"Keep the ball out of one end...and stick it in the other!"

[smp20]

Real Management Begins at 50...

 

 

Arsenal legend Tony Adams has been appointed head coach of Spanish top-flight side Granada until the end of the season. On the face of it, giving Adams - whose previous managerial experience amounts to ill-fated spells in charge of Wycombe, Portsmouth and Azerbaijani side Gabala - the task of saving La Liga's 19th-placed club from relegation seems a strange decision. But, as Spanish football writer Andy West explains, the appointment is a more logical one than it might first appear.

Adams a La Liga manager - how has that happened?

 

Although Adams' elevation to manager of La Liga strugglers Granada looks extremely bizarre, upon closer inspection it makes a reasonable amount of sense. Granada are owned by Chinese businessman Jiang Lizhang (often referred to as John Jiang), also the part-owner of NBA basketball team the Minnesota Timberwolves, who bought the Andalusian club last summer from Italian entrepreneur Gino Pozzo. Adams is a vice-president of Jiang Lizhang's DDMC Football Club Management Company, and last year he had a spell in China as sporting director for the Chinese Super League team which is owned by DDMC, Chongqing Dangdai Lifan.

After leaving China, Adams moved to Spain midway through the current season, working in a similar role for Granada with the aim of helping Jiang Lizhang construct his plans for the club's long-term future. So, Adams already had a strong personal involvement at Granada as the chief advisor on all footballing matters to the club's owner. And when the position of Granada manager Lucas Alcaraz became untenable after Sunday's 3-1 home defeat by Valencia, in many ways Adams was the logical choice to deepen his role by becoming a part-time interim coach before, assumedly, the appointment of a long-term successor in the summer.

What kind of club is he taking over?

It's obvious that Granada have been deeply mired in a painful 'transitional period' since last year's takeover by Jiang Lizhang. But in fact, the instability at the club goes back much further because former owner Pozzo - who is also in charge of Watford and Udinese - based his recruitment strategy upon an endless recycling of players between his three clubs. Although that strategy helped earn Granada promotion into the top flight in 2011 and has kept them (just) in the top division ever since, it is hardly an ideal recipe for long-term success when most of your best players are either on loan from - or destined to join - one of the owner's other clubs.

Regular changes on the bench also pre-date the Jiang Lizhang era, with Adams becoming not only the club's third manager of the current season but also their seventh in just over three years. Interestingly, Adams criticised the approach of the previous regime during a recent interview about his then-advisory Granada role on the club's official website, explaining: "We inherited 106 players, of whom only 44 actually belong to Granada.

"Our aim is to return Granada [Football Club] to Granada so the people here can identify fully with their team and their players.

"I'm here to put the Spanish structure in place, with players who will belong to Granada CF and who will fight for Granada."

Now he'll be putting that structure in place from a lot more close-up than he probably initially envisaged.

Does he have any chance of keeping them up?

Realistically, Granada have very little chance of staying up.

Sunday's defeat against Valencia left them eight points adrift of safety, with just seven games remaining and only one point gained from their last six outings. Granada will probably need to win at least four of their remaining games to have any chance of survival and, as their upcoming opponents include Real Madrid, Sevilla and fierce local rivals Malaga, that's a major ask. However, they do have a kind run-in, with the final two games coming away to bottom-placed Osasuna, who will almost certainly already be relegated by then, and mid-table Espanyol, who will have nothing to play for.

If Adams can even extend Granada's season that long it will be regarded as a big success, and an awful lot will depend on his first game in charge: at home to Celta Vigo on Sunday evening. Celta are the perfect opponents for Adams' La Liga debut. The Galician team's league campaign has more or less ground to a halt while they focus their energies on the Europa League, and their trip to Granada is sandwiched between the first and second legs of their quarter-final meeting with Genk. Adams, therefore, is highly likely to face a virtual reserve team when Celta come to Granada next weekend, giving him a wonderful opportunity to make a flying start. If he doesn't, it will probably be curtains.

Could this turn into a permanent role?

It would make much more sense for Adams' new role to be a temporary one, buying some time while the club makes longer-term plans for next season and beyond. Certainly, Adams being named permanent manager would not fit very well with the 'Spanish structure' he spoke about in his interview last month. And until today, everything Adams had said about his role at Granada suggested that he was happy to take a backroom director's role rather than holding ambitions to become first-team manager, and that remains the most likely scenario beyond the current season.

But considering his strong relationship with the club's owner, of course he could end up getting the job on a permanent basis. If he has success in the next few weeks, Adams may acquire a taste for the dugout, and he may convince decision-maker Jiang Lizhang that he is the right man to lead the team's bid to return to top-flight football. This, after all, is that most illogical of businesses… football. So don't rule anything out.

 

 

[smp20]

So, after shamelessly stealing my opening post from BBC, here's the plan for the save. Well that's it, there isn't one really...

I'm now taking on the role of Tony Adams, newly appointed Granada boss. The aim is to forge out a career with Tony Adams - he's going to get the bug for being in the dugout. I'm going to manage it realistically. I've got masking on, I won't be using player search (scouts will be very important) and I won't be using any of my tried and tested tactics. I will be making it up as I go along.

I've downloaded a database that has the real world results as of today (11th April) of England (top 3 leagues), France (2), Germany (2), Spain (2), Italy (1), Holland (1). I've added in some other leagues that start in Feb/Mar/Apr 2017 for good measure - China, Brazil, Belarus, Finland, Norway, Sweden, South Korea and Iceland.

More to follow, but here's a peak at Adams' profile:

[BoxToBox]

This should be fun, good luck!

[ManUtd1]

Very interesting, and should prove good fun (even if we're just cracking jokes at Adams' expense...)!

[Lenzar]

Will the ultimate goal to be to give Big Tone a glorious reunion with Arsenal?

[Keano16]

Interesting idea, like the realistic database too.

[smp20]

16 hours ago, BoxToBox said:

This should be fun, good luck!

Thanks, I think I will need a dose of luck.

14 hours ago, ManUtd1 said:

Very interesting, and should prove good fun (even if we're just cracking jokes at Adams' expense...)!

I hope so and I also expect jokes at Tony's expense...

4 hours ago, Lenzar said:

Will the ultimate goal to be to give Big Tone a glorious reunion with Arsenal?

Now that would certainly be something! If Adam's retires at 65, that gives me 15 years to work up towards being the new Arsenal manager. Doable. Then again there's nothing stopping him from going well into his 70s...

1 hour ago, Keano16 said:

Interesting idea, like the realistic database too.

Thanks, I stumbled across it and I just jumped at the chance. Should be good fun!

[smp20]

I'm away from my laptop at the moment, but last night I managed to get through the rest of the season, taking lots of screenshots. I will break it into monthly updates

[noikeee]

17 hours ago, smp20 said:

I've downloaded a database that has the real world results as of today (11th April) of England (top 3 leagues), France (2), Germany (2), Spain (2), Italy (1), Holland (1)

Wait... this is a thing? How is this possible? The game starts at 11 April?

Good luck!

[BoxToBox]

16 minutes ago, noikeee said:

Wait... this is a thing? How is this possible? The game starts at 11 April?

Good luck!

Sortitoutsi does one, it's pretty awesome. You can pick any day, too, doesn't have to be the very most recent day.

[smp20]

4 hours ago, noikeee said:

Wait... this is a thing? How is this possible? The game starts at 11 April?

Good luck!

 

3 hours ago, BoxToBox said:

Sortitoutsi does one, it's pretty awesome. You can pick any day, too, doesn't have to be the very most recent day.

Spot on, I stumbled across it and found it very interesting! Thanks guys.

[smp20]

April 2017 Update - Staff

First and foremost, I will start with the backroom changes. With the exception of my old assistant no one was let go, just filling some spaces.

Javi Garcia is a club icon and it's good to have someone in the dugout who knows the club inside out. He'll be a great link between the players, fans and my management team.

David is someone I know well from my playing days at Arsenal and with England. He's a great attacking coach and he's used to working abroad - his last stint was managing Pune in India while he played in Italy for many different clubs.

Phil will be helping me sort my defence out and after a stint with Valencia he already knows the league and the language. I've also enticed goalkeeping coach Xavi Valero back to Spain after his stint in China.

 

 

[smp20]

April 2017 Update - Important Players

Barca loanee Samper is arguably our best outfield player. He's a player who will control the midfield possession, though he's not much of a fighter.

Ochoa is a fantastic experienced goalkeeper, it's just a shame that he's not a player we will be able to keep. Nevertheless, he'll be key in these last 7 games.

Franck can play anywhere down the left and he's a decent all rounder. However, his defensive ability worries me.

Uche is a Granada grown player who transferred to affiliate Watford. I do like a grafter.

Ruben is a technically gifted centre back with great composure. Good all round physically, I can see him being important for us.

Adrian will be our first choice striker. He's a battler with pace, though he lack finishing prowess.

David is one of a short-list of players that actually belongs to the club and he's not out on loan elsewhere. He will partner Vezo in the centre of defence and he'll be our captain.

Every team needs a creator and for us it will be Kone.

Overall the squad isn't bad, but there's a lack of togetherness. It's time to get to the training ground and drill our defence. 

[smp20]

April 2017 Update - Results & Tactics

I've had only a few days to work with the side before our first match. On the training ground we've worked intensively on our defensive positioning and this will continue throughout the campaign. We need to be hard to break down and I know how to drill a defence. We're going to play on the counter, getting two banks of 4 behind the ball with a DM covering the midfield bank for good measure. From our defensive position, we're going to press and get stuck in. We're in for a battle. Attack wise we're keeping it simple. I don't want to waste possession at the back, but I want to get the ball into space quickly. We will attack in waves, using a dynamic midfield and supporting wing backs.

First Match - Celta Vigo

Everything went to plan in our first game! We created three good chances and we limited Celta - a lot of their efforts were from long. We were a little wasteful in front of goal, but I'm very happy with a 1-0 win. That clean sheet is vital.

Andalusian Derby: Sevilla

An incredibly even game. Almost identical match stats. I'm very happy with this point.

Andalusian Derby: Malaga

A fantastic win against one of our biggest rivals. We end April on a high, 2 wins, a draw, no losses and just one goal conceded.

La Liga Table

We're up to within 3 points from safety, a dramatic improvement. However, the bad news is that Sporting and Leganes are both ahead of us on head-to-head. We've also got a tricky run in to the season:

We're in a much better position, but the trip to Sociedad and tie against Real Madrid could put us onto the backfoot again.

[smp20]

May 2017 Update

We kicked off May with a solid result and a clean sheet away from home. Though judging from the match stats, we had the better opportunities and really should have put one home for  3 points.

vs Real Madrid

When you compare the line ups it was always going to be tough to come away with any points and Kone made it impossible after his straight red early on in the game. Real romped to inflict the first defeat in my tenure.

vs Relegated Osasuna

We really needed to win here and we managed to do so, though we made hard work of it! 4 points from 3 games isn't so bad, where did it leave us?

Going into the final game

We go into the final game level on points with Leganes, therefore we need to better their result. They're facing mid-table Alaves while we face Euro-chasing Espanyol.

And it all comes to... 

....an abrupt end . Judging by the stats we were really unlucky to lose this game. We bottled it in front of goal. The only saving grace is that even if we had won, we would still have been relegated. Leganes beat Alaves,

Results & Table Overview

We ended up relegated, but we put up a fight. We were unbeaten in our first 4 games but ended up with a 3-2-2 record. The highlight of the season was the win against our rivals Malaga, while being thumped at home to Real left us shaky at the back for the remainder of the season.

Barcelona won 10-0 against Eibar in their final match to clinch the title - all of the big 3 finished strong. Real Madrid will rue their loss against Sporting Gijon.

I've managed to convince my good friend Lizhang Jiang to keep me on for another season, but I know the pressure will be on for us to bounce straight back. I believe that I'm the man to lead Granada back to La Liga. I've got the bug for this managing malarkey.

Player Stats

Player ratings were pretty average overall. Our defence, particularly our centre backs, did well while our forward weren't up to the standard required at all.

Player of the Season - David Lomban

I needed a leader at the back and David provided that. He was strong in the tackle and in the air, while adding two goals at the other end. 

 

 

[smp20]

A glance at Europe's top leagues

Premier League

Bundesliga

Ligue 1

Serie A

Liga NOS

 

[noikeee]

Gah, so close.

So this is over or are you continuing trying to reshape the club in the Liga Adelante?

[smp20]

19 hours ago, noikeee said:

Gah, so close.

So this is over or are you continuing trying to reshape the club in the Liga Adelante?

It was close, just not close enough . I'm continuing on with Granada, looking to rebuild in the 2nd tier. Will do a pre-season update soon 

[smp20]

https://www.theguardian.com/football/2017/apr/14/tony-adams-manager-granada-winston-wolfe?CMP=share_btn_tw

It looks like Adams is copying the 4-1-4-1 from me

[smp20]

Looks like I've made a bit of an error...when I set up up the game I must have set first window budgets off. As I started in April, this means that there are no budgets for summer 2017...I can't sign freebies unless there are no agent/sign on fees. I will have to go with the squad I've got plus a loan or two until January.

[smp20]

 

[Keano16]

Whatever that was it didn't work, they got smacked 3-0!

[Benjoe]

On 16/4/2017 at 18:45, smp20 said:

Looks like I've made a bit of an error...when I set up up the game I must have set first window budgets off. As I started in April, this means that there are no budgets for summer 2017...I can't sign freebies unless there are no agent/sign on fees. I will have to go with the squad I've got plus a loan or two until January.

That's a bummer. But good luck in Adelante. Hopefully Adams can bring things into order next season. Shame how this one ended.

[ManUtd1]

Brutal to go down on the last day, after making such a good push. I've no doubt that you'll do well in the second tier.

[smp20]

10 hours ago, Keano16 said:

Whatever that was it didn't work, they got smacked 3-0!

I saw that (and that Adams had copied my 4-5-1) - it seems that by the stats they were a little unlucky. Although they only had 40% possession, they had as many shots, including on target, as Celta. Tony will be fuming.

10 hours ago, Benjoe said:

That's a bummer. But good luck in Adelante. Hopefully Adams can bring things into order next season. Shame how this one ended.

 

8 hours ago, ManUtd1 said:

Brutal to go down on the last day, after making such a good push. I've no doubt that you'll do well in the second tier.

Cheers guys, hopefully I can build some reputation for Adams. Positive reputation.

[smp20]

2017/18 Pre-season Update

Backroom Staff

Sambade and Margallo applied for our goalkeeping and fitness coaching vacancies while Alan Curbishley joins as DOF. Alan is a football man, he knows his stuff. At the present time the board won't allow me to bring any more coaches in - I feel I could do with one more technical minded coach. Myself and Phil will be looking after the defensive and mental sides of the game, Platty works on our attacking side while Javi Garcia is tactically well grounded. I leave the goalkeeping and fitness coaching to the experts.

Transfers

With no transfer budget, I had to make do with what I had once the loan players came back, though I was able to make a few shrewd signings. Faraoni joins us for the season as a complete freebie - we're not paying a penny for him!! Nigel & Kieran had been with us on trial and they've been a great presence on the training ground and in the dressing room - they're battlers and although I don't expect them to start many games they are good squad players. Tammy is a talented youngster with real hunger and desire. He's a grafter, a trait I admire - again he's not a starter but a great player off the bench and 2nd choice option. Lastly, we need more Spaniards so I've brought in ex-Gunner Toral and striker Joselu. I've got high hopes for Joselu to be our key goalscorer. I've got no problem with foreign exports, but you need home-grown players for the fans to feel a connection with the club. This has been a problem for Granada.

Tactics: Arsenal 97/98 Double Winning Side

We ended the 16/17 season with a 4-1-4-1 but it has always been my intention to play 4-4-2, or a variant of it. The system we've been working heavily on in training is based on the Arsenal 97/98 double winning side. There is a great balance between defensive stability and creativity and various ways of getting the ball in the net. The back four or 5 with David behind us, which I captained, was experienced, extremely well drilled and we knew each other inside out. In the second half of the season we had more cover from the midfield and we were fantastic defensively. The following season, 98-99, we conceded just 17 Premier League goals. My knowledge and understanding of how a defensive machine works will be the basis of our success, this Granada team will be drilled defensively until it's all they can think about.

However we can't just defend - we need to stick it in the other end as well. Emmanuel Petit was the defence minded centre-mid while Vieira was a box-to-box type who demanded the ball and controlled the come. On the right, Ray 'Romford Pele' Parlour was an industrious midfielder. He worked his socks off all game. On the other side, Overmars was quick, two footed, a great dribbler and he could cross and score. Bergkamp was the genius of the team, sitting somewhere between midfield and attack pulling the strings. Partnering the non-flying Dutchman was Wrighty or Anelka, who were out-and-out goalscorers.

Seaman - Olazabal

Olazabal is a good keeper for the Adelante. He's determined, reads the game well and is good in the air. Rating: 7.5/10

Second choice: Rui Silva Rating 6/10

Dixon - Tito

Tito is mentally strong, just like Dixon. He's exactly the kind of full-back I like. Rating 8/10

Second Choice: Silvan Widmer Rating 7/10

Bould - Wague

Jury's out as to whether Wague has the mental strength to play the 'Bould' role, but he's a decent all rounder and better physically than Steve. Rating: 7/10

Second choice: Francisco Sierralta Rating: 6/10

Adams - Lomban

Without blowing my own trumpet too much, I was an instrumental part of the side - every team needs a leader. David has proven his leadership credentials already. Rating: 8/10

Second choice: Sverrir Ingason Rating 6.5/10

Winterburn - Foulquier

Foulquier isn't really defence minded enough for this role, and he's right footed. He will be given a chance to prove himself. Rating: 6/10

Second choice: Kieran Richardson Rating 5.5/10

Parlour - Faraoni

Ray was industrious, and while Faraoni is no slacker and is a good all rounder, he's not quite a workhorse. Rating 6.5/10

Second choice: Isaac Cuenca Rating 6/10

Petit - Krhin

Krhin is a good all rounder and capable of performing the Petit role. Rating 7/10

Second choice: Nigel Reo-Coker. Rating 6/10

Vieira - Perez

Ruben is a fine player, though it's always going to be tough to play the Vieira role. He should be able to do it for us. Rating 7.5/10

Second choice: Jon Toral Rating 7/10

Overmars - Carcela

Overmars was essential to the double-winning 97/98 side both as a creator and scorer. I think Mehdi will be our star man. Rating 8.5/10

Second choice: Darwin Machis Rating 7/10

Bergkamp - Atzili

There will never be another player able to play this role like Dennis and I wasn't sure if Omer was up to the job. But he's been the standout player in pre-season. Rating: 7.5/10

Second choice: Sergio Pena Rating 5.5/10

Wright - Joselu

I've got high hopes for Joselu and he's been fantastic in pre-season. Good finisher and he's got good movement too. Rating 8/10

Second choice: Tammy Abraham Rating 7/10

Pre-season Fixtures

We had an excellent pre-season. The first 4 games were all about getting to know the tactic, and we did so without conceding. An outstanding 2-0 win over Sevilla gives us great confidence. Valencia scored in 89 and 90+2 to come back to draw and I was disappointed to concede 3 goals against Maracena.

The pressure is on. But we're confident. La Liga here we come!

[Rikulec]

Unlucky to go down. I feel you can come back at the first time of asking though.

[BoxToBox]

No fear, Granada going straight back up.

[Keano16]

Great preseason and very nice signings for the second division. I like the way you're trying to emulate Arsenal's side which gives you something to work towards tactics wise. Things are looking good to go straight back up.

[smp20]

1 hour ago, Rikulec said:

Unlucky to go down. I feel you can come back at the first time of asking though.

 

1 hour ago, BoxToBox said:

No fear, Granada going straight back up.

 

1 hour ago, Keano16 said:

Great preseason and very nice signings for the second division. I like the way you're trying to emulate Arsenal's side which gives you something to work towards tactics wise. Things are looking good to go straight back up.

Thanks for having the confidence in Adams guys . I do like to emulate real life tactics and the 97/98 season was the first I got into football, as an Arsenal fan, so it's linking nicely for me too.

[smp20]

August 2017 Update

We were the dominant side, but missing a penalty and conceding one left us behind in the match. We managed to get back into the game, with two goals from substitutes Toral and Abraham.

This was a really disappointing result. Elche are our biggest rivals, and we really should have won the match. We were just terrible in front of goal and conceded a sloppy one.

A good win against a Sporting side that got the double over us last season in La Liga, though before my time. Once again, we relied on super-subs to grab the goals.

Segunda Table

We're right up there from the start and I'm confident of staying there. Elsewhere, Sporting, Getafe and Zaragoza (they're bottom on 0 pts) have had terrible starts.

Aug-Sept Results/Fixtures

So far, all of our goals have come from subs. I hope this will change in the near future, we need to dominate games from the off. Though I'm pretty happy with our start, especially conceding less goals than games played. Our next game is against league leaders Valladolid, followed by a cup game. I will be playing as full strength as I can in all of our games.

[oriole01]

Will Ruben Suarez be coming in from Castellon anytime soon? Tony Adams deserves to be sacked if Ruben doesn't get a chance at Granada lol .

[smp20]

27 minutes ago, oriole01 said:

Will Ruben Suarez be coming in from Castellon anytime soon? Tony Adams deserves to be sacked if Ruben doesn't get a chance at Granada lol .

Haha! I'm having him scouted

[oriole01]

1 minute ago, smp20 said:

Haha! I'm having him scouted

Don't you already have a pretty good idea of his abilities though?

[smp20]

September 2017 Update

Results

I've decided I'm not going to screenshot individual matches, unless its a big game. We kicked off September with two 1-0 wins, clean sheets are always good. We then found our scoring boots, putting in 14 goals in our next 3 games. We went 2-0 down early on vs Nastic which I'm not very happy about. We've got a good run of games coming up in October, we should pick up plenty of points on our current form.

Table

We're top of the table on goal difference. Osasuna are breathing down our neck.

Other News

My focus is on the first team, but I see no harm in investing a little in the future.

 

[smp20]

10 minutes ago, oriole01 said:

Don't you already have a pretty good idea of his abilities though?

I do, personally, but Tony Adams doesn't

[smp20]

October 2017 Update

Results

We're really hitting our stride now. We conceded just one goal in 5 games, whilst scoring 12. Free-scroring Tammy Abrahams picked up an injury but Joselu seems to have found his scoring boots. I'm now 20 games into my Granada Tenure and I've got a 75% win percentage. I'm bloody happy. Next month we play in the cup again. Leganes are in La Liga, but I fancy our chances. A ties against Malaga or Cadiz awaits us if we get through.

Table

We're now 5 points clear of Osasuna and 8 points ahead of 3rd. We've just got to keep this up.

[Rikulec]

Spectacular start.

[ManUtd1]

Nice start, man.  Bouncing back was always looking like the most-likely outcome for one of your sides.  This period to consolidate will be huge when you are promoted.

[smp20]

November 2017 Update

Results

This for me is as close to perfect as it gets. If we'd won 1-0 against Albacete, which we should have done, this would have been a dream month. We're now on a run of 8 games without conceding.

Table

We're now 10 points clear. Valladolid and Osasuna look like the only clubs that could possibly catch us - the game vs Osasuna next month could prove to be very important.

New Contract

I've had 3 previous managerial jobs in career. At Wycombe I spent just over a year at the club. I was at Portsmouth for two and a half years, but I was only manager for a few months. In Azerbaijan I signed a long term contract, but I stayed for just 18 months before leaving for family reasons. I've got a point to prove that I can see a project through and I firmly believe I can do it here at Granada. I'm the man who can take us up and consolidate in the league. Granada will have a true identity. I've signed a new deal with the promise that our junior coaching will be improved.

[smp20]

33 minutes ago, Rikulec said:

Spectacular start.

 

33 minutes ago, ManUtd1 said:

Nice start, man.  Bouncing back was always looking like the most-likely outcome for one of your sides.  This period to consolidate will be huge when you are promoted.

Thanks guys. I've found my stride here that's for sure. Fingers crossed I can carry this on throughout the season and into La Liga.

[smp20]

December 2017 Update

Results

Not a good month in all honesty. We were beyond sloppy against Numancia, I was raging. Vs Osasuna, I have no idea how we came away losing all three points. We were by far the better side. We finally got back to winning ways against Lugo along with a clean sheet. We're through to the 5th round of the cup, but I was again disappointed to concede 3 goals.

Table

We're still top, but Vallodolid and Osasuna are closing in on us.

Fixtures

We've got an Andalusian derby to look forward to in the cup against Malaga, as well as the opportunity for revenge against our fierce rivals Elche.

Transfers

Cuenca was complaining about first team football and I've got no time for whingers. We've made a good sum for him.

Mikel Rico is rejoining the club for a second time, having made 114 appearances for Granada between 2010 and 2013. He's a grafter with great defensive ability, better than the defence minded centre mids we've already got that's for sure.

I'm on the look out for an industrial right midfielder as well as a centre back and trequartista to  challenge Atzili for his position.

Player Stats

Lomban and Foulquier have been pretty much ever present in our backline. Our top performers have been Carcela and Abraham, the latter scoring more goals than starts.

[noikeee]

Given your track record in previous careers I'm hardly surprised by how this season's going, tbh. Getting promotion back isn't enough. Getting promotion as champions isn't enough. Maybe as dominating champions, maybe... 

[smp20]

On 4/19/2017 at 10:52, noikeee said:

Given your track record in previous careers I'm hardly surprised by how this season's going, tbh. Getting promotion back isn't enough. Getting promotion as champions isn't enough. Maybe as dominating champions, maybe... 

Well looks like the pressure is on then

Been away with the wife for a few days - managed to get through January. Update to follow!

[smp20]

January 2018 Update

Transfers

Our first big transfer comes in - Marcelo Meli. We've now got a left footed centre back too and we've already seen Mikel Rico who had agreed to join earlier. In terms of outgoings, we've already said goodbye to Cuenca but Reo-Coker and Richardson are also on the way out after leaving for Rotherham and Wigan on loan before their contracts run out in the summer. They've been good influences in my first few months at the club, but they no longer have the quality to play at this level.

Marcelo is exactly the kind of player I've been looking for to fulfill the 'Parlour role'. He's a workhorse who will act as a box-to-box player down the right-hand side.

Taylor is a good, solid all round full back. He's been available on a free since leaving Leeds midway through the season after playing on a month-to-month contract with them.

I've been looking for future targets and I'm delighted to announce that Oliver will be signing us from Atletico in the summer. Unfortunately, our captain David Lomban will be leaving for PSG in the summer after refusing a new deal.

Results

January was a very busy month on and off the pitch and I'm happy to say it has been a very successful one. We've played four league games, winning 3 and drawing 1. We've overachieved in the Copa del Rey. First we overcame Andalusian rivals Malaga before comfortably beating Levante 5-1 on aggregate. Then the unthinkable happened...

...We beat Barcelona in style! Ok, so it wasn't their strongest 11, but they still had Suarez and Messi in the side and we really outperformed them. The 2nd leg is going to be tough, but we've got a great chance of making the cup final!

League Table

We're now 13 points clear from 3rd place with a game in hand, barring a disaster we're looking very good for promotion.

February Fixtures

Away days galore in February, but all eyes are firmly on that Nou Camp fixture that's for sure!

 

[BoxToBox]

Marcelo Meli, Charlie Taylor, Oliver!?! Geez man, they're some magic signings!

[smp20]

On ‎22‎/‎04‎/‎2017 at 23:03, BoxToBox said:

Marcelo Meli, Charlie Taylor, Oliver!?! Geez man, they're some magic signings!

Yes I'm very happy with these signings . Just a shame to lose Lomban, but he's replaceable....I hope. I finished February over the weekend, update to follow

[smp20]

February 2018 Update

Results

A strong Barcelona side were able to beat us on aggregate at the Nou Camp. Marcelo Meli, after scoring and getting two assists in the first leg leading to MOTM on his debut, swiftly went from hero to villain after getting sent off just 5 minutes into the game. Barcelona dominated the game, but a Tammy Abraham goal gave us a chance. In the league we continued our unbeaten run until the final game, where a 90+3 own goal gave all 3 points to UCAM.

Table

We're looking very comfortable at the top of the table - 13 points clear and 18 points ahead of 3rd place

Fixtures

A quiet month and one we could get 100% record from.

[smp20]

Ok, I got a bit carried away and ended up finishing off the season rather than monthly updates. As you can see, we maintained our position at the top. Getting to the Cup Semis was a fantastic achievement. Barcelona went on to win the league, cup and Champions League.

Results

After the second 3-2 loss I tinkered with a tactic inspired by George Graham. I wasn't happy with how much we lost the ball, so we reverted back to what we'd been doing beforehand and the defence sorted itself out. We finished the season very well.

League Table

We'd won the league with many games to spare, so it was good that we didn't just let the season fizzle out and got the record points tally. Vallodolid ended the season well and join us back in La Liga, while UCAM are the surprise team in the playoffs.

Youth Intake

The overall intake wasn't great, but we have a local-born star in the making. Emilio Enrique started the last two games of the season and he's already showing glimpses of quality and has a terrific career ahead of him. All players were signed due to our lack of U19 players.

Player Awards & Stats

Both strikers Abraham and Joselu knew how to find the net and throughout the season we were solid defensively. Mehdi Carcela was the player of the season, pitching in with 11 goals, 17 assists and 10 MOTMs. Captain David Lomban scored in his last ever game for the club, he's off to PSG. Best of luck to him, he'll be a big loss.

[smp20]

In other news, I was offered an interview with Gladbach and was offered the job. Rejected it though, enjoying it too much in sunny Spain.