This Saint Gonna Be Easy: Ch. V - Endgame

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

February Update: 

No complaints here. Maicon finally ended his goal drought too but went on to get injured in that same game. Kasper Dolberg 2.0?

Reading: G. Fabio Martins (2), Patrik Nyman, Cristian Salerno  A. Alejandro Pozo, Patrik Nyman

We progressed in the FA Cup with a comprehensive victory over Reading. Fabio Martins got a rare start due to an injury to Leon Bailey and took full advantage. He got his and our first on 37' after a short pass from Nyman found him on the edge of the box. He netted again on 41' after defender Joe Mundey slide tackled the ball into his path and he smashed it first time. Nyman made it three in the second half, scoring from Pozo's cross on 50' before Salerno slotted home on 63' when Elder also slide tackled the ball into his path and he took full advantage. Jérôme Deom would get a consolation goal on 65' but we held out after that. Good way to start the month.

Huddersfield: G. Patrik Nyman, Alejandro Pozo, Maicon  A. Maicon, Jean-Claude Jacquin, Claud Adjapong

A comfortable win over Huddersfield was up next. A lovely passing move culminated in Maicon playing Nyman in on goal and he gave us the lead after only 3 minutes. We kept the pressure on and got a second on 33' when Adjapong made a brilliant run and a great cross which Pozo knocked in at the back stick. The third came on 63' when Jacquin skinned his man and crossed for Maicon who nodded home to end his barren run. Once again, we gave up a sloppy consolation goal as Amine Khammas slotted home on 72' but it was to no avail. 

Bournemouth: G. Alejandro Pozo (2)  A. Patrik Nyman

We continued this fine run of form with a win against Bournemouth. Alejandro Pozo was the star of the show as he notched a brace. He got his first on 14' when Franc played it to Nyman who got tackled. The ball fell to Pozo and he made no mistake, burying it from about 20 yards out. The rest of the game was a little bit nervy as both sides could've gotten the next one. We would eventually score it though as Nyman nodded the ball down for Pozo from the edge of the box and he smashed home a half-volley to seal the deal. Good win.

Manchester United: G. Alejandro Pozo  A. Harry Winks

We should've won and we've only ourselves to blame. Mainly Harry Winks to be honest. We started very well and Pozo gave us the lead on 4' when he headered Winks' cross into the back of the net. We then got a chance to double our tally on 33' when we earned a penalty. Winks stepped up and blazed it off the post and it was promptly cleared. Romelu Lukaku would eventually equalise for them on 56' after a well executed counter attack. We couldn't find a way through after that and will play a replay at Old Trafford.

Benfica: G. Michal Franc, Harry Winks  A. Patrik Nyman, Leon Bailey

Well I fell conflicted about this. It's a good result with two away goals but we also threw away the lead twice. Patrik Nyman played an exquisite pass to Bailey on 9' and he racked up an assist on his return from the sidelines by crossing to Pozo who swept home the opening goal. Mauricio Villarraga equalised with a header on 39' to equalise for them. We got our second and final goal of the night on 57' after Nyman nodded Shaw's cross down to Harry Winks who slotted home. However, they'd score again with Villarraga once again burying the ball past Horvath on 76'. We have a good chance of progressing as we'll surely not lose to them at home.

 

Key Points:

• It was an outstanding month for Patrik Nyman who takes in the goals and assists. Hopefully he keeps it up.

• Pozo was also brilliant this month. Hopefully the two keep it up.

• Defensively we were very poor and ended the month with one clean sheet. That's not good enough.

• Hopefully we're getting the old Maicon back.

 

League Table:

We've stitched further points into United which is great. Our lead is still pretty narrow and our fixtures are way worse. They've only got two big teams left, we've five. Man City are resurgent while Liverpool continue their descent into mediocrity. Southampton are winless in their past five.

 

Great news! I didn't have to do much to get the award though! Gago deserves it more, given he played an extra match and still had a 100% win ratio. Pozo definitely deserves his award though.

[john1]

Brilliant month and good to get a draw against Benfica. Slowly creating a gap between you and Man Utd  

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

15 hours ago, john1 said:

Brilliant month and good to get a draw against Benfica. Slowly creating a gap between you and Man Utd  

Thanks John. 

I think we'll be able to finish the job at home to Benfica. And we've done well to create a gap but we have to maintain it. It'll be hard given our fixtures.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

Here's something you'll like, @oriole01. Wolves are Carabao Cup champions! They've defied all expectations to beat City in the final. 

[oriole01]

3 hours ago, Fer Fuchs Ake said:

Here's something you'll like, @oriole01. Wolves are Carabao Cup champions! They've defied all expectations to beat City in the final. 

YAAAASSS!!! Although I have to wonder who's in charge of our transfer policy when it's Duncan Watmore scoring our goals...

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

16 hours ago, oriole01 said:

YAAAASSS!!! Although I have to wonder who's in charge of our transfer policy when it's Duncan Watmore scoring our goals...

Whoever's in charge is a genius for signing the man who won you the Carabao Cup.

Watmore could you want? 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

To: The staff of HMP Wakefield

From: Warden Buck

Subject: Escape Plan Details

Following Warden Gentles' memo to keep an eye out for suspicious behaviour from any of the Iron Something-Or-Other, I can confirm I overheard them discussing details of an escape. The five of them were huddled together in conversation inside the canteen. I had the clever idea to pretend to be looking at my phone while eavesdropping but I heard everything. They discussed the full details of the plan in front of me! They'll be breaking out on Thursday 23rd March at 10 in the morning, when everyone else is showering. They're planning on sneaking out of the front door of the prison and violently taking on an guard who stands in their way. So we'll need extra wardens on that Thursday morning shift, even if it means having fewer on Wednesday night. Everyone be on full alert on the 23rd. 

Cheers,

Warden Buck

Edited May 6, 2018 by Fer Fuchs Ake

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

March Update:

Rough month. Many, many dropped points as both form and morale plummeted. At least we progress in the Champions League.

Arsenal:

We started the month as we seemed intent to go on - by dropping points. We simply never threatened in a lacklustre home performance. Axel Tuanzebe gave away a penalty on 43' which Lacazette smashed home to get what would turn out to be the winner. Very poor from us.

Manchester United: G. José Tavares  A. Leon Bailey

It would get worse too as we dropped out of the FA Cup with a loss at Old Trafford. Marko Pjaca would give them the lead after just 8 minutes as we let them in behind. A lovely cross from Bailey saw Tavares restore parity with a close range header on 41'. Unfortunately, we couldn't take advantage of the momentum gained as wonderkid John English would snatch the winning goal on 65' to send us crashing out. Disappointing.

Leicester: G. Patrik Nyman (2), Axel Tuanzebe  A. Fabio Martins, Tin Jedvaj

We conceded three to Leicester. If that doesn't show how bad our defence was this month, nothing will. Nyman got the opener on 10' after he latched onto Martins' cross to tap home past the keeper. Tin Mladicek equalised on 23' before Juanpi put them ahead ten minutes later. Nyman equalised shortly after on 35' with a rebounded effort from the edge of the area. Tin Mladicek would once again pop up on 84' to seem like he'd won it for them but Tuanzebe's header from a Jedvaj flick on denied them. Not good enough to draw here.

Wolves: 

Boring. We created nothing and just attempted long range pot shots all game deposited me insisting they do the opposite. In the end, a bore draw resulted. We really needed to win this one.

Benfica: G. Alejandro Pozo, Maicon  A. Alejandro Pozo 

We finally found our feet and got a convincing win over Benfica to send us through to the quarter finals. It was an Alejandro Pozo masterclass which got us there. He gave us the lead on 21' with a majestic, looping free kick which sailed in from the edge of the box. Maicon got the second on 60' when he fashioned his own chance with some brilliant dribbling after a short pass from Pozo. Very good performance against a decent side.

Stoke: G. Michal Franc, Maicon  A. Alejandro Pozo, Pedro Obiang

I was hoping we'd be able to carry the momentum and fighting spirit into the next game but instead we just about drew against Stoke. Cool. Maicon gave us the lead on 11' after he got his head to Pozo's cross. The game was quiet after that until Joel Pohjanpalo restored parity on 53'. He notched another on 68' to put Stoke ahead. When it looked like we were consigned to defeat, Obiang found Franc with a short pass and he smashed it in from 20 yards. Lovely goal, poor team performance.

 

Key Points:

• Dreadful month. I don't know what went wrong but we need to fix it fast.

• RB Leipzig in the quarter finals. Should be fairly winnable but I would've said the same about the Wolves match and Leicester match etc this month.

• Defensively, we've been shocking. So many simple mistakes being made. Also, we've been very poor attacking. The players seen to have abandoned the crossing and passing that's worked so well and instead are just shooting from 30 yards every time they have the ball.

• Pozo has been brilliant and Maicon also seems to be returning to form which is a positive.

 

League Table:

2 points behind and United have a game in hand. Not good at all. City seem to be resurgent while Liverpool and Newcastle are having strangely poor seasons. Southampton have also risen a little whilst Middlesbrough struggle greatly.

 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

Youth Intake Day:

Not great to be honest. Not bad but not great. Only two worth showing.

 

Bruno Adekunle:

The young ball winning midfielder looks fairly tidy, with a solid work rate and bravery. His tackling isn't too bad either though it will obviously need some work. Will also need to hit the weights. I love that PPM though, it's great for a defensive minded player.

Danny Johnstone:

A decent looking prospect and probably the best of this year's bunch. Johnstone is a solid defender with a lot of room to grow. His tackling and heading are already very good while his marking needs some work. Needs to improve mentally though I like his determination. Physically, he's fairly good. Good strength and jumping reach for a player of his age. Needs to get faster though.

Overall, we didn't get many good players this year but the two that we got look quite promising.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

Thursday 23rd March, 2023

To: The staff of HMP Wakefield

From: Warden Buck

Subject: I think I ****ed up.

Ummmm, yeah. Remember how I said that the Iron So-and-so would escape today because I overheard them saying so? Well, it appears to have been a bluff. Or was it a double bluff? No, I'm pretty sure it's a regular bluff. Anyway, they somehow saw through my ruse of pretending to be texting whilst eavesdropping on their conversation and countered it. How? By just making up some fake plan which they knew would be fed back to the higher-ups (namely most of you reading this). Soooo yeah. Sorry.

 

To: Warden Buck

From: Warden Gentles

Subject: I think I ****ed up.

So what are you saying? They'll attempt an escape some other time?

 

 

To: Warden Gentles

From: Warden Buck

Subject: I think I ****ed up

I'm saying they sort of took advantage of the fact that we had reduced staff on last night due to us preparing to prevent their escape today...

 

To: Warden Buck

From: Warden Gentles

Subject: I think I ****ed up

WTF?! YOU BETTER BE BULL******** ME, BUCK! YOU DIDN'T EVEN CONSIDER THE POSSIBILITY OF THEM LYING??? YOU REDUCED STAFF FOR THE NIGHT SHIFT?! THE TIME WHEN PRISONERS ARE MOST LIKELY TO TRY AN ESCAPE?! ARE YOU SLOW? YOU'VE LET HARDENED CRIMINALS OUT INTO THE PUBLIC!!! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT THIS COULD DO FOR THIS PRISON'S REPUTATION??? HOW MANY OF THEM ARE GONE??? AND IF YOU ****ING SAY ALL OF THEM GOT OUT, I SWEAR TO GOD YOU'RE FIRED! 

 

To: Warden Gentles

From: Warden Buck

Subject: I think I ****ed up

Yeah, all of them. Sorry boss.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

So much was being said of his team's poor form. Rumours of the manager losing the dressing room here, murmurs of him not being able to motivate the players there. They constantly needed to put him in the spotlight. Michael was beginning to hate the press. 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

April Update:

Pretty mixed but a lot better than last month. I forgot to screenshot the league table but it's as good as over. United have been in insane form and it would take a miracle to catch them.

Everton: G. Patrik Nyman (2), Maicon  A. Leon Bailey (2), Harry Winks

We started off the month with a slightly unconvincing win over the Toffees. It could've been 4-2 but Winks missed a penalty in the second half. Nyman gave us the lead on 21' when he slotted home from Bailey's cross. He got his second after 34 minutes after Harry Winks spotted him on the edge of the box and he rifled it home. Angel Romero pulled one back for them on 60' before Maicon got our third on 72', nodding home a Bailey cross. Denis Leroux made things nervy with a goal on 76' but we held onto a much needed three points.

RB Leipzig: G. Patrik Nyman (2), Maicon  A. Alejandro Pozo, Jean-Claude Jacquin, Junior Tavares

Once again, Nyman got a brace while Maicon notched one as we got a brilliant away win in Germany. It took just 12 minutes for Nyman to put ahead after he headed home Tavares' cross. The next goal took a while to come but eventually it did when Nyman tapped in Pozo's cross on 62'. They went up the other end after tip and scored with Malcom being the scorer on 63'. Jacquin helped us wrap up the win as he teed up Maicon for him to volley home our third and final goal on 82'. Great win.

Man City: G. Patrik Nyman  A. None

One quick lapse in concentration cost us the entire game. They scored two in three minutes to get the win. Munir, keen to get revenge for his former side's humiliation in the CL final last season, popped up with the first on 24' which was shortly followed by Kingsley Coman grabbing the second goal on 27' after some nightmarish defending. Patrik Nyman pulled one back on 64' as he smashed in a shot in the rebound but we couldn't push for another. Disappointing result.

RB Leipzig: G. Patrik Nyman, Leon Bailey, Maicon (2), Harry Winks, Jean-Claude Jacquin  A. Maicon (2), Leon Bailey, Pedro Obiang, Harry Winks

An emphatic second leg win puts us through to the semi finals. They got a red card early in the second half which admittedly helped our cause but we were already cruising to a win at that point. Nyman put us in front after only 2 minutes when he knocked it Bailey's cross. Winks then slotted home a penalty on 8' to put us 2 up. Malcom tucked away a penalty for them on 13' to give them the faintest of hope. Bailey all but crushed that hope on 45+3' when he buried Maicon's through ball. Phillip Ochs got another for them on 54' after some lazy defending from us before a red card for their right back changed the game completely. We went rampant. Maicon blaated home Winks' incisive pass on 56' before finishing off a short pass from Obiang with a great dribbling display. Jacquin put the icing on the cake as he finished off Maicon's pass at the near post. Great, great performance.

Swansea: G. Harry Winks, Cristian Salerno (2), Maicon, Patrik Nyman  A. Maicon (2), Fabio Martins

We continued our fine goalscoring form into the Swansea game with a massive victory. Winks converted from the spot after just 5 minutes. The rest of the goals came in the second half. Salerno got his first on 49' despite playing on the right wing due to injuries after a beautiful ball in from Maicon. His second came on 55' when he latched onto a poor clearance to volley home. Maicon got a goal of his own on 62' after a fine cross from Martins. Nyman then continued his incredible goalscoring run with a neat finsih from Maicon's through ball on 74'. Maximilian Phillip was able to score a consolation on 82' but it was far too late for a comeback. Moussa Dembele only made a sub appearance against his old club.

Watford: G. Harry Winks  A. None

Awful. Simply dreadful. A striker with 11 finishing scored twice. A regen called Søren Nørgaard. He got his first on 5' after a long ball over the top. His second came on 33' as he poached a cross from the right and put us two down. Winks restored some bit of dignity on 73' with a well hit shot from the edge of the box but it was ineffectual. A dismal performance and an unacceptable loss.

 

Key Points:

• Nyman has been sensational this month. Exactly what we needed from him. 

• Our defence continues to be sloppy. I don't know are they getting complacent or what. Jedvaj is more to blame than Tuanzebe and the full backs have been grand, though Shaw has been a bit inconsistent. Horvath has been great but let down by what's in front of him.

• Maicon has completely overcome his January slump and is fine form. If we're to nail down a top four spot and progress in the CL, we'll need him to continue in that vein. 

• We've cut down a lot on the amount of pot shots which is great. They got it all out of their systems in March! 

As stated above, I forgot to screenshot the league table. Sorry. We're well behind United and we look good for top four, though it's certainly not secure yet. Nothing else has changed much. 

 

 

 

 

 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

Oof... That's gonna be tough. They've got a lot of stars, such Mbappe, Ronaldo, Bernardo Silva and a ridiculously good regen striker called José Andrade.

[john1]

Tough draw, hopefully you can nab away goal.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

13 hours ago, john1 said:

Tough draw, hopefully you can nab away goal.

Definitely the toughest draw available. I'd love an away goal or two but even with their attacking power it wouldn't guarantee anything.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

12th April 2024

The decision had been made. The talks weren't easy but they had to happen. And eventually an agreement was reached. One that suited everyone. 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

All the constant scrutiny. The rumours. The expectations of thousands of fans plus the board members. It was all so much to deal with. Michael was beginning to like management less and less.

[noikeee]

Poor Michael. 

Is there an upset coming up against Real? I might put a cheeky bet in West Ham...

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

5 hours ago, noikeee said:

Poor Michael. 

Is there an upset coming up against Real? I might put a cheeky bet in West Ham...

Probably not, but hopefully! Bet on us now while the odds are still 8/1. Also throw on a cheeky €5/£5 on Horvath to score the opener. Probably won't happen but you'll make a killing if it does.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

The various members of the Iron Fist had gone in separate directions. They wandered aimlessly, without any purpose other than avoiding being caught. Except for one. And that one was David Griffiths. He had another purpose. To finally get revenge on Michael King for turning down his beloved Wales and also because David had a misguided belief that Michael was at fault for him ending up behind bars. He reasoned that had Michael not annoyed him so much, he wouldn't have tried to plant drugs in him, wouldn't have mistakenly Joel for him and he wouldn't have got arrested.

David was meeting with Ralph Krueger at the infamous restaurant David had got arrested at. 

“Well to start with, I've got some bad news.” Ralph opened. “My sources are telling me that Michael isn't that happy as a manager anymore. He might be getting out at the end of the season. Unconfirmed but my sources are generally quite reliable.”

“Well that's all the more reason to go big!” replied David. “If that is true, we need to stop him before has the pleasure of bowing out of his own accord.”

“That's true. We need to end his career in disgrace! But how?”

“Well, I've still got my connections with the Iron Fist...”

“Good, good.” Ralph responded. Then an idea flashed into his mind. He smiled tightly. “We can use them. He's got those Champions League semi final legs coming up, hasn't he?”

“Yeah?” said David who was unsure where this was going.

“Well we know the fraud will probably lose to them, right? Especially after what I've planned. So if we put our idea into action then it'll have more of an impact. It'll probably be after a loss. The fans will be a little bit more willing to turn against him.”

“Ok, but what plan?”

“Well those goons of yours owe you a favour. It was your plan that got them out. So you get them together. Tell them there's a reward in it for them-”

“Is there?” David interrupted.

“No but if they harass me about it, I'll just threaten to report them to the police.”

David smiled at this. Ralph continued, “We get them to kidnap Michael before the first leg, okay? They take him to some abandoned building or warehouse. They're criminals, they'll know somewhere that fits the bill. They have some beer and wine in there. They threaten him into drinking it. We release him just before the match. He shows up wasted just before his side plays the semi finals. He'll be disgraced. His players will be distracted and probably lose. He'll get all the blame. The fans will hate him!”

David laughed loudly. “I love it! There's no way he'll come back from that. I'll get onto my... associates.” he said, trying to sound like some sort of powerful mob lord. Ralph cringed.

“Yeah, do. And before he knows it, Michael King will be-”

“If you're not ordering anything, I'm going to have to ask you to leave.” interrupted the young waiter who'd appeared suddenly at their table. 

Ralph looked at him as though he was something you'd scrape of the sole of your shoe. “Yeah, we're done anyway. You know what you're doing, David? I don't want any **** ups like last time, yeah?”

David nodded and the two men left, anxiously awaiting the execution of their scheme.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

Ralph and David watched in horror as Michael strolled out of the tunnel on the screen in front of them. 

“You've... done it again,” said Ralph exasperatedly.

“Well, it's not my fault. Not this time. I was clear in my instructions of who they were supposed to target, what he looked like and where he'd be,” David responded nervously. 

“Well we're still in the same ****ing situation, aren't we? Michael is as free as a bird because, once again, that psychopathic döppleganger of his got in the way.”

Joel, who was bound to a chair just behind David and Ralph was more confused than ever. He'd recently stepped up his awfully creepy game of trying to imitate Michael as much as possible by getting plastic surgery on his face to look more like him. He still had the wig as well.

Ralph continued his rant, “And I've heard from my sources this is definitely his last season as a manager! This is my last chance to get revenge! AND IT'S GONE! ALL BECAUSE THOSE DOG BASTARDS IN YOUR GANG - THE IRON CYST - CANT DISTINGUISH MICHAEL FROM SOME RANDOM FAN!!! How did you run enough brain cells together to coordinate an escape when none of you can even kidnap a single man?”

“Firstly, it's the Iron Fist,” David said patiently. “And second-of-ly, it's not just you who's missing their chance at revenge here. I want to get back at that dirty shoe too. And we still can.”

“Can we? He has about four games left in management after this one. We had our master plan and it's been ****ed up.”

The two stare at Joel who was feeling more uncomfortable by the second. 

“Sooo... He knows what our plan was,” David mused. “He also knows that we organised for him to be jumped, lightly roughed up and then kidnapped. He's probably going to report us sooooo... What exactly do we do with him?”

It took Ralph a few seconds to realise what David was implying. It went completely over Joel's head. Probably for the best really.

“Well... no. We couldn't. We can't. I mean we have our reasons to get at Michael but this guy's innocent. Despite what the information Michael has on me might reveal, I do have some morals,” he eventually responded. He found himself somewhat perturbed by how much prison had hardened David.

“Well what can we do? If we release him as normal, we go to jail.”

“Well the original plan was to kidnap Michael and make him really drunk and disgrace him, right? Why not do that for Joel? He won't remember a thing and if he does, no one will take him seriously because he'll smell so much of booze. Everyone thinks he's crazy enough already,” Ralph reasoned. 

“Alright, that's fair enough.”

The pair put their plan in place to cover their own *****. Both were deeply disappointed that they may have blown their big moment to get revenge on Michael.

Both were furious at the other members of the Iron Fist for failing so badly. 

Both took little solace in the fact that Michael's side lost the first leg.

Both figured it couldn't get much worse.

But of course, it always can...

[Benjoe]

Damn, @Fer Fuchs Ake! 

This has become quite a piece! 

Can't wait to catch up to the story!

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

On 03/06/2018 at 15:51, Benjoe said:

Damn, @Fer Fuchs Ake! 

This has become quite a piece! 

Can't wait to catch up to the story!

Cheers Benjoe! 

Like @noikeee, I can give you a TLDR if you want

[Benjoe]

21 minutes ago, Fer Fuchs Ake said:

Cheers Benjoe! 

Like @noikeee, I can give you a TLDR if you want

That would be terrific!

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

50 minutes ago, Benjoe said:

That would be terrific!

Did you leave off at a certain point or am I giving a full TLDR?

[Benjoe]

2 hours ago, Fer Fuchs Ake said:

Did you leave off at a certain point or am I giving a full TLDR?

The moment you started the thread was when I was the day I moved to Ireland, and haven't read anything ever since!

EDIT: You can tell from my English, that I've been living in Ireland too long already...

Edited June 4, 2018 by Benjoe

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

1 hour ago, Benjoe said:

The moment you started the thread was when I was the day I moved to Ireland, and haven't read anything ever since!

 

Ok, fair enough. I'll take it from the top. Fair warning though: I'm not great at summarising so even though it's a TLDR, this might still be fairly long. 

 

Michael King was a youth coach at Southampton until he eventually got some dirt on chairman Ralph Krueger. He used this to blackmail him into getting the job after Puel was sacked. He knew next to nothing about management but he wanted to try and hold on as long as he could. 

His first season was mixed. A good start was followed by some dismal form which led to him being threatened with the sack in December. Some more threats leveled against Krueger saw him keep his job. Things picked up marginally and we finished tenth, barely meeting minimal expectations. Record signing Dolberg spent most of the season on the sidelines which blunted the attack. Gabbiadini was **** which made it even worse. Vietto came in in January and Gabbiadini was sold. Michael learned a bit more about management and became good friends with his assistant manager Orlando Trustfull. 

The second season saw Goretzka come in on a free and Van Dijk left for Real Madrid. We pushed for Europa League. We didn't quite make it but finished a respectable 8th place. Orlando got poached by West Ham at the end. Dolberg stayed fairly fit and paired well with Vietto. Things looked promising.

The third season saw Vietto fall out of the XI due to complaints over not being sold. Goretzka also was fighting with me a lot. It started pretty brightly but our form fell away. King was offered the Wales job but he didn't take it which massively pissed David Griffiths (the Welsh FA's chairman) off. We found ourselves a few places above the relegation zone but we were also only a few points off the top half. King was unceremoniously fired in February 2020.

In January 2021 Michael King took over a West Ham side in 14th place. He signed Harry Winks and got Patrik Nyman* in on loan from United. He guided them to ninth. Maicon* was also signed alongside Yuri* with both set to join in the summer. King trounced Southampton 4-1 when he played them. Michael also found out he had a hyper obsessed fan called Joel who tried to imitate him. Andries Jonker was brought in as assistant manager. We finished ninth.

The second season saw King do the double over Southampton again. Patrik Nyman returned on loan and players like Leon Bailey, Axel Tuanzebe, Tin Jedvaj, Fabio Martins José Tavares* were signed. Maicon and Yuri were sent out on loan to Celtic but Maicon was recalled in January having developed enough. Michail Antonio and Javier Hernandez were the main stars of last season and the second season. Maicon excelled as soon as he came in. We came fourth and won the FA Cup final 2-1 over Chelsea. Robbie Savage and Gary Lineker commentated on the game, with Savage swearing on camera and getting sacked.

The third season saw us sign Alejandro Pozo, Ethan Horvath, Luke Shaw, Alexey Miranchuk and a few others. Once again, Nyman returned on loan. Jonker became known for his extremely bizarre training methods. We won the Community Shield over Manchester United 4-0. Lineker commentated but Robbie returned to the studios and tried to assault him. He was arrested. Griffiths and Krueger plotted to plant drugs on Michael. Griffiths was the guy who was putting the plan into action. He mistook Joel for King and ended up getting arrested himself. We won the Premier League on the last day, beating second place Tottenham 3-0. We also beat Atletico Madrid 5-0 and won the Champions League final. Gary Lineker and José Mourinho commentated both games with Mourinho's boring, pragmatic commentary driving Lineker mental. Maicon had an incredible season and tore up the PL and CL. Antonio had a career ending injury but not before becoming a club legend. Bailey stepped up to the mark.

This season, Nyman returned on loan yet again. Also, we've signed Cristian Salerno*, Branko Jedvaj*, Santiago Caseres and one or two others. We won the Club World Cup and Community Shield, beating Corinthians and Liverpool respectively. We didn't win the league though. Maicon was still exceptional as was Bailey. 

Maicon, Nyman, Horvath, Antonio Bailey, Obiang, Pozo, Adjapong, Winks and Hernandez have been the standout players. Yuri would only go on to be a bit-part player. though he got in my permanent good books for an 88th minute winner over Southampton at one stage. We never lost to them since going to West Ham. I think we've draw against them once.

* Denotes any player who's a regen.

Edited June 4, 2018 by Fer Fuchs Ake

[Benjoe]

- Do we know which kind of dirt? Was it actual mud from a field? 

- I like the sound of not only bullying your chairman to sign you, but also threaten him not to threaten you!

- **** Vietto! And ha, **** Griffiths too! Oh **** - Michael got the sack.

- Michael Learns to Hammer!

- Good to have a maniacal fan and Andries Jonker must've been solid. 

- Those are some really good signings! 

- What are said bizarre training methods? 

- Take that Lineker you bitch. 

- Poor Joel getting victimized for being like his idol... 

- Wait what. How the **** did that happen?!  I guess this is time to repeat - Michael Learns to Hammer!

- Sounds like a great ride man! Impressive to go that far with West Ham so quickly! 

 

Oh and cheers for doing a tl:dr! 
Much appreciated!

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

3 hours ago, Benjoe said:

- Do we know which kind of dirt? Was it actual mud from a field? 

- I like the sound of not only bullying your chairman to sign you, but also threaten him not to threaten you!

- **** Vietto! And ha, **** Griffiths too! Oh **** - Michael got the sack.

- Michael Learns to Hammer!

- Good to have a maniacal fan and Andries Jonker must've been solid. 

- Those are some really good signings! 

- What are said bizarre training methods? 

- Take that Lineker you bitch. 

- Poor Joel getting victimized for being like his idol... 

- Wait what. How the **** did that happen?!  I guess this is time to repeat - Michael Learns to Hammer!

- Sounds like a great ride man! Impressive to go that far with West Ham so quickly! 

 

Oh and cheers for doing a tl:dr! 
Much appreciated!

- It hasn't been revealed yet so no one knows right now.

- Unethical but definitely effective!  

- Yeah **** Vietto. He got what was coming though. He had to play for Stoke. **** Goretzka too but he also got what was coming. He had to play for Spurs. 

- Yes he did! He dropped the hammer, Ludwig style.

- Wasn't so good for Michael.  He was just creeped out by the whole thing. Solid is one word for it...

- Cheers! They all proved themselves too. Very reliable group of players.

- An ill-fated attempt at goalkeeping training involving bowling balls and cannons which saw Robin Olsen (our first choice keeper at the time) break his hand. He also tried to reach Bailey to stop cutting in by putting a slip n slide on the right side of the training ground. The press caught hold of that one. And he set a rottweiler on one of our best prospects to increase his speed. Strange stuff but it did win us multiple trophies so maybe he was onto something. Perhaps he's ahead of his time.

- Probably what Robbie Savage said when he attacked Lineker at the Community Shield.

- Michael kind of owes him one in a way. He only got the job because Ranieri left for Inter. And he only left because Joel freaked him out.

- I've no idea.  I recommend you go back a few pages and read the commentary because the match was mental. We also beat Bayern 5-0 in the group stage as well as getting a win over PSG in that group. We weren't expected to qualify from the group. The board didn't even have an expectation. We also managed to knock Barcelona out en route to the final.

- Cheers! Everything just clicked into place from the get go. 

No bother. 👍

 

 

[Benjoe]

1 hour ago, Fer Fuchs Ake said:

- It hasn't been revealed yet so no one knows right now.

- Unethical but definitely effective!  

- Yeah **** Vietto. He got what was coming though. He had to play for Stoke. **** Goretzka too but he also got what was coming. He had to play for Spurs. 

- Yes he did! He dropped the hammer, Ludwig style.

- Wasn't so good for Michael.  He was just creeped out by the whole thing. Solid is one word for it...

- Cheers! They all proved themselves too. Very reliable group of players.

- An ill-fated attempt at goalkeeping training involving bowling balls and cannons which saw Robin Olsen (our first choice keeper at the time) break his hand. He also tried to reach Bailey to stop cutting in by putting a slip n slide on the right side of the training ground. The press caught hold of that one. And he set a rottweiler on one of our best prospects to increase his speed. Strange stuff but it did win us multiple trophies so maybe he was onto something. Perhaps he's ahead of his time.

- Probably what Robbie Savage said when he attacked Lineker at the Community Shield.

- Michael kind of owes him one in a way. He only got the job because Ranieri left for Inter. And he only left because Joel freaked him out.

- I've no idea.  I recommend you go back a few pages and read the commentary because the match was mental. We also beat Bayern 5-0 in the group stage as well as getting a win over PSG in that group. We weren't expected to qualify from the group. The board didn't even have an expectation. We also managed to knock Barcelona out en route to the final.

- Cheers! Everything just clicked into place from the get go. 

No bother. 👍

 

 

- My money is on real dirt. 

- That's the best kind. 

- Oh my. I'd rather die than suffer either's destiny. 

- Jaaaaaaaaah!

- Oh well, Michael needs to man up!

- 👍

- A misunderstood genius is what I take from that.

- 

- Poor Ranieri  

- I definitely will! Sounds like good fun!

- What now? World Domination? 

Cheers 👍

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

3 hours ago, Benjoe said:

A misunderstood genius is what I take from that.

That's what he insists he is too. 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

It can always get worse.

David Griffiths wasn't counting himself lucky that he was the only member of the Iron Fist not to be captured. Instead, he was furious that the others had been caught. He listened to the reporter describe how “Heroic” Warden James Buck had recognised them after “seeing them in a local Sainsbury's”. He'd alerted the authorities immediately and they were “promptly apprehended”. They made sure to add that there was “still one member of the Iron List on the loose”. “It's the Iron Fist, damnit. Why does no one get that right?” he muttered. They didn't report on the fact that Warden Buck had saved his job by doing so or that he was at fault for them escaping in the first place. 

David was very much aware of the fact that their chances of destroying Michael King had dwindled drastically. He wasn't sure what Ralph would make of it.

“****! I CAN'T ****ING BELIEVE IT! HOW THE **** COULD THEY BE SO STUPID?” That was what Ralph would make of it when David called to deliver the news. Fury followed by the realisation that he'd made a huge mistake in trusting those criminals. Not satisfied with his original outburst, he continued his tirade. 

“I HAVE THE WORST ****ING ASSOCIATES! WHAT THE FLYING **** AM I MEANT TO DO NOW?” He too was aware of just how much this hurt his chances of getting even with Michael King. He flung his phone against the wall in frustration and took a little bit of pleasure in the sound it made as the screen cracked off the wall before storming off.

 

The diners in the cafe he'd been eating at stared at each other in confusion.

 

 

 

[kidthekid]

what was greater, the story or the other headline

 

[oriole01]

2 hours ago, Fer Fuchs Ake said:

“I HAVE THE WORST ****ING ASSOCIATES! WHAT THE FLYING **** AM I MEANT TO DO NOW?”

Get some new ones .

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

32 minutes ago, kidthekid said:

what was greater, the story or the other headline

 

Apparently he cheated when he beat Brendan Rodgers. Rumours are unconfirmed as of yet.

3 minutes ago, oriole01 said:

Get some new ones .

He tried but they were busy. Apparently they're solely focused on their plot to hurt Dortmund's bald fraud so badly he'll wish he had hair. Krueger had no idea what that meant.

[oriole01]

5 minutes ago, Fer Fuchs Ake said:

He tried but they were busy. Apparently they're solely focused on their plot to hurt Dortmund's bald fraud so badly he'll wish he had hair. Krueger had no idea what that meant.

He will once it makes the world news...

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

56 minutes ago, oriole01 said:

He will once it makes the world news...

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

Due to a long holiday and a rather eventful flight home, I've been away from this thread for a while. For that reason, this thread has been a little bit...

I'll pick it up again over the coming days and we'll see more of the specialist in fraudulence that is Michael King.

[oriole01]

Glad to see you back!

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

1 hour ago, oriole01 said:

Glad to see you back!

Thanks man 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

Ralph Krueger found himself at the London Stadium, unsure of what he was actually planning on doing. He just knew he had to be there. King had this match left and two more games in the league. But those didn't matter. United had already won the Premier League. Unless he reached the final, this was to be the last match King would manage that mattered. . Even though he didn't know what he was going to do. Even though there wasn't much he could do. Even though he was flying solo, he just had to be there. For what was potentially a final confrontation.  

It had been just six days since Ralph and David's scheme was ruined by the Iron Fist mistaking Joel for Michael. Just three days since five of the six members of the Iron Fist had been arrested. David Griffiths was in hiding. He had called Ralph again a few hours after he had broken the news to him about the Iron Fist to inform him that he was fleeing the country. Ralph had gone apoplectic of course. David's absence would further worsen his chances of getting even with Michael. And as much as it infuriated David that he couldn't get revenge on Michael for snubbing Wales and getting him locked up, David knew he had to prioritise his safety. As a wealthy and powerful man, it had been easy for him to get a fake passport, change his look and get the hell out of the country as quick as he could. And on the 7th May, the day West Ham were due to play their second leg against Real Madrid, David Griffiths arrived at his beach side house in Ambergris Caye, Belize. How long he would cower there was uncertain. Maybe until everything blew over. Maybe the rest of his life. If so he didn't mind. It certainly wasn't a bad place to spend it. He sat in front of a large television, waiting for the West Ham match to come on.

Michael was getting ready for potentially the last truly important match of his career. He felt good. He felt ready. He felt motivated. He was hoping to leave the club on a high note. Beating Real Madrid and getting through to the final would certainly be a high note. Winning it for the second year running? That would just be incredible. Hell, even if they lost it wouldn't be too bad a way to end. He'd won the Community Shield and Club World Cup. He'd come second in the league and got West Ham Champions League football for the next season. And a Champions League semi final, while not as impressive as winning the thing, would still be pretty good. But he knew he had to forget about all that now. He'd a game to focus on.

Edited July 4, 2018 by Fer Fuchs Ake

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

Michael was not surprised to bump into Ralph Krueger in the corridors of London Stadium. He had been on his way to the West Ham dressing room to give his team talk ahead of their Champions League semi final second leg against Real Madrid. 

“Hi Michael. Fancy seeing you here,” Ralph opened, chuckling slightly at his weak joke.

“What are you doing here Ralph?” Michael responded wearily.

 Ralph got right down to it. “Is it true you're resigning?”

“Yup. I'm done. I've done everything I wanted to do as a manager. It's been fun but this season is the final one.”

“Fraud,” Ralph scoffed. “Of course you're taking the easy way out. First full season, you win the FA Cup and everyone loves you. Second, you win the league and the Champions League. Now this season you've just got a few Mickey Mouse trophies and you're fleeing. Pathetic.”

“Season's not over yet. We could still get through here and go on to win the Champions League.”

Ralph laughed. “Oh, believe me, that won't happen. You won't get through tonight.”

“I'd say you were similarly confident that we couldn't win the Champions League you arrogant **** and look what happened there.”

“Yeah, but I had no control over that. I do have control over this. It pays to know a few refs well. And I know tonight's one, Lukas Schug, very well. Best of luck.” He laughed again and strolled off. 

“****ing idiot,” Michael muttered under his breath. He wasn't going to let Ralph's mind games get to him.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

Close one but not good enough. 6-5 to Madrid on aggregate.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

2-2 on the night, 6-5 on aggregate. A respectable showing against such a good side even if it was disappointing to be knocked out. So that was essentially that. Michael had just two more dead-rubber games left before he was done. Three and a half seasons had come to this. He began reflecting on everything that had happened in his time at the club, from the day he joined to the players he signed to the many trophies he won. His reverie was interrupted by the sight of a man standing beside his car. He knew who it was. 

Michael was the first to speak. “You weren't lying about bribing the ref. That 88th minute penalty was a disgrace. I didn't think you'd stoop that low.”

“I stooped low? Says the blackmailer. Unlucky, by the way. Guess you won't be getting that grandstand finish you were hoping for,” Ralph replied smugly.

“Don't care. I won two pieces of silverware. The fans love me. I'm basically a club legend. The fans will be happy with semi finals, it's still more than was expected. I don't care about that **** you pulled with the ref.”

Ralph looked annoyed that Michael wasn't reacting as much as he'd thought. “Yeah some final season. Two pissy trophies is all you have to show. You may have beaten my club on the pitch, King but I've definitely won the final battle.”

Michael laughed out loud. “Won the final battle? Jesus, listen to yourself. That's the most pretentious **** I've ever heard. You inconvenienced me slightly. You won sweet FA. You took a pawn and lost the rest of your pieces. I've always beaten you along the way. And I always will with my West Ham.”

“Oh I definitely won. Don't pretend like winning a major trophy in your last season didn't matter to you. And I'm the sole reason you didn't. We've been enemies for the past seven years and I get the last laugh.”

“Well, whatever you need to tell yourself. Pretty s*** last laugh if you ask me.”

Ralph ignored this. “Anyway, what's that bull**** about always winning with your West Ham? You're leaving, you absolute bell***.”

“You don't need to be a manager to be a part of the club. If you knew anything about how to run a club, you'd know that.”

And with that, Michael hopped into his car and drove off leaving Ralph confused as to what he'd meant and also as to what he'd do with his life now that his arch enemy was seemingly gone.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

May Update:

Well normally, I'd give you the goalscorers, who got the assists and a summary of the match. I won't do a summary given that A. It's the last month so there's no point and B. It would make me procrastinate too much. I will show you the goalscorers and who got the assists.

Real Madrid (A): G. Harry Winks, Alejandro Pozo, Leon Bailey  A. Maicon (2), Alejandro Pozo

 

Liverpool: G. Maicon, Jean-Claude Jacquin  A. Alexey Miranchuk, Patrik Nyman

 

Real Madrid (H): G. Maicon (2)  A. Harry Winks, Tin Jedvaj

 

Tottenham: G. Jean-Claude Jacquin, Maicon  A. Patrik Nyman, Harry Winks

 

Chelsea: G. Leon Bailey, José Tavares  A. Alejandro Pozo, Maicon

 

Key Points:

• And so this is the end of the career (but not quite the end of the story). It's been great fun. 

• This month had it all. A great away performance to Madrid, an entertaining draw vs Spurs and a poor loss vs Chelsea.

• Maicon, Pozo, Nyman, Bailey, Jedvaj, Obiang, Shaw, Horvath, Winks Adjapong and Tuanzebe were the stars of the season. Basically the whole starting XI. 

• Maicon is quite possibly my favourite regen since I've started playing FM just over two years ago. Nyman a close second.

• Thanks for reading and following this story and career so far. As I said, while it is the end of this career, the story still has one or two extra parts which will hopefully come tomorrow/over the next few days.

 

League Table:

Well if a team had to win that wasn't us, I'm glad it's United. Third place certainly ain't too bad for us. Meets expectations anyway. Liverpool not getting any European football is a big highlight.  Meanwhile, Southampton finish in unlucky 13th. @oriole01 will certainly like this table - Wolves in the Europa League (league cup winners) and Huddersfield relegated.

 

 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

So with the career element of this save done and dusted, I think it's time to end Chapter IV. After all, the hammer has been dropped (Shoutout to @ManUtd1's Ludwig) the legacy has been built and all that remains is to close out the narrative. For that reason, we move to the final chapter of Michael King's story, Chapter V. Essentially an epilogue, this is easily the shortest chapter and will consist of a handful of posts (not including your comments and my replies) which will wrap up the story as a whole. So let's move on to...

 

This Saint Gonna Be Easy: Ch. V - Endgame

Edited July 10, 2018 by Fer Fuchs Ake
Epilogue, not a prologue

[Benjoe]

"pull yourself together man!"

"*sobbing* I caaaaaaeeeen't.. It's gonna be so geeeeeeeeewd"

"Don't you get it, the thread is ending, why are you happy!"

"it's going to beee... beeee.... I caaan't speeeak - 

 " 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

4 hours ago, Benjoe said:

"pull yourself together man!"

"*sobbing* I caaaaaaeeeen't.. It's gonna be so geeeeeeeeewd"

"Don't you get it, the thread is ending, why are you happy!"

"it's going to beee... beeee.... I caaan't speeeak - 

 " 

No pressure there then 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

On 13/05/2018 at 17:21, Fer Fuchs Ake said:

12th April 2024

The decision had been made. The talks weren't easy but they had to happen. And eventually an agreement was reached. One that suited everyone. 

And the outcome of that meeting had just been announced to the world. The media were abuzz. Nothing like this had happened before in football. Pretty much everyone had knows he was stepping down as manager but no one had predicted his next move. 

“You don't need to be a manager to be a part of the club.”

Those were the first words Michael said in his press conference after the news was announced before laughing. Only one other man would understand what the joke was.

 

12th April 2024

“I still can't believe you're resigning,” Andries said dejectedly.

“Yeah, I know. It feels weird for me too but I have to do it,” Michael replied.

“And when will the monkey come out of the sleeve for the public?”

“The what? ... Oh, right I get ya. At the end of the season. No point in creating drama now.”

“We made some team. Won a load of trophies over the past three and a half seasons too. Oh, I've some great memories.”

“What, like the one where you broke our keeper's hand with a bowling ball?” Michael quipped. Both men laughed. 

“So what'll you do once you're done? 

Michael told him his plan. Andries smiled broadly. 

“Ahhh, clever. Well it's been great working with you and hopefully I can continue to do so if the new manager keeps me on.”

“Oh, you don't have to worry about that. Trust me,” Michael responded with a wink and a tap of the side of his nose. 

“Mr. Vrenna and Mr. Manning will see you now,” said the secretary, appearing from out of the blue. Michael walked through the double doors while Andries pondered what he'd meant about not worrying about losing his job.

 

Michael sat opposite Giovanni Vrenna, Brad Manning and one or two other directors. They exchanged handshakes before getting down to business.

“Well, gentlemen, I won't waste your time. As you probably already know, I'm resigning from my post as West Ham manager at the end of the season. Don't try to convince me otherwise, my mind's made up,” Michael announced.

Giovanni spoke up first, in a thick Italian accent. “Well, Michael I think I speak on everyone's behalf when I say that I am deeply disappointed to hear this news. However, I'm not surprised, as you said, we already knew. There's been rumours flying round for weeks. You've been a wonderful servant to the club, its fans and to the players. You've brought unprecedented success to this club. Is there anything we can do to get you to stay on? A massive pay rise? Better transfer budget? Anything?”

“No, I'm afraid not. My mind is made up 100%.”

“Well as I said, I speak on behalf of everybody when I say you were an asset to this club. We all very much enjoyed your time here and we respect your decision.” 

Murmurs of agreement came up from the other members. Giovanni continued, “You constantly surpassed expectations. You made our club big and you were successful as hell. I really do wish you'd remain at the club.”

“Well, that's mainly what I wanted to talk to you about. I do want to remain at the club,” Michael said.

The board members looked confused but interested 

“I did not like the ever present media attention as manager. Nor the constant stress, particularly on match days. The position that I want at your club would mean I wouldn't face much of that. I also am not that good tactically. You saw what happened at Southampton-”

Laughter from the board members interrupted him. Michael frowned. He was quite defensive over that firing. He resumed his proposal.

“And at West Ham, despite my success, my tactics were nothing special. A bog standard 4-3-2-1. Why did it work? Because of the players that I signed. Maicon, Nyman, Winks etc. So you take the manager position. Take away a good portion of the stress and media attention. Take away the matches, take away the tactics and keep the transfer business. And you're left with me working as a...”

“Director of football!” both parties say in unison. The board members murmur amongst themselves for a while before turning back to Michael. 

“You make a good point. Come to think of it, you were a fraud tactically,” Brad Manning declared.

“Well I wouldn't go that-”

“Anyone who'd played Football Manager for a few weeks could've come up with your tactics.”

“That's a bit-”

“But in the transfer market, you were a force of nature. The deals you made were incredible.”

“Now we're getting to the good stuff.”

“You brought some fantastic players to this club at even better prices. You're a brilliant judge of talent and you've a great eye for a deal.”

Michael grinned, anticipating the response.

“Therefore, we accept your request!” Brad blurted out. “Would you be able to start once the season ends?”

“Definitely,” responded Michael, thrilled that his offer had been accepted. “But I have one condition.”

The board members looked slightly apprehensive as they awaited his request. They expected something overbearing.”

 “No matter who the new manager is, they have to agree to a clause in their contract. They must be willing to work with Andries Jonker. They can't replace him.” Michael awaited the board's response.

They raised their eyebrows and looked at each other before nodding. It wasn't too bad a request. 

“Alright, that's not unreasonable,” Giovanni replied. “We're delighted to still have you on board, Michael albeit in a different capacity. We look forward to many, many years of success working with you.”

Michael beamed, shook the various members' hands and walked out.

 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

The news became official on June 1st as West Ham wasted no time in announcing their decision.