Moneyballing My Way To A Champions League Title in Every European Nation Part X: The FM23 Experiment

[shaunvamos]

November 2027

 

 

 

 

 

We seem untouchable in the league at the moment, and at least we got a point in the Champions League!

 

 

 

National Team

 

 

 

 

 

We lose our last two games, inadvertently screwing Ukraine out of qualifying.

[shaunvamos]

18 hours ago, Jtomsett11 said:

Looks like the champions league is going to be a real challenge here, great progress in the league! How far off is the league coefficient in terms of getting a better seeding for the group stage? 

It's not the league coefficient that determines group seeding, it's the coefficient of the individual club  Our rank is currently 65th, which is why we are seeded last for the Champions League, but it won't get any better if we keep losing all our games. All we need is a slightly weaker 3rd seed team, which will get us into the Europa League and we can grow that way.

[shaunvamos]

December 2027

 

 

 

 

 

A very depleted side lose to AZ, but we still head into 2027 4 points clear at the top.

 

 

 

 

 

A very strong looking preview  

[shaunvamos]

January 2028

 

 

 

 

 

The good run continues, but Ajax still linger.

[shaunvamos]

February 2028

 

 

 

 

 

A tough start to February, and now things are getting interesting with Ajax. The good news is we don't have to play any of the big 3 (PSV, Ajax & Feyenoord) for the rest of the season, but that doesn't mean it will be smooth sailing. There's still Heerenveen 

[shaunvamos]

2028 Youth Intake

 

 

 

Haruna Addo 7A*  -  Gillian te Vrede 7B  -  Marvin Beck 7C

 

 

 

Another great intake, but despite the 2 5* prospects they aren't considered promising. Hmm.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[shaunvamos]

March 2028

 

 

 

 

 

Heerenveen ffs 

 

 

 

National Team

 

 

[shaunvamos]

Holland Euro 2028 Squad

 

 

 

 

Likely Best XI

 

 

It's a pretty strong squad, with an average age under 30 which bodes well for the future. This will be the last international tournament for Memphis Depay, but the core elements will likely be there until at least 2030.

 

 

 

Where Did They Come From?

 

 

Holland (20): Ajax (7), Feyenoord (4), AZ Alkmaar (3), PSV Eindhoven (2), JVOZ (1), NEC Nijmegen (1), Volendam (1), Willem II (1)

England (1): Manchester City (1)

Germany (1): Enitracht Frankfurt (1)

Spain (1): Barcelona (1)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We really get through this group without an issue, but France and Germany looks to be a real tough group to get anything out of.

 

 

Edited June 6, 2022 by shaunvamos

[shaunvamos]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I forgot to do the April recap, but we pulled away from Ajax in the end. A pretty impressive run from Fortuna Sittard also sees them qualify for continental football for the second year straight too  

 

 

 

Best XI

 

 

 

Benjamin Ott  -  Niklas Tauer  -  Matti Herold

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Record Breakers

 

 

 

 

Award Winners

 

 

 

 

 

Progress

 

 

[shaunvamos]

Holland's Euro 2028 Campaign

 

Friendlies

 

 

 

We begin with some very good results against teams ranked in the top 30. Granted, they were at home, but still. 

 

 

Group Stage

 

 

 

We get through our group games relatively unscathed, bar a late comeback against Denmark where we stormed back from 2-0 down.

 

 

 

 

 

Not too many surprises here, except maybe Ukraine failing to deal with what was an extremely tough group, and Ireland taking advantage of a weaker group to qualify for the Second Round.

 

 

 

 

 

We are the 7th best team in Europe, so I think reaching the quarter finals is a reasonable expectation. Switzerland are probably one of the more weaker teams we could draw, but they'll still be tough. Some ridiculous games here though, like Italy v France and Portugal v Belgium.

 

 

Second Round

 

 

 

We left it really, really late but we're safely through to the last 8 and have hopefully kept my job.

 

 

 

 

 

The two games I thought would be the toughest proved to be extremely one sided, as hosts Italy disposed of France and Belgium flogged Portugal. Elsewhere, Germany needed 4 goals to put Norway and Haaland out, and Denmark produced what will likely be the upset of the tournament, eliminating England.

 

 

We've reached the last 8, so I won't be too disappointed if we bow out to the hosts. At least there'll be an unlikely semi finalist with either Serbia or Denmark,

 

 

 

Quarter Finals

 

 

 

We needed extra time, but we did the unthinkable and knocked the hosts out of the tournament! It does come at a cost though, as we lose Frenkie de Jong for the remainder of the the Euros.

 

 

 

Holy wow, it's suddenly all opened up for us  Germany and Spain both lose, and Belgium are the only team in the top 10 remaining.

 

 

 

 

 

We had to fight back against Denmark in the group stage, so we're under no illusions about how difficult they can be. Their performance so far reflects that. The loss of de Jong will really hurt as well.

 

 

 

Semi Finals

 

 

 

A 94th minute goal tied the game for Denmark, and we ran out of steam to lose on penalties. I'm not too disappointed really, I just wonder what could have been. Especially with Wales defeating Belgium!

 

 

 

Final

 

 

 

A thoroughly deserved win by the Danes, a true fairy tale come true  

 

 

 

 

 

I'll showcase our players in the Best XI.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[shaunvamos]

2028 Preseason

 

Transfers (Out)

 

 

 

We lose two starters, but we'll only feel the loss of Hillewaere.

 

 

Transfers (In)

 

 

 

We've finally signed some first team players that are Dutch, including emerging international Jop Goossens and probably the next newgen to be called up in Rico Heij.

 

 

 

Right Wing Back

 

 

 

 

 

Central Midfielder

 

 

 

 

 

Striker

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A strong preseason once more.

 

 

 

 

 

Two time defending champions? Yep, sounds like you'll finish 5th this year.

[shaunvamos]

August 2028

 

Transfers (Out)

 

 

 

Our backup keeper leaves for the premier league where he immediately starts earning nearly twice as much as our highest played player. Absolutely does not deserve it, but if Newcastle want to pay him that they have the means to!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Off to a fantastic start in the league, and we now need to add the KNVB Beker to complete the box set of Dutch trophies.

 

 

 

 

 

We were actually seeded 1st for this group despite being ranked around 60th in the coefficient, so @Jtomsett11 pay zero attention to me, thinking I know how the seedings work, obviously I have no clue  A quick look showed me that the UCL and UEL winners along with the champions of the top 6 leagues receive the top seed. As a result, we have a group we can definitely finish 2nd in. I'd be happy with 3rd, but that's the minimum expectation. Ajax unfortunately get a tough group, but no group gets tougher than Group G, that's a real toss up.

 

 

 

National Team

 

 

 

 

 

We grab a very important point in France.

[shaunvamos]

September 2028

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ajax hand us an early defeat in the Eredivisie, but we won our first Champions League match!

 

 

 

National Team

 

 

 

 

 

Another important point away to Poland.

[shaunvamos]

October 2028

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Strong wins over Feyenoord and AZ, and gaps are beginning to form in the league.

 

 

 

National Team

 

 

 

 

 

Very disappointing to drop points to Scotland, but we flog France so it will come down to the wire for the last two games.

[shaunvamos]

November 2028

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We have a chance to top the league if we win our games in hand, and we're through to the knockout stages of the Champions League after a thumping win over Manchester United. Which makes me wonder, maybe we aren't too far away...

 

 

 

National Team

 

 

 

 

 

It's amazing to think that the inly win we had was against France. A major bottle job.

[shaunvamos]

December 2028

 

 

 

 

 

I think I may have mentioned this several times, but in this save I really, REALLY hate Heerenveen. My overall record against them is 3W-1D-10L. In contrast, my overall record against the Dutch big 3 is 21W-7D-19L. They really have a hold over us.

 

 

 

 

 

It's likely this is where we'll be eliminated, but with our performance against United who knows? It's good to see Ajax there too  We need every coefficient point we can get to stop yo-yoing with Portugal.

 

 

 

 

 

Doesn't look as good as last years, but still good.

[ucdark]

Nice work!! How are the coefficients going for Netherlands??

[shaunvamos]

January 2029

 

Transfers (Out)

 

 

 

Almeria met Schuurman's release clause, so off he goes. A bit of careful rejigging meant we didn't need to replace him though, saving us some money for next season.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Out of the cup, but we can now push for Ajax after they've slipped up a little bit.

[shaunvamos]

4 hours ago, ucdark said:

Nice work!! How are the coefficients going for Netherlands??

 

 

We're currently 7th but it looks like we can hold 6th for a little bit once the coefficients roll over.

[shaunvamos]

February 2029

 

 

 

 

 

Ajax and us will be fighting tooth and nail for this title.

[Zeonflux]

Hey @shaunvamosgreat career, been really enjoying reading through it (will admit it took me until your second season in Portugal to realise you were starting each league fresh after completing one, was trying to figure out why Haaland was still doing so well)

Anyways I’m looking at starting a San Marino Challenge save and was looking at Moneyballing the first part of it and was wondering how do you use the Spreadsheet to find players?

(quick note, as of writing I haven’t downloaded the spreadsheet yet so if it’s a vary basic open and look then that would be why I sound so dense 😂)

Edited June 7, 2022 by Zeonflux

[shaunvamos]

2029 Youth Intake

 

 

Tolga Yılmaz 8A  -  David Ericsson 8B*  - Ton Brands 8C

 

 

Another excellent intake, and the determination levels are quite strong across the board as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[shaunvamos]

7 hours ago, Zeonflux said:

Hey @shaunvamosgreat career, been really enjoying reading through it (will admit it took me until your second season in Portugal to realise you were starting each league fresh after completing one, was trying to figure out why Haaland was still doing so well)

Anyways I’m looking at starting a San Marino Challenge save and was looking at Moneyballing the first part of it and was wondering how do you use the Spreadsheet to find players?

(quick note, as of writing I haven’t downloaded the spreadsheet yet so if it’s a vary basic open and look then that would be why I sound so dense 😂)

 

Thanks for reading!

 

In terms of finding players, I go to the player search tab on the scouting screen. I then:

1. Make sure all interested players can be shown using the attribute view (for it to work with attribute masking you need to add a filter for scouting knowledge over 75%)

2. Select all players (Ctrl+A) then print as web page (Ctrl+P). Save it as something you'll remember, and it will be saved to the FM22 documents folder

3. Open the web page, select all (Ctrl+A) and then copy (Ctrl+C)

4. Right click and paste into the spreadsheet. Make sure you select "Match Destination Formatting" so it doesn't go all weird.

5. Look for the best players and enjoy!

 

Let me know if you have any questions

 

 

 

 

[shaunvamos]

March 2029

 

 

 

 

 

We may have to concede to Ajax, I think they've got us.

 

 

 

National Team

 

 

 

 

 

The post Memphis Depay era has gotten off to an explosive start, flogging what will probably be our closest challengers 4-1 at home.

[shaunvamos]

April 2029

 

 

 

 

 

Yep, I think we're done here. 2nd place is still great though.

[shaunvamos]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We did everything right, it just wasn't enough. The amount of points we accumulated would've been enough to win the league every season so far, including the ones where we already won it. It just goes to show how good Ajax were this season as well.

 

 

 

Best XI

 

 

 

Niklas Tauer  -  Benjamin Ott  -  Jop Goossens

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Record Breakers

 

 

 

 

 

Award Winners

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Progress

 

 

[shaunvamos]

2029 Preseason

 

Transfers (In)

 

 

 

Up front, we only spent about 20M, but these are heavily back-ended deals. We really went hard in this recruitment drive, signing two current wonderkids, as well as bringing back Hillewaere after a failed run in Germany. We also sign Dutch international Daan van Gelderen who recently made his debut in the World Cup qualifiers.

 

 

 

Central Defenders

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Left Wing Back

 

 

 

 

 

Central Midfielders

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Striker

 

 

 

The other players were signed with the intention of being in the first team, but were pushed to the subs as a result of line-up reshuffling.

 

 

 

 

 

About as clinical as we could be, but Gent pushed us all the way in our CL qualifier.

 

 

 

 

 

4th?! No thanks, let's get revenge on Ajax. With the additions we've made, I think we have the ability to do it as well.

[Zeonflux]

5 hours ago, shaunvamos said:

 

Thanks for reading!

 

In terms of finding players, I go to the player search tab on the scouting screen. I then:

1. Make sure all interested players can be shown using the attribute view (for it to work with attribute masking you need to add a filter for scouting knowledge over 75%)

2. Select all players (Ctrl+A) then print as web page (Ctrl+P). Save it as something you'll remember, and it will be saved to the FM22 documents folder

3. Open the web page, select all (Ctrl+A) and then copy (Ctrl+C)

4. Right click and paste into the spreadsheet. Make sure you select "Match Destination Formatting" so it doesn't go all weird.

5. Look for the best players and enjoy!

 

Let me know if you have any questions

 

 

 

 

Cheers fella!

Which attributes am I copying and to which page of the spreadsheet am I copying it to?

[shaunvamos]

August 2029

 

 

 

 

 

A decent start to the league, but we scraped past Trabzonspor to qualify for the Champions League.

 

 

 

 

 

Back to being seeded 4th, which means back to getting ridiculous groups 

 

 

 

Transfers (Out)

 

 

 

A few guys we didn't really need leave. We profit on all of these sales.

 

 

 

National Team

 

 

 

Still looking dominant in the qualifiers.

[shaunvamos]

31 minutes ago, Zeonflux said:

Cheers fella!

Which attributes am I copying and to which page of the spreadsheet am I copying it to?

GK.fmfField Squad.fmfGK Squad.fmfField.fmf

 

All of the attributes, with the views as above. The GK and Field views get copied into Trans GK and Trans Field respectively, and GK and Field Squad go into GK and Senior  

[shaunvamos]

September 2029

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We beat Ajax, but despite still being undefeated sit 3rd. Meanwhile in the Champions League, we receive a pleasant surprise in our opening game, flogging Sociedad in San Sebastian.

 

 

 

National Team

 

 

 

 

 

A win over Croatia will seal our qualification.

[Chris_ANZFM]

16 hours ago, shaunvamos said:

September 2029

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We beat Ajax, but despite still being undefeated sit 3rd. Meanwhile in the Champions League, we receive a pleasant surprise in our opening game, flogging Sociedad in San Sebastian.

 

 

 

National Team

 

 

 

 

 

A win over Croatia will seal our qualification.

Off to another strong start here sir. Things seem to be pretty secure at least domestically. But if interval growth should hopefully see a stronger campaign through the UCL.

is Heij still playing WB? With attributes like that I’d expect him to be banging them in all over the place. 

[shaunvamos]

October 2029

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We're dropping points left right and centre in the league as we're desperately trying to keep players fresh, but in the Champions League another surprise result (from my perspective) sees us sit 2nd at the halfway point.

 

 

 

National Team

 

 

 

 

 

Safely qualified, we never looked like being in danger.

[shaunvamos]

3 hours ago, Chris_ANZFM said:

Off to another strong start here sir. Things seem to be pretty secure at least domestically. But if interval growth should hopefully see a stronger campaign through the UCL.

is Heij still playing WB? With attributes like that I’d expect him to be banging them in all over the place. 

We definitely look like we can hold our own in the CL this season that's for sure.

 

Heij isn't playing at WB anymore, he's been moved up front. He didn't even play WB for that long last season really. I re-select the team in January to account for any improvements, and he was actually relocated to CM for the rest of last season. It happens more often then you think!

[shaunvamos]

November 2029

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We are slowly starting to come to life in the league, and have successfully qualified for the knockout stages in the Champions League for the second straight year. Man City look to be a tough team to beat though!

 

 

 

National Team

 

 

 

 

 

We end our qualification on a high note, scoring nearly 5 goals on average every game.

[shaunvamos]

December 2029

 

 

 

 

 

We lose our first game of the season to a team that was 17th until that game, but we're still within reach of Ajax. Problem is, it's looking like a 4 horse race at the halfway point. 

 

 

 

 

 

Drawing Arsenal is not the worst luck we could've received. They've finished 4th in the EPL the last 3 years (how unlike them) but are 4 points clear on top this season so it may not be a good time to play them.

 

 

 

 

 

It may look excellent, but I think we might be due for a bad one.

 

 

 

National Team  - 2030 World Cup Draw

 

 

 

 

 

Hosts Spain get gifted a dream group, and I really feel for debutants Haiti, they're going to get smashed. Curacao back up their 2026 appearance, but against Cameroon and England will likely prove too strong for them. Group C looks to be anybody's game, and in Group D Iran and Angola will be fighting for that last knockout spot.

 

 

 

 

 

China will more than likely be the whipping boy in group E, and the same could be said for New Zealand in relation to Group F. Group G throws up another group of death, and Group H looks to be tough too.

 

 

 

 

 

Mexico and Poland should qualify from Group I comfortably, and in fairness we should from our group too. You could pick anyone out of a hat in Group K, and I'd say Brazil and Scotland will progress from L.

 

 

 

 

 

I fully expect Qatar and Guinea Bissau to get flogged in their respective groups, Argentina and Turkey to qualify and a whole host of interesting ties in the final group as Syria qualify for their first World Cup.

 

 

 

Notable countries in the top 50 missing include:

#18 Denmark, who finished behind Turkey and the Czechs in their group

#22 Wales, who finished behind Albania

#23 Norway, who finished behind England

#26 Ukraine, who finished behind France

#27 Australia, who didn't even make it to the final stage of Asian qualifying, and their manager was duly sacked

#29 Sweden, who finished behind Italy

#30 Mali, who finished behind Ghana and Angola and ahead of #39 Morocco

#33 Ivory Coast, who finished behind South Africa and Nigeria

#34 Tunisia, who finished behind Senegal

#40 Austria, who finished behind Romania and Portugal

#44 Guinea, who finished behind Cameroon

#45 Croatia, who finished behind us and Iceland

#47 Ireland, who finished behind Switzerland and Serbia

 

Obviously not every European team in the top 50 can qualify, but for the Euro champs to not even qualify, what are we, in 2022? 

 

[shaunvamos]

January 2030

 

 

 

 

 

The year has rolled over, and we seem to have discovered our form again. 

[shaunvamos]

February 2030

 

 

 

 

 

I think we've conceded already to Ajax, but 2nd will still get us an automatic group stage spot. We also have a slim lead against Arsenal, but it probably won't last.

[shaunvamos]

2030 Youth Intake

 

 

Wilco Leliveld 9A*  -  Alberto Specken 9B  -  Javairo Baja 9C

 

 

 

Well, we were due a bad one. I'm just happy to get a nationality I've never received before, in Tuvalu. He's almost worth keeping just to give them what is probably the best player they'll ever have!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[shaunvamos]

March 2030

 

 

 

 

 

We just haven't been able to stay fit, but the loss to Ajax was 1-0 until we had a player sent off. We are now desperately fighting for second, even to stay in the top 5 as Zwolle have come from nowhere to be surprise CL spot contenders.

 

 

 

National Team

 

 

 

We beat Brazil! Even though it was only a friendly, we had a weakened squad due to injury and fatigue so the result still counts in my book!

[shaunvamos]

April 2030

 

 

 

 

 

Rock solid in defence, but it looks like 3rd will be where we finish unless Feyenoord capitulate.

[shaunvamos]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, at least we're in the Champions League qualifiers.

 

 

 

Best XI

 

 

 

Manfred Maas  -  Joeri Hillewaere  -  Werner Krabler

 

 

 

 

 

We've cracked the vaunted "80" overall, but our form just does not reflect it at this stage.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Record Breakers

 

None

 

 

 

Award Winners

 

 

 

 

 

Progress

 

 

[shaunvamos]

Holland 2030 World Cup Squad

 

 

 

 

It's great to see that every player in the squad is playing in a top 6 league, and the Ajax talent factory in full force. Cool to see we have a former NAC Breda player in the squad, Tein Troost, who left the club in 2018. The only current NAC player in the squad is Jop Goossens, who despite playing at WB for club will be playing CM for his country.

 

 

 

Ideal Starting XI

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It's an older, more experienced squad than Euro 2028, but not as strong either. This tournament will be the last for Frenkie de Jong and Donny van de Beek, two Dutch stalwarts over the years. For their sake I hope we make the last 8, as being ranked 6th means that's my minimum expectation.

Edited June 10, 2022 by shaunvamos

[shaunvamos]

Holland's 2030 World Cup Campaign

 

Friendlies

 

 

 

We had a strong friendly schedule, but it was dampened by an Achilles injury to starting LWB Owen Wijndal, meaning that we had to call up a replacement. It's a huge blow, but hopefully one that can be covered.

 

 

 

Group Stage

 

 

 

 

 

Two strong, controlled performances in which we were never in any trouble. It's a good buildup to the knockout stages.

 

 

 

 

 

As I thought, Haiti and Curacao were drilled in their respective groups. South Korea qualifies despite a heavy loss to Belgium, and Angola smashed Iran 3-0 to reach the knockout for the first time in their history.

 

 

 

 

 

China bow out without scoring, France become a the team no group winner wants to play after an upset loss to Chile, Canada were unlucky in a nip and tuck Group G, while Japan miss out by the slimmest of margins.

 

 

 

 

 

Venezuela were crushed 7-0 and 5-1 by Poland and Mexico respectively, you've already seen how our group turned out, Romania look quite strong as they muscle through a tough group, and Brazil also become a team no group winner wants to play after a surprise loss, but took it out on Costa Rica.

 

 

 

 

 

Finally, Nigeria qualify over Portugal, and Qatar, Guinea-Bissau, Saudi Arabia and Syria were clearly out of their depth.

 

 

 

 

 

We receive a tough tie against Mexico, but all eyes will be on Italy and France as the two powerhouses face each other at the earliest knockout opportunity for the second tournament in a row. Brazil seem to have gotten lucky as well, drawing a Romania side that might be weak on paper, but have the potential to shock them. I think the only other interesting tie here is Uruguay and Portugal.

 

 

 

Second Round

 

 

 

We out xG'd them by 2 goals, but still had to come from behind to win. We're playing well though.

 

 

 

 

 

The only real boilover here was Ecuador over Colombia in my opinion, everything else was generally par for the course.

 

 

 

 

 

Algeria knock out the dangerous Poland, Brazil needed extra time to get past Romania, and Uruguay beat Portugal.

 

 

 

 

 

It's not getting any easier as we now draw Brazil. What I will take into account is that we beat them last time, and they're likely to be more fatigued after their extra time win. Two interesting ties will see one of Senegal/Ecuador and Algeria/Scotland making an unexpected quarter final appearance.

 

 

 

Third Round

 

 

 

This is the defining match of our tournament so far. We made them look silly, up 3-1 at the half and never let them back in.

 

 

 

 

[Chris_ANZFM]

Unfortunate to slip down the league table, those results in March might well have been what did you in. Another crack at the CL is a good spot to be in. excellent start at the World Cup 

[shaunvamos]

Holland's 2030 World Cup Campaign - Part 2

 

Apologies for the delay, it's the Queens Birthday weekend here in Australia and I've been playing a baseball tournament all weekend, but as soon as I was able to, FM came back on

 

 

 

 

 

The 3rd round produced one big upset, as Switzerland knocked France out. Ecuador flogged Senegal, and Germany went out on penalties.

 

 

 

 

 

On paper, these matches look straightforward, But Switzerland knocked France out, and Ecuador and Scotland showed they can bang in the goals. I don't know if we'll beat the US, but anything after this is just exceeding expectations, so I'm just enjoying the ride.

 

 

 

Quarter Finals

 

 

 

Fatigue set in, and we had no answer to the Americans. Still, we made the last 8 so can't be too disappointed.

 

 

 

 

 

Upsets again in the quarter finals, as Switzerland knock out England and Argentina fall to Scotland. It could have been 3 upsets from 3, but Spain held their nerve in the shootout, establishing the hosts as overwhelming favourites to take the title.

 

 

 

Semi Finals

 

 

 

Spain cruise through to the final, and Scotland continue the dream run, defeating Switzerland to reach the final.

 

 

 

Final

 

 

 

Scotland did their absolute best, but for the 4th straight time Spain won on penalties, proving their mental superiority and winning the Cup in their home country.

 

 

 

 

[shaunvamos]

2030 Preseason

 

Transfers (Out)

 

 

 

We have a record sale, with Manfred Maas catching City's eye after only a season with us. Despite the huge fee he commanded when we bought him we still make 15m+ profit on him. We also profit off the sale of Aydin, who we bought for less than a million. 

 

 

 

Transfers (In)

 

 

 

Despite the departure of Maas, there were no suitable options better than our replacement Libero, so it was a very quiet window. I did have my eyes on a young Dutch midfielder from Zwolle who would've made a great DM, but Villarreal turned his head more. We still get a great striker in Polman though, so our strikeforce should be strong.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

An undefeated preseason, and Polman already has his scoring boots on.

 

 

 

 

 

Predicted top 3, but I think it's time we regained the title.

[shaunvamos]

5 hours ago, Chris_ANZFM said:

Unfortunate to slip down the league table, those results in March might well have been what did you in. Another crack at the CL is a good spot to be in. excellent start at the World Cup 

Thanks! Hopefully this season will change things, despite our lack of additions.

[shaunvamos]

August 2030

 

 

 

 

 

We get off to a strong start, especially with an away win over PSV.

 

 

 

 

 

We are once again rewarded with a diabolical group, but we beat Monaco last time so maybe we can snatch 3rd?

[shaunvamos]

September 2030

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We did better than I thought we would against Bayern, and we go top of the league provisionally.

 

 

 

National Team

 

 

 

 

 

The national team has been dealt a huge blow with the international retirement of de Ligt at just 30 years of age. We really could have done with him in this extremely tough group featuring traditional powerhouse Germany, current World Cup finalists Scotland and the ever dangerous Ukraine.