FM17 Sunderland AFC - The greatest escapologists

[oliverz4]

Just finished my 4th season guys, a lot better than the previous season at least I feel like we've made some progress this season, last season it felt like we didn't make any but now I feel like some of my youth (Lee Lynch particulary) are coming good and it's starting to look better for the future, only issue is we're having a lot of trouble scoring goals, had a lot of games this season where we haven't even scored any, even had a few 0-0s at home, but I feel like slowly but steadily it is getting better, had Cameron Carter-Vickers attract some serious interest from big clubs so he's unhappy but I'm staying firm, I'm only selling him if they meet his 40 mil release clause as we paid 22 for him and looking at his attributes now he is definitely worth that a very solid defender he has been, I have also had interest for Scalera all season but I tied him down, same with him really unless you're going to pay the amount I want I'm not going to sell him, then you've got Cancelo as well but I may sell Cancelo as Scaleras really improved leaps and bounds to make the right back slot his own, and he can't defend either Cancelo so he can be a liability in certain matches.

Lllajic has been a flop, barely done anything all season, I think part of the reason we don't score much is because our wingers aren't effective, Campbell/Roberts have come up with the goals occasionally but been really inconsistent, found it hard to find a quality right sided right winger last season as a lot of them just look too average, only winger I'm satisfied with is Lee Lynch I think the guy is great love his style of player, left footed left sided left winger, he's only 19 so he's going to be great in a few years time I'm sure, so definitely he is now my first choice suits my style of play too even if he is inconsistent a little bit at the moment he's been better than anyone else. Decided I'm finally going to sell PVA, Dlijibodjii and Kirchoff as well, none of them are really anything special to be honest, I have a young left back I want to put in as back up for Gibbs, who has been a lot better this season although is 30 so I want someone to can come in and do well for the future, Funes Mori has been a solid signing though his 10 concentration and composure attribute does seem to hinder him so I've agreed to sign this italian cb who makes up for that from Juve on a free, Jorge has been solid may be one for the future, then after that I've got Tarashaj who has shown good attacking instinct on occasion but is inconsistent, maybe it's due to our wingers so I will keep him, definitely selling Falcinelli too as the guy is on an 18 hour goal drought and has been a flop for us in general. Traores also been a very good signing has largely improved on Pozuelo is very solid and has a good pass on him.

So yeah we finished 12th so 2 better than last season but only got 2 more points than we did last year so we have to definitely improve next season, I'm looking for something more like season 2, going to make a right footed right winger my priority, then probably sign another striker, going to loan Wozniak out as he's got potential but he's not the finished article and last season wasn't great, will also sign a new defensive mid who will cover for Zebli who's also improved a lot and had a really solid season in that position.

 

 

Also here are the players I'm bringing in/brought in in January:

 

 

[nextqprmanager]

Oliverz4, good post, I may loan Traore - any good?, he may be better LM?

Goldaniga will be good.

I think maybe your formation is slightly wrong - the LM & RM should be pushed forward a touch esp at home.

Roberts may be weak / not turn out as good as we all think?.

Lastly, I think always invest in the best ST you can - CF if you can get.

[oliverz4]

20 minutes ago, nextqprmanager said:

Oliverz4, good post, I may loan Traore - any good?, he may be better LM?

Goldaniga will be good.

I think maybe your formation is slightly wrong - the LM & RM should be pushed forward a touch esp at home.

Roberts may be weak / not turn out as good as we all think?.

Lastly, I think always invest in the best ST you can - CF if you can get.

Yeah thanks nextqprmanager,

I really like him he's half engine half playmaker but he has done a really good job for me since I signed him, looking at his attributes when playing LM he seems to suit that as well only thing that lets him down is 11 crossing attribute but apart from that he's solid and yeah I think Goldaniga has been wasted by Juve according to his history, will put him next to Carter-Vickers if I can keep him this summer and put Funes Mori to the bench as he can be a bit error prone. Yeah I will keep the formation in mind I've been switching it a bit this season especially when things haven't been working for me at times, Roberts is pretty average I think right wing is a weak position for me ever since last season, I signed Campbell as he had better mental attributes but he's nothing special either so I'm keeping an eye on right wingers, would buy this Javier Ontiveros guy from Bournemouth but they want like 30 mil for him I think hard to negotiate with them, I've seen an 18 year old german regen I like too but he can only play RM and I don't think that's what we need right now, maybe I will just cash out for Ontiveros I'm not sure.

On ST I thought Tarashaj was probably the best out of what was available in last summers market, I'm thinking of buying someone else maybe better or similar was either Tarashaj or Batshuayi and I chose Tarashaj as his finishing stats were better but it hasn't really made a difference that attribute apart from the odd game so he's been disappointing most of the season, isn't as bad as Falcinelli Ayew were but still he's only scored 7 goals all season which isn't great.

*Edit* Infact I'm definitely not signing him they do want about 30 mil and that's most of my budget so it isn't worth it, will keep a look out and see if anyone better comes available for a better price.

[nextqprmanager]

RM - Bentancur is meant to be best, Ounas is also good. I had Cerny in Champ - is good, but I dont play with Wingers atm. FM Scout has Players.

I follow Sunderland for QPR tips, but on vids they always seem to have alot more money than QPR !.

[oliverz4]

33 minutes ago, nextqprmanager said:

RM - Bentancur is meant to be best, Ounas is also good. I had Cerny in Champ - is good, but I dont play with Wingers atm. FM Scout has Players.

I follow Sunderland for QPR tips, but on vids they always seem to have alot more money than QPR !.

Scouted a lot of right wingers who look good attributes wise, I'm thinking of signing the french guy, Deulofeu also looks good but I know he's labelled as inconsistent on his report and he's obviously like that in real life was for Everton recently anyway, Fearon has promise has some good looking stats, labelled a wonderkid and has a release clause of 7.5 mil, though the french guy is more the finished article than him so I'm not sure. Bentancur isn't on my game when I searched though I've scouted Ounas to see if he'd join us and yeah we do get about 30-35 mil a season which ain't too shabby I suppose for premier league mid table clubs and lol you wouldn't picture Sunderland to have much money.

*Edit* Though actually Karamohs listed as selfish and I'm kinda sick of players like that too, Fearons good I just don't know if he will develop into what I want. Also scouted Ounas and he apparently has no interest in joining. I think I'm definitely going with Fearon even if it's a gamble it's one worth paying for plus my club want me to sign young players so it fits well, could turn into a really good player I think and isn't selfish or anything etc. suits me!

[Sunlinlad]

Quality posts lads. 

 

Finished 11th in my first season. In January I brought Diego Poyet in on a free transfer and loaned him out to Nottingham forest, more to come on him later. Jermain Defoe finished as my top scorer with 18 league goals in 31 appearances.

 

start of the second season and there has been a lot of change. Major outgoings include Wahbi Khazri 9m, Papy Djiliobodji, 8.5m and Diego Poyet 8.5m (12.25m) without making a single appearance for Sunderland. 

 

With Quite a few players, some first teamers, leaving on free transfers I needed quite a few signings. Michael Keane came in to replace Djilobodji from relegated Burnley for 11.75m. Sebastian De Maio (free) and Neven Subotic (1.3m) came in to help shore up a leaky defence.  Christian Trasch (700k) and Kyle Naughton (loan) came in to replace Billy Jones and Javi Manquillo with Charlie Taylor also coming in to offer Ludwig Augustinsson some competition. 

In midfield Yann M'Vila came in on a free alongside Marco Van Ginkel (4.9m). Very happy with these two as CM is the position I wanted to improve most since Cattermole left. 

Charlie Austin came in as my main striker signing for 9m from Southampton, can't wait to partner him with Defoe. Also signed a young lad named Hervin Ogenda after his contract with PSG ran out. 

 

Still on the lookout for someone to play behind Austin and Defoe. If Kuki gets injured I'm in trouble as he's my only option there. 

[oliverz4]

5 hours ago, Sunlinlad said:

Quality posts lads. 

 

Finished 11th in my first season. In January I brought Diego Poyet in on a free transfer and loaned him out to Nottingham forest, more to come on him later. Jermain Defoe finished as my top scorer with 18 league goals in 31 appearances.

 

start of the second season and there has been a lot of change. Major outgoings include Wahbi Khazri 9m, Papy Djiliobodji, 8.5m and Diego Poyet 8.5m (12.25m) without making a single appearance for Sunderland. 

 

With Quite a few players, some first teamers, leaving on free transfers I needed quite a few signings. Michael Keane came in to replace Djilobodji from relegated Burnley for 11.75m. Sebastian De Maio (free) and Neven Subotic (1.3m) came in to help shore up a leaky defence.  Christian Trasch (700k) and Kyle Naughton (loan) came in to replace Billy Jones and Javi Manquillo with Charlie Taylor also coming in to offer Ludwig Augustinsson some competition. 

In midfield Yann M'Vila came in on a free alongside Marco Van Ginkel (4.9m). Very happy with these two as CM is the position I wanted to improve most since Cattermole left. 

Charlie Austin came in as my main striker signing for 9m from Southampton, can't wait to partner him with Defoe. Also signed a young lad named Hervin Ogenda after his contract with PSG ran out. 

 

Still on the lookout for someone to play behind Austin and Defoe. If Kuki gets injured I'm in trouble as he's my only option there. 

Nice yeah I was thinking of signing Poyet myself but opted to sign Ariel Cabral in the end as he was more established, was also looking at Austin myself from time to time did sign Rodriguez but sold after 6 months for 3.7 mil to Valencia as he was nothing special for me, either way you've made some nice signings should be looking at a solid 2nd season, for some reason I could never get many goals out of Defoe maybe it's my tactics that didn't suit him as I always play with one striker as it makes my defending stronger.

[oliverz4]

Just a short update just started my 5th season now, signed a few nice looking regens, also signed an argentine wonderkid who looks really good, and a really nice looking Japanese regen right back who will be good for the future, I think I will be looking to cash in on Cancelo maybe as he can't defend and keeps becoming unhappy but I'm definitely going to play Scalera as my first choice left back from now on trying to retrain him there as I think that's where he will get the most gametime, also going to retrain this guy incase he finds it easier to retrain than Scalera and then I can have 2 top quality right backs/left backs. first 2 games nothing special same as last season really drew 0-0 away at Man City which wasn't a bad result but we could have won it for sure, had a lot of good chances to, Fearon looks like an exciting player who I mentioned in one of my last posts, then I lost 1-0 at home to Chelsea which was disappointing, similar to the other game still having trouble scoring and they got a 94th min penalty and won it, really frustrating plus one of my favourite players Lee Lynch is out for 4 months so I will have to play Llajic there, would sell him but everyone wants me to pay half of his wages and it just isn't worth it as we'd make a loss anyway, hopefully he has a better season this term.

The Japanese guy cost me 2.2 mil which was a bargain, then the argentine cost me 5.75 mil rising to 6.25 mil, only issue is the argentine is selfish, not a team player and he needs to adapt to fit in apparently but still a good signing really like his stats, decided to loan Wozniak out as he disappointed me last season and needs some first team football experience,

[stevio11]

Just to cheer you guys up, into my fourth season in my Middlesboro save and Sunderland are 3rd in the premier league with about 15 games or less to go but sorry guys, I just beat them 3-2 in the derby game

[Fernando Xavier]

Just started a save with Sunderland with 17.3, the amount of injuries on the team scared me but at the same time its a 'good' extra challenge 

[Scaramanga]

Nice to read how everybody's doing with Sunderland!

I started i February 2017 with Sunderland in last place, 7 points from safety with 11 matches to go.

Went on a good run only losing to Man Utd and drawing with Bournemouth winning the rest.

Had alot of 1-0s (5  of them 4x borini and a injury time winner against CP and Allardyce ) and was very fortunate with injuries to key players too which saw me finish in 12th place.

Just started the second season,  four games in im 2-0-2.

 

How is Defoe doing for you guys? And how do you use him?

He's really disappoiting for me until now. 3 goals in 15 starts and a propensity too stray offside.

Borini is outgunning him with 9 in 15. (3 penalties).

Im playing a 3-5-2 with Borini (DFS) and Defoe (AFA) up top sometimes with a AMS behind them.

 

 

 

[carlmiles1879]

39 minutes ago, Scaramanga said:

Nice to read how everybody's doing with Sunderland!

I started i February 2017 with Sunderland in last place, 7 points from safety with 11 matches to go.

Went on a good run only losing to Man Utd and drawing with Bournemouth winning the rest.

Had alot of 1-0s (5  of them 4x borini and a injury time winner against CP and Allardyce ) and was very fortunate with injuries to key players too which saw me finish in 12th place.

Just started the second season,  four games in im 2-0-2.

 

How is Defoe doing for you guys? And how do you use him?

He's really disappoiting for me until now. 3 goals in 15 starts and a propensity too stray offside.

Borini is outgunning him with 9 in 15. (3 penalties).

Im playing a 3-5-2 with Borini (DFS) and Defoe (AFA) up top sometimes with a AMS behind them.

 

 

 

Defoe was great for me I used him as a AF alongside TM(S) of Anichebe most of the time and he scored plenty. Never had any luck with Borini he got injured allot and wasn't great when he was in the team Anichebe didn't score loads but he got tonnes of assists. Second season Defoe picked up a very nasty injury and retired so cant say how he held up long term. 

[Scaramanga]

Spoiler

 

 

Spoiler

 

Just finished the second season. Managed to improve on my first seasons 12th place with one spot, finishing 11th.

Never in danger of relegation nor challenging for the European spots.

I tend to buy players from the nation im managing in and so my transferdealing were mostly British.

Getting in: Gosling, Cork, Galloway, Taylor (free),  Stanislas (free), Hayden, Borthwick Jackson (loan) and Long.

And in January i added Fulton, Cahill, Holding and Puncheon (loan).

The cups were really disappoiting losing both in the 3rd round against Championship outfit Swansea and rivals Newcastle.

Defensively i was pretty solid with  only Man U having a better defensive record. But scoring goals was a big, big problem (37 goals).

Shane Long was my topscorer with a measly 12 followed by Borini with 8. Nobody else got more than four.  Defoe got 1 goal (26 games ) in the entire campaign and another penalty in the cup.

Wouldnt mind i Jermaine decided to call it quits so i can get his salary of the books!

I really need some firepower in the team or tinker with my tactics of course.

Atm i'm trying to add Wilson from relegated Bournemouth, if he isnt attainable i'll shift my focus onto Gray (Burnley ) or maybe Hogan (Villa).

 

I managed to get rid of Catermole, Lens, McNair, Oviedo and Djilobodji.

Hopefully i can complete my clearout this summer.

[Scaramanga]

PS how do you undo spoilers? 

[oliverz4]

Haven't updated in a while but I'm going back to this file now, 5th season done and dusted, great season by all accounts, signed Raheem Sterling on a free transfer as we were really lacking something out wide and my has he made a massive difference! Even offered him a new contract near the end of the season so I wouldn't lose the guy, also won the league cup against Wolves which was great got us into the europa league this season which should be a different challenge! All in all hard for me to recap as it's been about a month since I finished the season but was a really good season, Goldaniga a solid signing too, decided to sign Reece Oxford as he's homegrown so should give us more solidarity at the back, Goldanigas solid but looking for someone about as good as Carter-Vickers is, resorted to playing Scalera and Fukushima at left back even though they haven't fully made it a natural position they are performing well and I think they're both too good to drop honestly, Scalera especially love the guy, I think if someone mades a good offer for Cancelo I may think of selling him and put Scalera at right back instead.

Also signed another wonderkid striker this time a guy called James Lovatt from Birmingham City, was on the transfer list for 19 mil and I needed a decent 2nd choice tbh may even play some games with 2 strikers as he is honestly that good! And also bought Jonathan Leko for 25 mil from West Brom, a lot of money but he has potential and should provide another great option at right wing/left wing bit like Sterling does. Either way sorry if I've missed bits out I kinda burnt myself out a bit after 5 seasons so relatavely quickly but I'm back now for a 6th one and who knows what it will hold.

[Sabine]

I'm currently in a new save with the winter transfer update and it has been a lot more difficult this time around.

That being said, this amazing win has sent us into seventh place, with the team being unbeaten in five league games so far:

[Sabine]

Fifteen games unbeaten now, absolutely ridiculous how this year is turning out.   I previously went five games without a win, changed from a 4-3-2-1 to a 5-2-3 and everything is just clicking into place now.

I'll edit instead of multi-posting, but this new tactic is beyond belief for me. 

[Sabine]

A beautiful 4-2 win away to Arsenal capped off an amazing season for me in my first season.  We ended up finishing fifth, level on points with fourth place Liverpool but with worse goal difference.  Couldn't even imagine what I would've done if we ended up in the champions league place.

Jermain Defoe was outstanding, finishing the season with 30 league goals!  Lescott, Oviedo and Anichebe also impressed me. 

We got knocked out of the League cup by Blackburn, but we did manage to win the FA Cup for the first time since '73.  We beat West Brom 2-0 in a very standard game.

These are the season's transfers, and I think I did quite well. 

• Carole was a solid back up who never complained.
• Manquillo was very good as our new starting right back and for £4 million, I had to sign him on a permanent deal.
• Ibarguen was a very good bargain signing, ended the season with 12 goals in 14 games and is already worth £7 million.
• Hughes is the club's new record signing and I honestly think he's the reason why my midfielders are playing so well now.   Great passing and tackling success percentages.
• Duarte was another bargain signing and has turned into my new starting centre back alongside Lescott and Kone when he's fit. 
• Joe Dyson was bizarrely a free agent regen with no previous club who one of my scouts managed to find.  He has amazing potential and I honestly see him becoming our back up next season.

 

 

[nextqprmanager]

Sabine, great 1st Season !

[Sabine]

I have a feeling that it's only gonna be uphill from here.  Changed from my 5-2-3 to a more managable 4-2-3-1, with the sale of Anichebe.

To gauge on how I believe the season will go, here is the Community Shield game..  It was an absolute riot to watch. 

 

The transfer window has been one of my successful so far.  Players' reputation have risen alongside their value, and it made for easy picking when offering them out.   I've very much gutted the team..but sales for Anichebe, Lens, McNair and an extortion for money for Djilobodji so severe, that I would probably have gotten arrested if this was real life.  Twenty bloody million!

If you haven't noticed by now, all but one of my incoming players are British.  I probably would have not signed Javet befpre today, I was having a conversation with a friend about how FM 2017 is a bit easy and she suggested to buy only British players. 

Wall and McArdle are also regens, Tom Davies was brought in as a direct replacement for Gibson, Chambers for Djilobodji and Connor Ripley for Mika and Mannone.  I also bought Ripley because of his Resolute personality.  I have a youth intake goalkeeper who could become amazing, so I'm going to use Ripley as a tutor and use him as my cup game goalkeeper.

My Europa League group is alright as well,  Napoli being the only team who will test us, but it seems like they are declining,

[nextqprmanager]

Sabine, that`s good seliing, £5M for Gibson !!!

[Sabine]

Yeah, I couldn't believe that!   I put him out for sale and Ajax bid £3.2 million.  Managed to get it straight up for 5.

A little update now and I'm currently top in November, still unbeaten and haven't lost a game in 2017, which is some feat. 

I have promoted Embleton and Asoro as full time players in the squad and they are developing amazingly;

Asoro is infact my starting right back and has surpassed Watmore in current ability according to scout reports.  His, and Embleton's attributes are absolutely shooting up and I think Embleton is now ready for a more important role in the team.

I have Luke Garbutt and Rob Holding coming in January and I have my eyes on Lingard, Barkley, Ibe and Andre Green to get a more English core into the squad.   I have teams sniffing around Will Hughes including Liverpool and Tottenham, but I won't sell anything less than £50 million because he is quite simply amazing.

 

Small edit and Embleton is definitely getting more opportunities after this performance;

[the SLC]

18 hours ago, Sabine said:

Yeah, I couldn't believe that!   I put him out for sale and Ajax bid £3.2 million.  Managed to get it straight up for 5.

A little update now and I'm currently top in November, still unbeaten and haven't lost a game in 2017, which is some feat. 

I have promoted Embleton and Asoro as full time players in the squad and they are developing amazingly;

Asoro is infact my starting right back and has surpassed Watmore in current ability according to scout reports.  His, and Embleton's attributes are absolutely shooting up and I think Embleton is now ready for a more important role in the team.

I have Luke Garbutt and Rob Holding coming in January and I have my eyes on Lingard, Barkley, Ibe and Andre Green to get a more English core into the squad.   I have teams sniffing around Will Hughes including Liverpool and Tottenham, but I won't sell anything less than £50 million because he is quite simply amazing.

 

Small edit and Embleton is definitely getting more opportunities after this performance;

can you put your tactic up for download please? struggling to play this edition and remember using one of your tactics previously

[Sabine]

I just play a 4-5-1 and adjust my tactics according to the opposition mate, not really got the whole tactical thing figured out in this version yet.

Meaning, I mainly just listen to my tactical advisors. 

edit:

Serves them bloody right, trying to insult me by playing a second string side out. 

[the SLC]

4 hours ago, Sabine said:

I just play a 4-5-1 and adjust my tactics according to the opposition mate, not really got the whole tactical thing figured out in this version yet.

Meaning, I mainly just listen to my tactical advisors. 

edit:

Serves them bloody right, trying to insult me by playing a second string side out. 

is that with 5 mids across the middle or with the dm 2xcm 2xwingers/insideforwards?

[nexting]

Where do I find that screen with tactical advice, haven't seen it for ages?

[Sabine]

18 hours ago, the SLC said:

is that with 5 mids across the middle or with the dm 2xcm 2xwingers/insideforwards?

One with the DM
Against lower table teams, I sometimes change the right and left wingers into strikers, stick on control and let them run riot.   This has been my tactic for the past four months;

 

 

9 hours ago, nexting said:

Where do I find that screen with tactical advice, haven't seen it for ages?

 Go to  Staff, then backroom advice;

You will have this screen and this is how I have it all laid out:

[Sabine]

A truly amazing season has just ended, won the league and the EFL Cup.   The team fell short in the Europa League in a semi final loss to Bournemouth of all people,  they have Bayern in the final and could potentially spend the Championship in the Champions League! 

The final goals for and against was 115:32,  which is pretty incredible, but I would've preferred less goals conceded, but definitely not complaining with the goals scored!

 

A couple of notes; 

Joel Asoro has turned into an incredible player.  He has won the player of the year in the Premier League, and rightfully so;  19 goals and 13 assists and is arguably the best player on the team.  To think that he's only 19 is scary, he's going to be world class.

 

Jermain Defoe has still got it at the age of 35 and scored 43 goals in 43 games in all competitions.   Although his pace is starting to falter, he still has the class like in real life and I think he is deserving of a new contract.

Another surprise of the season is Elliot Embleton, who has ousted Cattermole from a centre midfield spot, playing as a roaming playmaker and absolutely flourishing.  He's one of our own and will have a great career at the club, an absolute must keep.

I personally believe I have done a very good job with transfer dealings this season.   I'm pleased with the sales of Lens, Anichebe (who I didn't want to sell, but could not deny a transfer that huge) and Oviedo was a straight up £15 million deal, something that hit me by surprise because he wasn't really that good for me and I already had bought Garbutt to replace him; a player with similar current ability but was English. 

All in all, a successful season.  I'm looking forward to champions league football next year and I have a couple massive transfers coming up which I absolutely can't wait for!

edit: 

63,000!  This club truly is going to turn into a force to be reckoned with coming next season.

[Sabine]

It's transfer window opening and I've already been given a few amazing offers for my best players;

Never going to sell Hughes.  He's now a World Class midfielder and he runs the show in the midfield.  19 goals and 13 assists in 61 games.   

I was curious on how much of a fee I could potentially get for our wonderkid Asoro.  Chelsea started off with £52 million and it negotiations ended at this. 

Both rejected. 

[smplfc123]

Hey guys,

Thanks for giving me the motivation from this thread to start a Sunderland save.

My aim at the start of the season was to avoid relegation and thankfully, I did. We managed to finish 11th on 44 points, however I actually feel disappointed and frustrated with the season.

I got to the 40 point mark before 30 games in and my players decided to hit the beach, causing us to free fall out of the top 10. Not only that but I conceded a whopping 72, YES 72 goals! Only Palace who finished 20th conceded more. We conceded 4 or more goals on 6 occasions in the league, including a 7-0 drubbing away to Man City. I just couldn't defend against the big boys and even when I won games, I just struggled to keep clean sheets. Coincidently, I actually became steadier at the back when Kone and Djilibodji were at the AFCON and Lescott and Denayer had to play CB. We didn't fair well in the cups, going out early in both, that was due to me risking fringe players, however I now know for the long term who is good enough for this club and who isn't.

Before the season I brought in 2 players.

Laszlo Sepsi - LB - Nurenberg - £350k
Andrea Poli - CM - AC Milan - £6m

The only permenant outgoing was Fabio Borini to RBL for £3m.

Jermaine Defoe managed to bag 16 goals in 32 games in the League for us. Probably just tipped to player of the season by Bryan Oviedo who was consistently excellent going forward.

My plan is to now try and finish above the 44 point mark next season, even if that means finishing in a lower league position and getting a better run in at least 1 of the cups.

I have a lot of deadwood to get rid of.

Anichebe, O'shea, Lescott, Denayer, Manquillo, Januzaj, Pienaar and potentially Larsson will all be leaving the club this summer.

On top of them, I'll be looking to move on Gibson, Buckley and potentially Lens.

I feel this squad needs a big overhaul and I understand it's going to be up and down next season with me needing to bring in quite a few new players. My first aim for next season is to sort out my defence, so a back to basics on the tactics board over the summer. It's going to be a busy one!

Wish me luck.

 

[Sabine]

Welcome and good luck @smplfc123, a very decent first season which could've been far better if Sunderland had better defenders.  Their starting ones are just awful, aren't they?

Although I do rate Kone and Lescott, Djilobodji, O'Shea,  Jones and Kirchoff underperformed so much in my first season and it was my main goal to improve on that.  Oscar Duarte is a centre back who is a must buy if he hasn't been picked up by another club yet.  I managed to buy him for £3.3 million in the january window of the first season and his experience is vital and gives a great amount of stability to the team.

The team does need a huge overhaul and it's exactly what I've managed to do, the squad I've got coming into the third season is completely different to the starting one, with only eight players still at the club.

 

 

Meanwhile, Manquillo has developed into an outstanding right back for the side and I've made a really tough decision and will be selling him to Manchester City for £40 million, ten times the amount I paid for him. 

I have also sold Watmore to Sampdoria of all clubs for £15 million.  That'll be it for transfers as I have young English players replacing them which may hinder the squad a little in terms of quality depth, but it could provide a little bit more of a challenge for me. 

[Sabine]

Bloody hell, no 16 year old should be this good in the game.  Going to spend all I can to get my hands on him. 

And there we have it.  £18 million for a potentially world class player.  Did I mention that he was both footed as well?  Bloody love him already.

[smplfc123]

Thanks @Sabine WOW, that's a huge offer for Manquillo.

It's certainly a big clear out so far.

O'Shea, Anichebe, Lescott, Buckley, Pienaar, Beadling and Honeyman all released on a free.

Billy Jones sold for £1m to Brentford.

Darron Gibson out on loan to Rosenberg until Jan 18.

The only other potential outgoings are:

Adam Matthews - Not sure him and Love are good enough to be vying for that RB spot in the PL.
Poli - Wanted by Schalke and AC Milan
Kone - Wanted by AC Milan.


Incomings so far are:

Hugo Basto - CB - Arouca - £1m
Rachid Ghezzal - LM - Lyon - £3m
Ben Gibson - Middlesbrough - £3m
Tyrone Mings - Bournemouth - £850k

A bit of squad filling for now. I decided that suad filling is what is needed this window with the aim to then strengthen in the future windows with just 2 or 3 top players who will improve the first 11. Mings and Gibson were cheap and English and I feel good enough quality to beefen up my back line within the squad. Ghezzal I feel may start regularly and could be a steal for £3m and the same for Basto who's value has risen instantly to £1m and has some really impressive attributes.

My last transfer target now is to go out and get a starting quality centre forward

Thanks to being shrewd and getting a lot of the wage budget, I have £22m left in the budget.

My main targets are:

Sebastien Haller
Wissam Ben Yedder
Diafra Sakho
Carlos Fernandez

Any striker suggestions to play up top as a complete forward is much appreciated. I'll be making sure I do some extensive scouting before bringing one in.

[Sabine]

Tom Davies wants to leave for Man City so I had to think fast..  I had a look and saw that Alli was unhappy and I negotiated from £92 million to 55 in a matter of days. 

Speaking of Davies, he has left for Man City for £30 million.  Such a shame because I think he could've become a legend for the club, but his replacement isn't too bad.

edit:

This team is going to turn into something special this season.  Absolutely no idea why he's transfer listed and in the reserves.

Outgoing is Oscar Duarte to Man United;

 

@smplfc123 some very good transfers there, I tried buying Gibson in the first season but Middlesbrough wanted far too much for him, £15 million I think it was. 

Some more striker suggestions I could give you;

Andres Ibarguen from Aletico Nacional.  He tends to get his work permit easily and is a great all rounder, although very short and with pretty much no jumping reach.

Then there's Santi Mina (Valencia), Giovanni Simeone (Genoa), John Guidetti (Vigo) and Sardar Azmoun (Rostov). 
They're all still relatively young and suit the complete forward role.  You could be a little more ambitious and try for the likes of Berahino, Johannes Eggestein and Milik, but you might end up paying a truckload for those.

[smplfc123]

Some big money flying around there @Sabine

So I'm about to start season 2. My first 3 fixtures are:

Man Utd - H
Man City - A
Chelsea - H

Nice easy start to the season!

So here are the incomings and outgoings before the season starts.

Incomings:

Sebasitien Haller - Utrecht - £8m
Hugo Basto - Arouca - £1m
Rachid Ghezzal - Lyon - £3m
Ben Gibson - Middlesbrough - £3m
Tyrone Mings - Bournemouth - £850k
Callum Patterson - Hearts - £3m
Ryan Ledson - Oxford - £750k (Loaned Back)
Kalvin Phillips - Leeds - £2.8m (Loaned Back)
Gedion Zelalem - Free


Outgoings:

Lamine Kone - £13.25m
Andrea Poli - £12m
Billy Jones - £1m
And a lot of players released on a free.

Poli wanted to return to AC Milan who offered me double what I paid for him, so that was a no brainer. Kone was decent last season, but I think Basto will be a good replacement and with Kone missing for a month each season, I thought £13m was a good deal.

I've brought in 9 players, all of which are 25 years old or younger. I've filled the squad nicely, with the idea being for the future that I will now only look to strengthen the first team with quality in the next transfer windows.

Hoping I don't start with 3 hammerings as last years form against the big boys would suggest that there is a high possibility of that happening.

@Sabine as you can see, I decided to go with Haller.

[Sabine]

15 minutes ago, smplfc123 said:

Some big money flying around there @Sabine

So I'm about to start season 2. My first 3 fixtures are:

Man Utd - H
Man City - A
Chelsea - H

Nice easy start to the season!

So here are the incomings and outgoings before the season starts.

Incomings:

Sebasitien Haller - Utrecht - £8m
Hugo Basto - Arouca - £1m
Rachid Ghezzal - Lyon - £3m
Ben Gibson - Middlesbrough - £3m
Tyrone Mings - Bournemouth - £850k
Callum Patterson - Hearts - £3m
Ryan Ledson - Oxford - £750k (Loaned Back)
Kalvin Phillips - Leeds - £2.8m (Loaned Back)
Gedion Zelalem - Free


Outgoings:

Lamine Kone - £13.25m
Andrea Poli - £12m
Billy Jones - £1m
And a lot of players released on a free.

Poli wanted to return to AC Milan who offered me double what I paid for him, so that was a no brainer. Kone was decent last season, but I think Basto will be a good replacement and with Kone missing for a month each season, I thought £13m was a good deal.

I've brought in 9 players, all of which are 25 years old or younger. I've filled the squad nicely, with the idea being for the future that I will now only look to strengthen the first team with quality in the next transfer windows.

Hoping I don't start with 3 hammerings as last years form against the big boys would suggest that there is a high possibility of that happening.

@Sabine as you can see, I decided to go with Haller.

Oh, I have thrown around an insane amount of money this window.   

This time around I went for more players to fill out the squad, as I realised that I'm actually playing in the Champions League.. silly thing to forget.. I lost two months of the save because of my computer crashing and I ended up back in the pre-season and this time around, I said I was going to win the league, get into the Quarter Finals of the Champions league and win the domestic double, giving me a very respectable transfer and wage budget.

I only have three players over the age of 27 now, two of them (Cattermole and Defoe) will be retiring at the club.

Haller looks really good.  He's current at Crystal Palace on my save and scored a couple against me.  A very good transfer window.

But that is a tough start to the premier league, very similar to what mine was in the second season..

This is my squad now, the left back position is very weak, but Javet is both footed and can cover there if needed.  I tried buying Luke Shaw but Man United want a mind boggling £135 million for him, so nevermind. 

I have had some very good luck in youth intakes as well, Jake Adams, Benedict Mason and Stewart Wootton are all from the first intake and I can see them being future first teamers, especially Mason who looks set to be Defoe's long term replacement.

[Sunlinlad]

Can I just ask how anyone manages to do well with Sunderland?

 

finding it impossible to do even half decent second season. 

 

Any successful tips, tactics or formations will be massively helpful as I'm pretty close to giving up on FM to be honest. 

[Sunlinlad]

On 3 April 2017 at 21:44, Sabine said:

Oh, I have thrown around an insane amount of money this window.   

This time around I went for more players to fill out the squad, as I realised that I'm actually playing in the Champions League.. silly thing to forget.. I lost two months of the save because of my computer crashing and I ended up back in the pre-season and this time around, I said I was going to win the league, get into the Quarter Finals of the Champions league and win the domestic double, giving me a very respectable transfer and wage budget.

I only have three players over the age of 27 now, two of them (Cattermole and Defoe) will be retiring at the club.

Haller looks really good.  He's current at Crystal Palace on my save and scored a couple against me.  A very good transfer window.

But that is a tough start to the premier league, very similar to what mine was in the second season..

This is my squad now, the left back position is very weak, but Javet is both footed and can cover there if needed.  I tried buying Luke Shaw but Man United want a mind boggling £135 million for him, so nevermind. 

I have had some very good luck in youth intakes as well, Jake Adams, Benedict Mason and Stewart Wootton are all from the first intake and I can see them being future first teamers, especially Mason who looks set to be Defoe's long term replacement.

How on earth have you managed that?

 

these massive fees your getting in and your doing that well. Is there something I'm missing?

[NabsKebabs]

Hey guys,

Started a Sunderland save with the idea of going for counter attacking football with a 442..really enjoying it so far. Started with an unbeaten pre season (assistant manager in charge but my tactics and selections) then have played 7 league games (currently sitting at 6th) and 2 cup games with just one loss.

Summer Transfers

As you can see, kept it pretty simple but some pretty exciting additions I reckon. Most of the players I wanted out had long term injuries so will have to wait for January. I tried to move on Rodwell but only loan offers came in and I decided I would rather just keep him as depth. Lookman was inspired by his impressive performances irl in the league for Everton. I've been using him off the bench a lot and starting in cup games. Should develop nicely. Josh King was a deadline day signing, I had spare money and thought why not use it. His in game stats aren't as good as he really is because he took his game to a new level this season but his pace is just so explosive and I think he really suits my counter attacking style. What really sealed the deal was the fact that his squad status in the game at Bournemouth is rotation so I got him for around half his value. 

Tactic

As I mentioned earlier, 442 counter was always the plan. I think the Anichebe/Defoe combo can be really deadly. Anichebe has the strength to hold up the play while Defoe has the pace and intelligence to get in behind. That's what I always look for when going 2 up top, one stronger and one pacier. Januzaj on attack because I want him to be very direct with his runs. Khazri on support because he is not as good a dribber or passer as Januzaj so I want him as more of a standard winger, he has the PPM 'runs with ball often' so will still look to take the game on. Just a balanced CM def/sup combo in the middle. I think Ndong has the potential to be a very decent BBM but I want him to develop a bit more before I make the switch. CM(s) is role is very similar, just a bit more conservative. Pretty standard defence...PVA is great going forward but since I have Januzaj as a winger on that side it doesn't make much sense to have him on attack aswell. King hasn't managed to break into my first 11 yet but he is very versatile. Has the pace/finishing to play as the last man in attack, the strength to play the Anichebe role aswell as the handy PPM 'knocks ball past oppenent' which would make him very hard to catch running down a wing. Only issue is his crossing attribute is poor.   

With the TI's, keeping it simple is very important imo. I went for pass into space because I want to use pace to rip my opponents defence apart. Whipped crosses because my strikers don't have much height, although Anichebe has a lot of strength so an argument could be made to have just left it on mixed. I'm scoring plenty from crosses though so it seems to be working.   
 
Schedule and League Table

As you can see the fixtures have been fairly kind but there are definitely some impressive results in there with plenty of goals. I have been playing kids in the cup so far and they have done the job.

Stats

Just sorted in order of goals for a quick look at some stats. As you can see Defoe is flying and going at a goal a game. What I am really happy to see though is the goals/assists are exactly what I want to see for my wingers and strikers. Defoe playing as the last man with attacking role is all about goals. Anichebe as a deep lying forward is there to link the midfield to Defoe and he is both scoring and providing with 3 goals, 3 assists. The wingers are getting those crosses in with a combined 9 assists between Januzaj and Khazri. Khazri even had a hattrick of assists in the last game. King while only on a 6.86 avg rating has still managed 2 goals from just 1 start and 4 cameos.     

Hope you enjoyed reading that guys, I'll be sure to keep updating as the save progresses.

 

 

 

[RedGuns]

I stumbled over this thread, and found it to be a great inspiration. Thank's you all!

So I gave the mighty Sunderland a go for my first time ever. And it’s such a great fun! I’ve just finished my second season.

I started up with two new tactics, 5-2-3-0 and 5-2-2-1, and went off to the transfer market. Trouble. That is not easy with Sunderland! I did manage to get a couple of new first team faces, and some talents for the future. But that was it.

Well, what can I say. This team is quite impressive as it is. We went on to my big surprise to fight in top 6 all season, and in the end we lost the CL ticket with just two goals difference. Arrrrg!

But then again, it was EL time. And the mighty Sunderland was going to be even stronger.

Already in the winter window 16/17 I managed to get Llorente from Real Madrid and Schaub from Rapid Wien for free, so those was waiting for the second season.

Right wing back was a problem, but I was able to pick up Alexander-Arnold from Liverpool for 12,5m (25m total). I also got Kalas from Chelsea (1,8m), and loaned Pereira from Porto and Velazquez from Real Madrid and extending Januzaj for one more season.

Meanwhile I’ve continued the youth players search, so this team is going to be around for a long time.

Did mange to sell Lens for 13m and Billy Jones for 3m. Defoe had to go as he didn’t fit the zero tactic, but went for peanuts. 18 players(!) left, but I did just get 19m in.

Our first match 2017/2018 was away to United, and we lost 1-2. We went on to beat Watford 5-1, and then lost 3-4 against Bournemouth. We won just 5 of the 12 first matches, and was without a victory in the first three EL matches.

It was a nightmare!

But then the luck turned, and we won 9 of the 11 next including thrashing Arsenal 4-2 at the Emirates.

In EL we went second in the group just ten minutes before the end of the last match, and advanced. We was on a roll.

We went out of the cups, but that didn’t matter. My aim was the league and the EL.

We draw Ajax, and beat them 1-0 twice. Besiktas next was no match, but then we got Napoli.

They outplayed us at home, and was controlling the match 1-0 when Hamsik lost his head and got his second yellow. We turned it around and won 2-1. At home we draw 2-2.

Inter waited in the semi. At home we controlled the match, but Inter turned every chance to a goal. The match ended 3-3.

And then Cattermole lost his temper after just 8 minutes in the second match. We had no chance, and lost 0-2. I transfer listed our captain the second after the match ended, and put him in the U23 team. Yeah, he deserved that, but my team wasn’t happy about that. I don’t care, he will not play another minute for us. Such a shame, but he ruined it for us.

In the PL thing’s was going great. The only bad defeat came in Newcastle when they beat us 5-2.

We lost 11 matches, but everbody else did worse. Except United, who won the league by 14 point. But we did manage to secure a fantastic second, so no it’s off the the CL. It is going to be crazy!

I also managed to get the board to expand the stadium, so in 2019 we will have a 55 000 fans cheering us forward! Our facilities is also upgraded, and we have 7 first team trainers now.

Our youth academy also produced a really big talent that’s going to dominate the game in the years coming. Take a look at Calum Gooden (sorry it's in Norwegian, but you get the picture), born in Grays (no idea where that is) and a future England star.

The future is looking bright at Sunderland. Let’s just hope I don’t get sacked now!

I will try to strenghten the team in the summer, so let’s see how it goes from here.

As I stated in the start. Sunderland is great fun, and everybody should give it a try. Good luck to you all.

((Excuse my english, it’s not my native langues))