[FM21]C'est Francais...and we will be Top Dogs

[SRL88]

Sporting Club Lyon

Welcome to the 2021 edition of an SRL career thread. After a long break from Football Manager, 2020 was the first Football Manager I had played since 2015. It was a big change for me to get used to, and I somewhat struggled getting into the game. My 2020 save was somewhat enjoyable, but I lost interest after a while and decided to take a break from the game until this years edition was released.

I've been thinking long and hard about what I wanted to do as a save, and I knew I wanted to go back to a one-club career. From there it was about picking the country. I did a very similar save back on FM14 (even ripping off my own title) with my Saint Andreu save in Spain.  I decided to on France. I wanted a European team, I wanted a league where I had to gain at least two promotions to reach the top division, and I wanted a team where we were the minnow team in the city, much like my Saint Andreu save, and picking Sporting Club Lyon felt a very similar fit to that. 

My Save

--------------------------------------
| France     | Championnat de France |
--------------------------------------
| England    | Vanarama North/South  |
| Germany    | 3. Liga               | 
| Italy      | Lega Pro              | 
| Spain      | Segunda Division B    | 
--------------------------------------

*Please note - Only France is playable, the rest are view only*

- Players of national reputation from all continents have been loaded
- Players from top clubs in all European regions have also been loaded

This database gives me an approximate player count of 57,000

Who are Sporting Club Lyon?

Founded in 1964, Sporting Club Lyon are a French Semi-Professional football team based in the La Duchère district of Lyon, and currently plays in the Championnat National, France's third tier. They currently play their matches at their home stadium, Stade Balmont. 

Club Information

Nation: France

Year Founded: 1964

Operational Status: Semi-Professional

Nickname: -

Fierce Rivals: -

Other Rivals: Villefranche Beaujolais (Local), AS Saint-Priest (Local), FC Bourg-Peronnas (Local), FC Lyon (Local)

Finances: Okay

Season Ticket Holders: 168

Media Prediction: 7th

Facilities

Stadium: Stade Balmont

Stadium Capacity: 5,438 (3,000 seated)

Stadium Condition: Average

Surface: Grass

Pitch Condition: Very Good

Corporate Facilities: Adequate

Training Facilities: Basic 

Youth Facilities: Poor

Junior Coaching: Fairly Basic

Youth Recruitment: Basic

Finances

Transfer Budget: £0

& of Transfer Revenue made Available: 60%

Wage Budget: £20,495 (currently spending £20,495)

Balance: £651,855

Projected Balance: -£563k

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Aims and Objectives

As much as I love any kind of career save on Football Manager, I really wanted to go back to the one-club save. I like that sense of getting attached to a club, and I want that here. I won't be leaving SC Lyon, and will be sticking with them throughout.

I really wanted to go to a country that isn't that prominent in European football, and one where I had to put in a fair amount of work to get to the top division and I think France offers that.  Two promotions to get to Ligue 1 is something I am happy with, and I also wanted to go to a country that has been dominated for lengthy periods. It was Lyon during the 00's, and since then it's been PSG, and I like the prospect of not only competing with Lyon to become the top team in the city, but also PSG due to their millions. 

I am looking forward to the challenge, and hope to have you along the way with me. 

[B.W.G]

Best of luck with Lyon Sporting Club Lyon!

[SRL88]

29 minutes ago, B.W.G said:

Best of luck with Lyon Sporting Club Lyon!

Thank you kind Sir  

[_Ben_]

If this is half as good as your Sant Andreu career, this will be amazing! Good to see you back @SRL88!

[karanhsingh]

I didn't know Lyon had a second team! Will follow.

[abulezz]

Looking forward to this - love any SRL88 save. 

Following!

[SRL88]

12 hours ago, _Ben_ said:

If this is half as good as your Sant Andreu career, this will be amazing! Good to see you back @SRL88!

 

5 hours ago, karanhsingh said:

I didn't know Lyon had a second team! Will follow.

 

2 hours ago, abulezz said:

Looking forward to this - love any SRL88 save. 

Following!

Thank you all

It’ll probably be tonight after work or tomorrow morning before I’m able to get some gameplay in, but I’m looking forward to getting started. 

[Rikulec]

Great to see you back with a thread, good luck!

[john1]

Remember your Sant Andreu thread very well  Good luck  

Edited November 23, 2020 by john1

[Deisler26]

The old guard are back!! Looking forward to seeing this on the awards next year!

[SRL88]

9 hours ago, Rikulec said:

Great to see you back with a thread, good luck!

Thanks man 

8 hours ago, john1 said:

Remember your Sant Andreu thread very well  Good luck  

I really enjoyed that save. Hope to have as much fun on this one.

7 hours ago, Deisler26 said:

The old guard are back!! Looking forward to seeing this on the awards next year!

Haha...time will tell  

[SRL88]

SRL88's Career - Sporting Club Lyon - Pre-Season 2020/21

Friendlies

Manager Thoughts

I really can't complain with our pre-season in truth. I re-arranged all our friendlies as we were facing the likes of Anderlecht, Club Brugge etc at home, and it was costing us more in fees to play the game than what we would be bringing in via revenue. I arranged all our fixtures to be at home, bringing in a little revenue in the process and we picked up some good results.

Impressive wins against FC Lyon and Bavois stand-out. Yes, they're smaller clubs than us, but given the experimenting, I'm happy. The only real disappointing performance was against Alessandria where we just weren't at it. A good performance in defeat against Thun, where we didn't turn up until the half hour mark, by which point we were already three down. We managed to put in a spirited fight though to bring it back to within a goal. 

I believe we have managed to find a system that fits the players we have. We definitely don't have the strength in depth I would like, and certainly don't have the funds to bring players in. With the board unable to find us a suitable parent club, it means we're relying on the players we already have at the club, and youngsters. I haven't signed anyone as of yet, but we're working on that in hopes of bringing one or two in.

Meet the Team

Our Assistant Manager seems very happy with the players we have in the squad. Everyone with a solid enough rating. However, as mentioned, we lack depth. The fact we only have one out-and-out striker is worrying, but we do have players who can play there if needed. I feel like we need a bit of luck on the injury front if we are to mount a challenge for promotion.

Based on what I've seen in Pre-Season, here is what I think my starting eleven for the season is:

Maxime Hautbois

Kassim M'Dahoma - Frederic Bong - Nathan Dekoke - Jordan Pierre-Charles

Corentin Jacob

Garland Gbelle - Matthieu Ezikian

Alex Araujo - Jonathan Rivas - Oumare Tounkara

[OlivierL]

On 22/11/2020 at 23:34, _Ben_ said:

If this is half as good as your Sant Andreu career, this will be amazing! Good to see you back @SRL88!

Can i find and read this topic somewhere ? i'm thinking about starting the youth only challenge with them.

[Rikulec]

8 minutes ago, OlivierL said:

Can i find and read this topic somewhere ? i'm thinking about starting the youth only challenge with them.

It's here.

[SRL88]

SRL88's Career - Sporting Club Lyon - August 2020

Championnat National

Manager Thoughts

Well you can't ask for a much better start than that now, can you?!

A dominant performance on the opening day was helped by our opponents going down to ten men in the first half. Despite it taking time to break the deadlock, once we did, it was never in doubt as we eased to a 1-0 victory. Two goals in the opening ten minutes got us off to a flying start against Cholet, but they pulled one back shortly thereafter. We were in control, but my nerves never settled until a second half penalty sealed the three points as we made it two-from-two. 

Edited November 25, 2020 by SRL88

[abulezz]

Great start to the season!

[SRL88]

2 hours ago, abulezz said:

Great start to the season!

Thank you  

Definitely no complaints from that start. 

[SRL88]

SRL88's Career - Sporting Club Lyon - September 2020

Championnat National

Manager Thoughts

Not a month that is going to set the world on fire, but we're sitting nicely at the top of the table after our impressive start continues.

There seemed to be a pattern for the month. Our two away games we were huge underdogs, dominated possession, but our opponents had double our efforts on goals. Despite that, they didn't test our goalkeeper enough and the single goals that we did score in those games gave us two big wins. Our home games were similar to one-another also. Big favourites, but we just couldn't get going. The games were both even, including against bottom of the table FC Sete, to my surprise. The only goals in each game came from the penalty spot, our captain Matthieu Ezikian, with us managing to grind out all three points in our final game of the month, but failing to hold on to an early lead against Creteil. 

Still, six games in, unbeaten and sat top of the table, with a very impressive defence. 

[SRL88]

Our excellent start to the campaign brought about this message.

---

And in what has been our only signing of the season so far, we brought in this experienced head. 

I felt like we needed someone with who wasn't going to play every game, but could step in when needed and give us that experience in midfield. He's been there and seen it all (as you would expect at 41yo ), but with his creativity at our level, he could come in very handy. 

[B.W.G]

Solid start to the season  

[SRL88]

16 minutes ago, B.W.G said:

Solid start to the season  

Thanks

[SRL88]

SRL88's Career - Sporting Club Lyon - October 2020

Championnat National

Manager Thoughts

October brought about our first real sense of adversity as we suffered defeat for the first time, however, we bounced back to end the month strong.

A hard-fought win got the month off and running as we had to battle for all three points against a struggling Annecy team. A late goal from Oumare Tounkara giving us all three points. Our first defeat came thanks to a shocking first half display. Three goals down in the first half gave us a huge uphill task. Although we improved in the second half, we could only pull a goal back as we suffered a poor defeat. I felt we improved on the road to FC Bourg, and a Jonathan Rivas goal looked to be enough, but a poor defensive decision cost us as we settled for a draw.

The month rounded off well however. We looked to be cruising against QRM as we led by three at the break. They gave us a real fright though by pulling two goals back in the second half before we settled the tie in the final minute. We put in a masterclass performance against Le Mans to round the month off in style. Completely nullifying their attacking threat, we controlled all aspects of the game as a single goal gave us a massive win on the road. 

---

With his performance against Le Mans, our captain Matthieu Ezikian became our all-time record appearance holder. 

Edited November 25, 2020 by SRL88

[SRL88]

SRL88's Career - Sporting Club Lyon - November & December 2020

Championnat National

Our unbeaten run stretched to eight games following Decembers games as we head into the winter break sitting nicely at the top of the table.

After making numerous changes for the game against Boulogne, I was thrilled with how easily we dispatched of them, running out comfortable winners. Bastia made things difficult for us and it showed as we failed to score for the first time this season, before battling to a win against struggling Concameau. 

A fantastic performance on the road at Bastia-Borgo got December off and running, but we were forced to wait until the second half to seal things thanks to a brace from on-loan winger Lamine Ghezali. The month rounded out in poor fashion however. Once again ringing the changes, they didn't have the same effect as we limbered through the game against Avranches. Despite taking the lead, we couldn't hang on and a 94th minute goal meant we had to settle for a draw.

Still, rounding out the year 4pts clear of Le Mans, and more importantly, 6pts clear of third place US Orleans who occupy the Play-Off spot has me pleased.

[SRL88]

Such is the rate that we are losing money due to the lack of finances in the third tier in France, our board has had to help us out.

We still sit in the red however.

---

Nice to see that we have some prospects coming through. I'm really pleased someone is coming through at centre-back, as we lack a lot of quality depth there. 

[scarp]

Great season so far! Intake also look decent.

[B.W.G]

Doing well so far,hopefully you can keep it up in the second half of the season.

Also it looks like the teams challenging you also have a similar colour scheme with red and yellow being the main focus  

[SRL88]

5 hours ago, scarp said:

Great season so far! Intake also look decent.

Cheers

We could definitely do with a couple of decent players coming through. 

4 hours ago, B.W.G said:

Doing well so far,hopefully you can keep it up in the second half of the season.

Also it looks like the teams challenging you also have a similar colour scheme with red and yellow being the main focus  

Thank you. Hopefully the winter break doesn't affect the players coming back.

It is quite weird that we all have the same colour scheme

[Hootieleece]

Always interested in French saves. Good Luck with this.

[SRL88]

4 hours ago, Hootieleece said:

Always interested in French saves. Good Luck with this.

Thanks  glad to have you on board. 

[SRL88]

SRL88's Career - Sporting Club Lyon - January 2021

Championnat National

The return from the winter break started out really well, but I can't help feeling a little flat at the end of the month.

A controlled and comfortable performance began the new year as an early goal gave us a win. That was followed up by another controlled performance, where although we took our time to break the deadlock, the result was never in question once we got it. A late goal sealing all three points. Another win over a solid Red Star team followed that with two quickfire goals, but the month ended poorly against a struggling team. We never got going, and a second half penalty gave them all three points in what was a frustrating display. 

[karanhsingh]

15 hours ago, Hootieleece said:

Always interested in French saves. Good Luck with this.

Same here. Had such a fun one with Red Star last year.

[SRL88]

SRL88's Career - Sporting Club Lyon - February 2021

Championnat National

A weird ol' month in which the two games where we dropped points were at home, and we won both games on the road, but nonetheless, we sit nicely at the top of the table.

Following just our second defeat of the campaign against Creteil, we looked to bounce back against Stade Lavallois but failed to do so. Leading 2-1 going into the final few minutes we couldn't hold on as some sloppy defending cost us all three points. We followed that up with a bang average performance against FC Sete. Nowhere near our best, we were second best throughout, but importantly found a way to win as a quickfire brace from Jonathan Rivas (who is evidently on a fine run of form) got us back to winning ways.

Another subdued performance came next as we couldn't find our way past in-form FC Annecy, who were on a ten match unbeaten run going into the game. We however, saved the best for last. As has become the case this season, our best performances are coming on the road against teams who are in and around us in the league. We were wonderful against US Orleans as we got off to a flying start. From there we grabbed the bull by the horns and a second before half-time completely deflated our opponents.

We end the month six points clear at the top, something that could have been a whole lot different if we lost against US Orleans. 

Edited November 28, 2020 by SRL88

[SRL88]

This is potentially devastating news, as JPC as he has become known, is easily one of our better players. A huge injury in an important game against US Orleans could have a big impact on our promotion push.

It's now time for youngster Mathis Louiserre to step in.

[SRL88]

One of our fixtures in March brought about this message.

Not bad for a team that was promoted from the lower levels of France just five years ago. 

[abulezz]

You got this in the bag - congrats on finishing first, even though it isnt official yet. 

[SRL88]

2 hours ago, abulezz said:

You got this in the bag - congrats on finishing first, even though it isnt official yet. 

Feel like I’m doing a press conference here, but it’s one game at a time  

Fingers crossed we get over the line though. 

[SRL88]

So in come the youngsters. Given the level we're at, I don't hold amazing hope, with the two wingers being the stand-outs.

Louis Vallet

Bastien Rey

[SRL88]

SRL88's Career - Sporting Club Lyon - March 2021

Championnat National

Although it looks a frustrating month on paper somewhat, it's one that pushes us ever closer to that line, especially given results from our main rivals.

We really made hard work of things to start off the month against FC Bourg. Trailing at the break, we put in a sensational second half performance to turn the game on it's head. We conceded in stoppage time, but held on for the three points. Trailing again against QRM, we turned another game around to lead. Once again though, we couldn't see stoppage time through, this time the goal conceding meaning we had to settle for a point.

That tightened the race up a little between ourselves and Le Mans. Going into the game against them, we knew we needed to avoid defeat or the race could be blown wide open. We did it again though, saving our best for our rivals. An early goal putting us on the way in what a dominating performance, just lacking goals to seal our display.

Edited November 30, 2020 by SRL88

[SRL88]

We've done it! And with 4 games to spare too! 

---

Just the excellent messages we received after gaining promotion...and two-years ahead of schedule too!

---

Holy **** 

That's a huge transfer budget for a club like us.

[SRL88]

And just a game later...

[SRL88]

SRL88's Career - Sporting Club Lyon - April & May 2021

Championnat National

A sensational end to the season that not only saw us promoted, and win the league, but do so in extremely comfortable fashion.

After snatching a draw at home to Bastia in a game we absolutely dominated, we went on a fantastic run towards the title. We comfortably beat Boulogne away from home, the two goals we conceded coming in the final five minutes (frustratingly), before a huge win away to Concameau which handed us the title. From there on it was about seeing the games through and the players seemed to have a pressure lifted as we eased past opponents. 

Three comfortable wins followed before a draw finished off the season at home, which saw us lift the trophy. 

Edited November 30, 2020 by SRL88

[SRL88]

As son as the season ended I received this. 

Well...at least it's a step towards what we need. We are in for a rough ol' season though

[karanhsingh]

Well done on winning the league! Great season

[abulezz]

Ligue 2 next - this is good. I think Rey could end up being talented if he improves right. 

[B.W.G]

Congrats on the title win  

[SRL88]

8 hours ago, karanhsingh said:

Well done on winning the league! Great season

Thank you  

8 hours ago, abulezz said:

Ligue 2 next - this is good. I think Rey could end up being talented if he improves right. 

We will definitely be looking to develop them both. Even if it’s just to cash in. 

3 hours ago, B.W.G said:

Congrats on the title win  

Cheers man  

—-

I do have updates ready to go, but my internet is down atm, so everything is on hold until it’s working again. 

[OlivierL]

Good job ! @Perre8 won the league with Toulon

[SRL88]

23 hours ago, OlivierL said:

Good job ! @Perre8 won the league with Toulon

Cheers man

[lupinho]

Ligue 2 bring it on!!

[SRL88]

2 minutes ago, lupinho said:

Ligue 2 bring it on!!

Yes Sir! Let's get it