[FM2020] Albion My Way (Part 2)

[deez0r]

Improvement

Our first improvement in youth facilities!

[deez0r]

Pre Season & Transfers Out

Results

2 smashing results here although having looked at their teams they weren't anything close to their first team.

We have managed to get nearly 200k in transfer sales. A lot of these players were backup players last season and have dropped further down the pecking order due to the the number of new players coming in. The legend that is Umar also leaves us as the step up to this level is just too much for him. 

 

[deez0r]

Transfers In Part 1 - Loans

Loans

Hjelde joins again on loan from Celtic. He was fantastic last season and will be another big positive for us.

White joins us on loan from Rangers for the season. He is a quick and tricky winger who should get good game time for his development.

Another from the Old Firm! Naismith comes in as a very good striking option. He will start and hopefully get us goals to keep us up!

And our final (allowed) loan player from Scotland. Again from the Old Firm. Roberts is a fantastic defender for our level and will be one of our starting centre backs.

And now 2 young Brazilians (second nationality Portugal which is a trait of this transfer window). Praxedes is a very solid centre midfielder and his skills really suit my deep lying playmaker role.

Caue is our other Brazilian on loan for the season. Becomes our 4th centre half and will be rotated with the others.

 

 

[deez0r]

Transfers In - Part 2 - Permanent Transfers Part 1

A lot of transfer in this season and we have finally spent some money!

Goalkeepers

Back to my homeland to pick up our new starting goalkeeper. 60k is a bargain I believe for a player of this quality. Has big potential!

Defenders

Brought in as a squad player. Wont play too much as we have a lot of solid centre backs at the club but he is a good backup to have.

A really solid full back who comes in as our first choice right back! Handy that he also covers both sides!

A bit more experience with this signing. He still has really solid stats for a centre back and is our new captain!

Our new left back comes in on a free from France. Solid player and I like his stats as he needs to bomb up and down that left hand side.

 

 

[deez0r]

Transfers In Part 3 - Permanent Transfers - Part 2

Midfielders

A massive signing for us. He is quality and can play in a variety of positions but will probably be utilised most on the right for us this season. Expecting big things!

Another younger player signed more for backup than to start games. Once our loans go back will be a handy squad player to have.

Musaba joins us from Vitesse. He will be a rotation option this season but has solid stats and covers pretty much the whole spine of the team!

A signing for just under 50k. Another of the Brazilian/Portuguese crew! Covers both sides and will be a good option for us this season.

Our record signing. Comes in from PSG. Quick and skilful winger who should be great for us once he settles into the team. 275k is big money for a club like us so lets hope it pays off!

Strikers

Another signing I am very excited about. Ruocco has really solid stats and will be out number 1 striker this season!

Not 100% sure where to utilise Lima most effectively. We do not play an AMC but he could be trained for that deep lying playmaker role I like or as a deep lying striker. I am going for the latter currently but has very solid stats around the board.

Another one of my favourite signings. Needs to develop but I think we have a very good base for a fantastic striker for us. Massive potential and will get games this season!

 

[deez0r]

One Last Signing

This one I couldn't resist. He comes in for 350k. He has huge potential and will slot into our midfield right away!

[deez0r]

Training Facilities

[deez0r]

Well well well

An amazing performance! We were the better team and puts down a marker for the season!

[karanhsingh]

Ben Hur?? 

Great result against celtic! 

[deez0r]

Just now, karanhsingh said:

Ben Hur?? 

Great result against celtic! 

Cracking name isn't it! It was unfortunately we have had some slip ups against teams I thought we would beat!

[karanhsingh]

Just now, deez0r said:

Cracking name isn't it! It was unfortunately we have had some slip ups against teams I thought we would beat!

Does he have dual nationality? Or are WP rules easier in Scotland? 

[deez0r]

1 minute ago, karanhsingh said:

Does he have dual nationality? Or are WP rules easier in Scotland? 

He does, I had a filter on which made sure they were EU nationals

[deez0r]

I think every fan was entertained in this match. Just the 57 shots on goal. 

[deez0r]

August - October 2022

Results

Well we have been fantastic so far in the SPL and in the Betfred Cup. We have managed to beat both Old Firm teams already this season. A couple of poor results away at Hamilton and Hibs but it is showing that our transfer policy really has paid off this season.

League Table

We amazingly sit 2nd behind high flying Hibs! They have been battering teams (+28 GD already!). The surprises are Rangers and Celtic both having big struggles with Celtic only 2pts above the relegation zone. We can potentially push on for a European spot!

Betfred Cup

It has been smooth sailing in the Betfred Cup (apart from Morton who we beat on pens) as we have made our way through to the semi finals after knocking out Rangers & Hearts in the 2 knockout stages to date. In the semi finals we will play struggling Celtic!

Player Review - Kays Ruiz

Ruiz has been fantastic after taking a month or so to settle. Since then he has kicked on and has 6 goals and 2 assists so far!

Goalkeeper Watch

Pucko has 5 goals in 18 games! 4 penalties and 1 free kick!

Youth Review

Now that we are in the SPL I decided to bring back my trusty spreadsheet. These are the 7 players currently 21 or under in the first team. Nice to see there are no negative personalities. We have some big PA on Hur, Ruiz and Puglisi which hopefully they can reach. It has been a positive start with Ruiz being the standout so far!

[karanhsingh]

Wait a second, what in the world is going on at celtic!? I don't think I have ever seen them sh*t the bed like this! 

[deez0r]

1 hour ago, karanhsingh said:

Wait a second, what in the world is going on at celtic!? I don't think I have ever seen them sh*t the bed like this! 

I am not sure this season. They have won the last 3 leagues and still comfortably have the best team in the League. Just going through a very bad patch! They have only won 2 of their opening 11 league games. 

[deez0r]

Youth Intake Preview

Again not expecting anything. I am trying to get these increased. Until such a point that they are much better we wont be seeing much if any of our youth graduates in our first team.

[deez0r]

More misery on the Hoops

Make that 2 wins in 12!

[deez0r]

Scuds

I dont think Celtic like us. 93rd and 94th minute goals to send us to the Betfred Cup final!

[deez0r]

Old Guns

I seen a couple of free transfers and I couldn't resist...

Modric and Moutinho both come in to help us to the end of the season. Both retire but both have signed on as coaches as well!

They are still quality for a team of our level and will get games. We lost Praxedes as he was signed whilst on loan to us so needed cover.

 

[deez0r]

Betfred Cup Final

We win our first major piece of silverware with a 1-0 victory over St Johnstone in the Betfred Cup. We were the better team and a Ruocco goal was all that was required!

[deez0r]

December 2022 - February 2023

With the World Cup happening in winter we had no games in November and very little in December. Spain beat England 1-0 in the final!

Results

More good results here! We have had a few defeats as well but all in all we are in a very solid position for European football next season.

League Table

Celtic and Rangers seem to have bucked up their ideas a bit. Celtic winning unbeaten in 9 winning 8 of those. If we can continue to pick up wins before the league splits and keep that gap to Celtic we can potentially finish 2nd!

Betfred Cup

As you seen before we won the Betfred Cup knocking both Old Firm teams out in the process!

Scottish Cup

We got past Dundee and Morton quite comfortably but a red card away at Aberdeen was always going to make a tough tie that much tougher. We go out at the quarter final stage!

Player Review - Alexis Puglisi

Puglisi is developing well and is now over 100 CA. He has 5 goals this season and as he continues to develop he will become more and more important to the team.

Goalkeeper Watch

Pucko has 5 goals this season so far.

Youth Review

Just realised I had Ruiz's age wrong in the previous. He is actually 20. Good progress here from the younger players. Some have probably already hit their peak in terms of McPake and Ruocco.

[deez0r]

Stadium Expansion Completion

Pretty much doubled our stadium size which should help us a bit financially if we can fill it out.

[deez0r]

League Split

After slagging Celtic off they are now unbeaten in 18 games winning 16 and have won 13 games in a row now. We have dropped some silly points in the last few weeks and Hibs have choked a bit meaning its a 3 way title challenge!

[deez0r]

Gameweek 34

We travel to leaders Hibs whilst Celtic play Hearts at home.

Celtic do what they do and continue their ridiculous run. Us on the other hand absolutely batter a struggling Hibs side 6-0. And the scoreline didn't flatter us. Hibs have lost 4 of their last 6 games with only 1 win in that period. It means the table looks like this.

We go top by a point and have the best GD in the league now! 

[deez0r]

Gameweek 35

We have Celtic at home in what could be a massive game which decides where the title goes! Hibs have another difficult game away at Rangers.

Hibs collapse continues as they lose 4-2 at Rangers. The big news came at Reigart Stadium as a fantastic performance by us gave us a 2-1 win over Celtic meaning this is how the table looks.

We move 4pts clear with 3 games left to play. This is by no means over. We have to travel to both Hearts and Rangers and have St Johnstone at home. 

[deez0r]

Gameweek 36

We travel to Hearts whilst its an Old Firm Derby at Celtic Park. Hibs travel to St Johnstone.

Gutted. The sending off hurt us. Both Celtic and Hibs win meaning its tight at the top!

Hibs and Celtic play next!

[deez0r]

Poached

Player poached by Utd. Will keep an eye out for him!

[deez0r]

Manager Of The Year

Surprised this is handed out prior to the end of the season but its a nice accolade to have.

[deez0r]

Gameweek 37

We played St Johnstone at home whilst Hibs play Celtic!

We absolutely thump St Johnstone. Ruocco had a hat trick within 7mins and we never looked back. Hibs come from 2 down to draw 2-2 with Celtic! This means....

Celtic are out of the title race! For the first time since the 1984/85 season a team outside of the Old Firm will win the league!

[deez0r]

Gameweek 38

What a performance! Down to 10 men after 17 minutes. @Jimbokav1971 you would be proud of Ben Hur. He has had 16 yellows and 3 red cards this season :D. Even more amazing is we used all 3 subs and got an injury which meant we ended up playing with 9 men for nearly 20 minutes! Hibs did their part but it wasn't enough. We are Champions!

[deez0r]

Stadium Expansion

Another expansion. I presume this is to our maximum for this stadium. We move to the Joe Jordan Stadium (which I have never heard off) which holds 41000 people!

[karanhsingh]

Wow brilliant stuff!! Amazing to win the league so early in the save- well done!

[deez0r]

On 26/09/2020 at 06:40, karanhsingh said:

Wow brilliant stuff!! Amazing to win the league so early in the save- well done!

Yes I think I got fairly lucky in that Celtic had an atrocious start to the season or else they would have walked the league!

[deez0r]

Improvements

Improvements again in the junior coaching and youth recruitment!

[deez0r]

Dirty Rovers

Even though I am not attempting to be dirty like some on this forum such as @Jimbokav1971 my team have taken it upon them to get into the spirit. We finished with 8 men against Hibs.

[deez0r]

Transfers Out

9 players have left the club permanently and 3 on loan. McKenna was no longer required as our squad is simply much better now. Lima we got good money back on. We have a number of players who can play in that position now and we are still quite a small club so any fees over 1m is really good for us. Laidlow was our number one 2 seasons ago but like McKenna the better players have forced him out. Musada heads across the Atlantic. He moaned last season about wanting more games where I immediately dropped him. Gomes I probably could have kept but at 34 years old we have some younger players coming through. So he was sold for just under 100k.  Eboue was very good for us but an offer for 2.5m was too much for us to turn down especially with better quality players coming in. Wellinton scored some important goals for us last season but hasn't really developed the way I wanted him to so he's off to Spain for a nominal fee. Boutsingkham was very good for us last season and I wasn't actively looking to sell him but he complained when I brought another left back in so is off to France for just over 1m. The one I really didn't want to sell was Ruocco who again had started the season very well but SPAL met his release fee and he turned down a new contract. 

Instead of doing transfers in I think I will do a squad review and mention the transfers in that!

[deez0r]

Squad Review Part 1

Goalkeepers

Patricio was brought in on a free transfer. He still has a lot of qualities and even at 35 is a very good goalkeeper. Pucko is still developing but will get a lot of games this season still.

Full Backs

Ralston and Sequeira (free transfer) tend to be our starting 2 full backs although we do have a couple of centre backs who can play out there in Hesp and Ostigard. Massimo was brought in on loan mainly due to the amount of different positions he can play. Very solid player to have on our books. Lapper is one of 5 players I managed to poach for free from the States. All of which I got work permits for on appeal. I wasn't planning on having him in the first team this season but he will be our backup left back.

Centre Backs

Wes is a superstar in the making and my scouts have to take all credit for this. Costing only 400k he will be starting this season. Ostigard can play at centre back or right back. He will get quite a few games at full back this season in the big games. But is more a centre half. Forrester is our 2nd of the American boys to come in and in my eyes is probably has the most current ability out of the lot. I will try and get him a few games this season to aid his development. Hesp came in last season in January on an 18 month loan deal. He is fantastic for us and covers the whole back line. Vieira was another played brought in on a free transfers. Can play anywhere through the middle. Probably utilise him more in defence simply due to the quality we have in centre midfield now.

[deez0r]

Squad Review - Part 2

Centre Midfielders

Definitely our most stacked area (although 2 of these are loans. Ben Hur despite being the dirtiest player in Scotland is developing really really well. Keogh is another of our American recruits on a free transfer. Not really ready for this level but I will give him game time against smaller teams where possible. Levitt was another free transfer previously off Man Utd. He has really good quality and covers a lot of positions which is handy! We brought in Doyle (Man City) and Sousa (Porto) both on loan. They are quality players and will really help us with all the competitions we play in.

Wingers

It may look like we are short here but we have Massimo, Hur, Sequiera, Levitt, Puglisi and if need be Scheck that can play in the wide areas as well. Clarkson came in on loan from Wolves and is starting on the right whilst Ruiz starts on the left hand side. McPake I kept as we need to hit some form of home grown status in the CL.

Strikers

We are looking solid here despite losing Ruocco. Friars is the player we spent our whole transfer budget on. Transfer listed at Leicester he came in for just over £5m. He will be our main striker and really does look like quality! He is also Northern Irish (like me) and I used to live in a place called Friars Wood. Everything points towards a wonderful relationship! Cassio came in for 500k from Brazil. Current ability isn't as great as some of our other strikers but in terms of potential he can be a world beater. Will get quite a few games this season! Scheck is another American who comes in. Again has very good potential and will try and get him some game time throughout the season to aid this development. Puglisi has been tracked all summer by a few clubs. He will still get quite a few games but our positions this season will definitely be rotated a bit more. Aubameyang was the old star we decided to go with this season. He still has really good stats and can definitely do a job for us. Covers a lot of positions also!

[deez0r]

Training Facilities Improved

Youth facilities were rejected but training facilities are being improved again. 

[deez0r]

August - November 2023

Results

It has been another very good start to the season. Some slip ups but we have hit some fantastic form in October and November. We have reached another Betfred Cup final as well!

League Table

No slip ups this year by Celtic thus far. They have hit the ground running and they hold a 3pt lead over us currently. 

Betfred Cup

As we are in Europe we skip the group stages. We heavily rotated our team for the Kilmarnock and Dundee Utd games before putting more a first team out against Celtic in the semi finals.

Champions League

I think we have been given one of the easiest groups being a 4th seed. Benfica as 1st seeds where definitely the best case scenario for us. Napoli are always a hard game and Salzburg again where one of the best teams we could have asked for. 2 fairly drab 0-0 draws where followed by 2 wins over Salzburg and a big win over Benfica which meant...

We have qualified for the first knockout stage with a game to spare!

Player Review - Wes

Wes has been fantastic so far and has even nipped in with 3 goals. We have kept 14 clean sheets already this season and I think our defence is a big part of that!

Goalkeeper Watch

Both Patricio and Pucko have 2 goals each this season. Pucko's 2 came both from the spot whereas Patricio has 1 from the spot and 1 free kick!

Youth Review

Friars: Friars has fitted in very well so far and has 6 goals in 15 games as well as some solid development in terms of CA.

Hur: Hur has also been playing very well grabbing 2 goals and 2 assists so far this season. He has developed too much although I hope that will change in the coming months!

Vieira: Vieira has been more a backup player but has played very well when required. He to has popped up with 2 goals and has been very solid when called upon. 

Pucko: Pucko is sharing the number 1 spot with Patricio. He has an amazing 10 clean sheets in 11 games as well as 2 goals!

Wes: As mentioned above Wes has been imperious so far. He has developed very well in terms of CA also which is great to see.

Cassio: Cassio may be the our big prospect but he has been very disappointing so far. 0 goals and 2 assists in 17 games (5 subs) is not a great start. Hoping when he learns the language this becomes easier!

Ruiz: Ruiz has probably been our player of the season so far. Playing very well and is our joint top goalscorer in the team from left midfield!

Puglisi: Puglisi has been more a backup this season but has nipped in with 2 goals. Hasn't developed as well as I thought though.

Keogh: Keogh has been given some time (along with the other Americans) in the "easier" games in the league to aid development. 

Forrester: Forrester has also been given a few games mainly at centre half but has also played in midfield. 

Scheck: Scheck is the only player who has a goal or an assist in the American boys! 

Lapper: Lapper is playing at left back currently as our backup despite probably being better suited to centre half. Solid so far though!

[deez0r]

First Knockout Stage Draw

Well what a draw for our first ever knockout game!

[deez0r]

Youth Facilities Improvement

We managed to get some youth facilities upgraded!

[karanhsingh]

Wes looks great !

Where did you get Friars from? Interesting how he can play SC and MC but not AMC - typical FM 

[deez0r]

December 2023 - February 2024

Results

More fabulous form for us. We are able to rotate quite a bit against those teams in the bottom half which is really aiding development. Some slip ups (although not many) means we are still not able to catch Celtic.

League Table

2pts separates us and it could very well come down to who beats who in the Championship group. 

Scottish Cup

We beat Alloa in a replay after rotating our whole team and being reduced to 10 men in the first match. A very good victory away at Hearts sets us up with a quarter final clash away at Hibs.

Betfred Cup

For the second season in a row we are Betfred Cup champions. A very comfortable final for us and it was never really in doubt.

Champions League

A loss in our last game meant we dropped into 2nd place which as you have seen means we got Barcelona!

We were so close to a famous victory over them. A 91st minute goal means they have a massive advantage going into the 2nd leg.

Goalkeeper Watch

Patricio has 3 goals in 19 games and Pucko has 5 goals in 22 games! solid returns!

Player Review - Klauber Cassio

Cassio finally got rid of that drought! He has started to perform really well now and has hot double figures after starring in a 4 goal appearance at Motherwell!

Youth Review

Friars: Our top goalscorer and 2nd top goalscorer in the league! Settled in really well and will be our main striker for years to come.

Hur: Our dirty player has again performed very well this season. 3 goals and 5 assists is a good return!

Vieira: Probably hasn't got as many games as he deserves but when called upon he has been flawless!

Pucko: Still sharing the number 1 spot along with Patricio and has nipped in with 5 goals and 15 clean sheets!

Wes: Our number 1 centre back. Playing really well and is also a threat at the other end of the pitch and has got 4 goals!

Cassio: After struggling the first 4 months (0 goals) of the season he has finally hit some very good form. 10 goals and 5 assists since them means he is now our 2nd top goalscorer and is developing across the board.

Henrique: Only brought in in January. He has settled well and has a good average rating. Looking more in the final pass or finish from him though.

Forrester: Has had the most games out of the young Americans so far mainly at centre half. Has nipped in with a couple of goals and is developing well.

Keogh: It has been tough to get Keogh too many games simply due to the number of fantastic midfielders we have in the squad. He has managed to appear 7 times though which is a good first season!

Scheck: Scheck has got more game time now after losing Puglisi. Aubameyang has really deteriorated so Scheck has moved above him. He hasn't disappointed getting 5 goals in just 8 starts and 6 sub appearances along with 3 assists!

Lapper: Lapper again hasn't played too much but when called upon has performed well. He also managed to get himself a goal from left back! 

Lopez: Only joined in January but due to lack of midfielders and me wanting to rotate in the SPL against "smaller" clubs he has had some good game time (although got sent off on his debut). 1 goal and 1 assist so far!

Estrada: Estrada has the least current ability but his performing very well when called upon. 3 goals and an assist (including 2 absolute screamers) mean he is performing well above his current ability!

Transfers

Out

3 players left in January. 2 due to release fees and one because he was no longer required. Puglisi I really liked but Bordeaux matched his release fee and he turned down a new contract. The same for Ruiz who had turned down 2 previous moves to China before accepting Shenhua. A big loss for us as up until then he was our player of the season. McPake was no longer required and is off across the Atlantic!

In

3 signings come in. 2 I sorted during the summer transfer window. Another of my scout America jobs! The other is another young Brazilian with loads of potential!

Henrique is the pick of the bunch here. He already is good enough for our first team and has a lot of potential still. Looking forward to seeing how he turns out. The other 2 young Americans are also wingers and despite lacking the ability now they definitely are ones for the future. I have managed to give them games already which is good! Being young in a few years they will help with the CL squad which we have had issues with this season!

 

[deez0r]

45 minutes ago, karanhsingh said:

Wes looks great !

Where did you get Friars from? Interesting how he can play SC and MC but not AMC - typical FM 

Wes has been fantastic so far. Always handy getting players in from Brazil. They cost much cheaper and have great potential!

Friars came from Leicester. He was transfer listed by request and I was surprised he came to us but he was a great coup for us!

[deez0r]

Champions League First Knockout Stage 2nd Leg

We managed to get within a goal of a massive upset but the sending off on half time destroyed any chances we had. Still an amazing first season in the CL for us!

[deez0r]

End Of Season

Results

A few stumbles here. The St Johnstone match I rotated the whole squad and we got caught cold. We beat Celtic at home and drew with them away, was that enough?

League Table

Yes it was. Celtic lost on the last day at home to Hearts which took any pressure of us!

Scottish Cup

We thumped Hibs before Celtic FM'd us. 

Champions League

As seen above we took the game to Barca before the red card just before half time.

Player Review - Evan Scheck

Scheck has been a great backup for us this season and nipped in with 5 goals whilst developing really well. 

Youth Review

Good development here and we managed to get a lot of games to these young players. If we can keep this going next season we could be in a very good position.

Transfer In

Once again kudos to my scouts who found this young left back who was on a free transfer. Strangely he has never had another club? He has very good potential in a position we dont have much cover in!

Other News

Unsurprisingly Friars mops up most of the awards whilst Henrique's 30 yard screamer wins goal of the season.

Our upgrades begin!

[deez0r]

Transfers In

I think these 3 transfers will technically be in this seasons transfers rather than next so I decided to show them now so I dont forget!

Alemao is our biggest ever signing. He is young but has huge potential. Hopefully it should mean we dont need too many loans next season! Macrae was brought in as he is a high potential young Scottish player to help with our CL squad. Lucas Lucas was brought in for his dreadful name! So good he was named twice! We needed another striker at the club and he definitely fills this void!

[deez0r]

Improvements

We are slowly getting there with these. And this reminded me that our intake came and we signed just the one player:

Our first player who could definitely become part of our first team squad. In a position we are short in. I will call him up this season and give him some game time.