(FM18) Family kidnapped by Ninja's. Need $$$ for Karate lessons

[andychar]

Managerial Carousel

I had a busy Summer ahead with France in the European Championship but before that I want to talk about my domestic life.

Real Madrid and Bayern Munich both fired their managers and I applied for both. I was the favorite for the Real Madrid job and after I attended the Interview I was red hot favorite. Even as low as Evens to take over. I got an article in my news feed telling me that they had all but offered me the job.

So imagine my surprise when I didn't get the job. Apparently Conte was better suited than I was. 

A few days later Munich also rejected me. Turns out the Benfica manager impressed more than I did.

I was beginning to think I was trapped in Sunderland. 

I went about my business and started buying for next year. I also received my expectations for next year. 

I applied for a few more jobs and learning from my mistakes I changed a few of the answers in the interview. Sunderland even allowed me to talk to Benfica and allowed reduced Compensation.

Just when I had given up hope of ever leaving Sunderland I was offered a job...

[noikeee]

Bloody hell that's a brutal way to finish the season.

- beaten to a Champions League spot on goal difference, due to a late drop in form
- to add insult to injury, not just the top 4 qualify, but the team below you as well
- superb late equalizer to take the FA Cup to extra-time! ....
- .... only to concede 2 more goals in extra-time

Still a season Sunderland can only remotely dream of. In their wildest, craziest, possibly even psychedellic-induced dreams to have such imagination. 

[andychar]

8 minutes ago, noikeee said:

Bloody hell that's a brutal way to finish the season.

- beaten to a Champions League spot on goal difference, due to a late drop in form
- to add insult to injury, not just the top 4 qualify, but the team below you as well
- superb late equalizer to take the FA Cup to extra-time! ....
- .... only to concede 2 more goals in extra-time

Still a season Sunderland can only remotely dream of. In their wildest, craziest, possibly even psychedellic-induced dreams to have such imagination. 

 I was a broken and beaten man. I thought I was being punished and would have to spent another season in Sunderland!

European Championship 2024

But enough about my domestic issues I had the Euros with France to look forward to!

I was given on paper a straightforward group. But you know me by now I don't like straightforward.

That'll do pig?

France 2-2 Russia - Twice I led against Russia and twice I was pegged back. It wasn't a great performance and I was left largely frustrated. We missed chance after chance and it seemed the Russians looked deadly every time the went forward. Still a point is a point it could have been much worse.

France 6-2 Switzerland - Now this was better. Switzerland were the team I was worried about the most but they have been the groups whipping boys. I was delighted to make up for lack of fire power in the last game (I know we scored 2 but you weren't there man!). 4 points was more than likely enough to qualify for the knockout but I wanted to do it in style.

France 2-2 Ukraine - Nothing says style like a 91st minute equaliser against Ukraine. Boom! Opposite of the Russia game in the sense that we went down twice and came back but once again we were the better team and shouldn't have had to rely on a 91st minute equaliser. Just how close this group was...we were 3rd when the clock hit 90 minutes and top by the time the game finished.

It was not at all convincing but we came top. Also encouraged by the amount of goals we have scored. Fingers crossed we have had our bad spell early. The board (FA) want at least a Final and I have the feeling anything less could give me the sack.

What was my reward for finishing top?

Portugal. They have limped through their group finishing 3rd...now where have I heard that before?

[noikeee]

5 minutes ago, andychar said:

What was my reward for finishing top?

Portugal. They have limped through their group finishing 3rd...now where have I heard that before?

Lord Éder gives his blessings to your France team and forgives you in advance if you knock Portugal out.

[andychar]

European Championship Knockout Rounds

So I was a little disappointed to draw a team like Portugal so early in the Tournament. Especially after finishing top of my group! 

And that's why! Frustrating game. As you can see there was nothing between us but they took the chances and we didn't.

It's so annoying knowing with each press of Continue your getting closer to your inevitable firing.

As soon as the tournament finished...

No surprises there.

There were only 2 jobs that interested me after the Euros. England and Spain. Spain boss slightly unlucky. Portugal exciting as ever all the way to the final.

Oh well every cloud eh.

Also a massive hint as to where I ended up domestically.

 

 

[andychar]

2 hours ago, noikeee said:

Lord Éder gives his blessings to your France team and forgives you in advance if you knock Portugal out.

Not this time! Italy won the most depressing Final since 2016.

[andychar]

Preseason 2024-25

A new team and a fresh start.

After Real Madrid and Bayern rejected me I thought I was going to be stuck at Sunderland for another year but thankfully Juventus came in and rescued me.

Surprised at my wage...I didn't want to push them too much and risk losing out all together but I managed to add another 3k on it.

Not great amount of money but this should be a brilliant stepping stone and a chance to add a Major European league title to my CV.

I had 70M to spend and would be targeting a LB, RB and maybe a new ST.

On the transfer list from United I thought he would be a good addition to a struggling aging defence. Didn't really perform for me at a International level but Serie A is a different animal.

Speaking of Manchester United, they are tormenting me despite me moving away. They have unsettled my best defender to the point where I have been forced to sell him to 55m quite a bit less than what I wanted.

A youngster who I managed to pick up for 18m. Just look at that Potential. He could go far.

Only cost a couple million but wages through the roof. After selling my 4* defender I needed somebody to come in just to appease players who are worried before I make a big money move.

And here is the big money move. I don't need to tell you how good he is. We paid 60m for him. Was essential. It was also pretty much transfer kitty finished. Unless I can sell off a bit of deadwood.

Expectations and Squad to follow!

[andychar]

Just a brief outline of my career so far. The wages per week is constantly increasing which is a good sign. 

Still a long way to go till a billion. I'm going to need to start winning some trophies.

At the current rate I will be able to save my family in 160 years.

Sit tight family!

[MarcxD]

Good luck with Juventus and England. How have Juventus been doing before you took over?

[andychar]

10 minutes ago, MarcxD said:

Good luck with Juventus and England. How have Juventus been doing before you took over?

Cheers. Will hopefully qualify for the World Cup as current Champions. Although I have to go through my beloved Scotland 

Juventus haven't finished outside the top 2 since the save started. Back to back champions. Made the Champions League final in 2019-20 season but lost to PSG. Since then they have been knocked out of the Group stages, twice in the 1st knockout round and once in the semis. So a mixed bag really.

[Keano16]

Good to win a trophy with Sunderland before you left. Bit of a disappointing end to the France job but you should do well with Juve! 

[andychar]

7 hours ago, Keano16 said:

Good to win a trophy with Sunderland before you left. Bit of a disappointing end to the France job but you should do well with Juve! 

That was my aim. I knew with Champions League we didn’t have the depth to spring another surprise title challenge which is why I went for it in the cups. 

France was a massive disappointment. Good team but just didn’t turn up on the big stage. Fingers crossed England won’t be the same. 

Ill be posting the squad tomorrow. I should be fine in Italy but maybe not good enough for Champions League. 

[noikeee]

It's the worst possible combination. Portugal knocks you out early and doesn't win anything neither. Gah.

Good luck with Juve and England.

[andychar]

On 12/17/2017 at 21:16, noikeee said:

It's the worst possible combination. Portugal knocks you out early and doesn't win anything neither. Gah.

Good luck with Juve and England.

They were so entertaining as well. 

Squad and Expectations

I was happy with my transfer activity and if left the team looking like this for the start of the season.

Generally happy with it.

A flat back 4 will include, Adapong and Herdandez on the flanks with Mammana and Hoedt in the middle.

3 in the centre will have Sanches, Kovalenko and Bernardeschi as the start but I'll be keeping a close eye on Ricci.

Chalov, Kean and Cuevas will be the 3 starts up front but I'm excited about de Jong. 

If I can keep my strikers together they are young enough to really make an impression.

It came as no surprise we were favourites and the board expected nothing less than winning the league. 

In the Champions League they wanted a Quarter Final appearance. Luckily we went into the draw as 1st seeds.

Arsenal only there because they won the Europa League was one of the better 2nd seeds we could have gotten. We should top that group comfortably.

The board didn't care about the Italian Cup but a clause in my contract would bag me 140k. So I want to win it. Would take me 5 weeks to earn that with Juventus!

[andychar]

First Impressions

Quite a jump from the humble beginnings at Solihull Moors I wanted to make a good impression. That would start with the Italian Super Cup against Inter Milan. It will also be a good measure at where we currently stand against a potential rival.

Perfect.

Juventus 4-0 Inter - This game was actually a lot closer than the scoreline would suggest. 2 quick first half goals really put the ball in our court but Inter had their chances. Kean made the cup safe in the second half. We were the better team no question about that but the major difference here was we took our chances and they didn't. Perfect start to life in Italy.

Fingers crossed the League would start the same, as you know my opening day record hasn't been fantastic.

That'll do pig.

Palermo 0-1 Juventus - Not going to lie I expected to destroy Palermo. I did but it took 77 frustrating minutes to break through. We dominated the game and it looked like it was when not if. We missed chance after chance and I was starting to get that familiar opening day sinking feeling. Luckily Moise Kean got the decisive goal and I was able to celebrate a good if not great start.

Juventus 3-1 Lazio - This was more of the same really. An early goal and I thought the floodgates would open. Instead we were left frustrated once again with missed opportunities. We were having plenty of shots but what's worrying is how many are actually hitting the target and then how many of them are hitting the back of the net. Cuevas opened his account this season to make the points safe before Kean grabbed a 3rd. Lazio scored with the last kick of the game to save my clean sheet bonuses. Solid start.

I'll not bore you with an early season table but we were one of 7 teams with a 100% record. Shows a massive gap between the good and the bad.

[andychar]

Staying Perfect

I'm finally at a club where winning games is actually expected so the pressure was on. Much like the Championship season with Sunderland.

Its safe to say we have found our goals scoring touch.

Cagliari 1-8 Juventus - We expected a win and we delivered with spades on! 4-0 up in first 25 minutes and we never really looked back. All 3 first choice strikers showed what they are capable of and we would have had a complete performance had it not been for a silly defensive lapse. Still not much to complain about here.

Juventus 8-0 Galatasary - Couldn't have predicted such a brilliant start to the Champions League Campaign. Cuevas had himself a game as we really let lose in the 2nd half. Not much can be said really other than the scoreline didn't flatter us. We deserved it.

Juventus 6-0 Spal - I don't want to look too much into the recently scorelines, we have played some weak teams we would be expected to beat. Its satisfying to see us winning and scoring a lot of goals. 5 different goalscorers as well, I've mentioned before how I like it when the whole team can contribute.

Juventus 2-0 Roma - Our first real test but once again at home we would be expecting to win. It was our hardest game and that showed. Roma were more than in this game and had some chances to equalise before we scored a late penalty to secure the points. We have won big and here we proved we could win a little bit scrappy. Either way a win is a win.

Fiorentina 4-4 Juventus - A late goal rescued a point but this was a case of 2 points dropped rather than 1 won. We were 3-0 up and absolutely cruising. A goal just before half time allowed them to dream. I told the lads not to get complacent. 45 seconds later it was 3-2. We held firm until mid way through the second half when they equalised. 2 minutes later a stupid penalty gave them the lead. Cuevas rescued a point with a thunderbolt but I was less than impressed.

Milan were perfect. No need to panic but we needed to make sure we were better at the back.

[andychar]

Bridging the Gap

I know 2 points isn't much of a gap but I don't like being 2nd!

I love a sea of green.

Red Bull Salzburg 0-4 Juventus - Nothing spectacular about the performance and nothing spectacular about the result. Probably what was expected. It wasn't a great first half, we got the breakthrough early but then went through the motions until half time. I lit a match under then and they came out firing in the second half. A nice straightforward win.

Juventus 6-0 Sampdoria - A great way to bounce back following a disappointing domestic result. It was Chalov's turn to have a game. The damage was done in the first half which allowed me to start resting some key players, this month and next month looks a bit full so freshness was important. Solid win, great performance.

Carpi 2-4 Juventus - I'm always happy with a win but Carpi gave us a scare. Things were looking good, we were 3-0 up at half time and I was half expecting another 3 in the second half. Carpi had other ideas. 3-0 became 3-1 and 3-1 quickly became 3-2. Flashbacks to the Fiorentina game and I was frantically changing things around. Luckily this time we grabbed a winner and the 3 points. Job done although a new pair of underwear was needed. 

Juventus 3-0 Arsenal - A game made so much easier thanks to a Arsenal red card mid way through the first half and a dodgy penalty awarded in the first 10 minutes. I've had these games go against me so it was nice to be on the good end for a change. We didn't need to do much Arsenal went into their shell after the red card and started damage limitation. I could have turned the screw but was happy to conserve energy. 3-0 will do. 3 wins from 3 and qualification pretty much a certainty.

Juventus 6-0 Novara - Again this sort of result was expected considering the opposition. We could have got more but with Milan on the horizon I wanted to rest as many players as possible whilst the rest play in 1st gear. Professional performance which put us in the best position for a early season big game.

AC Milan 1-3 Juventus - Cuevas gave us a great start with an early goal but Milan were level soon after. It was a pulsating first half with both teams missing chance to take the lead. Luckily Sanchez struck just before half time to give us a slender lead. The second half was much more of the same, the game was very entertaining. Cuevas doubled our lead and meant I could afford to go a bit more defensive. We held on to secure a huge early season victory.

We had managed to open a lead. Serie A is separated by results against team so thanks to that win over Milan we really have a 3.5 point lead.

[andychar]

International Interlude

September and October (and November) saw International breaks. 

It was my first chance to get my teeth stuck into the England side.

I've been given a somewhat decent European International League group. Still, anything can happen.

USA 1-4 England - I might be wrong and I can't be bothered to go back and check but I think USA has been my first game in charge as England, France and France U23 manager. Either way it was a solid performance. Was good to have a friendly because it gave me a chance to have a look at most of the squad. We were 2-0 up at half time but my changes disjointed the team and USA came back in it grabbing a goal back. Once the new subs had gelled we took over again and scored 2 late goals to perhaps add gloss to the scoreline. Good start.

England 3-1 Ukraine - The first competitive fixture got off to a terrible start as we went 1-0 down after 3 minutes. I could almost here the shouts from armchairs up and down the nation. Luckily we levelled pretty much straight away. Ukraine made it tough and had some chances to retake the lead and at half time I was wondering just what I had gotten myself in to. My main man Gallimore struck early to settle nerves but still Ukraine came at us. We defended well but I wasn't optimistic. Thankfully we grabbed a 3rd and secured a win. Tense times all around though!

Holland beat Ukraine in the other group match which set up an intriguing game in Holland next.

Holland 1-3 England - The first half was utter garbage as neither side really got anything going. Our second half performance was brilliant as Rashford completely took over. He was everywhere and had set up a few chances for Gallimore before he took matters into his own hands. 2 goals in 5 minutes stunned the crowd. Holland grabbed a goal against the run of play to set up a nervy 10 minutes but a brilliant team goal finished by Dele Alli secured a massive win in this competition. 

Sweden 1-5 - Sweden were second in the World at the start of play so to beat them 5-1 in their own back yard was very satisfying, despite it being just a friendly. Nobody really put a foot wrong as the side looks to have gotten use to my way of thinking. Good job too!

After the October break the table looked like this.

Holland beat Ukraine again to seal their fate. It meant we had to get something against them in Ukraine or face a very nervy final game at Wembley.

[andychar]

Seek and Destroy

Now I was finally top on my own I wanted to really turn the screw.

2 different screenshots....professionalism!

Juventus 4-0 Udinese - With a big game in Europe I was very happy to get the job done in just over half an hour here. We are dominating every game and luckily all of our strikers are finding the net on a regular basis. de Jong is developing nicely and Kean is doing a brilliant job, he seems to score in every game.

Arsenal 2-0 Juventus - Arsenal were superb here. They really stopped us dead for 90 minutes. We couldn't get anything going at all, they controlled the pace of the game and never let anybody settle. An early goal and a late goal was enough but we never looked like scoring. Hats off, we were well beaten and its a nice lesson to learn, we aren't as invincible as we seem.

Napoli 1-5 Juventus - Napoli have been the story of the season, for all the wrong reasons. They have struggled and they showed us why. No confidence or belief and silly silly errors. We weren't going to look a gift horse in the mouth! Great response to a poor performance and it kept up our mini dominance in the league.

Juventus 4-0 Atalanta - There is a big gap between the top and the bottom of this league and we are proving it week in week out. Job done in 17 minutes here. We are starting games fast, taking our chances which then allows us to take a breather for the rest of the game. If this continues I can honestly see us going unbeaten throughout the season. Domestically anyway.

Galatasary 0-3 Juventus - This was one of those games. We were second best in the first half, they had a goal disallowed and we were under pressure throughout. A penalty changes the game. Silly tackle as my player wasn't going anywhere and we went into the break 1-0. The second half was a none starter really. They pressured without really creating a meaningful chance and we were happy to sit back and let them have the ball in the middle of the park. 2 sucker punch goals made the result look a lot more convincing than the performance.

Milan were starting to falter and daylight was starting to appear.

[andychar]

Getting F'ed in the M

You know where this is going.

Torino 0-6 Juventus - The Turin derby left me a little worried because all form goes out the window. Well not in this case. We were 2-0 up at half time and quite comfortable but we really turned on the style in the second half. Kean and Cuevas can argue over who gets the match ball. I'm just glad I had the worry of which in form striker gets the start.

Juventus 1-2 Spezia - We went into this game unbeaten, they went into it without a win this season. We were top, they were second bottom. Everybody expected double figures instead we got one of the biggest upsets in Italian football history. Let me break this down. We had 29 shots (admittedly only 8 of them were on target) they had 4 (3 on target). We hit the woodwork 3 times and also had a goal disallowed (which after complaining and being fined turned out to be the correct call). Sometimes FM just does not want you to win. But hey...it happens...doesn't it AC Milan (IRL).

Obviously I was quite mad. We had been left quite humiliated. It was time to get even.

Yeah like that!

Juventus 11-0 Red Bull Salzburg - Talk about the wrong fixture at the wrong time for Red Bull. We were 3-0 up after 11 minutes and normally I would have called off the dogs and rested the players. Not after that 2-1 defeat. I went for it, for 90 minutes. I was attacking constantly, fast pace. I didn't want to just win, I wanted to win well. Even so I wasn't expecting 11. I did feel sorry for them in the end but like I said wrong fixture wrong time. The win saw us top the group after already bagging qualification.

 

No surprises at all really.

Genoa 2-3 Juventus - Every so often this game wants to make sure my heart can still beat. Not for the first time this season we were 3-0 up and looking very comfortable. And not for the first time I decided to save some energy. Boy was that the wrong thing to do! Genoa came out like a completely different side they dominated us and were deservedly back in it at 3-1. They then missed a penalty to make it 3-2 and I thought that would be that. Instead Genoa came at us even harder and were back in it with 8 minutes to go. We held on by the skin of our teeth and if it hadn't been for a missed penalty we would have dropped points and it would have been all my fault.

Juventus 5-0 Bologna - After the last game you bet your sweet a$$ I didn't go easy. We got lucky against Genoa and I wanted to make sure history didn't repeat itself. We went 3-0 up and I made some changes but I made sure we kept the same level of intensity. Much better no more mistakes.

Sassuolo 1-1 Juventus - I can have no complaints here, it just wasn't our game. We took the lead and once again I expected 3 or 4 but Sassuolo made sure heads didn't drop they stayed in the game and although we missed chances we had no arguments when it was 1-1. Sassuolo defended well after that and hardly gave us a sniff. Fair result. More points dropped.

So could Milan take advantage?

No is the short answer. They drew when we did so missed out on the chance to ramp up the pressure.

 

[andychar]

New Year Greens

That'll do!

Juventus 2-0 Inter - We started the year with a great display against a tricky Inter side. We were gifted the lead thanks to a penalty, although I wasn't happy with Sanches taking it, luckily he proved me wrong. Inter had the chances to get back into it but weren't clinical enough. Cuevas made it 2 and the 3 points were ours.

Juventus 3-2 Palermo - A great game of football. We took the early lead and I was cocky enough to think that was it. Palermo equalised halfway through the 1st half and they were good value for it. We retook the lead midway through the second half and I thought that the points were in the bag. 2 minutes later they came back and equalised. Thankfully the 3rd time was the charm and we were able to grab a hard fought win. Sometimes those wins are sweeter than the massive wins.

Juventus 3-1 Cagliari - In a normal save where I wasn't being a money grabber I would have made 11 changes here in the cup that nobody cares about. That being said I have a win bonus for the cup so I'm going to try and win it! I did still make changes but we had enough quality against a bottom of the table team. Next round is the 1/4 which will do nicely. Home to Roma.

Lazio 2-4 Juventus - Another result where we were probably not as good as the scoreline suggested. Another early start but we were 2-1 down quickly. We equalised after 25 minutes. 2-2 was the score for a while. We were the better team creating more chances but we were guilty of being wasteful. Thankfully 2 goals in 8 minutes broke Lazio hearts and we were able to keep up a 100% 2025.

The gap was now 8 points and the way we were playing I would assume that's enough.

We made one signing in January.

We will be getting him in the Summer on a free transfer from Chelsea. We will be paying close attention to him throughout the second half of the season.

Other than that and selling a player who hasn't played a minute for us it was a very quiet transfer window.

The Champions League would be back next month and for the second year in a row I drew Atletico Madrd in the Last 16. This time however expectation will be higher.

 

[MarcxD]

Wow, those are some results. 11-0 in the CL?! 

[andychar]

55 minutes ago, MarcxD said:

Wow, those are some results. 11-0 in the CL?! 

I know I couldn't believe it either. Never had a result like that before!

International Interlude

November saw the end of the Group Stage of the International European League.

Pointless? Better than friendlies I suppose.

Ukraine 2-3 England - Boy did we get lucky here! For the second time in a row against Ukraine we went behind early but once again we managed to claw our way back. Then Ukraine had the audacity to retake the lead! We huffed and puffed but couldn't really get anything going then we bought Nicholas Gallimore on. He was on for last than a minute before he equalised. A point would have meant all we needed to do was avoid defeat but we snatched the win thanks to another piece of Gallimore greatness.

England 4-0 Holland - Brilliant start really took the sting out of what could have been a nervy night. As we needed to do to qualify for the Semi was avoid losing by more than 1 goal. We were 2-0 up after 6 minutes and from then on really controlled the game. A clean sweep through the group and a Semi Final appearance.

We drew Spain in what should be a tricky game.

 

[kingjericho]

Read this in one sitting, what an amazing career so far!

Save the WBs dropped to FB and the ST dropped to AM, is the rest of the tactical setup still the same from your time in Solihull?

Your write-ups are really funny and well-written, so keep it up!

[andychar]

14 minutes ago, kingjericho said:

Read this in one sitting, what an amazing career so far!

Save the WBs dropped to FB and the ST dropped to AM, is the rest of the tactical setup still the same from your time in Solihull?

Your write-ups are really funny and well-written, so keep it up!

Thank you very much, I appreciate the kind words. I'm enjoying this save more than I have done in a long time! So glad your enjoying it too.

Yeah I'm using the same basic 4-3-3 with Juventus as I did with Solihull but I can afford a few tweaks just because of the difference in quality. I figured that the Italian league is stereo-typically defensive if I go into each game with 3 up front and attacking I should outscore most teams! 

With Sunderland I had the flat back 3 with wingbacks, 3 in the middle and 2 upfront. I might have used it with Juventus but I had so many decent strikers I just thought I had to play with 3 up front. 

[noikeee]

And we thought Juve was dominant in real life.... (well, in recent seasons, not this year).

Looks like you're putting quite a show for the Juve fans, too - goals everywhere!

[shottersnati0n]

Great great great thread. It's taken me the last 3 days reading this at work and it inspired me to do my own.

One question, you never (or I may have missed) mention anything to do with tactical instructions or player instructions. Are they the same at Solihull as they were at Juventus, and England?

[andychar]

21 hours ago, noikeee said:

And we thought Juve was dominant in real life.... (well, in recent seasons, not this year).

Looks like you're putting quite a show for the Juve fans, too - goals everywhere!

Yeah its been a different season. The team I've got I knew I was going to destroy Serie A, its just weather or not we have what it takes to compete in Europe.

I like Goals :). Most of my seasons have ended with 100+ goals. I like goals that much I concede loads too :).

19 minutes ago, shottersnati0n said:

Great great great thread. It's taken me the last 3 days reading this at work and it inspired me to do my own.

One question, you never (or I may have missed) mention anything to do with tactical instructions or player instructions. Are they the same at Solihull as they were at Juventus, and England?

Thanks a lot, glad I was able to inspire and welcome to the forums!

I will post screenshots of my tactics and instructions. I am using sort of a mix and match from a few tactics I've seen on the forums. 

Good luck with your save!

 

[andychar]

Had my car broken into last night. For no reason other than to take my hand break off, take it out of gear and roll it down the street.

We were just unlucky enough to live on top of a hill. Car is a write off and so is the poor lady's car at the bottom of the hill.

So I thought I'd do something to cheer myself up. Update my thread.

(Donations/New Car are appreciated and encouraged)

I promised I would show my tactics so here you go!

It makes me even more impressive I won the league with all those players away .

February in Italy

League was becoming a formality. But at least the Champions League would return.

Juventus 3-1 Cagliari - Same scoreline as the cup game but not a great performance. We were 2-0 up and comfortable but allowed them back into the game after a stupid mistake. Luckily we were able to take control back and give ourselves a comfortable lead. Still it was a less than perfect performance against a team on paper we should be smashing.

Juventus 3-0 Roma - A win in the cup saw us qualify for the Semi Final against Atalanta. We did what was necessary of us here. 2 goals in 3 minutes really killed the game for Roma and we went into cruise control. Not much happened after the game and we were able to add gloss onto the scoreline in the final minutes. Jobs a good one!

Spal 3-7 Juventus - A love a good high scoring game. We were both brilliant an awful in this game. We were brilliant going forward but awful defending. It was a sort of "you score 3 we will score 7" type of game. Classic.

Roma 1-4 Juventus - Much better performance compared to the 3-0 in the up. We went ahead but were pegged back almost immediately. It was almost like them scoring upset the team. From then on they were in complete control. We were unlucky to be drawing at half time but the lads saw it through the second. This performance was made more impressive by the fact I rested quite a few in preparation for the Champions League. 

Atletico Madrid 1-8 Juventus - Wow. Wow. Just Wow. Never in my wildest dreams did I envision a score line like this. Would you believe me if I told you it was actually a close game. We only had 3 more shots than them and possession was 52-48. We took every single chance we had. They didn't and that was the difference. Safe to say this tie has been put to bed. Although I wouldn't put an 8-0 return leg past FM!

"It was a very even game. Apart from the Score" Michael Owen 2025

Juventus 4-1 Fiorentina - On a high from the Champions League Fiorentina did something that not many teams have done. They dominated. They took an early lead in the first half and were unlucky not to make it 2 or 3. We held firm and I was happy to only be 1 down at the break. I was not a happy bunny at half time and I told the players exactly what I thought of their performance. It worked and we came out looking like a completely different team. We were soon level then leading then away. The worst 45 minutes followed by the best.

The second 11 will be playing game before the Champions League and the Italian Cup.

Yes I'm that far ahead I can rest players for a Cup nobody in Italy seems to care about.

Life is good.

 

[andychar]

Just in case you think its boring that I'm dominating Serie A...this is the French League.

[andychar]

Staying True

More of the same needed for March.

Wooooo!

Sampdoria 1-2 Juventus - Our games go one of two ways. We either go 2-0 up and then score 8 or we go 2-0 and just start going through the motions. This game was the latter and we nearly paid the price. 2 quick goals put us in complete control but again we let it slip and Sampdoria came back into it. They halved the lead and looked dangerously like equalising. Luckily we held firm and took away a good win.

Atalanta 2-6 Juventus - I like to think that's game over as we won the first leg of the semi in style. We won each half 3-1 which baring a catastrophic collapse should be enough to see us through. Paid to rest some players in the previous game. I can almost taste that bonus!

Juventus 2-0 Carpi - Again we did what we needed to do early on and then just sat back and let them control the game. They didn't have anywhere near the quality needed to break us down and we managed an easy win and clean sheet. I rested players again not wanting to take a chance against Atletico.

Juventus 3-0 Atletico Madrid - This game had a weird feeling to it. It played out like a friendly. Atletico knew the game was over and didn't really put any effort in while I wanted to win and see just how far we could stretch the aggregate lead. I was happy with 11-1 in the end. I wanted to send shockwaves through Europe and I think I achieved that. We will go into any game believing we can win. Manchester City is up next.

Novara 0-7 Juventus - Nothing to special about this game, in fact a scoreline like this was expected. We were professional and clinical. We did everything we needed to. Moise Kean has been amazing all season and delivered yet another hattrick. 

Juventus 3-1 AC Milan - If the title was in any doubt it wasn't now. Great performance and although Milan tried to give us a scare we held firm and was able to increase the lead. Title done but the shouting. If we kept on winning the title could be won as early as 2 games time.

I didn't take a screenshot of the table this month because...well...I'm top...by loads.

 

[kingjericho]

1 hour ago, andychar said:

The second 11 will be playing game before the Champions League and the Italian Cup.

Sorry about the car  at least you're doing well in your save! Get a Tesla, they don't pollute.

Regarding your rotation, if you win two consecutive games with two completely different starting XI, that unlocks a Steam achievement. I don't know if anyone cares about this, it was just a curiosity.

[andychar]

On 22/12/2017 at 14:44, kingjericho said:

Sorry about the car  at least you're doing well in your save! Get a Tesla, they don't pollute.

Regarding your rotation, if you win two consecutive games with two completely different starting XI, that unlocks a Steam achievement. I don't know if anyone cares about this, it was just a curiosity.

I didn't change the keeper! I never rotate the keeper because lets me honest, he shouldn't be getting tired!

National Juventus' Christmas Vacation

Ok I'm back after a bit of a break. Apparently its rude to go on the computer and update everybody on how I'm getting on with my Juventus save over Christmas...who knew!

Lets bulldose through the season because lets face it...I'm going to win the league.

Udinese 1-5 Juventus - I rotated the squad ahead of a Cup game but the best thing about this team is the strength in depth. I don't ever feel like I'm rotating just giving some players some much deserved playing time. Moise Kean has been brilliant all season and one of the few really consistent players. Another hat trick here and a very comfortable 3 points.

Juventus 6-1 Atalanta - Job done and it was into the final. Not like it was in any doubt after the first leg win. Looking at the scores from this month its clear we have the mentality you will score we just need to score more. I like a player getting 5 or 6 in a game but I like 4 players scoring 6 goals more. A complete team performance.

Juventus 6-2 Napoli - A completely rested team (well as far as I could anyway) ahead of the Champions League 1/4 against City. A win would win the league with 7 games to go and there was no problems. 3 goals in each half and a Napoli early sending off meant the celebrations could begin in earnest. A bumpy start to the league but we never looked like surrendering the title. 

Confirmation if it was needed.

Manchester City 4-1 Juventus - Wow. We are dominant in Italy but City have just proven just how far behind the rest of Europe we are. I thought after the Atletico game we stood a chance. I didn't take long before I realised we were a step behind. They were 2-0 up and dominating before we snatched a vital away goal, I defended but they managed to break through not once but twice more. We needed a miracle in the second leg. The score was a fair reflection of the game, stranger things have happened!

Atalanta 1-1 Juventus - It took an 88th minute equaliser to spare our blushes but we really weren't at the races in this game. As you can imagine I made a lot of changes and for once the back up players didn't perform. Maybe that bad result against City has had an effect on the players. Either way we needed to bounce back ahead of the second leg.

Juventus 3-4 Manchester City - We gave this a good go! Kean gave us a dream lead and suddenly the belief was there, we were in control and looked like we could get the 3 goals needed. Then City hit us with a sucker punch and it was 1-1 and we were back to square on. Absolutely nothing happened until the 75th minute when we were reduced to 10 men following 2 yellow cards. Any hope had been extinguished when City took the lead then 2-1 became 4-1 very quickly. We made the score line look respectable but in all honest over the two legs we couldn't complain. 8-4 on aggregate and we needed to really think about how we were going to break through in Europe. Only thing left was the cup final against Inter.

Spezia 1-2 Juventus - I wanted to win this, I wanted to destroy them. They are responsible for our only domestic loss this season and I wanted them to pay. It looked like that's what was going to happen when we went 2-0 rather quickly. It then stopped going to plan. Spezia grabbed a goal back and looked more like grabbing the equaliser than we were extending the lead. Luckily and I mean luckily we held on for the win. It wasn't the demolition I wanted but at least we got a small bit of revenge. 

Juventus 5-0 Torino - A nice win in the Derby. Chalov had a brilliant game and we gave the fans bragging rights (like they needed it). It wasn't the game that was interesting but the post match press conference when the Torino boss came out and said we would always be in Torino's shadow.

No table lets just get to the end! 

[andychar]

Wrapping Things Up

Another Christmas based pun? I'm sorry.

I can think of worse ways to finish a season.

Juventus 3-0 Genoa - Hard to really care about these games, I was still feeling the disappointing of Europe but the players could break the points record so at least there was something to keep them motivated. A straight forward game here where the game was over after 21 minutes. Each of the 3 strikers on at the time grabbing goals. Very satisfying indeed.

Bologna 3-4 Juventus - This was a brilliant game. We were heading to a 1-1 half time before 2 goals in stoppage time gave us what I thought would have been a insurmountable (I like big words) lead. But Bologna had other ideas! I went for a pee after I made all 3 subs, came back and it was 3-3! Don't know what happened. Luckily Cuevas came up with a goal with the last kick of the game. I felt sorry for Bologna, but it soon passed.

Juventus 5-1 Sassuolo - Again our back up players came up top trumps. The cup final was mid week (sacrilege!) so I needed my best players rested, problem was at this point in the season I had injuries and suspensions galore so we actually fielded a strong team, one that was too strong for Sassuolo. 

Juventus 2-0 Inter - The cup final went exactly how everybody expected. We grabbed 2 goals in 2 minutes to take control of the Final which never really got started after that. Chances were few and far between for both sides, it seemed we had destroyed their spirit and we knew the job had been done. A nice domestic sweep and a little bonus for me :).

Inter 0-1 Juventus - We had nothing to play for but a win for Inter would bag them 2nd. Makelele is the manager of Milan and I'm a Chelsea fan, no way Inter was taking 2nd place off him! Again an early goal set the tone. Inter gave a bit more than we did in the cup final but we manage to defend well and end the season on an unspectacular high.

Record points, record goals and if it hadn't been for a home loss to relegated Spezia it would have been an unbeaten season.

If I'm here next season I need to find a way to bridge the gap between domestic and Europe.

I say "if" because I will be looking for another job. I've done everything I can in Italy and will be open to new offers!

 

[andychar]

Awards and Shizzle

It seems one player just cleans up at awards night but with my whole team being brilliant I didn't think that was going to happen this season.

Nobody could argue there, just look at that Average Rating.

So another good thing surrounding Kean.

Yeah...he's had a good season.

All I think of when I see this is f*** you Spezia.

Well that's a no brainer 

Hernandez not getting the nod at RB is surprising but oh well eh and Justin Kluivert didn't play a single minute as a CM. Just FM things.

All I think when I see this is F*** you Spezia.

All in all a very successful first season in Italy. 

I say first because it won't be my last.

The only big job that came free was Bayern Munich, this was despite both Barcelona and Manchester United jobs becoming insecure and very insecure. 

I applied for Bayern job and was very confident I was going to get it.

I didn't get it.

It's the 3rd time Bayern have passed up on me. Starting to take it personally. It means another season in Italy with the Old Lady. Oh well. A few more trophies won't go amiss.

Before that though I had the joys of the Semi and hopefully final of the International Europe League and the Confederations Cup to look forward too.

 

[andychar]

International Interlude - International Europe League

The Semi Final was against Spain.

England 2-2 Spain - Spain started well but we held them at bay and started taking control of the game. 2 goals in 3 minutes put us in control at half time. Spain came roaring back in the second half but we were still looking good, both of their goals came against the run of play. I was annoyed as we had controlled the game. Both teams had chance to win it in both normal time and extra time with England creating the better of the chances. Something very strange happened England won a penalty shootout! Although I'm sure the last time England won a penalty shootout in a major tournament was against Spain in the Quarter Final of Euro 96 (correct me if I'm wrong). A final was on the horizon against none other than France. Couldn't make it up!

England v France - It was a end to end game. Both teams had chances without really worrying the keepers. It was a cagey affair, it seemed both teams were more worried about making a mistake rather than trying to cause a mistake. One piece of brilliance split the teams in the 83rd minute and it turned out to the winner.

Marcus Rashford's striker separated us and we grabbed a lovely win!

Part 1 complete. Next up was the Confederations Cup.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

Typical FM - your one loss was against a team who got relegated. Still, congratulations on a great season. How long before you get to £1B?

[noikeee]

On 22/12/2017 at 12:53, andychar said:

Just in case you think its boring that I'm dominating Serie A...this is the French League.

How salty must Monaco be? 24 wins in 27 matches yet they're 8 points behind. 

Decent season with Juve. 

[DarkSleeper]

5 hours ago, andychar said:

 

Maybe the biggest achievment here is to fill up your stadium, not so easy in Italy! It only took u 145 goals...

 

Great thread so far, keep up the good work!

 

[andychar]

On 12/28/2017 at 13:37, DarkSleeper said:

Maybe the biggest achievment here is to fill up your stadium, not so easy in Italy! It only took u 145 goals...

 

Great thread so far, keep up the good work!

 

I need that extra 3%! Not happy!

Thanks for the kind words.

[andychar]

Italian Dominance

Ok after a Christmas break I'm back. Luckily I have a season and a half to update.

I'm not going to lie to you. I can't possibly update the next season the usual way.

I was bored playing it so I can imagine you would be bored reading it.

As you can imagine domestically...I dominated.

The Super Cup was easy.

The league was very easy, in fact I lead from start to finish.

The Italian Cup provided no shocks.

Basically domestically I was in control. It was all down to the Champions League. Due to the massive lead I had in the league I was able to rest players before every single Champions League game.

 

[andychar]

Juventus Champions League Group Stage 

So with no domestic challenge all the effort and attention this season went into the Champions League. That was the aim from the start.

United should be tricky but Lyon and Celtic should be 12 points.

Juventus 4-0 Celtic - Perfect start to the campaign. The match was over as a contest by 22 minutes. From then it was really how many. Luckily for Celtic we seemed to stop trying once the game had been won, we never really got out of 2nd gear. Hendrix grabbed a 4th once all the key players had been subbed off. Brilliant if not shocking start.

United actually lost the first game against Lyon which filled us with confidence ahead of the match at Old Trafford.

Ouch. My pride.

Manchester United 5-1 Juventus - A result which struck the fear of God into me. We were already clear in the league at this point and had struck double figures on more than one occasion. The Champions League was our only test and we had failed massively. United destroyed us from start to finish. We didn't even deserve the consolation. Luckily with United dropping points against Lyon it meant the group was still wide open.

No need to panic just yet.

Lyon 1-3 Juventus - A great win away from home meant 3 teams were on 6 points heading into the halfway point. We started poorly and found ourselves 1-0 down early on. i was fearing the worst. Luckily we started playing once behind and found ourselves level on the half hour mark. From then there was only one side who was going to take the lead, Martial had been a brilliant signing and he gave us the lead in the second half. Lyon gave us a few scares but the points were in the bag thanks to a goal with the last kick of the game. Huge 3 points.

Juventus 3-1 Lyon - Same result although a little bit more comfy in Italy. It took us until the half hour mark to take the lead in a game we were dominating and from then on Lyon heads dropped. 1 become 3 very quickly and the game seemed over at half time. Lyon did grab a goal quite early in the second half to threaten a comeback but we shut up shop quite well and preserved the 2 goal lead. We were still in 2nd place behind United but with them to play at home we fancied our chances at topping the group.

Celtic 0-6 Juventus - We destroyed the whipping boys and coupled with a United win over Lyon both teams secured passage into the knockout rounds with only top to play for. 3 goals in each half didn't flatter us as we dominated from start to finish. Celtic offering very little in the way of attacking intent. Great performance.

Juventus 4-2 Manchester United - The first half was simply brilliant, we controlled the game and looked like scoring every time we went forward. At half time we were winning the tie on away goals. United came out and bossed the second half, they looked just as dangerous but just weren't as clinical as we were and that was the only difference. A game of 2 halves, but we did more with our control. Table topped.

[andychar]

Juventus Champions League Knockout Round(s)

We drew Monaco in the First Knockout Round. They were currently locked in a 2 way battle for Ligue 1. This gave us the advantage as we could happily rest players while they probably couldn't afford to.

Monaco 2-2 Juventus - Honours even and the fair result. We had the best start and found ourselves 1-0 up early on but that seemed to wake up the Principality. They equalised before the half and took the lead not long after the restart. They were probably the better team at the time but only just. We huffed and puffed for large portions of the 2nd half but wasted some good chances. I was preparing for a tough second leg and accepting 2-1 away isn't a bad result. Luckily we got the equaliser our play merited and we left with a draw and half a foot in the 1/4s. 

Juvetnus 3-0 Monaco - Perfect performance at home. We took our chances well and defended brilliantly. Monaco very rarely threatened and couldn't respond to our early goal. There were holes in the second half which allowed us to take the tie away from Monaco. Job well done.

Every single Group Winner qualified for the Quarter Final. We drew Leverkusen who were the reigning Bundesliga Champions. They couldn't be taken lightly but it was probably the best draw we could have got, bar RBL.

Leverkusen 0-1 Juventus - A tight cagey affair which neither team really deserved to win. Obviously I wasn't complaining when we too the lead with 18 minutes to go. Neither side really created much, half chances and pot shots were on the menu. Luckily we showed that bit of class and Chalov was able to give us something to defend in Italy.

Juventus 11-1 Leverkusen - I literally have no words. We were 3-0 up in 15 minutes and the tie was over. Normally we would shut up shop and save energy but the lads just kept going. They were at their clinical best, no more so than Centre Midfielder Kovalenko. If this didn't send a message that we wanted this trophy nothing would. Clinical, brutal, brilliant.

Bayern, Chelsea or Paris SG awaited in the semi final. We drew Bayern who haven't won the league for a few seasons now and who have turned me down on no more than 3 occasions. This was a bit personal.

Juventus 8-1 Bayern Munich - That's how its done! 5 goals in the first half and I believe the fitness levels of my players are playing a massive part in these big results. Bayern just didn't have a chance when my strikers are in the mood. I was disappointed to concede as it was 7-0 at the time but job done. Barring a miracle we were into the Champions League final.

Bayern Munich 3-1 Juventus - Not going to lie I panicked here. Bayern came into the game needing 7 goals. They got 3 in the opening 20 minutes and suddenly I was fearing the worst. I went attacking at the start but once the 3rd goal went in I parked the bus. They knocked hard on the door but we refused to open it again. They missed a few sitters which would have really had my panicking. Chalov popped up with a counter attacking goal with 15 minutes to go to stop the worry but this was not as comfortable as it should have been.

Into the Final we went where we would take on my beloved Chelsea.

[andychar]

Juventus Champions League Final

After being dismantled by United in the Group Stage I didn't think I was able to truly compete in Europe. Some lucky draws and massive performances have proven me wrong and suddenly I found myself 90 minutes away from winning the Champions League.

4th Minute - Its been a slow start by both teams. But what a ball that is Chelsea are through on goal...he's scuffed it wide! What a big chance early on in this game.

11th Minute - Some lovely build up play here by Juventus. Sanchez is already dominating the midfield. That's a great ball to De Jong on the wing he crosses it...GOAL! Off the head of Kean and Juventus take an early lead. That earlier miss by Chelsea looks even bigger now. Juventus 1 Chelsea 0.

12th Minute - How are Chelsea going to respond. They have lost the ball in midfield and thats a through ball. Chalov clear of the defenders...GOAL! 2-0. What a massive 2 minutes in the Champions League. Chelsea already have a mountain to climb.

20th Minute - Chelsea are coming forward now, they have responded well to that horror 2 minutes which saw them concede twice. Hazard with a darting run, he shoots...off the post! Unlucky for Chelsea.

38th Minute - Juventus have sucked the pace out of this game as they look to defend the lead. But here come Chelsea, some good passing play. The ball is played to Hudson-Odoi he shoots...GOAL! Chelsea back in this game just before half time.

Some big half time team talks ahead. Juventus have been the better side but Chelsea will be confident. Juventus 2 Chelsea 1 at the break.

47th Minute - Its been a fast and frantic start to the second half as both sides look to assert their dominance. Here come Juventus, Chalov has the ball, he passes it to De Jong...GOAL! What a start to the second half for Juventus. They restore the 2 goal lead and its all uphill for Chelsea now.

55th Minute - Chelsea are coming forward now with menace, they need a goal soon. That's a terrible challenge by Mammana and he could be off here. What's the referee going to do...its Yellow. I've seen players sent off for that but the Ref decides to keep it 11v11. Lucky lucky boy.

62nd Minute - Chelsea come forward again, Juventus look happy to soak up the pressure. Kluivert is in the box, he goes down...Penalty. Chelsea have been given a golden opportunity to get back into this game. Saul will step up...as cool as you like! 3-2 and game on!

75th Minute - Time is starting to become a factor here for Chelsea. They need a goal. Kluivert comes forward and hits it...great save. Its a corner for Chelsea, the crowd sense something. The corner comes in...just wide! Chelsea getting closer.

84th Minute - Chelsea have had most of the ball but Juventus seem to be happy to let them have it. The free kick for Chelsea is headed away and suddenly Juventus can break! Its 3 on 2. The ball finds its way to Fernandes...GOAL! Juventus are minutes away from winning the Champions League for the first time since 1996! 4-2!

94th Minute - And there is the final whistle. The Chelsea players drop to the ground, they gave it everything but nobody can argue Juventus didn't deserve it. Great performance.

Champions of Italy and now Champions of Europe. Hoorah!

[MarcxD]

Great job on winning the CL with some more outlandish results. That Leverkusen game.....

[andychar]

Awards and Shizzle

Sorry for the wham bam thank you mam approach to the previous season. As I mentioned we won everything at a canter and I didn't think it would be fun reading about how I won most games by 5 or 6 goals!

Anyway here are the awards.

Martial killed it and despite missing a good chunk of the season with injuries he was still one of our best players.

De Jong proving his worth as well.

The Managerial turntables started early this season. Mourinho was sacked by United after a lackluster season. Between now and the start of the next season I applied for Manchester United, Chelsea, Real Madrid, PSG and Tottenham Hotspur. And didn't get a single one of them.

In fact PSG came out and said they weren't prepared to pay the compensation.

If PSG weren't prepared it meant I had to take a bold move.

I resigned from Juventus. I had done everything I needed to with them so I was happy to move on.

Still all the major clubs in Europe turned me down...except one. 

I now had a decision to make. Do I wait until after the World Cup and gamble that another big job would become available. Or do I  take this maybe not as glamorous job?

[andychar]

12 minutes ago, MarcxD said:

Great job on winning the CL with some more outlandish results. That Leverkusen game.....

Cheers! I was not expecting some of those results. I think I got a bit lucky with the draw and the fact I could rest my starting 11 before every game didn't hurt either!

[BoxToBox]

I hear tell after this season, Germany have giving a winding up order to every football club in the country.

[andychar]

International Interlude

Speaking of the World Cup I have some catching up to do on the International Stage. Last time I updated this side I had taken over England and won the International European League. The Confederation Cup was next.

Considering the other group consisted of Brazil, New Zealand, Tunisia and USA I feel I got the harder of the draws!

England 3-0 Mexico - A great start to the tournament. Mexico provided little resistance. We started quickly and put them to the sword. Rashford added a 3rd and a little gloss but from start to finish there was really only one team in it. 

England 3-1 Argentina - Argentina were 1-0 up at half time after having much of the running. I wasn't happy and let them know about it. Luckily they listened and produced a brilliant 2nd half. Harry Kane maybe on the wrong side of 30 now but he proved he can still do a very good job and Rashford has become the striker everybody expects him to be. Great second half after a shoddy 1st. It gave us the comfort of not having to worry about the final game.

England 4-1 Australia - This was never going to be a worry although the final score makes it look a lot more comfortable than it was. I tried my best to rotate in this game and give rest to the players that needed it. Stones got us off early and I thought it was going to be a cricket score but fair play to Australia they came roaring back and deservedly equalised. We huffed and puffed, creating and wasting chances until finally got the breakthrough our second half had deserved. A late penalty and snatch and grab goal added gloss. 3 from 3. Good stuff.

Mexico surprised the group by taking 2nd (the screenshot above showing the group was actually the final table). Brazil unsurprisingly topped the other group with us meeting USA in the Semi.

It really wasn't suppose to be that close!

England 2-2 USA - Maybe this was my fault for underestimating my opponent but I thought this was going to be a cake walk. We got off to a good start and I thought it was the beginning of the end. Then USA shocked us by not only equalising but by taking the lead as well. The second half we frantically searched for an equaliser as I threw everything at them. It looked like it was going to be an humiliation until the Centre Back Joe Gomez connected from a corner and took us to extra time. Neither side really showed anything in the half hour and penalties were inevitable. Amazingly England kept their nerve and qualified for the Final. 

Mexico took Brazil to extra time before Brazil showed their class. At least they will be just as knackered as we are for the final.

England 1-0 Brazil - It was a game where you could tell both teams were absolutely shattered. Neither side really dominated or created any meaningful chances. To be honest I was expecting another penalty shootout...even as early as half time. All 22 men looked dead on their feet. Luckily I threw on a fit AMC who burst through the defence and finished as cool as you like. The trophy was ours in completely unspectacular fashion.

So 2 International trophies in the same Summer. Next up was qualifying and then competing in the World Cup for the first time as a manager. And after winning this I fancied my chances at going all the way.

[andychar]

International Interlude

Speaking of the World Cup I have some catching up to do on the International Stage. Last time I updated this side I had taken over England and won the International European League. The Confederation Cup was next.

Considering the other group consisted of Brazil, New Zealand, Tunisia and USA I feel I got the harder of the draws!

England 3-0 Mexico - A great start to the tournament. Mexico provided little resistance. We started quickly and put them to the sword. Rashford added a 3rd and a little gloss but from start to finish there was really only one team in it. 

England 3-1 Argentina - Argentina were 1-0 up at half time after having much of the running. I wasn't happy and let them know about it. Luckily they listened and produced a brilliant 2nd half. Harry Kane maybe on the wrong side of 30 now but he proved he can still do a very good job and Rashford has become the striker everybody expects him to be. Great second half after a shoddy 1st. It gave us the comfort of not having to worry about the final game.

England 4-1 Australia - This was never going to be a worry although the final score makes it look a lot more comfortable than it was. I tried my best to rotate in this game and give rest to the players that needed it. Stones got us off early and I thought it was going to be a cricket score but fair play to Australia they came roaring back and deservedly equalised. We huffed and puffed, creating and wasting chances until finally got the breakthrough our second half had deserved. A late penalty and snatch and grab goal added gloss. 3 from 3. Good stuff.

Mexico surprised the group by taking 2nd (the screenshot above showing the group was actually the final table). Brazil unsurprisingly topped the other group with us meeting USA in the Semi.

It really wasn't suppose to be that close!

England 2-2 USA - Maybe this was my fault for underestimating my opponent but I thought this was going to be a cake walk. We got off to a good start and I thought it was the beginning of the end. Then USA shocked us by not only equalising but by taking the lead as well. The second half we frantically searched for an equaliser as I threw everything at them. It looked like it was going to be an humiliation until the Centre Back Joe Gomez connected from a corner and took us to extra time. Neither side really showed anything in the half hour and penalties were inevitable. Amazingly England kept their nerve and qualified for the Final. 

Mexico took Brazil to extra time before Brazil showed their class. At least they will be just as knackered as we are for the final.

England 1-0 Brazil - It was a game where you could tell both teams were absolutely shattered. Neither side really dominated or created any meaningful chances. To be honest I was expecting another penalty shootout...even as early as half time. All 22 men looked dead on their feet. Luckily I threw on a fit AMC who burst through the defence and finished as cool as you like. The trophy was ours in completely unspectacular fashion.

So 2 International trophies in the same Summer. Next up was qualifying and then competing in the World Cup for the first time as a manager. And after winning this I fancied my chances at going all the way.