PGC: Tour de France for FM16

[AccyScott]

Martigues - Season Review

Not the start I had in plan I have to say for my debut season in the clan... it were always going to be a difficult challenge with very little money to spend on new players and a very small squad but I have to admit that I were disappointed to be relegated and sacked. One man I do have a lot to say for is Axel Prohouly, a man I signed in the summer window on a free, now aged 33 and he shown his experience and bagged a load of goals and assists at vital times although it's a team performance at the end of the day and ultimately we weren't good enough.

We started the season well, a win against Cretail after a disappointing but probably expected, loss in the cup to recently relegated Lille and then other points were picked up within the first five games. We then only picked up two points within eight games which saw us really slip down the table and this spell, personally, were the one that got us relegated. The same story were at the tail end of the season as well where we went 5 games without a win twice in the space of a few games and simply put, you need to get a few wins here and there which we just didn't seem to get.

Alongside the disappointment in the league we went out in the prelimanery round in the Coupe de la Ligue against Lille as previously said and we went out in the eighth round in the French Cup, as we lost to National side Dijon 4-2 following a win against fellow Ligue 2 side, Caen. Nothing can really be said again to excuse the poor season we had overall if I'm honest though I doubt the team will get immediate promotion due to how tight the finances are on that ship they run, it's very difficult to run a club with few players and then to only be given approx 20k a week to spend on wages is poor to bring in reinforcements.

Moving onto this squad I've been given a promotion to Montpellier in Ligue 1, the 2012 winners finished 13th last term however this season is set to be much more difficult as we've been predicated in a lowly 18th position. I was given around £2M to spend by the board and I've been looking to invest carefully, more focusing on the loans as I don't feel like I need to spend that money on players that I can't see being better than the ones currently at the club. I also have a few younger players in the squad, such as Claudio Francesconi who as I type this, has been getting offers of around £450k by top European clubs like Manchester United, Manchester City, Bayern Munich and Leverkusen however all offers have been rejected for the talented 15 year old left winger. Hopefully this season will be one of joy.

[AndyFal36]

Media Predictions[/u] (Season 15)

Ligue 1

[AndyFal36]

End Of Week Standings (Season 15)

Ligue 1

[AndyFal36]

End Of Season Standings (Season 15)

Ligue 1

[AndyFal36]

Summary - End Of Season 15

[Advantageous]

Alessandro Jacobo - AS Nancy Lorraine

My return to the French Leagues sees me take over newly relegated AS Nancy in Ligue 2. They're a club with a pretty sizeable bank balance and have given me a healthy £15m to spend during my first windows. I have 7 players who want out, 4 of those being the best players at the club. I'm a little wary about upsetting the morale and squad harmony within the club, as I need to sign replacements for those unhappy players and additional players to fit into my preferred formation. However, needs must if I'm going to have a settled squad going into my first season. The board are expecting that we win the league and no less. It's going to be a tough season, i'm predicting, and simply not getting the sack i'd be happy with. One or two transfer targets I've bought in look to be very good for this level, so fingers crossed.

[AndyFal36]

AndyF - Bourg-en-Bresse

Too many draws was our problem this season, with the same amount of wins as draws (16) we had to rely on results going our way on the final day of the season to qualify for next seasons Champions League albeit in the Qualifying Rounds. In all honesty it was a blessing in disguise Damien not being in game meaning his far superior talented assistant would take control for the final fixture for Nice and he did us the biggest favour as they beat PSG 3-1 against all the odds, ensuring Niro Herrigers 88th minute winner v AC Ajaccio wasn't in vain as we grabbed that 4th spot.






In this seasons Champions League we were drawn in a tough group against Schalke, Roma and Athletic Bilbao and my expectation was to grab 3^rd place and continue on in the Europa league for as long as we could. To my surprise we managed to qualify for the first KO stage as group winners going unbeaten in the 6 games, unfortunately Barcelona were to come in the 1^st Rnd and even thou we came out victors in 2^nd leg it wasn’t enough to turn around the deficit from the Nou Camp.







In the 5-0 victory over Bilbao the final goal was scored by Bryan Heynen which was voted goal of the tournament.




It was a poor showing again this tear in the domestic cups as we failed to reach at least a semi final in either competition.





Transfers




On a personal note I achieved 600 games in management at Bourg-en-Bresse.



Onto this season and my aim is once again to qualify for the Champions League, turn some of them draws from last season into victories and to hopefully get to a domestic cup final.

Until Next Time......

[SeanBhoy88]

Us.Orleans

This season wasn't exactly much fun my team didn't play with the same flair it did last season from day 1 and we often found ourselves digging holes for ourselves in matches and having to work really hard to get out of them, Starting with the league we stuttered from the get go with fixtures not being very kind to us starting away to Monaco draws were piling up and even when we played well we often conceded silly goals and did not compared to our usual high standards we were not anywhere near as lethal in front of goal, after a sketchy first half of the season we did eventually fight back with an Impressive win run of 17 games total both in league and Europe but it wasn't enough to catch Stu's impressive Lyon side who rarely drop a point, our side's hard work in coming back was severely undone with a run that came late on in the season that saw us winning one game in 5.

In the cups well... big disappointment we didn't really get anywhere in either nothing worth mentioning... the problem I have with the cups is they are way down the ladder of importance for me so I use them for rotating both tactics and players to keep the fitness in check but this time around excuses aside we were just poor and went out pretty early in both cups.

Europe - We looked good the entire time then boom against Bayern off the back of an impressive 17 game win run in the league and Europe we somehow didn't show up at all then we went on to lose in the league and then thumped again by Bayern this knocking us out in the quarter finals... BAH!!

This was my home form last season as always our home is a fort and we are extremely hard to beat!! if we could have the same commanding away form I would have the invincibles at Orleans!! I'm hoping that we can continue to keep our home a fort for the coming seasons.

This was one of our expensive signings last season one of only two signings actually as we sold a lot without spending a lot as per usual he done well in his debut season and I thought he was worth a mention, he will hopefully kick on this season and become the player his potential says he can be!

Young Stoll!! signed when he was 18 and finally showing signs of the player I know he can be, he is a long term replacement for Longhi who is demanding to much in wages nowadays for me to consider keeping him to much longer, this young lad broke into the side this year and at the tender age of 20 he made that transition look very easy and I'm excited to see what the future brings for the Stollmeister.

Window - Sold so far 120+m and lost one of my best players and only good AMC Tran for 60mil plus mill the selling has been a big part in my game at Orleans we have stayed well clear of debt over the year in transforming this club from micky mouse status to heavyweight status by selling to buy but when you become heavyweight and your still having to sell to buy its draining and for whatever reason it always seems to be the feature at Orleans, we get zero money and our balance dwindles away all season so we are left to sell more than we purchase to balance the books which I think upto now iv done a good job.

Bought nobody as yet but hunting continuously until the right buy pops up.

Grats to Stu on his treble and welcome back to clan B+ player Ali.

[FFCStu1428]

Stuart - Lyon

That's how you respond to a season of doom and gloom. You go out there and blow the league apart. 101 points is a new French record and one i hope stay around for a long time. This season in the league we were outstanding and the draws i had last season where a thing of the past. i added well in the summer in a aim to get more goals from midfield and the plan worked a treat, Sunday George added 38 league goals to his name and maybe should of went onto 50 but for some reason he fell away towards the end of the season but we still found ways to win, a sneeky 1-0 here and there was enough to see us over the line and for the 2nd time in 3 year become champions.

Cup

Its was a case of might might of been. Winning the french up at the end of the season is always nice but we lost in the final of the league cup 2-1 ATT. I have no idea how we lost as we bossed the whole game. 2 break away goals is what cost us but we played just as well in that game as we did the whole season so i guess it was just damn bad luck that stopped us. We also won the Pre season cup against sean so that make it a treble for the season but it was just a shame i could't do all 4.

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE

Guess what, yep knocked out in the semi final again!! this time by Real, I dont know what we have to do it make a final in this. We played so well over the 2 games and went out not knowing what eles could of been done to have won . My team cant play any better than what they did so i guess it comes down to the players getting found out by the top class sides. But this time Sunday George had not scored in 8 games and i think if he was still on fire like he was most of the season then there is no doubt i my mind that we would of made the final and maybe even of won it such was our form we had showed all season but it was not to be and so the semi final hoodoo hits lyon again .

SUMMER WINDOW

Key players are needed to get win the champions league, the side is strong but seems to be getting found out. so i brought in what i think will help me win the league and champions league next season. i still have 1 more signing to make but he is out hurt so have to wait a little longer before i am able to make my last signing. But here is the business i have done so far

Well that's that on another wonderful season for me and my lyon side. Maybe next time i can tell you about my champions league Final Victory. Till then its great to see ali back with us after studying hard outside of FM lets see if he can join the part soon.

More soon

[Tiki Tak'n Turner]

DAMUS MAXIMUS II

Managers Profile:

Season: 2029/30

Club: AS Nancy Lorraine

League: Ligue 1

Media Prediction (17th):

Season expectations:

Season budgets:

Our so called tycoon board were not making things easy in the run up the season, allocating a laughable 72k transfer budget and a wage budget lower than what we're currently spending.

As a result, we couldn't afford ANY new signings to improve the squad, and even had to let a few squad players leave to reduce wage bill.

This had the predictable effect on our results, losing our opening 6 games before a mini revival.

24th oct results:

By mid january we were down to 17th in Ligue 1.

26th jan league(17th):

26th jan results:

The board were getting restless, but despite a balance of 22mil, the board still redfused to give any cash to strengthen squad, which effectively sealed both our fates. A month later the inevitable finally happened.

27 FEB SACKED

DAMUS MAXIMUS TAKES CHARGE AT NICE.

I decided to go nice, they were currently under achieving, lying in 12th despite having ambitions for Euro qualification.

There wouldn't be time to change their fortunes in what remained of this season, but hopefully next season will bring a little success.

[AndyFal36]

Media Predictions (Season 16)

Ligue 1

[AndyFal36]

 

Media Predictions (Season 16)

Ligue 2

[AndyFal36]

End Of Week Standings (Season 16)

Ligue 1

[AndyFal36]

End Of Week Standings (Season 16)

Ligue 2

[AndyFal36]

Bourg en Bresse - AndyF

At the halfway stage in Season 16 and we are still in the mix for a trophy this year with us fighting it out still on all 4 fronts. We have managed to turn around the ridiculous amount of draws from last season into well deserved 3pts as you can see from the current tables, which sees us considerably closer to the top 2 of Sean (Orleans) & Stuart (Lyon) than in previous seasons.

In the cups domestically Ali's unbeaten AS Nancy awaits in an eagerly awaited League Cup Quarter Final clash and we are currently waiting for the 10th Round of the French Cup to be drawn after beating Marseilles 5-2 in the previous round as we try and reach the Final for the first time in 7 seasons.

After losing to Barca in the Best Play-off stage of the Champions League we dropped in to the Europa league group stages and ran out group winners taking maximum points and now face Spartak Moscow in the 1st Knockout round.

We have made a massive profit on overall transfers so far this season with 3 players each leaving for more than £25M contributing in bringing in over £100M thru player sales and with transfer expenditure being less than 50% of the total transfer income this has boosted our war chest for new players to just over £200M.

So that's it for now and I'm hoping that I'll be bring you news of some silverware in my full end of season post.

Until Next Time......

[AndyFal36]

End Of Season Standings (Season 16)

Ligue 1

[AndyFal36]

End Of Season Standings (Season 16)

Ligue 2

[AndyFal36]

Summary - End Of Season 16

[FFCStu1428]

Stuart Lyon

It was always going to hard to repeat last season dominance but there was something missing from our game all season. The fast pace from last season had gone and it at times it was all to slow and easy to defend against. Sean showed that in the games we faced each other and then proved that my right back was nowhere near the 4 stars the game had to down to be, his side tore me apart every time we played each other. I ended up finishing 3 points off Sean in the end when in fact it should of been alot more as i was never really in the hunt and knew that i much needed clean out was needed in the suummer. To double down on that way of thinking came when i went out int he `1st knock round of the champions league to Spurs, 1-0 home win in the 1st leg saw me get a early away goal at white hart lane, but i wasn't sure of my side by now and the weakness of the side start to show again and again My Captian for 5 years Rafa made a big error and cost a goal just after we had scored, from them in it was all spurs a 2nd before HT had the score 2-2 on Agg i laid into the players hoping for a reaction all i got was a England style shambles. Spurs rocked the bar and the post and with minutes to go they got a 3rd and i was out of the champions league first round for the first time in my lyon history. Sean also went out at the shame stage and i think we have both fallen into a trap by looking at each others side and not whats going on over seas. Yes were are now kings of the french league but apart from andy who is now in the mix the league is very weak and we both got found out this season for sure. Below is how my season went

SUMMER WINDOW

Soon as they last game was played i listed all the players i wanted out. so far i have sold over 160 million and brought in around 80 there was a little debt because of the champions league exit but that is now sorted and i sit is a balance of 100million. I signed a RB 2 Center Halfs, i also have a right winger on loan from chelsea for the season who i am very happy with. below is my list of business so far, and i haven't Finished yet.

Update on window to follow

SEASON AHEAD

I hope my new players gel fast as i need to get off to a flyer, Sean and Andy are the main dangers again tho Ali is now back in the top league after a great first season, with his millions and skills as a manger, so who knows what he can do, i know he will he out to his mark on the game so we will all have give him respect. I have a hard start to the season with Sean and Andy in to play in the first 3 games, We also play each other early in the new year so these games are what will win the league for someone as there is now little in the way that stops us, yes we all have a slip up here and there but over all teams are now beaten and beaten well by all of us.

Well that's you all on a dreadful season for me and my Lyon side

Cya next time

[Advantageous]

Alessandro Jacobo - AS Nancy Lorraine

The Rebuilding Job

I spoke a little about the rebuilding job that was needed after this side faced what was probably an unexpected relegation under the hands of the AI. A vast number of key players wanted out and there was no persuading them otherwise. In the the weeks that followed my appointment, a rapid fire sale commenced and several players were shown the door for relatively small transfer fees. Several players came in with my transfer policy focusing on players from the transfer list and the free transfer market. Complete lack of knowledge scouting wise at this point limited my options here.

Ligue 2

It was a great year for my side as we ran out comfortable winners at the season's close. The season started well and my tactical philosophy looked solid and functional. We weren't playing amazing football, but we were defensively secure and untroubled throughout the early stage of the campaign. A series of 1-0s took us to the top of the league. From this point in, we never really looked back. With the media establishing us as the favourites for promotion, teams sat back and allowed us to play our game. A 28 game unbeaten run in all competitions was my personal highlight; ended by one AndyF's Bourg-en-Bresse side in the Coup de la Ligue Quarter Final. The only real blip occurred in late September when we drew 5 games in a row.

Cups

A decent showing in both reaching the quarter finals of the Coupe de la Ligue and the Coupe de France 11th round. Board expectations exceeded. Boxes ticked.

Stand Out Players

My central midfield maestro, Kamil Versely, pulled the strings in Ligue 2. Rotting in the Man City Reserves side, I splashed out £4.8m and brought him in to rejuvenate what was a physically weak part of my side. 8 goals, 12 assists and an average rating of 8.06 ensured his survival in the first 11 I plan to take into Ligue 1.

Kamil Versely - Central Midfielder

Another of my summer signings saw the young Dutch wingback arrive on a free transfer having been released by PSV. A pretty good all rounder, he proved to be a key player shuttling up and down the right flank, providing crosses and crunching tackles when needed. Another player I plan on keeping for my first taste of Ligue 1 football.

Kurt Van-Brouwer - Right Wing Back

[SeanBhoy88]

Us Orleans

This was a season with lots to remember and lots to forget for my side first of all it was back to winning ways in the league we notched up another league title adding to our already strong history, this was our fourth top tier title and it went down with a bang lots of goals were scored in fact we broke the record for goals scored, and we went through an immense patch of conceding very little which eventually unfolded later on as tiredness set in, the highlight of this season was changing my tactics to play with 2 up front to suit my lack of attacking midfielders and to get my young ST Breteir more involved in the first team and oh boy was he involved he was first class any chance he got.

In the cups my side had a mixed bag one we won against Fallon's tidy Bourg side in the final which was a tight game which he then proceeded to beat me in the league a couple of games later but at least I won the right one eh Fallo?

and the other I went out early but again the luck of the draw was far from on my side and despite being 3-1 up away at Monaco we wound up tossing it away and losing on penatlies ( harsh ) but that's football.

Europe is were I was disappointed this season after winning the champions league a 2 seasons back I thought my side would be on the right path to be at least late participants in the tournament each year, but we went out in the first knockout round to a decent Athletic side... this was a game we lost 1-0 away from home and I have absolutely no idea how we lost home or away we had so many chances probably 45 shots total with around 8 CCC and a missed pen and we got a wopping 0 goals between both legs it was incredible!!! but sometimes its just not meant to be and that's exactly what it was.

We won the French super cup also beating PSG on penalties... having dominated the game from the first whistle PSG's only time in my half resulted in a goal but a domestic treble none the less.

This is my striker Francis Kabeya I thought I would give him a mention as yet again he has won the top goal scorer award in the league quite an awesome statistic from him to have won it 3 out of the last 5 seasons and I'm pretty sure at least one of them he had a pretty bad injury so yeah that's fantastic this guy is class and id love to keep him but the contract he want's and probably deserves is a lot of money for my club and I'm floating about with the idea of selling him if I can actually bring myself round to he prospect of losing such a talent.

The afore mentioned Bretier who had an outstanding season coming into the side more regularly, this is the man who I hope is a long term replacement for the explosive Kabeya!! this young lad has a bit of everything and when I work on his weaknesses over the next year or two I reckon he can progress a lot.

This is the incredible amount of goals my side managed this season its pretty good viewing when your watching your team some games smash sides 10-0, 9-0, 9-1 as I have done these past years but then you get the odd game you have 30/40 attempts and don't even find the net and your left completely baffled :D but that's the game we all love!

Window - Quite so far out with a few unhappy one's and still really being picky over who I bring in to be fair, a much more youthful Orleans this year to be expected.

Aims - Trophies!! With Stu re-doing his team and meaning business I reckon it will be hard to keep him down for long, also Andy is really bursting on the scene now it won't be long before a 2 horse race turns into a 3 horse race with Ali

limping not to far back with the stragglers lol ( jokes )

Good season lads and grats to Ali winning the league so easily on his comeback season.

[AndyFal36]

AndyF - Bourg-en-Bresse[

Its taken 10 years but finally there is another addition to the Bourg trophy cabinet as the Europa League trophy now sits proudly next to the Ligue 2 trophy won back in Season 6.

We had a fantastic run in the Europa League after losing heavily to Barcelona in the CL Best Play-Off stage back in August, winning all of our 15 games picking up some great victories along the way scoring an impressive 45 times and only conceding a measly 8 goals, leading to Ljubomir Kovacevic picking up the trophy in Porto after beating Dortmund 3-1 in the final.











With us in European competition I thought things might have suffered domestically in the league but this was not the case as we ended the season 24pts better off than the previous campaign finishing in 3rd place on 88pts as we looked to muscle into the frame for the title which in the end was not to be.
On a positive note it was still our best performance in top flight with us closing the gap dramatically on the top 2 of Sean from 30pts to 7pts and Stu to 4pts from 37pts and with our spending power enabling us to bring in the best talent I'm hoping we can kick on and break the monopoly of Orleans and Lyon next year.



There was another chance of a trophy this season as we reached the final of the Coupe de la Ligue but unfortunately it wasn't to be as we succumbed to a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Seans Orleans, one of three human managed sides I had to face in the 4 games played in the competition.



I don't know what it is when it comes to the French Cup we just don't seem to perform in this competition having only reached the final once in 2023/24 and another semi final in 2028/29 and this season was no different going out early on.



Transfers




With the profit from transfers to go with the £25M we garnered in prize money and not to forget the TV money and bonuses from our European escapade we now have a transfer kitty of £220M going into Season 17. We have smashed our transfer record in this summers transfer window bringing in a Spanish international to partner Kalinichenko as our number one defensive pairing more on that at a later date.

We also have needed to invest in our facilities after a recent downgrade forcing the club to splash out £2.5m on the Stade Municipal the clubs training ground.



At the end of the season club legend and the clubs all time scorer Ulrich Nnomo brought the curtain down on a fantastic 20 year career, finishing on a fantastic 289 goals for Bourg.



Right I cant think of anything else to put so that's it from me for now as we head on to a new campaign.

Until Next Time.......

[Tiki Tak'n Turner]

DAMUS MAXIMUS II

Season: 2030/31

Club: OGC Nice

League: Ligue 1

Media Prediction (9th):

When given the boot from AS Nancy midway through last season i had 2 options for what to do next, either choose another ligue 1 club, or drop down to ligue 2. I knew choosing another ligue 1 club was unlikely to bring success due to the low manager reputation that comes with the creation of a new profile, the senmsible option would be to drop down to ligue 2.

Guess that makes me an idiot for ignoring my own advice and choosing Nice in ligue 1 as my next club, I regretted it almost instantly and exactly what i was afraid would happen, did happen.

The squad were continually unhappy and nearly every teamtalk resulted in half the teams reactions highlighted in red.

On the pitch we just couldn't score and lost almost every game until i was finally put out of my misery.

SACKED.

STADE RENNAIS:-

After choosing Stade Rennais in ligue 2, they already had a relatively strong squad i was happy could see out the remainder of the season, before looking to strengthen in the summer, which i did.

SEASON REVIEW:

But from out of nowhere, AFTER THE SEASON HAD FINISHED, the board requested a meeting to discuss squad harmony, I didn't notice the message in time and got sacked for not attending!!

NOT MY BEST SEASON!!

[AndyFal36]

Media Predictions (Season 17)

Ligue 1

[AndyFal36]

End Of Week Standings (Season 17)

Ligue 1

[AndyFal36]

End Of Week Standings (Season 17)

Ligue 2

[Athrill]

[Athrill]

[AndyFal36]

End Of Season Standings (Season 17)

Ligue 1

[AndyFal36]

End Of Season Standings (Season 17)

Ligue 2

[AndyFal36]

End Of Season Standings (Season 17)

National

[Athrill]

[Advantageous]

Alessandro Jacobo - AS Nancy Lorraine

Ligue 1

Pre-season began with the daunting task of preparing for a campaign where the minimum expectation was to finish in the Europa qualifying places. Not an easy task for a newly promoted side, but we did have £15m in the transfer budget to play with.

In the end it turned out to be a successful season. At one point, we were holding our own in 4th place and looked like securing Champions League football, but our performances tailed off in the last 10 games of the season and we limped over the line, all be it 10 or so points clear of the team in 7th. The highlights of the season are undoubtedly holding our own against the big boys, taking two points off of Stu's Lyon and knocking Sean's US Orleans out of the cup. We ran Fallon's Bourg-en-Bresse side close twice, eventually falling to a 2-2 draw and a 2-1 defeat, despite being up in both games.

Cups

A decent showing in both cups, eventually falling in the latter stages to two of the human sides. Expectations are greater this season with quarter finals expected in both and the Europa League thrown into the mix.

Performances

Transfer listed central defender who was signed for my first season in Ligue 1 for £4.3m. Fairly inconsistent at times, but generally solid presence as the back and rarely let his marker go. With a resolute personality, he has been an ideal tutor to my younger players, a select few of which are on the verge of breaking into the first team.

George Bayemi - Central Defender

[AndyFal36]

AndyF - Bourg en Bresse



After patiently waiting 10 years to win our second trophy a third was a short time coming just a few months later as we swept a good Spurs aside beating them comprehensively 3-0 at Telia Parken (Denmark) in the European Super Cup.




Rather disappointingly that was to be the only bit of silverware we would collect this season but with a little bit of luck and good fortune here and there we might of won all 5.

In the league it was heartbreak for the players as we ended runners up after finishing the season on a club record 99pts and it needed a new Ligue 1 points record of 102pts by Seans Orleans side to stop us. Its was also sickening that after a 50 game unbeaten run in the league stretching back to February last year and with only 2 games left an 'Invincibles' season was on the cards only for us to suffer our only loss to 14th place Lille and finally put an end to our title hopes.







Runners Up in both cup competitions was hard to take as well especially after both defeats came against Stu. In the first of the finals the League Cup I thought we was unfortunate not to get at least a goal in 90 mins to try and take the game into extra time but it wasn't to be. In the French Cup it was a different story as Lyon took control of the game after a fairly even start with a goal apiece but we soon found ourselves 3-1 down after 33mins with Sunday George causing havoc, we were in with a fighting chance of nicking something with 10mins left as Curbelos second goal of the game made the score 3-2. Any hopes were dashed with 5 mins left on the clock as a Lyon counter attack from one end of the pitch to the other following on from our corner ended with Diallo slotting home and killing the game off.





In the Champions League this year there was no play-off for us and it was straight into the group stages were Liverpool, Celtic and Benfica awaited. We narrowly qualified from the group finishing 2nd on goal diff whilst not playing anywhere near the levels I know the team can with all 3 wins coming by a single goal margin.
The draw was very much on our side as we avoided the elite and got drawn against Dynamo Kyiv which I was happy with and the 2-leg tie went as I wished running out 8-3 winners. In the QF we almost blew it we were 6-3 up on agg and leading 4-1 on the night with 10mins of the game to go we went to pieces and as the full time whistle went we was luckily still to be in the competition as Spurs rallied level at 4-4 and had chances to win it but we survived to go through on away goals.
In the SF Man Utd waited and it was an away goal that was our downfall as Karlo Matics' 92nd min leveller in the 1st leg to make it 1-1 was the difference over the 2 games as it would of been Bourg in the final on away goals after losing 3-2 at Old Trafford.





Transfers

This year for the first time we spent all our transfer budget and the revenue from sales as we broke our record transfer buy not once but twice as we looked to improve the teams defensive frailties from seasons past. The first of these saw 23 year Adonis Jiménez (39 caps) join from Athletic Bilbao for £68M the Spaniard will without doubt become one of the first names on the team sheet as our No1 defender for years to come. That fee was broken when Australian born German international Cameron Casey joined from Leverkusen after the clubs agreed on a fee of £72M and I'm hoping both will now see out the rest of his careers at Bourg and propel us on to the next step by winning trophies.




With us performing well the crowds turned up week in week out so much so we beat our previous average best just short of 1K with it climbing to over 34,000.











Until Next Time.....

[SeanBhoy88]

Us Orleans

Another season of mixed emotions for the mighty Orleans! in the league we were absolutely fantastic and as much as Andy provided one hell of a challenge my boys managed to pull a bit extra out of the bag when needed, a grand total of 102 points were scored this season beating the all time record which was set by Stu 3 years ago ( 101 ).

Myself and Andy were both unbeaten for around 27 games each in the league and when I finally lost a game leaving Andy the sole unbeaten side in the league I thought my days were numbered at the top, but with my slip up Andy's came shortly after and it remained very tight throughout this was a nervy season for all kinds of reasons one slip and you were potentially losing the title, in the Cups my side were rank rotten we slumped out of one fairly early to Ali's camp in my own box type tactics, we went down 1-0 after missing a host of chances and in the other we went pretty deep but eventually lost to a PSG.

Champions league.... Hmmm well, we got further than last year but having drawn Man City at a time we had a lot of injuries was the last thing we needed, they swept us away in the second leg and we were left with a red face, I had folk out of position and a completely new back line it really hurt our morale! but again we didn't get any sort of luck with our squad and we will go again this season.

This is our final standings as you can see 102 points was an unbelievable effort, Fallon had his best season by a country mile and only went down to a record breaking season which is incredibly unlucky iv more or less done everything and anything there is to do with this side that's why I often want to leave in favour of a fresh adventure within the game, but there is an illustrious trophy in steam that you get for being at one club for twenty years I'm chasing that one before I go.

Something that was achieved this season! the Us Orleans gaffer topped the hall of fame for French managers, something I am very proud of and hope to build on before I leave the club when I hit the 20 seasons, my CV over the last two FM's is pretty impressive and I hope to carry that on into the next one, and when Sean Jnr applies to the clan in ten years time when he is old enough the legend of his old man's legacy will be told with amazement

This is the kid I bought a few years ago and often loaned him out to develop, last season was his debut season slotting in for the class Helg Karg who had to be sold for 42.5m in January due to his unhappiness and upsetting the camp,

he slotted in when called upon like he had played there all his days and I reckon with the right development this season and more game time under his belt we will see his ability shoot up.

Window - Nothing happening yet again selling to buy as we do every season, few big players gone and two kids brought in I'm looking to loan one or two to bulk up our options as I firmly believe it was the lack of depth we had that severely let us down in Europe last season.

Congrats to the promoted Pedro who done a Nice job :P Also Jonas back in action this season got promotion as well grats on that buddy!! and Ali well done on a solid season at the first attempt in Ligue 1.

Good season lads, onto the next! good luck to all.

[Athrill]

[Jonas Christensen]

FC Nantes

After a few seasons break, the Dane is back and trying to finally crack the nut of FM16... So far, my FM16 path has only led to one real success: When I won L2 a few seasons back...

This time, I took over FC Nantes, who were in 2nd place with a 7 point lead down to 3rd with not too many games to go.

A fairly safe club to take, I thought... A good position, a certain club stature and good finances... Or so I thought... The finances turned out to be less than great, and I knew that it would take some cleaning up at the end of the season...

On top of the finances not being great, the team suffered from several key players being out, when I joined, and 1 player who only recovered to play 1 game for the remainder of the season... This meant, that despite the great position, I took them in, it took some struggling with getting the tactics to work out, as I often had to play one or two players out of position... And also, I haven't really mastered the tactics of FM16...

It didn't help, that 4 out of the first 5 games were against the clubs fighting to take me on for promotion...

Nevertheless, we managed to get our act together in the final matches, and secured promotion to L1, although not in style, I have to say... We finished 3rd with 4 points down to 4th...

We're in for a big task in L1, as the team wasn't really good enough when we went up... The defence was lacking (but my best DC was out the entire half season, I was in charge), and the keepers were all on loan...

The best players were actually the strikers...

Gregory Garcia netted 20 times, my main target striker, who played alongside Ngoy, a fan favourite... Ngoy was let go though after the season, as he was ancient and on a high wage... Much to the fans dismay though...

[FFCStu1428]

Stuart Lyon

Not the kinda season i had in mind . I went into the season with high hopes of taking back the league sean, i ended the season in 3rd place but with the league cup and French cup in the bag. it wasn't still the 2nd half of the season that we started to find our form, after a shocking 6-0 loss to sean things had to change. I have 2 19 year old's playing at the back for me and there was a clear weakness when they both played togetter, dont get me wrong they will be super stars in the years to come but at the time were still finding there feet. After that i swap things about abit and it worked like a treat, payback on Sean came in the way of knocking him out of the French cup in a 1-2 Victory. That win seem to change the whole mindset of my side and we went on a good run till the end of the season , we lost 2 more league games but i was resting players and throwing in my young player getting them much needed game time in a bid to bring them on as fast as i could.

By the time the season was over Cris and Kafion were showing signs of the class i was hoping, this came in the way of my 4-2 Cup final win over Andy, With Sunday George on form after being out for much of the season with a knee injury George put on a 1st half show that will stay long in the minds of all lyon fans, On one attack he picked the ball up in on the half way line and went on his merry way taking on 2,3 players before dancing his way into the box only to for the keeper to push it away for a corner. He set up the 1st goal and scored the 2nd and maybe should of added another before HT but a 3-1 lead should of seen the game done, But Andy came back strong in the 2nd half and really put me under some pressure this paid off in the 81st where he pulled a goal back to make it 3-2, I was playing on the counter and knew with andy getting that 2nd goal he would throw as many players forward as he could, A corner to him was cleared by Denker My center half it found sidibe who picked a 60 yard cross feld pass to my loan signing from Chelsea Millutinvic who then did the same back to Sidibe who saw Diallo busting a gut after running the whole lenth of the pitch, Sidibe pinged a cross that he can ran onto the volly home, 4-2 job done. We had Saved our season by doing the double and my 2 young stars were solid all game with Cris having a 6.9 and Kafion 7.4 having there best games for me in there lyon tops.

Learning on the job

Came though the youth, starting to show his class

over all of my season

SUMMER WINDOW

With my youth now showing there talent its been a easy summer for me. Adding a depth to the side. I round Jorge in the Jan window, he was leaving on a free and was not seen by anyone from clan to my suprise so i snaped him up. My nd signing is a french winger and much needed back up. Hes a player i know but thought he would be better than what my scout report told me. 4 star said the scout only 2.5 star when he signed. I was not best pleased with my scout but he will fit into my side well. I may by one more player but i am in little rush.

SEASON AHEAD

I hope for a injury free season with George, if he can stay fit then were go close to the league , He makes my team tick and is the class act any team would love to have. Andy and Sean will be fighting it out with me again so the battle is on. Pedro and Jonas have joined us in the league after a very good season in League 2 so will be interesting to see how they handle the league. The dark horse is Ali, A great season for him saw him add some top players this summer and will want to spoil the party for the rest of us.

That's all. till next time

[Tiki Tak'n Turner]

DAMUS REPEATUS MAXIMUS

Managers Profile:

Season: 2031/32

Club: Le Mans

League: French National

Media Prediction (3rd) :

Season expectations:

After a brief break spanning just over half a season, it was time to choose my next club, i opted to start from scratch and take a club back in National league, Le Mans looked a solid choice.

18th feb joined:

They were currently sitting 8th place

18th feb league (8th):

on a decent run of form

18th feb form :

with only 3 months remaining of season the boards ambitions of promotion looked unlikely.

our form remained after taking charge remained consistant, consistantly inconsistant that is and i could do no more than maintain their league position of 8th.

12th may league (8th) :

END OF SEASON REVIEW:

[AndyFal36]

Summary - End Of Season 17

[AndyFal36]

Media Predictions (Season 18)

Ligue 1

[AndyFal36]

Media Predictions (Season 18)

National

[AndyFal36]

End Of Week Standings (Season 18)

Ligue 1

[AndyFal36]

End Of Week Standings (Season 18)

National

[Athrill]

[AndyFal36]

Bourg-en-Bresse Péronnas 01 - AndyF

So we're midway thru our eighteenth season in clan and my 16th at Bourg and once again at this stage we are in contention of gaining some more silverware come the end of the season as we are still in the mix in all 4 competitions.

In the league our next game is do or die as we find ourselves now in 2nd place after an extra session on Friday and everyone is looking to avenge our only defeat so far this season a 5-1 humiliation versus current unbeaten league leaders Orleans, a win reduces the gap to 2 points and its game on but a defeat and its goodbye to any hopes of winning the league this season. I will also need to keep an eye out on Stu who is always there or there abouts and Pedro who is having a great 1st season in
Ligue 1 with Nice who are both close behind on my tail.





In the Champions League we have eased thru the group stage and UEFA have been kind to us in the first Knockout Round draw as we face a two legged tie against Turkish giants Galatasaray when teams like Man City and Chelsea awaited. There was also a few shocks as Arsenal, Real Madrid, Napoli and Spurs (winners 2 seasons ago) failing to make into the knockout stages.



In the cups domestically were are still in with a shout on both fronts and I am delighted with outcome of the League Cup semi final draw as we avoided facing the big hitters of Lyon and Orleans.





Until Next Time......

[AndyFal36]

End Of Season Standings (Season 18)

Ligue 1

 

[AndyFal36]

End Of Season Standings (Season 18)

National

[FFCStu1428]

Stuart - lyon 

Another season over and another one that ends in disappointment. For all my hard work and tactic changes i couldn't get in the mix at anytime this season. My main am before the season was to sure up the back 4 as there had been some major issues with alot of errors and mistakes made by all of them, This i managed to do really well and 20 games into the season i had only leaked 8 goals, That said i had taken away the free flowing style that the fans had come used to since i took charge and i was failing to finish teams off . George was back to his best but he couldn't do it on his own and no matter how good he is. My midfield had dried up with goals for some reason and i was left off the pace all season long. By the time the season was drawing to a end tho i was on a good run of form but  was miles from winning the league and getting a beat down from Pedro was the lowest point of my time as lyon boss but things were about to change for me and my side. 

After the loss to pedro i didnt really know what to, the club was losing all kinds of money and it seemed that i would have another summer of selling to buy, i was at rock bottom and for the 1st time i started to question myself and the club as a whole, then me and the fans got the news we all wanted to here, A TAKEOVER!! , Could this be the change in fortune we needed, the chairman had done his best for me and the club but the club had grown  so much that it was him that was holding us back, tho he tried he's best to give me the funds i needed each season he just didn't have that financial clout that the likes of Andy had. If this take over could happen i would hope the new owners would see that the team needed investment in a big scale. After 3 weeks of talking and at one stage talks almost breaking down a agreement was made and the takeover was compleat, and i got my wish to, funds were made for me in a big way and i couldn't wait for the season to end so i could added the class of players that i need. I had a list of players on my shortlist for years but i was unable to pay the prices these clubs wanted. This was all about to change. 

 

CUPS 

I had a good run in the French cup getting back to the final again where i lost to sean. His side was far stronger than mine and has been for sometime now we did our best but the power of his side was all to much, we didn't play well and was rightly taken to task over it we lost 3-0 ( 1-0 the score becasue of a reload was needed as andy forgot his champions league final game lol ) and to be honest it could of been a lot more if not for my goalkeeper. 

Champions league 

5 Semi finals never a final, and now its 6. After a good group campain we made it to semi final my hopes were high that i might be able to win it as i had beaten Barca 4-0 away from home and found myself up aganist andy who i had beaten 2-1 with 10 men only a week before in the league. The 1st leg was a home and i scored 1st andy then got the away goal close to half time. 2nd half we went for it and got our 2nd. We had a chance at the end to make it 3-1, George was put through one on one with the keeper but missed the chance to score as he hit it right at him, it was to be a costly miss as the 2nd leg the mistakes at the back raised there Ugly head. i was blown away 4-0 by a very good side, I had a chance when i was 1-0 down and really should of scored, George once again found himself one on one with the keeper but this time the keeper made a outstanding save pushing it onto the post and away for a corner. That was the 2nd time George had missed and we never got a sniff after that. Andys side took me apart, my keeper was outstanding, even tho we lost 4-0 we could of lost by 10. So again i was out of Champions league for the 6th time in the semi Final. The curse goes on. 

SUMMER WINDOW

For the 1st time since i became Lyon boss i found myself able to add class to myside without having to sell. Like i said i had a list my players i was wanting to sign for a couple of years, Now i was on a mission, I knew where i was weak and i knew what i wanted. I started of with 2 free signings from Arsenal, this was before the take over it was so this gave me much needed depth already, Tho the midfielder needs work i had to sign him as at the time i had no money, he signed for me only to be out for 5 months with a broken leg ( just my luck). Anyway my here is my business this window. 

My 1st signing was a on a free from Arsenal and was before the takeover. Was signed as i hope to improve him. Out now for 5 months with broken leg and i dont think he will able to improve much. Not really a risk on a free but cant see him making the 1st team anytime soon.

My first real signing. Again on a free but a great bit of business. Will help the side in a big way and will be pushing to make the left wing his own.

Again on a free from Arsenal but the 1st choice french RB is maybe the best free signing i have made. Was very lucky nobody eles spotted him and brings much needed depth to the right back spot

The first of my big summer signing. This powerhouse of a Center half is what i have been needing for sometime. I have had him on my shortlist since he was 19 and with the money i got from the takeover he was the 1st player i bid on. I am so pleased to have finally got my main man

 

A all round player who can play in a number of spots. I have brought him to be the anchor man of my side. He is big stong good on the ball and loves to get stuck in, Much needed player to break up the play and will be extra support for my back 4.

 

Much needed fire power added to my front line. tho i have 2 great strikers i needed a 3rd who was just as good. Sambu brings that and much more to my side. Only 24 i hope the best is yet to come, And with George now 28 will be an ideal replacement for years to come. George is also helping the  lad out so fingers crossed he can be just as good in a couple of years.

 

 

Last but by no means least fran is a all round beast of a Center midifielder. With bags of speed and great vision for a pass frans reading of the game is just what i have needed in the center of the park, still young Fran is the class i have been looking for. He is going to be a monster of a player and i can wait to see him i acton

 

 

SEASON AHEAD.

I go into this season with a very strong side, If we can play to our best then we will have a chance of winning the league. Sean has now dropped back down to League 2 after winning everything he wanted. Its a shame because i liked our battles even tho he had the upper hand most of the time i was still able sometimes to give him a bloody nose. So my Rival now is Andy and Pedro. Andy has a side just as strong as mine and he signed the monaco keeper for a whopping 80million. I could only go to 50million after all the players i had signed but it shows what power andy has in the market to be able to splash that kinda cash out. Pedro on the other hand is punching way above his weight. After a truly Stunning season beating me into 3rd place pedro finds himself in the champions league, he has little money and will have to balance the champions league and the Domistic campain something he has not had to do. This was one of the reasons why he beat me to 3rd as i had to rest my best players when i was fighting it out with andy in Europe, It's not to say pedro wouldn't have finsh 3rd anyway but there is no doubt if you dont have enough good players in your side then your going to find it real hard to fight on all front. This will be pedros biggest test for sure. 

As for the Others 

Ali - a good season again for ali hes still finding his best formation but once hes know what hes going with exspect him to be fighting it out with the big boys very soon. Ali is a hard nut to crack and he is mindful of tactics more so than any other player, he knows how to set up a side to get a bore draw as he also knows how to counter attack you to death. hes a  Dangerous player but also a mastermind. 

Sean - Well hes dropped down to league 2 with olympics marseille. Sean has won everything this game has to offer and said it was time for a new challange. I get his reasons behind the move as most of us like to build a side from the ground up, but i would of loved him to have stayed where he was, selfish on my side but i will miss our ding dong battles. 

Jonas - Went down this season but has a better side now than he did when he went up, he has a stiker that scored 20 goals last season and if he can keep hold of him while adding some much needed class at the back then he will bounce back up very easy. Jonas needs to get a good start tho or his board will sack him for sure. 

Damo - Had the league by the balls for much of the season only to fall away at the end. Heart breaking stuff for damo as he had done so well with a side not being seen to be up there fighting it out. Damo SHOULD go up this season but will need a good start and a big lead so if he does bottle it again he may have enough points to get him over the line. 

Anyway thats you all upto date on another crap season for me but a exsiting season over all 

Till next time

[AndyFal36]

Summary - End Of Season 18