The FM22 Youth Academy Challenge

[JLAB]

 

45 minutes ago, aldojags said:

@JLABdoes the relegation group reset your points again? Seems unfair you're at risk when you're so many points ahead of the bottom. I like the look of Maric with a great personality too.

 

It doesn't no, but there are 7 more games after the league splits, so with 21 more points up for grabs and 4 teams going down, anything could still happen.

[Daddy]

1 hour ago, aldojags said:

@Daddyit's cool watching someone else in Belgium although I am worried you'll make a mockery of the struggles I've had, ie being stuck in 2nd tier for like 8 years now! But it'll be good to compare!

I'm worried about finances. I knew people said they were rough, but I guess I underestimated. Though I haven't gone through the full offseason yet.

[Daddy]

2022/23 Season Review:

Excellent first season. Whenever there was just one game a week the team played well. Weeks with two matches became trickier and it almost cost us at the end. 

Was able to get one upgrade. The rest the club does not have funds for.

Youth Intake:

Quite a few players saw a match or two as the schedule beefed up at the end. With a few players retiring or leaving the club three players (Y23A, Y23C, and Y23D) will move to first team with Goris getting the starting DR role. Very thin there. 

2023/24 Season Preview:

Another season starting off without much expectations. I'd be stunned to get back to back promotions, but I'd be disappointed to get relegated.

 

Edit: 

Well I didn't actually expect them to say yes.

Edited June 14, 2022 by Daddy
stadium surprise

[dcayton9]

Call me the PGA Tour the way my best players are getting poached by Saudi Arabia. The story of my league season was losing two important starters (from Board forced sales) and another 3 getting unsettled by lower league Saudi clubs. I wish I could say at least I got money to make it worth my while but the transfer fees were around 10k each. 

On the bright side, this season went well. We won the Potiguar State Championship andd made a run out of the group stage in the Copa do Nordeste all before the league started. In the league, the expectation was to fight bravely against relegation, however relegation was never a threat and we finished in eighth. In Brazil, the top 8 of Serie C go into a promotion group stage and the top 4 get promoted. I was hoping I could make a run, but no luck as we dropped 4 of the 6 games in the stage.

I can't help but feel this was our window, as some legacy two-year loans from before I took over will be leaving and I wouldn't be surprised if the unsettled players from last window start pushing their way out again. 

The youth intake was exciting however, and there is already some exciting young talent at the club from the first season's youth intake.

He was my top scorer in all competitions and will look to be the full-time starter next season.

In the youth intake, a lot of excitement as we got plenty of potential arriving, and hopefully we can start to bring some through ASAP, as the team is weak.

Overall review. Brazil is long (60ish games this season alone) and the seasons will only get longer as (or if) I move up the leagues and go deeper in competitions. To be determined if I'll have the patience for it but for now I'm enjoying it, so I'll keep you updated!

[SkiIIs]

Season 2033 / 34 - League 1

Was expecting a similar pattern of previous years of starting off well then edging towards the play off spots but never really getting close. It wasnt to be as we started with a loss and the fans questioning my tactics (i had not won in the last 6 games of last season). Fortunately, that was the lowest point of the season. It was in our 7th league game where we beat Gillingham (mid table team) 7 - 3 and Man Utd u23's (current holders) in the Papa John Cup 4 games later 8 - 2 that I realised we had something special going. And it all really has to go to the discovery of Pringle in the attacking forward role for what was to come, simply marvellous!  He clearly finished the league as top goalscorer with 35 with the next best at only 23 goals. 

By midway through the season we had hit first but it was all very tight up the tip between a few teams. With 5 games to go, we had it in our own destiny however we bottled the next game against Ebbsfleet at home where we copped a 30min red card but managed to hold on for a draw 1-1. We then won our next game with Shef Weds losing so we then had our catch up game against Bristol Rovers (18th) at home to win to put us equal first on GD. We again bottled it and lost 2 -1 which made us clear 3rd, 2 points away from Preston in second and too far away from Shef Wed. All three of us had teams from the bottom 5 at home so it was likely we would all win meaning we'd find ourselves in the play offs for the first time.  Preston then did the unthinkable and bottled it at home against a 10 man Gillingham who had nothing to play for as they had already been relegated!  Championship baby!!!

 

My hero:

Only 1 year left on his contract so will be interesting how this plays out, lots of clubs sniffing around and bidding for him but he wants to move to a bigger club.

We had really good cup runs in all 3 competitions starting off with the Papa John Cup where we made it to the final for the second time in 6 years. This time managing to go one further against Man City u23's and win it for the first time in the club's history.  Hopefully it will be the last ever time we contend for it! Disappointing to only get 10k at Wembley, against QPR last final there was close to 50k watching us

In the Carabao Cup, we made it to Round 3 where we were fortunate enough to get the jackpot draw playing Man City at the Etihad. We put up a decent fight and scored a goal in a 3 - 1 loss.  Much to my surprise, it only netted the club about 450k...  last time we played Man Utd and West Ham away we got a cool 1.2m!

In the FA Cup we progressed to the 4th round beating Boreham Utd (from VNS in a replay), Burton (L1) and Stevenage (L2) respectively. We got drawn Tottenham in the 4th round but it was only at home.  There followed the biggest surprise of all, we creamed them 4 - 1 to then get drawn Wolves in the 5th round, but again it was at home. We found ourselves down 2 - 0 early but fought our way back in the contest to go into the break level at half time 2 - 2.  Second half was a stalemate and i went defensive mode late on hoping for a draw and a replay.  Well we got the draw, but no replay lol  went to extra time where they scored 2 goals to knock us out.  A fantastic run and our best to date!

We didnt sell anyone this year as i rejected all bids in our attempt for promotion and hence no improvements off the field.  Money has been tight but our cup runs have helped!

Youth Preview, two strikers and two mids and nothing else:

There's a bit to work with here, another year of improvements on the personality front as well:

Next year is bravely fight for survival, nothing else!

EDIT:  Chelsea came last and Everton second last and hence the Championship is stacked!

 

Edited June 14, 2022 by SkiIIs

[BigJack]

Cray Wanderers Season 2 2023/24

Competitions

Overview

Vanarama South - Predicted to finish bottom this season, I went into it with just the aim of staying up and we just about managed it but it was a big struggle. We had some decent form in spells but then go on horror 10 game runs where we just cant do anything. However the struggle is a weird pleasure and the wins mean more because of this. 

F.A Cup - An embarrassing cup exit to a side in the regional divisions. 

FA Trophy - We got to the 3rd round then lost to Wealdstone.

Playing Squad

Intake Preview    Intake 1    Intake 2    Squad    Transfers    Best 11

We finished 1 place lower than last season but I do feel as if the team has got better. Our youngsters are not very promising but should improve us a little bit more as they hopefully develop. This years intake was a bit better than our first one but we are still screaming out for a striker. The best of the intake were Boateng - Gayle 24a, Yaroshenko 24b, Morris 24c and Yoo 24d. With our complete lack of talent up top I am thinking to try Gayle up there and see how it goes. Our left winger Reid is 36 now and we have 2 decent left backs already so I will try Yaroshenko as a winger initially. Our best youngster from last season Charalabidis 23a played 35 times for us this season but hasn't developed as much as I hoped. He has however played 5 times for Greece's U21 side so I am hopeful he has some kind of half decent potential. 

Facilities and Finances

Facilities    Finances

The new stadium build in now just 12 months away but the loan taken out to build it means we are losing money every month. The board just pump money in every 2 months or so to even our balance out and thats how its been all year. 

Next Season

I would love to see a big improvement but I am not hopeful. We still lack quality in a few key positions and need some of our youths to kick on a little if we are to start climbing this table. 

[JLAB]

11 hours ago, Daddy said:

I'm worried about finances. I knew people said they were rough, but I guess I underestimated. Though I haven't gone through the full offseason yet.

I'd be worried about the finances in Belgium. I did a save with Charleroi earlier this year and the board literally sold my training facilities to cover our debts, despite having just won the Jupiler Pro League and qualifying for the Champions League group stage.

[Joaquimorais]

6 horas atrás, dcayton9 disse:

Call me the PGA Tour the way my best players are getting poached by Saudi Arabia. The story of my league season was losing two important starters (from Board forced sales) and another 3 getting unsettled by lower league Saudi clubs. I wish I could say at least I got money to make it worth my while but the transfer fees were around 10k each. 

On the bright side, this season went well. We won the Potiguar State Championship andd made a run out of the group stage in the Copa do Nordeste all before the league started. In the league, the expectation was to fight bravely against relegation, however relegation was never a threat and we finished in eighth. In Brazil, the top 8 of Serie C go into a promotion group stage and the top 4 get promoted. I was hoping I could make a run, but no luck as we dropped 4 of the 6 games in the stage.

I can't help but feel this was our window, as some legacy two-year loans from before I took over will be leaving and I wouldn't be surprised if the unsettled players from last window start pushing their way out again. 

The youth intake was exciting however, and there is already some exciting young talent at the club from the first season's youth intake.

He was my top scorer in all competitions and will look to be the full-time starter next season.

In the youth intake, a lot of excitement as we got plenty of potential arriving, and hopefully we can start to bring some through ASAP, as the team is weak.

Overall review. Brazil is long (60ish games this season alone) and the seasons will only get longer as (or if) I move up the leagues and go deeper in competitions. To be determined if I'll have the patience for it but for now I'm enjoying it, so I'll keep you updated!

I live a little less than 4 hours from the America(RN) stadium, it was a great club but nowadays it's well finished in debt.

good luck

[glennuk]

@skillsnice promotion. Pringle looks immense. Hope you can keep hold of him.

[glennuk]

Worthing FC - Season 16 - Sky Bet League One - Mini Update, New Staff & Youth Preview

New Staff

Changed my Assistant Manager (after 15 years) and HOYD (this will be my 3rd).

In comes Basile Zottos to replace the very impressive Lawson D'Ath. I know stats wise this isn't an upgrade but I wanted to see if the Belgian Nationality would help with getting a bit more variety in the intake, and to be honest just wanted a change, after a few disappointing intakes.

However on the Assistant Manager front it is definitely an improvement. Dave Winfield served us well, but Callum Hulme looks to be much better and with a better personality. Again I just wanted to change things up a bit.

Youth Category 1 & Improved Training

That (approx) 20 mil bank balance is now going to be used for something. Going all in on facility upgrades now we have the cash.

Youth Intake Preview
Not a great preview, but hoping that this transition period between HOYD is swift and we can get some better intakes ASAP. We need it if we are going to be promoted back to the Sky Bet Championship (eagle eyed readers may see we have a good chance of doing just that).

League So Far - 2nd

It is going pretty well indeed. Very solid defensively and after a slow start we have really found our groove. The only negative is Jean-Claude Kitoko (YP06A) has had a relatively slow start to the season.

[JLAB]

OFK Beograd - Did We Survive With Just 16 Players?

So I found myself only wanting to avoid relegation going into this season. Having only 16 players I could use and not even having a recognised left-back told me that this would be a difficult season for us to survive in. So when we won the last two games of the regular season to give us a shot of getting into the promotion group, you can understand why I would be relieved.

Especially when it meant that because of how close the league was, we actually finished in 5th place. That last win took us up from 10th place to 5th in the last game of the regular season, and I couldn't believe the situation that I was in. What makes this all the more surprising was the fact that 2nd place Graficar were the B Team for Red Star, so they couldn't even get promoted. So by finishing in 5th, we could be in with a chance of playing in the playoffs for promotion.

So we played all seven matches after the league split. We didn't lose a single game, but we did throw away a 3-0 league against Mladost GAT after going down to 10 men, and we did get a late equaliser against Graficar after going down to 10 men ourselves. We did at the very least, give ourselves a chance to do well.

 

What I didn't expect was for us to not only do well, but to somehow get promoted in the first season of the save. I had expected us to be forced to stay in this division for at least 5 seasons as we prepared ourselves to get into the top-flight, but our end of season form was so good, we've managed to get promoted with a side that is not ready for the SuperLiga.

Just to further show what can happen in this division, OFK Vrsac who finished in 7th in the regular season and 5th in the final phase of the season got promoted through the playoffs. Silly isn't it?

Understandably, the board and the fans are delighted by our promotion, because this might be the only good thing we will experience in a few years as we look to survive in a league that is far too good for us. Even our players were delighted by it too.

Then it turns out that the board plans on turning the club professional going into the next season, just when I had given all of my intake player part-time contracts when they officially turn 17. Which means I'm going to need to redo all of this contracts one they turn 17, which might take another half a year, because they just signed official deals. Lovely...

Speaking of our youth players, Maric is already improving, as you'd expect, and he's actually consistent. I've been giving him some minutes, but it might be a while before he's good enough to break into the first-team.

Bakic is even more consistent than Maric, so my best two players have got good potential. He's had more minutes because he could play more roles.

I even get minutes to Petar Ristic, who once again, is actually consistent. Which as far as I am concerned is turning this intake into a good one.

One player I couldn't give minutes to, despite wanting to do so was Jasmin Kurtovic. He will be in the first team next season alongside Ristic, but his paperwork for the Serbian nationality didn't arrive in time for the end of the season, so I couldn't play him because he would have needed to be registered in order to play. 

So it turns out that not only can you survive with just 16 players, but you can get promoted with 16 players as well. Who knew that a good tactic could be the key to all of that after all?

[JLAB]

Good news, completed the National A Licence.

Even better news, we're now studying for our Continental C Licence. The way this is going, we could be completing our licences within 3 or 4 seasons.

[Daddy]

4 hours ago, JLAB said:

I'd be worried about the finances in Belgium. I did a save with Charleroi earlier this year and the board literally sold my training facilities to cover our debts, despite having just won the Jupiler Pro League and qualifying for the Champions League group stage.

I'm definitely hoping it doesn't get that bad. Only in second season now.

[glennuk]

Worthing FC - Season 16 - Sky Bet League One - Youth Intake + Record Sale

Record Sale

Graham Loft (YP13A) had just became our starting Left Winger (Inverted Winger) and had been progressing and playing well. I said I wouldn't sell anyone without it being a big fee, and big fee it was. It helped that he was my first choice, but I have two other Left Wingers who depending on form could start ahead of him, and have so far throughout the season.

Record Sale Rejected

I then got a big deadline day bid for our best CB Zain Simmonds (YP12I) who is surprising as the I indicates he was 9th best player in that intake, remember that 12th intake was a BIG one. 9.25 mil is not to be sniffed at, but the money is less needed than the position as CB is still where we are weakest.

Youth Intake

Still hoping to become more continental with our intakes. This isn't a bad one, but not a great one either. Although I do have some hope for the elite talents here, as well as a few of the top talents.

There are a mixed bunch of personalities, but in general there are less bad personalities than usual. Hopefully that is a sign of things to come, as I have been working hard at mentoring out, releasing and selling poor personalities. Everyone tagged has been signed, those untagged have been released. The bottom two Baugh and Amos were signed as they fill needs at the CB and RB role, which we have few of in general.

Top 3 - Youth Intake 16

James Bradshaw (YP16A) - A decent personality and the flexibility to play Left Wing or Striker makes me excited for the youngster and I am hopeful that he can come into the first team straight away as a rotation piece, or for cup games. The physicals I am sure will improve, and if he can get those up, along with his 15 dribbling, he could prove to be great in either the LW or ST position.

Graham Staunton (YP16B) - The fact that this is now two decent youngsters who can play LW, makes losing Graham Loft (YP13A) less of a blow. Decent in most areas and as usual I am confident we can improve those questionable physicals. He has a long way to go to make it into the first team, but he will likely get opportunities within the next few years to prove himself.

Jason Maynard (YP16C) - A CB, the area of most need. Light-Hearted is a personality that I seem to get a lot out of, so hopeful for Maynard to join the first team in the next two years. Tackling of 15 to start is great, the only big concern for me is the questionable mentals, but with time hopefully they can be trained up.

Anthony Low (YP16D) - Giving you an extra one here, purely for a look at this guys immense physicals. Immense being relative to most youth I bring through anyway. There was big debate whether he would be the C or D player, but some relatively low Technicals and Mentals mean that Low has more to improve in that area than Maynard. A slight concern is the balanced personality and the opinion that his PA is relatively low..LOW....Low... 

Edited June 14, 2022 by glennuk

[JLAB]

OFK Beograd - Season 2 - Do We Even Have A Chance?

One of the first things that happened was our affiliate link with Balzans Youth FC being terminated, not that it made a difference since we probably weren't going to be getting players from Malta joining us.

The day of the first game where we took on Cukaricki told me that we were expected to go straight down along with OFK Vrsac, who also managed a 2nd straight promotion. We take on Red Star in our 2nd game of the season, so we're not going to have a good start.

Despite getting promoted, our reputation is still lower than most teams in the 2nd tier, so even if we wanted to bring some better people in to help us, I don't see us being able to do so. The lack of money we can offer to staff is also being hindered by this.

Speaking of budgets. These are my budgets. We're not going to stay up, but we will try to at least. If we can avoid finishing in the bottom 2, we can avoid automatic relegation, but avoid the bottom 4 and we can avoid relegation outright. It's not ideal, but it's better than nothing. Still need to give my young players professional deals now that we're a professional club again.

[WhiteCat33]

3 hours ago, JLAB said:

One of the first things that happened was our affiliate link with Balzans Youth FC being terminated, not that it made a difference since we probably weren't going to be getting players from Malta joining us.

You'd be surprised, I got several good squad players from Lithuania and Latvia during my Slovenia run. Glad to see you back for another Youth only save!

Edited June 14, 2022 by WhiteCat33

[JLAB]

46 minutes ago, WhiteCat33 said:

You'd be surprised, I got several good squad players from Lithuania and Latvia during my Slovenia run. Glad to see you back for another Youth only save!

It's good to be back. I plan on eventually making seasonal review videos for each season, and the only reason I haven't done it now is because I'm sick and my voice has gone. So hopefully I can do that in the near future.

[WhiteCat33]

 

Toni Store Jugglers FC – St Vincent & The Grenadines
Season 21 2042/2043 SVG Championship
 

Performance

League Champion

Cup Champion

North American Champions League

When I saw we drew defending champions Pumas in our group I assumed this would be a throwaway year. While we didn't advance I'm still very happy with our performance. It all came down to a missed a penalty to draw Pumas 0-0 at home. Had our young playmaker Azinho Anderson 19g made it, we would have advanced over Pumas. Pumas went on to lose the Final 0-1 against Tigres, so it shows we can hang with the big cats.

Group

Caribbean Club Championships

Group

Knockouts

8th trophy added and 4th in a row. 

It almost didn't happen because for the 9/9/2043 Semi-Final first leg I thought I would have 17 First Team Players on international duty! Literally leaving 2 players from my first team and because it was Nations League instead of friendlies I can't recall my team. Thankfully they all came back a day early and while many were tired I at least didn't have to play my reject 16 year olds against a legitimate Haitian team. They only won because my 3rd string AML gave up a penalty. Second game started equally poor where I gave up a 40 second goal off the kickoff. Our star Winger Theon Jeffers 12a saved us with a brace before halftime. Then the game stretched with hardly a highlight through FT & ET into penalties. Where again its Jeffers 12a with the #6 Penalty to give us the win!

After that eventful of a Semi-Final, the Final (away again) against TLH Rangers was well controlled. We capitalized on two FKs by Wesley Davis 14c within 2 minutes of each other to score both our goals. This will be Ezra Williams 05a's last season with us so it was nice to see him get the winning goal for the trophy. Especially since Tomas 13a took his CCC Assist Record away from him with 12 to his 11. 

Squad

There is one new youth talent to mention. Kante Marshall 20d was developing very well in the U18s and with a switch to a more offensive Midfield trio, he's my new Box-to-Box prospect. 

For those interested here are the updated abilities of my other Star Players:

• Azinho Anderson 19g - DLP who I've trained into the DM position so our best player & playmaker can anchor our midfield and allow me to play two more offensive CMs. So far its working amazing. He is my first successful Model Citizen for FM22 and even in St Vincent he has grown an astounding 14 Technical, 20 Mental & 24 Physical for a total 58 CA Increase in 3 seasons. Absolutely Unreal!
• Jellando Westfield 17a - The anchor for my defense, who Charlotte FC offered ~200k for unsolicited which is massive for a nation where you can scam talented players for less than 10k easily. 
• Theon Jeffers 12a - He came in awesome and has stayed that way. Only negative to him is his shooting, but if that was any better I would have lost him years ago to the MLS. He's our new captain with the sunset of our old DLP. 
• Emerald Lee 11c - It's always good to have one of your stars be your GK as it keeps us dependable at the back. Like Jeffers he's the 'old guy' at 25 so both have many seasons left with us.

Transfer

Youth Academy

YI Preview

Youth Intake 

What is this abomination of an intake?! Sorry Shane Phillip, your short spell as our Youth Scout is now over, go back to being a great coach. TBF later it switched to a 4* Good intake, so maybe that part was bugged but was still a bad intake.

Youth Intake Squad

Its bad personalities across the board as well. Granted, we have star players in the squad who are skewing all our ability stars. 2* is playable as a starting player, so if Winslow James had a good personality he could become useful as needed DM depth but I doubt he will develop.

I still signed him cause why not and then I gave all the Fairly Professionals youngster contracts, which gives us 6 total.

Chairman Change

A Club Takeover finally went through as our old owner has been trying and failing to sell the club for over 2 years.

 
No investment

BUT Youth Facility Upgrades are Back!!

Due to the YF bug in this FM version I used FMSE just to see what the difference was between these two. Our old was Shemol McMaster who was replaced by a Cuban owner Gonzalo Linares. No question our new owner is miles better than our old, but the stat that seems to matter is Working with Youngsters where we saw a bump from 11 to 15. It will be interesting to see how many upgrades I'll be able to do.

St Vincent National Team

This was a huge year for the Youth Teams. You may recall last update our U20 team was North American U20 Championship Runner Up. Because of this, we got an automatic U20 World Cup Group Stage spot!

Naturally we didn't do so well:

But that didn't matter as we then got a spot in the Pan American Games! Yes, we got annihilated in a group with the U22's of the #2, #5 & #6 Ranked Teams in the world. (Top 10), but hey we got to play!

Because of the games St Vincent actually had its U20, U22 and Main squad all in competitive matches this October window. My players were busy:

Excel & Thoughts

EXCEL SEASON 1 – 15 ; Season 16 - 21   

The team is as ready as it will ever be for a run into the NACL. We have 1 more season with our old men, and then I'll be hoping for a good Striker and/or AMR to appear in our intake. The team is solid defensively, its just we don't have the finishing ability to be consistent against the strong Mexico & USA sides. 

Edited June 14, 2022 by WhiteCat33

[glennuk]

Worthing FC - Season 16 - Sky Bet League One - End of Season Review - 2 is the magic number!

League - 2nd - Promotion again and 2nd again

Again we had a chance to win the title, but end of season form wasn't the best, 7 points in 5 games was frustrating. We were in the top 3 almost the whole season, making the pre-season preview even more of a joke than it usually is. We definitely went up on our solid defence with by far the least amount conceded.

The Squad

We kept a relatively similar line up to last season, but the big standout was Myles Miller (YP12C), that 12th intake really was something. He was actually someone I was ready to let go, but gave him a go due to his good performances in the U18 team and he never let up. Highest average rating in the whole league and contributed with goals and assists. Jean-Claude Kitoko (YP06A) started the season slow and finished better, but still 22 goals in 45 games is not up to his usual standard, he has reached his peak but I hope he can regain his form. Oh he still finished as the leagues top goalscorer so perhaps I am being a bit harsh.

The Finances

The finances are still very impressive, after the sales last season and this we are pretty well set up for the future. Our sponsorship also went back up alot, which is confusing considering we were a league lower. Hopefully getting promoted continues to improve that.

The Accolades

Jean-Claude Kitoko (YP06A) was top goalscorer for the league and has many of the clubs historical records. We had 3 players in the Team of the Year, which is a bit of a disappointment, as previously mentioned Myles Miller (YP12C) had the highest average rating in the league but did not get in the TOTY. One interesting thing to note, is the LW from Coventry is Richard Owens (YP05A) who came through our youth system.

Facilities & Other News

Our current facilities are very strong indeed. I also decided to buy out Graham Loft (YP13A) sell on clause, I thought the amount was decent I am not convinced that he will become a stand out player in the Premier League.

The Future

I feel that with a bit more experience and some continued improvement from our youth players we should be able put up more of a fight in the Sky Bet Championship. I am now working on getting our training facilities up and continuing to improve our coaches, especially their personalities.

[aldojags]

@JLABWell done on the promotion, weren't you worried about the relegation group a few days ago!? Great achievement!

 

@glennuk you're doing well with some of these sales - some of the players, they look decent, but £9m, for that guy....take the money and run!

 

Hope you finish the job and get back the Championship!

[glennuk]

@aldojags - Thanks. I think it the English Premium. Most of the big sales are English youngsters who are in the England setup (U18, U19 etc). I also must have been posting as you were commenting. Thankfully finished the job and back in the Championship.

On a side note (a bit in the future) I took screenshots of my keepers for you....I wish I could play more than one. In choice order right now

1

2

3

 

 

Edited June 14, 2022 by glennuk

[toshimitzou1]

Icelandic Youth Challenge: Haukar.

2025 - 2026 Season Summary.

 

Just churning the seasons as fast as I can. Complete domestic dominance again, going invincible and winning all four available domestic trophies:

For a club whom had won diddly squat prior to my arrival, the trophy cabinet is looking pretty impressive:

Did well to make it to the Knock-out phase of the EURO Cup after navigating the three Champions League qualifiers and getting defeated in the final play-off. We lost heavily over two legs to Sevilla and in the group stage we also took an absolute pasting from a rampant Arsenal:

I thought we had set a Competition record as well, but that still stands from Luxembourg's outfit Differdange, whom were battered 14-0 by Ajax back in 1984. Phew!!!

Transfer History:

Quick Summary:

As you can maybe tell, our season duration is completely at odds with the rest of Europe's football calendar and as such, the season summary will lack any updated information regarding our league's reputation, our European club coefficient and other comparable standings. For us to stand any chance of European success these are the areas that I will need to focus on, Hereon, when this information becomes updated In-game at approximately July/August, I will give a brief update on our progress and offer any thoughts/insights I have had/made. This is where we are at the moment:

Updated 15.06.2027: Club and League Coefficients. Some improvement here- we've finally given some of our other league outfits a better chance to compete in Europe by dragging up the nation's coefficient - allowing our teams to at least gain some coefficient points to add to our own!

The next big leap is gaining a EURO Cup spot for second place in our domestic league when we reach 15th in the standings. Still a long climb for the league but, we have started the ball rolling:

Plus, a couple more seasons of European football and we will be sitting happily inside the top 50 coefficients- just outside the top 100 atm after a 51 place climb:

Time to push on.

Edited June 14, 2022 by toshimitzou1

[aldojags]

Season Review 2030/31 (Season 9)

Table | Fixtures 1 & 2 | Finances | Transfers

 

More of the same, as you'll see from my previous seasons, I haven't really improved for about 7 seasons! This is the most frustrating save I've ever had, but I'm still enjoying it despite the fact I'm destined never to get us out this league!

 

Same stuff you've read from me before, woefully inconsistent, can't decide on a shape, I have a really young team and the minute someone decent matures, the board sell them out from under me, and the next 16-17 yr old needs to step up. As you'll see from transfers, our best 2 players were sold in the summer.

 

Ah well, we go again! Board still showing little ambition, happy still to avoid relegation despite being in the league for years.

 

Finances are a tip, despite my being under wage budget for entire save, and selling players every year...board doing a sterling job! Nice to see the move to part time has had an impact!

 

Team

Will show you some of the best players we've produced...

Oliver Kamango, play him on left wing, cutting in, he's decent but i want more from him.

Brent Lippens wants away, I don't blame him, in my opinion our best player, clubs sniffing around and I've agreed to sell him for £500k if a club comes in...hopefully they don't!

Frustratingly Di Matteo also plays his best on right wing, same as Lippens, but I can't play them both! But he's a good inverted winger for us.

I really like Toma Pena, crap disciplinary record though, but I'm still expecting him to be a main player for us in years to come.

Regis Tsishamba at centre half I think will be a good player for us in future.

Admir Hadzic, our keeper, he's ok!

 

Youth Intake

Preview | Intake | Squad View

 

Another good keeper frustratingly! Need a left back!! Plenty of keepers and wingers though!

Van de Velde - he might be better than my current keeper Hadzic, who has tons of Bosnian U21 caps, and Brugge were looking at him a while ago, tempted to offer him out with a 50% sell on and just go with this boy!

Fanelli - nice looking centre half although wish he had better physicals.

Covo - already been called up to like u19 world cup for his country despite just being regen'd!

 

Next season....mid table obscurity. ZZzzzzzzzz

 

[JLAB]

15 minutes ago, aldojags said:

@JLABWell done on the promotion, weren't you worried about the relegation group a few days ago!? Great achievement!

I was yeah. Now I'm expected to be relegated from the SuperLiga at the first time of asking. 

[aldojags]

@glennukbloody hell all those keepers are great!

[Daddy]

2023/24 Midseason Update:

I'm no longer worried about going back down. Sint-Truiden beat us cleanly the first two times we faced them, so I'm figuring if we beat them in the second half we have a shot at winning the league. 

Intake Preview:

That's pretty promising looking!

[JLAB]

I've just completed my Continental C Licence by October 2023.

Also managed to convince the board to let me study for a Continental B Licence despite having a bigger reputation than the club. They love me here.

[glennuk]

@Daddy - That Youth Intake looks sooo good. Hope you get some gems in a few months.

 

@aldojags - Yep it seems like every few years I get a really good keeper. I want to keep them all, but I know soon enough the two who aren't playing are going to want to move on or be starters. On a side note, keep going with the save, hopefully you will get a season where everything clicks and you get the promotion you so need.

[SkiIIs]

10 hours ago, glennuk said:

Worthing FC - Season 16 - Sky Bet League One - Youth Intake + Record Sale

Record Sale

Graham Loft (YP13A) had just became our starting Left Winger (Inverted Winger) and had been progressing and playing well. I said I wouldn't sell anyone without it being a big fee, and big fee it was. It helped that he was my first choice, but I have two other Left Wingers who depending on form could start ahead of him, and have so far throughout the season.

Record Sale Rejected

I then got a big deadline day bid for our best CB Zain Simmonds (YP12I) who is surprising as the I indicates he was 9th best player in that intake, remember that 12th intake was a BIG one. 9.25 mil is not to be sniffed at, but the money is less needed than the position as CB is still where we are weakest.

Youth Intake

Still hoping to become more continental with our intakes. This isn't a bad one, but not a great one either. Although I do have some hope for the elite talents here, as well as a few of the top talents.

There are a mixed bunch of personalities, but in general there are less bad personalities than usual. Hopefully that is a sign of things to come, as I have been working hard at mentoring out, releasing and selling poor personalities. Everyone tagged has been signed, those untagged have been released. The bottom two Baugh and Amos were signed as they fill needs at the CB and RB role, which we have few of in general.

Top 3 - Youth Intake 16

James Bradshaw (YP16A) - A decent personality and the flexibility to play Left Wing or Striker makes me excited for the youngster and I am hopeful that he can come into the first team straight away as a rotation piece, or for cup games. The physicals I am sure will improve, and if he can get those up, along with his 15 dribbling, he could prove to be great in either the LW or ST position.

Graham Staunton (YP16B) - The fact that this is now two decent youngsters who can play LW, makes losing Graham Loft (YP13A) less of a blow. Decent in most areas and as usual I am confident we can improve those questionable physicals. He has a long way to go to make it into the first team, but he will likely get opportunities within the next few years to prove himself.

Jason Maynard (YP16C) - A CB, the area of most need. Light-Hearted is a personality that I seem to get a lot out of, so hopeful for Maynard to join the first team in the next two years. Tackling of 15 to start is great, the only big concern for me is the questionable mentals, but with time hopefully they can be trained up.

Anthony Low (YP16D) - Giving you an extra one here, purely for a look at this guys immense physicals. Immense being relative to most youth I bring through anyway. There was big debate whether he would be the C or D player, but some relatively low Technicals and Mentals mean that Low has more to improve in that area than Maynard. A slight concern is the balanced personality and the opinion that his PA is relatively low..LOW....Low... 

always a pet hate of mine has been an attribute of 1 so i can understand the D rating

[libbyshuss]

Argentina

Premier League

2044 (season 23)

Season Summary

League - we were reigning champions so I wasn't too fussed about the league and just wanted to make sure we got top 6 to qualify for the Libertadores, which I'm focussing on. And we were ok in the league, a little inconsistent, but with 7 games to go we were 10 points clear of 7th place and looking comfortable. With 2 games to go we were only 1 point clear and looking really vulnerable. Luckily, we scraped wins in those last two games to just about qualify. As league defences go, it was pretty poor to be honest

Copa Libertadores - But never mind, becuase this is the one I want. And in the group stage?

Vasca are good but still a nice easy qualification. So into round 2....

Fantastic second round result! we were great. So, quarter final!

Our nemesis Vasco da Gama! and we did it!! that second leg we were really under the kosh and my keeper made 14 saves on his way to getting a man of the match award

So.... semi final!

and it proved a bridge too far. Flamengo were far too good. D'oh!!!!

 

Players

So this team are now costing me 350k a week in wages, which is far more than I can afford. But i'm going to take the club into financial oblivion in my chase for the Copa Libertadores. Death or glory!!!!

Still no wonderkids though, which is just bizarre really.

Finances

An absolute binfire. Projected to lose 20m a season! lol, i don't care any more! It's either the sack or the Libertadores. There's no middle ground any more!

 

Career

Can I do it? Signs point to unlikely at the minute to be honest but I'm gonna keep pushing it. But I am now at the stage where I'm looking at short term glory over long term gain, whereas it's the complete opposite for the first 10-20 (!) seasons

Youth? another golden generation and full of strikers and attacking midfielders again. What is that all about?

 

[JLAB]

So it turns out that I've been impressing clubs around Europe, as I was offered job interviews by clubs in Serbia, Croatia and Hungary within a few months due to my "great performance at OFK Beogard", which tells me that even if I get relegated, I'd surely have a place at OFK Beograd next season. 

[Neo_Geo]

Season 6 (2029/30) Review

 

Competitions

An improved finish of 11th place with 42 points compared to last season's 38 and another quarter final appearance (and exit) in the Dutch Cup, so we are improving slowly.

As you can see from the positions we started off relatively well again before dropping down and teetering around the drop zone before we got into a rhythm and steadying the ship.

This pattern can be explained by my approach to the squad and the tactics as this year I took the plunge and trusted the youth players and eventually settled with 4-3-1-2 Narrow.

 

Players

Given the change in formation it was the first time that Botermans was not top scorer and the top assists was not a winger. In goals Strikwerda has now taken over from Fikkert (not better than him yet but again I needed to get his development moving and Fikkert has since moved to MVV).

El Haddouti will be leaving on a free and its likely he will be followed by another 3/4 of the original cast as we look forward to a future of graduates forming the starting XI.

As far as development is concerned I have 2 players that appear to be the real gems:

Sezer has opted to play for Turkey but I am astounded by his attributes at 16 and he has a strong partnership with Schotte.

Comvalius is now our talisman up top and given his extended run in the team you can see the progression (I do love an attribute screen like this one!)

Strikwerda actually picked up the Young Player of the Year award (as well as having the highest average rating so I am confident he will continue to do well next year)

 

Youth Intake

Another excellent intake this year:

Looking strong in midfield with Burger now making the starting XI at the tail end of the season.

 

Manager

A few attribute increases and another interview offered with Bordeaux and FC Utrecht (just before my double header with them in the league and cup.....we lost both so they are probably happy I didn't go for the job afterall!)

 

Facilities

We moved to Cars Jeans Stadion this season as Sportpark De Krom was getting an expansion

 

....and no sooner had we moved back in did I get this news story break:

Facilities are improving and we have both training and youth facility improvements currently underway (with some gentle persuasion - do it or I walk!) so I'm pleased with the progress made.

 

The Future

Next season will all be about consolidation in the league and getting game time to the best prospects from the Y06 Graduates. I don't think I'm at the stage where I have the depth (and quality) to loan out players in any great numbers so I will just be looking to get as much gametime as I feel possible for the best of this years intake.

I'm a little concerned at the contract Bijl has just signed as he insisted on a minimum fee release clause of £3.8m however if he does go I know Plezier can handle that position with Meerveld taking Plezier's place up top.

I'd love for some good full backs in the next intake as its the one area of the team I feel is lacking and right now with this formation they are my main source of width (apart from Mezzalas)

 

Edited June 15, 2022 by Neo_Geo

[Daddy]

2023/24 Season Review:

Late in the season I received the dreaded "unwilling to experiment" email, but it was a bit too late to recover. It's hard to complain about finishing third pushing for back to back promotions.

No transfers. Won coach of year and also had a player win an award. 

Stadium going forward. Lot of debt though.

Youth Intake:

The preview wasn't a lie and we got some good players coming in off the bat. A few move right to first team. 

2024/25 Season Preview:

 

Our Keeper retired so a youth player from first intake class is taking over. Otherwise running back with same roster with a few of the 24 class players. I still think we'd be over matched in the top flight, but even if the money isn't great there it'll be better than the 2nd division and with the loan repayments our finances will be dire fast.

[BigJack]

Cray Wanderers Season 3 2024/25

Competitions

Overview

Vanarama South - Predicted to finish bottom again this season, I was confident we could survive again and we did so pretty comfortably. We started well with only 2 losses in our first 8 games but then came the horror drop in form and morale that saw us win just 2 of our next 18 games and I started to worry. I shifted the tactics around and have simplified them as I think I was asking too much from them and we have had a good run with 6 losses in our remaining 20 games. Our highest league finish of 16th, highest points total and highest wins is progress at the very least.

F.A Cup - Another embarrassing cup exit at the first hurdle to a side in a league below us.

FA Trophy - We got to the 3rd round then lost to Salisbury

Playing Squad

Youth Intake    Squad    Transfers    

Another season and one which a few of our youngsters have finally started to develop a bit.  We are losing 2 experienced heads to retirement this summer, Mccoy has been basically our only RB for 3 seasons and he will be missed as will Reid who has managed 15  goal contributions each season for us, something that is going to be hard to replace. We still have not had a natural striker come through an intake who could do a job for us, but Boateng-Gayle 24a is developing well in his new position and managed to bag 12 in 33 starts for us this season and I am hoping he can get a few more next year. I am not sure who will yet replace Reid on the left but whoever I choose will not be as good as him yet. This years intake looks ok on first look but again nobody who can really step straight into the first team. Potential Elite talents are:

Parker 25a

Leigh 25b

Ozer 25c

Jones 25d

Conrad 25e

Facilities and Finances

Facilities    Finances

Nothing to note here other than the £6m loan for the new stadium has left us in a state and I cant see attendances jumping up enough to even pay for the loan itself. We move in this summer and hopefully having our own home finally improves our home form. 

Next Season

Hopefully our financial problems dont effect us too much and we can push on with the development of our young players and try push on and finish a few places higher up the table. We also need to sort out our cup form and try put together a cup run to help the clubs finances.

Edited June 15, 2022 by BigJack

[JLAB]

OFK Beograd - Season 2 - Heading To The Winter Break

Playing in the SuperLiga has been as difficult as I've expected it to be. We've been smashed several times this season, but at the same time, while we've lost 6-1, 5-0, and 4-0 twice, we've managed to win 6-1 and 5-1 away from home and I still don't know how we've been doing so well.

Heading into the winter break, we've actually picked up less points than we did last season, but at the same time have a higher league position too. We still need to take on runaway leaders Partizan in the last 9 league games, but we also still need to take on 16th, 15th, 14th, 12th and 10th as well. So there is a world where we could actually put ourselves in a good position to survive in the relegation group. Avoid the bottom 2 and we avoid automatic relegation, avoid the bottom 4 and we also avoid the relegation playoffs. I have reasons to believe.

Speaking of reasons to believe. I've been offered 7 job interviews and linked with another club in Serbia, Croatia, Hungary and Croatia in just the last 6 months and if this doesn't tell me that I'm doing a good job at OFK Beograd, I don't know what does. The most shocking job interview offer was honestly Hadjuk Split of all teams, but I suppose it goes to show that yes, I should he safe from the sack even if we go down this season. Right?

As for the main event, we're expected to have yet another good youth intake, with a DM, an AMC, a ST and a CM looking like exciting reasons to hope. I'd love to get more players in other positions, but I also know that despite the ratings, I shouldn't just take them at face value, we've still got a lower reputation than most teams in the 2nd tier after all. Hopefully that will change soon.

[toshimitzou1]

3 hours ago, JLAB said:

I should he safe from the sack even if we go down this season. Right?

Totally dude. Relegation by no means means being sacked if all else is good (finances, club vision etc.).

[JLAB]

OFK Beograd - Season 2 - Youth Intake

When we returned from the winter break, we won 3 games in a row and I was honestly starting to believe that we could be able to do something magical. Then we picked up just 1 win in 5 matches, which was against some rather difficult opponents, but was still enough to cause a deflation in my confidence. Still, 13 points out of a possible 24 was really handy.

So as things stands, we're currently 16 points clear of the bottom two, who will be automatically relegated. My main concern is 13th and 14th being relegation playoff positions, so we're not out of the woods just yet. We will be in the relegation phase of the league, but considering I was expecting to finish in the bottom two this season, I consider this to be a massive win.

Still, my youth intake has arrived and while it was good for potential ability, I'm rather underwhelmed by the personalities that we have been given.

Despite that, Branislav Aleksic is the player that I am most excited about. While he's not close to my current best DM in currently ability, he's immediately considered my 2nd best natural DM in the side, which might say a lot. My main concern is that he's fickle, but hopefully we can make him into a good player that if I end up potentially having to sell him one day.

The next best player is Mahir Bajramovic who is more of a defensive player, but someone that I could potentially use as a mezzala. We've got plenty of good CMs now, so hopefully we can build up that part of the squad.

The last player that potentially has a lot of potential is Dusan Markovic, who apparently is a Target Forward. Going to be honest, I don't see it, but he's also unambitious, which is far from ideal.

Can we actually survived in our first season in the SuperLiga?

[glennuk]

Worthing FC - Season 17 - Mid Season Update + Youth Intake

League

We were top after 8 games and I was in shock, we went the first 11 games unbeaten. Then Jean-Claude Kitoko (YP06A) tore his hamstring again (only 2 months out this time though). Things didn't go completely downhill from there, although we certainly had a harder time scoring. But after 22 games we had as many points as we got in the entirety of our last stint in the Championship.

Upgrades

We upgraded our Training Facilities to great and then straight after we got an upgrade approved again.

Foreign Affiliate

We also finally had the opportunity to get a foreign affiliate. I chose Mladost in Serbia, as I have always been a fan of Serbian youngsters in my FM Careers.

Youth Intake Preview

Not the best preview again, hoping this is still just a bedding in time for our new HOYD, or the actual intake is much better. A pity that GK is slotted to be the best position from this intake as we already have 3 solid keepers (all part of the England set up).

[glennuk]

Worthing FC - Season 17 - Youth Intake

A better intake than I expected. Plus a Belgian who I assume was influenced by our Belgian HOYD. Pity he doesn't look great.

A decent mix of personalities. These seem to be getting slightly better as we progress, less bad personalities, but still not great personalities all around. Signed all who are tagged.

Top 3 - Youth Intake 17

Jacob Megginson (YP17A) looks to be a very good central midfielder. Will be trained Box to Box and could well be in the first team as early as next year. Hoping we can continue to mentor up his determination and see some growth in his physicals ASAP. I like the look of his player traits too.

Harry Littler (YP17B) an area where we could do with more depth. I like his personality and a decent mix of technical stats. His strength is very poor but again its something we can train.

Charlie King (YP17C) another area where we are starting to get thin on the ground is the AMR position. With blistering pace and decent technicals where it matters, King could be involved as early as next season. Again I seem to get a lot out of the light hearted personalities.

Calivon Gumbs (YP17D) another good keeper from the intakes. Will be 4th choice keeper and I can't believe how solid my GKs are.

[glennuk]

Worthing FC - Season 17 - Sky Bet Championship - End of Season Review

League - 5th

We had such an up and down season.  The start was amazing, the middle was terrible and the end was unbelievable. We knew we were in the playoffs before the final game of the season, but getting the win and moving into 5th was certainly a big help. We didn't want Huddersfield in the semi final of the playoffs as over 2 games in the season they beat us by a 5-0 aggregate. 

Playoff Semi Final

We were not the better team in the first leg, but squeaked out a win due to a fantastic free kick from Conall O'Hanlon (YP14A). It was not a super comfortable game, but we certainly weren't under a lot of pressure either.

In the second leg, I did not change a thing, partly out of fear of change, partly out of a confidence that the streak we were on was due to familiarity. We again were probably not the better team Conall O'Hanlon (YP14A) coming up big again with an assist to Myles Miller (YP12C) for a goal just before half time. We knew we weren't going to concede 3 goals, went cautious and wasted time. We hung on to make it to the Final at Wembley.

Sky Bet Championship Playoff Final

We faced Huddersfield in the final, who handled us comfortably during the season. However we had confidence and were on a great run of form. It was a game in which everything came together perfectly. We were superb, we didn't just squeak out a win, we dominated from start to finish. Jean-Claude Kitoko (YP06A) deserves to have a statue outside of the ground. 2 goals and an assist on the biggest stage in England. One from a Conall O'Hanlon (YP14A) free kick that was saved by the keeper and then rebounded in and the other from a great Myles Miller (YP12C) cross. This was the most unexpected season ever. I am still in shock! We are in the Premier League

The Squad

These guys will go down in history as Worthing FC Legends! Ed Bass (YP09F) was stupendous in goal. Chris Blanchard (YP09E) and Zain Simmonds (YP12I) were terrible in our last championship season and now they are as solid as a rock back there. Jean-Claude Kitoko (YP06A) is a hero, even without any hamstrings.

Fixtures and Position Graph

Look at how bad we got in December and January (when Kitoko was out). Then the end of season form!

 

Finances

After all of the upgrades we were struggling a bit with finances, the 2.8 mil bonus we paid the players didn't help, but that will soon be rectified by the sweet money the EPL brings.

Our Sponsorship is still worse than it worse in our last Championship stint, but again hoping the promotion will solve this. Also going from a 2.5* rep to 3* should see improvements in so many areas.

The Future

I doubt we can stay up, but we will give a damn good go of it.

Note: Sorry for taking over the thread. I player this entire season in about the last 28 hours. I was so excited I just couldn't stop playing. I am sure there are more screenshots to come, but in my CM/FM career (since about 94) this is probably one of my greatest achievements, even if I come straight back down.

Edited June 16, 2022 by glennuk

[SkiIIs]

50 minutes ago, glennuk said:

Worthing FC - Season 17 - Sky Bet Championship - End of Season Review

League - 5th

We had such an up and down season.  The start was amazing, the middle was terrible and the end was unbelievable. We knew we were in the playoffs before the final game of the season, but getting the win and moving into 5th was certainly a big help. We didn't want Huddersfield in the semi final of the playoffs as over 2 games in the season they beat us by a 5-0 aggregate. 

Playoff Semi Final

We were not the better team in the first leg, but squeaked out a win due to a fantastic free kick from Conall O'Hanlon (YP14A). It was not a super comfortable game, but we certainly weren't under a lot of pressure either.

In the second leg, I did not change a thing, partly out of fear of change, partly out of a confidence that the streak we were on was due to familiarity. We again were probably not the better team Conall O'Hanlon (YP14A) coming up big again with an assist to Myles Miller (YP12C) for a goal just before half time. We knew we weren't going to concede 3 goals, went cautious and wasted time. We hung on to make it to the Final at Wembley.

Sky Bet Championship Playoff Final

We faced Huddersfield in the final, who handled us comfortably during the season. However we had confidence and were on a great run of form. It was a game in which everything came together perfectly. We were superb, we didn't just squeak out a win, we dominated from start to finish. Jean-Claude Kitoko (YP06A) deserves to have a statue outside of the ground. 2 goals and an assist on the biggest stage in England. One from a Conall O'Hanlon (YP14A) free kick that was saved by the keeper and then rebounded in and the other from a great Myles Miller (YP12C) cross. This was the most unexpected season ever. I am still in shock! We are in the Premier League

The Squad

These guys will go down in history as Worthing FC Legends! Ed Bass (YP09F) was stupendous in goal. Chris Blanchard (YP09E) and Zain Simmonds (YP12I) were terrible in our last championship season and now they are as solid as a rock back there. Jean-Claude Kitoko (YP06A) is a hero, even without any hamstrings.

Fixtures and Position Graph

Look at how bad we got in December and January (when Kitoko was out). Then the end of season form!

 

Finances

After all of the upgrades we were struggling a bit with finances, the 2.8 mil bonus we paid the players didn't help, but that will soon be rectified by the sweet money the EPL brings.

Our Sponsorship is still worse than it worse in our last Championship stint, but again hoping the promotion will solve this. Also going from a 2.5* rep to 3* should see improvements in so many areas.

The Future

I doubt we can stay up, but we will give a damn good go of it.

Note: Sorry for taking over the thread. I player this entire season in about the last 28 hours. I was so excited I just couldn't stop playing. I am sure there are more screenshots to come, but in my CM/FM career (since about 94) this is probably one of my greatest achievements, even if I come straight back down.

congrats mate, a truly wonderful achievement from someone who knows how hard it is in the Champ after being promoted from League 1!

[Daddy]

1 hour ago, glennuk said:

Worthing FC - Season 17 - Sky Bet Championship - End of Season Review

League - 5th

We had such an up and down season.  The start was amazing, the middle was terrible and the end was unbelievable. We knew we were in the playoffs before the final game of the season, but getting the win and moving into 5th was certainly a big help. We didn't want Huddersfield in the semi final of the playoffs as over 2 games in the season they beat us by a 5-0 aggregate. 

Playoff Semi Final

We were not the better team in the first leg, but squeaked out a win due to a fantastic free kick from Conall O'Hanlon (YP14A). It was not a super comfortable game, but we certainly weren't under a lot of pressure either.

In the second leg, I did not change a thing, partly out of fear of change, partly out of a confidence that the streak we were on was due to familiarity. We again were probably not the better team Conall O'Hanlon (YP14A) coming up big again with an assist to Myles Miller (YP12C) for a goal just before half time. We knew we weren't going to concede 3 goals, went cautious and wasted time. We hung on to make it to the Final at Wembley.

Sky Bet Championship Playoff Final

We faced Huddersfield in the final, who handled us comfortably during the season. However we had confidence and were on a great run of form. It was a game in which everything came together perfectly. We were superb, we didn't just squeak out a win, we dominated from start to finish. Jean-Claude Kitoko (YP06A) deserves to have a statue outside of the ground. 2 goals and an assist on the biggest stage in England. One from a Conall O'Hanlon (YP14A) free kick that was saved by the keeper and then rebounded in and the other from a great Myles Miller (YP12C) cross. This was the most unexpected season ever. I am still in shock! We are in the Premier League

The Squad

These guys will go down in history as Worthing FC Legends! Ed Bass (YP09F) was stupendous in goal. Chris Blanchard (YP09E) and Zain Simmonds (YP12I) were terrible in our last championship season and now they are as solid as a rock back there. Jean-Claude Kitoko (YP06A) is a hero, even without any hamstrings.

Fixtures and Position Graph

Look at how bad we got in December and January (when Kitoko was out). Then the end of season form!

 

Finances

After all of the upgrades we were struggling a bit with finances, the 2.8 mil bonus we paid the players didn't help, but that will soon be rectified by the sweet money the EPL brings.

Our Sponsorship is still worse than it worse in our last Championship stint, but again hoping the promotion will solve this. Also going from a 2.5* rep to 3* should see improvements in so many areas.

The Future

I doubt we can stay up, but we will give a damn good go of it.

Note: Sorry for taking over the thread. I player this entire season in about the last 28 hours. I was so excited I just couldn't stop playing. I am sure there are more screenshots to come, but in my CM/FM career (since about 94) this is probably one of my greatest achievements, even if I come straight back down.

Awesome job! The money alone will be transformative for you I'm sure.

[Neo_Geo]

@glennukwhat an amazing run you had in April and May, perfect time for it and congratulations on your achievement.

[libbyshuss]

@glennuk awesome job!!! Really enjoying your journey, particularly as worthing is just down the road from me!

Even if you come straight back down the money alone will be worth it. Premier league money is just insane! You can max everything out straight away!!!

Good luck for next season!

[glennuk]

2 hours ago, libbyshuss said:

@glennuk awesome job!!! Really enjoying your journey, particularly as worthing is just down the road from me!

Even if you come straight back down the money alone will be worth it. Premier league money is just insane! You can max everything out straight away!!!

Good luck for next season!

Thanks. Yep I am predicting a 20th finish, especially as my first championship season was disastrous.

 

Luckily I already have everything maxed out, so hopefully I can just build up what I have, get some more affiliates and be prepared for the next 5-10 or even 15 years that this challenge will take.

[JLAB]

OFK Beograd - Season 2 - Did We Stay In The Linglong Tire SuperLiga?

Heading into the League Split, I already knew that we would be going into the relegation phase, so as far as I was concerned, finishing 12th place was the aim. So when we picked up 7 points from a possible 24 in the last 8 matches of the season, doubt started to creep into my mind as to whether or not we had managed to survive in the top flight of Serbia with a squad that really wasn't good enough for the league as it was.

So when we actually managed to finish in 12th by 2 points, avoiding the dreaded relegation playoffs, I never felt more relieved than I had done at the moment I realised that we would be playing in the Serbian top tier for yet another season. Ironically, FK Vozdovac who won the Prva Liga to be promoted with us automatically actually got 2nd place ahead of Red Star of all teams by 14 points, so will be playing in the Champions League of all things next season. 

We had managed to secure relegation with a game in hand, and my main striker scored 23 goals in the league to help us stay up. He's been amazing for me since I took over, with 38 goals in 72 matches so far in the league.

In the end though, 14th place Zelenicar (P) went down through the relegation playoffs, while Proleter Novi Sad stayed up, so once again only 3 of the possible 4 teams were relegated from the top tier. 

The board have given me another £4K p/w in wages, which is very handy for building up the squad.

One slight problem is that my first-choice goalkeeper, got scared into retiring from professional football, preferring to only play on a semi-professional basis. So I've got to find a good replacement for him going forward. Even if he is a rubbish goalkeeper, we didn't have another goalkeeper that's as good as he is, which is a major problem.

Still, as I look through my best 4 players who have potential, Branislav Aleksic is the one with the highest potential according to be backroom staff, even if he needs a lot of work to get there.

Though Milan Maric is the player I am the most excited about, for he has been developing quite nicely so far for the team, I just need to give him more minutes and allow him to develop.

Dalibor Bakic has also been developing as well, and having someone like him be loyal to the team is always going to be helpful for the long-term future.

 

Then we talk about Lazar Stanojevic, who will be forced to be our starting keeper next season. He's not good enough to be taking on the role, but with Jevtic retiring professionally, Stanojevic is the only real option to depend on. How I wish I had another goalkeeper right now.

Though I must give special mention to Andreja Lazovic, without whom we probably wouldn't have been promoted last season and stayed up this season. He's a decent player for this division according to my backroom staff, but his goals have singlehandedly kept us up, and we've got him for at least another 3 seasons, for his contract has an optional one year extension in it. 

Still, I'm back in the swing of things, the seasons might start to slow down a little bit now that the illness that I've been suffering and the reason I started the save at all is starting to disappear. Unfortunately, we've not been able to upgrade any facilities, because we've only got £100K+ after sponsorships come in and we only get £90K through TV money. We might need to sell before we can upgrade any facilities.

Also, fun fact. OFK Beograd produced Dusan Vlahovic from their academy many years ago. This Euros article made me realise that was the case. I thought it was pretty cool.

[JLAB]

OFK Beograd - Odds Still Against Us

Going into the new season, we're still expected to finish bottom, because we've easily got the weakest squad in the league right now. Whether or not we can actually stay up for another season will be interesting, but things have happened.

I actually got approached by SK Austria Klagenfurt for a job interview, they managed to win the Austrian Bundesliga in the first season of the save, so another 3 star team has come sniffing around to prize me away, and means that clubs from 5 different countries have try to poach me from OFK Beograd now.

I also managed to convince the board to try and get a new affiliate and with FK Srem Jakovo having adequate training facilities and the best training facilities of the teams available, I felt they were the best option for my players' development, even if they are just an amateur side. 

Here's hoping things go well for season 3.

[glennuk]

I guess I forgot just how big those TV rights were!

Also New Stadium! A bit annoyed it is not in my name, but it will do. For now we play in Fratton Park (Portsmouth FC).

[Daddy]

2024/25 Midseason Review:

First season I rolled the Diamond and got promoted. Last season near the end it fell off. Switched to 4231 and rebounded. My plan was to mix it up a bit but the 4231 has really taken off so I'll probably keep riding it. After the slow start things have gotten on a roll and hopefully can make a run at promotion.

Some impending doom on the horizon. The loan repayments for the stadium are devastating. I don't know how this plays out, but if they force us to go amateur or restrict the contracts to where I can't keep anyone it'll be a save killer.

The poaching begins.

Another very strong looking intake. 

[SkiIIs]

Season 2034 / 35 - Championship

Aim was to fight for survival and a fight for survival we did!  Apart from the start, we were really never that close to the relegation spots but also never too far as we managed to come up with a win or two when we were a game away from 3rd last.  In saying that though, it was a really tough season as we had to fight tooth and nail for every point we got. Again we were thankful for Pringle's goals where he finished second in goals for the league with 21. Unfortunately he wouldnt sign and by March I offered him around and surprisngly no one bidded (at the time was top goalscorer with 19 at the ripe age of 19) and then big guns Benfica and Lyon offerred him a contract and for the second year in a row i lost one of my brightest prospects for nothing!   I vow not to ever let this happen again (getting too attached to my players).

Funds were again tight as there were no sales, the increase in wages to players hurt but the positive news is that our sponsorships went up and the prizemoney is quite a nice hit at the end of the season.  We managed to used the funds to upgrade our youth category which meant we had to upgrade our youth facilities which will be at Great once complete.

One of my players Darren Williams who doesnt rate well in matches but is ranked by staff (and me) as one of our better players enjoys being fined apparently.

Youth Preview was kinda average: 

Youth Intake was bang on the money as average. Although a Ghanian striker is exciting to have, shame about the personality 

Next year is about survival without Pringle's goals