Jump to content

[FM16] Leeds, A Lancastrian's adventures in Yorkshire!


facman

Recommended Posts

  • Replies 193
  • Created
  • Last Reply
2 hours ago, BoxToBox said:

Hmmm, where do you feel needs strengthening the most?

Feels like that Sule is the answer to me, IIRC you're already strong up front, Sule would help the defence and Bazoer replaces Raibot.

That is the obvious choice - I was going to go after Calum Chambers (available for £9M from Liverpool), but his wage and status demands have gone through the roof, far more than he is worth. Had I gone for Chambers, I would have had enough money for Ivan or Passlack. Currently, there aren't any more decent defenders on the market or available cheaply, so Sule is the only other option. Its not like Sule is a poor-man's choice, though, he is an excellent defender who would slot into the team wonderfully.

Strictly speaking I don't need Ivan, as I already have Wilson, Eggestein, Clough and Campbell, but Clough and Campbell aren't out-and-out goalscorers like the other two. Campbell is more of a winger-cum-striker, and Clough is fine for a mid-table team, but lost his place to Eggestein early on in November of this season and never won it back. Also, Campbell is being hunted by 3 clubs, and I might be able to get £12-15M for him, so making the investment in Ivan somewhat less than anticipated. I will be able to cover Campbell's winger duties (he plays roughly 40% of the time as ML) with a youngster coming up from the U21s who is ready for a few starts.

Regarding Passlack, I currently have Walker and Brenet covering the DR position, and Ward-Prowse and Stuart Dallas covering the MR position, so there is even less of a case for Passlack than there is for Ivan. However, I signed Passlack at a younger age in my Everton save, and he was just great! His versatility is so useful, and he has such good development potential that I might not need to look for another right-sided player for several years.

Argghhhh! Choices, choices! This is why I'm such a slow player in the off-season! :rolleyes:

Link to post
Share on other sites

The Premiership season is over, and although the FA Cup, Europa League and champions League are yet to be decided, the great and the good come together to award prizes and politely golf clap their rivals :applause:

The Chelsea manager won't be attending though, as Roman gets rid of yet another for underperforming!

Season%2018-19%20Chelsea%20sacking_zps75

oh, and our board finally decide it is time to upgrade the training facilities

Season%2018-19%20training%20fac_zpsepj6q

We get two of our players into the Team of the Year, James Ward-Prowse and Emanuel Mammana. Well done lads! :)

Season%2018-19%20Team%20of%20year_zps5kk

Bellerin is named Player of the Year, and Sterling wins Players Player, with JWP winning Young Player! Good work JWP! :brock:

Hang on a minute, though, this is a fix. Last year Bellerin won Players Player, and Sterling won Player of the Year... something dodgy is going on! Aguero won top goalscorer again, which is so predictable I couldn't even be bothered to take a screenshot

Season%2018-19%20Prem%20awards_zpszn6zal

And what's that you say? Moi? Manager of the Year? Surely you can't be serious?

I am serious, and don't call me Shirley!

Season%2018-19%20Manager%20ofYear_zps0bn

The Leeds end of season awards are in too, and its no shock that Leeds Legend (yes, he is on that list already) Charlie Taylor wins the Fans' vote. JWP is signing of the season (no shock there) an Lewis Cook wins the Young Player award (I can't believe he is still only 22!). Wilson is top goalscorer again, although this year he was pushed hard by Eggestein. JWP easily won the Most Assists category, with 17, and shared the Player of the Match award with Cook.

Season%2018-19%20Leeds%20awards_zpsexzik

Our season review makes for good reading...

Season%2018-19%20Leeds%20review_zpsck2ce

And here's the squad that performed so well this season. I've highlighted Callum Wilson and Johannes Eggestein's goal tallies, Lewis Cook's all round performance in goals, assists and MOM, and JWP's assists. Also, it is worth noting that JWP os our highest earner with 63k per week, which is less than half of the average player wage of the Man City squad. Let's just think about that... our top earner makes less than half the AVERAGE wage at Man City!! And did Man City finish in the Top 4? I don't think so! :D

Season%2018-19%20squad_zpshxbdgjz7.jpg

While we are talking stats, we have the lowest average age in the Premiership, and an average wage of only £34.5k per week.

Season%2018-19%20team%20general_zps3qhng

And this next picture only goes to affirm that it isn't always about having the best players...

Take look at the Defence column - we conceded the fewest goals in the Premiership this season, and yet only rated 11th in tackling and 14th in Positioning in defence. Our 4 strikers scored 75 goals between them, yet only rank 9th in finishing. Our midfield maestros were awarded 56 assists, yet only ranked 13th for Technique and 10th for Vision. Just goes to show, in this game its all about the system!

Season%2018-19%20Team%20comparison_zpsdu

Next we should get to the FA Cup and Euro Cup finals! :)

Link to post
Share on other sites

Round up of the final weeks of the season:

Man U win the FA Cup against Sunderland. Sunderland had a few chances, but in reality it was a stroll in the park for the League Champions, so Newcastle will take the third Europa League spot behind Man City and Chelsea (which reminds me, I need to take a screenshot of the completed final table at home tonight!).

Season%2018-19%20FA%20final_zpsadsuj7px.

And Man U win the treble. Odd to think how close we cam to winning two of those trophies, and in the end we came away with nothing!

Season%2018-19%20Man%20U%20treble_zpsdlk

Our vanquishers in the Europa League, AS Monaco, make it all the way through to the final, but are outplayed by Liverpool at Villa Park. So Liverpool will win a place in the Champions League next season, and there will be 5 English teams competing!

Season%2018-19%20Europa%20final_zpsz8gso

And in the big one Barca are victorious against Juve. I watched this game, and what a sham it was! Juve were all over Barca, hitting the woodwork a couple of times and generally bossing the game about. If it hadn't been for Neymar's poacher instincts, it would have been Juve all the way!

Season%2018-19%20CL%20final_zpswvixyafa.

Our first big signing of the off season goes through, as we get Niklas Sule on the promise of Champions League football.

Season%2018-19%20Sule%20signing_zpsqti1h

And not a moment too soon. Those who have followed from the start may remember when Bryan Oviedo's work permit was randomly revoked. Well, it appears that lightning does indeed strike twice! Its not like Balanta in't important to us. He started 33 games last season! Who cares if the idiot running the Colombia team doesn't like him? That doesn't mean he isn't Premiership standard! Well, we've got 12 months left on his contract to try to get another work permit... :(

Season%2018-19%20Balanta%20WP_zpspcamcj8

 

Link to post
Share on other sites

As promised, a look at the final table, and as you can see 8 teams are in Europe next year... I don't know about you, but I sort of long for the good old days of the European Cup, the Cup Winners Cup and the UEFA Cup...

Season%2018-19%20Final%20table_zpsbzyzqj

Link to post
Share on other sites

On 11/24/2016 at 16:12, BoxToBox said:

Not far off half the league in Europe. Crazy.

Yeah, it gets a bit silly really! :idiot:

Sorry about the delay in posting, that's what happens when you finally get round to buying XCom 2 in the Thanksgiving Steam sale! ;)

Onwards and upwards into the 2019/20 season. I guess this is where things get a bit more nervy... in previous seasons we haven't really been expecting that much, and everything we have done has been a bonus... promotion, being in the top half of the Premiership, winning the Capital One Cup, Quarter finals of the Europa League, 3rd place finish last season. Now, however, we actually have a team that is Champions League ready, and we are playing with the big boys. Our board and fans will start to expect European qualification every year, and we won't be able to afford any hiccups!

Prior to any Leeds news, Klopp moves to Chelsea!

Season%2019-20%20Chelsea%20Klopp_zpscqlw

In preparation for our trip into the Champions League, I take the opportunity to bolster our war chest. Getting rid of Campbell wasn't hard, he's a decent player but I've got a young left midfielder coming up from the reserves (Adam Burt) who will be able to fill in admirably. Garbutt was a more difficult decision, as he played really well near the end of last season. He is a bit of a moaner though, and was always banging on about something behind the scenes. Ultimately, with Burt able to cover the ML position, and a young Vashon Neufville pushing for a backup spot at DL, it was time to cash in.

Season%2019-20%201st%20sale_zpssmzd6lho.

In the meantime, a couple of young hopefuls join the U18s setup...

Season%2019-20%20first%20signings_zps9fh

And then we start our push for the big guys... Passlack breaks the transfer record...

Season%2019-20%20Passlack_zpsbetiywfw.jp

And after a long period of deliberately unsettling him at Inverness, we sign a young Scottish wonderkid striker...

Season%2019-20%20signing%20wonderkid_zps

...and then this happened... £3M for Mascherano. Ok, we had to pay him £180k per week (3 times more than anyone else in the team gets!), but here is a guy who has the ability to really help us in Europe I think. The contract is only for a year, but I'd be happy to extend as his physical stats haven't really started declining yet.

Season%2019-20%20sign%20masch_zpspf83hda

A bunch of players join, including Niklas Sule, our other big signing of the summer

Season%2019-20%20main%20signings_zpsmbzx

And just as everything is going swimmingly, Jonny Evans goes down with a 3 month injury!

Season%2019-20%20Evans%20injury_zpsezjqp

We are up to 46th in the club rankings - not that it matters this year, I still think we'll be a bottom seed in the CL

Season%2019-20%20club%20rankings_zpszvz4

And we are still very much outsiders for the Premiership, despite our top 3 finish last season, and our strengthening of the squad

Season%2019-20%20prediction_zpssgqzqjqg.

Arsenal win the Charity Shield (shows how old I am, I still think of it as the Charity Shield!)

Season%2019-20%20community%20shield_zpsd

Our preseason results have been a mixed bag, similar to last season, and Callum Wilson's lack of goals is worrying, but Johannes Eggestein bagged 6, so that's good!

Season%2019-20%20friendly%20results_zpsf

 

Link to post
Share on other sites

On 11/28/2016 at 14:04, BoxToBox said:

Some big moves!

I know - a little bit scary as I've basically "done a Leeds" and spent big on the basis of a good Champions League campaign. At least I've only got Mascherano for 1 year, so I haven't tied myself into a huge contract for a long time. If I look like I'll qualify for the CL next year then I will consider extending him...

20 hours ago, Fer Fuchs Ake said:

What do the fans have against Yorwerth?

 

And what are the minimal expectations this year?

The fans don't like that we signed Yorweth from "rivals Cardiff".  :idiot:

Minimum expectations are:

- Qualify for the Europa League (6th or 7th in the EPL should do it, unless we have an absolute shocker of a season this should be fine)

- Group Stage of the Champions League (which we have already done by virtue of our 3rd place in last season's EPL)

- 6th Round of FA Cup (3 wins needed - should be OK so long as we don't have bad luck in the draw - last year we got Spurs away in the 5th Rnd, previous year we got Arsenal away in the 3rd Rnd!)

- Quarter Final of the Capital One Cup (we've reached the final two years running)

 

So far so good in August, we are top of the League after 3 games, but face Man U at Old Trafford next! 6 of our First Team squad have been called up for England, 2 for Scotland and 1 for N.Ireland, so no-one can say we are not giving chances to home nation talent.

The Champion League Group draw was, I think you'll agree, kind to us, considering we were bottom seeds. We missed the group containing Real Madrid, Spurs and AC Milan, and the group containing Barcelona, Liverpool and Ajax! :eek: 

We ended up with

Season%2019-20%20CL%20group_zpsvap0ncdb.

Although it isn't an easy group, we have a good chance of progressing, and a great chance of finishing 3rd and making it to the knockout stages of the Europa League.

Link to post
Share on other sites

17 hours ago, facman said:

I know - a little bit scary as I've basically "done a Leeds" and spent big on the basis of a good Champions League campaign. At least I've only got Mascherano for 1 year, so I haven't tied myself into a huge contract for a long time. If I look like I'll qualify for the CL next year then I will consider extending him...

The fans don't like that we signed Yorweth from "rivals Cardiff".  :idiot:

Minimum expectations are:

- Qualify for the Europa League (6th or 7th in the EPL should do it, unless we have an absolute shocker of a season this should be fine)

- Group Stage of the Champions League (which we have already done by virtue of our 3rd place in last season's EPL)

- 6th Round of FA Cup (3 wins needed - should be OK so long as we don't have bad luck in the draw - last year we got Spurs away in the 5th Rnd, previous year we got Arsenal away in the 3rd Rnd!)

- Quarter Final of the Capital One Cup (we've reached the final two years running)

 

So far so good in August, we are top of the League after 3 games, but face Man U at Old Trafford next! 6 of our First Team squad have been called up for England, 2 for Scotland and 1 for N.Ireland, so no-one can say we are not giving chances to home nation talent.

The Champion League Group draw was, I think you'll agree, kind to us, considering we were bottom seeds. We missed the group containing Real Madrid, Spurs and AC Milan, and the group containing Barcelona, Liverpool and Ajax! :eek: 

We ended up with

Season%2019-20%20CL%20group_zpsvap0ncdb.

Although it isn't an easy group, we have a good chance of progressing, and a great chance of finishing 3rd and making it to the knockout stages of the Europa League.

 

Fair expectations. Thanks for showing that.

Link to post
Share on other sites

So, yesterday I was happy about our start to the season, especially the Champions League draw. Today I am upset, but more of that later.

Firstly, our August results. I'm annoyed about the Man U result, as we leveled the game at one-all on 70 minutes, then conceded an amazing Mata fee kick on 75 minutes. The third was a break in the last minute or so after we were pushing for the equaliser. All-in-all, we were Man U's equals in that game, so very frustrating!

Season%2019-20%20Aug%20results_zpsgz1m2l

However, the table looks reasonably good

Season%2019-20%20Aug%20table_zpsfdzbhpib

Eggestein and Passlack win Player awards for August, which is excellent

Season%2019-20%20Aug%20PoM_zpswkeqe63c.j

Season%2019-20%20Aug%20YPoM_zpsqi3qbvat.

The transfer window closes and we have spent a lot of money this summer!

Season%2019-20%20Leeds%20transfers_zpsop

but not as much as others have!

Season%2019-20%20transfer%20deadline_zps

Especially Man City!

Season%2019-20%20transfer%20roundup_zpsz

And then the annoying stuff happened... Mascherano gets injured for 2 months, and will miss our first 3 CL matches

Season%2019-20%20Masch%20injury_zps2oqtb

And then JWP, arguably our most effective creative player, injures himself on International duty, and is out for a month!

Season%2019-20%20JWP%20injury_zpsgdoc8sj

:mad:

Link to post
Share on other sites

Congratulations on 3rd place in the league last year, plus a cup final, plus Europa League quarters, I think that's a really satisfying season really.

Starting to approach a level capable of a Premier League title challenge?

Link to post
Share on other sites

14 hours ago, noikeee said:

Congratulations on 3rd place in the league last year, plus a cup final, plus Europa League quarters, I think that's a really satisfying season really.

Starting to approach a level capable of a Premier League title challenge?

Thanks mate! :)

It was satisfying, but frustrating too as we came so close to winning silverware but ended up with nothing!

I'm not sure yet if last season was just a fluke, or whether we are in with a shout of the title. I think our best chance will be in the cups, especially if we get 3rd in our CL group and qualify for the Europa League knockout phase (we came very close to beating the eventual winner in the quarterfinals last season).

Link to post
Share on other sites

Had a few days away from the game over the weekend, so here we are back for the September 2019 update:

Another good month for Johannes Eggestein, who has overtaken Callum Wilson as my number 1 striker (Callum is having a shocking start to the season, and can't buy a goal!). Adam Burt is one of my youngsters who I'm hoping will be the long term starter at ML as Adam Lallana slows down with age.

Season%2019-20%20Sep%20YPoM_zps2gdisaja.

Our results are pretty decent, with 2 home wins and an away draw (at the Emirates) in the League and a first win in the Champions League against Zenit. The defeat against Everton in the Capital One Cup was frustrating, as Callum Wilson missed two sitters during normal time. We eventually gave the game away in the 2nd half of extra time. No repeat performances of our Cup heroics this year! :(

Season%2019-20%20Sep%20results_zpsj6ah8i

Our good league form has us sitting pretty near the top, which is great. Liverpool and Spurs are having shocking starts to their season!

Season%2019-20%20Sep%20table_zpsv3xviqlj

 

Link to post
Share on other sites

Following on from a good September, our Board announce that a long awaited upgrade to our training facilities is complete

Season%2019-20%20Training%20upgrade_zps3

If you recall in the summer, Eder Balanta's contract renewal was cancelled due to work permit issues. Pleasingly, Balanta has started every Colombian international game since then, and the work permit issues are solved

Season%2019-20%20Balanta%20contract_zpsd

We go undefeated in October, including in the Champions League where we are joint top of the group with Leverkusen on 7 points after 3 games. The game against Southampton was a crazy affair - one of those days where everything goes into the net!

Season%2019-20%20Oct%20results_zpscicd4o

2 wins and a draw in the League put us top after 10 games!

Season%2019-20%20Oct%20table_zpswk418xfn

Our youngsters are really coming along, as not only do we win Young Player of the Month for the third month running, but we take all the placings!

Season%2019-20%20Oct%20YPoM_zpse27opnjj.

 

Link to post
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, noikeee said:

Told you you'd be putting in a title challenge this year!

Still a tad early in the season though, but it's looking promising.

I bow to your abilities with a crystal ball! ;)

If we hadn't had those two annoying draws at Watford and Villa we'd have a healthy gap. Man U have been on a dodgy run recently, and have only picked up 2 points from their last 3 matches. I'm hoping that run continues. Mascherano, Jonny Evans and Ward-Prowse are back from injury too, and our performances against Southampton, Leverkusen and Hull were excellent. Ward-Prowse in particular has been superb on the right of midfield.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Back after a small hiatus due to real life...

Oh dear, our first team keeper out for 2 months...

Season%2019-20%20Forster%20injury_zps7ig

Newcastle get rid of Chris Hughton - I think we may have played a part in that one!

Season%2019-20%20Newcastle%20sacking_zps

And Spurs bin Pochettino - they've been so close to winning silverware in the last few seasons, but have always lost form at the end of the season. this year, though, their bad form has hit them at the start of the season

Season%2019-20%20Spurs%20sacking_zps7ntz

meanwhile, we go unbeaten for the second month in a row

Season%2019-20%20Nov%20results_zpsumzzci

and our lead at the top of the table is extended to 5 points

Season%2019-20%20Nov%20table_zpspqnldsqw

for the 4th month in a row, we win the Young Player of the Month award

Season%2019-20%20YPoM%20Dec_zpsksenxtds.

And we also qualify for the Knockout stages of the Champions League... much more than we hoped for!

Season%2019-20%20CL%20qual_zpswdstz5j3.j

Link to post
Share on other sites

22 hours ago, BoxToBox said:

Firing on all cylinders. :applause:

So far so good! :p

17 hours ago, Keano16 said:

Spurs and City struggling! 

I know - we held City to 2 shots all game (one of which they scored!!) in our win over them, and they even lined up in a defensive 4-1-4-1 against us... first time that's ever happened! Also, our next game is against Spurs I think, ideal time to play them, no morale, caretaker manager! :D

Link to post
Share on other sites

7 hours ago, Keano16 said:

Awfully convenient wouldn't you say? :brock:

It would have been, but I was wrong! :p Our next game was actually against Liverpool, with Spurs the game after that, by which time they had hired a manager! :( 

This is as good a time as any to give a mid-December update...

Season%2019-20%20Spurs%20manager_zpso2iw

Season%2019-20%20Newcastle%20manager_zps

We finished our CL group campaign with a draw against Porto, winning our group comfortably, scoring 9 and conceding only a single goal (and here was me aiming for 3rd place in the group!)

Season%2019-20%20CL%20group%20finish_zps

And just look at the Champions League 1st Knockout round... We get Benfica, which isn't a bad draw. Liverpool v Juve, Arsenal v Real Madrid, and Man U v Bayern are the ties of the round.

Season%2019-20%20CL%201st%20knockout_zps

I've got a couple more league matches left in December, which I'll hopefully get done tomorrow...

Link to post
Share on other sites

12 hours ago, BoxToBox said:

If you can beat Porto, you can beat Benfica, surely.

You would certainly hope so! :)

And now for the proper December roundup

Crystal Palace and Everton sack their managers...

Season%2019-20%20Palace%20sacking_zpsfv2

Season%2019-20%20Everton%20sacking_zpsmh

Meanwhile, we haven't lost a match since we were knocked out of the Capital One Cup by Everton on the 24th of September

Season%2019-20%20Dec%20results_zpsrvd2f4

And our lead at the top of the table is holding at 5 points. Man City have extracted themselves from danger with a string of impressive performances, and Spurs are very slowly edging themselves out of the mire. Everton, however, are awful at the moment, and need to do something drastic! Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink is the front runner to get the Goodison job, so we'll see how they get on

Season%2019-20%20Dec%20table_zpsxycdipdm

Our first Manager of the Month award!

Season%2019-20%20MoM_zpstcwrm9fa.jpg

 

Link to post
Share on other sites

As usual, Christmas is a really busy time for me irl, so updates are slower than I would like. Anyway, I've managed to play through to the end of January 2020. The current manager movements are as follows, with new managers underlined in red

Season%2019-20%20manager%20movements_zps

And almost as soon as I had taken that screenshot, Man City sack Guardiola for the second time in his career!

Season%2019-20%20Guardiola%20sacking_zps

And his replacement comes from Celta of all teams

Season%2019-20%20Man%20City%20manager_zp

Our results are somewhat more stable than Man City's have been, and we remain unbeaten

Season%2019-20%20Jan%20results_zpsmrvftu

Winning against Man United was really important, as we are able to extend our lead to 10 points with 14 games to go!

Seson%2019-20%20Jan%20table_zpsiwbvad54.

Eggestein wins Young Player of the Month AGAIN!

Season%2019-20%20YPoM%20Jan_zpsqflbwbim.

And I get another Manager of the Month award, which is nice :)

Season%2019-20%20MoM%20Jan_zps31tgxoit.j

Coming up we play back to back games against Arsenal (FA Cup and League), and we get our Champions League campaign back underway in the Knockout phase

Link to post
Share on other sites

On 12/19/2016 at 13:54, SirManager said:

Looks like you're having one hell of a save right now. Hope you hold it tight and don't sink. Looking good. 

Thanks mate, fingers crossed! :D

February didn't start so well!

Season%2019-20%20Clough%20injury_zps2lpw

and Mascherano decided to leave at the end of the season... more on that later

Season%2019-20%20Mascherano%20leaves_zps

Arsenal finally won some silverware, battering Man U in the Capital One Cup final

Season%2019-20%20Cap%20One%20Cup%20final

And once more we showed our dominance in the Young Player of the Month award. This time it was Zac Clough's replacement!

Season%2019-20%20Feb%20YPoM_zpsy17nfsah.

Our results in February were a mixed bag. After drawing away at the Emirates in the FA Cup 4th Round, we comfortably beat Arsenal in the replay, setting us up for a trip to Villa Park. Our league form was once again impeccable, with 4 wins out of 4. However, the Champions League and FA Cup 5th Round were not so good. Having gone 2 goals down against Benfica following some sloppy defending, we had pulled a goal back with only 10 minutes to go, and I would have been happy getting the away goal and going into the home leg only a goal behind. Cue Mascherano getting himself sent off, for the second time in a month! Having warned him after the first sending off, I had no choice but to fine him for this latest misdemeanour, as with only 10 men against an attacking Benfica team we conceded a thrid goal, to make the return leg an altogether more challenging prospect. Mascherano was not happy with the fine, and decided to leave at the end of the season.

The Villa match was frustrating as we led twice, before they stole it with a wonder strike on the hour mark, and we just couldn't get the equaliser...

Season%2019-20%20Feb%20results_zpszd0llk

However, most importantly, we have a massive advantage in the league with only 10 games to play. After their shocking start to the season, Spurs have brought themselves back into the Champions League places, but it looks like Man City will miss out, and may not even get a Europa League place! At the other end, Everton are slowly clawing themselves back from the brink, and pretty much anyone from 14th place onwards could go down. In fact, 11th through 13th aren't completely safe as yet, if they have a total meltdown they could find themselves for the drop.

Season%2019-20%20Feb%20table_zpsm41zmala

So, I have 10 more league games to play, and a Champions League return leg in which I have to overturn a 2 goal deficit...

Link to post
Share on other sites

On 12/21/2016 at 11:46, noikeee said:

It's starting to look like a Premier League title in the making!

Shh! Let's not jinx it! ;)

Too late! As if by magic, two important players go down with long term injuries, including my Captain, Adam Lallana.

Season%2019-20%20Bender%20injury_zpsxhmu

Season%2019-20%20Lallana%20injury_zpslnt

Fortunately, our League form isn't affected, although we were pretty hopeless in the home leg against Benfica. Renato Sanches dominated both matches, and our failure to neutralise him was our undoing.

Season%2019-20%20Mar%20results_zpsruupws

Man U and Chelsea stumble, picking up only 6 and 7 points respectively in the last 4 games, whereas we gained 10 points, extending our lead to 17 points! Dare we say that the title is in the bag?

Season%2019-20%20Mar%20table_zpsslvga59j

The pundits certainly seem to think so, as they award me Manager of the Month

Season%2019-20%20March%20MoM_zps65vh1jjs

But just take another look at the bottom of the table... 7 teams are within 5 points of each other!

Link to post
Share on other sites

On 12/22/2016 at 23:28, BoxToBox said:

Jesus, that's some battle at the bottom.

I know! :D

On 12/22/2016 at 23:52, Northernpilgrim said:

Brilliant season so far, looking nailed on for the title :) 

Cheers, mate! :)

Now, the kids are in bed, the presents are under the tree, and the wine is going down nicely... so let me wish you all a very Merry Christmas! :cool:

our results continue to keep the points rolling in through April...

Season%2019-20%20Apr%20results_zpstt7qcp

and it doesn't take long for this message to roll in...

Season%2019-20%20Leeds%20win%20EPL_zpsqg

And the table at the end of May confirms it...

Season%2019-20%20Apr%20table_zps2rmmwbll

At the bottom it looks likely that QPR and Burnley will down, as neither of them has been able to gain any significant points in the last month. They'll be joined by either Everton or Palace, probably...

anyway, Merry Christmas, and we'll finish the season in a few days :D

Link to post
Share on other sites

On 12/25/2016 at 13:36, deltablue said:

Nothing like a title to celebrate Christmas with ;)

Yep, a very merry Christmas was had by all :D

On 12/25/2016 at 14:40, BoxToBox said:

Cracking stuff, ran away with it.

 

On 12/25/2016 at 16:23, argento said:

well done!  Never in danger

 

On 12/25/2016 at 18:42, Keano16 said:

Well deserved! Only one loss so far! 

 

On 12/28/2016 at 17:19, noikeee said:

About time! :D Well done.

Cheers, everyone! :)

So, here comes a long update...

We finished the season with 2 wins, although the Leicester game was touch and go! We scored 2 penalties and missed a third!

Season%2019-20%20May%20results_zpsubvptd

Before we do the final league table, lets run down the cups... First the Europa Leagues, which saw Man City beat Malaga

Season%2019-20%20Europa%20Lge%20final_zp

Season%2019-20%20Europa%20Lge%20tree_zps

Next the Champions League Final (at Wembley), which saw Benfica lose (unfairly really) to Barca. Yes that's right, Benfica, who beat us in the first knockout round, went all the way to the final on the coattails of Renato Sanches...

Season%2019-20%20CL%20Final_zpsy93wo2gk.

Season%2019-20%20CL%20Tree_zpsgyrjsd6y.j

And the FA Cup final, in which Liverpool overturned a dominant Man U in extra time, despite being a man down for most of the match

Season%2019-20%20FA%20Cup%20Final_zpshkg

Season%2019-20%20FA%20tree_zpsa9rymuou.j

so the final table looks like this, with Man City scraping their way to a Champions League place due to a Europa League victory! Arsenal miss out on the Champions League, and Norwich manage to qualify for Europe! At the bottom, Everton and Hull scrape through, but its bye-bye to Palace, QPR and Burnley. I am most happy with our Goals Against column. We only conceded 21 goals in the League this year, and as our NFL friends would say - 'Offense wins games, defense wins championships'!

Season%2019-20%20EPL%20final_zpsz76hax1i

Unsurprisingly, I get the Manager of the Year award, which is nice...

Season%2019-20%20awards%202_zps9ve7a3mh.

Martial runs away with Footballer of the Year, and Serge Gnabry, of all players, wins the Players' award

Season%2019-20%20awards%201_zpscrljjsn2.

Leeds move up to 34th place in the rankings after another good year in Europe, and automatic qualification for the Group stage for next years competition will move us up further in the rankings regardless of how we perform.

Season%2019-20%20club%20rankings_zpsywwg

Charlie Taylor gets himself in the Premiership Team of the Year, as do both of our strikers, Callum Wilson and Johannes Eggestein.

Season%2019-20%20awards%203_zpsqweb5nvh.

With Stephen Davidson, our young Scottish signing, coming along well this year, there was no room for Zach Clough, so we sell him the the Hammers for a shade under £10M. Good business for us I think.

Season%2019-20%20Clough%20sale_zpsjsgixa

Our other major signing is that man from Benfica... you know, the one who almost single-handedly dragged them to the Champions League final... If we are to do something in Europe next season we need to change it up a bit, so I'll be keeping the 4-4-2 for English games, and going to a 4-3-3 in Europe, with Eggestein, Ward-Prowse and Lallana up top, and Sanches, Lewis Cook and Riechedly Bazoer in midfield... 

Season%2019-20%20Renato%20Sanches_zpshrz

And on that note, I bid you adieu!

5 seasons as Leeds has taken it out of me a little, and I need bit of break from FM for a few weeks or so, so I thought I'd bow out on a high. I do plan to come back to the Leeds save at some point, as I have unfinished business in Europe, but for the meantime, thanks for reading! A round of applause for those who made it this far with me :applause:

Hope you've enjoyed the ride, :) see you soon...

 

Link to post
Share on other sites

Archived

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

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

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