DaneBramage

GKS Katowice - 2026/27 Season Review There were a lot of good performers this year, though admittedly some stats are boosted by the second-string playing the European and cup games. Aleksander Lezon was top of our scoring charts with 21 goals, and the 18 of these in the league made him the Ekstraklasa's top scorer. Surprisingly though, he wasn't named in the division's team of the season. We did have three entrants, Nikola Nenadovic (12 clean sheets), Luis Pinheiro (5 goals and 10 assists), and Urh Bloudek (4 goals and 4 assists). Luis Pinheiro (7.43 average rating) was named the Ekstraklasa player of the season, but in the Katowice fan vote he didn't even make the top three. Urh Bloudek (7.38 average rating) took this award, as well as the Slovenian player of the year trophy. ----------------------------------- We received £1.3 million for finishing as runners-up in the league, and the board immediately used this to fund another upgrade to our youth facilities. We already have an improvement for these underway, so hopefully this won't interfere with that. In theory the first one should be completed, then the next one should kick in. It would be annoying if this meant it was all dragged out longer. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - April + May 2027 I can't complain about our form in this stage. 16 points from a possible 21 is good going, and 18 goals scored is pretty impressive. The only problem is that we needed to overhaul a six point deficit to Lech Poznan, and they didn't let up. Their victory over us was their 14th in a row, and it was this game that clinched them the title. ----------------------------------- We ended up nine points behind Lech Poznan, but a whopping 17 ahead of Legia Warszawa. In each of the last two seasons we picked up 65 points, so adding 13 more to this was a real improvement. But Lech Poznan were just on another level, one we couldn't reach. We've made it into the second qualifying round of the Conference League again. ----------------------------------- Swiss Super League: Winterthur spent most of the season in the relegation play-off spot, and that proved to be their undoing. Home and away losses to Lugano in the play-offs saw them sent down 3-0 on aggregate. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - Youth Intake 2027 Nothing worth mentioning here, a pretty poor-looking batch of players. I left the contract offers up to the HoYD, he signed up nine players after a 2-2 draw with the Under 18s. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - March + April 2027 Decided against taking the Steaua Bucharest job. It didn't feel right at this time. ----------------------------------- And immediately the team let me down and make me regret that decision. ----------------------------------- Thrown it away. A six point gap to Lech Poznan as we go into the Championship Group, and with the form they're on it's likely insurmountable, even if we get our act together again. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - March 2027 More interest from Romania, this time it's Steaua Bucharest making the advance. And this time, it's actually quite tempting. Four losses in the last six games saw them fall from top of the table to 4th, with a 9 point gap to the leaders. But then the league split took place, and points earned so far were halved. And now they're just 4 points behind, with a game in hand. They've made it to the Romanian cup semi-finals too. I've applied for it. Can't hurt to test the waters. ----------------------------------- Two clean sheets in the league led to a pair of wins, but the cup game was disappointing. We took the lead against Rakow Czestochowa, but for the second time this season we failed to beat them. I thought we stood a good chance of retaining the trophy, but it's not to be. ----------------------------------- We've temporarily gone back to the top, but Lech Poznan are still to play and are on a great run at the moment. ----------------------------------- Decision time... -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - February 2027 Another interview offer rejected from another Romanian team. They're 6th in the league, but have made it through to the Conference League knockout rounds. ----------------------------------- And off he goes, for a very good fee to the Hungarian second division. Chuffed that we're getting this much for him, although part of the profit (roughly £230k) did have to be passed on to his previous club. ----------------------------------- Three wins with 3 clean sheets is also nice to see, and we made a statement with the victory over Gornik Zabrze, who were in 1st place at the time. Unfortunately we ended the month with a loss, conceding 3 times in the final 15 minutes against a rampant Lechia Gdansk side. ----------------------------------- The win over Gornik Zabrze saw us overtake them and go top of the table, but the loss at the end of the month saw us drop back into 2nd. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - December 2026 In the league we've been good. The draw against Wisla Plock was maybe less than we'd hoped for, but it wasn't much of a problem when we followed this up with a pair of wins. Aleksander Lezon had been on a bit of a drought up front, so I had a word of encouragement for him (breaking from my usual criticism style), and he repaid this with a double against Jagiellonia Bialystok. He's now on 15 goals for the season, and with 12 of those in the Ekstraklasa he's leading the scoring charts at the moment. In Europe, we had a disaster. A 12th minute sending-off for Marcin Zych (19, AMR, ST) ended our participation in the Conference League, as we couldn't get a result with just ten men. This also ended his career with us, as following a stunning career of 14 games, 0 goals, 0 assists, and 1 red card, he was given a two week fine and released from his contract. ----------------------------------- ----------------------------------- Swiss Super League - Only the tragic form of Grasshopper Zurich is keeping Winterthur off the bottom of the table. Six games without a win has left them in 11th place, and facing the relegation play-off. They have made the cup quarter-finals though. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - November 2026 First interview offer I've received in a while. 11th in the Romanian league. No thanks lads. ----------------------------------- Considering we've gone the whole month unbeaten I probably shouldn't be so annoyed, but the three draws are really frustrating. Rakow Czestochowa aren't a good team at all, and we shouldn't be labouring to only take point from them. Although Lech Poznan are a good side, taking an 84th minute lead only to concede an equaliser less than 60 seconds later is enough to drive anyone mad. In Europe we got an unexpected win against Olympiakos, and we should have secured qualification to the next round with a game to spare. Instead, we wasted the opportunity. 30 shots against Alashkert, 15 on target, no goals. Hubert Podolski was my top scorer in 2023/24, but has barely hit a barndoor since. He was the casualty of this poor result, instantly finding himself transfer-listed. ----------------------------------- We temporarily went top of the Ekstraklasa, but have since dropped back into second place. Competition is fierce with the top four split by just three points. Our final game in the Conference League is hosting FK Partizan, while Olympiakos play Alashkert. If we win we're through to the knockout rounds in first place, if we lose and Olympiakos win we're out. Draw and things get complicated. If Olympiakos don't win we're fine. If they win 1-0, 2-0, or 2-1, we're fine. If they score three or more and win with at least a two goal margin, we're out. The pressure is on. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - October 2026 Losing at home to Piast Gliwice was unacceptable, and a couple of harsh interactions with players afterwards took place to remind them I expected better. Luckily, this had the desired effect. Aboubacar Cisse hasn't scored enough this year, but he did go on to net in both of the next two games, as we picked up consecutive 3-1 wins in the league. The cup side also stumbled, with just 1 point from two games in Europe. I didn't expect anything from Olympiakos, but the draw away at FK Partizan could yet be costly. I see them as the team we're competing against for the second qualifying spot. Allowing Siarka Tarnobrzeg a 4th minute opener wasn't ideal, but any chance of a cupset was snuffed out by our 31st minute equaliser, and two second-half goals completed the job. ----------------------------------- We sit third in both the domestic and European Conference Leagues. We still stand every chance of progression, I think the home tie against FK Partizan could be the decider. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - September 2026 You'd think that after such a busy opening to the season a break would do us good, but it wasn't the case. When we returned to action after the international week we suffered our first loss of the season, ending a run of 24 games without defeat. Although the loss to Pogon Szczecin was disappointing, at least they're up near the top of the table. The draw with Wisla Krakow was worse, we dominated the game and if we'd had our shooting boots with us it could have been a cricket score. The league month wasn't a total write-off though, as the mini slump was halted with a good win over Lechia Gdansk. The second-string continued producing the goods in the cup competitions, making a winning start to both the Conference League group stage and the domestic cup. ----------------------------------- -----------------------------------

It's a big increase in one go, sure. But you'd think it should have gone up incrementally over the course of time, as you went out of the fourth, third, and second tiers, to the Liga Bwin, to winning it, then the Champions League. Out of interest, do you have the average ticket price from earlier years? Has it gone up? Just on a bit of a tangent, I'm assuming the likes of Benfica and Porto have much higher prices. So is this something the game can model accurately? Rising clubs see their prices grow, while slumping clubs start charging less. I think it would have a larger effect. It's only £9.35m a season, but you've won 4 Champions Leagues in the last eight years. You're one of the biggest clubs in Europe and have been for a while. So even looking at just that period it quickly adds up to about £75m. Include the cup games and it's probably closer to £100m. £14 is an absolute bargain. Imagine paying that little to see Liverpool or Manchester City. I have to pay nearly that much just for Thatcham Town or Hungerford.

That average price is surely a large part of the problem. Fair play for keeping it affordable to fans, but that's ridiculously low. Stick another tenner on it and that's nearly £10 million more a season, just for league games. £10 x 55,000 attendance x 17 league games = £9.35 million

GKS Katowice - August 2026 Excellent results all round. Nine games in a month made for a very crowded schedule, so we used entirely different starting line-ups for the league games and the European games. In the league we made it 5 wins from our opening 5 games, but lost the 100% record at game week six. We'd have gone top with a win, but conceded a 94th minute equaliser to Gornik Zabrze. I thought Spartak Moscow might be difficult, but after sneaking an away win with an early goal we demolished them at home. We brushed Aris aside just as easily, and with the job done in the first leg a couple of youngsters got the nod for the return tie. 25b Daniel Kowalski became the first academy graduate to make his debut and score. ----------------------------------- With qualification for the Conference League group stage confirmed we were rewarded with £2.5 million. A large chunk of this (£1.6 million) was quickly put to use, an upgrade to our youth facilities which will take just over a year to complete. ----------------------------------- Early days, but we're one of just two teams still undefeated. In Europe we've got a group I think we should qualify from. Olympiakos will be tough, Alashkert should be beatable, the games against FK Partizan will likely be the deciders. And last year we beat them home and away in the qualifying rounds, so I'd hope we can do the same again. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - July 2026 The first competitive action of the season was in the Superpuchar Polski. As the reigning cup holders we took on the league champions Legia Warszawa. Twice we took the lead, twice we were pegged back. But just like I won my first trophy via a penalty shootout, that's how I secured my second trophy as well. ----------------------------------- A comfortable start to the league campaign as we beat newly promoted Cracovia, then beat last year's runners-up Lech Poznan. The score was 1-1 before we had a player sent off, and with ten men we managed to smash 3 more past them in the final ten minutes. In the Conference League we dominated Knattspyrnudeild KR twice, but somehow went 135 minutes without scoring, leaving things a little tense at the interval. A goal immediately after the break settled any nerves, and once we grabbed a second the game was never in doubt. Spartak Moscow await in the next round. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - 2027/27 Season Preview The board want a top-half finish, while the media expect us to end up in 6th place. After making Europe two years in a row I'm hoping for the same again. In Europe I'd like to get to the group stage, though there are some good teams in the qualifying rounds so that could be difficult. ----------------------------------- A few squad players left over the summer, but no one from out strongest eleven. I'd have liked to keep Michal Skoras, but he knackered his knee putting him out of action for 9 months so it wasn't worth re-signing him. ----------------------------------- Just the two signings at the moment, both on free transfers. I don't think either will be straight into the first-team, but both should still see plenty of playing time. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - 2025/26 Season Review Last year's top scorer Hubert Podolski had an awful year, contributing just 3 goals. There were goals from our other attacking players, but none of them truly stood out. Six players scored 6 goals or more, and Aboubacar Cisse was the only player to hit double figures with 11 goals. In terms of creating chances, right-back Luis Pinheiro was star man with 11 assists, which helped win him 6 MOTM awards. 24 clean sheets in 49 games was a great return from Nikola Nenadovic in goal, earning him a first Serbian call-up. ----------------------------------- A first trophy, and improved facilities. A very successful season. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - May 2026 Four games in nine days is brutal, but with players coming back after injuries we got through it without too much trouble. The 3 clean sheets were the key to getting results this month, as although goals were a little scarce, we did enough to go undefeated and pick up two more wins. ----------------------------------- We'd already secured qualification for the Europa Conference League by winning the cup, but doubling down on that by finishing in the top four showed our strength. In fact, we were unlucky not to finish even higher. During the Championship Stage we made up 12 points on Pogon Szczecin, finishing equal on points with a better goal difference and head-to-head record. Unfortunately, the deciding factor was points during the first stage. ----------------------------------- While we're on the subject of wacky rules, this was a new one for me. And here's the rule. Kinda wish I'd known of it earlier, definitely one worth keeping an eye on. Can't scoff at an additional half million. Though I can't seem to find this info recorded anywhere under the Ekstraklasa screen. ----------------------------------- Swiss Super League - At the halfway stage the season was looking promising for Winterthur, but a terrible January (6 losses on the bounce) followed up a terrible March and April (6 losses out of 7) ruined their campaign, eventually finishing 8th. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - May 2026 Not the most exciting way to win the Puchar Polski, but I will happily accept it. 120 minutes of a very even game didn't see any goals scored, thus sending the game to penalties. When we missed our first spotkick things weren't looking good, but Lechia Gdansk missed their next two to leave us even after three penalties apiece. Ultimately it went to the final pair of takers. Their player skied his effort, and Roman Lukashevich slotted his away to give us victory and my first trophy of this career.

GKS Katowice - April 2026 We had a bit of a tough time during April, with all four of my starting attacking players being ruled out for a few weeks. The biggest loss was Aleksander Lezon. He'd started the season in the ressies, but after 22 goals in as many games he was promoted to the senior squad. With 7 goals in his last 10 games this was a really bad time to get injured. ----------------------------------- That being said, even with the back-ups playing upfront we've been doing well. We've had to dig in deep, stoppage-time goals earning results against both Lechia Gdansk and Legia Warszawa, and Hubert Podolski finally scored his first goal after an 18 hour drought. ----------------------------------- Up to 4th place, one point ahead of Lechia Gdansk. And our next game is against them, in the Puchar Polski final. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - April 2026 The post-update curse struck with a disappointing home loss against LKS Lodz. This was followed up by another heavy loss, but this was more expected as we rested the first-team for the trip to Wisla Plock so they'd be fresh for the cup tie. It proved to be the right decision, as we took apart Miedz Legnica with ease. The wingers were the stars of the show, Tiago Alves and Mohamed Medfai managing 4 assists and 3 goals between them as we secured our spot in the final. The regular season was then completed with a win over the side at the bottom of the table. ----------------------------------- We're in 5th place going into the split. Repeating last year's 3rd place appears unlikely, but not completely impossible. -----------------------------------

How is the Hall of Fame looking? Guess you must be near the top of most of them now.

GKS Katowice - March 2026 Seven points from a possible nine is a good return, but I'm not happy about dropping points against Slask Wroclaw. We should be winning home games against struggling sides. On the other hand, the cup win over Legia Warszawa was massively pleasing. It's the first time (in six attempts) that we've beaten them during my reign, we've made the semi-finals for a second time, and it's always nice to give the game an FMing. ----------------------------------- We've jumped a couple of places up the table, and with three games left before the split we're guaranteed to be in the Championship Group. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - 2026 Youth Intake Not a great batch on the face of it. Not a huge amount of potential, and poor personalities all round. I left the HoYD in charge of signing players, after a 1-1 draw in the trial game against the under 18s he picked up nine of them.

GKS Katowice - January + February 2026 Just the one bit of transfer business this window. Luis Menalo looked like a great addition to the team when he scored twice on his debut, but this was the high point and he's achieved very little since. After a bad reaction to criticism of his form I decided to get rid, and making nearly a half-million profit on him was a bonus. ----------------------------------- The return after the winter break was disappointing, but we were much better over the next few games. The win over Miedz Legnica was especially pleasing, both strikers and both wingers getting on the scoresheet. ----------------------------------- No change in position, but the gap from 4th down to us in 7th has tightened with everyone dropping points in this time. -----------------------------------

GKS Katowice - December 2025 10/10 for defensive work. We might not be scoring many goals, but four consecutive clean sheets meant we had a great month. Full points in the league, and progression again in the cup. Against Rakow Czestochowa we were imperious at the back, not allowing them even a single shot. After last year's heroics Hubert Podolski has regressed massively, with just 2 goals in 20 games so far. But at the other end of the pitch Nikola Nenadovic has settled in well with 16 clean sheets in 29 games. --------------------------------------- Our top-half position is now looking a lot more stable, and some dropped points from the top-runners have opened the door slightly for a possible European finish. --------------------------------------- Swiss Super League - Going into the winter break Winterthur sit 6th in the table, and they're definitely in the European qualification battle. ---------------------------------------