? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
malikoi Posted December 23, 2015 Share Posted December 23, 2015 Is their any alternate to Morata. Hes been injured in pre-season with Juve and is out for about 9 months? Giroud, not sure why people aren't using him... First season he scored 38 in 47(4) games, also injured for the last 2 months of the season. In March, second season, he has scored 38 in 42(3) games... Frustrating at times, but give him a chance. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scribe Posted December 24, 2015 Share Posted December 24, 2015 Giroud, not sure why people aren't using him... First season he scored 38 in 47(4) games, also injured for the last 2 months of the season. In March, second season, he has scored 38 in 42(3) games... Frustrating at times, but give him a chance. Giroud has been very good for me as well, but he won't last forever. I'm on the lookout for a world class striker as well; preferably one that is best as a DLF or F9. I have my eye on Neymar, but I don't think I'll be able to get him. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kieran87 Posted December 24, 2015 Share Posted December 24, 2015 This is what we like: Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scribe Posted December 24, 2015 Share Posted December 24, 2015 Giroud has been very good for me as well, but he won't last forever. I'm on the lookout for a world class striker as well; preferably one that is best as a DLF or F9. I have my eye on Neymar, but I don't think I'll be able to get him. I decided to go for James: Not cheap. 97m. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
JEinchy Posted December 27, 2015 Share Posted December 27, 2015 Finished my last season with the club. We won the league at a canter: We had another tough CL run: It looked like it would end early in the quarter-finals when Bayern beat us at the Emirates, but an incredible away leg comeback got us through: Madrid were cast aside with ease, setting up a big final against Chelsea. Sadly, it wasn't meant to be, as after taking the lead we were pegged back in the second half, missed two penalties, including one in the final minute of normal time, had Martinez sent off for an off-the-ball incident towards the end of extra-time, then lost the penalty shoot-out. It seemed that the powers-that-be were determined not to let us win another CL. I'll post screenshots of some young players later. My contract expires at the end of the season and I'll be moving on. Might re-visit Arsenal after the database is updated. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
arsenalthebest Posted December 28, 2015 Share Posted December 28, 2015 Finished my last season with the club. We won the league at a canter: We had another tough CL run: It looked like it would end early in the quarter-finals when Bayern beat us at the Emirates, but an incredible away leg comeback got us through: Madrid were cast aside with ease, setting up a big final against Chelsea. Sadly, it wasn't meant to be, as after taking the lead we were pegged back in the second half, missed two penalties, including one in the final minute of normal time, had Martinez sent off for an off-the-ball incident towards the end of extra-time, then lost the penalty shoot-out. It seemed that the powers-that-be were determined not to let us win another CL. I'll post screenshots of some young players later. My contract expires at the end of the season and I'll be moving on. Might re-visit Arsenal after the database is updated. how do you play Malen , Maitland-Niles , Reine-Adelaide & Dragomir? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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