The History Bhoys - From the Lisbon Lions to ____?

[mjaferrie]

January 2048 Update

IN

Luke Rutherford SP31a (21), born in Clacton-on-Sea - £500k from Manchester City

Possibly one of the bargains of this save (although I don't think anything is going to beat Stephen Easton from the Celtic days).  This guy is absolutely phenomenal and I've no idea why City wanted shot of him.



OUT

John O'Hanlon - Free to Gainsborough
Radmilo Jovanovic - £2.7m to Girondins de Bordeaux
George Dean - £525k to Aberdeen

I said when I came in that I'd sell the other two oldies up front and keep Jovanovic, but nobody was in for the others and £2.7m for a 32 year old on the decline is not an offer I can refuse at this point.

I started off my tenure in the international break, and decided to take the lads to Belgium to let off some steam, get some friendlies in and start piecing together what I thought about the squad.  For context, here are the 10 results prior to me taking over:



3 wins against Aalst, Beerschot-Wilrijk and Berchem gave us a much needed morale boost and me the chance to assess who I needed and who I didn't - both on the field and in the backroom team.  It wasn't enough to prevent a 3-2 loss to then 3rd place side Watford but in the 13 games that followed we have only lost once, against top team Crystal Palace.  



We're on a 7 game unbeaten run, including victories over Cardiff and Crawley in the FA Cup, which drags us up from the depths of the Championship to a much more respectable 13th.



We're only 6 points off Bristol and Swindon in 5th and 6th place, so with our current form it wouldn't be absurd to suggest we could actually make the playoffs this season, although realistically I think that it will take a couple years of building and preparing for the big time before we are ready.

In my backroom team I've made a couple of changes, but nothing major at this stage.  I've replaced Adam Le Fondre, our HOYD, with Josh Williams - a 38 year old newgen who started out at Swindon before a £425k move to Aston Villa.  He then moved back to Swindon for £500k two years later, where he spent 11 seasons before moving on a free to Charlton where he saw out his career.  I've also brought in a new goalkeeping coach, and a defensive coach, as we were pretty thin on the ground in terms of coaching staff.

Here we go into the second half of the season!  Only the one player brought in as I try and get my head round who I can and can't sign.

[mjaferrie]

Just now, mjaferrie said:

Luke Rutherford SP31a (21), born in Clacton-on-Sea - £500k from Manchester City
Possibly one of the bargains of this save (although I don't think anything is going to beat Stephen Easton from the Celtic days).  This guy is absolutely phenomenal and I've no idea why City wanted shot of him.

I realise that 'absolutely phenomenal' is a bit of an overstatement, but years in the lower leagues does strange things to your mind

[thehazeofspades]

This is like when you come home with an A- and your really happy and then your parents ask you how your friend mjaferrie did and you're like he got an A and your parents ask you why you can't be more like him....

Absolutely phenomenal performances here with all of the teams you've managed!

[mjaferrie]

2 minutes ago, thehazeofspades said:

This is like when you come home with an A- and your really happy and then your parents ask you how your friend mjaferrie did and you're like he got an A and your parents ask you why you can't be more like him....

Absolutely phenomenal performances here with all of the teams you've managed!

Hahaha, jesus, sorry dude!

I think Ipswich is going to be pretty hard transfer-wise again... As far as I can tell, there are only 13 places I'm allowed to sign players from: Braintree; Bury St. Edmunds; Clacton-on-Sea; Colchester; Diss; Dovercourt; Ipswich (no ****, Sherlock ); Stowmarket; Sudbury; Tiptree; Witham; Wivenhoe; and Woodbridge.

If any of y'all have any geographical knowledge particular to the Ipswich area, I'd like to hear it... 

[thehazeofspades]

5 minutes ago, mjaferrie said:

Hahaha, jesus, sorry dude!

I think Ipswich is going to be pretty hard transfer-wise again... As far as I can tell, there are only 13 places I'm allowed to sign players from: Braintree; Bury St. Edmunds; Clacton-on-Sea; Colchester; Diss; Dovercourt; Ipswich (no ****, Sherlock ); Stowmarket; Sudbury; Tiptree; Witham; Wivenhoe; and Woodbridge.

If any of y'all have any geographical knowledge particular to the Ipswich area, I'd like to hear it... 

I've lived in the Middle East and Africa my whole life, I'd barely know where Ipswich is on the map anyway

I think it's a bit of a sticky situation you're in. 30 miles isn't enough (especially as according to the map you've put up, Ipswich is towards the sea), but at the same time an all English save wouldn't be the same (or me trying to make it harder for you ), so it comes down to your judgement, but my recommendation is making it 50 miles instead of 30, as that would help you out a bit but not to the point of making it too easy.

[mjaferrie]

1 minute ago, thehazeofspades said:

I've lived in the Middle East and Africa my whole life, I'd barely know where Ipswich is on the map anyway

I think it's a bit of a sticky situation you're in. 30 miles isn't enough (especially as according to the map you've put up, Ipswich is towards the sea), but at the same time an all English save wouldn't be the same (or me trying to make it harder for you ), so it comes down to your judgement, but my recommendation is making it 50 miles instead of 30, as that would help you out a bit but not to the point of making it too easy.

Oooorrrr.... we go completely the opposite direction and make it youth only, haha!  No, Christ, I couldn't do that to myself just yet.  I think I'll stick with the 30 miles for now and see how that serves us over the next few years.  If I'm getting stuck in a rut then I might consider expanding it, or then just take a new job   Someday I'm going to have to tackle the lower leagues in England, so I'm thinking somewhere in London would be the best bet for this kind of save.

[mjaferrie]

Youth Intake Day!

Hmm... Maybe I was wrong to get all excited about those facilities at the beginning.  At least, at first glance, this is pretty poor.

[mjaferrie]

Season Review 2047/48!

So, in November I joined a struggling Ipswich side who had only managed one win in their previous 10 games.  We were languishing in 19th place in the Championship and it was my job to turn our season around.  I'm not entirely sure how this team had been doing so badly, as we have only lost 8 of our 31 games since I took over.  Here are the results since the January update.



We had a bit of a shaky patch there in February, but after our 5th round exit at the hands of Everton in the FA Cup we turned our focus back to the Championship and results started to pick up again.  Going into the last game against Gillingham we actually had the chance to secure 6th place and a playoff spot, if other results went our way, but a 3-0 hammering means we finish the season in 9th place.  That is a great step up from when I took over though!



Sorry, my laptop screen doesn't let me view the whole table at once.  The bottom two were Bournemouth on 43 points, and Cardiff on 36.  Two recent Premier League teams both facing League One next season.

End of Season Departures

Achiel Willaert, Joe Kyle, Ian Lamb, John Cox, Rob Flint, Steven Roddan, Ed Simpson, Marek Dvorak, Mike Clark, Lee Gerrard - released at end of contract
Michael Collantine - loan spell ends

Some names here you may recognise from the squad assessment when I took over.  There isn't a single player here with a potential higher than 2PA and most of them are in their 30s.  The other few names are U23 and U18 players who don't look likely to make the grade here as they are getting too old to develop much further.  I'd rather let these guys leave and take the risk of playing our own youngsters.  Hopefully I can make some signings this summer too!

Top 5 Young Players of the Season (Players 21 and under at the beginning of the season)
Michael Collantine - not contracted to club
Simon Foster - Age 21, Appearances: 1(2); Goals: 0; Assists: 0; Av. Rating: 7.00
Shane Gilder - Age 20, Appearances: 5(6); Goals: 0; Assists: 2; Av. Rating: 6.94
Darren Palmer - Age 20, Appearances: 0(10); Goals: 1; Assists: 3; Av. Rating: 6.91

Hmm... another familiar story as this looks surprisingly similar to the situation I faced at Nottingham Forest.  Not enough youngsters, and not good enough performances...

Here we go into the summer, and I'll set about properly shaping the team for my reign.

Season  |          Club           |     Nation    |         League         |   Position  | Other  
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2016-27 |         Celtic          |    Scotland   | Scottish Division One  |   10x 1st   | 7 Glasgow Cups, 6 League Cups, 4 Scottish Cup, 2 Europa Leagues (2018 and 2022), Champions League 2026, Club World Championship 2027, Resigned in December 2026.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2026-28 |    Nottingham Forest    |    England    |  Sky Bet Championship  |  14th, 1st  | Joined with 8 games remaining in season 2026/27.
2028-31 | Nottingham Forest/Wales |    England    | English Premier League |  13th, 16th | Resigned in the middle of 2030/31.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2031-34 |  Shamrock Rovers/Wales  |    Ireland    | Irish Premier Division | 3x 2nd, 1st | 2 Leinster Cups, 2 Senior Challenge Cups, President's Cup
2035-38 |     Shamrock Rovers     |    Ireland    | Irish Premier Division |   3x 1st    | 3 Leinster Cups, 2 Senior Challenge Cups, 3 League Cups, 4 President's Cups. Resigned as Wales manager in 2035. Sacked in the middle of season 2038.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2038/39 | Cardiff Met. University |     Wales     |  Welsh Premier League  |     1st     | JD Welsh Cup, Nathaniel MG Cup, resigned at end of season.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2039/40 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     3rd     | League Cup
2040/41 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     3rd     | n.a.
2041/42 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     3rd     | n.a.
2042/43 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     2nd     | League Cup
2043/44 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     1st     | Northern Irish Cup
2044/45 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     2nd     | n.a.
2045/46 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     1st     | League Cup, Northern Irish Cup
2046/47 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     1st     | League Cup, Northern Irish Cup, Co. Antrim Shield
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2047/48 |      Ipswich Town       |    England    |  Sky Bet Championship  |     9th     | Signed in November

[mjaferrie]

Holy crap, Celtic have won back to back Champions Leagues!

EDIT: And Burnley have won back to back Premier Leagues?!?!



Barnsley just offered me their manager job.  Do I jump ship so soon after joining Ipswich for a taste of the Premier League... Me thinks no.

[Keano16]

I knew Burnley would come good eventually!

[hasdgfas]

12 hours ago, mjaferrie said:

Season Review 2046/47!

Ladies and gentlemen, please stand, FOR THE LINFIELD INVINCIBLES!

How you didn't go with "Lin-vincibles" I have no idea  

Great work regardless! Wish I could find the consistency you seem to find everywhere.

[mjaferrie]

25 minutes ago, hasdgfas said:

How you didn't go with "Lin-vincibles" I have no idea  

Great work regardless! Wish I could find the consistency you seem to find everywhere.

Hahaha, thanks mate!

[mjaferrie]

Season Preview 2048/49

The media predict we're going to finish in 13th and the board want a mid table finish again.  We came 9th last year and 7th and 8th in the seasons before that so I'm hoping for a slightly better than predicted finish.  Who knows, we might even make the playoffs!  I don't feel under too much pressure to actually win this league, as I already achieved that with Nottingham Forest, so promotion by the playoffs or 2nd place wouldn't be too bad at all!



We've had some good results so far, with one loss against Brentford and a draw against Preston both coming in the league.  In the EFL Cup, we navigated ties against Tranmere and Accrington, winning both 1-0, to set up a 3rd round tie against Newcastle.



INs

Ricky Edwards SP32a (20), born in Colchester - £55k from Norwich
Graham Barnett SP32b (20), born in Ipswich - £10k from Hungerford
Tom Taylor SP32c (19), born in Ipswich - Free, unassigned
Luke McCarthy SP32d (17), born in Bury St. Edmunds - £350k from Leyton Orient
Christian Andrew SP32e (17), born in Wivenhoe - £86k from Colchester

Our first proper attempt at redesigning our squad, with 5 youngsters joining us for a total of £500k.  

OUTs

Scott Steane - £275k to Aberdeen

STAFF



FIRST TEAM SQUAD

Goalkeepers

Moustapha Diallo CIV (34) - 3.5CA/PA, still our first choice 'keeper but we're going to need someone new soon.
Trevor Martyn ENG (20) - 3PA, second choice for now, but will hopefully develop well.
Verdict:  Martyn moves up into the first team to replace Ed Simpson, who left on a free at the end of last season.

Right Back

Matthew Sim AUS (28) - 3CA/PA, is first and foremost a central midfielder, but has played almost every game in the right back position since I took the job.
Shane Gilder ENG (20) - 2CA, 3PA, moved up into the first team during last season as we didn't have anyone in this position.
Verdict:  We're not as bad here as I thought we were going to be.  We'll still need some quality in though.

Left Back

Erik Krokbo NOR (33) - 2.5CA/PA.
Verdict:  Only the Norwegian in here now after Willaert left us.  We'll need someone in soon.

Centre Backs/Sweepers

John Fleming SCO (30) - 3CA/PA. Rotation option.
Simon Foster ENG (22) - 2.5CA/PA.  Moves up from the U23s as backup.
Kenneth Segers BEL (23) - 3CA, 3.5PA, first choice and hopefully still has time to improve.
Levi Hatch YP31a ENG (16) - 4PA, straight into the first team, a bit prematurely.  Will act as backup until we can get some first team quality in.
Verdict:  Marek Dvorak left us on a free and Michael Collantine headed back to Newcastle after his loan expired so I needed some new faces in here.

Right Midfielders/Wingers

Luke Rutherford SP31a ENG (22) - 4CA, 5PA, this guy is phenomenal and is training as an AMC as we head in a strikerless direction.
James Quinn ENG (22) - 3.5CA, 4.5PA, one of our best players and I'll be building the team around him.
Verdict:  This is a strong area and we don't need to improve here soon.

Left Midfielders/Wingers

Sebastian Lilleng NOR (24) - 3.5CA/PA, first choice.
Leighton Shannon WAL (26) - 3CA/PA.  Primarily a right winger but we needed cover here.
Verdict:  Flint leaves on a free so Shannon moves over to this flank as backup for Lilleng.

Defensive and Central Midfield

Mohammed Nartey GHA (28) - 3.5CA/PA, rotation option.
Junior Campbell JAM (29) - 3CA/PA, rotation option.
Mark Leigh ENG (17) - 2CA, 5PA, backup for now but looks likely to be our best option in years to come.
Aitor Galdeano ESP (23) - 4CA, 4.5PA, first choice.
Verdict:  This is a really strong area still and Mark Leigh has the potential to be a key player for us.

Attacking Midfielders

George James ENG (19) - 3PA, not much quality.
Verdict:  James returns from his loan spell but doesn't really offer us much at all.  I have every striker and winger at the club currently training in this position.

Strikers

Dusan Nikodijevic SRB (33) - 2CA/PA.  Last resort.
Jose Gomes POR (28) - 3.5CA/PA. First choice if we play with a striker.
Jason Cann ENG (28) -3CA/PA. Also gets a lot of game time, but mostly as an attacking midfielder.
Darren Palmer ENG (20) - 3.5PA. Developing nicely and could be an important player for us.
Verdict:  Big changes here as we were seriously overstocked last season.  Roddan and Jovanovic both leave us and Nikodijevic looks likely to follow suit.

Huge changes to the squad as we head into the second season.  Hopefully we can continue to improve!

[R7Now]

I say you do a double-switch and do Scottish only. That'd be fun and totally impossible

[ManUtd1]

What kind of Brexit did you get again?

[mjaferrie]

8 hours ago, R7Now said:

I say you do a double-switch and do Scottish only. That'd be fun and totally impossible

Oh now there's an idea.  Maybe not Scotland, as they now regularly have 5 or 6 teams in European Group stages (I know.. what the **** :D), but Wales, Northern Ireland... hmm!

8 hours ago, ManUtd1 said:

What kind of Brexit did you get again?

I have absolutely no idea.  Judging by the number of foreigner's in Ipswich's squad when I took over, I'm gonna take a punt at soft as the refereeing in an Old FIrm derby.  I'll have  a look, did I even post it here?

[mjaferrie]

There is no Scotland, England, Northern Ireland, Wales or Gibraltar in the European Union agreement, so no independence for any countries or reunifications or anything like that.  It's difficult to tell without actually seeing the Brexit status from somewhere (is that even possible?) but I made some kind of 'research'.

Aston Villa have 10 EU players in their First team; 2 from further afield.
Brentford - 9; 1
Brighton and Hove - 9; 0
Bristol City - 5; 4
Chesterfield - 9;0
Coventry - 11; 1
Oxford - 7; 3
Preston NE - 7; 1
Sheffield Utd - 7; 2
Swansea City - 8; 2
Watford - 11; 4

That's not all the teams in the Championship, but it certainly seems that the 2nd tier of English football isn't struggling to get EU and non-EU players in to their teams.  I vote:

[mjaferrie]

Mid Season Update

It's the 1st of January 2049, which means it's time for a mid season review!  We've been pretty awful.  I went on a run of 10 games with only two wins, and a 5-4 win over Newcastle in the FA Cup 3rd round has just ended a three game losing streak.  We're 12th in the table, we've been as high as 2nd and as low as 15th, and luckily everyone else has been pretty **** this season too as we're only 3 points off the playoff places.  Here's how the league form has been so far:



Not great, but that's the Championship I guess.  In the League Cup, we crashed out against Newcastle in the 3rd round in a 4-2 loss, but we got our revenge in the FA Cup against the Premier League side.



Not much else to say about this season so far!  I'm the favourite for the Swansea and Aston Villa jobs, but they're both below us in the Championship table so I don't really see the point in taking either of those jobs - especially as Swansea would increase the scouting complexity due to being physically located in a different country.  Linfield are also on the lookout for a new manager as my replacement there, Ben Doherty, just joined me in the Championship with Leeds. 

[mjaferrie]

January 2049 Transfer Window

As has somehow become the norm of this save, no one has left or signed during the January window.  As far as we're concerned, there is no one available in the transfer market from our 13 available towns - unless I wanted to pay £61m for an 18 year old keeper at Chelsea who looks pretty gash...

3 draws, 2 wins and 1 loss in the league means we're up to 10th place but now 4 points off the playoffs.  Hopefully we can pick up some decent results in the second half of the season.  We have though just claimed our first serious scalp of the Ipswich journey - beating Premier League winners Burnley 2-1 in a tightly contested FA Cup 4th round tie. 



The match was a sell out, and has broken our gate receipts record - a much needed boost as we're now in the red finance-wise thanks to an improvement to our training facilities and junior coaching.  

[mjaferrie]

The next step on my quest to British and Irish domination has been decided!  I applied for the Liverpool job, but didn't get an answer, and meanwhile I got offered interviews at Reading and Dundee.  I got offered the job at both, and delayed the answer successfully in the hope of getting a response from the Reds, but nothing doing and a week later:



I've decided to join Reading!  They're currently 20th in the Premier League, and are almost certain to be relegated this season.  I decided against taking the job now and trying to turn it around, as they're 12 points from safety and there's no guarantee that if I got relegated I'd actually get to keep the job going into the summer.  Now, relegation is someone else's problem and I'll have the whole summer to build a squad capable of going straight back up next season.  It also gives me some time to do some research into the club's history - and most importantly find out who the **** I can sign in the all important 30 mile radius of the 36,295 seater Madejski Stadium.  It's a step up from Ipswich certainly, but for now I'm seeing out the season with the Tractor Boys!

[mjaferrie]

For **** sake!



Literally two weeks after accepting Reading's offer I get this.  What does that even mean?  If I take the job, am I still going to join Reading in June?  What if I try and get them to take me on at the end of the season...?  I'm taking the interview, who knows what happens now I'm probably going to end up at Dundee after all.

[mjaferrie]

In all the excitement, we've had a youth intake back in Ipswich.  I'm not bothering to tag any of these guys as I'm heading out the door one way or another.

[mjaferrie]

Well that solves that problem.

[mjaferrie]

Season Review 2048/49!

Well, needless to say, the turmoil surrounding my job offers started to affect the players, and results around that period were pretty poor.  As the players realised I'm heading out the door and there is someone else coming in to replace me, they started playing for their futures at the club and we won 5 games in the last few games of the season.  I'm sure that's exactly what happened, right? 



We actually finished up the season 3 points, and a place in the table, worse off than last season.  I'm pretty happy with a 10th place finish though, as I think that rather flatters the players we had available. 



There are still a couple of games still to play in the Premiership but Crystal Palace, Hull and Reading have all had their fate sealed already which means that I'll still be managing in the Championship next season - albeit with a bit more cash and hopefully a better team too.  Meanwhile Cardiff and Bournemouth are coming straight back up from League 1 and will be joined by the winner of Millwall versus Bradford City or Sheffield Wednesday (Scunthorpe were the 4th team in the playoffs but just lost to Millwall). 

End of Season Departures

Me!

No players or staff are leaving Ipswich at the end of this season.  I decided to renew everyone's contracts to give them the best chance of remaining a top half team.  

Top 5 Young Players of the Season (Players 21 and under at the beginning of the season)
Luke Rutherford SP31a - Age 22, Appearances: 13(28); Goals: 9; Assists: 4; Av. Rating: 7.06
Shane Gilder - Age 21, Appearances: 36(10); Goals: 2; Assists: 5; Av. Rating: 7.03
Mark Leigh - Age 18, Appearances: 2(13); Goals: 1; Assists: 2; Av. Rating: 6.90
Adrian O'Connor - Age 20, Appearances: 4; Goals: 0; Assists: 0; Av. Rating: 6.88
Simon Foster - Age 22, Appearances: 15(19); Goals: 0; Assists: 1; Av. Rating: 6.73

A couple of players brought in during my 18 month tenure making this list.  The squad overall is still pretty old but it'll be up to my successor to take this bunch of decrepits forward.

Season  |          Club           |     Nation    |         League         |   Position  | Other  
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2016-27 |         Celtic          |    Scotland   | Scottish Division One  |   10x 1st   | 7 Glasgow Cups, 6 League Cups, 4 Scottish Cup, 2 Europa Leagues (2018 and 2022), Champions League 2026, Club World Championship 2027, Resigned in December 2026.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2026-28 |    Nottingham Forest    |    England    |  Sky Bet Championship  |  14th, 1st  | Joined with 8 games remaining in season 2026/27.
2028-31 | Nottingham Forest/Wales |    England    | English Premier League |  13th, 16th | Resigned in the middle of 2030/31.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2031-34 |  Shamrock Rovers/Wales  |    Ireland    | Irish Premier Division | 3x 2nd, 1st | 2 Leinster Cups, 2 Senior Challenge Cups, President's Cup
2035-38 |     Shamrock Rovers     |    Ireland    | Irish Premier Division |   3x 1st    | 3 Leinster Cups, 2 Senior Challenge Cups, 3 League Cups, 4 President's Cups. Resigned as Wales manager in 2035. Sacked in the middle of season 2038.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2038/39 | Cardiff Met. University |     Wales     |  Welsh Premier League  |     1st     | JD Welsh Cup, Nathaniel MG Cup, resigned at end of season.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2039/40 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     3rd     | League Cup
2040/41 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     3rd     | n.a.
2041/42 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     3rd     | n.a.
2042/43 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     2nd     | League Cup
2043/44 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     1st     | Northern Irish Cup
2044/45 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     2nd     | n.a.
2045/46 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     1st     | League Cup, Northern Irish Cup
2046/47 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     1st     | League Cup, Northern Irish Cup, Co. Antrim Shield
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2047/48 |      Ipswich Town       |    England    |  Sky Bet Championship  |     9th     | Signed in November
2048/49 |      Ipswich Town       |    England    |  Sky Bet Championship  |    10th     | n.a.

[mjaferrie]

Part Seven



I've made a smooth transition from Ipswich west to Reading, recently relegated from the Premier League, and I have the task of restoring them to their top flight status.  A brief look at our league history shows that we've been yo-yoing the two leagues for the last 15 or so years. 



I've spent many an hour today researching the local area, and it looks like we are going to be quite okay in the transfer market!  We have 50-60 towns to select players from, and that doesn't include any of London.  Googlemaps has been working hard this evening!  Reading are only the 2nd team I've taken over in this save without any European history to speak of and that has continued in game.  They did of course reject the opportunity to play in the UEFA Intertoto cup back in 2007 (2008?) but have never joined the teams at the top table of European competition.  We also have a pretty bare trophy cabinet:



In game, Reading's highest league finish was 15th in the Premier League.  Of course their highest ever finish was in the same year that saw them invited to the Intertoto Cup, when they finished 8th in their first ever season in the top flight.  I'll be looking to improve upon that for sure, and I'd like to add at least one cup to the trophy cabinet.

As ever, here's the 30 mile limit:



Not quite close enough to justify signing anyone from London, as far as I'm concerned, but as I already mentioned there are around 60 in-game locations in this little green circle, and I'll be looking to get affiliations with as many Berkshire-based teams as I can.



Our stadium capacity was increased two years ago which is great, and we've got around £40m in the bank to work with going forward.  I'm overspending on wages, and I only have £2m available transfer money - so I'm going to have to get in with the surgical knife and start looking at who will stay and who will go from our overpaid squad.  Time to get cracking turning the Royals around!

I'd also like to request a minute's silence for the Scottish, indy supporting Celtic fan with Irish family who has just taken over a team nicknamed the Royals.  I'm sorry dad.

[mjaferrie]

A right Royal mess

Okay, I've decided to dive right in and have a look at the squad.  It's the 1st of June, so I have plenty of time over the summer to make changes here and changes will certainly be made.  I'm not going to go too in depth at the moment with what I have, a full analysis will come at the end of the transfer window as always.

At first glance, this is a big squad, 69 players all told.  I'd prefer to have that around the 50 mark, with all the U23s available for U18 matches.

FIRST TEAM SQUAD



Reasonably balanced in terms of positions, but that's a lot of 30+...

U23 SQUAD



Some of these guys could come straight into the first team.

U18 SQUAD



Only a couple of these guys have any real potential.  I will probably have a closer look and let some of them leave this summer to optimise the gametime available for the better quality youngsters.

CURRENTLY ON LOAN



A lot of quality here as well, and certainly some thinking to do over the summer!  Hopefully that gives you guys a feel for the squad at the moment - in we go with the carving knife!

[mjaferrie]

Season Preview 2049/50

Something feels different about Reading, I'm really excited about this opportunity!  Ipswich somehow felt like a shiiiiitt-someone-offer-me-a-job! panic filler, but here I feel like I have a strong basis for building a team capable of winning the Premier League somewhere down the line.  Right now though, the focus is on getting us back to the Premier League, never mind winning it, after a disappointing campaign that saw my predecessor sacked.  I set about slimming down our 69 man squad to somewhere closer to the 50 mark, while bringing in a couple of recruits of my own.

I was helped out there by a few relegation release clauses, which is not what I'd have hoped for at all as we lose a couple of our best players, but most of the guys also had wage drop clauses in the event of relegation which has significantly reduced our wage bill.  I had a couple of guys over the £80k mark which are now down to around £60k per week - James Reed and Mario Anzures are now our only players over £60k and Michael Polley is next on £44.5k.  We also saw a number of players leave at the end of their contracts in the summer.

Here's how the media think the top 10 will look come the end of the season.  Ipswich were fancied at a low mid-table finish earlier in the summer, so their summer deals must have impressed somebody!  My board expect me to make the playoffs, but I aim to go one higher and achieve automatic promotion back to the Premier League.  We opened the season with a 3-1 win over promotion rivals Aston Villa, so hopefully that's a sign of things to come!



Before we have a look at the transfer deals over the summer, and the first team squad, here's our results in August:



In the league we have three wins, two draws and a loss.  Not exactly the form of champions yet, as we sit in 7th place.  In the EFL Cup though we have already met the board's expectations.  In the 1st round we needed extra time to beat a plucky Bristol Rovers side who raced to an early 3-1 lead.  Two late goals from Thorndike levelled the game, and he completed his hat trick in extra time to scrape us through.  A 3-1 win over Birmingham was rewarded with a 3rd round tie against Arsenal in September.

Our finances are pretty healthy, thanks to the Premier League parachute payment, but I didn't want to spend too much money this summer.  I've decided to invest that in a junior coaching upgrade, and hopefully it will reap rewards come the Spring.  Only £4m out in transfers, here's where it went:

INs

Ricky Baker SP33a (19), born in Slough - £3.4m from Crystal Palace
Mark Walker SP33b (18), born in Aylesbury - £650k from Leeds



Only two players brought in during this transfer window - one with an eye to the future and one to fill a gap.  We only had one left back in the whole squad after a couple of departures in that position, so SP33b is brought in as backup there.  He must have some kind of potential, as Leeds wanted £1.1m and two of our players for me to sign him, but I managed to talk them down to £650k and a 40% sell on clause.

OUTs

Augustine Mumuni, Leon Warren, Neil Pearson, Nils Edenfield, Michael Saunders, Andy Burgess, James Wright, Dennis Herbert - released at end of contract
James Parkes - £4.7m to Hibernian
Danny Scott - £83k to Merstham
Carl Jefcoate - £2.3k to Leicester
Jaydn Chapman - £5.5m to Bournemouth
Leandro de Jong - £625k to Kilmarnock
Matt Francis - £43.5k to Cheltenham
Faouzi Afkir - £2.2m to Dundee Utd
Chris Clark - £9m to Hull
Richard Carlsson - £7m to Real Sociedad
Tony Wheatley - £250k to Leeds

Total Income - £29.4m

Quite a substantial list of departures but we now have a much more balanced, and much younger, squad although it would have been much better if we could have held on to Chris Clark and Richard Carlsson.  I have absolutely no idea how I managed to hold on to right back Louis Smillie, as Arsenal, Chelsea, Man Utd, Man City, Stoke, Tottenham, West Brom and West Ham were all in for him over the summer.  I wasn't happy with their offers around the £5m mark, for a guy I consider to be one of our best players and certainly our best prospect.  He spent last season out on loan but this year will be in our first team, and has just signed a new 5 year contract to ward off any interest.

STAFF



In our first few games in August, I've already given 5 players their Reading debut.  Hopefully that will continue as this side gets younger!

FIRST TEAM SQUAD

Goalkeepers

Komi Klomegan TOG (28) - 3.5CA/PA, first choice 'keeper with Premier League experience, should get a few years out of him.
Mike French ENG (28) - 2.5CA/PA, second choice and should also be here for a while.
Verdict:  Late twenties, but not old enough to hit the panic button just yet.

Right Back

Roberto Ionut ROU (30) - 3CA/PA, rotates with Smillie.
Louis Smillie ENG (19) - 3CA, 5PA, the youngster is a machine and can also play at centre back and RM. 
Verdict:  We're quite strong here, with a couple of lads in the U23s ready to go if Ionut retires anytime soon.

Left Back

Nicky Makaay NED (25) - 2.5CA/PA.  First choice.
Mark Walker SP33b ENG (18) - 1.5CA, 3.5PA.  Has had a few games already (largely owing to stupid red cards for Makaay) and will hopefully develop well.
Verdict:  We need a bit of quality in here, hopefully something will come up or Walker will improve.

Centre Backs/Sweepers

Carlos Mas ESP (31) - 3CA/PA.  Had to batter away hundreds of offers for him in the summer.  I would have sold given his age and ability, but we don't have the numbers in this area to have that luxury.
Danijel Vukmanovic SRB (24) - 2.5CA, 3PA.  Not much time but will hopefully reach his potential.
Matthew Briggs ENG (22) - 3CA, 3.5PA, first choice and hopefully still has time to improve.
Verdict:  We're okay in this area but I could do with a youngster with serious potential.  We have a couple of guys in the U23s but they're not going to make waves I think.

Right Midfielders/Wingers

James Reed ENG (30) - 4CA/PA, our expensive elderly statesman.  I would have tried to sell him in the summer if he wasn't our best player...
Joakin Svensson SWE (22) - 3CA, 3.5PA, not exactly the same quality, but not far off it and we at least have a replacement if I do decide to get Reed's wages off our budget.
Verdict:  This is a strong area and we don't need to improve here soon, unless Reed is sold.

Left Midfielders/Wingers

Steve French IRL (23) - 3.5CA, 4PA, first choice.
Jeremy Mariotti FRA (20) - 2.5CA, 4.5PA. Will develop into a star.
Verdict:  This is a strong, and young, area of the team and we won't need to think about bringing anyone in here for a while.

Defensive and Central Midfield

Charis Efstathiou CYP (31) - 3CA/PA, rotation option and on the road to retirement.
Jurgen Bakker NED (24) - 3CA/PA, will play mostly at CD as I'm not using defensive midfielders at the moment.
Mario Anzures USA (28) - 3CA/PA, rotation option.
Srdjan Petrovic SRB (24) - 3CA/PA, rotation option.
James Maher ENG (19) - 4PA, backup.
Les Butterfield ENG (19) - 4PA, backup.
Verdict:  This is a crowded area, but with some logic.  The Cypriot isn't likely to get a lot of game time as I'll prioritise developing the younger guys.  I don't consider anyone here a 'first choice'.  Anzures and Petrovic play most of the time, while Maher and Butterfield drop in to replace them when needed.

Attacking Midfielders

Michael Polley ENG (31) - 4CA/PA, one of our best players.
Mufit Bayraktar NED (31) - 3CA/PA, backup option.
Verdict:  This is a strong area but these guys aren't going to last much more than two or three seasons.  This is a priority area for getting players in, especially as I'd like to play strikerless again.

Strikers

Scott Thorndike ENG (30) - 3.5CA/PA.  Our EFL Cup hat trick hero and first choice striker.
Moses Frimpong ENG (22) - 3PA.  Regularly subbed on.
Martin Penn ENG (17) - 5PA. Will give this guy as much game time as possible as he looks to be a serious star of the future.
Verdict:  This is a strong area.  Frimpong probably won't ever be more than a backup, hopefully the timing will work out well with Thorndike's retirement and allow Penn to come straight into the first team.  I'm happy to keep Frimpong on after that as well.  

As you can see, there has been a huge amount of work done this summer.  I'm looking forward to this season, and it looks like we won't have to make too many changes from here on.  

[ManUtd1]

Glad to see you settling in at Reading, especially given that Ipswich wasn't quite doing it for you!  I figure you're good for promotion.

[mjaferrie]

On 15/03/2017 at 05:05, ManUtd1 said:

Glad to see you settling in at Reading, especially given that Ipswich wasn't quite doing it for you!  I figure you're good for promotion.

It would appear that I wasn't quite doing it for Ipswich either, halfway through the season and they're in the top 6 Update to follow at the end of the January window...!  Sorry for being slow these past few days, I got excited about 17.3 and the editor.

[mjaferrie]

Mid Season and January Transfer Update

We're into February 2050, and we're in some form!



We're had six total defeats in the league so far, including that one against Norwich back in August, but apart from 5-2 and 4-1 hammerings by Preston and Hull we have been pretty close in all the others.  Our excellent form puts us second in the league to Crystal Palace, who are ahead of us by 10 goals difference.



Thankfully, the chaos surrounding job rumours has calmed down and I haven't been considered the top candidate for any roles since joining Reading.  Don't know what that says about me, or Reading, but I'm happy to be settled in a role for now!   In the FA Cup, we have just played against Plymouth in the 4th round, securing a 2-0 victory after we progressed against Premier League side Everton in the 3rd round.  Everton have been up and down between the leagues a lot in this save, so I wouldn't really consider that too much of a scalp considering our own yo-yoing between the divisions, but it's nice to know we can get a result against the 'bigger' teams.  In the EFL Cup, we have certainly been doing that!  We beat Premier League sides Arsenal, Middlesbrough and Barnsley on the way to the EFL Cup Final where we will play Manchester City.  A huge game for us in my first season at Reading as I have the opportunity to claim the first bit of silverware in England since that Championship win with Nottingham Forest all those years ago!



In a departure from our normal January window proceedings - I've signed some players!  Well... it's not quite 38 guys Czeching in to our first team, but rather 2 youngsters going into the rotation option category.  Farnham born Micky Davies and Newbury born Neil Evans will hopefully be here for a while!

[mjaferrie]

EFL Cup Final and Youth Intake Day!

After our sensational run to the final this year, we gave it everything against Manchester City.  Were it not for two late goals from French and Polley though, this would have been a bit more embarrassing.  



Runners up this time round, in our first final since I came back to England.  The future looks bright at Reading though, if we keep getting intakes like this: (I forgot to tag the players before taking the screenshots, but they're YP33_).









Complete with a Batman logo moustache...

[BoxToBox]

Pearson is an odd one, lot of potential, but will require some work developing no matter what you choose to do with him.

[Mark Heath]

incredible career so far, am really enjoying following this story, amazing cup run. hope you can get promoted this season

[mjaferrie]

19 hours ago, BoxToBox said:

Pearson is an odd one, lot of potential, but will require some work developing no matter what you choose to do with him.

Yeah it's a question.  Excellent technique/crossing/first touch for a winger, but then ***** dribbling/passing/workrate...  Doesn't really have the mentals for a playmaker either.  Only 15 though so plenty of time to develop him!  At the moment I've got Michael Polley (18 determination) tutoring him to get that crucial stat up a bit.  
 

19 hours ago, Mark Heath said:

incredible career so far, am really enjoying following this story, amazing cup run. hope you can get promoted this season

Thanks for Reading! (sorry...)

[mjaferrie]

Season Review 2049/50!

At the end of the season, it was a two-horse race for the top two spots with early season leaders Crystal Palace falling off the pace and dropping 7 points behind.  After a thirteen game unbeaten run in the league we were top of the table by 2 points, but a penultimate clash against relegated side Bournemouth saw us taste defeat for the first time since February.  This meant we dropped into 2nd place by one point heading into the final game of the season.  A 3-1 victory over Swindon Town, with two classy goals from Moses Frimpong, meant we did everything we could - but this year the title wasn't to be ours.  A 2nd place finish means we are promoted though!  The Premier League beckons!  What about the winners of this seasons Championship, the tortoise to our hare, who stole our title at the last stretch?

Ipswich Town.  ****ing Ipswich.  The squad I assembled over the last couple of years, with the addition of £7.5m of spending and some loans from the Premier League, win the Championship title a year after I left them for Reading.  What a massive middle finger to me for daring to leave them for a 'better prospect at promotion'!  I suppose I absolutely deserve it!   I'm looking forward to absolutely trashing them in next year's Premier League!



End of Season Departures

Mark Richards, Richard Lewis - released at end of contract

Only the two players leaving us at the end of this season.  On the staff front, there's going to be a pretty extensive overhaul, so I'll update about that in the future!

Top 5 Young Players of the Season (Players 21 and under at the beginning of the season)
Jeremy Mariotti - Age 21, Appearances: 1(3); Goals: 0; Assists: 1; Av. Rating: 7.20
Louis Smillie - Age 19, Appearances: 45(1); Goals: 1; Assists: 2; Av. Rating: 6.98
Brad Greene - Age 20, Appearances: 2(21); Goals: 3; Assists: 1; Av. Rating: 6.95
Neil Evans SP33d - Age 20, Appearances: 0(3); Goals: 0; Assists: 0; Av. Rating: 6.90

Only the four players making it onto the list this year, we're going to have to get to work decreasing the age of our squad.

Season  |          Club           |     Nation    |         League         |   Position  | Other  
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2016-27 |         Celtic          |    Scotland   | Scottish Division One  |   10x 1st   | 7 Glasgow Cups, 6 League Cups, 4 Scottish Cup, 2 Europa Leagues (2018 and 2022), Champions League 2026, Club World Championship 2027, Resigned in December 2026.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2026-28 |    Nottingham Forest    |    England    |  Sky Bet Championship  |  14th, 1st  | Joined with 8 games remaining in season 2026/27.
2028-31 | Nottingham Forest/Wales |    England    | English Premier League |  13th, 16th | Resigned in the middle of 2030/31.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2031-34 |  Shamrock Rovers/Wales  |    Ireland    | Irish Premier Division | 3x 2nd, 1st | 2 Leinster Cups, 2 Senior Challenge Cups, President's Cup
2035-38 |     Shamrock Rovers     |    Ireland    | Irish Premier Division |   3x 1st    | 3 Leinster Cups, 2 Senior Challenge Cups, 3 League Cups, 4 President's Cups. Resigned as Wales manager in 2035. Sacked in the middle of season 2038.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2038/39 | Cardiff Met. University |     Wales     |  Welsh Premier League  |     1st     | JD Welsh Cup, Nathaniel MG Cup, resigned at end of season.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2039/40 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     3rd     | League Cup
2040/41 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     3rd     | n.a.
2041/42 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     3rd     | n.a.
2042/43 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     2nd     | League Cup
2043/44 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     1st     | Northern Irish Cup
2044/45 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     2nd     | n.a.
2045/46 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     1st     | League Cup, Northern Irish Cup
2046/47 |        Linfield         |   N. Ireland  |    Danske Bank Prem.   |     1st     | League Cup, Northern Irish Cup, Co. Antrim Shield
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2047/48 |      Ipswich Town       |    England    |  Sky Bet Championship  |     9th     | Signed in November
2048/49 |      Ipswich Town       |    England    |  Sky Bet Championship  |    10th     | n.a.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2049/50 |         Reading         |    England    |  Sky Bet Championship  |     2nd     | Promoted!

[thehazeofspades]

23 minutes ago, mjaferrie said:

Yeah it's a question.  Excellent technique/crossing/first touch for a winger, but then ***** dribbling/passing/workrate...  Doesn't really have the mentals for a playmaker either.  Only 15 though so plenty of time to develop him!  At the moment I've got Michael Polley (18 determination) tutoring him to get that crucial stat up a bit.  
 

Thanks for Reading! (sorry...)

It isn't even pronounced like that  

[mjaferrie]

Just now, thehazeofspades said:

It isn't even pronounced like that  

Yeah yeah... I'm doing the best with what I've got here man

[mjaferrie]

Woah!  Absolute chaos in the south of England!

First of all, West Ham's manager Sam Rose retired from management at the age of 64.  This then hit the headlines:



The media asked me about the job, and I said that I'd be interested in managing at such a big side - West Ham are nowadays a perennial top 4 side in England.  I didn't mean at all that I wanted that particular job right this very second, but apparently my board weren't having any of it!



Effectively telling the board to go **** themselves after what I saw as a lack of support after getting the club straight back to the Premier League may have cost me my job at Reading... Sacked for the second time in this save!



So off I went to London for an interview at the London Stadium, and...



Pastures new!  After all the talk of finally finding a place to settle in England, I've been sacked and moved on after a single year.  Incredible scenes!  

[BoxToBox]

56 minutes ago, mjaferrie said:

Yeah yeah... I'm doing the best with what I've got here man

Don't worry, Ipswich what you were going for.

[mjaferrie]

Part Eight - Getting to Wembley is Nothing



What an absolute mess over the last couple of days!  Sacked by Reading, and I find myself relocating to Stratford with West Ham United.  The Hammers have been in the top four for the last few seasons, and even came 2nd to Manchester City a few years back, and my task here will be to stop their dominance in English football - The Citizens have only missed out on the English title 9 times in the last 25 seasons!

In terms of trophies, we haven't won the Premier League during this save-time - in fact we only came as high as second in that one season a few years back.  We have lifted the Europa League on three occasions however, in 2024/24, 2041/42 (after which we also lifted the Super Cup, beating Atletico Madrid) and 2045/46.  Our best result in the Champions League has been three semi-final appearances, while back on the domestic front we have two FA Cups to our name.  We haven't lifted the EFL Cup at all during this save, and despite qualifying for the Community Shield twice on the back of our FA Cup wins we lost out on both occasions.  That will hopefully be the first trophy of my career in London though, as we qualify thanks to last season's FA Cup success.

One major decision since moving to London is to scrap the career-defining rule of this save.  The 30 mile limit is hereby gone!  At least, it will be gone for the duration of my time in London.  I spent the day thinking long and hard about that decision, but with the bonus of being physically located in London I felt that signing quality players would be too much easier than it has been in the past.  Therefore, I've decided to role with @R7Now's suggestion and will be choosing a single-nationality only transfer policy.  I have a few National team applications in the post, as with it being 2050 we have a World Cup and the inevitable sacking season that follows, so the transfers will become clear after that!  Here's some info about the club as it is in 2050!



As you can see, we have Superb facilities and top notch stats for the youth development side of things as well - so these are going to be a big focus for the future.  We are still at the 66,000 seated London Stadium though, and the romantic in me would like to see us invest in our own stadium.



Here we can clearly see West Ham's steady rise over the last twenty years, it seems like the lack of title success is a major disappointment.  The media predict us to equal last season's 3rd place finish - and anything less than the top four would be a disaster.



It may only be the first day at the office, but I am a bit concerned about only having £53m in the bank.  I know right!  I must be joking... But let's think about that for a second:
£shitloads from TV + £shitloads for top 4 finishes + £shitloads for European progress = £morethan53m... right?  This belies to me at least a pretty hefty outlay in terms of wage bill and transfer spending over the last few years - and when I look at the squad?  8 players on more than £150k per week, four of whom are 31+ and at least 2 of whom are not going to be featuring in the squad.  I need to have a serious think about this, where should our wage structure lie, and adopting a sensible transfer policy that focuses on making the most of our fantastic facilities.

To wrap it all up though... we're back in the Champions League!!!!

[mjaferrie]

An update on the direction we may be taking in terms of signings...

[mjaferrie]

Aagh!  What do I do?!  



Edit:  I'm gonna save the game, go and make some coffee and let the people sing!  I mean decide!

Who would you like to see me take over at an international level? (Sweden are offering £4.8k a week to Spain's £115k...)

[mjaferrie]

I've narrowed it down a bit.  For me, this save is about restoring former glory to sides with a history in European football.  Therefore, Mexico and the USA are out.  If we're talking former glories, then Spain also have to be off this list, having won three of their last 5 major trophies IRL.

France is a question mark - is 1998/2000 long ago enough to count as 'former glory'?
Sweden - a 1958 runners up medal in the World Cup the closest they've got?
Holland - my favourite of the three... their '88 win over the Soviet Union in the Euros certainly ticks the boxes for me.

[BoxToBox]

Holland are probably the closest to what you're doing with club sides.

[mjaferrie]

1 hour ago, BoxToBox said:

Holland are probably the closest to what you're doing with club sides.

It's the 17th of July, so I've got about a month and a half to sort out a few transfers

[ManUtd1]

West Ham?  Our saves collide!  You really should have tried to play us, straight up, in the CL final, man.

Good luck in the new pastures! 

[mjaferrie]

10 hours ago, ManUtd1 said:

West Ham?  Our saves collide!  You really should have tried to play us, straight up, in the CL final, man.

Good luck in the new pastures! 

We're the new Arsenal man, what can I say.  Specialists in failure.  My first result as WHU manager?



Pathetic.  

"I tried to convince them in all the meetings we had to come here, try to attack and score," said Guardi... Ferrie.

 "My mistake was being not able to convince them to do that.".....

On the Dutch front though, we had an affiliate set up with VVV-Venlo already and I've managed to negotiate with the board in order to:



Hopefully we'll start getting some top Dutch youngsters coming through our ranks!  My favourite addition in FM17 (this morning).

[mjaferrie]

Season Preview 2050/51!

A nice round number to start off a new career at West Ham United.  The last couple of seasons have been a bit of a farce, seeing me move to my third club in four seasons in England.  It's been the fastest career shifting since the Welsh stint, but unfortunately not for those trophy laden reasons.  All I have to show for 4/5 years at Forest, two at Ipswich and one at Reading is a single Sky Bet Championship trophy, and it's time to end that drought in England.  A 3-1 loss to Manchester City didn't exactly kick off the season in the way we'd have hoped, but we've certainly improved over the course of August with some excellent signings.



We learned our lessons and went to Bozek Park (Manchester City's 81,250 seater stadium named after club legend Pawel Bozek, a Polish newgen striker who made his name at FC Lorient before moves to Barcelona, Newcastle and eventually a 7 year stint with City to finish his career aged 37) with a more defensive mindset - a tactical shift that saw us claim a point from the Champions.  A narrow 1-0 victory over Tottenham showed signs of some kind of tactical know-how developing, and a fantastic win to round off the month suggests we may have a team on our hands!

With the move away from 30-mile signing policies, and going back to international management after a fated spell with Wales earlier in this save, I decided it was time for a tactical shake up too and we'll be using the same formation with both club and country.  Note that the RCD should also be a BPD-d, and Laurent and Improta should be swapped over.




In terms of player roles, I've got the keeper distributing to my centre backs.  I've also got the AP and CF moving into the channels. 

Inspired by Martin O'Neill's Celtic side of the early 00's, there were a few things I was looking for.

• A solid back three, with a powerful Bobo Balde figure in the middle - Laurent is perfect for this role at 193cm and 20 strength.
• An Alan Thompson-esque LWB - a retrained midfielder, always looking to get forward.  In 32yr old Jaime we have the perfect fit.  Meanwhile on the right, a Didier Agathe generally staying a bit further back than the left wing.
• A Paul Lambert at RCM, to protect the defensive line and a Neil Lennon accompanying him in the middle of the park, looking to play the ball.
• A front three of a deeper Henrik Larsson finding space, a target-man-ish Chris Sutton figure, and a Stiliyan Petrov behind them looking to move into the channels.  

Going forward, this is giving me 3-4-3, a 3-2-5, a 3-3-4, plenty of options depending on the attacking situation.  When we lose the ball, the back three are solid, with Laurent looking to clean up any loose balls behind, and frequently our RWB forms a sort of diamond with the midfielders.  If we are facing a ball-playing team, we are defensively sound.

The weakness for us is playing against a team who look to launch fast counter attacks down the flanks.  The diamond I mentioned means that the right hand side of our team are solid, and with our RWB generally occupying a deeper role then the space doesn't open up there.  On the left hand side though, we are frequently caught out with Jaime too high up the pitch to track back and defend effectively.  In this case, the midfield roles are switched, so that I have the defence-minded midfielder covering that area of the pitch.

So hopefully that gives you an idea of the philosophy and tactical style I'm working on in London and with Holland!  Another defining aspect of the Martin O'Neill era was the heavy spending on established players.  Chris Sutton and John Hartson joined Celtic for £6m apiece, and hold the joint record for Celtic's highest transfer outlay, with Neil Lennon's £5.75m fee just a shade behind.  The days of major outlay at Celtic are over IRL with the club taking a more youth-driven approach since the appointment of Peter Lawwell as chief executive (although Brendan Rodgers has claimed he wouldn't have a problem with breaking the club's transfer record for the right player) - but in the money-driven English Premier League?  Why not!  Here are my Dutch-only transfers this summer:

INs

Mitchell van de Beek SP34a (31) - £2.7m from Atletico Madrid
Leon Groenendaal SP34b (22) - £14m from Atletico Madrid
Roel Broekhuizen SP34c (30) - £230k from Atletico Madrid
Martin Constancia SP34d (34) - Free, unattached
Jos Nijholt SP34e (29) - £17m from West Brom

34 year old Constancia is much older than I would have preferred, but with the £20.5m departure of Chris Wood to Reading (I actually made that signing before the whole job malarkey) I needed a backup goalkeeper.  He comes with the added bonus of being home-grown in England, as after coming through the Feyenoord ranks he moved to Manchester City and then Liverpool.  The Reds released him this season but he can still do a job!



Meanwhile, Nijolt also comes with home-grown status as he spent his entire career at West Brom, he's a great option at LWB and will replace Jaime very soon.

OUTs

I made the decision to let 15 players leave on a free transfer, as they were cluttering up the youth squads and I want to start developing players seriously here.  Only two players leave us permanently for a fee - Paul Jones (DM) to Leeds and Moreira (CD) to Nottingham Forest for £73k and £14.25m respectively.

On the staff front, there has been a complete overhaul of my backroom team, with a new HOYD, ten scouts, seven coaches and two physios coming in the door.  Only a fitness coach and HOYD head the other way.  

Here we go into our first season at West Ham United.  Back in the Premier League, and back in the Champions League!

[R7Now]

Ah, delightful! Dutch in England should be fun, and whilst I think trying to win the Premier with only Americans would be super fun, it would also be near impossible. Happy trails ahead!

[mjaferrie]

14 hours ago, R7Now said:

Ah, delightful! Dutch in England should be fun, and whilst I think trying to win the Premier with only Americans would be super fun, it would also be near impossible. Happy trails ahead!

I was so tempted to go for the US!  But I felt like it wouldn't really make sense in the context of this save... Dutch-only in a British and Irish save is already pretty questionable

Here's a more defensive version of the tactic I'm going for, from www.tictactic.co.uk - their website is down at the moment so I'll have to wait a bit to go into the analysis on that one.  I'll be working on this over the coming season as well.  You can see, though, that it's pretty much the same as what I'm already using with a few noticeable differences - Larsson/Sutton reversed, Lennon and Petrov (McNamara) dropping into deeper positions and Agathe taking up a more attacking role (albeit from a deeper starting position) than in cases with Thompson on the left.