wils2603

Season 1 Transfers Players out: Our highest earner off the books, and another over 30 player leaving in Damien Marcq. We managed to offload a CB and a striker who both are surplus to requirements. All players leaving also ease the stress in managing squad registration. Players in: I got a little carried away and I did not help the squad registration stress. However, I have found a couple of gems which will improve us no end. Suk Hyun-Jun and Valerian Gvillia were both signed as backup strikers and box to box midfielders respectively after both performing very well on trial in our pre-season friendlies. I'm not sure I needed Suk Hyun-jun but he was so good from set pieces in the friendlies i thought he would be a good plan b option. We were short at right back so we signed Tomas Silva, 23 year old Portuguese right back who has great pace, stamina and work rate. The other two I'm excited about. Salifou Diarrassouba My scouts found this guy after I set up a recruitment focus in West Africa. Really great all round attributes, I will be utilizing him as a Mezzala. A snip at 275k. Karel Pojenzy Another find by scouting, this time in Eastern Europe. We only had one left footed CB, so we needed another one. Young, tall, good passing and vision for his age and good all round physicals. Hopefully he will develop nicely and form a formidable partnership with Stelios Andreou. That concludes our transfer business. Our first ten games of the season present a tough start with Standard at home and Genk, Anderlect and Club Brugge all away. In the next post we will see how we got on.

Season 1 Tactic As mentioned in a previous post I will be looking to draw inspiration from the way Newcastle play under Eddie Howe focusing more on the fundamentals of how I see them play rather than focusing on formation and roles specifically. That being said, season 1 we will be lining up in a 433, but as the seasons progress I want the flexibility to chop and change as I see fit depending on what is in front of us in either a specific game or at the start of the season due to players available or unavailable to us. That being said we will at all times be trying to adhere to the following principles: High Pressing Quick in transition Aggressive defence This might seem overly simplified or perhaps broad, but I like to keep things simple. I'm not overly fussed by possession. If we have it, I want us to use it effectively. If that means going direct then that's what we will do, if a more patient approach is needed then I hope with limited in possession instructions the players will make the right decisions which of course will influence my transfer strategy as we go through this save. Here is how we will set up. The full back positions will be a work in progress as the midfield 3 and the front 3 will be quite high up the pitch when we are in possession. So committing too many bodies forward might not work especially against the big teams, that being said I would like to play really positive football against anyone, especially at home. In possession, keeping it simple. Play out from the back, let the player roles do the talking and play for set pieces - any opportunity to create more opportunities is a good opportunity. The roaming playmaker at the base of midfield is how I see Bruno Guimares playing for Newcastle. I like this role to be 6/8 hybrid and I'm not sure how this will play out in the match engine and in game but we shall see but I want the midfield to contribute at both ends of the pitch. The BBM and a player in the DM position hopefully should ensure that. Obviously the Mez on attack will be the most advanced of the roles but I'm fine with that. I have never gotten much tune out of a pressing forward in previous versions from a goal contribution point of view, so hopefully that changes this version. This role might change, but it suits our pressing style. In transition - lets win the ball back as soon as possible and get on the front foot. Ball Playing defenders should help with transitions. I will need to improve my CB’s passing and vision via training and I will look at this if we need replacements in the transfer market. Out of possession we will press high up the pitch, our defensive line will be adjusted against certain teams and away from home. I want us to sit narrow and compact as a unit and force the opposition out wide. We have some tall players in our team, particularly in defence so I hope this strategy will play into our hands by forcing the opposition to cross more. Height is definitely something I will look for when looking for new players, height and strength, I want this team to be incredibly hard to play against. The front three will be key in winning the ball high up the pitch and will be the first line of defence. I am by no means a tactic bod, but I'm hoping we should be able to get a tune out of this. Next up will be signings and then on to the first few league games. Cheers, Wils.

The Squad The Squad I have inherited have typically been playing a 3 at the back IRL, I will be playing a 4 at the back so there is a little imbalance that we will try and rectify in the first few windows. Let's take a look. Goalkeepers: Herve Koffi obviously the stand out here and will be our No 1. He has been here for a few years now and is more than capable. Some well balanced attributes as you can see below. I think we will look to improve this position eventually though, good distribution will be needed. Also due to registration rules in the Belgian league, 6 players in the match day squad have to be homegrown so having a GK who fits this bill would be very helpful. Defenders: Some solid defensive options here, but we will look to reduce the number of CB’s. We will also need to add depth or strengthen our full back positions. The pick of the bunch here though is Stelios Andreou, who is well thought of IRL and highly rated in the game. I hope we will be able to build the backline around him over the next few years. However, I'm sure it will be hard to hang on to him if we do not deliver progression quickly. Funnily enough he is “wanted” by Newcastle at the start of the game. I will offer a new contract to keep the suitors at bay! Midfield: We will be playing a 3 in the middle. So we have plenty of options here. Trebel and Morioka are on quite high salaries compared to the rest of the team. The average wage is just below 4k per week however they are both on 12k. Trebel has only just signed and has good all round attributes for the league and is only on a one year contract. I will look to sell Morioka who I'm sure can be improved on. I've signed Guiagon on previous versions of FM and he is a solid signing so im happy hes at the club, Ill likely play him as a mezzala or in one of the wing positions as an inverted winger or forward. As you can see below he should be well suited to both. Forwards: Well Stacked in the forward positions, we will likely let one of the strikers go. Benbouali probably the man to depart. Nkuba is a good prospect but is injured at the start so we might need some depth there. I will be playing with one striker, Dabbagh, Badji and Stulic fighting for the starting berth. Who all look great for this level. Badji and Stulic look like they can improve considerably too. Oday Dabbagh Youssouph Badji Nikola Stulic Overall the squad is useful and we should be able to get a 433 working out of what we have with one or two possible additions. Next up I will show the tactic I will be using.

So here we are Running the traditional football manager database, not your world etc. Here is an overview of the club: It's funny that they have only won once in the second deivison too, that is their only trophy. These guys really have had a barren run. Hopefully that will change. As you can see, fierce rivals with Standard Liege who I'm sure need no introduction. But there is also a much more local rivalry with Olympic Club Charleroi who play their football in Nationale 1, Belgium's 3rd tier. Their stadium is a mere 850m away from our stadium. Will be interesting to see how they get on, it would be great if they got promoted to the top division. Decent sized stadium and some good facilities which is a nice start and hopefully we can unearth the next Philippe Albert sooner rather than later. Transfer budget is not disastrous, but I'm not sure we will be making wholesale changes just yet. General finances are bleak though with a large amount of debt which amounts to a 850k per month for the first season it looks like. That will have to be managed. Club Vision: Just focusing on the first two years here, all fairly routine. They finished 6th last season IRL, so hopefully we can achieve something similar if not better. Would be a disaster if we could not finish top half.

Royal Charleroi Sporting Club In 2008 Charleroi was voted the ugliest city in the World by a Dutch newspaper. The once capital of Belgium's mining economy lies 37 miles south of Brussels. Once famed for its steel and mining, Charleroi is now more famous for its infamous title, high unemployment rate, depressing post industrial architecture and being home to a notorious serial killer peadophile. Charleroi is also home to Royal Charleroi Sporting Club, which suffice to say has not fared much better than the city it resides in over its 119 year history. Formed in 1904, they reached the top division in Belgium football 43 years later and played their first season in the top flight in the 1947- 48 season. Since then they have had long stints in both the top division and the second division and recently they are enjoying a stint in the Juplier Pro League where they have been since 2012-13 season. Their highest ever league finish was a runner up in the 1968-69 season and their most successful run in the Belgian Cup was losing the final in the 1992-93 season. As you can see this is where I come in…. I have taken over the reins of Charleroi with the hope of finally bringing league and cup success to this club. Before I get into the nitty gritty of the club I thought I'd just mention how I came to choosing Charleroi for this save, which will also be the first time I have ever written about a save in the 25 years or so of playing this game. I'm sure all these reasons will be cliches in some way, but it's nice to write them down for full disclosure. League outside Top 5 European Leagues Team outside the “top teams” Team/location with an interesting history Never won a trophy Phillippe Albert started and finished his career in Charleroi Team colours are also black and white So that's that, as a Newcastle fan I was particularly drawn to the last two and also Charleroi being a grand industrial town like Newcastle there is some nice synergy there. That's hopefully not where the synergy stops. My goals for the save are the following: Win the League Win the cup Domestic honours take president, but any European success would be welcome. Find the modern day Phillipe Albert and utlise in Libero role once we have him. Develop tactic taking influence from Eddie Howe’s Newcastle. The Belgian league is highly competitive and there are some big clubs who have considerable resources not just in terms of finances but also through their superb youth academies. Winning the league and the cup will be a great challenge. There was a temptation to create an “ugly tactic”, winning ugly etc and maybe we will have one as a backup/defensive tactic but we will be incorporating bits of ugly into our main tactic. Pressing, playing for set pieces, getting stuck in, time wasting where necessary. Eddie Howe famously went to Athletico Madrid to watch the training being taken by Simeone and if you watch how Newcastle play he has certainly incorporated some of the darker arts in to how Newcastle play and I will be doing the same in Belgium. Can we bring success to the ugliest city in the World? Or will we only add to the misery? In the next post we will check out what state the club is in and what the squad looks like. Cheers, Wils