[FM20] Chain Wreck to Champions League | Lynx FC (Gibraltar)

[mattyjames_]

UEFA Champions League - First Knockout Round - Season 2029/30

Well, to say that the first knockout round tie against Manchester City had everything would be an understatement. Red cards, penalties, routs, own goals, screamers from range, you name it, it happened. Unfortunately, not all of it happened in our favour.

We were up against it in the first leg, and despite having a man advantage for the last twenty minutes, we managed to concede twice. Haines' own goal was a disaster - the lad decided to take a touch on the goal line, rather than just hoofing it clear. Next thing, it had hit the post and bounced in. A disappointing way to lose, especially with the late goal from Eduardo, but the stats suggest that it was probably the fairer result.

We went to the Etihad, and got smashed. We didn't really ever show up, and although we kept fighting for the full 90 minutes, we didn't really get anything that looked like it could have been a goal. Manchester City played better, and we played worse, and unfortunately we are out of the Champions League after losing 6-3 on aggregate. We will need to try and produce a better performance next season - it's clear we still have work to do!

 

Goal Scorers - UEFA Champions League - Season 2029/30

Screve Zola - 14

Filippo Di Biase - 5

Carlos Romero - 5

Paul Shields - 4

Rocco Sarcone - 3

Chad Haines - 2

Filippo Ballarini - 1

Matthieu Muller - 1

Matt Watson - 1

own goals - 2

[mattyjames_]

Gibraltar National League - Championship Group - Season 2029/30

It has been another fantastic season for us as we continue our winning run in the Gibraltar National League, with our winning streak now stretching over seven years. It's going to be a sad day when we do eventually fail to win a league match, but I think that day might be getting closer.

Some big shake-ups in the final ten games of the season, with Lincoln Red Imps capitulating, failing to win any of their last 5 games, and missing out on the second Champions League Qualification places available in the league this seaosn. They would instead have to settle for third place, and a Europa League qualification spot. After I talked them down, Europa Point played incredibly well to get within a couple of points of continental football, but Manchester 62 proved to be too good in their head-to-head clash, and stole the second Europa Conference League place on offer. It's an exciting position for the Gibraltar National League to be in, with teams getting additional qualification places, and I'm looking forward to seeing how this allows the clubs to continue to develop.

As you can see from the stats, Joe McGlynn seemed to tail off in the second half of the season, while Kelvin Morgan picked up his form and scored a bag of goals. It's impressive to see us with the top three players for average rating in the league, especially considering the rotation that we had throughout the season. We played 39 games across all competitions this season, but only four of our players made more than 20 starts - no player in our squad made more than 23 starts in total. We really are making the most of our squad depth, and trying to give all the players the game time they want.

We conceded just two goals in the second half of the season, but again it looks as through St Joseph's might be causing us some trouble in the seasons to come, we only managed a 1-0 win over them in our second to last game of the season. The biggest highlight of this run of ten games was our 6-0 thumping of Lincoln Red Imps, which is their largest ever defeat. We just outclassed them and overwhelmed them.

 

We have now won the Gibraltar National League 10 times from 11 attempts over the course of this save.

 

Goal Scorers - Gibraltar National League - Season 2029/30

Joe McGlynn - 19

Kelvin Morgan - 12

Matt Watson - 9

Carlos Romero - 7

Dougie Taylor - 4

Screve Zola - 5

Mark Burton - 2

Kegs Chauke - 2

Craig Galliano - 2

Paul Shields - 2

Tyler Burey - 1

Tjay De Barr - 1

Julian Del Rio - 1

Filippo Di Biase - 1

Kemeron - 1

Rocco Sarcone - 1

Dylan Thompson - 1

Own goals - 1

[mattyjames_]

Gibtelecom Rock Cup - Season 2029/30

We had a great run through the Rock Cup this season, keeping three consecutive clean sheets and winning all of our games comfortably in order to claim another title.

Although the opposition was one we have never faced in a Rock Cup Final, the result was the same as what we have witnessed in previous seasons; a comfortable Lynx victory. Europa Point will be proud to have made the Final, but have come so close to continental football on two occasions this season and missed out on both counts. It will be interesting to see how they bounce back from this.

 

Goal Scorers - Gibtelecom Rock Cup - Season 2029/30

Kelvin Morgan - 3

Julian Del Rio - 1

Filippo Di Biase - 1

Joe McGlynn - 1

Paul Shields - 1

[mattyjames_]

End of Season Awards - Season 2029/30

Fans player of the season- Joe McGlynn (78%)

Mac's player of the season- Screve Zola

Rising Star- Screve Zola

Goal of the season- Paul Shields (vs Manchester 62 FC)

Signing of the season- Mark Murphy ($29.99 million from Everton)

Young player of the season- Mark Burton

Screve Zola earns the Rising Star and my Player of the Season award for the second consecutive season after his exceptional performances in the UEFA Champions League. He scored 14 goals and grabbed 1 assist in 13 Champions League games, and scored 5 goals in 5 games in the Gibraltar National League as well. The fan vote I think only takes into account the League performance, which is why McGlynn got up in such a big way. He scored a glut of goals in the first stage of the league, and it's hard to argue that he was the best player in the league. Perhaps the most disappointing thing about this save for me is there is no "team of the season" award for the Gibraltar National League. I'd really be interested in seeing which of my players would make the cut for that. Mark Burton winning the Young Player of the Season was a surprise for me - the youngster is a graduate from our Youth Academy, and has played almost every league game this season to ensure that we have our quota of 5 players trained in Gibraltar on the pitch. I didn't think he was that impressive, but probably got a lot more game time than the other young players on our books.

Burton's stats: 

 

End of season stat leaders (competitive fixtures):

Top Goalscorer- Joe McGlynn (20)

Most Assists- Rocco Sarcone (15)

Most Clean Sheets- Drazen Pejic (13)

Highest Average Rating- Joe McGlynn (7.49)

Best Passing Percentage- Filippo Ballarini (92%)

Most Player of the Match- Joe McGlynn (6)

 

Season Summary

Managerial Record

Trophy Shelf

Season Review

[mattyjames_]

Exciting times ahead! All of this without being asked as well!

[mattyjames_]

UEFA Champions League - Qualifying Rounds - Season 2030/31

Due to our excellent performance in past editions of the Champions League, we are in a position where not only are we one of five Gibraltarian clubs taking on Europe this year, but we also only have to progress through two rounds of qualification to make the Group Stage. I really feel like we can achieve that. It's unfortunate, because at this point in time I feel like, although we could have success in the Europa Conference League, that competition is beneath us and is actually more difficult for us to get into than the Champions League. Alongside us in the hunt for European glory this season were Europa FC (Champions League Best Placed Second Qualifying Round), Lincoln Red Imps (Europa League Best Placed Third Qualifying Round), St Joseph's FC (Europa Conference League Best Placed Third Qualifying Round) and Manchester 62 FC (Europa Conference League Best Placed Second Qualifying Round). Here's how they got on.

Probably the biggest disappointment of the bunch was Europa FC, who bowed out of Europe in straight sets. The biggest, and most exciting news for Gibraltarian Football is that we finally have another team in the Group Stage of a continental competition! For the first time since 2022/23, Lincoln Red Imps are back in the Group Stage of the Europa Conference League! Their group looks tough, I'm not going to lie. But I will be keeping a close eye on them as their group stage progresses,

 

What about Lynx? Well, we had a couple of testimonial games prior to our season starting, for true servants of the club, Kelvin Morgan and Leon Clinton. We won them both, in what was an exceptional pre-season. Here's some info on those two players if you haven't been following along with the save.

But of course, that's not why you're here. You want to see the Lynx FC Champions League Qualification matches. Well, I am pleased to inform you that we again made the Group Stage in 2030/31!

We didn't have anywhere near as many games to play, and we were comfortable favourites against our opposition, so I am pleased to have got the job done. We fielded a slightly different lineup to what we have done in the past, but for the most part it seems that it has worked out just fine for us. The change was to take Paul Shields out of the "Europe" lineup and replace him with Sarcone as an attacking midfielder. We then brought Matt Watson back to the A-team to play in the centre of midfield, and both players have scored crucial goals for us so far in the qualification campaign. You'll notice that crowd numbers are down on previous years - that's because we are redeveloping the stadium and some of the stands are closed. I'm hopeful that we will be able to host some sort of European football once our upgrade is complete in November, and I'm looking forward to the gate receipts that will come with that!

For the first time ever in the save, we were seeded second in our group. Which means that we should be one of the favourites to qualify. Until you see our group, of course.

I mean, I am overjoyed about getting Galatasaray again - hopefully we can punish them like we did last season. However, PSG doesn't excite me that much. Also, Roma actually have the same coefficient as us, but were seeded third in the group, meaning this could be seriously challenging for us! As a bare minimum, I need to finish third in the group so we have a chance at a Europa League run.

 

Goal Scorers - UEFA Champions League - Season 2030/31

Carlos Romero - 2

Rocco Sarcone - 2

Matt Watson - 2

Screve Zola - 2

Filippo Di Biase - 1

Craig Galliano - 1

[mattyjames_]

Pepe Reyes Cup - Season 2030/31

We didn't have any trouble getting the win in the Pepe Reyes Cup with our second string team against Europa FC.

Joe McGlynn slotted a hattrick as we cruised to our fourth straight victory of the Gibraltarian version of the Community Shield.

Edited October 3, 2020 by mattyjames_

[mattyjames_]

UEFA Champions League - Group H - Season 2030/31

I suggested at the start of the season that this Champions League Group was slightly tougher that I would have liked it to be, and unfortunately my worst fears have come to pass over the course of the first three matches in the group stage.

We haven't produced the kind of goal scoring form that I've been accustomed to, and at times our defence has been fairly poor, which has meant that we have suffered two defeats to the arguably "bigger" clubs in the group. One more result against us could mean that our best chance for the group stage is to finish in third place, and that would be incredibly disappointing.

Things didn't start badly as we met Galatasaray in the first match of the group stage, and continued our strong form against them, scoring three times in a solid win. It wasn't anything like the smashings that we handed to them last season, but it was three points on the board and $4 million in the bank, and we were happily sitting on top of the group. It would have been nice to score even more goals, but unfortunately that was not to be.

The problem with starting so well, and being still a relatively small team that tends to have the ability to defeat the giants, rather than being an actual giant, is that often once things start so well, there is only one way to go from there.

We took the lead away from home against Roma and I was buzzing. It was a scintillating strike from a volley that should be in contention for the goal of the season award, and it would have almost certainly been a match winner had we not capitulated in the second half. Both of the goals that we conceded were the result of disappointing defensive work from a corner. Of which we gave Roma far too many. It's disappointing to have been in front only to go on to lose, but it is still a heartening performance for a team like Lynx away from home in the Champions League.

The final match in the first half of the group stage was nothing like that.

We were poor. Very poor. PSG were dominant, but they weren't clinical. Our best chance of the game was a header that ended up in the back of the net, but was chalked off by VAR because Carlos Romero was offside. PSG went straight up the other end and won a penalty, which fortunately they missed. The Neto goal in the first half came from one of my (usually reliable) defenders getting caught in possession and gifting them a chance, which they capitalised on. The worst thing is, our next competitive match is the return fixture against PSG, back on the Rock. Adding even more pressure to the tie is the fact that our future in the Champions League is on the line.

 

Goal Scorers - UEFA Champions League - Season 2030/31

Rocco Sarcone - 3

Screve Zola - 3

Carlos Romero - 2

Matt Watson - 2

Filippo Di Biase - 2

Craig Galliano - 1

Chad Haines - 1

 

Looking across the Rock at Lincoln Red Imps, their performance in the Europa Conference League has gone pretty much exactly the way that our performance in the Champions League has gone, with a win in their first game and then two consecutive losses.

However, their group is much tighter than ours, and they are still a decent shot to qualify with three games remaining. Especially considering their win came against the team that is currently leading the group!

[mattyjames_]

I was also wondering how common it is for player managers (or any staff characters for that matter) to have stats above 20?

I always thought that 20 was the limit, and that it was impossible to get any higher. But I've checked my manager attributes recently and.. well. My discipline is literally off the charts?

Is this a bug?

[cel1234]

That Level of disipline must be a bug haha 26. This a regen ?? Managers will have 20 surely but be like Pep and Klopp etc.

[mattyjames_]

No @cel1234 that's my manager profile. I've never seen anything get so high before?

Maybe my players fear me hahahaha

[mattyjames_]

Well, looks like we shouldn't expect too much this year from the Youth Intake either. I guess as we play this is going to improve though!

[mattyjames_]

UEFA Champions League - Group H - Season 2030/31

We entered the second half of the group stage with a mountain to climb. Having just been dealt a cruel blow at the hands of PSG, the standings in the group with three games to play looked like this:

We would face PSG once more, then Galatasaray, and then Roma in the final match of the group stage.

We played no better the second time around against PSG; though the penalty they won was a very doubtful one (at least from my view through the 3D match engine). Nothing much else of note to say here, this wasn't one we deserved to win. I thought it would be all over for us from here, but Galatasaray had done us a favour - they had held Roma to a draw. While we remained in third place on three points in the group, Roma only moved to five points clear of us on eight points. We continued to play for our lives in the group, knowing that if Roma defeated PSG we would be eliminated from contention regardless of our result. All we could control was the outcome of our match, and we had to win it (also, these pictures have got really big - it's great).

Zola came up huge for us in this one, slotting a goal early and a goal late to seal the win away from home, and we moved to six points in the group. While we had one eye on this match, we also had a watchful eye on the match between PSG and Roma. Roma held the lead for much of the match, after scoring in the 35th minute. However, Roma then scored an own goal in the 71st minute and the floodgates opened. PSG scored another three goals in the final 19 minutes to win 4-1 and keep our hopes alive.

So it came down to this.

We trailed Roma by two points with a head-to-head match remaining. Everything was on the line, we couldn't afford to hold anything back. Playing in front of our home fans, in our newly expanded stadium, we were expecting a sell out crowd of nearly 10,000 people. We had to get the job done.

We started poorly, giving up possession and plenty of shots to Roma, however they were unable to do anything with all the ball they were getting. We went in to the break at 0-0, and I was feeling pretty happy. As the clock ticked over 60 minutes, I started to panic a little bit, and pushed forwards, making three substitutions at the same time, bringing on Paul Shields, Craig Galliano and Joe McGlynn up front to see if fresh legs would make the difference. With 20 minutes left, I went all out attacking - we had only taken one shot on goal by this point, so I was ready to push and risk it all. A draw would get us nowhere.

Then Paul Shields did this. Blew my socks off. He hasn't had a place in the "first" team this season, but I think I might have to give him more serious consideration after that performance!

Some may say it was undeserved. I'd call it a managerial masterstroke. Two clear cut chances late in the second half and we were able to capitalise on them both and get the win. Even more impressively, we get to follow our U19s through to the Knockout Rounds.

 

Well. This could be interesting. I still don't think we have the quality to beat these teams. But I'm unwilling to write us off completely.

 

Goal Scorers - UEFA Champions League - Season 2030/31

Screve Zola - 5

Rocco Sarcone - 3

Filippo Di Biase - 2

Carlos Romero - 2

Paul Shields - 2

Matt Watson - 2

Craig Galliano - 1

Chad Haines - 1

 

Lincoln Red Imps won their final match of their Europa Conference League Group Stage, but missed out on qualifying to the knockout rounds on goal difference. It was a much better showing from Lincoln this time around, after not scoring a single point in their first Europa Conference League Group Stage match many years ago.

[mattyjames_]

[mattyjames_]

Gibraltar National League - First Stage - Season 2030/31

We have been exceptional in the league so far this season, balancing our performances in the Champions League with regular league fixtures and coming through the first eleven games having conceded just one goal. The league stats show just how impressive our reserve players have been throughout the early league games, with three of our players leading the league scoring tables, as well as a variety of other categories. What's more impressive is that the likes of Morgan and McGlynn haven't played in all eleven games due to me trying to give matches to the "first" team in order to keep them fresh and happy with the minutes they're getting.

Our matches for the first half of the season look like this.

The two major highlights of the season so far are:

1. Our record-breaking 13-0 victory over Magpies which coincided with our first match at our newly upgraded stadium; 8,500 fans got to witness the slaughter.

2. Our 6-0 smashing of Europa FC, where their goalkeeper still managed a 6.6 because we had 13 Clear Cut Chances and 6 Half Chances (oh, and January loan signing Alberto Ruiz scored 4 goals on debut).

We are in a commanding position at the top of the table, with a nine point advantage over second place. The battle for second is a hotly contested one though, with four teams separated by just two points. Mons Calpe have just scraped through into the Top 6, and we will be looking forward to coming up against them twice more this season. We are still on track for our best defensive season ever, having conceded just one goal so far. The best we've ever done, in comparison, is 2.

 

Goal Scorers - Gibraltar National League - Season 2030/31

Joe McGlynn - 12

Kelvin Morgan - 9

Paul Shields - 7

Kegs Chauke - 5

Craig Galliano - 5

Alberto Ruiz - 4

Screve Zola -  3

Belmin Klacar - 2

Louie Annesley - 1

Mark Burton - 1

Filippo Di Biase - 1

Matthieu Muller - 1

Edited October 11, 2020 by mattyjames_

[mattyjames_]

Not sure how these two things are similar? 

[mattyjames_]

Youth Intake - Season 2030/31

Not bad - we might make something out of a couple of these players!

[mattyjames_]

UEFA Champions League - First Knockout Round - Season 2030/31

Well, we are back with the Champions League. We had made it to this place before, last season, where we were comprehensively beaten by Manchester City. This time around, we found ourselves facing FC Barcelona. Being the lower-ranked team, we played at home first.

I mean, we were outclassed across the park, and probably didn't deserve to draw, just looking at the stats, but here we are. Barcelona threw everything they had at us, but they could only find the back of the net through Marcus Rashford in the 27th minute. We had Chad Haines to thank for a delightful headed equaliser with 19 minutes to go that brought the crowd to life. The goal was beautifully assisted by Screve Zola from a deep free kick. A dream finish to the match as we held on for 1-1. We would head to the Nou Camp knowing there was work to do, but believing that we could get it done.

 

We still never stood a chance. We have improved immensely from last year, getting a loss on away goals this time around, instead of on aggregate, but it hurts to go 90 minutes without taking even a single shot. Barcelona played well, but Mark Murphy had one of the games of his career between the sticks to keep the likes of Rashford and Haaland silent. Alas, we do tumble out of the Champions League at this stage, with no further continental competition to be part of this season. However, we can hold our heads high for making it this far. Lynx FC are getting closer by the season, we can taste it! A quarter final berth awaits us in the near future (hopefully). It's the third time in the last four seasons that we have fallen at this hurdle, but we are strengthening our case to be considered one of the top 10 teams in Europe.

 

Goal Scorers - UEFA Champions League - Season 2030/31

Screve Zola - 5

Rocco Sarcone - 3

Filippo Di Biase - 2

Chad Haines - 2

Carlos Romero - 2

Paul Shields - 2

Matt Watson - 2

Craig Galliano - 1

[cel1234]

Unlucky with Barca mate. BTW the game was meant to be live but they ran into problems but you can watch the 1st game of season for Lynx if your interested. On Lynx TV on youtube

 

[mattyjames_]

On 21/10/2020 at 02:07, cel1234 said:

Unlucky with Barca mate. BTW the game was meant to be live but they ran into problems but you can watch the 1st game of season for Lynx if your interested. On Lynx TV on youtube

 

So good! I was wondering if the GFA was going to put them on YouTube or not, but if Lynx has it, that's even better!

[mattyjames_]

Gibraltar National League - Championship Group - Season 2030/31

The Lynx FC train rolled on through the National League, despite our hiccup in the Champions League. We continued our winning run, which stretches now to 177 league games (and unbeaten in 190). We are approaching 10 years since we have experienced a loss in the league now!

Despite our good form, we have made a habit of squeaking out wins in the second half of the season, doing just what we need to do in order to get the three points. Strangely enough, this happened with our best players in the lineup as well, despite having over 30 shots in a game, we struggled to find the breakthroughs and get more than a goal or two in each game.

Lincoln Red Imps again earned themselves a place in the qualifiers for the UEFA Champions League, with Europa just edging out Manchester 62 FC for the Europa League Qualification place. Mons Calpe performed relatively well despite not getting a win through their last five games - they held a number of better teams to draws, and only gave up a goal to us!

As you can see, we managed a fairly decent clean sheet streak through the first seven matches of the Championship group, but there were no real blowout wins. The biggest match was a 4-2 goal-fest against Europa. It was a great performance from our squad though, and the players all shared around the goal scoring rather effectively. Unfortunately, Alberto Ruiz was incredibly disappointing after his flying start to his time with us.

 

Goal Scorers - Gibraltar National League - Season 2030/31

Joe McGlynn - 15

Kelvin Morgan - 9

Paul Shields - 8

Screve Zola -  7

Craig Galliano - 6

Kegs Chauke - 5

Filippo Di Biase - 5

Alberto Ruiz - 5

Belmin Klacar - 2

Matthieu Muller - 2

Louie Annesley - 1

Mark Burton - 1

Carlos Romero - 1

Rocco Sarcone - 1

Matt Watson - 1

[mattyjames_]

Gibtelecom Rock Cup - Season 2030/31

The Rock Cup went just as well for us this season, and we continued our impressive streak in the competition.

This time around, we had a slightly more challenging calibre of opposition, facing arguably the three best teams in Gibraltar (other than us), in order, en route to the title.

Not much else to say about this tournament, really. Other than the fact that we have really taken a liking to it after getting messed around earlier in our careers.

 

Goal Scorers - Gibtelecom Rock Cup - Season 2030/31

Joe McGlynn - 2

Screve Zola - 2

Filippo Di Biase - 1

Craig Galliano - 1

Carlos Romero - 1

[mattyjames_]

End of Season Awards - Season 2030/31

Fans player of the season- Joe McGlynn (76%)

Mac's player of the season- Screve Zola

Rising Star- Screve Zola

Goal of the season- Kelvin Morgan (vs College '75)

Signing of the season- N/A

Young player of the season- Paul Shields

Screve Zola earns the Rising Star and my Player of the Season award for the third consecutive season after his exceptional performances in all competitions. He scored 17 goals and grabbed 8 assists in 25 appearances in all competitions, far and away the best player we had. McGlynn was impressive in the league, and desrevedly earned the Fans Player of the Season award as a result of that. Paul Shields picked up the Young Player of the Season at 24 years old - he grabbed three Player of the Match performances in the league this season to strengthen his claim as the best of what is a very young group for us.

 

End of season stat leaders (competitive fixtures):

Top Goalscorer- Joe McGlynn (20)

Most Assists- Leon Clinton (12)

Most Clean Sheets- Drazen Pejic (13)

Highest Average Rating- Joe McGlynn (7.62)

Best Passing Percentage- Filippo Ballarini (90%)

Most Player of the Match- Screve Zola (7)

 

Season Summary

 

Managerial Record

Trophy Shelf

Season Review

[mattyjames_]

It's been a long off-season.

Lynx FC have put in the hard yards, and fended off their best players from all comers, and are heading into the Champions League Qualification matches in a very good position.

For perhaps the first time ever, we have played friendlies against teams that are not our U23s, and it's worked out okay for us!

 

Just one transfer of note - James Hill has left the squad for Al-Kohr in Qatar for a fee of $1.2 million, which could rise to $1.4 million. 

[mattyjames_]

UEFA Champions League Qualifiers - Season 2031/32

We were again privileged enough to be one of five Gibraltarian clubs to qualify for Europe this season, and it was a lengthy break as we sat and waited for our first game in the Champions Third Qualifying Round.

However, perhaps the best news for us and the league in the long term is that not one, but two other teams qualified for a European Group Stage this season, with Europa FC (going the easy way) and Lincoln Red Imps (going the hard way) making it into the Europa Conference League! They will take on Group G and Grou H respectively:

 

But of course, you want to know about the Lynx FC matches, don't you? Well, I'm afraid it's more good news for the yellow and black, with comprehensive performances in all four of our matches to secure a spot in the UEFA Champions League Group Stage for the seventh consecutive year. I am starting to believe that we belong at this level!

 

It was an incredible period for both Alberto Ruiz (on loan) and Screve Zola, who notched five goals each across the four matches, and were very effectively supported by their teammates. Ruiz's goal 16 seconds into the second leg of the Malmo FF tie was the fastest ever goal by a Lynx player. One thing not show here in the stats is the incredible support put in by Matthieu Muller and Filippo Ballarini through these four matches. The right-side players have contributed three assists each, providing a devastating return through the qualifiers. These results have filled us with confidence for our group stage clashes coming up in Group G, which appears to be a group we have a great chance of getting out of.

 

Goal Scorers - UEFA Champions League - Season 2031/32

Alberto Ruiz - 5

Screve Zola - 5

Filippo Di Biase - 2

Paul Shields - 2

Kegs Chauke - 1

Joe McGlynn - 1

[mattyjames_]

UEFA Champions League - Group G - Season 2031/32

We have had the perfect start to our campaign in Europe, with everything going according to plan.

There have been moments of brilliance from individual players in every single match, but perhaps the highlight so far is the fact that we have not conceded a single goal in the first half of the group stage.

With perhaps the most challenging series of fixtures out the way (having played two games away from home in the first half of the draw), our real challenge in the second half of the campaign will be the away match against Ajax. Sitting six points clear of Ludogorets, and playing them in the next match means that a win would secure us passage to the Knockout rounds of the Champions League for the third year in a row. Alberto Ruiz has shone so far in the Champions League, the 18-year-old getting five assists to go alongside his seven goals and he is making a strong claim for a record transfer spend in the months to come.

 

At the other end of Europe, Lincoln and Europa have been struggling in the Europa Conference League, with both teams taking just one point from their opening three matches in the Group Stage.

Both teams will have their work cut out for them if they are going to qualify from here, but at least they are going to help improve the coefficient of Gibraltar in their next three matches. It will be interesting to see if either team can get the first win for a Gibraltarian club (other than us) in European Group Stage competition.

 

Goal Scorers - UEFA Champions League - Season 2031/32

Alberto Ruiz - 7

Screve Zola - 7

Filippo Di Biase - 4

Paul Shields - 2

Kegs Chauke - 1

Craig Galliano - 1

Joe McGlynn - 1

Matthieu Muller - 1

[mattyjames_]

UEFA Champions League - Group G - Season 2031/32

We belong at this level. The results we've had this season prove that! Our best ever Group Stage performance, taking a maximum six wins from six games.

Screve Zola and Alberto Ruiz have been immense up front for us, leading the line with aplomb and combining for 21 goals over the course of the campaign. They have been adequately supported by Filippo Di Biase and Matthieu Muller, who have notched six and five assists respectively. Ruiz has assisted six goals to go with the nine he has scored. Rocco Sarcone has chimed in with four assists of his own, and the midfield is clearly doing its job to perfection. Unfortunately, our defence didn't remain perfect through the second half of the Group Stage - we conceded one goal in each match to share the love around to all our opposition.

All in all, it was a Group Stage to be savoured, and one that will live long in the memories of the fans and the manager. Looking ahead to the First Knockout Round, we have been drawn against:

Chelsea. Man, that seems a bit rough considering we were the best performing team in the Group Stage! We played a lucky draw and a narrow loss to Chelsea in the Group Stage in 2028, so hopefully we stand a chance of making it to the Quarter Finals for the first time ever!

 

Looking at the other Gibraltarian teams, they both crashed out of the Group Stage of the Europa Conference League. However, Lincoln Red Imps gave the other teams a real run for their money, taking seven points from their last three games to just miss out on qualification.

It looks like the other clubs are starting to build towards European success, which is fantastic to see. The better the other teams perform, the better off Gibraltar will be when it comes to qualification places, and the easier it will be for us to regularly make it to the Champions League Group Stage!

 

Goal Scorers - UEFA Champions League - Season 2031/32

Screve Zola - 12

Alberto Ruiz - 9

Filippo Di Biase - 5

Paul Shields - 4

Matthieu Muller - 3

Kegs Chauke - 1

Craig Galliano - 1

Joe McGlynn - 1

[mattyjames_]

Gibraltar National League - First Stage - Season 2031/32

This year is our year. If the league table doesn't show it, maybe a few crucial stats will. We have been breaking records game after game, and we have not yet conceded a single goal in the Gibraltar National League. Lincoln Red Imps are the only team that have come close to us, riding off the back of their relative success in the Europa Conference League. Two big surprises in the league standings at the halfway stage - one for good reasons, and one for... not so good reasons.

Europa Point are flying high at the moment, sitting in third place after half the games in the season. This is the first time in the history of the save that they have ever made it to the Championship Group - only time will tell if they are able to stay in the qualification places for Europe at the end of the season.

At the other end of results is St Josephs FC, who have missed the cut for the Championship Group by virtue of losing their head to head fixture with Gibraltar Lions (courtesy of a goal from one of Lynx FCs players who was out on loan at the time). The last time St Josephs failed to make the cut was in 2021/22, where they finished seventh overall.

Lynx FC have had a series of comfortable league wins in the opening stage of the competition, with the most nerve-wracking game being the 1-0 win against Mons Calpe where Paul Shields waited until the 88th minute to produce the winning goal. Highlights of the run would definitely be our 'second string' guys running out 11-0 winners against Gibraltar Lions early in the competition, in a match where Craig Galliano scored 4 goals, as well as the first league match for our 'first team', which was a 7-0 win over St Josephs that saw Alberto Ruiz score a hattrick. This is the kind of dominance that's been years in the making. We just need to hold out for 10 more games, and we will have won the league without conceding a goal - something no team has ever done before.

Speaking of things no team has ever done before - we are flying high right now, sitting on a 29-match winning streak across all competitions (including the Champions League), and we have not lost in 44 games. In fact, it has been over an entire calendar year since we tasted outright defeat in any competition. With the First Knockout Round of the Champions League against Chelsea on the horizon, I'm not sure how much longer these streaks will continue...

 

Goal Scorers - Gibraltar National League - Season 2031/32

Joe McGlynn - 8

Alberto Ruiz - 7 

Craig Galliano - 6

Paul Shields - 3

Filippo Di Biase - 3

Carlos Romero - 3

Screve Zola -  3

Matt Watson - 2

David Bond - 1

Kemeron - 1

Matthieu Muller - 1

Rocco Sarcone - 1

Own Goals - 1

[mattyjames_]

There's only one thing that hasn't really gone according to our plans.

Muller decided he'd rather play for a team that's worse than us that are going to pay a gigantic pile of wages per week.

As you can see, he is currently on $67k, but he was asking for in excess of $130k to stay with us, and I felt that was a little too steep.

 

Looks like we are now on the search for a new winger!

[mattyjames_]

Youth Intake - Season 2031/32

 

[OlivierL]

This is the FM20 database ? in the FM21 database their is a strange prize money bug for the winner of the championship and 'second' group.. they both get 250k a season.

[mattyjames_]

UEFA Champions League - First Knockout Round - Season 2031/32

So the stage is set. After our record breaking run through the Group Stage, everything was on the line for our First Knockout Round clash with Chelsea. We've had some success against Premier League opposition before, but had not previously defeated Chelsea in two matches.

The first leg of the tie had it all. Playing at Stamford Bridge, we came out with a much more defensive approach than anything we adopted throughout the Group Stage, looking to keep ourselves in the contest more than anything.

The first moment of note was in the 35th minute, where we gave away a penalty. Mark Murphy stepped up though, and our Keeper saved the day, keeping us in the match with a brilliant save to preseve the tie. As the seconds were ticking down to half time, Chelsea were able to open the scoring. However Screve Zola was the man to get me out of my seat, his 84th minute equaliser giving the Gibraltar fans a glimmer of hope heading into the home leg. Alongside the two red cards, there were seven other players who received bookings in this match, proving there was plenty of tension both on and off the field.

 

Three weeks later, and the stands were packed to the rafters, with nearly 10,000 people turning up to Lynx FC Stadium for the second biggest match of the save (behind the Europa League Final a few seasons ago). 

It was a nervous opening, with both teams taking some time to test the waters, neither side getting a good shot on goal in the opening 20 minutes, though the visitors did seem to have the better of the play. Medhi Peyronel picked up an injury and had to go off after 27 minutes, throwing our plans into disarray. I started to lose confidence as we had some of our defence playing out of position, but less than 10 minutes later it was Alberto Ruiz who pounced on a mistake from the Chelsea defence and opened the scoring. The goal put us up 2-1 on aggregate, with a vital away goal that could prove all the difference. We held the lead through to half time, and we were flying high, full of confidence, and ready for the second half.

Adopting a more defensive approach, we were trying to contain an ever more desperate Chelsea attack. With an away goal up our sleeves, we felt comfortable, but Dani made us sweat in the 64th minute when his clutch header redirected a great cross past Mark Murphy and into the back of the net. We opted to still make our scheduled substitutions, bringing on Craig Galliano and Carlos Romero who would hopefully give us the boost we needed. As the match entered the dying minutes, we began to steel ourselves for the oncoming extra time and the potential of penalties, until...

Dani struck again, in the 90th minute, breaking hearts and spirits of fans all around Lynx FC Stadium. Now trailing 1-2, and with Chelsea having scored two away goals, Lynx would need to win the match outright in order to progress to the final eight of the Champions League. The boys kept their heads up, and moved into injury time. 

Craig Galliano. Off the bench. Mindblowing goal. Lynx are level! Two minutes deep into injury time and again, the fans choose to believe. The fans choose to have hope. It appears that Screve Zola may have broken his finger, but he doesn't want to come off. He's too committed to the game. Second tick by. The end is nigh.

Zola's set piece. Ruiz's goal. Me standing up, screaming in delirium and joy at beating Chelsea in the most unlikely of circumstances. Six minutes into injury time, with what was pretty much the last touch of the ball, we have emphatically got the job done.

I still can't quite believe this!

 

Goal Scorers - UEFA Champions League - Season 2031/32

Screve Zola - 13

Alberto Ruiz - 11

Filippo Di Biase - 5

Paul Shields - 4

Matthieu Muller - 3

Craig Galliano - 2

Kegs Chauke - 1

Joe McGlynn - 1

Edited January 30, 2021 by mattyjames_

[mattyjames_]

15 minutes ago, OlivierL said:

This is the FM20 database ? in the FM21 database their is a strange prize money bug for the winner of the championship and 'second' group.. they both get 250k a season.

Yes, I'm playing on FM20.

[mattyjames_]

We are going to need to be at our best to get anything out of this.

A goal away from home could be absolutely vital!

[mattyjames_]

The best player I've ever had is not convinced that we are worth signing for.

We are willing to cough up $182 million to meet his release clause, but this is what he wants along with that.

I can't afford that right now, which is a shame because Atletico won't allow us to loan him for another season.

[mattyjames_]

UEFA Champions League - Quarter Final - Season 2031/32

Barcelona. Winners of the LaLiga in five of the last seven years, and rocketing ahead of the competition this season to be nine points clear of their nearest rivals with six games to play. We have faced them twice previously in this save, home and away in a First Knockout Round tie that saw us lose on away goals. The results show that, if anything, we have been their equal, if unable to get the better of them on the day.

The first leg of the tie would be played in front of almost 100,000 fans at a packed Camp Nou, with just under 350 Gibraltarian supporters making the trip over to Spain for the match. It was an absolute rollercoaster of a match.

Alberto Ruiz gave one of the most inspired performances of his fledgling career, scoring an immense hattrick and giving us the lead with each of his three goals. Unfortunately, we were undone each time by brilliance from either Nascimento or Antonic, and the match finished at a 3-3 stalemate. Ruben Dias showed inexperience that defied his years in the 89th minute, getting dismissed for a second bookable offence and ruling himself out of the return fixture. With the huge impact of an immense defender missing, we headed into that fixture even more confident of achieving something that has never been done before.

Barcelona had it all to do in the return leg, knowing that not even a draw would be enough to secure passage to the next round. They threw everything at us, but couldn't find a way through during the first half. Something must have sparked within them during the team talk at half time though, because they came out firing on all cylinders in the second 45, and quickly made their dominance tell. Oscar Amat scored to give Barcelona the lead, both on the night and in the tie, and Lynx FC were left staring at the brink of elimination. Thankfully, the boys on the pitch have developed a penchant for not giving up, and continued to fight for the shirt. Six minutes later, Filippo Di Biase was brought down inside the box, and the referee went to the VAR monitor to determine if it was a foul. After a nervy wait, the penalty was confirmed. Rocco Sarcone stepped up and slotted the equaliser, and the home fans knew it would be enough to get through.

The match finished 1-1, though not without drama as Barcelona had a 62nd minute strike chalked off due after VAR intervened and made an offside call. Lynx FC win the Champions League Quarter Final at the first time of asking, and move on to the Semi Final, where they will face Tottenham Hotspur.

 

Goal Scorers - UEFA Champions League - Season 2031/32

Alberto Ruiz - 14

Screve Zola - 13

Filippo Di Biase - 5

Paul Shields - 4

Matthieu Muller - 3

Craig Galliano - 2

Kegs Chauke - 1

Joe McGlynn - 1

Rocco Sarcone - 1

[mattyjames_]

UEFA Champions League - Semi Final - Season 2031/32

Oh. My. Gosh.

We've done it! We have made it to the FINAL of the UEFA Champions League! An absolute fairytale for the boys from Gibraltar after one of the all time greatest comeback matches!!

After going down 0-2 in the first thirty minutes playing away to Tottenham in the first leg, it was our set piece game that brought us back and allowed us to squeak through to the final on away goals.

Chad Haines was the man of the moment in the first leg, scoring a brilliant header right on the brink of half time to grab a crucial away goal, while Paul Shields stole the show with a first minute sneak attack in the second leg to book our tickets to the final. The stats certainly were not in our favour, but the fans and board are ecstatic at this once-in-a-lifetime result.

 

 

Uh oh.

 

Goal Scorers - UEFA Champions League - Season 2031/32

Alberto Ruiz - 14

Screve Zola - 13

Filippo Di Biase - 5

Paul Shields - 5

Matthieu Muller - 3

Craig Galliano - 2

Kegs Chauke - 1

Chad Haines - 1

Joe McGlynn - 1

Rocco Sarcone - 1

[mattyjames_]

Gibraltar National League - Championship Group - Season 2031/32

We have finally done it!

After coming so close, but falling so far short on a number of occasions, the 2031/32 season was the one that dreams are made of. Closing out the season with a 5-0 win against Europa, we have now played 21 games in the league and not conceded a single goal.

Lincoln Red Imps fell apart in the second half of the season, taking just seven points from their final 10 games. Despite being the worst performers in the Championship Group, they still managed to hold on to second place and a Champions League spot after Europa Point stumbled to a draw on the final day of the season. Speaking of Europa Point, it truly was a fairytale season for them - in their first time making the Championship Group, they almost managed to pull off a huge upset and finish in second place overall, but it just wasn't to be.

It was a great second half of the season against some of the best that Gibraltar has to offer, and we have worked exceptionally hard to get results with some combination of our "second string" players.

 

Goal Scorers - Gibraltar National League - Season 2031/32

Joe McGlynn - 15

Craig Galliano - 12

Alberto Ruiz - 8

Paul Shields - 7

Carlos Romero - 6

Filippo Di Biase - 5

Screve Zola -  5

Matthieu Muller - 4

Filippo Ballarini - 2

Kemeron - 2

Matt Watson - 2

David Bond - 1

Kegs Chauke - 1

Ryu Earl - 1

Chad Haines - 1

Rocco Sarcone - 1

Own Goals - 1

[mattyjames_]

Gibtelecom Rock Cup - Season 2031/32

Another season, another Cup win for Lynx FC. We have truly asserted our dominance over the rock cup, claiming the title for the eighth successive season, in a competition that the board no longer prioritises.

We managed to score 15 goals en-route to the silverware, with our toughest match being the Quarter Final against Europa. We are really starting to see a shift in the balance of power in Gibraltarian football, as Europa Point begin to step up their claims to being one of the eilite. The cash flow into the league over the past few seasons has been immense, and it is only a matter of time before our fominance starts to peter out. The two goals conceded in the game against Europa are the only two goals to be scored against us in Gibraltarian football this season - another impressive achievement.

 

Goal Scorers - Gibtelecom Rock Cup - Season 2031/32

Matt Watson - 4

Filippo Di Biase - 3

Joe McGlynn - 2

Alberto Ruiz - 2

Kemeron - 1

Matthieu Muller - 1

Carlos Romero - 1

Paul Shields - 1

 

[mattyjames_]

Just one game left of the season now.

[mattyjames_]

UEFA Champions League - Final - Season 2031/32

Well, we are here. The Final of the UEFA Champions League. For the first time in the history of Lynx FC, we are playing on Europe's biggest stage. It is the second continental final of our career, with our previous match being a loss in the Europa League Final a number of seasons ago. We lined up with our standard 4-3-1-2 formation, while Liverpool met us with a 4-2-3-1. The stage is set for a showdown for the ages in Hungary.

The match kicks off with a highlight, Liverpool bring the ball forwards and I start to get nervous, but their attack is cut short 23 seconds into the match when the offside flag is raised.

We get a highlight just after the 10 minute mark and bring the ball forwards, Murphy's goal kick finding the head of Carlos Romero. He nodded it down to Di Biase, who took the ball around Trent Alexander-Arnold and let loose a cannonball from outside the box that flashed past the Liverpool keeper and hit the back of the net.

Almost at the 37 minute mark, Reyna whips in a corner to the Liverpool near post. An attacker gets their head on it, and despite a desperate dive, Mark Murphy can't reach it. Medhi Peyronel leaps up on the line and manages to head the ball clear! It doesn't get to safety though, and Liverpool get the ball back, before Paul Shields takes down his opponent right on the edge of the box. Thankfully, he was outside the area, or we would have been facing a penalty. Shields gets booked for his trouble, and the Reds have a free kick almost straight in front of goal.

Reyna sends the set piece straight into the wall, and Murphy handles the follow up shot comfortably.

Despite Liverpool dominating the shots statistic, possession is almost completely level, and we take a one-goal lead into the half time break.

50 minutes into the match and we have gone slightly more defensive. Liverpool strip the ball from Paul Shields as he takes too long to get rid of it, and surge forwards on the counter. Leo skips around a man and lets loose a shot, but it's blocked by a Lynx defender. Liverpool pick up the scraps and play the ball forward to Leo who has continued his run to the edge of the 6-yard box. Leo hits a fierce shot that a desperate Murphy can only parry away. The ball falls straight back to Leo, but as the angle gets tighter as he approaches the byline, his follow-up shot is saved by a flail of Murphy's arm, then cracks against the post and goes out of play. 

The resulting corner is cut off at the near post by Filippo Di Biase, and the highlight ends.

Matt Watson takes the place of the booked Paul Shields in the 53rd minute - I don't want to be caught a man down if I can help it.

At the 68 minute mark, Medhi Peyronal dishes up an absolute peach of a long throw that sets Alberto Ruiz free inside the penalty box. One-on-one with the keeper, the Spanish wonderkid could almost seal the win for us, but instead he scuffs the shot and plays his clear cut chance straight into the hands of the Liverpool keeper. Screve Zola comes on to replace Ruiz in the 70th minute, as we look to find a way to take any other chances that come our way. With that change, we also switch our mentality to very defensive.

We've done it! We managed to hang on, and we have claimed victory in the Champions League at our first time of asking!!! Lynx FC are the Champions of Europe!

Liverpool may have had many more shots than us, but we did ourselves proud in maintaining possession and we have claimed what is arguably the biggest crown in the game, by taking victory in the Champions League!

 

Goal Scorers - UEFA Champions League - Season 2031/32

Alberto Ruiz - 14

Screve Zola - 13

Filippo Di Biase - 6

Paul Shields - 5

Matthieu Muller - 3

Craig Galliano - 2

Kegs Chauke - 1

Chad Haines - 1

Joe McGlynn - 1

Rocco Sarcone - 1

[mattyjames_]

End of Season Awards - Season 2031/32

Fans player of the season- Craig Galliano (63%)

Mac's player of the season- Filippo Di Biase

Rising Star- Alberto Ruiz

Goal of the season- Craig Galliano (vs Chelsea)

Signing of the season- N/A

Young player of the season- Carlos Romero

Filippo Di Biase started in all but one game from our victorious Champions League campaign, and the 22 year old left midfielder put the team on his back for every one of those fixtures. He scored six goals and assisted another 8, picking up two player of the match awards in the process. He came through the season with the higheset average rating across all competitions, and despite other members of the squad (Ruiz, Zola, Galliano) making this decision very difficult, Di Biase is a worthy recipient of the award.

 

Galliano's goal of the season is probably the goal of the entire save so far. Make sure you scroll up to our match against Chelsea to check it out again - it was the goal that kick-started our comeback and kept us in the Champions League when we were on the brink of elimination in the First Knockout Round.

It is with great sadness that we must still say goodbye to Matthieu Muller after this season, with the right midfielder having signed a contract with another club during the January transfer window. Muller played 34 games for us during this campaign, the most of any player in the squad. We will also lose Alberto Ruiz, who was on loan from Atletico Madrid, which means two of the best players from our team will not feature in our lineups next season. 

 

End of season stat leaders (competitive fixtures):

Top Goalscorer- Alberto Ruiz (24)

Most Assists- Carlos Romero (14)

Most Clean Sheets- Serine Sanneh (20)

Highest Average Rating- Filippo Di Biase (7.86)

Best Passing Percentage- Filippo Ballarini (89%)

Most Player of the Match- Craig Galliano (7)

 

Season Summary

Managerial Record

Trophy Shelf

Season Review

Edited February 6, 2021 by mattyjames_

[mattyjames_]

Craig Galliano's goal of the season was also voted as the best goal in the Champions League for 2031/32.

[mattyjames_]

[mattyjames_]

Great to see a number of Lynx FC players either in contention for or winning awards on the Champions League stage this season.

Mark Murphy and Alberto Ruiz winning their respective categories, with Screve Zola and Filippo Di Biase finishing runner up, and Matthieu Muller claiming third.

[mattyjames_]

And the board continues to expand our stadium to cope with the demand for Lynx FC!

[mattyjames_]

Well, we have paid through the nose, but we managed to sign Alberto Ruiz. We have smashed our club transfer record in order to do so, but he was willing to agree to a contract, and we want to make the most of it!

[SimpleFM]

On 06/02/2021 at 08:52, mattyjames_ said:

Gibraltar National League - Championship Group - Season 2031/32

We have finally done it!

After coming so close, but falling so far short on a number of occasions, the 2031/32 season was the one that dreams are made of. Closing out the season with a 5-0 win against Europa, we have now played 21 games in the league and not conceded a single goal.

Lincoln Red Imps fell apart in the second half of the season, taking just seven points from their final 10 games. Despite being the worst performers in the Championship Group, they still managed to hold on to second place and a Champions League spot after Europa Point stumbled to a draw on the final day of the season. Speaking of Europa Point, it truly was a fairytale season for them - in their first time making the Championship Group, they almost managed to pull off a huge upset and finish in second place overall, but it just wasn't to be.

It was a great second half of the season against some of the best that Gibraltar has to offer, and we have worked exceptionally hard to get results with some combination of our "second string" players.

 

Goal Scorers - Gibraltar National League - Season 2031/32

Joe McGlynn - 15

Craig Galliano - 12

Alberto Ruiz - 8

Paul Shields - 7

Carlos Romero - 6

Filippo Di Biase - 5

Screve Zola -  5

Matthieu Muller - 4

Filippo Ballarini - 2

Kemeron - 2

Matt Watson - 2

David Bond - 1

Kegs Chauke - 1

Ryu Earl - 1

Chad Haines - 1

Rocco Sarcone - 1

Own Goals - 1

How you didn't concede a single goal is nothing short of a miracle, not just because you have the best players in the league but no penalty? no free kicks or corner goals. Outstanding.

What is your tactical set up?