Back To Basics (FM22)

[Fudal]

Hello, welcome to my FM22 save with FC Villefranche-Beaujolais (yes it's a mouthful). After a few saves in the past few weeks, I've decided I need a new long term save, and this will be it. My plan is to build a team through our youth setup (although not entirely youth only). I know that's not new for many of you, but I've never tried something like this. So it will be back to football manager basics for me, very few signings, just tactics and player development. 

I chose this club due to the history, more-so the lack of history. In FM there are no legends, icons, or favored personnel, as well has having awful facilities, so the club is an entire clean slate.

The manager for this save is a fictional person who's name was randomly generated because I am unoriginal. His name is Demetrius Leblanc and he was born in Marseille, so his favorite club is Olympique Marseille. It will be interesting if we ever get offered this job and I guess that will be a tough decision for him.

Here's how the team looks in FM.

Lots of strikers, but I loathe 2 up top formations in FM, so we will utilize them off the bench. 

We also signed Rudy for our head of youth development as he has a professional personality, so hopefully he can be a positive influence onto our intake players.

That will be all for this intro post, I will be back soon with the first months of the season.

[Fudal]

It's been an undefeated start this season and I couldn't be more surprised. We have a subpar squad with little depth and we're dominating the league. Well, I will take it.

Our best performers:

Medhy has been incredible this season, scoring two hat tricks in the cup.

Romany is our rock at the back, and has scored 2 goals already, but just look at his tackle winrate at 100%!!

[Fudal]

Our first few losses of the season start piling in, however we're still in first with a 5 point gap.

[Fudal]

Solid two months for the team.

We have the top goal scorer, and we're top!

Here are the squad stats.

[Fudal]

The youth intake has come in and I am pretty disappointed, to be honest. I know our facilities are well below par, but I expected more than just 4 3*+ players.

Pereira is the best of the lot, and to be honest looking at him, I think he could be really good. Until I look at his personality and determination.

Lucas is the only other player who will/might ever play for us unfortunately.

[Fudal]

We've made our first signing of the save, and probably only signing of the summer, as Seydou comes in to play as a mezzala for us next season.

[Fudal]

!!

I am so, so, so tempted.

!!

Leblanc gets his recognition.

Medhy ended up with 32 goals, while having a 26xg.

I hate the name, but it makes sense given we have no club legends.

Medhy joins LeBlanc in the favored personnel list after his 26 goal season in the league.

[Fudal]

I've decided to make a few more signings, as the teams depth is awful, so welcome these players,

[Fudal]

We raid Ghana for a young winger who played extremely well last season, (I have almost all of west Africa loaded) for 36.5k, he will probably start on the right wing.

We've also signed a new starting GK, Franchi from PSG. He looks pretty good, and my scouts seem to think he could be a Ligue 1 GK.

[Fudal]

We sign yet another African player, and it seems like LeBlanc has found his new starting RB.

Nankishi is a star in the making, if we can just improve his stamina and determination.

[Fudal]

Mercadante comes in to solidify the defense.

[Fudal]

Medhy is still carrying us to our victories, and now we're mid table.

[Fudal]

This is very interesting, until you realize that we're above PFC in the L2 standings.

[Fudal]

Some upgrades!

[Fudal]

Valenciennes are 12th in L1, so I'm going to attend this interview, as it's realistic for LeBlanc's progression as a young manager.

[Fudal]

These would end up being my last games with FCVB, as Valenciennes offer me a contract on Halloween!

LeBlanc's wage increases tenfold, and we're actually managing a rival of Olympique Marseille, so we'll see how that dynamic unfolds when he faces Marseille first.

Only 54 games in and we're already in Ligue 1!

[Fudal]

Here is the squad, we're old. Ismael Doukoure is an academy graduate, and will be our starting CB. 

In the Development Centre we can see that no one is first team caliber, but looking at the under 19's we have some great potential players.

Xico is probably the best Madagascan player I have ever seen, and he looks really good. He reminds me of a worse version of Fatawu, our young winger at Villefranche.

Gregoire Pelops is a Reunionese? defensive midfielder, who has a great CB profile, until you realize he's 5'5.

Tom Trochut is my favorite of the young players, who looks like he's going to be a great striker for us for many years to come.

Ludovic Ferrere is another player from Reunion, who is a 5'4 playmaker, who looks really solid mentally. His personality is poor, so we'll get him in a mentoring group right away.

Oliver Guyot is a solid, if unspectacular center back prospect. He's great at nothing, but not awful at anything either.

Wow. We have 3 great midfield prospects all under 5'6.  This guy is insane, though!! 16 passing, 15 finishing, high mentals as well.

[Fudal]

A quote from Dimitrius LeBlanc's introductory press conference:

"I loved my time at VIllefranche, but I am very excited at the prospect of working in the best league in France just after a year in management. I want to thank the Valenciennes board for making my dream of managing in Ligue 1 a reality. Let's get to work."

[Fudal]

Dimitrius LeBlanc on his debut match versus Montpellier:

"It's going to be a tough match. I'm going to be sticking to my principles, and you can expect to see a similar shape to the way my Villefranche team played. Obviously Montpellier is a difficult team, but I'm confident in our team."

We'll see how his Valenciennes debut goes!

[Fudal]

The game is a hard fought draw in a match that was mostly notable for LeBlanc's decision to start 16 year old midfielder Mickael Lacroix over trusted veteran Zinedine Machach. Lacroix had an average game, and was promptly subbed off at half time.

[Fudal]

Record breaking Mickael!

[Fudal]

The match against Nantes came with a more reasonable lineup, although the average age of the bench is around 21.

Valenciennes concedes early through a Marcus Coco goal, and at halftime we're down 1-0. 

3 youngsters come in, Pelops, Aly, and Lacroix replace Alvarado, Machach, and Fran, respectively.

The game ends 1-0 and we were very, very poor. The youth movement is happening, but it might have to be less dramatic in terms of sweeping changes right away.

[Fudal]

In the French Cup 9th round we start 5 youngsters, and they all performed pretty well! We ended up losing on penalties, but LeBlanc isn't concerned with this competition in his first season.

Next we have a must win game against bottom of the table Clermont.

The game ended up being extremely high scoring, with Valenciennes winning 3-2. Jose Fran scores a brace, Sotoca misses a penalty, and LeBlanc has decided to bench him for the next few games to give Tom a chance in the first team.

Next up against Olympique Lyon Trochut gets his start, but he couldn't get his goal, as the game ends at 0-0.

The next two games are against relegation threatened Bordeaux and Troyes. We're employing a full strength side with Trochut still in the first team, and he scores against Bordeaux to give us a 1-0 win!!!

Against Troyes, it is Yves Dabila who scores to give us a 1-0 win against Troyes, and that ends LeBlanc's first month as Valenciennes manager.

[Fudal]

[Fudal]

February 2023

The month started off with a convincing 3-1 victory over Angers, and then it was the big one. The match against Marseille.

Dimitrius Leblanc on his first match against his favorite club, Olympique Marseille:

"Obviously, for me personally, this is a huge game. But it is the same as every other game, my focus is on Valenciennes and Valenciennes only. I want us to win every match, and that is my expectation going into this one."

The match itself, well, it was a surprise to everyone, as Valenciennes destroyed Marseille 4-0. 3 assists from RB Dos Santos, paved the way for a huge victory over LeBlanc's favorite club.

Next up was Lille and Monaco, two teams near the head of the table.

Against Lille it was back to expected results, as we lost 3-0. Jonathan David's hattrick in the first half made it near impossible to come back.

Against Monaco it would be back to back defeats as Donny van de Beek scores to push Monaco into 5th place.

[Fudal]

March 2023

We start off with a game against RC Lens who we defeat 2-1, with goals from Sotoca and Fran. This moves us up to 9th place, above Lens.

Next up is former FM club of mine, RC Strasbourg, and we defeat them 2-1 as well, this time defensive midfielder Jaime Alvarado scoring both goals.

Finally, we go away to Brest and complete our perfect March, all 2-1 wins, this time Sotoca and Justo scoring for us.

We also got our youth intake and it was incredible.

Dahmani is another short midfielder, who looks really solid already.

Dany Tousart is a really decent CB prospect, but he has very low natural fitness, so won't be able to play every week.

 

Junior is a really well rounded striker prospect, who will hopefully be a pressing forward for us.

SCL is an okay winger, who will hopefully improve his pace a few points to really become that rapid winger that LeBlanc loves.

Marvin is another winger, who looks pretty poor to be honest, his personality and determination should help him, but he's slow, weak, and can't pass.

Xavier looks like the best CB prospect we have so far.

Another winger/striker, not that we need that, but he looks okay.

[Fudal]

April 2023

The month starts at home to 15th placed Rennes, in which we destroyed them on XG, but only managed a 1-1 draw.

Up next, we were away to OGC Nice, who we lost to 4-1 after an early red card.

Off the back of that, we played Nimes, whom we dispatched 2-1 with goals from CB Dabila and CM Machach.

Next up was Saint-Etienne away, in a game which we got destroyed 4-0, where we even had the higher XG. They were just more clinical.

Our penultimate match of the month was Reims at home, in a match that we won, 1-0, with our goal being scored by Sotoca.

The final match of April was away to Montpellier, who we played in LeBlanc's Valenciennes debut. The match ended 1-1, and we finish the month in 7th place.

[Fudal]

May 2023

We come so close to finishing in 6th, but in the end Saint-Etienne just kept winning.

Next up is the summer, and time for new signings, while we wait for our youngsters to develop.

[Fudal]

Oier is our first signing of the summer, who will be our roaming playmaker most likely.

WELL THEN, this is big news for Dimitrius. Not expected to take over, but he has put his name in.

Dietsch will come in to be a backup keeper.

Singh is our new LW.

A new LCB.

Our new Mezzala

A star right back joins.

As well as a star left back.

Hopefully our new goal scorer.

Our best GK leaves to a Saudi club for 5m. Dietsch now becomes our starter.

Probably for the best for right now.

[Fudal]

Upgrades, people, Upgrades!

[Fudal]

August 2023

The season starts with a game against Nantes, in which we debuted 7 players in the starting lineup. The game ended 0-0, in a match where we dominated, but we will take the point.

Next up was RC Strasbourg, whom we drew 2-2 with, with us scoring off an own goal and a Guillaume header.

Finally, we played AS Monaco at home, who we dispatched 2-0 with Facundo Colidio scoring his first goal of the season, and Yves Dabila scoring as well.

We're even in a CL spot!

[Fudal]

September 2023

To start off the month we have Stade de Reims, who we destroyed 6-2 after they had a first half red card. Guillaume scores 2, D'Almeida scores, as well as Martos, Colidio, and Ouattara.

FCSM was next, and we defeated them 2-0 with goals from Singh and Colidio.

Next up was Lyon, who we drew 1-1 with, with Singh scoring a penalty to secure us a point.

Finally, was Saint Etienne, in a match that we drew 1-1 yet again, Colidio getting the goal this time.

 

[Fudal]

October 2023

The first match of the month is away to RC Lens, in which we got destroyed 3-1 with Guillaume scoring our only goal of the game.

Next up was Angers SCO, Singh comes back into the fold, after an ankle injury, and he assists two, in a 3-2 victory, with our goals coming from Hanuljak, Colidio, and Zarraga.

In the second to last match of the month, it was Lille away, which we drew 3-3 with Colidio scoring 2, and the drawing goal coming from an own goal.

Finally, it was FC Metz at home, in a match we really should be winning. And win we did, off of a Sarpreet Singh penalty in the 17th minute to win 1-0.

Colidio and Singh have been our stars this season.

 

[Fudal]

This has me a bit confused. We're 10+ places ahead of them, have 2.5x more points. why would I accept this?

[Fudal]

November 2023

Just the two matches this month, then. We start off against Nimes, who we dominated, and won 3-0. Our goals came from Dabila, Sotoca, and Zarraga, with Singh getting two assists.

Our good form gets us some upgrades.

The second, and last, match of the month was at home against Montpellier, in a match that we lost 1-0 and we were impotent in attack.

Still in Europe as of now.

[Fudal]

December 2023

The month started with a 1-0 win against Rennes with Guillaume scoring our goal.

More upgrades.

Next up was OGC Nice, who we dispatched 3-1 with goals from Guillaume, Dabila, and Zarraga.

Then it was PSG, with two backup defenders starting, and it showed as we lost 4-1.

Definitely going to attend this.

Wow, I didn't expect to get the job. I need help with this. It's a realistic career move, so I think I'm going to take it. Any thoughts?

[Fudal]

I've done some great work with this Valenciennes side, and while the dream job of Marseille is still out of our grasp, (as of right now), I think LIlle is a realistic step. We're far away from challenging OM and PSG for the league, and we just don't have the money or the facilities to do it just yet. Lille gives us that opportunity.

[Fudal]

[Fudal]

So it's three jobs in as many seasons for LeBlanc, but I could see this job being stable for a couple years, until we win some serious silverware.

The goal of the save was always to go to Marseille, but after that I think a major Premier League side is on the cards, as well as Barca or Real.

So it's a fresh start for LeBlanc, let's get stuck in.

[Fudal]

SQUAD REVIEW

Goalkeepers:

This is an area of real concern for LeBlanc, he has no trusted #1, and for the first few games, he'll have to rely on the backup of the Swedish national team, Andreas Linde.

Linde is a solid goalkeeper, if unspectacular, he's incapable of playing out from the back, which is a problem.

Right Backs:

As much as I would love to play Moussa Wague, I think Celik is the main man here.

I love Wague's pace. but Celik is all around better.

Left Backs:

We have an undisputed #1 here in Zinchenko, who I love in real life. He can play everywhere, but for us, he'll be the left back.

Center Backs:

It's Botman and Jerome for right now. The others just don't have the pace that Onguene has, nor the ability that Botman has.

We have a clear number one here as well, but he needs a good, right footed partner.

Here we have Andre, and Maia, as our 1-2 punch. 

Andre for right now gets the nod. However, at 33, I think this will be his final season at the club, so Maia will get his chance.

Center Midfielders:

Here it's Yazici and Alan Franco as of right now. Yazici is the perfect roaming playmaker, and Franco will be the mezzala.

Yazici, obviously is the better playmaker, but Franco is a runner, so he'll be at mezzala.

Attackers:

I grouped these together, because they're all interchangeable. David will be up top, with Ikone and Bamba on the wings.

That leaves the team looking like this:

Very solid, if you ask me.

[Fudal]

Game #1

Well then. We seem to be adapting to the tactics well.

[Fudal]

It would be them, wouldn't it!

[Fudal]

The big match ended in a big win for LeBlanc's boys!

[Fudal]

January 2024

The month started with the win against Valenciennes, but the good form continued onto the next game as we destroyed Lyon 3-0.

Next was Lens in the league, where we escaped with a 1-0 win off of a David penalty.

Botman leaves, but we get a new CB.

Tapsoba for 49m over the next 3 years, so we pay them 16m a year.

The final game of the month was away to Angers, where we drew 0-0, in a match that we dominated.

[Fudal]

February 2024

Results:

Two disappointing losses, we should've won all the games this month, but PSG is annoying, and Nimes just got two lucky late goals.

Still in contention for the european places, but I am putting all my focus on the UEL.

[Fudal]

March 2024

Results:

Yikes.

[Fudal]

April 2024

Only 4 points back from Montpellier in 6th now, but we're also in the UEL semi final!

[Fudal]

May 2024

A near perfect month, and up next is LeBlanc's first European Cup final!

[Fudal]

Europa League Final

In just the 5th minute, Lukaku bangs one in from 25 yards, past the slow Linde. 

1-0 Chelsea.

Then in the 9th minute Lukaku struck again, and it was a 2-0 game.

2-0 Chelsea.

37th minute, Lukaku scores after a long throw.

3-0 Chelsea.

In the 40th minute David wins a penalty and dispatches it to get one back for us. Could the comeback be on?

3-1 Chelsea.

In the 63rd minute, Lukaku gets his 4th. We're in shambles.

4-1 Chelsea.

[TheRobert]

Congratulations for qualifying in the final