[FM22] Montee les Verts: Rise of the Greens! Trying to stem the tide and restore faded glory...

[Hootieleece]

 

Background of Save:

Hello, everyone, I have decided to try and reverse the decline of AS St. Etienne Soccer Club. Reason as their stare relegation in the face IRL. Maybe with my "Vast Experience" in France (Clermont), Hungary (DVSC), Slovakia (FC Kosice), (Baltika)and countless other clubs in my recent FM'ing I can do something else with the squad.

 I will use a generic manager that fits ASSE named Monsieur Football. He/I will try and play realistically. No editor for unlimited funds or forcing All stars and wonderkids into the team. I will probably use a 4-2-3-1 Wide System with either a Vertical TikiTaka approach or Gengenpress featuring. I will try and establish Youth Players into the first team using the academy, but also scouts and transfers will try and restock the Academy with plausible players. So, I will be scouting Francophone Countries in Africa as well for talent. I will also try and accept bids that a financially struggling team would as well.

@SixPointer, @_Ben_, @karanghsingh, @13th Man

 

This save will start slowly but will update more regularly after the school year is finished.......

This podcast link was the clincher:

https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5zaW1wbGVjYXN0LmNvbS9XdV9qbzRyTQ/episode/OTMwZGIyZGItYjM3ZC00NmQ4LWJlMzktNjIzZTllOWMyMzg0?ep=14

History[edit]

Early history[edit]

AS Saint-Étienne was founded in 1919 by employees of the Saint-Étienne-based grocery store chain Groupe Casino under the name Amicale des Employés de la Société des Magasins Casino (ASC). The club adopted green as its primary color mainly due to it being the principal colour of Groupe Casino. In 1920, due to the French Football Federation (FFF) prohibiting the use of trademarks in sports club, the club dropped "Casino" from its name and changed its name to simply Amical Sporting Club to retain the ASC acronym. In 1927, Pierre Guichard took over as president of the club and, after merging with local club Stade Forézien Universitaire, changed its name to Association sportive Stéphanoise.

In July 1930, the National Council of the FFF voted 128–20 in support of professionalism in French football. In 1933, Stéphanoise turned professional and changed its name to its current version. The club was inserted into the second division and became inaugural members of the league after finishing runner-up in the South Group. Saint-Étienne remained in Division 2 for four more seasons before earning promotion to Division 1 for the 1938–39 season under the leadership of the Englishman Teddy Duckworth. However, the team's debut appearance in the first division was short-lived due to the onset of World War II. Saint-Étienne returned to the first division after the war under the Austrian-born Frenchman Ignace Tax and surprised many by finishing runner-up to Lille in the first season after the war. The club failed to improve upon that finish in following seasons under Tax and, ahead of the 1950–51 season, Tax was let go and replaced by former Saint-Étienne player Jean Snella.

Ten league titles (1956–1981)[edit]

 

Georges Bereta won six league titles while playing for Saint-Étienne.

Under Snella, Saint-Étienne achieved its first honour after winning the Coupe Charles Drago in 1955. Two seasons later, the club won its first domestic league title. Led by goalkeeper Claude Abbes, defender Robert Herbin, as well as midfielders René Ferrier and Kees Rijvers and striker Georges Peyroche, Saint-Étienne won the league by four points over Lens. In 1958, Saint-Étienne won the Coupe Drago for the second time. After the following season, in which the club finished sixth, Snella departed the club. He was replaced by René Vernier. In the team's first season under Vernier, Saint-Étienne finished 12th, the club's worst finish since finishing 11th eight seasons ago. In the following season, François Wicart joined the coaching staff. In 1961, Roger Rocher became president of the club and quickly became one of the club's chief investors. After two seasons under Wicart, Saint-Étienne were relegated after finishing 17th in the 1961–62 season. However, Wicart did lead the club to its first Coupe de France title in 1962, alongside co-manager Henri Guérin with the team defeating FC Nancy 1–0 in the final. He also led the club back to Division 1 after one season in the second division, but after the season, Wicart was replaced by Snella, who returned as manager after a successful stint in Switzerland with Servette.

In Snella's first season back, Saint-Étienne won its second league title^[3][4] and, three seasons later, captured its third. Snella's third and final title with the club coincided with the arrival of Georges Bereta, Bernard Bosquier, Gérard Farison and Hervé Revelli to the team. After the season, Snella returned to Servette and former Stade de Reims manager Albert Batteux replaced him. In Batteux's first season in 1967–68, Saint-Étienne captured the double after winning the league and the Coupe de France. In the next season, Batteux won the league and, in the ensuing season, won the double again. The club's fast rise into French football led to a high-level of confidence from the club's ownership and supporters and, following two seasons without a trophy, Batteux was let go and replaced by former Saint-Étienne player Robert Herbin.

In Herbin's first season in charge, Saint-Étienne finished fourth in the league and reached the semi-finals of the Coupe de France. In the next two seasons, the club won the double, its seventh and eighth career league title and its third and fourth Coupe de France title. In 1976, Saint-Étienne became the first French club since Reims in 1959 to reach the final of the European Cup. In the match, played at Hampden Park in Scotland, Saint-Étienne faced German club Bayern Munich, who were the reigning champions and arguably the world's best team at the time. The match was hotly contested with Saint-Étienne failing to score after numerous chances by Jacques Santini, Dominique Bathenay and Osvaldo Piazza, among others. A single goal by Franz Roth eventually decided the outcome and Saint-Étienne supporters departed Scotland in tears, however, not without nicknaming the goalposts "les poteaux carrés" ("the square posts"). Saint-Étienne did earn a consolation prize by winning the league to cap off a successful season and, in the following season, the team won the Coupe de France. In 1981, Saint-Étienne, captained by Michel Platini, won its final league title to date after winning the league for the tenth time. After two more seasons in charge, Herbin departed the club for archrivals Lyon.

Decline and recent history[edit]

 

Loïc Perrin spent his entire career at Saint-Étienne, his hometown club.

In 1982, a financial scandal involving a controversial slush fund led to the departure and eventual jailing of long-time president Roger Rocher. Saint-Étienne subsequently suffered a free-fall with the club suffering relegation in the 1983–84 season. The club returned to the first division in 1986 under the leadership of goalkeeper Jean Castaneda who had remained with the club, despite its financial state. Saint-Étienne kept its place in the first division for nearly a decade with the club reaching the semi-finals of the Coupe de France in 1990 and 1993 during the stint. In 1996, Saint-Étienne was relegated to the second division and returned to Division 1 in 1999. In the 2000–01 season, the club was supervised by five different managers and had to deal with a scandal that involved two players (Brazilian Alex Dias and Ukrainian goalkeeper Maksym Levytsky) who utilised fake Portuguese and Greek passports. Both players were suspended for four months and, at the end of a judicial inquiry, which linked some of the club's management staff to the passport forgeries, Saint-Étienne was docked seven league points and relegated.^[5]

Saint-Étienne played three seasons in the second division and returned to the first division, now called Ligue 1, for the 2004–05 season. They came fifth in the 2007–08 season, which resulted in the club qualifying for the UEFA Cup for the first time since 1982. Saint-Étienne was influenced by several youngsters within the team such as Bafétimbi Gomis, Loïc Perrin, Blaise Matuidi and Dimitri Payet. The club followed up its fifth-place finish by finishing 17th in the next two seasons. ^[6]

Having won the Coupe de la Ligue in April 2013, their first major domestic trophy for more than 30 years, Saint-Étienne qualified for the third preliminary round of the 2013–14 UEFA Europa League campaign. Following crowd trouble towards the end of the 2012–13 season, Saint-Étienne were handed a one-match stadium ban which would have forced the team to open their campaign behind closed doors. However, on 23 July 2013, this ban was lifted.^[7] On 30 November 2014, Saint-Etienne defeated fierce rivals Olympique Lyonnais 3–0 at the Stade Geoffroy-Guichard for the first time since 1994.^[8]

The 2017–18 Ligue 1 season started badly for Saint-Etienne and culminated in a 5–0 derby loss to Olympique Lyonnais, after which Óscar García Junyent was dismissed as manager and replaced by former player Julien Sablé.^[9] Sable was replaced in December by Jean-Louis Gasset because he did not hold the required qualifications to coach in Ligue 1, and the club were fined €25,000 euros for every game played with Sable in charge.^[10] Under Gasset, Saint-Etienne went 13 games unbeaten and finished 7th in the table at the end of the season.^[11]

In the 2018–19 season, Saint-Etienne came fourth, the best finish since their promotion, after which Gasset elected to leave the club.^[12] The following year they were 17th when the season was ended by the coronavirus pandemic.^[13] They also reached the Coupe de France final in this season, which they lost 1–0 to Paris Saint-Germain.^[14]

In the 2020–21 season, Saint-Etienne started poorly and hovered above the relegation zone for most of the season before winning five of their last ten matches to finish 11th on the table.^[15]

Players[edit]

Current squad[edit]

As of 27 May 2022.^[16]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 2 DF  CMR Harold Moukoudi 3 DF  FRA Mickaël Nadé 4 DF  GUI Saïdou Sow 5 DF  FRA Timothée Kolodziejczak (vice-captain) 6 MF  FRA Lucas Gourna-Douath 7 MF  ALG Ryad Boudebouz 8 MF  FRA Mahdi Camara 9 FW  SEN Sada Thioub (on loan from Angers) 10 FW  TUN Wahbi Khazri (captain) 11 DF  BRA Gabriel Silva 13 DF  PER Miguel Trauco 14 DF  MLI Falaye Sacko (on loan from Vitória S.C.) 15 MF  FRA Bilal Benkhedim 16 GK  SEN Boubacar Fall 17 MF  FRA Adil Aouchiche

No. Pos. Nation Player 18 FW  FRA Arnaud Nordin 19 MF  CMR Yvan Neyou 20 MF  GAB Denis Bouanga 21 FW  FRA Romain Hamouma (vice-captain) 22 DF  FRA Eliaquim Mangala 25 MF  SEN Assane Dioussé 26 FW  MLI Bakary Sako 27 DF  FRA Yvann Maçon 28 MF  FRA Zaydou Youssouf 29 MF  FRA Aïmen Moueffek 30 MF  FRA Maxence Rivera 31 FW  FRA Enzo Crivelli (on loan from İstanbul Başakşehir) 40 GK  ENG Etienne Green 50 GK  FRA Paul Bernardoni (on loan from Angers)

Out on loan[edit]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player — DF  ESP Sergi Palencia (at Leganés until 30 June 2022) — FW  CIV Jean-Philippe Krasso (at AC Ajaccio until 30 June 2022)

No. Pos. Nation Player — FW  FRA Charles Abi (at Guingamp until 30 June 2022)

Reserve squad[edit]

^[17]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player — DF  CIV Abdoulaye Bakayoko — DF  FRA Lucas Calodat — DF  FRA Lucas Llort — MF  FRA Victor Petit

No. Pos. Nation Player — MF  FRA Mathys Saban — FW  GNB Edmilson Correia — FW  SEN El Hadji Dieye — FW  FRA Abdoulaye Sidibé

Retired numbers[edit]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 24 DF  FRA Loïc Perrin

Edited May 27, 2022 by Hootieleece
added words I forgot

[Hootieleece]

ASSE

Meet the Manager

As one can see Monsieur Football is almost the man recommended to take Les Verts to new heights.

A slightly better profile for masses...

The save started on 8/16/2021.

This is a mostly manageable expectation but given how the team performed IRL it might be a challenge.

Team Background

Facilities

The team and its facilities appear to be a great place to create a youth focused challenge that will probably also use analytics and "Moneyball" Ideas.

 

Edited May 28, 2022 by Hootieleece
added images , and wrote words

[SteinkelssonFM]

I am glad you liked the podcast link I fired over, good luck in 🇫🇷 you know I am strapped in for this one 💪

[karanhsingh]

Yes! Fantastic club to manage. Good luck 

Btw you spelt my name wrong 

[13th Man]

It's the summer again, which means - @Hootieleece threads are back!  I was about to ask what did it, but remember your an educator and it's those sweet summer months.

I've got a few more weeks of teaching/admin left, though I may actually have less time for FM.  My current job has been fairly flexible (occasional daytime FM when things aren't too crazy!).  But over the summer my own kids will be out of school and require parenting and attention.

Point is, looking forward to following your new adventures this summer, and St. Ettiene is a nice choice - an established club but one that's in trouble.  M. Football will have his work cut out for him.  Also, if he develops a signature style, the press will have to call it Footballball.

[karanhsingh]

Footballball  good catch 

[Deisler26]

Good luck with that!

[Hootieleece]

44 minutes ago, Deisler26 said:

Good luck with that!

After playing a bit....I now know why they face relegation.....

58 minutes ago, karanhsingh said:

Footballball  good catch 

 

5 hours ago, 13th Man said:

Also, if he develops a signature style, the press will have to call it Footballball.

It won't be a signature style......it is my poor imitation of Rashidi's Bayern Tactic with a little of "Nesselquist" Ball thrown in....I change roles, and PI's but Positions on the Pitch and TI's usually remain the same. 

[13th Man]

No signature style? Come on! You have to do it, even if just to make the media talk about Footballball and sound even sillier than usual!

[Sonic Youth]

9 hours ago, 13th Man said:

Also, if he develops a signature style, the press will have to call it Footballball.

 

I want to see a screenshot of that!

[Captain Blackadder]

Good luck! They're a great club to manage with good history as well.

[Hootieleece]

ASSE

The Team

Monsieur Football decided to take a first look at the team he inherited and make some preliminary tactical plans.

The team looks decent maybe not world beaters but better than Relegation Fodder.

The Key Players' according to the Assman

The Goalkeeper

A little more eccentric than I like but should be a decent Sweeper Keeper-D, problem is a loan.

The Right Back

Another decent player with plenty of pace and will play a Fullback-Attack. Problem: Loan.

The Left Wingers

The Main man and highest earner on the team decent stats. Will probably try to resign if he takes a pay cut......

Decent stats and will be a deputy to Wahbi Khazri as AML playing as an IF-S.

The Striker

Enzo doesn't have the pace to win balls over the top, but his ball skills and tackling will see him play as PF-S. Problem: Loan

The Central Midfield

will probably play as CM-D on the left of the pivot. 

The Hot prospect! I am trying to decide whether play him as a MC or AMC.

The understudy CM-D

The Players that I need to find places for.....

This highly thought of prospect will definitely challenge for the AMR-IW-S position.

Excited about molding this player into a dominant midfielder.....

The Tactics 

This is the primary tactic and we will see where it take us during August and September. Will probably have to make adjustments to roles and PI's after I have watched some games.

This is a more attacking version for chasing the game or we are significantly better than are opponents. Again I will probably make adjustments to the Roles and PI's after some games.

The famous "Nesselquist Ball" that will be for when I feel we need to change it up to break a losing streak..... 

Coaching Matters

This is how the team has been performing in the prior two matches.

After a feverish month I put together a decent staff for the club........The team staff needed a lot of help. The team had FOUR Fitness Coaches and NO tactical coaches!

I put together some mentoring groups.

 

Manager's Thoughts

After my first analysis the team looked like one that shouldn't be facing relegation, but definitely some improvements can be made. I won't really start making any real overhaul to the team until the summer. The main goal for this first season is to not get relegated!

But after a false dawn I now understand why that is the case......

 

Thanks for Reading......

 

 

 

[Hootieleece]

ASSE

August and September 2021: A False Dawn and a Descent into Hell....

M. Football had inherited a team that had been playing well but hadn't been tested by top teams. That was about to change.

First of course were some media types trying to stir up some controversy over the late appointment of M. Football before his first match.

The LOSC manager must have known something.....

because the LOSC 4-4-2 was systematically taken apart by ASSE's press and possession, a late goal was scored on a Over the top ball. Which was a foreshadowing of things to come.

Also of importance was the loss of the main man Khzari for a month.

The next match was against OM:

The match started well ASSE scored twice in ten minutes and generally bossed the game during the first half. After halftime OM change tactics and brought on Dmitri Payet and the team had no answers to the Long Ball and Set Pieces.

After this match came the Trade Deadline and an International Break.

Because of late bids by Premier League Teams Man U and Norwich.....the following players left.

Man U offered fair value ($6.5M) and player said he wanted to leave for a dream move. He will be missed but his lack of defense doesn't really fit M. Football's plans.

Norwich! offered ($5M) and again Dream move even though this player was one that M. Football planned on building around.....it was too early in his reign to deny moves. He needed happy players if He was going to find a way to keep ASSE out of Relegation.

As far as Transfer Policy. I don't expect to make any major moves until the summer of 2022. Because I am really thinking this save as starting Tomorrow (5/30/22) with the rebuild of the team.

After a decent International Break the team returned to continue Ligue 1 play with a match against Montpelier.

Montpellier was favored but ASSE had a chance......

 

This was almost a carbon copy of the OM match. ASSE scored first dominated the game in the first half. After Halftime, Montpellier started lobbing Longballs and playing like their hair was on fire!

Ryad Boudebouz was the ray of hope for ASSE in second half, but no one was able to finish.....

The defense was a shambles......

The next match was ASSE hosting Bordeaux.

ASSE had a chance win but was unable to put the chances away.

The match ended in a 0-0 draw!

The next match was hosting similarly struggling OGC Nice.

The pundits didn't even think we would win in front of the home fans.....

The team battled hard a rescued a draw from the jaws of defeat......

And this continued run of bad results was making M. Football wonder if he had been wrong about the team....

The next match was in many ways the most important of the season. ASSE would be hosting their HATED rivals from Lyon OL.

The match would be a sellout so it was imperative to send the fans home happy.

This was the last match before the October Break that would see M. Football tinker and tweak his tactics to reflect the team, but he needed a win just to keep his job!

Again we were home underdogs! Never underestimate a home underdog!

The match went to plan even if there were a lot of close calls after OL switched to Long Balls to beat the press. There are definite things that M. Football can do to improve his results.

The Right Back was the hero with a magnificent curling shot to open the scoring.

League Table

Schedule

Player of the Month

Ryad has become the #10 (AMC) and his Set Piece Skills make him almost irreplaceable. Unfortunately, he came looking for a raise and is now mulling his options at the end of his contract.

Analyst Report

The terrible defense was directly responsible for our terrible run.

Financial Report

The budget is modest, but it is a team living within its means. Eventually the team will need European Money as well as sales to progress.

Thanks for Reading!

Next installment tactical thoughts and tweaks.

 

 

 

 

 

[13th Man]

Tough run, but if your aim is to be safe from relegation you’re on track.

Get that defense sorted and you’ll be in a good position to turn the club’s fortunes around.

[SteinkelssonFM]

Ending that run of bad luck/games with a HUGE victory over OL keen to see what 'tweaks' you made to spring that suprise...hopefully that result will give the squad a much needed boost in confidence and self-belief. 

[Hootieleece]

IRL: St. Etienne were relegated to Ligue 2 after falling in penalties against AJ Auxerre.

AJ Auxerre is something of a Bogey team for them.

 

AS Saint-Etienne vs AJ Auxerre statistics for most recent head to head matches

AS Saint-Etienne		AJ Auxerre
32	Matches	32
14	Home Matches	18
18	Away Matches	14
33	Total Goals	40
1.03	Average Goals Scored	1.25
5	Wins	13
13	Losses	5
14	Draws	14

Last 5 games & match results between AS Saint-Etienne and AJ Auxerre

May 29, 2022	Ligue 1 21/22	AS Saint-Etienne	1  - 1	AJ Auxerre
May 26, 2022	Ligue 1 21/22	AJ Auxerre	1  - 1	AS Saint-Etienne
February 1, 2017	Coupe de France 16/17	AJ Auxerre	3  - 0	AS Saint-Etienne
February 25, 2012	Ligue 1 11/12	AJ Auxerre	0  - 0	AS Saint-Etienne
October 1, 2011	Ligue 1 11/12	AS Saint-Etienne	1  - 1	AJ Auxerre

 

So the result was almost predictable.

 

Now back to saving fictional ASSE!

 

[Hootieleece]

ASSE

Tactical Interlude

The International Break came at a great time for M. Football. It allowed him to really digest some things the "nerds" were trying to tell him about the team.

It was obvious that the team couldn't play like Man City or Liverpool for more than a Half.....something had to change.

So M. Football decided to look at some of the simpler comparisons of the team to help make some tweaks to the main tactic.

The first comparison shows that as suspected the team has gifted Set-Piece Takers, but can't head a ball!

Skillfull attackers with out much else.....A team of individualists that didn't work too hard or together!

Something that will have to change in the club DNA for next Season!

Physically a weak fast team of individuals that will need to to play keep away from other teams to be successful.

Smart, fast Technical players that individually  will have to find a way to score.....

The Assman's report wasn't much different than the analyst's......

This all gave M. Football something to think about.....the old way had worked by luck against OL, but things needed to change if there were to be improvements.

(This is the Gengenpress Version)

The major tweaks were to the roles of the players......Three players had their role changed. The AMC went from being a Trequarista to an AP-A so he would have more defensive responsibility.

The Center backs roles would change from BPD-D's to NCB-ST and CD-D roles which the players available were better for.

Other Changes included changing the mentality to Balanced from Positive. Other instructions that were changed included no more shorter passing, Higher line of engagement, Higher defensive line, and Offside Trap.

From now on the Team would set up deeper (Standard) to lessen the Balls over the top.....pass more directly to each other and Play for Set Pieces. 

This would allow the team to use its attributes effectively in attack while shoring up the defense. 

 

Thanks for Reading!

[13th Man]

Smart tactical tweaks.  Hopefully will add a bit of solidity without giving up too much attacking threat.

[Hootieleece]

ASSE: Montee les Verts

October 2021: Rising like a Phoenix

Manager's Thoughts

After the horrific month of September M. Football had to do something or this would be the shortest Career Update in History! He used the data available to him to make some changes to the tactical framework he already had based on the data and what he saw during games. The players fit the formation it was just a tweaking to take advantage of what the team does well and minimize the weaknesses. That included dropping the mentality and the aggressive defensive line and the tight marking. The team would continue use its flair to unlock defenses and try Set Pieces more often. 

All of this led to a remarkable run of games in October that saw the team regain form and play to potential. This is still a work in progress, but I think the team will be safe from relegation unlike "Real Life". Especially because other than PSG we have already played the TOP 5 teams in Ligue 1.

Schedule

Highlights

The first match after the Tactical changes was a trip to Strasbourg. The Home team was definitely favored but it was a winnable match.

The match was an ugly one as the players tried out the new tactical framework. We created chances which was good, but Strasbourg defended valiantly. The team finally broke through off a Corner in the 86th minute. Unfortunately, a lack of concentration by the defense let another long ball over the top lead to a score.....where our pacy defenders out paced. 

After the dissapointment in Alsace the team returned home to St. Etienne looking for a victory......The next opponent was Angers SCO.

The Angers SCO Manager had some things to say about us, but was also trying to spark some complacency in the team as well!

The game was a thriller....the team went down, but responded with two unanswered goals one by Khzari to win it!

As the analysis shows after the slow start we really controlled the match.

The last match of the month would see the team travel to Lorraine and the Fortress City of Metz. The Home team was favored, but M. Football thought the team had a chance!

another slow start, but the team responded immediately and then took over the match, but the opponents defended tenaciously! Until another Set Piece ended it with victory to the Green Team!

This victory started the team getting decent press about the turn around that started with the "miraculous" Victory against OL.

XG shows that we started slowly but grew into the game. The way we did it was to use our individual skill to retain possession to keep the other team from scoring.

We did so by making 661 Passes!

and the defense is better because of the possession

We work less on defense because we control the game. This isn't how M. Football wants to play, but the most important thing is to avoid relegation.....

The IRL Relegation haunts this save since many of the same players were part of it.

League Table

Player Awards

The player of the month had the Ligue 1 Goal of the Month.

Manager Report

I think the Board might allow M. Football to keep his job.....for now!

Financial Report

The team has a healthy balance but must not overspend in the transfer market. "Moneyball" will become the name of the game. With Player sales allowing the recruitment of new players to the team.
 

Thanks for Reading!

 

 

[karanhsingh]

Sad scenes at the real life St Etienne on the weekend. Glad to see that your charges are fairing better 

[Hootieleece]

2 hours ago, karanhsingh said:

Sad scenes at the real life St Etienne on the weekend. Glad to see that your charges are fairing better 

I have been a bit of a fan of theirs for a while. For no real reason other than they aren't PSG.  I basically have a favorite team in each country and ASSE was it. They had a little bit of Chicago Cubs pre 2016 (baseball) feel to them even as they really dove into their role as Farm Club for the Bigger teams. Great Local Support and a there will always be next season vibe, 

 

I read that the team is for sale hopefully someone with deep pockets buys them and returns them quickly to Ligue 1.

PS. The only country that I don't have a favorite team is Spain......

[SixPointer]

Just catching up bud. Great club. Crazy scenes after the result, shows the passion of the fans I suppose. Loving the win against Lyon at such a crucial moment! 

[Hootieleece]

1 minute ago, SixPointer said:

Just catching up bud. Great club. Crazy scenes after the result, shows the passion of the fans I suppose. Loving the win against Lyon at such a crucial moment! 

I was debating between 3 clubs: ASSE, Hertha, PNE. Each had its benefits and drawbacks. So, I asked in another thread for a team to manage. @MattyLewis11 put a podcast link about ASSE in the replies, I listened and was hooked.

I have played more than I have written but can say that bad tactical management (too many players of the same type vying for playing time) and the possible sale of the club led to a toxic mix that led to relegation. 

I noticed the problems almost right away and after looking at the Analysts Report and Assman Report on the team the answers were obvious. 

I will say that my version did better in real life......34 points at Christmas Break.  

[SixPointer]

5 minutes ago, Hootieleece said:

I was debating between 3 clubs: ASSE, Hertha, PNE. Each had its benefits and drawbacks. So, I asked in another thread for a team to manage. @MattyLewis11 put a podcast link about ASSE in the replies, I listened and was hooked.

I have played more than I have written but can say that bad tactical management (too many players of the same type vying for playing time) and the possible sale of the club led to a toxic mix that led to relegation. 

I noticed the problems almost right away and after looking at the Analysts Report and Assman Report on the team the answers were obvious. 

I will say that my version did better in real life......34 points at Christmas Break.  

Look forward to reading more 

[Hootieleece]

ASSE: Montee les Verts

November 2021: Back to Earth

Manager's Thoughts

The tactical tweaks worked well in October and M. Football looked forward to November another short month because of an International Break. This time however the team would be visited by the Stormtroopers of the Galactic Empire of Oil. M. Football was sure that the team would lose but he would at least try. Even though he knew the only way to beat them was to play with teamwork and work rate that ASSE just didn't have. Individually all the players on PSG were better than ASSE and often made more than the WHOLE Team as well. M. Football was just hoping to get through the month playing respectable football and start another run in December.

Highlights

The Intenational Break ended, and we were visited by "Local Rival/Petit frere " Clermont.

Newly Promoted Clermont had upset OL 7-0 a few weeks before......the team had to be at its best!

Former Favorites commented on our form in the press. ratcheting up the pressure a bit!

I decided to Gengenpress them at the start before sitting back in our usual press....It worked well led to two early goals and in the second half I returned to our main tactic and scored a 3rd goal. The only thing that marred the performance was the fact the team gave up a goal to a late long ball.

(Also, it was nice to see old friends....)

The main man put in a shift from the AMR position.

This is a nice streak , but M. Football is unsure the team can keep it going.....

The analysts had lots of nice things to say about our Gameplan.

The next match was one most people including M. Football were sure that ASSE would win.....

 

M. Football was confident and set up with his 4-2-3-1 (balanced) and was ready to go.....unfortunately he forgot the adage of being wary of home underdogs......

Ike Ugbo ate his spinach before the game and played the match of his life! He was unstoppable......and thing went down hill for ASSE from there.

After the disaster at Troyes it wouldn't get any easier with PSG coming to town.

 

Stating the obvious!

Messi, Neymar, and Mbappe together make 5X as much as the ENTIRE ASSE team!  With Messi making almost 3X.

The team played but had no answer for Angel Di Maria playing in place of Mbappe......

After the two beat downs M. Football went in search of anything that could be as good news. And he found the French Cup Draw.....

League Table

Analysts Report

According to the Analysts we are just about where we should be even after being shutout twice this month!

Player of the Month

Enzo Crivelli

According to the nerds Crivelli played the best overall even though he failed to hit the back of the net.

He has many attributes M. Football likes but not hitting the net doesn't help his cause in making the loan permanent.

Management Report

Thanks for Reading!

 

 

 

[13th Man]

Right on track and where, I suppose, a club like ASSE “should” be. Tough times in real life, though.
Tough and surprising loss against Troyes but it’s expected that PSG will get you the first time. Still looking solid on the whole.

[SixPointer]

Still hold out hope of a top 6 finish 

[Hootieleece]

4 hours ago, 13th Man said:

Right on track and where, I suppose, a club like ASSE “should” be. Tough times in real life, though.
Tough and surprising loss against Troyes but it’s expected that PSG will get you the first time. Still looking solid on the whole.

You are right about the surprising loss and relegation IRL, but if you saw how much woodwork and sitters my opponents miss, you would be wondering how we are doing as well as we are. The defense is still shaky, but We are good going forward with our flair and skill.

PSG spends $150M on just 3 players, but arguably they are 3 of the top 10 attackers in the world.  The rest of the team all make more than my biggest earner.  We can't really compete unless I get lucky in the Transfer Market or Youth Intake.

1 hour ago, SixPointer said:

Still hold out hope of a top 6 finish 

There is hope, but we are very much a Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde team...... never really know which one is going to show up. It all depends on how we do in April....

[Hootieleece]

ASSE: Montee les Verts

December 2021: Taking it on the Run

Schedule

Manager's Thoughts

As December got started M. Football wanted to leave the "November Rain" behind. It had been an ugly month, fortunately the Football gods had scheduled 5 matches against lower table opponents including a Coupe de France 9th round match against AC Ajaccio of Ligue2. This was a winnable month and Football was looking for at least 8 points. Other than the "beautiful" heart stopper against Stade de Reims on the road, the matches were dominated by ASSE individual brilliance and flair.

Highlights

The month started out with a trip to Brittany to visit the City of Brest.  Main man Wahbi Kkazri started off the scoring and another was put in by CM Neyou. Brest attempted to make it a game with a goal against run of play, but Miguel Trauco sealed the match with a goal late in overtime.

The team then returned to Stade Geoffrey Guichard to host Stade Rennais FC from Brittany as well.....

 

The team was the favored but would need a good outing to overcome Rennes.

It was a close run thing......on a different day a different result....probably!

Stade Rennais "Parked the bus" and just refused to leave their box.

Not a bad passing map.....It is how we kept possession to eventually break down their defense.

The RC Lens manager that was eyeing a few ASSE players for his team got fired.

and for all the Saudi Haters......Newcastle fired Eddie Howe.

The Youth Intake preview looks promising.......

The next match would see the team travel to the Cathedral City of Reims. We were favored, but Football smelled a trap! Home underdogs are always tough to beat. Especially when a rotated team is fielded.

It also didn't help that we would be playing a team managed by Claude Puel....

M. Football only had nice things to say about him!

Which was a good thing considering that his tableproppers pushed the team to the brink with two goals from Moussa Dembele. Luckily "Le Stephanois" scored two goals late to rescue victory from the jaws of defeat.

After the escape in Reims "Les Verts" headed home to host a Coupe de France match against AC Ajaccio. Football let his squad players have the match as a reward for waiting patiently for their chance.

The AC Ajaccio manager was putting up a brave face.....

The team won the match late after finally breaking down their dogged defense.

Bad News for January! The team will lose 5 Starters to the African Cup of Nations.

As a reward for beating AC Ajaccio the team heads to Pau to play Pau FC in the next round.

The Last match before the Christmas Break is against struggling FC Nantes.

The boys from Nantes would visit Stade Geoffrey Guichard and we hoped to give the crowd a Xmas Present of a win!

Dominant Win we were clicking on all cylinders and pressed them hard with the Gengenpress version of our Tactic.

Passed the ball and kept possession did a great imitation of Liverpool!

League Table

Analysts Report

Our Attacking numbers are quite good.

Player of the Month

Aimenn Mouefek

The young CM played well in the CM-D position on the left side of the formation with his tackling really helping to break up opposition attacks.

Manager Report

The board is happy and the bank balance is healthy and the team should stay in the black for the season if projections are correct.

Thanks for Reading!

 

 

 

[13th Man]

European spots and a good solid month! 

Going to be tough losing 5 starters to the ACN.  Brutal, best of luck.

[Hootieleece]

ASSE: Montee les Verts

Winter Break 2021

During Christmas break Football decided to shake up the staff. Specifically, the Scouting Staff. He had been less than happy with all of the reports about 33+ "has beens" and "Never will be's" being offered to him as replacements for players that were leaving. Yes, there were players that were upset with their playing time and ASSE as "Farm Team" needed young players to develop and sell for profit. Somehow the General Manager and Chief Scout didn't get the memo!

All of the scouts had been working on the "General Focus" which I had set to 15–25-year-old players. Unfortunately, I kept getting 30 somethings. So M. Football decided to dole out the Assignments himself.

He sent the appropriate scout (Scouting Knowledge) to a country or region that ASSE was interested in recruiting in the next 6 months which should get the Staff prepared for the Summer Transfer Window.

These are the new assignments and reflect the fact that ASSE and Football want to find young Francophone African players to develop and sell fitting the vision of the club and fitting with the players already here.

Mentor Groups

Also, he had set them up earlier, but now seemed like a good time to explain Football's Player Personality Development Plan.  When he set's up Mentoring groups He uses Mentors (Starters or High Influence Players) with "good" personalities for each role group in the club and pair them with 1-2 young players from that position group that needed mentoring.

Sometimes not every group will have a mentee, but when an appropriate player is brought into the team he is assigned to the group he would learn the most from based on his position and role.

The groups a kept small no more than 3-5 players at a time preferably with mentors outnumbering mentees. Also not all Starting Players and Highly Influential Players are part of the mentoring program. (Balanced Personalities need not apply)

Thanks for Reading!

 

[SixPointer]

Great month!! European football back in green hell, looks A safe bet

[karanhsingh]

That's a very solid first half of the season mon frere!

[Hootieleece]

On 02/06/2022 at 06:10, karanhsingh said:

That's a very solid first half of the season mon frere!

It wasn't bad. It gave us a foundation for success. (I have finished the season, but haven't caught up writing it) The biggest problems are sorting out the Defense (back 4 and GK) and finding a reliable #9. The second half of the season will see us almost throw  it away.....because this is a group of talented individuals and not a team.

[Hootieleece]

ASSE: Montee les Verts

January 2022:

Managers Thoughts

After the Holidays the team returned to play and confidence was high, but Football wasn't so sure about this team. Too many players were worried about things other than soccer and Football was also trying to remove as many of these individualists as possible while winning games. Football believed in the collective (the Team) and it did well all would reap the benefits. Football also realized that January would be tough due to half the First XI playing in the ACN.  The biggest match would be a rematch of the "Rhone Derby" would ASSE win again, this time in Lyon. Football wasn't sure. He just wanted to win as many as possible and vanquish the "Nightmares" that visited him nightly before games of a word where ASSE wasn't doing so well and would find themselves Relegated to Ligue2! 

Highlights

M. Football tried to play a rotated side against the lower league opposition and it almost backfired. The game started well enough, but we couldn't get the ball past their GK and get the second goal. The match went to extra time and Football brought on the stars in the second half to ensure a win.

After the match M. Football got news he was dreading.....

This player had been carrying the team thus far and he had hoped to be able to reach an agreement with him to stay, but he wanted to "explore his options". 

In the end M. Football doesn't want players who don't want to be here.....he wants to build a team first culture.

In the mean time he expects the player to continue his good performances.

M. Football was happy to extend a player who is breaking into the first team and will see considerable Playing time in January because of African Nation Call ups.

As a reward for getting past Pau FC the team would have to play our rivals OM. This will be a tricky match!

The GM brought in this player on a free to help replace Ryad.

I was surprised that such a talented player was available on a free....(as I had signed him for each of my previous French Saves Clermont and Grenoble)

He will have to be trained and needs to be mentored but should make a decent rotation option a AMR-IW.

The team then had to be ready to resume the season with a match against Angers SCO.

The trip to Loire Valley would normally be one that I would expect to win, but the African Nations Call ups and our Starting #9 suspended this should be a tricky match.

Just before the match another young prospect was sent on loan to a rival. I accepted because of previous affiliation.

Also M. Football went to the board and asked them to make the Academy better because he has decided to go the Youth Route to build the team. I think this meshes well with the team and Board Philosophy.

After the Transfer and Board News it was time to play some Football.

Ryad Boudebouz carried the team offensively from the #10 and "Kolo" had his best match under Football playing as a Centerback.

The core of the team of the team played well.....

The Media/Press has a lot of nice things to say about M. Football's tenure as manager so far!

Another 5 match winning streak something is going right.....makes me wonder about the Real life team.

The analysts said it was a well-played match as well. M. Football likes to see at least 500 passes a match. The 678 meant that the other team was always on the back foot.

The team then prepared to host RC Lens in St. Etienne.

Football was looking forward to the match, but it was ultimately canceled and rescheduled due to a Blizzard.

So then the team had to get ready for another Rhone Derby with hated rivals OL.

This time the team would have to travel to Lyon. At least a few of the ANC players back.

The Big Match Hype got to Football......

The Match started off badly and got worse after Silva was sent off just before halftime. The team battled but being down a man it wasn't meant to be.

In the after match press conferences the press tried to ratchet up the tension between the two teams.......

The analysts showed that we didn't play well even though we made more than the "Magic Number" of passes. Football put it down to being under pressure due to being down a man.

After the loss to OL the team returned to Stade Geoffrey Guichard to ready themselves to play the rescheduled match against RC Lens.

This was a match that on paper ASSE had no business losing.....

and the press and fans believed that we were in great form......

In other news Football decided to look for a replacement for Boudebouz. So he found this young French player in Normandy.

A bit more of a midfielder than Boudebouz, but it is his Set-Piece Prowess that made Football pull the trigger on the deal.

He will be a sub of the bench immediately and a Squad/rotation player afterwards. He will be retrained as a AMR-IW.

The match against RC Lens was a desultory affair that angered Football because of the points being thrown away.....mostly because he was beginning to believe that ASSE had European potential even with the shaky defense.

Football also chased a reliable #9, but this player turned us down. (He is a player I have seen other players use effectively, but have never signed him) He had been on the transfer list and we matched NYCFC's bid. He would have been the perfect #9 for the "Football System"!

Transfer Deadline Day came but Football was amused that ASSE was linked to Matic. He had no idea where that came from.....He had made his two forays into the market.

Analysts Report

The defense has moved from busy and leaky to quiet and leaky....Football guesses it is an improvement!

Manager Report

 

 

[13th Man]

This continues to look like a good challenge. Success is coming, but not coming easy. Plus, considering real life events, avoiding relegation is success!!

[Hootieleece]

3 hours ago, 13th Man said:

This continues to look like a good challenge. Success is coming, but not coming easy. Plus, considering real life events, avoiding relegation is success!!

I was pretty sure when I got to this point in the Season the team was safe. My ego wanted the European place.....so I can tell myself I know more about football/soccer than then "Experts"!

 

[Hootieleece]

 

ASSE: Montee les Verts

February 2022:

Managers Thoughts

The team came into February reeling from the Rhone Derby loss and Football could see things beginning to go south on the morale front so that good performances were necessary to maintain the position in the European places. The month was bookended by tough matches against OM and PSG respectively. Honestly M. Football only expected to get 7 points from League games even though his target is to average 2/match.

 

Schedule

Highlights

The month began with a trip to the ancient port of Marseilles to play our rivals OM in the 11th Round of the Coupe de France.

OM got out to an early lead the team kept trying to find a way into the game, but the team scored too late to make a match of it.

The analysts thought the result was fair based on Xg.

So the team was now out of the Coupe de France.....even though some thought we could have been a contender. M. Football wasn't sure.....

Also with January ending the Transfer Window closed.....

M. Football continued to put his stamp on the team by letting players go who didn't want to fight for the shirt or their teammates and the fans.

After the terrible result against OM, M. Football looked to turn things around at home against Montpelier.

The team was on the edges of European places due to its fantastic December run, the team seemed to have hit a rough patch and Ryad Bourbouz would not be able to play the #10. 

The hero of the evening was Denis Bouanga recently returned from the ACN. He scored an early penalty that was the only goal in the game.

According to our analysts and most neutrals the best player on the pitch was the Montpellier GK! 

The next match would see the team head to Clermont to play our rival. (LOL) Clermont fans thought of it as a rivalry since the teams were both in Ligue 1. M. Football thought of it as a chance to put "little brother in his place"

M. Football exuded confidence at the Presser and the players liked it!

The match was an affair that showed Clermont couldn't handle the emotions and had TWO players sent off.

The only thing that marred our performance was the goal we gave up before half up a man!

After the Clermont match Football was looking for a repeat against Strasbourg

but this was a classic "trap game" before the big match with PSG that both Football and the players were looking forward to.

It was a tough battle between to even teams and the first half proved how even it was in that no one score until First Half Extra time when ASSE took the lead. Strasbourg answered with 2 between the 50-70th minutes and ASSE tied it late on an own goal by Kolscielny. ASSE and fans were celebrating when a Long ball over the top to their CF led to Diallo dribbling around the GK Bernardoni and passing the ball into the net. As angry as M. Football got, he could help but admire the goal!

 

according to the Xg this was one that got away.....the shaky defense again was the culprit.

After that disappointment the team had to pull together for a trip to Paris and the Parc des Princes.

M. Football had no illusions of task ahead when the probable PSG Lineup looked like this:

In all reality ASSE had little chance of winning, but M. Football refused to "park the bus" to try and beat the "Galactic Empire"

The pundits and favorites came out of the woodwork for this one.....

M. Football backed up his mindset with words.....

It was to no avail, there was no way to bridge the chasm of quality between the two teams. Every player in the PSG starting 11 and most players on their bench make more money than our highest earner. In fact 3 players, Mbappe, Messi, and Neymar all make more than the entire ASSE team.

Pochettino had kind words after the demolition.

Mostly M. Football will learn how to keep his mouth shut and not give rival teams "Bulletin Board Material"

Highlights of our destruction were all over the sports casts in France after the game!

The xG showed that we were outplayed but it was closer than the scoreboard showed. Again our defense and GK let us down.

 

The passing analysis shows that the team didn't make it to the "Magic Number" of 500 passes and that contributed to the defeat.

League Table

Analysts Report

Management Report

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[13th Man]

That Strasbourg loss is a real kick in the teeth. Something especially brutal about fighting back and equalizing only to give up two points in extra time!

Still in the European places though, and getting points here and there - PSG can be considered 0 points from 2 games generally speaking.  Any points from those matches in your first year and you've done something really well or gotten lucky!

[Hootieleece]

ASSE: Montee les Verts

March 2022

Manager's Thoughts

The team is somehow maintaining a challenge for Europe with a terrible defense highlighted by the loss to LOSC. Now the team is struggling in front of the net. It shows that we rode our luck early in the season and next month will be decisive in the race for European Places. considering our improbable run compared to the real ASSE.

 

Schedule

Highlights

The first match of March was at home against FC Metz and the Relegation Candidates were a perfect team to bounce back against.

The match was a real trial for the team FC Metz played with dogged determination

the team wasn't clicking going forward. Luckily Boudebouz was able to score on a penalty to get the Green Team the win!

The analysts were bullish about the xG. Football was a little worried about the shaky defense that on another day would have lost the match.

The Passing was good and Joris Gnagnon is making a claim to a first team place......with his passing and interceptions. He was playing for the Moukoundi.

Youth Intake

The International Break came at a perfect time as it was Youth Intake Day. M. Football was keen to build his team mostly with youth and it was exciting to see the players that were brought to such a famed Academy.

 

This looks like a decent pool of recruits. I think that I think that will produce 2-3 Starters down the line.

This player is considered the most talented player in the intake. I'm not sure this player will ever get game time is Football's ASSE Team, but I will train as an AML-IW and hope he attracts attention of other teams.

A decent Striker but will need to improve heading and teamwork as M. Football doesn't like Poachers.

This Giant Luxembourger show lots of promise. Heeds to work on Aerial Ability to become great.

This CM has the basis for being the kind of player I want in midfield needs to be mentored.

The Right Back is intriguing could become a decent backup option but needs to be mentored and work on offensive skills and physical traits.

The rest of the intake was good as well.

M. Football directed the HOYD to offer youth contracts to almost everyone and M. Football would cull the intake over the summer.

Highlights (cont.)

After the International Break the team had to travel to Lille for a tough match vs, LOSC a team much like ourselves, but having a down year.

M. Football hoped that our better overall form would see the team through the match.

The team ran into a "Buzzsaw" LOSC negated our press by lobbing long balls by to Jonathan David (AMC) to flick on for goal scoring chances. Our Defense and Goal keeping were a mess and the team was down 3-0 at halftime.

M. Football made tactical changes at half-time, but it was too little too late. The only bright spot was the fact that the team continued playing hard and was rewarded with a consolation goal.

The humiliation was watched by the fans on the nightly highlight shows

The analysts showed that the team didn't get to the 500 passes.

LOSC played it much more direct from the back and had more than 500 passes.

The nerds were at a loss to explain the heavy loss......

It wasn't the best time to reward a defender, but M. Football made sure our best defender will stay a while.

The next match was against Troyes and M. Football wanted to bounce back

Also we learned that the team is for sale.......

The match is one that we dominated but couldn't get the ball past their goalie!

M. Football was angry at the fact we didn't score for all our shots and possession of the ball.

Boudebouz had been carrying the team, but there was no reason to upset him with the team with a chance to make Europe.

The analysts were at a loss as to how we lost the match......by every metric we should have won!

Make up your minds about selling the Team!

League Table

Analysts Report

Player of the Month

Even though it was a dreadful month for Defenders this player had the best ratings on the team....

Manager Report

Thanks For Reading!

 

 

 

 

 

[karanhsingh]

Looking good for European football there 

[SixPointer]

Things are beginning to boil in the green hell 

[Hootieleece]

4 hours ago, karanhsingh said:

Looking good for European football there 

 

1 hour ago, SixPointer said:

Things are beginning to boil in the green hell 

It was going all too well......then April came. It was not one thing but a combination of all the problems that ended up leaving us short. (Spoiler Alert: 7th)

The plan for next season is to sort through the youth players and players we already have for the most part and start a rebuild. The aim is midtable/top half.

I will sell realistically. If Chelsea comes in for a Key young player and the Transfer Fee isn't terrible, I will sell and possibly ask for loan back. (Already happened) (In Future)

I have to realize that ASSE is a "Farm Club" of Talent for the "Big Clubs".

The goal is to get my contract extended so I can aim for Europe in years 3 and 4 and a title challenge in year 5.

 

[Hootieleece]

ASSE: Montee les Verts

April 2022

Manager's Thoughts

With 6 matches in the month April was going to be decisive in the quest for the European Place. M. Football expected at least 12 points to help assure a 6th place finish. Unfortunately, it was not meant to be. The team still has its problems defensively as a reliable back four is still elusive. The win over OM showed what we could do when the team played its best, While the loss to FC Lorient showed all the problems at their worst. which all goes back to being defensively leaky "Glory Hunters".

Schedule

Highlights

The hype for yet another match against OM started in late March because the Match was on April 2nd.

The fans and the President were looking forward to the match.

Both teams came into the match in similar form, and this was a 6 Pointer for a European Place!

This was a big match and I let everyone know it!

It was an even match between the two teams and ASSE's Defense came to play even though it was mostly POM GK Bernardoni. There were cheers throughout Stade Geoffrey Guichard when Enzo Crivelli scored late to take the lead and win the game!

Lucky win! but we'll take it.

8 saves! what a game, it saved our bacon.

The game made the highlights shows in France.

We played a lot of keep away from OM and it was just enough.

After the big match with OM the team would have to travel to Nice for another European Place 6 Pointer! OGC Nice was trying to make a title challenge.

It would be a tough ask....but we had to try.

This was a back and forth game and they won because they scored first and last to seal the win.

As analysts show the match wasn't close....

We were pressed hard and had a hard time playing the ball into their half of the field and it led to turnovers that led directly to their goals.

The team would have a chance to change their fortunes on the road against FC Lorient or so Football thought.

This was a relatively even game and you could say we dominated and that their goal was against run of play, but we lost another road game......

At least we are still 7th in the table.....Football thinks that will get us European Football.....

We got the "Magic Number" of passes and had better xG.

This shot map makes M. Football weep!

After the defeat in Lorient the team headed home to St. Etienne where the "Stephanois" were almost invincible.

another plus was the fact that relegation threatened Brestois 29 was coming to town.

It went our way with some friendly refereeing as the Brestois tried to intimidate the Green Team!

The Brestois manager called it poor work ethic it was undisciplined.

xG shows  the dominance and it should have been more except the Brestois goalie "stood on his head"!

The 5th match of the month would see the team travel to Bordeaux and play another struggling team.

They are midtable and are favored to win and considering our road form that is a fair assessment by the Bookies and Pundits.

The match was even until Bordeaux were reduced to ten men and then ASSE started peppering the Goal and it looked like the team might not score until Gabriel Silva popped up with a goal!

xG shows that this match might have gone another way on another day.

The pass map also shows the difficulties we had with the Bordeaux defense.

The last match of the month was against AS Monaco at Fortress St. Etienne.....

They were just another level especially after halftime......

There is a chance that 7th place will get Europe!

The xG graph makes the match look closer than it was.....our defense was terrible.

League Table

Analysts Report

Manager's Report

The Board and finances are secure so M. Football can spend his time trying to figure out the back four!

Thanks for Reading!

 

[SixPointer]

Still in with a shout for a European slot 

[karanhsingh]

Let's finish the season strong!

[13th Man]

Still in with a chance for Europe, but it will be tough certainly!

Have to remember that the most important thing was not getting relegated though.  Of course, that would be the bare minimum, but a top half season with a decent challenge for Europe is nothing to scoff at.

[Hootieleece]

ASSE: Montee les Verts

May 2022: "Knocking on Heaven's Door"

Manager's Thoughts

Even with all the stumbles in form the team sat in 7th place and if they could finish strong and get some help, they might get European Place. Which would help immensely in creating playing time for the youngsters. This was what Football wanted but not the team as there was an air of complacency and it felt like the team packed their bags after the last home game.  The 7th place finish is one the real life ASSE fans would be ecstatic over Real life resllts but Football was unsatisfied mostly because of his ambition.  The summer will see a lot of turnover in the squad, but Football is keen on seeing what is truly available to him already on the team or in the reserves. The only two spots he is looking for reinforcement is Center Back and Striker.

Schedule

Highlights

 

The first day of the month saw our European hopes fade as a promising young CB lost his mind and got sent off for a horror tackle.

The winner of the Coupe de France meant that an extra spot was up for grabs.....if we could sneak into 6th!

That meant the last two games against Relegation Candidates Reims and Nantes become important!

 

The first was at Stade Geoffrey Guichard so Football was confident of a win, but the team had do it not have any mistakes like the last match.!

And the Club is still for sale.....to the right bidder!

The team played well and got the result we wanted but the match was in doubt because Reims fought like lions! Doubly so even after the sending off! Embarrassingly we gave up a goal to a 10 man side on a long ball over the top.

As you can see we had trouble with the 10 man side....enough that we might not make Europe, but that also gives Football food for thought of how to fix his defense. Different Player or Players or change of formation. the 4-2-3-1 Wide suits the attacking players though. 

Good news the club will have better facilities to train its players. This works well with Football's future plans of becoming a self sustaining Farm club for the top teams while becoming one ourselves.

The final match of the season will see the team head to the Atlantic Coast to visit relegation threatened FC Nantes.

Hopefully the team will put in a good shift and not already be on vacation!

This was a big game and the favorites were doing their best to help with Strategy!

The old man is really looking to sell!

The game was an Anti-climax the team had gone on vacation already and looked toothless in attack and terrible in defense as we let another longball beat the defense. A few more days like this and it might have been us getting relegated (M. Football still has nightmares about a parallel universe where the team is relegated)

At least a great Servant of the club was allowed to take a bow.....unfortunately the team lost!

The team achieved a respectable 7th place. A far superior showing than 18th IRL!

Even with success compared to real life. Football was annoyed that the team gave up basically when safety was secured even though the team had a chance at Europe!

League Table

The -5 goals should have seen us further down the table. The team needs a lot when the top scorer had 8 goals! The fact we did better than expected came down to we were a Jekyll and Hyde team either very good or very bad with very little in between and we played well more than we played bad especially in the first half of the season.

Analyst Report

Nothing jumps out other than the team was average!

Highlights (Cont.)

The U19's won their league confirming that ASSE has an excellent Youth System that will figure in M. Football's Future Plans!

Board Meeting (Vision)

The Board and M. Football's vision for ASSE are nearly identical. The Future is so BRIGHT you gotta wear shades!

Manager Report

Thanks for reading!

 

[Hootieleece]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ASSE: Montee les Verts

Awards Night 2022

A great big welcome to the supporters and fans to the ASSE Awards Dinner 2022 at the Hotel du Golf.

Please watch the market team's presentation on the past season!

 

The season saw many players join the team but the crown Jewel of Football's recruitment Demingret who is the replacement for Boudebouz next season at AMR.

Many players left as well with Nordin leaving for Man U for $5M.

The team also had alot of players out on loan......the Marketing team was excited about Palencia, but Football was more interested Abi the Striker!

 

The season ended with the team in a respectable 7th place.

The Coupe de France run was short lived with the team losing a tricky match to OM.

Everyone's favorite memories are here!

The team had a really consistent lineup. The only problem was that more than a few key players were loans.

The Commercial summary is promising for the future.

The Player of the Year was Ryad Boudebouz who will be leaving us for Russia in the offseason. We wish him well.

Analyst's Summary

We ended up comfortable in 7th thanks to a great December run that sealed safety.

The team had a low number of shots against the defense that helped magnify our defensive woes that led to our terrible goal difference.

Oue plan of possessing the ball than our opponents to protect the defense was a failure.

but our pssing for the most part was good, coming in third in the league. We are technically proficient but lack aggressiveness and  willpower needed to play effective defense.

The team took a decent number of shots the problem is the misses.....

The team failed to reach the 2points/game average that M. Football intends every season.

An interesting Stat was that we had 13 shutouts. The team's defense was a real Jekyll and Hyde situation.

Thanks for Reading!

 

 

[karanhsingh]

It's been a very solid first season, definitely out-performed expectations. Keep it up!