noikeee Posted January 2, 2018 Share Posted January 2, 2018 Woah, so close this time around. I guess it must be gutting to come so close and lose the final, but I think you can be pretty happy with that, I look at those players you showed off from your team against the players from Monaco, and to be honest yours aren't that good by comparison, or at least not world class, so your side is really overacheiving for their level of talent. The missing piece is how to attract those megastars to Northern Ireland, but it looks like the reputations of club and league are growing, so it might become possible sooner or later. Or you might get a roll of the dice your way earlier than that, very nearly happened this season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted January 4, 2018 Author Share Posted January 4, 2018 On 1/2/2018 at 11:15, noikeee said: Woah, so close this time around. I guess it must be gutting to come so close and lose the final, but I think you can be pretty happy with that, I look at those players you showed off from your team against the players from Monaco, and to be honest yours aren't that good by comparison, or at least not world class, so your side is really overacheiving for their level of talent. The missing piece is how to attract those megastars to Northern Ireland, but it looks like the reputations of club and league are growing, so it might become possible sooner or later. Or you might get a roll of the dice your way earlier than that, very nearly happened this season. It definitely feels like we are punching well above our weight but the gap is shrinking and because I've been signing only high potential young players it feels like time is on our side where as teams like Monaco are aging and look ready to decline. To my surprise, we managed to make our way to the Champions League final again for season 2035/2036 so we get another crack at it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted January 4, 2018 Author Share Posted January 4, 2018 Season 2035 / 2036 ROUTE TO THE FINAL Atletico Madrid have been playing really well during this Champions League campaign and rightfully deserve their place in the final. It's the 5th Champions League final they have made in their history. They have yet to chalk up any victories so will be looking to change that record on home territory with the final being staged at the Nou Camp. They have established themselves as regular challengers for La Liga, last season they won the title with the team finishing 4 points ahead of city rivals Real Madrid. They entered the group stage as all Spanish clubs do and were drawn into Group A. Joining them in Group A were Chelsea, Olympiakos and FC Basel where they managed the following results. They were almost perfect in the group stage conceding only twice in 6 games. They managed to top the group which finished as follows: Thanks to the 2-0 home victory against Chelsea they pipped them to 1st on the head to head record, in the next round they faced Italian giants Inter. They went to Italy and lost and would have been disappointed with the performance but emphatically corrected it with a 4-0 thumping at home leaving their opponents stunned and progressing to the quarter finals. Strangely, they drew the other side of Milan in the quarter final and completed the humiliation of the Milanese teams with another 4-0 win at home and managed a more respectable draw in the San Siro. Seemingly flying their way through the competition up to this point, the last obstacle was the mighty Barcelona in the semi finals. It was a close run thing in the end but a 3-0 win in the first leg all but booked their place in the final. They will go into the Champions League final as strong favourites after notching up some fantastic results during the campaign. They will be depending on key players such as their Brazilian pair of superstars, striker Kaue and majestic midfielder Andre Luis to see them through. They will be determined not to let this opportunity go to waste as no doubt this is the easiest opponent they have yet faced in the final. If they put in a performance it should be a comfortable victory for them. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted January 4, 2018 Author Share Posted January 4, 2018 Season 2035 / 2036 ROUTE TO THE FINAL After last seasons heroics in reaching the final, the Northern Irish minnows find themselves in a 2nd final in 2 years. They have had another miraculous run beating some impressive and more reputable teams along the way. They have no domestic competition which enables them to focus on Europe and it is perhaps that ability to rest players for the Champions League games which has allowed them to travel so deep into the competition. They entered at the group stage once again and were drawn into Group E. Drawn into Group E with them were the surprise top seeds Galatasaray, Koln and Olympique de Marseille where they managed the following results. Qualification was looking unlikely after 3 games with them sitting in 3rd and adrift of 2nd placed Koln but a perfect record in the final 3 games propelled them to 2nd. The group table finished as follows: There were some impressive victories in there but it wasn't enough to catch Marseille, in the next round they would face shock winners of Group C, Schalke 04. This was a relatively easy tie for them as they managed an impressive 5-2 aggregate win. In the quarter finals, they were drawn to face group competitors Marseille. A magnificent and entertaining first leg with both teams going at each other but ultimately they couldn't be separated. On home ground, the result was far more comfortable and once again Dollingstown scored 5 goals in a knockout tie. The final hurdle they drew was 3 times Serie A champions Juventus. After the 2-1 loss in Turin, it looked like the end of their journey but the away goal gave them hope and a narrow 1-0 win at home gave them the victory on the away goals rule. They will go into the Champions League final as the underdog in what looks a harder game than last season. In order to stand any chance they will need all the players to play at the very peak of their ability but especially record signing central defender Dennis Lems and top striker Richard Glover. They face a monumental task but in one off games anything can happen, will this be the year of the underdog? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted January 4, 2018 Author Share Posted January 4, 2018 Season 2035 / 2036 THE FINAL The superb looking Nou Camp is slowly filling up and the atmosphere of excitement is at a fever pitch. Will the match live up to the fantastic venue? Our squad Their squad I'm actually looking forward to this, unlike last season. The players have great morale, are fit and raring to go so I'm sensing we can at least make more of a game of this than last season even if we ultimately end up losing. Last time we had issues going into the final where as this time Atletico Madrid seem to have a couple of issues going into the game. Their star striker Kaue who happens to be their top scorer is still suffering from a knock and their top provider of assists is out of the final entirely. Final Here's how the two teams lined up: Diego Simeone is still there so we will face a straight up battle of the 4-4-2's. My hope is that Kaue's injury severely handicaps their attacking potency and that we can take advantage. If we can leave that pitch at the end having given it our all I'll be happy. Result Na, Na, Na, Na, Na, Na, Hey, Hey, Hey, CHAMPIONS!!! What a final that was!!...Utter and complete ecstasy to lift the trophy. The resolve we showed to turn around what looked an impossible task was sensational. When they scored two goals within 5 minutes to put us 2-0 down after 71 minutes I was feeling mighty down in the dumps as they were dominating the play and it looked like a case of damage limitation for us. We had held out for so long and I felt that the two goals had completely demoralized us and broken our spirit. The first goal they scored came from an uncontested cross from the left flank that was tapped into the roof of the net at the near post by our former club favourite Rajkovic which was like a dagger through our hearts. The second goal we conceded was even worse for us defensively. They were awarded a deep free kick centrally which they played out to the left flank again to an unmarked winger who played in a low cross with 3 completely unmarked players in the centre of our penalty box. The ball landed at the feet of Pelayo and he slotted the ball into the net. A complete shambles and at that point I was severely disappointed to be losing to such sloppy defending. To my pleasant surprise though we found something, I knew that in order to have any chance we needed to get back a goal quickly and we did which reignited our challenge. A deep and wide free kick from the left flank was whipped in by Galasso which was met with a stunning header into the top right-hand corner by central defender Kron. That meant it was game on with just over 15 minutes to get the equalizer. Then came the moment which Andre Luis (who incidentally I highlighted as one of their key players) will have nightmares about for the rest of his life. He played an absolute shocker of a back pass to his goalkeeper from 20 yards out from his goal. It was never going to make it and sensing the opportunity substitute De Gori nipped in and blasted the ball into the right-hand corner. How quickly my mood changed from despair to elation as now we have the momentum all behind us. They are the ones which are looking tired and nervous and then we deliver the killer blow. Piggott receives the ball around 40 yards from their goal in the half space on the right-hand side. He then does something which he wasn't doing throughout the game and delivers a peach of a ball over the top for the fresh De Gori to chase. Pelayo who is now really tired can't keep up with him and he is in behind. De Gori then crosses a lofted ball into the centre of the box as he sees Scannicchio flying in between the two defenders. Neither of the defenders can intercept and he bullets the header past the goalkeeper. All we need to do now is hold and given how hard we've worked to get into the position I lock it down and go Very Fluid and contain to ensure everybody comes back. It works!!...They don't get another chance and we lift the trophy. Absolutely brilliant. EUROPEAN SEASON REVIEW I didn't expect to even get to the final so to win the whole thing just blows me away. What an incredible season and what an end to it. This will be the last of the in-depth analysis reports. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted January 4, 2018 Author Share Posted January 4, 2018 Dollingstown F.C. Season 2035 / 2036 Season Expectations After last seasons unbelievable run to the Champions League final, anything close to that would be a great result. League Table - We suffered our first loss in a long time as I rested players against Cliftonville in preparation for the Champions League semi final. No 3rd entrant into the Europa League again . UEFA Champions League - The stuff dreams are made of, our first of what I'm hoping is many wins. Domestic Cups - Poor Hanover, I tried to throw the Irish Cup final by playing my youth and reserves but they still managed to win on penalties. I'm a bit torn on what to do about the Europa League qualification bug. If I throw the Irish Cup completely I deprive other teams of gate receipt money and lose out on a trophy I can easily win but if I win it I deprive the country of its 3rd Europa League spot, what a terrible situation to be in. Reserves - Stop the presses, they finally lost a game!!...Won all the others though. Under 18s - If this was a youth only save I'd be in serious trouble if their performances in Europe are anything to go by. Squad – In terms of ability, we are far away from the elite clubs in Europe and needed a perfect combination of events against Atletico Madrid to give us a chance against them. We have however got a good young core of players which are improving which should help us to continue closing the gap. There is still plenty of room to improve though, we could do with strengthening the flanks and getting in a world class striker. If we can do that then I see no reason why we can't be challenging for the Champions League on a regular basis. We will need to find another class central defender however as Kron had his release clause of £40M activated by PSG. Transfers – Only one screenshot this time as the most significant signings are contained within it. Astonishingly we still made a great profit as we attracted some very large fees for our players. The signing of the season without a doubt is Lems DC from Ajax who is truly world class even at the age of 21. If I can keep adding that caliber of young player to the squad we will be in great shape. Ptacek MC was also a revelation and for that price an absolute bargain. Player Of The Season Vladyslav Kamenyuka – MR - Average Rating: 8.20 The biggest compliment I can pay to him is that while he was signed to be the backup for Guzman, he played more games than Guzman and provided more assists than anyone else. The Ukrainian is a real class act. Young Player Of The Season (U21) Darren Dempster – ST - Average Rating: 7.88 I gave him an opportunity and he never let me down. He is in the team because he helps us to meet the HG requirements but he has developed well enough to get the occasional run out in Europe. If I'm being honest he's never going to become world class but can have a decent career and I'll be interested to see how he gets on with N. Ireland at Euro 2036. Finances – If last seasons balance was comfortable this seasons balance is ridiculous. At one point in the season, the balance was over £130M which is really stupid when you think about it. What's the point of having all of that money lying in the bank when the clubs infrastructure is at its maximum level? Aside from the interest which is actually pretty nice, I'm better off investing in the playing squad which is what I'll be doing next season. Facilities – We didn't really fill the stadium on a regular basis but the board has decided that it's time to move on from Planters Park and are in the process of finding suitable locations for a new stadium (which shouldn't be too hard given that the current ground is surrounded by countryside). I'm not too thrilled by the starting capacity proposed as that is still smaller than Windsor Park but hopefully, if we can push our reputation to 5* they might be a little bit more ambitious. Youth Intake – There is some decent talent in there with Kirkwood ST & Jackson DR looking promising. I decided this time to sign the lot and give them all a chance as whilst they are no good for us even the worst should be able to forge a career at another N. Irish club. League Reputation – The fall was inevitable and was no doubt assisted by only having 1 team in the Europa League group stages and having only 2 Europa league entrants. Club Domestic Reputation – We are now known around the world with our 4.5* reputation which I'm hoping can be pushed up to 5* with a victory in the World Club Cup. Even though a number of the clubs in N. Ireland now have 'Secure' finances many teams seem reluctant to turn professional after the early rush which saw another 4 teams turn pro. The top 5 in N. Ireland are miles ahead of the rest and the gap is getting larger and larger. Club European Reputation – Even after two brilliant seasons in Europe we are still miles off the summit. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
noikeee Posted January 5, 2018 Share Posted January 5, 2018 Holy ****, that was an awesome way to win the first Champions League! Congratulations! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted January 5, 2018 Author Share Posted January 5, 2018 12 hours ago, noikeee said: Holy ****, that was an awesome way to win the first Champions League! Congratulations! Thanks @noikeee, I really wasn't expecting it and after we went 2-0 down I thought we were just having a repeat of last season against Monaco but the players didn't give up and here we are European champions.... I think the squad personality really helped, having a lot of determined players allowed us to dig ourselves out of difficult situations at numerous points in the campaign which made the difference I feel. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted January 17, 2018 Author Share Posted January 17, 2018 Dollingstown F.C. Season 2036 / 2037 Season Expectations I really would like to retain the Champions League and break new ground by winning the UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup at the first attempt. League Table - Another unbeaten season that was made special by the fact we only conceded 6 goals. It is also nice to see that next year we will get our full contingent of N. Irish teams competing in Europe. UEFA Champions League - We managed to retain our title and in some style too as we nearly went through the campaign unbeaten. The team performed brilliantly in the final which I take as a positive sign of progress given how much difficulty we had last season against the same opposition. FIFA Club World Cup - Our jaunt off to India proved to be a fruitful one as we became world champions without any major problems. Winning the trophy didn't give us a 5* reputation as I expected as we had to wait until we lifted the Champions League trophy again to achieve that. UEFA Super Cup - The lack of quality penalty takers really cost us here, at least the team gets another chance to win it next season. Domestic Cups - I decided to throw the Irish Cup final by playing my youth team so that we could get our rightful 3rd Europa League place. We lost the Livingston game because of international games which left the squad threadbare, we didn't embarrass ourselves though. I'm seriously considering throwing the Mid Ulster Cup final too as the prize money for that competition has become rather decent at ~£500K, for us it is not a significant sum but for a team like Portadown or Glenavon, it would be a great help for them on their way to professional status. Reserves - Another perfect season which again indicates to me that the players in the squad are too strong to be playing at that level. The backup players would be far better served playing at other N. Irish clubs and getting a competitive level of football. Under 18s - A lot better in Europe than in previous times and perhaps signing the entire youth intake helps as it allows players to rest. Squad – I was determined to improve the quality of the squad and I felt I achieved that which is proven by the performances in Europe. I'm going to need to get in another quality RM but outside of that, there isn't a lot more improvement that can be made without it costing more than the club can afford. Transfers – I decided to bring Craig ST back to the club as he was just wasting away at Arsenal with the constant loaning out and lack of regular football. He cost an absolute fortune but he provides another HG option for us and will get regular games which should help his development. The signings I was most pleased about were Hopkin DC who is a consistent and big game player, Silvestre DC who is in the same mold as Hopkin, Ilic DL who is a quality left back and Aldrovandi MR/ML who provides great cover and whose relationship with AC Milan had turned sour because of a lack of playing time. I decided to sell the players (apart from Arendt, Parker & Kalman) as they wanted to try at a higher level which I understand so cashed in for them. The club made a significant loss in the transfer market this time but the money we gained from winning the trophies we did more than covered it, additionally, a number of transfer clauses were sold which also shrank the deficit. Player Of The Season Richard Glover – ST - Average Rating: 8.23 The media describes the England international as an elite striker and I agree wholeheartedly with that assessment. I was gutted for him that he had to miss the Champions League final through injury but his contribution this season has been exceptional. Now that he is entering the peak years of his career I can't wait to see what he has to offer going forward. Young Player Of The Season (U21) Martin Ptacek – MC - Average Rating: 7.78 He is potentially a great player which I hope hasn't peaked as my coaches believe. The reason why I'm concerned is that whilst he has some great attributes in some areas he is also rather lacking in others which I feel are needed to truly become an elite central midfielder playing in a 4-4-2. His off the ball and positioning concern me for a player that I need to be an all-rounder in the central midfielder (support) role. He's also not very combative which means he wouldn't be very good in the central midfield (defend) role either, hopefully, he still has some room to grow. Finances – As you can see the finances have taken a rather sharp dip but not enough for us not to be considered rich. The wage bill has been creeping up with the renewal of contracts but I'm happy enough with that as it gives us confidence that should we need to sell players that we can get a good price. Our non-champions league related revenue has also been increasing which is a positive sign and we are selling out games regularly for the first time. Once again we will be falling afoul of the dreaded release clauses but I'm confident we will be able to replace players if necessary. I'd like to build up a nice balance for the new stadium also as I don't really want a massive debt over the club which would lead to massive cutbacks. Facilities – The training facilities will be getting maxed out after downgrading again. There has been no news on the new stadium, I'm hoping that next season the planning permission gets approved and we can start building. I'm hoping that now we have a Worldwide reputation that they might be more ambitious with the build and at least start with a capacity which is larger than any other in N. Ireland. Youth Intake – I signed them all, I'd be very surprised if any of them have what it takes to forge a career here but given the right environment perhaps they might thrive. League Reputation – It was nice to see us moving up again which was helped by two factors. Cliftonville and their appearance in the Europa League and Ballymena United who became the 2nd team from N. Ireland to qualify for the Champions League group stage (helped no doubt by the loans I made to them). Better still they won a game against PSV in the group and might have nicked third. I'm hoping that run will change them forever like it did for us and hopefully make it easier for them to qualify in future. Club Domestic Reputation – I was a disappointed to see Crusaders get relegated and Limavady United stay up. I want to see the top flight become totally professional so that the teams can begin to close the gap and start attracting better players into the league. Club European Reputation – We're still some way off the summit be we are climbing steadily. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
noikeee Posted January 19, 2018 Share Posted January 19, 2018 Pretty impressed that you managed to retain the Champions League and comfortably so, I'd have thought it'd take you a few years still to win back-to-back CLs. It's really only the UEFA Supercup missing now, right? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted January 29, 2018 Author Share Posted January 29, 2018 On 1/19/2018 at 10:05, noikeee said: Pretty impressed that you managed to retain the Champions League and comfortably so, I'd have thought it'd take you a few years still to win back-to-back CLs. It's really only the UEFA Supercup missing now, right? That's right, the only missing trophy is the UEFA Super Cup which I always seem to struggle with for some reason. I didn't really expect to retain the Champions League either but I'm glad that I did. I'm not sure the team is quite good enough to dominate year after year but there are some encouraging signs. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted January 29, 2018 Author Share Posted January 29, 2018 Dollingstown F.C. Season 2037 / 2038 Season Expectations Get a hat-trick of Champions League wins under our belt and retain our status as world champions. League Table - The perfect season was on until Ballymena United came to Planters Park and we drew a blank. The lack of competitiveness within the DBP is staggering. UEFA Champions League - The group stage was brilliant and the knockout stages were going pretty well too until the nightmare in Turin which we couldn't recover from. FIFA Club World Cup - A straightforward win down under. UEFA Super Cup - The last empty space in the trophy cabinet looked to be getting filled when we were 2-0 up after 60 minutes but then we threw it all away. Domestic Cups - I once again played a mixture of youth and reserves in the Irish Cup final. Reserves - Another perfect season. Under 18s - I felt truly sorry for them, they did magnificently to get to the final of the UEFA Youth League only to then get smashed. Squad – I think the balance is becoming a little bit too old and the team is beginning to get characteristics within it which I don't like. The majority of the younger developing players are all getting the inconsistency trait which I'm slightly perplexed about considering our form on the pitch and the players' season-long average ratings. I don't understand what influences this and how I'd go about improving it. I'm also not very happy with the number of players in the squad which dislike big matches. Next season could see a lot of transfer activity as I look to address the issues in the squad. Transfers – I made a great profit but I feel I'm drifting away from the transfer policy which has served the club so well. Even though Lemaire MC is a quality player I shouldn't be spending that sort of money on any player especially given our facilities and ability to develop players. Player Of The Season Marco Scannicchio – ST - Average Rating: 8.09 A consistent player who doesn't enjoy big matches. I think he pretty much embodies the problem with the squad at the moment. I don't need a player of his ability to win games domestically and where I do need him in Europe he isn't going to perform. Even though he did well and scored a lot of goals he is also on a large wage and has interest from Barcelona so he may be one of the players that leave. Young Player Of The Season (U21) Jose Javier Blanco – MR - Average Rating: 8.63 The new arrival had a very productive first season but is considered by my coaches to need to work on his consistency if he is to develop further. This I don't understand, he averaged an 8.28 in the 13 games he played in Europe, an 8.86 in the 13 league games he played and an 8.88 in the 8 cup games he played. His average rating of his entire career is 7.17. If that is not consistent then what is? Finances – The club was never in any danger of failing the FFP so I don't understand why the red bar is showing. Facilities – I have no clue what is going on with the new stadium but we desperately need the council to play ball here and grant planning permission. I'm trying to build a footballing superpower here, a little co-operation would be nice, I wonder who I have to bribe 🤔. Youth Intake – What a load of absolute rubbish. League Reputation – We held onto our spot which is fine, Ballymena United also became the second club to make the knockout stages of a UEFA competition as they progressed in 2nd from their Europa League group, they got resoundingly beaten by AS Roma in the 1st knockout round but progress none the less. Club Domestic Reputation – Crusaders are coming back to the DBP which is nice to see. We seem to have hit a wall with regards to other N. Irish teams turning professional. Club European Reputation – We've made it to the top of the tree which is very pleasing although I can see our place at the summit being very brief unless we win the Champions League next season. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted February 1, 2018 Author Share Posted February 1, 2018 Dollingstown F.C. Season 2038 / 2039 Season Expectations After last seasons disappointment in the Champions League, the aim has to be to reclaim the trophy. League Table - We lost our first games in a while but was still a very comfortable win overall. It was a bit disappointing to see Crusaders go right back down. UEFA Champions League - I really enjoyed this campaign as we scored for fun in the group stage. It was especially pleasing to get revenge against Juventus with us winning thanks to a 25-yard belter which was named goal of the tournament. We perhaps benefitted from a tired PSG side in the final as they played the French Cup final only 2 days prior but we certainly deserved to lift the trophy given our performances during the season. Domestic Cups - For the first time in the career we didn't win the Mid Ulster Cup as I played a weakened side. I also played a weakened side in the Irish Cup final but we still managed the win which unfortunately means the loss of the nations 3rd Europa League spot. Reserves - All too easy for the backup team although a draw ruined another perfect season. Under 18s - What a contrast when compared to last seasons run to the UEFA Youth League final. Squad – I'm fairly satisfied with the team and the development of some of the players such as Brinks DC & Kirkwood ST has been impressive. I have tagged players which I'm happy to let leave the club with an L so there is still a lot of work to do in a number of positions. I need to find a consistent, big game player who is defensively minded to fill the Central Midfield (Defend) role, another top class Wide Midfielder (Support) on the left and a pair of offensively minded fullbacks. If I can manage that then I feel we'll have a squad capable of dominating in Europe for quite some time. Transfers – The transfer dealings I feel were a successful first step in shaping the squad in the way it needs to be. The club didn't make as much money from the outgoing transfers as I would have liked and we made a big loss on Lems DC but we didn't miss the players and the signings that were made all proved to be quality additions. Player Of The Season Jose Javier Blanco – MR - Average Rating: 8.62 A brilliant player who was named the best midfielder in the Champions League and also made it into the Dream Team. He has had interest from some pretty large clubs but will only be leaving for a king's ransom as far as I'm concerned. We don't need to sell and replacing a player of his quality could prove difficult, having said that if a team came in with an offer of say £70M I might be willing to negotiate. Young Player Of The Season (U21) Barry Kirkwood – ST - Average Rating: 8.08 I am delighted with the way he has developed and he has become a dependable domestic striker for the club. I don't think he'll quite manage to reach the ability of Craig but he still has a lot of room to grow and if he can keep up the level of consistency next season he might just displace De Gori as the 4th choice striker at the club. Finances – A very good year for the clubs finances with not only the board deciding to pump in ~£20M into the balance but we also managed to sign a lucrative sponsorship deal worth ~£30M. As we had such a comfortable balance we were able to pay for the new stadium without taking on any debt which is very helpful. Facilities – It has arrived!!...The new stadium is here and whilst it has a starting point that is smaller than Windsor Park I'm hoping that it has massive room for growth with expansions. If the potential expansion capacity is between 40000-50000 I'll be satisfied as that would allow us to start helping out other N. Irish teams more with gate receipts in the domestic cups and should help develop the domestic game better. I'm also happy that we will no longer have to ground share at Windsor Park after next season which means proper home games in Europe for the first time ever. Youth Intake – The first intake in a while which looks to have some decent players. Doherty ST and Marron MC look really good and since the day of the intake, Doherty ST has actually had an upgrade with my coaches now thinking he could be a 5* player with development which is very pleasing. They all got signed and I'm trying to improve the coaching provided to my youth players as there has been a number of complaints and I really don't want to stifle the development of the players especially Doherty who looks like a future N. Irish international striker. If that would come to pass then the future of the N. Irish national team is looking rosy in the striker department. I think current national team manager Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink will be pleased, League Reputation – On the rise even after a relatively poor season for the other N. Irish clubs. The coefficient table shows that in season 2040/2041 the nation will overtake Scotland and gain a third Champions League place which will be fantastic and an outcome I don't think I've ever had. This really could be the making of the domestic game in the country as I've seen how an influx of money has helped a team like Ballymena United who only narrowly missed out on making the Europa League knockout stages on goal difference this season. If we can maintain having a second automatic group stage spot in the Champions League that is going to be revolutionary in developing the league. In my previous careers in N. Ireland, the biggest stumbling block has always been money which largely meant that whilst my team would be wealthy the other teams would lag behind dramatically and struggle to be competitive in Europe. As a result, it became a vicious circle with them, lack of money meant lack of investment, lack of investment meant lack of improvement, lack of improvement lead to an inability to compete in Europe, the inability to compete in Europe lead to lack of money and so on. If we can guarantee another N. Irish team at least £11M every season with the chance of a third team making it to the group stage and making the same then this really could make for a golden age of domestic N. Irish football. Even if the 3rd team fails to make the Champions League group stage, having 2 N. Irish teams in the Champions League group stage and 2 teams in the Europa League group stage is going to do wonders for the finances of the clubs that finish in the top 4. Exciting times ahead for sure. Club Domestic Reputation – Times are changing here in N. Ireland, if a team is going to break from the rest (the likes of Portadown, Glenavon, Coleraine) and join the top 5 clubs the time has to be now as once that money starts flowing into the clubs near the top I can see the gap becoming insurmountable. Club European Reputation – We stay top and have a nice cushion ahead of 2nd. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
noikeee Posted February 5, 2018 Share Posted February 5, 2018 On 01/02/2018 at 20:42, pheelf said: League Reputation – On the rise even after a relatively poor season for the other N. Irish clubs. The coefficient table shows that in season 2040/2041 the nation will overtake Scotland and gain a third Champions League place which will be fantastic and an outcome I don't think I've ever had. What really catches my eye is... Scotland! How did they get that high up? Certainly been building up the league over the last couple of decades, but they don't have a human manager like you, so how come? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted February 8, 2018 Author Share Posted February 8, 2018 On 2/5/2018 at 10:13, noikeee said: What really catches my eye is... Scotland! How did they get that high up? Certainly been building up the league over the last couple of decades, but they don't have a human manager like you, so how come? It's quite odd as the furthest any Scottish team has gone in European competition is Celtic who has twice reached the quarter-final of the Champions League. There has also been only one tycoon takeover and that was for Dundee United but he left nearly a decade ago so the improvement hasn't been a result of a massive investment of money into the league. There have been movements done off the field however which have improved the clubs revenues making them more competitive in Europe. Celtic have expanded their stadium to a 75,000 capacity in 2039. Aberdeen moved into a 38,900 capacity stadium in 2039. Partick Thistle has expanded their stadium to a 12,627 capacity in 2038. Ross County moved into a new 16,800 capacity stadium in 2034, Falkirk will move into a 17,901 capacity stadium in 2042, Finally, Dundee is in the process of getting planning permission for a new 21,120 capacity stadium. I don't feel that the Scottish teams have done exceptionally well in Europe but Celtic have gone about their business gradually improving the coefficient year after year until the league has reached a point that other clubs within the league regularly get a massive influx of money. If there is money then clubs can invest to make even more money which makes them more competitive in Europe and more capable of sustaining the level of growth. Even though the SPL has been only slightly better than the DBP in reputation for a while the financial gap between the two leagues is still massive. For e.g. the team that finishes 12th in the SPL gets around £1.7M in prize money whereas the winner of the DBP still only gets around £1M. I don't think that will ever be addressed as N. Ireland doesn't even have a TV deal with only the domestic cup finals being televised except the Mid Ulster Cup which is odd as you get £599K in prize money for winning that cup and only £392K for winning the Irish Cup. My hope is that now we have a 3rd Champions League place that the teams in the DBP might start to emulate what has happened to the Scottish domestic game. In order to make it sustainable and ensure the nation holds onto its 3rd Champions League spot for as long as possible, we're going to need to see a rapid and massive improvement in the infrastructure of the clubs as we're still miles behind. There have been some promising signs of late with the majority of teams in the DBP now operating at professional status but there is still a long way to go. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted February 8, 2018 Author Share Posted February 8, 2018 Dollingstown F.C. Season 2039 / 2040 Season Expectations Win the Champions League and continue to build up the nations coefficient. League Table - The competition is definitely getting harder as it took a bit longer to put Ballymena United away but still comfortable. UEFA Champions League - This was a really topsy-turvy campaign in which we finished 2nd in our group but we showed great fight and determination to retain our title. FIFA Club World Cup - I don't know who thought it was a good idea to host a mid-December tournament in Canada but that's what happened. The weather conditions were atrocious with the semi-final taking place in blizzard-like conditions. It was a shame as it ruined the quality of football played at the tournament with us only getting through to the final thanks to a header from a corner. The conditions improved a bit for the final which enabled us to put on a show and lift the trophy against a tired CF America who had to win through 2 rounds to get to the final with their semi-final being an energy-sapping 3-2 win after extra time against Santos. UEFA Super Cup - There it is!!...the final piece of silverware to complete the set. It was a fairly tepid affair if I'm being honest but all that matters is winning. Domestic Cups - The two finals that I played weakened teams in are the two finals we lost but at least the nation gets its 3rd qualification spot. Reserves - Perfect Under 18s - A very inconsistent season in Europe probably not helped with their ranks being weakened with loans. Squad – There has been a massive increase in the number of young wonderkids within the squad as there are now 6 in the first team which is a positive improvement when looking at the future. I am however concerned that I may have pushed the balance of the squad too far in that direction and that it has become somewhat bloated in size. After all, there is no point in having loads of high potential players if they aren't getting enough game time to develop to their potential. The oversized squad also had ramifications on team cohesion as during the season I was getting constant requests from players asking for first team football. Initially, I just asked a team leader to talk to them and that sufficed but after a while, that wasn't cutting it so I will need to trim the squad down. 2 players for each position is more than enough, the striker position as it stands has 6 players competing for 2 spots which is way too much, quality over quantity has to be the way forward. Transfers – Wonderkids don't come cheap and that was shown here with the massive amount spent on players. We still managed to turn a slight profit but even still this was a crazy pair of transfer windows. Bringing Dempster ST back was a mistake but he was beginning to stagnate at Arsenal and wasn't playing which had negative connotations for the N. Irish national team so I felt I had to try and do something to rescue his career after he was transfer listed. I can see De Gori ST and Dempster ST leaving next season as the former wants a new challenge and latter is too inconsistent even though he is a HG option. Player Of The Season Richard Glover – ST - Average Rating: 8.25 For the first time, I can proudly present a player that has become the Ballon d'Or winner. He had a truly magnificent season but even he is complaining about a lack of appearances in the league so I will need to make adjustments to the squad to make him happier as he is a player I don't want to lose. Young Player Of The Season (U21) Aleksandar Nikolic – ST - Average Rating: 8.08 A magnificent player who is really coming into his own, he is our 2nd highest paid player who is considered to be the best at the club so Barcelona can scout as much as they like unless they offer me in excess of £100M he isn't going anywhere. Finances – The balance was a bit of rollercoaster this season with it reaching as low as the £20M mark at one point but it was bolstered by a sponsorship deal of £39.5M and the selling off of some transfer clauses for ~£10M. Facilities – One more season and we can start hosting games in Europe. I'm hoping that the success we've been having of late pushes up the potential expansion capacity because if we get stuck below 30,000 for 25 years that is really going to hamper our money making ability. Both the youth and training facilities downgraded so money was invested to max those out again. Youth Intake – This was quite poor although for the first time we got a player from our youth affiliate in Argentina. The club this season also signed a youth affiliation with Braga with the optimistic hope that we can find the next Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi as unlikely as that is. League Reputation – The only thing left now is to break into the top 5 but that gap is huge and will require a monumental improvement from the other N. Irish clubs. We should take inspiration from the Scottish teams in that it shows that progress is possible from the AI teams with money but as the teams are coming from such a low base it's going to be much more difficult. For now, I just need to focus on winning as many games in Europe as I can in order to keep the coefficient ticking over and maintaining our place. The longer the nation can hold this position the more quickly the other teams should be able to catch up and the more likely it becomes that we can sustain the position. Club Domestic Reputation – To my surprise both Glenavon and Newington decided to become professional clubs at the start of the season bringing the total up to 7. I'll be interested to see if the league attendances improve at all as currently, we are miles ahead of Linfield who have an average league attendance of 5,188. The highest average capacity fills among the other professional clubs being Ballymena United with 70%. I'd have much preferred Linfield to be where Ballymena United are as I feel they could improve a lot more quickly given they have a far better infrastructure behind them. Even after all of Ballymena United's success in reaching the 1st Knockout Round of the Europa League they still have a significantly smaller fan base than Linfield, Glentoran & Cliftonville which says a lot. Club European Reputation – We have to keep it up for as long as possible. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted February 10, 2018 Author Share Posted February 10, 2018 LEAVING PLANTERS PARK Built for the 2003/2004 season and initially just consisting of a football pitch on farmland, Planters Park has been the home of Dollingstown for 37 years and has seen the club develop from an Amateur team plying their trade in the Mid Ulster Intermediate League to multiple time World Champions. To give some sense of the massive transformation that the stadium has undergone above are photographs of the stadium before any expansion took place. Here are some shots from the final game showing the fully expanded stadium in all its glory with a 10,000 capacity sellout against Linfield that brought back some of the club legends such as Jacob Bruun Larsen and Miguel Angel Gudiel to give it a fitting send off. The Main Grandstand The Facing Grandstand The Away End The Miguel Angel Gudiel Stand dedicated to the club legend who managed the incredible feat of scoring 71 goals in season 2028/2029. The final whistle which brings an end to football at Planters Park, the fans will be hoping that their new home brings as much success and can retain the great atmosphere of the old ground. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted February 10, 2018 Author Share Posted February 10, 2018 MOVING TO SINCLAIR ARENA It has taken 5 years to get to this stage but finally, the builders are gone and the keys have been handed over to the new stadium. Dollingstown will be hoping that the stadium has a lot of room for expansion to match their ambition of creating a stable and sustainable club. The stadium starts with a capacity which is still smaller than Windsor Park but the first expansion has already been granted which should take the capacity to around 21,000. The potential expansion capacity is a little bit limiting at 33,500 and it feels like the club will be able to expand to that size in a relatively short period of time. It also means that Glentoran and their 42,000 record attendance won't be broken at the new ground. The first competitive game at the new stadium will be against minnows Ballinamallard United with what looks like being a record attendance for the DBP. A semi-panoramic view of the new stadium. A lot of the character of the old ground seems to have been lost with a more uniform look reminiscent of a Leicester City or Southampton type stadium design. The Main Grandstand which doesn't appear to have any way for people to take their seats in the upper tier but there it is. A closer look at the away corner although this may become the away end when we have teams come to the stadium who have a bigger following. An eagle eye view of the new stadium. As expected the club sets a new benchmark for an attendance in the DBP although this will be broken again during the season when a team with a bigger support comes to the stadium. It is the start of a new era at Dollingstown filled with optimism for the future. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted February 11, 2018 Author Share Posted February 11, 2018 Dollingstown F.C. Season 2040 / 2041 Season Expectations Leave Planters Park in style and retain the Champions League. League Table - We came so close to the perfect season but it wasn't meant to be. As a consolation, the club broke the record for points scored in a season and wins in a season. UEFA Champions League - After a poor start we managed to finish 2nd in the group and hit our stride in the knockout rounds with the final being especially imperious. FIFA Club World Cup - Off to Canada again to play in even colder sub-zero conditions. UEFA Super Cup - I don't feel we were adequately prepared for the game so the loss wasn't unexpected. Domestic Cups - The less said about the Irish Cup final the better. Reserves - After 5 seasons, the unbeaten run has finally come to an end. Under 18s - After such an impressive group stage in the UEFA Youth League, the result against Bremen was rather disappointing. Squad – The squad is really starting to take shape with the wonderkids developing into world-class players. If we can keep the core of this squad together it could be dominant for some time although the chances of that happening are unlikely given the sheer amount of interest some of the players are attracting. Transfers – Unlike previous seasons, a somewhat quieter pair of transfer windows. I perhaps overpaid for McMahon ML but I needed another left midfielder after Aldrovandi suffered a serious injury and missed the knockout stages of the Champions League. I'd expect less incoming transfers next season as there are some younger HG players who I'd like to give some game time and will only really move into the market for replacements if needed. I decided to keep Dempster ST in the end as he gives us an extra HG option which I needed in order to select all the players I wanted for Champions League registration. He is also pretty decent domestically although there are a couple of high potential HG N. Irish strikers waiting to take his place. Player Of The Season Jose Javier Blanco – MR - Average Rating: 8.16 In terms of personal awards. he pretty much cleaned up. Most importantly of all, he won the Ballon d'Or making him the 2nd Dollingstown player in consecutive years to claim the prize. Young Player Of The Season (U21) Kingsley Adesina – ML - Average Rating: 8.04 He slotted into the squad well and performed admirably in his first season at the club. If he can continue to develop he might have a very bright future here. Finances – For the first time we were actually in serious danger of failing the FFP but a last-minute one-off sponsorship deal worth around £2M pulled us out of the fire. As I'd like to expand the new stadium as quickly as possible we might have to curtail the spending so that we end the season with a good bank balance. The club has become dependent on sponsorship deals which isn't great because without the £39.5M we'd have failed the FFP and have a balance in the red. The wage bill has also exploded over the last few seasons with players constantly asking for wage rises which while merited are causing the club to hemorrhage money, I'll need to watch this carefully as I don't feel £1.32Mp/w (~£70Mp/a) is sustainable given our comparatively paltry revenue streams. Facilities – The new stadium is here although the expansion capacity is rather underwhelming. Youth Intake – There are some interesting looking prospects but no player really stands out as a potential first-teamer. League Reputation – At the moment I'll just be happy to retain 6th for as long as possible. It was actually a very good season for the N. Irish clubs with Ballymena United and Cliftonville shining in Europe. Ballymena United not only qualified for the Champions League group stage but they then went on to finish 2nd in their group. Then remarkably they beat Man City in the 1st knockout round to make the quarter-final against AS Monaco who proved to be a hurdle too far although they had beaten them in the group stages. Cliftonville was also very effective in the Europa League as they managed to reach the knockout stages. The money is really starting to make a huge difference to the other clubs performances in Europe which may improve the coefficient further and close the gap on the top 5 as the nation has already established a good cushion over Scotland. Club Domestic Reputation – Very disappointing to see Portadown relegated and to make matters worse Crusaders won't be replacing them either. The train is leaving the station and unless the likes of Linfield and Glentoran get a move on to catch it they could find themselves cut adrift from the top 3 and unable to access the riches available from the Champions League. That would be pretty bad because a strong Linfield in the league is far more beneficial than a strong Ballymena United as I feel Linfield have a better capacity to spread the wealth around. Club European Reputation – The club is comfortably on top. If the nation is to challenge for the top 5 and 4 automatic qualification spots for the Champions League group stage we are going to need to see other N. Irish teams appearing on this list. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
noikeee Posted February 15, 2018 Share Posted February 15, 2018 On 08/02/2018 at 13:06, pheelf said: Player Of The Season Richard Glover – ST - Average Rating: 8.25 For the first time, I can proudly present a player that has become the Ballon d'Or winner. He had a truly magnificent season but even he is complaining about a lack of appearances in the league so I will need to make adjustments to the squad to make him happier as he is a player I don't want to lose. Young Player Of The Season (U21) Aleksandar Nikolic – ST - Average Rating: 8.08 A magnificent player who is really coming into his own, he is our 2nd highest paid player who is considered to be the best at the club so Barcelona can scout as much as they like unless they offer me in excess of £100M he isn't going anywhere. I'm coming in a season late, but reading this I thought Nikolic already looked better than Glover. Both seem to be still scoring absolute truckloads of goals for you. Also looking like the transition to the new stadium has been seamless, with slight manageable financial problems but absolutely fine on the pitch. Ever thought about taking a new challenge? Like, for example, taking over ANOTHER Northern Irish team and facing the monster you've created? Just thinking out loud and brainstorming ideas, of course if you're still enjoying this by all means carry on. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted February 18, 2018 Author Share Posted February 18, 2018 On 2/15/2018 at 11:57, noikeee said: I'm coming in a season late, but reading this I thought Nikolic already looked better than Glover. Both seem to be still scoring absolute truckloads of goals for you. Also looking like the transition to the new stadium has been seamless, with slight manageable financial problems but absolutely fine on the pitch. Ever thought about taking a new challenge? Like, for example, taking over ANOTHER Northern Irish team and facing the monster you've created? Just thinking out loud and brainstorming ideas, of course if you're still enjoying this by all means carry on. Nikolic does look to be a better player but his form in the Champions League let him down. I always felt that he didn't quite put in the performances his ability would suggest he was capable of. I struggle to explain it but perhaps his lack of experience played a part whereas Glover is in his prime years. I'm pleased that the transition to the new stadium has been easy going when compared to FM17 with Chimney Corner although I would have been happy to sacrifice a bit of financial stability in the short term for a bigger stadium which would have been better in the longer term. I think that 33,500 as a maximum capacity is slightly restrictive. The ultimate aim for all the saves I've had in N. Ireland has always been to build up the entire country to become the best but usually, the timescale over which it would need to be done was often too long to fit within one release without cheating (pumping money into other clubs). I've also felt that I couldn't leave the club that I was at because they simply weren't strong enough to be able to sustain the success once I had left. I have always considered moving clubs as that would be more effective at building the league but there are a few things I'd want to achieve first at Dollingstown before making a move. 1) Reach the summit of the Hall of Fame. Currently, I'm 8th but all the managers above me bar one (who is 68) have all retired. Jose Mourinho is still quite some way ahead but provided I can keep the level of success I'd see no reason why I couldn't catch him within a decade. 2) Max out the capacity of the stadium and leave them with a huge bank balance to give them the best chance of maintaining the success. 3) Leave them as the most decorated club in Champions League history. 4) An optional extra, I wouldn't mind a stint as the N. Ireland national team manager if the job ever came available. To be honest, I think that trying to replicate the level of success I've had at Dollingstown at another club (especially one of similar stature to how Dollingstown started) would be near to impossible given the massive gap that exists now which is only going to grow bigger. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted February 18, 2018 Author Share Posted February 18, 2018 Dollingstown F.C. Season 2041 / 2042 Season Expectations Start our life in the new stadium in the best possible way by retaining the Champions League. League Table - The increased money within the league is really starting to make a difference to the competition. Very disappointed to see Linfield miss out on European football. UEFA Champions League - The group stage was patchy even though we went unbeaten, we were much better in the knockout stages showing great resilience after two first leg defeats. FIFA Club World Cup - Off to South Korea this time to retain our title. UEFA Super Cup - Well, we certainly threw that one away. Domestic Cups - A clean sweep with some absolute hammerings thrown in for good measure. Reserves - Won everything but had a few slipups in the league. Under 18s - Are we ever going to win the UEFA Youth League? Squad – The squad suffered some serious injuries which made reinforcements unavoidable although now that a number of players have returned it has become somewhat bloated so will need to be trimmed. Transfers – Atletico Madrid really raided us for players but given the money they offered I obliged and let them leave. I was relatively pleased with some of the replacements although Imaz LB was overpriced. Player Of The Season Gabriel Bontempi – MR - Average Rating: 8.27 Owing to Blanco suffering a terrible cruciate ligament injury which will last 10 months I needed him to step up and be counted and thankfully he didn't let me down. Young Player Of The Season (U21) Damir Kondic – DC - Average Rating: 7.64 I was torn between awarding it to him and Doherty ST but he just edged it based on the massive improvement he has made this season. Finances – A nice comfortable balance which was bolstered by an investment made by the board. Keeping the balance at this level at season end should ensure we can continue to upgrade the stadium without any problems. Facilities – A very nice expansion which will give us the largest capacity stadium in N. Ireland. Next season we will be ground sharing at Windsor Park which will be devastating for the pitch given how many teams will be playing there. Youth Intake – A much better intake than in recent seasons assisted by the youth affiliations. League Reputation – A slightly worse performance by the other N. Irish teams in Europe but I'm not too disappointed given how exceptional Ballymena United and Cliftonville did last season. Club Domestic Reputation – Portadown will be returning which is a nice boost to the Mid Ulster contingent in the DBP. Club European Reputation – Well done to Ballymena United who sneaks into 32nd place. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 7, 2018 Author Share Posted March 7, 2018 Dollingstown F.C. Season 2042 / 2043 Season Expectations Maintain the level of success during our season at Windsor Park. League Table - We lost a few but had sewn up the title by the split which allowed us to focus on Europe. UEFA Champions League - This was an interesting campaign, the group stage was a little inconsistent but thankfully we scraped through in 2nd thanks to a last day win at the Nou Camp. The knockout stages were better although we did sail close to the wind against Man City. FIFA Club World Cup - A comfortable win as we returned to South Korea. UEFA Super Cup - We made it difficult for ourselves with the red card but our determination to win saw us hold on. Domestic Cups - I played a mixture of youth and reserve players for the two games against Cliftonville and lost although I did the same against Ballymena United in the semi final of the Irish Cup and won. Reserves - Almost perfect. Under 18s - That first UEFA Youth League title is looking miles off at the moment which says a lot about the quality of the youth intakes over the last few seasons. Squad – I didn't manage to shift any players that I wanted to leave which left the squad somewhat oversized. It caused a lot of consternation in the dressing room with constant requests for first team football but I was able to keep on top of it. In the end, keeping a larger squad size turned out to be a good decision as once again we went through an injury crisis. If we didn't have the squad depth to cope it could have easily derailed the season. There are however areas which need to be addressed, a goalkeeper and central defender are the priority in the short term. Over the longer term, I will be needing to gradually replace some of the players who are aging. Transfers – I felt we need another quality defensively minded central midfielder for the CM (D) role and Troiano looks the part and fitted in quite well. I sold Aldrovandi ML to trim the squad down a bit and McNamara MC was surplus to requirements so I let him leave in a deal which made a decent profit for the club. Player Of The Season Richard Glover – ST - Average Rating: 8.32 He swept up personal accolades becoming a player in the World Team of the Year, Ballon d'Or winner, Best Player in Europe, Golden Ball Winner, Runner Up for the Footballer of the Year and the fans Player of Year. At 32 he may be at the end of his peak period as a striker and start to decline but even if that is true what a season he's had as his last hurrah although given his excellent mental attributes I think he has a good few more productive seasons in him yet. Young Player Of The Season (U21) Steven Doherty – ST - Average Rating: 7.92 If Glover is the now I'm hoping that HG Doherty is very much the future. He has done really well and scored some important goals in the Champions League. I am however concerned that my coaches feel he has peaked in ability at 20 as his attributes while good isn't in the same range as Glover. I think that his Either footedness hasn't helped on that front although perhaps that will help him to overcome that deficit in raw attributes. Finances – The board decided to pump in £10.5M to keep us ticking over and an Asian drinks manufacturer gave us another £20M. It's not a great balance to be ending the season with but is more than comfortable enough considering we were able to invest in expanding the stadium and renovate the training facilities and still have this as the bank balance. Facilities – The stadium will be expanded to its maximum size by mid-October next season which is great. It cost £20M for the expansion which proved to be no obstacle at all and means that I haven't had to take on any debt to get to this point which is fantastic. Strangely enough, we actually managed to play 2 games in the expanded stadium this season with both the Irish Cup final & Champions League semi final being played out in front of sell-out crowds of 25,125. We also played at the stadium for the Mid Ulster Cup semi final and final before the expansion had been completed which was odd. Given that the stadium is now the largest in N. Ireland by some margin I think we may have usurped Windsor Park as the destination to host all the finals. I don't know whether it would be possible but it would be fantastic to see the national team playing at our ground. Youth Intake – The youth intakes haven't been that great of late but I'll sign them all up and see what they can do. League Reputation – Holding steady and keeping our 3rd Champions League place which is all that I want at this point. Ballymena United did reasonably well in Europe by getting to the quarter final of the Europa League where they lost to AS Monaco who put out Cliftonville in the previous round and nearly beat us to 2nd in our Champions League group. After wiping out N. Irish representation they then went all the way to the final only to lose to Watford 3-1. The performances by Cliftonville & Ballymena United are however good for the coefficient and are needed to offset the terrible performances of the other N. Irish teams in Europe. Club Domestic Reputation – I wouldn't expect to see much movement on this screen as everybody in the DBP appears to be cemented in place. We are the dominant force, Cliftonville & Ballymena United will fight for 2nd every year, Glentoran & Linfield are contending for 4th and Glenavon and Newington are the best of the rest. In a piece of good news, next season will see the return of Newry City who turned professional last season and hence walked the Championship meaning that the top flight will now have 8/12 teams at professional status. I'm hoping that will make it a bit more competitive for Europa League qualification and also pushes us closer to a fully professional league. Club European Reputation – We need to step up our game in Europe and start picking up more wins in the group stage as not only have we slipped from the summit even after winning the Champions League but we may end up failing to get out of a group if we continue like this which would be very damaging for the nations coefficient. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 25, 2018 Author Share Posted March 25, 2018 COMPLETING SINCLAIR ARENA The expansion is complete and the stadium is now at its maximum size. With a capacity of 33,500 it doesn't give the club the same financial clout of an elite European club in terms of matchday revenue but at least it ensures that the most reputable club in the world has a more stable financial footing for the next quarter century until a new stadium can be built. A top-down view of the new expanded main grandstand with the empty burger van corner to the left. As can be seen, the freestanding floodlights and roof of all the stands have been replaced. The floodlights are now mounted to the new roof which features a new metal frame structure. The away corner features a video screen and small corporate section in the 2nd tier. When teams bring a bigger away following the entire end is given over to their supporters. The new completed Miguel Angel Gudiel end featuring another small corporate section in the 2nd tier in the left corner. An eagle eye view of the stadium. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 25, 2018 Author Share Posted March 25, 2018 Dollingstown F.C. Season 2043 / 2044 Season Expectations Regain our position as the best team in Europe coefficient-wise and aim for a clean sweep. League Table - Cliftonville made us wait until after the split to clinch it but it was comfortable overall. UEFA Champions League - A fantastic way to clinch the trophy with a late header in the last minute of extra time. FIFA Club World Cup - Less comfortable than last time but another victory in Japan. UEFA Super Cup - We didn't turn up and Watford deserved it ruining our attempt at a clean sweep before it even started. Domestic Cups - International call-ups hindered us against St. Johnstone although we did well to take them all the way to penalties. Reserves - All was going well until they lost against the Juventus youth team. Under 18s - Not great really. Squad – A very strong collection of players with a number of them in their peak. Keeping this squad together is going to be the key challenge going forward given that the world and his wife seem interested in so many. Transfers – A somewhat subdued pair of transfer windows although I was very pleased with Mutombo DR who replaced Perkovic DR. Tkachuk ML also showed some impressive form during the season. Player Of The Season Damian Prisco – MR - Average Rating: 8.41 Glover once again was exceptional winning more awards this season than last but I couldn't overlook Prisco who was simply sensational this season. Young Player Of The Season (U21) Steven Doherty – ST - Average Rating: 8.06 Regrettably, I'm coming around to the realization that my coaches were right last season in that he has peaked which is disappointing as he will never become the world-class striker that I was hoping for. Finances – We have a good balance but we're not what I'd call wealthy even though the status is still listed as Rich. I think the club is still some way off being able to sustain its expenditure but I sense that may not be possible until a new stadium is built which is a long way into the future. The ticket prices also seem to have peaked and the amount of money we can earn from prize money / TV money is as high as its going to be. All of which means that in terms of building the club I've probably gone as far as I can with it. Facilities – Everything is as good as I can make it. Youth Intake – Some interesting players in the intake especially Smyth who looks to be the best of the bunch. All the recommended players have been signed once again. League Reputation – Any further progress up this table is only going to happen with massive help from the other N. Irish clubs. Ballymena United did very well reaching the quarterfinals of the Champions League although they took a right hiding once they got there by Sevilla losing 10-1 on aggregate. We did get revenge for them in the next round. Club Domestic Reputation – We're going to need to see a lot more from the non-big 4 teams in DBP in order create a more competitive league. Club European Reputation – Back to the summit. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 26, 2018 Author Share Posted March 26, 2018 BREAKING NEWS Sky Sports News have been told that there will be a press conference held at 11:00 am on the 15th July 2044 by Dollingstown F.C. No further details are available at this time but there are rumors flying around on social media that there could be an announcement on the future of the clubs manager and that he may have left his post. We must state however that this is purely speculation at this point and that viewers should wait to hear from the club. We will bring you the press conference exclusively live here at Sky Sports News. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 26, 2018 Author Share Posted March 26, 2018 DOLLINGSTOWN PRESS CONFERENCE The clubs spokesperson enters the press room with a sheet of A4 paper in his hand and takes his seat. The hordes of the press assembled await what he has to say with eager anticipation. Spokesperson "Good Morning Ladies and Gentleman. My name is Robert Magilton and I am the official spokesman for Dollingstown F.C., the club has an announcement to make with a statement that I have been asked to read out. The statement I'm about to read will understandably herald a lot of questions but I would politely ask if you could refrain from asking them until I have finished the statement when I will take questions" Spokesperson "Our legendary manager who has been with the club for 26 years has resigned with immediate effect" All around the room are gasps and faces of stunned reporters. Spokesperson "Dollingstown F.C. would like to pay tribute to the most successful manager in its history who has built a footballing legacy not only at this club but throughout the whole of N. Irish football. He transformed a team of amateurs into a team which is now known the world over. He leaves the club with our blessing and has been a loyal and dedicated servant to the club during his whole tenure." Spokesperson "He has prepared a statement that he would like for me to read out". "It is with a heavy heart that I announce my departure from the club. During my wonderful 26 year reign, I have had the pleasure to travel on a fantastic journey which has seen the club rise from the N. Irish 3rd division to multiple time world champions. I hope that my legacy to the club will be continued success on the pitch and that the team will be able to continue its dominance both domestically and on a continental level. I have decided to leave the club as I wanted a new challenge and I felt that I could no longer take the club any further forward." "I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all the players who have put on a Dollingstown shirt for me over the years who have performed brilliantly time and time again often playing beyond their abilities becoming legends in their own right. I would like to pay tribute to the chairman who has been there from the very beginning and supported me every step of the way to build this fantastic club. I am grateful for all the staff whose behind the scene dedication has been critical in helping us to achieve so much. Last but not least I'd like to thank the fans whom I have shared many great moments with from the very first cup win with the Mid Ulster Cup to last seasons triumph in the Champions League, without you there would be no club. I would only ask that you show that same passion and desire to support the club's next manager" "I wish you all the best of luck for the future and I want you all to know that I will forever be a Dollingstown fan. Thank you for giving me some of the best moments of my life" Spokesperson "I will now take any questions" Thomas Smith, Sky Sports News "This announcement comes as a great shock, was there any indication that he wanted to leave?" Spokesperson "He didn't express to the club that he wanted to leave but now that the stadium has been fully expanded he perhaps felt he had left his desired legacy at the club and it was time to move on" Lisa Stanford, BBC Sport "What next for the club, do you have any candidates lined up to replace him?" Spokesperson "We have always had contingency plans in place for the possibility of him leaving the club and have a few potential names that we will be entering into talks with shortly" Lisa Stanford, BBC Sport "Is it fair to say that Brendan Rodgers might be one of those candidates?" Spokesperson "I wouldn't want to speculate on that front given that he is currently managing AS Monaco but should he become available he would be one of the names under consideration definitely" Simon Artree, ESPN "Could his leaving the club mark the end of Dollingstown dominance in Europe?" Spokesperson "I don't necessarily think so, we have a quality team which has proven itself as the best in Europe over the last 6 seasons, I see no reason why a change in management would suddenly make them incapable of continuing with that success" Simon Artree, ESPN "What Dollingstown have achieved over the last 6 seasons has been incredible but also can be seen as vastly overachieving given their resources when compared with other clubs, will a new manager be able to get that level of performance out of this team and will the players even want to play for another manager given their great affinity with the previous one?" Spokesperson "The players are professionals and will play for another manager, what we have to do as a club is to ensure that the transition is as smooth as possible and that we appoint the right manager" Rachel McGee, DollingstownFanTV "Was there anything that could have been done to keep the manager here?" Spokesperson "He had made up his mind and there was nothing we could do to convince him to stay" Rachel McGee, DollingstownFanTV "Now that he has left it appears that a number of key players at the club want to leave, how are you going to prevent a mass exodus from the club?" Spokesperson "If a player wishes to leave the club it certainly won't have anything to do with the manager leaving. We are a massive club which would be a fantastic opportunity for any player so I can't envision a scenario where we would see a mass exodus from the club, I'll take 2 more questions and then bring this press conference to a close" Terry Rabek, Mid-Ulster Mail "Does the club have any plans to immortalize the manager?" Spokesperson "Yes, as you know the stadium is named after him but in addition to that we have commissioned a statue and will be holding a dedication day at the stadium" Terry Rabek, Mid-Ulster Mail "Given the unprecedented success he has enjoyed at the club will the new manager be inheriting a poison chalice?" Spokesperson "Well, that will depend on the attitude of the new manager. I would hope that they would view it as a great opportunity to continue the success and keep the good times rolling. I have faith that the club will make the right appointment." "That concludes the press conference, thank you for your time and goodbye" Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
noikeee Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 End of an era!! What next? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 27, 2018 Author Share Posted March 27, 2018 25 minutes ago, noikeee said: End of an era!! What next? Ultimately, I'd like to get back into management in N. Ireland with a club like Linfield in order to continue building the league but I've decided to take a break from club management and opted to take a job that I've always wanted which has been vacant for some time. Spoiler The move works well as it will mean that I have a reasonable chance at winning the World Cup in 2046 (which is to be held in Australia) to push me further up the Hall of Fame rankings as I currently lie in 3rd slightly behind Carlo Ancelotti and miles behind leader Jose Mourinho. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
noikeee Posted March 27, 2018 Share Posted March 27, 2018 Straight from Dollingstown to the Brazilian national team. Love it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 27, 2018 Author Share Posted March 27, 2018 I've decided to move into international management for the first time with my only objective being to qualify for the World Cup in 2046 and win it. I will attempt to do this with the most successful nation in World Cup history which is Brazil who holds a record 6 wins (having added the 2038 title). A national team that needs no real introduction to their history and pedigree as it's well documented everywhere. A team that reinvented how to play the beautiful game with a unique style and identity. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Brazil. Team Information A legend list which brings back some fond memories for sure. Facilities They don't have a fixed abode like some other national teams which I suppose is done to give fans from around this vast nation a chance to see them play. Squad The team is fairly strong although there are few causes for concern. The defenders aren't the best and there appears to be a real lack of talented young defenders coming up. Another issue is that some of the best players in the national pool will be in their mid-30s by the time the world cup starts which might prove problematic if their physical attributes start to fade as there doesn't appear to be any players which are near their level. I've decided that I'm going to stick to my principles and play the 4-4-2 tactic as even though the nation has a lot of talented attacking midfielders and is weighted heavily toward central midfielders without many strong wide players, I feel we will need that width given that the majority of teams we will face will play defensively against us and we need to be able to stretch them to break them down. Starting Conditions When I took over the role we were 3rd in the qualifying section coming off the back of a defeat to Argentina in Buenos Aires and an uninspiring 0-0 draw at home to Colombia. We were also ranked 7th in the world which was the nations joint lowest ranking throughout the duration of the save. I'll record the national team the same way as I did with Dollingstown with an end of season update except for the World Cup which I'll provide more detail for. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 28, 2018 Author Share Posted March 28, 2018 Brazil National Team Season 2044 / 2045 Season Expectations We start in a qualification spot for the World Cup in 3rd with Argentina and Colombia above us in the table but I'd like to do a lot better and clinch a top 4 spot and place at the World Cup as soon as possible. Given the fixtures we have in this period we should be more than capable of consolidating our position and the final competitive fixture of the period being a qualifier at home to Argentina will tell us a lot about our progress. Fixtures & Results - The first game of my tenure was against Peru and my reign couldn't have started any better. We didn't concede a goal in the first 5 games and we've won every single game so far which propelled us to 1st in the table. I was especially pleased with the hammering of Argentina considering that a draw against them would have qualified us for the World Cup so to clinch our place in that manner is rather special and means that I can use the remaining 4 games of the qualifying campaign to experiment with players. It was also nice to get a friendly win against the Netherlands who are ranked number one in the world. CONMEBOL FIFA World Cup Qualification Table - Very pleased to have qualified with a year to spare which should give us a good period of time to prepare for Australia. Under 23s Fixtures & Results - They came so close to winning a gold at the Olympics but had to settle for a silver. I think the injury to star winger Alexander MR really cost them. Under 20s Fixtures & Results - That is a lot of fixtures, they did brilliantly to qualify with a perfect record but once they got to the World Cup it all fell apart. Hopefully, that is not an omen for how the main team will perform. National Team Squad – I'm fairly satisfied with the team although the central defence is still concerning as even though we beat the Netherlands we also conceded 3 which in the pressure of a World Cup could have led to our defeat. When we are on form we can play some brilliant football but when we aren't we can concede a bit too easily for my taste. It would be great to be able to scout players so that I could find out whether they were big game players or not but that doesn't appear to be working even though I have hired a scout. U23s Squad – I can see some talented players like Henrique DC, Rafael MC, Carpes MR & Bruno ST which I'd like to promote to the main squad to see how they fare. I doubt any of them will make the World Cup squad but if they get another season of development who knows what could be possible. U20s Squad – So many injuries!!...The players are way off the required level and I'm unsure whether it would be worthwhile promoting any of these players to the main squad. These players need to start playing more games for their clubs in order to develop otherwise they'll have no chance which could be seriously damaging for the future of the national team. Player Of The Season Kaue – ST - Average Rating: 7.66 The guy is just incredible and has some fantastic attributes. I feel we might need to get another World Cup out of him so I'm hoping that those physical attributes continue to hold up and he doesn't get any serious injuries. Young Player Of The Season (U21) Jucemar – DR - Average Rating: 7.18 He really needs to start playing matches for his club as he is the 2nd best choice for the right back slot. He can't keep turning up for international duty unfit, he really needs to demand first team football or transfer to a club where he can continue his development. World Ranking – We've gone flying up the rankings to 2nd which is great although I can't see us going into the World Cup at the summit. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
noikeee Posted March 29, 2018 Share Posted March 29, 2018 On 28/03/2018 at 11:42, pheelf said: Young Player Of The Season (U21) Jucemar – DR - Average Rating: 7.18 He really needs to start playing matches for his club as he is the 2nd best choice for the right back slot. He can't keep turning up for international duty unfit, he really needs to demand first team football or transfer to a club where he can continue his development. Bloody hell, that is an unreal 17 year old. Looks like you're rating him much higher than the AI, Flamengo doesn't deem him good enough to even retain him on his squad so loans him out, yet you give him 7 Brazil senior caps. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 30, 2018 Author Share Posted March 30, 2018 On 3/29/2018 at 12:24, noikeee said: Bloody hell, that is an unreal 17 year old. Looks like you're rating him much higher than the AI, Flamengo doesn't deem him good enough to even retain him on his squad so loans him out, yet you give him 7 Brazil senior caps. He certainly has some incredible physical attributes and best of all it seems he has a lot of room to continue improving. My concern with him though is that a lack of playing time will stunt his development and could mean that a future potential Cafu instead only becomes the next Cicinho. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 30, 2018 Author Share Posted March 30, 2018 Brazil National Team Season 2045 / 2046 Season Expectations With a place at the World Cup guaranteed this season was to be used to assess a number of the young players in the national pool and see if they could claim a spot in the 23 going to Australia. Fixtures & Results - I experimented with the team and the difference in class showed clearly. It was nice to beat Argentina again and end this period unbeaten although I was a little bit disappointed with the draw against Paraguay. Neither the U23s or U20s played any fixtures during the whole season so those screenshots have been dropped. Going into the World Cup we appear to be in good form so we'll see how that translates into our first group stage fixture. CONMEBOL FIFA World Cup Qualification Table - We easily topped the table and were very close to breaking a number of records but in the end just fell short. I'm happy with the overall performance in the qualifiers as we navigated what is one of the most competitive qualifying regions in the world and we did it very comfortably which bodes well for the World Cup. National Team Squad – This is the squad we will be taking to the World Cup. On reflection selecting Rubens was perhaps a mistake and I should have selected another pure central defender but I'll have to work with it. There were a number of shock inclusions. Lara GK looked impressive for his club so I decided to call up the uncapped player, Rafael MC from W.B.A. was another who I brought in to inject a bit of youth into the central midfield and Taubate MR pipped Adalberto MR for a place as I felt he offered a little more experience and had more developed attributes. I tried to provide as much balance in terms of the spread of ages within the squad and I think I managed it although we do have three 34-year-olds in the team. Whether this team will be good enough to bring home the World Cup is another question but I'm relatively confident going into the tournament. Player Of The Season Alexander – MR - Average Rating: 7.73 It's amazing to think that this player was in the U23s squad for the Olympics given how fantastic he has been for PSG this season. I feel a lot of how we do in the tournament will depend on how he performs as his blistering quickness could prove pivotal against tiring legs later in the competition. Young Player Of The Season (U21) Rafael – MC - Average Rating: 6.99 While he doesn't have the ultra-high technical and mental attributes of some of the older central midfielders in the squad what he does give me is an injection of speed and flair from deep. I may utilize him as a starter against the weaker sides and as a late-game substitute against the better teams. I don't have another player like him in the squad and I feel that could be very important if things aren't going our way and we need to change things up a bit. He is another player who could cause massive problems for tiring opposition defenders. World Ranking – As expected we won't enter the World Cup as the number 1 team but as we have beaten that team in a friendly we should be able to go into the competition without fearing anybody. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 30, 2018 Author Share Posted March 30, 2018 WORLD CUP PREVIEW Perceived as one the favourites to win the tournament alongside Germany, Holland, France, Argentina and England. Brazil go into the World Cup full of confidence and in great form. They will be hoping that key players such as Alexander, Luiz Antonio & veteran striker Kaue can inspire them to glory in what is likely to be the last opportunity at winning a World Cup for a significant number of the squad. The group stage draw has taken place and they have been placed into Group G alongside China, Denmark and South Africa in what is considered by many to be one of the easiest groups in the competition. They will be confident of topping that group with the biggest threat coming from Denmark who should vie for a 2nd placed finish. Their first game of the competition pits them up against South Africa and they will be hoping for a win to kick-start their campaign and build momentum for their most difficult game of the group against Denmark. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 30, 2018 Author Share Posted March 30, 2018 Sky Sports News reporter Ian Stone sat down with the Brazilian national team coach to hear his thoughts on the upcoming World Cup. "Here we are in Australia, how have the players adapted to their new surroundings?" "I feel that preparations have gone very well and that the players have settled into the training camp. The staff has been very accommodating and the facilities here are of a very high standard" "Given the ease with which the team qualified for the World Cup are you having to guard against complacency?" "No, not at all, I would never have my team underestimate the opposition as even though the qualification may have appeared straightforward it took a lot of hard work and dedication to make a reality" "When the team was drawn into what appears to be the weakest of all the groups what was your reaction?" "In some respects, I was encouraged as if we perform like I know we can we should be able to get through but also cautious as I know that all the teams we will face will be right up for the games as they aspire to cause an upset" "The first game pits you against South Africa, are you confident of starting with a win?" "I know what we are capable of so am confident of a win but they have some dangerous players which we will need to be able to deal with to get the result we want" "How far do you think you can take the team in the World Cup?" "I go into every competition looking to win it but I know it will take a lot of hard work and there are a lot of quality teams in the competition which could beat us. I know it's a cliche but we really have to take it one game at a time and see where we end up" "Which team or teams do you see as the main competitors for the World Cup?" "I'd say Germany, France, Holland, Argentina & Spain would be the ones that have the best chance of competing for the trophy but as history has taught us there is always a dark horse that can always spring a surprise or two and work their way into the reckoning. If the 2022 World Cup taught us anything it's that even unfancied teams can put together a run and end up with the glory" "With a number of aging stars in the team are you at all concerned that they might not have the stamina to go all the way?" "I'm actually quite pleased with the squad as I wanted a good mixture of experience and youth. I feel having a combination of players that have been there and done it with a number of young fearless players provides a good balance. I have no concerns about the stamina of the older players as I will be rotating throughout the tournament where possible" "There were a number of shocks in your selection of players for the World Cup with some arguing that you've handed places to undeserving players, do you agree with this assessment?" "Absolutely not, I've selected players that I feel give us the best chance to achieve our objectives in the World Cup. As I stated, balance is the key and if that means bringing in players which haven't necessarily been in the national team picture before in order to get that balance then that is what I'll do. I think all my selections are players that have shown they are deserving of playing in the World Cup." "Who do you see as your most important player?" "I don't really feel I have such a player in the squad and each component is as important as the next given our style of play is based around collectively working hard off the ball. I'd say we really need every player performing at their absolute maximum if we are to go far in the tournament" "Thanks for taking the time out and all the best of luck for the competition" "You're welcome and hopefully this time next month we'll have something really special to celebrate" Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 30, 2018 Author Share Posted March 30, 2018 AUSTRALIA 2046 - GROUP G - GAME 1 So our quest for glory begins. First up South Africa. They have some good players with Lekata being the most dangerous. It is also nice to see old Dollingstown player Vilakazi still donning a shirt for his country, We should have the measure of them but we have to be careful not to start slowly as the longer the game goes on the more nervous we'll get if we don't score which could play into their hands. Interesting formation, it appears that they are looking to control the center of the park but by doing so have gifted us the flanks which means that we could get some joy by overloading the flanks given their aging fullbacks. I've gone with a strong lineup as I want to start the tournament well with a look to making substitutions should we get into a comfortable position. A comfortable win but unfortunately one which comes at a great cost. Alexander picked up an injury which will keep him out for a couple weeks. Hopefully, if we go far he will be back in time for the later stages. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 30, 2018 Author Share Posted March 30, 2018 AUSTRALIA 2046 - GROUP G - GAME 2 Now we will face what could turn out to be group winner decider. If we win we qualify, lose the game and we then need to get a result against China which shouldn't be too difficult a task but isn't a position I really want to be in. A definite step up in quality but we should be able to beat them. I've rotated the squad heavily and was forced to replace the injured Alexander for Taubate. I expect a much stiffer challenge but I think we should just have enough to get the win. A rather more comfortable win with the rotated team than I expected which puts us through into the 2nd Round. Unfortunately, we suffer yet another injury to a star player in Kaue which will see him miss the next 2 games at the very least which is annoying, at least we've qualified. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 30, 2018 Author Share Posted March 30, 2018 AUSTRALIA 2046 - GROUP G - GAME 3 As we have secured our place in the next round I'll take this opportunity to rest some players and give some players their first starts of the tournament. This should be a relatively straightforward affair but the fact that they rather than Denmark look likely to clinch 2nd means they still have something to play for which might make it a bit more challenging. Well, no doubt about their intentions here given their formation. It is certainly a risk from them which could backfire massively but you never know and they say fortune favours the brave. Even though they dominated the ball they didn't have the strength in the final 3rd to pose us any real problems. This means that we end the group stage with a perfect record and the final group table is below. In the next round, we have been drawn to play Croatia which is a rather difficult draw but at least we should have some rested players. In other news around the World Cup here is how Group F finished. What would have happened if the goal difference was all equal? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 30, 2018 Author Share Posted March 30, 2018 AUSTRALIA 2046 - 2ND ROUND The knockout stages, now the real tournament begins in my book. Croatia isn't going to be a walkover so we are going to need to be on our game to progress. This is always a tricky formation to face with a 4-4-2 given that they outnumber us in two critical areas of the pitch. Our wide play is going to need to be good and I'd hope that we can catch them out on the break when they over commit their wingbacks forward. That was a real battle and perhaps on reflection, it was an undeserved win but we got through it thanks to a goal late in extra time. We suffer another setback however given that Rodolfo got sent off and will miss the next game. Next up comes a serious threat in Germany, time to avenge that humiliating defeat in 2014, well at least that's the hope. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 30, 2018 Author Share Posted March 30, 2018 AUSTRALIA 2046 - QUARTER FINAL Our first tie against what many would consider a favourite for the competition and the first real test of our title winning credentials. Looking at their squad I'm not overly confident going into the game. They look exceptionally strong and we are going to need to perform at our best to be competitive against them. We might be able to take some comfort from Emde missing the game and the fact that a number of their players are looking a bit tired although our players are looking a bit tired also after playing extra time against Croatia. I think our best hope lies in staying in the game for as long as possible then hoping for a goal or two on the break. I expected an attacking formation from them given that I would consider them favourites for the game and they have duly obliged. I'm not overly convinced we are going to be able to keep them out especially given that I've had to put Rubens into the backline but I'm hoping that we can catch them out on the break. I knew that if we were going to win it was going to be by a fine margin and so it proved to be. For the 2nd consecutive match we have played extra time which is really hammering the condition of our players but at least we might get some relief in the semi final as we have been drawn against the United States who are the easiest of the teams left in the competition. Lara proved to be our hero by pulling off some brilliant saves in the shootout, in that one performance he has vindicated his selection for me. Getting close now, at least we are starting to get some of our players back now and not a moment too soon. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 30, 2018 Author Share Posted March 30, 2018 AUSTRALIA 2046 - SEMI FINAL Potentially, 90 minutes stand between us and a chance at glory. I'm not taking anything for granted and will be playing a strong team but if we end up going out to them I will be crushingly disappointed especially after overcoming Germany who I consider to be a much harder opponent. The last time we came up against this formation it resulted in a comfortable victory for us in the opening game of the tournament so I'm hoping for more of the same. Rodolfo comes back into the team after serving his suspension. YES!!!...We've done it!!...Into the World Cup final and in some style too. Once we took a 2-0 lead within the first 20 minutes I knew we were there. The final obstacle for us to surmount is Argentina which has me optimistic that it could be our year given our record against them so far. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 30, 2018 Author Share Posted March 30, 2018 AUSTRALIA 2046 - FINAL Here we go, the World Cup final is upon us and the chance to become champions of the world. I couldn't be any tenser!! Although I'm encouraged by our unbeaten record against Argentina and the fact that Alexander will be back for the final which could make all the difference. They look tired and their defense seems to have been decimated. I'm hoping that their main strikers' performance might just suffer given how exhausted he appears to be. Here goes nothing... Spoiler I don't think it gets much sweeter than that!! Smashing your main rivals to become world champions...We were absolutely brilliant, dominated the game from minute one and were clinical. What a brilliant tournament this has been... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
noikeee Posted March 31, 2018 Share Posted March 31, 2018 Never in doubt. (well... Maybe by that penalty shootout against Germany ) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 31, 2018 Author Share Posted March 31, 2018 1 hour ago, noikeee said: Never in doubt. (well... Maybe by that penalty shootout against Germany ) I had my moments when I doubted whether we would win it but overall it was fairly comfortable. As for the next step of the career, I've resigned as Brazilian national team manager. I'd like to get back into N. Ireland at some point but I feel I'd only be interested in managing a team like Cliftonville or Linfield at this point but as those jobs don't look like coming available anytime soon I'll take a stop off to a struggling team south of the border. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 31, 2018 Author Share Posted March 31, 2018 Moving South Now that I have achieved the ultimate distinction in international management it is time to get back into club management. I don't plan for this to be a long-term stay as it is only intended to be a stopgap while I wait for the desired job in N. Ireland to become available. The question now is who to manage? Well, right after the World Cup win I spotted a club with a vacancy which I think fits the bill perfectly. A team which has fallen far from grace and spent more time in the Irish 1st Division in the last 20 years than they have in the top flight. That team is Bohemian F.C. They have a rich history and are one of the biggest teams in Ireland but in recent times they have been more likely to fight a relegation battle than one for the title. They currently lie rock bottom of the table with a considerable gap between them and 9th placed St. Pats and are in desperate need of a savior, I hope to provide that for them and bring back the good times. It's an enormous risk given that I could get a nasty big R on my manager CV but if I can make them beat the drop it might just surpass all the achievements I have done thus far. Club This is no small club (relatively speaking) and has massive untapped potential that just needs to be unlocked. Being in Dublin means that we should be able to grow the fanbase rather quickly should we manage to be successful. The only major stumbling block for me is the semi-professional status. If we can raise enough money to turn professional I feel that I could very quickly build the club up given that there are minimal work permit restrictions and loads of Brazilian wonderkids just begging for game time. Facilities The brilliant part about this club is that if the team qualifies for Europe then they get to play in the impressive Aviva Stadium which has a 61,675 all-seater capacity meaning that the money making potential is fantastic. Additionally, as the stadium is council owned we pay a pittance in ground maintenance which is nice also. Squad Well, I can certainly see why they are rooted to the bottom of the table. This lot are useless and the lack of goals in the team is especially worrying. Given that I want to keep my 4-4-2 I'm going to need to go searching for a striker or two as this team is nowhere near good enough to stay up, a task that won't be made easier given that the transfer window is closed and only unattached players will be able to join. Finances Did I forget to mention?...Oh yes...they're also broke Starting Conditions Dundalk is the kingpin here winning 21 Premier Division titles since the save began. They along with Cork City are the only professional teams in the league although I wouldn't say that their lead over the rest of the teams in the country is insurmountable. We start in 10th, 9 points behind St. Pats with 3 games in hand with a measly 14 points from 25 games. First game, a relegation 6 pointer (12 pointer in the case of Ireland) against St. Pats, no pressure then. Starting League Reputations Irish Premier League - 85th Irish First Division - 197th The league has a long way to go to even be considered decent, the first priority has to be survival. If I am are here for the long term then getting into Europe and turning professional are definitely key objectives. Unlike N. Ireland I think once this league starts to rise up the rankings other clubs will improve much quicker making league building easier. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 31, 2018 Author Share Posted March 31, 2018 Bohemian F.C. Season 2046 Season Expectations Avoid relegation at all costs. League Table - It took until the final matchday for us to claw our way off the bottom of the table but we did it to get into the playoff. Irish Premier Division / First Division Playoff - That was an almighty struggle as Sligo Rovers were relegated last season but we showed fight to retain our place in the top flight. Domestic Cups - The only cup I was in charge of was the Senior Challenge Cup. We did quite well to go as far as we did but the semi-final came at a bad time as we were really struggling for form. Under 19s - This comes as no surprise, there was hardly any players in the team until the youth intake day. Squad – This team needs major surgery, it is no exaggeration to say we need a whole new back line and we really need to bolster our firepower up front to avoid another relegation battle next season. It's not all doom and gloom however as there does appear to a number of young talented players like O'Brien GK, Horgan MC and O'Flynn ST who look to have good potential to develop. Transfers – Aiden Horgan ST was the first signing and for me proved to be the most important of all. His goals were priceless in helping us to stay up. Player Of The Season Aiden Horgan – ST - Average Rating: 7.17 I think it is fair to say that without him we would have been relegated. He really helped by alleviating some of the pressure off of O'Flynn to score. Young Player Of The Season (U21) Keith O'Flynn – ST - Average Rating: 6.90 He is a fantastic prospect, the concern is how long will the club be able to hold onto him. Finances – We are going to need European football in order to bolster our income as we made a loss this season. There are good aspects though, we have been given a decent wage budget which will allow me to strengthen and the chairman status is 'Happy to stay' which may indicate a takeover might not be too far off. Facilities – We managed to get the junior coaching improved but we didn't have money for anything else. Youth Intake – Fairly uninspiring, although Robinson MC could prove decent in time. League Reputation – A long, long way to climb to get anywhere near their illustrious northern neighbours. Club Domestic Reputation – First target, overtake our deadly rivals Shamrock Rovers. Club European Reputation – Haven't seen a coefficient that poor in quite some time. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted March 31, 2018 Author Share Posted March 31, 2018 Trophy Cabinet Career Overview Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pheelf Posted April 1, 2018 Author Share Posted April 1, 2018 Bohemian F.C. Season 2047 Season Expectations After all the additions to the squad, the board wants a mid-table finish. I feel we should be capable of that but I'd like to set our sights a little higher and aim for European qualification. League Table - I'm very pleased with that as we clinch a spot in Europe in the first full season. We need to work on our consistency and fitness as that really cost us a lot of points during the season. Domestic Cups - Nothing too special in the cups although the loss to Shamrock Rovers was pretty bad. It took Dundalk winning the cup to turn 4th into a Europa League qualification spot. Under 19s - A very mediocre effort. Squad – There has definitely been a significant improvement although there are still areas of the team which need work. We could do with getting another central defender and definitely a left back. The squad is a little bloated and that caused massive issues. Given the lack of a reserve team getting players fit was very difficult, I'm going to need to trim the squad so that I can give players more regular playing time. Transfers – Some impressive players were brought in although I may have gone a little overboard. On the plus side, we have a lot of high potential youngsters which should develop nicely for the future. Player Of The Season Keith O'Flynn – ST - Average Rating: 7.55 The teams top scorer who provided the basis for European qualification given how inconsistent some of the other strikers were. Young Player Of The Season (U21) David Horgan – MC - Average Rating: 7.06 A very good defensively minded midfielder. His development has stalled a bit but he still has a good amount of potential in him. Finances – Yikes!!!...It's a good thing we qualified for Europe otherwise we might be in serious trouble. We really are going to need a good run in Europe as all improvement off the pitch has stopped. If we can manage that then next season we could be looking at professional status. Facilities – No changes except the presence of Aviva Stadium as the alternate stadium. We are going to need to get through a few rounds however in order to play there. Youth Intake – A couple of really exciting prospects in Fitzpatrick MC & McGuinness ST although the rest look poor in comparison, I'll sign them all up anyway. League Reputation – At least I'll be able to influence it next season. Club Domestic Reputation – Still stuck on 1* which isn't great when trying to attract players. Club European Reputation – Hopefully, next season we'll be able to add some nice coefficient points to the tally. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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