[FM21] Bonjour, les Guêpes!

[KlaaZ]

Transfer news

A lot of outgoing loans, the most important ones being central defender Rojas to Auxerre, who join us in the Ligue 1, and Ghimouz to Bordeaux who dropped to the Ligue 2.

On the incoming side, we provide some more left wing cover by loaning a 20-year old Romanian from PSG: Alexandru Pantea, who is already better than Valdemar it seems.

 

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[KlaaZ]

Important one, PSG were on an eight game winning streak until now! We were on the backfoot for quite a bit of the game without really giving away big chances, but not doing well offensively either. Things changed when Mbappé was subbed off. I feel that once he moves clubs or retires, things will become a lot easier. 

Edited September 26, 2021 by KlaaZ

[KlaaZ]

Almost forgot, last season's intake wasn't amazing but there is one player who looks like a very, very big deal. Malhory Romain is a French/Guadeloupean midfielder with a great personality and looks like the player who will finally be able to take over from Carraro once he retires. 

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[KlaaZ]

I'm actually afraid to go on now, because I'm worried we'll throw it all away again. They arguably have the easier games, but I have the three point bonus and (for now) a better goalscoring difference.

[KlaaZ]

So close, that would've taken the pressure off immensely. But we got the results we wanted in the toughest two games we had left. The game against Monaco was a lot closer than the final scoreline showed, but it's a big result nontheless.

 

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[KlaaZ]

Turning up when it matters.

[KlaaZ]

Not our finest win and Metz put up a very brave display, but we edged it on quality. Put the pressure on PSG, who have a tricky home tie against fourth placed Lille on Sunday.

[KlaaZ]

No dice, we're going right to the wire with two games to play. One win should be enough as I don't see PSG overcome a seven goal difference.

[KlaaZ]

[KlaaZ]

Lineups!

 

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League table!

 

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[KlaaZ]

Could it be?

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[KlaaZ]

Yes!

 

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[KlaaZ]

Almost gave me a heartattack, keeper was close. 0-1 up!

 

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[KlaaZ]

GET IN!

 

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[KlaaZ]

Meh.

 

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[KlaaZ]

Set it right straight away.

 

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[KlaaZ]

Halfway!

 

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[KlaaZ]

We're into extra time, it's looking good. PSG is stuck on a 1:1 draw away at Auxerre as well so the stars are lining up. 

[KlaaZ]

IT. IS. DONE. 

 

[KlaaZ]

Season 2028-2029: Review

Ligue 1

We started off like a rocket with five wins in a row and not a single goal conceded until we ran into Brest at home with a disappointing 1-1 draw. We weren't really phased though, and did even better with seven wins out of seven, including a very satisfying 3-0 trashing of PSG where we scored all our goals in the last eight minutes of the game. This also put us in first place, two points ahead of the Parisian giant.

 

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Then came the end of November. We dropped two points at home against Reims and another two away at Marseille, despite being the better team on both occasions. And to make matters worse, we lost the next game in Saint-Etienne. These three games saw us go from two points ahead to four points behinds, and I thought at that point the title was lost again. Luckily, we managed to do some damage control by winning the remaining three games before the winter break, but so did PSG.

 

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January started off well when we ran over Toulouse in an empathic 6-1 away win, and we built momentum from that, winning another seven games in a row. Even better, the last game we won had us jump to first place again as PSG were starting to drop points left and right. Unfortunately, our next game was in Paris and although it looked like we would steal a draw for a long time, Mbappé sealed the win in the 86th minute. As a result, we once again dropped back to second, trailing by one point.

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But the Parisians remained erratic and when they lost away at Saint-Etienne in the next game, we came level thanks to another draw against Marseille, this time at home. To make things even better, PSG dropped five more points in the next two games, drawing at home against Monaco and then suffering a surprise loss in Metz. We partially profited with four out of six, putting us three points ahead.

With seven games to go, we really picked up our game, determined not to let it slip. We won five games in a row including a very slick 0-3 away win in Monaco, and just when it looked like PSG were gonna push it all the way to the final day, they slipped away at last placed Auxerre while we did our job in Rennes, crowning us champions on the penultimate day of the season. We finished the season with a very sensational but defensively questionable 5-3 win over Montpellier.

As we only picked up three more points compared to last season, it was mainly PSG who lost it rather than us who won it. They conceded almost twice as many goals as in 27-28, which was the main reason for why they dropped so many points. That said, our defensive record was very impressive this year and I feel both the addition of Boucher and Seda cementing a first team spot helped achieve this. But we'll talk about the team later!

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French Cup

The cup is where second string gets a chance for some action, and they did well. Finally, a decent draw with Guingamp in the 9th round and a 3-0 win. We beat Lyon away next 2-1 (well done youngsters), followed by a 3-0 win over Union Sportive Concarnoise. We then noticed that PSG somehow got eliminated (again) in the first round they played, which meant this was another chance at silverware. We survived at home against Lille and went through on penalties to the semi final, but there we threw away a 2-1 lead in Marseille, where two goals in two minutes sentenced us to an undeserved 3-2 loss. 

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Champions League

The young ones also played most of the games in the CL and did very well in a group with United, Real and Fenerbahce. We started off with two home draw against the giants, and then beat the Turks twice in an 8-0 aggregate. I was already happy with a third place but we then pulled off a very surprising 3-1 holdup in Manchester and finished off with a goal bonanza draw in Madrid.

Our luck ran out in the first knockout where we followed a narrow loss in Chelsea with getting our butts kicked at home.

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[KlaaZ]

How we defended

Goalkeeper Joakim Nilsen was solid for us this season, keeping 21 clean sheets in 38 league games. He was helped by some very good performances of the back four. Kurz and Clavijo are a fairly even trade for the left back position. On the other side, the same can now be said of academy products Michel and Lefeuvre.

 

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In the center, Roberts and Boucher did a great job holding the line and are forming a very strong duo. Boucher might become a rotation option in the future though as Slovak has not only making a lot of progress, he also showed glimpes of his ability in the CL and as a backup in the league. Further down the line, Abdel Gauthier will probably replace Zouma next season when he returns from loan.

 

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[KlaaZ]

Bossing the midfield

In central midfield, Carraro was phased out for upcoming Czech ankle biter Patrik Seda, who claimed his place after successful loan spells with Gil Vincente and Ligue 1 outfit Nantes. I'm actually considering pulling him back a line into central defense now as his pace is a bit low for the midfield and he looks like an amazing ball playing defender.

 

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Next to him, Li Ting played the majority of the games. Originally only signed for marketing purposes, the Chinese mezzala quickly cemented his spot in the first team and has improved greatly. Could be the midfield boss for years to come.

 

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Both players were backed up by Thuram (who is end of contract and will leave the club) and Carraro. To fill in for Thuram next season, we're looking either into the transfer market or into the academy, where Malhory Romain is doing really, really well. He already made his debut in both league and cup but we're trying to bring him slowly as to not stall his progress.

 

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[KlaaZ]

Supporting the attack

In attacking midfield, our options were plenty. On the left, Pantea did so well that he pushed new signing Valdemar to the bench for a lot of games. Fortunately, the Brazilian can also play on the other side. The only bad news is that Pantea will go back to PSG next season and there is no chance that we'll be able to loan him again. I wonder how happy they are with his 16 goals and seven assists contributing massively to our title win.

 

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On the right flank, Laquintana started as first choice but Wahlqvist has been making it hard for him. The Uruguayan has also proved quite injury prone so it's possible that we'll ship him off to China if we can find a suitable replacement. We also started giving more minutes to Guilloteau but I'm not entire convinced if he'll make the cut in the end.

 

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Behind the striker, Leifsson has been indispensable, obviously. When he can't play due to injury or needing a rest, Dominique N'Doye stepped in to replace him. And last but not least, there's a new kid in the youth ranks who may be able to eventually claim his place.

 

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[KlaaZ]

Leading the line

Only two names to mention here. Perrin is thé man, coming through the youth ranks to end up as the best striker in France, and possibly even abroad. Scored 25 in 37 last season and bettered that this year with 29 in 35 (from an xG of 19.36!), claiming the top goalscorer award in the process. Only 20 years old!

 

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Behind him, new kid Aarseth did surprisingly well, scoring five in Europe and four in the cup. A bit of a different profile and more of an aereal presence, the perfect backup for Perrin.

 

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Edited September 29, 2021 by KlaaZ

[deltablue]

Nicely done.

[smp20]

Top Klaaz work 

Great points tallies the last two seasons and winning the title with a PSG loanee playing a key part is an excellent way to do it .

You've built a superb young team, headed up by academy star Perrin who's definitely my favourite.

Congrats 

[KlaaZ]

On 30/09/2021 at 12:33, deltablue said:

Nicely done.

 

On 04/10/2021 at 23:50, smp20 said:

Top Klaaz work 

Great points tallies the last two seasons and winning the title with a PSG loanee playing a key part is an excellent way to do it .

You've built a superb young team, headed up by academy star Perrin who's definitely my favourite.

Congrats 

Thanks both! The irony of Pantea playing an integral part in our title win is not lost on me and made it all the sweeter. And yeah, I'm hoping to make Perrin into a legend at the club (as far as he isn't already).

[KlaaZ]

Preseason 2029-2030

Transfers

We sold a few youth players that looked like they weren't going to make the cut. Apart from that, Bomba and Sastre join Belgian outfits Genk and Gent respectively on loan, while Pancrate becomes first choice goalkeeper at Nice for a season. Jaaouani lost his spot to Li Ting and is loaned out to Belgium as well, where he joined Zulte Waregem. 

The biggest name to leave is Thuram, who's contract ran out. He's always been a reliable backup but his financial demands were too high for a player of his calibre. He moves to Lille, where he's already transfer listed for some reason on September 1st. On the other end, the biggest loss will be Pantea who goes back to Paris. 

No big spending on the incoming side, with just two new players joining us from abroad. Stefan Miloslavljevic (hope I wrote that right) will provide competition for Nilsen in goal and will probably replace him somewhere in the next two years if all goes well. He comes over from Serbian side Cukaricki for 825k, his release fee. 

 

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To replace Pantea in the squad and to provide some more depth, we make a last day loan signing by bringing in La Masia product Pau from Barcelona. A different profile from Pantea, but nontheless very welcome. 

 

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Youth promotions

To fill the gap left by Pantea, we also permanently promote Jean-Pierre Guilloteau from the U19's to the first team. In midfield, Malhory Romain replaces end of contract Thuram and in central defense Abdel Gauthier will provide cover for Roberts. 

 

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Friendlies

Great preseason with the exception of the blip against United.

 

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Trophée des Champions

A very tidy 2-1 win over Marseille (no PSG!) thanks to a brace from youngster Guilloteau. Good to see how well we reacted after going 0-1 down to a penalty.

 

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[KlaaZ]

Oh, and it's been a very interesting start of the season so far! Mbappé is out with a long term injury and it seems to be hurting PSG big time, despite the fact that they just signed the biggest name in French football at the moment, Sabatier.

[KlaaZ]

https://giphy.com/clips/hamlet-dead-rip-hes-already-O55cHCUGcdkgccbX1h

Edited October 6, 2021 by KlaaZ

[KlaaZ]

It's going to be one of those seasons it seems. Should've been seven points clear from a faltering PSG by now but instead it's only two because we find it seemingly impossible to score and concede the most ridiculous goals. 

[KlaaZ]

Perrin was out for a few weeks with a niggle so Aarseth stepped up.

[karanhsingh]

Well done on winning the league! Great achievement 

[KlaaZ]

Youth intake preview

It's been a while but we actually may have another very fancy intake coming up! Funny coincidence about the Belgian right midfielder is that I'm actually in the process of building a house in Tienen in real life.