[FM24] Adelaide United - Homegrown Challenge

[kdavva74]

ADELAIDE UNITED
HOMEGROWN CHALLENGE

Way back in FM15, I had a very long save with my local A-League side, Adelaide United. In this save, which I played for several years, I only signed players born in South Australia, of which Adelaide is the capital, and managed to dominate the domestic scene as well as build AUFC into one of the biggest clubs in the world, including winning the Club World Championship final. It was a very fun, fulfilling save and it scratched the itch of civic pride for me.

I want to replicate that success with Adelaide United in FM24, and the timing is perfect because in real life the Reds have found a sustainable model in developing local talent, then selling for a profit. The club has really positioned itself as 'South Australia's Team' due to the large amount of local first team players, including Ryan Kitto, Alexandar Popovic, Joe Gauci and the recently departed Craig Goodwin. They've also developed a large group of promising homegrown talent, led by the mercurial Nestory Irankunda, who's on the radar of Bayern Munich, and even father-son prospects like Ethan Alagich and Bernardo. Generally, Adelaide United have also featured young African refugee footballers developed through the youth system.

With very little upheaval, I should be able to not only build a squad of solely South Australian players, but also include some really talented prospects that I can develop into great players. I could capitalise on a genuine golden generation at Adelaide United and maybe build up the national team as well.

GOALS

• Australia win the World Cup with 5 AUFC homegrown players
• Australia win the Asian Cup with 5 AUFC homegrown players
• Australia win a match with 5 AUFC homegrown players
• Win the Club World Championship
• Reach the Club World Championship semi-finals
• Win the Asian Champions League
• Win the Asian Confederation Cup
• Win the A-League Finals Series - completed in 2023/24
• Win the A-League Regular Season - completed in 2023/24
• Win the Australia Cup

RULES

1. Only players that grew up solely in South Australia can be signed, including youth intake players.
2. Players who were born overseas that have Australian nationality and grew up in Adelaide are also eligible.
3. Players who don't satisfy rules 1 & 2 must be sold/released at the earliest convenience.
4. If a reasonable bid comes in from a good European side, the bid must be accepted.

HALL OF FAME

South Australian All-Time Best XI

    Player               Nat.   Cap    Career                       Ga   Go
GK  Joe Gauci*           AUS     1     2020-                        87    0
DF  Michael Marrone      AUS     1     2008-10, 2013-21            160    3
DF  Robert Cornthwaite   AUS     7     2005-11                     103    4
DF  Jordan Elsey         AUS     0     2013-21                     124    4
DF  Ryan Kitto*          AUS     0     2013-14, 2016-              182   19
MF  Louis D'Arrigo       AUS     0     2018-23                      98    3
MF  Osama Malik          AUS     0     2011-16                      95    2
MF  Fabian Barbiero      AUS     1     2007-13                      90    8
FW  Travis Dodd          AUS     2     2005-11                     137   30
FW  Carl Veart           AUS    18     2005-07                      47   12
FW  Craig Goodwin        AUS    16     2014-16, 2018-19, 2020-23   157   53

*denotes current player

*denotes current player

South Australians with >50 games for Adelaide United

Player                 Nat.  Cap  Pos    Career                       Ga   Go
Ryan Kitto*            AUS    0   MID    2013-14, 2016-              182   19
Michael Marrone        AUS    1   DEF    2008-10, 2013-21            160    3
Craig Goodwin          AUS   16   MID    2014-16, 2018-19, 2020-23   157   53
Travis Dodd            AUS    2   FWD    2005-11                     137   30
Jordan Elsey           AUS    0   DEF    2013-21                     124    4
Robert Cornthwaite     AUS    7   DEF    2005-11                     103    4
Lucas Pantelis         AUS    0   MID    2005-11                     101   14
Louis D'Arrigo         AUS    0   MID    2018-23                      98    3
Osama Malik            SUD    0   MID    2011-16                      95    2
Fabian Barbiero        AUS    1   MID    2007-13                      90    8
Joe Gauci*             AUS    1   GK     2020-                        87    0
Nikola Mileusnic       AUS    0   MID    2016-20                      86   14
Paul Izzo              AUS    0   GK     2012-15, 2017-20             84    0
Dylan McGowan          AUS    1   DEF    2014-17                      82    7
Ryan Strain            AUS    4   DEF    2017-21                      81    0
Iain Fyfe              AUS    0   DEF    2009-13                      75    5
Angelo Costanzo        AUS    6   DEF    2005-09                      72    0
Richie Alagich         AUS    0   DEF    2005-08                      64    2
Nathan Konstandopoulos AUS    0   MID    2013-15, 2017-22             63    5
Stefan Mauk            AUS    0   MID    2015-16, 2020-22             61   13
Daniel Mullen          AUS    1   DEF    2008-12                      58    2
Nestory Irankunda*     TAN    7   FWD    2021-                        55   11
Alexandar Popovic*     AUS    0   DEF    2021-                        54    1
Bernardo*              AUS    0   MID    2021-                        52    5
Ben Garuccio           AUS    0   DEF    2016-18                      50    1

*denotes current player

South Australians who have appeared for Adelaide United and a senior national team

Player                  Nat.          Caps    AUGa
Awer Mabil^             Australia      45       47
James Troisi            Australia      37       13
Riley McGree^           Australia      33       40
Ryan McGowan*           Australia      22       28
Carl Veart              Australia      18       47
Craig Goodwin^          Australia      16      157
Elvis Kamsoba*^         Burundi        14       18
Pacifique Niyongabire^  Burundi        12       22
Ryan Strain^            Australia       9       81
Robert Cornthwaite      Australia       7      103
Nestory Irankunda*^     Tanzania        7       55
Angelo Costanzo         Australia       6       72
Osama Malik^            Sudan           6       95
Ross Aloisi             Australia       3       47
Travis Dodd             Australia       2      137
Fabian Barbiero         Australia       1       90
Joe Gauci*^             Australia       1       87
Michael Marrone         Australia       1      160
Dylan McGowan           Australia       1       82
Daniel Mullen           Australia       1       58

*denotes current AUFC player
^denotes current international player

Edited November 8, 2023 by kdavva74

[kdavva74]

ADELAIDE UNITED
HOMEGROWN CHALLENGE

Season 1 | 2023/24

It was a very successful year for Adelaide United, as we won the A-League double! We comfortably won the title in the end after leading most of the way and then endured a thrilling penalty shootout Grand Final victory over our bitter arch-rivals Melbourne City. We thoroughly disproved the notion of 'you can't win anything with kids' as we sported an extremely young side and developed some future stars.

Transfers

The Barnett and Goodwin deals were both done before I arrived, but I still managed to do good business in the transfer market this season. We leant heavily on promoting youth, but I did spend a little cash on bringing home Ryan McGowan, an Adelaide-born defender who has played all over the world in the past decade and adds some much-needed experience to our backline. In January, after some departures, we also brought in Elvis Kamsoba on a free transfer, with the Burundian international starting his career in the Adelaide suburban leagues. We signed Valentino Yuel but I accidentally didn't register him and subsequently released him.

In terms of outgoings, I was very pleased with how many non-South Australians I managed to get rid of in January, which allowed me to promote some youth team players. We've also released Luke Duzel and Lachlan Barr; there's only 3 non-South Aussies left in the squad at the end of the first season.

Squad

I got a chance to rotate a lot throughout the season, with frequent injuries and a lot of young players missing at times for youth international games. The average age of the squad was incredibly low, and some teenagers became genuine first team players.

First XI

GK - Joe Gauci - 25 apps, 8 clean sheets, 3 assists, 6.85 avg - The A-League's best young keeper, Gauci was named the league's best goalkeeper and has been called up for Australia. He's requested a move to a stronger club, with an asking price of $2,200,000.

RB - Panashe Madanha - 28 apps, 4 goals, 3 assists, 6.98 avg - The club already had a lot of talent on the wings so I gave 19yo Madanha a shot at right back and he performed really well. Still has a lot of developing to do but should be a long term option.

CB - Ryan McGowan - 28 apps, 4 goals, 6.92 avg - Was brought in to provide some experience and stability to our defenders. I was happy with his performances but I am mindful of his age and how he could drop off pretty quickly.

CB - Panagiotis Kikianis - 22 apps, 1 assist, 6.72 avg - Kikianis and Alexander Popovic both vied for this position and while neither of them excelled, they're both still very young and have a long way to go. Kikianis also provided some versatility at left back on occasion and will remain a first-team squad member.

LB - Ryan Kitto - 23 apps, 3 goals, 4 assists, 6.92 avg - The club captain and longest-serving player started the season brilliantly but dropped off slightly as it went on. Still finished with a good average rating and could continue to feature heavily for a while yet. Struggled a little with injury.

DM - Jay Barnett - 22 apps, 3 goals, 4 assists, 6.92 avg - We had to wait a while for Barnett to get up to speed due to an injury at the start of the season but he slotted in beautifully to replace the departed club icon Isaias.

DM - Ethan Alagich - 23 apps, 5 goals, 4 assists, 7.00 avg - Arguably the biggest success story of the season in terms of development, the son of foundation Red Richie Alagich adapted brilliantly to a new defensive midfield role and became a first team regular. He's now progressed to being one of the best midfielders in the A-League and is on the radar of Socceroos boss Graham Arnold.

RW - Elvis Kamsoba - 18 apps, 3 goals, 2 assists, 6.96 avg - We added Kamsoba to our winger stables for depth and he performed well, covering in for some key injuries as well. It's cool to have an African international in the squad as well.

LW - Nestory Irankunda - 21 apps, 3 goals, 9 assists, 7.25 avg - The genuine wonderkid at AUFC had an unsurprisingly fantastic season, although injury caused him to miss our Grand Final triumph. Was a creative force on the left wing and committed to Tanzania with 7 caps already. Sadly, it does not look like he will be receptive to renewing his contract so it's likely he'll be testing himself against the free agent market.

ST - Luka Jovanovic - 27 apps, 15 goals, 5 assists, 7.08 avg - Was thrust into an important role at a young age and stepped up magnificently, bagging 15 goals and providing a wonderful strike partner for Musa Toure. We are in the hunt for a new striker but Jovanovic will still be a regular feature regardless.

ST - Musa Toure - 26 apps, 16 goals, 8 assists, 7.37 avg - Musa is the third Toure brother to come through the academy, with Al Hassan and Mohamed both now playing in Europe. Musa could follow shortly after a tremendous season that has seen him named the A-League Player of the Year, A-League Young Player of the Year and AUFC Player of the Year. He contributed 24 G/A in a commanding season, it's hard to believe he's only 18.

Results

Youth Intake

The first intake isn't until October 2024, so it'll be covered in the next update.

Progression

Season    Pos   Pl   W   D   L   GD  Pts   Finals       Continental       Club MVP          Golden Boot           Most Appearances       Most Goals
2023/24   1st   26  15   6   5   25   51   Champions    none              Musa Toure        Musa Toure (16)       Ryan Kitto (182)       Ryan Kitto (19)