Dougeh Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 Club: F.B.C. Unione Venezia Manager: Doug Walker Year Founded: 1907 Year & Division: 2010/2011 - Serie C2/A Stadium: Pierluigi Penzo, Venice. 7500 Capacity. Facilities: No Corporate Facilities, Average Training Facilities, Basic Youth Facilities. Club Kits: It should be noted at this point that Venezia have probably the most confusing colour scheme Ive encountered. The first hour I was genuinely surprised at what colour would pop up and be used on certain menus & kits - it appeared to throw Orange, Black, Green and White around at random! I started this save with a vague idea of documenting it to some extent - but only really decided to from the latter parts of the second season onwards. Because of that - forgive my barebones updating and 'dated' or screenshots that are slightly ahead of time in game. This was originally intended as a reply to iacovone's excellent Small Club to Big Club Big Euro Nation Challenge, however, I mistakenly signed one player in season two on loan that I could not scout (I didn't realise this until late into the season) so have decided to make it a career game with Venezia, having the same goals as before, just in the knowledge I have failed the code! Season Division Position Achievements & Trophies _______________________________________________________________________________________________________ 2010-2011 Serie C2A 1st Promoted as Champions. C2 Super Cup Winner. Round 1 Serie C Cup. 2011-2012 Serie C1A 1st Promoted as Champions. C1 Super Cup Winner. Round 2 Serie C Cup. 2012-2013 Serie B 13th 13th in Serie B, Defeated in 3rd Qual Round of Italian Cup. 2013-2014 Serie B 13th 13th in Serie B, Defeated in 2nd Qual Round of Italian Cup. 2014-2015 Serie B 4th 4th in Serie B, Defeated in 2nd Qual Round of Italian Cup. Qualified for Playoffs. Defeated in Playoff Final. 2015-2016 Serie B - - Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougeh Posted January 3, 2010 Author Share Posted January 3, 2010 Season One: 2010-2011 - Serie C2/A A solid & successful year. I started off fairly strongly but unsure what I really was aiming for - its hard to gauge where your squad is at from pre-season alone. I had drafted in a lot of loan signings and free agents and all but replaced the squad I inherited given they lacked footballing ability... Some strong showings in the C1 Cup group stages led me to believe a playoff run at the very least had to be my aim, but I soon realised that the #1 spot was well within my grasp. The Serie C Cup threw up a few highlights, including a 4-2 victory over Padova in the first knockout stage. We were sadly defeated in the second round by Olibia in a close match where only penalties could decide a winner. By the half way point of the season I had a 7 point lead, and by the end of the season my squad had really hit its stride. I had a gap of 21 points to 2nd place, wrapping it up with 5 games to spare. I only lost two games all season in the league - one of which I was comfortably winning till a cruel own goal and a header from two corners denied me in the dying minutes before a reply was possible. My title run was definately aided by the fact no other teams came close to stepping up and providing a challenge. With the pressure off & very few injuries it was plain sailing the whole way. Promotion to Serie C1/A Achieved! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougeh Posted January 3, 2010 Author Share Posted January 3, 2010 Season Two: 2011-2012 - Serie C1/A I felt pretty confident this season - having played a lot of the C1 teams the season prior and not finding the challenge that much greater. My board was generous with the transfer budget, making almost all of the banks cash available for me to spend. I made a move for french youngster Vincent Acapandie of Aj Auxerre, who cost a sizable fee of £650k. Acapandie pictured at start of 2012-2013 season I used the rest of the wage budget space to make loan signings and bring in a few free transfers. I had a slow start to the season, Notching 3 Wins, 3 Draws and a single Loss in the first seven games. This however, vaulted me into a surprise 7 match winning streak in the league. By the half way point - I had a 9 point lead over Giulianova and 10 points over Novara. What happened then I do not quite know - as my side lost the way to goal after christmas. Thoroughly outplayed by Giulianova at home, we lost out cutting edge and a 4 match run without a win allowed the tital rivals right back into the fight. At one point, Novara took the lead of the championship by two points with just 8 games to go. Resisting the urge to go ballistic in every team talk and press conference was a challenge! A run of clean sheets however allowed me to refind my form and I knew that Novara would be unable to sustain their incredible lossless streak which was approaching 20 games. With the confidence back, we secured promotion with time to spare, but it was a long long way from being as comfortable as the final positions suggest. I was very very lucky to get away with promotion here! Promotion to Serie B Achieved! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted January 3, 2010 Share Posted January 3, 2010 This all seems rather easy... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougeh Posted January 4, 2010 Author Share Posted January 4, 2010 This all seems rather easy... For a start to season three, that suggests otherwise! The Italian C1 & C2 Leagues are vastly inferior to Serie B it would seem. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 More like it. I was beginning to think of foul play. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
iacovone Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 More like it. I was beginning to think of foul play. Career Forum police are always on the prowl. "Nobby McDonald - Protecting YOU" Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason the Yank Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 You can take the LLaMa out of LLM ... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted January 4, 2010 Share Posted January 4, 2010 Yes indeed. I recognise everybody can play the game as they see fit, I don't like people who boast/write about doing well when they have cheated. I'm not saying Dougeh has as his Serie B season is more akin to Castel di Sangro than Juventus. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougeh Posted January 4, 2010 Author Share Posted January 4, 2010 Season Three: 2012-2013 - Serie B - Episode Three: "...from Castel di Sangro to Juventus ;)" The first task was to hunt for reinforcements. Given a moderate transfer budget (£1.5m of Serie B TV Rights were pumped straight in) I was able to work the market and continue to attract a few free agent signings. The standout signings of the bunch were as follows (click player for screenshot - screenshots taken at end of Serie B season): Bruninho, D RC - 300k: A young defender who attracted my interest due to a scout recommendation. Had a few standout technical stats, tolerable mentals and decent enough physicals for the price and age. Coser, GK - 300k: Had been a thorn in my side the season prior putting in several good performances against me in the Serie C1/A. Bettoni, D L - Free: Signed on a bosman deal, the young left back had previously performed on loan for me and impressed enough to be given a deal as a key member of the squad. Gomez, S - 650k: Technically able, I used up my 1 Non-EU signing on this young Argentine Youth International who seemed both cheap and capable. Kohler, WB/M R - 240k: Lacks pace, but signed to slot into my existing 4-4-2 setup which allows the right sided midfielder to sit further back and punch balls in from deep. Probably the best buy of the lot in terms of value for money. Mendoza, M RC - Free: The young spaniard was a free agent and willing to sign on reasonable wages so was an obvious pick-up. Equally adept at playing in the middle of the park and offering cover on the right flank. There were several loan additions at various points during the season when cover was needed, especially in attack, where the loan signing of Macauley Christanus from German side HSV provided a goal threat that Gomez was clearly not ready to provide himself. As evidenced earlier in this thread, the season started badly for my team. Generally my squad was inexperienced and there was little chemistry between the players. For the first few games, I was creating chances and matching teams to an extent but rarely taking my chances or getting the rub of the green. Dumped out of the cup in the third round, I eventually managed to find batches of form and was able to begin a climb up the table towards safety. Serie B 2012/2013 Table - Mid Way Through Season Taking 24 points from the first half of the season, a stronger second half of the season saw me take 31 points to finish on 55 points. Venezia Serie B Fixtures In Full Final League Position - 13th Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougeh Posted January 4, 2010 Author Share Posted January 4, 2010 Season Four: 2013-2014 - Serie B Not a full update - and I have actually clawed my way back to 15th at time of writing (26 Games into the season) in season four - but I don't think Ive ever had a start to a season as poor as this one. Absolutely appauling! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted January 6, 2010 Share Posted January 6, 2010 Cheat! You scored five goals in your first ten games! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CAFCIan75 Posted January 6, 2010 Share Posted January 6, 2010 Just caught up with your career Dougeh, congratulations on the two promotions, I can see you are finding Serie B a difficult league to get out of, good luck for the remainder of the season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougeh Posted January 7, 2010 Author Share Posted January 7, 2010 Season Four: 2013-2014 - Serie B As shown previously, a crippling start meant it was damage limitation for the entire season. A range of new faces had been brought in, some of whom were not settling or producing the goods. I crashed out of the cup to a poor Novara side before my Serie B campaign even begun, and things went downhill from there. While the defence was not watertight, the main issue was an inability to convert any chances and even scoring was a rarity. Once the morale had been nursed around, performances improved greatly and I was able to clamber out of the relegation zone but realistically mid table was the absolute maximum that could be achieved. I ended up mirroring the previous seasons result of 13th in the league. The only positive other than achieving survival was the clubs ability to operate at a decent profit through the season. Bruninho left the club for a fee of £2.4m that the Board accepted over my head - but it was a fair bid and I would have taken the money anyway. Javier Acuna, a magnificent free transfer acquisition in the summer, was subject to a barrage of bids and I ended up folding at £3m as he departed to Verona. Venezia Serie B Fixtures In Full Final League Position - 13th Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dougeh Posted January 7, 2010 Author Share Posted January 7, 2010 Season Five: 2014-2015 - Serie B I had identified that the biggest issue I had been having in the previous two seasons was my inability to be competetive from the beginning. Too many new faces settling in a new country was having an adverse effect on my teams ability to see out results and put in good performances for the first 15 games. I spent £3.5m during the season, bringing in a lot of youth talent as well as the experience of Emmanuel Jorge Ledesma and Gabi Mudingayi to bolster the midfield. In customarily embarassing fashion, I lost another penalty shootout in the Italian Cup to lowly Benevento before I had even played a game in Serie B. I started off moderately well, despite two back to back losses at the start of the season, hanging in there mid table for the first half. Hitting my stride, I found myself able to make a push towards the latter part of the season and a combination of imploding rivals and some good performances pushed me into playoff contention. I finished 4th in the league, drawing Mantova in the playoffs. Venezia Serie B Fixtures In Full Final League Position - 4th. Qualification For Playoffs Achieved. ...Able to see off Mantova over two legs 2-1, it led to the final against 3rd place finishers Salernitana. Serie B Playoff Final 2014-2015 The Playoff final was hotly contested. Going 0-1 down at home in the first leg early on, I was able to fight back through the young Italian striker Claudio Tacchinardi who found space in the box and finished from 12 yards. A penalty was given early in the second half and Tacchinardi stepped up to give me the lead. Content to sit back, I was then punished as their right winger Oliveira crossed for Tomasz Sokolowski to hammer home. Two a piece in the first leg, it would go down to the wire at the Arechi. First Leg: Venezia 2-2 Salernitana A magnificent drive from 18 yards by Cioffi gave me the lead on 7 minutes and I proceeded to boss the game. Reducing them to few efforts in the first half, they did fight back but I was always on top. I was then gifted a penalty on 53 minutes and had a chance to all but seal the game. Driving it straight at the keeper, the outcome was predictable... SAVED. ... Step forward Schepis. Stendardo lays off a free kick from a harmless distance and it was fired with supreme accuracy and power at the top corner of Coser's goal. Stunned. A magnificent extra time followed, which saw their goalkeeper make an array of staggering saves in the dying minutes. Desperation was apparent, and golden chances were squandered as their goalmouth was overrun. It was not to be however. Second Leg: Salernitana 1(3)-1(3) Venezia Salernitana qualify for Serie A by virtue of Serie B rules, which dictate in the event of a tie after extra time, the highest place team in the league progresses. A result of 3-3 after extra time was to mean that, as stated in the rules, Salernitana would gain promotion to Serie A. There would be no penalties. I had lost and would be spending another year in Serie B. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nobby_McDonald Posted January 9, 2010 Share Posted January 9, 2010 Nail bitingly close. Unlucky. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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