Rotherham? They'll... oh, who cares.

[ManUtd1]

2 hours ago, BoxToBox said:

I'll not lie, a positioning attribute of 9 terrifies me.

Especially for a 32 year-old center back.

[Bedese]

8 hours ago, BoxToBox said:

I'll not lie, a positioning attribute of 9 terrifies me.

 

8 hours ago, SpillBlood said:

His traits worry me .

 

5 hours ago, ManUtd1 said:

Especially for a 32 year-old center back.

Yeah, he has a LOT of downsides. We're pretty weak at CB, so I'm hoping he might be able to not screw things up for us.

[oneronaldo]

Uggh Sol Bamba, now theres a name that haunts me from FM15. Was useless for me, concedes free kicks needlessly and was almost always out of position. Sure he scored a few for me, but then any fool would if they were his height.

[Bedese]

4 hours ago, oneronaldo said:

Uggh Sol Bamba, now theres a name that haunts me from FM15. Was useless for me, concedes free kicks needlessly and was almost always out of position. Sure he scored a few for me, but then any fool would if they were his height.

I'll be honest, you guys haven't exactly filled me with optimism here!

[johnstonpickle]

Bamba's getting a bad rep here! I bought him on my Millers save and he is decent alongside McFadzean.

 

[Bedese]

15 hours ago, johnstonpickle said:

Bamba's getting a bad rep here! I bought him on my Millers save and he is decent alongside McFadzean.

 

We have a Sol Bamba fan in the house! I was actually looking at McFadzean as an option but decided he was too slow for my liking.

[Bedese]

September:

Aston Villa vs Rotherham:

Quiet game. We made nothing.

Rotherham vs Huddersfield:

They took a 2-0 lead with an Izzy Brown (traitor!) thunderstrike being the second. We hit back late, with two Sebas Moyano goals rescuing a draw in stoppage time.

Rotherham vs Sheffield Wednesday:

What a win! We absolutely destroyed our biggest rivals. Wednesday couldn't cope with us. Sullay Kaikai and Joe Newell had put us 2-0 up inside 30 minutes, and Chris Mavinga added the first with a superb strike late on.

Ipswich vs Rotherham:

We were the better team, but Pietro Iemmallo missed a ridiculous number of chances, and Sheyi Ojo grabbed a winner against the run of play.

Brentford vs Rotherham:

ARRRRRRRRGH. We took the lead early through Iemmallo, but Sol Bamba decided to get sent off for a two footed challenge in the 23rd minute. We held out for the entire game, only for Brentford to score from 25 yards with the last kick of the game.

Cardiff vs Rotherham:

Jason Cummings opened the scoring for them, which was probably to be expected. Iemmallo pulled us back level later, and although we were the better team we couldn't find the winner.

[Deisler26]

SOL BAMBA, EVERYONE!! 

 

[Bedese]

Oh, what have you done Sol...

 

 

 

[ManUtd1]

Is my thread leaking?  That's seriously ridiculous 

[BoxToBox]

1 hour ago, ManUtd1 said:

Is my thread leaking?  That's seriously ridiculous 

I was seriously thinking it was you as I scrolled up!

[Bedese]

October:

Riiiiiight...

Swansea vs Rotherham:

Swansea are too good to be in this league. We outplayed them in Wales.

We made Gylfi Sigurdsson - one of the better players in the Premiership, valued at 21m and earning 53k a week - look average, and they actually subbed him off 53 minutes into the game. By that point, we were 1-0 up from a Kelvin Wilson header. Nahki Wells equalised for them just after the hour, and Swansea held on for the draw. Being disappointed with a draw away at Swansea is a pretty good sign.

 

MK Dons vs Rotherham:

There aren't many teams I hate more in football than MK Franchise. We lost 2-0 to them. They had Samir Carrethers sent off after 63 minutes and still won 2-0.

We absolutely dominated them, which makes it even worse. 19 shots to 5, with 4 clear cut chances and 2 half chances for us. Problem is, we couldn't hit the target to save our life, and they hit us on a counter attack twice. Ridiculous.

 

Rotherham vs Nottingham Forest:

Third game this month we dominated, third game this month we didn't win. Our usual LB Chris Mavinga was suspended for this one, and they absolutely tormented his replacement (Kristian Pedersen) down the right wing. We fought back from 2-0 down with a great hit from Pietro Iemmello and an even better one from Sebas Moyeno in the 86th minute, only for Ben Osborn to win it for Forest in the 89th.

 

Sunderland vs Rotherham:

There we go! Pietro Iemmello gave us the lead in the 22nd minute after a superb overlap from Aimen Belaid at RB, but Fabio Borini had Sunderland level just 9 minutes later. We dominated from then on, with Sol Bamba heading home from a free kick just before HT. Bamba was then felled in the box and Pietro Iemmello tucked home the penalty, before converting from close range after great work down the left from Chris Mavinga for his hatrick. Pure domination.

 

I have no idea what to think right now. We're outplaying pretty much every side we meet, yet we're only outside the relegation zone on GD. I feel like we're very, very close to turning the corner and making a real push up the table, but we're not quite there yet. I'm clueless as to what to do upfront - Pietro Iemmello has 7 goals in 14 starts in the league, which is a superb scoring ratio, but he misses a bucketload of sitters every game, and Danny Ward isn't much better. No-one else seems capable of converting chances, either - Sebas Moyano has 4, but no-one else has more than 2. 

 

Players:

Eldin Jakupovic has been superb in goal. He's every bit as good as I hoped. Taye Taiwo is a liability at FB (6.41 average rating), but luckily Chris Mavinga at LB and Aimen Belaid at RB have really stepped up - Belaid has a 7.18 in his last 5 games, and Mavinga a 7.20. Dael Fry and Sol Bamba have formed a nice partnership at CB - Fry is on a 7.04 in the last five, and Bamba a 7.44! He hasn't punched our physio yet, either, which is a plus. Kelvin Wilson is a solid backup at CB, but Kirk Broadfoot isn't getting anywhere near the team. Young talent Christian Orihuela has been injured with a back fracture, but he wouldn't be involved with the first team much anyway.

Richard Smallwood is the solid, dependable figure that we want as our BWM. Joe Newell has been doing the business as our AP, which means the talented Jack Byrne has to make do with a place on the bench - as do Lee Frecklington and Will Vaulks. Samba Diakite and Pedro Chirivella can't even get that far. Sebas Moyano is our starting CAM, playing fairly well and developing nicely.

Jon Taylor hasn't done superbly on the wing, which has given Alex Kiwomya some gametime. Sully Kaikai hasn't set the world alight on the left, either, so Danny Ward is getting a look in there. Demetri Mitchell isn't getting much gametime at the moment.

Upfront, who knows. Pietro Iemmello is frustrating to work out, but Danny Ward hasn't taken his chances when he's gotten the start upfront, either.

[SpillBlood]

Time do ditch the wingers like I did!

[Bedese]

November + December:

Teams we battered:

Scunthorpe, Birmingham, QPR, Barnsley (even with Jon Taylor getting sent off), Bristol City, Charlton

Teams we were better than:

Middlesbrough

Even games:

Leeds, Norwich, Reading

Teams that were better than us:

None.

 

We're battering teams. We just don't have a goalscorer apart from Iemmello.

 

 

We're 17th, but we're only one point above the drop zone. We could easily be around the playoff places.

[Bedese]

January:

Preston vs Rotherham:

We battered them. Sebas Moyano scored twice for us, but Atdhe Nuhiu pulled them level each time.

Birmingham vs Rotherham:

We're through to the fourth round of the cup! We battered Birmingham, but it took a 76th minute Danny Ward goal to get the win after Brock-Madsen had cancelled out Sebas Moyano's early goal.

Rotherham vs Derby:

This was an equal game, for the most part. They took the lead when Jakupovic fell over and let a backpass roll past him, and Pietro Iemmello's tidy finish meant nought when Jacob Butterfield tucked home in the 67th.

Fulham vs Rotherham:

We completely dominated the league leaders at the time. They weren't in the game at all. Samba Diakite got a goal from RB, before Danny Ward hit a brace in the 70th and 73rd minute.

Rotherham vs West Brom:

We outplayed a Prem team! Alright, they're a bad Prem team and it wasn't completely one sided - and we didn't win - but still. Pietro Iemmello put us 1-0 up in the first minute, but Robbie Brady hit back on the stroke of half time. Jon Taylor gave us the lead with 30 minutes to go, only for Phil Jones to head home in the 70th minute and give us a replay at The Hawthorns. If we win, a potentially winnable tie against Hull awaits.

Huddersfield vs Rotherham:

This is one of the only times this season we were actually outplayed. They deserved the win.

 

Transfers:

Getting rid of some deadwood, but we also sold Belaid for 1.1m. I couldn't turn that down for a 29 year old who's value was a lot less. Only problem - we don't have any RBs in the squad. At all. Samba Diakite is playing there for now.

 

Only one move in. No point buying players for the sake of it - but not finding a decent RB does hurt.

 

He looks pretty good. Might be worth signing next year if he impresses.

 

[SpillBlood]

What role are you playing the striker as?  Either footed and very physical is nice tbh.  Looks like he needs a friend uptop.

[Bedese]

45 minutes ago, SpillBlood said:

What role are you playing the striker as?  Either footed and very physical is nice tbh.  Looks like he needs a friend uptop.

I think he'd go great as a DLF(S) or a TM(S), personally. Right now he's just being used in rotation, but I might try 2 up top soon enough, so he'd (likely) go as a DLF next to an AF/P.

[oneronaldo]

I'm more amazed Sol Bamba hasn't gone mental yet than by the results

[Bedese]

3 hours ago, oneronaldo said:

I'm more amazed Sol Bamba hasn't gone mental yet than by the results

Surprisingly enough, he's been our best player this year. A 7.12 average rating, and only the one red card for trying to murder the opposing striker.

[Bedese]

I haven't posted in a while, because I just wanted this season to be over, to be honest. Here's the table at the end of the year:

Not getting relegated/fired is always a positive, but this was a deeply frustrating year. I'm going to have some long, rambly posts coming up, first about this season and then about the shape of the squad, stuff like that.

Just quickly - good on Brentford for getting promoted to the Premiership for the first time in their history. I suspect they may come crashing back down, but you never know...

[Bedese]

2017/2018 season:

I said it was frustrating. That's because I genuinely think we were good enough to finish in the top half, if not make a push for the playoff.

First of all, lets look at some team stats for the division.

We had by far the most average possession in the league. That doesn't actually mean anything to me. Possession alone does not get you results. It's nice to have the ball, but our 17th place finish doesn't suggest that it really made a huge impact. Preston had the third most possession in the league and got relegated. Still, it suggests we are at least competent passers.

 

Yup. Second best pass completion ratio, and by far the most passes completed. Doesn't mean anything. Passing it 2 yards sideways will put you top here, but it won't exactly give you results.

 

13th in shots, but 19th in shot accuracy. Again, means nothing. We might be bad finishers, or we might be taking too many pot shots. You need context for every stat.

 

Above average defence, average attack. So how did we end up in the lower half of the league?

 

Lowest attendance, but third highest attendance by % of the stadium sold out. We can't afford to extend the stadium yet, though.

 

 

According to Soccernomics, net wage spend makes up 92% of a team's final league postion. In that sense, coming 17th with the second lowest wage bill in the league is pretty pleasing. I'm still not happy, though. I think we should have done better based on performances.

[BoxToBox]

I need to read that Soccernomics book! Excellent performance going by that, but it sucks when it feels like you've missed a great chance at doing something special.

[Bedese]

Right, well, I need to actually go and either prove my delusions wrong, or realise I was right and work out what went wrong. Time to look through every league match played and try to judge how many points we should have taken, if results were based purely on being the better side in the game.

For the purposes of this, the better side is going to be the team that created the most Clear Cut Chances + Half Chances mixed with a little bit of common sense. It's not the most scientific method, but it should do a pretty good job.

 

Games we were dominant in:

Sheffield Wednesday (H), Swansea (A), MK Franchise(A), Sunderland (A), Scunthorpe (H), Birmingham (H), Barnsley (A), Bristol City (A), Charlton (H), Preston (A), Fulham (A), Aston Villa (H), Cardiff (A), Swansea (H), Middlesbrough (H), Barnsley (H)

Games we should have taken 3 points in:

Charlton (A), Preston (H), Ipswich (A), Middlesbrough (A), QPR (H), Ipswich (H), Sheffield Wednesday (A), MK Franchise (H), Sunderland (H), Nottingham Forest (A), Birmingham (A)

Even games:

Huddersfield (H), Nottingham Forest (H), Leeds (A), Norwich (H), Reading (A), Derby (H), Scunthorpe (A), Reading (H)

Games we deserved to lose:

Fulham (H), Aston Villa (A), Brentford (A), Cardiff (H), Brentford (H), Leeds (H)

Games we were battered in:

Bristol City (H), Derby (A), Huddersfield (A), Norwich (A), QPR (A)

 

Well, that's pretty damning. If football worked purely on chances created, then we'd have 89 points. That would have won us the division.

 

Problem is, I now need to interpret those stats and work out what went wrong.

 

The problem doesn't lie in goal. Eldin Jakupovic made some mistakes, but he actually had a very good season, all things considered.

Could we improve in defence? Well, they weren't perfect, that's for sure. They were pretty reliable, however.

Is our midfield good enough? Well, the creative side is certainly there, as evident by the chances created. I also happen to think our midfield did a good job defensively.

The problem - at least in my mind - is very much with our goalscorers.

 

Pietro Iemmello netted 15 times in 34 games as our main striker before a torn calf muscle prematurely ended his season. It's not a bad scoring ratio, but it's nothing special. I'd expect more from my loan striker. He had some awful days at the office where he couldn't hit a barn door, and missed a whole host of sitters.

 

Here's the scoring record from our team this year:

10 goals from Sebas Moyano at CAM isn't a terrible return. He wasn't a good finisher, however. He had his moments, but in general wasted a lot of good chances.

9 from Jon Taylor as a W(S) isn't bad. His finishing is also pretty poor, but he's not expected to be the main source of goals.

9 from Danny Ward in 35 games, either as an IF on the left wing, at CAM or upfront? Not fantastic. I might try to cash in on Ward, to be honest.

5 in 13 from Terrence Boyd isn't bad - but, just like all the others, he missed too many sitters.

 

We just don't have that goalscorer we need in the team. We have strikers who can score, sure, but we don't have a 20 goal a season player. Not even close. Considering we don't get much help in goalscoring from elsewhere, that's a problem. We make too many chances to score this few goals.

 

Sure, luck had something to do with our performance this year. I have no doubt that if the season was replayed, we'd have done better purely down to the luck of the bounce. Not so much better that we'd be challenging for the playoff places, though, which is where I want to be. We need to tighten up at the back, but we mainly need to score more goals. Scoring the 13th most goals in the league with what I imagine to be the most chances created is not good enough.

 

Problem is, strikers are expensive. We don't have money, and even if we sell players to bring money in (which is a possibility), there aren't many proven strikers who want to come and play for Rotherham. 

 

I'm going to do a big, big squad review soon, but just beforehand, here's what I would consider my ideal starting lineup from last season:

The back 5 are all above an average rating of 7, as are the midfield trio. The attackers are close, but not quite there. It's pretty evident to me the area that cost us what - in my mind - was a very possible promotion last year. It sounds a bit mad considering we came 17th and were expected to avoid relegation, but I'm confident that this team played well enough to finish in the top 6 last season, easily.

[Bedese]

4 minutes ago, BoxToBox said:

I need to read that Soccernomics book! Excellent performance going by that, but it sucks when it feels like you've missed a great chance at doing something special.

I can't recommend Soccernomics highly enough. I poured over that for days on end  

[BoxToBox]

Just be aware, FM has been pretty janky in counting what is and isn't a CCC.

[Bedese]

1 minute ago, BoxToBox said:

Just be aware, FM has been pretty janky in counting what is and isn't a CCC.

I've seen that, actually. Kind of amusing to see a header from 14 yards get counted as a CCC  

I don't think this is a perfect methodology by any means, but I think it points towards the basic situation that I felt was happening in most of our games - that is, being the better team and not picking up any points. Do I think that we deserved to win the title, like this methodology would suggest? No, not at all. I do think that just on the balance of play, we could - and should - have been fighting for a spot in the playoffs, however, rather than down in 17th place.

[BoxToBox]

1 minute ago, Jupjamie said:

I've seen that, actually. Kind of amusing to see a header from 14 yards get counted as a CCC  

I don't think this is a perfect methodology by any means, but I think it points towards the basic situation that I felt was happening in most of our games - that is, being the better team and not picking up any points. Do I think that we deserved to win the title, like this methodology would suggest? No, not at all. I do think that just on the balance of play, we could - and should - have been fighting for a spot in the playoffs, however, rather than down in 17th place.

Aye, despite the CCC thing, I think you're on the right track, for a single striker system, 15 in 34 isn't enough, unless he's matching it in assists. That a goal in what, every 200 minutes? I'd want something near half that.

[Bedese]

Just now, BoxToBox said:

Aye, despite the CCC thing, I think you're on the right track, for a single striker system, 15 in 34 isn't enough, unless he's matching it in assists. That a goal in what, every 200 minutes? I'd want something near half that.

One every 204 minutes, to be exact. He did manage 10 assists on the season, but it's still not really enough. I'd be wanting a lone striker to net about 22/23 in a season, personally.

[Bedese]

Squad Review

Time to take a look at every player in the senior squad, I reckon. Show you the depth we have at positions, how players did, all that jazz. I'm also going to make a list of who could be on their way out the door at the end.

 

Goalkeepers:

Jakupovic is one of the better keepers in the division, and he had a very good year in goal for us. His place is safe as our starting keeper.

 

Which, unfortunately, means Ben Garratt is going to have to keep waiting for his chance. The young keeper is good, and has the potential to be our keeper of the future, but he's just not as good as Jakupovic right now, and I can't purposely weaken a squad that I think has a chance to be pushing at the upper end of the table next season.

 

God, I regret giving Lee Camp a contract extension now. He's on 7k a week to never play. I hope we can shift him this summer, because I could do with those wages. He's not actually bad (he made the Championship TOTS bench in season one...) but he's not as good as Jakupovic and not as talented as Garratt, so I have no need for him.

 

Fullbacks:

Mavinga joined us on a free from Rubin Kazan last summer, and I couldn't be happier with him. He was superb this season, and the first name on the teamsheet when healthy and not suspended. He's the only LB we have in the squad, so his position isn't exactly under threat, either.

 

Diakite isn't actually a FB. Problem is, my only RB (who also wasn't actually a RB) was Aimen Belaid, and when a ridiculous offer came in for him last year, I bit the bullet and sold him on for over a million quid. We couldn't bring in a decent replacement, so Diakite had to stay at RB for the rest of the season, despite having played about 3 games for the club before that in the year he'd been here. He actually did really well. That doesn't mean he's keeping his place. We clearly need more FBs, even if they're just for depth, so Diakite is going to have to fight to keep his job at RB (again, even though he's actually a DM...)

 

CBs:

A liability in real life, Bamba was superb for us last season. He's 33, so he's not going to be here forever, and he's probably going to decline fairly quickly, but he's hopefully going to be good enough to stay as our starting CB for one more season.

 

Dael Fry was superb for the second year running - but he's on loan from Boro, and I doubt we can bring him back for a third straight year. We need someone to step up and become a starting CB if that's the case.

 

That won't be Kelvin Wilson. He's not on big wages so he'll stay as depth for the last year of his contract, but I don't want him starting.

 

Right now, Dominic Ball is my choice to do that job. He spent the season on loan at Aston Villa because I thought that he'd develop better there, basically. He's not too bad, but I'd like to bring in another CB in case he doesn't live up to expectations.

 

Orihuela was bought in to hopefully be a prospect at CB, but even though he's only 21 I don't see it working out. Our training facilities aren't superb, and his mentals are just nowhere near where they need to be at this point. He'll stick around for another year, but I don't think we'll be making much money on him.

 

CMs:

I love this man. He came back from dominating League One on loan at Scunthorpe to be a hugely important player for us. The glue that held us together. Alright, 23 yellows is a bit much, but it's to be expected from a BWM with a team told to get stuck in. Unquestionably the starter.

 

Vaulks is likely on his way out. He's a defensive minded midfielder, but nowhere near as good as Smallwood, and at 24 is running out of room to really develop. He didn't get much gametime here, and spent the second half of the season on loan at Aberdeen, where he again didn't see much playing time. 

 

You won't have seen Kallqvist before. His agent alerted me to the fact he was without a club - in fact, he was generated into the game as a free agent. My scouts rated him, and considering he was basically like an extra youth academy player - and a much better one than we're usually provided through intakes, at that - it was a no brainer to sign him up. He got a little bit of gametime when suspensions bit us.

 

It pains me to have to do this, but Mr Rotherham is on his way out. In real life, he needs a statue built of him outside the New York Stadium as one of the most important players to ever play for the club. On FM, he's soon to be 33, and just not very good. Sorry, Lee  

 

I picked him up on a free from Shamrock Rovers liking his potential, but it hasn't worked out. If I can sell him, I will. If not, he's leaving when his contract is up next year.

 

This is one I'm hopeful of working out. Hamilton has 5* PA, and looks very, very good for a 19 year old after joining us on a free from Man United a year ago.

 

Our starting CAM, he has the potential to be a star, but I don't think we're the right club to help him realise that potential. He hasn't developed a whole lot so far. He played well last season, but nothing superb. We could do better.

 

The best player from an intake so far, Taylor's coming along nicely.

 

Our starting AP, Newell has done superbly. I've just looked at his value, though... if someone wants to give us 6m for him, I'm biting their hand off!

 

Wingers:

Taylor is a decent winger, but please lord let someone bid 7.75m for him...

 

Same with Danny Ward. He's decent, but there's not a chance he's worth 7m. I'm praying we get some bids.

 

Forde is a decent backup, but he made just one appearance from the bench last year. I'll keep him around because he's cheap.

 

If Kiwomya could develop his technicals, he'd be a phenomenal player. Unfortunately that hasn't really happened, but his explosive pace is still a useful asset to have.

 

Likewise with Mitchell.

 

Strikers:

Unfortunately, the ACL injury that 'JCH' has at the start of the game has ruined him. He's developing back quickly, but his abysmal season on loan in L2 has made my mind up. I'm going to try and cash in.

 

Iemmello is joining us on a free this summer, but that doesn't mean he's going to be our starter.

 

I'm so split over whether to try and bring Boyd in on a free. He was average last year, but he does have very tantalising stats... it depends on how much he wants in wages. If it's too much, he's not coming back.

 

 

 

[Bedese]

Not sure how Kiwomya was the signing of the season when both Bamba and Fry were new signings, but there you go. Also not sure how Newell makes his way into the 'Best XI' at LW, considering I don't think he played there once.

[SpillBlood]

I'm sure signing of the season is bugged.  My latest season Player, Young Player and Goal were all the same player who'd signed that season but signing went to a CM I'd bought in January.

Hopefully you can sell the likes of Taylor in the transfer window.  I'd of liked Hamilton to of gotten more game time but he really looks like he needs a tutor aswell.

It's a bit alarming that your lone striker has most assists though.  I understand that he'll be holding the ball up/playing through balls but it doesn't look like your width(especially Ward) are providing enough.

[Bedese]

4 hours ago, SpillBlood said:

I'm sure signing of the season is bugged.  My latest season Player, Young Player and Goal were all the same player who'd signed that season but signing went to a CM I'd bought in January.

Hopefully you can sell the likes of Taylor in the transfer window.  I'd of liked Hamilton to of gotten more game time but he really looks like he needs a tutor aswell.

It's a bit alarming that your lone striker has most assists though.  I understand that he'll be holding the ball up/playing through balls but it doesn't look like your width(especially Ward) are providing enough.

Aye, it was actually your thread that made me realise something wasn't right with signing of the season  

We really have a lack of quality tutors in the squad. Something I may need to rectify in summer.

Our wingers definitely need to improve. I'd happily flog both Ward and Taylor and bring in fresh blood, providing that offers came in for them.

[oneronaldo]

Think I can see why Iemmello might be abit garbage at taking his chances, "Tries First Time Shots" despite his technique and composure both being bang average. Not to mention being one-footed.

Terrence Boyd probably isn't worth bringing back unless he is on absurdly cheap wages,

[Bedese]

5 minutes ago, oneronaldo said:

Think I can see why Iemmello might be abit garbage at taking his chances, "Tries First Time Shots" despite his technique and composure both being bang average. Not to mention being one-footed.

Terrence Boyd probably isn't worth bringing back unless he is on absurdly cheap wages,

It's not the best PPM, is it? At least he makes up for it by missing a lot of chances he doesn't take first time  

You're right about Boyd. He wanted 10k a week. I told him where to go.

[oneronaldo]

Just now, Jupjamie said:

It's not the best PPM, is it? At least he makes up for it by missing a lot of chances he doesn't take first time  

You're right about Boyd. He wanted 10k a week. I told him where to go.

Tell Boyd he can sod off to deepest darkest Yorkshire, 10k a week? Get outta here.

[BoxToBox]

10k a week? Nope.

[Bedese]

Everton have somehow won the FA Cup whilst finishing bottom of the Premiership. This will be interesting...  

[oneronaldo]

1 minute ago, Jupjamie said:

Everton have somehow won the FA Cup whilst finishing bottom of the Premiership. This will be interesting...  

Doing a Wigan?

[Bedese]

Superb  

[Bedese]

Also superb  

[Bedese]

If only it was this easy in San Marino...

[BoxToBox]

Excellent news!

[Ceching You Out]

2 hours ago, Jupjamie said:

If only it was this easy in San Marino...

Or Luxembourg... 

[Bedese]

How else do you go about doing business on the first day of the transfer window with a small club?  

[BoxToBox]

Nothing quite like some good freebies.

[Bedese]

Preseason:

Anytime a preseason includes a win over Chelsea, there aren't going to be any complaints. This preseason was mostly used to get the new signings used to playing together - and there are a LOT of them.

 

We got rid of some deadweight, but the key sale was Anthon Kallqvist for 1.1m to Newcastle - he had potential, but not world class potential, and there was no way I was turning down that much money for him.

12 incomings, not a penny paid for any of them except for Will Keane's loan fee. I'm buzzing with that. There's only 11 listed, but that's because...

 

Dael Fry is back for a third year! He's going to have some competition for his place, though...

 

Mancini joins us on a free from Perugia in Italy. He looks good enough to push Fry and Bamba for a first team place, and has lots of room to improve.

 

We finally have a RB! I had a shortlist of 5 that could have joined, but Moscati won out. 9 marking, though...

 

We also have a backup LB. Forsyth joins on a free from Derby, and he'll be backing up Mavinga at LB.

 

We have a new BWM, too. Coady joins on a free from Wolves. He's going to have to fight Richard Smallwood for the starting place, and I hope that Smallwood can be sold for a few millions, because Coady is on too high a wage to sit on the bench.

 

Competition for Newell as our AP, Allan is here on loan from Liverpool for absolutely no wages. Lovely.

 

Pereira didn't make the grade at Benfica, but I couldn't be happier to have him here as a prospect.

 

I like Sebas Moyano, but Pantic (on loan from Chelsea for the year) is our starting CAM. He's too good not to be.

 

LuaLua is a 'boom or bust' player. He's either going to be superb or useless. Either way, it's definitely worth the gamble for 4k a week, considering I wasn't at all impressed with Danny Ward on the left last year. LuaLua will be given every chance to win the starting job.

 

After spending last year here on loan from Sassuolo, Iemmello joins us on a free transfer.

 

The starting striker job, however, is Will Keane's to lose. On loan from Hull for the year, he's far and away our highest earner in terms of wages. I just hope he can deliver. We need that cutting edge upfront.

 

Also from Perugia, Vicaroni is a prospect with some room to grow.

 

I seem to be bringing in a huge amount of players every season. There's a lot of deadwood to cut, and far too much depth in places. Problem is, no teams seem to want our rejects. We may not be done in the transfer market, either. Watch this space, because there's a 400k bid being tabled for someone as we speak...

[Bedese]

I'm actually pretty proud of that. Not a bad way to open the season.

[BoxToBox]

I like them moves, Mancini looks especially good!

[Bedese]

What... what is happening to us?

Comfortably saw off Wolves, but our reserves lost to Tranmere in the EFL Cup, which was pretty pathetic. James Wilson and Brighton then hit 4 past us, before we went back to the New York Stadium and hit Ipswich for 5 - only for Charlton - F***ING CHARLTON - to do the same to us a few days later.

I don't know what to think yet. Brighton scored with nearly every chance, and 3 of Charlton's goals were vaguely fluky longshots, but that's no excuse to lose 9-0 over the two games - and then we dominated Wolves and Ipswich. We'll see how things go...

 

Oh, and we did some transfer business.

Vaulks was never going to get a look in here, so I'm glad to be rid of him. We re-invested that money with by far the most expensive signing I've made in my time here...

Gonzalez joins us for 400k. He doesn't have a work permit, and the board won't let me get a feeder club to help get work permits, but he may get some youth caps for Argentina? He looks the business at just 19. Porto were one of the many clubs sniffing after him, so I'm delighted we got this over the line.

[Bedese]

Sigh...