Franjo: A Journeyman Story

[Franjo]

Optimism (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep53)

Let me level with you. I'm worried. Very worried. There have been times this Summer when I've questioned my decision to join Katowice. Off the back of a hugely successful season with SC Angrense, maybe it would've been more sensible to take a job in the Slovenian or Czech 2nd tier. I could've taken over at one of the big hitting clubs in a division like that and maybe continued to build up my reputation with another promotion. Instead I took the biggest job I could find, and possibly the most difficult one too.

There's every chance that this squad won't cut the mustard in the Lotto Ekstraklasa and that I'll be back on my arse in 6 months having been sacked, with GieKSa rooted to the foot of the table.

I'll be back where I was 18 months ago, trying to convince anyone who'll listen to take a punt on a Manager who's effectively relegated 2 clubs.

But enough of that. Optimism is the way forward now. We line up against Jagiellonia in our new look Project: Burnie MK II, a simple counter attacking 4-1-2-3 system. Vice-captain Nowak will start in goal, with Scheffel, Hutton, Olivier and Garbacik in front of him. I'm giving Rodrigo Silva a chance in front of the defence too. It's a risk, but his potential is excellent and I want to see if he's ready. Bart and Hurley are our midfield partnership, Mandrysz will take the right wing while Kevin cuts in from the left, and Captain Goncerz leads the line.

We start on the front foot, and Goncerz shows a glimpse that he can fashion chances, holding the ball up well and playing it through for Hurley, whose shot is straight at Stachowiak, the Jagiellonia keeper.

The rest of the half is quiet but we start the second 45 promisingly too. Mandrysz plays a long ball over the Jagiellonia defence almost straight from kick off and Goncerz latches onto it, but he drags his shot wide of the far post.

Less than 10 minutes later, the deadlock is found. And not in the way that I'd hoped. Khomchenovskyi squares the ball from the left side of our penalty box and Jelic drills it past Nowak from close range.

5 minutes later, Khomchenovskyi's corner is headed back to him and he crosses it in again. Cernych rises and heads the ball against the bar. I keep a poker face but this is a nightmare. The little momentum we'd built up from the chances we'd made has evaporated with the opening goal. We've gone all wobbly while Jagiellonia are growing in confidence.

2 minutes later, another Khomchenovskyi corner comes back to him and he crosses the ball back in to the far post. Gabacik swipes at the ball but can only clear it as far as Frankowski a few feet away, who puts it past Nowak for 2-0.

I tell the boys to attack and to play in a more structured way, but we're getting battered. Less than 5 minutes after the second goal, Frankowski plays the ball in to Jelic in the area and luckily for us, he skies it.

I decide to just go for it. I withdraw Silva. I feel quite bad that I started him today in such a big game, I shouldn't have put so much pressure on him. We go 4-2-3-1 and I bring on Machalski, an attacking midfielder, in Silva's place.

A couple of minutes later though, Jagiellonia's Scottish full back Ziggy Gordon swings a cross in from the right and Jelic volleys in his second. The match ends 0-3.

https://youtu.be/TRUag7ZoFyY

Huh. I don't want to sound like an arse hole, but I'd sort of forgotten what this felt like. To be beaten so soundly. To be torn apart by a far superior team. If I had to guess, I'd say the last time this happened to me was the first time Angrense played Caldas. 

It doesn't feel good. I was worried before the match and I'm worried now. We offered up very little in terms of attacking threat or defensive solidity and in all honesty, Jagiellonia should've beaten us by 4 or 5. Our counter attacking was minimal. Our creativity was non-existant. We need to improve massively if we're to survive this year. Or come to think of it, if I'm to survive past Christmas.

So the road to survival with GKS Katowice is indeed going to be long and gruelling. We've gotten off to the worst possible start and we're already down at the foot of the table. Let's hope we don't stay there for too long.

[Franjo]

Going Dutch (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep54)

Well, our first match was a bit of a downer, I won't lie. But what better way is there to raise spirits back up than with a couple of brand new exciting loan signings from big clubs? I have taken roughly 100 wingers on trial this Summer (I'm not even kidding) as we did still need reinforcements there, and to be honest, aside from Whitfield who we missed out on, the quality of the available players hasn't been great, but we've signed 2 pretty promising young Dutch lads to bolster our ranks.

First to arrive is Vitesse's Aaron Kwarko. I signed him for a few reasons, but mainly because he's a... I don't know if there's a term for what he is, so I'm going to call him an Anti-Winger. Wingers are traditionally small and nippy, and burst past defenders purely through pace. Anti-Wingers are tall and strong, but still quick. They bully defenders and surge past them with power, and will be useful in a physical league like the Lotto Ekstraklasa. Kwarko is an excellent example of an Anti-Winger as he's 6'5", has good acceleration, speed and strength, as well as technique and crossing ability. He's only 19 but he can be a different option to what we already have, and he's also perfectly comfortable on either wing.

Our other signing is Feyenoord's Shurendo Janga. He's also a big lad at 6'2" but prefers to play through the middle as a striker or attacking midfielder, although he's also comfortable on either wing. At 20 he's another young man and he has a good touch, good technique, and he's quick, agile, skilful and strong. He's got the makings of a very good player there.

Our next match is a Polish FA Cup match away at our First Division neighbours Rozwój Katowice. Today is a very good chance for us to pick up our first win, and it's also a good chance to see what the rest of my squad can do. I'll try my second string with Project: Meatloaf and see how they do.

Azevedo makes his debut in net, with Geng, Pluta, Abramowicz and Franczak in defence. Silva and Fossy start as our midfield duo, and Janga and Kwarko make their debuts either side of Baran, with Tarnowski up front.

My new signings are almost vindicated in the 12th minute when Janga drills the ball into the box low from the right. Kwarko collects it in the centre but drags his shot just wide of the mark.

On the 20 minute mark, the ball's up the other end. Sobotka blasts a free kick from just outside our box, and it flies over the wall, past Délcio Azevedo and into the net. Bollocks.

At half time, I pace up and down in front of my team as they stare blankly back at me. I don't know what words to use. And even if I did, I don't know how to say them in Polish. I feel like this Country, this League, and this club are showing early signs of rejecting me like a transplanted kidney. The most frustrating part is that I've brought this on myself, playing the kids and reserves instead of the first team was a mistake. I should've known that.

I stop my pacing and turn to face the poor rabble, glaring at each of them in turn. I decide that the best course of action is to just open my mouth and let words happen.

"Bollocks! I'm a ****ing kidney..." I blurt out. I feel myself go bright red. Did they understand that? A couple are smirking. This is awful. I lower my head into my hands. "Just... Just don't... Just win!" I sigh in desperation, before walking shamefully out of the door and away from the room full of confused and demotivated footballers.

Shockingly, those footballers come out swinging for the 2nd half. Less than 2 minutes after the restart, Tarnowski plays the ball into the box for Kwarko, who places it first time past Slowik and into the net. What's not shocking though is that the linesman's flag was already up and we're still 1-0 down. And in deep trouble.

On the hour, I decide to just stick to the original plan. I may as well give a couple more kids some game time. Kamil Karwot, a 16 year old left winger, and Mariusz Stryjek, the 17 year old striker who scored for us in pre season, replace Baran and Tarnowski.

But to be honest not a lot happens in the remaining half hour. Azevedo makes a good save from Zak, I beg the team to attack and even bring on Wilk as a makeshift second striker in place of one of our centre backs, but to no avail.

https://youtu.be/BsF2_TS_nWQ

Listen, I know I ****ed up by not playing my first team. I know I ****ed up again by trying to solve the problem by bringing more youth players into the equation. But these are the stupid decisions that get made when you're panicking, and I am absolutely panicking. This is feeling more like Höllviken with each passing day. I feel like I've turned up to the battle of Minas Tirith on the back of a 3 legged Shetland pony equipped with a pea shooter I got free with a copy of the Beano. And no peas.

But no more. No more will I let fear rule my decisions. No longer will I listen to Nuno's voice saying "You fail, Inglês! You fail, Inglês!" as I fall asleep at night. Katowice will not become another black mark on my CV next to Höllviken. We've had a bad start, but we've punched above our weight before in Portugal and we'll bloody well do it again here. Starting...

[Franjo]

GieKSik (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep55)

...NOW. And do you know why we're starting now? Because we're playing KGHM Zagłębie at home. They lost their first match too, 2-0 against Wisła Kraków, so they're only 1 place above us in 15th. I know that league places are meaningless at this point but it's still a bit of a confidence booster.

As I walk towards Stadion GKS Katowice's home changing room, I get my instructions for the players ready in my mind. We'll play an incredibly standard and flexible 4-2-3-1 and we'll work the ball into the box. That's all. No messing about.

As I turn the corner though, I see something that sends shockwaves of pure terror through my entire body. Walking towards me is a man. A huge, horrifying man, with skin as white as snow and lifeless eyes as wide as saucers. His jet black hair is slicked back and his mouth is wide open, the corners curled into an unsettling smile.

"Powodzenia", says the scary man in a gruff, muffled voice. His lips don't even move.

"Are you a vampire?" I ask quietly, as he really looks like a ****ing vampire.

"I am GieKSik", he replies, somewhat more chirpily but still muffled. He continues walking towards me until he's very very close, and then stops, holding up his massive hand for a high 5. I don't move. I stay perfectly still. He seems to get the message after a few seconds and I sense a touch of sarcasm in his gruff voice as he says "Well we could talk until the cows freeze over, but I have to go." As he skirts around me he drops a business card into my suit jacket's right pocket, before striding around the corner that I've just come from and out of sight.

Once I'm sure that the obvious vampire's gone, I take out the business card and have a look. It reads:

"GieKSik

Maskotka GKS Katowice"

He's a mascot. Of course he's a bloody mascot. And of course I already knew that. And of course I wasn't really scared.

Anyway, there's a link to GieKSik's Facebook page on the card too, because obviously. I make a mental note not to have a look later because I'd like to sleep tonight.

I walk into the changing room as the lads are chatting amongst themselves and announce in my boomiest voice "Right lads, thank you." The room falls silent.

"Are you OK boss?" Asks Dennis Lawrence, a look of concern on his face.

"Fine thank you Dennis", I reply.

"You're all white, you look like you've seen a ghost".

"No I don't. Right then."

"Can anyone smell ****?"

"RIGHT THEN, KGHM Zagłębie", I boom, feeling the colour flood back to my cheeks.

The team that I name for this match is the same as the team that faced Jagiellonia, with the exception of Fossy replacing Rodrigo Silva and playing behind the striker. After relaying my minimal instructions and making my way to the dugout, the match begins. And it's not a good one. The only first half action is an early shot from KGHM's Vasilef which flies high and wide, followed by a quick game of pinball in their box which we're unable to capitalise on.

The second half is no better, but as the match begins to wind down, I realise that I'm OK with it. Our first point on the board is not a thing to be sniffed at in our position. We might even move out of 16th place.

With 15 minutes to go, Bart finds himself with the ball in KGHM's half and plays it out to Kevin, who's cutting in from the left. He takes a touch, looks up, and drives the ball low into the far corner of the net.

Kevin is mobbed by his teammates, in particular his fellow former Heróis Hurley and Olivier, but he wriggles free and runs over to me in the dugout and I give him a high 5, as our resident scary bastard, GieKSik, watches on enviously in the background.

A couple of minutes later, Bart nearly makes it 2-0 when Goncerz lays the ball off for him, but his fizzing shot across the ground is just wide of the post.

https://youtu.be/MoIo5BS6OWE

Thank **** for you, Kevin. I know that one swallow doesn't make a Summer, but that goal gives us a bit of vital breathing room. From being mid-meltdown last week, we've now scored the first goal of my tenure, kept our first clean sheet, picked up our first points and our first win, and that is not bad for a day's work.

So let's keep this momentum going... Against the team that finished 2nd in the Lotto Ekstraklasa last season... And are predicted to do so again... Well let's at least try. Lech Posnań have so far won 1 and lost 1 but as they're favourites to beat us in the same way that the Death Star was the favourite to beat Alderaan, we'll be playing a cautiously standard and flexible variation of Project: Burnie MK II, with Gregurina coming into the team in place of Fossy as a holding man, and Janga replacing Mandrysz on the right wing.

Less than 10 minutes in, Jevtic stings Nowak's hands with a low drive, but the veteran keeper can only parry it as far as Jozwiak, who thankfully smacks the ball into the side netting.

A few minutes later Lech are dominating, and Mbemba plays a good long ball forward to Galán, who dribbles into our area - And is tripped by Olivier. My heart sinks. The referee puts his whistle to his lips and runs over, pointing to the spot.

Jevtic stands at the edge of the area as the ref blows his whistle again, and the attacking midfielder runs forward to hit the ball from the penalty spot. He places the ball low to the left - And Nowak goes with it, tipping it behind for a corner, the beautiful bastard.

Before the 20 minute mark, just as things are starting to turn our way, Olivier under hits a back-pass to Nowak. Hutton tries to get to the loose ball before Galán, but he's not the quickest off the mark. Galán gets to it first and smashes it past our helpless keeper. Oh Olivier. Poor, sweet Olivier. Today is not your day, my friend.

Lech's pressure does not let up. A couple of minutes after the opening goal, Mbemba dribbles forward and hits a hopeful shot well wide, and a few minutes after that, Jevtic's free kick is shoved away by Nowak and Galán rifles the rebound against the post.

At half time, I tell Janga to position himself more centrally as he and Goncerz have been quiet so far, and I'm hoping having Janga as more of a secondary striker will bring both players into the game.

We start to drag ourselves back into the game after the break, and 10 minutes into the second half, Scheffel hits a good pass over the Lech defence and Goncerz runs through on goal, slotting the equaliser past Lis, the Lech keeper.

Spirits are high after that, but only temporarily. On the hour mark, Radut swings a free kick in from the left, Jach gets up above poor Olivier and directs what I would describe as a "Bobbling header" towards goal. It is utterly without pace, and Nowak should save it really, but he doesn't. 1-2. I suppose the penalty save balances out that horrendous mistake though, so I'll let him off.

5 minutes later, Baran and Fossy come on for Gregurina and Janga and we change to a fluid counter attacking system to try to catch Lech out again. It nearly pays off immediately when Hurley runs the ball into the box, but he puts his shot just over the bar.

With 10 minutes to go, Majewski swings a Lech corner to the near post. Galán nods it on, and their debutant centre back Valente is unmarked at the far post to head past Nowak. We go attacking, but the game's over.

https://youtu.be/U5poMwODbOk

You know what? Fine. I'll take that. On another day, Olivier is his usual solid self and doesn't give away a penalty, under hit his backpass, or get beaten in the air for their second. On another day we keep our focus from that late set piece and mark Valente. We were no doubt beaten by the better side, and I have no problem with that, but on another day we might have scraped a draw. I can live with that result though. And I can live with 13th place too.

Although there is one thing that's troubling me. Something that's been eating away at me for the last week, actually.

Why does GieKSik need business cards?

[Franjo]

Bartbeat (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep56)

Some might say "Franjo, could you leave SC Angrense alone now please?"

To those people I say that technically, Angrense released Amonike in the Summer and we've signed him on a free transfer, so I'm not exactly raiding them. Any more. They didn't want him for some reason, and I do. Welcome back, my friend.

I've been vocally unhappy with my options on the wings since I joined Katowice, hence the signing of Kevin and the loan signings of Kwarko and Janga, but I see Kevin as a left inside forward, Kwarko as more of a late game destroyer substitute, and Janga as a utility squad player. I needed a first choice right winger, and hopefully, once he's back to full fitness, Amonike will be just that for me once again.

Anyway, Amonike will get a place on the bench today as we take on Legia Warszawa. Our previous opponents Lech Poznań finished 2nd last season are predicted to do the same again this year, but 3 guesses where Legia finished last season and where they're predicted to finish again? Top of the bloody pile. This should go swimmingly.

Having done my homework on Legia, I'm seeing that they usually play quite narrow in a 4-2-3-1 with 3 central attacking midfielders. I'm quite pleased with this if I'm honest, because if we can just deny them space in the centre we might be able to nullify them entirely.

We'll be going for our Project: Burnie MK II system again, which has become a standard flexible system in the past few weeks as oppose to the counter attacking system we tried to play against Jagiellonia Białystok. We'll also be playing the same line up we played against Lech. I will be making a couple of crucial tweaks for this match though, considering Legia's play style. We'll be fairly narrow, restricting space in the middle, and we'll exploit the flanks where they're weakest.

The game starts with lightning pace. First Chukwu plays a good ball through for Costinha, whose low, central shot is saved by Nowak, then at the other end Goncerz plays a similar ball through for Hurley, ans his considerably better shot has to be tipped behind by Majecki.

Then in the 6th minute, Jedrzejczyk's cross into our box is headed clear by Alan Hutton. Janga gets to the ball on the right and plays it down the line for Goncerz, who surges forward as reinforcements arrive to his left. He dribbles forward and skips over a dangerous and malicious challenge from Hlousek, before swinging a cross to the far post. The ball hurtles towards Kevin, who decides not to go for goal, and instead uses his head to cushion the ball down for Bart, who lashes it on the half volley - Into the back of the ****ing net.

I keep my poker face once again, as I don't want to celebrate now and look daft in 10 minutes when we're 1-4 down, but inside my heart is hammering and I'm fighting a losing battle trying to hold back the massive grin that's appearing on my face.

A couple of minutes later, Scheffel swings a cross in from deep on the right and it falls perfectly for Hurley at the far post. He pokes a volley at goal, but it doesn't have much power and Majecki keeps the ball out.

It all goes pleasingly quiet after that and we are indeed nullifying Legia, until 10 minutes before half time when Szymanski's drilled cross is turned towards goal by Chukwu, but he hits the near post.

Before half time, Goncerz, who I'm beginning to think likes setting up chances way, way more than he likes scoring goals, plays the ball to Hurley, who drives forward to the edge of the area and shoots, but Majecki catches it with a degree of comfort.

Half time comes and goes, and as we pass the hour mark, not much else has happened. I stand up and catch Amonike's eye. "Warm up mate", I smile. We'll bring him on for young Janga on the right. Except we won't. Because before the ball goes out of play, before our substitution can occur, our goal scorer Bart, the beating heart of GKS Katowice, or Katowice's Bartbeat if you will, trips Hämäläinen from behind. He was already booked in the first half and receives his second yellow for the trip. We're down to 10 men.

I scramble, telling Amonike to sit back down and gesturing instead to Fossy and Machalski. Our central midfield duo come on replacing Janga and Kevin, the 2 wingers, and we'll change to a flat 4-1-3-1 to make us as solid as possible. I also get the message out to go even narrower.

With quarter of an hour to go, we're more than holding on. We're pushing for a second! Goncerz again plays hurley through, but the midfielder's shot is just wide. There's a real partnership developing between these 2, I just wish Hurley would put a couple of these chances away.

We enter the final 10 minutes still relatively untroubled by Legia. With 8 minutes to go, Hurley plays a lofted ball forward and Goncerz takes it down and turns well. He tries to chip the ball towards the far top corner, but it goes just over the bar.

I don't think I'll forget today in a hurry. I love a good giant killing. The exhilaration when the ball hits the back of the net, the relief of the full time whistle. We're really onto something now. This is starting to feel a little less Höllviken and a little more Angrense. Today was a very good day. The final score: Predicted title winners Legia Warszawa - 0, The 10 men of predicted cannon fodder GKS Katowice - 1.

https://youtu.be/GTnzhOU4WU0

And do you know what? I won't forget Bart's contribution today, nor will I begrudge him that second yellow. A journalist asks me immediately after the match if he'll need to sit out of a couple of matches to learn his lesson, and I want to tell them not to be so ****ing stupid.

It's not him that makes the team of the week though, it's Olivier! Aside from his off day against Lech, he's adapted really well to his new league. He's mainly been very solid, and of course, he played a big part in completely nullifying the champions.

So all we need is to keep spirits high, keep the players happy and try to build on this platfo... Oh bollocks, Baran wants to leave. So basically we've just received 2 bids: Up to £40k from Verona for our 16 year old left winger Kamil Karwot, which I reject, and up to £165k from Genoa for Ryszard Baran, our young and incredibly talented playmaker, which I also reject.

Instantly, Baran is banging on my office door, demanding he be allowed to move to Genoa. I tell him, very reasonably, that he can go if someone comes in with more money. In the next few days a bidding war erupts between Saint Etienne, Bologna, Cagliari and Bordeaux, and I allow Bologna to enter contract discussions as they bid the most: £400k and 50% of his next transfer fee. I'm not happy with this situation at all, Baran's been a little brat about it, but we'll just have to wait and see how that develops.

For now, Cracovia are my sole focus. They're an upper mid-table side and call me crazy, but I reckon if we can turn Legia over then we turn these over too. As the home side we'll return to our incredibly standard 4-2-3-1 and bring Fossy in for the suspended Bart.

Nearly a quarter of an hour in, Gregurina runs forward and sprays the ball out to Kevin on the left wing, and he crosses low to Goncerz on the edge of the box. Our selfless striker touches the ball straight on for Gregurina, who rifles the ball into the bottom corner for 1-0. What a start.

The rest of the half is cagey, not that I'm complaining. The second half begins tentatively too, and our first chance comes when Kevin chips the ball over the Cracovia defence and into the path of Goncerz. Goncerz dribbles out to the left hand side of the area before skimming a low cross into the centre, which Fossy converts from close range.

We're 2 to the good! Against a pretty good team! I'm over the ****ing moon! I consider belly bouncing Dennis, but think better of it.

10 minutes later, Kwarko and Amonike are on for Janga and Kevin, and we're still playing the best football I've seen us play. An excellent passing move on the right hand side culminates with Fossy sending in a low cross from the right. A quick game of pinball begins as Osyra deflects the ball with his outstretched foot, sending it towards Goncerz, who's only a few feet away from goal. Before it can reach him though, Kotula slides in with a perfect tackle but only succeeds in knocking the ball away as far as big Aaron Kwarko, who stabs in his first Katowice goal just minutes after coming on.

3-0! Bloody 3-0! We're cruising! This is absolutely not what I expected from Cracovia. I expected them to take 1 point at the very least, but they're rudderless. They're helplessly throwing sandbags in front of their doors as the tidal wave of our fantastic football crashes into them. The gentlemanly thing to do would be to kill the game and take our 3 points without trying to humiliate Cracovia, but as far as I know gentlemanly conduct has never saved anyone from relegation, so we press on.

With a quarter of an hour to go, Fossy hits a hopeful ball forward from deep in our half. It falls to one of Cracovia's centre backs, Kornel Osyra, but it falls awkwardly and he miscontrols it, knocking it backwards towards his own net. Goncerz runs through and collects the loose ball, takes aim, and smashes it against the bar. It bounces back and into the grateful arms of Sandomierski.

I decide to bring Goncerz off and replace him with Michel Tarnowski. Tarnowski hasn't scored in 15 matches and today seems like the day to end that run, given Cracovia's capitulation.

A couple of minutes later, Scheffel's cross is cleared as far as Garbacik on the half way line. The left back thumps the ball straight back into the box, and as the defence snoozes Tarnowski acts quickly, losing his marker and nodding the ball over the onrushing keeper and into the net.

With a couple of minutes of the match to play, Cracovia's Ferraresso attempts to justify his side's decimation by getting himself sent off. "10 man Cracovia hammered 4-0" makes for a slightly less embarassing headline I suppose.

https://youtu.be/xAssnmnT49k

I don't think that I've had a more satisfying victory in my short career. We were immense. Everything we did came off for us. Fossy, Tarnowski and Gregurina all got off the mark for the season and Kwarko got off the mark for Katowice full stop. What a bloody day.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to tilt my head back and pinch my nose to prepare for the inevitable nosebleed. We're sat in 4th place in the Lotto Ekstraklasa.

[Franjo]

Deadline Day - Summer 2018 (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Mini-sode 56.5)

It's that bizarre time of year again. Marital aides are being removed from their drawers and taken down to football stadia with those select few fans that feel like spending their day standing behind journalists, looking half excited and half ashamed. Jim White's ****ing yellow tie has been clipped onto his collar, the colour merging with his fake tan to create a nice sunset effect. It's a biannual international holiday when copious amounts of unjustified excitement is followed swiftly by disappointment, anger and reluctant acceptance.

Transfer deadline day is upon us, ladies and gentlemen.

We start off by shedding a piece of self entitled dead weight named Ryszard Baran. It's Genoa in the end that stump up £500k and a promise of 50% of his next transfer fee, trumping the previous frontrunners Bologna. He has real potential so I'm happy that we'll get a chunk of what might be a big future fee. It's just a shame that the club was already about £1.5m in the red from inherited debt, so we'll only see 25% of the cash, but it's better than nothing.

Anyway, Baran's got a bad attitude and I think we'll be better off without him. I tell him as much actually, before he leaves. Ta ra, Ryszard. Don't let the door hit you on your way out.

Our first incoming of the day is a possible replacement for Baran's position in the squad. Vladan Savanovic signs on a free transfer, well, for £8k compensation, from a small Bosnian side called Vlasenica.

Vladan is an 18 year old Bosnian midfielder. He's by no means the finished article, but he has potential. Good technique and leadership, along with great speed, balance and aggression are particular highlights.

My final incoming transfer of the window is a familiar face, but for once it's not one of my former heróis. Danny Wilson puts pen to paper after being released by Glasgow Rangers in the Summer.

I've always been a fan of Danny, ever since he came through Rangers' ranks as a youngster. In my opinion he took too big a step too quickly and paid a steep price. He's not convinced since moving back North of the border in what many saw as his last chance, but I still think he can make it. He's got everything a centre back needs: He's determined as all hell, a great leader and defender, fine on the ball, tall and physically excellent.

The one drawback to this deal is that Danny's agent insisted upon a £240k release fee for foreign clubs, but my thinking is that if he does well enough to make someone activate it, we'll have had a solid defender and we'll have made a profit.

"I'm recruiting so many Scottish warriors, it's like I'm Braveheart, isn't it Danny?" I ask enthusiastically in his first training session with the rest of the squad.

"Nae really" replies Danny Wilson, bluntly and without looking at me.

"Oh." My face drops slightly. I turn to Alan Hutton. "What do you reckon Alan, I'm a bit like Braveheart aren't I?"

"A wee bit, aye" replies Alan, who seems slightly annoyed by the question. I'll take it.

The last deal of our window is for our promising young centre back and central midfielder Arkadiusz Pluta. I turn down a potential £140k offer from Brentford, which naturally pisses Pluta right off, so after a bit of haggling, Brentford become the 2nd team of the day to sign one of our young players for £500k and 50% of the next fee.

I don't really mind. With Danny Wilson joining fellow scotsman Alan Hutton, the trusty Olivier and our regular left back Damian Garbacik, we've now got 4 players who'll do good jobs at centre back if needed, so relieving our debt a bit more for a youngster I had no intention of playing is a no brainer.

And with that, the day is done. The Sky Sports camera crews all pack up and head home from their respective stadia, the marital aides go back in the drawer, the yellow tie is unclipped and Jim White is put back in frozen carbonite where he'll remain until January.

The sun has set on deadline day, and our squad is finally complete.

[Franjo]

Knock On Wood (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep57)

I've got to admit, August was a bloody great month. After a shaky July start to life in Poland, we picked up 9 points from a possible 12, including a win over the Champions and the thrashing of a pretty good team. I've been awarded 3rd place in the Manager of the Month award behind Lech's Nenad Bjelic and Lechia's Waldemar Fornalik, which is excellent. Everything's coming up Franjo.

Anyway we kick off September with a visit to Wisła Płock, and having studied their start to the season, it seems that they play a very solid looking withdrawn 4-2-3-1 with defensive and wide midfielders. In most of the matches they've lost so far, their opponents lined up with a 4-2-3-1 with defensive midfielders, leaving Płock's attacker and number 10 isolated and outnumbered. This makes sense, so I'll do the same. I withdraw Hurley from the starting line up and bring Bart back in following his suspension to form a defensive midfield partnership with Mario Gregurina. Danny Wilson takes a seat on the bench.

In under 5 minutes, Reca's low cross bounces off Olivier's shin and Basca thumps the loose ball into the roof of the net.

We go on the counter after half an hour, and then on the attack after an hour, but both sides struggle to create quality chances. With 15 minutes to go, I bring on Kwarko and Hurley for Janga and Gregurina and tell the boys to be more direct. Hurley will add some good passes from deep and Kwarko will be a target to aim at further forward.

Thankfully, that does the trick. Hurley passes to Kevin, who puts a good ball into the path of Goncerz, who in turn slides the equaliser into the far bottom corner of the net.

I throw Amonike on for a cameo appearance, but the only other "decent" chance comes a couple of minutes later, when Szewczyk gets behind our defence and literally hits the corner flag with his shot. This has not been a great match.

I then get another one of those "Wow, I'm at a big club" reminders, as the International break actually disrupts our schedule. None of our players are internationals though, so we just get a 2 week rest.

Our next match is Lechia away. I had planned to bring Hurley back in and give Mandrysz another chance to impress on the right wing, but they both pick up knocks just a few days before the match. They're still lacking fitness when I pick the team, so Gregurina stays in and Amonike makes his full GieKSa debut on the right.

Just over 10 minutes in, Goncerz lays the ball off for Bart, who drives it left footed from the edge of the area and into the bottom corner of the net.

We don't get to hold the lead for long though. Only a few minutes later, Olivier fails to properly clear a Wolski cross and can only bobble the ball away as far as Gajos, who hammers it over Nowak and in.

Not uncommonly for one of our matches, everything dies down until just after the hour mark. I bring on Kwarko for Amonike, who's been quiet today. I'll put it down to the fact that he's still settling in. Not long after the sub, Gregurina chips the ball onto the left wing. Kevin rises well and nods it perfectly onto Goncerz's left foot, and he unleashes a thunderbastard of a volley - That smacks the top of the bar and balloons away.

With under 20 minutes to go, Kupisz lays the ball off for Kadlec, who lashes his low shot against the foot of the post. I decide to bring on Tarnowski to see if he can get another late goal, and Abramowicz as Garbacik has made a few mistakes today.

In the 82nd minute, the woodwork is struck once again when Takacs' free kick cracks against the bar. This time though, Kadlec is there to follow up and puts the rebound away. I feel sick.

To add insult to injury, the goal goes down as a harsh own goal for Alan Hutton. If the ball touched him, it must have grazed his shorts and it was on target anyway.

The goal only spurs my boys on though. Straight from kick off, Tarnowski plays a good ball through for Kevin - Who hits the bar. Ever get the feeling that it's not your day?

A couple of minutes later, Gajos' ball over the top is nearly converted by Kadlec, but he puts it just wide. Gajos tries again instantly though, passing it through for Makuszewski, who rolls the ball into the bottom corner. GG WP, Lechia. For ****s sake.

Look, we've been here before. This isn't new territory. "The Gods of Football blah, blah, blah". We came close a few times to scoring more, but so did Lechia. In the end, they finished their chances, and although I think we played well, we didn't finish ours. Today hurts. Luckily I know a place that serves pints of draft Wodka.

[Franjo]

Gesundheit (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep58)

Someone's knocking at the door. At my office door. It's a quiet, meek knocking, but it's clearly audible, cutting through the thick silence that hangs in the air. I stand, stride over to the doorway, and wrench the door open to see little Ben Whitfield stood on the threshold, looking up at me with wide, terrified eyes. I tower at least 3 feet above him.

"Please, Franjo", he whimpers, in his generic Southern English voice, "Please let me join GKS Katowice!"

Tears are welling in his eyes as he begs to join the tremendous GieKSa. We're on top of the league with a 100% record, while Ben's team, Zagłębie Sosnowiec, the team whose name sounds like an elaborate sneeze, have managed to be relegated 13 times this season already.

"I'm sorry", he continues as his voice cracks and the tears begin to roll down his cheeks, "I never should have passed up the chance to work with such a great team, and such a world class manager. I was wrong!"

My right hand reaches slowly down to the nunchucks attached to my waist, and I meet Whitfield's eyes. "Who do you play for again?" I purr.

Perplexed, Ben Whitfield answers "Zagłębie Sosnowiec", and with my lightning fast reflexes, I grab the nunchucks and swing them at his head, knocking it clean off. His decapitated body slumps to the floor as I turn back to my desk.

"Gesundheit." I quip, in sunglasses.

I jolt awake in bed. ****, that was a dark one.

Shaking myself well and truly back to reality, I reassure myself that I did not actually decapitate Ben Whitfield, and that he will in fact be joining us today at the Stadion GKS Katowice as we take on Zagłębie Sosnowiec.

Contrary to my dreamtime beliefs, Zagłębie Sosnowiec have actually made a decent start to the season, sitting in 4th having won 4 and lost only 1 of their first 7 matches. Also, Ben Whitfield's been a bloody revelation, scoring 4 and assisting 2 in his first 8.

Apart from bringing Hurley in for Fossy to accommodate a 4-1-2-3 formation, I wasn't planning on making any changes from the previous game, but Alan Hutton is injured the day before the match and that forces my hand. Danny Wilson will partner Olivier today on his debut appearance.

Just over 10 minutes into the match, a Hurley corner starts a game of pinball in the Sosnowiec penalty box, and eventually it's Kevin's shot that's deflected in off a defender to open the scoring.

In the 23rd minute, Ben Whitfield, who remember has not been the slightest bit decapitated, curls a corner in towards our near post. Makengo nods it on and Mills is waiting at the far post to get a shot away, but Garbacik gets a heroic block in, sending the ball out for a corner.

If that was a warning, I missed it. Only a couple of minutes later, another Whitfield corner is headed in at the near post by Mills to equalise.

To try and take a foothold back in the match and end Sosnowiec's growing dominance, we start to retain the ball, which succeeds in the sense that nothing happens at all. For the rest of the match.

We go route one towards the end, throwing Fossy on for Gregurina to hit some good passes towards Kwarko, who comes on for Amonike, but to no avail.

https://youtu.be/wQ4DTv2BsGI

I'm fine with a draw, I think. They're a handy side. Plus, if we were to draw every game this season we'd probably survive. As long as we aren't losing, I'm happy.

Górnik Zabrze are next at their place. They're not enjoying quite as good a start as Zagłębie, or us for that matter. They're sat in 14th having lost half of their 8 league matches and won only 1. We should have these! We go unchanged.

Unfortunately, and for all my optimism, we start poorly. Just after the 10 minute mark, it's Arcon who turns in Grendel's low cross to put Górnik Zabzre ahead.

We show some spirit though and about 5 minutes later, Adrian Garbacik stabs home the equaliser after Hurley's corner is nodded down for him by Mario Gregurina.

At some point, I really need to sit down and have a good long think. I need to scratch my head and work out what it is about my management style, or system, or formation, or players, that makes it so that the 40 minutes leading up to the hour mark are so bloody uneventful.

Luckily, when something does happen just after 60 minutes have passed, it's a GieKSa goal. Bart fires the ball down the right wing for Amonike, who whips in a good cross for Goncerz, and the big man heads us back in front.

With the lead back in our possession, I swap us to a defensive 4-1-4-1, keen to kill the game again. I bring on Fossy for Kevin and sit back to actually enjoy a dull half hour of time wasting.

Within 2 minutes, Mraz lays the ball back for Matuszek, who cracks a shot against the bar. 5 minutes later, it's Mraz that's pulling the strings again. He floats a cross to the far post and Konrad Nowak heads it into the side netting. This "killing the game" thing isn't working as well as I'd hoped.

With about 15 minutes to go, Macierzynski equalises for Zabzre. My fist clenches involuntarily and my eyes narrow as I glare at nothing in particular. Throwing leads away is quickly growing tiresome.

In a considered risk, we swap to our 4-2-3-1, with Aaron Kwarko coming on in place of Bart and going to the right wing, while Amonike goes to the left and Fossy takes his place between them. It nearly pays off within 5 minutes when Goncerz's floated cross is headed just wide by Kwarko.

The last 10 minutes is tense and frustrating, but as we enter injury time we win a corner, prompting a roar of encouragement from the 300-odd travelling fans. Amonike swings the ball in, and it's cleared, but only as far as Fossy who's stood just inside the area. Everyone in the stadium holds their breath as one as Fossy lets it bounce, picks his spot, and drills it into the bottom corner.

https://youtu.be/w19NEaO6mg8

The final whistle blows. That'll do, I think as I applaud the players, listen to the cheers and songs of our fans, and let the relief wash over me. It was a close game. Very close. But just then a thought occurs to me. Maybe I've not fully adapted back to Managing an underdog yet. Maybe I've expected too much from these players at times so far. Maybe I've not savoured the wins enough. Maybe I've taken too many of our dropped points to heart. We've already picked up enough wins to give me hope that we can beat the drop, so **** it. I'm going to savour this one. The pizza's on me tonight, lads. Dilly ding, dilly dong.

[Franjo]

Climb Or Fall (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep59)

The league table is starting to get extremely congested in the middle. We're in 9th place on 14 points, a respectable tally. We could well climb above Bruk-Bet Termalica to 4th if we win our game in hand, which would be incredible, but we're also only 2 points clear of 12th placed Cracovia, and only 4 clear of today's opponents Korona Kielce, who are in 13th. My point is that we could climb or fall very very quickly in the next few matches, and we need to rack up all the points we can.

I'll be making a few changes for the Korona game. I'm going to do something I never thought I'd do, and drop Olivier. It's nothing against him, but I want to see if there's anything to be gained by having an all-Scottish centre back pairing of Hutton and Wilson. I also bring in Fossy and Janga for Gregurina and Amonike. We're at home and we're going 4-2-3-1.

It doesn't even take Cebula 5 minutes to unlock our defence with a through ball. Klups takes the ball and places it well into the far corner and we're behind already. In the 12th minute things threaten to go from bad to worse when Klups dinks a free kick in from the left wing, but Arak's near post header comes back off the angle.

Just after the half hour mark though, we're put in our place. Klups crosses in again, this time from open play on the right wing, and Arak heads this one in. Changes must be made. I tell GieKSa to go control the tie and I tell Hurley individually to change from his deep lying quarterback role to his preferred attacking central midfield role.

As half time looms, my players start to push back. Fossy plays a direct ball to Goncerz on the edge of the area, and the brilliant bastard lobs the onrushing keeper to pull one back a couple of minutes before the break.

I encourage the lads at half time, sensing that spirit might be just enough to get a result today. It nearly pays off quickly. Fossy chips another ball to Goncerz and he shoots towards the near post, but Gostomski flings out his big gloved paw and bats the ball behind.

We go attacking, we go route one, I even throw Wilson up front as a makeshift target man towards the end, but apart from a Zubrowski shot that Nowak saves, the second half is drab and actionless.

https://youtu.be/UEBi_K6NkDo

In the spirit of not taking dropped points too hard, that was not the worst match I've seen. We were OK, but that first half hour when Korona played out of their skins killed us. Also, Goncerz was named in team of the week! His chipped goal was doing the rounds on social media too.

And also, remember in the final days of SC Angrense when I convinced Borba to pay for my National C license? I've kept it all a bit hush hush for the most part, but I just completed the course. I'm not sure if this is a good thing to announce 2 years into a Managerial career, but I finally have a professional coaching qualification!

OK, so let's pick ourselves up and go again. Bruk-Bet Termalica away promises to be a tough game. We're 11th and still only 3 points behind them in 7th, but they've won their last 4 games by a single goal and we've now picked up 1 win in out last 5 matches.

Olivier comes back in to partner Wilson at the expense of Alan Hutton, as we've picked up 4 points in the 2 games that those 2 have played together. I'm also trying something a little different going forward. Amonike plays on the right, Kevin on the left, and Janga in between them as an attacking midfielder. I'm sacrificing Fossy's playmaking role in the hopes that Janga can link up with Goncerz and get some runs in behind the defence. Goncerz seems to really like holding the ball up and playing others in, so let's lean into it.

We start off OK, but neither side is able to fashion any chances of quality. By time the first real chance comes for either team, there's only 10 minutes to play before the break. Janga has the ball, he flicks it skilfully to Kevin and sets off sprinting into the box. Kevin finds him to complete the one-two, and Janga stabs the ball home for his first GieKSa goal. As I watch him peel away towards the travelling fans, I feel something soft and warm on my shoulders. The feeling wraps itself around my torso and arms, and then my entire body: Swaddling me from head to toe. It's my Vindication Blanket. Hello, old friend.

We go on the counter attack after that, hoping that the trailing home side come out at us and leave gaps that we can exploit on the break.

5 minutes before half time, we have bodies forward following a free kick. Olivier lays the ball off for Garbacik and he rifles it in for 2-0.

Bruk-Bet come out swinging for the second half, though. Holownia swings in a perfect cross from the left wing, right in that awkward spot between defence and goalkeeper. Kiepura launches himself forwards to reach it and heads it home. I have to applaud that one, it was an all-round great goal.

About 10 minutes later, Gergel swings a corner in for Bruk-Bet. We're right on the back foot so far since the break. Putivtsev gets his head to the ball and powers a header at goal. It's going just wide until Hadascok glances it into the net. All square once more.

The game dies off once again. We bring on Kwarko and Tarnowski for Amonike and Goncerz, but can't find the winner. I'll take a draw there. It's always disappointing to lose a 2 goal lead, but both sides deserved a point in the end.

https://youtu.be/owwepPLfjps

On the other hand, that's now 1 win from 6. 6 points from a possible 18. The league table is still congested in the middle, and we could find ourselves slipping further and further down towards the relegation spots unless we start to turn some of these draws into wins. It feels like we just need that extra 10%, to finish our chances and to stop the sloppy mistakes. I feel like I'm getting to know this squad well though. I'm getting to know their character and their ability. They'll turn this around. I know they will.

[Franjo]

Give Me Strength (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep60)

Andreja Prokic has left Katowice. "Who?" You may ask. Prokic was the left winger who I voiced my concern about shortly after arriving in Poland. He had a good pre season friendly where he set up 2 goals, before promptly injuring himself, and I'd be surprised if I've mentioned him since. He's gone out on loan to Icelandic Premier League side KR for the remainder of the season after telling me that he wanted first team football.

Anyway, let's talk about Piast. Piast were the other side to get promoted to the top division last season and are in front of us in the Lotto Ekstraklasa by a nose, sitting in 11th place on 16 points. We're in 12th on 15 points, so this should be a close match between 2 evenly matched sides.

I'm told that Piast's manager, Piotr Jawny, is a bit of a game player though. A bit of a **** stirrer. You know the type. And low and behold, he goes out in front of the press in the build up to our match and singles out veteran goalkeeper Nowak as GieKSa's weak link.

Now, I'll let a lot of things slide. Bragging, delusions of grandeur, even sometimes direct insults. But a lack of respect for a stalwart of the game is something that I will not stand by and watch. Piotr, you've pissed off a man that will hold a grudge at the drop of a hat, and you are going down. And Nowak will start in net. And I'm half considering doing that hilarious thing where I offer you my hand for a handshake, but then pull it back at the last second and run it through my hair instead. *****.

Also, the only change we make is bringing Tarnowski in for Janga. The Janga plan worked last week but I want to see how Tarnowski does in that role.

An early chance goes Piast's way when Janicki's corner is nodded on by Polczak, before being glanced wide by Banasiak. 10 minutes later they're still pressing forwards. Wilson fails to clear his lines after a cross and Bart clatters recklessly into the back of Kurminowski, giving away a spot kick. Bollocks. Wieteska's penalty is pretty close to perfect, right into the bottom corner with plenty of power. Nowak, annoyingly, has no chance.

We have a chance to draw level on the half hour mark, when Amonike's cross from the byline is met by Goncerz, but he hits his shot into the side netting.

I'm very used to our matches dying off for a bit before a frantic finish, but this one just sort of... Dies. We try to control, we try to attack, we use all 3 subs, but it's a nothing match.

https://youtu.be/t7Ka50Az5jU

I said a few weeks ago that because of the congestion in the middle of the table, we could either climb or fall very quickly. As it turns out, we're falling. We're now in 12th place and my ideal finishing position (within reason) is 8th so that we're safe from relegation. But surely today's the day that we turn it around. Wisła Kraków are having an absolute shocker of a season. They we're predicted to be in or around the race for the Europa League places, but as it stands they're 15th, they've won 1 of their 12 matches and they have below half of our points tally. The only side doing worse than them are KGHM Zagłębie, who are yet to win this season.

I'm going off-menu for this one. We need to assert our dominance as the home side and as the favourites. Give me 4-2-3-1. Give me fluidity. Give me dreamies. Give me strength, we're breaking out the ****ing Meatloaf.

We start off on the front foot. 20 minutes in, Hurley passes to Goncerz, who squares the ball for Fossy. He's been returned to his number 10 role today as we're trying to play a nice brand of football that a tidy player like him can often help to facilitate. Fossy's shot has power and precision, but a good diving save from Carlos keeps the scores level.

After half an hour, I've seen some warning signs, but in the 33rd minute, we collapse. Garbacik heads the ball needlessly to Mak, giving possession away. The ball goes to Llonch, who is closed down by Olivier, but also Scheffel. This leaves space for Vidémont to move into on the left. He receives the ball, at which point Olivier and Scheffel both abandon Llonch to chase him instead. Vidémont pokes the ball back through for Llonch, who side foots it past the keeper from close range.

I am incandescent with rage. Everything about our defending was wrong. I seem to remember similar teething problems after introducing Os Heróis to fluid football, but I won't accept that 3 of our back 4 forgot the very basics of defending because I gave them slightly more freedom. What a ****ing shambles.

But in for a penny, in for a pound. We're going attacking but we're staying fluid. There's every chance that the rest of this match will be about us trying to break Kraków down while they cling to their precious goal, and we'll be best off doing that with fluidity. Instantly, Amonike cuts in and hits a pot shot from 25 yards, but it goes just wide of the far post.

Just before the break, Malecki's corner is curled into the 6 yard box, but Maaczynski heads the ball just over the bar.

The second half is just as frustrating as the first. Nothing interesting happens until Grzegorz Goncerz has to be brought off with a broken nose in with just under half an hour to go. Michal Tarnowski replaces him up front and Shurendo Janga comes on for Fossy.

With quarter of an hour to go, I'm sat in my seat in the dugout with my notebook open, silently fuming. In a bid to finish the game off, Popovic plays the ball behind our defence for Ondrasek, who runs through on goal and shoots, but the ball clatters back off the far post.

A minute or so later, we're finally stringing some passes together though. Tarnowski dribbles forward and feeds Janga in the area, who takes a touch, picks his spot, and buries the ball in the bottom corner. I leap out of my seat, sending my notebook flying through the air as I pump my fist. This match just got interesting.

5 minutes later, Hurley's on the ball. He spreads it onto the left for Amonike, who turns inside and chips the ball into the centre - And Michal Tarnowski's there to volley it left footed into the bottom corner. No time for fist pumping now. We fall right back. Mario Gregurina comes on for Kevin. We see the game out.

https://youtu.be/S9hrV5ZkrhQ

Well, we definitely made hard work of that, but a win is a win is a win. Tarnowski picks up the player of the match award despite only playing for 27 minutes, which should give you a good idea of the overall quality displayed by both sides. He scored one goal and set up another for fellow substitute Janga, and colour me impressed with both of them. Goncerz has yet to fully convince me that he deserves to be our undisputed striker, and I'm starting to wonder why it is that a couple of other first team regulars keep getting games too. These boys have both just done their chances of a run in the team the world of good.

[Franjo]

Taking A Winter Break (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Meta-sode 60.5)

So, what I didn't really consider at the start of the season is that a Lotto Ekstraklasa season contains a rather large (2 Month) winter break. It's taking a while to play through so there'll be no episodes next week while I get everything sorted. We'll come back strong next Monday (14th) and hopefully try to climb into the top 8 by the end of the season!

As always, thanks for your patience, thanks for your feedback and thanks so much for reading.

Cheers,

Franjo

[Franjo]

Tough Opposition (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep61)

I am blinded. I'm blinded by the lights, and I'm blinded by the pain. The ground is cold and unforgiving against my back. The sudden silence is broken only by the scurrying of feet across the turf towards me. This can't be the end. Not now. Not like this.

I awake in a cold sweat. My heart is hammering in my chest and my left leg is aching. I feel sick. I've not had that dream in a long time. I hate that dream. I dread it. Dragging myself out of bed, I force myself to think of something else. To think of Katowice. The aching starts to fade.

The half way point of the first stage of our season is fast approaching. 13 out of the 30 matches have been played and the final 2 games before we start playing our 2nd round of matches are against 4th placed Górnick Łęczna and 2nd placed Pogoń Szczecin, both away. I'm obviously expecting 2 tough matches, but we'll have plenty of preparation time for them as they're the only 2 matches we've got in the remainder of November.

Surprisingly, Górnik aren't in great form. They're 4th, but they recently had 3 0-1 losses in a row, followed by a 0-0 against underperforming Wisła Kraków and a 1-0 win against Jagiellonia. We aren't making many changes today, but we are absolutely dropping Project: Meatloaf in favour of our usual, less fluid 4-2-3-1. We learned the hard way last time out that this team is not currently equipped to play fluid football. We're also bringing in Gregurina to replace Bart, who's picked up 4 yellows - A one match suspension in this division.

10 minutes in, Olejarka stretches his legs and dribbles forward powerfully. He reaches the edge of our box and shoots, but the ball flies comfortably wide.

Kevin dribbles forward himself on the half hour and springs Amonike, who's got himself goal side of his marker on the right. His shot's tame though and straight into the arms of Berkovec.

It's another scrappy and even match, and nothing much has happened by the time I make my 67th minute double sub, bringing Aaron Kwarko and Michal Tarnowski on for Amonike and Grzegorz Goncerz.

5 minutes later though, Spiaczka plays a pass over the top for Grzelczak, who places it past Nowak and into the bottom corner of the net. With not much time left, we need to put our game faces on. We go attacking.

It only takes a few minutes to claw our way back into the game. Fossy receives the ball from Tarnowski and plays a great pass over the top for Kwarko. The towering winger takes the ball down and pokes it under the keeper to equalise.

With momentum on our side, we keep attacking in the hopes that we can find a deciding goal, but with 5 minutes to go, Grzelczak plays a clever pass through our defence for Dzalamidze. His low shot is tipped behind by Nowak, and I take the hint. We go on the counter and take our point.

I'll take that. Despite their poor form, Górnick Łęczna are a good side and we're hardly in a position to turn our nose up at a point against the likes of them.

As we stare down the barrel of another international interruption in which not one of our players will participate, I arrange our first transfer of the upcoming February transfer window. 17 year old Finnish Under 19 International Ari Tuovinen will join us on a free when the window opens from Finnish amateur side PKKU. He's an interesting little player; A very aggressive and lightning fast right winger with decent levels of fitness, flair and work rate. He needs to develop the technical side of his game a lot but I reckon I can mould him into a solid winger.

I use the International break as an opportunity to keep fitness levels high and make sure we don't take our eyes off the ball. Premier League strugglers Fulham make the trip to Stadion GKS Katowice for a friendly match. We'll be facing the Cottagers without Alan Hutton though, who'll miss 2-3 weeks with a groin strain.

It's a good match to be fair. Bart drills us ahead on the stroke of half time, but 2 late goals from Aluko and Woodrow turn it around for the away side.

It's not the end of the world, that. The thing that frustrates me much more than Fulham's second half turnaround is the sharp increase in medical attention that my squad requires during the build up to the Pogoń match. First, Kevin comes in with a strained neck, and will be out for 5-6 days. Then Tom Scheffel limps in dragging a dead leg, and he'll be out for 1-2 days. Mario Gregurina strolls in with a bruised jaw and is out for 3-6 days, and finally Michal Tarnowski wanders in clutching his gashed head. He's out for 1-2 days. I realise that all of these injuries could have been a lot more severe, but I do worry that a couple of the players won't be back to full fitness for the weekend.

Pogoń are 4th in the league but could actually move up to the top if they beat us by 5 goals and other results go their way. There's no doubt in my mind that they'll be tough opposition but I'd rather they didn't end the match as league leaders.

Bart comes back in after serving his suspension. He'll replace Gregurina and will play next to Hurley, with Fossy deployed behind them as a deep lying playmaker. Janga also comes in on the right wing in place of Amonike. At some point I'm hoping that someone will stake a claim to be our nailed-on starting right winger, but until that happens you can call me Lazy Susan, because I'll keep rotating.

The match is slow to start, and the first real chances comes 10 minutes before the break, when Olivier's free kick bounces off the wall and back to him. He passes to Janga, who's tripped by Sebastian Rudol on the edge of the box. We're given another free kick, which Olivier hits wide, but more importantly Rudol sees his 2nd yellow and we'll play against 10 men for the remaining 55 minutes.

Just minutes after the second half kicks off, Pogoń's day goes from bad to worse when yet another Olivier free kick is chipped into the box from the left. Gregorz Goncerz goes for the ball but is shoved by Senic. No card's shown this time but the referee points to the spot without hesitation.

Goncerz won the penalty and he steps up himself to take it. He runs up, smashes it towards the left, and the ball crashes in off the bar as the keeper dives the wrong way. We've taken the lead.

From that point on though, Pogoń seem galvanised and determined. Tuszynski leaves Wilson for dead as he sprints towards goal, only to thwack the ball wide of the near post. We go on the counter.

With 20 minutes to go, Danny Wilson makes a pig's ear of clearing the ball after Augustyn's cross, and can only get it away as far as Bargiel, who hits the ball over Nowak and into the back of the net.

We can't let this match go without picking up 3 points. We've had a penalty against a 10 man team, we can't fail to capitalise on good fortune like that. We change to an attacking 4-2-3-1, bringing off Fossy, replacing him with Kwarko, who moves onto the right wing and switches with Janga, who'll run from deep positions to link up with Goncerz.

With 10 minutes to go, Kwarko squares the ball across the edge of the box for Goncerz. The striker takes aim for the top left corner, but his shot comes back off the bar. Amonike comes on for a late cameo, but the match ends 1-1.

Through gritted teeth, I'll accept that result too. It is frustrating, don't get me wrong, to fail to get the result against 10 men, but we just need to keep pressing on. We're now at the half way point of the league stage, we're well clear of relegation, and we're close to the top 8. I'll take that.

[kayron]

You're back! I started reading this on Friday and got to the end and thought maybe you'd stopped. Great read so far and gl in the story of the year comp!

[Franjo]

2 minutes ago, kayron said:

You're back! I started reading this on Friday and got to the end and thought maybe you'd stopped. Great read so far and gl in the story of the year comp!

Thanks very much mate! 

Yeah I had to take an impromptu 2 week break to get everything sorted, but back to daily episodes now! Thanks for reading, hope you continue to enjoy

[mark wilson27]

@Franjo just a quick note please could you just put a link to the youtube videos please as per the House Rules

Cheers Mark

[Franjo]

3 hours ago, mark wilson27 said:

@Franjo just a quick note please could you just put a link to the youtube videos please as per the House Rules

Cheers Mark

Oops sorry Mark, will do!

[Franjo]

Ziggy Plays The Ball (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep62)

Humiliated. Found out. Out of their depth.

These are just some of the words and phrases used by the local media to describe GieKSa after Jagiellonia ripped us apart in our first Lotto Ekstraklasa match. But it was one thing defeating us in their own back yard, sweeping aside a shambolic thrown-together mix of half-fit players managed by a fresh faced and naive manager. Beating us again today will be a completely different proposition.

I went into our last match completely petrified. Scared stiff by the nagging worry that I had made the wrong decision. That my career was over. That I had put all my eggs in an extremely precarious basket. But GKS Katowice are no league's whipping boys. We aren't the cannon fodder we were expected to be. We are spirited and determined. We are strong and skilful. We have learned to be somewhat efficient, and our Portu-Polish side has become much more of a unit, as oppose to the 2 halves of a team that it was. We all speak decent Polish now. We have better quality depth in our squad. And most importantly, we're all hungry for revenge.

Jagiellonia are having a decent season. They're sat 1 place and 1 point above us, sitting in 9th with 21 points. Interestingly, with 15 games played, we've won 5, drawn 5 and lost 5. We go unchanged today.

To give Jagiellonia credit, one of their players has the best name I've ever seen. Their Scottish fullback, who I remember from his contribution in our first encounter, is brilliantly named Ziggy Gordon. What other name could remind you so succinctly and vividly of both David Bowie and Brian Blessed? Maybe Brian Bowie would, but it's definitely not as good a name.

Ziggy plays the ball. Running good past Kevin and Hurley, for Jagiellonia. Crosses from the right, but crosses too far. Then Khomchenovskyi heads, but can't get it in the net.

GORDON'S A LIVE... wire all through the first half (Sorry) and we're kept pinned back a lot while he leads Jagiellonia forward from the right fullback spot. Indeed, with a couple of minutes to play before the break, he gets up and clips in a low cross towards Romanchuk and Guti. The ball reaches neither of them and instead deflects off Fossy and into our net. Luckily, both Romanchuk and Guti were stood in offside positions when Ziggy crossed the ball, and were deemed to be interfering with play enough for the goal to be chalked off. That was a huge stroke of luck.

At the break I tell my team to go back out and control the game. We've not looked like the home team so far and I'm well aware that our last encounter with Jagiellonia was 0-0 at the break, before we promptly lost 0-3.

In the first 15 minutes back on the pitch, Hurley chips a pass over the top of the defence and into the central channel for Goncerz. He takes it down and fires a venomous shot straight at Stachowiak, and the keeper tips it over.

I bring on Kwarko and Tarnowski in place of Janga and Fossy. Kwarko has become my go-to second half substitute to bully the tiring defenders with his immense physical presence, and Tarnowski tends to do quite well off the bench with his pace and intelligent runs.

A few minutes later, an exquisite passing move that includes most of Jagiellonia's players culminates with Frankowski at the right byline. He crosses to the far post and Khomchenovskyi puts it away. I'm having flashbacks. It's happening again.

As I said before though, we're a better side now. We show our composure and refuse to instantly capitulate like we did last time. With 20 minutes to play, we go on the attack.

7 minutes later, Hurley plays a carbon copy of his earlier pass, over the top and into the central channel. Goncerz takes the ball down again and expertly holds it up, luring 2 defenders out of position before slipping in Tarnowski, who drives it home to equalise.

A couple of minutes later, we're pushing for a winner. After a good move, Tarnowski plays a slick one-two with Goncerz and then slams home his second from the edge of the area, the brilliant bastard.

I bring on Gregurina for Kevin and shut up shop. We change to a 4-1-2-3, with Tarnowski playing as a just-left-of-centre attacking midfielder instead of a left winger, in case he fancies completing his hat trick. He doesn't, but I couldn't give less of a ****. We've held on. We've won. We've got our revenge.

https://youtu.be/0oCwj4IgNfA

Tarnowski's fantastic cameo not only won him the player of the match award, but also a place in the Lotto Ekstraklasa team of the week, alongside Goncerz, who did my confidence in him the world of good with those 2 clever assists.

KGHM Zagłębie are next at their place. I don't want to paint them as the worst team in the league, but in my defence they've done that themselves. After finishing 10th last season and being predicted to finish in the top 8 this season, they've lost 12 of their first 16 matches, drawing the other 4. Needless to say, I would be mortified to lose today.

We make 2 changes - Abramowicz comes in for Garbacik, who is suspended having picked up his 4th yellow card of the season against Jagiellonia, and Tarnowski comes in for Fossy as our number 10. He's earned it.

We get off to a surprisingly quick start when 6 minutes in, a near post Tom Scheffel corner is nodded into the net by Danny Wilson. The Scotsman celebrates his first GieKSa goal passionately with the travelling fans. Well in, Danny.

2 minutes later, Abramowicz whips in another near post corner from the other side. Wilson gets there again and nods it across goal, but Janga's subsequent header is cleared off the line by Uzelac.

That's pretty much the only action we see in what is a dominant first half display. That is until Olivier is caught in possession on the right and robbed of the ball by Badía. Badía dribbles down the left wing and crosses to the near post, where Nespor is waiting to turn the ball in from close range.

There's a sombre atmosphere in the changing room at half time, as is always the way when you concede just before the break, but a passionate plea to keep doing what they've been doing sends the players back out with smiles on their faces.

10 minutes later, we score a ****ing beauty of a goal. Tom Scheffel stands over a free kick 35 yards out, and passes short to Olivier. The centre back turns and finds Bart, who plays it on first time for Janga, who plays it on first time for Goncerz on the edge of the box, who shapes his body and crashes the ball first time - In off the bar.

That goal really was a thing of beauty, and KGHM's manager certainly seems shaken. So shaken in fact that he throws me a curveball with extra mustard. KGHM change to a flat 3-5-2 formation. As I watch their players take their new positions, my face scrunches up as I try to process what to do now. Weirdly, I suddenly realise that I've barely played against such a formation during my Managerial career and it poses us several problems.

The first and most imminently dangerous problem is that their strikers are now 2 on 2 with our centre backs. I like our 2 central defenders, but they've proven themselves susceptible to clever movement that pulls them out of position, coupled with runs in behind.

The next problem is that our central midfield duo is now outnumbered by 3 KGHM players, so we'll be dominated in midfield.

And finally, our strike force of Goncerz and Tarnowski, because he is playing as more of a striker than a midfielder, are now outnumbered by 3 centre backs. The entire central column of the pitch belongs to KGHM and if I don't act fast, they have the potential to turn this back around on us.

So I roll the dice and do something that I don't think I've ever done before. I go with a back 3. Our 2 wingers Janga and Kevin come off and are replaced by Alan Hutton and Mario Gregurina. We change to a 3-5-2 as well, but with Scheffel and Abramowicz as wing backs. Hutton slots into the defensive line with Olivier and Wilson, Gregurina takes his place alongside Bart and Hurley in a formidable looking midfield trio, and Tarnowski joins Goncerz as a second orthodox striker. I've never played a back 3 before. I'm quite excited.

With 25 minutes to go, Gregurina plays a long ball into the left channel, and Goncerz does what he does, calmly placing the ball in front of Tarnowski to set him up with a great opportunity. Tarnowski takes a touch too many though, and by the time he shoots the keeper is off his line to close down the angle and block it. Promising signs nonetheless.

5 minutes later we're still winning the battle of the 3-5-2's. We break quickly following a half-hearted KGHM attack and Tarnowski chips a cross from the right wing towards the back post. Gregurina arrives and volleys it, but the keeper saves well. The rebound falls to Goncerz though, and with the keeper still stretched out on the floor, he has the whole goal to aim at. 3-1.

We go on the counter after that and KGHM have no response. I even have the luxury of bringing on young Stryjek for a bit of game time in place of Tarnowski. We see out the game with ease.

https://youtu.be/5I4N1do0ZSk

Our second half of the league stage begins with 2 wins. A few more and we'll be flying towards the top 8 and away from the prospect of relegation. Oh, and who was watching from the stands today? Cameroon Boss Joseph Onana. We might be a player light come the next international break. Today was a good day.

[Franjo]

Back To Reality (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep63)

God, it feels good to be King. I hope that doesn't come across as big headed or anything, but I'm working wonders at Katowice. The press can't believe it. Neither can the players, staff or board for that matter. To be fair, neither can I. We're now unbeaten in 5 matches and edging closer and closer to a top 8 finish which would guarantee our survival.

Dependable right back Tom Scheffel, the possible future Cameroon International Olivier, Scotland's forgotten man Danny Wilson and the quite enigmatic Grzegorz Goncerz all get a place in The Lotto Ekstraklasa team of the week after we thumped KGHM. God, it feels good to be King.

We welcome Lech to Stadion GKS Katowice today. At their place in August, they put 3 past us and missed a penalty in a performance that we all, especially Olivier, wanted to quickly forget. This time though, we'll meet them in good form with our chests puffed out. We go unchanged, because why change a winning side?

The groundsmen have done a good job keeping the snow at bay before the match. It's been falling heavily and settling across Katowice since yesterday and shows no signs of letting up before kick off, but the pitch is green for the most part.

20 minutes in, the party atmosphere that we've been cultivating in recent weeks comes to an abrupt end when Gumny's floated far post cross is met by Jozwiak, who rises above Tom Scheffel to head the visitors in front.

Less than 10 minutes after the goal, Radut and Sacko press Kevin to win the ball from him. Our left winger has already had a frustrating afternoon thanks to Lech's aggressive closing down and has picked up a booking, so his sliding lunge at Sacko is ill-advised, and not only because the grass is frozen solid. He goes straight through the Lech player from behind and thoroughly earns his 2nd yellow. I ignore Kevin as he trudges off the pitch and instead turn to one of my coaches. I instruct him to follow Kevin into the changing room and restrict his shower or bath to cold water only. *****.

Anyway, there's no point whining about it. Let's try a narrow 4-2-2-1 formation, with Janga and Tarnowski playing off Goncerz.

We hold Lech off until half time, but not a minute more. Another fine Gumny cross just after the restart is put in at the far post by the unmarked Jevtic. 5 or so minutes later, Janga works himself an angle just outside the box and shoots low towards the corner, but Putnocky gathers it easily.

We have a free kick in a decent position a couple of minutes later, but it breaks down and Lech counter. Sacko gets to the byline and chips the ball into the centre, and Vázquez compounds my misery with a nice volley. We go attacking and I give our 2 full backs license to push up on the overlap.

Just after the hour, Janga squares the ball for Bart who shoots from 20 yards. Putnocky gets to the powerful shot but can't hold onto it, and Goncerz nips in to bury the rebound. I look over to the linesman though, and sure enough, he's stood there looking infuriatingly smug with his flag-arm outstretched.

Over the next 20 minutes I bring on Hutton, Fossy and Garbacik for Scheffel, Tarnowski and Abramowicz, but I think the lads realised long ago that it wasn't going to be our day. Sacko does excellently to get clear down our right hand side with 5 minutes to play, but then makes the bizarre decision to shoot (And it was a shot) from a ridiculous angle way out on the right wing, sending the ball into the side netting.

It doesn't lift my spirits much to see Bart put Goncerz through in injury time, as Putnocky makes another good save to deny him. The match ends 0-3.

https://youtu.be/a6yoAg5u_jE

It's been one of those days. We faced a good side, didn't put our chances away, and to be fair, got absolutely torn apart. It's a reality check, definitely. Don't forget who you are, Franjo. Don't forget who you are, Katowice. Don't forget what's expected of you all.

There will be no palette cleanser though. No home tie against a league minnow. We'll have to try to bounce back against the mighty Legia Warszawa Away. We beat them in a thoroughly satisfying match at the start of the season but they've since found form and propelled themselves up to the top of the league. Repeating our winning performance today will be a tough ask. Mind you, we're only 7 points below them despite the fact that we're down in 10th place.

Tom Scheffel's yellow card against Lech was his 4th of the season, so he'll be donning his suit in the stands along with Kevin as they serve their 1 match suspensions. Hutton and Kwarko will come in to replace them, but Kwarko will start on the right wing with Janga taking the left. Garbacik and Gregurina are also in for Abramowicz and Tarnowski as we revert to our slightly narrow, flank exploiting Project: Burnie MK II that beat these in Katowice.

20 minutes in, Trinks drives forward into our half. He then passes to Costinha, who runs to the edge of the box and shoots powerfully towards the top corner, but Nowak pulls a save right out of the top drawer to tip it over the bar.

Familiarly, our free kick breaks down a couple of minutes later and Legia counter. Well I say Legia counter, but it's really only Trinks that counters, dribbling the length of the pitch before running into trouble just outside our box. He's forced to pass to Ritzmaier, who slots it through for Szymanski, who slides the ball under Nowak. It's a great goal.

As the second half arrives we go on the counter to try and stop Legia being able to counter quite as effectively, but 20 minutes after the restart, Szymanski swings a corner into our box. Rzezniczak barely has to move to lose Hurley, his marker, and nods the ball on towards the far post. Chatziisaias is waiting there, having barely had to move to lose Olivier, his marker, and he nods it in to double his team's lead. Game over.

The introductions of Amonike and Tarnowski don't help, and just to add insult to injury, or more accurately to add injury to a poor performance, Shurendo Janga comes off with 4 minutes to go with a potentially serious knee injury. Luckily he'll have the whole winter break to shake it off.

https://youtu.be/wkgLRHHSC7I

Well, consider me brought back to reality. 2 comprehensive losses against 2 good sides will do that. I still maintain that a top 8 finish is within reach and that will continue to be my goal, but for now, as we enter my first Winter Break, I'll look at the 8 point gap between us and Korona in the relegation zone and smile.

God, it feels good to be King.

[Franjo]

Dennis Arranges Some Friendlies (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Mini-sode 63.5)

"...And so the penguin says: 'Dude, he's not an eggplant, he's ********!'" I raise my eyebrows expectantly at Radzinski, but he looks puzzled as he absent-mindedly rubs his glass with a cloth for seemingly no reason.

"I don't get it." He says blankly.

"Oh", My face drops. "Because the penguin..."

At that moment, Dennis Lawrence pushes open the door to Radzinski's, revealing the thick snow that's settled outside. He steps in from the frigid cold to join us, looking extremely pleased with himself.

"I've done it!", he exclaims triumphantly, waving a sheet of paper in his hand.

"Done what?" I enquire.

"Arranged our friendlies for the winter break!" He beams, offering me the piece of paper. Excitedly, I snatch the sheet and scan my eyes down the list of teams and dates. My face drops.

"Who are these?" I ask. Dennis looks taken aback.

"They're... they're our opposition." He offers weakly.

"There's a million of them... And these are all bloody Polish Second Division sides! Third tier sides! How are we meant to prepare against these? And come to think of it, why are you arranging the friendlies? I didn't ask you to do that." Dennis looks crestfallen as I barrage him with my scathing, negative logic. I continue to scan the page. "And here, look! 7 matches in 16 days? Are you insane?" I bat the sheet of paper with my hand and give it back to him. "And these are all confirmed, are they?" Dennis nods, avoiding eye contact. "Perfect." With that, Dennis shuffles back out of the bar and into the snow as I glare after him.

After a short pause, I hear "Bit harsh." In Radzinski's gruff voice. I sigh.

"Yeah you're probably right." I acknowledge. "I'm going to see if I can catch him up, get him back in for a pint." Radzinski smiles darkly. "Of beer. A pint of beer." I clarify, narrowing my eyebrows and throwing back the dregs of my Polish lager. "Nobody wants draft wodka, you maniac. Watch the cats will you?" He nods. There's not much to watch to be fair, they're both curled up in one of the old booths with bellies full of wet food. They aren't going anywhere.

"Piece of icing on the cake." Radzinski says thoughtfully, as he gazes at Meatloaf and Burnie.

"Great, thanks." I laugh, as I don my trusty grey coat.

As I open the door, I hear "Franjo". I turn to see him still rubbing the glass with the cloth for seemingly no reason. Still staring vacantly at the cats. "Merry Christmas." He mumbles.

"Merry Christmas, mate." I smile. And with that I step out into the cold.

[Franjo]

My First Winter Break (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep64)

"Please can we take a break, Boss? We're knackered." Asks Alan Hutton, between deep, gasping breaths.

"What did Święty Mikołaj bring you, Alan?" I call.

"Eh?"

"What did you get for Christmas?"

"Oh. New boots, Boss." He grins.

"Ah, very nice. Did you get 90% of them or did you get 100%?" Alan rolls his eyes. I suspect he knows where I'm going with this.

"100% Boss."

"Right, well pay it forward, you lazy bastard! Give me 100%!" I'd been waiting for someone to ask to stop. I really wanted to use that line.

The lads are currently running cross country as a part of my winter high fitness training schedule, which should help carry us through until the end of the season. What certainly won't help is all of the bloody useless friendlies against weaker opposition that we've got lined up.

Janga won't be joining us for at least a month after straining his knee ligaments in the Legia match. He could be out for as many as 7 weeks, but other than that we're all looking good.

2 Months Later...

This has been my 1st winter break. As a player, a fan, or a manager. I've got to say, I'm not a fan. Maybe it's just that we've not done it properly. Maybe we should have arranged some kind of warm weather training camp, played a few top clubs to test ourselves, and that kind of thing. As it stands we've barely trained because we've had **** friendlies almost every other day. (I've realised that at some point I must have given responsibility for organising friendlies to Dennis for whatever reason, but I've made it abundantly clear that I'll be arranging them in future). In short, it feels like we've just stagnated. We've had a massive amount of disruptive, small, niggling injuries throughout the squad but nothing serious. It's just been quite a frustrating couple of months.

Sebastien Nowak tells me not long after the Legia match that he's hanging up his boots at the end of the Season. I try to convince our vice-captain to reconsider, but his mind's made up. He's had a good career and I'll try and get him to stay on as a coach, but we'll deal with that at the end of the season.

I also have quite a few conversations with Carmine Gautieri, Manager of Verona, as his club once again pepper me with offers for Kamil Karwot, our promising left winger. They start with an insulting bid that could rise to just under £80k and I reject it without hesitation. They make another, slightly better bid, and as much as I try to negotiate, they never get close to my asking price. Their 3rd bid is accepted - By Wojciech Cygan, our Chairman. It could rise to £275k, but as I may have already mentioned, Chairmen who go over my head with transfers can **** right off. I talk him into backing down. Their persistence eventually wears me down though and I negotiate the same deal I give all of the clubs that come around trying to poach our young players: £500k and 50% of his next fee. We finally agree a deal. Days later though, Karwot turns down the chance to join Verona and instead signs a contract extension, because he's a bloody good lad. The Verona saga is finally over. Until the Summer, I'm guessing.

And then there's the small matter of these friendlies that I've been bleating on about for so long. We win most of them, but I don't learn anything. We don't test ourselves. We don't get anything out of them aside from match sharpness and that's very frustrating.

Polonia Bytom:

https://youtu.be/n2ncAG4I8QI

 

Olimpia Zambrów:

https://youtu.be/nB8-mV_CnEo

 

KS Polkowice:

https://youtu.be/2yZAw89RB_8

 

 

Liptovsky Mikulas:

https://youtu.be/56WomMAV5Ac

 

Radomiak:

https://youtu.be/NMYDNp3mDeU

 

Siarka:

https://youtu.be/hZ7VH2go0DY

 

Widzew:

https://youtu.be/j1u-9rwu9js

 

MKS Kluczbork:

https://youtu.be/qYtrFLaV4iE

 

Kisvárda:

https://youtu.be/NoglwsL8AGA

 

Puszcza:

https://youtu.be/vxxde3dU61I

One of the most curious stories that pops up in Polish newspapers over the break is the one linking me with the vacant Wisła Płock job. When asked, I quickly distance myself from the story.

As we enter February, the transfer window opens, allowing promising winger Ari Tuovinen to finally complete his transfer from PKKU.

We don't have the finances to do any more business, but I do allow Pawel Mandrysz to join Bruk-Bet on loan until the end of the season. It makes me feel slightly uneasy that a better club want him when I don't, but he's young and maybe some much needed game time will show me what he's made of.

Stjepan Geng also wants to leave, and I have absolutely no objections to him doing so. He's nice to have as a versatile backup, but I've barely needed him. I put him on the transfer list.

The final piece of "transfer" news is that Jakub Wilk decides that he'll retire in June. In all honesty I had tried to release him from his contract just days before his decision, so I won't lose any sleep over it. He strikes me as a player who never quite fulfilled his potential, and at this point he's past the point of being able to do so.

As our match against Wisła Płock draws closer, Maciej Machalski and Rodrigo Silva both rule themselves out for 5-6 weeks and 3-4 weeks respectively through injury, but I doubt that either of them would've started anyway. We've got to put our best foot forward if we're going to reach the top 8 by the end of the League stage. We'll be going full strength. We'll be fighting tooth and nail. I just hope it'll be enough.

[Franjo]

Is This Good Enough? (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep65)

So. Wisła Płock. It's strange in a way watching them disembark from their team bus. If I'd answered the press differently about the rumours of me moving there over the winter break, maybe it'd be me getting off that bus. I'd be getting ready to play my first match, poetically at Stadion GKS Katowice. I stand by my decision to deny interest though. I might go as far as to say that they've got a marginally better squad, with players more used to playing in the Lotto Ekstraklasa, but my team is made up of players that I know, and for the most part, players that I've brought in. I trust my team and that's not a thing that should be understated.

It's snowing again as I make my way back inside and into the home changing room. We'll line up with the extremely standard 4-2-3-1 that's often served us so well this season, with no real surprises in terms of personnel. Nowak starts in net with Scheffel, Olivier, Wilson and Garbacik in front of him, Bart and Hurley in midfield, with Janga, Fossy and Kevin behind Goncerz.

10 minutes in, a hoofed goal kick flies into our half. Reca nods it on for Guinean striker José Kanté, who dribbles easily away from Bart and fires just wide.

A few minutes later, the 2 almost connect again when Reca swings a cross in from the left towards Kanté, but Olivier heads the ball clear. Fossy goes for the header but aerial prowess is not his strong suit. Wlazlo beats him in the air and heads it back to Kanté, who makes himself a yard of space and places the ball into the bottom left hand corner. We immediately try to get on the front foot and try to control the game. By the end of the first half, we're full on attacking Płock, but we remain behind as the whistle blows to signal the break.

5 minutes after the restart, Reca plays the ball to Aurélio just inside our half. He dribbles forwards with purpose and gets to the edge of the box, before lashing a shot towards the bottom corner of our goal. Luckily, Nowak is on the ball and tips the ball behind. Zgrablic's header from the resulting corner is wide.

I am growing concerned about our chances of not conceding a second though. Płock have had 3 good chances, all of which have involved them exploiting the space between our defence and midfield. I drop Bart back to a holding man position in an attempt to close that area off.

The response is almost immediate. We start a pretty clunky counter attack after a spell of possession for Płock breaks down. Kevin passes to Hurley, who chips the ball into the box first time for Janga. The young Dutchman takes it down as the keeper rushes out, and powers it past him into the back of the net. I feel my vindication blanket flop down onto my shoulders once again.

With 23 minutes to go, Płock are venturing into our half again. Wlazlo catches Olivier out with a pass in behind him, into the path of Kanté. Olivier recovers with an inch-perfect sliding tackle, but in doing so, knocks the ball straight back to Wlazlo, who smashes it in off the bar.

I bring on Kwarko and Tarnoski for Kevin and Goncerz to try to give us the physical advantage against Płock's tiring defenders.

With 15 minutes to go though, our bottle seems to have gone. Aurélio drives the ball against the foot of the post, but the clock ticks away and the whistle blows, signalling a 1-2 loss.

https://youtu.be/o61WovbxqPg

We've now lost 3 on the bounce but 2 of them were against very good sides. Am I disappointed? Yeah, of course. Am I worried? Not really. We'll sort ourselves out.

And who better to sort ourselves out against than Cracovia? I had low expectations at Stadion GKS Katowice, and we came away with a well deserved 4-0 win. Now we'll go to their place and hopefully pick up another 3 points to end our miniature slump.

The good news is that Gregurina is back in full training. The bad news is that Tarnowski comes down with the flu just a couple of days before the match. I was considering giving him a start but he's only fit enough for a place on the bench. Therefore, we go unchanged.

20 minutes in, Cracovia are retaining possession well, presumably to kill off any early "We can turn these over again" spirit we may start with. It's the home side that get the first chance when Platek slips through Adamczyk, but his shot goes into the side netting.

Some worrying news comes in the 24th minute when Goncerz suffers a chest injury after a particularly rough challenge. He's able to play on though, so he does.

Before the half hour mark, Jendrisek sprints away down the left wing, leaving Scheffel for dead. He gets to the byline and crosses into the centre, and Platek's there to head it in. 0-1. We change mentality and try to control the game.

At half time, I sacrifice Fossy and bring on Kwarko, who moves to the right wing. This frees up Janga to move up front with Goncerz in a 4-2-4. He'll play as a false 9 to try to link our midfield to Goncerz.

With not even a minute of the second half gone, Adamczyk releases Platek, who's through on goal, but his shot comes back off the post.

The next 10 minutes are all Cracovia, and in the 54th minute, Forsell curls a brilliant 20 yard free kick over the wall and into the top corner. This will not do. We go attacking and we'll try to be more fluid.

Just after the hour, Kevin plays a good ball into the centre of the pitch for Janga, who runs it to the edge of the area but shoots just wide.

A few minutes later, Adamczyk, one of the best performers today, feeds Nagy, but his shot is saved well by Nowak. We go fairly narrow to try to limit the number of through balls cutting through us, and we'll close down slightly less to keep our shape.

With about 15 minutes to go, Goncerz plays a nice ball into the left channel for Kevin, who's cutting inside. He toe pokes it into the far corner of the net, but as I'm in quite a critical mood, the keeper should have done better. In a final roll of the dice, Stryjek comes on for Janga, and will be the poacher while Mr. Link-up, Goncerz, will play as the target man. We go more direct as we've now got 2 big players up front.

I do bring Savanovic on for a late cameo, but we can't turn the tide. Another match ends 1-2. I go into the changing room and wait silently while the players trudge in.

https://youtu.be/T2rySFbWlBg

"In our last 4 competitive games, we've conceded 9 goals and scored 2", I seethe. "Do you think that's good enough?" I ask nobody in particular. No response. All eyes are on the changing room floor. "What's so ****ing exciting about that floor?" I snap, prompting the players to snap their heads up towards me. I turn to Tom Scheffel. "Is it good enough, Tom?"

"No, Boss", he says monotonously. I turn on Grzegorz Goncerz.

"Is it good enough, Grzegorz?"

"No, Boss", he echoes. I can sense that I'm getting through, but I need to make this hurt. I wheel around towards Hurley, Kevin and Olivier, who are sat side by side, looking nervous.

"What about you 3?" I demand. "I brought all of you here because I thought you could step up to this level and make this club better. Was I ****ing daft?"

"No, boss", they reply in unison. I turn back to address the room.

"IS. THIS. GOOD ENOUGH?!"

"NO, BOSS!" Comes the slightly more enthusiastic reply. The words echo against the tiles for a second or so.

"No, it's ****ing not." I sigh, grabbing my trusty grey coat and walking out of the changing room. I don't hear a single word as I stride down the corridor. I think I got through to them. My old manager at Worksop Town would be proud. Something tells me that spurring the players on won't be enough though. I desperately need to make some changes, and as far as I'm concerned, from what I've seen lately, nobody's place is safe in my squad.

[Franjo]

No Video Highlights For A While (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Meta-sode 65.5)

'Ello,

Quick heads up that there'll be no more video highlights for a while. I know that most of you just read the scintillating story and don't watch them, but I thought I'd let you know anyway.

In case you're interested, the reasons for this are that:

A) If you try to export highlights from a Mac (The save is on a Mac), it doesn't work properly. The highlights are unwatchable and from what I've seen from the forums, this has been a bug ever since exporting highlights was introduced to the game.

B) Because of that, I've always sent the save to my PC to export the videos, but the poor old thing's fallen on hard times recently and is currently incapable of doing certain things that I want it to do, such as exporting videos, powering on or being even remotely useful.

So yes, it's broken. While my PC's out of commission, there'll be no video highlights. If I get it working though I'll add them all retroactively.

Thanks for reading, have a great week.

Cheers,

Franjo

[Franjo]

Welcome To GieKSa (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep66)

Today is the day of the annual youth candidate match. After our recent unimpressive run, it'll be a perfect palette cleanser and an opportunity for our latest band of young footballing wannabes to show me that they deserve to join the mighty GieKSa.

I've been told to pay particularly close attention to a number of players. Firstly, young right back Tomasz Jaworski. At 15 years old, it's already clear that he's a great athlete, a born leader, and that he's as brave as a lion. That's a very good recipe for an aspiring footballer.

Next, 15 year old left winger Filip Glen. He's quick off the mark and full of tricks, with a decent cross to boot.

And finally, Michal Grzybek, a 16 year old striker. He's pretty good with his feet and a decent athlete, but his real quality is his mental strength: He's another born leader and is remarkably mature for his age.

As per usual, I let the members of my first team that need game time play for the Under 18's, making it more of a B Team, so the youth candidates are in for a tough time.

Grzybek actually goes close early on when he breaks through the Katowice B Team, but he can only put his shot from a tight angle into the side netting.

Just after half time, Koj pushes Amonike in the area and gives away a penalty, and Gregurina steps up to confidently put the B Team in front. Machalski's free kick is headed home by Krawczyk 15 minutes from time to give the Under 18's a 2-0 victory, but I'm pretty impressed that the match was so close.

Interesting, that. I hope to be given reason to promote a few of the new lads to the first team over the next few months. Welcome to GieKSa, boys.

Anyway, back to first team news! Kevin's earned himself a place in Team of the Week for his consolation goal against Cracovia.

But please hold your applause. Sit yourself back down, Kevin. We aren't in this for personal glory. His accolade is meaningless because we've now lost 4 matches in a row. In an attempt to halt our recent decline, I'll be trying out a new system at home against Lechia today: The gracefully named "Falling Counter" system. It's essentially a variation on Project: Burnie MK II.

Our back 4 will stay the same personnel-wise but our full backs will be encouraged to fly up the wings on the overlap. A holding midfielder will be deployed just in front of the centre backs to offer stability to the side. Bart and Hurley will stay as the midfield duo, but Hurley will be given freedom to roam and to run into channels in the final third. Our front 3 will consist of Tarnoski, our right-of-centre attacking midfielder who will also run the channels, Kevin, our familiar left-sided inside forward, and Goncerz, the spearhead.

So the idea is that we'll have a defensive triangle of Olivier, Wilson and Hutton, who I'll be trying as a makeshift holding man, with Bart winning the ball in front of the 3 of them and starting counter attacks. Hurley and Tarnowski will get forward through the channels in support of Goncerz, with Kevin also cutting in providing support, while Scheffel and Abramowicz bomb up the wings, with strict instructions to stay as wide as possible, providing the width. They aren't ideal candidates for this, but I reckon they've got enough about them to give it a go.

Annoyingly, Goncerz isn't yet fit to play following the chest injury he picked up against Cracovia, so he won't feature. Janga starts in his place, and will play behind Tarnoski.

The match never really gets going if I'm honest. Janga hits a long shot in the first 5 minutes that's easy for Kuciak to catch. After 40 minutes we change to short passing and attempt to work the ball into the box.

With around 15 minutes to go, we go on the offensive. Kwarko and Fossy come on in straight swaps for Kevin and Hutton as we try to find the breakthrough. In the last 10 minutes though, the cost of my changes becomes clear. First, Jorge Diaz slams a shot against the bar, which I should have seen as a warning. Then, from a 91st minute Gajos corner, Kadlec heads home the winner. Nobody deserved to win this match. It's so, so cruel.

The bad news, apart from the obvious, is that Hurley twisted his ankle in the last 5 minutes and will miss the next 2-3 weeks. The good news however, is that I was really quite impressed with Alan Hutton's first ever (That I know of) performance as a holding man. He did a fine job, and I'll be training him to play there.

OK, now we really need a win. Or a draw. Why didn't I shut up shop and take the draw? Next up is a trip to our local rivals Zagłębie Sosnowiec. Gesundheit. Hurley's injured, Goncerz is fit again, and let's face it, Abramowicz is awful. Fossy, Goncerz and Garbacik come into the side. Hurley, Janga and Abramowicz are out.

With just over 10 minutes played, Fossy loses the ball in Sosnowiec's half and they counter. Fast. A move that I might have found quite easy on the eye in other circumstances sees Makengo tee up Mystkowski, who chips the ball on for Mills, who volleys it deftly past Nowak. 0-1.

It's another eventless match but nevertheless, we're somehow on the back foot again. With half an hour to go, nothing has happened and I see nothing to convince me that we'll turn it around without a change. Kwarko comes on for Kevin and we go attacking, and more direct.

5 minutes later, Tom Scheffel's... Direct... pass is cut out, and Sosnowiec counter. Fast. Makengo's glancing header from Pawlowski's pacey cross is saved well by Nowak, but our keeper is left badly positioned a split second later when Mills passes the rebound into the empty net. 0-2.

Not even 3 minutes later, Goncerz loses the ball high up the pitch and Sosnowiec counter. Fast. Or they would do, but Mills is tripped just into our half by the already-tightrope-walking Bart. He receives his marching orders. I'm about ready to walk down the tunnel myself. Amonike comes on and will spray crosses towards the big men from deep on the right. Tarnowski comes off.

But then, 5 minutes from time, it clicks. I don't know what it is, but it just clicks. Fossy's chipped free kick comes back to him and he tries another cross. It evades the defence and Goncerz is there to help it past the keeper. And the linesman's flag is up.

Sorry, did I say it clicks? I meant to say that I hate everything. I hate the linesman, I hate winter breaks, I hate wodka, and I hate Zagłębie bloody Sosnowiec. Goncerz does blast an injury time consolation goal in, but it's too little, too late.

The new Cameroon boss, Yves Nounkeu, was in the stands today watching Olivier. Why anyone would travel from another continent to watch any of my defenders at the minute really is beyond me. We need radical change and we need it now.

[Franjo]

Turn The Tide (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep67)

“Here’s the thing,” I begin, pausing to take a drink of my unnecessarily strong Polish lager, “I’ve not taken any confidence whatsoever from the falling counter system. We’ve lost both of the matches that we’ve used it.” Dennis listens quietly, a worried look spread across his face. “The far more vexing thing at the minute though is that I’m genuinely losing faith in the players.” I continue. “I know they can play better. I know they can be better. But they just aren’t rising to the occasion."

“It’s only been 2 matches though.” Dennis pipes up. “The players will get comfortable in the system given time."

“We don’t have time though, Dennis. We need to stop losing. We need to pick up some points or we’re going to get dragged into a relegation scrap.” Dennis nods with reluctant acceptance. “Korona away is a must win game. They’re second bottom. We need to turn the tide. Another loss here today would be catastrophic.”

“It’d be a league record too”, he says quietly. “7 losses in a row.”

“Excellent, thanks.” I reply, covering my face with my hands in exasperation.

“With 6 in a row, we’ve already set a club record”, he continues, unhelpfully.

“Right, well I’d rather not go down in Lotto Ekstraklasa history as the guy who can’t stop ****ing losing.” I snap. We both take a long drink.

“So what do we do?” Asks Dennis, breaking the silence.

“We catch Korona off guard." I reply thoughtfully. "They stick religiously to their 4-4-2, so we go 3-5-2. We outnumber their strikers and midfielders and we dominate the game.”

After more scheming and more of that lager that I suspect might have been originally manufactured as a weapon, we settle on our team. A back 3 of Olivier, Hutton and Wilson, with Hutton playing a stopper role, Scheffel and Garbacik as the wing backs, Gregurina and Fossy playing in the midfield 3 either side of our full debutant Vladan Savanovic. Goncerz and Tarnowski are up front.

I signed Savanovic as a possible replacement for Baran when the young playmaker left at the start of the season, and I feel like now is as good a time as any to give him a try. He’s young, hungry and unpredictable. He might just give us that unknown factor that'll secure the win against Korona.

3 minutes in, Tarnowski releases Scheffel down the right wing. Tom whips a cross straight into the box, and straight onto the boot of Goncerz, who simply helps the ball into the bottom corner. 1-0. We’re winning. We’re actually winning.

The rest of the half is awful, but I’m fine with it. We completely nullify Korona. The only downside is that Savanovic hasn’t really been in the game at all, so we’ll go more direct in an attempt to create chances without him. Fossy moves into the central midfield spot as a deep lying playmaker to facilitate the change.

Almost 15 minutes after the break, Korona do actually threaten. Rovcanin crosses from the left but it’s awkwardly behind Palanca, and his header reflects that. The ball flies well over. Suddenly though, the whistle blows. The referee comes sprinting over and points to the spot. I’m flabberghasted. What possible reason could he have for giving Korona a penalty? A quick, friendly chat with the 4th official reveals the decision was made because Alan Hutton shoved Mitsanski in the 6 yard box. Neither player was anywhere near the ball. It was just a random act of violence from our centre back. I hate everything again.

Palanca steps up to hit the penalty - And Nowak saves brilliantly to his left! You brilliant old bastard, Sebastien. Wilson clears the ball following the save, but Korona smell blood now. It comes straight back at us via a Markovic ball over the top. Rovcanin latches onto it on the left and shoots at the near post. The ball ripples the back of the net. I have no words. We go control.

With 20 minutes to go, Garbacik and Tarnowski are replaced by Kwarko and Stryjek as we try to push Korona back and snatch another goal, but to no avail.

With a couple of minutes still to play, Tomasevic plays the ball over the top of our defence down the left wing. Olivier gets to it first but is tripped by Mitsanski. The referee waves play on and my fists clench. The red mist is descending. Mitsanski is one on one with Nowak and shoots, but our veteran keeper saves brilliantly at the near post. I’m still incensed. The ref’s extraordinary eagle eyes didn’t catch that one, did they?

I have a pop at the officials in my post-match interview. We nearly went into the history books in a really ****** way thanks to that late decision not to award us a free kick for the foul on Olivier and I would’ve gone full on Mourinho if we had done.

Let’s move on swiftly though. We’ve dropped down to 14th. We’re 1 place and 5 points above the relegation zone. Górnik Zabrze visit us next and they’re 13th, on level points with us but with a much, much better goal difference. This is another match that we just can’t afford to lose.

We’re changing system again. The 3-5-2 was specifically for Korona as they play a 4-4-2 and I don’t want to go back to the falling counter, so we’re trying a 4-4-2 of our own. We’ll attack Zabrze, focus down the wings where we’ve got power and pace in Kwarko and Janga, pass into space and float crosses into the box for the aerially proficient duo of Stryjek and Goncerz. We’re the home side. We should have enough about us to win. This may be some of these players’ last chance.

The first half is predictably dull. Towards the end I instruct the wingers to hit early crosses in towards the strikers. But it’s not actually until after the hour mark that we see any action, when Goncerz plays a one-two with Stryjek and gets himself into the box, before forcing a good save from Bolten. Kevin comes on replacing Stryjek and heads out to the left wing, while Janga accompanies Goncerz up front.

With 15 minutes to go, Gregurina and Goncerz are also replaced by Hurley and Tarnowski. It so nearly pays off in the last couple of minutes when Hurley’s through ball finds Tarnowski in the box, but his shot comes back off the post. The match ends goalless.

The good thing about draws is that they’re not losses. The bad thing about drawing the matches we have done is that we were playing against teams that in my eyes we should have beaten. At least we can take solace in the fact that we’ve picked up a couple of points, but I really am losing patience with some members of the squad, and I might have to start mixing it up and bringing in some new faces to keep it fresh. Who knows, my job may depend on it.

[Franjo]

Tricky Janicki (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep68)

"Let's play a game shall we?" I ask the squad in the changing room. "This", I gesture to the whiteboard sat on an easel next to me where my team is laid out in formation, "Is our starting 11 today. Nowak, Scheffel, Olivier, Wilson, Garbacik, Bart, Hurley, Amonike, Janga, Kevin, Goncerz." I point to each of their names as I reel them off. We're going with our 4-2-3-1 and the exact lineup that took a 2-0 lead against Bruk-Bet in the reverse fixture earlier in the season, before we came away with a slightly disappointing 2-2 draw.

"If we fail to win today", I continue, "The 3 players who I deem to have played the worst will be... Out." Wilson raises his hand.

"Out, Boss? Out of the side?" He asks.

"Out of the squad, Danny." I reply. "If we do not come away with 3 points today, then 3 of you will be dropped." The changing room starts buzzing with disgruntled murmurs. I raise my voice accordingly. "If we then do not come away from our next match with 3 points, then 3 more of you will be dropped. Etcetera. Understood?" I smile around at them. I know that I'm being a dick, and I know that this plan has the potential to backfire horrifically, but I honestly don't know what else to do at this point.

"I'm not asking any of you to become Ruud Gullit. This isn't a 'If I take on the entire Bruk-Bet team and score, I'm safe' situation. This is a 'Do what I ****ing pay you to do' situation. Of course, the silver lining for anyone who does get dropped is that if we don't get a win soon, we'll be relegated, I'll be sacked, and you'll get a clean slate under your next Manager in the First Division. Good luck." And with that I walk out of the stunned dressing room, through the tunnel and out into the dugout.

God, I hope that works. I need to assert my authority now more than ever. Aside from the fact that we haven't won in 8 matches, I'm apparently the favourite to take over at Korona after they sacked Dariusz Wdowczyk. The stories of my departure have been doing the rounds this week, piling more uncertainty into a squad that's already undeniably broken. It's mildly flattering to be linked with them, but the way this 2nd half of the season has gone so far, I have my doubts that I'll be staying in Poland beyond the end of the Season whether we go down or not.

Bruk-Bet get off to a flier when Budzyn hits a 25 yard free kick straight into the top corner. My heart sinks. The sensation's becoming all too familiar. Budzyn comes close to doubling his tally less than 10 minutes later when he's released by a Gutkovskis pass, but his shot comes back off the post.

After the half hour, Amonike swings a corner into the box. Janga gets up to direct a header towards the far corner of the goal, but Misal's there to clear the ball off the line.

In the second half, we try to control the game, but we fail to fashion any decent chances. With 20 minutes to go, Kwarko and Tarnowski replace Amonike and Janga, and with 10 minutes remaining we go all out attack. We still create nothing until the 90th minute, when Goncerz finds himself with space on the left and has a shot, but the keeper makes a routine save. Bruk-Bet go straight up the other end, with Kiepura playing in Gutkovskis, but he skies his effort.

I follow through on my pre-match promise. Unsurprisingly, the 3 players that I deem to have played the worst are 3 attackers. Goncerz, Amonike and Janga are dropped. We have a 2 week gap before our trip to Piast, so that's 2 weeks to figure out who's going to come in for them. I eventually decide on Tarnowski up front, with Fossy behind him and Kwarko out on the right.

7 minutes in, the seemingly inevitable happens when Janicki's free kick is cleared as far as Kurminowski. He gives it back to Janicki, who rifles the ball into the back of the net from the edge of the box.

20 minutes later, we have a corner on the left. Hurley swings in a good cross and Kwarko nods it down towards the near post. Danny Wilson's there to blast it, but it's blocked by the goalscorer Janicki, who's stood on the goal line.

Right on the hour mark, we're looking threatening. Scheffel splits Piast apart with a great through ball, which Tarnowski runs onto. He sprints through on goal but is forced onto his left foot by the back-peddling defenders and skews his shot wide. We go on the attack shortly afterwards and bring Kawot and Stryjek on for Kevin and Tarnowski. Kawot should give us more width as a natural left winger.

With just under quarter of an hour to play, we come forward again. Hurley dwells on the ball for too long though, and Piast counter attack. Niezgoda ends up with the ball and pokes it through for bloody Janicki, who buries it in the bottom right corner of our goal. I can't say that I like Tricky Janicki all that much to be honest.

In the final couple of minutes we're still coming forward, but Hurley loses the ball again, this time on the left wing. Piast counter once more, culminating in Kurminovski laying it off for Tricky Janicki. The bastard aims for the top left corner, but his shot flies just wide. The fact that he fails to bag his hat trick brings me a small but hollow moment of happiness.

We have 3 matches left of the league stage and we're 6 points clear of 15th placed Korona. When the Relegation Group stage begins, every team's points tally will be cut in half, meaning that we're actually only 3 points clear. Ambitions of finishing in the top 8 are now a distant memory. Our new goal is picking up as many points as possible in order to avoid the second relegation of my career. I'll keep my chin up, I really will, but we need to fix this before it's too late.

[Franjo]

Chin Up (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Mini-sode 68.5)

Our eyes meet as I turn the corner towards the home changing room. He's walking towards me from the other end of the corridor and we're on a direct collision course. I avert my eyes sheepishly and step to my right, but as I do, he steps to his left. I see him in my peripheral vision. We're still heading straight towards one another. I quickly step back to my left, but he steps back to his right at the exact same time, like he's my mirror image. My horrifying, vampiric mirror image. GieKSik starts to laugh. "We seem unable to avoid each other," comes the gruff, familiar voice from behind the dead eyes and the joyless, unmoving smile.

I look up and give the kind of facial expression that every Englishman perfects over his lifetime; The eyes roll in a full circle, as if to say "What are we like?". The head shakes back and forth, and at the same time tilts ever so slightly upwards, to ensure that eye contact absolutely cannot be made. The lips curl up at the corners, in an attempt to convince our new foe that we feel something other than pure, unbridled fury towards them and the situation that they alone have caused and inflicted upon us. The whole thing is brought together by a short "Tsk" as the tongue clicks against the roof of the mouth. For such a tiny noise, it packs a hell of a passive-aggressive punch.

Content that I've made my point, I continue to walk, stepping to my right so that I can pass GieKSik. As I do though, he stops and places a huge padded hand on my shoulder, stopping me in my tracks. I instinctively look around for something that could be used as a weapon. A ready-made wooden stake perhaps? A clove of Garlic? A vial of Holy Water? I see none of them lying around. Just my luck.

"You have flies up your nose, my friend." He says softly.

"I beg your pardon?", I ask, taken aback.

"You are troubled. What is wrong?"

I smile wryly. "It's no secret," I tell him. "We're losing. I'm failing. We're in relegation form at the minute and I can't turn it around."

GieKSik considers this for a moment. I mean, I'm not great at reading the body language of vampiric sports mascots, but he does go quiet. "You've had some bad results, Franjo, but it is no use crying over sliced bread."

I nod slowly. "You know, you really butchered that idiom, but I do appreciate what you're trying to get at."

He claps me on the shoulder. "Chin up", he says slightly cheerily, before walking past me and rounding the corner. Feeling slightly confused, but slightly buoyed, I continue walking in the opposite direction towards our changing room. A weak smile creeps across my face.

[Franjo]

All Downhill From Here (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep69)

It's all going to be OK. It's all going to be fine. Somebody once told me something that really resonated with me. They said "It's all downhill from here." It's not an uncommon phrase, and I'd heard it many times before. But it wasn't the words that resonated with me, it was the perception of the meaning behind them that I hadn't heard before.

If you're riding a bike up a steep hill, then going up is the tough part. You pedal, and pedal, and pedal. It's exhausting and it's painful. But once you've pedalled enough, once you've put in the work and the pain, once you've shed enough sweat and tears, you find yourself at the top of the hill. And it's all downhill from here.

Recently, we have been pedalling and pedalling and pedalling and I have to hope that we're coming close to the top of the hill. What I'd give at the minute to be able to just hold onto the handlebars, keep my feet steady on the pedals and let gravity take care of the rest.

Today we take on Górnick at home. Last week we travelled to Piast and were unravelled by Tricky Janicki, and so I must drop 3 of my players. As the lowest performing players in that match, Tom Scheffel, Danny Wilson and Adrian Garbacik will be the ones to make way. Wilson's suspended anyway after picking up 4 yellows, but I want it on record that he'd be sat in the stands even if that wasn't the case.

To be honest, I had hoped that this new self-imposed rule would spur my players on to pick up a win, but I think that all I've succeeded in doing so far is cutting my nose off to spite my face. The upside though is that I have the chance to freshen up my squad with new or rarely seen faces.

I had hoped that Alan Hutton could replace compatriot Danny Wilson, but he picked up a bruised head a couple of days ago and so is not fit to play. I know, I don't get it either. I thought he was Scottish. I doubt that Duncan Ferguson's head was ever completely unbruised, but he still racked up 98 career goals. I'm willing to bet that at least 95 of them were with his head too. Anyway, Hutton is out of contention, so Bart will drop back into the centre of defence, with Gregurina replacing him in midfield. Abramowicz replaces Garbacik and 15 year old Tomasz Jaborski replaces Scheffel. He'll set a Lotto Ekstraklasa record as the league's youngest ever player.

I know what you're thinking.

"You've lost it, Franjo!"

"You're out of your mind!"

"I have a tattoo of your half-robot face on my thigh!"

Maybe you're right. Maybe I'm crazy. Maybe I'm mad. Maybe I'm extremely photogenic and an excellent choice for anyone's thigh tattoo. But my squad is failing. I expected them to bounce back by now and they haven't, and yes, a lot of the blame for that is on my shoulders, but this kid's mind is fresh. He's untroubled by our recent failure. If he can play with a smile on his face and a couple of the lads follow suit, my gamble will have paid off.

10 minutes in, we go close. Kevin plays a well timed cross to Aaron Kwarko, but his header bobbles wide. A few minutes later, Kwarko gets into the box again, this time on the end of a pass from Fossy on the right. He shoots with power, but Berkovec saves and does well to hold onto it.

Alas, our promising start unravels before the 20 minute mark. Peyrzak's corner is headed clear by Gregurina but only as far as Dzalamidz, who toe-pokes the ball into the bottom corner from the edge of the area.

We try to control the game after half an hour, but we just can't find the equaliser. 10 minutes into the second half, Mackiewicz has the ball on the left wing for Górnick. He skips down the line past young Jaworski, who sticks out a foot and brings him down for a penalty. I bury my head in my hands. I've picked a young lad in the team to add some optimism into the squad, and within an hour he's set a new record for "Youngest ever player to give away a penalty in the Lotto Ekstraklasa".

Vukobratovic's penalty is near perfect. Power, accuracy, straight into the bottom corner. Nowak dives the right way but gets nowhere near it. With an hour gone, I break out a rare triple substitution. Gregurina, Kwarko and Tarnowski are replaced by Machalski, Tuovinen and Stryjek.

Within minutes, the extremely unfit Machalski is looking lively and wins the ball from Olejarka. He hoofs it onto the right wing for Ari Tuovinen, who breaks away down the line. I feel my vindication blanket drawing closer... Until Tuovinen makes the absurd decision to shoot from way out on the right wing. The ball goes nowhere near the goal. I am displeased.

We go attacking, but the last chance of the game goes to Mackiewicz following a Dzalamidze free kick. His shot is caught comfortably by Nowak. 0-2 it ends. I guess we'll just have to pedal that little bit more.

The GieKSa press officer, Michal Dabrowski, is sending me weekly updates on how long it's been since we last won a match, which is really ****ing helpful and appreciated.

Next up in my fully immersive nightmare is a trip to Wisła Kraków. After their terrible start to the season, Kraków have picked themselves up for the second half of their campaign. Good for them. They currently sit above us in 13th place with 4 more points. We risk really isolating ourselves in the relegation scrap if we lose to them.

In terms of our inevitable personnel changes, Kwarko, Kevin and Tarnowski are dropped. Franczak, Glen and Stryjek are all in. With no disrespect to these guys, I'm really scraping the barrel now. Jaworski stays in the lineup because I want to give him another chance to prove himself.

It takes just over 10 minutes for Malecki to hoof a cross in from the right wing, and for Morrell to slip into space between Bart and Jaworski and nod the ball home.

Another 10 minutes passes before Morrell receives the ball again, this time skipping effortlessly past Gregurina and Hurley and into the box. He shoots, but drags his shot wide of the far post.

5 minutes later, Ondrasek crosses from the right. The ball flies over Bart's head once more and Vidémont's there to volley it in at the far post. 0-2.

I can barely believe my eyes though when within 2 minutes, young Stryjek releases even younger Glen on the left wing. The nippy youngster takes it forward and clips a lovely cross to the far post, where Franczak arrives to apply the finish. My fist flies into the air so fast that I nearly dislocate my shoulder.

Straight from kick off however, Kraków come back at us. This time, Bartosz crosses to the near post and Ondrasek is there to volley the ball into the bottom corner, restoring his team's 2 goal lead almost instantly.

It's actually quite impressive that with 25 minutes gone, we were losing 0-1, and with 30 minutes gone, we're losing 1-4. Kraków's 4th comes just 2 minutes after their 3rd, when Morrell dribbles into the box and up to the byline, squares the ball for Ondrasek, and he blasts his second past Nowak.

I watch my players' body language as they troop back to their positions, heads down, shoulders slumped. I watch the travelling fans, those who've shown up at least, as they boo and shout and throw their hands up in despair. I don't know if I can do this anymore, GieKSa. I think I'm done.

In the 32nd minute though, Bartosz is caught in possession outside his own box and Fossy nicks the ball away from him. I look up hopefully from my current position, slumped back in my seat in the dugout. Fossy lays it off for young striker Stryjek, who shoots from just outside the box - And the ball flies into the top corner. 2-4. All I can manage at the minute is a smile though. Good for Stryjek, I think. Maybe I'll try to sign him on loan for my next, far inferior club after I'm sacked in disgrace.

With just under 10 minutes to go until the break, Abramowicz takes a throw in, launching the ball down the left wing and into the box for Fossy to chase. Fossy does chase it, but just as he gets close to the ball, he's tripped by Maczynski. My heart skips a beat. He was inside the box. The referee blows his whistle and runs over, pointing to the penalty spot.

Mario Gregurina places the ball at 12 yards and measures his steps backwards. The referee's whistle blows. Gregurina takes a step, and another, and runs the last few, before striking the ball, and placing it comfortably into the bottom left corner. 3-4. I do stand this time, feeling hopeful enough to fist pump once more. The bastards are pedalling. They're pedalling furiously against the steep incline, against the force of gravity, against wind resistance. Just keep going, I beg them silently, just pedal a little further.

Half time comes and goes. I urge the lads on in my team talk, convincing them that the next goal will be ours. That they can still get a result. I think they believe me. I hope they do.

Nearly 10 minutes after the restart, my group of lovable misfits are playing with their chests puffed out. Fossy is having the game of his life and he plays a nice through ball into the box for Stryjek, who should shoot first time but takes a touch instead, allowing Lis to close down the angle and save his shot. The crowd are on board now though, cheering the players on. Kraków are getting scared, mistakes are becoming more and common among their players.

With a quarter of an hour to go though, they break. Sylwestrzak gets away down the left wing. He crosses the ball into the centre and Ondrasek meets it with his head - But the ball cracks against the bar. He was inches away from his hat trick. We go on the attack.

5 minutes later, I opt once more for a triple substitution. There's only 10 minutes to play and the fresh legs can only be good for us. Off come Gregurina, Hurley and Glen, on come Rodrigo Silva, Machalski and Karwot.

But it's no use. The clock keeps ticking on. 90 minutes pass and the 4th official signals for 2 minutes of injury time. We've not gotten close since Stryjek's chance in the 54th minute.

But then Stryjek finds himself with the ball, 20 yards out. He holds it up well. I get up from my seat, along with the travelling fans and my coaching staff. Stryjek lays the ball off for Rodrigo Silva, who's bombed on from his regular holding man role, arriving just outside the box. He shoots low, and the ground goes silent. The whole stadium inhales as one as the ball fizzes towards the bottom corner - And is saved by Lis. I make an involuntary agonised noise as I watch it bobble onto the right wing, away from goal.

But we aren't done. Franczak picks the ball up on the right, turns and swings a cross towards the far post. Kamil Karwot leaps to reach it, but he can't. He ends up in a heap on the floor. Because he was pushed by Malecki. The referee's whistle goes as he once again runs over, pointing to the spot.

After a split second of realisation, every single person affiliated with GKS Katowice lets out a cheer or a scream or a shout of delight. Apart from me. Not yet. Not until I see 4-4 up on the score board.

After a few seconds, the delight turns into worried murmurs and I think I know why. Mario Gregurina, our usual spot kick taker who has already put one away today, has gone off. And we're left with, quite frankly, a bunch of kids to choose from to take the second.

And then I remember. I remember a moment that seems like it was played out a whole lifetime ago, but in reality was only just over a year ago. A moment when I watched a 16 year old boy step up for a team of youth candidates, unfazed by the prospect of taking a penalty against a goalkeeper twice his age. He rifled the ball into the net from 12 yards then, and he can do it again. I catch Silva's eye as he trudges back towards the half way line, and point towards the box. "Take it Rodrigo!" I shout.

Dennis turns to me with a look of confusion on his face. "Rodrigo, Boss?" He asks.

"He'll be fine." I reply, as Silva starts jogging back towards the box. I sound a lot calmer than I feel.

Silva does look slightly more worried than I remember in that youth candidates match last March though, as he steps up and places the ball on the spot. He, like Gregurina, counts his steps back. The referee blows his whistle, and Rodrigo breaks into a jog, before hitting the ball - Nay, ****ing twatting the ball - Straight down the middle of the goal, past the flailing feet of the goalkeeper as he dives out of the way to his left. 4-4.

Euphoria ensues. I don't think I've ever celebrated a point more. The players are piling up on top of Silva in the corner where the fans are sitting. The travelling fans that have finally been rewarded; Bouncing, singing and cheering as their heroes gather below. Dennis leaps into the arms of one of the coaches like he's Scooby Doo, laughing hysterically while the rest of the staff high five, hug and laugh.

I just stand outside my dugout: Applauding, breathing a sigh of relief, and wearing the first genuine smile I've worn in a long time.

[Franjo]

All Hands On Deck (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep70)

Ah, the sweet relief of avoiding a loss. It's a bit disappointing that results like this are cause for celebration nowadays, but we are where we are and it is what it is. A strange and disturbing thought crossed my mind after the Wisła Kraków match when I was informed that our 12 games without a win was a new club record. It crossed my mind that "Achieving" that record, along with the one for our 6 straight defeats a couple of months ago, means that I may well be the worst Manager that GKS Katowice have ever had.

It's a really unsettling thought, but put into perspective, we're actually overachieving. Remembering that we were not only heavy favourites to go down, but to finish bottom of the league gives me some comfort.I suppose it's all about context. For example, I still think of my stint at FC Höllviken as the biggest failure in my career to date. I saw the team through 3 wins and 5 defeats in 8 matches. That's far, far better than we're currently doing. The difference of course is that in the first half of this season with Katowice, we bought ourselves some much needed breathing room, whereas at Höllviken we had no such luxury. It's strange comparing my stints with the 2 clubs in that way. It makes you think.

We welcome Pogoń to Katowice today. This is our last chance to put some points on the board before our tally gets halved and we head into the relegation stage. We're without our Bartbeat as he serves a 1 match suspension for collecting 8 yellow cards. Hutton replaces him at centre back. I'm also making a couple of other changes as we swap to a 4-1-2-3 formation with which we'll try to control the game. Fossy comes out despite his excellent game against Kraków as we aren't using a number 10, which I've found is the only position he can successfully play. Rodrigo Silva replaces him as a holding man, fresh from scoring his first professional goal in extremely dramatic circumstances. I'm also bringing Jaworski out of the team. We gave it a go but he's not ready and I feel like putting him through this with the first team is slightly unfair. Franczak will drop back to fullback, while Tuovinen takes his place on the right wing.

I'm not entirely vindicated in my decision to start Tuovinen when he loses possession in Pogoń's half 5 minutes in. What comes next is a brilliant, high tempo counter attack culminating with Rudol placing a cross straight onto the forehead of Jaroch, who directs the ball into the far bottom corner.

You'd think we'd fight back. You'd think we'd keep peddling. Especially when we go on the attack at half time. Apart from a Gyurscó pot shot just after half time though, the match fizzles out. None of Jaworski, Machalski or Karwot can turn the tide when they're brought on with half an hour to go. It's a gutless performance and I'm thoroughly disappointed.

What a wasted opportunity. We'd brought a losing streak to an end with a dramatic 92nd minute equalising penalty to draw a match level at 4-4, and what do we do next? We throw away our chance of gathering momentum. We finish 14th in the Lotto Ekstraklasa league stage, marooned between Wisła Płock, who are 7 points above us, and Korona, who are 6 points below.

Everybody's points will now be halved as we enter the relegation group, meaning that on the upside, we're only 3 points behind Płock, but on the downside we're only 3 points ahead of Korona in the relegation zone.

I'm sick of dropping people. Overall it's a motivational strategy that's had little to no impact and who knows, may have even cost us points. Everybody will come back into the fold for our next match. Clean slates all round. We'll absolutely need points to avoid relegation now and we need all hands on deck to make it happen.

[Franjo]

One Of Two Ways (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep71)

"I won't lie to you, I'm nervous." I say quietly. "We need to win at least a couple of matches out of the 7 we've got left, or we're going down. We've not won a match in 5 months, so that's going to be a bit of a challenge."

Burnie stares back at me silently from my lap, watching with vague interest as I think aloud.

"I'm bringing all of the players I dropped back into the first team, but that could go one of two ways." I press on. "They could come back with something to prove, having learned their lesson. They could come back determined and aggressive." Burnie continues to stare at me curiously. "Or..." I let out a sigh. "... They could come back resentful and apathetic. They could decide that they don't care about the fate of GKS Katowice, or that they just don't want to play for me anymore. I wouldn't blame them to be honest."

Burnie yawns widely, showing his many tiny feline teeth as he seems to unhinge his entire jaw, like a cobra about to chow down on a whole cow or whatever it is they like to eat. He stands, stretching his legs, and plops gracefully down onto the floor, before wandering away in the direction of his food bowl, leaving me quite alone.

The one player we'll be without today is Hurley, who's serving a 1 match suspension for accruing his 4th yellow card. We'll play 4-2-3-1 and we'll sit deep before hitting Cracovia on the counter attack. Nowak plays behind a back 4 consisting of Scheffel, Olivier, Wilson and Garbacik, Bart and Gregurina form the midfield duo, with Janga, Fossy and Kevin behind Goncerz.

Right, I think as I get to my feet and reach for my trusty grey coat, let's do this.

After quarter of an hour, Forsell chips a free kick into our box from the right. Adamczyk goes for goal on the volley, but his shot deflects off a crowd of bodies and bounces to the far post. Covilo acts faster than Tom Scheffel and gets to the ball first, directing it past the helpless Nowak and into the net.

5 minutes later, it's us with the set piece. Our corner is cleared as far as Tom Scheffel, our last man, who takes 5 full seconds to think about where he wants to play the ball. Unfortunately, that's plenty of time for Apostolovic to tackle him and play a quick ball ahead of Platek, who dashes through on goal and clips the ball easily past the outrushing Nowak. 0-2 down after 21 minutes, we quickly change to a more attacking playstyle.

Right on the stroke of half time, Janga intercepts a rogue Cracovia pass in our half and powers down the right wing. He does brilliantly, leaving the defenders for dead and drilling a low cross in to Goncerz, who bundles the ball into the net from close range. The goal gives us something to be optimistic about during the break.

With 25 minutes to play, we still trail Cracovia by a goal. Tarnowski and Kwarko come on for Fossy and Kevin. Just a few minutes later, Platek gets the ball and runs directly at our centre backs. Olivier sticks out a foot and trips him, conceding a free kick and earning himself a second yellow card and thus a red. Luckily, Cetnarski hits his free kick straight at Nowak, who catches it cleanly.

With just over 10 minutes to go, our 10 man team collapses. First, Apostolovic receives the ball from Dabrowski and drives down the right, getting himself a yard clear of Garbacik and drilling in a cross. Platek lays it off for Adamczyk, who's unmarked and finishes calmly. Then almost straight from kick off, Garbacik decides to lump the ball forward and hand possession back to Cracovia. Another exquisite ball from Damian Dabrowski finds Adamczyk on the left wing. He gets clear of Scheffel and chips the ball into the centre, where Platek is waiting to tuck the ball into the net. Game well and truly over.

https://youtu.be/VYCTglds3Do

I don't think I've got it in me anymore to just shout at them. I don't know what good it'll do. I walk straight from the dugout out of the ground and onto the team bus, forgoing the team talk. I sit at the front, alone, and wait for the players to troop on silently, filling up the seats behind.

But hey, need something vaguely resembling good news to pick you up? Me too! So congratulations Sebastien Nowak for becoming GieKSa's oldest ever player!

And congratulations to Zagłębie Sosnowiec's Ben Whitfield for being shortlisted for the Lotto Ekstraklasa Player of the Season award. Just take my vote and get out of my sight.

And finally, I'm sure it won't surprise you to learn that I've been casting an eye elsewhere lately, resulting in an interview with Ajax Cape Town in the South African Premier Soccer League. I attend and it goes quite well. I've been wanting to get out of Europe for a while now and I'd relish the challenge of managing in South Africa. I'll keep you posted.

Anyway, next up is Jagiellonia at our place. They remind me of a happier time as they were one of the last teams we defeated before we embarked on this horrific run of games.

Scheffel and Olivier are both suspended for one match, so they miss out. Gregurina, Janga and Fossy are all left out too as I bring in Jaworski, Hutton, Hurley, Amonike and Tarnowski. We'll try to get on the front foot and control the game.

Just over 5 minutes in, Ngombo comes forwards with the ball, drawing Hutton out of position before playing a pass into the space for Starzynski. He shoots with power but the ball flies just wide.

The rest of the half is tightly contested, but the best chance comes a few minutes before half time when Garbacik throws the ball down the line from a throw in. Tarnowski is on the receiving end and lays it off for Kevin, who's stood 25 yards out from goal. Kevin plays the ball on first time for Goncerz, who holds it up well before sliding the ball across to Amonike. The winger just needs to place it into one of the corners, but only manages to pea roll the ball straight into the arms of the keeper from 12 yards.

With almost an hour gone, Garbacik wins the ball from deep in our half and hoofs it towards Goncerz on the halfway line. Our striker takes it down and dribbles forward into the Jagiellonia half, before playing it across into the space outside the area for Bart. He takes a couple of touches and shoots, but his effort just grazes the top of the bar as it goes over.

We win the ball back quickly after the goal kick though and Bart spreads it out to Amonike on the right wing. He thinks about attacking the fullback and going down the line but instead turns inside and crosses with his left foot. The ball falls to Goncerz in space at the far post and he takes it down brilliantly, before sliding it into the bottom corner with his left foot. 1-0.

I'm skeptical at this point of our ability to hold onto a lead, and rightly so. Not even 5 minutes after Goncerz's goal, a nice move from Jagiellonia leads to Kucharczyk laying the ball off for Jelic, who smacks it into the bottom corner to equalise.

With a quarter of an hour to play it's still all square. Bart wins the ball in out half and finds Tarnowski, who plays it on first time to Kevin on the halfway line. Kevin looks up and sees Goncerz running through the central channel beyond the defenders. He picks him out superbly, lobbing his path over the defenders, and Goncerz takes the ball down. He runs through on goal with the defenders snapping at his heels. He looks up to see the keeper coming off his line to close the angle. Goncerz picks his spot and shoots left footed - And the net ripples as the ball flies into the top corner.

Every member of my coaching staff and all of my substitutes are instantly up off their feet, cheering and applauding, but there's still 15 minutes to play. As I say, I'm skeptical nowadays.

"Calm down," I bark, silencing them all at once. "Mario, warm up." Gregurina comes on replacing Michal Tarnowski and we swap to a 4-1-2-3 formation. We go all out defence. But Jagiellonia are throwing the kitchen sink at us now. We go into injury time still ahead. The 92 minutes are almost up and Jagiellonia are in possession of the ball. Canouse has it 25 yards from our goal.

Come on, I mutter under my breath. Just once. Just once, let us win.

Canouse looks up, takes aim and smashes the ball - Just over the top of the bar. The referee blows his whistle. That was the last kick of the game.

https://youtu.be/amEId8gj68g

I get straight to my feet this time, beaming from ear to ear. Dennis grabs me and ruffles my hair. In the words of Mr Burns, it's a little overfamiliar, but I'll allow it. I stride over to Piotr Szendzielorz, the Jagiellonia manager, and offer him a trembling hand.

"Well played," I smile.

"Well done, friend" he smiles back warmly and takes my hand, shaking it firmly. I think my immense relief must be showing on my face.

Our winless nightmare is over. It's finally bloody over.

[Franjo]

Mr WT Franco (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep72)

To MR WT FRANCO,

Thank you for your interest in the position of MANAGER at Ajax Cape Town.

We regret to inform you that on this occasion, your application has been unsuccessful, but we'll keep your CV on file should any MANAGER positions become available in the future.

Warmest regards,

Ari Efstathiou

Ajax Cape Town Chairman

 

"Mr WT Franco". I read the words over and over. "Mr WT Franco". "Mr WT Franco". "Mr WT Franco".

Huh.

Well I've made a sworn enemy today.

I crumple the letter in my hand and throw it roughly in the direction of the bin. It's nice to know that I was seriously considered for the job. I mean, I had an interview for ****s sake. He called me Franjo in the interview! ... Didn't he? Maybe he called me Franco and I instantly shrugged it off and forgot about it, assuming that he misspoke or that I misheard.

Well in any case, I hope you're pleased with yourself Ari, because you just made my list. You will know my name. You'll curse my name as your empire crumbles around you.

I've got to get myself to South Africa.

Anyway, that'll have to wait. For now, Grzegorz Goncerz has won a place in the team of the week for his 2 goals against Jagiellonia in our WIN!

That's right, our ****ing WIN last week! That monkey's been on our back for 5 long and painful months, but against Jagiellonia we grabbed it by it's stupid little primate face and threw it into the Baltic sea. Our fight to avoid relegation has officially begun.

Our victory also prompted Wojciech Cygan to offer me a new one-year contract, and here's the thing... I signed it.

I do realise that I'm sending out mixed messages, but the long and short of it is that I don't want to be unemployed. I do want to leave Poland this Summer, but if nobody wants me I'm willing to stay in Katowice rather than have another few months on the dole. Of course, there is still the chance that we'll be relegated in 5 games time, in which case I'll be chucked out on my arse anyway. Another upside to my new contract is that I demanded that the need to sign high profile players be removed as we just don't have the resources or the pull, and Wojciech accepted.

A trip to Lechia awaits us today, a team that have already beaten us 3-0 and 1-0 this season. I really would like to kick on and get another win, so I've been doing extra homework this week. The thing about Lechia is that they play with that really annoying withdrawn 4-2-3-1 that is incredibly difficult to break down. Our usual wide 4-2-3-1 would be useless against it, as their block of 4 central defensive players would isolate our 2 central attacking players without breaking a sweat, and they aren't particularly vulnerable on the wings either with their fullbacks supported by withdrawn wide midfielders.

So my solution is a new, bespoke system just for them. It closely resembles a narrow diamond formation but with the fullbacks pushed up as wingbacks. This way, we have 2 strikers (Tarnowski and Goncerz) and an attacking midfielder (Fossy), and 2 central midfielders (Bart and Gregurina) with specific instructions to push forward through the centre. We'll outnumber their defensive block 5 to 4. The wingbacks (Scheffel and Garbacik) will provide width and support attacks, while we have our own defensive triangle (Olivier, Wilson and Silva) to keep us safe. We'll play a fluid, counter attacking game and focus all our play through the centre where we have the numeric advantage. It's a ballsy system, but I think it's just ballsy enough to work.

I'm practically smacking my lips as I walk into the away dugout, but once the players come out onto the pitch and line up, my eyes widen with terror. They aren't playing the annoying, withdrawn 4-2-3-1 after all. They're playing a bog standard 4-1-2-3. All of my preparation for nothing. This side is delicately balanced to counter their usual system! The system they use every pissing game!

Captain Goncerz turns to me from his place on the centre spot, narrows his eyes and shrugs. He too has obviously spotted the 4-1-2-3. I give him a thumbs up and mouth "It's fine". This seems to reassure him and he turns back around, ready to kick off. We're so ****ed.

7 minutes in, Cermak swings a corner in for the hosts. Gregurina's there at the near post to head the ball away, but only as far as Cermak again. He crosses a second time and this time Grozav gets his head to the ball, directing it into the net.

With a quarter of an hour gone though, Bart plays a great chipped pass over to Scheffel on the right wing. He turns inside and crosses for Goncerz, who volleys it sweetly past the keeper.

After another 10 minutes, a free kick right outside the box is smacked against the bar by Lechia's set piece specialist, Cermak. It's a narrow escape for us.

The first half ends with the scores tied, but to be honest our new system has worked quite well. It's kept Lechia guessing and played some quite nice football. We head back out unchanged.

5 minutes later, Fossy drifts a free kick from the left wing into the box. Olivier rises above his marker and nods the ball over the stranded keeper, who had come to claim the ball. It loops over his head and bobbles slowly over the line, giving Olivier his first GieKSa goal.

Another 5 minutes pass before Wolski chips a cross in from the left, Kadlec lays the ball off and Grozav shoots for the bottom corner, but Nowak gets down to parry it behind. We change to Project: Burnie MK II to try to protect our lead. Amonike replaces Michal Tarnowski to balance the side.

With just over 15 minutes to play, Cermak chips the ball across for Remmer on the right, who volleys it brilliantly into the 6 yard box for Kadlec, who bundles it in to equalise for Lechia.

Each team has a decent chance in the final 10 minutes. First, Amonike drives down the right and shoots into Kuciak's arms, and then Grozav runs through on goal but puts his shot over the bar. All in all, we'll happily take a point from that game, but more pleasingly, I suspect that Lechia will too.

https://youtu.be/DK5-M7QxcPc

I'm especially happy for Olivier. He doesn't threaten from set pieces too often, so it was great to see him on the scoresheet today. He even earns himself a place in the Team of the Week.

So a win and a draw in 2 matches. I honestly pity the fools that have to try and stop this runaway train now that it's picking up speed. Step on up, Korona.

Korona visit us today as the team that are bottom of the league. That feels good. However, they're only 4 points below us, which, if we take our eye off the ball, could easily turn into 1 point. Then we'd be right back in the thick of it.

We'll line up in a counter attacking 4-2-3-1, with Hurley replacing Gregurina in midfield and Janga replacing Fossy in the hole. It's make or break time.

It takes less than 10 minutes, and I don't know whether to laugh or cry. Amonike runs down the right wing and swings a peach of a cross to the far post. Kevin leaps to meet the ball with his head and heads it straight against the bar. For a second, everything stops. The ball rebounds back into the 6 yard box. Who'll reach it first? Kevin wants it. So does Goncerz. Unforunately it's right back Mateusz Mozdzen who leaps in to ensure he gets to the ball first. Fortunately though, he knocks it straight into his own net.

It really is a horrible half of football. There are no more quality chances, just 22 men kicking 7 bells out of each other. The bookings flow like draft wodka. Silva comes on for Janga at half time to drop back in front of the defence, and we prepare for a scrap.

Just after the hour mark, a long Nowak free kick is aimed towards Amonike, but Tomasevic challenges him for the ball in the same way that a wrecking ball challenges the structural integrity of an old abandoned building. He flies through our winger and earns himself a second booking and an early bath.

With 10 minutes to go, we go all out defend, and I tell the lads to keep the ball in order to kill the game, but it doesn't make the last 10 minutes any less vicious. We make it until the 2nd minute of injury time, but then Hurley collides with Zubrowski. Both players were already on a booking and to be honest I thought it was an old fashioned 50:50, with both players having just as much blame as the other. The referee disagrees though and shows Hurley his second yellow. He heads down the tunnel for a ever so slightly earlier bath than everyone else. In the moment though, I couldn't care less. The final whistle blows. 1-0.

https://youtu.be/RjjfgpewicA

Now this is pod racing, my friends. My lads have finally come through. That's 7 points from our last 3 matches, and if we keep up that kind of form for the final 3 games, we'll be well clear of relegation.

[Franjo]

KGHM: Resurgence (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep73)

There are 3 matches left of our season, and most likely of my Lotto Elstraklasa career. 3 measly matches. It seems like nothing, doesn't it. But these 3 games are everything. In our relegation group of 7 teams, Korona are 8th and have become the first team to be relegated, with 14 points and 2 games left.

KGHM Zagłębie have been on something of a resurgence of late after winning the Polish FA Cup, beating Bruk-Bet Termalica in extra time in the final. It's quite an achievement, and they've since beaten Cracovia 2-0, Wisła Kraków 3-2 and Wisła Płock 2-1. We really need to look out for them because their late winning streak has meant that the second relegation place is very much up for grabs. They sit in 7th place on 21 points but have played one more game than us, and we'll play them in our final game.

Wisła Płock on the other hand are without a win in 6 weeks, but we've not beaten them in our previous 2 meetings this season, which worries me. They sit in 6th place, also with 21 points but with 3 games left, and we'll play them today.

You know as much as anyone how we've fared lately. We've had a torrid time followed by a sudden upturn in form, and here's hoping that continues. We sit in 5th place with 22 points.

Wisła Kraków have had a bit of a mixed bag of late, but interestingly they've only won once in the last 3 months. They sit above us in 4th, also on 22 points but with only 2 games left.

Jagiellonia are in 3rd with 22 points but we've already played them, and I'm going to ignore Lechia and Cracovia completely as they're pretty much nailed on for the top 2 places.

But do you see how much these next 3 matches mean? Wisła Płock, Wisła Kraków and KGHM Zagłębie are our direct relegation rivals and if we lose against them all, we're down. We need to get a win as quickly as possible to take some of the pressure off of ourselves, so let's do it today against Płock, shall we?

We've been forced to make a few changes today. I was planning on using Project: Burnie MK II anyway, but Hurley is both suspended (1 match) and injured (8-10 days with a strained wrist), Silva would have started but he's out for 3-6 days with a bruised head, and Olivier has blisters and is only fit enough for a place on the bench.

Savanovic, Gregurina and Hutton will start in their places. Also, Tuovinen has been impressing the coaches lately with his application in training and his matches for the Reserves, so he's in too, taking the place of Amonike.

The match starts slowly as the teams work each other out and it's not until 10 minutes before half time that either side creates a decent chance. It's Płock's Aurélio that gives the ball to José Kanté on the edge of our box. Hutton sticks in a foot but Kanté hurdles it, before turning and thumping the ball into the top corner of the net. It's a fine goal to be fair.

It all goes quiet again, and on the hour mark I decide to try to take control. We go to a controlling 4-2-3-1 with Tarnowski replacing Gregurina. We improve instantly, putting a good passing move together. Savanovic ends up with the ball and passes it to Goncerz, who holds it up before playing in Tarnowski. The substitute shoots low but Kielpin saves well.

We seem to grow in confidence over the next few minutes, but it's a feeling that's abruptly cut short when Bart trips Kanté and receives his second yellow card. We go down to 10 men and I adjust our tactics again, bringing off our 2 wingers Tuovinen and Kevin and replacing them with Olivier and Fossy. We go to a narrow diamond with a single striker and Hutton as the holding man.

With a quarter of an hour to play we go attacking, and very fluid, trying to recapture the hope that we so briefly showed before Bart's red card.

A few minutes later we do show it. We counter after a Płock free kick breaks down, with Fossy passing inside to Tarnowski, who's stationed in our half. He looks up, gets the ball out of his feet and plays a brilliant ball over the defence for Goncerz, who chests the ball down, runs through on goal, and shoots straight into the grateful arms of Kielpin.

The clock keeps ticking on and we approach the end of 90 minutes, still trailing 0-1. It doesn't stay that way for long though, because Kun's near post cross from a corner is nodded on across goal by Reca, and turned into the net from close range by the unmarked Kanté.

https://youtu.be/HY5LtrfA9JM

I won't lie, that's a really disappointing result and a really disappointing second goal. The marking by Goncerz on Reca was sloppy and the marking by absolutely anyone on Kanté was non-existent. Otherwise, I was pretty pleased with our performance. We went behind to a great strike, forced their keeper into making a couple of brilliant saves and held our own with 10 men. It's at this point of the season especially though that pleasing performances just aren't good enough. Points are the only thing that matter, and Wisła Płock have just separated themselves from the pack with that win.

Next up then is Wisła Kraków, another away match. Garbacik and Bart are both suspended because of their 8 cumulative yellow cards and 1 red respectively, while Olivier, Silva and Hurley are all fit and available to start, so changes are made. Olivier, Abramowicz, Silva, Hurley and Amonike replace Hutton, Garbacik, Bart, Savanovic and Tuovinen. KGHM played these away recently and won. They played 4-1-2-3, so we do too. Admittedly though, they also had the bounce from that FA Cup win. We'll be disciplined, we'll stick to our positions and we'll go direct, with Hurley acting as our main creator in a deep lying playmaker role.

The sight of players like Vidémont and Morrell make me shudder slightly. They were both very good going forwards the last time we played Kraków in that insane 4-4 draw. Indeed only 3 minutes in, Vidémont passes to Morrell just outside our box and he shoots towards the bottom right corner, but Nowak just manages to tip the ball against the post. It rolls back across the line and thankfully Danny Wilson is there first to hoof it away.

Near the end of the half, Maczynski sends a corner in towards our near post. Goncerz heads it away but only as far as Malecki, who takes it down and drills it towards the bottom left corner. Amazingly, Nowak gets down again to tip the ball onto the post. The ball rolls across the line again and this time Olivier clears it before anyone can knock it in.

2 minutes later though, Wisła Kraków get the breakthrough that I think we can all agree they deserve when Morrell lays the ball off for Maczynski and he slides the ball under Nowak.

10 minutes into the second half we've still barely had a sniff, but then Hurley breaks forward on the ball and plays it to Gregurina, who's promptly tripped by Popovic. He's shown his second yellow and we'll play against 10 men for the remaining 35 minutes.

With half an hour to go, Fossy comes on replacing Silva and we change to a 4-2-3-1 with wing backs. Kraków have gone to a narrow diamond so we'll have our wingbacks and wide men double up on their fullbacks, overloading and exploiting the wide areas.

We're still failing to break through over the next 10 minutes or so. The only shots are speculative efforts from Morrell and Mak, both of which go well wide. We go attacking.

With 5 minutes to go, our misery is compounded when Brlek's free kick is met by Czerwinski, who directs his header into the bottom corner of the net.

The first shot that I can remember us actually having comes from Hurley in injury time, but it goes wide. This has been a toothless performance and the best team have definitely won.

https://youtu.be/SMcUS4vk8gM

Nounkey, the Cameroon boss, was in the stands again today. How much do you need to see of Olivier before you make your mind up, Nounkey? You're like the bloody kiss of death for my defence, you never turn up for a win.

Anyway, here's the situation following that shambles: Jagiellonia, Wisła Kraków and Wisła Płock have all dragged themselves out of the relegation battle. Our final match will be against the only team apart from ourselves that can take the second relegation spot: The resurgent KGHM Zagłębie. We sit a single point above them, so if we win or draw, we'll stay up. If we lose however... Bye bye, Lotto Ekstraklasa.

[Franjo]

SuperFran - Part 2 (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Mini-sode 73.5)

When I was a player, albeit a pretty awful one, I had two strings to my bow. I could defend, and I could run. Defend and run. Run and defend. That was my game. We'd win the ball and I'd run into space to provide a sideways or backwards option. We'd lose the ball and I'd run back, closing down, man marking playmakers, tackling or shutting off passing lanes. I'd get the ball, I'd play it straight on. My left foot was pretty decent, although my right was non-existent. Oh, and I couldn't shoot. Not at all. Not even a little bit.

I think my point is that in my playing days, I didn't care about being the star player, or the goalscorer, or the superhero. I was never the name on the back of the fans' shirts. I approached the game in the same way that I'd approach being helpful in any other situation:

Just do as many little things as you can. Make it as easy as possible for everybody else.

You can't go far wrong with that philosophy in any walk of life. Do the boring things. The unglamorous things. The repetitive things. In the end, you can end up being a superhero to someone without scoring a bicycle kick against your rivals. Without guiding your relegation threatened team to a shock title win. Without saving your team from relegation full stop. Sometimes it's not the results of our actions but our actions themselves that make us superheroes. Maybe not to everyone, but to someone.

I've done my best with my time in Poland. I can say that with my hand on my heart. I've made mistakes, but I've tried to learn from them. I've tried different formations, different systems and different players. I've tried being nice, I've tried being harsh, I've tried dropping near enough my entire first team, and for one reason or another, here we are. With a winner-takes-all match that'll result in one of the 2 participating sides getting relegated.

We have the advantage, definitely, as a draw will keep us up, but I am not playing for the draw. I never have done and I never will. Sometimes you can look back on draws as acceptable. Sometimes you accept that a 92nd minute equaliser to level a match at 4-4 is the best that you could have hoped for in the circumstances. But we'll play this match to win it, and during my deceptively short career I've found one system in particular that can save me when I'm in a bind. One philosophy in particular that can secure the win and achieve the impossible.

We won't sit back and wait for the game to come to us. We will be the aggressor. We will be meatloaf. We will be ****ing superheroes.

[Franjo]

Us Or Them (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep74)

I didn't sleep at all last night. I spent the hours that I should've been resting for the big game going back and forth on my decision to bring back Project: Meatloaf. We tried it once here in Katowice, and it went poorly, but we need to play for the win and the element of surprise could give us that extra edge. I know that this system works, and my squad is more tightly knit than it was earlier in the season. They're bound together by our collective failures and subsequent fight back from the brink. I believe in Project: Meatloaf, and call me daft, but I believe in GieKSa too.

In the build up to the match, I offer a new 1 year contract to our rarely called upon goalkeeper Délcio Azevedo. If I end up staying here another year, I'd like to have a goalkeeper that I know, and Nowak's already decided that he's off to enjoy retirement. The delicious Avocado accepts the offer and then promptly breaks his toe, ruling him out until next season.

Garbacik and Bart both come back into the side after completing their suspensions, along with Janga and Fossy. Abramowicz, Silva, Gregurina and Amonike are the ones to drop out for this crucial match. I keep my team talk short and sweet. The players know what they need to do. They know what I expect. "Go and keep us up" I tell them with a grin, before they troop out of the changing room to line up in the tunnel.

KGHM come out with fire in their bellies. They start quicker than us, and look the more threatening of the sides. 23 minutes in, El-Bouazzati plays a long ball forward to Klimala. Klimala dribbles forward to the edge of our box and shoots, but it's straight at Nowak and he catches the ball, which is greeted by applause from the home fans.

On the half hour, KGHM get a throw in level with our box. Nobody goes short, and the taker Warcholak takes a long run up, ready for a long throw. He launches it into the box, and into the crowd of players at the near post. Nowak comes out to claim it, but he can't. It's Uzelac that reaches the ball and nods it on. It bounces off Nowak's shoulder and he dives back towards his own goal, clawing at thin air. He can't reach it. In agonising slow motion, the ball bobbles across the line and into the net.

I get that feeling again. The one that I've felt just once before. That unique feeling of being hit in the face by some kind of heavy, blunt weapon, but being oblivious to the pain. The numbness has taken my body. I can't even feel myself standing. This can't be how my time with Katowice ends.

We haven't been in the relegation zone since Saturday 4th of August, which is just over 10 months ago. We climbed out when we won in our 2nd league game against... Any guesses? Yeah, of course it was KGHM Zagłębie. We beat them to escape the drop zone after finding ourselves there after our first game, a thrashing against Jagiellonia, and now with an hour left of the season, they've put us back. As it stands, I'm taking GKS Katowice down to the second tier of Polish football.

In first half injury time, we come forward with purpose. Fossy plays a nice through ball into the path of Amonike, but the winger shoots straight at Polacek, the keeper, who catches the ball with ease.

As the players trudge down the tunnel at half time, I turn to Dennis, stood next to me in the dugout. He looks tired and worried. I'm glad I'm not the only one. We go in after the players and walk into the changing room.

I shut the door behind us, and let the silence permeate the room, broken only slightly by faint laughs and excited voices somewhere outside.

"Do you all know who I am?" I ask eventually. I get no response. I turn to Tom Scheffel. "Tom, what do you know about me? About my career?"

"You were unbeaten in Portugal somewhere?" He replies sheepishly.

"Correct, but what about before that?" I ask. Amonike pipes up.

"You were in Sweden." He says. "The news in Angrense said that you beat a top Swedish club with a tiny one." I give him a broad smile.

"Yeah, I remember that." I grin. "The news labelled me as some kind of genius. As a giant killer. I couldn't really afford to correct them at the time." My smile fades. "But that match was a tiny, insignificant speck in my extremely short time with FC Höllviken." I can feel everybody's eyes on me now. I'm not entirely sure what I'm doing. It's a bit of a Hail Mary.

"We were relegated." I continue. "It was between us and the team we were playing in our final match, just like today. We went behind to an early goal, just like today. We just couldn't find a way back after going behind." The silence amongst my players is palpable. Maybe it's pity, or worry, or resignation that my history will repeat itself.

"Once was enough." I say quietly. I actually feel confident. I feel conviction in my words. I feel different than I did in late 2016. My Höllviken team was a bunch of misfits. The best set of vaguely talented footballers I could get at the time. This is Katowice. This is the top tier of Polish football. These are professional footballers.

"One team gets relegated today. It's us or them. WHO'S IT GOING TO BE?"

"THEM", comes the reply.

"WHO'S GOING DOWN?"

"THEM!"

"MAKE IT ****ING HAPPEN!"

We go out for the second half a different team. Buoyed, confident and determined. When we kick off, we're faster, tougher, more aggressive. I make a double sub too, with Amonike and Tarnowski replacing Fossy, who picked up a knock in the first half, and Goncerz, who has been ineffective.

With an hour gone, we're the side in control. Project: Meatloaf is in full effect. Tarnowski plays a great ball through for Amonike in the area, similar to Fossy's at the end of the first half. Amonike hits it, but it's always curling just wide of the far post.

5 minutes later we go on the attack and immediately we look even more dangerous. We win a corner on the left, which Amonike swings towards the near post. It's headed away by Zlicic, but only as far away as Janga, who heads it back into the area. Garbacik plays it on for Hurley, who shoots - But Zlicic stands firm and blocks it and the ball bounces away as far as Garbacik again. He can't control it and the loose ball rolls to Bart. As Bart strikes the ball, Stadion GKS Katowice falls silent. As the ball ripples the net in the top right corner, it's anything but.

I allow myself a fist pump and a smile, but then my thoughts are back on tactics. Do we drop back and invite KGHM back into the match, or do we keep going on the front foot, pegging them back? For now, we'll stay as we are. It crosses my mind that this may turn out to be the worst mistake that I've made in my career to date. It's a thought that I could do without.

With 20 minutes to play, Kevin gets the ball on the right wing. He drills the ball across the ground into the area, and Bart gets on the end of it. He goes for his second - But the ball hits the post and it rolls back across the line. Modica is the first on the scene and he hoofs it - Against his own bar, but then clear nonetheless. I decide that now is actually the time to drop back. We can hold them out for 20 minutes, I know we can. We go to an all out defensive 4-1-4-1, with Gregurina replacing Janga.

We last until the second minute of injury time, and there's only time for one more attack. KGHM are on the ball. Their own 4-1-4-1 looks more like a 3-4-3 as they pile men forwards in search of a goal. El-Bouazzati passes to Vlasko 30 yards out and he turns towards goal. He gets the ball out of his feet, takes aim, hits it - Way, way over the bar. The referee checks his watch, and blows his whistle.

https://youtu.be/zUSZ-d0D3JI

We've done it. We've survived. By the skin of our teeth, and carried through in the end by our Bartbeat, we've held on and avoided the drop zone by a solitary point. The weird thing is though, it feels pretty hollow. 2019 so far has been exhausting mentally. I think as soon as the final whistle went, all of the adrenaline that had been keeping me powering through all this time just dissipated. The Sword of Damocles has been hanging over my head, getting lower and lower as we've approached the end of the season. I'm relieved that I've jumped out of the way at the last second, of course I am, but it's left me with mixed feelings.

I just want to get this Summer done with. I want to see where I'll be at the start of next season. Who'll want me? Who's been watching apart from the bloody Cameroon boss? The relegation favourites have stayed up against all odds, my job here is done, and the world's my bloody oyster.

[Franjo]

Itchy Feet (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep75)

Summer 2019 is a blur. Because of the winter break, the Lotto Ekstraklasa season starts in late July and it doesn't feel like long enough of a break when your last match is in June. Nevertheless, the Summer actually starts off really well. I'm on the shortlist for Manager of the Year, which is a bit of a shock, but flattering.

I don't win it of course, Piotr Jawny of Piast does. He guides his side to 4th place in the league after they were predicted to end up 12th, so he's a good choice to be fair. I vote for rival manager Jacek Paszulewicz of Jagłębie Sosnowiec, as he's overachieved too in 5th.

Then comes the inevitable pitter-patter of itchy feet, and not just from me. First Olivier, who wants to move to Sporting Gijon. In all fairness, they're going up to La Liga and I'm not going to stand in his way of playing in such a great league. He's earned it. After some arguing and low ball bids, I eventually let him go to Alanyaspor for £375k, rising to £620k plus 50% of the next fee. It isn't exactly what I signed up for, as I thought he was going to La Liga, but the Süper Lig is a good one too, with some top clubs. I wish him the best of luck and I'm genuinely saddened to see him go.

The next person to attract interest from elsewhere is actually my assistant, Dennis Lawrence. Relegated Korona offer him the job of manager but I convince him to stay with GieKSa because of our good working relationship. I also tell him that he might have a shot at the Katowice job as I'm looking to leave, so he may as well stay for a while.

Then comes the hammer blow - Our Bartbeat knocks on my office door and tells me that he wants to leave. Cracovia are showing interest and he wants to jump ship. I tell him that Cracovia would have to make a bloody good bid for me to accept, but that he can leave if somebody activates his £375k foreign club release clause. Ironically, if he hadn't scored that goal against KGHM and saved us from relegation, Cracovia would have been able to snap him up for £200k, the value of his relegation release clause. I don't share my thought with Bart. I don't think he'd find it funny.

It's at this point though that I start to become completely disillusioned with the idea of staying in Poland for another year. No Olivier, no Bart, and barely any money to replace my 2 key players. I start looking around again, sending my CV in for the top jobs at Pohang in the K League Classic, USA U23s, and Maccabi Tel Aviv in the Israeli Premier League.

Sebastien Nowak and Jakub Wilk then call time on their careers. I don't think I played Wilk more than twice at most, but fair play to Sebastien. He's had a couple of bad moments this year but on the whole he's been a solid number 1.

I don't offer him a role as goalkeeping coach, because frankly the one we already have, Janusz Jojko, is far better. And as I found out when speaking to a GieKSa fan* once, he's actually a bit famous in Poland too. Janusz made a spectacular blunder in his playing days that some still remind him of today.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubuytNCrp0E

But then finally, a bit of good news. Janga and Kwarko both agree to extend their loan deals by a year. They've been decent this year. I've used Janga a fair bit more out of the 2 and his performances have reflected that, but I'm glad that they'll both be staying.

I then make a huge decision. I make the decision that me and Cristiano Magina are done professionally. I mean technically, he decides it for me by rejecting the chance to join us again, this time for a £60k fee. He's had a decent year with Os Heróis (More on them in another episode) but sometimes you need to know when to take the hint, and that's what I'm doing. Good luck, CM9.

When the time comes for friendlies, I'm actually quite excited. Our new shirt sponsors are a Polish... Wodka company named Wodka Wyborowa, and amongst a host of highish profile matches, I help to arrange the first annual Wodka Wyborowa Cup.

4 teams are involved: Us, CSKA Sofia, AA Gent and Ingolstadt, and our season gets off to an absolute flyer when we finish in 4th place, losing 2-4 to Sofia in the Semi-Final and 0-2 to AA Gent in the 3rd place play off. Still, at least we're actually testing ourselves.

https://youtu.be/dL-4QJ2QRyM

https://youtu.be/4ecyThvnMhw

I keep my CV circulating outside Europe. I apply at Minnesota United in the MLS, or Min United as I hope they're nicknamed, Santos FC in the South African Premier Soccer League, Plaza Colonia in the Uruguayan First Division, Millionarios in the Colombian First Division, Belgrano in the Argentinian Premier League, Busan in the K League Classic, and most optimistically, the Argentinian, Chilean and Colombian national team jobs.

I get a couple of interviews that go quite well, but meanwhile we keep plugging on with the friendlies, losing to Honvéd 0-1, beating Bohemians 1905 2-1 despite having Danny Wilson in net for most of the match, beating Ahi Nazareth 4-1, and finally losing to Hull 1-3. It's a mixed bag but overall, I'm pretty pleased with where we are and how we've performed against quality teams.

https://youtu.be/3p9yNMiprYQ

https://youtu.be/xZSbMgRYCAo

https://youtu.be/thaGSU6YZ-Y

https://youtu.be/aJkl735CmfA

Unfortunately, as Azevedo is injured throughout pre-season, our only goalkeeper is young Kacper Gajdemski, who spent last year in the reserves. He does fine really, but then breaks his collarbone against Bohemians 1905, ruling himself out for 7-9 weeks and forcing me to delve into the transfer market. I sign a third Scotsman for my collection: 25 year old keeper Jack Hamilton from Hearts for near enough £100k. He's pretty good, but there's not much value in the market for us this Summer. He's not worth £100k, but nobody else that we could realistically sign is good enough to play.

Hurley strains his knee ligaments in our final friendly against Hull and will miss the first 2 months of the season, but on the upside, Cracovia are no longer interested in Bart and I offer him a new 3 year deal and he seems content to stay. Danny Wilson is made the new club captain, with former captain Grzegorz Goncerz demoted to his deputy, and we're a generous 1000-1 to win the league.

All I keep thinking about though is how much my heart is not in this job anymore. I want out so badly. I wanted out months ago, and we're now days away from the start of the 2019/20 season. I get back to Radzinski's in a mood after finding out that Kamil Karwot has broken his arm in training and will be out for a couple of months.

I walk through the door to see GieKSik stood behind the bar. I freeze like a rabbit in headlights. I've heard that his vision is based largely on movement. He turns towards me though so I'm fairly sure I've been spotted. "What are you doing here?" I ask, trying to play it cool. GieKSik takes his head off and places it down on the bar, revealing a much smaller, much more familiar head beneath.

"I've just got back", sighs Radzinski. "Went to give a talk on the dangers of excessive drinking at a primary school on the other side of town."

"That seems unnecessary." I reply, perplexed. "And hypocritical." There's a few seconds of awkward silence. "You're GieKSik." I ask, but as more of a statement. Radzinski scrunches up his face.

"Of course I am. You didn't know?" My mind is racing.

"I just thought that all Polish people were awful at using English idioms." I say quietly. Radzinski sighs.

"That's an offensive old sterotype." He looks at me like a parent that's disappointed with their child. I think for a moment.

"I don't think it is..."

"You missed a phone call this morning, a Goolam Allie?" He interrupts. My pulse quickens. Allie is the Chairman of Santos FC, the South African side that I interviewed with.

"What did he say?" I ask, again trying to play it cool.

"He said..." Radzinski ducks below the bar and rummages around for a few seconds before emerging with a tiny sheet of paper, on which a message is scrawled. 

"He said... Save us, Franjo."

 

* Cheers to @GralingradPL on Wordpress for letting me know about Jojko's ridiculous throw way back in episode 52!

[Franjo]

Another Year Over (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Meta-sode 75.5)

Hey,

Well... That last 6 months has been bloody exhausting! The good news though is that I've already started playing through the league with our new club Santos FC, so in terms of gameplay I'm ahead of where I usually am at this point in the season. There is however still the small matter of writing everything down, so I'm going to take 2 weeks without dailies to get everything sorted and that should be plenty of time.

As usual, there'll be 3 or 4 mini-sodes over the next 2 weeks where you'll find out where we'll review the year, have a look around the world and maybe do some kind of wacky pure story mini-sode, and then daily episodes will be back on 25th September!

As always, if you've got any feedback, either negative or positive, feel free to email me at franjofm23@gmail.com

Thanks for sticking with me as we've scrapped and scraped ourselves through a tough year in Poland and genuinely, thanks for reading and for all your feedback. Have a great couple of weeks!

Cheers,

Franjo

[Franjo]

Year 3 Review (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Mini-sode 75.5.5)

I don't think it'll surprise any of you to learn that I'm immensely pleased to be leaving Poland. It's been a real slog of a season, especially since Christmas, but in the end I did my job. I did what I set out to do. Let's have a look back on year 3.

GKS Katowice

Final Position: 14th

Record: W9 D10 L19

Key Player(s): Sebastien Nowak, Jean "Olivier" Sumo Kingue, Bartlomiej "Bart" Kalinkowski, Grzegorz Goncerz

Highlight: Our 4-0 win away at Cracovia in August

Lowlight: Our record breaking runs of losses and games without a win

I realise that I've been incredibly negative about GieKSa, especially in the last few months when things weren't going very well. Don't get me wrong, I'm incredibly happy that I was given the opportunity to move to the Polish top tier as it was a big step up for me. And I've showed the World that I can (Just barely by the skin of my teeth) do a job at this level.

Lech Poznań's Hadi Sacko won the Lotto Ekstraklasa Player of the Year award. I was a bit surprised to see that he'd clinched it as from what I saw there were plenty of players in the league that looked better, but he had a pretty good year by the looks of it, racking up the most assists out of anyone in the league, so fair play to him.

The Katowice Football Post summed up my overall feelings about this season. "They will be delighted to have finished with their heads above water", and yeah. Pretty much. I'm still disappointed though that we lost to Rozwój Katowice in the first round of the FA Cup though. At some point I'd love to have a proper cup run, but I suppose it would've only been a distraction this year.

Our player of the season and young player of the season took me a bit by surprise. The fans voted by quite a distance for Tom Scheffel, but I often found myself disappointed with him. I was tipped off by the coaches upon joining GieKSa that he was one of our best players, but in my opinion he was mainly fine and sometimes awful. Bart came in second, and Mario Gregurina, who could easily be overlooked as he wasn't a nailed on starter for us, came in third. Those two I do agree with. Also, our best eleven for the season was quite predictable, with Nowak in net, Scheffel, Olivier, Wilson and Garbacik across the back, Bart and Hurley in the middle, and Janga, Fossy and Kevin behind Goncerz.

Our goal of the season was a very good choice. Grzegorz Goncerz's effort in our December win over KGHM Zagłębie might be the best goal that any team's scored under my stewardship. It was not only a fantastic strike, but a great team goal.

https://youtu.be/kplZ5AcA0qE

Olivier on a free was our signing of the season, and for good reason. He attracted a lot of interest and eventually got his move away thanks to stats like these:

He made the joint second most key tackles (13) in the divison, behind Kornel Osyra.

He made the second most key headers (115), just behind Pape Djibril Diaw.

He made the most interceptions in the league (592) by a country mile.

Grzegorz Goncerz, although he received a fair bit of flack from me at times, was a decent enough striker for me. He was the joint fourth top scorer in the league with 13 in 32, and was obviously our top scorer too. Grzegorz also assisted more than any of our players. He only got 5 though, so I think that says more about the rest of the attacking players than it does about him. Finally, nobody won more Player of the Match awards for us than Grzegorz (4).

Overall, Bart had the highest average rating throughout the season, which is no less than you'd expect from the Bartbeat of the side. He had the best pass completion percentage out of everyone in my squad with 88%, and unfortunately but unsurprisingly, he got the most yellows (11) and reds (3) for us too. He also made the second most (4.00) tackles per game, coming in just behind Korona's Vanja Markovic.

In other vaguely impressive statistical news, Hurley covered the seventh most distance per 90 minutes (8.85 miles), and Kevin made the joint seventh most key passes (25) in the league.

And finally, Olivier and Kevin were inducted onto the GKS Katowice Best Eleven sub's bench. Good job lads.

I think the reason that I've not fallen in love with GieKSa in the same way that I did with SC Angrense is that with Angrense, we made a tweak here, a good signing there, and it all just slotted into place. I was spoilt. We had a bloody unbeaten season! With GieKSa, I feel like I tried everything in that second half of the season and nothing worked. Every crushing defeat was another punch in the face. I was powerless. It was incredibly frustrating.

I wish them all the best and I sincerely hope they can stay up again next season and establish themselves as a Lotto Ekstraklasa club, but I had to get out. Incidentally, so did Bart. He left just 5 days after I did, joining Russian Premier Division rookies SKA Khabarovsk for £275k.

Former Clubs

SC Angrense

I'm absolutely delighted to see that SC Angrense have had a very successful season. They were one of the clubs tipped to go back down to the Portuguese Championship, but finished 16 points clear of the drop zone in 9th place. The man that Os Heróis chose to replace me last Summer was Pedro Amora, who I had faced off against 4 times (Winning 3 times and drawing once, I might add) the previous season when he was in charge of Barreirense, and he's done a fine job in the second tier.

Their squad is already pretty unrecognisable, with the frustratingly immovable Cristiano Magina, the heartbreakingly underused Benjamim, and O Capitão Jaime Seidi the only familiar faces on their roster. Lassina Touré was the vice captain until he was released this Summer.

FC Höllviken

Höllviken are difficult to find details on at this point, as they're still in the 5th tier of Swedish football. Captain Wani Mukoko, Vice Captain Mattias Andersell, Lawrence and Stefan Bouvin are all still knocking about though.

So all in all, it's been a year that I'll be happy to leave behind, but one that I'll hopefully learn from. Here's to a better one at Santos FC in Cape Town, South Africa.

[Franjo]

Year 3 World Roundup (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Mini-sode 75.5.5.5)

Do you want to know the worst thing about being a journeyman manager?

All the packing. I hate packing. I despise it. I'm the kind of person who'll pack very begrudgingly the night before going on holiday, and then live out of my suitcase while I'm there so that I don't have to unpack and then pack again a few days later. I just can't be arsed.

It's for this reason that my suitcase currently lies empty on my bed. Well I say empty, but Burnie's decided that it's a damn fine place to have a sleep, so he's curled up in there. Right now though, that's my excuse for not packing. Let sleeping cats lie, right? Right.

Let's procrastinate. Let's have a look at what's been going on around this big blue football we call Erf, shall we?

It's become increasingly clear over the last 3 years that Arsene Wenger has been the victim of an "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" style abduction. Because there is no way that the Arsene Wenger we all know and love has guided his team to a third successive title! Not only that, but he's Manager of the Year once again!

Compared to his Arsenal side's last 2 title wins though, this one was a bit trickier. They came out a solitary point higher than Conte's Chelsea in 2nd place. Admittedly though, they wrapped up the league with a match to spare and had their flip flops on when Mark Warburton's Newcastle visited on the final day, allowing Chelsea to close the gap and save face.

The big 6, none of whom have changed their managers in the last 3 years, were all once again in the top 6, this time joined by Brendan Rodgers' Leicester City in the final European spot. Walter Mazzarri's Watford now seem to be establishing themselves as a top half club, while West Ham plummeted down to 15th after successive top 8 finishes in the last 2 years, despite the £40m signing of Christian Benteke. My old pal Slaven Bilic was sacked in March and replaced by Maurizio Sarri. The mighty Toffees seem to be getting closer to relegation with each year that passes, but they sacked Ronald Koeman at the end of the season, so hopefully new manager Michael Laudrup will bring about a change in fortunes.

In terms of relegation, Mika Lehkosuo couldn't keep his job after taking Fulham straight back down, despite being the one who got them up there in the first place, and has been replaced by Robbie Neilson. Another of last year's promoted sides, Derby County, went straight back down too, costing Steve McClaren his job by the end of 2018. Up and coming Scottish Manager Stevie Crawford took over the Rams, but couldn't charge them out of the drop zone. The last team to be heading for the Championship is Sunderland. They actually let David Moyes off the hook for relegating them in 2017 and he got them back up the next season. Taking them straight back down again though was seen as an excessive amount of failure by the Black Cats' hierarchy and they've curiously appointed former Wales International and lower League One side Wycombe Wanderers' boss Rob Page as his replacement. I'm interested to see how he does.

Anyway, Chelsea's Mauro Icardi was the Premier League's top scorer this season with 22, just ahead of Bournemouth's Callum Wilson. At 27, Callum's scored 54 goals in his last 3 seasons and is now worth £32m, which is great to see for an English lad. He's only made 1 appearance for the national side somehow though, despite the fact that Eddie Howe was appointed England Manager last year.

Mesut Özil and Nathaniel Clyne both had outstanding seasons for their clubs, while City's Ilkay Gündogan and Sunderland's Oriol Romeu got the most assists. Alexis Sánchez, still at Arsenal of course because he's incredibly loyal and content, was voted Players' Player of the Year and Footballer of the Year, while Dele Alli bagged his 3rd Players' Young Player of the Year award in 4 years and his Spurs teammate Hugo Lloris picked up the Golden Glove.

The team of the year exclusively features players from the top 6, with Arsenal's Özil and Sánchez, Chelsea's Aymeric Laporte and Icardi, Tottenham's Lloris, Alli and Eriksen, Liverpool's Clyne, City's Otamendi and De Bruyne, and United's Daley Blind.

Coming up to the Premier League are Brian McClair's Southampton and Burnley, who were brought up but then abandoned by the Goodison-bound Michael Laudrup. Both sides are back up at the second time of asking, and are joined by Crystal Palace, who sacked Laurent Blanc in February and replaced him with Claude Makélélé, who successfully guided them to and through the play offs. If I was a betting man, I'd put my money on Patrick Vieira to be Claude's eventual replacement. I think I see a pattern emerging. Shout out to Brian Deane too, while we're on the Championship. He saw that his beloved Sheffield United were in trouble and leapt into action, taking over at Aston Villa and sending them down to League One instead of the Blades. Now that's dedication.

En España, the top 2 have finally been broken up, allowing the perennial underdogs FC Barcelona to get their moment in the sun. I actually feel really sorry for their fans, having not seen their side win the league since 2016, so good on them. And fair play to 'Manager of the Year' Luis Enrique's side, the title race was not close. They finished 16 points ahead of Simeone's Atleti, and 18 ahead of Zizou's Real Madrid. Zidane got the sack at the end of the season, which is really disappointing for the footballing world, but the massively experienced Marcelino has left Porto to take over.

Luis Suárez had a great season, scoring by far the most goals, putting on consistently excellent performances, and even pipping Leo Messi to the Player of the Year award; an accomplishment only equalled once in the last 9 years by Cristiano Ronaldo. Simone Zaza of Valencia scored the second most goals, while Celta Vigo's highly rated young midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur got the most assists, followed by Real Sociedad's Recio. Real's Keylor Navas won the Goalkeeper of the Year award for the 3rd straight season.

Surprisingly Cristiano Ronaldo is only named on the bench in La Liga's Team of the Season, and there's no place for Simone Zaza at all! Navas is in net, with Athletico Madrid's £35m 2018 signing Alessandro Florenzi and Real Madrid trio Sergio Ramos, Raphaël Varane, and Nacho across the back. Across midfield, Bentancur, Recio, Messi and Neymar are the picks, with Suárez and Sevilla's Franco Vázquez up front.

The German Bundesliga has surprisingly dropped below the Premier League and Serie A in the European standings recently. Unsurprisingly though, Carlo Ancelotti's Bayern Munich won the league for the 7th time in a row. I've got to tell you though... 'Bundesliga Manager of the Year' Thomas Tuchel's Borussia Dortmund were so, so close. With 33 out of 34 matches played, they sat in 1st place, with Bayern a point behind them, and then they went and lost to Hertha bloody Berlin. At home. And Bayern won away at Mainz to snatch the title.

Roger Schmidt's Bayer Leverkusen couldn't quite keep up with the top 2, despite having the 2 highest goalscorers in the league: £24m signing Timo Werner and Javier "Chicarito" Hernández. As usual, Bayern put on a defensive masterclass, with Players' Player of the Year David Alaba and Mats Hummels the standout performers. Leverkusen's Kevin Kampl and Red Bull Leipzig's Naby Keïta were the top assisters and Manuel Neuer was unsurprisingly the top keeper.

The Team of the Year was made up mainly of Bayern players, with Neuer, Jerome Boateng, Javi Martinez, Mats Hummels, David Alaba, Douglas Costa and Renato Sanches all making the cut. Naby Keïta, Marco Reus, Mario Götze and Timo Werner made up the rest of the team.

Serie A went pretty much back to normal this year I'm afraid. Spalletti's Roma, following their dramatic last gasp title win last year, reverted to type and got in line behind the Champions: Jardim's Juventus.

Udinese were the surprise package in the league, snatching an unlikely European spot and earning manager Luigi Delneri the Manager of the year award. A big factor in the achievement was their equally unlikely strike partnership of Stipe Perica and Jay Rodriguez, who bagged 30 goals and 12 assists between them.

Perica finished a not-so-close second in the goalscoring charts though, with Paulo Dybala having another scintillating season in front of goal. Dybala won the Serie A Player of the Year award and shone in a Juve side that also benefitted from the stunning defensive form of Leonardo Bonucci and Gigi Buffon's replacement, Gerónimo Rulli, who won the Goalkeeper of the Year award.

The team of the year's back 6 consisted of 5 Juventus players; Rulli, Bonucci, Sami Khedira, Alex Sandro and William Carvalho, along with Cristian Ansaldi of Inter. Napoli's Jorginho and AC Milan's Giacomo Bonavetura are in midfield, and there's a front 3 of Roma's Mo Salah, Juve's Dybala and Fiorentina's Federico Chiesa.

Paris Saint Germain have taken back their throne in Ligue 1, with manager Unai Emery winning the Manager of the Year award for finally pegging José Barros' AS Monaco back. Edison Cavani's 25 goals helped, as did £31.5m signing Gianluigi Donnarumma's Goalkeeper of the Year winning performances.

Monaco were 10 points behind the Champions in the end, but still had a good season thanks to the goals of Alexandre Lacazette and the incredible performances of Bernardo Silva, while left winger Kylian Mbappé won the Player of the Season award. PSG's £74m 2017 signings Thiago Alcântara got the most assists in the league, followed by Lyon's Sergi Darder.

The Team of the Season was made up almost entirely of players from the top 2, with PSG's Donnarumma, Serge Aurier, Thiago Silva, Marquinhos, Thiago Alcântara and Edison Cavani joined by Monaco's Fabinho, Thomas Lemar, Bernardo Silva and Mbappé. Marseille's Ludwig Augustinsson rounds out the numbers.

It's funny looking at these leagues. They may as well all be taking place on a different Planet they're so far away. But one day I'll manage in one of them. Maybe all of them. One day.

My attention is caught by Burnie, standing and stretching, before stepping out of the suitcase and plopping onto the floor. I'd better start packing I suppose. Next stop - South Africa.

[Franjo]

Stevie & Chappie (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Mini-sode 75.5.5.5.5)

I've never been outside Europe before, you know. Never. I've always wanted to though. There's certain countries that I've always been wary of visiting, like Australia, purely because it seems like it's designed specifically to eat, poison, or just generally kill humans, what with all the sharks, spiders, snakes, stingrays etc, but I'd still go. I want to explore these places. I want to see them all. The thought does cross my mind though, as I sit quietly like a brave boy and receive my jabs for Diphtheria, Cholera, Hepititis A and B, Rabies, Tetanus and Typhoid, that I may be jumping right into the deep end here.

My flight from Katowice takes 15 hours, with a quick 90 minute stop in Frankfurt, before eventually touching down in Cape Town. From there, I catch a train to the small and relatively quiet suburb of Lansdowne. My new home.

Maybe it's the fact that I'm so drastically unenlightened to life outside of my European bubble, but I'd sort of expected Africa to be a 24/7 safari. I'd heard that Cape Town was inhabited by Otters, Seals, Wildebeest, Mongooses, Porcupines, Aardvarks, Leopards and Baboons, so to find my new digs on a quiet suburban street with no herds of wildebeest sweeping majestically across the main road is a huge disappointment.

I've rented a 5th floor apartment in quite a small block of flats, set back slightly from the road behind a mesh security fence. It's a fairly nice building, with a sign next to the door that reads "Geen Rook Nie". I assume that this is the name of the building. It sounds pretty exotic.

After a few minutes, I'm joined outside the security gate by a man that I recognise to be my new landlord, Stevie. He's a tall, heavily built bloke with bronze skin and a friendly look about him. His hair's braided into cornrows and he's wearing the 2019/2020 Santos FC Home shirt, which was only released yesterday. Trotting alongside Stevie is a dog; Some kind of collie cross by the looks of it, although my dog breed knowledge has never been fantastic. She's panting excitedly at Stevie's heel as she watches me.

"There's your keys, bra", he says, with probably too much enthusiasm for such a mundane event. He hands me a trio of keys on a ring: One for the gate, another for the Geen Rook Nie building and a third for my flat.

"Cheers", I mutter. "Want me to sign that?" I gesture to the Santos shirt.

Stevie grins. "Let's see how you fare first, bru, eh?"

"Probably fair enough" I grin. "What's you dog's name?" I glance down at the Collie-ish dog, who is still watching me with interest, her tongue lolling out as she pants.

"She's called Chappie. Say hello Cha..." Stevie is cut off as Chappie lunges towards me, almost knocking me over. She jumps up and rests her front paws on my stomach, supporting herself with just her hind legs, and I give her a stroke and a scratch behind the ear. It's only now that I appreciate just how big Chappie is; she's almost as tall as me now that she's stood up on her hind legs. After getting a good look at me, Chappie lowers herself back onto four feet and goes back to Stevie's heel. I smile as I watch her, then I look back at Stevie.

"Nice dog", I smile. He smiles and nods. "So you're a Santos fan then?" I ask, pretty redundantly.

"Ya, nee, all my life, bru." He replies proudly.

"Go on then, what have I let myself in for?" I ask, anxious to get a fan's perspective on my new club.

Stevie thinks for a moment. "Santos is the people's team, bru. We aren't the oldest club in the world, but we're proud, you know?" His face suddenly turns very serious. "If you want my honest opinion bra, the players we have aren't great. They aren't bad, but they aren't great. We stayed up last year, but it could still be tough trying to keep us up."

I furrow my brow. "So what would you do if you were me?"

"Ag man, unless you can buy a whole new team..." Stevie scratches his chin and sighs. "You've got to get more out of them", he concludes unconvincingly. It's not the helpful and insightful 'voice of the fans' that I'd been hoping for.

I thank Stevie, give Chappie another scratch behind the ear, and make my way through the gate, into the building and into my new flat. My cats, Meatloaf and Burnie, are already in there. For a moment, I question how that's actually possible, but then I just accept it as the explanation is probably dull and not worth thinking about too much.

After initially dismissing Stevie's words as unhelpful, I find myself going over them in my head that night. How do you get the best out of what you've got? How do you lift mediocre players to the point where they can challenge the best in the league?

I've got some ideas.

[Franjo]

So, I know I said that I was pushing the story back just a week, but I’m afraid it’s going to be a bit longer. I can’t get it sorted at the minute and instead of being enjoyable it’s only serving to stress me out. I will be back, but it’ll be at least another week.
apologies, speak to you all soon
Franjo

[mark wilson27]

No worries Franjo, we all have spells when it becomes more of a chore too write. Take as long as you need 

[Franjo]

Cheers mate

[Franjo]

Brexit (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Mini-sode 75.5.5.5.5.5)

I glance around my flat, searching for something to do. Something to talk about. Anything. Anything at all. I’m so bored. There’s nothing new with Meatloaf and Burnie. Meatloaf’s still a dickhead and Burnie’s still the lovable scaredy cat. I’ve currently got no tactical decisions to make, no transfers on the horizon, no drama at all in fact, footballing or otherwise. I take a deep breath and let out a long sigh... Fine, let’s talk about Brexit.

The United Kingdom is, to quote Graham Chapman, a silly place. It’s a silly place where rich silly people tell poor silly people to vote for laughably silly things. The poor silly people, just to compound the misery of everyone involved, then proceed to vote for the laughably silly things. The upshot of this is that the Kingdom is basically ****ed. The silly people will stay imprisoned in a jail of their own making, breeding with other silly imprisoned people and creating silly imprisoned children, who will grow up and vote for an entirely new generation of silly people and laughably silly things, thus completing the silly circle of life in the United Kingdom. Anyway, I’ve decided to stay very neutral, journalistic and professional about the whole thing as I tell you all about how Brexit has played out back in Great Britain. 

In truth, the warning signs were there for all to see in early 2018 when Theresa May resigned her post as Prime Minister due to a lack of support and a publicity stunt by bookmakers BetFred went horribly wrong when the public voted in Robbie Savage as her replacement, narrowly beating Alan Curbishley in the polls. Robbie Savage, to give him his dues, was a pretty horrific footballer but a decent defensive midfielder. He was actually like a “Premier League standard” version of me in my playing days, so I can’t really have a go in that regard. Since retirement, he’s been a regular presenter on the BBC’s pit of unrelenting toxicity known as the 606 phone in, and more recently the Fletch and Sav show, which to be honest I’ve never watched, so I can’t really comment. The Welshman was faced with a sink or swim round of negotiations to determine the fate of the UK and their relations with the EU, and much like in his playing days he went diving into the metaphorical ocean with 2 feet and studs raised, dropping like a sack of spuds deep beneath the waves. To put it simply, it turns out that Robbie Savage is unable to negotiate. My homeland was left with a ridiculously confusing and long-winded deal. Mind you, it just wouldn’t be political negotiations if the outcome wasn’t wordy, confusing and needlessly complicated, so here we go...

So whether a non-domestic player is signing for an English club with or without a pre-existing work permit or even if he’s just renewing his contract, the rules that determine if a permit is granted are the same, in as much as he must have played in a certain percentage of his nation’s recent International matches. If his national team is in the top 10 in the FIFA World rankings, he must have played 30% of their recent matches. If the nation is in the top 20, then it’s 45%. In the top 30 it’s 60% and in the top 50 it’s 75%. To be honest I’ve no idea what happens if the poor bloke made the unfortunate decision to be born and raised in a nation outside the top 50, but I would imagine that they’re just out on their arse. If the work permit is not granted, the club must wait 120 days before applying again.

Of course, the club could choose to appeal the decision. If the club appeals, then the decision is postponed and a work permit can be granted as long as the player ticks enough of the boxes to convince the powers that be that he deserves a chance to come over and play football. The boxes are as follows (Player needs 4 points to gain a work permit on appeal):

3 points are given if the transfer fee paid for the player is in the top 25% of Premier League transfers in the last 2 windows. Currently in the Premier League the bar to beat is £9.25M, but I imagine that fees will increase to beat that figure, driving the average up, and hence raising the bar that needs to be beaten. This could get messy. 2 points are given if the fee is in the top 50% over the same period (Currently £3.7M).

Another way to bag 3 of the 4 points required is if the player’s proposed wage would put them in the top 25% of the 30 highest earners at the club. Again, 2 points are given if they’ll be among the top 50%.

1 point is given if the player being signed is currently an “active player” for a club playing in the top 6 leagues in Europe or the top 2 leagues in South America. “Active player” is an extremely ambiguous description and will undoubtably lead to arguments. In other words, it fits perfectly into the football rule book.

Simple, eh? Of course not. You got ripped off, Savage. We all got ripped off.

So let’s just think about the fallout from the deal that the former Blackburn Rovers midfielder made with the European Union. Firstly, because of the work permit appeal system, the teams with money will still be able to get any player they want, giving them another advantage over the rest. Just tack an extra few million onto the fee and an extra £15k onto the weekly wage and you’re sorted. I hate this. I hate this with a ****ing passion. The gap between the rich clubs and everyone else will grow exponentially because of these bloody rules, making the Premier League more predictable, which is the worst thing it could be.

Secondly, I’ve already mentioned the fact that everyone tacking on a few more million every time they want to sign a player will raise the average transfer fee, which will mean that everyone needs to tack a few more million on. The same goes for wages. These rules are going to accelerate inflation in football! Accelerate inflation! As if it needs any bloody help! As if the amount of money swilling around the game isn’t already utterly laughable. 

Finally, as I’ve mentioned, throwing yet another ambiguous rule regarding “Active players” into football that’s “At the discretion of XYZ” will only end in tears and will ironically make the 606 phonelines that Savage used to abide explode with furious football fans, just itching to give their “controversial” 2 cents about the direction in which the game’s going.

By the way, I understand that this doesn’t affect us at the minute, but my career is only just beginning. I guarantee you I will head back to Blighty eventually, and when I do I’m going to have to deal with all this *****. For now though I’m going to settle into my new job and my new flat in Lansdowne and let Mourinho, Guardiola and co deal with it.

So to summarise, top level football is going to be more predictable, even more advantageous to the rich and even more ambiguous from now on. **** you, Savage. **** you, Brexit.

[Franjo]

Procrastination (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Mini-sode 75.5.5.5.5.5.5)

What kind of Manager am I? I stare at the two sheets of paper on the desk in front of me. Well I stare past them, really. I stare at the desk. I stare at the spot in the desk where somebody’s taken a big chip out of the wood, right in the centre, so that when you put the paper down and write on it your pen goes through, and you need to go and get another sheet and move it to the side of the chip. What kind of Monster would do such a thing? What kind of arse hole takes a chunk out of the centre of the writing desk in a furnished flat, just to spite the next tenant?

I stare at the sheets of paper again. I force myself. I procrastinate far too often for a grown man. I feel like I’m trying to study for my GCSE’s again. I’d have my Biology textbook open on the same page for about 5 hours while I watched Gavin and Stacey “In the background”, forcing myself to look down for about 10 seconds every half hour or so, so that the only thing that sinks in is “Osmosis is the net movement of water particles through a partially permeable membrane from high to low concentration.” Never even came up in the exam. It never came up and here I am 10 years later, able to remember that sentence but not the names of vague acquaintances that I’ve met more than enough times for them to sink in. I’m able to remember that sentence, but I can’t remember to take my bags for life back to the pissing supermarket. I must have spent at least a grand on 50p carrier bags since their introduction. I’m the exact opposite of an eco-warrior. I might as well be dumping toxic waste into the sea. I might as well be kicking sea-lions directly in the face.

It happened again didn’t it. Focus, man. This is important. After a year like I’ve just had I need to come up with a tactical plan so brilliant, so groundbreaking, that the name WT Franjo is catapulted into the spotlight of world football. As a success, not a failure. That’s important. So why is it so difficult? I’ve had my first training session with Santos, I’ve made my notes on all the lads, and I just need to write down eleven names and a **** tonne of arrows. And then do it again. I need more than one system after all.

So what kind of Manager am I? Am I the kind of Manager that imposes a system on the players he inherits? The kind that imposes a system and buys a load of new players to fit it? Or am I the kind of Manager who gets the best out of what he already has, maybe with one or two adjustments? Am I Type 1, 2 or 3?

With Höllviken I was type 3, although that was rather imposed upon me. I only made signings to get 11 names on the team sheet. With Angrense... My beloved Angrense... I was type 3 again, surely. Yes I signed Hurley, but that first half season I largely made do. With Katowice, I’d have to say that I was type 2. I did need to sign centre backs because we didn’t have any, but I then proceeded to go a bit mad, signing a raft of new players and expecting them to gel with the existing ones.

So overall, I’m type 3. There is no type 2.6666666 so I’m type 3. I’ll make the most out of what I have. Now if I can just figure out what that is, I’ll really be onto a winner.

[Franjo]

Foxy (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep76)

Life in Lansdowne is off to a promising start. The players are enthusiastic and optimistic, and they're adapting to my new systems well. My adopted assistant manager, Keith America, seems to borderline know what he's doing, and best of all, I've found that Santos are a very sensibly run club, which means that on the downside there's not much money for me to spend on the squad, but on the upside I've started my National B License course, authorised by the Chairman Goolam Allie and funded with Santos’ pretty decent bank balance.

My landlord Stevie was onto something with regards to the players. They aren't terrible, but they aren't great. They're a bit so-so. My new systems are designed to get the best out of them. As is customary, allow me to introduce you to my preliminary starting XI.

Goalkeeper - No 31 - Dino Visser

I should probably mention straight off the bat that the quality of players here in the Premier Soccer League (PSL) is lower than it was in Poland, mainly due to strict Homegrown quotas and work permit regulations. So with that in mind, our new shot stopper Dino Visser is what I would describe as "The bare minimum". He's tall with good reach, handling, reflexes and agility. As we get to know the league it might turn out that he's on par with the other clubs' goalkeepers, but for some reason I doubt it. The good news though is that at 29 he's just coming into his prime and has some good experience behind him.

Right Defensive Full Back - No 4 - Jino Moeketsi

Moe is exactly the kind of full back that I like. I've never managed at a big club that can afford fancy attacking wingbacks, so I like my fullbacks to be tall, defensively minded and solid. Moe is just that.

Centre Back - No 15 - Issouf Paro

I don't want to toot my own horn, but I've got a 100% record of getting the best out of Burkinabe International centre backs. This gives me hope for the thrice capped Paro, who is strong technically and physically, but could be prone to switching off and making the odd mistake.

Defensive Centre Back - No 23 - Nathan Gertse

Nathan has played most of his career at right back, I presume because of his pretty decent pace, but for me he's a centre back. He'll form a very physically imposing partnership with Paro.

Left Defensive Full Back - No 13 - Aidan Jenniker

I could just repeat what I said about full backs a second ago, but you get the idea. Jenniker is solid and defensive, with the added bonus that he's not bad going forwards either.

Ball Winning Defensive Midfielder - No 12 - Marothi Diale

It will become clear in a second when I talk about the system why I see Marothi as a potentially important player for us. He's energetic, defensively excellent and aggressive enough, but like a lot of the others he lacks determination, which worries me.

Deep Lying Playmaker - No 8 - Sandile Sibande

The only 2 things that annoy me about Sandile are that his decision making is poor, and that his surname is just not quite an anagram of Sinbad. But you know I'm going to call him Sinbad anyway. Other than those 2 things, he really is a Rolls Royce of a player for a team like us. He's great on the ball, good defensively, and an excellent worker and team player. Remember the name, because Sinbad is going to be an extremely important player for us.

Left Winger - No 6 - Sello Japhta

Sello is going to be important for us too. You can have all the good defensive players you like, but you also need an outlet to start counter attacks. Sello has pace, flair, and times his runs well, on top of having a decent end product.

Right Winger - No 9 - Ryan Moon

Ryan's an interesting player. He says that his best position is up front, but I see him as a right winger. Like Sello, he's pacy and has some tricks up his sleeve, but with Ryan it's all about the end product. He's got great technique, a wonderful first touch, can dribble fantastically and has a hell of a shot on him.

Attacking Midfielder - No 11 - Suhayl Allie

I've chosen to cut out the middle of Suhayl Allie's name, and he'll be addressed as Sullie. He's one of the younger players in this fairly old team at just 24 and I'm not entirely sure if we'll be able to depend on him, but for the time being he's the best attacking midfielder we have. He's pretty good on the ball, with good technique, first touch and passing, he's very physically fit and has decent pace and flair. Watch this space, because he could be our star player... Or he could be a complete flop.

Poacher & Vice Captain - No 10 - Emil Sambou

Finally we need a goalscorer, so say hello to Emil Sambou. He and Paro are the only non-South-African players to be in my preliminary XI. Sambou is a Gambian international, who plays alongside the fairly well known former Swansea and now Preston North End striker Modou Barrow at International level. Emil is great off the ball, has decent enough pace and can finish with his boots or his head. As a traditional poacher I think he'll do very well indeed.

Captain - No 5 - Philani Cele

It would be remiss of me not to mention our skipper, Philani Cele. As you'll probably have gathered over the last 3 years, I'm not someone who will charge into a new club and just give the armband to whoever I like. I like to keep the existing captain in place for at least a season, but for the first time having joined my new club, I'm not sure whether the captain will have a guarenteed spot in my starting XI. Luckily, Philani is a bit of a utility player who's comfortable on the right side of defence or midfield, as well as at centre back and defensive midfield. He's pretty good defensively but technically limited, which isn't a huge problem for those positions. He's mentally strong and physically imposing at 6'3", and although he's not in my preliminary lineup I'm sure he'll get plenty of football when the season gets going.

I found inspiration in 2 very different places when coming up with our new systems: Firstly, for the preliminary lineup that you've just seen, I looked at Claudio Ranieri's 2015/16 Leicester City side, hence Project: Foxy:

There are similarities between us and that Leicester team, definitely. We have pace in the final third, tonnes of it, which means that a counter attacking playstyle may be our only option at the minute. We have solid defenders, a vicious ball winning midfielder, a quality ball player, a good balance between attacking impetus, creativity and willingness to keep the shape on the wings and a (hopefully) decent enough strike force to tie it all together. I just need to make sure that the team is well drilled and make us as difficult to beat and as lethal on the counter attack as Ranieri's side was.

The other place that I found inspiration was... In fact, I'll keep that to myself for now. You'll see Project: CO in due course.

[Franjo]

South African Premier Soccer League 101 (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Mini-sode 76.5)

Here we go then. We’ve met some of our new players, we’ve met my new assistant Keith, and now it’s time to meet the 16 sides that make up the South African Premier Soccer League.

 

Ajax Cape Town

From: Cape Town

Ground: Cape Town Stadium

Last Season: 9th

Predicted: 6th

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: Cape Town City (Fierce, Local), Santos FC (Fierce, Local), Kaizer Chiefs (Competitive), Orlando Pirates (Competitive)

 

Bloemfontein Celtic

From: Bloemfontein

Ground: Dr. Rantlai Petrus Molemela Stadium

Last Season: 12th

Predicted: 8th

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: N/A

 

Cape Town City Football Club

From: Cape Town

Ground: Cape Town Stadium

Last Season: 5th

Predicted: 7th

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: Ajax CT (Fierce, Local), Santos FC (Local)

 

Chippa United Football Club

From: Port Elizabeth

Ground: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium

Last Season: 8th

Predicted: 11th

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: N/A

 

Golden Arrows Football Club

From: Durban

Ground: King Zwelithini Stadium

Last Season: 10th

Predicted: 10th

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: N/A

 

Highlands Park

From: Johannesburg

Ground: Highlands Park Stadium

Last Season: 11th

Predicted: 15th

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: N/A

 

Kaizer Chiefs Football Club

From: Soweto

Ground: FNB Stadium

Last Season: 2nd

Predicted: 1st

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: Orlando Pirates (Fierce), Sundowns, Supersport United, Ajax CT

 

Maritzburg United

From: Pietermaritzburg

Ground: Harry Gwala Stadium

Last Season: 7th

Predicted: 9th

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: Golden Arrows

 

Mthatha Bucks Football Club

From: Pietermaritzburg

Ground: Harry Gwala Stadium

Last Season: Champions in and promoted from the South African National First Division

Predicted: 13th

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: N/A

 

Orlando Pirates

From: Johannesburg

Ground: Orlando Stadium

Last Season: Champions

Predicted: 3rd

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: Kaizer Chiefs (Fierce)

 

Polokwane City Football Club

From: Polokwane

Ground: Peter Mokaba Stadium

Last Season: 14th

Predicted: 14th

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: N/A

 

Santos Football Club

From: Lansdowne (Cape Town)

Ground: Athlone Stadium

Last Season: 13th

Predicted: 12th

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: Ajax CT (Fierce)

 

Mamelodi Sundowns

From: Pretoria

Ground: Loftus Versfield

Last Season: 3rd

Predicted: 2nd

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: Supersport United (Fierce), Orlando Pirates, Kaizer Chiefs

 

SuperSport United

From: Pretoria

Ground: Lucas Masterpieces Moripe Stadium

Last Season: 4th

Predicted: 5th

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: Sundowns (Fierce), Kaizer Chiefs, Orlando Pirates

 

Thanda Royal Zulu FC

From: Richards Bay

Ground: Umhlathuze Central Sports Complex

Last Season: 3rd, promoted from the South African National First Division

Predicted: 16th

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: N/A

 

Bidvest Wits

From: Johannesburg

Ground: Bidvest Stadium

Last Season: 6th

Predicted: 4th

Rivals in the Premier Soccer League: Kaizer Chiefs, Orlando Pirates, Supersport United, Sundowns

 

So the good news is that after surviving the Portuguese Championship and the Lotto Ekstraklasa where the Leagues started splitting up and going into little mini-leagues, the PSL is actually pretty straightforward. 16 teams play each other twice, so 30 games in all. The top 2 in the League qualify for the African Champions League Preliminary Round, the 3rd and 4th placed sides qualify for the African Confederation Cup, depending on who wins the SA Cup, and the bottom team is relegated. I mean, yes the team that finishes 2nd bottom goes into a play-off mini-league with the 2nd and 3rd placed sides from the 2nd tier, but still. Overall it's quite a straightforward system.

And I actually feel pretty good about this league. Am I wrong? Am I just naive, or does this feel OK? The board expect us to stay clear of a relegation scrap. Santos have had 2 solid seasons back in the top flight, and that was without me! Under the guidance now of a practically never relegated Manager like me, I feel like this club can not only avoid the drop but really push on up the League.

And the other thing is that if we can push towards the upper echelons of the league, it actually looks pretty open. Kaizer Chiefs won it in 2017 with Supersport United, Sundowns and Ajax CT well behind them, then they won it again with Sundowns, Supersport United and Orlando Pirates chasing, and then last year Orlando Pirates won it, closely followed by Kaizer Chiefs, Sundowns and Supersport United. There seems to be a fair bit of fluctuation up there. Ajax CT have plummeted down to 9th place in the last 2 years, while Orlando Pirates finished 6th and 4th before winning the league. If you ask me, there's room for anyone to break into the top 4 club, and I don't see why it can't be us. Eventually.

[Franjo]

The Chosen One (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep77)

So now that I've met my team and have a vague idea of what they can do, it's time, weirdly, to start my second pre-season of the summer. It kicks off in quite baffling fashion when backup goalkeeper Keenon Blignaut knocks on my office door after our first training session. He's clearly wound up and wants to discuss his lack of first team football. I fix him with a quizzical look, wondering momentarily whether he's gotten his hands on my preliminary lineup, before reassuring him that if he works hard there's no reason why he can't push for the first team. Just between us though, I'm looking for a first choice keeper to replace the average Dino Visser, and Dino's comfortably better than Keenon.

Our first outing with Project: Foxy goes very well as we take on South African second tier side Stellenbosch FC at our own Athlone Stadium. Left winger Sello Japhta and attacking midfielder Sullie are the standout performers in a 4-1 victory, with the former bagging a goal and setting up another and the latter grabbing 2 goals. Striker Emil Sambou gets the other goal while right winger Ryan Moon sets up 3!

https://youtu.be/lgcgN7AV7ik

As I told you when I arrived, as well as Project: Foxy, I have delicately crafted a mysterious secondary system that I've named Project: CO. However, I know that for Project: CO to work, I need to add an all round top quality player to the squad. Therefore, I make a bid to spend £70k of my transfer budget on none other than Newport County's Joss Ladabie.

My scouts aren't too familiar with Joss, but I know from reputation that he fits the bill. We agree terms and there's just the formality of a work permit to be granted so that Joss can join us, but I nearly spit my morning coffee out when I realise that the decision on whether to grant his work permit will be made on the 22nd of August. Today is the 23rd of July. Getting a quality foreign player may not be as simple as I first thought.

Our second friendly sees us travel to our semi-professional affiliate club Zizwe United. We do them the favour of showing up and flaunting our second string and I assume that they’ll be too awestruck to put in a performance, so imagine my surprise when they send us back nursing a comprehensive 0-2 defeat. It’s an uncomfortable afternoon.

https://youtu.be/CFN9YyNH5QI

I knew when I bid for Ladabie that the deal had a chance of falling through, so at the same time I made a £2.5k bid for an old friend.

Benjamim is an all rounder. I know this and you know this. We had a year apart when I moved to Katowice, although I would have brought him with me if I hadn't already had 2 comparable midfielders in Bart and Mario Gregurina. I want to sign him not only because he's so rounded, but also because he's been criminally underutilised since I left Volcano Island. Like with Joss however, we'll have to wait a full month to find out whether Benjamim can join.

In the meantime, we’ve got more friendlies to play. We host Grassy Park next, a semi-professional club from the Northern Cape Division 2. Again, we line up with Project: Foxy, and we come away with a narrow win. The only goal comes just into the second half when right back Itumeleng Tlali’s long ball forward is nodded over the keeper by young midfielder Sakhile Maloka.

https://youtu.be/MCWWJ5kPj0Y

With not much else to do except wait on Benjamim’s and Ladabie’s work permits, we press on, focussing on our fitness and system familiarity in training. We then travel to Gauteng Division 2 side Ga-Rankuwa United in another friendly. A Ryan Moon penalty and another goal for Sakhile Maloka earns us a 2-0 win.

https://youtu.be/WWRnL1yS2d4

At this point, I'm getting worried that my bids for Joss Ladabie and Benjamim will be derailed, as I'm not sure how generously South African work permits are handed out. Therefore, we need to find a top quality all rounder with a South African passport. And I think we have.

Kingston Nkhatha has arrived. I dub him Khat, partially as an homage to Danny John-Jules' Red Dwarf character of the same name, and partially because we'll need him to roam around doing whatever he wants, similarly to my 2 feline travelling companions Meatloaf and Burnie.

Having said that, I should probably explain my secondary system, Project: CO at this point. During my flight over from Katowice, I listened to Ruud Gullit's pretty condescendingly named audiobook 'How to watch football'. Aside from being a really good listen (Or read, if you're not as lazy as me), it really opened my eyes to the idea of the Libero; an extremely rarely utilised role in the modern game. A libero is ideally an extremely smart, technically gifted and physically dominant footballer, much like prime Gullit, who positions himself behind the central defenders when the team is off the ball, but then roams up the pitch when the teams wins possession, becoming an advanced creative outlet and potential surprise goal threat.

That is what Project: CO is all about. If we have an average team, why not have one player that can be the last line of defence, main creator and goalscorer all wrapped into one? Someone that can make everyone else 10% better by being there to call the shots and make everything happen. The instructions to the team are minimal as I only want them to create a disciplined framework for Khat to operate inside.

Before you call me mad, bare in mind that we can't afford to gut this team and rebuild it this Summer, and frankly I wouldn't want to if we could. We need to live within our means, and for me, that once meant playing a goalkeeper as a target man. Today it means playing a 33 year old journeyman striker as a Libero. I know we've only just met, but I believe in Khat. I believe that he can be our Libero. He can be our Ruud Gullit. He can be the main player in our Project: Chosen One.

On the downside, he's been around the block a bit, and at 33 isn't the ideal age to dramatically change his position, but on the upside he’s got a South African passport despite being Zimbabwean, so we can snap him straight up without having to wait a full bloody month for a work permit.

Cape Town All Stars are up next. It’s quite an ironic name for a second tier side because there are quite a few top flight clubs from Cape Town, and our names all contain a wee bit more humility. We fire up Project: CO for the first time and teach the "All Stars" a lesson in a 2-0 win used to honour the career of their centre back Howard Davids. Ryan Moon continues his good preseason by setting up both goals, one for Sello Japhta and one for Emil Sambou. Khat has a very solid game, which for a striker playing his first game behind the defence is extremely promising.

https://youtu.be/vblMWxFs6OU

We carry on our pre-season with 2 more solid wins against First Division sides. Sullie gets us the only goal in a 1-0 win over Steenberg United...

https://youtu.be/d36pogBKaMI

... And our incredibly named backup left back Siyabong Zulu and new signing Khat get us the win away at FC Cape Town.

https://youtu.be/IBZs64bT5Lw

And then comes the big one - in our final match before the Season begins, young winger Salieg Richards and Emil Sambou get us a win over BARCELONA.

Now, does it matter whether it’s Lionel Messi’s FC Barcelona side from La Liga, or Gerardo Cozzolino’s Barcelona FC side from the South African Regional Leagues? Not to me, lads. Not to me.

https://youtu.be/f-y_vtSMIZA

Sadly, Joss Ladabie's work permit is then rejected, which isn't ideal. We appeal the decision, but we won't know whether he's joining until after our first league match. What we can do though is sign staff. Lots and lots of staff. My backroom team has grown dramatically this Summer.

My first competitive match as Santos FC Manager is at home against Cape Town City, who’ve finished in the top 8 4 times in the last 4 Seasons. We’ve got our systems now. We’ve got our players, our staff, and of course we've got our chosen one. We’ll be ready.

It's good to be back.

[Franjo]

Not Like This (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep78)

"Ready?" I sit myself down next to Khat on the bench. He nods. "Remember, no sprinting about, you’re an old man", I grin. "What’s your job off the ball?"

"Drifting", he replies confidently.

"Roaming, not drifting", I correct him.

"What’s the difference?"

"Well, people who fall asleep on little inflatable rings will drift out to sea, whereas a Lion will roam around looking for other animals to rip apart and eat." I narrow my eyes, trying to work out if I’ve been clear enough. "Do you see my point?"

"There’s no current on a football pitch", he replies happily.

"Exactly. Probably."

We’re all feeling the nerves a bit today, and if there’s one person I’ll forgive for being more nervous than me, it’s Khat. I’m asking him to throw out everything he’s learned in the last 20 years and pretty much learn the game from scratch. A lesser footballer would’ve told me to **** right off, but I can tell that Khat wants to give it his best shot.

We’re setting up today with our controlling Project: CO. Visser starts between the sticks with Khat in front of him. Moe, Paro, Gertse and Jenniker make up the back 4, with Sinbad starting in midfield alongside tough midfielder Gugu Gogotya, the man clearly named by a newborn baby. Moon and Japhta are on the wings and Sambou’s up front.

"Come on then, lads!" I cry, clapping my hands together as I stand and walk towards the changing room door. With the cacophony of 18 sets of studs clacking against the concrete floor, the players get to their feet and follow me, clapping and cheering with anticipation of the great game of football to come.

When we trudge back inside for half time, I’m shellshocked. What just happened? Somehow the score’s still 0-0 but we could be 3 or 4 down. We’ve not managed a single shot, while Cape Town City have huffed and puffed but somehow our little straw house is still standing. By now, they should really have been able to blow our door down, cave our roof in and **** in our fridge for good measure. That was completely one way traffic. Although saying that, our back line was pretty resilient and fair play to them for keeping the scores level.

For now, we’ll go a little more structured. I’m drawing a blank. I don’t know what else to do. Maybe with a similarly resilient defensive display in the second half we’ll escape with a point.

15 minutes after the break that’s exactly what it looks like is going to happen. But then I decide that no, you know what? That’s not how I’m starting off my career in Lansdowne. I usually say that an opening day draw is fine, but not like this. We go attacking.

A few minutes later, Manyama collects the ball just outside our box and dribbles out onto the left wing. He swings a cross in but Gertse gets there first. Our centre back volleys the ball and it travels about a couple of inches before hitting Ramagalela right in the face. It bounces back towards goal - And bobbles just wide.

With 20 minutes to play, we look nervous. I’ve never seen a team look so nervous during a match. I stand on the touchline and bellow words of encouragement. I also send on striker Carl Lark for Sambou, who’s been a spectator for the last 70 minutes.

In the 77th minute, they’re still all over us. De Jongh passes short from a free kick 35 yards out to Matsi and he squares it for Manyama, who takes the ball forward and smacks it against the bar.

With 10 minutes to go, Paro wins the ball outside our box, breaking up yet another Cape Town attack and prompting a huge sigh of relief from me and my assistant Keith. The Burkinabe defender plays it out to Ryan Moon on the right, who gets it out of his feet before playing a long ball over the top. Suddenly, Carl Lark takes it down and he’s through on goal. He shrugs off the centre backs, bursts through into the box and blasts the ball into the back of the ****ing net. Football, eh?

Captain Cele replaces the more attack minded Ryan Moon on the right wing and we go to a defensive 4-1-4-1 formation. We cling on, and I’m happy, but my God we’ve got to reconsider this system. That match has not exactly gone as I had planned.

https://youtu.be/kmMCNOePmHA

In the next few days it’s made clear that the transfers of Joss Ladabie and Benjamim are dead in the water. So too are late attempts to bring in Paro’s compatriot Lassina Touré, who starred at centre back for my SC Angrense side, and Délcio Azevedo, because of high wage demands and work permit issues respectively. We reject a couple of loan offers from Thanda Royal Zulu, one of our relegation rivals, for Tiali and Gertse, and with that the transfer window closes.

I’m left with a knot in my stomach. Even though we’ve picked up an opening day win, I’m already seriously doubting Project: CO as a system and any attempts I’ve made to bolster the quality of my squad have been promptly shot down.

It’s going to be an extremely challenging year for a whole bunch of new reasons. It’s lucky I love a challenge really, isn’t it?

[Franjo]

One More Try (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep79)

You know when your team’s fixtures come out for the new season and you see that in your first few fixtures you’re playing Chelsea away, or Barcelona away, or Paris Saint Germain or Bayern away? At first glance you see that and think "Oh no, how unlucky, what a terrible start". But then you think "Well we are more than likely going to lose, so we may as well get the toughest match of the season over and done with right at the start so we don’t have to dread it all year". That’s how I feel today. I feel like that because today I oversee the 100th match of my career, and we’re playing Kaizer Chiefs. Away.

When I realised that this was my second match, did I think "Oh my god"? Yes. Did I predict a riot? Sure. Did I sit down for far too long and try to work out how to work the word "Ruby" into a question about my hundredth career match? Most definitely. But the thing that really matters is the match itself and how we intend to set up against arguably the best team in Africa on their own turf.

The safe, and some would say sensible thing to do would be to park the bus. Maybe play a flat 5-4-1 or a 4-5-1 or a 4-1-4-1. Or maybe replace the nomadic striker at the heart of my defence with an actual defender. The thing is though that my faith in Project: CO as a system that we can use at home to dominate a match has been so violently shaken by our smash and grab battering against an average side like Cape Town City that I’m just about ready to pull the plug on it already. The only thing that’s stopping me from doing so is the thought that maybe, just maybe it can be a good counter attacking formation. We have men behind the ball when we don’t have possession, we have outlets on the wings, so why not? And what better match to test out my theory than right now? We’re as unfavoured today as we will be all season so let’s have one more go at making it work.

So that’s what we do. We play a counter attacking variant of Project: CO. We keep the same lineup from our last match.

The match starts slowly, and while the Kaizer Chiefs keep possession for the first half hour they’re unable to break us down. Promising stuff. I tell the boys to stick to their positions to make us even more difficult to break down and play at a slightly higher tempo when we get the ball.

The first warning sign comes 3 minutes later when Mahlangu tests Visser with a shot from the edge of the box, but Dino Visser catches it comfortably.

3 minutes after that, Morena skips past Jenniker skilfully on the right and swings a fantastic cross to the far post. Khutlang gets there but his close range shot is tipped onto the post impressively by Visser and cleared by Paro.

A further 3 minutes passes before Kaizer Chiefs start going through the gears. A brilliant passing move ends with Khutlang playing a nice through ball to Mekoa inside the box. He has a go but once again the shot cannot beat Visser.

Seeing that they’re cutting through us using the channels, we go slightly narrower and I tell the isolated Emil Sambou to close their defence down much more to try to force a mistake.

We’re only a minute away from half time when out resolve is broken. Mahlangu’s corner is headed away at the near post by Sinbad, Morena takes the ball down on the edge of the box and shoots through a crowd of bodies. Visser sees it too late and has no chance. The home side leads.

At half time, I tell the team to speed up play even more when on the ball. Exploit the flanks and pass into space to give our wingers a chance of breaking. In defence we go much narrower, drop the defensive line deeper and close down much less to stop them from passing through us.

10 minutes after the restart, Gogotya plays a direct ball up to Sambou, who turns, drives forward to the edge of the box and shoots, but he puts it wide.

For a few fleeting moments I think that we may be able to put together a few more chances like that and maybe bag an equaliser, but less than 5 minutes later Mekoa’s low cross deflects off Moe and falls perfectly to Abraw on the edge or the 6 yard box. He buries it for 0-2.

I opt for a triple sub, to give a few players a chance to impress more than anything else.

Gertse, Japhta and Sambou are replaced by skipper Philani Cele, young winger Saileg Richards and last match’s winning goalscorer Carl Lark.

7 minutes later, Mekoa toe pokes a brilliant deep cross towards the far post and Abraw’s there again to tuck in the third. Khat joins Lark up front for the last 20 minutes as we change to a 4-2-4 formation, but the match ends 0-3.

https://youtu.be/N3IeEbMtS54

I’m OK with that to be honest. We knew realistically that we’d be comfortably beaten and for now at least I can put Project: CO to bed secure in the knowledge that I gave it a shot both home and away, but the performances have been pretty awful. Or... I might give it one more try. One more. Next match is Highland Park at home so it’ll be a good to see if we can dominate now that we’ve had a couple of matches practice. Can you tell that I really want this to work?

The South African Knockout Cup (SA Cup) draw is made midweek, and we draw Bidvest Wits, but I can’t be thinking about them now. By the time that match rolls around I want us putting in good performances and getting results to match. That starts against Highlands Park.

Before that though, Santos agree an Affiliate link with the wonderfully named "The Magic Football Club", or just "The Magic".

They’re a Western Cape Division 2 side and we’ll share our training facilities with them them and play a yearly friendly in exchange for having first dibs on any young South African stars that push through their youth system.

Speaking of stars, our International contingent are in action before the next League match. Issouf Paro comes on for the last 13 minutes of Burkina Faso’s friendly loss against The Ivory Coast, preferred to Lassina Touré and facing the likes of Mainz’s Wilfried Zaha, Atalanta’s Emmanuel Latte and Besiktas’ Jonathan Kodija. Good experience for him I’m sure.

Emil Sambou plays the last 35 minutes of Gambia’s 4-2 friendly win over Libya, scoring instantly from a Modou Barrow assist and scoring again with a deflected shot 15 minutes from time, earning him the man of the match award. I intended to give Carl Lark his first start of the season against Highlands Park as Sambou’s not really offered anything in our first 2 matches, but I’ll give him one more chance after that performance.

And then comes a hammer blow. A few days before the match, Dino Visser picks up a gashed leg in training and will miss the match. Not only that, but his frustrated understudy Keenon Blignaut rules himself out 2 days later with Achilles Tendonitis and will miss 3-4 weeks. As much as I’ve lamented the quality of my 2 senior goalkeepers, Visser actually had a really good first half against Kaizer Chiefs, and it leaves me scratching my head wondering who I’ll play in goal for the match. I think Khat’s worried that it’ll be him.

But no, say hello to 17 year old local lad Sthembiso Nkomo. He’s a bit wet behind the ears, but he has tonnes of potential. He seems nervous and excited when I break the news to him, after all this is every youth goalie’s dream: All of the senior keepers getting injured at once, thrusting them into the first team.

"It’s just for this one game", I tell him after training one day. "The physios say that they should be able to rush Dino back for the next one, so don’t worry."

"Do I get a nickname?" He blurts out. "Like Khat and Moe and Sinbad?"

"You’ve got to earn that, mate" I grin, "I don’t just go around handing them out to everyone."

I sort of resent the fact that after a 15 day gap we now have 2 games in 3 days. The physios do say that Dino should be fit enough to get through the next one away at Golden Arrows, but it’ll be close.

Marothi Diale replaces Gogotya in midfield as I want to give him a chance to steal the ball winning position, but otherwise we go unchanged.

24 minutes in, Shellar receives the ball on the right hand side of our box, and lays the ball off for Shikweni, who places it perfectly into the bottom corner of our net. To be fair to the debutant Nkomo, he had no chance with that and I doubt that Dino or Keenon would have got to it either. 0-1.

I tell the lads to retain possession and get a foothold in the game. We’re the home side after all and we need to start controlling the play. Just 2 minutes after the goal however, Senamela wriggles into space on the edge of our box and shoots towards the bottom corner, but Nkomo gets down well to catch the ball, drawing a great ovation from the home support.

His goal kick reaches Sambou, but the striker’s dispossessed and Highland Park come forward again. Senamela plays a great ball through for Sekola, who has a go, but Nkomo catches it again, prompting another great ovation.

Over the next 10 minutes, we do indeed get a foothold in the game. We keep possession well and play some nice football. 10 minutes from the break a brilliant move culminates with Japhta whipping a cross to the near post and Emil Sambou, fresh from his heroics for Gambia, glances a header past the keeper to equalise. I punch the air. This is more like it.

Unfortunately half time comes and goes and the match gets a bit scrappy again. Both teams look pretty even and you get the feeling that it could go either way. With 25 minutes to go we hand a debut to Project: Foxy, but we'll keep trying to retain possession, and play a fluid controlling game. We also make a double sub; Paro tweaks his hamstring slightly and is replaced by Cele, and Sullie comes on for Khat to play behind the striker Sambou.

With 10 minutes to go, Mavimbela releases Thobela on the counter attack. He plays a pass through the centre backs for Thobela to chase and he goes through on goal, but luckily Gertse's pace allows him to recover, getting back in time to block Thobela's shot and sending the ball out for a corner. We drop our defensive line back slightly because frankly I don't want that kind of thing to be a recurring theme between now and the final whistle.

With 5 minutes to go, Carl Lark comes on for Emil Sambou, who gets a hearty clap from the home fans. I'm hoping that Lark'll be the difference like he was on opening day, and with 3 minutes to go, we get a corner. Ryan Moon swings it in towards the near post and Jenniker meets it, nodding it towards goal. The keeper dives and can't reach the ball, but Thobela's on the line to head it away. It only goes as far as Lark 8 yards out though and he swings his left foot at the ball, mis-kicking it, but still doing enough to make it pea-roll into the net. Get in.

All out defence time. We go to 4-1-4-1 and I tell the team to get it into the corners and waste time. 3 minutes of injury time are given as the clock ticks towards and then passes the 90 minute mark.

Jenniker’s throw in goes to Japhta on the left wing, who takes it straight over to the corner flag. "Good lad", I mumble under my breath, throwing a nervous glance the way of the clock on the North stand. 1 minute of the 3 added on is nearly up. Japhta looks penned into the corner by Mendes and Senamela, who are keen to win it back before he can run down the clock too much. Just then though, our left winger steps over the ball and skims it across the turf towards Sinbad, who looks up, picks his spot, and hits it first time with his left foot. The keeper gets a glove to it, but he can’t keep it out. 3-1. That's Sinbad's 1st goal since October 2016 and the 2nd goal ever in his 12 year, 175 game career.

As the final whistle blows and the 8 and a half thousand Santos fans erupt in jubilation, I stand for a moment on the edge of the pitch, soaking it all in. This is what I’ve missed. A good well earned win that sends you, the staff, the players and the crowd all home with smiles on your faces.

https://youtu.be/R7caDwcjyIc

I shake hands with Highlands Park boss Kosta Papic before jogging over to our young debutant keeper. He’s trembling and beaming, the relief plain to see on his face. I’ve searched all through the Summer for a first team goalkeeper, but why on Earth shouldn’t Sthembiso Nkomo get a chance to keep his place now?

I wrap an arm around his shoulders and we start to walk towards the tunnel. "Well played tonight, Komo", I shout over the noise of the fans. "Same again on Tuesday please".

[Franjo]

Febreze (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep80)

So what did we learn from our match against Highland Park? We have to figure it out quickly as the Boffins at the SAFA have scheduled us 2 matches in 3 days after our 15 day break.

I think the most obvious thing to take from the match is that it’s time to bring in Project: Foxy. We used it for about 25 minutes and scored twice just before the end, and that was with a controlling variant of the system, which I’ll try again today seeing as we’re at home. I’m going to keep using Project: CO in training though. Maybe when Khat becomes more familiar as a Libero we’ll have better success with it.

Today we take on Golden Arrows at their place and I’m anxious to see what kind of performance I’ll get using Project: Foxy. I’m dropping Moe because he’s been pretty underwhelming so far at right back while our captain Philani Cele has been on the bench, so he comes in. I also drop Khat even though he’s comfortable playing behind the striker and bring in Sullie to be our number 10, as he’s more natural there and I want to give him a chance. Otherwise we remain unchanged.

With less than 2 minutes on the clock, Emil Sambou slips Ryan Moon through and the winger strokes the ball under the outrushing keeper, moving us up to 1st place in the PSL!

I think it’s fair to say that we’ll be seeing Project: Foxy quite a bit. The players look absolutely inspired. Only 2 minutes after the goal, Sullie launches the ball forward, Sambou latches onto it and shrugs off the centre backs before running through on goal, but he shoots just wide. What a start though.

After 20 minutes things just keep getting better when Nonyane goes through the back of Moon and earns himself a straight red card.

We react with a sublime passing move, at the end of which Sambou slips Moon through on goal again, but his near post shot is held onto by the keeper.

We don’t let up either. Golden Arrows are having a nightmare start and when Komo launches a goal kick deep into their half, the defenders panic and don’t deal with it properly. The ball’s headed meekly back as far as Moon and he sprints down the line and shoots from a tight angle, but can’t keep it down and the ball flies into the stands.

And then, after half an hour, Shozi passes to Mothiba just inside our box, and with thudding inevitability he loops it over Komo, perfectly into the far top corner of the net.

Changes are made instantly. Golden Arrows are currently persevering with their 4-4-1-1 without their sent off left winger, so Cele pushes up as more of an attacking wing back on the right and we focus all of our play down that side. I also tell Diale to man mark Shozi, who had far too much time to set that goal up; and to stay tight to him.

At half time, Golden Arrows do change formation, making me rethink again. They opt for an asymmetrical 3-2-2-1-1 system. A classic, I think we can all agree. Seeing this, I change us to a 2-3-1-2-2 formation, leaving just the 2 centre backs at home with Diale marking their number 10, and allowing both wing backs to push up to help the the wingers feed our striking partnership of Sambou and Khat, who replaces the largely ineffective Sullie.

10 minutes into the half, Khat sweeps the ball beautifully over to the right for the overlapping Cele, who lays it inside. The enthusiastic... Maybe overly so at this point... Ryan Moon aims for the far top corner, but a fingertip save by Mabokgwane denies him.

In the next 15 minutes Golden Arrows start to dominate. They take advantage of our single file 2 man midfield and pass it through us at will, forcing a couple of good saves from Komo.

I replace Sambou with Gogotya, who drops back alongside Sinbad to form a midfield triangle. The attacks stop coming, but apart from Moe replacing the knackered Diale and Cele moving to the holding man spot, nothing else happens. It’s 2 points dropped in my eyes.

https://youtu.be/uOs5syzipfs

We look to move on swiftly with Supersport United at home. Dino Visser, although he could have been risked in the last match, is now fit again, although I don’t think Komo deserves to lose his place just yet. He’s been undone twice, but only when our opponents have placed the ball perfectly into the corners, giving him practically no chance. He’ll stay in the team for now.

Under the previous regimes, Santos have lost their last 5 matches against Supersport. For this reason, we’re heavy favourites to lose today, which is probably fair enough. We’re currently 4th in the league on 7 points and Supersport are 6th on 6, so they’ll overtake us if they do get the win.

We line up with the true Project: Foxy for the first time today. We’ll sit back, soak up the pressure and smash them on the break. As I’ve already said, Komo keeps his place, as does Cele at right back, and I’ll have Diale man marking Lakay, Supersport’s attacking midfielder from the start. Come on boys.

The first 20 minutes are reminiscent of the 55th-70th minute period against Golden Arrows. We are absolutely dominated and as far as I can tell, the reason is the same. They have a midfield triangle and we don’t, so their spare man in the centre is able to link up play and bring Diale and Sinbad out of position. If only we had Ngolo Kante, he made this system look so easy.

I make a tactical change at the 20 minute mark and Khat doesn’t seem to like it. I replace him with Gogotya, who drops into the middle of an orthodox 4-1-2-3 formation with Sinbad. It’s not ideal, but Khat’ll just have to get over it.

Minutes later, Supersport respond by creating a chance down the left wing. Twala robs the ball from Cele and sprints down the wing, chipping it inside for Mthembu, but his low shot is saved by Komo.

10 minutes later, Gogotya works himself some space 25 yards from goal and plays in Ryan Moon, but his shot goes just wide of the far post.

And then a few minutes later, Lakay plays Moloi through, who’s questionably positioned in the box. "OFFSIDE!" I bellow, looking at the linesman, and then the referee. But the flag stays down, the whistle doesn’t blow, and when I look back, Moloi’s wheeling away towards the touchline and the ball’s nestled in the back of our net. To be fair, it was extremely tight and I can’t blame the officials for getting it wrong. But they did. They did get it wrong.

At half time, I tell the lads that they’re unlucky to be trailing. Sambou instantly switches off so I tell him to go and get changed. Carl Lark comes on in his place. I also put an emphasis on retaining possession in the second half to see if we can string some passes together.

With nearly an hour gone it’s still Supersport that are looking the more dangerous of the sides though. Morton’s shot from the edge of the area forces a good save from Komo, who gets down well to his left to tip the ball behind for a corner.

We try to control, we then try to attack, we then go to a balls-out 4-2-4 with Saileg Richards replacing Diale, but the match ends 1-0.

https://youtu.be/uIXvwiaH17U

Of course I resent coming away empty handed from a big team that we’ve now lost to 6 times in a row, thanks to an offside goal. Of course I do. But sometimes Lady Luck smiles on you, and sometimes she kicks down the door to your house, barges into your living room and takes a **** on the rug. Hopefully at some point this season we’ll ride our luck. We’ll get a scrappy goal deep into injury time and I’ll put it down to my mastery of the tactics white board, or a brilliant never-say-die attitude by the goal scorer. But really it’ll be her. It’ll be her, flashing those pearly whites, saying "Sorry about the Supersport match" and making amends. Tonight though, I need to buy some Febreze on my way home.

[Franjo]

Half Moon (Franjo: A Journeyman Story - Ep81)

"We’ve been unlucky in our last couple of matches", I say sympathetically to the team. "We got robbed of 2 points against Golden Arrows. We were by far the better side. And but for that ‘goal’ against Supersport we would have picked up a point against them too."

It feels like one of those moments in a season where we just need something to go in our favour. We just need a little luck or a win and we’ll hopefully be able to put together a run. After all, we’re playing well enough since we switched to Project: Foxy. Of course, what doesn’t help today is that we’re going to be without one of our key players. Although Sello Japhta’s yet to really get going this season, it's frustrating to hear that he’s suffered an abdominal strain and will miss the next 2 weeks.

Nevertheless, the show must go on. Mthatha Bucks are our opponents today and I’ll be tweaking my personnel slightly for this one. Obviously Japhta’s injured, so I’m going to give our left back Aiden Jenniker a try on the left wing, with Siyabonga Zulu replacing him at the back. I think that Jenniker on the left may actually benefit us as his defensive inclination should balance out Ryan Moon’s gung-ho play style. Elsewhere, Sullie will take the number 10 spot at Khat’s expense, and Carl Lark will get a long overdue run out ahead of Emil Sambou up front. We focus down the right wing. It’s all on you, Ryan Moon.

35 minutes into a quiet first half, Ryan Moon pulls up clutching his thigh. I let out a long sigh. I know it’s early in the Season, but he’s been by far our most dangerous player, so I’m pretty torn. Do I sub him off as a precaution with the game still tied and perhaps leave us short going forwards, or do I keep him on and risk aggravating his injury? After much deliberation, Moon stays on. I keep my fingers crossed for the next 10 minutes until the ref blows his whistle to signal half time.

It’s been a nothing game so far played out by 2 equally ineffective teams. I keep my team talk simple, just encouraging the lads to keep going.

It takes less than 2 minutes of the second half for us to win a central free kick just outside the box, and for who else but Ryan Moon to curl the ball into the top left corner. I’ve not felt the embrace of my vindication blanket for quite some time, but it’s as warm and comforting as ever as I watch Ryan sprint away and get mobbed my the rest of the team.

10 minutes later, Sinbad receives the ball, looks up and sees Moon making a typically dangerous run down the right flank. Sinbad plays an absolute beauty of a pass over the Mthatha Bucks defence into the winger's path and he takes it down, but his angle is narrow and Hoffman parries his shot across goal and away.

With 20 minutes to go, I hand a debut to young attacking midfielder Sakhile Maloka, who comes on in place of Sullie. You may remember he briefly impressed in pre-season, scoring in 2 consecutive friendly matches. Maloka’s a promising little player, and I mean that literally. At 5’4 he’s not going to win many aerial duels, but he’s 2 footed, skilful, and extremely comfortable on the ball.

I do eventually replace Ryan Moon for the last 10 minutes, bringing captain Cele on to help shut the game down on the right side of a defensive 4-1-4-1. We do so. I’ve no problem scraping 3 points while we’re getting going, and a first clean sheet for Komo is a great bonus.

https://youtu.be/bMHftD6Fbgo

Unfortunately, Ryan Moon only has a 50:50 chance of making it back in time for our next match away at Polokwane City. His bruised thigh may keep him out of this game, but on the upside he’ll certainly be back for the one after. Keenon Blignaut is back in full training, but I’m sure he won’t be too pleased when he finds out that he’s now slipped to 3rd in the goalkeeper pecking order.

The match against Polokwane City does indeed come around too quickly for Ryan. I stick him on the bench in case we’re desperate, but Saileg Richards starts in his place. Khat also comes back in for Sullie as I continue to wait for someone to claim the attacking midfielder spot for themselves by putting in a decent performance.

It takes a quarter of an hour for us to see any kind of noteworthy chance, but unfortunately it’s at the wrong end of the pitch. Khumalo hits a central free kick towards the right side of our goal and Komo does well to tip the ball onto the post, before catching it at the second time of asking.

With a few minutes to go before the ref calls time on quite a mundane half of football, Sekela Gajana leaps to challenge Khat for a header just inside our half. He’s already on a yellow card and blatantly handles the ball, earning himself a red. Now at this point I’m eager to actually capitalise on this advantage, especially as we were unable to do so when faced with a similar situation in our match against Golden Arrows. Polokwane City change to a narrow 4-3-1-1, so we push our fullbacks up and exploit the flanks.

When half time arrives, the game’s still deadlocked at 0-0, so we go on the attack for the second half, although after 15 more minutes of football, Polokwane change to a more solid 4-4-1 system, seemingly happy to try to hold on for the draw. We respond with a 4-1-1-4 system, hoping to overload their defenders with our 4 attacking players.

With 20 minutes to go, we finally start clicking. Saileg Richards crosses in well from the right wing and Khat takes the ball down on his chest, before slipping a pass through for Aiden Jenniker. The stand-in left winger takes a shot, but he snatches at it badly and the ball trickles wide of the far post.

Shortly afterwards, Issouf Paro picks up a slight chest injury, so I take the opportunity to make a triple substitution. Cele, Sambou and the half-fit Ryan Moon, or "Half Moon", come on replacing Paro, Lark and Richards. It’s a risk for Moon, but the injection of quality, leadership and experience may just be worth it.

With under 10 minutes to go, the ball goes out for our throw in on the right hand side of Polokwane's penalty area. Moe throws the ball in to Sinbad, who slides it down the line first time for Moon. Moon cuts the ball in first time to the edge of the box and for a minute it looks like nobody’s there. But then, arriving late from the left is Siyabonga Zulu. The rampaging left back takes it on his right foot and shoots towards the far bottom corner - And scores!

My hands are in the air before I know what’s happening, and they stay there until the final whistle blows. We’ve done it. We’ve scraped it again, but we’ve won. The comparisons to a poor man’s Tony Pulis have been thrown at me a fair amount so far in my short career, but I don’t care. As much as I once berated a Portuguese Championship team for their Pulis-esque brand of negative football, I’ll settle for boring 1-0 wins all season thank you very much.

https://youtu.be/9zcz0TwjQAQ

There’s still work to be done, don’t get me wrong, but at the minute we sit 3rd in the league, Komo’s starting to keep clean sheets and we’re picking up points. That’ll do just fine for now.

[Franjo]

Mr WT Franco - Part 2 (Franjo: A Journeyman Story  - Ep82)

What’s the worst thing about having a 24 day gap between matches? Is it the fact that the momentum from your 2 wins beforehand will inevitably have evaporated by your next game? Is it Emil Sambou starting a World Cup Qualifier for Gambia and being hooked after 45 quiet minutes, before his team triumphs over Ethiopia without him?

Or, and this is my vote, is it the fact that Nathan Gertse waits 20 days before damaging his foot and being ruled out for up to 3 weeks?

Oh well. The time has come for my very first SA KO Cup match and today we host Bidvest Wits. They’re a good side but I’d like to try and dominate today as the home side, so we’ll go with the controlling variant of Project: Foxy. I also want to give match fitness to a couple of the lads who need it. Left winger Sello Japhta, for example, has returned to full training but is lacking match fitness so he comes in for Aiden Jenniker. Unless he really impresses today though, Jenniker’s going back in for the next match as he’s had a good couple of games in Japhta’s absence.

Sullie also comes in replacing Carl Lark, and I’m giving Khat a run out up front. He deserves it for bearing with me so far this season. Captain Cele comes in replacing the injured Gertse at centre back and Ryan Moon replaces Richards to build his fitness back up after shaking off that bruised thigh.

A quarter of an hour into the match, Alexander backheels the ball to Myeni on the right side of our penalty area. Myeni crosses to the far post and Dutiro’s there to head the ball back across goal, but it’s so off target that it doesn’t even go out for a goal kick and ends up back with Myeni. He starts the routine again, picking Dutiro out at the far post, and this time Dutiro scrambles it into the net, but the linesman’s flag goes up against him and the goal doesn't count.

With half an hour gone though, Hlanti runs down the left for Wits and drills a low cross into the 6 yard box, and Mkatshana’s there to tap it in. 1-0 Wits. I take the opportunity to encourage my lads to play quicker and run at the opposition defence. Our passes aren’t getting through their well organised defence as they’re standing off us and keeping their shape well.

On the stroke of half time, Japhta runs forwards with the ball. He squares it for Sullie, who takes it past Dutiro and passes to Sinbad in space. Sinbad moves forward to the edge of the box and shoots, but the ball flies comfortably over the bar. To be fair, at least they took my instructions on board. That's the most dangerous we've looked so far.

7 minutes after the break, Hlanti swings a corner into the centre for Wits. Yende leaps to beat Japhta in the air, nodding the ball on for Mkatshana at the far post, who heads in their 2nd goal of the day. With very little to lose, I urge the team to attack to try and find a way back into the match.

5 minutes or so later, Dutiro powers forwards unchallenged through our half. He gets to the edge of the box and shoots wide, but I'm worried by how easily he exploited the space in the left side of central midfield there, so we change to a 4-2-3-1, with Gogotya coming on replacing the holding man Diale and slotting in alongside Sinbad. While we’re at it, I replace the once again quiet Sullie with Saileg Richards, who’ll play on the right wing with Moon coming inside to play behind Carl Lark, who replaces Khat.

With a quarter of an hour to go, we win a free kick on the edge of the box, just right of centre. Japhta hits it over the wall towards the right hand side of goal, and although the keeper gets a glove to the ball, he can’t stop it from rippling the back of the net. We're back in the game.

As we enter the final 5 minutes, Japhta’s still trying to claw us level. He plays the ball inside for Ryan Moon 30 yards out, and the stand-in attacking midfielder runs towards goal, jinking past Miambo. He shoots towards the top right corner of the net but can't quite find it. The ball flies inches wide.

https://youtu.be/dv9h3uPcr5A

The final whistle blows, confirming our exit from the SA KO Cup at the first hurdle. If I’m being perfectly honest, it wasn’t that much of a priority for me this year. The first thing I need to do realistically is make sure Santos don’t get dragged into a relegation scrap. Still though, it’s not a great feeling. Luckily, not many fans had to share that feeling with us as we attracted a record low attendance of 3,862 people to the game.

Now then, THIS is the real quiz. 3 days after our SA KO Cup exit we face Ajax CT at home in the league. There are quite a few layers to this match, the first one being that we’re on 13 points in the league and just 1 behind the top 2, so we could actually go top with a win. Ajax CT are trailing with just 9 points so far. The second layer is that Ajax CT are our fiercest rivals due to the 2 clubs’ close proximity. The clash is known as "The Old Cape Town Derby", and I’m definitely not interested in losing my first derby.

The final and far more personal layer to this match is that letter. That ****ing letter I received whilst managing GieKSa. Cast your mind back to the rejection letter addressed to "Mr WT Franco". Straight from the desk of Ari Efstathiou, Chairman of Ajax Cape Town Football Club. I can just picture it now: After we kick Ajax’s arse on the pitch, I’ll shake the hand of the man who did get the Manager’s job, Serame Letsoaka, and then I’ll walk into the stands, straight up to Ari and I’ll say "Hey, Ari". He’ll turn to see me, regret plastered all over his face, and I’ll say "It’s Franjo." And then if I can arrange it in time, shades will just appear over my eyes and somebody will play a sick guitar sting as I walk through the ecstatic home fans, high fiving them as I go.

So that’s the plan for after the match, but what about on the pitch itself? Well, for one thing we’ll stick with the controlling variant of Project: Foxy. We’ll tweak it slightly though, going with a higher tempo and harder tackles. If this is a derby match I want to give these fans a derby match. I want it to be all action, blood and thunder. Japhta actually keeps his place ahead of Jenniker on the left as he was arguably our only player to have a good game against Wits. I also give Maloka a chance to wow me in place of Sullie, Sambou comes in for Khat, and Tlali comes in to make his first appearance of the season as Moe has sadly not found form yet.

Nearly 5 minutes after kick off, we're looking good. We're dominating these extremely early stages. And then Lebysa loops a cross into our box, over our goalkeeper Komo, and onto the bonce of Doutie, who cushions the ball into the net.

What happens next is no surprise. In fact, It's becoming choreographed. Just over 10 minutes after we concede our first, Phohlongo plays in Chideu in our box, and he rolls the ball under Komo to make it 0-2. We're capitulating and there's so much more of the match still to play. After spending only a couple of months here, I fear for the mental fragility of my squad. It seems that we can be so quick to fold if we concede in the first half.

At half time, I give the team a good old fashioned bollocking. 0-2 down against our fiercest rivals, and we've got no chance of pulling it back. We aren't even playing! 4 of the 5 shots that we've had were taken in our 5 minutes of dominance at the start! I tell them to pull their fingers out, get back down the tunnel and attack, attack, attack.

At the hour mark, they've done nothing of the sort, and my misery is almost compounded when Phohlongo squares the ball to Mdabuka on the edge of our box, and he leathers it against the bar.

I make some changes, bringing Gugu Gogotya and Sullie on for Japhta and Maloka. We change to a narrow 4-3-1-2 and I want the full backs bombing forwards on the overlap as we focus play through the centre.

With 13 minutes to go, I feel like I'm bashing my head against a brick wall. We've still offered nothing at all. Lark comes on replacing Sambou. 5 minutes later, Ajax go close again when Nyambi's played in by Losper, but Komo parries his shot behind for a corner.

The last few minutes are a bit of a blur. First, the fourth official signals for a minimum of 2 minutes of stoppage time, then those minutes pass, then Ajax win a free kick 25 yards out, and then Doutie bends the ball into the top corner of our net. We finish my first Old Cape Town Derby match having had 7 shots, 4 of which were in the first 5 minutes. I'm really, really unimpressed.

https://youtu.be/rNuq7DeEExA

I suppose we can take solace though in the fact that at 20,836, the match's attendance was actually a record high for us. I wonder if we've just broken a record for breaking both attendance records in such quick succession.

But to be honest, it's not much of a consolation. It's back to the training ground for this lot, because we've obviously got a lot of work to do.