Einmal Löwe, immer Löwe - a(nother) 1860 story

Dalbeider · June 28, 2023

May 2nd 2027

For some reason Leipzig play one day later than the rest of the league, aaaand they throw the league away with a 1-1 draw against already relegated Union Berlin. Now they need Bayern to drop points in their last match against Hamburg, something that's very much a possibility given how well HSV have been playing lately, but still, it's Bayern.

May 12th 2027

Once the league is over there'll be a few international fixtures still to be played. Vuskovic, Sapmaz, and Rijkhoff will be travelling with their respective U21 squads.

May 15th 2027

Bayer 04 Leverkusen (5th) vs. TSV 1860 München (6th) (Bundesliga, 34/34)

It's time. Today only has three possible outcomes: either we win and we finish fifth, or we don't and we finish sixth as long as Gladbach don't win their game. If they do, we're seventh and we'll need to rely on Bayern winning the DFB Pokal to qualify for the Conference League. Simeone's Leverkusen come into this match from three consecutive draws, but are still a strong team that'll give us many headaches. Let's see if we're up to the task.

* * *

LEVERKUSEN (4-2-3-1 deep): Maarten Vandevoordt (GK); Jeremie Frimpong (DR), William Saliba (DCr), Jonathan Tah (DCl), Mitchel Bakker (DL); Adama Diallo (DMCr), Devyne Rensch (DMCl); Fábio Vieira (AMR), Florian Wirtz (AMC), Luis Sinisterra (AML), Marcos Leonardo (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Kevin Lomónaco (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Florent Da Silva (MCr), Urko (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Nahuel Bustos (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)

* * *

Simeone's got Leverkusen playing with a much deeper midfield and a more counterattacking style, reminiscent of his time in Atlético de Madrid. That works fine for us, though, as we struggle the most against teams that press us high. For us, Svensson returns to the lineup together with Miranda, and a rainy evening welcomes us to our most important fixture in a long, long time. Leverkusen start on the offensive, somewhat surprisingly given a draw is good enough for them and, well, Simeone, but we cope with their early attacks well and soon hit them back with a dangerous cross from Svensson towards Maldini, who tries to surprise Vandevoordt through the near post but finds the keeper ready for that.

Svensson isn't having any luck with injuries in his first few months with us, and now he suffers another minor knock after a clash with Vieira. He keeps playing for now, so he has a priviledged sight of our attack in the 18th minute that ends with Miranda assisting Rijkhoff on the run so the striker can hit it low and with power from the edge of the box, surprising Vandevoordt to score the 0-1. Leverkusen seem to take it hard, and only three minutes later a cross by Maldini towards Rijkhoff ends with the play stopped as Tah pushes the striker in the air when he was about to head the ball in. Penalty kick for Bustos, who buries it from the spot and doubles our lead.

The game is not over quite yet, though, and Saliba gives us a grim reminder with a header in a corner kick that misses the crossbar by a couple of inches. Svensson's injury worsens after a while, and Manu Sánchez replaces the Swede with a bit over thirty minutes gone. After that both teams split possession, but our defense holds strong against Leverkusen's few attacks except for a great ball from deep towards Marcos Leonardo which leaves him unmarked inside the box, but which Kretzschmar fixes going down on the pitch at the right moment to hold his finish. Injury time comes, and a steal by Miranda launches a quick attack that the Argentinian himself ends with a beautiful through ball to Rijkhoff, who calmly chips it over Vandevoordt to score the 0-3 just before the break. Looking good.

HALF TIME - 0-3

Leverkusen need goals fast, and it's only a few seconds of the second half before Vieira tries his luck with a left-footed finish that goes nowhere near the target. We calm things down quickly, though, keeping them away from our goal first, and then with a set piece Miranda takes in the 56th into the box so Bustos, who suddenly remembers how to score goals, can volley it into the post and in, scoring an outrageous 0-4. The home team keep trying through Vieira, this time with a soft header that Kretzschmar holds effortlessly, just before we bring Hadzic and Karlsen into the game so they too can enjoy this historic moment.

The home team seems to surrender then, apparently more worried about Gladbach's result (still 0-0 in Mainz) than about fixing their own mistakes. Lomónaco denies Marcos Leonardo in one of their very few approaches with a timely tackle inside the box, while we decide to play it easy and let the clock do the rest. Another block by Lomónaco prevents another finish by Marcos Leonardo already in the 90th minute, then the striker tries luck from distance but blasts it miles over. A bit later the referee signals the end, and we go collect our tickets for a trip across Europe come next season.

* * *

Bayer 04 Leverkusen 0
TSV 1860 München 4 (Julian Rijkhoff 18 45+2, Nahuel Bustos 21p 55)

- - -

Fifth! And what a way to achieve it, most likely our best performance of the season at the exactly right moment. Rijkhoff and Bustos were clinical in front of goal for a change, and the former might've earned a permanent stay with us with this. Bustos... We'll see. Regardless, a wonderful performance in both defense and attack despite Leverkusen having most of the ball and a decent number of chances themselves. Another achievement to add to the pile. Next up, winning an actual trophy! Maybe!

On the topic of trophies, Bayern didn't miss and put five past HSV to secure the Bundesliga title and restore normalcy after last year's oddity. Moukoko scored four of those five, by the way. Leipzig won by the exact same result against Wolfsburg but it didn't matter in the end. Leverkusen kept the sixth place in the end thanks to Gladbach being unable to score in Mainz, and both teams will have to see what Bayern does next weekend in the cup final to know their European destination. At the bottom, Nürnberg almost got themselves in serious trouble with a 0-2 defeat against Köln, but Hoffenheim couldn't score in Frankfurt and failed to capitalize, relegating to the 2.Bundesliga after an epic almost-comeback. Nürnberg will, of course, be in the playoffs.

***

| Pos  | Inf   | Team                | Pld   | Won   | Drn   | Lst   | For   | Ag    | GD    | Pts   | Form  | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 1st  | C     | FC Bayern           | 34    | 24    | 5     | 5     | 82    | 22    | 60    | 77    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 2nd  | CL    | RB Leipzig          | 34    | 23    | 7     | 4     | 78    | 36    | 42    | 76    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 3rd  | CL    | Borussia Dortmund   | 34    | 21    | 6     | 7     | 60    | 24    | 36    | 69    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 4th  | CL    | Hamburg             | 34    | 20    | 3     | 11    | 52    | 33    | 19    | 63    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 5th  | EL    | 1860 München        | 34    | 17    | 8     | 9     | 48    | 33    | 15    | 59    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 6th  | ECL   | Bayer Leverkusen    | 34    | 16    | 8     | 10    | 51    | 41    | 10    | 56    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 7th  |       | Borussia M'gladbach | 34    | 16    | 7     | 11    | 51    | 39    | 12    | 55    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 8th  |       | Stuttgart           | 34    | 16    | 6     | 12    | 48    | 49    | -1    | 54    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 9th  |       | Köln                | 34    | 15    | 6     | 13    | 52    | 41    | 11    | 51    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 10th |       | Freiburg            | 34    | 13    | 10    | 11    | 56    | 51    | 5     | 49    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 11th |       | Frankfurt           | 34    | 10    | 11    | 13    | 43    | 53    | -10   | 41    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 12th |       | Mainz               | 34    | 11    | 7     | 16    | 41    | 56    | -15   | 40    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 13th |       | Hertha BSC          | 34    | 8     | 12    | 14    | 25    | 42    | -17   | 36    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 14th |       | Wolfsburg           | 34    | 8     | 7     | 19    | 27    | 54    | -27   | 31    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 15th |       | Fortuna Düsseldorf  | 34    | 8     | 6     | 20    | 47    | 79    | -32   | 30    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 16th | Pl    | Nürnberg            | 34    | 6     | 8     | 20    | 35    | 67    | -32   | 26    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 17th | R     | Hoffenheim          | 34    | 5     | 9     | 20    | 38    | 63    | -25   | 24    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 18th | R     | Union Berlin        | 34    | 1     | 10    | 23    | 27    | 78    | -51   | 13    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

EvilDave · June 28, 2023

Now that's how you wrap up a season! It's a shame it means EL rather than CL, but it feels like you're getting close now. Bayern had better enjoy their time on top while it lasts...

Dalbeider · June 29, 2023

@EvilDave: yeah, one more step left. Problem is, it's the most difficult step of them all. Not only we have to best Bayern, who at their worst have enough to wipe the floor with the whole league combined, but we also have to beat Leipzig and Dortmund with regularity if we're to have a chance, not to mention any outsiders that pop up out of nowhere like HSV this season. Might take a bit, but we'll get there.

* * *

END OF SEASON 2026/27 - PLAYER SUMMARY

GOALKEEPERS

Name               Apps    Conceded  Clean Sheets  PoM  Av.Rat.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tom Kretzschmar      34          33            14    1     7.16
Valentino Quintero    3           3             2    0     7.43

Kretzschmar's best season since my arrival at Munich, and that's saying something. Third in clean sheets in the Bundesliga behind Ramsdale and Kobel, he was the cornerstone of a defense that wowed the league and finished as the third best behind obvious culprits Bayern and Dortmund. If he doesn't get a callup for Germany after this he never will, honestly, and it'd be a huge shame if that happened. Quintero on the other hand had some great performances in the DFB Pokal, given how we had to face some unexpectedly tough ties, but his run was cut short by Leipzig and he didn't have any chances in the league with Kretzschmar in the for of his life. He's on a contract year and already 24, and it's unlikely he'll ever be good enough to seriously challenge for the starting spot, so there's a decision to be made this summer.

DEFENDERS

Name                   Apps     Goals    Assists    PoM    Y.C   R.C  Av.Rat.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Niklas Lang           24(1)         1          0      3      3     0     7.27
Mateja Stjepanovic    25(2)         0          0      1      3     0     7.18
Thierno Baldé         13(2)         0          1      1      3     0     7.16
Amer Hadzic           14(1)         0          0      1      0     0     7.04
Manu Sánchez          26(2)         1          4      3      3     0     7.02
Francisco Gerometta   13(5)         1          3      1      2     0     6.97
Daniel Svensson        8(1)         0          2      0      2     0     6.96
Kevin Lomónaco           11         0          0      0      1     0     6.93
Josha Vagnoman        12(3)         0          4      2      2     0     7.27
Tjark Rung             2(3)         1          0      1      0     0     7.02

Our best line by a huge margin. When the worst of the bunch is Lomónaco with a 6.93 rating, you know our defense was rock solid this year. At the center the starting pair of Lang and Stjepanovic ruled with impunity, even though their fantastic performances also meant that playing Hadzic and Lomónaco became increasingly difficult, since it was hard to justify cutting their great form short. Stjepanovic's season-ending cruciate injury changed that, though, and Lomónaco did fine in the final fixtures as his replacement, although ironically Hadzic had it even harder from then on, since now removing Lang was almost unthinkable. The 24-year-old "veteran" completed a dream-like season, earning himself a new contract in the process and solidifying his claim as a future legend of the club.

The wings did very well, too, with Vagnoman in particular starting the season in the form of his life, racking assists and notable performances like there was no tomorrow. Turns out there was no tomorrow, and here came Leipzig to take him away from us, so we brought in Baldé and Svensson to replace him. Both did really well for their first few months at the club, with Svensson having an excellent start but dropping down a bit later due to injuries and a couple of stinkers, and Baldé starting slower but becoming a shoe-in starter as the season progressed. His arrival (and Vagnoman's departure) meant tough times for Gerometta, who despite having a very decent season saw himself in the fringes more often than not. Manu Sánchez didn't seem to care, though, and completed the most solid season of a left back in this club since Steinhart's first. Young Rung started really well with his cup heroics, but with Svensson's arrival and his unwillingness to sign a new contract he had to be transferred out to Wolfsburg, where he hasn't played since.

MIDFIELDERS

Name                   Apps     Goals    Assists    PoM    Y.C   R.C  Av.Rat.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Matías Miranda        29(4)         5          6      2      4     0     7.11
Darko Vuskovic        28(2)         0          0      0     11     0     7.04
Urko                  11(5)         1          0      0      1     0     6.99
Martin Karlsen         2(9)         1          0      0      0     0     6.81
Laurin Ulrich          5(9)         0          1      0      0     0     6.79
Florent Da Silva      23(8)         2          3      0      2     0     6.78
Erik Majetschak       10(3)         2          1      0      0     0     6.91
Antonio Entrena        3(1)         1          0      0      0     0     7.20

A very mixed line, in which Miranda and Vuskovic stand out as our best performers. The Argentinian was once again our best creative midfielder, although he didn't quite reach last year's levels of productivity, and was our most reliable source of danger throughout the season, while the young Croatian kept improving and becoming our most valuable (money-wise) player thanks to his rock-solid defensive work, although we missed his passes from deep a bit, and his discipline still leaves a bit to be desired. He was well complemented in defensive duties by Urko, who despite being a backup most of the year did really well with the chances he was graned, both in the anchor and further upfield, and improved by leaps and bounds on his hesitant form from last year.

After that, well, not much. The two kids did... fine. Karlsen did particularly well in the half-season he was with us, and the only reason he didn't rack at least a handful of assists is because our forwards were trash all year long, although he still has consistency issues. He's still eighteen, though, so there's time to improve. Ulrich stagnated a lot, though, showing no improvement from last year and even looking like a worse player when playing for higher stakes. Unlike his Norwegian partner, he's already twenty-two and his window for growth is quickly closing down. Another player in a contract year who might be offloaded for a decent profit so we can make space for other, better prospects.

Entrena was supposed to be our star youngster this season, but his untimely departure led us into a bit of a panic buy. Da Silva had a rough start, having serious difficulty finding his place in our midfield, but Majetschak's departure in the winter window after a pretty average first half of the season gave the Frenchman another chance with a more prominent role. He did better then, not exactly up to the standards we expect of our midfield but showing signs of progress. Whether that'll be enough to retain his place in the rotation next season is still to be seen.

ATTACKERS

Name                   Apps     Goals    Assists    PoM    Y.C   R.C  Av.Rat.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Daniel Maldini        22(3)         6          5      2      2     0     6.98
Can Sapmaz           15(11)         5          5      3      3     0     6.95
Julian Rijkhoff       25(8)        14          1      2      4     0     6.88
Nahuel Bustos         22(9)         8          1      1      2     0     6.78
Marcos Paulo         21(12)         1          6      1      2     0     6.74
Shiloh 't Zand         6(7)         1          0      0      2     0     6.52

Our attack was pretty bad, all things considered, but some streaks of good form by individual players managed to save our season. Sapmaz started the year like he'd been touched by an angel, turning everything that went through him into gold and goals, and pretty much carried us through the early fixtures and put us in the perfect starting position to challenge for great things, like we did in the end. Then he just... vanished, completely. A badly timed injury didn't help, but even after getting long runs in the team afterwards he never looked like regaining his magic touch. That was when Maldini took over, and although never to the heights of those early Sapmaz performances, he was much more consistent throughout and provided enough goals and assists to keep us trudging along until a successful end. Funny how the player who didn't score for almost nine months turned out to be our best attacker in the end...

Our strikers had similar struggles, with very streaky performances by both Rijkhoff and Bustos, although both managed to drop in production from last season. Our bigger focus on defense probably didn't help them, but still. In the end Rijkhoff ended with an acceptable amount of goals, some of them in absolutely key moments, and has probably earned himself at the very least an attempt at purchasing him from Dortmund. Bustos, not so much. If nine goals weren't enough last year then eight sure aren't now, and his performances in general have looked even less consistent. For someone earning as much as he does this is not acceptable. He'll be transferred out in the next window.

The thing is, he was still not as bad as our left wingers. Marcos Paulo at least provided a good number of assists, tied with Miranda as our best provider, but he was absolutely hopeless when it came to scoring, and we need goals coming from that position if our strikers aren't having a good day. He might have another chance, but it will depend on what funds we have available and what our scouts find. 't Zand just has no excuse, his performances were bad enough to kick him out of the rotation entirely, and he'll most certainly be transferred out this summer. He's twenty-four already, so we can't wait for him to improve any longer.

* * *

May 16th 2027

Our fifth place comes with a prize attached, of course: a bit over 72 million euros. That's more than enough to clear all our stadium-related debts twice over and still have some leftovers, although we probably won't do that and instead keep the cash to deal with the more short-term expenses.

The board are, of course, absolutely delighted with the club's return to Europe after twenty-seven years, as are the fans. Lang sweeps the most important awards in the season review, becoming both the Fan's Player of the Season and the Young Player of the Season (yes, he's still 24). Baldé is lauded as the Signing of the Season, which is absolutely fair considering the competition.

The five-year-plan review sees few changes to our short-term goals, still wanting nothing more than avoiding a relegation battle and more than happy enough with our already guaranteed presence in the Europa League group stage. After that we're supposed to start working towards consistent top-half finishes. Honestly, I'd like a bit more ambition from the board, but the lack of pressure to keep achieving higher and loftier goals is also welcome. The players are on board with the plan, happy with aiming for mid-table in the league, but they want us to at least push to get out of our group in the Europa League. I like to see that.

With that, we go on break, to return on the 2nd of July. Some players might not make it that far, though...

One more piece of good news before going on holiday: the board set the initial budgets for the next season at €700k for weekly wages and €34.5M for transfers. I'm particularly happy to see the latter, since it means we can splash a bit of cash on very needed replacements while also retaining Rijkhoff. We'll be dipping our feet in the market in the coming weeks, that's for sure.

May 17th 2027

No need for a depth chart this year, I think. We know what we need to buy and what we need to get rid of. At the very least 't Zand and Bustos will leave for sure. There's the question on whether we want to sell Quintero and Ulrich, but I'm leaning towards keeping them for different reasons: the keeper would be hard to replace for what little we might receive for him, and the midfielder has the added bonus of fulfilling homegrown requirements for the Europa League registration. Lomónaco might also leave if we receive a good offer, but not before we find someone to replace him, since we're without Stjepanovic until the turn of the year or thereabouts. As for transfers in, easy: a new striker and a new inside forward/inverted winger to replace the two guaranteed sales, a new midfielder to fill the gap left by Majetschak back in January, and possibly a new ball-playing defender to replace Lomónaco with. Oh, and signing Rijkhoff to a permanent deal, ideally.

First of all we need to get rid of the dead weight, starting with Bustos and 't Zand. We get immediate offers for them, with Schalke wanting to buy the latter for €1.7M and RB Salzburg the former for €3.7M. Both offers are accepted.

The last Team of the Week of the season features Lomónaco, Baldé, and Miranda.

May 21st 2027

't Zand is the first to leave, joining Schalke in the 2.Bundesliga for €1.7M, half of it in installments. A young player with lots of promise three seasons ago, he never quite exploded the way we expected him to, but since he came on a free from Feyenoord everything we get for him is pure profit, so in the end it was a decent piece of business if nothing else. He'll be remembered for a handful of good performances, particularly last season, but as a could-have-been otherwise.

May 22nd 2027

And one day later we confirm his replacement, in what becomes the biggest transfer performed by 1860 to date: 19yo Venezuelan international Rodrigo Caraballo joins on a €12M transfer from Athlético Paranaense, no other clauses since our bid triggered his release clause for European clubs. Caraballo is a young star, already a sure starter at his former club despite his young age, and also a full international for Venezuela. He's a straight-up replacement for 't Zand in our left wing, providing fantastic pace and technique, plus a very determined personality which is sure to help him in his development. If anything he lacks a bit of finishing, but it can't be any worse than what we've "enjoyed" this season. He comes with €38.5k weekly wages on a four-year deal, a €24M release clause that expires in January 2030, and an option to extend his contract for one additional year should the club decide to.

Bayern give Gladbach and their own fans some good news with an almost effortless 4-0 thrashing of Wolfsburg in the DFB Pokal final. With this Leverkusen join us in the Europa League, and Gladbach slot into the Conference League, completing the European qualifiers for the Bundesliga.

May 24th 2027

Nürnberg survive the relegation playoff with a nailbiting 4-3 aggregate win over our rivals from Augsburg, who see their return to the Bundesliga delayed by another year. They almost came back from a 3-0 loss in the first leg, but a goal by Larthirigoyen in the 88th minute sealed Nürnberg's survival. So, only two teams will promote this year to replace Hoffenheim and Union Berlin, and both are quite surprising: Paderborn and Heidenheim. Schalke finished 12th, sinking a bit further with each passing year. At least it wasn't as bad as Fürth, who finished just one place above the relegation playoff...

May 25th 2027

Bustos' move to Salzburg is delayed due to work permit issues. If he fails to get it there are other options, since Besiktas seem to be interested in him, too.

Third place in the VDV Fussball-Trainer des Jahres award, aka Manager of the Year only more German-sounding. Leipzig's Manuel Baum got first place for failing once again at the last hurdle, and Hamburg's Frank Schmidt, in my books the most deserving winner, finished second.

May 26th 2027

Oh, that was fast. Bustos' permit is granted by the Austrian authorities and the Argentinian moves to RB Salzburg in exchange for €3.7M, half of it in installments once again, 10% of which go to the player due to a sell-on clause. Probably my biggest failure in the transfer market so far, and one of the few pieces of business in which we actually made a loss even without taking his way overinflated wages into account. Signed from Schalke for €5M as the team's star forward, he barely provided second fiddle numbers in his two years with us before our patience and our willingness to pay €42k a week to a rotation-level player ran out. A return of seventeen goals and four assists in two seasons is most certainly not worth the price. With this sale we recoup part of that fee and, more importantly, free up a huge space in our wage budget we can now use for better contracts and/or for additional transfer funds should we need them.

May 28th 2027

Svensson joins our early summer internationals after another call from Sweden.

May 29th 2027

Here's our second signing, who is not a direct replacement for Bustos, but another South American youngster with tons of upside and already good enough to start for us: 18yo Mexican attacking midfielder Jair Rodríguez joins from Pumas in exchange for €5.5M, an absolute bargain for a very technically gifted player who finished second in this year's NxGn award behind fellow Pumas winger Dante Garza. Lots of vision and flair, a mean long shot, and enough physical strength to perform at the Bundesliga level, he'll become Miranda's new de facto partner in crime and possibly the future leader of our midfield. Even better, he joins on a five-year contract worth only €14.5k per week, another bargain, and a release clause worth €68M that expires in two years. Fantastic signing.

Jun 2nd 2027

Vuskovic, Rijkhoff, and Sapmaz make the final squads of their nations for the U21 European Championship, to be held in two weeks.

* * *

ELSEWHERE IN THE WORLD

(Yes, I forgot to take a look halfway through the season, sorry about that)

Premier League: that will be seven in a row for Manchester City, yes. If anything this year was one of the closest in recent memory, with Chelsea and Spurs pushing the champions all the way to the end and only losing out by three and four points. Newcastle completed a somewhat surprising top four, with Leicester performing another minor miracle and sneaking into fifth place ahead of Liverpool and Manchester United, the latter of which will have to do with the Conference League. Wolves finally relegated to the Championship after a couple seasons playing with fire, together with Reading and Sheffield United. The FA Cup went to Newcastle after a 2-1 victory over Liverpool in Wembley, while Man City took the Carabao Cup in an extra time win over surprising finalists Burnley.
LaLiga: Real Madrid's three-year reign is over, and Barcelona are back at the top with a seven point lead over Los Blancos, led by a fantastic Pedri with fourteen assists. Villarreal almost got ahead of Real in the second place but fell two points short in the end, and Real Sociedad surpassed Athletic, Atlético, and Valencia to claim the last Champions League spot. No surprises at the bottom with Sporting, Las Palmas, and Rayo Vallecano relegating, while Real Madrid got the consolation prize of consecutive Copa del Rey wins in a close-fought final against Cádiz, another surprising cup finalist.
Serie A: after two years failing to top the Milan duo Juventus are back, scoring 91 points to secure the title precisely ahead of the previous two champions, Milan and Inter. Roma finished well ahead of Napoli in fourth place, then Lazio completed the Europa League places and Udinese took the last European spot. Venezia, Parma, and Monza relegated to Serie B, while Napoli took the Coppa Italia on penalties, defeating Milan in the final.
Ligue 1: no surprises nor changes in PSG's absolute domination in France, with the millionaires scoring their sixth title on the trot in Neymar's last year as a professional (?) footballer. Their new star duo of Musiala and Vinicius Jr. tore the league apart and put them seven points ahead of Monaco, still the best of the rest. Nice took the third and last Champions League place, Rennes and Lyon will be potential rivals for us in the Europa League, and OM finished sixth to qualify for the Conference League. Auxerre and Montpellier dropped down into the Ligue 2, Lens survived in a playoff against Angers, and Saint-Étienne surprised with a very solid eighth place in their return to the top division. The Coupe also went to Paris in an easy 2-0 win over Nice.
Champions League: finally. PSG finally lifted the Champions League as a retirement gift for Neymar, with midfielder Vitinha scoring the only goal in a lucky win over Man City (two consecutive finals lost, by the way), who had more and better chances but failed to get the result they probably deserved, most likely because Haaland was unavailable due to a lower leg fracture he'd sustained one month earlier. Juventus and Dortmund were their victims in the semifinals.
Europa League: in an all-English final of the second European competition, Arsenal managed to overcome Liverpool in extra time to win 3-2, lift the title, and qualify for next year's Champions League despite finishing twelfth in the Premier League. Striker Gabriel Martinelli scored a hattrick for the eventual winners, and the deciding goal three minutes into the second half of extra time. Leipzig and Atlético made it to the semifinals, and the Germans brought Liverpool all the way to the penalty shootout only to lose out in the end. Funny how that keeps happening...
Conference League: Valencia surprised many with their 1-0 win in extra time over Spurs in the Conference League final, held in Amsterdam and decided by Maxi Gómez only five minutes before the end. Just like PSG in the Champions League, Valencia were extremely lucky to win a game in which they got a grand total of three shots on target for Tottenham's seven. Sassuolo were Valencia's victims in the semis, while Tottenham had to deal with the surprising Panathinaikos.

Dalbeider · June 30, 2023

Jun 6th 2027

Time for taxes, which amount to €5.25M after €35M profits during the last fiscal year. Not bad at all.

More expenses, although this time with something tangible in return, even if it's a something we already had: Julian Rijkhoff signs a permanent deal with us after negotiating a deal worth €10.5M plus €1.5M after scoring 10 league goals and a 30% of future profits. Immediately cheaper than the €16.5M clause we had agreed during his loan, but with the potential of more benefits for Dortmund in the future. We know who Rijkhoff is, and we know he can get even better than he already is. Signing one of Europe's top young strikers for this cheap after already enjoying him for two years is fantastic, and now it's just a matter of seeing if he can turn it up a notch further and become a bona fide star. This leaves us with only €7M in the budget and we still need to sign at least another striker, but we have wage space we can divert to transfers in case of need.

Jun 9th 2027

We're not the only ones wanting to make deals this summer, though: PSV come in with a €1.5M for Manu Sánchez, obviously not enough to even consider parting with him. Fortuna Düsseldorf are also rumored to be interested in Hadzic, another player who'd take a big, big bid for us to sell.

Jun 12th 2027

The U21 Euros start for Vuskovic with a 3-1 defeat against Belgium, in which he played the whole game but contributed little. Rijkhoff has it even worse, losing 4-1 against Norway with the Netherlands and even picking up a pulled groin that'll keep him out of contention for a few days. Sapmaz, on the other hand, had a pretty solid game off the bench with Turkey in a 1-1 draw against Serbia.

Jun 15th 2027

Better luck for Vuskovic in his second fixture, coming off the bench and looking good in a 2-1 win over England. Sapmaz also did well as a starter in a 2-0 against Sweden. Meanwhile, Svensson played well with the senior side of Sweden in a 1-0 win over Moldavia.

Jun 18th 2027

Croatia end their participation in the U21 Euros with a 0-0 draw against Germany, in which Vuskovic played forty-five minutes at a pretty average level. Rijkhoff returns to play the whole game in a 5-1 demolition of Slovakia, but the Netherlands also fall at the first hurdle. Turkey, on the other hand, qualify after a 0-0 draw with France with Sapmaz looking pretty mediocre and being substituted at half time.

Jun 19th 2027

HSV steal the biggest overachievers "award" from us, deservedly so, as the new season rolls into view already.

Jun 20th 2027

Time for new season expectations, and following the five-year plan we agreed to a while ago the goals will be a safe mid-table finish, reaching the group stage in the Europa League (already done), and the usual third round presence in the DFB Pokal. Nothing too fancy, we should be able to do this at a canter. A shame that we don't get the option to promise loftier goals, though, I could do with a few extra million...

We'll have a pretty affordable start in the Bundesliga's fixture list for once, first at home against Fortuna and then travelling to Paderborn, although then it'll take a turn for the difficult with another away game in Mönchengladbach. The final fixture will be another doozy with Leipzig visiting Grünwalder Strasse, while Bayern will come to visit us on the tenth date.

Jun 22nd 2027

Turkey is the protagonist of today's news, particularly their youth. Sapmaz's companions manage a great 1-0 win over Germany to advance to the semifinals in the European Championship, with the winger playing most of the game to a decent but not particularly brilliant level.

That's not the only reason, though: our new striker is here in the shape of 20yo Vedat Özcan, a wonderkid under contract with Inter and who comes to Munich on loan until the end of the season, for which we'll be paying his whole €17.5k weekly wages plus a monthly contribution of €175k, and we also have agreed a €32M optional future fee in case we want to make the move permanent. Which we might if we happen to have the money come next June, because the kid means business: already six times senior international with Turkey, he's scored eight goals in those six appearances, and looks set to be one of the best forwards in European football in the near future. Quick, tall, and technical, he's the whole package of what a complete forward should be. He'll become our second striker and will rotate with Rijkhoff as our starter.

Jun 25th 2027

Sapmaz's and Turkey's adventure in the U21 Euros ends in the semis with a 0-1 defeat against France. The winger had some minutes off the bench but was largely irrelevant.

Jun 27th 2027

With the usual anual turnover in our staff we take the chance to add another legendary name to the team: Jordi Cruijff joins 1860 as a recruitment analyst.

Jul 1st 2027

Transfer window opens, players leave, players arrive, loanees return, and the party gets started once again: Nürnberg make a €3.1M offer for Marcos Paulo. The player isn't particularly interested so we're free to refuse, but honestly, I'm very tempted to negotiate and try and find someone better. In the end the realization that we probably can't find anyone good enough for that amount makes me say no, but it was close. Heidenheim also try to buy Hadzic for around €3M, but that one's much easier to say no to.

Jul 6th 2027

Surprisingly quiet window so far, although to be fair we already made most of our business before it opened. Our first youngster departs on loan today, with Ante Crnac moving to Slaven Belupo. Not expecting much from him at this point.

Jul 9th 2027

We also add a youngster to our (as of late) dwindling list of up-and-comings by signing 18yo winger Holger Bock on a free transfer, following his release by Dortmund. A two-footed left winger who can also do a good job in midfield, he comes as one of our usual bets and is likely to leave on loan soon.

Dalbeider · July 3, 2023

Jul 10th 2027

Fifth and final signing of the preseason (I hope) is here: Arnau Casas, Spanish 23yo center-back, joins from Brondby in exchange for €2.1M upfront, €20k for each of his first ten league appearances, and a 20% of future profits. A former Barcelona prospect who didn't make the jump into the first team and had to migrate to Denmark, he comes from an extremely solid season in Brondby to become our new ball-playing defender alongside Lomónaco, and in his place once Stjepanovic recovers from his injury. Very similar to both of them in style, he slots right in the middle in quality and still has potential for improvement given his age. His contract is five years long at €19.75k per week, very reasonable, and comes with an also very reasonable €7.5M release clause for Champions League teams.

* * *

FC Hansa Rostock vs. TSV 1860 München (Friendly)

Casas comes just in time for our first friendly of the preseason, our traditional short trip to Rostock to play with our 3.Liga affiliates. Rodríguez, Caraballo, and Casas get their first minutes with the team in the first half, although the first goal comes from two veterans: Miranda taking a corner kick and Lang heading it in. Miranda repeats in the assists department a while later with a pass from deep towards Maldini, who scores the second with ease, then makes it an assist hattrick with another set piece that ends with Lang scoring his second. The second half bring Özcan's debut with it, and a penalty on Sapmaz only three minutes in allows Da Silva to score the fourth from the spot. We take it easy for the rest of the game, maybe a bit too easy, and the result stays unchanged until the end.

FC Hansa Rostock 0
TSV 1860 München 4 (Niklas Lang 5 45+1, Daniel Maldini 23, Florent Da Silva 48p)

Jul 11th 2027

Youngsters keep leaving on loan, and the next one to try luck outside Munich is defensive midfielder Ramazan Ergül, who moves to Magdeburg in the 3.Liga. Twenty-one already, this might be his final chance to make a real impression.

Jul 12th 2027

Nürnberg come back with a €4.1M offer for Marcos Paulo, and now they're actually offering more than his market value. It's still dangerous to be left with only one option there until we find a cheap replacement (or a loan, that works too), but... We negotiate the offer up to €5M, they accept, and now it's up to the player.

Jul 15th 2027

Marcos Paulo says no to Nürnberg in the end. Not particularly fussed about this, honestly, saves me the trouble of finding a replacement with very limited funds.

Jul 16th 2027

FC Rotenburg vs. TSV 1860 München (Friendly)

Back to Austria for our training camp, our first friendly there is against semi-pros Rotenburg. Rijkhoff opens up the score with a perfect header to a cross by Baldé, but our following chances don't translate into more goals, and an injury to Rodríguez with a bit over thirty minutes played disrupts our plans somewhat. Lomónaco finally scores the second already in the second half, profiting from a nod by Özcan in a corner kick, and ten minutes before the end a penalty on Ulrich turns into the 0-3, once again transformed by Da Silva, but it's still a short result given the chances we had.

FC Rotenburg 0
TSV 1860 München 3 (Julian Rijkhoff 13, Kevin Lomónaco 64, Florent Da Silva 81p)

- - -

The price we pay for this friendly win is big, though: Jair Rodríguez sprains his knee ligaments and will miss six to seven weeks of training, or all the preseason and then some. That's a huge setback for our new midfielder.

Jul 18th 2027

More offers that make me think: Espanyol want to buy Urko and propose a deal worth €6.25M. This is still a bit short of our valuation, so I'm going to reject it, but if they come back with an improved offer it'll be a difficult decision. Urko played quite well last season, but he's not a starter and could probably be replaced with a younger and possibly better option if we get enough for him. We'll see.

Another loan out, this time for striker Carl Brünner, who joins Memmingen, another 3.Liga side. Very much a fringe prospect with a 2.Bundesliga maximum ceiling at this point, he's also on a contract year, so there's a chance he will leave on a free come summer.

Jul 19th 2027

DSG Vienna Falcons F.C. vs. TSV 1860 München (Friendly)

Our next opposition during our training camp is an amateur side from the Austrian capital which shouldn't give us much trouble. Özcan starts today, and his is the last pass towards Caraballo before the winger curls a beauty into the top corner to open the scoreboard just two minutes in. The Venezuelan youngster then assists Miranda for an easy finish inside the box only four minutes later, then Maldini makes it three in the eighth minute after a good pass by Casas. Miranda scores his second then with another easy finish, and we look like scoring every time we catch sight of Falcons' box, with Svensson joining the party for the fifth goal in just fifteen minutes. Özcan grabs the sixth in a corner kick, and then we finally calm down a bit, letting the locals breathe for a while until Lang scores the seventh in another corner kick in the 28th minute, three minutes before Özcan scores again, this time with a flat shot from outside the box. Maldini still has time to score another before the first half ends with a well-placed header, then the obvious and inevitable complacency and relaxation settles in once the second unit comes into the game. Not that it stops us, though: Marcos Paulo heads into the net a cross by Sapmaz only five minutes into the second half, then Rijkhoff does the same three minutes later. That's eleven if you've lost count, and afterwards Rijkhoff scores two more for a quick hattrick, then assists Da Silva for the fourteenth. Sapmaz twice, Marcos Paulo thrice, and Rijkhoff once again complete an absolutely ridiculous final score.

DSG Vienna Falcons F.C. 0
TSV 1860 München 20 (Rodrigo Caraballo 2, Matías Miranda 6 14, Daniel Maldini 8 41, Daniel Svensson 15, Vedat Özcan 17 31, Niklas Lang 28, Marcos Paulo 50 79 81 82, Julian Rijkhoff 53 54 56 90, Florent Da Silva 66, Can Sapmaz 73 90+1)

Jul 20th 2027

Many teams trying lowball offers for some of our young players, like Bourrier and Van Santen. So far none of them have got anywhere near the expected value of the players, but it's likely some of them will eventually get there.

Jul 22nd 2027

Yep, here we go... Freiburg offer, after some negotiating, €2.3M plus 40% of future profits for Bourrier. Not a bad profit for a player who came on a free just one year ago, and if he really develops into a Bundesliga caliber player there's more to come to us in the future. He has no space in the team for the playing time he needs right now, and loaning him is just stalling at this point. Accepted.

And Espanyol return with an improved €7.5M offer for Urko. Just like with Marcos Paulo, this is just enough to get me to negotiate, and after a brief back-and-forth we settle on €8.25M, €6.5M upfront and the rest in two installments. Unlike Marcos Paulo, though, Urko is willing to return to Spain, so it's time to start looking for a replacement. Ideally someone trained in Germany, we really could do with a few more homegrown first team players right now...

* * *

SV Donau vs. TSV 1860 München (Friendly)

Third and last friendly in Austria, and a small step up from last fixture with Donau, another semi-pro side. We still need only three minutes to score our first of the afternoon, courtesy of Özcan after a good assist from Maldini. The winger then provokes a penalty for Miranda to take and turn into the 0-2, then the midfielder scores from open play following a very nice through ball from Caraballo. Things are already shaping up for another rout, and Maldini piles on another profiting from Ulrich's assist, with the fifth falling to Özcan in the 17th minute after a small mess inside Donau's small box. This time we take a longer breather, though, although Miranda gets close to a hattrick a couple of times before the first half ends. The second half starts with Marcos Paulo blasting another one in with some help from Sánchez, but after that we really take the foot off the gas until Rijkhoff buries a corner kick to make it seven with under fifteen minutes left. The striker scores the eighth in injury time after a cross by Gerometta and signals the end of our stay in Austria in style.

SV Donau 0
TSV 1860 München 8 (Vedat Özcan 3 17, Matías Miranda 9p 14, Daniel Maldini 15, Marcos Paulo 48, Julian Rijkhoff 78 90+1)

Jul 23rd 2027

Wolfsburg join the Bourrier hunt with an even better offer: €3M and 40% of future profits. Player's choice now.

Jul 25th 2027

Franzke leaves for his third loan in a row, this time in the 2.Bundesliga with Aue. Hopefully it'll go better than last year with Wiesbaden, they finished dead last and Franzke's performances were bad even for such a team's standards. His perceived potential has been dropping like a rock in these last couple of years, and from being a sure bet for the future he's now the *fourth* best young midfielder in our ranks, and unlikely to ever have a real shot at the first team with us. A shame, those two long injuries really hurt his development.

The first round of the DFB Pokal is drawn today, and pairs us against SC Weidenbrück, from the fifth tier Hessenliga. Should be easy.

Jul 26th 2027

Just after returning from Austria Urko rides another flight to Barcelona to join Espanyol. We get €8.25M for him, of which €1.22M go to Real Sociedad and €825k to the player himself, and €4.2M enter our transfer budget. This means we have around €5M to spend on a replacement now, plus whatever we might get from other minor sales like Bourrier. Let's see what we can find...

Meanwhile, we secure a signing for the winter window: 19yo Brazilian midfielder Jô will join on a free from Internacional. An attacking midfielder with great passing and technique but still very rough around the edges, he's a bet for the future that might turn out good or not, but won't cost us a dime other than his €5k weekly wages. He has three years to develop and turn into the Bundesliga-level player he's expected to become.

Jul 27th 2027

SV Waldhof Mannheim 07 vs. TSV 1860 München (Friendly)

Back in Germany, we go down memory lane to visit Mannheim, former rivals in our 3.Liga years and who haven't seen the division since a year after our promotion, but for the completely opposite reason. At the very least they put up more of a fight than the previous Austrian teams we faced, and it takes us all the way until the 32nd minute to score the first thanks to Caraballo's low cross and Özcan's subtle finish. Maldini then hits the post twice in under two minutes as we look for a second, but it's not until well into the second half that Da Silva finds Rijkhoff with a pass from deep so the striker can finally double our lead. We have chances for more, but our finishing isn't quite working today, so we have to do with a short win for a change.

SV Waldhof Mannheim 07 0
TSV 1860 München 2 (Vedat Özcan 32, Julian Rijkhoff 58)

Jul 30th 2027

Bourrier finally accepts Wolfsburg's offer, which means €3M enter our coffers and we'll get 40% of any future profits for a player that we barely ever saw in Grünwalder Strasse. Not bad. The extra money is more than welcome for our hunt of Urko's replacement.

Jul 31st 2027

TSV 1860 München vs. Cádiz C.F. (Friendly)

For our last friendly of the preseason we decide to challenge ourselves a little, bringing last season's Copa del Rey finalists and tenth-placed in LaLiga Cádiz to Munich. It should be a major step up from our previous matches but no matter, Miranda still scores the opener only five minutes after a nod by Maldini. We keep the pressure up afterwards, scoring two offside goals but no legal ones before the first half ends. The second half is more of the same, including yet another offside goal, yet the score doesn't change at all before the game ends. I really hope we'll have better finishing when the cup comes...

TSV 1860 München 1 (Matías Miranda 5)
Cádiz C.F. 0

Dalbeider · July 4, 2023

Aug 1st 2027

Another youngster, Omari Forson, returns to England to join Rotherham in a permanent transfer worth €55k, plus €8.5k after 20 league apperances and a 30% of future profits. Honestly, I expected better from this kid, but just like Franzke his potential never stopped plumetting since his arrival. The only worthwhile part of the transfer fee received is the percentage on future sales, and even that is unlikely to produce any tangible benefits. Oh well, can't win 'em all.

Aug 2nd 2027

And here's our new defensive midfielder, coming on another big money transfer of €11M all the way from Brazil: 20yo Thiago joins from Internacional like his former colleague Jô, although in this case we had to pay his release clause in full. Worth it, though, because Thiago is a fantastic little player with great technique for a defensive-minded player, extremely strong mentally and with notable leadership qualities, and also quick and strong. More attacking-minded than Vuskovic, he can also play in a more advanced position but will be used mainly as a rotation option for the Croatian starlet, which will help him fulfill his great potential. Wouldn't surprise me one bit to see him in the Brazil U21 side soon, he's already been capped at U20 level. His €25k weekly wages are pretty reasonable, as is his €18M release clause for clubs in the Champions League, which we'll do our best to make irrelevant at the end of this season.

Thiago's purchase kills our budget for good, so let's hope there are no more undesired sales, because replacing any of our current players will be a challenge and a half...

Aug 4th 2027

One of the few youngsters in the squad who's on the rise, 19yo forward Harald Schwabl, secures a loan to 2.Bundesliga side Münster, just promoted from the 3.Liga through the playoffs. He'll be an important player for them, which should help him develop nicely.

Aug 6th 2027

Manu Sánchez can't stop attracting offers. First it was PSV, then Feyenoord joined in, and now Hoffenheim are trying to convince me to part with him for a mere two million euros. Granted, his market value isn't that high for some reason, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna lose a player for peanuts, not at this stage.

Aug 8th 2027

SC Wiedenbrück vs. TSV 1860 München (DFB Pokal, 1st round)

And the season starts with the already traditional visit to a lower division club like Wiedenbrück. Last year we had more trouble than expected to get through this first round, though, so I'll be expecting more focus and better finishing this time around, Rung is not around anymore to save our necks. Still, a perfect chance to give our newbies and first-team youngsters a full game to see how they fare.

* * *

WIEDENBRÜCK (4-2-3-1): Jasin Jashari (GK); Pascal Itter (DR), Abdul-Wahid Bancé (DCr), David Hüsing (DCl), Hendrik Lohmar (DL); Lukas Demming (MCr), Bjarne Pudel (MCl); David Sauerland (AMR), Jan-Lukas Liehr (AMC), Benedikt Zahn (AML); Fabian Brosowski (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Valentino Quintero (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DM), Laurin Ulrich (MCr), Martin Karlsen (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)

* * *

Bayern beat their first round opposition 0-11 yesterday, so I half-jokingly tell the lads that we have to do at least one better. They seem to take it seriously, and seven minutes in Hadzic almost gets our first in a corner kick, but is denied by a great dive by Jashari. We soon start living in Wiedenbrück's half, probing their supposedly weak defense for gaps, but our shots end up either blocked by a defender or stopped by the keeper, like Özcan's floating header in the 17th after a cross by Baldé. A similar play ends in the exact same way a few minutes later, as we forget about breaking goalscoring records and settle in for a long siege.

Caraballo is the next to try his luck, also with a header to a cross from the right, and also well held by the keeper, who seems to be nursing a minor knock but is hanging in there so far. On the topic of knocks, Sapmaz also gets a bit knackered towards the end of the half, but it doesn't look too serious. In fact it's him who has our final chance of the half, finishing a cross by Ulrich with a low effort that Jashari, once again, deflects wide for a corner kick. Halfway through the game already, and still no goals.

HALF TIME - 0-0

Eight minutes into the second half we finally get our break, although in the saddest of ways: a set piece whipped into the box by Thiago ends with Ulrich falling to the ground after a push, and it's a clear penalty that our other young midfielder, Karlsen, turns into the 0-1. After that Maldini comes in to give Sapmaz some rest and recovery from his bruise and we keep going for more, although there aren't any more good chances before Gerometta and Da Silva also enter the game.

A header by Maldini after a cross by Karlsen is our next try, but as always Jashari is there to save. The two players trade roles next, with Maldini passing into the box for Karlsen, who shoots well over the bar. Another minor injury, this one to Casas, gives us something else to worry about beside the very short result, even more now that the home team was starting to believe they had a chance at a historic upset. Casas himself is well enough to try a shot from the edge of the box that goes narrowly wide, and Thiago then gets closer with another attempt from afar, this one straight into the keeper's hands.

Five minutes before the end, finally, Maldini and Karlsen trade passes down the right flank until the midfielder places a beautiful curler past Jashari to score the 0-2 and seal the deal. One minute later the midfielder returns the favor and assists Maldini with a subtle touch into space so the Italian can score the 0-3 unopposed, and that's all she wrote. Not the easiest of first round ties, that's for sure.

* * *

SC Wiedenbrück 0
TSV 1860 München 3 (Martin Karlsen 53p 85, Daniel Maldini 86)

- - -

What did I say about bad finishing? Sigh... To be fair, even though we had many shots at goal, most of them weren't exactly clear-cut chances, but still. Good thing Karlsen woke us up in the second half, although we needed a penalty kick to really get going, which is sad all things considered. The debutants had pretty good-looking shows, except for a very irrelevant Özcan.

Dalbeider · July 5, 2023

Aug 10th 2027

Unrelated to his minor injury during the cup game, but Casas is out of our Bundesliga debut with a bruised thigh sustained in traning. He should be fine for the second game, though.

Aug 11th 2027

Another youngster with no future here leaves for greener pastures: Andy Anheier, 20yo goalkeeper, departs for Paderborn for a small fee of €350k, plus €36k after ten appearances and a 40% of future profits. He technically was our third keeper, so he will need replacing for the Europa League squad, I guess. Let's see if there are any young German or Germany-trained keepers out there with decent potential and that don't cost too much...

Aug 14th 2027

We found one, and he's free. Well, sort of... Braunschweig's 20yo Armenian keeper Harutyun Aghajanyan joins on loan until the end of the season. Yes, I loaned a backup keeper from a 3.Liga squad, why do you ask? Heh. But really, the market for available keepers is well beyond our very limited funds, so this is the best we could do right now. He at least has some promise and should make a decent backup-of-backups keeper for emergencies, and since his contract with Braunschweig ends next June we can even sign him for free if we like what we see this year. We're paying his wages in full, sure, but they're so small they're almost unnoticeable.

Loan in, loan out: 20yo defensive midfielder Riza Gundak moves once again to the Turkish 2.Lig to play for Çörum F.K. until the end of the season. Like most of our youngsters, his long-term chances in 1860 are close to nil, but we'll be keeping an eye on him for any surprising developments.

The draw for the DFB Pokal second round happens just before our league debut, and oh my god it gets worse than last year: Leverkusen away! And there's a Bayern-Dortmund tie in this same round! Madness!

* * *

TSV 1860 München vs. Fortuna Düsseldorf (Bundesliga, 1/34)

And back into the fun stuff. Fortuna have been bordering the abyss for a while now, although always saving themselves well before the end of the season, so in a way they're relegation candidates but at the same time they aren't? Regardless, they're expected thereabouts once again, so this should be a good chance to get off to a good start.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Kevin Lomónaco (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Florent Da Silva (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)
DÜSSELDORF (4-4-2): Florian Kastenmeier (GK); Benjamin Henrichs (DR), Christoph Klarer (DCr), Matthias Ginter (DCl), Benno Schmitz (DL); Kevin Munz (MR), Ilay Elmkies (MCr), Dennis Geiger (MCl), Ben Bobzien (ML); Rafael Santos Borré (STr), Elias Havel (STl)

* * *

Düsseldorf retain the same core from last year with the exception of Gonçalo Ramos, who left for Porto at the end of the January window. We rotate most of our squad from the cup game and try to dominate from the start, but instead get an early scare when Havel gets to a goal kick ahead of Lang and almost beats Kretzschmar in the first minute of the game, although thankfully the keeper manages to stop his finish. Miranda answers with a direct free kick that Kastenmeier flies to tip wide, then Klarer has to perform some heroics to block a shot by Caraballo with Kastenmeier on the ground after a failed attempt at punching a cross away.

Our good-looking start gets its reward nine minutes in: vertical pass by Da Silva into the heart of the box and Caraballo doesn't hesitate to shoot first time and put it past Kastenmeier to grab his first for 1860. That's already an improvement on Marcos Paulo, I'd say... Five minutes later Rijkhoff shoots inside the box after a low cross by Maldini, the ball hits Klarer, and the bounce almost gives Kastenmeier another scare before going an inch or two over the bar. Seventeen minutes in Maldini is getting ready to head into the net a perfect cross by Sánchez, but Henrichs shoves him into the ground: stonewall penalty, and goal for Da Silva from the spot.

Fortuna have barely started playing and they're already two behind, so they have no option but to try and push a bit farther forward. They only manage to keep us away from their goal for a while, though, and we still return to it past the half hour with a double chance for Rijkhoff and Vuskovic, both shots repelled by the keeper. Fortuna only get near our goal in the 43rd in a corner kick, but that's enough: Geiger whips it in and Ginter gets to it first to head it into the back of the net. A result much closer than the game has been so far.

HALF TIME - 2-1

The break gives us the chance to clear our heads and get back to it refreshed and ready for more goals, and Caraballo soon shows our intentions with a shot that hits a defender and bubbles harmlessly into Kastenmeier's hands. But five minutes in disaster strikes when Baldé misses a header and allows Bobzien an easy cross into the box, where our old nemesis Borré is ready to tap it in and draw the game. Back to the drawing board it is.

Ten minutes pass without any changes, so we make our own: Özcan replaces Rijkhoff and Svensson takes Sánchez's place. Eight minutes later it comes to fruition: Özcan sends a beautiful pass into space for Miranda, the Argentinian shoots into Kastenmeier's body, but Maldini picks up the rebound and scores the 3-2 unopposed. Karlsen for Miranda is our final substitution, and in the 75th minute Maldini takes a corner kick towards the far post and Özcan makes great use of his height to head the ball into the net, once again putting us two goals ahead.

Özcan is having a ball since he came in, playing as the axis around which our attack rotates. He shows his skill with a great ball towards Karlsen, who however can't finish the job and ends shooting into the keeper's hands under heavy pressure from the defense. The young Norwegian then passes towards Caraballo so he can try his luck from the edge of the box, sending the ball well over but with good power. Vuskovic also knows how to send good passes ahead, as he shows five minutes before full time with a ball that Maldini can't put past Kastenmeier. That's our last chance, and Fortuna don't get another, unable to recover for the second time today.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 4 (Rodrigo Caraballo 9, Florent Da Silva 18p, Daniel Maldini 68, Vedat Özcan 75)
Fortuna Düsseldorf 2 (Matthias Ginter 43, Rafael Santos Borré 50)

- - -

Well, that was a rollercoaster of emotions. We looked unbeatable for fifteen minutes, then our defense looked frail as a kitten for ten, then we went back to domination and great attacking play and finally got the win we deserved. Growing pains that come from so many changes in the squad, I guess, we'll go back to last year's rock-solid defense eventually. For now, let's enjoy the goal bonanza, knowing our forwards I'm sure it won't last. Özcan had a fantastic game off the bench today, incidentally.

Dalbeider · July 6, 2023

Aug 15th 2027

We've got our ticket sales for the year and there's a noticeable increase, reaching our new top of 15700 out of 18750 seats in our good ol' stadium. We're really reaching Grünwalder Strasse's ceiling, figuratively and almost literally.

Aug 16th 2027

Özcan earns a place in the Team of the Week in his Bundesliga debut off the bench. Not bad.

Aug 20th 2027

Karlsen signs a new contract to keep him away from the vultures (namely Ajax and Wolfsburg) circling him. He gets a very small wage hike, with the promise of a slightly larger one once he plays twenty more league games for us, and comes with no release clauses other than a by now pointless relegation clause. Hopefully that'll be enough to stop the bid flood coming through our fax machine lately.

Aug 21st 2027

SC Paderborn 07 vs. TSV 1860 München (Bundesliga, 2/34)

New kids on the block Paderborn are widely expected to be among those who go down into the 2.Bundesliga this season, a notion they reinforced last week after a 5-0 loss to Bayern. Which to be fair is what most teams in the Bundesliga usually do when facing Bayern, but still. A game we should be winning with relative ease, although being away from home is always slightly unnerving, no matter the opposition.

* * *

PADERBORN (4-4-2): Leopold Zingerle (GK); Bendegúz Bolla (DR), Jacek Winiarczyk (DCr), Sven Sonnenberg (DCl), Jaouen Hadjam (DL); Jessic Ngankam (MR), Kamil Kula (MCr), Tomer Gannah (MCl), Felix Mambimbi (ML); Marlon Mustapha (STl), Johann Brunnemann (STr)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Martin Karlsen (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)

* * *

Heavy rotation today, since there's a bunch of players I want to see in a competitive setting (Thiago, Casas) and a bunch of youngsters who probably won't have many better opportunities than this to start a game in the league. Surprising to see that Paderborn not only keep their flat 4-4-2 from the last time we played them in the 2.Bundesliga, but even retain some players from that starting eleven over three years ago, like Zingerle, Sonnenberg, and Ngankam. And the keeper has work to do immediately, tipping wide a direct free kick by Miranda even before the first whole minute has passed.

We keep putting Paderborn under pressure in the early game, next up with Özcan assisting Marcos Paulo for a difficult finish that Zingerle tips wide, and then with a dribble into the box by Karlsen that Ngankam stops with a clear foul. Marcos Paulo takes the penalty kick and... you all know where this is going, right? Yep, he sends it into the upright. He looks for redemption one minute later with a curling shot that misses the top corner by inches, but then Paderborn start getting a bit more adventurous, with Mustapha having two consecutive shots blocked by Casas and Svensson clearing a header by Ngankam off the line in a corner kick.

The match enters a period of tranquility then, with us holding the ball in Paderborn's half most of the time and the home team defending with all they have, and doing so well enough to deny us any clear chances. A wide attempt from afar by Miranda breaks the deadlock in the 35th, and four minutes later Hadzic almost scores in a corner kick, but Hadjam is well positioned to clear the ball before it crosses the line. In the 40th, finally, we break through with Miranda dropping towards the right wing and crossing towards the far post so Marcos Paulo, finally, can head it into the net almost unopposed.

But of course, this game can't go well for us without the other shoe dropping instantly: one minute later Brunnemann crosses into the box from the left, Casas intercepts, but his header only goes as far as Ngankam, who hits an unstoppable volley from just inside the box to make it a draw once again. The first half is still not over, though: injury time comes and a foul on Özcan turns into a dangerous free kick that Miranda sends straight into the top right corner, restoring our lead just before half time.

HALF TIME - 1-2

The second half starts in style: Miranda sends a pass into space so Sapmaz can run into it and unleash one of those shots he produces every blue moon that hits the underside of the bar and goes in, the winger's first goal in almost a full calendar year. Not much later Özcan, still reeling somewhat from that foul that led to the 1-2, goes to rest and is replaced by Rijkhoff. Meanwhile Mambimbi tries to get Paderborn back into the game with a wide shot from distance, only for Sapmaz and Miranda to combine once again in a quick break down the right flank that the midfielder finalizes with a badly high finish.

Paderborn keep trying, and in the 56th Casas blocks Mustapha for the third time today, only for the rebound falling to Mambimbi, who shoots as badly as he can. Rijkhoff also finds Winiarczyk on the way of his shot one minute later, while Gannah misses the target by inches in a daring 20-yarder that almost surprises Kretzschmar. Manu Sánchez and Ulrich some into the game then, while the excellent Miranda gets a very deserved rest, and we proceed to put the game to sleep for a while.

Time passes without any threats to our lead until Mambimbi tries a weak header in the 81st minute that Kretzschmar saves with ease. Any hopes of a comeback Paderborn could've held disappear when Hadjam sees his second yellow of the day after an unnecessary foul on Sapmaz and gets to enjoy the showers all by himself for a short while. We profit from our superiority immediately, and a passing play down the right wing ends with Gerometta passing into the box towards Ulrich, who takes his time to place his shot far from Zingerle's reach and scores the 1-4. Thiago almost gets a fifth with a direct free kick that the keeper barely keeps away from the net, then a wide finish by Karlsen already in injury time marks the end of another good win for us.

* * *

SC Paderborn 07 1 (Jessic Ngankam 41)
TSV 1860 München 4 (Marcos Paulo 40, Matías Miranda 45+2, Can Sapmaz 49, Laurin Ulrich 86)

- - -

That was good. If all our away games against bottom half teams go like this we might be in for a very successful season. I like how many chances and goals we're generating so far, a couple tweaks in the tactic seem to be working just fine. Great performance by Miranda today, one goal and two assists, and a goal by Marcos Paulo! What's not to like?

Dalbeider · July 10, 2023

Aug 23rd 2027

Obviously, Miranda is selected in the Team of the Week.

Aug 25th 2027

Jair Rodríguez is back in training after his injury and might have some minutes this weekend. To compensate, Svensson is suffering from food poisoning which might keep him out of the Gladbach game.

Aug 26th 2027

International callups for the upcoming window include Özcan with Turkey, Hadzic with Bosnia, and Aghajanyan with Armenia (yes, he's a senior international, somehow). Vuskovic remains out of Croatia's squad for... some reason. A couple days later Rodríguez also gets a call for the Mexico senior team, a chance for the kid to debut straight after his injury, and Svensson gets the customary call from Sweden. Surprising lack of U21 callups this time, huh.

Aug 27th 2027

Time for our first Europa League draw ever! And also for prize money, €3.4M just for entering the group stage. Anyway, we enter the draw as fourth seeds, so we should expect a tough draw, and we get... a pretty reasonable one, actually? Napoli are of course a monster, but the other two teams in the group are Young Boys from Switzerland (featuring former 1860 left back Francisco Moura) and FC Kobenhavn from Denmark. We might actually have a chance here.

Aug 28th 2027

Baldé is out of our next game after sustaining a pulled hamstring in the last training session before travelling to Mönchengladbach. He should be back to action after the international break, although only just.

Aug 29th 2027

Borussia Mönchengladbach vs. TSV 1860 München (Bundesliga, 3/34)

Time for serious stuff. Gladbach finished behind us last season, sure, but they're also on a ten game unbeaten run spanning both the end of last season and the beginning of this one, in which they've managed one win (against Leipzig) and one draw (against Fortuna). They'll be much tougher than our previous opponents, that's for sure, but we don't fear no one this year. Well, almost no one...

* * *

GLADBACH (4-2-3-1): David Raya (GK); Brandon Soppy (DR), Cheick Doucouré (DCr), Nico Elvedi (DCl), Luca Netz (DL); Herlan Gomes (MCr), Bali Mumba (MCl); Edgar Santacruz (AMR), Lazar Samardzic (AMC), Raúl Moro (AML), Marcus Thuram (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Florent Da Silva (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)

* * *

Van Bommel's Gladbach have seen a lot of turnover in their squad this summer, losing the likes of Embolo and Bajrami and replacing them with quality players like Gomes, Soppy, and subs Jonas Wind and Antoni Milambo. We bring back our theoretical best eleven, with Rodríguez and Svensson making the bench, but that's not enough to stop Gladbach who, in their first approach of the game, find Thuram behind the defense with a long ball by Netz and the striker beats Kretzschmar with a placed finish that the keeper gets a touch on, but not enough.

We accept the glove thrown at our face and go looking for a quick draw, with Caraballo being the first to try with a wide shot in the sixth minute. Things slow down soon afterwards, though, with Gladbach pushing the lines forward in order to reduce space in midfield and make our life more difficult. Our next chance doesn't come until the 24th, a shot by Rijkhoff that deflects on a defender and goes behind for a corner kick, and the striker follows it up with a good header in said corner kick that Raya saves with some difficulty. A third chance falls to Rijkhoff, this time after a good pass into space by Caraballo, but this time his aim is much worse and the ball ends up in the stands.

Our insistence finally finds its reward in the 36th when Casas sees Gerometta running into tons of space on the right and sends the ball to him, allowing the wingback an easy path to cross towards the far post so Caraballo can just push it in and draw the game. Both teams seem to decide to declare a truce for what remains of the first half, and the result remains the same when the forty-fifth minute comes.

HALF TIME - 1-1

The truce continues into the early second half, with zero attempts at scoring on both sides of the pitch until Santacruz, another new signing coming off the bench today, tries to curl a shot around Kretzschmar from a tight angle in the 59th minute but finds the keeper not so easy to beat. Our substitutions come soon after, aiming to remove from the pitch three underperforming players in Sánchez, Da Silva, and Maldini and replacing them with Svensson, Rodríguez (who debuts), and Sapmaz.

Kretzschmar then performs a fantastic diving save to prevent Thuram from scoring after the striker gathers a loose ball inside our box. It looks like Gladbach have the upper hand now, and we haven't even tried a single shot at goal since we scored the 1-1. Gladbach keep peppering us with shots that don't generate much danger for a while, but we take them on without any major trouble. With ten minutes remaining on the clock we try to take a step forward, but other than a blocked shot by Sapmaz we don't really gain much from it. Two minutes before the end, though, Sapmaz manages to launch a quick counter that ends in a good cross towards the center, but Rijkhoff can only head it over while tightly marked. Another blocked shot by the winger is the last chance of a tightly contested game that ends in a fair draw.

* * *

Borussia Mönchengladbach 1 (Marcus Thuram 2)
TSV 1860 München 1 (Rodrigo Caraballo 36)

- - -

One half for each team, one goal for each team. Balanced as all things should be, and a good result stealing one point away from a very difficult stadium. Caraballo already on two goals in three appearances is good to see, as are Rodríguez's first competitive minutes of the season. We finish the first three fixtures in fourth place, trailing behind three teams who've won all their games so far: Bayern (duh), Dortmund (duh), and Stuttgart (what).

Dalbeider · July 11, 2023

Aug 31st 2027

And the transfer window closes down once again. Well, it will in a few hours. Best we can hope for today is that no one decides to unsettle any of our players so we're forced into an unwanted sale and a difficult last-second replacement with little money available. Maybe a youngster or two will leave on loan, but we don't expect any business otherwise.

Hamburg sign Entrena off Köln for about half of what they paid us for him one year ago. He's been pretty average for them, to be fair, but he still has lots of upside, even if so many team changes might have hampered his development a bit.

The big offer for one of our players comes, and honestly, it's not as big as expected: Freiburg want Lomónaco for €3.3M, a few clauses included. Feels more than a bit short, so rejecting for now. If they come back later today with something better we'll talk, he's one of the few players I might actually consider selling today, considering Stjepanovic should be returning in a month or two.

Not a loan out, but one of our youngsters does leave for good: 18yo winger Manfred Hartmann moves to Werder Bremen for €87k upfront, €35k after 20 games, and a 20% of future profits. Not a big deal, but there was a host of 2.Bundesliga teams hounding him and he wanted to leave, so we got the best deal we could.

Here we go: Freiburg return with an improved offer starting at €4.4M. How does €5.5M upfront, €1M in installments, and a 30% of future profits sound? Good? Good. The transfer is concluded after minutes, and the former Benfica player moves to Freiburg leaving behind a pretty decent profit and a quite solid year-and-a-half worth of performances in defense, never as a starter but always there when needed.

To replace him we go for a short-term deal and loan Dortmund's transfer-listed 29yo Julian Chabot. A quality player, don't get me wrong, but he has two problems: one is his age, as I almost never sign players about to turn thirty. Two is his wages, since he's on a €75k weekly deal in Dortmund and expects to earn something similar wherever he moves to. So, we manage to convince Dortmund to accept a deal in which we only pay half his wages with no other fees, giving us the option to make it permanent for €24M (won't happen) and, more importantly, allowing us to terminate the loan whenever we please. The plan is to have him as a rotation/backup for Casas until the winter window and then, with Stjepanovic already healthy, return him to Dortmund. He has the added bonus of being both a German/French national and counting as trained in the nation, which makes him useful for Europa League registration purposes.

There's a couple more bids made for young players we don't want to sell, Wolfsburg make another half-hearted attempt for Manu Sánchez, and Ingolstadt have the gall to ask for Karlsen on loan basically for free. All rejected, of course, and the transfer window slams shut soon after. Not a bad day in the end.

Sep 1st 2027

Good thing we brought Chabot in, too, because he was key to fulfilling the homegrown criteria for the Europa League registration without having to resort to U21 players. Vuskovic still counting as U21 and having been with us for two full years already also helps, since he can be left unregistered with no consequence. In the end no one has to be left out, which is exactly what we wanted.

Sep 3rd 2027

Solid defensive show by Hadzic in his return to Bosnia's national team, helping them along in a 2-0 win over neighbors and rivals Serbia. Özcan, on the other hand, has a torrid time in a 1-3 defeat for Turkey against Belgium and is eventually substituted.

Sep 5th 2027

Jair Rodríguez plays the whole game with Mexico in his senior international debut, setting up a goal in a friendly victory over Morocco. One day later Hadzic plays another full game for Bosnia and does well in an easy 6-2 trouncing of Andorra.

Sep 8th 2027

Our last international in this batch, Svensson, gives a good account of himself in Sweden's 4-1 win over Slovakia.

The best piece of news today comes from the training ground, though: Stjepanovic has started the rehabilitation phase after his cruciate injury, and should be back in full training within two months. Glad to see him getting closer to returning.

Sep 9th 2027

Bad news had to come at some point to balance all the good, I guess: Caraballo suffers from a lower back stress fracture and will be on the sidelines for six to seven weeks, while he sees an specialist to treat it. Time for Marcos Paulo to shine.

Sep 11th 2027

TSV 1860 München (4th) vs. Sport-Club Freiburg (10th) (Bundesliga, 4/34)

Back home after two away fixtures, and Freiburg come to give us trouble. That said, their stock seems to have dropped notably since the last season, and most experts predict them to finish in the bottom half of the table, even after taking Lomónaco from us. In other words, we're now considered the favorites in this fixture. Funny how things change, huh.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Julian Chabot (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Jair Rodríguez (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)
FREIBURG (4-2-3-1): Pontus Dahlberg (GK); Felix Passlack (DR), Linus Gechter (DCr), Eric Martel (DCl), Guilherme Montóia (DL); Maximilian Eggstein (MCr), Yangel Herrera (MCl); Akinkunmi Amoo (AMR), Erik Majetschak (AMC), Sead Haksabanovic (AML), Nicolai Skoglund (ST)

* * *

We have a trip to Copenhagen in five days, so we need to be conscious of the fact that we'll be playing twice per week more often than not this season. Therefore, rotation, including Chabot's debut and Rodríguez's first start. Lomónaco is on the bench, but two ex-1860 start for Freiburg today, Gechter and Majetschak, and that somehow scares me a bit. The early game is a scramble for possession in which Freiburg seem to come up slightly ahead, leading to a great chance for Amoo that Kretzschmar denies by stretching his arms to the limit. Things soon turn around, though, and by the time twenty minutes have passed we seem to have restored equilibrium to the match.

In the 25th minute Hadzic has to work hard to prevent Majetschak from getting a shot in following a great ball into space by Skoglund, then it's Kretzschmar who stops a header by the striker after a cross from the right. We're struggling mightily to get the ball out of defense today thanks to Freiburg's pressure, and the predictable soon happens: quick combination through the center, Majetschak assists Skoglund, and the striker shoots past Kretzschmar to give the visitors a deserved lead twenty-eight minutes into the game.

We don't react after the goal, and Dahlberg remains untested while Skoglund gets really close to a second with a wide header. An injury time chance for Haksabanovic that Kretzschmar deflects wide is the last action of a very poor first half for us.

HALF TIME - 0-1

My screaming probably wakes the players up, because the first minutes of the second half are our best of the match by far, with quick chances for Özcan (blocked) and Rodríguez (deflected over by Dahlberg). That soon passes, though, and things go back to normal with Freiburg keeping us firmly locked inside our own half. Majetschak even threatens a second in a corner kick he heads narrowly over, just before we decide to make our first substitutions. Too many options today, but we settle with bringing Sapmaz and Rijkhoff in first, then Da Silva in Marcos Paulo's place on the left wing.

In the 70th we finally get another chance through Hadzic, who heads a corner kick into Dahlberg's hands, but that won't be enough if we want to salvage anything from this game. Kretzschmar has it a bit harder to tip over the bar a piledriver by Haksabanovic one minute later, then Rijkhoff runs on the break but gets his finish stopped by Gechter. He gets much closer in the 79th with a narrowly high header to a cross by Gerometta, our best chance of the match so far. In the 90th the striker nods a cross by Rodríguez towards Da Silva, who tries to finish the job but only finds the root of the post, then Dahlberg's hands. Injury time brings another save by Kretzschmar to deny Amoo, and then another to hold a header by Martel in the following corner kick. As for us, we don't get another. Bad game, worse result.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 0
Sport-Club Freiburg 1 (Nicolai Skoglund 28)

- - -

Where the heck did this come from? We'd been doing really well until today, and suddenly this? The most limp and toothless we've been since at least one year and a half ago. Kretzschmar was our only player doing what he was supposed to do today, the rest were all failures, with the possible exception of Miranda and Rijkhoff. Hopefully this will be our worst game of the year, because I sure can't imagine how topping this would look.

Dalbeider · July 12, 2023

Sep 12th 2027

We've been having trouble for a while now against aggressive 4-2-3-1 formations which press us high and basically force us to hoof the ball clear off defense, something that goes counter to our play style and makes us struggle to create any kind of danger. So I think it's time to try and create a counter to that tactic. We're gonna start training a 4-2-3-1 of our own, but with two deep midfielders who both help us get the ball out of the back, and also make us more solid defensively, since usually the teams playing these tactics are the strongest in the league.

Sep 14th 2027

Oh no. Marcos Paulo pulls a hamstring in training and will miss about two weeks. That means our two options on the left are out of contention for at least our two next fixtures, including our Europa League debut in Copenhagen. Wonderful. We have other options there, since the likes of Da Silva and Maldini can play there with little issue, but still. Sucks.

Sep 16th 2027

FC Kobenhavn vs. TSV 1860 München (Europa League group F, 1/6)

Europe! Denmark! Copenhagen! A nice city to start our travels across the continent in, I'd say, and also a game we have a reasonable chance of getting something from. Kobenhavn have been dominating the Danish leagues for a while now, six titles on the trot for them, but obviously the level in that league can't compare to the Bundesliga. If we play our game (and that's a big if considering our last game, grumble grumble) we could get a win here and start dreaming about qualifying from this group.

* * *

KOBENHAVN (4-2-3-1): Lawrence Zigi (GK); Petr Vaclavik (DR), David Khocholava (DCr), Andrea Cistana (DCl), Miguel Gutiérrez (DL); Takuhiro Nakai (MCr), Mateusz Bogusz (MCl); Hayen Palacios (AMR), Pep Biel (AMC), Albert Gronbaek (AML), Taiwo Awoniyi (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Florent Da Silva (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Daniel Maldini (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)

* * *

Rotation in, rotation out. Maldini takes the problematic left wing while Baldé returns to action after his injury. Kobenhavn also play a 4-2-3-1 like Freiburg did on Saturday, and it's pressure on Vuskovic that gives them the first chance of the game, stealing the ball and setting Awoniyi up for a shot he sends clearly wide. We have a lot of the ball despite that early pressing, though, and we grow more and more comfortable in possession until in the 14th minute Da Silva sees Sapmaz's movement into space and sends a long ball ahead of him so the young winger can beat Zigi in the one-on-one and give us an early lead.

Problem is, our lead lasts exactly one minute, which is what Gutiérrez needs to lose Sapmaz's mark down his left wing and cross into the heart of the box for an easy tap-in by Awoniyi. Pep Biel then tries to turn things around completely with a run through the center, but Kretzschmar does well to save and hold his finish. Another overlap by Vaclavik ends in another cross towards Awoniyi, who this time can only get a weak header in and make it easy for our keeper. Still, we seem to be losing control of the situation by the minute, and soon Kretzschmar has more work to do, tipping wide a shot from the edge of the box by Bogusz.

Ten minutes before half time Khocholava heads into the sidenetting a dangerous set piece, while our attack has not been heard off since our goal. Two more headers follow, one by Awoniyi into the crossbar and an immediate another by Gronbaek, this one easier for Kretzschmar. We finally show up near Zigi's goal in the final minute of regulation with a cross by Sapmaz that Maldini heads wide, but at least it's something. A draw at half time, and we should be happy with that result.

HALF TIME - 1-1

Well, no more reason to be happy then: thirty seconds into the second half we lose the ball in the midfield, Awoniyi controls it and drops towards the left, and his cross is finished by Pep Biel to score the 2-1 for Kobenhavn. So much for concentration. With no improvement in the following minutes, we decide to pull the trigger and try our new tactic, with Thiago replacing a tired Miranda and Rodríguez coming in for Da Silva.

Kobenhavn still have another good chance to score, with Palacios failing to hit the right side of the net after a nod by Gronbaek in a set piece, but then it's finally our turn, starting with two consecutive chances for Sánchez and Vuskovic, one blocked and the other wide by inches. Karlsen also enters the game to replace Maldini, exhausted and not particularly relevant today, but our attack seems to die even before it can get started, and minutes start ticking by without much to show. But in the 79th, after a patient passing play, the ball reaches Rodríguez and the Mexican turns around to assist Karlsen, who breaks into the box and places his finish past Zigi to draw the game once again.

The home team try to regain their lead in a corner kick that Gronbaek heads very narrowly over, then it's Nakai who blasts it over from right beside the penalty spot, and then Pedersen heads a set piece into the outside of the post. We survive them all, though, and steal a point from Copenhagen we most certainly didn't deserve.

* * *

FC Kobenhavn 2 (Taiwo Awoniyi 15, Pep Biel 46)
TSV 1860 München 2 (Can Sapmaz 14, Martin Karlsen 79)

- - -

I'll take the point, but our performance was too reminiscent of the Freiburg game for my taste. At least this time we took our (few) chances and got something out of the match regardless, which is good because this point gives us a very good chance at advancing in the competition. The kids saved the day today, first Sapmaz and then Rodríguez and Karlsen off the bench. Napoli got a minimal 1-0 win over Young Boys, so the group is looking more or less like we wanted it to so far. This point is worth €210k, by the way, which is nice.

Dalbeider · July 13, 2023

Sep 18th 2027

Injuries keep piling up, and now it's a key player like Miranda who'll have to rest for a couple of weeks with a pulled thigh. Looking a bit thin in attacking options right now...

Sep 19th 2027

1.FC Nürnberg (10th) vs. TSV 1860 München (5th) (Bundesliga, 5/34)

Only three days after our trip to Copenhagen and we're already in another high stakes Bundesliga game. This level of play is stressing, I must say... Regardless, Nürnberg are certainly doing better than in the previous season so far, sitting comfortable in the middle of the pack and already with five points to their name. They're still relegation candidates, though, so this is a stadium we should be aiming to get all the points from.

* * *

NÜRNBERG (4-4-2): Jan Olschowsky (GK); Nicholas Mickelson (DR), Armel Bella-Kotchap (DCr), Maksim Paskotsi (DCl), Valentín Barco (DL); Benie Traoré (MR), Mads Bidstrup (MCr), Ilai Madmon (MCl), Omar Campos (ML); Facundo Farías (STr), Manuel Wintzheimer (STl)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Julian Chabot (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DM), Jair Rodríguez (MCr), Martin Karlsen (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Florent Da Silva (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)

* * *

Funnily enough, the two games we've won in the league so far have been against 4-4-2s, so this looks promising already. Our rotation swings the other way now, with Da Silva playing on the left today to keep at least one of our natural wingers fresh, and Karlsen being awarded another start in midfield. We start well, with Svensson sending a good pass across the pitch towards Maldini, who tries a surprising first-touch finish but Olschowsky reads him well and deflects it wide. We carry that momentum for the first fifteen minutes of the game, having the ball and pushing Nürnberg back into their own half, although without many real approaches to their goal.

In the 15th minute we finally get through, with Özcan assisting Da Silva on the run and Olschowky doing well once again blocking his finish. But for all the good we're goind, Nürnberg do better where it matters: scoring. Their first approach is a good passing play through the center that reaches Farías inside the box, and the Argentinian places the ball past Kretzschmar to give the home team the lead 23 minutes into the game.

We keep trying and trying, and in the 32nd minute another cross by Svensson gives Maldini another great chance to score, but his downward header hits the root of the post and bounces clear. Another cross, this one by Rodríguez, turns into a very narrowly wide header by Özcan, then Maldini sends over the bar a shot created by a clearance from defense by Hadzic. Nürnberg answer with a soft header by Campos that Kretzschmar catches with ease, but in the end there are no more goals in the first half, much as it hurts us.

HALF TIME - 1-0

Nürnberg start the second half with a two-versus-one down their right wing that Gerometta can't quite contain and which ends with Kretzschmar having to work hard to prevent a goal by Campos. Another run by Campos in the 55th ends in the same way, but it's worrying how difficult we're finding it to get through their pressure, once again putting our center-backs under duress almost constantly. Da Silva, horrid in the wing, soon is replaced by Sapmaz, and Ulrich and Baldé soon join him on the pitch.

It's Sapmaz who finally creates something in attack for us with a run-and-cross very much in his style, headed over by Özcan. It's an isolated chance, though, and it looks like we're back into our previous helplessness when Özcan gathers the ball in midfield, turns around, and passes it ahead of Svensson, allowing the wingback a clean run into the box so he can place the ball into the back of the net and pull level for us with his first goal since his arrival at Munich.

We look really good for a couple of minutes afterwards, but then Madmon sends a long ball into space for Farías to gather, dribble past Kretzschmar, and calmly pass it into the net for the 2-1 with thirteen minutes on the clock. Those thirteen minutes fly by in a heartbeat, and the only attack we bring close to its objective is a pass by Ulrich towards Sapmaz in the 90th minute which ends with the ball flying well over the bar. The winger has another chance in injury time after volleying a cross by Svensson, but this time Olschowsky is there to save, and our last chance to grab a point today disappears in a puff of smoke.

* * *

1.FC Nürnberg 2 (Facundo Farías 21 77)
TSV 1860 München 1 (Daniel Svensson 72)

- - -

Nope, not looking good. Although to be fair, today we were unlucky to lose and a draw would've been the "correct" result given the chances both teams had, but still. We should be better than this. I want to blame lack of cohesion with so much forced rotation, injuries, and new players in the squad, so hopefully it should fix itself with time, but I'm still a bit worried.

Dalbeider · July 14, 2023

Sep 21st 2027

Svensson sneaks into the Team of the Week thanks to his goal against Nürnberg.

Sep 25th 2027

TSV 1860 München (9th) vs. 1.FC Köln (15th) (Bundesliga, 6/34)

Been a while since we last were this close to the bottom half of the Bundesliga table, huh. Then again, Köln's position is also a bit of a novelty, flirting with a relegation battle after a very rough start to the season. Which could become our own if we lose today, so let's not do that, hm?

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Florent Da Silva (MCr), Jair Rodríguez (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Daniel Maldini (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)
KÖLN (3-2-2-1-2): Kevin Trapp (GK); Hugo Faria (DCr), Nathan Phillips (DC), Júnior Firpo (DCl); Kevin Mbabu (WBr), Philipp Max (WBl); Anton Stach (MCr), Ethan Ampadu (MCl); Dominik Yankov (AMC); Joao Resende (STr), Jan Thielmann (STl)

* * *

A German legend like Lukas Podoslki is in charge at Köln right now, and using a formation we hadn't seen since over two years ago, back when Stuttgart and Fortuna used to play it. Miranda and Marcos Paulo almost made it to the bench today, but in the end I decide to not risk it and save their returns for Napoli's visit this coming Thursday. And it seems that we've finally learned how to attack 3-5-2s: one minute plus some change into the game Baldé and Sapmaz overload the right wing then send the ball towards the center, where Rijkhoff holds it then assists Sapmaz as he runs into the box, faces Trapp, and blasts it in for the 1-0. Nice start.

The young winger almost scores a second immediately after following a diagonal pass by Maldini, but this time he runs out of space before he can get his shot in and Trapp covers the shrinking gap and saves. After that we focus on controlling possession and keeping Köln inside their own half, where they're much less dangerous. Time passes with our game plan working exactly as intended, denying Köln any chances at the cost of renouncing to ours, too.

In the 31st we gift ourselves a bit of freedom once again through Sapmaz, receiving from Rodríguez and shooting into Trapp's confident save. Next one to provide for the winger is Da Silva with a beautiful pass from deep, yet Sapmaz once again finds Trapp in the way of his finish. Casas finally gets our first non-Sapmaz shot at goal in a set piece the center-back heads wide in the 39th, and four minutes later we find a way through Köln's overcrowded center in a quick one-two combination between Rodríguez and Rijkhoff that the striker finishes with a placed shot, scoring the 2-0 and his first of the season. Köln remain inoffensive, and we go into half time very deservedly ahead.

HALF TIME - 2-0

After ten minutes of tranquility Köln finally find a way through with a play through the center that sets Joao Resende up for a very dangerous chance, well deflected over by Kretzschmar. It's still a wake-up call, so we take the chance to make a few changes, bringing Karlsen into the left wing in Maldini's place and Ulrich to give Da Silva a rest. A good block by Casas prevents another chance for Resende, just before Thiago replaces Rodríguez with a bit over twenty minutes left to play.

Sapmaz resumes our attack in the 74th, heading a cross by Baldé into Trapp's block, then it's Thiago who tries luck with a 30-yard-long direct free kick that goes over the bar. It's a very comfortable time for us except for those two earlier chances for Köln, though, and for the most part we just keep the ball and let time do its job while the visitors watch on with dwindling hopes of a comeback. Time eventually runs out, and we secure a very solid win to get us back into the right path.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 2 (Can Sapmaz 2, Julian Rijkhoff 43)
1.FC Köln 0

- - -

Much, much better. The first half in particular was basically a monologue, with Rodríguez, Rijkhoff, and Sapmaz doing whatever they wanted with Köln's surprisingly weak defense. We took it easier in the second half, but still managed a clean sheet, the first of the season, and a win that brings us closer to where we want to be. Köln are likely to be in trouble if they don't snap out of this funk, though.

Today in "results no one could see coming": Leipzig 6-1 Dortmund. Bayern remain as the only team that hasn't dropped any points so far, already six points ahead of everyone else.

Dalbeider · July 17, 2023

Sep 28th 2027

Casas and Kretzschmar are selected in the Team of the Week.

Sep 30th 2027

Just before our game against Napoli, a pleasant surprise: Rijkhoff gets a call-up to join the Netherlands senior squad for the friendlies against Morocco and Georgia coming in the next window. Nice.

* * *

TSV 1860 München vs. S.S.C. Napoli (Europa League group F, 2/6)

Well, time to know how it feels to be in Europe for real. Napoli are one of the biggest clubs in one of the biggest leagues in the continent, and their squad surely shows that quality. They're currently sixth in the Serie A, just like us, so it's to be expected that they'll give us more than our fair share of pain today. I'm not resigned to defeat, though: if we play like we know, we can have a chance.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-2-3-1 deep): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Julian Chabot (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DMCr), Darko Vuskovic (DMCl); Matías Miranda (MC); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)
NAPOLI (4-2-3-1): Luis Maximiano (GK); Lutsharel Geertruida (DR), Matteo Lovato (DCr), Mattia Viti (DCl), Giuseppe Pezzella (DL); Nicolas Seiwald (MCr), Ibrahima Diallo (MCl); Otávio (AMR), Piotr Zielinski (AMC), Rodrygo (AML), Andrea Pinamonti (ST)

* * *

Time to give our new anti-pressing formation a fair, full-game test. Miranda and Marcos Paulo return to the lineup after their injuries, and we rotate most of the squad otherwise, while Napoli put out a very respectable eleven with the likes of Rodrygo and Zielinski. Things seem to work out fin in the early game, with us holding the ball and starting to put some pressure on Napoli's defense, with a narrowly high header by Özcan as our first serious attempt at goal nine minutes in. Marcos Paulo follows it up with a weak and centered finish that Maximiano has no trouble saving, but in the 16th he can't do much when Miranda finishes a cross by Maldini by shooting into Viti's legs, then the rebound falls to Marcos Paulo with the keeper on the ground and the goal wide open. Even he can't miss this, and the 1-0 is a reality.

Even with the lead we keep putting them under pressure, and soon another shot by Marcos Paulo goes over the bar while Napoli struggle to get past our advanced lines. Even when they finally get close with a corner kick we somehow manage to turn it into a counterattack that Özcan can't finish due to Geertruida's timely tackle, followed by Lang missing the target by mere inches with a good-looking header in a corner kick. Napoli finally get a shot in with a high header by Pinamonti after a good cross by Pezzella, but by now thirty-four minutes have already passed.

In the 40th minute we mount a quick attack down the left flank with Svensson and Marcos Paulo trading passes until the wingback sends a pass into space ahead of Miranda, who breaks through the center and shoots with power past Maximiano to score the 2-0. There's still time for a high header by Özcan in injury time before the first half ends, once again with us clearly ahead.

HALF TIME - 2-0

We don't want to take it easy today despite our lead, and only two minutes into the second half Maldini heads a cross by Marcos Paulo into the crossbar. Soon Miranda breaks through the center unmarked once again, gathering a cross by Gerometta, but this time failing to put his finish past Maximiano. Then we gift a chance to Napoli through a bad pass by Lang, but thankfully Pinamonti looks almost as surprised as we are and can only shoot wide when everyone was expecting a goal. Just in case it happens again Maldini decides to set Özcan up with a precious through ball in the 54th, and the young striker takes the chance to score the 3-0 and put the game well away from Napoli's grasp.

The players still want more, and even Vuskovic joins the goal hunt with a run through the center well assisted by the today excellent Marcos Paulo, although Maximiano denies the defensive midfielder the rare chance to score with a good save. Napoli can only produce a wide header by Lovato in a corner kick before we start bringing in our substitutions, giving Miranda and Marcos Paulo a richly deserved rest and bringing Rodríguez and Da Silva in. Sapmaz also replaces Maldini after a bit as the game enters a lull that works just fine for us.

Time passes with little action on either goal while the fans celebrate in the stands. Napoli still have their pride, though, and in the 83rd produce a good play that ends in a wide header by substitute striker Rafa Mir. We answer six minutes later through Sapmaz, whose shot is deflected over by Maximiano, then Chabot heads the corner kick into the keeper's hands. Then, with the match practically over, Lovato pushes Özcan inside the box and VAR calls for a penalty kick, turned into the final 4-0 by Da Silva. A brilliant game and an even better result.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 4 (Marcos Paulo 16, Matías Miranda 40, Vedat Özcan 54, Florent Da Silva 90+4p)
S.S.C. Napoli 0

- - -

It says a lot that with four different players scoring and an absolute stormer of a match for all our attacking half, the man of the match award went to Gerometta. This was a complete performance by the whole team, absolutely erasing a great team like Napoli from the pitch and beating them down until they cried uncle. We can call the tactical experiment a resounding success, I think, and we'll be using this tactic in the future for sure. Kobenhavn and Young Boys draw their game without goals, which clears the path towards the knockout rounds a bit further.

Dalbeider · July 18, 2023

Oct 1st 2027

More international callups to add to Rijkhoff's, with the usual presence in the senior teams by Özcan, Hadzic, Svensson, and Aghajanyan, while Sapmaz and Vuskovic go with the U21s.

Oct 3rd 2027

Hertha BSC (4th) vs. TSV 1860 München (6th) (Bundesliga, 7/34)

Two consecutive wins, yes, but now we face one of the most in-form teams in the league. Hertha seem set on returning to their selves of two or three years ago, rather than the ocean of mediocrity that was their previous season, and so far they've been doing just that. We'd do well to get any points from here, but with our recent performances maybe we can hope for a bit more than that.

* * *

HERTHA (4-2-3-1): Marco Carnesecchi (GK); Guille Rosas (DR), Andrew Omobamidele (DCr), Omar Alderete (DCl), Amar Dedic (DL); Julian Weigl (MCr), Charles De Ketelaere (MCl); Pedro Porro (AMR), Miguel Carvalho (AMC), Fredrik Byorkan (AML), Delyan Atanasov (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-2-3-1 deep): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Florent Da Silva (DMCr), Thiago (DMCl); Jair Rodríguez (MC); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)

* * *

Dárdai seems to have benched his 3-3-2-2 and gone back to a more traditional 4-2-3-1, giving us another reason to reuse our new tactic once again. Our defensive midfielders are tired, though, so we have to improvise a bit with Da Silva playing there. Otherwise it's the usual post-midweek game rotation, and also our recently usual fantastic start to the game, only ramped up to eleven: twenty-seven seconds is all it takes for the ball to get to Marcos Paulo and for the winger to cross into the heart of the box, where Rijkhoff hits it first time to score the 0-1, shocking the stands into silence.

Like against Napoli, we don't stop there, and soon Rodríguez tries luck from the edge of the box so Carnesecchi shows his skills with a well-timed dive. Hertha seem to give us a bit more of a challenge, though, and actually contest our ball possession in the early game as they try to recover from the blow. Meanwhile we just keep creating danger, this time through Sánchez's cross and Rijkhoff's header, well held by the keeper. The game does slow down a bit, though, while we take control of the ball back and start pushing Hertha into their own half again. After a long while with only a few minor chances for us and a single shot at goal by Hertha that created no real danger, we reach halftime ahead and looking comfortable.

HALF TIME - 0-1

Things remain extremely soothing in the second half, with possession firmly under control and few threats coming the keepers' way. In the 62nd, though, in our first serious attack in a long while, Marcos Paulo passes the ball back to Sánchez on the left flank then runs ahead looking for the return pass, enters the box, and blasts it in to score his third of the season and second in consecutive games after his injury. Did someone exchange our Marcos Paulo for someone else who looks just the same or what's going on? Not complaining, mind!

As well as he's playing, Marcos Paulo still isn't fit enough to play the whole game, so a bit later he's replaced by Karlsen, while Gerometta and Ulrich come in for Baldé and Thiago, who just had our last chance with a shot from the edge of the box that sailed over the bar. Hertha finally threaten us a bit in a corner kick that Alderete heads a bit too high, but after that is another long period of calm until Weigl tries luck from afar in the 78th, also blasting it well over.

Seven minutes later the ball once again goes over the bar after a header by De Ketelaere, and in the 87th Hertha finally prove why they're fourth on the table with a flat shot from distance by Suat Serdar that surprises Kretzschmar, slotting into the back of the net for the 1-2. Hadzic almost restores our two-goal lead immediately with a header that Carnesecchi struggles to tip over, only for Casas to head the resulting corner kick a bit over the bar. Injury time comes with Hertha pouring forward, a circumstance that Rijkhoff uses to gather a long clearance by Kretzschmar and run at goal, only he blasts it over in the end. Hertha fail to give us any last second scares, and the win is ours in the end.

* * *

Hertha BSC 1 (Suat Serdar 87)
TSV 1860 München 2 (Julian Rijkhoff 1, Marcos Paulo 62)

- - -

That almost looked easy. Heck, even when Hertha scored I never felt threatened, we were just that much better today. This tactic is working wonders, turning the pressure against the opposition and giving them a taste of their own medicine, while having almost constant control of the ball thanks to our superior midfield. Better yet, we've seen that even non-specialists like Da Silva and Ulrich can play deep in this formation and still do a fine job, so we have the personnel to use this frequently. We might turn this into our main tactic if it keeps working this well. Up to fourth, and Bayern drop the first points of the season in a home draw against HSV.

Dalbeider · July 19, 2023

Oct 5th 2027

Marcos Paulo in the Team of the Week. Who'd have thought...

Oct 7th 2027

Senior international debut for Rijkhoff! Just seventeen minutes off the bench in a 2-0 win over Morocco, but still, it counts. Just with that his value is sure to skyrocket. Otherwise Vuskovic is the standout of the rest with a solid performance in Croatia U21's win over Northern Ireland, while the two Turks did fine but nothing fancy.

Oct 12th 2027

More good performances in the second round of international fixtures, once again with Vuskovic as the standout with an assist in a 5-0 win over ther Faroe Islands. Hadzic also did well in defense in Bosnia's 3-0 win over Latvia, while Sapmaz had a cameo appearance for Turkey U21.

Oct 16th 2027

TSV 1860 München (4th) vs. Borussia Dortmund (3rd) (Bundesliga, 8/34)

Trial by fire, as they say. Our new formation has done really well against tough teams like Napoli and Hertha, but now comes the real test of seeing how it does against top teams like Dortmund, or Bayern in a few weeks, or Leverkusen in the cup. We're in for some fun fixtures this month, and if we're to keep pushing upwards we'll have to give it our best, starting today.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-2-3-1 deep): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Julian Chabot (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DMCr), Darko Vuskovic (DMCl); Matías Miranda (MC); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)
DORTMUND (4-3-3): Gregor Kobel (GK); Mohamed Simakan (DR), Manuel Akanji (DCr), Niklas Süle (DCl), Arthur Theate (DL); Angelo Stiller (DM), Kacper Kozlowski (MCr), Giovanni Reyna (MCl); Samuel Chukwueze (AMR), Adam Hlozek (AML), Luka Jovic (ST)

* * *

This is also a chance to see how this formation does against a 4-3-3, since so far we've only used it against 4-2-3-1s. And judging by the first minute, it works just fine: quick pass into space towards the left that Svensson gathers, then runs at Kobel before trying a lob that goes over the keeper, but also ever so slightly over the bar. Two minutes later Özcan nods the ball back towards Maldini, who finds a highway between Süle and Theate to run into then shoots low and near the post to score the 1-0. Perfection.

Dortmund doesn't scare us anymore, and we keep pushing for a second through Svensson and Marcos Paulo, who shoots well but finds Kobel's hand in the way. Soon the keeper has more work to do with a direct free kick by Miranda he pushes around the post, as we continue with our early domination. Dortmund are still Dortmund, though, and when in the 18th minute Chabot commits our first serious mistake with a bad pass in a dangerous area Hlozek is there to gather the ball, run into the box, and blast it in to draw the game.

The goal gives them a lift, and soon Kretzschmar needs to go down to block a dangerous shot from distance by Stiller, then Theate heads a set piece over the bar. We soon start pushing back, though, and in the 23rd Özcan gets terribly close after a great pass by Vuskovic, hitting the wrong side of the post with his placed finish. Both teams trade blows for a while before settling into a midfield battle with no clear winner, during which Chabot redeems his previous mistake with a great last-ditch tackle that denies Jovic a chance to score. Miranda responds with a high ball from the edge of the box, but in the 42nd Chukwueze sneaks past Svensson with a silky run down the right wing and into the box, then curls it low around Kretzschmar to make it 1-2 for Dortmund. The first half ends shortly after.

HALF TIME - 1-2

Dortmund seem to have won the possession war in the early second half, pushing us back and creating danger in a set piece that Süle heads over. Meanwhile Maldini picks up an injury and, despite still seeming able to play, we decide to bring Sapmaz in his place to avoid unnecessary risks. Kretzschmar soon saves a centered shot by Simakan, who then goes on to block a dangerous shot by Marcos Paulo on the other side of the pitch. A high direct free kick by Miranda comes next as we try to regain control, and soon it's time to bring Da Silva in for Marcos Paulo, who's had one of those days today.

A real chance falls to Miranda after Sapmaz runs into the box from the right and passes it back for the midfielder, but he can't find the target and shoots over. Rodríguez replaces him a few minutes later, and in the 76th a corner kick almost turns into the 2-2 when Chabot reaches the ball and heads it, only to see how Kobel somehow manages to both block it and then gather the rebound Lang was nodding back into the danger zone. After that, though, Dortmund manage to close up shop and deny us any further chances, and time slips away before we can do anything to counter that.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 1 (Daniel Maldini 3)
Borussia Dortmund 2 (Adam Hlozek 18, Samuel Chukwueze 42)

- - -

A real shame, this game smelled like a draw all over. Dortmund are obviously too good to contain completely, but our chances deserved better than this. I'm still satisfied with how the tactic turned out, particularly at the beginning of the game when we practically rolled them over. Shame it couldn't last... Oh well, a match we could probably expect to lose in most circumstances, so not too hard to swallow. Worst part is that Marcos Paulo returned to his former self today, let's hope it's just a blip.

Maldini's injury is nothing too serious, just a pulled thigh which will keep him out of contention for a week or so. Caraballo should be close to returning, so our wings will be back at full strength soon.

Dalbeider · July 20, 2023

Oct 20th 2027

Another minor injury with a somewhat annoying timing: Ulrich pulls a thigh just before a Europa League match where he was very likely to feature in one way or another. He'll miss it plus the Bundesliga match against Stuttgart, and will be unlikely for the cup tie against Leverkusen.

Oct 21st 2027

TSV 1860 München vs. BSC Young Boys (Europa League group F, 3/6)

Halfway point of the group stage, and so far so good. If we can get a win today against what's probably the weakest team in the group we'll be set and ready in the best possible position to qualify. So far Young Boys have managed a single point at home against Kobenhavn and haven't scored a single goal, but they've also only conceded one, so at the very least they're gonna be hard to crack.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Thiago (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Jair Rodríguez (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)
YOUNG BOYS (4-4-2): David Von Ballmoos (GK); Danilho Doekhi (DR), David Nemeth (DCr), Adrian Bajrami (DCl), Ludmiany Boto (DL); Christian Fassnacht (MR), Sandro Lauper (MCr), Christopher Martins Pereira (MCl), Benjamín Salomé (ML); Meschack Elia (STr), Munir (STl)

* * *

Back to the 4-3-3 against Young Boys' 4-4-2, since we want a bit more offensive presence today. Caraballo returns to the lineup although is unlikely to play the whole game, while our old friend Moura is on the visitors' bench. Young Boys try to come out swinging and attacking during the first few minutes, but soon we take control of the ball and start pushing them back. There are basically no shots during this whole period of trying to establish dominance, and we reach the twentieth minute with only a shot by Elia well blocked by Casas, and the keepers still being mere spectators.

Twenty minutes turn into thirty and things remain the same. In fact it's not until the 43rd minute that we finally manage something, a cross by Sapmaz into the heart of the box that Rijkhoff hits first time into the second stand behind the goal. A second attempt by the winger and the striker two minutes later ends with a header that Von Ballmoos saves with ease, but it's still the closest this game has been to a goal in forty-five minutes. Supreme boredom in Grünwalder Strasse so far.

HALF TIME - 0-0

Ten minutes into the second half Young Boys get a corner kick, Munir takes it, and Bajrami jumps well over his marker to head it through Kretzschmar's hands, scoring the 0-1 and putting us in a world of trouble. At the very least it seems to wake us up, and soon Sapmaz creates another chance for Rijkhoff that Bajrami himself turns into nothing with a timely block. In the 60th we try the other wing through Manu Sánchez, who crosses from as close to the goal line as he can and aims it perfectly, making Rijkhoff's header almost perfunctory: 1-1, and now the winds are changing.

Three minutes later Manu Sánchez does it again, this time entering the box and passing it back towards his wing partner Caraballo, who places a perfect little shot with his "bad" left foot past Von Ballmoos and completes our comeback. And then Rodríguez almost makes it three after gathering a beautiful ball from deep by Thiago, but Bajrami denies us another goal with his body. Da Silva and Karlsen give Miranda and Caraballo some rest, and a bit later it's Vuskovic who takes Rodríguez's place, pushing Thiago forward.

We slow the game down as much as we can then, although Kretzschmar still needs to perform to prevent Pusic from scoring with a surprising 25-yarder seven from full time. Another attempt by the midfielder goes well over the bar two minutes later, but after that we finally manage to silence them for good, and the final minutes go by with little tension despite the result. Important win, even if it took a bit more effort than expected.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 2 (Julian Rijkhoff 60, Rodrigo Caraballo 63)
SC Young Boys 1 (Adrian Bajrami 55)

- - -

Yep, they were tough to crack indeed. The first half was a borefest, and everything happened within ten minutes of the second half, thankfully with us on top in the end. The win was deserved, sure, but it most certainly wasn't easy. In Copenhagen Napoli concede a draw against Kobenhavn, who score their third single point in three games, leaving us top of the group with three points over Napoli, four over Kobenhavn, and six over last-place Young Boys. Looking good.

Dalbeider · July 21, 2023

Oct 24th 2027

VfB Stuttgart (12th) vs. TSV 1860 München (5th) (Bundesliga, 9/34)

Remember when I mentioned in passing that Stuttgart were one of three teams who had won all of their first three matches in the league? Well, since then they've got one more point, and it was last week in a 1-1 draw against Fortuna. Not exactly the most stellar of forms, that's for sure, but they're still a dangerous team we should take seriously, even if the two fixtures coming immediately after command more attention.

* * *

STUTTGART (4-2-3-1): Robin Zentner (GK); Roberto Massimo (DR), Waldemar Anton (DCr), Elias Machuca (DCl), Hrvoje Smolcic (DL); Shinta Appelkamp (MCr), Aleksander Andersen (MCl); Darko Churlinov (AMR), Ismaël Gharbi (AMC), Moussa Djénépo (AML); José Bica (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-2-3-1 deep): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Julian Chabot (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Florent Da Silva (DMCr), Darko Vuskovic (DMCl); Jair Rodríguez (MC); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)

* * *

Back to the 4-2-3-1 to try and hold Stuttgart back, with Maldini back in action but many tired legs in the squad, which is worrying considering we have two more high-stakes fixtures in six days. Stuttgart push from the start through a cross by Massimo that Churlinov heads well over, then Churlinov himself volleys wide a pass from deep by Andersen. We're struggling to keep the ball, but there's no need for that: Da Silva sees Maldini's run towards the box from deep and pumps a long pass towards him, allowing the striker an easy one-on-one against Zentner that becomes the 0-1... for twenty seconds, which is what VAR needs to disallow it for offside. Drat.

The not-goal is still a good way to finally start playing the game, soon matching Stuttgart in possession rates and gaining a bit of breathing space. The game slows down dramatically after those hectic first ten minutes, and there are no more chances, or shots on target for that matter, until Stuttgart get their own taste of VAR in another offside goal by Bica in the 33rd minute. Churlinov tries again seven minutes later, this time from a legal position, but then Kretzschmar is there to block his shot. And that's it for a nervy but in the end not very productive first half.

HALF TIME - 0-0

The second half doesn't change much: lots of battle for possession, very little attacking intent. Twelve minutes into the half we change our whole forward line, bringing Sapmaz, Caraballo, and Rijkhoff in. Soon Sapmaz has a decent chance with a run down the right that brings him into the box, but with little space to put a shot through he ends up sending the ball straight into Zentner's hands. Much better is Bica's chance in the 64th, gathering a through ball inside the penalty area and shooting with power into the crossbar. We counter with danger two minutes later, ending it with a narrowly high shot from the edge of the box by Vuskovic, and the game looks like it could go either way in a moment now.

Then it does: free kick in a very dangerous position near the edge of the box for Rodríguez, who takes two steps back before burying it far from Zentner's reach. Not a bad way to score his first goal for 1860. Svensson denies Djénépo six minutes later with a tackle in the exact right moment after provoking the chance himself with a missed header, then goes on to assist Caraballo down the left flank and allowing the winger a shot that Zentner deflects wide. Next Svensson shoots himself after gathering a good pass by Vuskovic, but also finds the keeper in the way. After that, though, we decide to reduce risks and hold the ball, and that's enough to secure a vital away win.

* * *

VfB Stuttgart 0
TSV 1860 München 1 (Jair Rodríguez 73)

- - -

Tough game, tough as nails. Very few clear-cut chances despite both teams trying their best, and the decider was a moment of genius by Rodríguez, who was having a pretty poor game until that point. Good defensive work, and nice to be on the right side of the karma balance for once.

* * *

| Pos | Team                | Pld   | Won   | Drn   | Lst   | For   | Ag    | GD    | Pts   | Form  | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 1st | FC Bayern           | 9     | 7     | 2     | 0     | 31    | 7     | 24    | 23    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 2nd | Borussia Dortmund   | 9     | 7     | 0     | 2     | 18    | 11    | 7     | 21    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 3rd | RB Leipzig          | 9     | 6     | 1     | 2     | 22    | 12    | 10    | 19    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 4th | Bayer Leverkusen    | 9     | 5     | 1     | 3     | 19    | 13    | 6     | 16    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 5th | 1860 München        | 9     | 5     | 1     | 3     | 16    | 10    | 6     | 16    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 6th | Hertha BSC          | 9     | 5     | 0     | 4     | 15    | 12    | 3     | 15    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 7th | Hamburg             | 9     | 4     | 3     | 2     | 14    | 13    | 1     | 15    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 8th | Freiburg            | 9     | 4     | 3     | 2     | 15    | 15    | 0     | 15    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 9th | Nürnberg            | 9     | 3     | 4     | 2     | 12    | 9     | 3     | 13    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 10th| Mainz               | 9     | 4     | 1     | 4     | 15    | 13    | 2     | 13    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 11th| Frankfurt           | 9     | 3     | 2     | 4     | 15    | 16    | -1    | 11    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 12th| Stuttgart           | 9     | 3     | 1     | 5     | 14    | 16    | -2    | 10    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 13th| Köln                | 9     | 3     | 1     | 5     | 11    | 14    | -3    | 10    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 14th| Borussia M'gladbach | 9     | 2     | 3     | 4     | 9     | 15    | -6    | 9     |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 15th| Heidenheim          | 9     | 2     | 1     | 6     | 11    | 25    | -14   | 7     |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 16th| Fortuna Düsseldorf  | 9     | 1     | 3     | 5     | 11    | 21    | -10   | 6     |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 17th| Wolfsburg           | 9     | 1     | 2     | 6     | 9     | 17    | -8    | 5     |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 18th| SC Paderborn        | 9     | 1     | 1     | 7     | 5     | 23    | -18   | 4     |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

Two less points and two more defeats than at this point of last season, but we're still where we want to be. Once again the table looks tight as heck, other than the top three looking likely to escape early this time. After that it's seven teams within three points, and even those further behind aren't that far away. Hard to take any kind of conclusions from such a close-fought league, but seeing Gladbach and Köln that far down is surprising. Heidenheim seem to have got into a good rhythm after starting horribly and have just now escaped from the drop zone, while fellow division newbies Paderborn are struggling about as much as expected. Otherwise, call me in eight weeks when there's actually some real separation between teams and we'll talk.

* * *

PLAYER STATS
============

Average rating (min. 3 games played):

Matías Miranda           7.28 (8 apps)
Arnau Casas              7.27 (7 pps)
Francisco Gerometta      7.14 (6(2) apps)
Niklas Lang              7.12 (6 apps)
Amer Hadzic              7.10 (7 apps)

Goals:

Martin Karlsen           3 goals
Rodrigo Caraballo        3
Can Sapmaz               3
Julian Rijkhoff          3
Daniel Maldini           3
Marcos Paulo             3

Assists: 

Matías Miranda           3 assists
Manu Sánchez             3
Daniel Maldini           3
4 players                2

Dalbeider · July 24, 2023

Oct 27th 2027

Bayer 04 Leverkusen vs. TSV 1860 München (DFB Pokal, 2nd round)

Isn't this a fun month? And we're not even done today! Regardless, Leverkusen away is among the five worst possible ties we could've got at this point of the competition, or at any point really. On the other hand, the last time we played in Leverkusen it was with European qualification on the line and we won 0-4, so hey, we at least know we have a chance.

* * *

LEVERKUSEN (4-2-3-1 deep): Okan Aydin (GK); Gonçalo Esteves (DR), William Saliba (DCr), Jonathan Tah (DCl), Jefté (DL); Giacomo Faticanti (DMCr), Alexey Kumykov (DMCl); Luis Sinisterra (AMR), Florian Wirtz (AMC), Moussa Diaby (AML), Marcos Leonardo (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-2-3-1 deep): Valentino Quintero (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Thiago (DMCr), Darko Vuskovic (DMCl); Matías Miranda (MC); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)

* * *

Mirror match of deep 4-2-3-1s today, and the usual full(ish) team rotation because the fixtures are really piling up now, and there's the Big One coming in three days. Simeone's Leverkusen have changed both their full backs and their defensive midfielders since our last meeting, and try to go for revenge for the systematic destruction that happened then from the start, soon leaving Diaby alone against Quintero, who covers the gap perfectly and stops the shot without issue. Simeone's teams still love counterattacking, though, and that's what Marcos Leonardo does nine minutes in before assisting Sinisterra, who is once again denied by Quintero.

What the keeper can't do, though, is stop Faticanti's header in a corner kick one minute later, which slots in the small space between the keeper and the near post to give Leverkusen the lead. Seven minutes later that same gap is exploited by Wirtz, who dodges Casas' tackle and runs alone into the box before shooting there and scoring the second. Alarm bells are ringing now, and it's obvious our plan isn't working. We try moving Miranda a bit further forward and closer to Rijkhoff and at least it helps us with pressing their defensive line, but it yields little in attacking results. Leverkusen bide their time, and soon the first half ends while we still haven't figured out what we should be doing.

HALF TIME - 2-0

We need a change, and Da Silva provides it by replacing Vuskovic at half time and moving us back to a 4-3-3. We almost instantly improve our play noticeably, and soon Rijkhoff is finally testing Aydin with a good header following a cross by Gerometta. But then Marcos Leonardo controls a goal kick, combines with Diaby, and chips the ball over the desperate Quintero to score the 3-0, and the game is already as good as over.

We don't give up, however, and soon Miranda has a great chance to pull one back that Tah blocks and deflects over the bar with his head. Sapmaz's volley one minute later goes the same way only without intervention of any defenders, and after a bit Miranda and Caraballo are replaced by Karlsen and Marcos Paulo as our last all-in bet. It almost works when Karlsen spots Sapmaz in the box and lobs the ball over the defense to him, but the winger can't beat Aydin and it all ends up in a corner that Hadzic heads over. A wide header by Marcos Paulo follows, and by now we've probably deserved at least one goal, but it just isn't coming.

Sapmaz doesn't get any closer with his next chance, a wildly high header, and in the 73rd Saliba shows us how it's done, heading into the net a set piece taken by Sinisterra to finally complete the 4-0 Leverkusen owed us since last May. Rijkhoff scores in an offside position five minutes later, and clearly so for once, while on the other end Quintero saves a shot by Sentdemir with some difficulty. Another wide try by Sapmaz in the 85th puts us level in xG with Leverkusen, and a header by Rijkhoff that Aydin saves actually puts us ahead, yet the result is still what it is, and remains like that until the end.

* * *

Bayer 04 Leverkusen 4 (Giacomo Faticanti 11, Florian Wirtz 17, Marcos Leonardo 54, William Saliba 73)
TSV 1860 München 0

- - -

Ouch. That one hurt. And, as mentioned, if we look at the numbers and the advanced statistics we should've *at least* drawn this game. Today the deciding factors were a) abysmal finishing, mostly by Sapmaz, and b) bad goalkeeping in Quintero's first, and possibly last, really bad game with us. The result is what it is: out of the cup earlier than the board expected, and with a serious blow to our morale just before hosting Bayern. Beautiful.

Dalbeider · July 25, 2023

Oct 30th 2027

TSV 1860 München (5th) vs. FC Bayern München (1st) (Bundesliga, 10/34)

And now for the big one. Nagelsmann keeps making Bayern look unbeatable in Germany (except for that one year they lost to Dortmund), and that's despite selling players like Gnabry this past summer. I don't feel like we're that much closer to them than we were last year, but that could be good enough to give them a scare today. Let's try.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-2-3-1 deep): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DMCr), Darko Vuskovic (DMCl); Jair Rodríguez (MC); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)
BAYERN (4-2-3-1): Aaron Ramsdale (GK); Nordi Mukiele (DR), Dayot Upamecano (DCr), Janderson (DCl), Owen Wijndal (DL); Dominik Szoboszlai (MCr), Yunus Musah (MCl); Youssoufa Moukoko (AMR), Kai Havertz (AMC), Timo Werner (AML); Robert Lewandowski (ST)

* * *

Not much to do today other than throw our best and most healthy players into the fray and hope for the best. It seems to work, too, as we hold Bayern back for the first ten minutes and enjoy a multiple chance in a set piece through various point-blank finishes by Özcan and others that, somehow, never make it past Ramsdale. Possession is ours for maybe the first time ever when playing against Bayern and we reach the twentieth minute without a single shot against Kretzschmar's goal.

The one time we make a serious mistake, Vuskovic in this case, Casas is there to fix it and deny Lewandowski the chance to shoot by throwing himself in front of the Pole at the exactly right moment. Kretzschmar's first save to a shot by Lewandowski is then turned irrelevant when the striker is flagged for offside, and all their other tries, few as they are, never go anywhere near the target. Half time finds us still holding on to the draw.

HALF TIME - 0-0

After reassuring the players that they're doing well we go right back at it, and actually give Ramsdale another scare three minutes in with a quick cross by Marcos Paulo towards Rodríguez, who tries to place his shot but doesn't give it enough power to beat the keeper. Lewandowski has Bayern's answer in the 58th, volleying a cross by Mukiele but coming across Kretzschmar stretching his whole body to block the ball. An injury to Werner that forces him to leave the field doesn't help them in any way, though.

We also make a couple of substitutions, bringing Sapmaz and Caraballo in to keep our wings fresh. In the 65th, though, our luck runs out: cross from deep by Musah and Szymanski, who just came into the game replacing Werner, volleys it towards the near post to score the 0-1. Da Silva replaces Thiago then, as we push our lines forward a bit to try and get back into the game, while Lewandowski keeps missing chances, this time running through the center like a knife through butter but failing to get past Kretzschmar in the end. We try our best to attack the very organized and fast Bayern defense, but we run into the wall time and time again, until we reach the end of the game.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 0
FC Bayern München 1 (Sebastian Szymanski 65)

- - -

Getting closer and closer. This might have been the most even a Münchner Derby has been in recent years, yet the result still remains the same. Obviously Bayern were still the better team and deserved their win, but this time we just needed one save on each goal going differently. Almost there, just not quite yet.

Dalbeider · July 26, 2023

Nov 3rd 2027

With European money rolling in and the stadium construction already paid for (except for that loan thing), it's a good moment to start investing in facilities. As such, I get the board to agree to a €2.3M investment in our youth facilities, which will start at the beginning of 2028 and be completed sometime around May. First step of many, there's a lot of work left to do to put us on par with the big teams in the Bundesliga.

Rodríguez and Hadzic get senior international callups once again, with the midfielder looking to establish himself with Mexico and Hadzic already a regular fixture for Bosnia. Özcan joins them with his habitual call with Turkey.

Nov 4th 2027

SC Young Boys vs. TSV 1860 München (Europa League group F, 4/6)

Time to forget our domestic woes and focus on the one competition where we're still unbeaten. We actually have a chance to qualify today if we win and Napoli beat Kobenhavn, so that's some extra motivation. Regardless, considering how tough the game at home was, I expect we'll have it even more difficult in Bern.

* * *

YOUNG BOYS (4-4-2): David Von Ballmoos (GK); Danilho Doekhi (DR), David Nemeth (DCr), Eduardo Quaresma (DCl), Adrian Bajrami (DL); Christian Fassnacht (MR), Sandro Lauper (MCr), Christopher Martins Pereira (MCl), Munir (ML); Meschack Elia (STr), Kai Arbinger (STl)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Julian Chabot (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Florent Da Silva (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)

* * *

Svensson returns to his former team's stadium for the first time as a starter, and the game starts with Young Boys in command but unable to create any significant danger. That lasts for a bit over ten minutes, at which point we start pushing them back and regaining some lost ground, even managing a shot by Vuskovic that deflects clear off a defender's back. In the 19th minute Vuskovic tries again, this time from almost thirty yards away, and the missile he unleashes is absolutely impossible to stop for Von Ballmoos. Beautiful goal for his first since his arrival a bit over two years ago.

Young Boys still have most of the ball, but the ones looking dangerous are us whenever we manage to steal it back. That happens in the 25th, when an interception by Svensson leads to a high pass towards the right where Sapmaz profits from a missed header by Bajrami and nods it back into the box, so Rijkhoff can simply shoot and score the 0-2. Three minutes later Sapmaz tries a more traditional run-and-cross assist towards the striker, who gets a good header in but finds the keeper in the right place to stop. Afterwards possession becomes more evenly split as Young Boys lose even that small advantage, and we enjoy a pretty relaxing end to the first half.

HALF TIME - 0-2

Young Boys finally have a chance two minutes into the second half, a floating header by Martins after a cross by Arbinger that bubbles wide off the target. Better still is Elia's chance three minutes later after another assist by Arbinger, running past Hadzic and shooting into Kretzschmar's save. But just when it looks like they might have a way back into the game, Rijkhoff smells blood and intercepts a horizontal pass from Nemeth to Quaresma, running alone into the box and circling around the keeper before passing into the back of the net for the 0-3.

With the result clear, we take the chance to give Ulrich and Karlsen some minutes off the bench, replacing Miranda and Da Silva. That, however, might prove to be a bit premature: in the 67th minute Elia sees Munir's run into space and sends a perfect through ball that the veteran forward doesn't waste, scoring the 1-3 and giving the home team renewed hopes of a miracle comeback. Sánchez replaces a solid Svensson after that, and things seem to calm down for a long while, neither keeper having any work to do except for a save by Kretzschmar in the 80th that turns out to be unneeded due to Munir's offside.

Six minutes before full time Munir tries again, breaking through the left side of the penalty area and passing back to Lauper, who somehow sends his finish wide from really close. With the home team pouring forward with all they have we find space for counterattacks, like the one Caraballo launches in the first minute of injury time that Sánchez ends with a poor, wide finish. Thankfully our work until then had been more than enough, and the game ends in a vital away win.

* * *

SC Young Boys 1 (Munir 66)
TSV 1860 München 3 (Darko Vuskovic 19, Julian Rijkhoff 25 53)

- - -

Solid as a rock. For once we were really sharp upfront, too, taking our chances with a very accurate Rijkhoff and a SSR Vuskovic screamer, something he might have to try more often judging by the results. It was a very even game play-wise, but we just created better chances when it mattered and took them, and that was enough. And, as predicted, Napoli's 2-1 win against Kobenhavn means we're already in the knockout rounds! We'll have to defend the first place in Napoli in our next match, a draw is enough to secure it for good.

Dalbeider · July 27, 2023

Nov 6th 2027

A last-minute call-up for Caraballo, who gets a chance to add to his current four senior caps with Venezuela. Svensson with Sweden and Vuskovic with Croatia U21 aren't surprising either, but the shocking one is Serbia calling Stjepanovic when he's not even fit enough to play for us just yet. If he comes back injured again I'm gonna be angry...

On the topic of injuries, here's a pretty worrying one: Maldini will miss four to five weeks with a twisted ankle sustained in training. While our left wing is pretty well covered with various midfielders able to play there well enough, the right wing is much more dependent on Maldini and Sapmaz being healthy. Miranda is the only one who could do a job there, and he'd require a change in role from our usual since he's left-footed. And Sapmaz played the whole game in Bern. Hm...

Nov 7th 2027

Eintracht Frankfurt (13th) vs. TSV 1860 München (6th) (Bundesliga, 11/34)

We've been going through the grinder of difficult fixtures as of late, but thankfully now we get a bit of a break. Eintracht so far have been about as mediocre as in their last two seasons, which puts them closer to the relegation battle than to the European places. Another defeat here could put them in a world of trouble, but we need the three points to keep chasing the top six, so it's not like we can afford to be generous here. Even if we wanted to. Which we don't.

* * *

EINTRACHT (4-2-3-1): Timo Horn (GK); Marvin Friedrich (DR), Jamil Siebert (DCr), Bright Arrey-Mbi (DCl), Matthew Sorinola (DL); Lewis Cook (MCr), Toma Basic (MCl); Datro Fofana (AMR), André Franco (AMC), Bryan Mbeumo (AML); Joe Gelhardt (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Thiago (DM), Jair Rodríguez (MCr), Florent Da Silva (MCl); Matías Miranda (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)

* * *

Miranda takes the right wing in the end, since Sapmaz is still looking a bit tired after the midweek game. We keep our 4-3-3 today despite Eintracht's 4-2-3-1, and we start looking good, Miranda being the first to try his luck with a wide header after a cross by Marcos Paulo. The Portuguese is the next to give it a go, trying a curler from the edge of the box that doesn't curl as much as it should have and goes wide in the end. Eintracht rely on long passes and quick counters, like the one Mbeumo sends wide from a tight angle in the ninth minute, but we remain in control and creating good danger, like a shot by Özcan from close after a low cross by Miranda that Horn manages to deflect wide sixteen minutes in, or the header by Lang held by the keeper in the corner kick that results from that save.

Eintracht hit back with a set piece that Fofana heads over, just as the game enters a period of sterile possession for us. We finally return to action with a good cross by Sánzchez that Özcan can't quite direct towards the goal with his header in the 34th, and in the 39th a long passing play involving most of the team ends with Thiago trying luck from distance and hitting the crossbar, only for the rebound to fall to Marcos Paulo who scores the easiest goal of his career. Eintracht's attempts to get the draw back before half time fizzle with only a weak header by Fofana as a result, and we go to the showers with our lead still intact.

HALF TIME - 0-1

The start of the second half is slow, just like we want it, and there are basically no attempts at goal on either goal for over fifteen minutes. Karlsen is our first substitution once again, replacing Da Silva, and a while later it's Sapmaz and Svensson replacing the tired Miranda and Sánchez. Meanwhile Eintracht try to put us under pressure, but there's always a defender ready to put their foot in the way at the last instant to prevent a dangerous shot. Another bad header by Fofana in a corner kick is the only exception, and that's already in the 68th minute of the game.

It takes them nine more minutes to try again, this time with Basic heading a cross by Fofana into Kretzschmar's hands, his first somewhat demanding save of the game. Horn has much more trouble with Özcan's header two minutes later, barely managing to block it and giving his defense a difficult job to clear the ball from danger. Karlsen shoots over the bar immediately after following a great pass by Marcos Paulo, then Lang performs another timely block to prevent a dangerous shot by Gelhardt. Sorinola blasts another shot well over the bar with only seven minutes on the clock, just before Eintracht move to a 4-4-1-1 formation for... some reason. Thanks to that the only other shot before the final whistle is by Marcos Paulo, and well saved by Horn. Nice result, if a bit lucky.

* * *

Eintracht Frankfurt 0
TSV 1860 München 1 (Marcos Paulo 39)

- - -

Better lucky than dead, as they say. Today we found ourselves with a lead after Marcos Paulo profited from a rebound, and then proceeded to defend like our lives depended on it, with Lang in particular blocking shot after shot before they even reached Kretzschmar's domain. Eintracht just couldn't break through despite many attempts, and we ran away with the points in the end. Great result given the circumstances, and one position gained on the table. In other news, Gladbach are now in the relegation playoff position and Van Bommel gets the sack, ouch.

Dalbeider · July 31, 2023

Nov 11th 2027

International break for us to recover our tired legs after such a stressing run of games. Except for our internationals, of course: Rodríguez plays most of the game in Mexico's surprise 1-0 defeat against Honduras, and Özcan enjoys 90 solid minutes in Turkey's 1-0 win against Costa Rica.

Better news come from the infirmary (well, Serbia's infirmary anyway), though, as Stjepanovic is back in full training! He damaged his cruciate ligaments back in April, and seven months later he's finally available for selection. He still has some work to do to get his fitness levels back up to scratch, but the hard part is finally over. Happy for the lad.

Nov 13th 2027

Full game performances for Caraballo and Hadzic, too, with the latter looking really good while the former had a bit of a stinker in a 0-1 defeat against Colombia. Svensson also has a good game in Sweden's 3-1 win over Slovakia.

Nov 16th 2027

Well, good news: Stjepanovic is healthy enough to play a whole competitive game. Too bad he did it with Serbia before doing it with us but hey, it shows they're not paying his wages if they're willing to risk him to that extent in a meaningless Euro qualifyer. Oh well, he did really well in a 2-0 win over Latvia and felt just fine afterwards, so maybe it was all good. Özcan came off the bench for Turkey in a 0-1 loss to the Rijkhoff-less Netherlands.

Nov 19th 2027

TSV 1860 München (5th) vs. VfL Wolfsburg (14th) (Bundesliga, 12/34)

Finally done with the international matches for 2027, it's time to return to the "easy" part of the Bundesliga with Wolfsburg coming to town. Dzeko's boys are having another torrid year, barely hanging on just above the relegation places but very much threatened by the teams below them. Current form aside, we've won our last three games against them, so this is a great chance to get three more points and continue pushing for a second year in Europe.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Thiago (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Florent Da Silva (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)
WOLFSBURG (4-3-3): Nico Mantl (GK); Pascal Stenzl (DR), Niklas Stark (DCr), Moritz Jenz (DCl), Lennart Czyborra (DL); Gianluca Busio (DM), Dani Ceballos (MCr), Maximilian Arnold (MCl); Jovane Cabral (AMR), Luka Ivanusec (AML), Luca Waldschmidt (ST)

* * *

A few of our internationals, most notably Caraballo and Svensson, are too exhausted to play today, so they take the bench and save energy for the trip to Napoli coming next. Stjepanovic also makes the bench, and might have some minutes in the second half to help him build up his fitness. We push our lines forward from the start to put Wolfsburg under pressure and it pays off quickly, with Baldé intercepting a clearance and assisting Marcos Paulo, who is only denied by Mantl's good dive. Rijkhoff goes even closer when he heads the corner kick mere inches away from the post, and our pressure keeps increasing as we dominate the early game with apparent ease.

Another good save by Mantl tips wide a shot by Sánchez that didn't look like it was going on target anyway, and Marcos Paulo follows with a high header to keep Mantl worrying. The goal looks like a matter of time, but Wolfsburg learn how to plug the holes in their defense and keep us at bay for the following minutes, even launching a counter or two that end nowhere important. They first serious attack comes in the 28th with a long ball into space for Czyborra, who outruns Lang but shoots very narrowly wide in the end.

Nine minutes later it's finally our turn once again, and Miranda couldn't get any closer with his left-footed shot from just inside the box that clips the outside of the post and goes wide. That's our last chance, however, and Wolfsburg manage to hold us back for the whole first half.

HALF TIME - 0-0

We obviously needed the break to gather some fresh ideas, and afterwards we go back at it with Sánchez sending a ball from deep towards Rijkhoff, who hits it first time but can't get the aim correctly. Mantl then saves a point-blank header by Land in a corner kick with a show of reflexes and confidence, then the keeper goes down to save and hold an attempt from distance by Da Silva. After a while we remove Sapmaz from the game to give Rodríguez the nod, moving Miranda to the right and instructing Baldé to push further forward along the right wing.

That seems to do the trick, and soon Miranda assists Rijkhoff with a good nod, but once again there's Mantl to save a not particularly strong finish. Dani Ceballos shoots over the bar from outside the box in Wolfsburg's first show of attacking intent of the half, which Rijkhoff replicates with a similarly high attempt one minute later. With time ticking against us we decide to bring Caraballo and Karlsen into the game, and in the 71st we finally break through: Miranda takes a corner kick towards the far post and Lang heads it in perfectly to score the 1-0 we'd been deserving for a while now.

A knock on Miranda soon afterwards gives us some reason to worry, but the Argentinian looks able to at least finish the game. He still has enough in him to run the wing and cross towards Rijkhoff in the 81st, the striker's volley well aimed and powerful, but straight at Mantl's body. A pass by Karlsen two minutes later allows Miranda a chance to shoot which he wastes with a terribly high finish, but at the very least we're keeping Wolfsburg busy defending instead of pushing for the draw, and our minimal lead turns out to be enough in the end. Three more points.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 1 (Niklas Lang 71)
Vfl Wolfsburg 0

- - -

I did say a couple of months ago that as soon as the pieces started clicking together properly we'd go back to our solid version from last season, didn't I? Looks like we're already there. We've had two notable defensive performances in a row now, and even our attack isn't looking half bad, despite missing chances by the dozen. Baldé, Lang, and Miranda were the standouts today in a short but comfortable win, and even better, Miranda's injury turns out to be a very minor bruise in his ankle, he'll be fine after a day or two of rest.

Dalbeider · August 1, 2023

Nov 23rd 2027

Lang and Manu Sánchez are half of the defense in the Team of the Week.

Gods above, we might have a problem soon: Real Madrid and Manchester United are reportedly interested in signing Kretzschmar. That would be a huge sale for sure, but also a huge blow, losing our best homegrown talent and an absolute pillar of the squad. Let's hope it all comes to nothing, but I know if they come knocking I won't have a way to stop them...

Nov 25th 2027

S.S.C. Napoli vs. TSV 1860 München (Europa League group F, 5/6)

It's nice to visit the Diego Armando Maradona Stadium with all the work already done. Well, most of it: we still have to secure the first place to have a more favorable draw for the knockout round, but even losing today we have a great chance to keep our place anyway. Regardless, we'll still look for a result today so we can relax completely in the final fixture.

* * *

NAPOLI (4-4-2): Luis Maximiano (GK); Lutsharel Geertruida (DR), Matteo Lovato (DCr), Edmond Tapsoba (DCl), Giuseppe Pezzella (DL); Otávio (MR), Nicolas Seiwald (MCr), Fabián (MCl), Piotr Zielinski (ML); Rafa Mir (STr), Rodrygo (STl)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Jair Rodríguez (MCr), Florent Da Silva (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)

* * *

Napoli change their outlook from the 4-2-3-1 we destroyed back in Munich to another flat 4-4-2, which we're coming across a lot this season, generally with good results. Today's big news is Stjepanovic's first start after his injury, and we don't hesitate to push forward from the start despite not really needing a win today. Napoli slowly regain control, though, and although they don't really give us much to think about in defense, at least they hold the ball.

There's no danger on either goal until the 25th minute, when a long attack with various phases finally reaches Sapmaz inside the box. The winger shoots into Pezzella's legs, Caraballo then tries to get the loose ball but again a defender blocks, and that last bounce happens to land firmly in Özcan's head, allowing the striker to just aim it in the goal's general direction and score a pretty comical goal as a birthday gift for himself. Napoli still have more of the ball, but we just have it better, keeping Maximiano on his toes whenever we approach their goal. The game continues in that vein until the final minutes of the half, when Napoli do get dangerously close to our goal in a cross by Pezzella that reaches Rafa Mir, but Stjepanovic tackles him before he can shoot. Effortlessly ahead at half time.

HALF TIME - 0-1

We start the second half looking for another goal, with Svensson soon finding a lot of space to run to until Lovato goes down to block his shot. On the other end of the pitch Gerometta and Lang double-team Rodrygo the one time the Brazilian tries to break free and chase a long ball, and the chance is aborted. Soon after Stjepanovic is replaced by Casas after a pretty decent return to action, while Miranda goes to the right wing in Sapmaz's place. In the 65th Napoli finally find a way when Zielinski breaks free of Gerometta and crosses into the box, Kretzschmar blocks Anderson's initial finish, but Rafa Mir gathers the rebound and scores the 1-1 unopposed.

Karlsen replaces Da Silva as our final substitution and both teams go looking for the winner, although the defenses once again are always one step ahead, plugging the holes and closing any gaps through which a shot could sneak. It's in fact one of those blocks, by Lovato to a cross by Miranda, that almost becomes the 1-2 accidentally, but thankfully for poor Maximiano the ball rolls very narrowly wide for a corner kick instead. The keeper is not so lucky in the 73rd when Özcan trades passes with Karlsen through the center, runs into the box, and blasts it in to restore our lead.

Napoli look defeated for about ten minutes afterwards, and only a corner kick that Pezzella heads very narrowly wide in the 85th gives them some hope back. A badly high finish by Anderson in a counterattack four minutes later gives us another scare, but after that we close shop and lock it tightly, taking the three points back to Germany with us.

* * *

S.S.C. Napoli 1 (Rafa Mir 65)
TSV 1860 München 2 (Vedat Özcan 25 73)

- - -

Pretty lucky win today, a draw was probably the fairest of results, but Özcan had a birthday to remember and that's all it took. Not much else to say about the game, really, there wasn't the usual competitive tension in the air today, which probably made for a bit of a lackluster performance, but it still was enough to beat the best team in the group again. First place secured, and now we can take it easy in the final game against Kobenhavn. Who, by the way, still have a chance to qualify if they beat us and Napoli don't win in Bern.

Dalbeider · August 2, 2023

Nov 28th 2027

1.FC Heidenheim 1846 (17th) vs. TSV 1860 München (4th) (Bundesliga, 13/34)

We now head into another intense week with three games in six days, with the middle one against Leverkusen being the critical fixture for this part of the schedule. Before that, though, a trip to just-promoted Heidenheim who, as expected, are having a tough time in the Bundesliga, although not as bad as Paderborn. They're just one point away from Wolfsburg in the playoff position and two away from complete safety, so this won't be as easy as it may look at first glance.

* * *

HEIDENHEIM (4-2-3-1): Timothee Lo-Tutala (GK); Raphael Framberger (DR), Sharqia (DCr), Kasim Adams (DCl), Jonas Föhrenbach (DL); Dominik Kohr (MCr), Paul Seguin (MCl); Franco Tongya (AMR), Leo Castledine (AMC), Lee Jae-Sung (AML); Tim Kleindienst (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Julian Chabot (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Thiago (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Florent Da Silva (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)

* * *

We haven't played against Heidenheim since our last year in the 2.Bundesliga, and we actually lost both games back then, so not exactly good memories. Kleindienst is the only remaining player from that team, though, so there won't be many callbacks today. Casas misses out today with a last second bruise, prompting Chabot's return to the lineup. We go hard on the pressing from the start, disrupting their buildup and generating some early danger through steals in midfield, although our first chance comes in a corner kick that Rijkhoff heads and Föhrenbach clears off the line. The striker has another in the 8th minute after a quick one-two with Sapmaz, but this time it's Lo-Tutala who deflects his finish wide.

Two minutes later we turn on the style for good, with a first-touch passing play between Da Silva, Rijkhoff, Miranda, and Sapmaz, with the winger finishing it all with a placed finish that leaves the keeper unable to even react. Beautiful team goal. We take a more controlling approach after the goal, letting time pass while Heidenheim tire themselves chasing after the ball. Not much happens chances-wise until the 28th when Miranda and Sapmaz connect once again, this time with the winger shooting with power from the edge of the box and Lo-Tutala tipping it over the bar. The keeper also saves Rijkhoff's header in the following corner kick, then watches as Miranda half-volleys a cross by Sánchez narrowly wide to his left. Another shot by Miranda into Lo-Tutala's hands marks the end of a very comfy first half.

HALF TIME - 0-1

Things remain calm in the first fifteen minutes of the second half, with Heidenheim barely threatening us and Kretzschmar still bored out of his mind. Rodríguez then gives Miranda some rest, keeping him fresh for what's coming midweek, while Karlsen takes Da Silva's place. In the 64th arrives Heidenheim's first shot on target, a direct free kick by Castledine that Kretzschmar has some trouble swatting away from the top corner, leading to some scrambling for the loose ball inside the box before it's finally cleared by Hadzic. Stjepanovic comes in for Chabot then, looking to get some more minutes into his legs.

We haven't done much in attack after halftime, but in the 74th Thiago spots a good run by Sapmaz and sends the ball to him, prompting a one-on-one that Lo-Tutala solves with confidence. And then nothing else, on either goal, until two minutes before the 90th an isolated corner kick for Heidenheim reaches the far post, and Kleindienst is there to head it in and draw the game. We don't have time to get back into an attacking mindset, and the game ends tied.

* * *

1.FC Heidenheim 1846 1 (Tim Kleindienst 88)
TSV 1860 München 1 (Can Sapmaz 9)

- - -

We owed karma a few chips, I guess. To be fair we made it easy for them today, after the goal we just took it waaay too easy, speculating a bit too much and with an unhealthy dose of overconfidence on top. It was bound to happen, even if Heidenheim did basically nothing to deserve a goal today. Oh well, let's take it as a wake-up call, we've had too many close wins we probably didn't deserve lately. HSV and Leverkusen leapfrog us on the table, and now the upcoming game against the latter is even more important than before.

Dalbeider · August 3, 2023

Dec 1st 2027

TSV 1860 München (6th) vs. Bayer 04 Leverkusen (5th) (Bundesliga, 14/34)

Last season we beat Leverkusen 4-0 in a high-stakes fixture with Europe on the line. This season Leverkusen beat us 4-0 in a high-stakes fixture with survival in the DFB Pokal on the line. Today we have another high-stakes fixture in which the winner can take the loser out of Europe for the time being and establish dominance in what's likely to be a close-fought battle come the end of the season. Let's see which version of ourselves we find today...

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Jair Rodríguez (MCr), Florent Da Silva (MCl); Matías Miranda (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)
LEVERKUSEN (4-2-3-1 deep): Maarten Vandevoordt (GK); Kluiverth Aguilar (DR), Marco Kana (DCr), Pascual Piera (DCl), Jefté (DL); Giacomo Faticanti (DMCr), Eyüp Aydin (DMCl); Moussa Diaby (AMR), Florian Wirtz (AMC), Gabriel Pirani (AML), Marcos Leonardo (ST)

* * *

Maldini almost makes the bench today, but in the end we decide to play it safe and save his reappearance for the weekend. Leverkusen show an almost whole new defense compared to our last meeting, but their main threat, Marcos Leonardo (20 goals already) remains. That new defense turns to be their undoing, though: four minutes into the game Özcan speeds past Piera and into the box and the center back trips him clearly, gifting us an early penalty kick that Da Silva turns into the 1-0.

Leverkusen remain a danger, though, and soon Faticanti has a good chance to draw the game in a corner kick he heads narrowly over. Stjepanovic answers with a Beckenbauer-like run forward before combining with Miranda and Özcan, who gets his finish deflected wide by Vandevoordt. In the 14th Gerometta finds himself with space to cross and sends the ball towards the far post, where Caraballo, who'd had a couple of suspicious performances as of late, volleys it in left-footed to double our lead. Now we can afford to control the game and keep the ball close to our feet.

We do so with ease, and in the 29th Miranda decides to spice things up a bit with an individual run into the box and a placed finish that Vandevoordt has to work to turn around the post. Leverkusen finally show some teeth in the 36th minute with a long ball towards Marcos Leonardo, who blasts it miles over when put under pressure by our center-backs. Injury time brings a fantastic movement by Özcan, who leaves Kana for dead and runs at the keeper only to find his finish blocked in what becomes the last chance of a very one-sided first half.

HALF TIME - 2-0

It's only fifteen seconds of the second half and Özcan is already heading a cross by Miranda over the bar, just to keep Leverkusen on their toes. Two minutes later the striker intercepts the ball inside the box and shoots first time into Vandervoordt's miracle save, which he repeats again when Miranda tries to score on the rebound. The miracles end there, though, and the corner taken by Miranda towards the far post is met by Özcan with a powerful downwards header to score the 3-0.

We're riding the wave now, and in the 50th two new miracles, this time performed by Leverkusen's center-backs, prevent two point-blank finishes from Caraballo and Rodríguez from finding the back of the net. On the other goal Leverkusen try with another corner kick that Piera tries to smash in from a tight angle but Svensson covers his post well and kicks it away. Another strong block by Stjepanovic prevents another point-blank finish by Marcos Leonardo, then Kretzschmar saves a header by the striker in another corner kick.

To prevent any more shenanigans we make a triple change then, bringing Thiago, Sapmaz, and Karlsen into the game. The substitutions seem to bring Leverkusen's attack to a screeching halt, and after fifteen minutes of calm Karlsen suddenly breaks through the right wing, stops, and sends a perfect cross towards the far post so Caraballo can head it in and score the traditional 1860-Leverkusen result of 4-0. After that neither team seems willing or able to attack anymore, so the final fifteen minutes are just a long celebration for the fans while the players watch the minutes tick away. A great win.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 4 (Florent Da Silva 5p, Rodrigo Caraballo 14 75, Vedat Özcan 49)
Bayer 04 Leverkusen 0

- - -

Perfection, once again. Looks like we can only win big or lose big against this team, at least since Simeone is in charge. Özcan, Caraballo, and Miranda had an absolute stormer today, and our defense was really solid too, including a good-as-new Stjepanovic. Fourth place recovered, and we reopen a bit of a gap ahead of our rivals for the Champions League. Let's see if it lasts.

Dalbeider · August 4, 2023

Dec 2nd 2027

Celtic and RB Leipzig join the growing list of Kretzschmar's suitors. The one thing I know for certain is that I'm not selling him to Leipzig, nor Bayern, nor any other team in the Bundesliga. Other than that it'll be up to the player and to the teams chasing him, but they should expect to pay through their noses.

Dec 4th 2027

1.FSV Mainz 05 (13th) vs. TSV 1860 München (4th) (Bundesliga, 15/34)

We end this quickfire run of games with a trip to Mainz, who are having a very... Mainz-like season. Still stuck in the bottom half and with little hope of pushing much higher, their aim is to keep the relegation candidates below at bay. Feels weird to say, but we play in a different league nowadays. We should be winning this.

* * *

MAINZ (4-2-3-1): Marvin Schwäbe (GK); Joe Scally (DR), Omar Rekik (DCr), Márton Dárdai (DCl), Mathias Farnes Gabrielsen (DL); Frank Hennig (MCr), Eduard Löwen (MCl); Tore Os (AMR), Mohammed Diomandé (AMC), Paulos Abraham (AML); Alessio Besio (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DM), Jair Rodríguez (MCr), Matías Miranda (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)

* * *

Partial rotation today, since a few players like Lang, Svensson, and Rijkhoff have been complaining about wanting more starts and we now have five days and an irrelevant Europa League game to rest them. The game starts slow, with us holding the ball by not risking it, and this patient approach finally leads to a shot by Rijkhoff that Schwäbe blocks right next to his right post. Mainz respond with an attempt by Löwen that hits Lang and bounces up before falling into Kretzschmar's arms.

After a while we decide to switch to a slightly higher gear, although chances are still hard to come by for both teams. Closest thing is a direct free kick that Dárdai smashes into the fence, while our only good approach, a saved finish by Marcos Paulo after a nice nod from Rijkhoff, is not even valid due to offside. In the 43rd, though, Sapmaz finally breaks free from Gabrielsen and sends a cross towards the small box, where Rijkhoff stretches to get ahead of Rekik and push it over the line for the 0-1. With that ends a very low-key first half.

HALF TIME - 0-1

The second half doesn't exactly turn into an attacking festival, but Mainz do get an early chance in a corner kick that Dárdai heads into Kretzschmar's hands. There's no continuity, though, and we feel comfortable enough to bring a few substitutes into the game early to keep our legs fresh. One of them is Maldini, who returns to action after his injury, while Hadzic takes Lang's place in our defense. Right before the substitutions take place, though, Sapmaz is tripped from behind by Gabrielsen and the left back is shown his second yellow card, making our job even easier.

The game is ready for us to score a second and confirm our win for good, and Rijkhoff gets the closest one can get after he gathers a through ball from Rodríguez and runs at Schwäbe before smashing his finish into the crossbar. Da Silva replaces Miranda afterwards after another great game in midfield by the Argentinian, and Rodríguez increases our woodwork count with a direct free kick that bounces off the top of the crossbar before going over. The goal is coming, though, and it arrives in the 82nd after a long play ends with Rodríguez passing the ball back towards the front of the area so Thiago can shoot with power and precision and score the 0-2, and his first since his arrival. With that the game is effectively over, and the remaining minutes pass without further incident. A professional job.

* * *

1.FSV Mainz 05 0 (Mathias Farnes Gabrielsen sent off 65)
TSV 1860 München 2 (Julian Rijkhoff 43, Thiago 82)

- - -

Rock solid once again. Very similar to the Heidenheim game at times, with us always in control but not really pushing for all we're worth in attack despite our superiority. Thankfully this time the sending off removed any chances Mainz had of stealing points from us, and a beauty by Thiago sealed the deal in the end. No complaints whatsoever. HSV and Leverkusen keep pace with us, but Leipzig and Dortmund drop two points apiece in Paderborn and Stuttgart, and now they're "only" four and six points ahead.

Oh, and the press didn't have anything better to ask me about than Köln's recently vacated manager post. Been a while. Still no.

Dalbeider · August 7, 2023

Dec 7th 2027

Svensson and Caraballo populate the whole left wing of the Team of the Week.

Dec 9th 2027

TSV 1860 München vs. FC Kobenhavn (Europa League group F, 6/6)

A friendly in everything but name, really, at least for us: Kobenhavn need a win to put some pressure on Napoli for the second place. We don't mind either way, so we'll play our youngsters and reserves and save our starters for the really important Bundesliga games coming in the following days.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Valentino Quintero (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Thiago (DM), Martin Karlsen (MCr), Laurin Ulrich (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)
KOBENHAVN (4-4-2): Lawrence Zigi (GK); Petr Václavik (DR), Morten Pedersen (DCr), Davit Khocholava (DCl), Miguel Gutiérrez (DL); Anders Dreyer (MR), Mateusz Bogusz (MCr), Takuhiro Nakai (MCl), Trym Brubak (ML); Lasse Jepsen (STr), Dias (STl)

* * *

Funnily enough, Kobenhavn are currently managerless after David Nielsen moved to Lazio, and their caretaker has switched into a flat 4-4-2, which serves us just fine. We start a mix of youngsters and players in need of fitness, plus Quintero, who gets an unexpected game after the cup exit. This patchwork starting eleven starts really well, with Sánchez and Caraballo combining so the Venezuelan shoots with power into Zigi's fist save. Our next attacks run into a defender at some point before the final shot, but a volley by Özcan after a cross by Maldini forces Zigi into another difficult save in the 9th minute. The corner kick is cleared, but the play continues into a cross by Sánchez that Özcan heads perfectly, downwards and away from the keeper's reach, to score the 1-0.

Two minutes later Karlsen sends into the clouds a chance to make it two following a great pass into space by Caraballo, and in the 15th Özcan's pressure on the defense bears fruit when he intercepts a terrible pass by Pedersen and walks into the box unopposed to score the 2-0 with supreme ease. After that we flip the "keep the ball" switch and start dominating in earnest, not giving Kobenhavn a sniff until in the 30th minute Maldini finds Özcan inside the penalty area, the striker shoots into the post, and Caraballo grabs the rebound to score the 3-0. Six minutes later, though, a cross by Bruback reaches Jepsen, who outjumps Ulrich and loops the ball over Kretzschmar to cut our lead back to two. The rest of the half goes by without any noteworthy news, and we maintain a healthy result at the break.

HALF TIME - 3-1

Özcan clearly wants a hattrick, and he almost gets it with a perfectly placed shot from the edge of the box early into the second half that only Zigi's self-propelled flight prevents from going in. However, in the 53rd, a good movement by Kobenhavn leaves them with superiority down the left flank, and their players combine well through that gap to allow Jepsen to score the 3-2, not conveniently defended by Quintero. Dias then tries luck from afar but misses the target by a mile and a half, just before we bring our first substitutions into the game, namely Sapmaz and Casas replacing the recently recovered Stjepanovic and Maldini.

Caraballo gathers a great pass by Özcan, undisputed man of the match, in the 63rd minute and bears down on Zigi, but runs out of space and the keeper has an easy time blocking his shot. Rodríguez then gives Thiago a chance to rest and moves Ulrich to the anchor, but that turns out to be a bad idea: Ulrich loses the ball in midfield, Hartmann assists Dias, and the striker runs into the box and shoots past Quintero, once again very static, to draw the game. Jepsen then has a chance to complete an unlikely comeback after Hadzic fails to measure a long pass into the box, but thankfully this time the striker blasts it over.

Kobenhavn now believe they can win this and pour forward, creating a few minor chances the best of which is a header by Hartmann that Quintero saves and holds with both hands. We also hit them on the break, and Rodríguez almost grabs the decider one minute before the 90th after a quick run by Sapmaz, but smashes his shot against a defender. In the end, though, neither team manages to break a tie that leaves everyone unsatisfied.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 3 (Vedat Özcan 9 15, Rodrigo Caraballo 30)
FC Kobenhavn 3 (Lasse Jepsen 36 53, Dias 75)

- - -

Good thing this game didn't matter, because by the gods that I'd be throwing bottles at the wall if it did. I have no idea what happened there, but I sure hope it never happens again. Özcan was great today, though, the kid's looking better by the day. No wonder Inter value him so highly. The result didn't matter for Kobenhavn either in the end, since Napoli won easily in Bern and secured the second place no matter what happened here. We get a bye in the first knockout round now, so we'll have to wait until it's done in February to know who'll be our next rivals in the competition.

Dalbeider · August 8, 2023

Dec 10th 2027

With Stjepanovic back in action it was about time to consider returning Chabot to Dortmund, but Klopp beat us to the punch by calling to complain that he wasn't playing enough. Well, good thing you called, Jurgen... Five minutes later the player is on his way back to his club. He was decent enough when he played, for sure, but certainly not worth the €37.5k we were paying him each week. And that's just half of his total wages! Now we can put that money to better use, like extending some expiring deals or offering a new contract to Kretzschmar before he's taken away from us.

Problem is, Kretzschmar just wants too much. The interest of such big teams means he knows he can get a much better contract elsewhere, so he's asking for wages we just can't afford to offer him, and which the board would block if we did anyway. Not to mention wanting a €9.5M release clause for Champions League clubs in exchange for not asking for even more money. A real shame, but I wouldn't be surprised if he left this coming January.

Dec 12th 2027

TSV 1860 München (4th) vs. Hamburger SV (5th) (Bundesliga, 16/34)

With most of the German football world focusing exclusively on der Klassiker between Dortmund and Bayern, we also have our very own "title" decider today against Hamburg, one of those teams that always, without fail, give us a lot of trouble. They're building on their successful Champions League challenge from the last season and look set to be there or thereabouts by the end of the year, so a win is imperative today if we want to keep them at bay and gain an important advantage.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-2-3-1 deep): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DMCr), Darko Vuskovic (DMCl); Matías Miranda (MC); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)
HSV (4-2-3-1): Yoshiaki Ichikawa (GK); Joel Agyekum (DR), Ron Schallenberg (DCr), Justin Janitzek (DCl), Andrii Buleza (DL); Burak Ince (MCr), Ludovit Reis (MCl); Xavier Amaechi (AMR), Tin Vrljicak (AMC), Filip Ristanic (AML); Kevin Schade (ST)

* * *

We return to our 4-2-3-1 formation to counter HSV's predictable high press tactic, facing an almost completely new forward line in which Schade still remains as their most advanced player, ready to score against us once again. The match starts really even, with us holding the ball but Hamburg defending well and looking dangerous on the break, and actually having the first chance in a pass by Amaechi gathered by Ristanic, who shoots into Kretzschmar's emergency save. Neither team is attacking with any kind of consistency, though, and the best we can produce in a bit over twenty minutes is a soft header by Rijkhoff that Ichikawa gathers with ease.

Our control of possession allows us to push HSV back little by little, though, and in the 24th a good cross by Vuskovic leads to Maldini's header, well blocked by Ichikawa for a corner kick. Casas has another header in a different corner kick five minutes later, although this one goes narrowly over, and it seems like we're slowly but surely becoming the better team on the pitch. That's when HSV remind us who they are, with a dangerous run by Schade that ends in a cross towards Ristanic, who heads it over the bar. After that, though, the ball gets mired in midfield and the keepers can have a bit of a breather until the end of the half.

HALF TIME - 0-0

The players look fired up after the break, soon creating an attack down the right flank that leads to Miranda's header, not too difficult for Ichikawa. More dangerous is Buleza's cross in the 50th, headed by Vrljicak from close range but well saved by the always well positioned Kretzschmar. Six minutes later Buleza sends another cross into the box, Schade is somehow paired with the much smaller Svensson, and the striker gets a perfect header in to score the 0-1 for Hamburg. Same old.

We react immediately, bringing Rodríguez, Sapmaz, and Caraballo into the game and switching to our usual 4-3-3, and right off the bat Sapmaz performs a great dribble past Buleza and crosses to an apparently easy finish by Caraballo, who nonetheless mishits the ball and sends it wide. We keep knocking on the door for the following minutes, but we don't create anything as good as that instant chance until the 76th, when a corner kick reaches Rijkhoff in the far post, but the striker can't bring it down and the ball sails over. Two minutes later Sapmaz sets Rijkhoff up for another great chance, one on one against Ichikawa, but the keeper wins this round too and the ball is deflected wide.

Time is running out on us and desperation starts settling in, but in the 88th minute Svensson sends a long diagonal pass into Sapmaz's path, and the winger runs into the box unopposed and places the ball past Ichikawa to score the 1-1, confirmed by VAR a while later. The players are fired up now, and a steal and cross by Sapmaz in injury time almost becomes the winner, but Rodríguez finds Janitzek in the way of his finish and all we get is another corner kick. We keep trying until the end, but there are no more chances to be had and the game ends in a draw.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 1 (Can Sapmaz 88)
Hamburger SV 1 (Kevin Schade 56)

- - -

I hate Schade so, so much. Sigh... At least we can have the consolation prize of deserving the win today, we had more and better chances and should've scored at least one more in the second half, particularly one of those near-misses by Caraballo and Rijkhoff. Still, Sapmaz heroics off the bench are always a thing of beauty. Oh well, looks like HSV will remain a thorn in our side for a bit longer.

Dortmund absolutely dominate Bayern in der Klassiker and score a momentous 5-2 win (Bayern's first league defeat of the season so far) putting themselves only one point behind the current champions, and allowing Leipzig to also get within reach of the top spot. The Bundesliga is still alive.

Dalbeider · August 10, 2023

Dec 13th 2027

Not one but two job interview offers out of nowhere. The culprits were Köln (expected after that question from the press a while ago) and Hertha (not so much, they sacked Dárdai a week ago), and both get the usual line of "I'm sorry, this can't work. It's not you, it's me."

Meanwhile transfer rumor season is already in full swing with only a bit over two weeks remaining until the winter window. First one in the headlines is, somewhat surprisingly, Svensson, who is reportedly Freiburg's main target. €20M or bust, guys, he's not moving otherwise.

Dec 14th 2027

Gigachad Sapmaz with the Team of the Week appearance off the bench.

Dec 17th 2027

RasenBallsport Leipzig (3rd) vs. TSV 1860 München (4th) (Bundesliga, 17/34)

Early end of the first half of the season, since we get the Friday fixture this week in our trip to Leipzig. The Red Bull fellows are doing their best to keep Bayern's and Dortmund's pace, but they still look like the weakest link in this top three. Let's see if we can give them a scare and pull them down into a whole different battle.

* * *

RB LEIPZIG (4-2-3-1): Alexander Nübel (GK); Wilfried Singo (DR), Kamil Piatkowski (DCr), Felix Uduokhai (DCl), Angeliño (DL); Jakub Moder (MCr), Nedim Bajrami (MCl); Francisco Conceiçao (AMR), Fábio Carvalho (AMC), Alan Velasco (AML); Patson Daka (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-2-3-1 deep): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DMCr), Darko Vuskovic (DMCl); Matías Miranda (MC); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)

* * *

We repeat our "defensive" formation since we know Leipzig love pressing us high, with some minor changes in the lineup from our last fixture. Leipzig get an early chance in a corner kick that Moder heads over Kretzschmar and into the crossbar, then Velasco follows it up with another header to a cross by Singo, this one wide. As expected, they're not pulling any punches. We try our best to get away from their early pressure, which directly leads to a ball lost in the build-up and a high shot by Daka as he tries to surprise Kretzschmar, and after some minutes without shots at our goal it looks like we've survived the first wave.

The second is a whole another matter, though: Singo runs down the right wing and crosses directly towards the goal, forcing Kretzschmar to punch the ball away but only as far as Daka, who scores easily to put Leipzig ahead. Immediately after that we mount our first real attack, with Caraballo nudging the ball under Moder's legs and assisting Rijkhoff, who shoots left-footed and weakly into Nübel's hands. Kretzschmar then does well to save and hold a dangerous header by Daka, but in the 29th Vuskovic trips Moder inside the box and the penalty is clear even before VAR's intervention. Bajrami beats Kretzschmar from the spot, and the game is starting to run away from us.

Once again we try to hit back right after kick off, and once again Caraballo sets up a good chance, this time with a pass into space ahead of Miranda who also sees his finish denied by Nübel, as does Stjepanovic in the following corner kick. Velasco then hits us back with a good run into the box from the right wing that he finishes by shooting into the sidenetting, and in the 35th Stjeppanovic tries again in another corner kick, this time nodding the ball slightly over the bar. We're improving, but we'll need more than this if we want to get something out of this game in the second half.

HALF TIME - 2-0

We give it ten minutes until we pull the trigger and bring in three players and a formation change, similarly to what we did against Hamburg: Rodríguez, Sapmaz, and Özcan are the chosen ones this time, but there's no immediate effect other than a good chance on the wrong goal, with Carvalho breaking through the center and shooting into Kretzschmar's block. We slowly push forward, although not every effectively when it comes to creating danger, while Leipzig keep hitting us with balls into space that generate good chances, like one for Joao Mário in the 73rd minute that Kretzschmar once again stops.

The keeper needs to perform once again two minutes later, stopping a long-range attempt by Paulo Bernardo, then watches as Barrow sends wide an absolute sitter in the 80th after a great through ball tears our defense apart. In the final ten minutes they seem to take pity on us, though, and stop their attacks in order to keep the ball and prevent any of our desperate attempts at a last-second comeback. Not a good note to end the year with.

* * *

RasenBallsport Leipzig 2 (Patson Daka 19, Nedim Bajrami 30p)
TSV 1860 München 0

- - -

Nah, this was terrible. Neither tactic worked today, we just didn't have the required skill level to put them under even the tiniest bit of pressure all game long. This could've easily been a 4-0 if they'd even bothered to try. Still worlds apart.

* * *

| Pos | Team                | Pld   | Won   | Drn   | Lst   | For   | Ag    | GD    | Pts   | Form  | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 1st | FC Bayern           | 17    | 13    | 3     | 1     | 55    | 14    | 41    | 42    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 2nd | Borussia Dortmund   | 17    | 13    | 2     | 2     | 35    | 18    | 17    | 41    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 3rd | RB Leipzig          | 17    | 12    | 3     | 2     | 43    | 19    | 24    | 39    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 4th | Bayer Leverkusen    | 17    | 10    | 2     | 5     | 30    | 22    | 8     | 32    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 5th | Hamburg             | 17    | 9     | 4     | 4     | 30    | 20    | 10    | 31    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 6th | 1860 München        | 17    | 9     | 3     | 5     | 26    | 15    | 11    | 30    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 7th | Stuttgart           | 17    | 8     | 3     | 6     | 31    | 28    | 3     | 27    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 8th | Freiburg            | 17    | 7     | 5     | 5     | 25    | 27    | -2    | 26    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 9th | Frankfurt           | 17    | 7     | 3     | 7     | 28    | 25    | 3     | 24    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 10th| Hertha BSC          | 17    | 7     | 2     | 8     | 24    | 27    | -3    | 23    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 11th| Nürnberg            | 17    | 5     | 5     | 7     | 23    | 25    | -2    | 20    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 12th| Köln                | 17    | 5     | 4     | 8     | 23    | 27    | -4    | 19    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 13th| Borussia M'gladbach | 17    | 4     | 5     | 8     | 17    | 26    | -9    | 17    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 14th| Mainz               | 17    | 4     | 4     | 9     | 23    | 33    | -10   | 16    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 15th| Fortuna Düsseldorf  | 17    | 4     | 4     | 9     | 22    | 38    | -16   | 16    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 16th| Heidenheim          | 17    | 2     | 4     | 11    | 21    | 46    | -25   | 10    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 17th| Wolfsburg           | 17    | 2     | 3     | 12    | 12    | 30    | -18   | 9     |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 18th| SC Paderborn        | 17    | 1     | 3     | 13    | 11    | 39    | -28   | 6     |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

Still, we're roughly where we'd want to be at this stage. It's obvious we're still far from a title-worthy team so challenging for the Bundesliga is a pipedream, but we certainly can fight for the fourth place and use the Champions League as that final step towards the top three. The situation is very similar to last year's, only the table is a bit less tight in the top half than it was then, with only Hamburg and Leverkusen really there and Stuttgart and Freiburg a fair bit behind, with other candidates like Eintracht and Hertha needing a huge comeback to even get involved. That should simplify matters come the final fixtures, and hopefully make it easier to secure European qualification once again.

The battle for the Bundesliga is, as mentioned previously, wide open between the three usual suspects. Bayern have a small lead and the moral advantage of only having lost once, but that one defeat was a thorough drubbing by Dortmund, so they might not want to feel too confident in their position. At the bottom, Heidenheim have just escaped the direct drop and dragged Wolfsburg into it, but only to see that there's a world and a half ahead of them if they want to reach Fortuna, Mainz, and the extremely disappointing Gladbach and Köln and drag them into the fight for extra funsies. It'll take something special for the bottom three to not remain as is come the end of the season, in whatever order.

* * *

PLAYER STATS
============

Average rating (min. 6 games played):

Vedat Özcan              7.19 (12(2) apps)
Matías Miranda           7.19 (17(1) apps)
Arnau Casas              7.19 (13(2) apps)
Niklas Lang              7.15 (14 apps)
Thierno Baldé            7.11 (14(1) apps)

Goals:

Vedat Özcan              7 goals
Rodrigo Caraballo        6
Julian Rijkhoff          6
Can Sapmaz               5
Marcos Paulo             4

Assists:

Matías Miranda           6 assists
Manu Sánchez             4
Jair Rodríguez           3
Martin Karlsen           3
Florent Da Silva         3
Daniel Maldini           3
Francisco Gerometta      3

* * *

ELSEWHERE IN THE WORLD

Premier League: sigh, I don't know why I even bother with this league anymore. The Ligue 1 is boring with PSG's domination, sure, but Manchester City is becoming as bad or worse. At least there's some entertainment in their chasers this time, though. Sure, Liverpool and Newcastle seven points behind are predictable, but West Ham in fourth place, comfortably ahead of Chelsea, Leicester, and Arsenal? Now that's different. Even more different is Manchester United's shocking twelfth place, although with a game in hand and only three points behind the Europa League places. As for the relegation places, Norwich and Stoke were expected as newly promoted teams, but Fulham is a bit of a surprise. The third ex-Championship side, Brentford, are actually eighth. Wow.
LaLiga: Barça are building up on last year's success with an almost perfect season so far, conceding only a single draw in seventeen games (against seventh-placed Atlético) and leading with four points over Real Madrid, with the likes of Real Sociedad, Sevilla, and Villarreal a world apart. At the bottom the one surprising thing is that none of the newly promoted teams (Alavés, Zaragoza, and Tenerife) are in the drop zone right now, although the latter are really close. Getafe are dead last with only seven points, but Cádiz and Valladolid could escape from there at a moment's notice.
Serie A: the most interesting big league in Europe bar none, with four different winners in the last five seasons, and looking like they might have another change at the top this season with Milan leading champions Juventus by two points and neighbors Inter by three. Napoli are a distant fourth, and there's a surprising face in the European places with Genoa. The biggest surprise by far, though, is seeing Fiorentina second to last, only better than dead-last Lecce, particularly considering they were expected to be fighting for Europe instead of for survival. Verona are third from the bottom, and both them and Fiore need only a couple of wins to escape that predicament.
Ligue 1: okay, I take it back, the Ligue 1 is still worse than the Premier. Nine points is PSG's lead this time, matching Barça's almost perfect season in Spain with also one single draw (at home against Brest of all teams) and leaving the likes of Nice, Monaco and Lille fighting to be the best of the rest. Surprisingly terrible seasons for the two classics of French football, OM and OL, both mired in midtable with surprise packages like Strasbourg, Brest, and Saint-Étienne taking their places in the European scuffle. Another classic in the league, Reims, is the only winless team and looking like a certainty for relegation after ten consecutive years in the top tier. Troyes, Bourdeaux, Nimes, and Lorient will try to avoid going along with them towards the Ligue 2.

Dalbeider · August 11, 2023

Dec 19th 2027

Okay, time to look at expiring contracts, of which we have three in the first team. First up is Quintero, who I fear has hit his ceiling already and, if we go by his latest performances in the Cup and Europa League, he's simply not good enough to play at this level. Extending his contract just to sell him is an option, but his value is low and the hassle is probably not worth it. He'll be let go come June, with a thank-you gift for all his work in that DFB Pokal semifinal run two years ago.

Then there's Ulrich. Unlike Quintero, who came on a free, we actually paid some money for Ulrich back in the day, but just like Quintero, he seems to have already reached a plateau where he's not good enough to play regularly for us, but also unlikely to ever get there no matter how much we try to force the issue. He's younger at only 22, but even if he manages to reach his whole potential he'll never be anything more than a fringe player. He has some current upside due to being homegrown, but that changes next June when both Vuskovic and Hadzic will attain that status, which makes him expendable. Most likely released in June, unless we can find a really good reason to keep him in the meantime.

Last one is Sapmaz, and his case is a bit more problematic than it seems. Yes, he's slowly getting better, but his development pace seems to always put him a step behind what a regular starter at the club should be. Still 21 so plenty of time to get there, and he is homegrown at the club so that's a huge upside, but just having him there needing regular minutes means improving on that position becomes more difficult, as we need to sell Maldini if we want a better starter, and that in turn makes it more difficult for Sapmaz to get minutes. Still, the kid's shown a remarkable increase in consistency this year when compared to his ten-game wonder from the last, and already has numbers comparable to what he achieved last year during the whole season, so an extension (and a healthy raise in weekly wages to €16.5k) is warranteed in any case. Doesn't mean he will stay past next summer with 100% certainty, though.

Dec 26th 2027

Well, that's a surprise. I was fully expecting some transfer offers to come our way as soon as the new window approached, but I didn't think the first one would be for Quintero! And from Racing Club de Avellaneda, no less. The fee is small (€55k with some extra clauses) but it includes a 20% of future profits which I'm much more keen on, particularly considering he'd leave on a free come June anyway. The only issue is that now we need to find a backup keeper for the rest of the season, although we might wait to see what happens with Kretzschmar (and how much we get for him) first to decide how much we want to splurge into this.

Dec 29th 2027

Baldé goes down in the first training session after the winter break with pulled ankle ligaments, meaning he's gonna be out for at least a couple of weeks and miss at the very least our first Bundesliga game of 2028.

Dec 31st 2027

Unexpected awards coming for one of our players, Arnau Casas. The center-back had an impressive year in Brondby before joining us, and even now they remember him fondly enough to give him the Player of the Year and Media Player of the Year awards.

Jan 1st 2028

Happy new year, and let the madness of the winter transfer window commence! First of all, one arrival in the shape of young midfielder Jô, who we signed on a free a few months ago and who will be loaned out as soon as possible to get him some playing time.

Otherwise, the party starts about the same as it ended last time: with Ajax being annoying sending lowball offers for Karlsen. Give up already, guys.

It doesn't take long for Quintero to agree his departure back towards Argentina to join Racing Club. The small fee is just that much more than we expected to get for him at this point of his contract, so this has to count as a good sale. He did acceptably well as our backup/cup keeper, but this is as far as he could go with us.

Jan 2nd 2028

TSV 1860 München vs. Olympique Lyonnais (Friendly)

For our traditional winter friendly we bring to München former Ligue 1 winners who have hit a rough patch lately, to the point of hiring ex-Wolfsburg Edin Dzeko as their manager. OL come into the game with a very defensive outlook, which hinders our progress towards scoring the opener, not helped by our lack of accuracy upfront. After ten shots, none of them on target, we go into the second half with a fresh new eleven and finally make their keeper work a little bit. A corner kick in the 54th minute finally gives us the lead thanks to a nod by Özcan and a point-blank header into the net by Casas. Four minutes later Hadzic makes it two in yet another corner kick, which seem to be Lyon's weakness. Their first shot at goal doesn't come until the 75th and it's a wide one, and four minutes later Rodríguez scores the third with a powerful shot from the edge of the box, and could've got a fourth in injury time if the post hadn't got in the way. A surprisingly easy win all in all.

TSV 1860 München 3 (Arnau Casas 54, Amer Hadzic 48, Jair Rodríguez 79)
Olympique Lyonnais 0

Jan 3rd 2028

Looks like the interest in Kretzschmar is cooling down a bit, with only Chelsea trailing him now. On the other hand Svensson is attracting attention from many clubs with deep pockets including Roma, Fiorentina, and Crystal Palace, so that's another problem we might have to deal with soon.

Jan 5th 2028

Welp, problems: Gerometta has a pulled groin. This is nothing serious and should only keep him out of the game for less than a week, but that's enough to make him a very serious doubt for our game in Düsseldorf in three days, and Baldé is definitely out for that one...

Jan 7th 2028

Caraballo gets called by the Venezuela U23 squad to take part in the South American branch of the Pre-Olympic tournament, in which he'll face against Brazil, Ecuador, Paraguay, and Uruguay in only six days. Of course that means we'll miss him for a while, which isn't ideal, but at least it's not in the busiest part of the schedule.

Still no transfer activity, which is good, but we secure a signing for the summer: 19yo goalkeeper Christian Englisch, who is German by the way, agrees to a free transfer from Hoffenheim. A young keeper with lots of future, he could become Kretzschmar's long-term replacement if he develops as well as the scouts expect him to. Somewhat surprising that we didn't have to fight against any of the big teams in the nation for him, though. Regardless, he'll come on minimal wages and with the expectation to train well and possibly play in the cup. His minutes with the first team might be reduced, probably to zero, if we sign an actual, senior backup in the meantime, though.

More problems in the infirmary, and once again with one of our full backs: now it's Manu Sánchez who's suffering from the seasonal flu, and will be sent home to recover for around two weeks.

Jan 8th 2028

Fortuna Düsseldorf (15th) vs. TSV 1860 München (6th) (Bundesliga, 18/34)

Break over, back to work. Fortuna remain in "their" place, hovering right above the relegation battle without getting dragged into it, but always with the feeling that a few bad results in a row could bring them down into the mud. With our last three fixtures having resulted in two draws and a defeat it's about time to get back to winning ways.

* * *

DÜSSELDORF (4-4-2): Florian Kastenmeier (GK); Benjamin Henrichs (DR), Christoph Klarer (DCr), Matthias Ginter (DCl), Pietro Beruatto (DL); Levin Öztunali (MR), Ilay Elmkies (MCr), Finn Ole Becker (MCl), Ben Bobzien (ML); Mamadou Kaly Sené (STr), Rafael Santos Borré (STl)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Jair Rodríguez (MCr), Matías Miranda (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)

* * *

Gerometta is able to play with minimal difficulties in the end, although we'll be keeping an eye on his fitness levels as the game progresses. Not like we have any other right backs to replace him with, though... Fortuna start someone familiar upfront today alongside Borré: Sené signed for them from Mainz this past summer after our previous meeting and has been doing a good job so far with six goals in twelve appearances.

The game starts quite even, both teams trying to push forward but not really getting past the opposing defensive lines with any clarity in the first twenty minutes. Then, exactly on the twenty-first minute, a long passing play by Fortuna ends when Becker finds Elmkies unmarked after a bad decision by Stjepanovic, and the midfielder takes his chance to advance and shoot with power to score the 1-0. But that lead lasts them all of two minutes: Caraballo assists Rijkhoff inside the box, the striker drops towards the left, turns around, and passes it low towards the center so Rodríguez can hit it on the run and draw the game. That's some change of pace.

Suddenly chances seem much easier to get, and soon Svensson is sending a shot over the bar after another good pass by Caraballo. Rijkhoff also sends his finish over the bar a bit later following a good low cross by Rodríguez, who almost returned the favor there. Another chance falls to the striker after a cross by Sapmaz, but this time his header is well saved by Kastenmeier. Fortuna all but disappear after our goal, but they still manage to hold on to the draw until half time.

HALF TIME - 1-1

We keep the pressure up in the second half, starting with another cross from the right that Rijkhoff heads into the keeper's hands. We switch wings then after Svensson sends a beautiful pass into the center towards Rodríguez, whose finish is once again blocked by Kastenmeier and deflected wide. The goal still won't come, though, and we try with Da Silva and Maldini to see if they can create something new. That doesn't seem to work, and after ten minutes without any more chances we bring Marcos Paulo in, too.

In the end our substitutions work as intended, at least one of them: in the 74th minute Da Silva drops to the left wing to trade passes with Svensson before throwing a high cross into the heart of the box so Rijkhoff can use his height to jump over Ginter in and score the 1-2. Fortune once again seem to take it hard, and Rijkhoff almost profits from their funk to score a third with a powerful left-footed finish that goes narrowly wide.

Seven minutes before full time Da Silva sends another ball into the box and Rodríguez, who looks very much offside, gathers it and calmly slots it in. The surprising part comes when VAR gives the all ok and the goal makes it to the scoreboard: turns out Elmkies was juuust in line with the Mexican. That basically seals the game, but there's still time for Rijkhoff to get a one-on-one stopped by Kastenmeier after another great assist by Da Silva, and for Kretzschmar to save a clear-cut chance for Köhlert to get one back for the home team in the 89th. The result doesn't move one way or the other, though, and we score a quite comprehensive away win to start the year in a good note.

* * *

Fortuna Düsseldorf 1 (Ilay Elmkies 21)
TSV 1860 München 3 (Jair Rodríguez 23 82, Julian Rijkhoff 74)

- - -

Quite good, this one. Conceding in Fortuna's only real chance in the first half was unfortunate, but we recovered quickly and, mostly thanks to Rodríguez, Rijkhoff, and a good show by Da Silva off the bench, we made short work of them and secured a very comfortable win in the end. A great result made even better by Leverkusen's draw against Köln, HSV's defeat at home to Freiburg, and Leipzig's shocking 0-3 loss to Gladbach, which means we go back to the fourth place once again and creep a bit closer to the third.

Edited August 11, 2023 by Dalbeider

Dalbeider · August 14, 2023

Jan 11th 2028

Here comes Mourinho to make our life difficult with a €7.75M bid for Svensson. Nowhere near enough, and while the player wouldn't mind a move to Roma, he isn't willing to push the issue either, so rejecting the offer is the easy choice here. Now, if other, more enticing teams come around we might have to deal with this differently, but for now we're safe.

Rodríguez and Rijkhoff make the Team of the Week, and deservedly so.

Jan 12th 2028

One of them won't be starting in our next game, though: Rijkhoff stubs his toe in training and will be in the medical bay for a few days, enough to give Özcan the nod against Paderborn.

Jan 14th 2028

Caraballo has a pretty torrid day in his first match with Venezuela U23, which they lose clearly to Brazil 1-3.

Minor injury to loanee keeper Aghajanyan, who still hasn't played but has now been thrust into the second keeper position with Quintero's departure. A gashed leg means he misses only five to eight days, but it's still enough to force us to call up a kid from the U18s just to fill the mandatory reserve keeper slot.

Jan 15th 2028

TSV 1860 München (4th) vs. SC Paderborn 07 (18th) (Bundesliga, 19/34)

Dead last, only six points scored so far, and with their last (and only) win having happened in September? This should be a walkover. But of course we can't go out there thinking like that, because that's when you throw away points you end up missing at the end of the season. Let's take this seriously.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DM), Jair Rodríguez (MCr), Florend Da Silva (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)
PADERBORN (4-4-2): Leopold Zingerle (GK); Bendegúz Bolla (DR), Laurin Moser (DCr), Jacek Winiarczyk (DCl), Jaouen Hadjam (DL); Bruninho (MR), Kacper Duda (MCr), Tomer Gannah (MCl), Felix Mambimbi (ML); Jessic Ngankam (STl), Johann Brunnemann (STr)

* * *

Some rotation today, but we keep a competitive eleven with few concessions to luck. The game starts slow, with possession clearly on our side but little in the way of results in attack, until twelve minutes in Maldini goes down inside the box after a challenge by Hadjam and, after the usual VAR drama, a penalty kick is given. Da Silva quickly makes it four out of four for him from the spot this season and gives us the early lead we'd been craving.

A good block by Thiago prevents an instant reply by Paderborn through Bruninho, and after focusing on defense and control of the ball for a bit we go right back at it, with Maldini leaving Hadjam behind in a burst of speed and shooting into Zingerle's effective but not very aesthetic save. In the 24th the winger goes for a more traditional route, dropping into the corner and crossing towards the heart of the box, where Marcos Paulo heads the ball unopposed into the back of the net for the 2-0. One minute later Maldini does it again, this time finding Özcan for a slightly wide header, but afterwards we go back to our more controlling profile, keeping the ball well hidden away for the rest of the half, with Paderborn only interrupting us in injury time with a corner kick that Winiarczyk heads into the crossbar and over. Easy so far.

HALF TIME - 2-0

To the players' credit they come into the second half looking for a third, with Özcan and Marcos Paulo having early chances denied by an excellent Zingerle. On the other end Kretzschmar has to go down to save a rebounded ball after an attempt by Ngankam, but we quickly respond through Özcan's through ball towards Marcos Paulo, who once again runs into the keeper in his attempt to score. After a while Stjepanovic, Baldé, and Karlsen enter the game, which seems to be completely under control.

Mambimbi has a decent chance to make me eat my words in the 64th after gathering the ball inside the penalty area from Hadjam, but thankfully his aim is terrible and his shot goes well wide. Meanwhile Maldini tries luck with a 30-yard direct free kick that almost surprises Zingerle, but the keeper manages to swat it away from the top corner before it goes in. Next comes Karlsen, barging into the box but being blocked by Hadjam when trying to finish the job, and in the 74th a combination through the center between Özcan, Karlsen, and Maldini almost ends with the Italian scoring, but another timely block by the defense saves an already beaten Zingerle, at the risk of almost scoring an own goal. Özcan follows up with a great header in the corner kick, sending it a few inches above the bar.

One minute later, though, Ngankam profits from Baldé's extremely deep position to receive unmarked and onside inside the box, but he takes too long to shoot and gives time to the same right back to come and take the ball away from him. On the other goal Zingerle flies again to tip wide another direct free kick, this one by Da Silva, and after a few more blocked shots Karlsen finally finds a way to the keeper with a run into space and a first-time shot that Zingerle once again turns around the post. Despite our somewhat suspect finishing, though, we still manage a comfortable win in the end.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 2 (Florent Da Silva 12p, Marcos Paulo 24)
SC Paderborn 07 0

- - -

Easy as expected. We probably could've scored a few more today if we'd needed them, although Zingerle had a bit of a stormer despite conceding twice. Other than a couple of isolated chances Paderborn were about as inoffensive as we could imagine from their position, so we never felt threatened. Great game by Maldini today. Once again tasty results elsewhere, with Leipzig and Leverkusen dropping more points, leaving us four points behind the third place and with a healthy six-point lead over seventh-placed Stuttgart.

After the match Thiago receives the news that he's been called up as an injury substitute for the Brazil U23 side. Good thing we made him play today, as he's unlikely to be available next weekend.

Dalbeider · August 15, 2023

Jan 16th 2028

Much better from Caraballo in his second game with Venezuela U23, scoring the only goal of his team in a 1-3 defeat to Uruguay. Doesn't look like Venezuela have much of a chance at making the Olympics now...

Jan 17th 2028

That's one face I didn't expect to see in the Bundesliga at all... Remember Erik Tallig, that attacking midfielder we had in our first couple of seasons then sold to DC United because he was starting to feel out of place in an ever improving squad? Well, Eintracht just paid €8.25M for him! It's a shame we couldn't include a future profits fee in that transfer, but at least we get €123k off a 1.5% solidarity fee as his second formative club. Will be nice to see him again, and in a Bundesliga team to boot.

Jan 18th 2028

Maldini caps his excellent performance against Paderborn with a place in the Team of the Week.

Once again, random international callup for Svensson to play against Cyprus. And once again while Manu Sánchez is out injured. Good thing he's returning in a couple of days, but still, what's this deja vu?

On the topic of injuries, Casas suffers from pulled ankle ligaments, the classic that never dies. He'll miss two weeks during which Stjepanovic will be starting in his place.

Jan 20th 2028

Oh my god, Fiore... They make a loan offer for Svensson, paying half his wages for what remains of the season, and with an optional future clause of a bit under €10M plus 20% of future profits. I think I'll laugh every time I remember this in the future. Heh.

Meanwhile, in South America, neither Thiago nor Caraballo manage a win with their U23 national teams, with Brazil losing to Uruguay and Venezuela at least drawing with Ecuador. None of them had particularly brilliant performances either.

And closer to home, yet another injury, this time for Rijkhoff. Thankfully it's just a twisted knee, so he'll only miss our next game against Gladbach.

Jan 21st 2028

Feyenoord do one better and offer a part-exchange transfer for Svensson with 20yo center-back Dean Bosz. Who yes, is a pretty interesting young player and has a higher market value than Svensson, but doesn't replace him in the team and wouldn't even have a place in our rotation right now. You can do better than that. Svensson doesn't want to go there anyways.

Jan 22nd 2028

TSV 1860 München (4th) vs. Borussia Mönchengladbach (12th) (Bundesliga, 20/34)

Yes, Gladbach are the disappointment of the season so far. So far. Their form has improved a lot with the turn of the year and they've won their last two fixtures, including a 0-3 away win against Leipzig. They seem to be recovering a bit of the lost ground, although it's doubtful that they'll have enough to reach the European places in the end. In any case, we should be the better and most in-form team today.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Florend Da Silva (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)
GLADBACH (4-4-2 diamond narrow): David Raya (GK); Brandon Soppy (DR), Igor Diveev (DCr), Nico Elvedi (DCl), Bali Mumba (DL); Tom Krauss (DM), Cheick Doucouré (MCr), Mike Kleijn (MCl), Antoni Milambo (AMC); Jonas Wind (STr), Marcus Thuram (STl)

* * *

Given our multiple absences due to injury and international duty today we're forced to bring new kid Jô along as a bench player, and might even have a chance to debut depending on how things go. Peter Ziedler has changed Gladbach's outlook to a rarely seen nowadays diamond formation, and seem to want to dominate the game with the ancestral tactic of clogging the middle with players. It doesn't seem to work too well, though, because our first chance comes from right there, with Özcan assisting Miranda so the midfielder shoots over the bar. They answer with a long cross by Soppy towards Wind, who benefits from Lang failing to intercept the ball and gets a shot in, also well over.

The game slows down then, just as Gladbach seems to want. We struggle in attack while they keep testing us with long shots, the best of which Milambo sends a couple of meters higher than the target. In the 25th, though, we find ourselves with a throw in near Gladbach's box and push our center backs inside. The ball eventually reaches Stjepanovic inside the box, and he decides to pass it back outside so Manu Sánchez can shoot with power and precision to score the 1-0. Too bad it only lasts four minutes: another throw in is intercepted by Mumba and the full back just hoofs it ahead towards the unmarked Thuram, who takes the chance to round Kretzschmar and pull level once again.

The game then returns to its previous state of attacks failing to do much noteworthy, at least until Miranda gathers a long ball on the right side of the box and runs at Raya, who covers the gap well and deflects the shot wide. The keeper has it much more difficult to tip wide Özcan's header in that corner kick, which was going straight into the top right corner of his goal, but that's enough to keep the draw on the board until half time.

HALF TIME - 1-1

The second half starts interesting, with Vuskovic trying a long pass into space for Miranda who tries a first-time touch around Raya, but the keeper reads it well and saves. Marcos Paulo comes next with a header straight at the keeper, wasting Baldé's good cross, while Gladbach can only produce a direct free kick that Wind smashes into the fence and a finish by Milambo that Kretzschmar saves without even having to move. Sapmaz and Rodríguez then enter the game replacing Maldini and Da Silva, trying to give our attacks some extra punch.

One more terrible finish by Marcos Paulo later, Wind has another good chance with a header that Kretzschmar tips over the bar, well assisted by Mumba from the left wing. Our answer is a great run by Baldé and a cross that Özcan heads very narrowly wide, just before Karlsen replaces Marcos Paulo on our left wing. Milambo then gives us a real scare when he controls a pass by Mumba and squeezes the ball between Lang's legs before rifling it towards goal, only for Kretzschmar to perform one of his miraculous reflex saves.

At that point Gladbach decide to change formations, replacing Milambo and moving to a 4-3-3 like ours. That slows the game down to a crawl, and the constant flow of chances on both goals stops suddenly. Diveev gets in the way of Özcan's finish in our first approach in a long time, already in the 81st minute, then Raya holds another header by the striker one minute later without issue. That seems to wake everyone up once again, and soon Kretzschmar is saving a header by Samardzic after a cross from the right, and Tshibangu sends another header over when the keeper had completely missed the flight of the ball. Another save by Kretzschmar prevents Elvedi from scoring in a corner kick one minute before full time, Rodríguez scores in a clear offside position in injury time, and an extremely entertaining game ends in a fair draw.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 1 (Manu Sánchez 25)
Borussia Mönchengladbach 1 (Marcus Thuram 30)

- - -

Told you this wouldn't be easy. Gladbach are a much better team than their position shows and they're finally finding their rhythm. This game could've gone either way, particularly in the second half when most of the best chances went for the visitors, but we also had our fair share. In the end a result that's not too bad but not particularly good given HSV's win. Leverkusen also take the chance to win against Dortmund and give Bayern the chance to escape, which they (barely) take winning 0-1 in Wolfsburg thanks to an 80th minute penalty kick.

Dalbeider · August 18, 2023

Last update of August, since I'm off for the holidays tomorrow.

* * *

Jan 24th 2027

One week left in the transfer window and still no movement. Only Svensson and Maldini seem to be attracting any interest nowadays, which is good. Watch it all happen at the very last moment once again...

Jan 29th 2027

Sport-Club Freiburg (8th) vs. TSV 1860 München (5th) (Bundesliga, 21/34)

And now for something completely different: a direct duel for Europe, and against a team that already beat us at our own stadium, no less. Freiburg have been extremel inconsistent all year long, though, managing famous wins against big teams but then failing against opposition way below them in quality. One never knows what version will appear. Still, we need a result here to keep them at bay and avoid making European qualification a free-for-all.

* * *

FREIBURG (4-2-3-1): Pontus Dahlberg (GK); Erik Warner (DR), Linus Gechter (DCr), Eric Martel (DCl), Felix Passlack (DL); Niklas Dorsch (MCr), Yangel Herrera (MCl); Akinkunmi Amoo (AMR), Erik Majetschak (AMC), Sead Haksabanovic (AML), Nicolai Skoglund (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Florent Da Silva (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Jair Rodríguez (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Julian Rikhoff (ST)

* * *

Going back to the 4-2-3-1 was very tempting today, but with Thiago still with Brazil U23 and Vuskovic suspended we don't have the right personnel for this, so we stick with the usual. Da Silva is our emergency anchor today, and Caraballo returns from international duty straight into the starting eleven, with Svensson on the bench. Freiburg start a very similar eleven to the one we met in September, and start the game on the offensive through Majetschak, who runs into the box and shoots into Kretzschmar's save. Our answer is even better, though: great ball into space by Caraballo and Rodríguez runs and shoots into the root of the post. Looks like another entertaining match in the making.

After those early chances both teams start playing a bit more carefully, so it isn't until the 22nd minute that another run into space by Rijkhoff gives Freiburg's defense some pause. The run is intercepted and Warner gathers the ball, but instead of clearing it he decides to pass it back to Dahlberg while Rijkhoff is still there lurking. The striker intercepts and, with the fans groaning in the stands, just passes it into the back of the net to score the 0-1.

Things slow down again after the goal, something we welcome with open arms. We go all the way into the 42nd minute before something else happens on either goal, and it's Caraballo sending another beautiful through ball towards Rijkhoff who, with everything in his favor, sends the ball wide by a couple of inches. There are no news from Freiburg's attack until injury time, when Warner sends a good cross into the box, Haksabanovic heads it into a miracle save by Kretzschmar, but the ball bounces back to Skoglund who just has to put his head on it to score the 1-1, just before the end of the first forty-five minutes. Harsh.

HALF TIME - 1-1

We almost get another scare six minutes into the second half when Rodríguez gets the ball stolen by Majetschak and it soon reaches Skoglund who, unmarked, shoots wide in a move very reminiscent of Rijkhoff's earlier miss. Passlack has another chance six minutes later that he sends straight at Kretzschmar's arms, but lately all divided balls end up going Freiburg's way, and our defense seems unable to cope with their movements. Karlsen and Maldini replace Rodríguez and Sapmaz then, but not much seems to improve. After a while it's Marcos Paulo who replaces a tired but solid Caraballo.

We finally create something in the 71st minute through Sánchez and Marcos Paulo, with a finish by Karlsen that hits a defender before being cleared out of the way. Still, it's a good sign, and we start pushing a bit farther forward looking for the winner with more faith. Freiburg hit us on the break from time to time, although their finishing is not good either and Skoglund sends their best chance into the stratosphere after a good run and pass by Amoo.

In the 74th Karlsen creates danger again with a good cross towards Rijkhoff who can't get a good enough header in and makes it easy for Dahlberg. Five minutes later the same play repeats, this time with Marcos Paulo being the one to finish with a good-looking header that hits the crossbar and bounces clear. Third time's the charm, though, and after a run through the center Karlsen delivers a soft touch towards Rijkhoff ahead of him, and this time the striker doesn't miss, placing the ball into the back of the net with ten minutes on the clock.

We can't have nice things today, though: four minutes later a corner kick taken by Haksabanovic towards the far post is met by good ol' Gechter with a perfect header, helped by the lack of markers around him, and it's 2-2. It could be worse, too, as Amoo has a great chance to steal the winner in the last minute of injury time but thankfully he sends it wide. Miranda then blasts a final shot over the bar, and the game ends in another draw that could've gone either way.

* * *

Sport-Club Freiburg 2 (Nicolai Skoglund 45+1, Linus Gechter 84)
TSV 1860 München 2 (Julian Rijkhoff 22 80)

- - -

A shame, but once again, fair result. It pains me to concede two goals so close to the end of the respective halves, to be honest. And also that another fantastic show of creativity by young Karlsen has been wasted by bad finishing. The kid really got us ticking in the second half, even if Rijkhoff got the glory with his goals. Oh well, another point which Hertha make taste a bit sweeter by beating HSV, and Stuttgart also beat Leverkusen. Problem is, that brings them both closer to the European places, which is exactly what I wanted to avoid in the first place. Sigh, we really can't have nice things...

Dalbeider · September 4, 2023

Jan 30th 2028

Thiago's Brazil U23 qualify for the Olympics together with Argentina after a 2-0 win against Colombia, in which our midfielder played a solid game for about sixty minutes. Hopefully he'll be allowed to take part in the tournament proper this summer.

Jan 31st 2028

And another transfer window draws to a close. This one has been surprisingly quiet so far considering the expectations, what with Kretzschmar and all that. Watch it all explode in the final hours, though... It's very unlikely we'll do any deals today, not even for a backup keeper: we'll wait for Englisch to take that role next year and make do with what we have. Crossing fingers that Kretzschmar doesn't have any serious upset.

Three of our players are currently attracting attention: the usual suspects Karlsen (Karlsruhe and Hoffenheim) and Svensson (Feyenoord, Roma, Udinese), but with the recent addition of Köln tracking Rijkhoff. I mean, if they have 40 million euros to spend I might consider it, but... As for the other two, I have no intention of selling Karlsen (even less for the ridiculous offers we've received so far) and Svensson would take a lot (€15M+) to convince me otherwise.

Three hours to go and no offers so far other than a €1.4M one for Karlsen by Hoffenheim which we auto-refuse. Not even our potential loanees seem to be garnering any attention.

When I saw the e-mail header reading "Borussia Dortmund make Svensson offer" I almost had a heart attack. Turns out they only offer €7M for a player with a much higher value. What's with this window, even Dortmund are trying to lowball us... Rejected, of course, if they come with something much better than that we might consider negotiating. Incidentally, Dortmund just spent €59M to take Liam Delap from Man City. Looks like they finally found a replacement for Moukoko...

One hour to go. Remember Vagnoman? He just left Leipzig for Bournemouth after playing almost zilch since they bought him from us. A shame we don't get anything out of that deal... Meanwhile, Dortmund return with a barely improved offer and PSV and (again) Leipzig join in, neither of them meeting our valuation. Still no, you can all do better. I won't even bother mentioning Hoffenheim's offers for Karlsen anymore, they're a joke.

And just with that, the window ends. Huh. Turns out it was a calm day after all. There's a couple off-window offers for both our targets, but with no possibility of replacing them there's no way in hell I would accept now.

Big transfer news that might affect us indirectly: Marcos Leonardo leaves Leverkusen for Manchester City in exchange for one hundred and sixty-eight million euros. Madness. Not that we mind right now, but them having this much money to spend come the summer is somewhat terrifying. Bayern meanwhile add yet another forward to their already stacked line with Ansu Fati (€78M) after he found himself benched in Barcelona. Y'know, just in case Lewa, Moukoko, Havertz, Werner, and company have a bad day.

Feb 5th 2028

TSV 1860 München (4th) vs. 1.FC Nürnberg (13th) (Bundesliga, 22/34)

With the whole transfer thing in the backburner for at least a few months it's time to focus in what matters: winning games. Nürnberg look like a viable candidate to return to winning ways after two consecutive draws, being currently in no-mans land, eleven points over the playoff place but nowhere near Europe, or the top half for that matter. They just won their first game after four straight defeats in the league, though, so we'd better be careful.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Jair Rodríguez (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Julian Rikhoff (ST)
NÜRNBERG (4-4-2): Jan Olschowsky (GK); Nicholas Mickelson (DR), Maksim Paskotsi (DCr), Lee Han-Bum (DCl), Omar Campos (DL); Brooks Lennon (MR), Ilai Madmon (MCr), Sebastián González (MCl), Lars Kehl (ML); Facundo Farías (STr), Manuel Wintzheimer (STl)

* * *

Casas returns to the lineup and Thiago is finally back from the pre-Olympic, so we're at full strength for the first time in a while. We rotate our defense a bit but otherwise keep the same core, and we soon get a first chance with a simple pass over the defense by Baldé towards Rijkhoff, who can't get his good foot into it and shoots very wide. Nürnberg take refuge inside their own half for the first ten minutes, but on their first incursion into our half of the field Kehl manages a great dribble past Baldé and assists Wintzheimer, who just hits it with all he has to score a shocking 0-1.

We go right back at it, Svensson being the first to try luck with a wide shot after the ball goes through basically all our forward line from right to left. It's slow going, though, not helped by Nürnberg having more reasons than ever to park the bus now. After a couple of minor chances Caraballo assists Rodríguez for a decent-looking one, but once again it all ends up in a mishit finish that goes wide without even bothering Olschowsky. In the 34th, finally, a great steal by Vuskovic in midfield leads to a counter led by Rijkhoff, a cross towards Caraballo, and a pass into the heart of the box so Maldini can rifle it in and draw the game.

A draw is not enough, though, and soon Miranda is seeking a second with a wide direct free kick. Another set piece, a corner kick this time, gives Hadzic a great chance with a downwards header that a defender clears off the line, then the play continues until Rijkhoff assists Svensson and the wingback gets his finish deflected over the bar by Olschowsky. In the final moments of injury time a header by Rijkhoff licks the upside of the crossbar before going over, and seconds later it's time for a rest and to look for new ideas.

HALF TIME - 1-1

We continue right where we left things before the break, with Svensson creating danger with a long ball towards Miranda, who gets stopped by the keeper in the end. An offside chip by Rijkhoff ends bouncing on the crossbar in spectacular fashion, even though in the end it was all disallowed, and in the 57th Caraballo intercepts a pretty bad clearance by Olschowsky near the penalty area, runs at the defense, then shoots into a gap to surprise the keeper and score the 2-1 we'd been deserving for a while now.

Nürnberg now make a few timid attempts to get back into an attacking mood, while we bring Gerometta, Da Silva, and Özcan into the game as substitutes. Rodríguez gets a chance to score the third and make our win much more clearer blocked by Paskotsi, then Hadzic gets really close to a goal with another good header in a corner kick, but for the most part we play the long game as time goes by, trying to keep Nürnberg away from our goal by holding the ball.

It's not a perfect plan, though, and in the 86th Lennon shows its flaws when he gathers a long ball into the box thanks to a missed header by Casas, only to shoot very wide when Kretzschmar was getting ready for another miracle save. And then it happens again, just as the clock goes over ninety: Vuskovic loses the ball, Lennon gathers it, shoots low, and the bounce on the wet grass surprises Kretzschmar, who watches it go over his body and into the net. There is no time to react, and two points fly away from Grünwalder Strasse in the most dramatic and unfair of ways.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 2 (Daniel Maldini 34, Rodrigo Caraballo 57)
1.FC Nürnberg 2 (Manuel Wintzheimer 11, Brooks Lennon 90+1)

- - -

...Well. That was a thing that happened. Nineteen shots to four, five to two on target. And this is what we get. Wonderful, just wonderful. Can we please not do this again?

Bayern bail us from this disaster with a win in Leverkusen, then Dortmund round it up by also winning in Hamburg. Stuttgart and Hertha lose too, so despite everything we manage to put one more point on everyone behind us. Could've been three, though. Should've been three.

Dalbeider · September 5, 2023

Feb 11th 2028

1.FC Köln (13th) vs. TSV 1860 München (4th) (Bundesliga, 23/34)

I could basically copy-paste my pre-match comments from last week here, honestly. Köln are also in that awkward zone of the table where they're not really playing for anything relevant with so much still left of the season, to the point that they're tied at almost everything with Nürnberg (same wins, draws, loses, and points, but -7 vs. -8 goal difference). Let's hope this game doesn't end exactly the same way, too...

* * *

KÖLN (4-4-2): Kevin Trapp (GK); Kevin Mbabu (DR), Hugo Faria (DCr), Saúl Filipe (DCl), Philipp Max (DL); Julian Draxler (MR), Ellyes Skhiri (MCr), Anton Stach (MCl), Jayden Braaf (ML); Felix Afena-Gyan (STr), Janni Serra (STl)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Jair Rodríguez (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)

* * *

Even more deja-vu inducing coincidences, Köln also play a flat 4-4-2 like Nürnberg now, having ditched their 3-5-2 when Podolski was sacked in December and Torsten Frings took over. They start well today, though, keeping the ball away from us and creating an early half-chance with a header by Serra that goes high and wide off the target. We soon regain control and start pushing back, though, and we hit back through Özcan's pass into space and Sapmaz's not too confident finish, easy for Trapp. Afena-Gyan then gives us a scare after scoring from a cross by Braaf, although thankfully the striker, just arrived from Sheffield United, was offside.

Things slow down after that, with both teams playing in a very narrow band in midfield and struggling to find a way through. Finally, in the 30th minute we create a gap in the center through which Özcan can try another assist towards Sapmaz, and this time the winger hits low and placed, making Trapp's attempt at a save useless: 0-1. Not even one minute later the winger is knocking at Trapp's door once again, this time after a great pass by Rodríguez, but the keeper does much better this time and blocks the finish effectively. And in the next minute, long clearance by Trapp towards Stach, the midfielder wins the jump against Lang, and Serra finds himself in a perfect position to beat Kretzschmar and score the 1-1. Deja-vu intensifies.

Özcan is in a very assisting mood today, and in the 36th he threads the needle with a perfect pass towards Rodríguez and between three defenders, but the young midfielder can't finish the job properly and shoots wide. The rest of the first half only brings a shot by Özcan into a defender's legs already in injury time while Köln seem happy to hold onto the draw for now. They get their wish, at least until the break.

HALF TIME - 1-1

Köln turn it up a notch in the early second half like they did in the first, restarting the hostilities with a shot from outside the box by Faria that Kretzschmar tips wide with some difficulty. Like before, though, we let their effervescence die off and start hitting them back through Miranda, who sends into the sidenetting his finish after an intelligent nod into the box by Marcos Paulo. Karlsen and Baldé then join the game in Rodríguez and Gerometta's places, but it's Sapmaz who creates our next chance stealing the ball from Max, then crossing for Özcan's header into Trapp's easy save.

Caraballo for Marcos Paulo is our last substitution with about twenty minutes left to play, and it's precisely a foul on the youngster that gives us the 1-2: Miranda whips the ball into the box, Özcan nods it forward, and Stjepanovic smashes it in from right in front of Trapp's face, straying dangerously close to an offside position but timing his jump forward perfectly. And once gain, Köln hit us back almost immediately, and in a surprisingly similar way: corner kick that Max takes, Júnior Firpo prolongs on the near post, and Faria puts it in on the far post. This is getting ridiculous.

Time to look forward once again, starting with Thiago's pretty bad attempt from distance in the 77th minute, and with a pause so Max can take another corner kick and allow Stach a high header over the bar. Both teams try their best to score in the final minutes, but once again the game dies off without any further chances and we score our fourth consecutive draw, once again thanks to our very own mistakes.

* * *

1.FC Köln 2 (Janni Serra 32, Hugo Faria 77)
TSV 1860 München 2 (Can Sapmaz 30, Mateja Stjepanovic 73)

- - -

To put it simply, we can't hold a lead for our lives. In each of the last four games we managed to put ourselves ahead, and then within ten minutes we'd conceded the draw. Sometimes, like today, even more than once per game. Whenever teams push us we fold like a house of cards, and we won't be going anywhere like this. And the sad thing is, other than that we're playing really well! Today we could've scored a couple more, and Özcan in particular had a fantastic game playing the buoy and assisting everyone around him, but in the end it was for nothing. Well, for one point.

Once again other results make our draw look almost good, though. Leverkusen draw in Frankfurt and Stuttgart and Hamburg do the same against each other, so everything behind us remains the same except that Hertha and Freiburg creep a little closer to the pack. At the top, Leipzig win in Dortmund and now Bayern is seven points clear at the top. Doesn't look like they're gonna be losing this one either... Fati scored their one and only goal against Mainz, by the way.

Dalbeider · September 6, 2023

Feb 13th 2028

New kid Jô suffers a twisted ankle in training and will be recovering for over a month. Not ideal, for sure.

Feb 15th 2028

Stjepanovic earns a place in the Team of the Week thanks to his goal against Köln.

Feb 16th 2028

Looks like it's the week for our reserve midfielders to get injured. Next in line is Van Santen, also with a twisted ankle, and also out for over a month.

Feb 19th 2028

TSV 1860 München (4th) vs. Hertha BSC (8th) (Bundesliga, 24/34)

Last chance to turn this streak of draws into something positive, because after this Dortmund is waiting... Hertha are on the rise mostly thanks to our (and HSV's and Leverkusen's) failure to, well, win games rather than to their great play and form, as they keep alternating home wins with away defeats. That said, they've beaten both Hamburg and Leverkusen this year already, so they have to be respected. And for the love of all that's good and cute, please don't give up another lead!

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Florent Da Silva (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)
HERTHA (4-2-3-1): Marco Carnesecchi (GK); Fredrik Byorkan (DR), Andrew Omobamidele (DCr), Omar Alderete (DCl), Amar Dedic (DL); Julian Weigl (MCr), Charles De Ketelaere (MCl); Pedro Porro (AMR), Miguel Carvalho (AMC), Hannibal (AML), Delyan Atanasov (ST)

* * *

Da Silva returns to the starting eleven after one too many mediocre games by Rodríguez, while Hertha present basically the same team we met (and defeated) in the first half of the season only with Byorkan showing off his versatility by moving from left winger to right back. We play the patient game in the first minutes, holding the ball and trying to see if Hertha had left any obvious gaps in their formation today. We can't find any, but Vuskovic still has enough to send a 20-yard piledriver into the post with fourteen minutes played, just to keep Carnesecchi on his toes.

From then on we turn our attacking engines on, testing the keeper with a couple of long range efforts he deals with easily, but after a while we start running into a wall whenever we get near Hertha's goal. A shot that Maldini that hits a defender and bubbles over the bar is our best not-quite-a-chance during this period, after which we decide to start focusing more on the wings, since Hertha seem to be defending really narrow today.

Hertha's only approach in the first half hour is easily solved by Stjepanovic with a good block on Carvalho's attempt inside the box, but in the 40th they manage to produce a corner kick that Porro takes towards the near post, where Omobamidele outjumps Stjepanovic and heads it in for the opener. Maldini heads a cross by Sánchez into Carnesecchi's hands one minute later, then the keeper does it again, tipping wide a finish by Miranda after a nice barge into midfield by Stjepanovic. With that, the first half ends.

HALF TIME - 0-1

Another corner kick for Hertha kickstarts the second half, with Carvalho heading it wide, while the best we can do is a bad shot by Rijkhoff that doesn't even reach the keeper. The striker is soon replaced by Özkan after one of his most irrelevant performances since his permanent signing, just as Miranda wastes yet another chance with a wide finish when completely unmarked inside the box following a nice cross by Sánchez. Rodríguez and Marcos Paulo come in then, replacing Da Silva and Caraballo to see if we can improve our finishing.

The winger makes me look a bit silly with his first chance, which he smashes into a defender's legs, while Hertha get close again in their first approach in a long while, a cross from the left that Atanasov finishes on the turnaround inside the box, but which Kretzschmar solves with a solid save. Carnesecchi saves easily a header by Marcos Paulo in the 72nd, and time is starting to run a bit too short for my tastes. One minute later, though, a long pass by Marcos Paulo towards Maldini allows the Italian to gather the ball, pause, look up, and put a perfect cross in Özcan's head so the striker can score the 1-1, finally.

We take a short break to catch our breath, then we go right back at it. Hertha hit first, though, with Hannibal slipping past Baldé and crossing towards Atanasov, who once again finds Kretzschmar well positioned to save. Then Marcos Paulo almost profits from an injury to Bjorkan and Hertha's failure to cover his position in defense, although in the end Carnesecchi fixes it all with a good save, which he repeats one minute later to stop a shot by Maldini. The match goes a bit crazy then, with both teams running up and down the pitch and threatening constantly, and Carnesecchi has another great save in the 87th, going down to stop a dangerous placed finish by Özcan. The final chance is for Hertha in a corner kick already in injury time, headed by Alderete and tipped over the bar by Kretzschmar. Time's over, and it's draw number five for us. Joy.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 1 (Vedat Özcan 73)
Hertha BSC 1 (Andrew Omobamidele 40)

- - -

I'm starting to think this is less a matter of not knowing how to hold a lead and more a matter of having extremely rotten luck, or extremely bad finishing. We had ten shots on target today, most of them in really dangerous positions, and a couple others that went wide that were also clear-cut chances. Then Hertha just get a corner kick and boom, another draw. This is getting silly by now.

Leverkusen win today, so we don't get out of jail for free for once, but an interesting result is Dortmund's heavy 3-0 loss in Düsseldorf, their second in a row. Might be a good moment to go visit them and maybe, heh, snatch a draw. Hamburg do lose to Bayern, though, and Stuttgart do the same in Leipzig. I don't know how we're managing to hold on to the fourth place with just draws, but so far it's working!

Dalbeider · September 7, 2023

Feb 22nd 2028

Russia and their weird transfer windows... Turns out they still can make signings, and Dinamo Moscow make a ridiculously low €4.8M offer for Baldé, then try again with €6M plus 20% of future profits. Good thing the player doesn't even want to hear about moving there.

Feb 25th 2028

Finally, we're going back to the Europa League. The first knockout round just ended (Napoli lost to Benfica, incidentally), and now we reenter in the second, where we get one of the best draws we could realistically hope for: Club Brugge from Belgium. Considering this same round has ties like PSV-Liverpool, Benfica-Leverkusen, or Leipzig-Atlético, I'd say we got lucky here.

Feb 26th 2028

Borussia Dortmund (3rd) vs. TSV 1860 München (4th) (Bundesliga, 25/34)

Klopp's boys are on their worst run of the season by far, with two defeats in the league and a loss in London to Chelsea in the Champions League just four days ago to boot. They're still heavy favorites here and I'll prepare for a pretty thorough drubbing, but if there's a moment where we might be able to steal something from them, it's probably now.

* * *

DORTMUND (4-3-3): Gregor Kobel (GK); Mohamed Simakan (DR), Niklas Süle (DCr), Manuel Akanji (DCl), Marcus Holmgren Pedersen (DL); Angelo Stiller (DM), Hadj Semahi (MCr), Giovanni Reyna (MCl); Luka Jovic (AMR), Adam Hlozek (AML), Liam Delap (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Jair Rodríguez (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)

* * *

Sapmaz misses out today with an untimely cold, but otherwise our team looks more or less as one would expect, except maybe for Casas in Stjepanovic's place. Dortmund start their new striker Delap upfront returning Jovic to the wing and Chukwueze to the bench, yet surprisingly it's us who have the first chance still in the first minute, with Rijkhoff heading a corner kick taken by Miranda into Kobel's fists and over. We also keep the ball very well in those first minutes, putting some pressure on Dortmund to see if they will crack under it. They don't, and instead create a very dangerous chance in the 11th minute with a cross into space by Hlozek towards Semahi, who rushes his finish and sends it well wide.

Jovic is the next to try luck with a curler from the edge of the box that goes wide to the right of Kretzschmar's goal, but the game is starting to take a very yellow color, as would be expected. Delap soon finds another pass into space by Reyna inside the box, but thankfully he shoots well over the bar, and afterwards we start taking less risks and just trying our best to have possession, only pushing forward when a clear opportunity to do so arises. The plan seems to work, and for a good while Dortmund look incapable of breaking us down.

That changes in the 41st, when Semahi breaks into the right side of the box and crosses towards Delap, who once again has his aim set too high and sends his header over. That's the last thing they can produce in the first half, though. Surviving so far.

HALF TIME - 0-0

Dortmund need a goal and start the second half looking for it, with Reyna heading over the bar a dangerous corner kick in the very first minute. Next comes Delap, profiting from a bad pass by Maldini in midfield to get a shot from inside the box blocked by Kretzschmar. Maldini himself is our first substituted player, bringing Da Silva in and moving Miranda to the right, while Özcan takes point in Rijkhoff's place. Meanwhile Holmgren Pedersen tries a right-footed curling shot from afar that goes well wide, but Dortmund still can't seem to be able to break us down, and look increasingly desperate.

Caraballo for Marcos Paulo is our final substitution, and now we start looking seriously into launching a counterattack here and there, just for variety's sake. Miranda ends one of them with a left-footed effort into the post from an offside position, which should serve as a nice warning shot. Dortmund haven't created anything in a while now other than a couple of good chances for Hlozek that were also flagged down due to offside. Theate finally tests Kretzschmar again with a powerful finish from inside the box in a set piece come the 78th minute, but the keeper answers admirably once again and the ball is deflected away from danger.

There's a dramatic moment in the 82nd minute when Caraballo goes down due to a challenge by Holmgren Pedersen right on the edge of the box. After checking with VAR, though, the referee correctly signals a free kick just outside the penalty area. Shame. That set piece goes nowhere, but Özcan manages to give Dortmund a pretty good scare in the 86th, running at his marker and into the box, but finally getting his shot blocked by Akanji. Two minutes later the striker gathers a clearance by Kretzschmar, holds it down for a bit, then assists Rodríguez as the young midfielder runs into space, into the box, and shoots past Kobel to score a dramatic 0-1.

Even more dramatic, though, is the next minute: corner kick headed by Delap and parried by Kretzschmar, only for the ball to go all the way outside the box to Kozlowski so the midfielder can send a low shot into the root of the post and in, drawing the game almost instantly. Injury time brings a direct free kick for Stiller that the defensive midfielder smashes into the crossbar and over, then a bicycle kick from distance by Da Silva that Kobel saves easily. In the end, though, the 1-1 stands.

* * *

Borussia Dortmund 1 (Kaçper Kozlowski 89)
TSV 1860 München 1 (Jair Rodríguez 88)

- - -

I hate that the first thing that comes to mind after such a fantastic performance and result in Dortmund is "gods, not another draw". And yes, it hurt to concede once again immediately after scoring, but to be fair this is the most we deserved out of this game, if that. Dortmund had us bottled in for most of the match, and although we defended well we should never have scored today, but Özcan does those things sometimes and goals just happen. I'll take it happily. Well, mostly happily, we lose the fourth place to Leverkusen today, but whatever, we'll get it back.

So yes, Leverkusen won and are now fourth one point ahead of us. The surprising thing today is that Eintracht have come out of nowhere, beat HSV, and snuck into the sixth place four points behind us. Stuttgart's loss at home to Fortuna helps, even more considering we're hosting them next.

Dalbeider · September 8, 2023

Feb 29th 2028

February 29th is a weird day, and not in a good way for us: Rijkhoff breaks a rib in training, because apparently doing American football drills without protection is a good idea. Our striker will be out of contention for five to six weeks, leaving Özcan as our only out-and-out striker in a very loaded period, with the Europa League coming in between a handful of extremely important league games.

Mar 1st 2028

Bayern, Leipzig, Gladbach, and Freiburg will be the participating teams in the DFB Pokal semifinals, quite the loaded lineup.

Mar 2nd 2028

Another serious injury, this time for Da Silva, who twists an ankle and will miss approximately one whole month. He's not having a fantastic season by any means, but he's still our main rotation option in midfield, so losing him now hurts. More minutes for Karlsen and, perhaps, Ulrich, I guess, plus Thiago might play some games in a more advanced position to see how he does.

Mar 4th 2028

TSV 1860 München (5th) vs. VfB Stuttgart (9th) (Bundesliga, 26/34)

Three fourths of the season gone today and everything still very, heh, tied up. Draw jokes aside, Stuttgart have had a rougher winter than even us, particularly in February where they lost three and drew one, thus dropping places like a rock. They're still only five points behind us because yeah, we only got three points more than them in February after all... Dare I wish for a win to end this curse?

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Jair Rodríguez (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)
STUTTGART (4-2-3-1): Finn Dahmen (GK); Chris Richards (DR), Waldemar Anton (DCr), Hrvoje Smolcic (DCl), Fabian Nürnberger (DL); Shinta Appelkamp (MCr), Orel Mangala (MCl); Aleksander Andresen (AMR), Ismaël Gharbi (AMC), Moussa Djénépo (AML); Borja Mayoral (ST)

* * *

We need to be careful about who we play and when now, because we have a trip to Belgium in five days, and two days later a derby in the Allianz, plus our injuries thinning our options in midfield and attack. Today we play a mostly-starters eleven that should be ready to face Bayern next weekend, and save a mostly-backups eleven for the Europa League. The match starts quite even in possession, although Stuttgart have a noticeable tendency to go back into their own half easily. They still draw first blood with a good run by Mayoral, who gains some space on Stjepanovic and shoots into Kretzschmar's save. We answer quickly through Rodríguez's pass into space and Sapmaz's finish, well blocked by Dahmen.

We keep pushing, generating a few shots without much danger to them before a corner kick allows Özcan a chance to get a header in which sadly goes wide by about half a meter. Stuttgart look content to wait in their own half now, thus making our job more difficult. We try widening the field as much as we can, and in the 42nd minute a good cross by Baldé gives Özcan another header, this one saved by a very confident-looking Dahmen. That's the last action of the first half, still goalless.

HALF TIME - 0-0

The second half starts even slower than the first ended, with neither team getting anywhere close to dangerous positions for over ten minutes, only a blocked shot by Özcan after a good counter by Sapmaz. Karlsen soon replaces a mediocre Miranda but nothing seems to really change, so it's Thiago's and Gerometta's turn to try and turn our engines on. Still nothing, other than Stuttgart having a bit more of the ball now and starting to get a bit too daring for my tastes.

Finally, some action in the 74th minute: good cross by Svensson into the penalty spot for another header by Özcan, deflected behind by Dahmen. That corner kick turns into an even better chance when Lang heads the ball into the crossbar and over, and the fans finally got lively, hoping for this to be the start of something better. It is not, and we go into the last minutes of regulation with only a weak shot by Andresen that Kretzschmar has zero trouble saving. Injury time comes and almost goes, and it looks like this is gonna be the seventh in a row when Caraballo spots Svensson running unmarked down the left flank and passes the ball to him, Stuttgart's defense have a bit of a sudden collapse, and the wingback just passes it towards the center where an equally unmarked Özcan only needs to push it into the net to score the 1-0 just seconds before the end of the match. That felt good.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 1 (Vedat Özcan 90+3)
VfB Stuttgart 0

- - -

FINALLY. And with the heaviest possible dose of drama, too. Absolutely deserved win against a very defensive-minded Stuttgart that only got a single, weak shot on target in the whole game, yet almost escaped from Grünwalder Strasse with a point. Özcan's goal is enough to snap us of our draw streak and give us a nice morale boost before the Europa League and the Munchner derby.

* * *

| Pos | Team                | Pld   | Won   | Drn   | Lst   | For   | Ag    | GD    | Pts   | Form  | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 1st | FC Bayern           | 25    | 21    | 3     | 1     | 75    | 17    | 58    | 66    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 2nd | RB Leipzig          | 25    | 17    | 5     | 3     | 62    | 30    | 32    | 56    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 3rd | Borussia Dortmund   | 26    | 17    | 4     | 5     | 54    | 29    | 25    | 55    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 4th | Bayer Leverkusen    | 26    | 14    | 4     | 8     | 44    | 32    | 12    | 46    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 5th | 1860 München        | 26    | 12    | 9     | 5     | 41    | 25    | 16    | 45    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 6th | Hamburg             | 26    | 12    | 5     | 9     | 45    | 33    | 12    | 41    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 7th | Freiburg            | 26    | 11    | 8     | 7     | 41    | 41    | 0     | 41    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 8th | Frankfurt           | 26    | 11    | 5     | 10    | 45    | 39    | 6     | 38    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 9th | Borussia M'gladbach | 26    | 10    | 7     | 9     | 39    | 33    | 6     | 37    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 10th| Stuttgart           | 26    | 11    | 4     | 11    | 39    | 43    | -4    | 37    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 11th| Hertha BSC          | 26    | 11    | 3     | 12    | 37    | 38    | -1    | 36    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 12th| Nürnberg            | 26    | 9     | 6     | 11    | 42    | 43    | -1    | 33    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 13th| Mainz               | 26    | 8     | 4     | 14    | 34    | 46    | -12   | 28    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 14th| Fortuna Düsseldorf  | 26    | 8     | 4     | 14    | 35    | 54    | -19   | 28    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 15th| Köln                | 26    | 6     | 8     | 12    | 32    | 47    | -15   | 26    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 16th| Wolfsburg           | 26    | 6     | 3     | 17    | 26    | 53    | -27   | 21    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 17th| Heidenheim          | 26    | 2     | 6     | 18    | 28    | 73    | -45   | 12    |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 18th| SC Paderborn        | 26    | 1     | 4     | 21    | 17    | 60    | -43   | 7     |       | 
| --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

One one hand, yay, unbeaten in 2028! On the other, boo, only fifteen points in nine league games, or in other words the same we would've got if we'd won five and lost four. Yet somehow, despite all the point-wasting and all the goals conceded in key moments, we remain as the second best defense in the league only behind Bayern, and that's with Kretzschmar having been a bit on-and-off lately. Our attack is still a work in progress, though... Fifth is a good place to start the final stretch in, and our four point lead on all our chasers, most notably Hamburg, means we don't have to worry too much about the upcoming and almost inevitable defeat in the Allianz. We have a chance to get in the Champions League, and we should take it this time.

The league title, on the other hand, is almost decided pending the adjourned match between Bayern and Leipzig, which won't happen until early April. Still, it feels like Bayern's lead is more than enough regardless of what happens then, and it'd take an implosion of massive proportions to rob them of the Bundesliga. Dortmund have entered a downward spiral with four consecutive games without a win and might find their third place in jeopardy if they don't snap out of it soon. On the other hand, look at Gladbach go! I predicted they'd bounce back in the second half of the season and they sure are doing so. I'd call them favorites for the seventh place, and might get even more than that. The bottom looks almost completely decided by now, with the only doubt remaining being whether Wolfsburg will have it in them to put some pressure on Köln, Fortuna, and Mainz for the relegation playoff. Heidenheim and Paderborn are almost as good as gone.

* * *

PLAYER STATS
============

Average rating (min. 9 games played):

Vedat Özcan              7.20 (16(5) apps)
Niklas Lang              7.17 (21 apps)
Daniel Svensson          7.16 (20(3) apps)
Matías Miranda           7.15 (25(1) apps)
Arnau Casas              7.13 (16(2) apps)

Goals:

Vedat Özcan              9 goals
Julian Rijkhoff          9
Rodrigo Caraballo        7
Can Sapmaz               6
Marcos Paulo             5

Assists:

Matías Miranda           6 assists
Vedat Özcan              5
Florent Da Silva         5
Daniel Maldini           5
Manu Sánchez             4
Martin Karlsen           4

Edited September 8, 2023 by Dalbeider

Dalbeider · September 11, 2023

Mar 5th 2028

Baldé signs a new contract with us, an upgrade to his wages after a bit over a year with us that the right back has deserved thoroughly so far. We guarantee his presence in the team for four more years at €29k per week and with no release clauses attached, a good deal in my books.

Mar 7th 2028

Svensson earns a place in the Team of the Week with his game-deciding assist and solid defensive work against Stuttgart.

And the injury crisis gets worse: Maldini goes down with a gashed upper leg which will make him miss somewhere between one and two weeks. Suddenly playing Sapmaz for the whole game against Stuttgart feels like a bad idea...

Mar 9th 2028

Club Brugge KV vs. TSV 1860 München (Europa League 2nd knockout stage, 1st leg)

Europe calls once again. Club Brugge are the current runaway leaders in the Belgian league, going strong for their fifth title in a row. It's still the Belgian league, though, meaning the standard of play there should be at least a step or two below what we find week in and week out in the Bundesliga. As such, we have to believe we have a chance of getting a result here, injuries or not. And for once, I'd welcome a draw.

* * *

CLUB BRUGGE (4-2-3-1): Nick Shinton (GK); Mark Spanring (DR), Henrik Heggheim (DCr), Josip Sutalo (DCl), Gastón Ávila (DL); Pedro Chirivella (MCr), Sivert Mannsverk (MCl); Sergi Canos (AMR), Sofiane Diop (AMC), Diego Moreira (AML); David Okereke (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Ader Hadzic (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Thiago (DM), Martin Karlsen (MCr), Jair Rodríguez (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)

* * *

Mandatory rotation today as we save a few legs for the game against Bayern in just forty-eight hours, with Karlsen getting his first start in a while after some good performances off the bench. Sapmaz and Özcan might need resting at some point today, though. There's a familiar face in Club Brugge's lineup, too, since left winger Diego Moreira spent some time with us on loan a few years ago. They start controlling possession in the early game, and after nine minutes a ball lost by Gerometta in midfield reaches Okereke some thirty-five yards away from goal, and the striker unleashes an absolutely unstoppable missile into the top right corner to score a spectacular 1-0 for the Belgians. His thirtieth goal in all competitions this season, by the way.

After the goal Club Brugge seem to retreat into their own half, something we thank them for with a good chance created by Marcos Paulo and finished, very poorly, by Rodríguez fourteen minutes in. Five minutes later Marcos Paulo has a chance to score himself with a header after a good cross by Karlsen, but he happens to send it exactly where Shinton was, and it's an easy save for the keeper. A through ball to Canos generates Club Brugge's second attack of the game, although this time Kretzschmar is where he has to be to stop the winger from scoring the second. Things even out after that, the game getting mired in midfield for a long while until in the 40th minute a good run down the left by Diop ends in a cross towards Moreira, who also finds Kretzschmar in the way of his finish. That's it for a very even first half decided by a moment of genius.

HALF TIME - 1-0

The second half starts in the worst possible way: pass into space from deep by Mannsverk towards Moreira, the winger completely outpaces Gerometta, enters the box, and rounds Kretzschmar with a good show of skill to score the second. Three minutes later another missile from outside the box, this one fired by Diop, rips a hole in our net as Kretzschmar is unable to stop it, and the game is now completely out of reach, as might be the competition altogether.

We decide to rest Sapmaz then and bring Miranda in, but Club Brugge still run rampant, with Kretzschmar having to go down in the 56th to prevent another goal by Diop following a great assist by Moreira, who's destroying Gerometta today. Caraballo replaces Özcan, moving Marcos Paulo to the center, and Ulrich returns to the team in Rodríguez's place. Then, to complete an absolutely horrid performance, Gerometta pulls on Moreira's shirt inside the box and it's a stonewall penalty that Okereke turns into the 4-0.

Moreira keeps hitting us even after switching sides to allow a substitute in his previous position, heading over the bar a cross from the left in the 62nd minute. Two minutes later and completely out of nowhere we get a corner kick, Miranda takes it towards the far post, and Marcos Paulo heads it in to cut our disadvantadge by a little. The incidental striker tries luck again a bit later from afar, trying a placed shot but sending it very narrowly wide. Miranda then picks a yellow that implies suspension for the second leg, followed by Diop wasting a good chance for a fifth with a centered shot after a lightning-quick counterattack.

We keep trying to reduce Club Brugge's lead as much as possible, and Marcos Paulo has another good chance with a header tipped wide by Shinton, well generated by Karlsen's cross from the right wing. We aren't having the best of days overall, though, and Sánchez forgets about his usual solid self with an absolutely atrocius mistake that gifts Nusa the ball and an empty goal to score in, and which the forward somehow manages to turn into an even worse finish, the ball sailing well over the bar. A cross by the same Nusa allows Okereke another chance to score but he sends it straight at Kretzschmar, then Nusa tries again from distance, this time hitting the crossbar. Thankfully that's the end for today, but this first taste of European knockout stages couldn't have been more bitter.

* * *

Club Brugge SV 4 (David Okereke 9 60p, Diego Moreira 46, Sofian Diop 49)
TSV 1860 München 1 (Marcos Paulo 64)

- - -

That was a short result. That's how bad we were today. I don't think Club Brugge are better than, say, Bayern, but we certainly made them look like worldbeaters. We still have to be thankful for Marcos Paulo's goal and their many sitters missed, because now we have a (small) chance to fix this at our stadium. Many players lost a lot of credit today, though, including but not limited to Gerometta and Hadzic.

Edited September 11, 2023 by Dalbeider

Dalbeider · September 12, 2023

Mar 10th 2028

If by some miracle we manage to come back from that 4-1 defeat we'd be facing either Leipzig or Atlético de Madrid in the quarterfinals. Not sure if worth it... Villarreal, OL, Monaco, or Leicester would be our extremely hypothetical semifinal opposition.

Mar 11th 2028

FC Bayern München (1st) vs. TSV 1860 München (5th) (Bundesliga, 27/34)

Fantastic timing for this, really. Can't help but think that if Club Brugge can put four (and threaten at least four more) past us, what can Bayern do then? On the other hand we've been doing really well lately except for that particular game, and our lineup today will be completely different, so who knows? We're most likely losing anyway, but at least we should put up a bit of a fight. Just a bit.

* * *

BAYERN (4-2-3-1): Aaron Ramsdale (GK); Nordi Mukiele (DR), Dayot Upamecano (DCr), Andrea Papetti (DCl), Alphonso Davies (DL); Leon Goretzka (MCr), Mikkel Damsgaard (MCl); Leroy Sané (AMR), Kai Havertz (AMC), Ansu Fati (AML); Timo Werner (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-2-3-1 deep): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DMCr), Darko Vuskovic (DMCl); Jair Rodríguez (MC); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)

* * *

Back to the 4-2-3-1, even though Thiago is reeling a bit from playing the whole game two days ago and we're without Da Silva as an alternative there. Bayern are also in need of a comeback against PSG in the Champions League so they save a few starters today, although Moukoko and Kimmich are both injured, the latter about to return after damaged cruciate ligaments. That's still more than enough, though, and after ten minutes Mukiele runs into space after a long ball sent in by Goretzka, enters the box, makes Kretzschmar go to the ground, then shoots calmly into the empty goal to score the 1-0.

Of course Bayern want more, and soon Werner is testing Kretzschmar from the edge of the box with a flat shot that the keeper manages to tip wide, before having to fly to keep out of the net a header by Goretzka in the corner kick that follows. Next up is Fati, receiving a long ball from Goretzka inside the box and trying to surprise Kretzschmar with a first-touch shot which the keeper reads well enough to save and hold the ball, and then it's Havertz who sends a header over the bar after a cross by Davies. In the 17th, though, we manage to break free for the first time and Caraballo almost scores the 1-1 with a cute little lob over Ramsdale, who has to watch the ball miss the target by mere inches.

That chance gives us a push, and soon Özcan is gathering a pass by Sapmaz and trying a finish that Papetti blocks and sends behind. A quick run through the center by Werner cuts our reaction short, though, as Stjepanovic is forced to trip him when he was getting ready to shoot and score the second. The penalty is clear, and so is Werner's 2-0 from the spot. Kretzschmar is called to action once again a while later to stop a very dangerous finish by Fati, but after that things seem to calm down a bit, with only Werner trying a powerful finish after sneaking past Stjepanovice once again but blasting it over. A wide header by Sané leads into the final minutes of the half, when a set piece whipped into the box by Damsgaard is perfectly headed by Werner to score the 3-0. Not the best note on which to end the first half.

HALF TIME - 3-0

The second half starts in a similar note, only this time Goretzka heads a corner kick wide instead of into the net. We still can't get the ball out of our own half, though, so a chance is warrented: Karlsen replaces Thiago and we move back to the 4-3-3, while Miranda takes Sapmaz's place in the right wing. No matter: another corner kick taken by Damsgaard reaches Upamecano at the near post and the center back heads it in for the fourth.

Marcos Paulo replaces a very frustrated Özcan after a bit, just to save some of the striker's energy for the Europa League's return leg, and not much later Miranda has a chance to put some pressure on Ramsdale with a direct free kick that the keeper tips over the bar with an aesthetic flight. The game is a bit more back-and-forth now, although with less clear chances on either goal. Probably an improvement. Kretzschmar doesn't have more work until the 69th, when he goes down well to save a long-range attempt by Sané.

After ten minutes of tranquility it's our turn to strike, once again through Miranda, who gathers a great pass by Baldé and faces Ramsdale one-on-one, but is once again denied by the keeper. Lang also gets close in the resulting corner kick, although his header ends up going over. On the other goal Werner wastes a clear-cut chance to grab himself a hattrick with a narrowly wide finish four minutes before the end of regulation, then Kretzschmar saves a powerful header by Upamecano, once again unbeatable in set pieces. A final high ball by Papetti in yet another dead ball situation marks the end of the most one-sided Münchner Derby in recent history.

* * *

FC Bayern München 4 (Nordi Mukiele 10, Timo Werner 22p 44, Dayot Upamecano 52)
TSV 1860 München 0

- - -

Apparently Bayern can do exactly the same Club Brugge did, only not conceding even once. At least this is a game we should be losing, because even a Kimmich-less, Lewandowski-less, Moukoko-less Bayern team is ridiculously strong. It's still a bad feeling to see that after all the improving we've done throughout the years we still keep being swept aside as an afterthought time and time again. Sigh, our time will come. Eventually.

Dalbeider · September 13, 2023

Mar 12th 2028

It's time for international callups once again, and Mexico bring Rodríguez back to the senior team for a potential third and fourth caps. A few days later the European nations name their squads, which include Özcan with Turkey, Svensson with Sweden, Hadzic with Bosnia, and, finally, Vuskovic returning with Croatia. Sapmaz and Karlsen also join their respective U21 squads. Finally, just before the Europa League game, Caraballo is called up by the Venezuela side.

Mar 16th 2028

TSV 1860 München vs. Club Brugge SV (Europa League 2nd knockout stage, 2nd leg)

Time to fish for a miracle, I guess. At least this time our next league game is in three days rather than two, so we can at least play a less backup-heavy eleven and hope for the best. Our focus will still be in the league, though, so we won't go all out unless there's a real chance of fixing our mistakes from last week. I'll want at least a good performance and a win, though, as a bare minimum.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Ader Hadzic (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Martin Karlsen (MCr), Thiago (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)
CLUB BRUGGE (4-2-3-1): Nick Shinton (GK); Mark Spanring (DR), Henrik Heggheim (DCr), Josip Sutalo (DCl), Abner Vinicius (DL); Pedro Chirivella (MCr), Sivert Mannsverk (MCl); Sergi Canos (AMR), Sofiane Diop (AMC), Diego Moreira (AML); David Okereke (ST)

* * *

With Miranda out of contention due to suspension and Rodríguez looking tired, we push Thiago into a more advanced role today alongside Karlsen. Maldini also returns to the lineup after his latest injury, but otherwise we trust in the same defense that conceded four one week ago. Club Brugge only change their left back from last time, and still seem to want to score more against this defense, with Canos smashing a shot into Casas's back just mere seconds into the game. We take control afterwards, though, with possession on our side and pushing Brugge back like we didn't manage to do in all of the first leg.

A weak header by Maldini is our first attempt at goal, easy for Shinton, but our first real chance comes in the 15th minute after a nod by Marcos Paulo leaves Özcan with only the keeper ahead, yet the striker ends up shooting wide by an inch or two. One minute later Okereke also sends the ball far from the target after a good-looking run through the center, but we keep piling the pressure on through Gerometta, whose shot is tipped over by the keeper in a really good save. Maldini also comes across Shinton's agility in another good chance generated by Karlsen's passes into space, but Okereke strikes back for the Belgians once again, this time heading wide a cross from the left by Mannsverk.

Karlsen joins the attack in the 34th minute to catch a long ball by Vuskovic and send it wide to the left of the target, but after that we run completely dry, and the final ten minutes of the half pass without any further chances. Still way too far from a comeback.

HALF TIME - 0-0

Another pass into space ahead of Karlsen ends with the ball flying into the stratosphere in our first approach of the second half, but after fifteen minutes pass and that's still our best chance post-break we need to start making decisions. Sapmaz replaces a tired Maldini, while Rodríguez and Caraballo replace Vuskovic and Özcan to keep them fresh for Sunday's key game against Eintracht. A left-footed finish by Canos sails over Kretzschmar's goal a few minutes later, as Club Brugge start feeling comfortable enough to push farther forward.

Soon Diop gathers the ball inside the ball following good service from Moreira, much quieter today so far, and shoots into Kretzschmar's first difficult save of the evening. On the other end Thiago tries luck from thirty yards away, but his shot is centered and easy to punch away for Shinton. Another attempt by the young Brazilian doesn't even find the target, and Kretzschmar's fingertips have soon work to do to stop a dangerous curler by sub forward Malpon. Three minutes before full time Sapmaz gets a low shot in after a good assist by Marcos Paulo but, once again, finds Shinton well positioned to save. Moreira wastes another chance for Club Brugge on the counter with a terrible finish just before time runs out on our European adventure for this season.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 0
Club Brugge SV 0

- - -

Much better today, even though our finishing was still poor and Shinton made good work of the few times it wasn't. Still, a marked improvement for most players, probably helped by the fact that Club Brugge didn't really have to try all that hard today. Let's hope we can carry this into the league now and turn it into actual wins. At least we get €1.2M for our troubles. Good bye, Europe. We will return.

Siren songs playing from back home in Spain, Valencia to be precise. Cute little job to take, assuming the board have sorted themselves out in the meantime (doubtful), but still no.

Dalbeider · September 14, 2023

Mar 17th 2028

It's a miracle! Kretzschmar gets called up with Germany's national team for the first time ever! Granted, it was only because Wolfsburg's Mantl got injured and he was the next in line, but still. We'll see if he gets the chance to debut, Mantl still hasn't despite being called up multiple times before now...

Mar 19th 2028

TSV 1860 München (5th) vs. Eintracht Frankfurt (7th) (Bundesliga, 28/34)

With Europe now done and dusted, it's time to focus on returning there next season, and for that we need to start picking up wins in the many direct duels we'll have to face in these final seven fixtures. Starting with Eintracht, who together with Gladbach might be one of the most in-form teams in the league not called Bayern. We'll need to be at our best today, and we haven't really been there for a while now...

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Jair Rodríguez (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)
EINTRACHT (4-2-3-1): Timo Horn (GK); Jordan Lotomba (DR), Marvin Friedrich (DCr), Jackson Porozo (DCl), Matthew Sorinola (DL); Lewis Cook (MCr), Toma Basic (MCl); Datro Fofana (AMR), André Franco (AMC), Bryan Mbeumo (AML); Joe Gelhardt (ST)

* * *

With the same starting eleven that got our last win against Stuttgart, we face an Eintracht side that only change three quarters of their defense from our previous meeting, with former Löwe Erik Tallig in the bench. After ten minutes of midfield battle without a clear winner we start pushing forward slightly, soon creating our first chance with a long distance direct free kick taken by Miranda and which Horn has trouble deflecting wide. Özcan gets his head to the corner kick, too, but that only sends the ball over the bar, and his second attempt two minutes later after a cross by Baldé doesn't find the target either, this time going wide.

With the game now firmly in our grasp we keep pushing for the opener, with Miranda testing Horn from distance and Svensson getting another potentially dangerous shot blocked by Franco. Özcan keeps finding crosses with his head, but mostly from awkward positions that don't lead to any real danger for Horn's goal. Eintracht are more than happy to keep defending all game long, and only show up near our goal in the final minutes of the half after a quick counterattack that Fofana finishes with a high header, in what turns out to be the final chance of the half.

HALF TIME - 0-0

There's a shift in Eintracht's attitude in the early second half, trying to push a bit farther forward and even testing Kretzschmar with a shot by Mbeumo that the keeper blocks with some difficulty. It's a momentary thing, though, and soon they're back to defending with all eleven men, denying us even the most basic of chances with very solid defensive work. Since normal attacks won't work, we give set pieces a try: Rodríguez takes a corner kick towards the far post and who else but Lang is there to put his head in and score the 1-0.

Now it's Eintracht's turn to attack, and it doesn't take long for Mbeumo to remind us of our many wasted leads into all those draws in January and February, entering the box and shooting into Kretzschmar's good save. It's time for substitutions, and soon Maldini, Thiago, and Marcos Paulo enter the game to try and help us retain our lead, or expand it if possible. Substitute Maina tries an acrobatic volley from afar that doesn't catch Kretzschmar by surprise, but otherwise the following minutes are a calm affair.

Kretzschmar is called up in the 83rd minute to perform his usual magic, parrying a point-blank header by Maina after a fantastic run and cross by Lotomba and keeping us still ahead. Eintracht move to a 4-4-1-1, a surprising move when chasing a goal which seems to make our life easier in the final stretch, even allowing us to create a great chance to score the second that Maldini sends straight into Horn's hands. There are no more scares, Eintracht don't really seem to push all that hard to score the draw, and we secure a vital win to revitalize our campaign.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 1 (Niklas Lang 58)
Eintracht Frankfurt 0

- - -

Absolutely key result, knocking Eintracht out of the race for Europe for the time being and putting some extra space behind us, while also recovering most of the lost ground with Leverkusen thanks to their defeat in Hamburg. It wasn't a brilliant game by any means, and Eintracht's defensive outlook didn't help matters, but we got the win and actually held onto it for a change and that's what matters at this stage. I'd kill for six more wins like this one.

Dalbeider · September 15, 2023

Mar 24th 2028

Very solid full-game performances for Hadzic and Vuskovic with their national sides, while Caraballo and Rodríguez had more discreet outings. This is also Vuskovic's fifth senior cap, which means he gets a wage hike up to €44k per week. Still more than worth it, although now offering him a new contract to get rid of his release clause is going to be even harder, even more considering the likes of Chelsea, Milan, and Bayern are apprently trailing him right now... The U21 kids also got their play time, with Karlsen as the stand-out with an assist against Armenia. Meanwhile, still no debut for Kretzschmar.

Mar 31st 2028

Just before the game against Wolfsburg the NxGn 2028 list is announced, and we receive the very pleasant surprise of seeing Jair Rodríguez at the very top after his second place from last year. Once again the Mexican league dominates the award with two Mexican players in the top 2 and a third-placed Brazilian kid who's playing for Toluca. As always, our scouts will have some work to do with this list, and maybe it's time to consider sending one of them full time to Mexico...

* * *

VfL Wolfsburg (16th) vs. TSV 1860 München (5th) (Bundesliga, 29/34)

Of the six fixtures remaining three of them are against bottom-half teams, and we should aim to take all the points from them if we want to challenge for the fourth place in the end, considering there's also two direct duels (HSV and Leverkusen themselves) and a final match against Leipzig to take into account. Wolfsburg are one of our favorite victims, and we come into this game after four consecutive wins against them, not to mention they've been stuck in the playoff position for basically half the season now. We should win this.

* * *

WOLFSBURG (4-2-3-1): Nico Mantl (GK); Pascal Stenzl (DR), Otan Kabak (DCr), Moritz Jenz (DCl), Gianluca Frabotta (DL); Gianluca Busio (MCr), Maximilian Arnold (MCl); Randal Kolo Muani (AMR), Luka Ivanusec (AMC), Jovane Cabral (AML), Gabriel Vidovic (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DM), Matías Miranda (MCr), Jair Rodríguez (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)

* * *

I'm actually glad Özcan didn't play any minutes with Turkey during this international break, so we have our one healthy striker at full fitness for once. Others weren't so lucky, though, so there's some rotation and starting positions for the likes of Thiago. Da Silva also returns to the bench after his injury, which gives us more options in midfield. Wolfsburg recover Mantl in time and start their new signing Vidovic upfront, a former Bayern product that we'd been tracking almost since my arrival but never had the chance to buy.

We start the game in style: long pass by Svensson from the left into the space ahead of NxGn winner Rodríguez, who gets his first shot blocked by Jenz but is first to the loose ball and, with Mantl still struggling to stand up, calmly passes it into the back of the net for a quick third-minute opener. Wolfsburg try to hit us right back through Vidovic, but the striker meets Kretzschmar's hands with his finish and all they can get is a corner kick. Eight minutes in Maldini takes a deep free kick into the box and Özcan taps it into the net, but he was offside by a bit and the goal is called off.

The game evens out, with Wolfsburg trying to push us back while we still do our best to try and find a second. We get three consecutive chances in three back-to-back-to-back corner kicks headed in by Özcan, Miranda, and Lang, and all of them saved by an excellent Mantl. Open play isn't generating much on either side of the pitch now, though, although we still have the upper hand in possession at the very least. Our best attempt comes through the center thanks to Rodríguez's through ball towards Özcan, who once again runs into Mantl with his finish. Next comes Maldini, once again assisted Rodríguez and also meeting the same final fate with his shot. The rest of the half sees little more than a couple of long-range attempts without any real danger to them, and we retain our lead without much issue.

HALF TIME - 0-1

Things remain mostly the same in the second half, although an early corner kick that ends in two dangerous blocked shots for Wolfsburg gives us some pause. The home team seem to be a bit more daring now, although without much bite upfront so far. Caraballo and Sánchez enter the game after fifteen minutes as the game remains under control, but with the feel that things might turn south at any moment. We need a second goal to close this, and Sánchez almost creates it with another fantastic pass from deep in the 67th minute towards Özcan, who finishes well but is denied by Mantl yet again.

Vuskovic for Thiago is our final substitution as we enter the final twenty minutes, and six minutes later we get a big scare when Waldschmidt receives on the left wing and crosses towards Kolo Muani, who scores with a good header but sees his goal disallowed as Waldschmidt had been offside when he got the ball. Kretzschmar then needs to block a difficult finish by Jovane after a cross from the right, and Wolfsburg look set to go all-out attack in the final ten minutes to get the draw. That doesn't happen, though, and with a great defensive and midfield display we proceed to completely and thoroughly kill the game before it can go anywhere dangerous. No chances at all in the final minutes, and three more points for us.

* * *

VfL Wolfsburg 0
TSV 1860 München 1 (Jair Rodríguez 3)

- - -

I did say I'd kill for six more 1-0 wins, didn't I? Well, that wasn't the intention today, and we probably should've scored at least one more if Özcan hadn't had a horrid day in front of Mantl, but it still worked out in the end. Once again extremely solid at the back and completely dominating in midfield, and Rodríguez celebrating his award with a key goal, his fifth of the season already. We put some pressure on Leverkusen now and wait to see how they react.

Edited September 15, 2023 by Dalbeider

Dalbeider · September 18, 2023

Apr 1st 2028

Well then, Leverkusen drop two points against Leipzig and that means we regain the fourth place. That's good, of course, but nowhere near definitive, since getting one point against Leipzig is probably one more than we'll get when we play them in the final fixture. We still need to beat Leverkusen in two weeks and drop as few points as possible elsewhere to be certain. Hamburg remain three points behind us after beating Mainz, but after that there's only Stuttgart in seventh place and already seven points behind, not particularly worrying. Europa League almost in the bag, now to reel the big fish in.

Apr 5th 2028

Yet another poor youth intake, and that's way too many in a row now. We really need to step up our recruiting game, otherwise we'll have serious problems in the future with homegrown quotas. Not to mention missing out on one of the club's bigger strengths in the past... At least this year there is one player with a certain degree of potential, 15yo attacking midfielder/forward Fatih Ari, but even he is a long shot.

Apr 6th 2028

Huh, Club Brugge just beat Leipzig 2-0 in the first leg of the Europa League quarterfinals. Looks like it wasn't all our fault then...

Apr 8th 2028

TSV 1860 München (4th) vs. 1.FC Heidenheim 1846 (17th) (Bundesliga, 30/34)

This looked like the easiest game in this final stretch by far until last week, what with Heidenheim having failed to win a single game since October, but then they went and beat Fortuna and now they're only six points behind Wolfsburg and have an actual chance at escaping the pit in the last moment. Not to mention they stole a draw from HSV just two weeks earlier. Relegation favorites, yes, but should be respected.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Martin Karlsen (MCr), Jair Rodríguez (MCl); Can Sapmaz (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)
HEIDENHEIM (4-4-1-1): Timothee Lo-Tutala (GK); Ronaël Pierre-Gabriel (DR), Kasim Adams (DCr), Dzenis Burnic (DCl), Kimberly Ezekwem (DL); Franco Tongya (MR), Paul Seguin (MCr), Dominik Kohr (MCl), Maurice Malone (ML); Leo Castledine (AMC); Tim Kleindienst (ST)

* * *

It's still a good chance for some rotation and for Karlsen to get some minutes as a starter, though, so we take it. Rijkhoff finally returns after his rib injury and goes straight into the eleven, although most likely will have to go rest sometime in the second half. The game starts terribly slow, with Heidenheim doing their best to keep the ball and then risk it as little as possible, while we run into their double defensive line time and time again. Our first chance doesn't come until the 12th minute and it's fruit of a momentary lack of organization in defense after a corner kick is cleared, which allows Baldé to find Caraballo inside the box so the winger can shoot into Lo-Tutala's save.

Heidenheim don't just defend, though, and two dangerous runs through the center by Castledine give us some trouble, with Kretzschmar and Stjepanovic dealing with both in the end. In the 19th minute, though, a steal by Rodríguez provokes a counterattack that ends with Sapmaz crossing into the box and Rijkhoff falling on the grass after a push by Burnic, correctly spotted by VAR. Manu Sánchez is our surprising taker today, but the left back doesn't miss and calmly scores the 1-0 from the spot.

The visitors don't give up, mostly because their survival is at stake, and Kohr soon gives us another scare with a surprise attempt from 25 yards away that hits the crossbar and bounces clear. Caraballo has our reply after a great pass into the box by Sánchez, but his finish is centered and easy for Lo-Tutala. Afterwards it's just twenty minutes of Heidenheim holding the ball and doing nothing worthwhile with it, and the clock ticks all the way until half time without any further chances.

HALF TIME - 1-0

Youngsters connect in the early second half with Karlsen assisting Sapmaz in a run into the box by the winger, who in the end can only shoot over the bar under pressure. Castledine hits us on the break one minute later, but his finish is equally poor, soft and straight into Kretzschmar's hands. Another good run by Sapmaz in the 57th ends with Ezekwem blocking his finish before it can get to the keeper, and soon afterwards Miranda and Özcan come into the game to give Rodríguez and Rijkhoff a bit of a break.

Their presence is key in a play that might decide the game: Miranda steals in midfield, Özcan gathers it and runs towards the box, and Burnic trips him just at the edge of the arc and earns himself an early bath through two yellow cards. The free kick is sent over the bar by Miranda, but the game should be much more in our favor now. Da Silva returns to action then in Karlsen's place to make sure we dominate the rest of the game, as Heidenheim change their outlook to a 4-3-1-1, trying to clog the center. That, of course, means weak wings, and that's where we focus now, finally generating the 2-0 in the 75th minute through Baldé and Miranda, with the later crossing so Caraballo can head it in at the far post. Game over.

Or so it should be, but ten-men Heidenheim still have enough to create danger from time to time, with a point-blank header by Kleindienst requiring Kretzschmar's intervention in the 81st minute, then Lee Jae-Sung blasting a 20-yarder miles over after the corner kick was cleared out. Özcan answers with a good header after a cross by Sapmaz, well saved by Lo-Tutala, but a bad pass by Manu Sánchez gifts the visitors another chance, once again denied by Kretzschmar as he deflects wide a one-on-one with substitute Ramazan Tas. Another header by Özcan saved by Lo-Tutala in the 90th is the last chance of a game that wasn't as one-sided as one might have expected.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 2 (Manu Sánchez 19p, Rodrigo Caraballo 75)
1.FC Heidenheim 1846 0 (Dzenis Burnic sent off 61)

- - -

Not brilliant by any means, but it'll do. Heidenheim's tactic of hiding the ball away gave us some trouble, but thankfully Burnic was there to first gift us a penalty, then remove himself from the picture early in the second half to make our job easier. Three more points in the end, another clean sheet, and things remain the same in the fight for the fourth place, with all three teams involved winning. The big news today is that Bayern are one point away from being crowned Bundesliga champions once again thanks to Leipzig's shocking 0-5 defeat against Mainz. I'd like to trade notes with Erol Bulut, if that's all right with him...

Dalbeider · September 19, 2023

Apr 10th 2028

Random interview offer out of nowhere coming from Ajax, they just lost Michael Reiziger to Valencia and thought of me as his replacement. Flattered, since Ajax is a team I admire quite a bit, but not right now, sorry.

Apr 11th 2028

Manu Sánchez takes the left back position in the Team of the Week.

Apr 13th 2028

Yep, Leipzig out of the Europa League semis, could only win 3-2 in the return leg against Club Brugge. The Belgians now play Villarreal for a place in the final, while Liverpool and Newcastle face off in the other semifinal. Liverpool absolutely destroyed Leverkusen 6-2 on aggregate, incidentally.

Apr 15th 2028

We play last this week, so we can relax at home while Bayern clinch the Bundesliga with an easy 3-0 home win against Köln and the red half of the city invades the streets in the almost-yearly celebration parade. Results today also mean we've secured at the very least a top half finish (not that there's been any doubt about that since, like, October or so), which once again fulfills the board's long-term plans in a single season. Now for bigger and better things.

Apr 16th 2028

Bayer 04 Leverkusen (5th) vs. TSV 1860 München (4th) (Bundesliga, 31/34)

The Game, part one. Leverkusen come into this after a midweek game in which they lost to Liverpool at home, so both tired and demoralized. However, considering how our last meetings with Simeone's boys have gone (4-0, 0-4, 4-0) it's hard to predict how this game will go, other than that whoever wins is likely to win big. The prize today is important, though, as having a four point-lead on them before the last three fixtures would be a godsend.

* * *

LEVERKUSEN (4-2-3-1 deep): Maarten Vandevoordt (GK); Gonçalo Esteves (DR), William Saliba (DCr), Pascual Piera (DCl), Marat Gadjiev (DL); Alejandro Valle (DMCr), Giacomo Faticanti (DMCl); Moussa Diaby (AMR), Florian Wirtz (AMC), Sergey Varfolomeev (AML), Lucas Júnior (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Jair Rodríguez (MCr), Matías Miranda (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)

* * *

We'll be keeping half an eye on HSV's result against Leipzig today, although our focus has to be solely on winning our match. We go with our most in-form eleven with Casas ahead of Stjepanovic and Özcan up front despite his somewhat mediocre recent performances. In Leverkusen Marcos Leonardo's absence after his move to Manchester City is covered by Lucas Júnior, a Brazilian youngster bought from Villarreal and who's already on three goals and three assists in nine league games.

The game goes back and forth in the early minutes, although eventually we start establishing ourselves in midfield and dominating possession while Simeone's team wait at the back ready to counter, as his teams usually do. Neither team manages to push through the other, though, and the first relevant event is not even a chance but an injury to Wirtz, which forces an early substitution with Davoud Sattari taking his place. Rodríguez finally tests Vandevoordt with a couple of inconsequential attempts from afar, and in the 29th Leverkusen finally create a dangerous counter through Diaby, whose run ends with a pass backwards towards Lucas Júnior who's unable to get his finish past Casas.

Our first proper chance doesn't come until the 32nd, a header by Maldini after Svensson's cross that Vandevoordt saves without trouble. We hit again five minutes later through Miranda, who shoots with power from the edge of the box but sees the keeper deflect the ball wide. Injury time brings Kretzschmar's first save of the game, holding well a finish by Varfolomeev after a cross from the left, and thus ends an uncharacteristically quiet first half in which we've held a slight edge.

HALF TIME - 0-0

The second half starts with a big one: set piece taken by Miranda and headed by Lang into the crossbar, then Casas can't gather the rebound clearly and ends up shooting wide. The game remains as even as before, though, although another set piece, this time a corner kick, ends with a header by Özcan that also hits the crossbar before going over. We're getting closer and closer, but we still need a bit more, and we bring Marcos Paulo and Rijkhoff in hoping they'll provided that little something. Leverkusen do the same, bringing Sinisterra and Pirani in on both sides of their attack.

Baldé generates our next chance with another cross into the box, this one headed by Marcos Paulo and once again saved by Vandevoordt. Seconds later the Portuguese repeats with another header, this one assisted by Maldini, but with the exact same end: excellent dive by the keeper to tip the ball wide. On the other end Kretzschmar also saves a header by Lucas Júnior without much trouble, while Sánchez replaces Svensson as our third and last lineup change.

The left back soon gets to work with a cross into the box that Saliba fails to clear and Maldini half-volleys high and wide. A mirror play with Maldini delivering the cross ends with a blocked shot by Marcos Paulo and a weak header by Rijkhoff on the bounce, easy for Vandevoordt. Finally, on the 82nd, a clearance after a corner kick allows us to patiently build a new attacking play, then Miranda sees Maldini's movement towards the box and sends the ball through the gap to him, and this time the winger doesn't miss, placing his finish past Vandevoordt and finally scoring the 0-1.

Leverkusen shift shape and move to a flat 4-4-2, pushing Sinisterra forward, but that just gifts the ball to us even more than before. Minutes pass without any danger coming near Kretzschmar, except for a long pass by Esteves towards Sattari in injury time that Vuskovic intercepts with a great tackle before it becomes a problem. We happily keep the ball under control for the remainder and score a critical victory.

* * *

Bayer 04 Leverkusen 0
TSV 1860 München 1 (Daniel Maldini 82)

- - -

Not a big result like most would've expected, but a huge result for us in our race towards the Champions League. Leverkusen were thoroughly dominated today, with most of the chances falling to us one after another until the dam finally broke. The day ended with Hamburg beating Leipzig for their second straight defeat in the league, once again failing to deliver when it matters the most, and now HSV climb over Leverkusen onto the fifth place, three points behind us and still with a good chance of catching up to us with a win in our meeting in two weeks. That'll be the decisive match if all things go to plan.

Dalbeider · September 20, 2023

Apr 18th 2028

Lang and Maldini are selected in the Team of the Week this time.

Apr 19th 2028

Oh, big surprise in the DFB Pokal semis: Freiburg beat Bayern! A 1-0 win with a first minute goal by Haksabanovic which the Bundesliga champions couldn't overcome. Leipzig struggled past Gladbach in the other semifinal and will have a great chance to lift their second title after their 2025 win.

Apr 21st 2028

TSV 1860 München (4th) vs. 1.FSV Mainz 05 (13th) (Bundesliga, 32/34)

From playing last to playing first, our last "easy" game of the season brings Mainz to Grünwalder Strasse, a team that's been going through the motions since practically the halfway point of the season, never threatened by relegation but never getting close to the important fights in the top half. And yet, they still managed a famous 0-5 win in Leipzig two weeks ago, which makes them scary. Let's see if we keep our current consistent form and not mess up at a crucial moment.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Francisco Gerometta (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Thiago (DM), Jair Rodríguez (MCr), Matías Miranda (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)
MAINZ (4-2-3-1): Marvin Schwäbe (GK); Joe Scally (DR), Omar Rekik (DCr), Márton Dárdai (DCl), Mathias Farnes Gabrielsen (DL); Eduard Löwen (MCr), Syver Aas (MCl); Tore Os (AMR), Mohammed Diomandé (AMC), Paulos Abraham (AML); Alessio Besio (ST)

* * *

Minor rotations once again, playing once a week we can afford to keep most of our core intact from game to game even when they're only five days apart. Mainz repeate ten out of eleven players from our last meeting, only replacing the promising young midfielder Hennig with Aas due to injury. Once again it's a slow start, with both teams struggling to dominate the midfield and neither managing a decisive victory in this early battle. We slowly seem to gain a small edge, though, and through that we manage a breakthrough: throw-in on the left side of Mainz's penalty area, Svensson and Marcos Paulo trade passes until the winger goes into the box, finds some space for himself, and curls the ball around Schwäbe to score the 1-0 with only fifteen minutes gone.

Mainz try to push forward immediately, but we remain patient in possession and, in the 23rd, build a long passing attack that ends with the ball at Marcos Paulo's feet just as Rijkhoff makes a run for it through the middle. The wingers sends the ball ahead, Rijkhoff gathers it, and sends it into the back of the net with style to score the 2-0 and his tenth of the season. Things don't seem to change much after the goal, and we look comfortable for a while until, suddenly, Aas finds space to send the ball through and assists Diomandé, who breaks the offside trap and beats Kretzschmar in the one-on-one to pull Mainz closer once again.

And then they do it again: quick ball towards the right for Os to gather, then the wingers sends a cross past Svensson and towards the far post where Diomandé shows up once again to score the 2-2. This happens five minutes before the end of the first half, and nothing else happens on either goal until half time. Four shots on target, four goals.

HALF TIME - 2-2

Nothing much happens in the second half until the 59th minute, when a cross by Maldini is volleyed by Rijkhoff in the near post, but Schwäbe flies across his goal to block it and concede a corner kick. Maldini and Miranda have been struggling a bit today, and Sapmaz and Da Silva come in in their place a couple of minutes later. Another combination down the left side of the box between Svensson and Marcos Paulo ends with the left back shooting this time, although Schwäbe does very well to produce a miracle hand and keep the draw going for a bit longer.

Our final substitution brings Karlsen in Rodríguez's place, but time keeps passing very quickly and with little production in attack for us, or Mainz for that matter. In the 76th we finally get there once again, Gerometta assisting Sapmaz so the winger tries to dribble past Schwäbe and put the ball between him and the post, but the keeper reads his intentions and closes the gap at the very last moment. We then enter the final minutes without much going on, and we run out of time before we can even realize it. A choke.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 2 (Marcos Paulo 15, Julian Rijkhoff 23)
1.FSV Mainz 05 2 (Mohammed Diomandé 32 40)

- - -

Two things: we can't concede twice against a team that shot two times in the whole match, and Gerometta has proven today that he doesn't have the quality to play at this level anymore, at least defensively: Diomandé ate him for breakfast in both goals, and no one else was around to pick up his slack. Credit to Mainz for being incredibly hard to tear down, both before and after their goals. Now we wait and hope that Leverkusen and HSV also mess up tomorrow. At the very least this point guarantees we can't go any lower than sixth, so that's Europe of some kind guaranteed for next season.

Dalbeider · September 21, 2023

Apr 22nd 2028

Well, one out of two ain't bad: Leverkusen got trounced 4-1 by Gladbach and end the weekend five points behind us, but HSV manage a 0-2 win in Düsseldorf and creep closer, now only with one point less than us. This basically forces us to win in Hamburg next week, since a draw wouldn't be enough unless we also beat Leipzig in the final fixture. Tough. At the bottom, relegation confirmed already for Heidenheim and Paderborn, while Wolfsburg win in Nürnberg and are now only two points behind Fortuna and four behind Köln, and might actually dodge the playoff in the end.

Apr 26th 2028

Leipzig and Bayern finally play their adjourned game, which Leipzig win 3-5. Other than being an absolute goal fest, this match means we can't catch up to them anymore, since it puts them nine points away with two games to play. Same for Dortmund, but that one was clear since the weekend. So, fourth to sixth is our window, and a win against HSV guarantees it's the former.

Apr 29th 2028

Hamburger SV (5th) vs. TSV 1860 München (4th) (Bundesliga, 33/34)

The Game, part two. We've been building a bit of a rivalry with HSV since we came across each other in the 2.Bundesliga, as we've been fighting for the same goals ever since. They had the upper hand in that promotion bid and won the league, they adapted earlier to the division, and last year they once again took the big prize with their Champions League qualification, just ahead of us. Not to mention they've been a thorn on our side whenever we've played them during these years. It's about time we changed that trend and upstaged them for once.

* * *

HSV (4-2-3-1): Yoshiaki Ichikawa (GK); Horst Billesfeld (DR), Jamie Lawrence (DCr), Joel Agyekum (DCl), Justin Janitzek (DL); Ron Schallenberg (MCr), Burak Ince (MCl); Xavier Amaechi (AMR), Tin Vrljicak (AMC), Faride Alidou (AML); Filip Ristanic (ST)
1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Niklas Lang (DCr), Arnau Casas (DCl), Daniel Svensson (DL); Darko Vuskovic (DM), Jair Rodríguez (MCr), Matías Miranda (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Rodrigo Caraballo (AML), Julian Rijkhoff (ST)

* * *

No sense in playing around today, so we start the same team that won against Leverkusen with the only change of sticking Rijkhoff as our striker instead of Özcan, who's having a rough ending to the season. HSV surprise leaving their top goalscorer and arguably best player, Schade, not just out of the eleven but of the team altogether. They still start the game pushing hard for an early goal, and a corner kick four minutes in almost gives them exactly that, with Lawrence producing a great header and Kretzschmar's block leading to a scramble inside the small box that almost ends with the ball crossing the line before it's finally cleared.

One minute later Vrljicak keeps the pressure up with a run through the center and a good-looking finish that Kretzschmar can barely tip wide, and then it's header by Lawrence and Agyekum in consecutive corner kicks leading to two more close shaves thanks to our keeper, until finally Lawrence heads the third one over the bar and gives us a breather. We take it slowly from there, trying to regain some of the lost ground while still allowing a good chance for Ristanic after a long ball over the defense, once again stopped by Kretzschmar. Slowly, very slowly, we begin to ease the pressure a little.

Kretzschmar is still required to perform his usual heroics once againt in the 25th minute, deflecting wide a shot by Billesfeld, then watches Ristanic send a 20-yarder wide one minute later, but the constant flow of chances has now slowed down to a trickle. We still can't produce anything in attack because HSV don't let us get through the midfield with the ball under control, and our first shot at goal doesn't come until the 40th minute and it's a long range attempt by Maldini with little danger. It's still a sign of improvement, and the best news so far is that we're still tied when the first half end.

HALF TIME - 0-0

Things remain roughly the same after the break, although HSV do get a great chance eight minutes in with a cross by Ince that Alidou heads into the post from a tight angle. Amaechi also tries a daring lob over Kretzschmar a bit later, but the keeper backtracks quickly and has no trouble saving. We try some substitutions, bringing Özcan and Marcos Paulo into the game, but even before they can enter the field a cross by Janitzek is met with a precise header by Ristanic, the ball hits the underside of the bar and goes in for the 1-0 HSV have been deserving for a while now.

Kretzschmar keeps keeping us alive with a good fingertip save to deny Amaechi in the 59th minute, but he has to watch as another corner kick generates another chance, this one sent into the crossbar and over by Janitzek. We then try something different, bringing Thiago in for Maldini, moving Miranda to the wing, and trying to open up the path for our wingbacks to charge through both sides. That at the very least seems to stop their attacks, and in the 74th we generate an actual chance in open play, wow, with Rodríguez and Miranda creating space for Özcan to shoot through, although sadly Ichikawa was there to save.

We finally start playing then, the players finding their rhythm as we keep pushing forward trying to get HSV into trouble. A blocked shot by Rodríguez leads to nothing too relevant, but the signs are looking better at least. Better is Özcan's chance after a pass into space by Marcos Paulo, but the defenders close him down quickly and his finish isn't good enough to beat Ishikawa. Then, in the 82nd, a throw-in on the right side of our attack ends with the ball inside the box under Casas's control, and the center-back performs an unlikely maneuver turning around and sending a no-look cross towards the far post so Marcos Paulo, from just one meter away from the goal, heads it in and draws the game.

The game has turned around now, although Hamburg still have a quick reaction through a shot over the bar by Buleza. In the 88th we get a corner kick that Rodríguez whips in, Lawrence fails to clear decisively, and Casas once again turns provider by gathering the loose ball and passing outside towards Rodríguez, who curls an absolute beauty into the top corner and scores the 1-2. The home fans can't believe their eyes.

HSV still have time to get the draw back, and Alidou gets a header in a dangerous position just before injury time starts, but it's a centered one and Kretzschmar saves easily. His goal kick is controlled by Marcos Paulo, who sends the ball into the box towards Özcan. The striker runs in, stops, turns around, and passes it back towards Rodríguez, who this time hits it with more power and less precision but still sends it to the back of the net. 1-3, somehow. But wait, there's more: with Hamburg pouring forward desperately, Rodríguez runs all the way to the corner flag in the right wing and crosses towards the far post, where Marcos Paulo nods it back perfectly so Özcan can volley it into the post and in, making it four and sealing our place in next season's Champions League for good. There's still time for Schallenberg to send a 20-yarder into the crossbar for their third woodwork impact of the game, but it doesn't matter anymore.

* * *

Hamburger SV 1 (Filip Ristanic 57)
TSV 1860 München 4 (Marcos Paulo 82, Jair Rodríguez 88 90+1, Vedat Özcan 90+2)

- - -

Insanity. That's the only word that can define this game. I know if I'd been on the receiving end of this I'd be throwing my coaching license into the closest open fire right now. Hamburg absolutely floored us in the first half, we looked like we were playing against Bayern at times with how cowed and powerless we seemed to be. We improved a bit in the second half, but then we conceded and it looked like game over. But our tactical change playing with two inverted wing players worked wonders, we scored in one of our first chances, and from then on the insanity really kicked off, with HSV looking aghast and our attackers just pummeling them time after time. That's one way to qualify for the Champions League, that's for sure!

Because yes, this seals the deal for good: we're now four points ahead of HSV and eight over Leverkusen, who lost at home to Freiburg and will still have to fight to keep their sixth place safe against Gladbach and Eintracht. At the bottom, Wolfsburg clawed another point back and will play the final fixture with real hopes of salvation, while Fortuna might want to start worrying seriously.

The board take the chance amidst the celebrations to set the initial budgets for next season: €700k for weekly wages and €24M for transfers. Not a huge increase from last year, but we'll make do.

Dalbeider · September 22, 2023

May 1st 2028

Oooh, election time again at the club! Can't wait for all the candidates to introduce themselves as wanting to continue doing the same things the current board are doing! Exciting!

May 2nd 2028

Jair Rodríguez is, of course, selected in the Team of the Week.

May 3rd 2028

Youth facilities upgrade completed! Once we get our prize money for the fourth place in the Bundesliga we'll be investing some of it in our recruiting system and other aspects of the club. We'll be going straight into the group stage of the Champions League, so that means we'll be getting very juicy income, which in turn means we can afford to splurge and make our club better for the long term. That's the whole point of this after all.

May 10th 2028

It's gonna be a busy summer for our internationals, with both the Euros and the Copa America coming soon, not to mention the Olympics. For now, seven of our players are called up by their respective senior teams: Rodríguez with Mexico, Hadzic with Bosnia, Vuskovic with Croatia, Rijkhoff with the Netherlands (for the first time in a long while), Svensson with Sweden, Stjepanovic with Serbia, and Caraballo with Venezuela. Özcan's absence with Turkey is somewhat surprising.

May 13th 2028

TSV 1860 München (4th) vs. RasenBallsport Leipzig (2nd) (Bundesliga, 34/34)

The best part of having already achieved all our goals for the season is that we don't need to get any points against Leipzig today, heh. To be fair the game is a dead rubber for both teams, although Leipzig still need to defend their second place against Dortmund for the slightly better prize money. It's kinda weird to see the league basically decided at all levels before the final fixture, but hey, we can't have nailbiters every year! Let's see if we can take advantage of the relaxation and get a win here.

* * *

1860 MÜNCHEN (4-3-3): Tom Kretzschmar (GK); Thierno Baldé (DR), Amer Hadzic (DCr), Mateja Stjepanovic (DCl), Manu Sánchez (DL); Thiago (DM), Jair Rodríguez (MCr), Matías Miranda (MCl); Daniel Maldini (AMR), Marcos Paulo (AML), Vedat Özcan (ST)
RB LEIPZIG (4-2-3-1): Alexander Nübel (GK); Wilfried Singo (DR), Kamil Piatkowski (DCr), Arnau Comas (DCl), Angeliño (DL); Paulo Bernardo (MCr), Jakub Moder (MCl); Francisco Conceiçao (AMR), Fábio Carvalho (AMC), Musa Barrow (AML); Patson Daka (ST)

* * *

We start a mix of starters and backups today, both as an opportunity for some of the youngsters to get quality minutes and as a celebration for a job well done. Leipzig play most of their starters, though, showing they're taking this game seriously, even if it's only as a practice run for the DFB Pokal final. We start the game half asleep, first wasting a chance because Özcan took too long to shoot, then gifting the ball to Leipzig in attack because Stjepanovic didn't see Conceiçao coming to steal it. Thankfully Daka's shot went miles over after that.

Soon Baldé clears over the line a header by Moder in a corner kick as Leipzig start pushing forward and taking control as they usually do. Daka then mishits another shot from the edge of the box and sends the ball way over the bar once again, but for once we're not feeling particularly overwhelmed. It takes until the 28th for the next chance to come, and while it's a good one with Barrow sending his header into the crossbar and over, it comes from a corner kick, so it's not like Leipzig are creating much danger from open play.

We aren't either, but in the 33rd Maldini manages to control a long clearance by Kretzschmar and dribble past Angeliño, then shooting low and placed but being matched in the end by Nübel's good fingertip save. Leipzig finally return in the 41st with a good run through the right wing that Conceiçao finishes, his shot well blocked by Kretzschmar. The keeper has more work in injury time, tipping wide a dangerous finish by Daka after a good play on the left by Barrow, in what becomes the last chance of the first half.

HALF TIME - 0-0

The second half starts with a surprise when Rodríguez intercepts a pass in midfield and mounts a counterattck that ends with a cross by Marcos Paulo and a header into the crossbar and over by Maldini. It's a mirage, though, and neither team seems capable of creating danger in the minutes that follow. We soon bring Rijkhoff, Caraballo, and Karlsen into the game, but the game remains completely flatlined for a long time, with only offsides and long shots breaking the tedium.

A blocked shot by Maldini and some good runs into danger areas by Manu Sánchez give the fans some reasons to cheer, although the main one is that Kretzschmar hasn't had any work to do in the second half just yet, and we're already in the final fifteen minutes. Then, a corner kick taken by Miranda in the 79th minute reaches the far post and Rijkhoff is there to head it into the net past a badly placed Nübel, grabbing the 1-0 and gifting Miranda his tenth assist of the year.

Now Leipzig have to attack if they want to keep their second place, but that's exactly what we'd been waiting for: quick counterattack through the center, with Miranda, Caraballo, and Rijkhoff trading passes until the striker runs into the box, shoots into Piatkowski's challenge, and sees the ball elevate over Nübel's desperate attempt at swatting it away to become the 2-0. The visitors try to accelerate their game even further but that leads to more mistakes, and only Nübel can prevent Karlsen from profiting from a pretty egregious one by Piatkowski. The youngster then assists Caraballo with a beautiful pass into space only for the keeper to save and turn it over the bar again. The 3-0 looks much closer than the 2-1, but in the end time runs out before either of the two happens, allowing us to score a famous win to finish the season with.

* * *

TSV 1860 München 2 (Julian Rijkhoff 79 81)
RasenBallsport Leipzig 0

- - -

Actually a very good game! Feels tempting to compare it to the HSV game because Leipzig did have quite a few chances in the first half and probably deserved to score then, but we resisted and then killed them in the final stretch thanks to our sub striker. But to be fair, we never felt too pressured even in Leipzig's best minutes, so I'll go ahead and say we deserved this one. It's also a perfect cap to an almost perfect second half of the season, so what's to complain about? Worth noting: we've only lost one game in the whole second half of the league, and it was against Bayern!

* * *

| Pos  | Inf   | Team                | Pld   | Won   | Drn   | Lst   | For   | Ag    | GD    | Pts   | Form  | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 1st  | C     | FC Bayern           | 34    | 26    | 4     | 4     | 99    | 36    | 63    | 82    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 2nd  | CL    | Borussia Dortmund   | 34    | 22    | 7     | 5     | 70    | 33    | 37    | 73    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 3rd  | CL    | RB Leipzig          | 34    | 22    | 6     | 6     | 77    | 44    | 33    | 72    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 4th  | CL    | 1860 München        | 34    | 18    | 10    | 6     | 54    | 32    | 22    | 64    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 5th  | EL    | Hamburg             | 34    | 17    | 6     | 11    | 59    | 41    | 18    | 57    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 6th  | ECL   | Borussia M'gladbach | 34    | 15    | 9     | 10    | 59    | 44    | 15    | 54    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 7th  |       | Bayer Leverkusen    | 34    | 16    | 6     | 12    | 55    | 46    | 9     | 54    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 8th  |       | Stuttgart           | 34    | 15    | 7     | 12    | 50    | 51    | -1    | 52    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 9th  |       | Frankfurt           | 34    | 14    | 8     | 12    | 54    | 45    | 9     | 50    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 10th |       | Freiburg            | 34    | 13    | 10    | 11    | 52    | 54    | -2    | 49    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 11th |       | Hertha BSC          | 34    | 13    | 4     | 17    | 49    | 53    | -4    | 43    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 12th |       | Nürnberg            | 34    | 9     | 9     | 16    | 46    | 53    | -7    | 36    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 13th |       | Köln                | 34    | 8     | 12    | 14    | 41    | 55    | -14   | 36    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 14th |       | Mainz               | 34    | 9     | 8     | 17    | 45    | 57    | -12   | 35    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 15th |       | Fortuna Düsseldorf  | 34    | 9     | 6     | 19    | 41    | 70    | -29   | 33    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 16th | Pl    | Wolfsburg           | 34    | 8     | 5     | 21    | 30    | 64    | -34   | 29    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 17th | R     | Heidenheim          | 34    | 4     | 7     | 23    | 37    | 93    | -56   | 19    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 18th | R     | SC Paderborn        | 34    | 2     | 8     | 24    | 22    | 69    | -47   | 14    |       | 
| -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

Our win against Leipzig combined with Dortmund's easy win against Eintracht to gift Klopp's lads the second place in the end. The really important battle, though, was the one for the sixth place, and in the end Gladbach managed a dramatic winner in the sixth minute of overtime to slip past Leverkusen on goal difference and guarantee a place in the Conference League, leaving the Aspirin club hoping that Leipzig win the cup and European football rolls one position down. At the bottom Wolfsburg drowned just as they reached the shore, falling heavily to Hertha in an ultimately irrelevant match, since Fortuna had a home tie against Paderborn that they won easily. Wolfsburg will now have a playoff for survival against St. Pauli, while Union Berlin and Hannover will replace Heidenheim and Paderborn come next year.

Also, something I just noticed: we were the best defense in the Bundesliga! Bayern's relaxation in the last few fixtures after winning the title sure showed in their final numbers, huh.

* * *

END OF SEASON 2027/28 - PLAYER SUMMARY

GOALKEEPERS

Name               Apps    Conceded  Clean Sheets  PoM  Av.Rat.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
Tom Kretzschmar      41          41            15    0     7.07
Valentino Quintero    3           7             1    0     6.67

Another solid season for Kretzschmar, in which he once again was our saviour in many games (the win in Hamburg comes to mind), although he also had a few stinkers during that long streak of draws in winter where every single shot on target somehow ended up being a goal. Regardless, while not as great as last season, it was still a remarkable year for our keeper, and that attracted some unwanted attention back in January, In the end it turned out to be nothing, but there's no guarantee more big clubs won't be turning their eyes towards him this summer. If he does end up leaving, we'll have to be prepared to sign a quality replacement. Ideally that won't happen, though.

His backup for the last few years, Quintero, had what probably was his worst season with us, with pretty poor performances both in the DFB Pokal and in the Europa League, and we were planning on releasing him come July, but Racing Club took the initiative and gave us some money for him in January, which prompted his early departure. Young Englisch will come on a free this summer to replace him, and might be joined by another quality young keeper if funds permit.

DEFENDERS

Name                   Apps     Goals    Assists    PoM    Y.C   R.C  Av.Rat.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Niklas Lang              27         2          0      2      3     0     7.20
Arnau Casas           21(2)         0          2      0      2     0     7.18
Daniel Svensson       26(3)         1          4      2      4     0     7.13
Amer Hadzic           17(1)         0          0      0      0     0     7.10
Thierno Baldé         27(3)         0          0      1      4     0     7.09
Manu Sánchez          18(4)         2          4      2      3     0     7.01
Mateja Stjepanovic    15(2)         1          1      1      1     0     7.00
Francisco Gerometta   17(4)         0          3      1      6     0     6.99
Julian Chabot             7         0          0      0      0     0     6.97

Fantastic season for our whole defense, no questions asked, yet with one asterisk next to one particular name. Our center-backs were rock solid all year long once again, with Lang still as the stand-out no matter how many quality players arrive to compete with him. His most frequent partner in crime wasn't Stjepanovic for once, since the Serbian was out injured until mid-November, but new signing Casas, who got used to his new team really quickly and completed a remarkable debut season, even stealing many starts from Stjepanovic after he recoved from his damaged cruciate. Hadzic also played really well when he was allowed too, although with Lang in his usual good form chances weren't as frequent as they probably should've been for the young Bosnian. He keeps improving, though, and it won't be long until he's a real threat for our captain. Finally, Chabot came in a temporary deal until Stjepanovic recovered and was largely average, but still perfectly valid.

Our wings also had great seasons, with a caveat: Gerometta. Yes, his numbers aren't bad at all, but his last few performances were terrible defensively speaking, and he looked out of his depth for the first time since his arrival. Even teams like Mainz managed to exploit this weakness, and that's something we can't afford on any regular starter at this level. Selling him this summer and replacing him with someone younger and better is not out of the question. Other than him, all our options there played remarkably, with Svensson as the most consistently good and Sánchez coming and going in bursts of quality surrounded by some less impressive performances. Baldé on the right was the strongest of the four defensively, although his attacking contributions were few.

MIDFIELDERS

Name                   Apps     Goals    Assists    PoM    Y.C   R.C  Av.Rat.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Matías Miranda        31(4)         2         10      1      4     0     7.13
Darko Vuskovic        26(2)         1          0      0      8     0     7.08
Thiago                25(6)         1          0      1      3     0     6.99
Jair Rodríguez       27(12)         7          4      3      2     0     6.93
Martin Karlsen        7(20)         3          4      1      0     0     6.90
Florent Da Silva     17(13)         4          5      0      1     0     6.84
Laurin Ulrich          2(6)         1          0      0      1     0     6.78

Fun year for our midfielders, with Miranda completing yet another great year and beating our record for assists in a season with ten. The Argentinian even performed admirably in some games where he was forced to fill in for Maldini on the right wing, showing that his versatility still remains. Twenty-eight and deep in his prime, we still have a couple of good years ahead for the most consistent midfielder we've had in this team since my arrival.

On the topic of consistency, Vuskovic remains solid as a rock in defensive duties, if still a bit too prone to picking yellow cards given the fantastic standards in that department elsewhere in our squad. The Croatian even popped off with our best goal of the season, but there's a good chance this might be his last year with us, as he's being chased by half of Europe's biggest teams including Bayern themselves, so it's very likely that his release clause will be triggered sometime this summer. New arrival Thiago is called to be his successor, both as our starting defensive midfielder and as one of our brightest young prospects, and his first year with us has been very promising, having good games both in that position and higher up the field. Another new arrival, Jair Rodríguez, wasn't just the hero of our win in Hamburg, but also our best midfielder when it comes to scoring goals in general, although he's still somewhat lacking in consistency. He has time to learn and improve, though.

Karlsen and Da Silva didn't perform as frequently as the aformentioned, but they still had their bright moments. The Norwegian in particular had some pretty nice showings off the bench, particularly in the first half of the season, and should be allowed to continue growing with us next season. Da Silva's numbers show a slight improvement after his debut season, although all his goals came from penalty kicks, but it still feels like not enough for someone who hasn't quite established himself as a regular starter despite having the time to do so. There are questions about his future. In Ulrich's case it's less questions and more a certainty that he'll leave on a free this summer, since his development stalled completely and his performances didn't give us any reason to keep playing him.

ATTACKERS

Name                   Apps     Goals    Assists    PoM    Y.C   R.C  Av.Rat.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Vedat Özcan           23(7)        10          6      3      2     0     7.01
Daniel Maldini        24(5)         5          5      3      1     0     6.98
Marcos Paulo          21(8)         8          3      2      1     0     6.97
Julian Rijkhoff       21(5)        12          2      4      0     0     6.96
Can Sapmaz           20(15)         6          2      1      0     0     6.83
Rodrigo Caraballo    20(10)         8          3      2      0     0     6.80

A weird season for our forwards. None of them stands out numbers-wise, but if we take their global contribution, the unit as a whole did a much better job providing goals and assists than in previous seasons, and it's not even close. For starters, having two strikers who could rotate and alternate in the starting eleven all season while maintaining a high level of production is a luxury we haven't had in a very long time, and both Özcan and Rijkhoff provided exactly that. The Dutch striker could probably have scored more if it wasn't for his untimely broken rib, while Özcan had a more creative and involved role that saw him pick a good number of assists and end the season as the better performer of the two overall, although only just. We'll be seeing if we can manage to extend his stay for another year, he's more than earned it.

The wings also looked much more balanced and involved than in previous years. On the right Maldini and Sapmaz shared the load for most of the season, with some help from Miranda once the Italian missed a few games due to injury. Both were solid enough, but I feel like this is our weakest position in the whole squad right now, and might be looking into improvements which might lead into one of the two leaving the club this summer. We'll see, though... The left, for once, was the more productive of both wings, and the biggest shock of the season was seeing Marcos Paulo, butt of all jokes one year ago, pop off with eight goals this year, some of them critical for the ultimate achievement of our seasonal targets. New kid Caraballo put some pressure on the Portuguese, and just his presence might have provoked his reaction. The Venezuelan had a solid debut year with eight goals, but like fellow newbie Rodríguez, he showed a serious lack of consistency, something I expect will fix itself with time.

Dalbeider · September 25, 2023

May 14th 2028

The prize money for our fourth place in the Bundesliga is no more and no less than ninety-two million Euros. We're rich! Now, let's see what we can invest it into...

Once again the five-year plan needs a revision, and for once the board are relatively ambitious: they want us to qualify for the Conference League at the very least. Doable, but not trivial. After that, though, the goal is to qualify for the Europa League in a couple of years' time and to remain there or higher in the future. As always, the board are a step or two behind what the team is actually achieving...

With that, the players depart on holiday until early July, although I expect some of them will have some work to do with their national teams before that. Our training camp will be held in St. Gallen a few days after preseason gets started.

May 16th 2028

The board quickly agree to my recommendations of upgrading our youth recruitment networks and academy coaching. Apparently it doesn't cost us anything other than increased upkeep, which begs the question of why we didn't do this earlier. Oh well.

May 20th 2028

Vuskovic has been selected as the Croatian Young Player of the Year. And that's with only two appearances for the national team so far. Incidentally, we tried offering him a new contract to see if we could manage to keep the vultures at bay, but the kid wants to keep his options open until after the Euros. Fair to him, considering the monster teams that are currently tailing him. Something tells me this will be an interesting summer...

Leipzig lift the DFB-Pokal with a simple 2-0 win over Freiburg in the final, earning their second trophy in four years and incidentally saving Leverkusen from dropping out of Europe completely. Gladbach will finally join HSV in the Europa League.

May 22nd 2028

Well, so much for Vuskovic's plans... Croatia's manager has left him out of the final squad for the Euros, so there'll be no chance for him to show off his quality to any prospective buyers. No idea why he's finding it so hard to keep his place in the squad considering how good he is, but okay. Vuskovic still doesn't want to extend his contract, though, so it's looking likely that someone's gonna be making a bid for him sooner or later. Hope it's not Bayern...

As for the rest of our internationals, more or less as expected: Caraballo and Rodríguez both make the final squads for Venezuela and Mexico for the Copa America, while Hadzic, Stjepanovic, and Svensson will take part in the European Championship with Bosnia, Serbia, and Sweden.

Inter's demands for renewing Özcan's loan are a bit out there: full wages, €475k monthly fee for a total cost of €6.75M, and a mandatory €19M fee at the end of the season. On the other hand, this guarantees we can buy him for a total cost of €25M, which is a pretty decent deal for a player of his quality and age. We'll think about it, but we'll probably end up biting the bullet.

Wolfsburg will stay with us in the Bundesliga after destroying St. Pauli in the playoff, 6-1 on aggregate with all goals scored in the first leg. Therefore, once again there'll be only two new teams in the division: Union Berlin and Hannover.

May 23rd 2028

Vereingung der Vertragsfussballer Fussball-Bundesliga Trainer des Jahres. Sounds nice, doesn't it? I can add that to my resume now, since I was selected as Manager of the Year in the Bundesliga ahead of HSV's Frank Schmidt and Nürnberg's Christian Streich. Yay.

May 27rd 2028

With the Europa League ending (see below for the eventual winners) we get a chunk of the TV money and coefficient ranking pool added to our accounts, for a total of approximately €1.5M. Not bad.

Guardiola, current Milan manager, going on record about his interest in buying Vuskovic. Yep, the kid's a goner. We'll have to start looking for a replacement soon, I fear.

* * *

ELSEWHERE IN THE WORLD

Premier League: if you look at the final table it seems like it was a very close race, with Manchester City only ending two points ahead of Newcastle and six ahead of Liverpool. The truth is that City won the league at a canter and then let themselves go in the final fixtures, losing five games in the last seven weeks of the competition. The last of those games, incidentally, was a 0-1 home defeat against Crystal Palace that saved them from relegation and condemned Fulham, who'll play in the Championship next season together with Stoke and Norwich. Arsenal was the fourth team in the Champions League places, with Spurs, Chelsea, and Leicester completing the European qualifiers. Manchester United finished ninth. The "Unluckiest Team of the Season" award goes to Southampton, who lost both cup finals, both on penalties, against Liverpool and Spurs.
LaLiga: one hundred points for Barcelona, and they still had to beat Espanyol in the final fixture to secure the title for good, with Real Madrid finishing only three points behind. The gulf between the two giants and the rest remains ginormous, with Real Sociedad finishing third twenty-one points behind the leaders, followed closely by Villarreal. Sevilla, Celta (!), and Atlético de Madrid completed the European positions, while Tenerife, Valladolid, and Getafe sunk into the second tier. Real Madrid once again had to do with the consolation prize of winning the Copa del Rey, even defeating Barça 2-0 in the final.
Serie A: second consecutive win for Juventus, with the top three turning upside down since the December update: Inter finished second and Milan fell to the third place. After them Genoa was first of the pack and earned a very surprising qualification to the Champions League, while Roma, Napoli, and Sassuolo will have to deal with the lesser European competitions. At the bottom, Fiore saved themselves from a shocking relegation by the skin of their teeth, only surviving thanks to their results against eventual eighteenth-placed Verona. Spezia and Lecce are also going down, and Benevento will return to the top tier to restart their streak of miracle survivals. Milan at least took the Coppa Italia, destroying ninth-placed Lazio 4-1 in the final.
Ligue 1: PSG won, thirteen points over the rest. Monaco and Nice in the Champions League, Lille and surprise package Strasbourg in Europe, too. Bourdeaux relegates again, together with Nimes and Troyes. Boring league is boring. At least the Coupe de France brought some entertainment, with an unlikely Saint-Étienne win in extra time against equally unlikely finalists Angers. We'll see Les Verts in Europe once again, yay!
Champions League: in one of the most emotional finals in recent memory, Barcelona lifted their sixth trophy in a 2-1 extra time win against Guardiola's Milan, after the first ninety minutes ended without goals and Milan took the lead against the flow of the game early in extra time. Nice comeback from Barça afterwards, earning a very well deserved triumph and a great league-plus-European-trophy double. They had to deal with both Milan teams to do it, too, since they had to get rid of Inter in the semis first while Milan squeezed past Chelsea in theirs.
Europa League: "our" competition ended in pain for at least one team: Liverpool lifted the trophy in a final in which their opposition, Villarreal, scored through Danjuma in the fourth minute and kept that lead until injury time, where 35yo Mohammed Salah pulled out another miracle and brought the game to extra time and, eventually, to penalties, where a final miss by Pau Torres decided the outcome. Both semifinals were also very tightly contested and ended 3-2 on aggregate, with Liverpool beating Newcastle and Villarreal robbing Club Brugge of what would've been a historic appearance in an European final. Worth noting that Liverpool's last win in the competition was also against a Spanish team (Alavés) and also in an equally dramatic fashion.
Conference League: after one of their worst performances in the Premier League in recent memory, Manchester United managed to save their season and gain access to next year's Europa League after winning the Conference League, beating Dynamo Kyiv in the final two goals to nil. Another Belgian team, Standard Liège, were United's victim in the semifinals, while Dynamo had to deal with one of our former rivals in the Europa League group stage, FC Kobenhavn.

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Einmal Löwe, immer Löwe - a(nother) 1860 story

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