Fola Posted August 14, 2017 Author Share Posted August 14, 2017 January 2018 Didn't expect this one. He has been playing in the 'B' side this season and to be honest, I had completely forgotten about him. For 16 years old, he looks like he could be a good keeper. No chance I'll be letting him leave yet. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted August 14, 2017 Share Posted August 14, 2017 Mixed feelings on your season so far! Personally I would have accepted Roma bid for Aspas, at the start of the season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 15, 2017 Author Share Posted August 15, 2017 January 2018 The transfer window has finished and I am delighted to announce that we have kept all of our big guns. A few bids came in for Fontas, Bongonda, Sisto, Gomez and Hugo Mallo but I rejected them all. In terms of how we did on the pitch, we did well again in terms of the league but were disappointingly knocked out of the on away goals to Real Sociedad. With 16 matches to go, we are sitting in the last Champions League spot- we are definitely in for an exciting few months. Transfers - Outgoings Starting with the players who left the club, Facundo Roncaglia was the first to leave. He's a good CB but unfortunately Sergi Gomez, Fontas and Duarte were all infront of him in the pecking order. He had a few big European sides in for him decided to follow the money and move to Al-Shabab. The next on that list to leave was Zeca but as I already said a few posts back, he was quickly recalled. Our backup keeper Ruben Blanco moved out on loan to fellow La Liga side Levante- looking forward to seeing how he does with regular football. Kevin Prince-Boateng moved on to French side Nice after falling out of favour while Carles Planas also moved on. Nacho Fernandez 17E moved out on loan too. Transfers - Incomings In terms of incomings, I am happy with how we recruited this transfer window. One for the future. Going to re-train him as a Shadow Striker CAM- should be able to make some money on him if he progresses well. Another one who I am going to train as a CAM. Disappointed by his low determination but looks like he could be alright. The youngster that I am most excited about. Going to try and give him a bit of game time before the end of the season. Re-training him as a LWB. Couldn't turn his guy down for such a small fee. Still only 24 but has had 2 very bad knee injuries- hoping he's over them now. Back up as Blanco moved out on loan. Managed to get him on loan until the end of next season. Plenty of potential- looking forward to seeing how he does for me. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted August 15, 2017 Share Posted August 15, 2017 Pretty decent month apart from going out in the cup, Cracking signings! I like the look of Vargas attributes. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 15, 2017 Author Share Posted August 15, 2017 2 hours ago, john1 said: Pretty decent month apart from going out in the cup, Cracking signings! I like the look of Vargas attributes. Thank you for the continued comments mate. I am very excited about Vargas- looking forward to see how he does. Do you think I should loan him out? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 15, 2017 Author Share Posted August 15, 2017 February 2018 Finally, after nearly two seasons of trying, I have convinced Hugo Mallo to sign a new deal. He isn't my first choice at the moment but he's an excellent squad player and has top PSG sniffing round him. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted August 15, 2017 Share Posted August 15, 2017 1 hour ago, Fola said: Thank you for the continued comments mate. I am very excited about Vargas- looking forward to see how he does. Do you think I should loan him out? Personally, I would loan him out. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 9 hours ago, john1 said: Personally, I would loan him out. Yeah I was thinking that too. He is currently 'made available' to play for the Vigo B side but they are sitting bottom of their division so not the best experience for the lad. I will look to loan him out for next season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 February 2018 11 games to and we still sit in the last Champions League spot. We are 5 points clear of Malaga so it should be an exciting last few months. Because of this, I will be doing monthly updates from now on. Managed three wins in February, the best being a last minute winner from Zeca to beat Aletico Pamplona (Osasuna). We were three up against Aleti but somehow conceded 4 goals in the last 25 minutes to throw away what could of been a massive win. Barca just destroyed us. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 Not bad month despite throwing away the lead against Atlético Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 8 hours ago, Fola said: Yeah I was thinking that too. He is currently 'made available' to play for the Vigo B side but they are sitting bottom of their division so not the best experience for the lad. I will look to loan him out for next season. Who have you got as your feeder club? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 March 2018 - Youth Intake They were all sh*t apart from these 2 and these 2 aren't great. Very disappointing. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 April 2018 Great news. I have managed to tie him down for the next 5 seasons and whacked a huge minimum fee release clause in there too. He's been on great form again for us this season- just happy now that he has signed a new deal. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 March 2018 - April 2018 What an amazing two months. WE HAVE QUALIFIED FOR THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE! With two games to spare, we have qualified for the Champions League. We made it hard for ourselves after poor defeats against Valencia and Sociedad but we held our nerve to fight through. The key highlight was the massive 6-3 win away at Real Madrid which saw Pione Sisto hit a fantastic hat-trick to ensure we did the double over Real this season. I am already looking forward to next season and looking at players to bring in. I am going to play some of the fringe players in the final two games to see how they do. Absolutely over the moon. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 May 2018 This isn't really surprising after the season he has had but I have no intention of letting him go. He is our top goalscorer and has managed 20 goals this season already, including the hat trick against Real only a few games ago. He's a very, very good player but I want to keep him here for a few more seasons at least. I will be rejecting any offers that come along and hopefully in the end, he will decide that he wants to stay here and sign a new deal. He's improved so much over the past few seasons and is still only 22 years old- he will be a superstar. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 May 2018 Got the last 2 games out of the way and despite playing a lot of youngsters, we did really well. I already have my eye on players for next season. As you can see, Sociedad got relegated and there is a few players from their side that I would like to have a look at. We have been given £11 million to spend which isn't a huge amount but I do expect a few players to leave the squad too. All in all, a great season and I already cannot wait for the new season to begin. After the horrendous start we had, not even getting through to the Group Stages of the Europa League, I never would of expected that we'd qualify for the Champions League. Squad overview/stats to come up. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 Season 2017/18 - Squad Overview Goalkeepers In goal, Sergio Alvarez played every single game for me. He's a keeper that I really rate and one that I expect to be my number 1 again next season. He's 31 years old now but still does a great job for me- Newcastle made a few bids for him in January but I rejected them. Ruben Blanco spent the second half of the season out on loan at Levante and even though they got relegated, it was good for him to get some experience in the La Liga. Bartlomiej Dragowski was purely a back up loanee and never played. Pablo Peris 17B is one for the future- will probably be backup for Sergio Alvarez next season. Defenders Hugo Mallo is a great back up for me. He can play both RWB and LWB and has great stats- he's very unlucky not to be a starter and did well when called upon. Sergi Gomez is a solid BPD and performed really well all season with an average rating of 7.16. David Costas picked up a nasty knee injury and was backup for the whole season- not sure if he has a future here. Oscar Duarte was a summer signing from Espanyol and was an absolute rock for me at the back- really good player. Andreu Fontas is another one who did really well for me- a player who attracted a few bids in January but there is no way that I am selling him. Daniel was my my main starter at RWB and clocked in with 10 assists and 5 goals- a key player to how we play. Zeca was a key performer for me in the second half of the season. He managed 4 goals from LWB and came in with an average rating of 7.29- definitely worth the £12 million I forked out for him a year and a half ago. Tyrone Mings is a good solid backup. He's never going to be a starter but did well when called upon. Midfielders/Strikers Levy Mandinda was actually in the first team picture when the season started but was kept out by Nemanja Radoja and since went on to hand in a transfer request- he'll be leaving in the summer. Jesper Pederson was brought in in January and a player I tried to give a bit of first team football to. He's the youngster that I am most excited about. Nemanja Radoja is an absolute beast. He's been a key player for me the past two seasons and he's a main factor to our success this season- a player that I want to stay at the club for a very long time. Javier Eraso was purely backup and will probably leave the club this summer. Marcelo Diaz was a key man for me in the RPM role in CM. He produced an average rating of 7.23 and had a great season. He's 31 years old now but I think has at least 2 more years in him. Pablo Hernandez was mostly played as Diaz's partner in CM and had a great season. He popped up with 9 goals and an average rating of 7.23. He's also 31 now but I am sure he will last a few moew seasons, much like Diaz. Pape Chiekh spent the season out on loan and hardly featured- will probably be moved on. Joaquin never played and he's retiring at the end of the season. Adnan Januzai did great for me. He was mostly used as an impact player off the bench but he did manage 10 goals and he's a player that I would love to bring into the club permanently. Theo Bongonda had another great season. Probably not as consistent as the previous season but still did really well- a key player for me. Pione Sisto was my best player this season. He got an average rating of 7.40 and found the scoresheet 22 times. He's got Real Madrid, Chelsea and Manchester City interested in him- I just hope we can keep him. Emre Mor hardly ever played- not too sure what to do with him. Jese was a good backup player and popped up with a few important goals. I expect him to play a bigger role next season. Samu Saiz didn't do too well out on loan and will be moved on. Borja Lasso played regularly for Las Palmas in the La Liga but they got relegated. I will probably look him loan him out again. Dejan Drazic spent the season at Trabzonspor- I am looking to sell him in the summer. Andrew Hjulsager is another one who I will be looking to ship out. He had a poor loan spell out at Alaves. Aaron Mooy was a good back up for me in CM and a player I would like to bring back next season. It all depends on if Manchester City will loan him out again- we will have to wait and see. Shinji Kagawa had a much better season and popped up with 12 goals. He's my highest paid player at the club. Jozabed only made 1 sub appearance- he's purely a backup player for me. Daniel Angeriz 17A spent the majority out of the season out on loan at Murcia and he managed 6 goals before I recalled him. He's a good player- definitely one for the future. Iago Aspas was without a doubt, the most disappointing. He was my key man last season but he only managed 5 goals this season and 3 of those were penalties. I turned down bids of nearly £40 million last summer for him. I will probably look to move him on this summer- I'll be lucky if I get £5 million for him. Finally, Roberto Vargas is a 16 year old that I brought in in January. He's got potential and he's a player that I'll probably look to loan out next season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 May 2018 Really happy with this. So excited for next season. Sisto scored more goals than Messi and Ronaldo. FACT. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 May 2018 Cannot disagree with any of these awards. Great season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 May 2018 The future is bright. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 May 2018 Very shocked by this. Especially after the season they both had. I doubt Diaz will play for Chile again now. A few of my other players have been called up. I hope Sisto has a stormer. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 May 2018 First bid in for Sisto. This is going to be a long summer. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted August 16, 2017 Share Posted August 16, 2017 26M for Sisto?! I would ask about 30-45M Good to see the board upgrading the training facilities Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 16, 2017 Author Share Posted August 16, 2017 June 2018 What a difference one season makes. This time last summer I was turning down £35 million for him. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 17, 2017 Author Share Posted August 17, 2017 August 2017 - Transfers Quite an eventful summer. The season is about to start now and we've been drawn against PSV in the Champions League Play Off. Happy with my transfer business. In terms of outgoings, there were no real shocks. A few of my promising youngsters have gone out on loan and it will be interesting to see how they do. All of the players leaving the club were backup players or players from the B side. PS. I signed Regan Poole on loan but then terminated his deal. One for the future. Will be given the season in the B side to see what he does. If he does well, I may look to loan him on in January. Very excited about this guy. I've sent him on loan for the season- looking forward to seeing how he does. One for the future. My new first choice keeper. Sergio Alvarez has done great for me the last few seasons but he's 32 years old now. Rulli is 26 and will be number 1 here for the next few seasons. Had a very successful stint here on loan last season. For £3 million, there is no way I could pass up on this opportunity. He's earning a lot of money but I think it'll be worth it. Had a successful loan spell at Malaga last season. Backup for Pablo Hernandez in CM- very well rounded footballer. Chelsea have ruined him. He's 22 years old and has only made 27 career appearances with the majority of them coming off the bench. Hoping he can find his potential here- will be good backup for me. Another exciting youngster added to the side. Spent the last two seasons on loan in Holland with Heerenveen. Another one for the future. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted August 17, 2017 Share Posted August 17, 2017 Superb signings you have brought in the club Especially Rulli He's brilliant on my Real Sociedad save! How is your scouting assignment being set up? Finding alot of decent youngsters Good luck against PSV Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 24, 2017 Author Share Posted August 24, 2017 On 8/17/2017 at 21:00, john1 said: Superb signings you have brought in the club Especially Rulli He's brilliant on my Real Sociedad save! How is your scouting assignment being set up? Finding alot of decent youngsters Good luck against PSV Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 24, 2017 Author Share Posted August 24, 2017 August 2018 Accepted. There is only a few days left of the transfer window so if PSG can offer £40 million then I'll let him leave. If not, I am hoping he will remove his transfer request after the transfer window. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted August 24, 2017 Share Posted August 24, 2017 2 hours ago, Fola said: Interesting assignments you have set up I have also got Pappa as well Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted August 24, 2017 Share Posted August 24, 2017 2 hours ago, Fola said: August 2018 Accepted. There is only a few days left of the transfer window so if PSG can offer £40 million then I'll let him leave. If not, I am hoping he will remove his transfer request after the transfer window. Hope you can get 40M for him I noticed he only played 1 game for you this season? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 25, 2017 Author Share Posted August 25, 2017 13 hours ago, john1 said: Hope you can get 40M for him I noticed he only played 1 game for you this season? Because the 2018/19 season has only just started mate. Only played 1 league game so far. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted August 25, 2017 Share Posted August 25, 2017 2 hours ago, Fola said: Because the 2018/19 season has only just started mate. Only played 1 league game so far. Oh silly me Have you received any bid for him yet since you posted? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 August 2018 - UCL Group Draw After beating PSV in the Play Offs (results to come shortly), the Group Stages have been drawn for the Champions League Groups. Quite a tough group really. Arsenal have won the Premier League for the past two seasons, Shakhtar are probably the best team in Ukraine while FC Kobenhavn are the best team in Denmark... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 September 2018 New deal for the lad on very high wages but he's a player that I needed to keep. He has been brilliant at LWB as an IWB and he's a player I want to keep at the club for a very long time. For his age, his stats are great and there is still plenty of time for improvement. He messed his knee up when he first joined and couldn't play for 10 months but he seems *touch wood* to have got over that. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 September 2018 So yeah, a move to PSG failed to materialise for Theo Bongonda. I have left him out of all of the matchday squads since he handed in his transfer request. No sides have made an offer, only a loan deal with the most recently coming from Maccabi Tel-Aviv (not exactly PSG are they?!). I will keep him on the bench or out of the matchday squad until he withdraws his transfer request. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 September 2018 Delighted with this. He has started the season off great and despite interest from Real Madrid, Manchester United and Chelsea a move away from the club has failed to materialise. We have signed him up on a new 5-year deal. His agent insisted on a £55 million release clause but hopefully we will be able to get rid of that further down the line. Really happy with this- what a player. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 Fantastic to see you manage to hold onto Sisto Pretty tough group but I am sure you can finish 2nd Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 1 hour ago, john1 said: Fantastic to see you manage to hold onto Sisto Pretty tough group but I am sure you can finish 2nd Thanks mate- I was worried that he'd be off! Fingers crossed- thank you again for the comment! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 18 minutes ago, Fola said: Thanks mate- I was worried that he'd be off! Fingers crossed- thank you again for the comment! I wouldn't be surprised if he did! Especially interest from Real Madrid! How's the club finances looking now? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 August 2018 - September 2018 Hmmmmmmm. What a poor start to the new season. In Europe, we absolutely battered PSV with an emphatic 7-1 win in the second leg. We lost to Valencia in our first league game but I thought it was probably just a blip.... apparently not. Our new goalkeeper Geronimo Rulli has had a shocker so far. He has great stats but we have conceded 23 goals in 9 games which is obviously terrible. We need to improve and we need to improve quick. We are predicted to finish 6th this season so if we continue with this terrible form, I am sure that I will find myself out of a job soon. To cap off a terrible few months, Pione Sisto picked up this injury too. Not the best- we need an improvement and quick. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted August 29, 2017 Share Posted August 29, 2017 Good grief!! Not the start I was expecting to see On my Real Sociedad's save, Rulli, is mixed bag Some matches, he tends to make daft mistakes which ends up costing us dearly. I am tempted to sell him! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 October 2018 He's realised that none of the big clubs want him anymore. Hopefully now he can concentrate on his football and help us get back up the table. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 30, 2017 Author Share Posted August 30, 2017 October 2018 Despite our poor start to the season, the board have rewarded me with a new 4-year deal. Happy with this. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 30, 2017 Author Share Posted August 30, 2017 October 2018 - November 2018 Massive improvement from the first few months as some strong wins have pushed us back up the table. The last three matches haven't been too good though which is worrying. Unsurprisingly, we have been knocked out of the Champions League but we sit in 3rd position with 1 game to go so hopefully we will end up in the Europa League. We managed some great wins over the past 2 months with the best coming over Real Madrid. Pione Sisto is back from injury now and Theo Bongonda is finding the scoresheet so hopefully we can push on. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 30, 2017 Author Share Posted August 30, 2017 December 2018 Gutted about this. He's been a key player for me and he is pretty much definitely ruled out until the end of the season with this one. He did his knee back in 2012 so looks like a recurrence of that. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 30, 2017 Author Share Posted August 30, 2017 December 2018 After a tough start to his life here, Kagawa has turned into a key player for us. Good to see despite him nearly hitting 30, he is still getting close to winning awards. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 30, 2017 Author Share Posted August 30, 2017 December 2018 With the January transfer window approaching, I decided to do a monthly update for December. After a poor start to the season we really seem to have found our feet. We lost to Arsenal in the Champions League but after finishing 3rd in our group, we have been drawn against Sampdoria in the first knockout round. Sampdoria are sitting in 15th in Serie A so it's definitely a winnable tie. In the league we have been scoring a lot of goals and winning matches, can't ask for much more. The transfer window opens next month and it is always a part of the season which I am dreading. I have a few good signings lined up but I think once again, I will have a fight on my hands to keep hold of my key players. Lets wait and see. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 30, 2017 Author Share Posted August 30, 2017 January 2019 Only one day into the transfer window and already one of the giants of World football have made a bid for Pione Sisto. I have rejected the offer but if we get close to £50 million, I may be forced to accept. I think I am going to drop him for a few matches and just hope that the interest dies down. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 30, 2017 Author Share Posted August 30, 2017 January 2019 I have managed to sign him down for the next 2 seasons. He has been a key player for me since joining the club so I am delighted that he has signed. He's 32 years old now so probably only has a few more seasons at the top level but his technical and mental stats are still looking great. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted August 30, 2017 Author Share Posted August 30, 2017 January 2019 No bid has been made yet but he's another player who wants to leave. Since joining the club, he has been a key player for me in CDM and I 100% don't want him to leave. I am going to offer him a new deal and see if we can sort this. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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