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My Story by Lee Rothery


LEEMOD

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SEPTEMBER 2031

It has been another superb month for us here at Dordrecht - the Eindhoven game was frustrating, we hammered them all game and it took an injury time goal from Rozman to snatch a point in the end but as it stands we remain top of the league, can we now keep this good form going into October?

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OCTOBER 2031

Not a great month results wise but we have still played well, the only game I need to erase from my memory is the away at Zwolle, we simply did not show up and created nothing. For the cup game I switched to a deeper version of my tactic and locked down my full backs and played with two pivots and it seemed to work as we soaked up attacks and looked much more dangerous so I may well look to keep to this plan for the league games in November.

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NOVEMBER 2031

All I can say is wow, my team are just hammering teams and best of all since my tactical shift we're defending so much better, I am encouraging this in training too as our general focus is on tactical work and my match prep has been defensive positioning. 

Half way through the season now and I think we have to be considered serious contenders although Utrecht will be hard to catch. 

Elsewhere, I am very happy to announce that Rozman has agreed a new deal as has Yildrim, I am very happy with them both and I do think Rozman could make the leap to the Eredivisie. Additionally, Jan Bartos has really stepped up and looks to be our main striker at the moment, I have to concede though we've been lucky with injuries and often we have being able to keep the same starting XI. 

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DECEMBER 2031

The month has gone swimmingly and we even went away to ADO Den Haag who are in the division above and we simply dispatched them playing our low-block / counter attacking football, it worked superbly as they came out all guns blazing, we just picked them off. We do face Vitesse next in the quarters and they are 2nd in the Eredivisie so I know we'll have a challenge on our hands but they don't scare us far from it, I can't wait to play them.

It's been a while snce we lost in the league and now we have that top spot it's ours now to cement and I firmly believe we can do this. One player who is really putting in some eye catching performances is my Bulgarian defender Sadakov, here he is, signed on a free and only on £150 a week!, I'm going to start contract talks with him in the summer. He has scored 5 goals already this season!

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Here are the results and league:

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In the January window I was scouting around for a loan DMC signing but instead I saw this guy (another Bulgarian and signed him instantly) he will be my 1st choice DMC going forward:

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JANUARY 2032

Another superb month, I notice we have started to concede a few more goals but the wins are still coming thick and fast as we keep trading places with Utrecht at the top. However, I would like to draw your attention to the win over Vitesse we were superb, it was such a tough game against a team who are always near the top in the Eredivisie but we overcame them and now we go into the semi-finals. This has also massively boosted our finances, if you recall our balance was just over 700k when the season started, now it is an incredible £2.2million!

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FEBRUARY 2032

This month we had a little wobble against Zwolle & Helmond other than that we were superb, we even went away to one of our title rivals (Sittard) and came away with a very easy and convincing away. We still have to play Utrecht away which could decide the title because like us they don't drop points and will be a tough nut to crack. 

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MARCH 2032

What a superb month it has been for us, not only have we accelerated away from our competitors in the league but we also beat Sparta to reach the Dutch Cup Final!! What an achievement this is and I have never had success this quick on FM before, I am so happy with my players and I am proud of them no matter what happens in The De Kuip in a month. Next up we could seal the title and best of all it's away at UTRECHT!  I will be doing live updates on that one in my next post!

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So here we are then in the Galgenwaard...come on boys - a win here will seal it!

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15 MINS

A nervy start from both teams but it's us who have the best chance as Milev my right back shaves the post in a blistering shot from 20 yards - 0-0

30 MINS

Utrecht threaten from a corner but we go up the other end and ROZMAN smashes the bar then we have a goal ruled out by left back MAZEK somehow still 0-0 here...

HALF TIME...

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65 MINS

A boring second half, not much has happened other than the announcement that 19863 people are here today, a huge crowd!

70 MINS

UTRECHT GOAL - a big lump up top and BORDIGNON leaps highest to send the home fans into raptures, very disappointing from our point of view - SUBS ARE ON!

WOW - instantly we hit them on the counter. something we're so good at and Milev smashes in far to the bottom left! What a response from the lads!

83 MINS

OH MY! Rozman dances through their defence and after a step over he tangles with the defender and the ref gives the penalty....

Young MILEV steps up..............

GOAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

the ref blows up...

 

WE ARE CHAMPIONS!!!!!!!!!!

GET IN!

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JULY 2032

Already even before we look at anything else I have already learned we're going to struggle this season, we played Twente in the Super Cup and got thrashed although the point against NAC Breda was decent the thrashing really opened my eyes. 

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Anyway, let's look at the players I brought in:

1st choice centre back - free transfer

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1st choice DMC - free transfer

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Back up keeper - on loan 

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1st choice wingback - what a player- £450k from WKE - potential superstar

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back up striker on loan:

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I hope we can gel them asap and get going, it's important we get off to a decent start this season. We also have Europe to deal with and with a small squad it could prove difficult but we'll see.

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AUGUST 2032

Even though we needed an injury time winner against Roda we fully deserved it and gives me some encouragement going into September. However, we have some huge news, the Europa League was drawn and look who we have!

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We play GVVV next and a win is a must as we look to build up morale and next month we will start our European campaign!

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SEPTEMBER 2032

It's been a good month for us overall as we have really tightened up at the back but despite the lack of league wins I am much more encouraged by the way we have played. I was so down about the loss away in Vienna, we were awesome first half and could have been out of sight but in the second half we just let go and they scored two as we tired. 

Elsewhere, we have issues up front with Bartos & Dragun both out so I deciced to hunt for a free transfer and I found young Moroccan striker Rachid Chafni, he has settled in well but needs some more games really for me to fully assess him so we will see how that pans out. 

Next month we go away to REAL MADRID! GULP!

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OCTOBER 2032

On results alone this month looks shambolic but it's been far from it, we have been so unlucky in games, for instance at Real Madrid it was fairly even and with 15 mins left against PSV we were leading 1-0 but the rate at which we concede late goals is sky high and it's concerning. I am glad we are still keeping our heads above the relegation parapet but we need to start winning games to get to our goal of mid-table.

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NOVEMBER 2032

After a good point against Real Madrid we followed this up with back to back league defeats and for the trip to Bratislava I decided to change things up tactically going to an old 352 I used with GVVV and it worked well and even against RKC we were unlucky but there's now do doubt about it we are now embroiled in a relegation fight and if only we can turn these draws into wins.

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In the Europa League we  entertain Vienna next knowing that only a win will do realistically. 

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DECEMBER 2032

The month has been so frustrating, we are in most games but we just can't seem to put away chances. Tactically it's been annoying too because at the moment I just can't get my team to score no matter what I try which is a far cry from last season where we were banging them in. 

In the Europa League despite the superb win we came 3rd based on head to head against Real Madrid so that was disappointing but we didn't disgrace ourselves. 

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JANUARY 2033

Just the two games this month and we were unfortunate against a good Ajax side but after making another tactical change we beat Roda somehow which now gives us a fighting chance going into the games against GVVV & Willem who we play next

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FEBRUARY 2033

The games against GVVV & Willem were so tight, the pressure was so much that my anxiety was sky high especially in the last 10 mins of both games where one error here or there can make a huge difference. Thankfully though my players restored my faith in them as we won it at the death against Den Haag even despite losing two players through injury early on in the game.  The fight carries on...

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MARCH 2033

It's been a superb month here, those two wins were so critical to us and have probably ensured safety I feel and to draw with FC Twente was just an added bonus as it was a match in which we were expected to walk away with nothing. 

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APRIL 2033

It was a superb way to end our season winning 3 of the last 4 games and playing some excellent stuff in the process. This actually means we finish the season in 12th which is a superb achievement! I was a little frugal this season but I think next season we're going to have to increase what we're spending on wages if we want to consolidate this mid-table season and I have faith that we can do just that. 

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  • 3 weeks later...

As we prepare for our away trip to RKC in what will be the opening league game of the 2033-34 season I think this is a good time to look at the players I brought in ahead of the season. 

SHAPOVAL (LOAN) - I worry about his first touch & composure slightly but with his creativity & passing he should unlock some defences for us this season:

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SILVA (LOAN) - A bit of an all rounder really, naturally fit , he is quick and when he does get into dangerous places he can really cross a ball, he may struggle to compete with Kok but he looks more than reliable,

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MOHL (FREE) - a very brave tough tackler in one of our DM slots, what's not to like? His positioning needs some work but he looks a good addition

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GONZALEZ (FREE)  - I saved the best till last, absolutely should be at a better club but so thankful he signed with us, his talent knows no bounds, ok he could improve physically but when paired with someone more physical I think this player will be worth his weight in gold.

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Here is how we did in pre-season:

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  • 1 month later...

As we head into December the team have shown glimpses of turning things around but overall I have  to say I've been left a little doubtful as I  did expect better than this.  However we sit in 10th which for a club like ours is decent enough:

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This is the league:

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Also, since my last update we have brought in Rinaldi who offers us some experience and should be a key asset for us

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Since my last update we have been much improved with some eye catching performances but as usual with my side we lack consistency, we can beat some of the best teams now and then but we can equally lose to bottom side Utrecht 4-2! Pejic has suddenly started to score goals as well which has really helped us push on and with 5 games left of the season we sit in an impressive 8th place in only our 2nd season in the Eredivisie. 

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On a sidenote, I am growing more concerned for my starlet Ben Kok, he is a class act but this season he has only made 1 start with 3 sub appearances, as soon as I think he is back and looking to settle he is injured again and this  is now effecting his development, I really do hope he can get a good number of games under his belt. 

 

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So we ended the season in 10th place which is an improvement on last year I suppose but I still feel a little underwhlemed especially given the manner in which we finished the season with four defeats on the trot, this is the final league and player stats, a lot of work in the summer is needed, i think with 3-4 key additions we can make top6-8, that has to be our goal. 

 

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So I have spent a day analysing the squad and I really like what I see on the whole so my plan in the first season is to perhaps look for some youngsters but the first team doesn't need much work I don't feel so we'll play it by ear and see how things go. We are strong on the wings so I will be looking to play a 4231 so for now I have ditched my usual style. 

For now though here are a few of what I think are my best players:

 

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As we look to prepare for our next home against Roda JC I thought now would be a good time to update. 

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As you  can see it has gone well if you can ignore the abominable performance against Sparta of course. We have also picked up 7 points in the Champions League which gives us an excellent chance of going into the last 16, the performance away at Norwich was the best I have seen us all year, we blew them apart with a new strikerless system I have been implementing, I have deciced to drop the wingers and focus our play more centrally and so far it has gone well. 

With this in mind my best left winger has agreed to join Chelsea for £18.25million and with an added % of next sale it seems like a good deal for usand may mean we look to improve our squad in January but I'm not in any real rush to this season if we can keep our performance levels. 

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ABSOLUTELY DISGRACEFUL!! 

So after a recent takeover by a consortium I was told I would probably be kept on but despite me being top by 7 points and desptite our excellent performance in the Champions League, the ba*tards have sacked me! This is the first time ever in FM I have been sacked from this kind of thing!!

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So it looks like I'm now on the job hunt yet again! What a shame this is for them because I had some big plans for this side!

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29th NOV 2034

Had to dust down my best suit and polish my shoes for an interview with Italian club Sampdoria, I thought the talks went well, time will tell if they are willing to employ me!

All to be revealed.....

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So my interview with Sampdoria was unsuccessful but Middlesbrough have offered me a job so here we go for a new adventure as I pack my bags and look for decent accommodation in Middlesbrough (is there any)

Welcome to Middlesbrough..

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Not such a bad place to play your football but this club needs a lot of work but sometimes in your career you need to go back to go forward and this is a huge step down as Middlesbrough currently occupy 19th place in League 1 - I may regret this challenge but time will tell.!

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Wow this club are a real mess, we have some older players on big wages then a side full of kids and it's freezing up here in the North East, my plan is this:

1) Try get rid of any high earners and look for loans/frees in January to bolster our squad in key positions to suit my own tactic.

2) Re-shape training regimes to suit my roles/attributes

3) Establish a club DNA which can be used for new signings (heavily focused on a hard working determined team who can keep going for 90 mins)

4) Other cost cutting schemes like release certain players/staff members

All this cannot be done in a day so this will be gradual but my main primary concern is that we face a tough trip to Grimbsy next and they sit just below us so this is without a doubt a 6 pointer!

To help me decide my depth chart I will use  Excel to set something up so I can monitor things 

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This is my squad on paper and I can confirm two things:

1 We are too top heavy so some strikers if not all can leave

2 We're such a young team but I see some potential in 3 or 4 players, Jamie Moran and Stuart Johnson seem to be the best of these and I like Nesa our centre back, here he is..

 

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I have now decided that I want to build a determined cohesive side that can run all day but as you can see from our 5 attributes STAMINA is lacking so a few players will be training this, get on the treadmill lads and run! 

 

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I have also marked out on my squad sheet the highest earners in orange so this tells me a few things

1 I need Lawless at the moment

2 Perhaps Duffy can leave once the lads beneath him have re-trained into our AMC roles.

 

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Speaking of which look at our finances, absolutely shocking! That bank loan is crippling us

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