[FM12] Now You Do Not Punish Someone, English Or Otherwise, For Being Rubbish At FM...

[Mongrel]

Saudi Arabia! Do they have any superstar players?

[SnakeXe]

They have plenty of decent players, some at high-level clubs, but I wouldn't say they have any superstars.

[SnakeXe]

SnakeXe's Career - Season 31 Preseason Update - Hellas Verona

Board Expectations:

Serie C1A - Promotion (minimum of Promotion, predicted 1st out of 18)

Coppa Italia - Third Qualifying Round

Serie C Cup- Unimportant

My Expectations:

Serie C1A - It'll be a failure if we don't storm the division, let alone promotion

Coppa Italia - I'll be happy so long as we don't lose to anyone in a division below us

Serie C Cup- It'd be nice to win it but I'm not going to make it a priority

Budgets:

Transfer: £85,830 (£8,050 remaining)

Wages: £126,016/week (£94,799/week currently)

Balance: £1,123,679 (first season at club)

Squad:

Plenty of quality throughout the team, as well as plenty of depth to allow for tactical flexibility and challenging on multiple fronts. Based on my recollections of Serie C1 from my time at Messina on FM11 we really should be walking it. That's the theory, any way!

Transfers:

The big sale of Castillo happened before I arrived, and I probably would have sanctioned it anyway - that fee really helps us financially. Other than that, I spent a little bit on Youssouf as we only had one left back at the club, and a few loans came in from our parent club Auxerre to bulk out the squad.

Key Men:

Goalkeeper/Defence

Patricio Avanzini - GK - Wants to leave, but is an exceptional keeper for this level so I'm going to try and play him back into my good books for a bit.

Midfield

Marcelo Guerrero - DM/MC - I couldn't believe my luck with this guy - he looks Serie A quality easily! Club captain and key player.

Marco Corazza - DM/M/AMC - This guy will be important as the 1 in my 4-3-1-2. Rather than the trequartista role traditionally associated with this position I'll be looking for him to perform the Kaká role - bursting forward from deep with pace and power.

Strikers

Zoran Romanovic - ST - I remember Enzo Scorza at Messina and the damage a striker with searing pace can do at this level - I'll be hoping for the same impact from Romanovic.

[SRL88]

Good luck for the forthcoming season fella .

[deltablue]

Yeah probably stretching the realism factor a little - World Cup semi-final to Serie C1A - but I like to think my manager is easily jaded by top-level football, and wants to get back to a simpler form of the game.

I did the same, hardly Milan-Dunfermline though

[SnakeXe]

Good luck for the forthcoming season fella .

Thanks!

I did the same, hardly Milan-Dunfermline though

Yeah that was definitely a bigger leap, haha.

[SnakeXe]

I'm shocked! What a complete waste, England's captain and most prolific striker to retired at 29. The AI has managed him completely and utterly ineptly. About a season after I left Newcastle the manager stopped selecting him for no apparent reason, nobody would buy him, then when his contract ended he had a few offers - Liverpool and Hull were the ones I noted, but he couldn't agree terms, then 3 months later he retired out of the blue.

[deltablue]

Wow, thats a massive shame.

[SRL88]

Seen similar on my save with players. It is a bit daft.

[SnakeXe]

Season 31: Halfway House Update

We started the season with the early rounds of the Coppa Italia. A 7-0 thrashing of semi-professional Flaminia Civitacastellana was a good way to start my reign, and we followed it up with arguably a better result in defeating Serie B Triestina 2-1 away from home. Then came the real scalp of our run - Andria may be newly promoted, but they were still a Serie A club, and we came home to Verona with a thoroughly deserved 1-0 win under our belts! A big gap followed until the final qualifying round, and a place against AC Milan in the first round proper the prize. We were against Serie B mid-table side AlbinoLeffe, and unfortunately our heroics could not extend just a little further, as we went down 2-0 thanks to their superior quality up front. Still, a great run, and one round further than the board wanted.

The Serie C Cup started slightly later for us than other sides, as we missed out the opening group stage due to our Coppa Italia participation. C2 side Bellaria were less trouble than the narrow 2-1 scoreline suggests, whilst fellow C1A fallen giants Pro Vercelli offered nothing in a 2-0 defeat in the 2nd Round. The 3rd Round has a weird 3-team 2-match group phase which we won thanks to stuffing Perugia by more than Celano managed (who we drew 0-0 with). C2 side Asti are up next in the two-legged semi-final, after which we play the winner of Sorrento v Reggina in the final (assuming we get through).

Despite starting with a disappointing draw, the league campaign has gone very smoothly indeed. We dropped just 6 more points before the half-way stage in another 3 draws, winning the rest, to leave us 11 points clear at the top over the winter break. Forza i Mastini!

The Good

• Unbeaten and 11 points clear in the league
  
• Great run in the Coppa Italia
  
• Romanovic, Spoldi, Corazza and Youssouf have been excellent
  

The Bad

• I could be getting more out of Guerrero
  
• One more round in the Coppa Italia would have gotten me a glamour tie against AC Milan
  
• Donvito still hasn't come round to my way of thinking and Errico decided he was leaving on a free transfer long ago
  

Results - Serie C1A Table - Squad

[SnakeXe]

Wow, thats a massive shame.

Seen similar on my save with players. It is a bit daft.

Especially inexplicable is he never stopped scoring for Newcastle when selected. Madness. The AI needs to look more at performance than the numbers under the hood sometimes IMO.

To take an example from my Messina save, Filippo Vitone would probably have been a lower Serie A/Serie B player under AI management. For me he smashed goal after goal in and rightly retired a club legend.

[SnakeXe]

SnakeXe's Career - Season 31 - 2042/43

Story of the Seasons:

Serie C1A - 1st

Apart from a ropey March (thanks to the Serie C Cup final), where we won only 2 from 5, our march towards the title was pretty relentless, and we secured it with 3 games to go. I had half an eye on an unbeaten season, but it wasn't to be.

Coppa Italia - Lost in 4th Qualifying Round (v AlbinoLeffe)

A great run, knocking out a Serie B side in Triestina and a Serie A side in Andria, before falling to AlbinoLeffe in the last qualifying round, narrowly missing out on a date with AC Milan.

Serie C Cup - Winners

We didn't really have any problems, unsurprisingly given our dominant league form. We beat C2 side Asti in the semi-final 3-0 on aggregate, before a 3-1 aggregate win over another C2 side in the final, Sorrento. Looks like the other C1 sides didn't really take it seriously!

Serie C1 Supercup - Winners

We played Serie C1B winners Benevento, who would have finished 3rd in C1A with their points total, 20 points behind us. Despite performing well in the first leg away from home, we lost 2-1, a combination of lackadaisical finishing and uncharacteristically poor defending. I was confident they wouldn't have an answer if we turned it on, though, and so it proved, as we stuffed them 4-1 at home to complete the Serie C treble.

Results 1 - Results 2 - Squad

Transfers - £975k recouped

Most of the outgoings were done befor I joined, but I sold a few players mostly because the size of squad we had was unnecessary for Serie C. Ilja Radovanovic was the big outgoing at £300k, but he proved worth it, finishing with 10 assists and 2 goals in 17 starts to push us over the finish line.

Finances

Well under budget, but £700k in the red. Looking at our income last season when we were in Serie B I can expect it to increase a lot, but our outgoings will also increase, with most of the squad having promotion wage increases built into their contracts. I may have to part with a prized asset or two in the summer.

5 Most Important Players:

5. Zoran Romanovic - ST - Unusual to have your top scorer so low in a list, but he spent far more time on the treatment table than I'd have liked, and we coped alright without him.

3. Marcelo Guerrero - DM/MC - Without particularly shining individually as I'd hoped, we just looked better with him in the 11. A key turning point in the summer will be whether Juve decide to take up their co-ownership option.

3. Carlo Formato - DC - The leader at the back, and a big reason behind the excellent defence we built our success on.

2. Djamel Youssouf - D/WBL - In a 4-3-1-2 the fullbacks have be fit, quick, and talented enough to provide the width, and in Youssouf we had probably the finest exponent in the division. Scored the odd ridiculously good goal as well.

1. Marco Corazza - DM/M/AMC - Plenty of goals and assists from the crucial AMC position.

History:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Season  | Team            | League/Competition    | Country      | Position | Notes                                                 |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2012/13 | Weymouth        | Blue Square South     | England      | 2nd      | Playoff Semi-finalists                                |
| 2013/14 | Weymouth        | Blue Square South     | England      | 3rd      | Resigned in October                                   |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2013/14 | Darlington      | Blue Square Premier   | England      | 14th     | 15th on arrival in October                            |
| 2014/15 | Darlington      | Blue Square Premier   | England      | 2nd      | Playoff Winners                                       |
| 2015/16 | Darlington      | League Two            | England      | 16th     | Resigned in January                                   |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2015/16 | Southend United | League One            | England      | 21st     | Relegated, 24th on arrival in March                   |
| 2016/17 | Southend United | League Two            | England      | 1st      | League Two Champions                                  |
| 2017/18 | Southend United | League One            | England      | 2nd      | Promoted                                              |
| 2018/19 | Southend United | Championship          | England      | 17th     | Resigned in October                                   |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2018/19 | Wigan Athletic  | Championship          | England      | 4th      | 13th on arrival in October, Playoff Winners           |
| 2019/20 | Wigan Athletic  | Premier League        | England      | 15th     | Left in December                                      |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2019/20 | Werder Bremen   | 1. Bundesliga         | Germany      | 8th      | 14th on arrival in December, DFB-Pokal Winners        |
| 2020/21 | Werder Bremen   | 1. Bundesliga         | Germany      | 1st      | B'liga Champions, Supercup Winners, EL Semi-Finalists |
| 2021/22 | Werder Bremen   | 1. Bundesliga         | Germany      | 2nd      | Supercup Winners, CL & DFB-Pokal Semi-Finalists       |
| 2022/23 | Werder Bremen   | 1. Bundesliga         | Germany      | 1st      | B'liga Champions, Champions League Winners            |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2023/24 | Arsenal         | Premier League        | England      | 2nd      | Champ's League Semi-Finalists, League Cup Finalists   |
| 2024/25 | Arsenal         | Premier League        | England      | 1st      | Premier League Winners, League Cup Finalists          |
| 2025/26 | Arsenal         | Premier League        | England      | 1st      | Premier League Winners                                |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2027    | Santos          | Brasileirao           | Brazil       | 1st      | Brasileirao & Paulista Winners, Libertadores SF       |
| 2028    | Santos          | Brasileirao           | Brazil       | 2nd      | Paulista & Copa Libertadores Semi-Finalists           |
| 2029    | Santos          | Brasileirao           | Brazil       | 1st      | Brasileirao & L'dores Winners, CWC RU, Paulista SF    |
| 2030    | Santos          | Brasileirao           | Brazil       | 1st      | B'leirao, L'dores, Paulista, Recopa Winners, CWC RU   |
| 2031    | Santos          | Brasileirao           | Brazil       | 1st      | Brasileirao, Paulista, Recopa Sudamericana Winners    |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2030    | Brazil          | Friendlies            | Various      | N/A      | Appointed in July, P5 W2 D2 L1                        |
| 2031    | Brazil          | Copa América          | S. America   | R-Up     | Copa América Runners Up, Resigned in July             |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2031/32 | Vélez           | Clausura              | Argentina    | 1st      | Clausura Winners, Joined in February                  |
| 2032/33 | Vélez           | Apertura              | Argentina    | 1st      | Apertura Winners, Left in December                    |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2032/33 | Newcastle       | Premier League        | England      | 7th      | FA Cup Runners Up, Joined in December                 |
| 2033/34 | Newcastle       | Premier League        | England      | 1st      | Premier League & League Cup Winners                   |
| 2034/35 | Newcastle       | Premier League        | England      | 1st      | Premier League, FA Cup, & Champions League Winners    |
| 2035/36 | Newcastle       | Premier League        | England      | 1st      | Premier League & CWC Winners, League Cup & CL R-Up    |
| 2036/37 | Newcastle       | Premier League        | England      | 1st      | Premier League, League Cup, & Champ's League Winners  |
| 2037/38 | Newcastle       | Premier League        | England      | 1st      | Premier League, FA Cup, Lg Cup & CWC Winners, CL R-Up |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2038/40 | England         | Euro 2040 Qualifiers  | Europe       | 1st      | Qualified for Euro 2040 in First Place                |
| 2040    | England         | Euro 2040             | Europe       | Grp A    | Finished 4th in Group A, Resigned                     |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2041    | Turkey          | Confederations Cup    | World        | Winners  | Confederations Cup Winners                            |
| 2040/42 | Turkey          | World Cup 2042 Quals  | World        | 1st      | Qualified for World Cup 2042 in First Place           |
| 2042    | Turkey          | World Cup 2042        | World        | 4th      | World Cup 4th Place                                   |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2042/43 | Hellas Verona   | Serie C1A             | Italy        | 1st      | Serie C1A, Serie C Cup, & Serie C Supercup Winners    |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Next Season:

I'm pretty satisfied with how the first season has gone, and we should have plenty enough to be competitive in Serie B without any signings. The question, with interest in a few of my prized players building, is whether I should (or indeed need to) sell to balance the books, or go all out for a double-promotion challenge?

[SnakeXe]

Former Club Watch:

Weymouth F.C.:

Boo.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2012/13*  Blue Square South       2nd       Playoff Semi-finalists
2013/14*  Blue Square South       9th       I left in October (resigned)
2014/15   Blue Square South       10th      -
2015/16   Blue Square South       19th      -
2016/17   Blue Square South       9th       FA Cup 2nd Round
2017/18   Blue Square South       3rd       Playoff Winners
2018/19   Blue Square Premier     21st      Relegated
2019/20   Blue Square South       14th      -
2020/21   Blue Square South       14th      -
2021/22   Blue Square South       19th      -
2022/23   Blue Square South       18th      -
2023/24   Blue Square South       22nd      Relegated
2024/25   N/A                     N/A       FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round
2025/26   N/A                     N/A       -
2026/27   N/A                     N/A       FA Cup 3rd Round
2027/28   N/A                     N/A       -
2028/29   N/A                     N/A       -
2029/30   N/A                     N/A       -
2030/31   N/A                     N/A       FA Cup 1st Round
2031/32   N/A                     N/A       -
2032/33   N/A                     N/A       -
2033/34   N/A                     N/A       -
2034/35   N/A                     N/A       -
2035/36   N/A                     N/A       -
2036/37   N/A                     N/A       FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round
2037/38   N/A                     N/A       -
2038/39   Blue Square South       13th      -
2039/40   Blue Square South       20th      Relegated
2040/41   N/A                     N/A       FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round
2041/42   N/A                     N/A       -
2042/43   N/A                     N/A       -

NB * indicates that I was in charge for at least part of the season.

Darlington F.C.:

A decent enough season.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2013/14*  Blue Square Premier     14th      I joined in October
2014/15*  Blue Square Premier     2nd       Playoff Winners
2015/16*  League Two              18th      I left in January (resigned)
2016/17   League Two              17th      JPT North Quarter Final
2017/18   League Two              15th      FA Cup 3rd Round
2018/19   League Two              3rd       Promoted
2019/20   League One              22nd      Relegated, FA Cup 4th Round
2020/21   League Two              20th      -
2021/22   League Two              6th       FA Cup 4th Round, Playoff Semi-finalists
2022/23   League Two              9th       JPT North Quarter Final
2023/24   League Two              16th      JPT North Semi Final
2024/25   League Two              11th      -
2025/26   League Two              19th      -
2026/27   League Two              19th      -
2027/28   League Two              18th      -
2028/29   League Two              20th      -
2029/30   League Two              1st       League Two Winners
2030/31   League One              12th      FA Cup 4th Round
2031/32   League One              22nd      Relegated, FA Cup 5th Round
2032/33   League Two              2nd       Promoted, FA Cup 3rd Round
2033/34   League One              18th      FA Cup 3rd Round
2034/35   League One              4th       JPT N SF, FA Cup R3, Playoff Winners
2035/36   Championship            24th      Relegated
2036/37   League One              18th      JPT North Quarter-finalists
2037/38   League One              22nd      Relegated
2038/39   League Two              13th      JPT North Semi-finalists
2039/40   League Two              10th      -
2040/41   League Two              4th       Playoff Semi-finalists
2041/42   League Two              13th      -
2042/43   League Two              9th       JPT North Quarter-finalists

Southend United:

A body-blow for the Shrimpers as they're relegated to League Two for the first time since my reign.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2015/16*  League One              21st      Relegated, I joined in March
2016/17*  League Two              1st       League Two Winners
2017/18*  League One              2nd       Promoted
2018/19*  Championship            15th      I left in October (resigned)
2019/20   Championship            20th      -
2020/21   Championship            12th      FA Cup 5th Round
2021/22   Championship            9th       -
2022/23   Championship            15th      -
2023/24   Championship            16th      FA Cup Semi Final
2024/25   Championship            21st      -
2025/26   Championship            19th      -
2026/27   Championship            16th      League Cup Runners up
2027/28   Championship            21st      -
2028/29   Championship            22nd      Relegated
2029/30   League One              3rd       Playoff Semi-finalists
2030/31   League One              7th       FA Cup 4th Round, JPT Finalists
2031/32   League One              17th      JPT South Quarter-finalists
2032/33   League One              11th      -
2033/34   League One              11th      JPT South Semi-finalists
2034/35   League One              5th       FA Cup 3rd Round, Playoff Semi-finalists
2035/36   League One              15th      JPT South Runners-Up
2036/37   League One              20th      FA Cup 3rd Round
2037/38   League One              5th       Playoff Winners, Promoted
2038/39   Championship            23rd      Relegated
2039/40   League One              9th       -
2040/41   League One              13th      -
2041/42   League One              14th      -
2042/43   League One              21st      Relegated, JPT South QF

Wigan Athletic:

Good enough to get out of a Europa League group with Benfica, Maccabi Haifa and Groningen, but not good enough to get out of the Championship. Hopefully they'll manage it with no European distractions next season.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2018/19*  Championship            4th       I joined in October, Playoff Winners
2019/20*  Premier League          11th      I left in December (job offer)
2020/21   Premier League          18th      League Cup Winners, Relegated
2021/22   Championship            2nd       Promoted, League Cup Quarter-finalists
2022/23   Premier League          17th      FA Cup 6th Round
2023/24   Premier League          19th      Relegated
2024/25   Championship            5th       Playoff Semi-finalists
2025/26   Championship            4th       Playoff Winners, FA Cup 6th Round
2026/27   Premier League          5th       FA Cup 6th Round, EL Qualification
2027/28   Premier League          19th      League Cup Quarter-finalists
2028/29   Championship            6th       FA Cup 5th Round, Playoff Semi-finalists
2029/30   Championship            4th       Playoff Runners Up
2030/31   Championship            2nd       Promoted
2031/32   Premier League          11th      FA Cup 5th Round
2032/33   Premier League          14th      -
2033/34   Premier League          12th      -
2034/35   Premier League          10th      -
2035/36   Premier League          9th       -
2036/37   Premier League          16th      -
2037/38   Premier League          16th      -
2038/39   Premier League          18th      League Cup Semi-finalists, Relegated
2039/40   Championship            2nd       Promoted
2040/41   Premier League          18th      FA Cup Runners Up, Relegated
2041/42   Championship            3rd       League Cup Winners, Playoff SF
2042/43   Championship            5th       EL 1st KO Round, Playoff SF

Werder Bremen:

3 points off retaining their title, but a Europa League win is some compensation!

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2019/20*  1. Bundesliga           8th       I joined in December, DFB-Pokal Winners
2020/21*  1. Bundesliga           1st       B'liga, S'cup Winners; EL Semi-finalists
2021/22*  1. Bundesliga           2nd       S'cup Winners; EL, DFB-P Semi-finalists
2022/23*  1. Bundesliga           1st       B'liga, Champs League Winners
2023/24   1. Bundesliga           2nd       CWC, DFB-Pokal Winners
2024/25   1. Bundesliga           4th       Champs League, DFB-Pokal Semi-finalists
2025/26   1. Bundesliga           4th       -
2026/27   1. Bundesliga           3rd       DFB-Pokal Winners
2027/28   1. Bundesliga           5th       Europa League Semi-finalists
2028/29   1. Bundesliga           4th       Europa League QF, DFB-Pokal RU
2029/30   1. Bundesliga           3rd       Europa League Quarter-finalists
2030/31   1. Bundesliga           4th       -
2031/32   1. Bundesliga           4th       DFB-Pokal Semi-finalists
2032/33   1. Bundesliga           4th       DFB-Pokal Quarter-finalists
2033/34   1. Bundesliga           2nd       DFB-Pokal Runners Up
2034/35   1. Bundesliga           3rd       DFB-Pokal & Champions League QF
2035/36   1. Bundesliga           6th       Europa League 2nd Knockout Round
2036/37   1. Bundesliga           12th      -
2037/38   1. Bundesliga           5th       -
2038/39   1. Bundesliga           5th       -
2039/40   1. Bundesliga           2nd       DFB-Pokal Winners, Europa League QF
2040/41   1. Bundesliga           2nd       Champions League Semi-finalists
2041/42   1. Bundesliga           1st       Bundesliga Winners
2042/43   1. Bundesliga           2nd       Europa League Winners, Bundesliga RU

Arsenal:

A poor season by their standards.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2023/24*  Premier League          2nd       CL Semi-finalists, LC Runners up
2024/25*  Premier League          1st       Premier League Winners, LC Runners Up
2025/26*  Premier League          1st       Premier League Winners
2026/27   Premier League          1st       PL & CL Winners, FA Cup Semi-finalists
2027/28   Premier League          1st       PL, CL, CWC & LC Winners, FA Cup Final
2028/29   Premier League          3rd       League Cup Runners Up, Champ's Lg SF
2029/30   Premier League          1st       Premier League Winners, Champ's Lg RU
2030/31   Premier League          1st       PL & LC Winners, CL Runners Up
2031/32   Premier League          1st       Prem League Winners, FA Cup Runners Up
2032/33   Premier League          2nd       Champions League Semi-finalists
2033/34   Premier League          6th       Champions League Runners Up
2034/35   Premier League          2nd       FA Cup 6th Round
2035/36   Premier League          3rd       Champions League Semi-finalists
2036/37   Premier League          3rd       FA Cup 6th Round, CL Runners Up
2037/38   Premier League          4th       -
2038/39   Premier League          1st       PL Winners, CL Quarter-finalists
2039/40   Premier League          3rd       Champions League Runners Up
2040/41   Premier League          3rd       Champions League Winners, FA Cup SF
2041/42   Premier League          3rd       Club World Cup Winners, CL QF
2042/43   Premier League          3rd       League Cup Semi-finalists

Santos:

Another Libertadores, but Corinthians just won't give up the Brasileirao crown, and Newcastle denied them a Club World Cup win.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2027*     Brasileirao             1st       B'leirao, Paulista Winners, L'dores SF
2028*     Brasileirao             2nd       Paulista, Libertadores Semi-finalists
2029*     Brasileirao             1st       B'leirao & L'dores W, P'lista SF, CWC RU
2030*     Brasileirao             1st       B'leirao, CL, P'lista & Recopa W, CWC RU
2031*     Brasileirao             1st       Brasileirao, Paulista & Recopa Winners
2032      Brasileirao             1st       B'leirao, CL, & Paulista Winners, CWC RU
2033      Brasileirao             2nd       CL, Recopa & Paulista Winners, CWC RU
2034      Brasileirao             2nd       Paulista RU, CL SF, Recopa Winners
2035      Brasileirao             1st       B'leirao & Paulista Winners, L'dores QF
2036      Brasileirao             1st       Brasileirao Winners, Paulista Runners Up
2037      Brasileirao             1st       Brasileirao Winners, Paulista SF
2038      Brasileirao             4th       Paulista & CL Winners, CWC Runners Up
2039      Brasileirao             2nd       Recopa Sudamericana RU, Paulista SF
2040      Brasileirao             2nd       CL Winners, Paulista SF, CWC 3rd Place
2041      Brasileirao             2nd       Recopa Sudamericana RU, CL & Paulista SF
2042      Brasileirao             2nd       Libertadores, Paulista Winners, CWC RU

Brazil:

Cheated their way past my Turkey side only to be humiliated by Saudi Arabia in the final.

Season    Competition             Position  Notes
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2030*     Friendlies              -         Appointed in July, P5 W2 D2 L1
2031*     Copa América            R-Up      Copa América R-Up, Resigned in July
2032      Friendlies              -         P3 W2 D0 L1
2033      Confederations Cup      3rd       Confederations Cup 3rd Placed Team
2031-33   CONMEBOL WC Qualifiers  2nd       Qualified for World Cup
2034      World Cup               Grp Stage Eliminated at Group Stage of WC
2035      Copa América            Grp Stage Eliminated at Group Stage of C. América    
2036      Friendlies              -         P3 W0 D2 L1
2037      Friendlies              -         P2 W0 D2 L0
2035-37   CONMEBOL WC Qualifiers  2nd       Qualified for World Cup  
2038      World Cup               R-Up      World Cup Runners Up    
2039      Copa América            4th       Copa América 4th Place
2040      Friendlies              -         P3 W1 D1 L1
2041      Friendlies              -         P2 W2 D0 L0
2039-41   CONMEBOL WC QUalifiers  2nd       Qualified for World Cup
2042      World Cup               2nd       World Cup Runners Up

Vélez:

Utterly awful.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2031/32*  Clausura                1st       Clausura Winners, Joined in February
2032/33*  Apertura                1st       Apertura Winners, Left in December
2032/33   Clausura                1st       Clausura Winners, CA 7th Rnd, CL SF
2033/34   Apertura                2nd       Copa Sudamericana Semi-finalists
2033/34   Clausura                5th       -
2034/35   Apertura                5th       Copa Sudamericana Quarter-finalists
2034/35   Clausura                3rd       Copa Libertadores 2nd Round
2035/36   Apertura                9th       Copa Sudamericana Quarter-finalists
2035/36   Clausura                7th       -
2036/37   Apertura                3rd       Copa Sudamericana Quarter-finalists
2036/37   Clausura                3rd       -
2037/38   Apertura                3rd       Copa Sudamericana Quarter-finalists
2037/38   Clausura                9th       Copa Libertadores Quarter-finalists
2038/39   Apertura                1st       Apertura Winners
2038/39   Clausura                7th       Copa Argentina Quarter-finalists
2039/40   Apertura                7th       -
2039/40   Clausura                4th       Copa Libertadores Semi-finalists
2040/41   Apertura                11th      -
2040/41   Clausura                14th      -
2041/42   Apertura                15th      -
2041/42   Clausura                8th       -
2042/43   Apertura                14th      -

Newcastle:

A poor run-in cost them the Premier League title.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2032/33*  Premier League          7th       FA Cup Runners Up, Joined in December
2033/34*  Premier League          1st       Premier League & League Cup Winners
2034/35*  Premier League          1st       Prem, FA Cup, & Champions League Winners
2035/36*  Premier League          1st       Prem & CWC Winners, League Cup & CL R-Up
2036/37*  Premier League          1st       Prem, Lg Cup, & Champ's League Winners
2037/38*  Premier League          1st       Prem, FA Cup, LC & CWC Winners, CL R-Up
2038/39   Premier League          2nd       Champions League Quarter-finalists
2039/40   Premier League          1st       Premier League & League Cup Winners
2040/41   Premier League          1st       FA Cup 6th Round
2041/42   Premier League          5th       Champions League Winners
2042/43   Premier League          2nd       Club World Cup Winners, PL Runners-Up

England:

Yet another abysmal group stage exit. Going nicely in the Euro qualifiers though.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2038/40*  Euro 2040 Qualifying    1st       -
2040*     Euro 2040               Grp A     Finished 4th in Group A, Resigned
2040/42   World Cup 2042 Quals    1st       Qualified for World Cup
2042      World Cup 2042          Grp G     Finished 4th in Group G
2042/44   Euro 2044 Qualifying    1st*      *1st after 4 games

Turkey:

A first-game defeat to Germany means they're playing catchup to top spot, but you have to be pretty terrible to not qualify for a 24 team Euros so they probably don't have anything to worry about.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2040/42*  World Cup 2042 Quals    1st       Qualified for World Cup
2041*     Confederations Cup      1st       Won Confederations Cup
2042*     World Cup 2042          4th       World Cup 4th Placed
2042/44   Euro 2044 Qualifying    2nd*      *2nd after 4 games

[SnakeXe]

Phew! I took a bit of a gamble, basically thinking that no matter how excellent Guerrero is for me, he wouldn't get a game at Juve, so they probably wouldn't bid, so I shouldn't waste my budget trying to outbid them (which I couldn't do if they did want him anyway).

[SnakeXe]

Might regret this later but I doubt it. He's 27 and worth £2.2m, and whilst good, he's not going to become a £10m player or anything. The £669k now pretty much wipes out our overdraft, which is good news, as I think I can probably afford to keep everyone now.

[SRL88]

Cracking first season in Italy .

[Northernpilgrim]

If you think promotion from Serie B is likely, £700k of debt isn't worth worrying about. My Derby were £10m in the red, but I got promoted, and now have a balance of £20m plus, despite being back in the Championship after just 1 season.

If you think you won't get promoted, and the debt is going to rise in Serie B, by all means sort it by trimming the wage bill with a sale or two.

[SnakeXe]

Cracking first season in Italy .

Thanks!

If you think promotion from Serie B is likely, £700k of debt isn't worth worrying about. My Derby were £10m in the red, but I got promoted, and now have a balance of £20m plus, despite being back in the Championship after just 1 season.

If you think you won't get promoted, and the debt is going to rise in Serie B, by all means sort it by trimming the wage bill with a sale or two.

Whilst very true between Championship and Premier League, the gain in income between Serie B and Serie A is much smaller, because of the individual TV deal they had up until the start of last season IRL. I believe this was renegotiated as a collective deal after the start of the season, so this change probably isn't in FM12 (or at least, won't be in my save because I started it on day one). I'll get slightly more TV money, and more gate and season ticket money, but not the huge game-changing wedge of cash the Premier League TV deal nets you.

As it is, my finances look fine now - I've had £1.9m in season ticket sales and recouped about £1.3m with that clause sale and giving a co-ownership option on one of my promising youngsters to Cagliari (which I don't know if I'll regret or not, he's improved more than I expected over the summer).

[Northernpilgrim]

OIC. I haven't managed in Italy on FM12 yet, only England, Spain, Holland and South America (Uruguay and Argentina national teams). Am really getting into my current save with Derby though. Will be sad to leave them when the time comes

[b101]

Just read through this over the last two days - it's a great read and congrats on all the successes - when does managing Bath City come then?

[SnakeXe]

OIC. I haven't managed in Italy on FM12 yet, only England, Spain, Holland and South America (Uruguay and Argentina national teams). Am really getting into my current save with Derby though. Will be sad to leave them when the time comes

My advice would be to stick with them until you're sure you want to leave - I think I left Werder Bremen too soon and regretted it throughout my time at Arsenal.

Just read through this over the last two days - it's a great read and congrats on all the successes - when does managing Bath City come then?

Thanks, glad you've enjoyed it! I've been thinking about that actually, there's a few goals I set myself which I don't know if I'll get around to before FM13, especially as Verona will be a relatively long-term project. Not to mention I'd like to manage in France and Spain, return to Germany, conquer the 3 remaining continental competitions and win the World Cup!

[SnakeXe]

Interesting to take a look at those original aims now:

• Win promotion (Done)
  
• Win a cup competition (Done)
  
• Manage my current local side, Bath City
  
• Win a top-level league (Done)
  
• Win a top-level cup competition (Done)
  
• Manage the side I support, Newcastle United (Done)
  
• Win a trophy with Newcastle United (Done)
  
• Win a European title (Done)
  
• Win top-level league titles in all of the "big five" European leagues - England, Spain, Italy, Germany and France (2/5 so far)
  
• Win a top level league title in another continent (Done)
  
• Win a top level cup competition in another continent (Done, if you count Sao Paulo state championship, which I do)
  
• Win a continental competition in another continent (Done)
  
• Win a top level league title in all five continents (2/5 so far)
  
• Win a top level cup competition in all five continents (2/5 so far)
  
• Win all five continental competitions (2/5 so far)
  
• Win an international competition (Done, if you count the Confederations Cup, which I do)
  
• Win the World Cup
  
• Win the World Cup with an Asian or African nation
  

I've actually done alright I think. Probably more than is possible in the duration of a normal person's career, especially as I'm picking up the Italian leg of my top five European leagues point via a circuitous route, but my manager is 56, so probably another couple of decades before he starts getting too senile to manage. The last aim has been somewhat diluted by the fact that Asian and African nations have already won the World Cup during my save, so it's not as much of an Everest to conquer.

[crouchaldinho]

It has been quite a journey so far!

And great season with Verona. Good luck in Serie B!

[deltablue]

Definitely achieved a lot so far.

[SnakeXe]

It has been quite a journey so far!

And great season with Verona. Good luck in Serie B!

Indeed! Don't know how my FM13 career will live up to this one, need to come up with a good idea (I mean title, obviously) for it first.

Definitely achieved a lot so far.

But more ambitions still to be! I think the priority for me would be the league titles in the big 5 European leagues, then after that I'll take a crack at the CONCACAF Champions League and see what happens from there.

[SnakeXe]

SnakeXe's Career - Season 32 Preseason Update - Hellas Verona

Board Expectations:

Serie B - Mid-table (minimum of Mid-table, predicted 14th out of 22)

Coppa Italia - Fourth Qualifying Round

My Expectations:

Serie B - I've got a really sneaking suspicion we can trouble the playoffs this season. I'm fully prepared for that to look stupid by the winter break, however!

Coppa Italia - Similarly to last year, I'll be happy so long as we don't lose to anyone in a division below us

Budgets:

Transfer: £0 (£0 remaining)

Wages: £116,573/week (£117,078/week currently)

Balance: £1,974,537 (+£850,858 since last season)

Squad:

We should have more than enough quality to stay up, but our ambition may be limited by a slight lack of depth of cover across the board. I'm most worried by left-back, where Marcos is really no replacement for Youssouf, being very much more a defensive-minded left back. I might have to create a mirrored formation for allowing a more attacking right-back for when Youssouf is unavailable, since both Syrigos and Donvito should be very capable going forward.

Transfers:

A shame to lose Mohamed since he was an important part of our promotion winning squad, but is 33, wanted too much money and Radovanovic is a much better option in his role. Other than that, the big deal was selling half of Fabio Allievi to Cagliari. I'm slightly regretting the decision as he could be worth far more than the agreed sale price if he has a good season, but at least it means we can keep everyone important for this season at least. On the incoming side, I'm excited about Fabio Vanzati, whose experience and technical quality should be very useful up front and in the AMC position, and Jérome Vallée returns for a second loan spell as defensive cover.

Key Men:

Goalkeeper/Defence

Djamel Youssouf - D/WBL - The Cormoran international was fans' player of the season last year, and with good reason - his marauding forays from left-back were key to our attacking play. His ability to do the same at a higher level could make or break our season.

Midfield

Marcelo Guerrero - DM/MC - We need a really good season from the captain this time.

Marco Corazza - DM/M/AMC - Much of our success could depend on how this man handles the step-up. When he plays well, the whole team ticks.

Strikers

Fabio Vanzati - AMLC/ST - A great quality addition for my favourite transfer fee - free. Hopefully his nous and technique can make up for his slightly fading legs.

[SRL88]

You have had a cracking career so far Snake. You were the one who make me start my save so long let this continue.

[Sholadona]

Cracking save. Maybe your manager can confirm his senility when he's older by dropping down a load of leagues and going to manage Bath City for his final run:D

[SnakeXe]

You have had a cracking career so far Snake. You were the one who make me start my save so long let this continue.

Thanks mate, I think yours has overtaken mine in terms of awesomeness now! Glad I inspired such a great career and thread

Cracking save. Maybe your manager can confirm his senility when he's older by dropping down a load of leagues and going to manage Bath City for his final run:D

First of all I love your username!

Haha that's definitely an option! Perhaps a month or so before FM13 drops I'll look out for the job coming up, and if it does, I'll definitely be taking it.

[markyosullivan]

Close to achieving all your targets, great work!

[SnakeXe]

Season 31: Halfway House Update

As with last season we started with the preliminary rounds of the Coppa Italia, albeit one round later due to our loftier status. C1B side Livorno were dealt with thanks to a great brace of freekick and penalty from Marcelo Guerrero helping us on the way to a 3-1 win. Sampdoria in the next round were comfortably the best team I've faced in charge of Verona, and we didn't disgrace ourselves in going down 0-1.

League matters started badly, as we lost our first two, and collected just 3 points from the opening 6 games. When we finally beat Benevento in October we were the last side in Serie B to pick up our first win. Another four winless games later and we finally seemed to click, picking up back-to-back 3-0 wins over Pisa and Brescia - doubling our season's goal tally inside a week. Narrow 0-1 losses against title-challenging Messina and Atalanta were encouraging but ultimately bad news as we got sucked back towards the drop zone. Fortunately, a 6 match unbeaten run, including 2 wins, enables us to look ahead to the teams in midtable rather than over our shoulders going into the winter break.

The question has to be whether to stick or twist with the squad. We've kept the ball well and looked solid as a unit but we have a horrendous lack of creativity and goal threat with my previous solution of attacking fullbacks creating more problems in defence than they help up front. Vanzati has sparkled very sporadically, but Yilmaz has been an absolute donkey, and the youngsters such as Spoldi and Allievi haven't made the step up. Lusadisu, a mid-season free transfer, has done slightly better, but 3 goals in 13 games is still not enough, leading me to think the problem is in creating the chances rather than necessarily in putting them away. Corazza has struggled manfully to exert the same influence as he did last year, but he's patently not good enough (yet). It could yet come good with the players we have, as Corazza, Allievi and Spoldi have plenty of room for improvement, but whether they'll do it fast enough I don't know. Tough decisions coming up in the transfer window.

Forza i Mastini!

The Good

• The defence has been relatively solid
  
• If we can catch the pack ahead of us, a top half finish could still be attainable due to the bunching of teams meaning 5th and 14th are just a couple of wins apart
  
• Corazza is at least finding the net still, if not entirely his rhythm
  

The Bad

• Absolutely limp in attack for large parts of the season
  
• Youssouf, Corazza, Allievi and Spoldi just can't perform as they did the level below
  
• I have no wiggle room left in the budget so I have to sell if I want to change things
  

Results - Serie B Table - Squad

[deltablue]

Not too good so far.

[Nobby_McDonald]

Good first season at Verona.

[SnakeXe]

Not too good so far.

But crucially getting better rather than worse!

Good first season at Verona.

Cheers Nobby, couldn't have gone much better if I'd written the script myself!

[SnakeXe]

Gutted. Captain and best player, gone for probably half what he's worth at best. Stupid higher division release clauses. Up to me to spend the money properly I guess.

[SRL88]

Things could be a lot worse so I wouldnt worry about your league position so far.

[SnakeXe]

SnakeXe's Career - Season 32 - 2043/44

Story of the Seasons:

Serie B - 6th, lost in Playoff Final (v Pisa)

Yes, you are reading that right! After our poor first half of the season, where we flirted with the relegation zone for far longer than I was comfortable with, we suddenly found our rhythm after the winter break. I switched to a 3-5-2 and suddenly we had cohesive passing and effective attacking play! We went on an amazing 8 match winning run, going 13 unbeaten before finally getting undone by relegation candidates Brescia at home of all teams. We won 4 of the next 5 to claim 3rd place, although we had next to no chance of automatic promotion at that stage. We blew what slim chance we did have, losing each of the last 3 games 1-0 as the games caught up with Vanzati and injuries curtailed his partners.

Still, a playoff spot was a great achievement, and we weren't about to wallow in self pity and squander it. We came up against Napoli first, and beat them 2-0 at home in a tough game. They really went for us in the return leg, but we snatched a 1-0 win, which lost their manager his job. Pisa were my favoured choice to face in the final, since we'd beaten them twice in the league and lost twice to the team they beat, Atalanta. However, they seemed to be a different animal to the one we faced in the regular season, and they matched us well at home. Despite a half-fit Vanzati hitting the post twice, we ended up losing 1-0 to a long ranged effort. With injuries, international callups (yes, really), and fatigue catching up with us, we briefly managed to equalise in the away leg, before finally having no answer to a goal in reply. Gutting to fall at the last, but we shouldn't forget how well we did to even get there.

Coppa Italia - Lost in 3rd Qualifying Round (v Sampdoria)

Livorno weren't up to much, Sampdoria, unfortunately, were.

Results 1 - Results 2 - Squad

Transfers - £1.9m recouped

The income from Allievi's co-ownership deal and Feyenoord activating Guerrero's contract clause means we make a healthy profit. I'm pretty happy with the money I spent, the three I brought in for fees all contributed well, although Zakula is more one for next season. His technical ability should help us move on to the next level.

Finances

Looking much better now, helped undoubtedly by the transfer income. I think we can probably bring in a few more for a serious promotion push next year.

5 Most Important Players:

5. Antonis Syrigos - D/WBR - 7 assists from fullback is excellent going, and both his goals were winners.

4. Hans Brands - DC - His height helped at set pieces both offensively and defensively.

3. Matteo Nurchi - DM/MC - Brought it to compliment Guerrero, he ended up replacing him. Did so very well and earned himself a new contract since the screenshot was taken.

2. Ilja Radovanovic - M/AMLC/ST - The move to 3-5-2 seemed to benefit Rado as much as anyone, as he grabbed 16 assists for the season.

1. Fabio Vanzati - AMLC/ST - Overcame a slow start to become our top goalscorer by quite some margin. I really hope his legs can manage it once more.

History:

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| Season  | Team            | League/Competition    | Country      | Position | Notes                                                 |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2012/13 | Weymouth        | Blue Square South     | England      | 2nd      | Playoff Semi-finalists                                |
| 2013/14 | Weymouth        | Blue Square South     | England      | 3rd      | Resigned in October                                   |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2013/14 | Darlington      | Blue Square Premier   | England      | 14th     | 15th on arrival in October                            |
| 2014/15 | Darlington      | Blue Square Premier   | England      | 2nd      | Playoff Winners                                       |
| 2015/16 | Darlington      | League Two            | England      | 16th     | Resigned in January                                   |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2015/16 | Southend United | League One            | England      | 21st     | Relegated, 24th on arrival in March                   |
| 2016/17 | Southend United | League Two            | England      | 1st      | League Two Champions                                  |
| 2017/18 | Southend United | League One            | England      | 2nd      | Promoted                                              |
| 2018/19 | Southend United | Championship          | England      | 17th     | Resigned in October                                   |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2018/19 | Wigan Athletic  | Championship          | England      | 4th      | 13th on arrival in October, Playoff Winners           |
| 2019/20 | Wigan Athletic  | Premier League        | England      | 15th     | Left in December                                      |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2019/20 | Werder Bremen   | 1. Bundesliga         | Germany      | 8th      | 14th on arrival in December, DFB-Pokal Winners        |
| 2020/21 | Werder Bremen   | 1. Bundesliga         | Germany      | 1st      | B'liga Champions, Supercup Winners, EL Semi-Finalists |
| 2021/22 | Werder Bremen   | 1. Bundesliga         | Germany      | 2nd      | Supercup Winners, CL & DFB-Pokal Semi-Finalists       |
| 2022/23 | Werder Bremen   | 1. Bundesliga         | Germany      | 1st      | B'liga Champions, Champions League Winners            |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2023/24 | Arsenal         | Premier League        | England      | 2nd      | Champ's League Semi-Finalists, League Cup Finalists   |
| 2024/25 | Arsenal         | Premier League        | England      | 1st      | Premier League Winners, League Cup Finalists          |
| 2025/26 | Arsenal         | Premier League        | England      | 1st      | Premier League Winners                                |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2027    | Santos          | Brasileirao           | Brazil       | 1st      | Brasileirao & Paulista Winners, Libertadores SF       |
| 2028    | Santos          | Brasileirao           | Brazil       | 2nd      | Paulista & Copa Libertadores Semi-Finalists           |
| 2029    | Santos          | Brasileirao           | Brazil       | 1st      | Brasileirao & L'dores Winners, CWC RU, Paulista SF    |
| 2030    | Santos          | Brasileirao           | Brazil       | 1st      | B'leirao, L'dores, Paulista, Recopa Winners, CWC RU   |
| 2031    | Santos          | Brasileirao           | Brazil       | 1st      | Brasileirao, Paulista, Recopa Sudamericana Winners    |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2030    | Brazil          | Friendlies            | Various      | N/A      | Appointed in July, P5 W2 D2 L1                        |
| 2031    | Brazil          | Copa América          | S. America   | R-Up     | Copa América Runners Up, Resigned in July             |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2031/32 | Vélez           | Clausura              | Argentina    | 1st      | Clausura Winners, Joined in February                  |
| 2032/33 | Vélez           | Apertura              | Argentina    | 1st      | Apertura Winners, Left in December                    |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2032/33 | Newcastle       | Premier League        | England      | 7th      | FA Cup Runners Up, Joined in December                 |
| 2033/34 | Newcastle       | Premier League        | England      | 1st      | Premier League & League Cup Winners                   |
| 2034/35 | Newcastle       | Premier League        | England      | 1st      | Premier League, FA Cup, & Champions League Winners    |
| 2035/36 | Newcastle       | Premier League        | England      | 1st      | Premier League & CWC Winners, League Cup & CL R-Up    |
| 2036/37 | Newcastle       | Premier League        | England      | 1st      | Premier League, League Cup, & Champ's League Winners  |
| 2037/38 | Newcastle       | Premier League        | England      | 1st      | Premier League, FA Cup, Lg Cup & CWC Winners, CL R-Up |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2038/40 | England         | Euro 2040 Qualifiers  | Europe       | 1st      | Qualified for Euro 2040 in First Place                |
| 2040    | England         | Euro 2040             | Europe       | Grp A    | Finished 4th in Group A, Resigned                     |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2041    | Turkey          | Confederations Cup    | World        | Winners  | Confederations Cup Winners                            |
| 2040/42 | Turkey          | World Cup 2042 Quals  | World        | 1st      | Qualified for World Cup 2042 in First Place           |
| 2042    | Turkey          | World Cup 2042        | World        | 4th      | World Cup 4th Place                                   |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
| 2042/43 | Hellas Verona   | Serie C1A             | Italy        | 1st      | Serie C1A, Serie C Cup, & Serie C Supercup Winners    |
| 2043/44 | Hellas Verona   | Serie B               | Italy        | 6th      | Playoff Runners-Up                                    |
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Next Season:

Our performance between November and the final 3 games of the season was title-winning form. I'll be disappointed if we don't win promotion next season, whether it's automatically or through the playoffs. Especially as I've found some nice free transfers in to bolster the squad. I will have to replace Syrigos well, however, as he faded badly towards the end of the season, and I don't think he's got it in him to do it all again, so he'll be leaving on a free.

[SnakeXe]

Former Club Watch:

Weymouth F.C.:

Boo.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2012/13*  Blue Square South       2nd       Playoff Semi-finalists
2013/14*  Blue Square South       9th       I left in October (resigned)
2014/15   Blue Square South       10th      -
2015/16   Blue Square South       19th      -
2016/17   Blue Square South       9th       FA Cup 2nd Round
2017/18   Blue Square South       3rd       Playoff Winners
2018/19   Blue Square Premier     21st      Relegated
2019/20   Blue Square South       14th      -
2020/21   Blue Square South       14th      -
2021/22   Blue Square South       19th      -
2022/23   Blue Square South       18th      -
2023/24   Blue Square South       22nd      Relegated
2024/25   N/A                     N/A       FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round
2025/26   N/A                     N/A       -
2026/27   N/A                     N/A       FA Cup 3rd Round
2027/28   N/A                     N/A       -
2028/29   N/A                     N/A       -
2029/30   N/A                     N/A       -
2030/31   N/A                     N/A       FA Cup 1st Round
2031/32   N/A                     N/A       -
2032/33   N/A                     N/A       -
2033/34   N/A                     N/A       -
2034/35   N/A                     N/A       -
2035/36   N/A                     N/A       -
2036/37   N/A                     N/A       FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round
2037/38   N/A                     N/A       -
2038/39   Blue Square South       13th      -
2039/40   Blue Square South       20th      Relegated
2040/41   N/A                     N/A       FA Cup 4th Qualifying Round
2041/42   N/A                     N/A       -
2042/43   N/A                     N/A       -
2043/44   N/A                     N/A       -

NB * indicates that I was in charge for at least part of the season.

Darlington F.C.:

Further consolidation.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2013/14*  Blue Square Premier     14th      I joined in October
2014/15*  Blue Square Premier     2nd       Playoff Winners
2015/16*  League Two              18th      I left in January (resigned)
2016/17   League Two              17th      JPT North Quarter Final
2017/18   League Two              15th      FA Cup 3rd Round
2018/19   League Two              3rd       Promoted
2019/20   League One              22nd      Relegated, FA Cup 4th Round
2020/21   League Two              20th      -
2021/22   League Two              6th       FA Cup 4th Round, Playoff Semi-finalists
2022/23   League Two              9th       JPT North Quarter Final
2023/24   League Two              16th      JPT North Semi Final
2024/25   League Two              11th      -
2025/26   League Two              19th      -
2026/27   League Two              19th      -
2027/28   League Two              18th      -
2028/29   League Two              20th      -
2029/30   League Two              1st       League Two Winners
2030/31   League One              12th      FA Cup 4th Round
2031/32   League One              22nd      Relegated, FA Cup 5th Round
2032/33   League Two              2nd       Promoted, FA Cup 3rd Round
2033/34   League One              18th      FA Cup 3rd Round
2034/35   League One              4th       JPT N SF, FA Cup R3, Playoff Winners
2035/36   Championship            24th      Relegated
2036/37   League One              18th      JPT North Quarter-finalists
2037/38   League One              22nd      Relegated
2038/39   League Two              13th      JPT North Semi-finalists
2039/40   League Two              10th      -
2040/41   League Two              4th       Playoff Semi-finalists
2041/42   League Two              13th      -
2042/43   League Two              9th       JPT North Quarter-finalists
2043/44   League Two              8th       -

Southend United:

Any hopes that dropping a level would restart momentum are certainly dashed. Terrible season.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2015/16*  League One              21st      Relegated, I joined in March
2016/17*  League Two              1st       League Two Winners
2017/18*  League One              2nd       Promoted
2018/19*  Championship            15th      I left in October (resigned)
2019/20   Championship            20th      -
2020/21   Championship            12th      FA Cup 5th Round
2021/22   Championship            9th       -
2022/23   Championship            15th      -
2023/24   Championship            16th      FA Cup Semi Final
2024/25   Championship            21st      -
2025/26   Championship            19th      -
2026/27   Championship            16th      League Cup Runners up
2027/28   Championship            21st      -
2028/29   Championship            22nd      Relegated
2029/30   League One              3rd       Playoff Semi-finalists
2030/31   League One              7th       FA Cup 4th Round, JPT Finalists
2031/32   League One              17th      JPT South Quarter-finalists
2032/33   League One              11th      -
2033/34   League One              11th      JPT South Semi-finalists
2034/35   League One              5th       FA Cup 3rd Round, Playoff Semi-finalists
2035/36   League One              15th      JPT South Runners-Up
2036/37   League One              20th      FA Cup 3rd Round
2037/38   League One              5th       Playoff Winners, Promoted
2038/39   Championship            23rd      Relegated
2039/40   League One              9th       -
2040/41   League One              13th      -
2041/42   League One              14th      -
2042/43   League One              21st      Relegated, JPT South QF
2043/44   League One              15th      -

Wigan Athletic:

Two thirds of the season were perfectly good. However, in the final third they didn't win a single game. Troubling.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2018/19*  Championship            4th       I joined in October, Playoff Winners
2019/20*  Premier League          11th      I left in December (job offer)
2020/21   Premier League          18th      League Cup Winners, Relegated
2021/22   Championship            2nd       Promoted, League Cup Quarter-finalists
2022/23   Premier League          17th      FA Cup 6th Round
2023/24   Premier League          19th      Relegated
2024/25   Championship            5th       Playoff Semi-finalists
2025/26   Championship            4th       Playoff Winners, FA Cup 6th Round
2026/27   Premier League          5th       FA Cup 6th Round, EL Qualification
2027/28   Premier League          19th      League Cup Quarter-finalists
2028/29   Championship            6th       FA Cup 5th Round, Playoff Semi-finalists
2029/30   Championship            4th       Playoff Runners Up
2030/31   Championship            2nd       Promoted
2031/32   Premier League          11th      FA Cup 5th Round
2032/33   Premier League          14th      -
2033/34   Premier League          12th      -
2034/35   Premier League          10th      -
2035/36   Premier League          9th       -
2036/37   Premier League          16th      -
2037/38   Premier League          16th      -
2038/39   Premier League          18th      League Cup Semi-finalists, Relegated
2039/40   Championship            2nd       Promoted
2040/41   Premier League          18th      FA Cup Runners Up, Relegated
2041/42   Championship            3rd       League Cup Winners, Playoff SF
2042/43   Championship            5th       EL 1st KO Round, Playoff SF
2043/44   Championship            15th      FA Cup 6th Round

Werder Bremen:

Unable to get the title back, but did manage to get into the Champions League knockout stages for the first time in a few seasons.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2019/20*  1. Bundesliga           8th       I joined in December, DFB-Pokal Winners
2020/21*  1. Bundesliga           1st       B'liga, S'cup Winners; EL Semi-finalists
2021/22*  1. Bundesliga           2nd       S'cup Winners; EL, DFB-P Semi-finalists
2022/23*  1. Bundesliga           1st       B'liga, Champs League Winners
2023/24   1. Bundesliga           2nd       CWC, DFB-Pokal Winners
2024/25   1. Bundesliga           4th       Champs League, DFB-Pokal Semi-finalists
2025/26   1. Bundesliga           4th       -
2026/27   1. Bundesliga           3rd       DFB-Pokal Winners
2027/28   1. Bundesliga           5th       Europa League Semi-finalists
2028/29   1. Bundesliga           4th       Europa League QF, DFB-Pokal RU
2029/30   1. Bundesliga           3rd       Europa League Quarter-finalists
2030/31   1. Bundesliga           4th       -
2031/32   1. Bundesliga           4th       DFB-Pokal Semi-finalists
2032/33   1. Bundesliga           4th       DFB-Pokal Quarter-finalists
2033/34   1. Bundesliga           2nd       DFB-Pokal Runners Up
2034/35   1. Bundesliga           3rd       DFB-Pokal & Champions League QF
2035/36   1. Bundesliga           6th       Europa League 2nd Knockout Round
2036/37   1. Bundesliga           12th      -
2037/38   1. Bundesliga           5th       -
2038/39   1. Bundesliga           5th       -
2039/40   1. Bundesliga           2nd       DFB-Pokal Winners, Europa League QF
2040/41   1. Bundesliga           2nd       Champions League Semi-finalists
2041/42   1. Bundesliga           1st       Bundesliga Winners
2042/43   1. Bundesliga           2nd       Europa League Winners, Bundesliga RU
2043/44   1. Bundesliga           2nd       -

Arsenal:

First title in 5 years for the Gunners.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2023/24*  Premier League          2nd       CL Semi-finalists, LC Runners up
2024/25*  Premier League          1st       Premier League Winners, LC Runners Up
2025/26*  Premier League          1st       Premier League Winners
2026/27   Premier League          1st       PL & CL Winners, FA Cup Semi-finalists
2027/28   Premier League          1st       PL, CL, CWC & LC Winners, FA Cup Final
2028/29   Premier League          3rd       League Cup Runners Up, Champ's Lg SF
2029/30   Premier League          1st       Premier League Winners, Champ's Lg RU
2030/31   Premier League          1st       PL & LC Winners, CL Runners Up
2031/32   Premier League          1st       Prem League Winners, FA Cup Runners Up
2032/33   Premier League          2nd       Champions League Semi-finalists
2033/34   Premier League          6th       Champions League Runners Up
2034/35   Premier League          2nd       FA Cup 6th Round
2035/36   Premier League          3rd       Champions League Semi-finalists
2036/37   Premier League          3rd       FA Cup 6th Round, CL Runners Up
2037/38   Premier League          4th       -
2038/39   Premier League          1st       PL Winners, CL Quarter-finalists
2039/40   Premier League          3rd       Champions League Runners Up
2040/41   Premier League          3rd       Champions League Winners, FA Cup SF
2041/42   Premier League          3rd       Club World Cup Winners, CL QF
2042/43   Premier League          3rd       League Cup Semi-finalists
2043/44   Premier League          1st       PL Winners, CL Semi-finalists, FAC R6

Santos:

Fast becoming continental speciliasts who can't do it at home. The less said about the Club World Cup the better.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2027*     Brasileirao             1st       B'leirao, Paulista Winners, L'dores SF
2028*     Brasileirao             2nd       Paulista, Libertadores Semi-finalists
2029*     Brasileirao             1st       B'leirao & L'dores W, P'lista SF, CWC RU
2030*     Brasileirao             1st       B'leirao, CL, P'lista & Recopa W, CWC RU
2031*     Brasileirao             1st       Brasileirao, Paulista & Recopa Winners
2032      Brasileirao             1st       B'leirao, CL, & Paulista Winners, CWC RU
2033      Brasileirao             2nd       CL, Recopa & Paulista Winners, CWC RU
2034      Brasileirao             2nd       Paulista RU, CL SF, Recopa Winners
2035      Brasileirao             1st       B'leirao & Paulista Winners, L'dores QF
2036      Brasileirao             1st       Brasileirao Winners, Paulista Runners Up
2037      Brasileirao             1st       Brasileirao Winners, Paulista SF
2038      Brasileirao             4th       Paulista & CL Winners, CWC Runners Up
2039      Brasileirao             2nd       Recopa Sudamericana RU, Paulista SF
2040      Brasileirao             2nd       CL Winners, Paulista SF, CWC 3rd Place
2041      Brasileirao             2nd       Recopa Sudamericana RU, CL & Paulista SF
2042      Brasileirao             2nd       Libertadores, Paulista Winners, CWC RU
2043      Brasileirao             4th       Libertadores, Paulista, Recopa Winners

Brazil:

A decent performance in the Copa América again ends in defeat at the hands of Mexico in the final.

Season    Competition             Position  Notes
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2030*     Friendlies              -         Appointed in July, P5 W2 D2 L1
2031*     Copa América            R-Up      Copa América R-Up, Resigned in July
2032      Friendlies              -         P3 W2 D0 L1
2033      Confederations Cup      3rd       Confederations Cup 3rd Placed Team
2031-33   CONMEBOL WC Qualifiers  2nd       Qualified for World Cup
2034      World Cup               Grp Stage Eliminated at Group Stage of WC
2035      Copa América            Grp Stage Eliminated at Group Stage of C. América    
2036      Friendlies              -         P3 W0 D2 L1
2037      Friendlies              -         P2 W0 D2 L0
2035-37   CONMEBOL WC Qualifiers  2nd       Qualified for World Cup  
2038      World Cup               R-Up      World Cup Runners Up    
2039      Copa América            4th       Copa América 4th Place
2040      Friendlies              -         P3 W1 D1 L1
2041      Friendlies              -         P2 W2 D0 L0
2039-41   CONMEBOL WC QUalifiers  2nd       Qualified for World Cup
2042      World Cup               2nd       World Cup Runners Up
2043      Copa América            R-Up      Copa América Runners-Up

Vélez:

This club is truly in the doldrums now.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2031/32*  Clausura                1st       Clausura Winners, Joined in February
2032/33*  Apertura                1st       Apertura Winners, Left in December
2032/33   Clausura                1st       Clausura Winners, CA 7th Rnd, CL SF
2033/34   Apertura                2nd       Copa Sudamericana Semi-finalists
2033/34   Clausura                5th       -
2034/35   Apertura                5th       Copa Sudamericana Quarter-finalists
2034/35   Clausura                3rd       Copa Libertadores 2nd Round
2035/36   Apertura                9th       Copa Sudamericana Quarter-finalists
2035/36   Clausura                7th       -
2036/37   Apertura                3rd       Copa Sudamericana Quarter-finalists
2036/37   Clausura                3rd       -
2037/38   Apertura                3rd       Copa Sudamericana Quarter-finalists
2037/38   Clausura                9th       Copa Libertadores Quarter-finalists
2038/39   Apertura                1st       Apertura Winners
2038/39   Clausura                7th       Copa Argentina Quarter-finalists
2039/40   Apertura                7th       -
2039/40   Clausura                4th       Copa Libertadores Semi-finalists
2040/41   Apertura                11th      -
2040/41   Clausura                14th      -
2041/42   Apertura                15th      -
2041/42   Clausura                8th       -
2042/43   Apertura                14th      -
2042/43   Clausura                16th      -
2043/44   Apertura                13th      -

Newcastle:

Decent enough, but now 3 seasons since the last league title.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2032/33*  Premier League          7th       FA Cup Runners Up, Joined in December
2033/34*  Premier League          1st       Premier League & League Cup Winners
2034/35*  Premier League          1st       Prem, FA Cup, & Champions League Winners
2035/36*  Premier League          1st       Prem & CWC Winners, League Cup & CL R-Up
2036/37*  Premier League          1st       Prem, Lg Cup, & Champ's League Winners
2037/38*  Premier League          1st       Prem, FA Cup, LC & CWC Winners, CL R-Up
2038/39   Premier League          2nd       Champions League Quarter-finalists
2039/40   Premier League          1st       Premier League & League Cup Winners
2040/41   Premier League          1st       FA Cup 6th Round
2041/42   Premier League          5th       Champions League Winners
2042/43   Premier League          2nd       Club World Cup Winners, PL Runners-Up
2043/44   Premier League          2nd       PL Runners-Up, CL Quarter-finalists

England:

Qualified strongly for the upcoming Euros in 1st place, dropping just 2 points.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2038/40*  Euro 2040 Qualifying    1st       -
2040*     Euro 2040               Grp A     Finished 4th in Group A, Resigned
2040/42   World Cup 2042 Quals    1st       Qualified for World Cup
2042      World Cup 2042          Grp G     Finished 4th in Group G
2042/44   Euro 2044 Qualifying    1st       Qualified for Euro 2044

Turkey:

Stormed past the Germans to qualify top of their group in the quest to retain their title.

Season    League                  Position  Notes                  
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2040/42*  World Cup 2042 Quals    1st       Qualified for World Cup
2041*     Confederations Cup      1st       Won Confederations Cup
2042*     World Cup 2042          4th       World Cup 4th Placed
2042/44   Euro 2044 Qualifying    1st       Qualified for Euro 2044

[SRL88]

Cracking first season in Serie B. Hopefully next season you can push on for promotion.

Santos are much like Liverpool under Rafa I see.

[deltablue]

Great recovery even if you lost at the final stage in the end.

[SnakeXe]

Cracking first season in Serie B. Hopefully next season you can push on for promotion.

Santos are much like Liverpool under Rafa I see.

Thanks, yeah I think we have to aim for automatic promotion after the second half of the season we had. Weirdly enough the title odds came up before I stopped playing last night, and we're longer odds for the title this season than last, even though our media prediction has gone up to 7th from 14th.

Santos are a weird one. They've just won the Libertadores again to overtake Boca in the overall titles won stakes but I doubt they'll get anywhere near Corinthians in the league again. It's like the AI managers can't rotate the squad effectively enough to compete in the state championship, continental competition, and national championship in the same season.

Great recovery even if you lost at the final stage in the end.

I think that turnaround has to be one of my favourite seasons in this save, just to go from so awful at the start of the season to playing some absolutely fantastic football and blowing teams away in the second half was great. Very satisfying.

[SnakeXe]

2044 UEFA European Championship

Hosts: Switzerland & Austria

Holders: Turkey

Group Stage:

Group A:

| Pos   | Inf   | Team        |       | Pld   | Won   | Drn   | Lst   | For   | Ag    | G.D.  | Pts   | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 1st   | Q     | Finland     |       | 3     | 2     | 1     | 0     | 6     | 3     | +3    | 7     | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 2nd   | Q     | Portugal    |       | 3     | 1     | 1     | 1     | 5     | 3     | +2    | 4     | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 3rd   |       | Switzerland |       | 3     | 0     | 2     | 1     | 4     | 6     | -2    | 2     | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 4th   |       | Bulgaria    |       | 3     | 0     | 2     | 1     | 3     | 6     | -3    | 2     | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

Group B:

| Pos   | Inf   | Team    |       | Pld   | Won   | Drn   | Lst   | For   | Ag    | G.D.  | Pts   | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 1st   | Q     | Croatia |       | 3     | 2     | 1     | 0     | 6     | 3     | +3    | 7     | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 2nd   | Q     | Austria |       | 3     | 1     | 1     | 1     | 4     | 3     | +1    | 4     | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 3rd   |       | Serbia  |       | 3     | 0     | 2     | 1     | 3     | 5     | -2    | 2     | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 4th   |       | Belarus |       | 3     | 0     | 2     | 1     | 2     | 4     | -2    | 2     | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

Group C:

| Pos   | Inf   | Team                 |       | Pld   | Won   | Drn   | Lst   | For   | Ag    | G.D.  | Pts   | 
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 1st   | Q     | Sweden               |       | 3     | 2     | 0     | 1     | 5     | 4     | +1    | 6     | 
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 2nd   | Q     | Czech Republic       |       | 3     | 2     | 0     | 1     | 5     | 4     | +1    | 6     | 
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 3rd   | Q     | Italy                |       | 3     | 1     | 0     | 2     | 6     | 6     | 0     | 3     | 
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 4th   |       | Bosnia & Herzegovina |       | 3     | 1     | 0     | 2     | 3     | 5     | -2    | 3     | 
| -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

Group D:

| Pos   | Inf   | Team        |       | Pld   | Won   | Drn   | Lst   | For   | Ag    | G.D.  | Pts   | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 1st   | Q     | Netherlands |       | 3     | 2     | 1     | 0     | 8     | 3     | +5    | 7     | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 2nd   | Q     | Romania     |       | 3     | 1     | 1     | 1     | 3     | 4     | -1    | 4     | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 3rd   | Q     | England     |       | 3     | 1     | 0     | 2     | 5     | 8     | -3    | 3     | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 4th   |       | Germany     |       | 3     | 0     | 2     | 1     | 4     | 5     | -1    | 2     | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

Group E:

| Pos   | Inf   | Team  |       | Pld   | Won   | Drn   | Lst   | For   | Ag    | G.D.  | Pts   | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 1st   | Q     | Spain |       | 3     | 2     | 1     | 0     | 6     | 2     | +4    | 7     | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 2nd   | Q     | Russia|       | 3     | 2     | 0     | 1     | 8     | 5     | +3    | 6     | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 3rd   | Q     | France|       | 3     | 1     | 1     | 1     | 3     | 4     | -1    | 4     | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 4th   |       | Norway|       | 3     | 0     | 0     | 3     | 2     | 8     | -6    | 0     | 
| ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

Group F:

| Pos   | Inf   | Team    |       | Pld   | Won   | Drn   | Lst   | For   | Ag    | G.D.  | Pts   | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 1st   | Q     | Ukraine |       | 3     | 2     | 0     | 1     | 6     | 3     | +3    | 6     | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 2nd   | Q     | Turkey  |       | 3     | 2     | 0     | 1     | 5     | 2     | +3    | 6     | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 3rd   | Q     | Poland  |       | 3     | 1     | 1     | 1     | 3     | 6     | -3    | 4     | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------| 
| 4th   |       | Wales   |       | 3     | 0     | 1     | 2     | 2     | 5     | -3    | 1     | 
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|

Knockout Stage:

Second Round:

Austria p2 v 2 Finland

Turkey 2 v 3e Spain

Croatia 0 v 1 Italy

England 2 v 1 Ukraine

Portugal 2 v 0 Russia

Sweden 4 v 0 France

Netherlands 2 v 1 Poland

Czech Republic 1 v 2e Romania

Quarter Final:

Austria 1 v 2e Spain

England 1 v 2 Italy

Portugal 2 v 2p Sweden

Netherlands 2 v 2p Romania

Semi Final:

Spain e2 v 0 Romania

Italy 1 v 0 Sweden

Final:

Spain 0 v 3 Italy

Turkey didn't do so well, but a good tournament by England's standards. Italy continue the tradition started by the Netherlands of scraping through the groups by the skin of their teeth and going on to win it.

[Nobby_McDonald]

Another decent season with Verona. A push for Serie A next season perhaps...

[SnakeXe]

Another decent season with Verona. A push for Serie A next season perhaps...

Cheers Nobby! I certainly hope so...

[SnakeXe]

SnakeXe's Career - Season 33 Preseason Update - Hellas Verona

Board Expectations:

Serie B - Title challenge (minimum of Top Half, predicted 7th out of 22)

Coppa Italia - Fourth Qualifying Round

My Expectations:

Serie B - I really hope knocking the expectations up doesn't come back to bite me, but considering how we played for the latter half of last season I think we can do it

Coppa Italia - I'd like to think we have the squad to make a go of reaching the first round proper, but getting past the inevitable Serie A side in the third qualifying round is going to be the crucial part

Budgets:

Transfer: £363,000 (£239,000 remaining)

Wages: £162,468/week (£126,389/week currently)

Balance: £2,629,825 (+£655,312 since last season)

Squad:

I've made quite a few changes now from the squad that initially took us up from Serie C1A. I think we're probably a little overstocked in central midfield, so I'm toying with the idea of sending Olivieri out on loan to get a full season in the first team under his belt. For the rest I think I'll see who performs best then perhaps trim in January. Not that it's necessary, we're well inside our wage budget, I just like a lean squad. I'm slightly concerned that none of my wing-backs are accomplished in the position yet, but hopefully that won't be too much of an issue, and they're all at least competent.

Transfers:

Most of the outs are youth teamers who didn't make it, but from the first team squad exit Syrigos, who was getting on, Marcos, who wasn't the sort of left back I wanted in my team, Rui Oliveira, who wanted first team football, and Romanovic, who just didn't make an impact in Serie B. Plenty of quality coming in to replace them however, with Teófilo Maldonado a particular coup from AC Milan. The two I spent fees on are Dzafic, a keeper to offer Avanzini serious competition, and den Breejen, a Dutch right fullback from Modena, who looks Serie A quality. Jerome Vallée also makes a permanent move to us after his Auxerre contract expired following two impressive loan spells with us.

Key Men:

Goalkeeper/Defence

Teófilo Maldonado - DC - The former AC Milan player joins us with an Olympic gold around his neck, having won the competition with France Under 23s over the summer. He'll have a big part to say in whether he adds a (obviously equally prestigious) Serie B winners medal.

Midfield

Matteo Nurchi - DM/MC - Much will depend on whether Guerrero's replacement can manage another season at last's performance levels.

Ilija Radovanovic - M/AMLC/ST - Last season's leading assist maker needs to add a bit more consistently in open play (the majority were from set-pieces), but he's a valuable weapon to have.

Strikers

Salvatore Cortellessa - AMR/ST - Last season's January capture added real impetus to our promotion push, even if Vanzati caught the eye with his goals. I have a suspicion the ex-Juventus striker could have a bigger say this season.

[deltablue]

You have a very good core of players, especially Nurchi and Cortellessa, that look like a team that can cope in Serie A, let alone get promoted to it.

[Jonfun1980]

Took me sometime to read through, but awesome career.

[SnakeXe]

You have a very good core of players, especially Nurchi and Cortellessa, that look like a team that can cope in Serie A, let alone get promoted to it.

Yeah I'm surprised at the quality of players I'm able to attract, but then I've got a huge reputation which will help bring players in that other Serie B sides couldn't, especially when compared to what I'm used to at this level from playing small-to-big one club saves.

Took me sometime to read through, but awesome career.

Thanks, glad you've enjoyed it! Good job getting all the way through

[SnakeXe]

Season 33: Halfway House Update

We faced Reggina in the Coppa Italia 2nd qualifying round, full of hope an expectation for a successful season. In many ways, the humbling 0-1 defeat that followed, during which we just never looked like scoring despite having the bulk of the play, was a good wake-up call.

My post-match hairdrier certainly blew the cobwebs out for the league campaign, as we topped the table for the first couple of months of the season, as we won 10 of the first 14 matches, with just one loss away to fellow promotion challengers Rimini to blot the copybook. We then suffered a little dip in form, with the team just not looking as dangerous as we had in the close of last season. We ground out 3 draws and a second defeat of the season in the next 4 games, and I knew it was time to shake things up. I was hoping to wait until after the transfer window to do it, but I'd been working on a 4-3-3 in training which I hoped would vary up our attack whilst still incorporating the qualities of both Vanzati and Cortellessa. The bold move reaped instant rewards, as we stuffed Triestina 4-1 away and put in a highly impressive display to beat title challenging Bologna 2-0 at home.

That all leaves us 2nd in the table going into the winter break, 3 points off the leaders, who are (appropriately) Messina.

Forza i Mastini!

The Good

• Promotion challenge is on track
  
• Cortellessa has kicked on from last season as I'd hoped, with 11 goals in 17 starts
  
• The shift to 4-3-3 looks to re-invigorate our season the way the 3-5-2 did last time
  

The Bad

• We're a little reliant on Cortellessa for inspiration
  
• If not for the dip in form we'd be clear at the top
  
• Key players from last season like Nurchi, Radovanovic and Vanzati haven't hit the heights yet this campaign
  

Results - Serie B Table - Squad

[Raware]

Edging closer to Serie A