Wavelberry Posted January 28, 2017 Share Posted January 28, 2017 Alrighty then. Last year after patch 3 I attempted to use Claassen's awesome database to try a massive save but due to some issues with the African countries and my old rubbish laptop it didn't work out. However, you can't just leave a good idea to wither on the vine (and I am also deeply unoriginal) so now with a better laptop and Claassen's updates looking solid and ready to rock it is time to return to my Polyglot Pursuit. As detailed in last year's thread the conceit is simple: go to country; learn language; leave country. It is that simple. There is no higher calling or hunt for silverware or desire to build a managerial dynasty. There is just a need to learn as many of the 117 languages in the game as possible. In order to add some gameplay interest I do have a series of challenges I cribbed for last year's effort that include: Most of them are self-explanatory. Sworn Enemy is a thing where I plan to make an arch-nemesis in every country, upsetting johnny foreigner like the thuggish Englishman on tour I am shouting loudly for another beer and some proper food while sporting a lobster red tan. They have to be someone completely new and not just on the anti list first of all. Maybe I'll get bonus points if I can turn someone with a high opinion of me. Alienate a foreigner is similar but that's a player achievement whereby I upset a player so much he won't talk to me. If anyone has any other achievement ideas or indeed what each one should be worth points wise please feel free to suggest and I'll add them to the list. One other thing that is going to make this year's slightly different is that I now have Twitch working for me so the stream and video updates will be strong with this one. I'll give shouts when I'm going live and might do video updates for months/seasons as well as the text updates. So if you're ready to hear me mangle names and places and insult the cultures of hundreds of different countries with my Brexit Essex accent then climb aboard the party bus. We're about to go on tour... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
nastymiller Posted January 28, 2017 Share Posted January 28, 2017 GAWON Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted January 28, 2017 Author Share Posted January 28, 2017 Here's the starting lineup then. We've gone for some low ranking extreme languages and judging by the reputations it looks like it would be a good idea to start in Lesotho although the worry is that due to English being a language that is spoken there I may not pick up Sesotho or Zulu which are the other languages spoken there. So not sure whether to start somewhere fruitless or head into Estonia which is the next lowest ranked but they are halfway through their season already. Decisions, decisions... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted January 29, 2017 Author Share Posted January 29, 2017 Okay, decision made. I'ma start in Estonia. Going live to pick a team. Join me here: https://www.twitch.tv/wavelberry Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted January 29, 2017 Author Share Posted January 29, 2017 Kohtla-Jarve JK Jarve June 2016 Update So the journey begins in Estonia where.. . This was the only picture of the stadium I could find early doors. Looks luverly don't it. I am in the northwest corner of Estonia in the town of Kohtla-Järve (Russian: Кохтла-Ярве) is a city and municipality in north-eastern Estonia, founded in 1924 and incorporated as a town in 1946. The city is highly industrial, and is both a processor of oil shales and is a large producer of various petroleum products. The city is also very diverse ethnically: it contains people of over 40 ethnic groups[2] Only 21% of the population are ethnic Estonians; most of the rest are Russians. Kohtla-Järve is the fifth-largest city in Estonia. Kohtla-Järve is unusual among municipalities of Estonia due to having a discontiguous territory. The two main parts of the city, Järve (Kohtla-Järve proper) and Ahtme, both with populations around 20,000, are located about 10 km apart. Several other settlements in north-eastern Ida-Viru county, connected to oil shale mining, are administered as districts of Kohtla-Järve; the furthest, Sirgala, is 40 km east of Järve. In the Soviet time, the town of Jõhvi was also incorporated into Kohtla-Järve. Thanks Wikapedia The squad is okay and I'll have to get my head around the selection/foreigner rules etc as already I've noticed some of the players are unregistered. Looks like the transfer window opens in ten days so that might be a chance to re-register some peeps and I need to sort out the fact that I only have two Central midfielders. Might be a lot of long ball needed. The club are currently sixth in a ten team league and the board are expecting to avoid relegation as they were promoted last season. Looks like we're on track and given that they've won four out of their last five I'm going to need to hit the ground running... Three games left in the month and their all against pretty decent sides. How will I get on with a complete lack of Estonian and a side that only has two CMs? Time to find out. For those with time to spare you can watch back as I take control of the club and flirt with Estonian Scouts, ruthlessly fire someone and have a nice wee chat with the chairman. Let's learn me some Estonian. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lenzar Posted January 29, 2017 Share Posted January 29, 2017 Will you ever learn secondary languages, such as Welsh? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted January 29, 2017 Author Share Posted January 29, 2017 I think it's unlikely. A country like DRC is going to be interesting coz there are three languages set in the database for them and all at 100 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
The_Gato_In_Goal Posted January 30, 2017 Share Posted January 30, 2017 Sounds like this will eventually have some comic relief so I'm in for the ride! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sherwinriga Posted January 30, 2017 Share Posted January 30, 2017 Best of luck in Estonia! Can I see the whole lists of languages that was included to make sure that when you go to a new nation, you may learn a language? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted January 30, 2017 Author Share Posted January 30, 2017 Livestream of my first press conference and first game incoming And here is that for those who missed it and want to waste 22 odd minutes of their life. Game of two halves anyone? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted January 30, 2017 Author Share Posted January 30, 2017 Kohtla-Jarve JK Jarve, June 2016 Update Well we started thrown straight into the quagmire of Estonian football with three games in June, only two CMs and a team that seem to have a lot more cons than pros. How did we get on? A mixed month. If you watched the stream you will know that it looked very dark at half time in the first game but a slight tactical tweak saw us roar back and nab a 3-1 win with a hattrick from Kemukhtashvili. He was in on the act again against Flora U21s as we made it two from two but we fell to a very annoying late defeat against Kalev in the final game of the month with our front line playing crap and looking all nervous. Not ideal. Especially after the manager had given me a vote of confidence. I'm absolutely going to destroy this ***** in my next press-conference. One plus side of this month has been the re-opening of the transfer window and registration window which means I've been able to register all the decent players not registered by the previous regime as well as sign three midfielders. Two decent back-up CMs and a DM who looks very tasty and I'm a man who likes a yellow-card accumulating DM. High hopes for young Olexiy Mukhin. Up to fourth then and seven points clear of what look like relegation play-offs. That'll suit me just fine. July sees me play the three teams I literally just played along with Maardu as well as a cup match against the old school JK Retro. Seven points and a cup win would do me fine... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted January 31, 2017 Author Share Posted January 31, 2017 Kohtla-Jarve JK Jarve, July 2016 Update Second month in Estonia and no time to breathe with six big games yo. But first I needed to put that twat at Kalev back in his place. Ha, yeah. Take zat. Did it do any good though? Well yes it did as we cruised to any easy win against them gaining revenge for that last minute defeat a week ago. Either Kemukhtashvili is hot or not and in this game he was hot grabbing two goals as we put them away with a scintillating second half display. In the next game he was not hot but Kolesnikov who had looked promising, been rubbish and dropped and then score in the last game late on got a late equaliser for us. Kemukhtashvili was back on form in the win against Levada before not turning up against Maardu who beat us in the last minute. We finished the month with two 1-0 wins. We beat lower league Retro 1-0 with a very, very reserve side which was pleasing before reversing our luck and smashing a late winner against Santos in an extremely end to end game. That I hated. 10 from 15 then which is pretty damn good and a trip to the 2nd round of the cup. We continue to keep pressure at the top being just four points off Infonet in 2nd. Our win against Santos has opened up an eleven point gap against relegation and life so far in Estonia is going okay. I still don't know any of the language but life is not bad. Four games in August with two big games against Tulevik and Infonet. I don't think we're anywhere near promotion ready but when you're close you gotta dream. We did lose our best CM on the last day of the transfer window with the other good one out injured for five months. We seem to be dealing so far but I imagine this month will bring us back down to earth. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 1, 2017 Author Share Posted February 1, 2017 Kohtla-Jarve JK Jarve, August 2016 Update We've been okay so far but a month that sees us play the top two could well see us crash back down to earth... Pretty much a month as expected as we struggled against the pure rubbishness in the squad and the fact that our key players were getting injured. We had two poor performances and two decent battling ones with the two home games being stinkers and the two away ones being good battling performances. A bore draw against Kalju U21 who were bottom of the league was made even worse three days later when Kemukhtashvili was injured in training. He may be a hot and cold striker but no-one else looks vaguely hot and a six week absence is a hard thing to take. The next game away at Vandra saw us go 1-0 down and a man down before half-time but a tweak and a gutsy 2nd half saw 43 year old hero Kitto nab a headed equaliser. We then faced the top two. The league leaders smashed us 4-1 although it was 1-1 for a long while and we were only 2-1 down with 15 minutes to go. Compelled to go for it I did and the lack of options and severe nervousness that seems to strike the squad saw us fall apart. I was not feeling too confident for our trip to Infonet and when we went 1-0 down after 15 mins to an own goal I though we were going to continue our downward spiral, however we took the game to them after the break and came away with a decent draw. 3 from 12 but given the injuries and the general shiteness of the squad we're doing well to be where we are. Our rubbish form has seen us drop to 4th but we're still 9 points clear of the relegation places. With nine games to go I reckon a point per game will keep us up and that is the only real priority. No-one is catching Tulevik anyways. Cup football and some mid-table battles this month as we play 3rd, 5th, 6th and 7th. A bad run here could see us face some relegation fun in the October run-in so am hoping for a nice six points to cushion us. Really not fussed about the cup but it is lower league opposition again so we could have a chance to make it through. Meanwhile I'm going to moan about this. Stupid press. Everyone was injured and I had no choice. Meanwhile those Estonians are probably moaning about foreign coaches caring more about systems and possession etc rather than getting the players up for the game. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 2, 2017 Author Share Posted February 2, 2017 Kohtla-Jarve JK Jarve, September 2016 Update Phrases I am going to learn quickly. 'Shit, we're ****ed' 'you are absolutely ****ing shit, get out of my sight!' 'Hit Les' 'Can we not knock it?' It's been that kind of month... A win in the cup against lower league MC Tallinn was scant respite as we looked all out of ideas, class and anything for 3 league games and dropped down the league. Defence was leaky, midfield couldn't do anything and the less said about Ivanov and bench striker Reinsalu the better with them averaging about 6.1 between the two of them. However a last gasp throw of the dice away to Levadia's U21s saw Reinsalu grab a last minute equaliser and suddenly we looked a completely different side at Maardu with Ivanov grabbing a brace, my midfield looking sharp and imaginative and my defence looking solid. Even the goalkeeper throwing one in and giving Maardu a sniff twenty minutes from time wasn't enough to sour the mood. What's Estonian for 'Thank **** for that?' And that shows just how desperate it had been. Nearly two months without a win... The closeness of the league actually means we've not dropped much at all in terms of places but it is getting bunched up as far as that relegation play-off spot is concerned with our lead of FC Santos cut to six. It's going to be a squeaky bum October... A team that doesn't have to worry about such things are Tuvelik. I'm hoping they'll be on the beach from now as we play the on the penultimate week of the season and may need to beat them to keep out of relegation issues. Five games left and a massive one first up against Santos who've been in good form. Beat them at home and we should be safe but we've got a few teams below us before finishing the season against Tuvelik and Infonet. Our cup run continues as well with an away to Premium Liiga side Rakvere Tarvas probably being our last game in the competition. Still, with injuries abating somewhat and Kemukhtashvil now making his way back from injury we will hopefully see a good end to the season. I also got a youth intake but given I can't play any of them because they need registering I'll just leave that till the end of season update. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 3, 2017 Author Share Posted February 3, 2017 Kohtla-Jarve JK Jarve, October 2016 Update Run-in time then. Would we be singing songs of a great survival story or would I be back to learning important Graham Taylor quotes in Estonian as we gear up for a Relegation threatened November? We. Are. Staying. Up. We did the first job well beating FC Santos 3-0 much to the joy of this guy... Not sure why Otto is experiencing the schadenfreude as he only managed Santos for six days way back when and has no connection with our club. Still, whatever floats yer boat mate. It was a cracking win and the start of an outstanding month from Boris Bobrov who nabbed a goal and two assists. He found the net again against bottom side Kaiju U21s away in a match we only needed a point from to confirm staying up. Unfortunately my rubbish defence didn't get the memo and let them in three times to see us lose and still have the spectre of relegation hanging over us. Next up would've been the side who could catch us in the shape of Vandra but the game got postponed because of a waterlogged pitch. Suddenly with a bit more rest in the legs I was able to play the first team in the cup match against higher division Rakvere Tarvas and we were five minutes away from a glorious win. We played well but they got an offside equaliser in the 89th and then scored in injury time to put us out. We were slated to face champions Tulevik next and with the Vandra game straight after I was worried about a spiral but that game got rained off to leave us with a very simple equation. Secure a point against Vandra and keep Esiliga status. The game was cagey for the first half with us giving away a few opportunities but keeping the point we needed. As the second half wore on I decided to take off Ivanov who has been playing up front for us ever since Kemukhtashvi was injured and bring on the aforementioned Georgian. That turned the game on it's head as a scored a four minute hattrick to blow Vandra away and ease us to victory. Bobrov even had time to nab one too as we scored four goals in just eight minutes to secure our status for another season. What a comeback from Kemukhtashvi. Conformation then that we are above the dotted line, but wait... The eagle-eyed among you might have noticed that if we win our game in hand it will put us into pole-position ahead of the last game of the season for 2nd place and a possible promotion play-off. How the hell we've got a chance of that I have no idea as the squad is ****ing bobbins but the chance is there. Watch us lose both games and finish fourth (although happily fourth is the lowest we can finish). Our battering of Vandra makes it very difficult for them to climb out of the relegation play-off spot while Santos look as good as down. Champions and then Infonet who also have a chance of snatching second whether we win or not. If this lot get to the play-offs I'll eat Arsene Wenger's magic hat. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
nastymiller Posted February 3, 2017 Share Posted February 3, 2017 Gonna be tears come 9:15pm.....get ready to call the riot act on them! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 3, 2017 Author Share Posted February 3, 2017 Kohtla-Jarve JK Jarve, November 2016 Update Right then. Simple dimples. Win against the Champions Tulevik and Infonet II and we secure a play-off spot. Anything less than a win in either game and we're out. The rest is in The Language God's hands... A very creditable draw away at the Champions where we frustrated and were their equal happened followed by a pulsating 2-1 win against Infonet to round of the season. We went 1-0 down to a pelanty just before half-time but a reading of the riot act and the bringing on of Kemukhtashvili saw us back on level terms. We then saw the game go this way and that way before Frolov headed in from a freekick to put us ahead. We were then seeing the clock down comfortably until, in the 90th minute (seem to be having a lot of last minute dramas in Estonia) the ref awarded Infonet another pelanty. It was clear there was s directive to stop the Englishman's team from getting into the play-offs. Is conspiracy. Anyways it didn't matter as Konstantin Kuznetsov saved it and we saw the game out to end the season on a high, but was it enough... Ultimately no. The dropped points against Tulevik saw us finish below Kalev as they secured the play-off berth. TBF they didn't concede a goal in the last four games of the run-in so they deserve it and we'd have been murdered if promoted so I'll take an extremely creditable third place in my first season in Estonian football. We weren't the main story though as Vandra somehow escaped the drop. They beat FC Flora U21s 2-0 so the goal difference swung right back in their favour and due to Flora's lack of goal-scoring prowess they dropped into the play-out. Santos and Kalju U21s went down automatically which is no surprise. So the season is over but the journey is just beginning. I don't know a lick of Estonian or Russian still so will be here for a while yet and am probably going to need to conduct an entire squad overview with a lack of money meaning I might not be able to hang on to my big players. Already my RB is attracting interest... However he's not been great this season and I was quite surprised when I was asked in a press conference before the Tulevik game whether I agreed that he'd been carrying the side... As you can see he's not bad but carrying the side? Hardly. Anyways it looks like keeping hold of him or any of my good players might be a struggle so next year could see a very different Jarve. For now I'll bask in the glow of a job well done and get back to practicing my Estonian. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 3, 2017 Author Share Posted February 3, 2017 Kohtla-Jarve JK Jarve 2016 Season Review So my five months so far in Estonia see the season draw to a close and what a season it proved to be. Despite a lack of midfield, my main striker being out for months and a 43 year old playing at CB we managed to finish 3rd in the Esiliga and miss out on a play-off place by a solitary point all without me knowing a word of Estonian. Not sure I agree with the match choices as our 4-0 beatdown of Vandra was much better than that win against Flora U21 I can't even remember and our capitulation away to Kalju U21s in the run-in was much worse than getting a humping by a side that won the Championship by 20 points but whatevz. As you can see by the graph we remained remarkably consistent once I arrived and despite my greeting up thread we were never really in the relegation mix despite our late summer blip. No room for Ivanov in the team of the season despite him coming second in the POTY awards but I guess that's due to him playing half on the left and half up front and not being quite as prolific in terms of assists or goals as either of the rivals. Can't really deny Kemukhtashvili his award though. He finished second top scorer in the league despite missing two months of the season. We will not hold on to him as already his demands are bigger than I can offer but I'm hoping something turns around. He seems destined for bigger things though. Mukhin is someone I'm extremely proud of as I bought him in as soon as the transfer window opens and he was everything I love from a DM. He's defo gonna be my fav and as soon as I learn Estonian properly I will tell him I love him. Bobrov did well to top the assist chart seeing as he spent the first half of my time here on the bench till Kemukhtashvili got injured. My 43yo CB got the most yellows (I wonder why) and my stupid LB got two reds and my wrath. Club is in the black which is good to see and I am untouchable. I am yet to sign a contract extension yet despite being offered twice. Just seeing if another Estonian club might take a punt while I'm cheap... This is the squad then. Four stand out players, some very promising youngsters and a lot of dross in between. This squad needs a proper overhaul if we're going to start building something proper here and there's a lot of deadwood to get rid of. My fear is that, like in the mid June transfer window, because my players are all on non-contract terms the good ones will be pinched right near the end and leave me buggered. This is the shape I'm trying to build around so will need some better fullback options in order to move Tishin to CB where he looks better and get rid of Sorokin the Slasher and some good CMs. I will definitely be in the market for another striker as well, two if Kemukhtashvili breaks my heart. As you can see he's far too good for me and wants too much money so it's likely. If I can get him to stay though it'll be a big coup. It'll be the only Christmas present I want. Vladislav Ivanov got a bum rap at the end of season awards as he played well on both the left and up front and will be the calm, older statesman I'm going to need with all the youngsters I've got around. Of course, if we're talking elder statesmen we can't ignore Kitto who is my best CB by far despite his advancing years. He's just offered to be a scout but unfortunately is no better than my other scout who is all 3s. Here's hoping he gets better and keeps playing well. Olexiy is my boy and at just 21 he's going to be the lynchpin this new look Jarve is gonna be built around. Just look at him, all shadowy, silhouetted and mysterious... until he BREAKS YER ****IN LEG! So there we have it. No sign of even having a basic understanding of the language yet but then it's only been five months so there is no alternative but to go back to the training ground and prepare for January... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 3, 2017 Author Share Posted February 3, 2017 Guess wha' Yeah, yeah... Don't count yer chickens etc... Boom. And he loves me. Yes I know it's a non-contract and yes I know he can still be easily poached by any bastard but at least it shows that he is willing to stay. Meanwhile in an interesting turn of events it seems Ivanov looks like being the dick who won't renew due to massive demands instead. Looks like he's sulking due to POTY/TOTY issues and wants to be the big man. He's going to be sorely disappointed. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 3, 2017 Author Share Posted February 3, 2017 MORE NEWS!!! Signed a contract extension and have started casting the net far and wide to try and make this side better than it were... Unsurprisingly Ivanov left. He can go. He is dead to me. LANGUAGE STUFF. Seems like I'm going to learn Russian and not Estonian which worries me slightly as I don't know whether that will stop me from learning languages in other dual language Baltic states such as Georgia and Armenia etc. With that I have started looking around Armenia, Kyrgyzstan and Malawi to see if any jobs come up. Hoping that if I keep the Russian at basic it might allow me to learn the more dominant language in the other countries. As an aside it always says I rarely communicate with my players which is a lie but it always seems to reset to the 'rarely' every time I reload the game. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 4, 2017 Author Share Posted February 4, 2017 Kohtla-Jarve JK Jarve: Pre-Season 2017 A fractious pre-season in many ways as my head has been turned. Learning Russian isn't why I came to Estonia. I came to Estonia to learn Estonian and couple that with my inability to offer anything but non-contract terms to my players which means they can be poached any time and that the board offered me the chance to increase physio wages but when I said it'd be better spent on scouts they told me there was no money. Everything seems a little bit on edge here. And I'm not learning Estonian. Oh and also... So yeah, I signed an U19s manager as I looked to make the club slightly more professional and I had the option to send this twat on a language course. Where is my language course? Also the fact that it was a Russian language course solidifies my thoughts about leaving... So I fired off some applications. Two in Malawi and one in Uzbekistan. The Uzbeks didn't want anything to do with me but the Malawians said they'd get back to me... They didn't get back to me. So onwards to the new Estonian season then I guess. Key signings were made with Kaju at CB, Babjak at CM and Stepanov at LB stepping straight into the squad. I got a few of my excellent prospects annoyingly poached and dropped some deadwood but I'm fairly pleased with my business as long as we can keep the vultures away before the window closes. Pres-season was okay. We lost to the two higher division sides although we were in the first game against out new affiliate Paide. Some of the performances have been a bit shank though and the picking off of most of AM has lessened my options. Also they're appear to be no decent strikers in all of Estonia available and given Kemukhtashvili's ability to be either shite or amazing we're lacking on that front. I feel the squad has slightly more quality than last year but the callow nature of the squad coupled with the loss of some stalwarts means that I think we'll be a lot more hit and miss this year. It doesn't help that some of the players don't take criticism lightly and new signing Stepanov has already annoyed me. I Vardy'd him after he chatted some shit after a poor performance but it did no good and he reacts poorly to constructive criticism. I already hate him and I'll have alienated him before June. So the tactics are the same as last season with three new players (two soon once Stepanov feels my wrath) entering the first XI. We're predicted 7th but the board wanted a top half finish. This is another reason for my disquiet. I just get the feeling that every one at Jarve is an ungrateful bastard. Doubts aside we start against relegated Trans away which is a tough first assignment especially with Kemukhtashvili injured for a week. After that we've got four games we should be looking for 7 points from. That's my plan anyways. But wait... a day after the last friendly I get this... Now I don't know what to do. Do I resign and gamble on the (and their admittedly awesome name is swaying me somewhat) Mighty Wanderers giving me the gig or do I stay safe and continue to not learn Estonian and keep on with my Russian and my building of Jarve. A genuine cliffhanger and a decision has not yet been made. Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 5, 2017 Author Share Posted February 5, 2017 Right then. Having slept on it and going back to it I made a decision. I resigned. Straight after that Mighty Wanderers appointed someone else but I had applied for a few Malawian jobs and got an interview with Azam Tigers. It was all looking swell. That was before I did my due diligence and realised that Malawi's main language was English. FFS. So it was back to the job centre for me as February turned to March and April. I missed out on a job in Uzbekistan and I was contemplating a possible move to the deathly Faroe's when I got offered an interview in Moldova. Why the **** not eh? Just the brief journey though Latvia, Belarus and Ukraine. And then I arrived and saw why the **** not... Yeah. Deep in the relegation mire. No win in five and just two wins in seventeen. This is a club deep in the brown stuff. Oh well, can't complain. I ****ing will complain. To the first journalist I see... Hmm, maybe something got lost in the translation. On the plus side I know I will be learning a new language while I'm here as they asked me about my lack of Romanian. Success. An actual new language. Who cares if I get relegated and automatically fired coz I'm playing in the lowest Moldovan division? Looking at the squad however I'm not sure why they're so bad. They're are some good looking players here but they are not feeling great and have some terrible numbers behind them. I have seven games to save them... Looking at the table and the fixtures the battle against Real Success on the last day of the season already looks like a humdinger. Unfortunately the only other team in the little groups at the back I am playing is Intersport Aroma although I don't play anyone in the top four so I'm hoping the mid-table sides will take it easy and allow us to escape. There are enough teams at the bottom to try and overtake but it's not going to be easy. Look at that proud crest though. I believe. I BELIEVE! What's I believe in Romanian? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 5, 2017 Author Share Posted February 5, 2017 FC Prut Leova April 2017 Update Straight into the mire then with seven games to save Prut from the drop. A team with the worst defence in the league and the worst goal difference this could be a terribly chastening month... Well now. That is fight. We started excellently with a cracking 2-0 win at home to Gagauziya. My first decision was to put precocious young Ciobanu into the starting XI. He may only be 16 but he is the most talented striker at the club and he got us off to a fine start grabbing his and our first goal. We scored a second and held out and played pretty well. A good start. It got even better when Ciobanu scored the only goal away Zimbru-2. We were absolutely battered by them but we held out with goalkeeper Ursu getting MOTM. The hype train was just about to pull out of the station... And then it stalled slightly. We lost at home to a much stronger Codru and saw Ciobanu injured for 10 days and then we took on relegation rivals Intersport at their place. They went ahead early on and I worried that the game was going to go exactly the same way as the Codru game but we got a vital equaliser and took a share of the spoils. A big blow though as we lost Ursu for the rest of the season. He was 17 and awesome and now we are left with a 16yo goalkeeper as the next to step up. These young boys can barely shave but they have the future of me and this football club still in their hands... One point clear of the relegation zone although Intersport have a game in hand. One team sits out each round because of the odd number of teams and it's our turn next so we'll be praying for an Intersport defeat. Still everyone from Iskra down is still fair game to catch. Three games left... Two tough games against 5th and 7th before taking on Real Success. We're certainly not going to do it the easy way if at all. Everyone is picking up points at the moment so I really think we'll need seven points to survive. Anything between four and seven and it'll be touch and go. Anything less than four and I think we'll go down. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 5, 2017 Author Share Posted February 5, 2017 FC Prut Leova May 2017 Update Pretty simple equation. Win three games and stay up. It's never that easy when you've got one of the worst sides in the league though... The two games against better sides went exactly as you'd expect results wise although we didn't disgrace ourselves and in fact could've and should've got a point at home to Edinet but they scored an 80th minute sucker punch winner. Dacia thrashed Intersport 4-1 in their previous game so a 1-0 loss to a dubious pelanty wasn't a bad result but at this time of the season when the margins are so tight good performances aren't enough. Points are needed and with one game to go we were back in the relegation zone given Intersport had picked up a point. Our goal difference meant that we needed to better Intersport's result as they were level on points with us. Sparta Selmet were two points ahead and Real Success were safe. We did our bit but only just. Apparently telling my players that this was a big game and we had to give it our best shot was apparently too much for their precious hides and they all had a go at me for cranking up the pressure. Maybe it was my lack of Romanian but we went into the game in poor morale and went 1-0 down to an OG. It looked all over and I was already planning my escape across the border until Florian Cretu got his first goal of the season just before half-time to give us a chance but with Intersport drawing we needed the win. We kept it normal until the final ten minutes when I threw on a second striker and went for it. We knocked at the door and then in the 85th minute Ilie popped up to head in a corner. SCENES. We held out and held up our end of the bargain. Was it enough... Yes it was. They'll be dancing in Leova tonight. We ended up finishing 12th as Intersport drew and Sparta lost. Despite our goal difference, lack of any decent players and a manager who can't even speak the language we stayed up. Stevie G, this one's for you babez. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 5, 2017 Author Share Posted February 5, 2017 FC Prut Leova 2016/2017 Season Review So we did it. My managerial career in Moldova will now last longer than the seven games Prut had left to survive as we stayed up on the last day of the season. Somehow. With the prospect of becoming fluent in Romanian now very much on the cards and a job for another year at least I can move out of my hotel and into a nice Leovan apartment. All the stuff happened before I arrived but I'm surprised our last win of the season wasn't the game of the season. Although my first win came at home against Gagauziya so they must love us. You may have noticed the average attendance of the side. That's because we don't appear to have a stadium but... So good news. I wonder how much time it will ta... So we're straight into the new staidum. Where had they been hiding that? Looks like it's getting an expansion or something as well. At least they named it originally eh? Onto the review of the season and there's not much to say here although I found it amusing that there were the strikers in the TOTY and none of them were the one I chose to play for me (and who scored 3 in 7 with a game injured). The stats show you just how awful the team have been. When your best average rating is 6.41 from a very unreliable young CB then you know you've had a shocking season. Ali Kone was top scorer with 4 goals (one ahead of the lad Ciobanu) and you have to ask how the hell we stayed up. Lots of work ahead to get this team back on an even keel. This is the squad and you can see just how terrible everyone was. There is a quite a bit of deadwood here but there are some excellent young prospects who I will be building this new era of Prut around. Already I have signed the key players to contracts. Now it's just a case of trying to find some decent players to come and join us. We've got quite a few gaps across the squad. It's going to be a busy pre-season. On the plus side because the club is flush with money they've paid for a coaching course. Thanks guys. I promise not to leave until I'm fluent in Romanian or I'm fired. Probably fired. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 6, 2017 Author Share Posted February 6, 2017 FC Prut Leova Pre-Season 2017 Update A busy pre-season in my little corner of Moldova as I begin the task of reshaping Prut into a side that won't need to rely on other teams to avoid relegation this year. First order of business was steadying the ship and getting rid of all the deadwood at the club. All those released were rubbish and they leave with my blessings. After that it was a question of strengthening the key areas. Namely most of them. In the end I made eight signings. Muscalu and Grecu come in as decent cover out wide which was well needed. One of the problems I had in my run-in is that I didn't have any decent wide left players at all so my preferred formation had a hole in it. These two are the grout around the the large plug I've put in the hole. Vaidu comes in as a back-up GK. He's 23 so it means if Ursu gets injured we have a solid reserve. The rest have been signed to come straight into the first team. Cazacu comes in to shore up the defence which was leaky as sin last year especially with Ceh being so flaky at CB. Shevchenko is the same ability as my other DM but looks a bit more solid so will start. It will be a battle between him and Cojucaru for the berth but I'm glad I have competition. Grynchenko provides much needed quality at LB and again provides a bit more experience than we had before. Scherbakov looks very decent on paper and will bring us some much needed class at CM along with being in his early 20s as well giving us more experience. Mandricenco looks like he could be the business if he first in the LW. A definite upgrade on the one-footed child who couldn't run or kick we had before. The squad looks a lot better than last year's version. There's enough talent in the first team to keep our heads above water I think and lots of interesting youth prospects to balance it out . Our first XI will start with Ciobanu but I am looking for a replacement if he does go off the boil. After all he is only 16. Cretu will captain the side this season and Oprea (who was POTY but hardly played for me in the run-in) is restored to the defence. We still lack a bit of bite at CM but young AM Bogdan Chis looks like an excellent prospect so may come into the side sooner rather than later. Pre-season was a bit of a mixed bag but we played a lot of teams that were rated higher than us so I'm pretty okay with how it went. The team and the gameplan are in place it's just a question of seeing if it's well suited to Divizia A football. The lack of goals from any of the reserve strikers (who played quite a bit) is a worry so another one is a priority before the window closes. The bookies don't think we have a prayer and that we'll finish a newly minted 16th (the league gained a side during pre-season). I'm slightly more optimistic and am aiming for about 10th. If we are going to finish 10th an early win against Edinet would be a good marker> Sfintel and Zimbru might prove sterner tests although I'm hoping we give Zimbru a game in the first game in our new stadium.If they do prove to be too strong then an early relegation meeting against Sparta Selemet is on the cards at the end of the month. Still don't know any Romanian yet but we did play on a French Open pitch... Also the Moldovan league dropped below the Esiliga. I'm certain it's nothing to do with me. Especially coz now pre-season is over the only way is up! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 7, 2017 Author Share Posted February 7, 2017 FC Prut Leova August 2017 Update Optimism will now disappear; hope will fade; reality will bite. What will the real world look like for the new look Prut? It was a promising start. We had an end to end match with Edinet that we lost with the old goal in five. We were very much in the game and lost out to an 88th minute winner which was disappointing but it showed (after we went behind) that we have some fight in us. The next match was our first in our new stadium against Zimbru 2 and after a quiet first half we went down to a 59th minute pelanty. That could've spelt the end for Prut last season but the 2017/18 vintage have a bit more fight about them as the captain equalised eight minutes later and then we nabbed a winner from a corner in the 89th. Off the mark. We had another 3-2 away reverse in our next game but this time we were out fought and looked quite suspect at the back going 3-1 down before throwing the kitchen sink in the last five. We got a goal back but it was not enough and we suffered another away defeat. We were away again for our cup match but this time a mostly second XI delivered a win with the side again coming back from 1-0 down. We finished the month with a vital win at home to Selemet with Ciobanu getting his first of the season just as he was literally being substituted for another crap game. Let's hope this kick-starts his season. A steady start but early doors yet. You can't make any judgments this early on but given we've picked up a third of the wins we got last season in the first four games we have started pretty well. September is busy with a cup match against lower-league opposition followed by a trip to the most powerful 'B' side in Moldova . We've two more home games and I hope we're going to Burnley our way through the season this year and win them both. Early table suggests the two games at the end of the month will be key early contests. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 8, 2017 Author Share Posted February 8, 2017 FC Prut Leova September 2017 Update The survival train continues to chug slowly through Moldova. Will it stop at success or failure? Not a bad month all told. A reserve side lost in the cup in the last minute of extra time before we went to Sheriff 2 in a game of pelanty swap and won. We gave away one, they gave away two and winger Grecu netted a 3rd for us five minutes from time to give is a cracking result. We could only follow it up with a draw at home to Buiucani 2 with Ciobanu getting off the mark to secure the point. We had another 3-2 loss away this time to Gagauziya letting in a last minute goal after a 2-0 down comeback, however, it was the last two games of the month that I'd marked as key and we got four outta six in them. We drew a blank at home but got a very good 1-0 win away at Codru meaning we'd only got 2 points from our home games but 6 from our away ones. Not quite Burnley after all... Comfortably mid-table and if we can keep that up for the rest of the season I'll be very chuffed indeed. Lots of mid-table games in the next month will be a test of where we are as a side. Three home games though mean ideally you'd want a minimum of 7 and a max of 9 points from the upcoming games. In actually important news I've got my continental C licence and even more importantly got basic Romanian now. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 15, 2017 Author Share Posted February 15, 2017 FC Prut Leova: October 2017 Update With October and three home games came the potential to shoot up the table but how did we fare? Pretty okay until the end of the month as it goes. We kicked off with a home draw against Ungheni which was slightly disappointing as we came back from an early goal down to lead 2-1 going into the final 10 only to give it away. Next was a trip to Iskra and a hard fought 1-0 win in an even game made up for the dropped points at home. Nistru were beaten by a quick fire double from the captain after I bought on Albu up front for the second half. The tactical change worked wonders as he laid on both goals. With Ciobanu injured I thought Albu deserved his start against Bardar but instead he played crap and everyone else played crap and we got a 3-0 beating and an absolute chewing-out by me in the dressing room afterwards mixing English, Romanian and Russian. Still, it's no relegation form. We sit comfortably mid-table at the moment then. A nice cushion between us and relegation and we could've gone third if we had beaten Bardar. We had been on a five match unbeaten run so the reaction to the Bardar defeat will be the important factor as we head into the last games before the winter break. A game against Real Success at the start of the month might be a perfect way to bounce back or it might be the start of a dangerous slump. We take on fellow mid-tablers Malak before the return fixtures against Edinet and Zimbru set the temperature for what kind of Winter break we will have. And it's one we need. This is the injury crisis abating but before that we had first choice GK, CM, RB and ST out. If we can get six points from these twelve I'll go into the Winter break happy. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 15, 2017 Author Share Posted February 15, 2017 FC Prut Leova: November 2017 Update A shocking defeat the week before you play a team away in the relegation zone after a run of five games without a loss... we all know how this ends don't we? Exactly as you suspected. We were taught a lesson by Real Success in one of the worst games we've played this season. I decided to tighten up for the home game to Malak and we ground out a 0-0 draw which led me to believe I could be a little more expansive against Edinet. Stupid bloody idea that was and we were battered 2-1 and I mean battered. After that result I decided to take action ahead of the trip to high flying Zimbru. I told quite a few players they needed to step it up including Ciobanu who had been in rotten form and then in a defensive masterclass we put Zimbru away with a Ciobanu goal to enter the Winter break feeling slightly better about ourselves. We sit 10th after some poor results but mid-table is so tight we could shoot right up again if we go on another good run. The key stat is the gap between us and that relegation zone which stands happily at 14 points and given our last minute survival last year is a mark of how far we've come. We've had a disappointing run into the Winter but we're still miles ahead of where we were. A long old break then which is good because most of midfield is out injured. I'm going to train some high level ball control over the break to get us playing my possession game with a bit more pzazz and arrange some friendlies for February. Five games once we return in March and they all look like tough ones apart from the Sparta Selemet game for now though we'll bask in the glow of that win against Zimbru and I will go and intensively study some more Romanian. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulHartman71 Posted February 15, 2017 Share Posted February 15, 2017 A pretty funny read. Enjoying this so far. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 15, 2017 Author Share Posted February 15, 2017 Cheers Paul. I also forgot to mention (it appears) that I got basic Romanian just after the season started so if I spend the Winter break learning hard I could be outta Moldova at the end of the season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 15, 2017 Author Share Posted February 15, 2017 Also, also. I didn't even realise we've already glided past last season's mark of 21 points. By God we were really **** last year. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 15, 2017 Author Share Posted February 15, 2017 Old Estonian pals Jarve finished the season in 5th with 50 points which is 3 points and 2 places below where they finished with me. I went to their last game of the season against Champions Trans (whom they beat 2-0) but the press couldn't work out a reason for me being there but then the Estonian press were never the sharpest... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 15, 2017 Author Share Posted February 15, 2017 FC Prut Leova: Winter Break Update Winter was coming and I needed a Sean Bean to arrive and kick the arse of some of my lazy players. With the opening of the transfer window and the youth day was there a chance? Possibly. But first, here are some friendly results... Bit of a mixed bag. We lost away games and won home games which is very unlike us as before the break we were doing the opposite. Anyways it was a useful winter break and moreso because of the players we signed... Berestean is the most notable given the fact that most of our midfielders are made of paper and he is better than all of them. He scored in his first friendly but his second performance made him look like he could well fit in at Prut being an excellently rated player who plays crap. Anyways I'm pleased with his capture. As well as the capture of Eremia who will hopefully shore up our defence even more given both Oprea and Ceh both go for the 'one decent game in four' model of performance as perfected by any Liverpool defender you want to pick. Yout intake then and both these guys are on the radar. Ivanescu is a very good prospect so it's unsurprising he is noted (although if he is like any other Leovan midfielder he is likely pretty breakable) while Nica gets a mention because he goes straight into the first team due to setting up two in the U19s vs Yout match and with Mandricenco out injured for a few months (although Madri is one of the boys who looks good but performs *****). We should be good for survival and these signings will hopefully push us on. The main issue we have is that there seem to be no decent strikers in Moldova for us to sign and all our strikers are basically Emile Heskey. Still the shoring up of the back and the bite in midfield will hopefully see us safe and that will be vital given I've learned no more Romanian despite three months off. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 18, 2017 Author Share Posted February 18, 2017 FC Prut Leova: March 2018 Update Five matches after the winter break to take us towards the back end of the season. How did we fare? Seven points is not a bad return given the stature of the teams we were playing. The defeat to Sfintul was disappointing as it was a home game but we did the business away to Selemet with young winger Nica getting his first ever goal for the club having been drafted straight from the youth intake. We smothered Sheriff in a dull game at home and then got a bit of lesson from Dacia-B 2 where they took us apart with one swift move and a free kick in the space of three minutes just before half-time. We finished the month with a decent win against Gagauziya but my God are we boring. The fact is that I have no decent strikers and apparently there are none who want to come to me. This means I am now the Big Sam of Moldova. Doing some quality Big Sam work though as we're now 20 points clear of relegation. We could be safe before April is out at this rate and that's all a Big Sam like me cares about. The squad doesn't have much more in it if I'm honest and the new defender is playing crap so far so even the players I bring in who look better don't really perform. Not sure if there is much else I can do here in Prut but we'll get to the end of the season first before we start having an existential crisis. Speaking of crisis poor Mandricenco is having one all to himself. No sooner had he got the all clear to resume training from his injury he was injured again and if you check the times of the news items you will see it only took him 7 minutes to do that. It gives young Nica a chance to continue (although he has quickly reverted to rubbish since his goal) coz Lord knows none of the older players are any good. Only Ungheni are well above us in the teams we play this month and by the time we play them our safety might be confirmed and when it is... Well, I'll probably have a wee drink. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 18, 2017 Author Share Posted February 18, 2017 Ha ha. No sooner do I start to wonder about my future at Prut then the game reads my mind... Obviously I laughed them off with added expletives because they're bobbins and going down but at least I am getting noticed in Moldovan circles and this is progress. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 18, 2017 Author Share Posted February 18, 2017 FC Prut Leova: April 2018 Update What could be an historic month was ahead with the chance of Prut retaining their Divizia A status with more than four games to go which, after last season's madness, is to be extremely welcomed... So why do I feel full of incandescent rage? I'll tell you why. Because this team are a bunch of mentally weak pissbabies who can't handle just the slightest sniff of pressure and collapse in a heap when anyone dares to question their ****ing awful performances. This is embodied in the absolute useless waste of space of my captain Cretu. We got a decent draw away to Saxan and were set fair for a triumphant home game against Codru. All we had to do was avoid defeat and we were staying up. I told them to give the fans something to enjoy and what happened? They ****ing fell apart. I've never been so sickened and angered by a bunch of Moldovans in my life... or ever before but this... this was ****ing dire. A last minute consolation gave some hope but we then proceeded to **** about with the ball when they should've been pushing forward. Useless bastards. They were even more useless away Ungheni but at least we were away and they were up the league. We were actually mathematically safe after that game so I made the decision that I should've made a year ago. Cretu has been dropped and will never play for me again. His one good performance in six and generally pissy mental attitude (looking stressed when you ask him to do his job) means that he's out especially as he's 24. I dropped him for the last game against Iskra and at least we picked up a win. Another youth player scoring a goal in the shape of Avadanei who is rated as possibly being as good as Ciobanu so he'll be good for another four goals in the next 30 games. Anyways, we're safe from the drop but I'm not sure any of these players are safe from my wrath... 10th then with four to go. I'd be happy to finish here and we really should now I've cut some of the deadwood from the first team. A real interesting fight for the title as well as the battle for relegation. I'm not involved in either and TBH I'm quite happy about that as this squad have barely been able to deal with the mental pressure of a mediocre mid-table season... Two top sides away? Uh oh. A relegation battler at home? Double uh oh. I reckon we'll get one point from this and end the season with me smashing teacups on the likeness of Cretu's face again and again and again... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 18, 2017 Author Share Posted February 18, 2017 FC Prut Leova: May 2018 Update Right then. Let's get on with it shall we. I've got places to be and you've got places to be and we all hate it here so... Oh... Alright then. That's pretty... decent actually. Amazing what happens when you drop your useless drip of a captain isn't it? We got a well deserved win away to Nistru Otaci with Ionut Maris (who was Cretu's replacement) scoring his first goal for the club and sealing the win for us. My smug smile could be seen all the way back in Jarve but I ignored the phone call from the Estonian press asking why. They wouldn't get it... Our next assignment was away at title chasing Bardar and we nearly did them. We went ahead in the first minute as Ciobanu scored from the opening move of the game and we held them at bay for nearly an hour until a bit of a soft pelanty was awarded to them. After that they were not to be denied and the got the winning goal with 14 minutes to go. We played well though and could hold our heads high but it was the next game I wanted to win. Ever since our pathetic capitulation to Codru I had earmarked this as a possible career-ender for anyone who couldn't deal with pressure. Luckily for me though this time we did and despite some excellent chances for them we scored three and basically relegated them. Another goal for young striker Avadanei was a welcome cherry on top of the tasty cake of our last home game. Our final mission of the season was to go to another title chasing side in Maiak. Just two points off the top they needed a win and we needed a party to ruin and boy did we ruin it. Ciobanu smacking in a decent free-kick and Maris getting a well deserved second. We took the wind out of Maiak's sails and celebrated our win intensely. We're not a nice side and we don't bow to anyone anymore. You hear me Cretu? NOT ANYONE! A decent end to the season sees us finish 9th and with a positive goal difference. Not bad considering how we squeaked survival last year though. Maybe this hasn't been as bad a season as I thought a month ago. It's amazing what a bit of perspective can d... CRETU YOU BASTARD! I SEE YOU SNEAKING OUT THERE. GET BACK ON THE TRAINING PITCH AND GIVE ME FIVE MORE LAPS YOU SNIVELING ****! Absolutely zen about it all now yeah. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ManUtd1 Posted February 18, 2017 Share Posted February 18, 2017 Dying of laughter here...great stuff Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 18, 2017 Author Share Posted February 18, 2017 FC Prut Leova: Season 2017-2018 Review A decent first full season in Moldova then as I took this side that survived relegation by the skin of their teeth last year and took them into comfortable mid-table. It was relatively painless and decent season all told and... sorry, I thought I might have just seen Cretu walking into training. Anyways, it was a decent season in the end so lets review shall we? A decent season all told although I'm not sure I agree with the worst game. The worst one was the home defeat to Codru. Hands down. I remember being impressed by the Zimbru 2 result at the time so am happy to take that one and obviously a 9th placed finish is pretty damn sweet after last year's madness. Here are your award winners and there's not much to complain about tbh aside from the fact that they didn't pick anyone to play at right wing which is weird. Football fans eh? Anyways I would probably agree that Ursu has been one of our better players this season and with a lack of a standout proper performed in either midfield or attack and with both my full-backs being as good as each other he has come through and won POTY by the two greatest words in the English language. De and Fault. He also picked up YPOTY as well so a decent season for a player who I always know I can depend upon (aside from that one match against Codru but everyone's allowed one). Can't remember Iacob's goal. Was probably drunk. Here they all are then. One of the mid-tableiest bunches of mid-tables who ever mid-tabled. Only Berestean averaged over 7 but when you compare it to last year where the POTY averaged 6.41 we're talking about a world of difference... We suffered quite a few injuries this year. Is an excuse. I am using... A cool stat for us though is that Ursu was the best keeper in the division with 13 shut-outs in 28 games. He's not a tough-tackling DM who breaks legs but he's all I've got right now on these cold Moldovan nights and I love him. One stat that I did stumble upon and find worrying though is that the experienced defender I signed to shore up our defence over the Winter break was directly responsible for four goals. In just thirteen games! I'm hoping it was just a settling in thing but I might need to cast my net around again in the Summer. Other stats to finish us off then. Ciobanu top scored with seven goals which isn't enough. I need a goalscorer desperately but given that he's just a kid he's done pretty well there and if he continues to develop could well lead the line one day. Nicolae gets rated as the top player (assuming Berestean doesn't count as he came in the window) while Scherbakov gets recognition for his tireless leg work and passing in midfield. He can pass the ball so he gets it a lot. No red cards and only six each as the highest is a bit off for me coz usually I win those stats by a country mile but I guess my English 'up an at 'em' nice is still a little lost in translation. Give it time though. The fact that only three players picked up two MOTMs each and that was the highest number showed how much it was a collective effort of mediocrity from the squad. I'd settle for a bit more mediocrity next season... Still, it's not why we're here is it? It's all about the language and my level has been upgraded to good. I am now good at speaking Romanian. HUZZAHS. What does this mean for next season though? Well... at the moment I am yet to sign a contract extension, however, I've not had any interest aside from the side that got relegated so I think I'm unlikely to find another Moldovan gig at the moment so the plan will be to stay at Prut for another year and spend my summer making Cretu's life an absolute misery... oh and maybe sign some players and make the team better etc etc. For now though. This one is for Cretu... He really is worth less than Alec Baldwin. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 19, 2017 Author Share Posted February 19, 2017 FC Prut Leova: Pre-season 2018 Update Well then. Onto pre-season and the first order of business was to make sure I was still employed by Prut so I could continue my Language Learning... Job done. I had asked for a parent club in order to help with the fact that my scouts can't find anyone to recruit at all but they came back blank. They have agreed to me going for my Continental B licence though so that's good. With my future secured for another season it was time to do some overhauling of the squad... This first bit of news was a bitter blow. With Mandricenco out I'd be forced to look for two completely new first team ready wingers... The transfers out are pretty much self-explanatory wasters who weren't good enough to play when I first arrived and only hung on last season in case of emergencies. As far as incomings were concerned in the end we strengthened in four areas with a new CB, DM and two new wingers. Kirillov comes in as a replacement for the Cretin who will not be named. Much better than him and let go from a higher division club it was a coup to get him. I only hope he can turn that talent into performances. Vasiljev was someone I scouted and thought might be okay so I offered him a trial. He was at ours and didn't look great yet but then was attracting attentions of a lot of other DIvizia A clubs. I decided to sign him and lo he agreed. Will give me some (hopefully) much needed steel at CB. Focsa was at Real Success and did get relegated but he looks better than my other two DMs and has looked solid so far in pre-season. Ionescu was an emergency find. I bought him on trial and he scored in our second game so he is now signed as Mandricenco's replacement which means we won't have to rely on Nica the 16 year old. This is the squad and it's not that much better but we've strengthened in a few key areas it's just there are no decent strikers in Moldovan football (not that my scouts could find anyway). I imagine we'll be on course to repeat last season looking at this lot. This is how we will line-up for the first game of the season. All the new signings are straight in and have looked okay in the friendlies. And so have the rest of the team with 6 wins, a draw and a loss coming. Berestean, Ciobanu and Ionescu have all scored more than once pre-season so I'm hopeful they will continue to do so as the season starts as our goalscoring is what let us down last year. If Ionescu works out in that IF role that could be a great boon for the campaign ahead. Despite last year's comfort we've been predicted relegation again. I think we're better than that and should be aiming for the top ten again. That's my personal aim for this squad although when I mentioned it pre-season there was much whinging about it being too ambitious. It's probably that snake Cretu's fault but don't worry, I've settled his hash over the summer break... Ahhh, we have fun don't we. He's still here at the moment but I'm going to drop him into the U19s in a week or so and then start fining him for his unprofessional behaviour. No-one else seems to have spoken out for their former leader which isn't a surprise. Would you want to leap to the defence of this sniveling coward? Anyway onto the football. Three games to kick us off and we start against Edinet again but at least we're at home, we then travel to newly promoted Congaz before facing a Maiak side who will probably have revenge on their mind after their championship choke against us on the last day of the season. Time for all our dreams to come crashing down again... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 19, 2017 Author Share Posted February 19, 2017 FC Prut Leova: August 2018 Update Off we go with a new season then. Full of hope and joy and all the possibilities. How long before we came crashing back down to earth? Well, not this month. Instead we'll dare to dream for another month at least. It all started against Edinet, a team we've lost to in every game ever, and when we went down 2-0 it looked like another terrible day against them but a great late rally and an equaliser three minutes from Ciobanu sent me into raptures. We'd never have done that last season with Cretu the Cretin as captain. From there it was strength to strength with a solid win away to new boys Congaz before thrashing last season's title chaser Maiak 4-1 with a hattrick from Berestean and Kirillov grabbing his first goal (which was heartening to see as he'd been gash in the previous two games). We finished the month with an away cup game and the second XI made a little bit more heavier weather than they should have but we ultimately prevailed in extra time with goals from both our young wingers. A pretty decent month then. Early doors yet but unbeaten and delivering an early smackdown is nothing to be sniffed at. Ungheni sit bottom which is interesting as they were interested in me apparently. They never made an approach and hired some Moldovan guy which appears to be working out well for them. A busy, busy September with a game against Ungheni as well as a cup match against fellow Divizia A side Iskra. I think we'll know how much better we are this season after this run of games. Meanwhile... He'll go eventually. He won't talk to me anymore and nobody else cares. Soon he will be on the Moldovan scrapheap and I will laugh, oh how I will laugh... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 19, 2017 Author Share Posted February 19, 2017 FC Prut Leova: September 2018 Update Who's ready to come crashing back down earth? You? And Me? And Prut? Alrighty then... A chastening month with no wins (in the league anyways) and a big spanking at the start of it. We have shown quite a lot of battling qualities through the month but a plague of injuries in key positions have cost us and left us floundering a bit. The most notable things have been Vasiljev scoring two pelanties to give us a point in two different games (if only he could defend eh?) and Aibu getting a goal for the first time since our relegation season. Other than that we've been pretty up and down with no consistency. Classic Prut. It hasn't put us in any mires at this stage and I'm fairly happy with the points tally so far especially after the Saxan manager trash talked me in the press and said we're going down. I chinned him after the game. Obvs. All these players have been out this month and in a busy month it has definitely caught up with us. Hopefully with a more sedate schedule we can get back on track. A mix of games in October. We've done well against Gagauziya since I've been here so that's a guaranteed loss. We then take on two title chasing sides before finishing the month away to another newly promoted side. I'm expecting us to take two points here. We'll lose the two games we should win but draw against the title challengers. It's how we Prut. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 19, 2017 Author Share Posted February 19, 2017 FC Prut Leova: October 2018 Update It's amazing how one win can turn a winless run into an unbeaten run innit? The vagaries of football... From no win in five to an unbeaten seven match winning run. That's how you do it but by God could we do with a Moldovan lad who can put the ball in the net. Any kind of lad. I'm not fussy. Nice to see Nica on the score sheet again but Vasiljev is now our top scorer and this ain't no FM08 with a corner exploit and he ain't no Sam Sodje so having a CB as your leading scorer is pretty damning. At least we're competitive... I guess... *chews gum and drinks a pint of wine* Midtable. Obvs. The most interesting thing thus far is that Ungheni have turned around their poor start to the season and our now top proving they should absolutely have not hired me. Good call guys. Good call. Five games take us to the Winter break with important relegation games against Iskra and Selemet away. Zimbru 2 come to Leova as do Congru and a trip to Edinet is also on the cards for us before th snow falls. I make no predictions except we'll score about three goals in all the games. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 20, 2017 Author Share Posted February 20, 2017 OMFG. STOP THE PRESSES!!! That's right. I'm fluent in Romanian. This is an absolute plot twist. I am now free to leave Leova and head somewhere else to learn another language. What one I go for is a mystery but this will signal that my time at Prut is coming to an end. I'll take them through to the Winter break and then start casting my net wide. Only taken me 18 months as well. What a ployglot I am... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 21, 2017 Author Share Posted February 21, 2017 FC Prut Leova: November 2018 Update Pressure is off and there is an end of term feel all around Leova as I being to dream of pastures new. Also there was football. And we did quite well. A bit annoyed to lose to Selemet but at least it was away. The rest was decent with all the youngsters scoring the goals. There is great talent here for the next manager. For me... I'll stay until my course is done and the resign probably. In the meantime the search for a new gig is underway. We're doing very well although the league is a lot closer this year so if I do go in the break there is no certainty of survival. If I stayed till the end I'd be expecting top 8 though. There are no strikers but the team is solid. These are the games once the Winter break is over. Hopefully I will be elsewhere for when these games happen. If not there are some tough fixtures out of the break. In the meantime I paid one last visit to Jarve as I scheduled the league for deletion. They lost. I was sad. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 22, 2017 Author Share Posted February 22, 2017 THIS IS THE NEWS!!! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wavelberry Posted February 22, 2017 Author Share Posted February 22, 2017 Completed my coaching course in January so I started having a look and Lithuania looked enticing especially as the league hadn't started yet. Having not had a pre-season with either Jarve or Prut when I first joined them this was a novelty for me and one I couldn't turn down. I didn't even have to resign although those Moldovans were crying betrayal but **** them and there stupid culture. I've learnt their language and I have no more time for them. So let's hit the road... So having headed down through Lithuania when leaving Estonia I know go back but this time stopping in Kaunas, the second largest city in all of the Lithuania. The best news is I should be learning Lithuanian as they asked me about it in my press conference. Huzzahs. The league is one step up from Divizia A so my reputation must be improving right? As to this club... well it's a phoenix club as the original FBK Kaunas went under in 2012 and was resurrected by their fans. They've finished 8th for the last three years and (bizarrely) have an affiliation with Thamesmead of all bloody places. I hope we don't have to pre-season there coz Thamesmead is a stinky hole. Squad needs a lot of work as it's pretty empty. Hopefully I'll get some hardy Ryman North boys in from Laandaan Taan I definitely need to get into the transfer market though if we're going to be successful as there is no youth squad to speak of. Another 16 team league with one up and two down and some B sides. Just like Moldova. So off we go then and what better anthem to get us going than this banger? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
deltablue Posted February 24, 2017 Share Posted February 24, 2017 That was a Eurovision classic Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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