Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Share Posted August 14 Kosovo. I know very little about Kosovo as either a footballing Nation or simply a Nation. As a landlocked former part of war-torn Yugoslavia I know that it has had a turbulent time in recent decades, surrounded on all sides by Montenegro, Serbia, Albania & North Macedonia. I can see from the map below that the border with Serbia is a dotted line which I expect means that it's disputed by someone in some way. On that note, if you are from this part of the World and I get something wrong and/or I say something that offends you, then please accept my apologies in advance. It really isn't intended and I appreciate that there are strong feelings in this part of the World about the War years and possibly borders that exist now. Kosovo declared it's independence, (from Serbia), in 2008, and has since gained recognition from most, (but not all), member states of the UN. I know that Serbia refuse to recognise then as an autonomous, but don't know if they are the only one. There are 7 main districts within Kosovo, (with sub districts), and the names of these might help identify where some clubs are located. The Kosovo National Team has been playing in FIFA tournaments since qualification for the 2018 World Cup, so are very much still a novice at this level. In terms of players in the National side, they are spread far and wide in Europe, but none of them still play at home in their domestic league. 6 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted August 14 Share Posted August 14 Good luck 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BML Posted August 14 Share Posted August 14 Good Luck Jimbo, can't remember seeing a long-term Kosovan save on here before. I'm guessing after the slog that squad management at Cueta turned into, this save'll be Youth Only with no B Team? 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 Kosovan Football League Structure. The Kosovan Superleague was pretty competitive agt the top with the top 3 teams separated by 6 points and the last European spot being decided on..... goal difference (rather than record against opponent which I like). I think I've heard of Prishtina and Llapi before from early European competition in real life, (but that might be rubbish). Yeah, I've definitely heard of Prishtina. The 2nd Tier in Kosovo is called the First League split into 2 Leagues, (A & B), and at this stage I don't know if they are geographical or not. Only the top team in each league goes up automatically, and then there is a Playoff for the 3rd promotion spot that is contested by...... the top 2 Teams in each League and then the winner plays off against the 3rd bottom team in the Superleague. The 3rd Tier in Kosovo reverts back to a single league format called the Second League. The top 2 get promoted. Only the top 3 tiers are available in the League Edit I used from.... can't remember actually. I actually subscribed when I was considering doing a Balkan journeyman save that never got started. You can see from the above that I have holidayed 1 season and will see which clubs get promoted to the 2nd tier, (although not sure where or what level I will start at yet or what rules I'm going to impose on myself, although 100% Youth Only is looking hot favourite right now). 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 (edited) 41 minutes ago, BML said: Good Luck Jimbo, can't remember seeing a long-term Kosovan save on here before. I'm guessing after the slog that squad management at Cueta turned into, this save'll be Youth Only with no B Team? Thanks. Yeah, I'm not sure I've ever seen one either. There is EVERY chance of Youth Only with no B Team, but haven't decided yet and won't until I work out who and where I'm managing. Edited August 14 by Jimbokav1971 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 58 minutes ago, john1 said: Good luck Thanks @john1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 Available Jobs. May 2023. I definitely don't want to start in the Superleague, (at least I don't think I do at this stage), so that's the top 3 options ruled out. Drenica and Ferizaj are both Semi-Pro, but KF Trepça '89 Mitrovicë are a fully pro team however as they have just been relegated to the 2nd tier I fully expect their Pro status to be under significant threat. Look at this wage budget though! With regards to the other teams in the Superleague, SC Gjilani are Pro.FC Drita Gjilan are Pro.FC Ballkani are Pro. (I quite like this name if I was doing a Balkan players only save). KF Dukagjini Klinë are Semi-Pro.FC Prishtina are Pro.KF Llapi Podujevë are Pro. FC Ferizaj are Semi-Pro.KF Trepça '89 Mitrovicë are Pro, (or at least were prior to their relegation). KF Drenica are Semi-Pro.FC Malisheva are Pro, (or at least were [prior to their relegation). A&N are Semi-Pro but have insecure finances and their name is just a bit rubbish so that's them ruled out. KF Ramiz Sadiku are Semi-Pro & again have insecure finances. KF Shkëndija Hajvali are Semi-Pro and in the 3rd tier, but their finances aren't insecure. Also, isn't Shkëndija a big Macedonian club. I wonder if there is a link there or is it just a club on the border? KF Shkëndija is indeed a big Macedonian club and it is based in Tetovo (North Macedonia) right near the Kosovan border in North West Macedonia, and it was formed by Albanians living in Macedonia. The Hajvali branch are based in Pristina which is under 2 hours away by car, but it's not "just across the border" either. This is on the Kosovan clubs website and at this stage it's not clear if the 2 clubs in 2 different Countries are owned by the same people, or if the name means something else. (I like the focus on Youth Development obviously), but not sure they are the club for me at this stage. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 Options. Jun 2023. The 2 promoted teams have arrived in the Kosovan 3rd Tier. One of the benefits of holidaying a season before I take over a new club when playing a Youth Only save is that you already have the 1st intake through the system. With that in mind I think I like the look of KF Shkëndija Hajvali. 6 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo Beckham Posted August 14 Share Posted August 14 Well done getting your new job. I look forward to this career thread after your great Spanish adventure. Such a credit to the Careers forum. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 KF Shkëndija Hajvali. Jun 2023. I would like to show you what the squad look like, (because we have loads of players), but we haven't got an Ass Man at the moment so I will wait a bit. The fact that we have 6 GK's at the club for just a Senior squad and an U19 squad tells you all you need to know about how many players we have at the club. Now this whole save is basically about me pressing continue lots of times, not doing much of anything at all and basically living of the work of all my staff. The only problem is that we don't have any staff. We don't even have an Ass Man, (so no CA/PA star ratings) , so I have delegated finding an Ass Man to the Balkan El Presidente, and I have told him I will basically be going on holiday until such time as he appoints an Ass Man. (No, this is not a joke). I have loaded up the last tactic I used in Spain, and well that's it. Pre Season went ok. (At least the players tell me it did). I wasn't there because we didn't have an Ass Man so I went on holiday for all the games because I couldn't even delegate the selection of the match day squad. The way I see it, we were unbeaten for 67% of pre-season. The Second Division started and we still didn't have an Ass Man so I kept just going on holiday. (No, I'm serious. I really did). # It could be that we have really good players, (but I wouldn't know because I haven't seen them play), or it could be that we're just really lucky, but it could also be that our El Presidente has paid the officials because we scored 4 penalties in our opening 5 games of the season, all why I was on holiday. I really did go on holiday. Look. The only problem now is that El Presidente has appointed an Ass Man so now I have to come back to work and manage a group of players who have just won 5 games on the bounce with any help at all. This could be embarrassing. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 38 minutes ago, Ronaldo Beckham said: Well done getting your new job. I look forward to this career thread after your great Spanish adventure. Such a credit to the Careers forum. Such a credit? I'm basically going on holiday and winning. (Thanks though). 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo Beckham Posted August 14 Share Posted August 14 3 minutes ago, Jimbokav1971 said: Such a credit? I'm basically going on holiday and winning. (Thanks though). I like your style of doing things on here. You and a few others on here make my days less boring so keep up the good work. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 The Ass Man cometh, (or not, as the case may be). Sep 2023. I thought we had signed an Ass Man because the CA/PA stars suddenly appeared, but actually we've signed a GK Coach. I don't care. It's good enough for me and he can do everything an Ass Man can do. What a beautiful man. What do you mean he has an (Unamb) personality and also Low (Det)? That the hell is this!!! I will have to put up with it until I can find someone else. On the plus side, it does at least allow me/him, to introduce the squad. We have 14 different players who have 5.0 PA. Unfortunately 3 of them are (Unamb) and all 3 also have (L.Det). On the plus side we have 11 players who have gold CA stars rather than silver CA stars, (but I can't remember if that's dependent on what squad they are in or if it actually considers actual ability). (I've just checked and it's actual ability). I'm not sure where to start really. In goal I suppose. GK. At least team selection is easy. His positioning is rubbish, he's not very agile and he can't jump, but other than that he looks surprisingly good. I'm not going to show you everyone but let's see who has done stuff while I have been away on holiday. I didn't set the GK to take pens, (because I was away on holiday and I didn't care), so Zagani 6'0" took them to start off with and it went quite well. He scored 2 goals in our 1st game, (1 pen), 2 goals in our 2nd game, (1 pen), and then and went and scored his 5th goal of the season, (a 3rd pen), in our 4th game. The only reason he didn't take the pen in our 3rd game is because he had already been subbed off. I think I will keep letting the players decide who takes pens for the moment. Our 2nd top goal-scorer, (on 4 goals), is Kastrati and if you ignore the (Unamb) + (L.Det) mix, he actually looks a tiny bit reasonable just so long as he doesn't have to play football and is just allowed to run and shoot, (oh and his dribbling isn't rubbish either). You know, he's actually just a tiny tiny tiny bit good. The best player at the club, (in terms of CA at least), is Sejdiu, and he actually looks like he might have played football before. I mean of you ignore his (L.Det) I actually like him. The problem here is that because we don't play with wingers, (we play with 2 wide strikers in a 3 up top), they haven't actually been playing him, and my plan is obviously to stick him straight in up top on the right hand side. OMG this is going to be so bad if the players are better at managing the team than I am. Sejdiu is also the best player, (ranked by PA), but the 2nd best player (by PA) is Granit. He got sent off in the 26th min in the last game, (I didn't know because I wasn't there), but we still won so..... the pressure is really getting to me now. Imagine if they win 5 on the bounce, I take over and lose immediately? I will show you some other players as and when they do something. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 30 minutes ago, Ronaldo Beckham said: I like your style of doing things on here. You and a few others on here make my days less boring so keep up the good work. Well this is going to be a slight change from my Spanish save, (much more laid back), so hope you like it. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rikulec Posted August 14 Share Posted August 14 Glad to see you back with a new thread so soon, hopefully it's going to be reinvigorating for you. Good luck! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 Problems. Sep 2023. We've only got 3 centre-backs at the club, 1 of them is out on loan and injured anyway, and we play 3 at a the back! We've got a rubbish DM who can pass though so he will play as the Libero. (This will all be fine!) I do wonder who has been playing centre-half for the U19's though if there are only 2 actually at the club and they are playing for the 1st Team. If only I had bothered to watch some of the matches I might have noticed stuff like this. We've also only got 2 proper centre-mids, and a rubbish kid. This is our 1st squad under my management. Prediction? It won't be 0-0. We scored after 1 min and 34 seconds and I thought it was going to be a cake-walk. It wasn't. The lads win 5 games on the bounce with me on holiday and then lose as soon as I take over. I know what they are going to ask me in the press conference. "Why did you have a winger at left-back, a short midfielder at centre-half and 2 wingers up front? We've been awarded 5 penalties in 6 games, and the lads converted 5 while I was on holiday, but as soon as I'm back one gets saved. I was expecting centre-half Zagani 6'0" to take it, (because he was still on the pitch), but instead Jetullahu took it and it was saved. Right this minute I'm going to nominate Zagani 6'0" as our pen taker. Granit is still suspended for my 2nd game, so I go with the same team again. It's business as usual as Zagani 6'0" scores his 6th goal and 4th pen of the season, (I can't begin to tell you how annoyed I am that he didn't take it last week), and then Kastrati scored a wonder-goal winner in the last 10 mins. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 32 minutes ago, Rikulec said: Glad to see you back with a new thread so soon, hopefully it's going to be reinvigorating for you. Good luck! Well at the moment I'm not as good as the players having no manager at all so....... 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rikulec Posted August 14 Share Posted August 14 12 minutes ago, Jimbokav1971 said: Well at the moment I'm not as good as the players having no manager at all so....... They did raise the bar pretty high to be fair. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 (edited) Oct 2023. Second Division. I'd like to say we're playing well, but we're really not. We're just scoring more than the opposition. The Lepenci draw was played 3 days after the Cup game that we won in Extra Time, and on top of the players being absolutely shattered, we played the last 40 mins with 10 men. Kosovan Cup. Records. Edited August 15 by Jimbokav1971 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 2 hours ago, Rikulec said: They did raise the bar pretty high to be fair. When we lost my 1st game I honestly thought this could be the shortest save ever. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deisler26 Posted August 14 Share Posted August 14 Nice start! I have been to Kosovo, but all I saw was Prishtina Airport Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 Careless. Nov 2023. Because I holidayed so much, there was lots of stuff done by others which I wasn't part of the decision-making process. I didn't really look at the players until we got an Ass Man, (sorry, GK Coach), which was some time between 17th September and 24th September, so I'm hoping none of these are particularly decent players. Mustafë Podvorica is good and would 100% make our squad and probably our starting XI up front. Albnor Maliqi would be our best centre-half. Rron Dermaku would have been one of our best players.Omar Nuhu would make our starting XI in the middle of the pitch.Lis Demiri would be a significant asset to the squad either in midfield or up front. Muhamet Krasniqi would be a good squad player.Lorik Dobratiqi scored 13 goals for us last season in a relegated side. He was significantly the best player I've seen.Rigon Kabashi is a good versatile squad player.Muqiqi 6'1" was our 2nd choice GK.Uvejs Bunjaku would be in contention to start up front. Fehmi Dragusha is a proper centre-half. Unfortunately none of them are products of our Academy so that's them dead to us. While the above players were signed by other clubs because their contracts had either expired or they were on non-contract terms, (a bit of both I think), the below players were released by someone other than me. (I tried to release some rubbish youth players on Day 1 and they told me we didn't have the transfer budget to release them). Drilon Leci is a DL who can run. We don't have one of those. Toni Salihu is better than our best striker. Egzon Krasniqi was one of the best players at the club.Armend Misini scored 15 goals for us last season in a relegated side and 15 goals the season before. He'd walk into our side. Fatlind Azizi would start for us in the middle of the pitch. That's all pretty sobering and perhaps explains why we have such a threadbare squad. OMG I've just seen these as well. (I had them hidden because they aren't at the club). They've all gone on loan to the same U19 club. I've immediately recalled Hamra *, (who will be our 1st choice DL), and Xhemajli. 6''0", (who will slot in as our Libero). 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 3 hours ago, Deisler26 said: Nice start! I have been to Kosovo, but all I saw was Prishtina Airport I've never mean to any of the Balkan Nations, but it's a beautiful part of the World. Would love to visit any of them. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
OlivierL Posted August 14 Share Posted August 14 Good luck in Kosovo, a big challenge ! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 (edited) Nov 2023. Second Division. The Bashkimi loss came just 3 days after they beat us in the Cup. They deserved to win the Cup game and we deserved to win the Superleague game, but morale obviously played a part in the outcome and that's that. The 6-4 loss was ridiculous. We led 4-1 with an hour gone and then our GK, (with nobody around him), let the ball bounce off his head and into the goal. Kosovan Cup. Records. Kastrati. * has fired us back to the top of the table 19 goals from 18 appearances this season. Edited August 15 by Jimbokav1971 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 24 minutes ago, OlivierL said: Good luck in Kosovo, a big challenge ! Cheers @OlivierL (and thanks for the inspiration to leave Spain). 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 Mid-Pre-Season. Feb 2024. When you lose not once but twice to your own U19's, (who only have 3 players), then it's not good. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 (edited) Feb 2024. Second Division. It's been a good month and a mix of players returning from injury and recalling the 2 young players from loan has really helped us. Edited August 15 by Jimbokav1971 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 Problems. Mar 2024. Some of our non-contract players have been attracting the interest of other Second League clubs. Luckily the players have opted to stay with us rather than leave, although I think this problem is going to get worse before it goes away completely. We still haven't got an Ass Man and nobody has responded to our advert as yet. In many leagues you can play kids under a certain age even if they haven't been registered. In this league though absolutely everyone has to be registered in order to play, (and there is a limit of 35 players that can be registered). I don't know when the Youth Intake arrives in Kosovo, but I'm desperate for some new blood. We're only spending £2,730 pm of a £4,359 pm budget, but because we're only a Semi-Pro club we can't tie any players down to proper contracts. The kids are fine while they are on youth contracts, (I think), but once they move to NC terms then they're free game for anyone to come in and poach. We're hovering close to the £0 bank balance mark, (currently £851 overdrawn), but we will need to not only get promoted, but also for the money in the 3rd Tier to be decent to propel us towards professionalism. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 (edited) Partnerships. Mar 2024. Something I mentioned a little in my recent Spanish, (and something I know @OlivierLhas mentioned in his Gibraltar thread), is the development of partnerships between players, (and how it impacts on player/team performance. We currently have 3 developing partnerships and you will see that not all partnerships are positive one's. Unfortunately in the case of our centre-backs, we simply don't have other options so we're stuck with them. Kastrati. * is developing well with Sejdiu *. Jetullahu * and Granit * also developing well despite the claim that the players are not suited to the roles, (which isn't something I have noticed before). All 3 of our centre-backs are lefties so they're certainly not a good fit but I'm not sure why Gezim Nuriu. 6'1" & Zagani. 6'0" get singled out. Edited August 15 by Jimbokav1971 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 15 Author Share Posted August 15 NxGn 2024. When I looked through the wonderkids, I was surprised to see a Kosovan wonderkid at #49 and even more surprised to see him at a Kosovan club. Nika 6'5" came through FC Feronikeli before they appear to have had a name change. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 15 Author Share Posted August 15 Mar 2024. Second Division. The Rilindja Prishtinë performance was a poor one and we deserved to lose. The Vëllaznimi game was different though and we were much the better side, but we all know how morale works and after losing the previous game we could only manage a draw. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 15 Author Share Posted August 15 (edited) Youth Intake day. Apr 2024. It's a great intake in terms of PA, and a decent one in terms of 2nd Nationalities, but in terms of CA it's pretty pants and there are some awful personalities there as well. I was tempted to just keep everyone, because I don't know who we will need in the future, but I just couldn't bring myself to sign some of them. (24n) Sadiku. is (Unamb) + (L.Det)(24f) Marku. is (L.Det)(24j) Klemenčič. (KOS)(SVN) is (Unamb) + (L.Det) These 3 have been sent on their way. Edited August 15 by Jimbokav1971 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thebaker Posted August 15 Share Posted August 15 (edited) Surprised you let Marku go and not strommen. The reason all of the national team play abroad is down to the fact that many are born abroad and nearly all have come through in other countries and have probably never played in the kosovon leagues, perhaps you can change this. Edited August 15 by Thebaker 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 15 Author Share Posted August 15 Apr 2024. Second Division. The loss to KF Arbëria was costly, especially so as they are our closest challengers for the title. Finances. I showed our wage spend and budget back in... whenever it was... and we had a surplus of £1,426 from a £4,359 budget. That sounds great but even with me only signing 13 of the 16 players in the Youth Intake and nobody else, it's already smashed our budget. The reason for that is because every youth contract player is on £120 per month and the highest paid player is only on £200 per month. I may have to re-think this moving forward. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 15 Author Share Posted August 15 21 minutes ago, Thebaker said: Surprised you let Marku go and not strommen. The reason all of the national team play abroad is down to the fact that many are born abroad and nearly all have come through in other countries and have probably never played in the kosovon leagues, perhaps you can change this. Of course. Makes complete sense that so many are living abroad now. Yeah, I was knackered last night and should have released more. Strommen and Klemencic should have gone too. I need to be smarter with my Youth contracts in future. It's so hard right now because everyone looks good because our players are so bad. I've had a nightmare there. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
OlivierL Posted August 15 Share Posted August 15 7 hours ago, Jimbokav1971 said: NxGn 2024. When I looked through the wonderkids, I was surprised to see a Kosovan wonderkid at #49 and even more surprised to see him at a Kosovan club. Nika 6'5" came through FC Feronikeli before they appear to have had a name change. Luckily he doesn't have the wonderkid tag, you can create the first newgen wonderkid in Kosovo yourself. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
_Ben_ Posted August 15 Share Posted August 15 Even though our playing styles have grown further and further apart as time has gone on - there is one thing that I can never miss out on: a Jimbo youth-only save. Your Icelandic adventure got me to sign up here and I tried to emulate your style for several years; I just love how you talk through it in simple terms (not patronising, I promise!!) So much to learn about how you do it. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 15 Author Share Posted August 15 3 hours ago, OlivierL said: Luckily he doesn't have the wonderkid tag, you can create the first newgen wonderkid in Kosovo yourself. I think we're a loooooooong way away from any wonderkids at...... I'm not calling the club the full long name so from now on we will be.....Skhendija, (or something close to that). 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 15 Author Share Posted August 15 3 hours ago, _Ben_ said: Even though our playing styles have grown further and further apart as time has gone on - there is one thing that I can never miss out on: a Jimbo youth-only save. Your Icelandic adventure got me to sign up here and I tried to emulate your style for several years; I just love how you talk through it in simple terms (not patronising, I promise!!) So much to learn about how you do it. Thanks very much. High praise indeed. I think when I started my attitude was that I didn't know if anyone would read it so it sort of developed as I talk to myself in my head, (the funny bits anyway). The more analytical bits are me just asking myself questions in my head and going through the possible responses. It's almost like a conversation with myself a lot of the time I think. Anyway, thanks again. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 15 Author Share Posted August 15 May 2024. Second Division. We were level on points with Vellaznimi, (but behind on GD), going into the last game. It was actually a surprise to me because I expected to be chasing Arberia for the title, but they bottled it on the run-in and missed out. The top 2 challenging for the title were each playing 2nd and 3rd bottom at home, (each fighting to avoid relegation), so it was very evenly matched and the smart money was on 2 home wins for the title-chasers. We did our bit and obliterated Dardania, (in one of the most one-sided games all season), but Vellaznimi also won and in doing so secured the title. Maybe I should be annoyed or frustrated that we lost the league title on goal difference, (11 goals), but I'm honestly not. Perhaps it wouldn have been different if Runners Up weren't promoted automatically, (but they are), and this 1st season was all about getting promoted and avoiding being sacked, (and we did that, (with 5 points to spare in the end). Squad by appearances. GK Makolli 6'0" and penalty taking DC started every single game for us, and young striker Kastrati. * was benched for the last game of the season to stop him starting every game, (but he did come on as a sub). Squad by goals. Most of our goals were scored by just a few players. Squad by assists. The assists were much more easily spread. Squads by Avg rating. 5.0 PA players. We have 17x 5.0 PA players, with 6 of them being from this seasons intake. U19's. We didn't play in a league this season, (just friendlies), but for most of the season we just had 3x U19 players and 6 more out on loan. It was nice when the intake arrived and we finally had some depth. Finances. I'm going to have to be really smart about culling players, (not usually a strength of mine), because 16 players each on a £120 pw youth contract takes up £1,920 of our budget. 15 year olds from this intake will be 16 next season, (and still on youth contracts), so effectively we're paying 2 lots of youth players totalling almost £4k pm before we starting thinking about 1st Team wages, (and that's a problem). We have 6 players signed on a NC basis, but all 6 players are starters and it's plain madness for me to be baying rubbish kids £120 pm while these players are NC. We've also got 2 players on PT contracts, but if I'm completely honest with you it's been a while since I managed a Semi-Pro team and I can't remember the ins and outs of the contracts. A NC player can be poached without a fee at any time. I'm not sure what's different about a PT contract. (In any case, both the PT contracts have expired anyway so......) Summary. The 1st Season is always a bit rubbish for me, (the 1st few seasons actually), so it was good to get it out of the way without being sacked and it was great to get promoted too. I have no idea what the level above holds in terms of Pro clubs or Semi-Pro clubs or what.... [Am actually checking now].... First League comprises 2 Groups of 10 if you remember. In Group A, the top 2 team, (Istogu & Trepca 89), are both fully Pro, but surprisingly Besa are also fully Pro. In Group B, the top 2 teams, (Vushtrria & Malisheva), are both fully Pro, but I was surprised to see that Kika in 5th are a completely amateur team. If we were going into leagues with fully pro teams I would expect to be unable to compete, but even if the Semi-Pro clubs have slightly better players, I would still be hopeful fo being competitive in an attempt to avoid relegation. It also depends on how many of our players are going to be poached and what sort of contracts we can offer this Summer. It really is all guesswork at the moment. Merch. 5 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 15 Author Share Posted August 15 Has anyone got a guide they can link me to about NC and PT contracts in FM23 please? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 15 Author Share Posted August 15 (edited) Contracts. Jun 2024. Not sure how accurate this is but let's have a look anyway. https://footballmanager.fandom.com/wiki/Contract#:~:text=Non-Contract,-Contradictory%2C a player&text=This gives the club the,a contract-transfer is agreed. Full Time. This is what we, (or at least I), are used to dealing with. The player is essentially a "protected" player in terms of approaches from other clubs, until 6 months before the end of his contract. Part Time. I'm not 100% positive about this, but I think it's just a PT version of a FT contract, so while it's more expensive, this is what I want my best young players to sign to ensure that they can't be poached by other clubs without compensation, (assuming I get some decent players of course). Youth. I'm really going to have to think long and hard about how many Youth contracts I give out and who to. I can't just give them to everyone with 5.0 PA, (because they haven't really got 5.0 PA even if the report is accurate. It's just that the CA of our players is so rubbish that everyone has 5.0 PA), so I think I'm going to have to revert back to looking for reasons to not sign a player rather than looking for reasons to sign a player. Non-contract. I think this will be the standard for a while, (even in the 2nd tier). I will just have to accept that we're going to lose players and there is nothing we can do about it. Frustratingly we can't do the same to others. Amateur. I hope I'm not managing so low that I have to deal with these contracts anytime soon. [Edit] I've just had a look and tried to offer a new contract to the player at the top of our PA list, but the only contracts we can offer are NC so what's the point. If someone comes in for them then I will try to offer them a better NC contract, but there is no point in doing it now. Edited August 15 by Jimbokav1971 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rikulec Posted August 15 Share Posted August 15 Well done getting promoted! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 15 Author Share Posted August 15 Contracts continued. Jun 2024. We had 2 players who were on PT contract, (1x £200 pm 1x £120 pm), but they had both expired anyway so weren't worth the paper they were written on and we were effectively over-paying for no contract protection. So I have offered both players NC contracts and they seem fine with that, (for a significant saving I might add). The only problem here is that both players are already wanted by clubs and they are our starting midfield. Granit * is 30 years old and wanted by Ferizaj in the SuperLeague, (which seems a little strange). Don't get me wrong he's one of our best players and we don't want to lose him, but he's also 30 and what we will lose with him will be his CA and nothing else. Jetullahu * is 34 years old so again, what we would be losing with him is his CA and nothing else. He's wanted by Vëllaznimi, (who just pipped us to the title), and Vitia, (who finished 5th in our League). I would like to think that we can offer them equal terms so there might not be a reason to leave. The only problem is if either of them can offer him a PT contract. One thing I have noticed though is that I've got my sums wrong with regards to the cost of youth contracts. Although most of them are on £120 pw deals, some of them, (5 to be precise), are on £200 pm deals). Does this mean they're better than we think in terms of PA, or does it just make them financially driven? 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 15 Author Share Posted August 15 PPM's. Something else I noticed and forgot to mention is that I'm not able to train PPM's at the moment. I've checked the settings/responsibilities and I'm wondering if it's limited to players who train FT? Anyone else come across this before because I love a PPM.... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thebaker Posted August 15 Share Posted August 15 40 minutes ago, Jimbokav1971 said: PPM's. Something else I noticed and forgot to mention is that I'm not able to train PPM's at the moment. I've checked the settings/responsibilities and I'm wondering if it's limited to players who train FT? Anyone else come across this before because I love a PPM.... maybe its to do with the standard of facilities 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 15 Author Share Posted August 15 1 hour ago, Thebaker said: maybe its to do with the standard of facilities Yeah that's a good shout. Will have to do some digging and work out what's going on. I have a sneaking suspicion that this has happened to me before, (in Scandinavia) but I can't remember what the results was. This is the facilities now, (so I think it's fair to say that there is room for a little improvement). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted August 15 Author Share Posted August 15 Rankings. Jun 2024. Kosovan SuperLeague. This doesn't really matter, but it's just to give us a point of reference if/when we ever start to play in Europe. Domestic club reputation. We're the lowest of the Local rep clubs before you drop into obscure. Nation club coefficient. Qualification Places. We're only just above Luxembourg, (and they only get 1 single place in the Europa Conference), (which is really shady by the way!) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muttley84 Posted August 15 Share Posted August 15 23 minutes ago, Jimbokav1971 said: Qualification Places. We're only just above Luxembourg, (and they only get 1 single place in the Europa Conference), (which is really shady by the way!) Thats Liechtenstein who only gets 1 place (for the cup winner, they have no national league). Otherwise, Kosovo still has room to grow. Good luck! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now