[FM23] Out of Africa. (Spanish out of Morocco to be precise). We will start with Ceuta, but if things go badly I might end up at Melila.

[Jimbokav1971]

2 hours ago, Sonic Youth said:

Good season, nearly got the league though achieved your European qualification 

It’s good that you got ECL qualification with your bank balance. 

Yeah, Sevilla were just too good for us. They are phenomenal attacking. I could really do with someone buying Crespo from them.

29yo Crespo scored 57 goals this season and 6 assists this season. 
33yo Alberto Martín scored 20 goals and 11 assists this season.
22yo Belvon (HUN)(SUI) scored 18 goals and 16 assists this season.
31yo Bryan Rubio scored 18 goals and 7 assists this season. 

They won LaLiga, lost the Copa del Rey Final to Barca and lost in the Quarter Finals of the Europa League to Chelsea. They will be looking to improve on that record this season. 

[Jimbokav1971]

4 year deal. Jun 2040. 

I think I've mentioned that I hate being offered 1 year contracts, (it's an insult), so it's good that the new board know the score. 

 

[Jimbokav1971]

Squad Depth. Jun 2040. 

GK. There's really not much of a choice to be had here. We weren't happy with the GK's we had at the club and Camara (SEN) 6'2" is significantly better than them and was by far the best we could bring in. (36j) Camara (GAM)(ESP) 6'4" played for the B Team in the 4th Tier last season and he will be given another go in the B Team in Tier 3 this season. Fofana (FRA)(CIV) 5'9" spent last season in Germany, (without playing). I really want him to play somewhere this season. 

1st Team. Camara (SEN) 6'2"
B Team. (36j) Camara (GAM)(ESP) 6'4", (38h) Morales 5'11"
U19's. (38l) Paradas 6'1", (39p) Ángel 6'2".
Loan. Fofana (FRA)(CIV) 5'9"
Sell. (37j) Daniel. 5'10"
Release. Imanol (B Team)

[Jimbokav1971]

Squad Depth. Jun 2040. 

DL/WBL. The 1st thing to point out here is that although Yakubu (ENG)(GHA) * plays on the left, he's actually a righty and I signed him as a righty to play on the right, unaware that he wasn't used to playing there. No really!  Lakhdar (MAR)(ESP) is ok, but I really think we could do with someone better. The problem is because we're limited to Africans & Academy players, it's not so easy to bring that type of player in. (38c) Giménez is 18 years old and still has 5.0 PA. It will be interesting to see how good he can be. 

1st Team. Lakhdar (MAR)(ESP) & Coulibaly (MLI)(ESP) *.
B Team. (38c) Giménez
U19's. (40i) Asier (Pro), (39m) Sáez., 
Loan.
Sell. Mahua. (RSA) 6'0", 
Release. Jacobo (B Team), (37f) Santamaría., (36n) Vázquez.

[Jimbokav1971]

Squad Depth. Jun 2040. 

DR/WBR. You might notice that Yakubu (ENG)(GHA) * isn't even on the below list, (he's an awkward DL and a makeshift WBL), but he will be our 1st choice there and it will soon get sorted. I want to sell Musa. (ENG)(NGA), but he isn't worth much and we will probably need him for the B Team so I might just keep him for another season. 

1st Team. Yakubu (ENG)(GHA) * & Ilunga (COD)(BEL) 5'10".
B Team. Musa. (ENG)(NGA),
U19's. (39h) Poves
Loan. 
Sell. Musa. (ENG)(NGA), (38e) Rey., (33f) Tejera., (38f) Ibáñez. 5'10", (37o) Ndiaye. (ESP)(SEN), (37p) Cañadas.
Release. Gianluca Sisto. (B Team), 

Edited February 13, 2023 by Jimbokav1971

[Jimbokav1971]

Squad Depth. Jun 2040. 

DC. We've got lots of bodies here, but we also need lots of bodies because we play with 3 at the back and have 3 teams. The 3 players I'm loaning out I've decided are too good for the B Team, (playing in the 3rd Tier this season), but not good enough to make 1 of the 6 slots I have earmarked for centre-backs in the 1st team squad. The only senior centre-half we're looking to sell this season is Diarra. (BFA)(FRA) 6'5" and while he isn't amazing, the main reasons I'm selling him is because (a) he's 28 and his contract only has 12 months left on it, but also because he's earning £150k per month and I think i have other players who can do a similar job for cheaper. I can't afford to offer him a new contract so I might as well cash in on him for a few quid now, (he isn't worth loads, about £6M). This isn't a strong area of the squad, but it's hard bringing in the quality we need to improve it. I am always on the lookout though. 

1st Team.
DLC. Idris (GER)(NGA) 6'5" & Ouédraogo (CIV)(BFA) 5'11" DC.
DC. Tetty (CIV) 5'9" & (33c) Francisco 6'3".
DRC. Cherif (FRA)(ALG) 6'5" DC & Gimo (RSA)(MOZ) 6'1" DC.
B Team. Diakité (CIV), (37k) Jesús 6'6", Ouattara (CIV)(BFA) 6'0", (37i) Alemany 5'10"
U19's. (39b) Agné 6'4", (39n) Rachade (FRA)(COM) 6'3", (39d) Vázquez 5'10" DC, (39d) Vázquez 5'10" DC.
Loan. Gomes (POR)(GNB), Mohamed (EGY) 6'4", Mofokeng (RSA) 6'1", 
Sell. Diarra. (BFA)(FRA) 6'5", (38k) González. 5'11"
Release. Théo Calvet. (B Team), (36i) Herrera. 6'5", 

[Jimbokav1971]

Squad Depth. Jun 2040. 

MC. There are loads of players at the club who can play DM, MC or AMC, but thankfully lots of these players are also eligible of DC or SC and MC is not their primary position. That being said, there are still quite a few players who's primary position is MC and when we only have 2 MC's playing at a time, & 2 more on the bench, it's probably a bit overkill in this area. In fact, when you look at the top 23 players on the list only 13 of them are actually MC's, but that's still a lot of MC's at a club which only uses 12 in total in all 3 squads and that allows for 2 players in each slot in each squad, (which is overkill anyway). 

At the moment I've got 5 MC's in the B Team, (which is overkill), and that's on top of 7 MC's listed for loan, and that's obviously after the best 4 MC's are labelled for the 1st Team and that also doesn't include Van Vuuren (RSA) who has 11 clubs interested in him and I'm trying to flog him to bring in some cash. 

You have to remember that we used to play with a 3 in midfield so we've had lots of MC's produced via the intakes, and I also signed a lot of players in this area too. 

Kouadio (CIV) looks like he is going to Real Madrid without playing a single game for us after they met his £20M min fee clause. His replacement will be Sakanoko 2 (CIV) MC. 

1st Team. Madidilani (RSA) & Aziz (EGY). Kouadio (CIV) & Ndlovu (RSA).
B Team. (36b) Jaime (EQG)(ESP), Koné (CIV), (38b) Pavas (COL)(ESP), (37h) Xavi, Taddese (GER)(ETH), 
U19's. (38i) Iván, (38a) Hernando, (39c) Franco (ESP)(BAS) 6'4", (40c) Llorente (F.Det), (40h) Rubio (Unamb), (40d) Álex (Pro), (39l) Figueiras., (39g) Esquerdo, (38n) Carrillo, 
Loan. Hamdi (EGY), Sakanoko 2 (CIV) MC, Hesham (EGY), Dube (RSA), El-Akchaoui (MAR)(FRA), Kouakou (CIV)(FRA), (37b) Manuel, 
Sell. (37l) Gómez., Van Vuuren (RSA), 
Release. Almeida. (CPV)(POR), (36l) Camará. (ESP)(GNB), (36p) Félix..

Edited February 14, 2023 by Jimbokav1971

[Jimbokav1971]

Squad Depth. Jun 2040. 

SC. We have loads of depth in this area and it's where I plan on making our money. Strikers are generally over-priced in comparison to other positions and even taking into account our strikers don't take penalties so their goal output is reduced, this will still be the case. 

1st Team. With (33d) Pascual (ESP)(BAS) 6'4" going to Leicester, we need someone to step up and at this stage that someone is (33b) Marcos *. We also lost Angoua (CIV) on the left of the 3 up front and now I don't know what to do. I think the answer is to bring (37a) Niño * back from loan in France and just throw him straight in. The reason he was out on loan rather than being 2nd choice at home was because I wanted to make sure he had a full season. It's a risk but I'm going to go with it. Man this is frustrating. 
SLC. Angoua (CIV) (37a) Niño * & Boli (CIV).
SC. (33d) Pascual (ESP)(BAS) 6'4" (32a) David & (33b) Marcos *.
SRC. Guèhi (CIV) * & El Sayed (EGY).
B Team. Okafor (ESP)(NGA), (37c) Castro *, (38d) Cisse (ESP)(SEN), (37g) Miguel, (32b) Intxaurraga (FRA)(BAS), 
U19's. (38o) Jose., (40a) Tomé (Unamb), (38g) Muñoz, (40e) Retuerta (Pro), (40b) Casas (Temp), (40j) Sergi (Pro) SC, (39j) Santos., (39e) Jiménez., (39f) Romero., (39a) Fornals, (40o) Preda (ROU) (Pro), (40p) Raúl (F.Det), (39k) Lázaro., (39o) Palao.
Loan.  (37a) Niño *, (36a) Iglesias., Koffi (CIV), Souprayen (FRA)(REU), Zungu (RSA), (33b) Marcos *, Sakanoko 1 (CIV), Amade (MOZ)(RSA), Diomandé (CIV), Diepkilé (ESP)(MLI), Dladla (RSA), (36k) Aguinaco, (36e) Reyes, (36c) Delgado, Dabo (MLI)(ESP), (38m) Roldán (ESP)(BAS), (37m) Joel, 
Sell.
Release. (36h) León.,  (36o) Miranda., 

Edited February 14, 2023 by Jimbokav1971

[Jtomsett11]

5 hours ago, Jimbokav1971 said:

Squad Depth. Jun 2040. 

SC. We have loads of depth in this area and it's where I plan on making our money. Strikers are generally over-priced in comparison to other positions and even taking into account our strikers don't take penalties so their goal output is reduced, this will still be the case. 

1st Team. With (33d) Pascual (ESP)(BAS) 6'4" going to Leicester, we need someone to step up and at this stage that someone is (33b) Marcos *.
SLC. Angoua (CIV) & Boli (CIV).
SC. (33d) Pascual (ESP)(BAS) 6'4" & (32a) David.
SRC. Guèhi (CIV) * & El Sayed (EGY).
B Team. Okafor (ESP)(NGA), (37c) Castro *, (38d) Cisse (ESP)(SEN), (37g) Miguel, (32b) Intxaurraga (FRA)(BAS), 
U19's. (38o) Jose., (40a) Tomé (Unamb), (38g) Muñoz, (40e) Retuerta (Pro), (40b) Casas (Temp), (40j) Sergi (Pro) SC, (39j) Santos., (39e) Jiménez., (39f) Romero., (39a) Fornals, (40o) Preda (ROU) (Pro), (40p) Raúl (F.Det), (39k) Lázaro., (39o) Palao.
Loan.  (37a) Niño *, (36a) Iglesias., Koffi (CIV), Souprayen (FRA)(REU), Zungu (RSA), (33b) Marcos *, Sakanoko 1 (CIV), Amade (MOZ)(RSA), Diomandé (CIV), Diepkilé (ESP)(MLI), Dladla (RSA), (36k) Aguinaco, (36e) Reyes, (36c) Delgado, Dabo (MLI)(ESP), (38m) Roldán (ESP)(BAS), (37m) Joel, 
Sell.
Release. (36h) León.,  (36o) Miranda., 

Did Leicester meet Pascual's release clause? Must have missed that! He really took off last season in terms of goals so is likely to be a big miss? 

[Sonic Youth]

9 minutes ago, Jtomsett11 said:

Did Leicester meet Pascual's release clause? Must have missed that! He really took off last season in terms of goals so is likely to be a big miss? 

Same, missed that too. Was looking forward to seeing him became like Giroud. Must be release clause.

[Jimbokav1971]

1 hour ago, Jtomsett11 said:

Did Leicester meet Pascual's release clause? Must have missed that! He really took off last season in terms of goals so is likely to be a big miss? 

 

1 hour ago, Sonic Youth said:

Same, missed that too. Was looking forward to seeing him became like Giroud. Must be release clause.

No, you haven't missed it because I haven't posted it yet. Just doing 1 update for all the transfers. 

I didn't want to sell him, but basically Leicester offered about £65M split between up front cash and installments and his min fee release clause was £73M. I knew then that he would be gone by the end of the window, (this was right at the start of the window). So early in fact that it was included in last years transfers. I countered with a structured deal that gives us £80M, (7M more than his min fee release clause), +25% re-sale value + a friendly, so it's a really good deal for us. 

I think we get £20M immediately, £20M over 2 years and then you can see the add-ons here. The 25% clause isn't profit, it's value and could be very nice. 

He will be a big miss. Absolutely no doubt about it, but we have loads of strikers who are decent so I'm hoping it won't be too big an issue. 

[Edit]

I should add that it's been a pretty mental transfer window already and that's why I haven't posted the Pascual info yet. There's just so much to include. 

Edited February 14, 2023 by Jimbokav1971

[Jimbokav1971]

Olympics. Jul 2040. 

Well this isn't ideal. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Summer Transfer window. Sep 2039. 

In. 

These early signings were all pretty low risk, (free transfers or very low min fee clauses), and some of them don't look great in hindsight, but I really like the look of this bloke Touré (CIV) and in terms of finances, Qwabe (RSA), (who we signed for £500,000 is already worth .

Out. 

Diarra. (BFA)(FRA) 6'5" is 28 and only had 12 months on his contract. We got more for him but I think if I had waited I could have got a bigger fee. To be honest I was just happy to get the deal done early and get him gone for a fee that was bigger than the one we paid for him. The big thing for us is the wages. We were paying him £150k per month and only 3 players at the club are paid more than that. He's not our 4th best player so it made sense to get rid of the wage spend. 

(33d) Pascual (ESP)(BAS) 6'4" might only be 22, but he was our best player and it's a blow to lose him. The truth is that we needed to sell him because the finances at the club are starting to look just a little but ropey and when Leicester offered £65M for him, (his release clause was £73M), I knew I had to instigate a deal that would see us get more than the £73M of his clause. I'm actually really happy with this deal. £20M cash, £20M over 2 years, £10M after 50 league games. £10M over 50 league games, £10M after 10 Internationals, (he's Spanish so it won't be easy), and £10M after 50 league goals, (which won't be easy but we will just have to wait and see). The big thing for me is the 25% clause and we also get a friendly. 

Mahua. (RSA) 6'0" left because although we haven't got loads of depth in this area, the truth is that he just isn't good enough. 

Van Vuuren (RSA) has been great for us, but he's 27 now and I thought it was time to move him on. We have a little depth in the centre of the pitch and because we only play 2 in there it makes sense to trim the numbers a little. As one of the older players it was good to make a tidy profit on him. 

Kouadio (CIV) was 1 of the 2 Ivorians who was on loan at Werder Bremen in Germany and became Wonderkids out of nowhere. I should have offered them new contracts as soon as I saw that they were wonderkids but you know how it is and I didn't do it then and then forgot to do it later and before I know it both of them are having their min fee clauses met and are leaving for £20M each. Thankfully Ouédraogo (CIV)(BFA) 5'11" DC was the other player who was on loan at Werder, and he turned down contracts at both Sunderland and Köln and I managed to get him to sign a new contract with A £50M+ release clause. 

Dube (RSA) is ok don't get me wrong, but he's more like a sitter in a 3 and I want both my players in a 2 to be ball-players. He's good without the ball, but not good enough with it and at 22 I'm not sure he had the time left in his development phase for me to turn him into a player who I would pick. I have a feeling that we got a 25% clause on him too, (but not positive about that). (yeah we did). 

Angoua (CIV) is a significant and really frustrating loss. I couldn't get him to agree to a new contract, (to get rid of his £20M release clause), and then when I did, Atletico steamed in and gazumped us at the last moment before he signed so we lose him for just £20M.  I know it's good money, but this is a big loss and £20M is neither here nor there at the moment.  There are also absolutely no add-ons.  It's good profit but.... meh.  We've gone from having a really strong strike force to almost feeling like we're down to bare bones. (Remember I have sent quite a few players out on loan already and there are only 11 days before the 1st LaLiga game. This was a real disaster and I have gone back and edited the Squad Depth SC page as I worked through what I was going to do, which turned out to be recalling (37a) Niño * from loan in France and sticking him straight into the 1st choice starting XI. On the plus side, we've now got £150M in the bank, (the hoard were having to inject cash during the close-season), and we have LOADS of money coming in through installments. We've properly managed to turn the finances around now even with getting snoozed on a few players. 

Tetty (CIV) 5'9" has gone to Germany now for £30M after his release fee was met. I'm starting to get the hump now. 

We sold players to the tune of £109M last season and the Summer window isn't even closed in this season and we have already sold players to the value of £104M. 

 We have loads of money to spend, but because of the setup of this save and my self-imposed restrictions, it's not that easy to just go and buy someone who will improve us. 

 

[Jimbokav1971]

Aug 2039. 

LaLiga. I was expecting a tough start to the season with no less than 8 1st Team players gone since we played the last game of last season. We battered Espanyol and 3 or 4-1 to us would have been a fair result, but that's what happens when you sell your 2 best strikers for the 2nd season running. We battered Valencia too and I think I have to just accept that until we gel as a squad again and our starting strikers develop a little, we could be on the end of some rubbish results when the performances have actually been ok. 

Records. 

This was last season by the way, and we've already sold players to the value of £104M this season and the Summer window has only just closed. I was actually keen to sell some players, but this is ridiculous. 

Goal-scoring GK's. No goals this month, but it's interesting that Camara (SEN) 6'2" managed to get 2 of his 3 free-kicks on target. 

Finances. 

You can tell how tight things were at the end of last season when the board had to inject funds into the club, but I think it's fair to say that there has been a fair old swing in the finances since then.

We've got just over £1M to play with in terms of monthly wage budget, but considering we have sold 8 (EIGHT) 1st Teamers since we finished last season I think shows there isn't loads of room for movement. 8 players at £100,000 per month is "only" £800,000 per month, but it's actually £9.6M per year and finances tend to look a little differently when you look at them as a yearly cost that you have to cover somehow.

I mentioned it in my transfer update and in at least 1 of the recent squad depth posts, but I'm not at all happy at how I managed this latest transfer window. I was very reactive and the truth is that in a save like this, (where everyone has a min fee release clause), you need to be bang on the ball in terms of refreshing player contracts and making sure that the release clause that was agreed when the contact was signed, is still an effective barrier to a cheeky bid from a big club a couple of years down the line. 

I didn't particularly mind the 2 Egyptians, Soliman (EGY) & El Nahhas (EGY)(USA) *, who left last Summer for a combined £56M, and I don't mind the big £80M +25% deal we got for (33d) Pascual (ESP)(BAS) 6'4", or the £35M we got for Van Vuuren (RSA), but I really do mind that we sold Kouadio (CIV), Angoua (CIV) & Tetty (CIV) 5'9" for a combined £70M. That's just rank bad management from me. 

Part of the reason I got snoozed with the contracts is because when money was tight I didn't have the funds to add a big whack on the wage budget, and then when there was I didn't make time to do it. With that in mind I'm going to play around with the budgets a little and give myself the opportunity to fix this little mess I've got myself in. 

I adjusted the scouting budget at the beginning of the season, (to cover the Worldwide cost for the rest of the year), (which is £360k). We spent £404,000 on scouting last season so we should be there or thereabouts this season. I would like it to be bigger, but we're stuck with it now. 

I'm going to give myself some more wriggle-room with regards to wage spend though and am increasing it from £4.5M per month to £5M. 

It means the situation now looks like this. 

[Jtomsett11]

2 hours ago, Jimbokav1971 said:

Aug 2039. 

LaLiga. I was expecting a tough start to the season with no less than 8 1st Team players gone since we played the last game of last season. We battered Espanyol and 3 or 4-1 to us would have been a fair result, but that's what happens when you sell your 2 best strikers for the 2nd season running. We battered Valencia too and I think I have to just accept that until we gel as a squad again and our starting strikers develop a little, we could be on the end of some rubbish results when the performances have actually been ok. 

Records. 

This was last season by the way, and we've already sold players to the value of £104M this season and the Summer window has only just closed. I was actually keen to sell some players, but this is ridiculous. 

Goal-scoring GK's. No goals this month, but it's interesting that Camara (SEN) 6'2" managed to get 2 of his 3 free-kicks on target. 

Finances. 

You can tell how tight things were at the end of last season when the board had to inject funds into the club, but I think it's fair to say that there has been a fair old swing in the finances since then.

We've got just over £1M to play with in terms of monthly wage budget, but considering we have sold 8 (EIGHT) 1st Teamers since we finished last season I think shows there isn't loads of room for movement. 8 players at £100,000 per month is "only" £800,000 per month, but it's actually £9.6M per year and finances tend to look a little differently when you look at them as a yearly cost that you have to cover somehow.

I mentioned it in my transfer update and in at least 1 of the recent squad depth posts, but I'm not at all happy at how I managed this latest transfer window. I was very reactive and the truth is that in a save like this, (where everyone has a min fee release clause), you need to be bang on the ball in terms of refreshing player contracts and making sure that the release clause that was agreed when the contact was signed, is still an effective barrier to a cheeky bid from a big club a couple of years down the line. 

I didn't particularly mind the 2 Egyptians, Soliman (EGY) & El Nahhas (EGY)(USA) *, who left last Summer for a combined £56M, and I don't mind the big £80M +25% deal we got for (33d) Pascual (ESP)(BAS) 6'4", or the £35M we got for Van Vuuren (RSA), but I really do mind that we sold Kouadio (CIV), Angoua (CIV) & Tetty (CIV) 5'9" for a combined £70M. That's just rank bad management from me. 

Part of the reason I got snoozed with the contracts is because when money was tight I didn't have the funds to add a big whack on the wage budget, and then when there was I didn't make time to do it. With that in mind I'm going to play around with the budgets a little and give myself the opportunity to fix this little mess I've got myself in. 

I adjusted the scouting budget at the beginning of the season, (to cover the Worldwide cost for the rest of the year), (which is £360k). We spent £404,000 on scouting last season so we should be there or thereabouts this season. I would like it to be bigger, but we're stuck with it now. 

I'm going to give myself some more wriggle-room with regards to wage spend though and am increasing it from £4.5M per month to £5M. 

It means the situation now looks like this. 

I'm playing in Spain for the first time on FM this year and am finding the minimum fee release clauses add a new dimension to my normal approach to contracts (the longer and the cheaper the better) as you often have to give a new contract to a rising star on a quite regular basis if you want the minimum fee release clause to go up enough to ward off big clubs. There's also a much greater element of uncertainty once clubs are interested in your players as you're never quite sure whether they'll bid and whether it'll meet the clause. I'm still in La Liga 2 with Deportivo so my clauses are still low in value (highest £14 million) so I know if they're any good and they play well they could be off. I presume players signing for you are still mostly seeing your club as a stepping stone so you aren't seeing those £200 million release clauses the bigger clubs sometimes have? It's all an added challenge but one that can bite you as it clearly has for you. I hope your squad gels quickly and you get back to winning ways!

[Jimbokav1971]

17 minutes ago, Jtomsett11 said:

I'm playing in Spain for the first time on FM this year and am finding the minimum fee release clauses add a new dimension to my normal approach to contracts (the longer and the cheaper the better) as you often have to give a new contract to a rising star on a quite regular basis if you want the minimum fee release clause to go up enough to ward off big clubs. There's also a much greater element of uncertainty once clubs are interested in your players as you're never quite sure whether they'll bid and whether it'll meet the clause. I'm still in La Liga 2 with Deportivo so my clauses are still low in value (highest £14 million) so I know if they're any good and they play well they could be off. I presume players signing for you are still mostly seeing your club as a stepping stone so you aren't seeing those £200 million release clauses the bigger clubs sometimes have? It's all an added challenge but one that can bite you as it clearly has for you. I hope your squad gels quickly and you get back to winning ways!

You're absolutely spot on about this adding a new dimension to the normal approach. 

In all seriousness, I actually don't mind the sales as much as I did when they happened and then again when I tried to fill the gaps and post about it. The fact is we're a selling club and the only difference between us and Sevilla last season is that not only do they not have to sell the likes of Crespo, but they were able to pay £35M to buy him in the 1st place and then keep him at the club for..... (this will be his 8th season at Sevilla), and they're paying him £1.6M per month. When you consider that we're currently paying the whole playing staff £3.9M per month, (and we have an enormous squad), I think this puts things in perspective. We can't just be Sevilla immediately because we can't pay the wages to keep offering players the new contracts to keep them at the club, so bringing in £200M in 2 seasons is actually the 1st of many steps towards us getting there, because get us closer to them in terms of financial power.

The top earner at our club is centre-half Cherif (FRA)(ALG) 6'5" DC on £199,000, (and yes you're damn right £200k was a barrier I didn't want to break). 

Sevilla are paying Crespo £1.6M per month as their top earner, but they are also paying big money to lost of other players. 
30 years old (BRA) DM £1.6M pm.
33 year old (ESP) MR £1.2M pm.
34 year old (GER) DR £990k pm.
31 year old (POR) SC £927k pm.

It's hard to compete with that and that's without us even looking at the likes of Barca, Real Madrid & Atletico. 

I know I want to win the title, but when you think about it, just being up there competing is an enormous achievement with these restrictions. I think I need to relax a little. 
 

[Jimbokav1971]

Reputation. Sep 2040. 

I forgot to update this in the close-season. 

Although we don't have Worldwide reputation yet, we have at least popped to Continental. More than that, we're ranked the top of the Spanish Continental sides. It's possible that this was updated the season before and this is a really really late update, (because our rep doesn't seem to have risen), but either way it's progressed. 

The difference between our rep (7,789) and that of Real Hispalis (8,325) isn't huge, (536), but the others are a little further away. 

A.Madrid. 8,624
Sevilla. 8,793
Barca. 8,878
R.Madrid. 9,150

I can see Sevilla topping this list before too long. They seem a really well run club in terms of transfers. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Sep 2039. 

Because of the amount of rotation I do, this is an achievement that is often slow going. To get to this stage it means that the 2nd string can score regularly against both domestic and European opposition. 

LaLiga. After a slow start to the season, we certainly moved up a gear this month. 

(32a) David deserves a mention after 2 hat-tricks and 8 goals in total in 4 LaLiga games this month. Although he has made 204 career appearances, (scoring 64 goals at a goal every 3.2 games), loads of his appearances have been from the bench or starting in a weakened XI and in fact his 64 goals have come in just 111(93) appearances which is a much better scoring rate. I never really expected him to ever be 1st choice, but we've lost 4x 1st choice strikers, and players such as the following are not quite ready for the step up.

22yo (33b) Marcos * After the 1st month I was starting to think I should have promoted (33b) Marcos *. 
19yo (37a) Niño *
19yo (37c) Castro *
20yo Boli (CIV)

UEFA Champions League.

Goal-scoring GK's.

 

 

Finances. 

Edited February 21, 2023 by Jimbokav1971

[Jimbokav1971]

Oct 2040. 

LaLiga. Not quite the form of last month, but an away win at Barca and an away draw with 10 men at a very good Real Hispalis, (who are actually Real Betis in real life), is not something you will hear me complaining about. As for the defeat to Athletico, it was a really tight game that might have gone either way and they just edged it so no complaints there either. 

UEFA Champions League. We rode our luck a little against PSG, but as they game progressed we just picked them off and were worthy winners. The Benfica game was a tight contest, but if anyone was going to win it it was us. 

Records. 

Goal-scoring GK's.

 

 

Finances. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Nov 2040. 

LaLiga. This is great form and we're up to 2nd in the league and only 1 point off Real Madrid who have finally lost their 1st game of the season. 

UEFA Champions League. I'm pleasantly surprised at how we're doing in Europe considering that it's largely our 2nd string that have been playing. 

Facilities. 

Goal-scoring GK's. 2 goals each from Camara & Camara 2 this month.

 

 

 

 

Finances. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Afcon call-ups. Dec 2041. 

It's a good job that we've been in good form this season, because I think we're about to hit a rough patch. 

GK. 1st and 3rd choices.
DL. 1st and 2nd choices. 
DR. 2nd and 3rd choices. 
DC. 1 starter for 1st Team. 1 starter for 2nd string. 
MC. 1st, 2nd, 3rd & 4th choices. 
SC. 1 starter for the 1st Team. 2 starters for 2nd string. 

The next month or so could be interesting. 

[Sonic Youth]

Joint top team scorers! Nice 

You’ve had a great couple of months and sitting where your form deserves.

6 hours ago, Jimbokav1971 said:

Afcon call-ups. Dec 2041. 

It's a good job that we've been in good form this season, because I think we're about to hit a rough patch. 

GK. 1st and 3rd choices.
DL. 1st and 2nd choices. 
DR. 2nd and 3rd choices. 
DC. 1 starter for 1st Team. 1 starter for 2nd string. 
MC. 1st, 2nd, 3rd & 4th choices. 
SC. 1 starter for the 1st Team. 2 starters for 2nd string. 

The next month or so could be interesting. 

And this is also the reward for your good form   

Don’t worry though, your top scorer (I think he is) David hasn’t been called up though.

[Jimbokav1971]

1 hour ago, Sonic Youth said:

Joint top team scorers! Nice 

You’ve had a great couple of months and sitting where your form deserves.

And this is also the reward for your good form   

Don’t worry though, your top scorer (I think he is) David hasn’t been called up though.

Yeah, I've actually been working pretty hard to plan for just this eventuality. At the moment I'm thinking that we will have the following squad available. 

GK. Fofana (FRA)(CIV) 5'9" 
DL.  (38c) Giménez is a LaLiga2 standard player.  (*1)
DR. Yakubu (ENG)(GHA) * 
DLC. Idris (GER)(NGA) 6'5" 
DC. Mohamed (EGY) 6'4"   (*2)
DRC. Cherif (FRA)(ALG) 6'5" DC 
DC sub. (33c) Francisco 6'3" & (39b) Agné 6'4". 
MLC. Kouakou (CIV)(FRA) is a decent LaLiga player but I don't think he's anywhere near good enough.  (*3) 
MRC. (38a) Hernando is a LaLiga standard player who can improve a lot and while I don't think he's good enough now, I'm happy to invest some playing time into him. 
MC sub. (38i) Iván 
SLC. (37a) Niño * 
SC. (32a) David 
SRC. (33b) Marcos * 
SC sub.

(*1) Musa. (ENG)(NGA) was signed as cover for the full-back areas, but he has converted from (ENG) to (NGA) since his arrival and now has 18 caps and is 1st choice (NGA) DL. 
(*2) Mohamed (EGY) 6'4" is recovering from injury and although he has never been capped by (EGY) at full International but be close to a call-up. 
(*3) Kouakou (CIV)(FRA) has been capped by (CIV) before, but has missed out on this squad. 

Looking at this squad, (and ignoring that we will obviously be unable to rotate and this also won't account for injury & suspension), I think it looks pretty decent, (even the subs are ok). The other thing of course is that the transfer window is about to open so (A) I might be able to recall players on loan and then send them out again at the end of the month, and (B) We have some new signings arriving when the window opens so it might be worth looking at who is coming in. 

Players out on loan. 

Dosso (CIV) covers DL & DR and is a LaLiga2 standard player who hasn't yet been capped by (CIV). He was loaned back to his selling club after we bought him so I'm not sure we can recall him when the window opens. 
Hamdi (EGY) is a MC of LaLiga standard and although I like him, the reason he's out on loan is because we already have 3 FGN players registered. I could recall him and then register him and then deregister him and then get him back out on loan and I'm really not sure I want to do that because he's developing really nicely at Rapid Vienna. 
(37b) Manuel is an MC of LaLiga2 standard, but he';s currently starting for PSV in the non-active Eredivisie and he would definitely get in our starting XI during this period. 
Souprayen (FRA)(REU) is a wide striker who is a decent LaLiga player but he's only made 2(12) appearances for Toulouse in Ligue 1 so I think I will recall him anyway even if we send him out somewhere else. 

Players arriving in January. 

Moussa (EGY) is a LaLiga2 standard GK, but obviously there is an issue with his registration as a FGN player so even if I'm not already loaning him back to Al-Ahly I may want to loan him somewhere else. 
Conneh (LIB)(ESP) is a regular in the (LIB) squad, but they haven't qualified for the AFCON finals so he might be an option for some cover at DR. Looks a little raw though. 
Naser (EGY) is a LaLiga2 standard DR, but looks decent, but again there is the problem of his FGN registration. 
Rodrigo (MLI)(ESP) is a very raw DC who hasn't yet been called up for (MLI). Not really good enough at the moment. 
Sène (ESP)(MLI) is a pretty raw MC who isn't really good enough at the moment. 
Msimango (RSA) is a lower level MC, But I have a feeling I have promised to loan him back to his selling club anyway. 
Uzoma (NGA) isn't joining us until the end of the season because he's too young to join now. 
Davids (RSA) isn't joining us until the end of the season because he's too young to join now. 

So in summary, not really much at all to help us in January. 

Edited February 22, 2023 by Jimbokav1971

[Jimbokav1971]

Dec 2040. 

LaLiga. It's been a good month and although the fixtures are certainly easier than they might have been, 3 away games for 4 shouldn't be ignored. We're still just 1 point off a Real Madrid side who are ridiculously tight at the back, and it's just a shame that we will play both them and Sevilla next month with so many players absent. I'm not really complaining though. This is part of this silly challenge remember, (and in any case the previous post shows that we're not exactly going to be fielding a team of U19's). 

UEFA Champions League. It's really surprised me how well we have done in this competition this season considering our 2nd string player have been playing the games. 

Goal-scoring GK's. Quite how good Camara2 is, (or quite how poor everyone else was), is becoming more and more apparent as he continues to develop. 

 

 

 

FInances. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Squad selection during AFCON. Jan 2041. 

1st Team.

1st Team available players during AFCON.

2nd String. 

2nd String available players during AFCON.

Best squad selection during AFCON. It's actually quite a strong squad. 

GK is decent. 
DC's are decent. 
WBL is weak but has good PA. 
WBR is decent.
MC's are not as good as our usual players but still decent. 
SC's are decent. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Jan 2041. 

LaLiga. All things considered, while the results this month weren't great, 4 points from a possible 9 against decent opposition is not to be sniffed at. We're still in 2nd and just 2 points off Real Madrid at the top. 

UEFA Champions League. Things didn't go nearly so well in Europe though, and as a result we've dropped down to 17th. I don't actually know what that means in terms of qualification for the next round. We definitely get a playoff game, but I don't know a playoff for what. 

Copa de Su Majestad el Rey. This is the trophy we've got the best chance of winning so I want to take it seriously. 

Supercopa de España. Real Madrid might be top of the league, but Sevilla are the team I fear most, (when they don't bench Crespo, who has already scored 30 goals this season by the way). They were way too good for us on the day. We were battered. 

Goal-scoring GK's. No goals this month.

Finances. 

[Sonic Youth]

Tough month, and have done well I think.

It’s curious the European form of the Spanish teams 

[Jimbokav1971]

Feb 2041. 

LaLiga. It was a much better month overall, with 6 wins from 8 games in all competitions this month compared to 4 losses from 7 games in all competitions last month. We're still doing fantastically well in LaLiga, (losing only 3 games all season). Despite us being in good form, and Real Madrid being in great form, Sevilla have gone on a charge and thanks to them winning 11 of their last 13 games in all competitions, (including 10 of their last 12 in LaLiga), they have stormed ahead of Real Madrid and now top the table. We're still only 4 points back with a game in hand, but I will still just be delighted with a top 4 finish this season. 

UEFA Champions League. you might notice that a relatively new name, (33b) Marcos * has appeared on the scoresheet lots this month. He's actually scored 9 goals in 7(1) appearances this month as he has been asked to step up and fill the boots of (32a) David who has been missing through injury. 

(33b) Marcos * was highlighted as a potential really high PA (5.0 PA), earlier in his career, (hence the * at the end of his name), but although he's decent, he's certainly not a superstar and has only been a bit-part player until this season. Even without his 9 goals this month he has done reasonably well this season, but the opportunity be 1st choice every week for a busy month has really seen him take his chance and we have benefitted as a result. I'm still not sure what to do with him once (32a) David is back available, but it's a good choice to have. 

Copa de Su Majestad el Rey. This is really frustrating as I have targeted this competition as our best opportunity of silverware. The problem is that we still had 7 players on AFCON duty for the Barca game, 2 more injured and another suspended, (all from our 1st team match squad), so to lose 10 players is tough to take, especially when 1 of them is by far the best GK at the club and 4 more of them are the best 4 midfielders at the club. We gave it a go but came up just short. A home tie might have made all the difference here. 

Our last 10 games in this competition have all been away, and 20 of our last 22 games have been away.  Is this because the team currently sitting higher in the pyramid is always drawn away?  Either way it's absolutely killing us, especially during AFCON time. Next season, (when there is no AFCON).... (well there is an AFCON but every 2nd season it's competed for by National B sides, (which is easier for us to cope with), I will give this competition a right good go at the expense of league points. 

Goal-scoring GK's. 3 more goals here. 

 

 

 

Finances. 

[Jimbokav1971]

6 hours ago, Sonic Youth said:

Tough month, and have done well I think.

It’s curious the European form of the Spanish teams 

It was a tough month, and we did ok I suppose, and probably did well under the circumstances, but it's still frustrating.

I must admit I didn't notice the Spanish clubs form in Europe. 

Sevilla were LaLiga Champions last season and have progressed to the KNockout stages, (albeit by the playoffs). Juve and Liverpool away are tough games though. It does seem unfair that you can play teams like that away, but not have the fairness of a home tie. 

We were Runners Up in LaLiga last season and again, it's away games against the likes of Arsenal that has seen us drop points, (although Juve also beat us at home and I would expect them to beat us over 2 legs in the Round of 16. 

Real Madrid finished 3rd in LaLiga last season and have been knocked out in the Playoffs, (by Athletico). I don't know if this means they drop into the Europa League. Again, it's away fixtures against Arsenal, Inter & Porto that has cost them, but actually they can have no complaints because they also dropped points away to St Gallen and at home to Hertha. 

Athletico finished 4th in LaLiga last season and have qualified for the last 16 via the Playoffs. So of the 4 Spanish clubs playing in the Champions league this season, 3 of them have qualified for the last 16 and Real Madrid were knocked out by Athletico. 

Barca finished 5th in LaLiga last season are in the Europa League where it's pretty comfortable for them so far. 

Real Hispalis finished 6th in LaLiga and needed the Playoffs to get through to the last 16 in the Europa League. 

Villarreal finished 7th in LaLiga last season and have made the last 16 of the Europa Conference without the need for the Playoffs. 

So of the 7 Spanish clubs competing in Europa this season, 6 of them have qualified for the knockout Rounds and the only club that didn't (Real Madrid), was actually beaten by another Spanish club, (Athletico), to stop them getting there. We obviously haven't seen how this format will work in rel life yet, (I personally think it stinks), but maybe you will see more rotation as a result of the increased fixtures. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Youth Intake day. Mar 2041. 

Preview. A 3.5 "Good Intake" doesn't sound great, but who knows what this will actually be like. 

Summary. 

Squad by PA. I've offered everyone except (41l) a contract. I can put with Low Det and I can put up with Unamb, but I can't be doing with Low Det + Unamb at the same time. 

Misc. players. 

Not sure what to make of this bloke but he can play all the way through the middle from centre-half to striker. He's not big enough to play centre-half, 5'8", jumping of 7 and his concentration is poor at 8. He's not physical enough to play in a 2 in the middle of the pitch, and he can't pass, so he can't play in midfield. That only leaves up front and his best technical attribute is finishing at 13 and his heading is decent. He really is a mixed bad. Considering we play 3 centre-backs and 3 strikers but only 2 midfielders it really has to be centre-half or striker, and I think he makes a better striker than he does a centre-half.

Mentals look decent. Never going to be a playmaker, but could be a midfield destroyer. 

Looks ok I suppose. 

[Jimbokav1971]

NxGn 2041. 

We've only got 1 player on the NxGn list this year. 

It's interesting that once again our player on this list is out on loan. 2 years ago we had 2 players on the list out on loan at Augsberg in the German 2nd tier. The previous year we had the same 2 players on the list, 1 at Augsberg again and the other at Vizela in Portugal. 3 years ago we had 3 players on the list, 1 out on loan at Cagliari in Italy, and the other 2 still at the club. 

This is a complete list of all our players who have made the NXGn list. 

2041.

Hamdi (EGY) was on loan at Rapid Vienna in the Tipici Bundesliga. 

2040.

Ouédraogo (CIV)(BFA) 6'0" DC was on loan at SV Werder in 2. Bundesliga.
Kouadio (CIV) was on loan at SV Werder in 2. Bundesliga.

2039.

Ouédraogo (CIV)(BFA) 6'0" DC was on loan at Augsberg in 2. Bundelsiga.
Kouadio (CIV) was on loan at Vizela in Liga Bwin. 

2038.

El Nahhas (EGY)(USA) * was on loan at Cagliari in Serie A. 
Soliman (EGY) was playing for us. 
Angoua (CIV) was playing for us. 

2037.

Soliman (EGY) was playing for us. 
(33d) Pascual (ESP)(BAS) 6'4" was playing for us. 
Tetty (CIV) 5'9" was on loan at RC d'Abidjan in Ivory Coast. 

2036. 

(33d) Pascual (ESP)(BAS) 6'4" was playing for us. 
El Fakiri (MAR) SC was playing for us.

The only player on this list who is still at the club other than Hamdi (EGY) from this years list is Ouédraogo (CIV)(BFA) 6'0" DC and he's only here because I managed to extend his contract just in time. To my mind this means that I need to extend the contract of Hamdi (EGY) immediately no matter what I actually think of him, because history has taught us that other clubs are likely to meet his min fee clause of £20M pretty soon. 

With that in mind I'm going to try and do just that to some of the other Africans on the list. 

#1 has already been capped 32 times by Norway while still a teenager, but was born in Somalia so is eligible to be signed by us even though it's highly unlikely considering how good he is and that he's at Barca. His min fee clause is £124M and he's already being paid £4M per year. 

#10 came through the Academy at Arsenal, but is already getting paid nearly £100,000 per month so his wage demands if we did manage to agree a deal would likely to be too steep. 

#15 is only 16 years old and I really like him. 6 Senior Caps at 16 tells it's own story. 

#16 came through the Academy at Sheff Utd and I like him. His wages are low there so if we can do a deal with them then his demands are unlikely to break the bank. 

#20 is the most likely deal so far looking at his wage and valuation. 

#23 needs to be scouted some more, but looks better than decent for a 17 years old and I'm liking his PPM's too. 

#34 is another who is European 1st and African 2nd, and we like that because it means they don't go away to the AFCON. 

#45 is another European and he has a min fee release clause of £25M. His modest wages that this might be a really doable deal. My 1st reaction was that I could turn him into a wide striker at a push, but actually he's a great WB but I really don't like that positioning attribute. I know it's key for full backs, but exactly how important is it for WB's I wonder? 

[Jimbokav1971]

Mar 2041. 

LaLiga. 2 draws might seem like 4 points dropped at this stage of the season, but considering they were away to Athletico and Bilbao I'm certainly counting it as 2 points gained rather than 4 points dropped. That we managed to also beat Barca this month, (our vanquishers in the Cup when we had players missing at AFCON), was also pretty pleasing. I'm astonished to see that Real Madrid are somehow 9 points ahead of us, but we now have 2 games in hand on them. We only have 1 game in hand on Sevilla and they're 5 points ahead so this is going ti be tough. 

UEFA Champions League. We had late chances at home to make it 3 and 4 nil against Juve and I thought it was going to cost us, but thankfully they could only manage a 1 goal win at their place. 

We got Red Bull Leipzig in the Quarters and this suggests that we have nothing to be afraid of. 

Goal-scoring GK's.

 

Finances. 

[Jimbokav1971]

NxGn 2041 Africans. 

Barca wanted £105M for #1 Musse (NOR)(SOM).  He's just too good and too expensive. 

PSG only want £16M for #15 Lakhsassi (MAR)(FRA) *.     Unfortunately the player won't discuss terms because he's so young. I have already commented in the media that I'm after him and will go and watch PSG a few times to crank up the pressure. I really like him. 

Sheff Utd want £43M for #16 Martin (ENG)(MRI) *. I will see if I can spread the payment over a few years. 

Troyes just said no no no to our offer for #20 Moha (FRA)(MAR) *.

Sporting wouldn't even discuss a deal with me for #23 17 year old Odita (NGA)(POR) *.

Vitoria wanted silly money for #34 Tavares (POR)(GNB) * and while this says that the deal will rise to £98M, that's only if we win the LaLiga, the Champions League and the Copa del Rey in the next 3 seasons, as well as him making 20 International appearances, scoring 50 league goals, making 50 league appearances etc etc etc. The actual deal is £30.5M (structured) and then another £20M in add-ons, (that we probably will end up paying), but unless we start winning silverware we're not going to have to pay out more. 

#45 has a min fee release clause for #45 Kitoko (BEL)(COD) * so Genk don't have a choice. 

It's no accident that both the lads I've agreed to sign are Europeans 1st and Africans 2nd, and I'm happy to pay more for that. 

I'm still interested in the other players, but despite our balance being £162M, we only have a transfer budget of £26M left after those 2 deals. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Apr 2041. 

LaLiga. This is a really good month, and when you consider that we were a man down in the 1st half and 1-0 down against Pamplona, to fight back and get a draw in those circumstances is brilliant. When you consider that we also played 2 Champions League Quarter-Finals and 1 Champions League Semi-FInal between these games it's even more impressive. Whether we will have enough about us to reel in the juggernaut that is Real Madrid at the top of the table over the remaining games remains to be seen, but if we win our game in hand then we will be just 3 points behind them and we play them on the last day of the season. Our next game is against Sevilla and they have 2 of their last 3 games, (although they were both away and they play us at home), but just in case you're thinking that game will be easy, their talismanic striker, (and our ex Academy product) Crespo, has now scored 39 LaLiga goals this season and 57 goals in all competitions this season.

UEFA Champions League. I was delighted to get past Leipzig, but I think Spurs might be a tough nut to crack in the 2nd leg with a 2-goal advantage. Spurs won the Premier League last season and are currently 3rd, (chasing Arsenal and Liverpool) for the title this season. 

Goal-scoring GK's.

 

 

Finances. 

[Jimbokav1971]

African XI of the Year. 

I'm a tiny bit peeved to only get 3 players in the African XI of the Year. 

Zerrouki (ALG)(FRA) * plays for NIce in France and is 33 years old so we have no interest in signing him. 
Mo Osman (EGY)(ENG) * plays for Spurs in England and is 24 years old so I would love to sign him but we couldn't afford his wages never mind about the transfer fee.
Rocha (CPV)(POR) 5'10" * plays for Liverpool in England and is only 21 years old so again I would love to sign him but it's just not realistic. 
Asuquo (NGA)(ENG) * plays for Dortmund in Germany but is 30 years old so we're not interested in him. 
El Fakiri (MAR) SC used to be our player but after moving to Norwich he now plays for Atletico Madrid. 
El Saeed (EGY) * is a top top player who plays for Man Utd, but his wages of £1.3M per month tells it's own story. 
Masina (RSA) is 30 years old and plays for Real Hispalis. 
Kassimi (MAR) is 34 years old and plays in France for Marseille. 

[Jimbokav1971]

The Crespo show. May 2041. 

Crespo scored 41 LaLiga goals in 37 appearances and 59 goals in all competitions in 52 appearances. I really need him to move to another league, but there is nobody even interested in him and he has 3 years left on his contract. 

[Sonic Youth]

Is Crespo the best player in your game? Or only in La Liga?

[Jimbokav1971]

4 minutes ago, Sonic Youth said:

Is Crespo the best player in your game? Or only in La Liga?

I'm honestly not sure. I haven't really been paying too much attention to the other leagues. 

England. Arsenal won the Premier League from Liverpool on goal difference, (4 goals), with Spurs 10 points behind in 3rd. Spurs players were 1st and 3rd on the match ratings list though. It was £2.1M very well spent by Spurs.

Italy. Brescia,  (yes really), won the league on head to head record against Fiorentina as they finished 20 points clear of 3rd placed Juve. This is the player with the highest match rating. 

France. Unsurprisingly PSG won Ligue 1 again, (6 pts clear of Monaco), but actually they haven't won all the titles since the game started, with Monaco somehow winning the Lige 1 title in the very 1st season of the save.  This is the player with the highest average rating. 

Germany. The Bundesliga was won by Hertha Berlin for the 2nd consecutive season and for the 3rd time in total during this save. They also won the 2039 Champions League and are now one of the big-hitters in Europe. The player with the highest match rating in the league is this bloke. 

The other structures I have loaded are Portugal, Belgium and South Africa, and they don't have anyone who can compete with Crespo. 

He scored 8 more goals than the 2nd highest goal-scorer in LaLiga and the 2nd highest match rating was 7.57 to his average of 7.77. He won 21 MOM awards from 52 games this season.

The Champions league Final will be played between Hertha Berlin & Spurs, and Spurs will be looking to avoid being a losing Finalist for the 2nd successive season. Spurs did win the Champions League in 2036/37 though, (beating Chelsea in the Final). That will have been a whole lot of messy! 

Other than Hertha's meteoric rise, the thing that jumps out at me here is that West Ham got to the Champions League Final in 2030/31.

So I'm not sure if Crespo is the best player in the game, but he's definitely playing the best, and this is his 3rd season at this sort of level. 

[Jimbokav1971]

May 2041. 

LaLiga. We lost to both Sevilla and Real Madrid and only took 5 points from a possible 15 over the last month. You can't do that and hope to compete with the big boys. We still finished 3rd which is really decent, but even had we won all 5 of our LaLiga games this month we would have still finished 3 points behind a resurgent Real Madrid, who have by far the best defence in the league. I'm really happy with 3rd though considering the limitations we place on ourselves and the budget we have to work with. 

Primera Federación Grupo I. The B team had a bit of a scare in Jan and Feb when everyone was away at the AFCON, but they still won the title comfortably in the end and will be promoted to the 2nd Tier for next season. 

Spanish U19 Division 1. The U19's romped to the league title, (scoring 5 goals per game), but were unable to win the Final, losing in ET to Atletico. 

UEFA Champions League. We were carrying a 2 goal deficit from the 1st leg and almost did it, but just fell a little short in the end and can't really have any complaints. 

Records.

Awards. 

Spanish League Young Player of the Year. 

African GK of the Year. (I don't know why the other awards aren't given out). 

Goal-scoring GK's.

 

 

Finances. 

[Jtomsett11]

Seems like a really positive season all round. The B Team being promoted must be great for player development? 

[Jimbokav1971]

1 hour ago, Jtomsett11 said:

Seems like a really positive season all round. The B Team being promoted must be great for player development? 

Yeah I think it was. 

It's the 2nd successive title for the B Team, (and the 3rd successive promotion if we count the promotion from unplayable), and of course it helps to play these player at a higher level and means that I don't have to loan them out which means that in turn they can be available for the 1st Team when needed. Particularly, if we think about the AFCON period, (every 2 years), having a whole squad who are capable of playing at LaLiga2 level to call on makes things significantly easier. 

There is also obviously far more control over the training of players in our B Team squad than there is when they're on loan somewhere else, and I just need to make sure that it's what's best for the player, (playing at LaLiga2 level rather than going out and playing at a higher level somewhere else). I have seen some serious development in the German 2nd tier when I have loaned young players out. 

If I plan it right, the B Team will be filled with U19 players with high PA who don't need registering, and this will be our long-term route to coping with the AFCON issues. 

[Thebaker]

Good news on the b team promotion.

I think Anton should be a striker, too short to be a great defender (ignoring Martinez IRL) and hopeless in midfield even if he is natural at it as he seems unsuited for any role.

I am very curious as to what Crespo's PA is, but not capped much by Spain!

[Jimbokav1971]

3 hours ago, Thebaker said:

Good news on the b team promotion.

I think Anton should be a striker, too short to be a great defender (ignoring Martinez IRL) and hopeless in midfield even if he is natural at it as he seems unsuited for any role.

I am very curious as to what Crespo's PA is, but not capped much by Spain!

Yeah, the promotion is great and my hope is that we're good enough to win LaLiga2 each season from now on, but it will be a big step up. 

Anton?.............  Ah......... the recent utility Newgen. Yeah, the game suggests that he's a DC but I see him as a SC. 

It's interesting that although he played centre-half in his 1st game, he's played as a SC since then. I wonder if that's because I'm training him as a striker or if it's just coincidence. 

I've been really holding off looking at his PA, but I don't actually know why he has featured so infrequently for Spain. Let me have a little delve. 

This bloke is probably a big reason, and the fact that they played 4231 for the past 4 years. 

There's also this bloke. 

And this bloke. 

I think he's just been unlucky in that there have been 3 big players ahead of him in the pecking order and with him being 30 already I don't think he will get much time after they retire. 

Thinking about it, there is nothing to be gained from me not looking at the (27a) Crespo * CA/PA now because he's in his 30's and we're never going to be able to re-sign him, so let's have a look. 

CA of 161. 
PA of 169. 

Anything 150+ is pretty good I think so for Ceuta to produce a 169 PA player is brilliant. 

Looking more at the hidden attributes...

Decent Pro level of 14.
Good Temp level of 17.
Good Temp level of 18. 
Decent Imp Matches level of 14.
Low Injury prone of 6, (which is good I think isn't it). I always get confused where a low score is a good score. 

[Sonic Youth]

It’s curious that Liverpool signed 3 of the 4 forwards and didn’t keep or use any of them. Crespo was loaned out though (condition of sale and then to German 2nd division), while Aparicio and Igleseas didn’t really do well together (Igleseas performed the better of the two). All three played better after moving away from Liverpool too. Surely Liverpool wouldn’t have a better player than these three when they were on their books?

[Sonic Youth]

Also, shoutout to your u19’s scoring 170 goals!

[Jimbokav1971]

12 hours ago, Sonic Youth said:

It’s curious that Liverpool signed 3 of the 4 forwards and didn’t keep or use any of them. Crespo was loaned out though (condition of sale and then to German 2nd division), while Aparicio and Igleseas didn’t really do well together (Igleseas performed the better of the two). All three played better after moving away from Liverpool too. Surely Liverpool wouldn’t have a better player than these three when they were on their books?

I'm sure Liverpool will look at the £33.5M profit they made on Crespo and be quite happy with the deal.

I didn't actually pay any attention at all as to the journey the other players had been on. 

Liverpool might have made a loss of £2M on Iglesias, but they made huge profit of £68M on Aparicio.

So they had 3 of them and made a combined profit of £99.5M.

I don't remember the other players at all, but I do remember looking at the Liverpool strikers when Crespo joined and thought he might struggle to get a game initially. 

Looking back now...

29/30 Crespo joined Liverpool and was loaned back to us. This was the front 3 as they finished as Champions in the Premier League.

30/31 Crespo is loaned out to VFL Bochum in 2.Bundesliga. This was the front 3 as they finished 4th in the Premier League.

31/32 Crespo stayed at Liverpool but didn't play. This was the front 3 as they finished 3rd in the Premier League.

32/33 Crespo is loaned out to Bournemouth in the Championship.This is their front 3 as they finished 6th in the Premier League. 

33/34 Crespo is sold to Sevilla. This is their front 3 as they finished Runners Up in the Premier league. 

You obviously don't need me to tell you what Salah is like and I think it's pretty clear that Harvey Elliott is going to turn into a good player, but here are the other 2 mentioned above. 

This was their main striker. They spent £114M on him so it makes sense they didn't want to replace him. This is him in Jan 2035.

He's still at Liverpool now in 2041 and this is him now. 

I have put Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in a spoiler because he is a real player. 

Spoiler

It's pretty hard to argue that they didn't get the decisions right, (although wrong with Crespo), but only 3 league titles during the save probably isn't enough and I wonder if Crespo might have made the difference, particularly in the seasons when they went close. 

[Sonic Youth]

Tough choices to make!

Crespo isn’t going to get Lovegrove’s position (those England caps and goals  )

Curious that Napoli didn’t re-sign Kvaratskhelia with Liverpool getting him on a free.

Endrick turning up was the final nail.

Edited February 26, 2023 by Sonic Youth
Caps n goals

[Jimbokav1971]

14 hours ago, Sonic Youth said:

Also, shoutout to your u19’s scoring 170 goals!

They really did run riot and I didn't interact with them at all. 

(38o) Jose. scored 57 goals in the U19's league season and 14 more in the UEFA Youth League but he's really not a good player and the "." after his nickname indicates that he's not someone who has a future at the club. The truth is that good players generally don't play for the U19's. They either play for the B Team or go out on loan. 

That being said, he could be reasonable. It's just that we have so much depth that you have to have a fair bit of PA just to get in the mix up front. 

Either way, he's contracted for 1 more season so I will either sell him in the Summer or loan him out next season and will keep you updated on where he goes and how he does. The truth is I think it's nothing to do with him and all about playing in that central position which just about guarantees you goals. 

[BML]

On 26/02/2023 at 14:47, Jimbokav1971 said:

The truth is I think it's nothing to do with him and all about playing in that central position which just about guarantees you goals. 

Sounds like an idea for a future experiment...

[Jimbokav1971]

23 minutes ago, BML said:

Sounds like an idea for a future experiment...

I haven't done the squad depth for next season yet so I don't know who is likely to be playing up front for the U19's, but I'm just having a quick look at it now. 

The problem is that as well as having 6 strikers rotating in 2x 3's for the 1st Team, I also probably need 4-5 strikers rotating for the B Team, (who will now be playing at LaLiga2 level for the 1st time). 

Anyone who's that good is going to get loaned out even if they can't get into the B Team. 

(38g) Muñoz is 18 years old and the most obvious choice. He scored 33 goals and 27 assists from one of the wide striker positions, playing as a PF(a), but as I've just mentioned I think he's too good to play U19 football and even if he isn't playing for the B Team will have to go out on loan. I think it most likely that he will play in the B Team next season even if I have better players available, (who will be sent out on loan). 

(41a) Antón 5'8" (Driven) SC is the utility player who came through the last intake and I decided he would be best played up front. He might get the chance sooner than I expected. He scored 3 goals in 3(1) appearances for the U19's at the end of last seasons so he's certainly good enough already. 

(40e) Retuerta (Pro) made 0(13) appearances for the U19's last season and is definitely ready to start for them already. I think he's more suited to a wide striker role though. 

(40b) Casas (Temp) is another who is more suited to playing in either wide position, but I think he will run riot at U19 level. In fact he already has, with 32 goals and 19 assists from 31(2) appearances for the U19's this season from a wide striker role. 

(40j) Sergi (Pro) SC is another who is likely to be in contention up front for the U19's and he looks more suited to a central role than a wide striker role. He scored 18 goals and 8 assists from 21(6) appearances this season as he moved between central and wide roles. 

(41c) Carlos (Bal) is one who might be too young and early in his development to start very often for the U19's. 

(40a) Tomé (Unamb) looks like he could do a job wide or centrally and it depends how he develops which role will suit him most. He scored a goal and an assist from the bench for the B this season, but only scored 3 goals and 3 assists from 11(12) appearances for the U19's so possibly still very much a work in progress.  

I think they're the main runners and riders and gives you an idea of those likely to be playing up front for the U19's and how good, (or not), they are. I expect to score at a pretty similar rate next season at U19 level, (although B Team will obviously be harder).