[FM24] Winning the Copa Libertadores with every CONMEBOL Nation - Country 2: Argentina

[corinthiano]

October 2026

I'd like to say the Copa Libertadores Semi Final was a breeze but we are through with a big helping hand from Talleres who lost their nerves in both legs. In the first they were winning and playing a lot better, even deserved a second goal. But they had a red card in the second half and we piled the pressure from there, with Khellven scoring with virtually the last kick of the game. In the return leg they went ahead twice and were again playing better despite us equalizing again early in the second half. Then another red card for them and we took advantage out of that by scoring 3 goals and making the score look a lot better than we were. Ultimately we are there though, Botafogo's first ever Copa Libertadores final!

In the league Flamengo dropped a few points, but so did we and in the end we continue to be behind and have played an extra game - with 4 games left I still do not remain hopeful of us winning the league.

Next Fixtures

I am glad it is not Flamengo in the final, but it would be nice if it also wasn't Palmeiras, who beat River 2-0 in Buenos Aires to overturn a 1-0 deficit and make it through yet another final. We have not beaten them in 6 attempts so are definitely not favorites. In the league we may not have many chances to win the title, but we still need to ensure we finish in the top 4 to gain direct entry in the Copa Libertadores group stages.

[corinthiano]

November 2026

We had a decent last few games in the league with strong away wins and a thrashing of Coritiba, but the loss to our rivals Fluminense ultimately meant we narrowly lost out on another league title. In that game we also has an injury to Neymar which ruled him out of the Libertadores final. A massive blow especially for his experience and ability to play well in big games. Tobias Heintz though stepped up into that role and did really well, and Vitor Roque also shined when he needed to.

The final was a very tight affair in the first half, with Palmeiras probably edging it. However once we won a penalty in the second half, which Vitor Roque cooly converted, we never looked back. Heintz then set Vitor Roque up a few minutes later to make it 2-0. Palmeiras were out at this point and we even managed to add a third towards the end to make it a very convincing win, finally earning Botafogo their first ever Copa Libertadores title!

[corinthiano]

2026 Season Review

It was mostly more of the same on the domestic front as we headed out early in the Copa do Brasil, lost in the State Championship final and narrowly missed out on the league title, but we did at least win the Super Cup (without winning another domestic trophy ). The one small improvement was the one that mattered as we had an unbeaten campaign and convincingly beat Palmeiras in the final to claim the trophy that was the most important one.

Squad by Appearances

A lot of rotation again and this year I really felt like we had a really strong squad, with at least two strong players per position.

Best XI

The only change I'd make here would be Sforza in place of Nathan, who was more of a squad player with less starts and more sub appearances.

Awards

Brasileirão

Copa Libertadores

Plenty of awards this season domestically and continentally. Oddly Tobias Heintz and Vitor Roque were elected the best two players of the Libertadores but did not make the Best Eleven

Top Performers

What a bargain at $1.7M, was so consistent down the left and a real attacking threat with his 14 assists.

Our top scorer, although I feel like he did miss some easy goals at times. I managed to renew his loan for next season so Botafogo will get to enjoy him for a little longer.

The Norwegian had a mixed start last year but really settled into the side this season, making the AP position his own and also excelling at DLF when Neymar was injured towards the end of the season.

Finances

We spent big on players and improvements this year but still made very decent money by winning the Libertadores.

Progress

And so our time at Botafogo has come to an end. There is a little feeling of disappointment that we did not manage to win more here as we were clearly good enough to at least add a league and State Championship title, but it is all about the Libertadores here so we will now move on to Argentina!

 

[corinthiano]

Country 2 - Argentina

Argentina is the second largest country in South America after Brazil, bordering Chile, Bolivia, Paraguay, Brazil and Uruguay. Like most other countries in the continent, Spanish is the official language. Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city, with Greater Buenos Aires having around 12 million inhabitants.

There was not significant presence in Argentina before colonial times, with the Inca Empire occupying part of the northwest of the country, but the remainder being primarily inhabited by tribes. Europeans first arrived in Argentina in 1502 and the Spanish initially made it a part of the Viceroyalty of Peru, before making it its own Viceroyalty of Rio de la Plata in 1776 with Buenos Aires as its capital. Interestingly Buenos Aires was first founded in 1536, but was abandoned in 1541 only to be re-founded in 1580. Independence from Spain came in 1816, with an initial plan to have the country as a monarchy reigned by descendants of Incas rejected in favor of a centralist constitution.

Initial liberal economic policies and mass immigration from Europe saw a strong development for Argentina until instability came in the form of coupe de etats, the Perón years as president from 1946 to 1955 and military rule until the early 80s which significantly impacted the development of Argentina. Despite democracy being in place since then Argentina has constantly  suffered economically, defaulting on $500M of debt as recently as 2020.

Despite that it has the third largest economy in South America and is rich in resources like lithium and silver. Manufacturing accounts for 20% of its GDP and is the largest sector, with industries such automobile, textil and refineries amongst them. In term of Tourism it is the second most visited country in Latin America behind Mexico, with Buenos Aires a popular destination, as well as some of its national parks, especially in Patagonia.

Football in Argentina

Argentina is another country synonymous with football and was also introduced by it through the British. The Argentina national team also has a great track record of success, with 3 World Cups, the latest in 2022 and a record 15 Copa América titles. They have not added any titles in-game yet but are still performing strongly.

The first Argentina league was contested in 1891, it is fifth oldest league in the world and first to be played outside of the UK and Ireland. It has been contested professionally since 1931 and has seen many different formats in its years. For a long time it disputed separate Apertura and Clausura titles, but today there is a single championship with a Copa da Liga also played. Teams from Buenos Aires have typically dominated the tournament with Boca and River the biggest winners. This has continued in game, with Talleres winning a title in between too. Argentina clubs have historically done very well in the Libertadores too, which means that a lot of the top clubs are ineligible for this challenge. Right at the top of the reputation list Talleres and Defensa y Justicia would be obvious candidates and I am surprised that teams with more history like Newells dont even make it near the top of the list. There are not any job openings right now so we will wait for the right opportunity.

 

 

[corinthiano]

2026 CONMEBOL Update

Copa Libertadores

We all know what happened here 

Copa Sudamericana

You cannot stop Flamengo from winning as they claim their first Copa Sudamericana after dropping out from the Libertadores.

Copa Libertadores Records

We have our first champion of the save and Brazil are now outright the most successful nation in the Libertadores.

CONMEBOL League Rankings

We have our first movements as Ecuador and Chile overtake Paraguay and Uruguay respectively.

Most reputable clubs

Botafogo up from 6th to 3rd after the Copa Libertadores win.

National Champions

We have a first time winner in Peru and Emelec are now joint most successful club in Ecuador after winning back to back titles.

[corinthiano]

Club Atlético Huracán

Club Atlético Huracán is a club from the Parque Palacios neighborhood in Buenos Aires. They were founded in 1908 and their name and nickname (El Globo - Balloon) originate from the Huracán balloon flown by aviator Jorge Newbery across Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina. The clubs golden age came early in its existence as it won 4 national titles in the 20s. Since then it has only won 1 more domestic title in 1973. The 80s and 90s were seasons of struggle for the club as they bounced between divisions, but they restablished themselves in the 2000s and even reached the Sudamericana final in 2015, a feat they repeated in-game in 2026. They play their games in the Tomás Adolfo Ducó stadium, named after the clubs most notable president.

Huracán getting to the Sudamericana final was what made me decide to join them. The best eligible club is Talleres but I dont think their manager is going anywhere soon, and below that the clubs eligible are actually well balanced. Newells and Gimnasia La Plata were the other options - under other circumstances I would have picked Newells for their history but they just got relegated to the second tier and finances are insecure so it feels like a bigger rebuild. Huracán had a slightly better set-up and budgets than Gimnasia and I figured if they got to the final of a continental competition, which earned the previous manager a move to Corinthians, they cant be too bad.

Best XI

On the face of it, it seems a balanced first XI, with AP the weak link.

Top Rated Players

Decent goalie with plenty of years ahead of him.

Decent defender.

Paraguayan striker who can hopefully fire a few for us.

Initial Fixtures

We have two weeks until the league begins and we start it with an away game against our bigger rivals. Great.

[corinthiano]

January 2027

Two things we need to address. First, not a great start but I am not too concerned yet as we ran Defensa y Justicia and Argentinos Jrs close. Second, the Argentine system is interesting. First you have the Liga Profesional which has 28 teams and everyone plays each other once until the end of July. The winner is then in theory the champion of Argentina. But then you have the Copa de La Liga which runs in the second part of the season where the teams are divide into two groups of 14 but you play against the teams in the other group - I think. From the re the top 4 from each group qualify and it is knockouts until someone is champion of the Copa de La Liga, which I guess is kind of like a league cup or a different way of calling it Clausura. For continental competition purposes they take the champion of the Copa de la Liga plus the best teams in the aggregate table between the Liga Profesional and Group Stage of the Copa de La Liga. Nice and simple, right?

Transfers

In

Out

We only had ten days until the transfer window for transfers between clubs closed so there was limited time for deals, but we brought in Eric Ramires and Igancio Rodriguez and they will be our new centre mid duo. There was an additional transfer window until January 31st for free transfers and we brought in Lirim who is a promosing 18 year old that will sit in the reserves for now. On the outgoing front we sold a few players as the squad is bloated, but we still have work to do to get it leaner.

Next Fixtures

I am hoping we can pick up a few points to get our season going but the schedule does look a bit tough.

[corinthiano]

February 2027

Now I am worried. Granted some of these games were against tough opposition, but some were against teams close to the bottom and we didnt even manage to beat Lanús at home who are also struggling. The board are slightly disappointed and my job is still Stable, but I guess this will change if results dont improve soon...

Next Fixtures

These are not the kind of fixtures you want to see when you are struggling...Talleres and Boca are right at the top and even though Independiente is not having the best of seasons they are still a traditional team.

[corinthiano]

March 2027

It feels like we are turning things around after a win against Independiente and a very credible draw at Boca, but the board seem to be losing their patience so it might be too little too late.

Transfers

Out

Agostino complained about wanting first team football since I joined and with his contract expiring at the end of the year, us needing the money and him not getting first team footbal, it seemed like the right move.

Next Fixtures

The schedule is kinder on us this month and we will really have to make the most of it if we want to survive in this job.

[corinthiano]

April 2027

A mini revival was spoiled by us losing to a third tier side in the cup, so the board is still not happy at all with me.

Next Fixtures

Some more friendly looking fixtures again as we try to survive another month.

[corinthiano]

May 2027

We have a very good month and shoot up the table. We have a happy board right now so my job seems to be safe for the time being.

Next Fixtures

Vélez and Rosario Central are right above us so beating them would help us firther climb up the table.

 

[corinthiano]

June 2027

After an excellent win against rivals Vélez we lose a bit of momentum. The defeat at Rosario Central was understandable, but needing a last minute equalizer to rescue a point against struggling Gimnasia Mendoza was disappointing.

Next Fixtures

We wrap up our Liga Profesional campaign this month. With the top 10-12 teams from the aggregate table between Liga Profesional  and Copa de La Liga qualifying to South America we still have something to play for this season.

[corinthiano]

Defensa y Justicia are the 4th highest rep club in Argentina, and have been runners-up a few times in the last few years in the league so I naturally applied for the job. They ended up offering me the role but the budgets were pretty similar to what I have at Huracán and they are only 4 points ahead of us in the league so I decided that it was best to continue the work we were doing. I think Talleres is the only job I would leave Huracán for in Argentina, the other clubs seems to all be on a level playing field.

[corinthiano]

July 2027

A somewhat frustrating end of the season as I feel we should be beating teams like Olimpo and Godoy Cruz, but the draws have left us with a 5 point gap to 12th we'll need to make up during the Copa de la Liga if we want to play continental football next season.

Transfers

In

Out

The mid-season transfer window opened and was another opportunity for us to further clear out the excess of the squad. Some of the players were in the first team but were complaining about a lack of playing time. It does leave us somewhat short on depth but I don't think you need as much of it in Argentina and we have decent youngsters that can cover in case of injuries. On the incoming front we brought two players back from Europe on a free.

One of the first signings I made although he only joins now. In hindsight not the best of deals considering his wage and age, but he has played well so far.

Decent player and our starting DLP.

Next Fixtures

We have a mini break before we start de Copa de la Liga. Initially I thought you played teams from the other group as there are 14 games in total at this stage. But this would be too logical, instead you randomly play one team in your group twice, which in our case is our rivals Vélez, which feel like a tough draw.

[corinthiano]

August 2027

Copa de la Liga - Group B

Overall Table

After narrowly losing out to rivals Vélez in our first game in an even match we have hit a great run of form, easily beating Colón, Defensa y Justicia and Independiente. The win over Defensa y Justicia was particularly nice and helped confirm I made the right decision in staying at Huracán. This has put us in a qualifying place and also closed the gap to 12th place and continental football in the overall table.

Next Fixtures

Hopefully we can keep this form going and stay in the top 4 of our group.

[rmcf2017]

On 21/03/2024 at 10:38, corinthiano said:

So I finally got to the point where I can play the save I wanted to since FM24 is out, first because I found a database that is mostly accurate when it comes to the South American leagues not in the original game, and secondly because with the 24.3 update we have the 2023 Copa Libertadores results updated, which as will be explained was an important factor.

The Copa Libertadores de América is South America's elite tournament and has been in place since 1960. There were informal precursors to the tournament but it only came into creation after the European Cup inaugurated in 1955. In 1958 the then FIFA president João Havelange announced the Copa de Campeones de America with the ultimate aim being a game between the European and South American champion to determine the best club in the world. In 1965 the tournament was renamed to Copa Libertadores, in honor of the liberators of America such as Simón Bolívar.

In its 64 editions the tournament has been primarily won by Argentinian and Brazilian teams, with the title going outside of these countries only 16 times, half of those to Uruguay. Peru, Bolivia and Venezuela have never had a team win the tournament, with the first having a couple of finalists. In terms of successful clubs there is not a clear dominance like Real Madrid in Europe. Independiente of Argentina is the biggest champion with 7 titles, but the latest was in 1984. 

The Premise

Inspired by other saves I have decided to try and win the Copa Libertadores with a team from every CONMEBOL nation. With only ten countries this should be an achievable goal. In line with the other saves and to make it a bit more challenging I will try to win it only with teams that have not won it before. This means the choices in Brazil and Argentina will be more limited and it will take out some of the big hitters in the other countries. I will start from the country with the league that has the highest reputation and work my way down, which currently means a start in Brazil and end in Bolivia.

The manager taking on this task will be Gabriel Libertador (a.k.a Gabriel the Liberator), loosely inspired by Brazilian rapper Gabriel O Pensador (a.k.a. Gabriel the Thinker, which is very random I know, but is what came to my head ). He will be the youngest age he can be and have his experience and coaching badges matched to his first club, which I will select and explain later. As soon as he wins a Libertadores he will resign and look for a club in the country with the next lowest reputation. He can move clubs between countries but can never manage a club that has won the Libertadores before.

So on we go to the first country...

Hey man, do you mind sharing the database?

[corinthiano]

7 minutes ago, rmcf2017 said:

Hey man, do you mind sharing the database?

Sure! I got it from fmscout and it was created by MasterIgor. He has databases for other continents too and they all look pretty decent.

CONMEBOL Leagues for FM24 by MasterIgor v24.2 | FM Scout

[rmcf2017]

1 minute ago, corinthiano said:

Sure! I got it from fmscout and it was created by MasterIgor. He has databases for other continents too and they all look pretty decent.

CONMEBOL Leagues for FM24 by MasterIgor v24.2 | FM Scout

appreciate bossman. Loving the save as well btw. Inspired me to do a south america save as well

[corinthiano]

44 minutes ago, rmcf2017 said:

appreciate bossman. Loving the save as well btw. Inspired me to do a south america save as well

Glad you are enjoying it! Feels nice to be out of Brazil now where the challenge really begins and it is fun trying to work out how these countries structure their leagues. The federations are definitely very creative!

[corinthiano]

September 2027

Copa de La Liga - Group B

Overall Table

Just as we hit form we get a few injuries which seem to derail the team with two home losses which should not be happening. This puts us our place in the Top 4 in the Group and Continental place in the Overall Table under threat.

Next Fixtures

We have six more games, 5 away and the home one against River, so I am not feeling positive about turning our form around.

[corinthiano]

October/November 2027

Copa de la Liga - Group B

Overall Table

I don't understand this team sometimes, we went from losing to Gimnasia Mendoza at home last month to comofrtably beating River this one in what could have been 3 or 4-0. The wins against them and Belgrano meant that if we beat San Lorenzo and Colón lost to Lanús we would be through to the Quarter Final. We did amazing to do our part, but Colón also won meaning we missed out on goal difference. However more importantly, we sneaked into 12th place in the Overall Table, so if the winner of the Copa de la Liga is amongst the top 11 we should make it into the Copa Sudamericana. It is an assumption though so lets see what happens.

In other news Newells will be back in the top flight next year, but a bigger giant is going down as Independiente finished last in the Average Points table so the record Libertadores winners will be in the second tier next season. I will wait until the Copa de la Liga is over to post the Season Review, hopefully by then we will have an idea of what happens to us next season.

[corinthiano]

2027 Season Review

Still no news on whether we made the Sudamericana but I checked last years 12th place, Independiente Rivadivia and they played in the Sudamericana this year, so with the Copa Argentina and Copa de la Liga winners both inside the top 12 I am fairly confident we will have South American football next season. In which case this season was very successful, especially after the dreadful start we had. I did think after 10 games or so I would get the sack but the team improved a lot in the second half of the season. We are still very inconsistent but I think we can have a decent season next year if we avoid the same disastrous start.

Squad by Appearances

We had a pretty settled first XI, so other than central defence and some of the midfield at times, we did not rotate a lot. There are some excellent youngsters in the club and I will try to introduce some of them next season.

Best XI

I would argue Eric Ramires and Mazzantti should have been in the Best XI, but other than that the team is pretty accurate.

Awards

My above comment is highlighted by Mazzanti getting third best on the Player of the Year Award.

Top Performers

Not always a starter, especially when Avila was signed - but scored a lot of crucial goals and was especially deadly when he went on his mazy runs down the left.

Our one expensive signing justified the investment as he was consistently strong as our BBM.

Our top scorer, which shows we were not great up front. He probably highlighted our inconsistency as he disappeared during spells of the season.

Finances

This piece is concerning as we lost just over $5.5M last season. I will try to sell some of our players to raise funds and focus on free transfers on the incoming side. We still have more than 70 players in our books so can trim down the squad quite a bit. I am also hoping a Copa Sudamericana Group Stage can help with funds.

Progress

We are a lot further away from a Libertadores title than we ever were in Brazil, but that was expected. It is all about the small gains next season and continuing to qualify for South America.

 

[corinthiano]

2027 CONMEBOL Update

Copa Libertadores

I said Talleres would be the only club I would leave Huracán for and that almost became a moot point as they were a penalty shootout away from winning their first ever title. Instead it was juggernaut Flamengo who conquered South America again, keeping the tradition of beating Botafogo convincingly along the way.

Copa Sudamericana

Another Brazilian double as Santos beat Grêmio on penalties to claim their first ever Sudamericana title.

Copa Libertadores Records

Flamengo now the 3rd most successful club in history alongside Peñarol, whilst Brasil pull further away from Argentina.

CONMEBOL League Rankings

No changes this year as Brazil continue to reign supreme.

Most Reputable Clubs

No big changes other than River now being ahead of Boca as most reputable Argentinian club.

National Champions

Flamengo make it a Libertadores and league double and are now just 1 behind Palmeiras. Emelec retain the Ecuadorian title and are now the biggest winners in history, whilst I have to give Academia Puerto Cabello a mention. They never got close to a title before the save and have won the Venezuelan league 4 years in a row now and got to a Sudamericana Quarter Final, which is a great achievement for Venezuela.

Former Gabriel Libertadores Champions

Botafogo: An awful season as they went through three managers, none being able to get Botafogo to be competitive in the league as they finished a lowly 8th. As usual they lost the State Championship Final to Flamengo, who also beat them in the Libertadores Semi Final. The only improvement was in the Copa do Brasil where they got to the Semi Final.

[corinthiano]

2028 Season Preview

We finally have confirmation we will play in the Copa Sudamericana, and better yet all Argentinian teams enter at the Group Stage. In the Liga Profesional the Media has us as the 10th best teams, which feels reasonable and aligns very well with the boards ambition of a top half finish.

Transfers

In

Out

As promised we cleared the squad and tried to raise some money, with around $900k made already with one big $3M sale pending. On the incoming front all free signings come in to challenge for the first team other than Gerson Azócar, who is one for the future and has been loaned out. The one position I was unsuccessful in signing ahead of the transfer window closing was a striker, where I feel we need to add a fresh option to our aging front line. I have two potential signings though that could join halfway through the season.

Meza has been the keeper at Huracán for a while but he has not convinced me, especially coming out for corners. Álvaro is experienced and should be an improvement for us in goal.

I was initially just looking for cover at RB, but Eros will actually be starting for us and is another good experienced head.

Denilson is a well rounded player and will challenge for a spot in our centre and attacking mid positions.

The same can be said about Matheus and this means we will have a very strong Brazilian flavour to our midfield.

Assistant XI

A fair assessment of the Best XI, and we do have some depth to the squad as well, but if we have too many injuries we will have to throw youngsters in.

Initial Fixtures

A tricky start, but I hope this campaign begins better than last year.

[corinthiano]

January 2028

It is not a great start, but it is 3 points more than we got last season. We did well to edge out Instituto and were awful against Argentinos Jrs. We should have gotten at least a point against San Lorenzo as we hit the post 3 times and missed a penalty, so that feels like an opportunity missed.

Transfers

Out

Our transfer window is closed but we were still able to seal a couple of sales as our third choice keeper goes to Colombia and Cordero goes to Brazil on a nice $3M deal. He was unlikely to be a starter for us so I had to take that kind of money.

Next Fixtures

Not a lot of easy fixtures this month so hopefully we can get a couple of wins and not spiral into a bad run.

[corinthiano]

February 2028

That's more like it. After we conceded a last minute equalizer against Defensa y Justicia I thought we would be in for another month of struggle, but instead the team rallied from it and produced some amazing performances, including a thrashing of Rosario Central and an impressive 2-0 against Boca at the Bombonera. We are sitting pretty in sixth, which is a Copa Libertadores place. Not likely to stay there, but we can dream!

Transfers

Out

Just a youngster being loaned out to a team in the Paraguayan top tier.

Next Fixtures

Hopefully we can get wins in the home games and if we can get a draw at Talleres that would be a big bonus.

[corinthiano]

Not too bad of a group, think we can finish second here.

[corinthiano]

March 2028

We continued our good form with a convincing win against Belgrano and then did really well to draw at Talleres in what was a very even game. The game against Dep. Maipú however was disappointing and we were disjointed and missing a lot of passes. They scored on a counter and we never really threatened to equalize until the last 10 minutes when we pulled one back and could have scored a winner a few minutes later. On balance we were probably lucky to have drawn and with us all the way up in 4th I will take it.

Next Fixtures

The next couple of months will really test our squad as we enter the Copa Sudamericana and with that, suddenly have a very busy schedule.

[corinthiano]

April 2028

Liga Profesional

Copa Sudamericana Group A

I think we have done well this month considering the busy schedule. The game against Racing Club at the beginning of the month was the only one where we were well and truly outclassed, but we followed that up with two decent wins to continue in a good position. In the Copa Sudamericana we look set for second place. Vasco da Gama did beat us at home but it was an even game, I am glad we were competitive against a Brazilian side.

Next Fixtures

The busy schedule continues into May as we wrap up our Copa Sudamericana Group Stage campaign.

[corinthiano]

May 2028

Liga Profesional

Copa Sudamericana Group A

The heavy schedule has started impacting us as we have struggled a little more in the league. We are still holding a great position though and with Sudamericana football only resuming in July we can put a bit of focus back in the league. Talking of Sudamericana, we finished in Second as expected as we had no chance against Vasco in Brazil. This means we play one of the teams that finished in 3rd in the Libertadores groups.

Next Fixtures

Peñarol is probably one of the harder teams we could have drawn, but at least they are not having a great season domestically so we have a chance. That is something for July though as we get a bit of rest and then can focus on the league for the rest of month.

[corinthiano]

June 2028

It is an all green month but we really had to work hard for it, coming back from behind both Villa Mitre and Unión (SF), the latter thanks to a goal with virtually the last kick of the game. We were also second best against Gimnasia (LP), but found something extra in the last part of the game to score two late goals and keep us in 5th place.

Next Fixtures

We are back to a busier schedule with Copa Sudamericana and Copa Argentina mid-week games.

[corinthiano]

July 2028

What a great month! In the Liga Profesional we started it by coming back from behind to beat Banfield and put some distance between us and them. Two straightforward wins against Newell's and Platense followed before what has to be the best result at Huracán so far. Holding our own against River and ending their 26 game unbeaten run at their place. With the Liga Profesional stage at an end we are fourth, which would be an automatic Libertadores place. If we have a good Copa da Liga then qualification could well be on the cards.

In the cups we did well too. The game against Gimnasia (CdU) was comfortable and we progress further in the Copa Argentina. In the Copa Sudamericana we did well to hold on to a draw at Peñarol, before overpowering them back at our place. We got what I perceived as a favorable draw in the Last 16 with Melgar from Peru and the first leg was evidence of that as we beat them 3-0 and now just need another composed performance to make it into the Last 8.

Transfers

In

Out

We shifted a lot of unhappy fringe players, mostly on loan. Sebastián Meza was the exception as we managed to get a decent fee for someone that had become back-up goalie. Squad is a bit thin so I may look to bring some loans in myself for cover, as well as promoting the odd youngster or two. On the incoming front we continued the mid-season tradition of bringing players back from Europe. They come with high wages but are great quality compared to what we can get locally and also do not require a fee.

He was a regular at Ajax so I was surprised they let his contract run down but very happy to get him in as he is significantly better than any defender we have at the club.

Denil was released by Shakhtar and he challenges Reinhart for a starting DLP spot, but can also fill at centre mid for us.

Next Fixtures

We have a break before the Copa de la Liga starts. Before that we need to finish the tie off against Melgar, with Atlético Goianiense or Vitória waiting for us in the Quarters. Whilst both are Brazilian, they are not top tier sides so we could have a chance. In the Copa Argentina we will play the winner of Boca or Olimpo in the next round, which will most likely be Boca and therefore a very tough match.

[corinthiano]

August 2028

Copa de la Liga Group B

Overall Table

This is a bit of a low after an excellent July. On the continental front it was positive as we finished the job against Melgar and then easily beat Vitória at home in the second leg after a decent away draw. Domestically though we made a very slow start in the Copa de la Liga, which has put a 4th spot and guaranteed Libertadores football under threat. In the Copa Argentina we narrowly lost to Boca in what I thought was an understandable loss, but the board and some players threw a bit of a stink.

Transfers

In

Out

Pllacchi comes in just as a back-up option as Navarro and Mosevich both wanted loan moves. I also promoted one youth player to make sure we have cover in central defence. I did not get the striker I wanted before the transfer window closed, but we have pre-arranged a deal for a very decent one that will come in January.

Milestones

Next Fixtures

Athlético Paranaense await us in the Copa Sudamericana Semi Final, they should prove a lot harder to beat than Vitória but it is a problem for October. Focus in September is getting our Copa de la Liga campaign back on track and we have an excellent chance considering we have mostly home games.

[corinthiano]

September 2028

Copa de la Liga Group B

Overall Table

We were still pretty poor against Belgrano but then those 4 home games really helped us regain form and now we are back in contention to qualify from the Copa de la Liga Group Stage and have reclaimed the 4th place in the Overall Table.

Next Fixtures

It is crunch time with some tough games in the Copa de la Liga and the Copa Sudamericana Semi Final.

[corinthiano]

October 2028

Copa de la Liga Group B

Overall Table

We continue the good form into this month with some solid wins in the Copa de la Liga, including an impressive win against Boca in an even match. This puts us almost into the Quarter Finals but more importantly we have secured 4th place in the Overall Table which means Libertadores football next year. The only draw came as we rested the squad ahead of the second leg of the Sudamericana with Athlético Paranaense. Against them we drew the away leg despite them being better on the day and then at home Denil Castillo scored his first two goals for the club at a crucial time in the second half of another even game. They scored a late one to make the last 5 minutes nervy but we held on to reach the clubs 3rd Sudamericana final!

Next Fixtures

We play Cruzeiro in the Sudamericana final, who are another side not doing great in the Brasileirão, so we have a chance to finally win this trophy. We also close out the Group Stage of the Copa de la Liga and will likely have a Quarter Final to play later into the month.

[corinthiano]

November 2028

Copa de la Liga Group B

Overall Table

Unfortunately the season ends in a whimper as we were not quite good enough when it mattered. Against both Cruzeiro and Talleres we took the lead but were unable to hold on to it. Against Cruzeiro we did manage to pull it back once but it wasnt enough as they went ahead again. Silver lining is the 4th place in the Overall Table which was the most important thing this season.

[corinthiano]

2028 Season Review

Despite some of the disappointments this was a great season and much better than I expected. The goal was to keep qualifying for continental football, but I did not think we would make it to the Libertadores yet so it is great progress. We are also really competitive asgainst the bigger teams and beat both Boca and River this year which tells me we are close to getting to the top. Obviously losing the final of the Sudamericana was disappointing, but we did well to get there and it has really helped the finances.

Squad by Appearances

We have managed to keep trimming the squad, although a lot of that has been sending players on loan. It has enabled us to sign strong first team players and I am really happy where we are at with the midfield, where we have ton of options that I have rotated around. Up front is where our problem is and having three players on 15 goals as the top scorers, incluiding a midfielder shows that. Nicolás Ocampo is a youngster that has started making a claim for the first place, but he was inconsistent at first and then when he started playing better he got injured, so hopefully we see him further improve next year. Talking of youngsters there are a couple of others that are making a claim for the first team and the pipeline looks pretty good.

Best XI

That is a fair Best XI, other than the problems up front, right back is another area we need to improve as Mancuso didnt convince and de la Fuente is getting on a bit.

Top Performers

Our most consistent starter in midfield, Tobías had another great year, playing across DLP and the two centre mid positions.

We have a great youngster in the position but it is hard to give him time when César keeps delivering.

I give my strikers a hard time but Ignacio actually did quite well considering he mostly played as a DLF, which isnt much of a goalscoring position in my tactic.

Finances

We did make money but that was largely due to player sales and continental prize money. We will continue to rely on those for next season.

Progress

Great improvement this year, I am interested to see what this team can do in the Libertadores.

[corinthiano]

2028 CONMEBOL Update

Copa Libertadores

What a shocker! I did not expect to have a team in Ecuador become ineligible but Emelec only went and won their first ever Libertadores! They rode their luck a lot with three penalty wins but to their credit they beat two Brazilian and two Argentinian sides on their way.

Copa Sudamericana

We know how this one went, a first title for Cruzeiro and as third final loss for Huracán...

Copa Libertadores Records

Well with that shock Ecuador move ahead of Chile in the overall rankings and Argentina miss a chance to claw a title back on Brazil.

CONMEBOL League Rankings

With the recent success of Ecuador they move up to third in the rankings and would be the next country on Gabriel's journey!

Most Reputable Clubs

Emelec sneak onto the list and we are not too far away from it with Huracán either.

National Champions

Flamengo tie with Palmeiras as most succesful club in Brazil, with the big hitters also winning in Argentina, Ecuador, Uruguay and Bolivia. Paraguay sees a first time winner with the impressively Deportivo Santaní who had just got promoted.

Former Gabriel Libertadores Champions

Botafogo: Had a slightly better time in the league as they finished 6th, but were knocked out early by Fluminense in both the Libertadores and Copa do Brasil. And to keep with tradition, they lost the State Championship final to Flamengo.

[corinthiano]

No way!

[AlfieLucas]

Enjoying your save so far. Well done with Botafogo, and a good season with Huracan.

[corinthiano]

2029 Season Preview

Our odds improve from 50-1 to 33-1 and we are now 5th up from 10th on the list of favorites. The board now expects a top 6 finish and that aligns with my ambitions as we need to become Copa Libertadores regulars. As you can see we also have a player in the Media XI in goal and it is a new signing.

Transfers

In

Out

I am really pleased with our transfer dealings, as we bring in two new starting strikers and improve in goal whilst making a tidy profit thanks to Saudi money. Not as much of a clearance this year either, but I do expect to sanction some loans soon. Mateo Pérez and Raúl Quiroga are two for the future, with Quiroga already out on loan, but I will introduce the other three incoming players.

I was not looking for a goalkeeper but when I had a bid come in for Montero I saw Federico had a low release clause so immediately went in for him. He is an improvement in goal, almost 10 years younger and saves us a foreign spot, could not have wished for a better deal.

I am trying to avoid spending money in players but Mateo was someone I could not miss out on. At 18 he is already very good and was voted best U21 player in Uruguay last season.

This transfer was pre-arranged and is another great addition up front. Not quite sure yet who is going to play which role yet between Thiago and Mateo.

Assistant XI

Probably the same Best XI I would pick. RB is still a weak spot but we have a pre-arranged transfer in the middle of the season that could hopefully address that.

Initial Fixtures

Kinder fixtures to start us off with and I am hoping we do so strongly.

[corinthiano]

6 hours ago, AlfieLucas said:

Enjoying your save so far. Well done with Botafogo, and a good season with Huracan.

Thank you! Excited for the season ahead with Huracán!

[corinthiano]

January 2029

A slow start with an unconvincing win agains Sarmiento Junín and a second half come back needed to rescue a point at Colón.

Transfers

Out

Our transfer window is closed but we could still see some players leaving for lower tiers or abroad. Solano is one I was hoping to sell permanently but a loan move will have to do.

Next Fixtures

A busy February with some tricky fixtures. We are straight through to the Group Stages of the Libertadores but I believe that will only start in March.

[corinthiano]

February 2029

We continued our sluggish start in the league with two defeats against Estudiantes and Argentinos Jrs. After that we picked up our form with three straight wins, including an impressive away performance at Boca where we dominated the match. The draw against Defensa y Justicia was fair and hard fought and we seem to be back on track and closer to fighting for the top 6. In the Copa Argentina we waltzed past Patronato in a very entertaining game to make it to the 6th Round.

Transfers

Out

Some loans out to help developing players and in the case of Luján and Figueredo take the opportunity to loan out fringe players who would have complained at some point anyway.

Next Fixtures

Our group was confirmed after Millonarios beat Botafogo in the last Qualifying Round. I am glad we dont have my former club and two Brazilians in the Group. Millonarios will probably be competing for second place with us as I see Fluminense a class above us both. The month will be busy as we start this campaign, some of the league games look kinder this month so hopefully we can balance domestic and continental football effectively.

[corinthiano]

March 2029

Liga Profesional

Copa Libertadores Group D

It was a month full of injuries which was not ideal considering the packed fixture list. We managed to do really well in the Copa Libertadores with two narrow wins against Fluminense and a last minute win against Millonarios to put us in a really strong position to qualify to the Last 16. We felt the fatigue more in the league as we had Olimpo and Belgrano peg us back in the last 10 minutes each time and Lanús even turned the game around before we rescued a point. We are still within touching distance of 6th so it is not too bad yet but we need to start winning regularly again.

Transfer

Out

Ezequiel Navarro was low down the pecking order and loaning him out frees up some wage budget. Amarilla and Gauna are youngsters that will benefit from some playing time abroad.

Next Fixtures

Time to get our form back in the league.

[corinthiano]

April 2029

Liga Profesional

Copa Libertadores Group D

If you ignore the extremely atypical hiding we got from Instituto we had a very good month in the league, which propelled us back into the Libertadores qualifying spots. Also, getting 4 points from the Libertadores games with a rotated side was nice. We are now guaranteed first place in a group we have dominated so far.

Next Fixtures

We will play the second side in the Libertadores again and enjoy the lighter schedule afterwards.

[corinthiano]

May/June 2029

Liga Profesional

Copa Libertadores Group D

I ended up playing until June as we had a break during the month. And what a great couple of months it has been! We confirmed our absolutely domination in the Copa Libertadores Group before and excellent run in the league has us in a very solid 3rd place.

Next Fixtures

Three tricky league games before we travel to Montevideo in the first leg of the Copa Libertadores Last 16, certainly a winnable tie considering we beat them in the Sudamericana last season.

[corinthiano]

July 2029

Let's address the bad news first, the Peñarol tie was very similar to last year in the Copa Sudamericana, but this time they had the edge and we are out of the Libertadores. A shame as I thought we were good enough to go at least another round. In the Liga Profesional we did very well, especially considering we played a rotated team in the thrashing of rivals San Lorenzo and against Patronato. Losing against Talleres is understandable, they are by far the best team in the country at the moment and sealed the Liga Profesional title.

Transfers

In

Out

The transfer window opened at the beginning of July and we brought in two players on a free. Javier is one for the future but Balatasar should be our starting right back, problem is he got injured as soon as he joined and has not played yet. On the outgoing front Ignacio and Christian were out of favor and I took a bit of a risk by selling Torres, he is a youngster with potential but I just dont think he will develop.

Next Fixtures

With no continental football in the second half of the season we turn our focus onto the domestic front. I would really like a deep run in the Copa Argentina this season and a top 4 placing in the Copa de la Liga is the aim.

[corinthiano]

Nice of them to want me back, but we already got the big one with them.

[corinthiano]

August 2029

Copa de la Liga Group A

Overall Table

We recovered well from the disappointment of the Libertadores by easing past Alte. Brown in the Copa Argentina before making a solid start in the Copa de La Liga. The only defeat came again at Talleres, we gave them a good game in the first half but it all fell apart in the second. Still, looking good in the Group and also in the Overall Table where a Libertadores spot is looking very likely.

Transfers

Out

Just clearing out some players before the transfer window closed and we are back below the wage budget after our free signings had put us over it in July.

Next Fixtures

A lot of winnable games in the Copa de la Liga and in the Copa Argentina we have a decent chance against Gimnasia (LP).