Bitner Posted June 2, 2017 Share Posted June 2, 2017 2 hours ago, Fola said: I don't want to let any of them go mate, especially Takis Klasakis (17A)! Fingers crossed we can do well over the next few seasons and qualify for the Champions League. That may be enough to keep them. As ever, thank you for the comment- I'm very glad that you are reading and enjoying. I understand that you want to get hold of them, but as you aren't the top tier at your country, maybe some good market action could give you the necessary Edge. And i enjoy more stories of struggles, they seem more real to me... Cheers, Bitner Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheriff7 Posted June 3, 2017 Share Posted June 3, 2017 Strong league battle against Olympiakos and Aek... You couldn't sell him so cheap mate, Benfica has money they must give more... ;-) :-)) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted June 5, 2017 Author Share Posted June 5, 2017 March 2018 Only three matches this month and unfortunately, we lost our unbeaten run but still a good month overall. We started off against Iraklis and managed to come away with the win thanks to an early header from Giorgos Koutroubis. We then went to PAOK and despite dominating throughout, they hit a late goal as we pushed for a winner. Probably my fault as I should of been content with the draw but decided to push on for the win. We then survived a scare against bottom side Lamia however Marcus Berg was absolutely outstanding for us and managed 4 goals.... he hadn't scored in the previous eight. So, with 4 matches in the league to go, it looks like Olympiakos are going to win the league... again. Remember the four sides in 2/3/4/5 all compete for a Play Off come the end of the season. It will be nice to keep up our good form heading into those matches. In other news, we had the youth intake, which I will talk about later. Stefanos Evangelou and Dimitris Kourbelis both made their Greece National team debuts, which is very pleasing. Also managed to sign down the latter to a new deal. Youth Intake [2018] So in our last intake, we had two players who have more than made their mark on the first team. Takis Kladakis (17A) holds the record of being the clubs youngest ever goalscorer and was subject of a rejected bid from Portuguese giants Benfica in the last transfer window. Elton Gaci (17B) has been one of the fairytales over our season, scoring 18 goals so far and being our top goalscorer. Those two players are setting quite high standards and I have signed up 6 players from the Youth Candidates squad who I am hoping can make an impact on the squad. Goalkeepers Miltos Karasaridis (18B) Midfielders Nikos Moysiadis (18F) Andreas Alibrantis (18D) Stamatis Mastrogiannis (18C) Strikers Giannis Golias (18A) Kostas Minogiannis (18E) --- I have got high hopes for Giannis Golias (18A), the next Elton Gaci (17B)? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted June 5, 2017 Author Share Posted June 5, 2017 April 2018 Very strong end to the season as we finished April unbeaten. We managed to finish 2nd in the table which gives us a slight advantage heading into the Play Offs. We started off against Xanthi in a very exciting match. It looked as though it was going to be heading for a draw until Xanthi were awarded a penalty on 85 minutes. Thankfully for us, the penalty hit the post... we then went on to win our own penalty only moments later, which Seb Leto emphatically put away. We then fought to a strong win against Larisa thanks to a goal from captain fantastic Zeca. Levadeiakos were next up and they surprised us with a late goal after a wonder strike from the in-form Dimitris Kourbelis. Finally, we faced rivals AEK, a side who we will be playing in the Play Offs. We came away with the win to give us the mental edge thanks to goals from Elton Gaci (17B) and Seb Leto. Very excited about the Play Offs. We're on great form, I just hope we can keep it up when it matters... Play Off Schedule Like I said, we start off a point ahead of the others due to finishing second. Last year we bottled it, this year lets hope it's a different story. We beaten all these teams once this season but also lost once. It's going to be tight but I'm confident. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 You should be able to beat those teams in the play off Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted June 5, 2017 Author Share Posted June 5, 2017 May 2018 Bottled it. Well and truly bottled it. Gutted is an understatement. Roll on next season... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bitner Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 Sad may, but there are some progress to be noted Cheers, Bitner Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lordemort Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 Atleast you're getting progress! Good luck in Europe next season Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted June 6, 2017 Author Share Posted June 6, 2017 14 hours ago, Bitner said: Sad may, but there are some progress to be noted Cheers, Bitner 12 hours ago, Lordemort said: Atleast you're getting progress! Good luck in Europe next season Thanks for the comments lads. Need to look to push on now for next season. There are a lot of positives to take from last season but just gutting to miss out on the Champions League by one goal! To only finish 5 points off Olympiakos is a pleasing. More updates to come tonight. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted June 6, 2017 Author Share Posted June 6, 2017 Season Review 2017/18 Players Goalkeepers In goal we have two very strong goalkeepers to compete for the number one jersey. Odysseas Vlachodimos was my number 1 goalkeeper last season but was somewhat overtaken this season by Kostas Kotsaris. Kotsaris is probably my favourite out of the two, mainly because Odysseas Vlachodimos threw a tantrum when I turned down an offer from Dortmund for him. I'd like to keep both of them on board next season if I can. Nikos Giannakopoulos spent the season out on loan and will be moved on. Defenders Starting from the top, Takis Kladakis (17A) is a player I rate very highly. As you know, he came up through the youth side and was one of my favourite players- a player I was hoping would stay here for years. However, Benfica placed a bid for him in January, which was rejected and he wasn't happy. His contract is due to run out at the end of next season and after a lot of deliberation, I have decided that if I can get a good offer for him, then I will let him leave. Better to lose him now then next summer where I will get nothing. Ange Kean was brought in in January and is being re-trained to be a left winger. Dimitris Chatziisaias had another great season and got a call up for the Greek National side, unfortunately he is yet to get a cap. Stefanos Evangelou on the other hand did make his first appearance for Greece. He's a good young player but another player who was disappointed I didn't let them leave in January. Hopefully he will come round as he's a player I would like to keep. Giorgos Koutroubis had a great season and has been interesting a number of Italian sides- I am looking to tie him down to a long term deal. Nuno Reis was another one who had a good, solid season. Dimitris Kourbelis played mostly as a central midfielder and had an outstanding season- a player who if I can keep, I would love to build the team round. He also made his debut for Greece this season. Miltiadi Georgoulopoulos (17C) is the a major factor into why I am letting Takis Kladakis (17A) leave the club. He hasn't been given much of a chance so far but I will be giving him a major push next season. Diamantis Chouchoumis never played and will be leaving the club. Niklas Hult is a good rotation player to have on the left wing. Midfielders Zeca is my captain and had another great season. He will be eligible to take up Greek citizenship next season- hopefully he will take it and get called up to the Greece squad, like in real life. Christos Donis barely featured and will be shipped put next season. Paschalis Staikos spent the season out on loan at Brescia in Italy and didn't exactly set the world alight. Thodoros Mingos has already agreed a move away from the club to a lower league Greek side. Tasos Chatzigiovanis had another tough season. He still gets called up for the Greek under 21 side but I am just not convinced that he is good enough- big decision to make over the summer. Ainsley Maitland-Niles had a great season as our main right winger- really happy that I will have him here on loan next season too. Dimitris Pelkas was a good rotation player for us and I am looking to give him more game time next season. Christian Atsu played every game since joining us on loan from Chelsea but didn't manage a goal or an assist in 20 appearances- he'll probably be let go. Wanderson did nothing since joining in January and will be sold in the summer. Ryan Gauld had another fantastic season for us and ran the show in centre midfield. Unfortunately, Sporting Lisbon are looking to give him a shot in their first team next year so he won't be re-joining us which is a real shame. Jannes Hoffmann spent the season out on loan somewhere in Germany- not good enough. Lucas Villafanez did OK, he's a little lightweight but a good squad player. Robin Lod spent the season out on loan in Croatia with Dynamo and had a great season. With Gauld leaving, I will be giving him a shot in the first team next season. Abdul Ajagun will be let go while Javi Munoz was a huge disappointment and I am going to look to ship him out the club, whether it be on loan or transfer. Enzo Zidane's loan spell was cut short. Strikers Giannis Golias (18A) is a player I have high hopes for for next season. Jorris Romil was brought in last summer but isn't really up to scratch and will be moved on. Nicklas Bendtner came in and did a good job but his wages are quite high so I may look to move him on. Seb Leto played more of a bit part role this season but still did very well- just signed him up to a three year deal. Marcus Berg, despite not being as good as last season, still managed to bag 15 goals. His contract is up at the end of the season and he currently isn't interested in renewing so unfortunately next season could be his last at the club. Lautaro Rinaldi spent the season out on loan in Holland with Roda JC and didn't do much. Marcus Solberg did nothing in his loan spell away from the club either. Finally, the man, the myth, the legend: Elton Gaci (17B) in his first full season as a professional bagged our top goalscorer award and was one of our best players. I doubt think it'll be long before he receives a call up to the Albanian national side- I just hope we can keep hold of him. JK Augustin was sent back to PSG midway through the season. --- League Came 2nd, only 5 points behind winners Olympiakos. Happy with how the season went- just disappointed to have collapsed in the Play Offs. Cup Were knocked out by Lamia in the knockout stages. Not too bothered about this cup to be fair. Europa League Once again failed to get out of the groups. Hopefully we can do better next season. Top 3 Players 1 - Elton Gaci (17B) - What an amazing season for the young man. To do what he did this season at only 17 years old was remarkable. I have VERY high hopes for this player.2 - Dimitris Kourbelis - This lad really came into his own this season and played really well in either CDM or CM. A player who I hope can be our Captain one day- great player for this league.3 - Ryan Gauld - Great season by the Scotsman and gutted that he is leaving. Hopefully not the last time we will see him in a Panathinaikos shirt. Finances Ones To Watch For Next Season 1 - Giannis Golias (18A) - This guy is the only youngster that I am properly excited about. I just hope he can do as well Elton Gaci (17B) has done this season. Next Seasons Expectations I would be happy with another top 2 finish and a good run in the Europa League. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 Absolutely gutted Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted June 6, 2017 Author Share Posted June 6, 2017 Season Preview 2018/19 The season is about to start and I have made quite a few changes over the summer months. Due to the league moving up to the 9th best in the world, we can automatically qualified for the Europa League Group Stages which is pleasing- just hope we get given a nice group. Like last season, I will be doing a full squad overview below- like before, no youth players will be included or back up if they're in the reserve team- only first team. Quite happy with my transfer activity but gutted that new signing Andriy Bliznichenko has done his knee ligaments and has been ruled out for 9 months. I will be playing the same tactics as last season. Home [3-2-3-2] and Away [3-4-1-2]. Goalkeepers 30 - Kostas Kotaris 99 - Odysseas Vlachodimos Centre Backs 18 - Dimitris Chatziisaias 36 - Stefanos Evangelou 4 - Giorgos Koutrobis 5 - Nuno Reis 31 - Miltaidi Georgoulopoulos (17C) 26 - Cameron Humphreys CDM's 21 - Dimitris Kourbelis 10 - Zeca 22 - Jackson Irvine Centre Midfielders 6 - Nuno Valente 8 - Dimitris Pelkas 19 - Lucas Villafanez 16 - Hany Mukhtar Right Midfielders 2 - Ainsley Maitland-Niles 39 - Tasos Chatzigiovanis Left Midfielders 7 - Andriy Bliznichenko 23 - Niklas Hult 14 - Lucas Ferraz Vila Strikers 9 - Marcus Berg 11 - Seb Leto 20 - Elton Gaci (17B) 52 - Nicklas Bendtner 15 - Giannis Golias (18A) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 Good signings, such a shame one of them out for 9 months Great to see few youngsters making breakthrough into first team. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ManUtd1 Posted June 7, 2017 Share Posted June 7, 2017 Oof...catching up in here. Rough end to the season, but definite progress to be that close to Olympiakos. Good luck in Europe! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheriff7 Posted June 7, 2017 Share Posted June 7, 2017 Good luck mate always difficult to dethrone Olympiakos!!You are going to keep Berg until he is 38 year old aren't you?? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted June 8, 2017 Author Share Posted June 8, 2017 August/September 2018 Not the start I was hoping for. Lets start with the league and we started off in against Aris. They were a side who beat us in my first season in charge and I think I definitely underestimated them this time round. We were poor and couldn't hit a barn door- deserved to lose. We then beat Larisa thanks to a fantastic hat-trick by the legend that is MARCUS BERG. Battered them from start to finish. A goal from Elton Gaci (17B) then grabbed us a late draw against Iraklis. This was another match which we probably should of lost. We then got battered by Olympiakos at home- embarrassing. The gulf in class between them and us is still huge, unfortunately. In the Europa League, we had one game and did really well to be fair. Marcus Berg bagged a double and is on good form and youth prospect Giannis Golias (18A) got his first professional goal. Giannis Golias (18A) saved us against Panionios in the cup as well thanks to a last minute header. Good to see he's gelled into the squad quickly. Our Europa League group has been quite favourable to us though (famous last words). There's not really a side there that worry me. We've already been Ludogorets, this year might be the year we progress through the Group Stages?! I've definitely jinxed it now I'm sure. Need to improve in the league and fast. --- Oh yeah and I nearly forgot to mentioned I just signed up this guy: Signed him up on a two-year deal. His legs have gone but he's still quality and I'm hoping he'll be a good mentor for either Elton Gaci (17B) or Giannis Golias (18A). Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bitner Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOH ROBIN VAI PERSIE!!!!! Hope he gives your team the Edge you need to get to the UCL. Cheers, Bitner Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted June 9, 2017 Share Posted June 9, 2017 Disaster start to the season You should be able to get past the group stages Good signing in Van Persie Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ManUtd1 Posted June 10, 2017 Share Posted June 10, 2017 Great signing! Poor guy probably gets injured just looking at the pitch... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted June 12, 2017 Author Share Posted June 12, 2017 October 2018 Improvement on last month but still not good enough if we are to be successful this season. We are already 12 points behind Olympiakos which is obviously pretty terrible. We seem a shadow of ourselves from last season. We played three matches in the league this month, starting off against Ast. Tripolis and managed the win thanks to youngster Giannis Golias (18A). We then next grabbed a draw away from home against Panionios before a poor defeat at home against Panaitolikos. We played two matches in Europe, starting off with a draw against Dnipro then a fantastic win against Midtjylland thanks to a Marcus Berg wonder show. In Europa, we sit top of the group with three matches to go. In the cup we drew against Kalloni, a side in the league below. All in all, doing well in Europe but big improvement needed in the league. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted June 12, 2017 Share Posted June 12, 2017 Much better month compare to previous! Hopefully you can improve next month Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted July 16, 2017 Author Share Posted July 16, 2017 Going to get this going again! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted July 16, 2017 Author Share Posted July 16, 2017 After spending a month away from this, I have decided to freshen things up and go back to basics. We had a good few seasons here but it has become blatantly obvious that for some reason or another, these tactics are not working. Due to this, I have decided to go back to basics and I would like to introduce my tactics which I will be implementing for the rest of the season. Team instructions: Counter (defensive when playing away), more direct passing. pass into space, hit early crosses, be more disciplined, stick to positions, much higher defensive line, higher tempo, close down much more. This tactic relies on hard work and a great team ethic. When you're on bad form, you need to just go back to basics and do the simple things correct and hopefully this will be the tactic to help me do that. We are midway through November now so I will play through until the end of the December and get back to you. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted July 16, 2017 Author Share Posted July 16, 2017 November/December 2018 Much improved few months since our change of tactic from the 3-5-2 to a standard 4-4-2 formation. I have been really happy with how quickly the lads have adapted to the new formation and we are looking a solid unit all over the pitch. Obviously, there a players at the club who don't fit into this system so I will look to move them on in January. With this tactic, there isn't really any need to highly technical players, more a need for strong workhorses to hound their midfield so unfortunately, some players will be shipped out. In terms of results, it's gone really well. We managed to top of Europa League group which is very pleasing. We have been drawn against Turkish side Trabzonspor in the next round which is definitely a winnable tie. They are sitting in 6th position in the Turkish Super League. Going to be an eventful January as I look to bring in players/mould players to fit into my new 4-4-2 tactic. Really happy to get back playing this again though and hopefully we can push on and get closer to the 2nd spot. After such a poor start to the season, I am just looking at finishing in the top 4 and hopefully doing well in Europe. I will be changing the update style from previously but hope I can get back some of the readers from previously and attract some new ones too. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bitner Posted July 16, 2017 Share Posted July 16, 2017 Good to see you found a tactical solution to your team. (Although i find it more conservative than it needs to be) Cheers, Bitner Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cedrik Posted July 16, 2017 Share Posted July 16, 2017 Look likes it's going much better now, keep it up . Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fola Posted July 18, 2017 Author Share Posted July 18, 2017 January/February 2019 Wow. What a pretty terrible few months. First off, the 4-4-2 tactic which I used, I have decided that I no longer like it. I used it up until the Ast Tripolis defeat and then I decided I needed a change. The three games after that, I have tried to formulate tactics around the weakness of the opposition, meaning I have played a different tactic every game. This seems to be working *touch wood*. We dominated against Trabzonspor in the first leg but gave away a late goal. I played a much weakened side against Panionios and it proved the correct decision as we changed formation again and beat Trabzonspor in the second leg to send us into the last 16 of the Europa League. Where we face Southampton. Southampton are currently sitting in 11th place in the Premier League and I am quietly confident that if I get my tactics right on the day, we could come away with something. Despite doing well in the Europa League and currently being in the Semi Final of the Greek Cup, I am quite confident that this will be my last season as Panathinaikos manager. A team who finished 2nd last season should not be sitting in 10th position, it's just not good enough. To be honest, if I was to be sacked I wouldn't be too gutted. I have struggled in matches where I am expected to win. My tactics usually involve sitting back and hitting teams on the counter, exploiting their weaknesses but as we are pretty much favourites to win every game, I have been unable to do that. We will see what the future holds- a lot will depend on how these next few months go. --- In terms of transfers, Elton Gaci (17B) and Miltiadi Georgoulopoulos (17C) were both subjects of bids. Both were courted by Portuguese giants Porto but both bids were rejected. I managed to get them both to sign a new deal- both these 18 year olds, especially Elton Gaci (18B) are going to have very bright futures, I am sure of it. Let a few people go- most notably Bendtner and Villafanez. Both were good players but just weren't getting enough game time here. In terms of incomings, I brought in players who would fit my 4-4-2 direct strict tactic but now I have decided to drop that tactic, I am not sure where these lads fit. Youga and Obi have yet to feature at all yet while Ilsanker and Gois have made a few sub appearances. All in all, some absolutely horrendous business from me this transfer window. Maybe I do need a change. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
john1 Posted July 18, 2017 Share Posted July 18, 2017 Truly awful 2 months Will be tough match against Southampton.. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ManUtd1 Posted July 19, 2017 Share Posted July 19, 2017 Lord Bendtner to Sturm Graz for $100k, absolutely priceless. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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