abulezz Posted July 15, 2018 Author Share Posted July 15, 2018 SEASON REVIEW 2036/2037 It has been a long, hard path, and I did not think it would happen this year of the next, but my team came together and surprised me – we are now officially on the way to the Premier League. They played strong and were consistent all season, and when we went through a losing streak, they showed great character in ensuring it didn’t last long and bouncing back. Obviously, the strength of the team was our offense, and Pearce Knill was named the Championship Player of the Year as he led the league with 39 Goals Scored. However, our defense was ranked 7th best in the league, and that was the crucial factor that allowed us to fight until the end and earn that automatic promotion. We lasted just two seasons in the Championship, and I can finally look forward to huge paydays and developing the youth infrastructure of the squad! GOALKEEPERS Joshua Spence (2032), 20 Years Old: One of the big reasons for our success this year was the play of our GK – in 46 Appearances, he registered 1.35 Con/90 and 13 Clean Sheets to go with his 6.78 AR (up from 6.68 AR), all of which were career-highs. The team as a whole made phenomenal progress, but Spence in particular showed remarkable improvement in his attributes – I think he is at a point where he is talented enough to be a Premier League GK. He was crucial for us this year, and he will potentially be even more crucial in our first Premier League season as he is clearly one of our most talented players. Rating: 6.5/10 LEFT DEFENDERS Scott Ward (2036), 16 Years Old: Ward’s rookie was not impressive – in 43 Appearances, he registered 6.52 AR that really highlighted just how poor he was at times. That being said, he did register 4.24 TpG, the highest of any defender on the team, and he did show some steady improvement in his abilities that could point towards him developing into a capable left-back. He was obviously overwhelmed throughout the season by older, stronger players and things are not going to get easier for him next year, but he will retain his starting place and hopefully his growing pains will not be too much of a liability for us. Rating: 4.5/10 CENTRAL DEFENDERS Brandon Boud (2030), 23 Years Old: There was arguably no one better in the air defensively in the Championship than Boud, who led the league with 115 Key Headers. He contributed so much more than that, however, also leading the league with 21 Shots Blocked and ranking 4th with 267 Interceptions to go with his 2.34 TpG and career-high 6.84 AR. His partnership with Osei has been fantastic for us, and although he sometimes had a little trouble with the more talented strikers in the Championship, Boud was easily one of the best CDs in the league overall. Rating: 6.5/10 Jordan Osei (2028), 25 Years Old: The biggest overachiever I have had so far in this save, the Ghanaian led the league with 288 Interceptions, and ranked 3rd with 105 Key Headers. This was a career year for Osei, who played in 42 Games and registered 2 Goals, 2 Assists, 2.14 TpG, and a career-high 7.00 AR. He is not the most talented defender, nor is he fast or physically strong, but he has consistently gotten the job done. Given what he has contributed to the team in the past few years, I could not ask for anything more from him. Whether he can continue doing the job in the Premier League remains to be seen, but he has already done enough helping us get to this point. Rating: 7/10 RIGHT DEFENDERS Danny Lloyd (2033), 20 Years Old: I could perhaps overlook bad form if there was some progress in terms of abilities, but Lloyd has been stagnant for the past few years. To be fair, he broke his ankle in early November and was out for three months after that, playing in only 30 Games, but he also only registered 6.62 AR for the season. There is no way he is going to hold his own in the Premier League as he was the definitely weak link in our defensive unit. I am going to have to get creative with solutions for the right-back position next season, because I don’t think Lloyd is up to it. Rating: 4.5/10 CENTRAL MIDFIELDERS Lloyd Hartley (2032), 21 Years Old : Outside of our strikers, Hartley was our best player this season, and perhaps our second most important player. He led the league in both Distance Covered Overall and Distance Covered in 90 Minutes (420.67 Miles and 9.22 Miles, respectively), proving just how much of a work-horse he is. In 46 Games, he registered 5 Goals, 6 Assists, 2 PoMs, 1.45 TpG, and 7.02 AR, controlling the middle of the pitch like few others in the league. Perhaps now that we have moved on to the Premier League, he will stop complaining about wanting to join a bigger club and concentrate on his football, because he is going to be vital for us next season. Rating: 7.5/10 Liam Daly (2034), 19 Years Old: His form was OK this season, but once again he disappointed when it came to improving his abilities – he has shown almost no improvement since breaking into the first team and is looking less and less likely to be more than rotational player for us. He has some great tackling instincts (his 5.04 TpG ranked 9th in the Championship), and his 6.87 AR in 45 Games was decent, but I am beginning to think I should start favoring Kerry Williams over him as it seems Daly has already hit his peak in terms of how good he can be. Rating: 6.5/10 LEFT WINGERS Michael Thomas (2025), 27 Years Old: Perhaps Trinidad and Tobago’s (70 Caps/6 Goals) best player, Thomas gave us more of the same this season, which isn’t a bad thing! In 44 Appearances, he registered 8 Goals, 12 Assists, 2 PoMs, 1.20 TpG, 1.23 DpG, and 6.83 AR – it might not be as impressive as his 2034-2035 stretch, but he still played a big part in our offense and was a consistent threat for us down the left wing. He has now played in 500+ League Games for us, and is one of our most experienced players, so we will rely on him heavily as an offensive threat next year in the Premier League. Rating: 6.5/10 RIGHT WINGERS Danny Barry (2021), 32 Years Old: Just when it seemed like the time had come for Danny Barry to hand over the reigns, he goes and turns back time. In 46 Appearances (the first time in 12 years he has played in every game), he registered 5 Goals, led the league with 15 Assists, 1.91 DpG, and 6.95 AR, delaying the inevitable for at least another year. He has not featured in 700+ League Games for us, and he has a special place in the club’s history, along with Michael Thomas and Pearce Knill, as one of its top legends. I have not made up my mind yet what his role will be next year, and his pace did regress a bit this year, but that is a decision for later. Right now, we can enjoy one more year of this brilliant winger’s career, and he will become a Premier League player to boot! Rating: 7/10 FORWARDS Pearce Knill (2022), 31 Years Old: After giving us his worst season of his career last year, Knill transformed back to his legendary ways and became the single most important piece in our successful promotion campaign this year. This was the best season of his career, bar none, and he was recognized as such, winning the Championship Player of the Year. In 43 Appearances, he led the league with 39 Goals, 9 Assists, 10 PoMs, and was 2nd in the league with 7.39 AR, enroute to our 2nd Place finish and automatic promotion. At this point, I don’t think anyone can argue that he has become the club’s GOAT, as his accomplishments have now surpassed those of Michael Thomas. He now has 312 League Goals for his career, and he will get to try his luck against the best defenders in the world next season before he begins to enter the twilight of his career. Rating: 10/10 Tim Cross (2023), 29 Years Old: The Scottie Pippen to Knill’s Michael Jordan, Cross was the perfect complementary player, doing everything he needed to do and then some. In 44 Appearances, he registered 18 Goals, 13 Assists, and 7.13 AR, punishing defenders when they collapsed on Knill and finding him with an assist when they didn’t. He is in the prime of his career and is of a similar age to Knill, so it is going to be difficult trying to replace both of them together in a couple of years, but for now, Cross is doing an amazing job as Knill’s wingman. Rating: 7.5/10 HOT PROSPECTS Pat Clayton (2033), 20 Years Old, Central Midfielder/Attacking Midfielder: Now that he has become Accomplished in the CM position, he is a prime candidate to take minutes away from Liam Daly next season. He had 20 Appearances, this year, all as a substitute, and I really should have found him more minutes – 2.03 TpG and 1.45 DpG point to a rare versatility. Plus, he has shown me what Daly has not – dedication to improvement in training. Intake: 1/5 CA, 5/5 PA – Current: 3/5 CA, 5/5 PA Liam Smith (2034), 19 Years Old, Central Defender: He has not developed as well as my coaching staff predicted, and he has not given me any reason to play him. In his few appearances, he registered 6.38 AR, which is not encouraging. Intake: 1.5/5 CA, 5/5 PA – Current: 2/5 CA, 4.5/5 PA Anthony Butters (2034), 19 Years Old, Left Winger: He certainly got chances this year, appearing in 20 Games (1 Start) – he also registered 3 Assists and 6.62 AR. Is he going to be a world-beater? Most likely not, but he is showing capability to be a versatile rotation player. Intake: 0.5/5 CA, 3.5/5 PA – Current: 2/5 CA, 5/5 PA Marcelo (2035), 18 Years Old, Right Winger: Although he barely played, he is probably the young talent I am most excited about. My coaching staff believe him to be potentially a Premier League talent, and I do not think they are wrong. He will definitely get his chances next year. Intake: 1.5/5 CA, 4.5/5 PA – Current: 3/5 CA, 5/5 PA Kerry Williams (2036), 17 Years Old, Right Winger: I really hope Williams is not Liam Daly 2.0 – so impressive coming out the Youth Academy, but no progress years down the line. He made virtually no improvements in his abilities this year, despite appearing in 11 Games and I will definitely need to see more from him in that regard this coming season. My coaching staff have already downgraded his PA half a star, so they seem to be losing hope in him early. Intake: 1.5/5 CA, 4.5/5 PA – Current: 2/5 CA, 4.5/5 PA Tommy Henry (2036), 16 Years Old, Right Winger: He is going to be great in the air, that much is obvious from now. Hopefully, the rest of his abilities can catch up to him, because I am definitely going to need some strikers to come through the ranks and replace Knill and Cross in the next few years. Intake: 1.5/5 CA, 4.5/5 PA – Current: 2/5 CA, 5/5 PA YOUTH INTAKE Lewis Gordon - Philip Okonkwo – Ali Salameh Lewis Gordon looks like a real gem, and he immediately makes me excited about this year’s Intake. There is not much to look at outside of Gordon, with Okonkwo and Salameh being the best of a bad bunch, but if Gordon pans out the way I hope, then this year’s Intake would have been a success in my eyes. Rating: 7/10 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted July 16, 2018 Author Share Posted July 16, 2018 On 06/07/2018 at 04:21, Torminator said: Wow making excellent progress! How is your youth system coming along? The Youth System is mediocre at best - the board has refused to invest much in it. After the promotion, the recruitment is now extensive, but the facilities are poor and Junior Coaching is only adequate. On 13/07/2018 at 06:19, Marbah said: the latest season looks promising cant wait for the next update Me too! Getting promoted to the Premier League was great - looking forward to our first season in the PL big time! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidthekid Posted July 17, 2018 Share Posted July 17, 2018 Fantastic work Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marbah Posted July 18, 2018 Share Posted July 18, 2018 yuhuu really happy for you lets see how the big boys play love your youth development Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
noikeee Posted July 23, 2018 Share Posted July 23, 2018 Holy **** that's a huge break man, congratulations on making the Premier League!!! Well deserved for an incredible amount of patience playing this. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobby_Zamora Posted July 26, 2018 Share Posted July 26, 2018 As always, the best in this forum for me. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted July 27, 2018 Author Share Posted July 27, 2018 On 16/07/2018 at 17:25, kidthekid said: Fantastic work Thanks! The most important thing for me was staying up in the Premier League, and he managed to do that, so really excited about that! On 18/07/2018 at 07:44, Marbah said: yuhuu really happy for you lets see how the big boys play love your youth development I will put a screen shot of my facilities information page in the coming update - I invested a lot of in the Youth aspect and thankfully we reaped the benefits! On 23/07/2018 at 16:57, noikeee said: Holy **** that's a huge break man, congratulations on making the Premier League!!! Well deserved for an incredible amount of patience playing this. Thank you so much! It was a rough journey, especially in the League 2! I don't know what happened there but we just could not get out of it, lol. 18 hours ago, Bobby_Zamora said: As always, the best in this forum for me. Thank you so much for the compliment - the next (and first Premier League) update will come later today, hopefully. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted July 27, 2018 Author Share Posted July 27, 2018 SEASON REVIEW 2037/2038 The goal was survival, and despite some early season drama and – quite frankly – abysmal form, the team managed to pick it up and we finished in 16th Place. Two late season results against relegation rivals Newcastle and Brighton got the job done for us, and we were pretty much safe with the last few games to be played. Honestly, though, when we played some of the bigger teams, it was a disaster – Manchester City ran the score up on us 6-1 even though it seemed they missed 90% of their shots. What was hugely encouraging, however, was the fact our investment in all aspects of our Youth showed immediate results, and we look like we have the beginning of a pretty decent foundation on our hands. The fact that we were not the WORST defensive team in the league (19th!) was actually surprising to me! GOALKEEPERS Joshua Spence (2032), 21 Years Old: He’s playing in the Premier League as a starter GK and he’s still making noise about wanting to leave for a bigger club! Honestly, if he knew what was good for him, he’d concentrate more on improving his inconsistent form and less on whether he can make shift over to a club with a bigger attendance average. Obviously, our defense was completely overmatched so you can’t put blame on him for our 81 Total Goals Conceded, but there were quite a few goals that got by him that seemed like they were shots he could’ve done something about. He played in all 38 Games, but he must do better than the 2.13 Con/90 and 6.62 AR he gave us next season. Rating: 5.5/10 LEFT DEFENDERS Scott Ward (2036), 17 Years Old: After Nuri Keskin graduated to the first team, Ward immediately lost his place as our starting left-back, and to be fair, his talents are better suited for left winger, anyway. He was absolutely dire – 28 Appearances, 6.38 AR – and had zero chance against Premier League players. It is not his fault in any way, as he is way too young and playing in a position not suited for him, but now that the pressure is off and he is being trained in his more natural position of left winger, perhaps he can become an adequate backup for Michael Thomas going forward. Rating: 3.5/10 CENTRAL DEFENDERS Brandon Boud (2030), 24 Years Old: In comparison with the rest of the team, Boud did fine – 33 Appearances, 3.81 TpG, 6.68 AR. He had 35 Key Tackles to lead the team and was second with 202 Interceptions and was generally as good as he could be for someone of his talent playing in the world’s toughest league. He definitely is not good enough to anchor a defense that is ready to make some noise in the Premier League, but he did OK for us this year and my assumption is that he will give us more of the same next year, as well. Rating: 6/10 Jordan Osei (2028), 26 Years Old: Again, the Ghanaian was an overachiever this year – he played in all 38 Games, registering 2.95 TpG and 6.70 AR. He also led the entire league with 251 Interceptions and 101 Key Headers, which is a combination of having been under immense pressure from opposing offenses and his own personal level of commitment. I have to admit – I love Osei. He is everything I want in a player: dedicated, hard working, durable, positive, and consistently finds ways to perform above and beyond expectation. Rating: 6/10 RIGHT DEFENDERS Danny Lloyd (2033), 21 Years Old: He was pretty bad, but surprisingly enough, not as bad as I thought he would be! The problem with Lloyd is that he is not naturally a right-back and his ridiculously inconsistent. He played in every game (38 Games), and despite his 6.51 AR, was second on the team with 2 PoMs! His 3.89 TpG was not so bad, either, but there was just some games where he was absolutely dreadful beyond comprehension. The Youth Academy has yet to give a prospect at right-back, so it looks like another season of Lloyd playing there next year. Rating: 4/10 CENTRAL MIDFIELDERS Lloyd Hartley (2032), 22 Years Old : He is the highest valued and probably most talented player on our team as it stands, but I feel like he should have done better for us this season. In 35 Appearances, he registered 1 Goal, 3 Assists, 1.97 TpG, 80% Pass Ratio, and 6.73 AR. His 1,843 Passes Completed were the most on the team, and most of our offense would begin with him, so his importance to the team is vital. Hopefully, he will take his first season in the Premier League as a learning experience and build on it – I believe he has enough talent to do well at this level. Rating: 6/10 Pat Clayton (2033), 21 Years Old: I re-trained him to be a CM, and so it is not his natural position, but I honestly expected more in his first season as a starter. In 36 Appearances, he registered 1 Goal, 2 Assists, 1.92 TpG, and 6.62 AR – not encouraging numbers by any stretch, especially considering his abilities and the fact that he is now no longer a teenager. Like Hartley, I will chalk it up to playing at the Premier League level for the first time, and he will remain our starter for the time being, but I need more. Between Hartley and Clayton’s underwhelming seasons, a strength of ours (the center of the pitch) has turned into an inconsistent force. Rating: 5.5/10 LEFT WINGERS Michael Thomas (2025), 29 Years Old: Our most decorated international player of all-time, he did not do so bad this season considering the factors, with the only big complaint being his inconsistency. In 38 Appearances, he registered 8 Goals, 7 Assists, 1.30 TpG, 1.38 DpG, and 6.71 AR, all decent numbers with the exception of the last one. Again, his inconsistency led to a low overall AR, but he did contribute a lot of meaningful goals and assists along the way. He is now entering the prime of his career, so hopefully he will continue to be a threat going forward but with a little more consistency next season. Rating: 6/10 RIGHT WINGERS Marcelo (2035), 18 Years Old, : It was not an easy situation for Marcelo this season, to be asked to become a starter for the club at such a young age. Not only that, his first stint as a starter for us and he was thrown to the wolves with the best of the best in the world, so his inconsistent form was to be expected. However, he did show lots of flashes of potential and, at times, brilliance – in 35 Appearances, he registered 5 Goals, 10 Assists, 1.30 DpG, and 6.67 AR. My coaching staff love him, both in CA and PA, and he has shown great progress in abilities over the past year. He has great speed, but he needs to continue improving on his technical abilities. Overall, he is legitimately one of our most important building blocks on the team right now. Rating: 6/10 Danny Barry (2021), 33 Years Old – Career: He made 38 Appearances, playing every game this season, but 34 of them came as a Substitute. The legend’s time as a starter and a major part of the rotation is over, having made way for an ever-improving Marcelo, but there is no taking away his accomplishments over the years for us. He is our third best player of all-time, without a doubt, after Pearce Knill and Michael Thomas. Rating: 6/10 FORWARDS Pearce Knill (2022), 32 Years Old - Career: When Knill tells his stories twenty years from now, not only will he be able to say that he was Kafra’s greatest ever player through its first 25-30 years, but that he was also good enough to score 20 Goals in the Premier League even at a relatively advanced aged. In 37 Appearances, he led the team with 20 Goals, 3 Assists, 3 PoMs, and 6.88 AR, and in the process was named the Kafra Player of the Year for the 10th time in his career. I have no clue as to how much I will play him next season, but I have thoroughly enjoyed his career and I was ecstatic to see him make his mark on the Premier League and help us stay up. Kafra’s GOAT at this point, no doubt about it. Rating:7/10 Tommy Henry (2036), 17 Years Old: Around mid-way through the season, I figured I need to start giving Henry some playing time in hopes it aids his development and help him become a Premier League level striker in a few years. I am happy to report that it worked – he contributed just as much as Tim Cross was contributing (3 Goals in 18 Appearances, compared to Cross’ 3 Goals in 16 Appearances), but more importantly, he Henry proved himself capable of holding his own. His improvement in training was also very noticeable, and coaching staff have him rated 5/5 PA with potential to be a Premier League level striker. I am definitely looking forward to seeing what he can do for us next season. Rating: 6.5/10 HOT PROSPECTS Jordan Hughes (2036), 18 Years Old, Right Winger: Hughes was a bit of the forgotten man of the ’36 Youth Class, which featured four 5/5 PA players and which I gave a rating of 9/10. Given the way he has improved, however, he might actually end up being the best of the bunch – at least, that is what my coaching staff thinks, as they rate him as potentially a future Premier League starter. He made 9 Substitute Appearances, and his 6.80 AR pointed that he did fine when he did play. He might end up splitting some time with Marcelo at right wing, as I will look to give him more playing time in the upcoming season. Intake: 1.5/5 CA, 5/5 PA – Current: 3/5 CA, 5/5 PA Kerry Williams (2036), 18 Years Old, Central Midfielder: Williams is the opposite of Hughes – when he graduated to the first time in that ’36 Youth Class, he was the player I was most excited about and the one I thought had the best chance to develop into a star player. Now, he is the lowest rated out of the four top prospects from that class, with even my coaching staff downgrading him. He simply showed no progress in his abilities – at one point, he was tipped to replace Daly in the starting lineup at CM, but because of his lack of improvement, Clayton took his place. Of course, it is not too late as he is only 18 years old, but as it stands, Williams is going to be one of those highly rated prospects that never made it. Intake: 1.5/5 CA, 4.5/5 PA – Current: 2/5 CA, 4/5 PA Lewis Gordon (2037), 17 Years Old, Attacking Midfielder: Our top prospect from last season, he has yet to make his debut but I am optimistic about his potential. I like his abilities, and he showed some improvements throughout the season that were encouraging as well. I think he will make his debut sometime next seasonIntake: 1/5 CA, 5/5 PA – Current: 1.5/5 CA, 5/5 PA YOUTH INTAKE Nuri Keskin - Jaheim Kavanagh – Charlie Batty – Freddie Sawyer – Barry Moran We put in some heavy investment into all aspects of our Youth this past summer thanks to the Premier League money, and from the looks of it, it has began paying big dividends. This is by far our most complete and deepest Youth Intake ever, and Keskin looks like an absolute stud of a full-back, a position we need as much help as we can get in. Sure, I would rather have a prospect at a more pivotal position, but this was a pretty good first Intake in the Premier League for us, I think. Rating: 8/10 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoxToBox Posted July 27, 2018 Share Posted July 27, 2018 What an intake! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted July 29, 2018 Author Share Posted July 29, 2018 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted July 30, 2018 Author Share Posted July 30, 2018 Prince Diallo left the club, and I just figured despite his underwhelming career with us, he deserved a bit of recognition because of the longetivity. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
dllu Posted July 30, 2018 Share Posted July 30, 2018 Well, he was nothing if not loyal... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
oneronaldo Posted July 30, 2018 Share Posted July 30, 2018 Well someone has to play full back. But no one grows up wanting to be Gary Neville Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted July 31, 2018 Author Share Posted July 31, 2018 22 hours ago, dllu said: Well, he was nothing if not loyal... That he was! Played a surprising number of games for us. 22 hours ago, oneronaldo said: Well someone has to play full back. But no one grows up wanting to be Gary Neville I can tell you, he was no Gary Neville, lol. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
oneronaldo Posted July 31, 2018 Share Posted July 31, 2018 1 hour ago, abulezz said: I can tell you, he was no Gary Neville, lol. 635 league games though, even Gary Neville only played 607 total games for United Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobby_Zamora Posted August 3, 2018 Share Posted August 3, 2018 What tactical change did you make? You have been performing really well the past seasons Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted August 3, 2018 Author Share Posted August 3, 2018 On 31/07/2018 at 04:43, oneronaldo said: 635 league games though, even Gary Neville only played 607 total games for United If I got 20 games from Diallo that were as good as Neville's average game, I would've been a happy man! But he was a loyal servant to the club, which is why I gave him his credit. 5 hours ago, Bobby_Zamora said: What tactical change did you make? You have been performing really well the past seasons So basically the past few years I have limited creative freedom, dropped down as deep as I can go, and I have instructed the defense to play the ball out of the defense, no dribbling. We play a strict Counter Attack tactic, with the ball coming in from the flanks, which is why my wingers always seem to have so many assists. We also play very wide and at a relative high tempo. I think that's pretty much it. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted August 8, 2018 Author Share Posted August 8, 2018 NOTE: Due to just having a couple more months before the FM19 is out, I will shorten the updates in order to speed track the career and see how far we can get! SEASON REVIEW 2038/2039 I must admit, last year was an easier time, but I have only myself to blame. I removed some established first team players, and put instead more talented but less experienced prospects to help further their aid. The result was a struggle – we barely stayed up whereas last year it was more comfortable. I replaced Osei with Kavanagh, Cross with Henry, and gave Hughes and Marcelo the most time at right wing. I also started rookie Keskin at left-back, while also giving Ward extensive time down the left flank. Hopefully, these growing pains will result in better results next year. The investment in all of our facilities is starting to pay off, however – our incoming Youth Classes have been significantly better, and our players are improving faster with less stagnation, which I can assume is being helped by the fact that we invested in the training facilities. Still, we need to do better defensively, and our offense has struggled, as well – hopefully, we will see an improvement in both next year. KEY PLAYERS Pearce Knill (2022), 33 Years Old, Striker - Career: Even though he managed to score 19 Goals for us, Knill’s season was marred with inconsistent form and sometime atrocious finishing. Simply put, our GOAT has become too old and his talents have regressed too much to be a solid contributor for a Premier League side. His struggles were a big part of the reason we did worse than last year, and I will have to strongly reconsider his starting spot moving on to the next season. His 6.71 AR (a far cry from his 7.19 AR over his career) was by the lowest mark he has ever recorded as a starter, and my suspicion is it will not get much better next year. His glory days were the greatest this club has ever seen from any of its players, but no can escape the trappings of time, and Knill’s time might have finally come. Rating:6/10 Lloyd Hartley (2032), 23 Years Old, Central Midfielder: Our newly crowned Kafra Player of the Year, it says a lot about your season when your best player registered a 6.85 AR. That being said, as expected, it was a significant improvement over his 6.73 AR that he recorded in his first Premier League season, and although his numbers were nothing special (2 Goals, 80% Pass Ratio) he provided us with the type of stability in the center of the pitch that was sorely needed elsewhere for us this season. He is Unhappy and wants to move to a bigger club, but he is Championship-level CM at best, so I don’t understand the logic. His contract runs out in a couple of years, so hopefully he will use up by then. Rating: 6.5/10 Joshua Spence (2032), 22 Years Old, Goalkeeper: The other player on the team that is constantly complaining about wanting to move to a bigger club, although I don’t see how he would be a starter at a bigger club. We were the worst defensive team in the league, but Spence actually showed improvement from his first year in the Premier League (6.71 AR from 6.62 AR), so his personal performance got better, but we still were terrible defensively. Luckily for me, we got an outstanding GK prospect in this year’s Youth Class, so now I am not so worried about Spence’s happiness going forward. Hopefully he sticks with us, but at least I know I have an alternative if he doesn’t. Rating: 6/10 Michael Thomas (2025), 29 Years Old, Left Winger: He might be the greatest Trinidad & Tobago player of his generation (89 Caps/7 Goals), but he definitely had one of his most miserable seasons in recent times for us this year. First of all, two different major injuries (Hernia and Hip) ruled him out for over three months, meaning he only appeared in 27 Games. His form was obviously affected, and while his 12 Assists led the team, his 6.65 AR was highly disappointing. Despite not yet turning 30 years old, his speed and pace also took a hit, and I am not sure if he will recover them going forward. Overall, where I expected a better season from him, he ended up regressing. Will I immediately be looking to see what the alternative is out on left wing? No, but I definitely will be watching the progress of other potential prospects who might show the ability to contribute. Rating: 6/10 HOT PROSPECTS Tommy Henry (2036), 18 Years Old, Striker: With the decline of Knill inevitable, it is Henry who we will lean on going forward. He did relatively well this year, playing in 37 Games in his first season as a starter, scoring 11 Goals and registering 6.75 AR. At 6’4, he is obviously a great asset for us in the air, and is being trained as a Target Man, and encouragingly he has also developed well physically. My coaching staff have him rated as a potential Premier League talent and given his impressive improvement in his abilities this year, I don’t see any reason why that should not happen. Rating: 6/10 Marcelo (2035), 19 Years Old, Right Winger: In a position where I have an abundance of young talent, Marcelo was the defacto starter, registering 36 Appearances, 3 Goals, 9 Assists, and 6.71 AR. He has a lot to live up to, as Danny Barry is one of the club’s greatest players of all-time, and although he did not show the improvement I would have liked in training (especially in the Technical area), he still was comfortably better in form than Hughes, the other prospect competing for minutes. The Brazilian is still a favorite of the coaching staff (3/5 CA, 5/5 PA), and did show a good ability to cross the ball, but I need more in terms of his Technical and Attacking abilities. Hopefully, he will show some development in both of those throughout next year. Rating: 6/10 Jordan Hughes (2036), 19 Years Old, Right Winger: The ’36 Youth Class held a lot of promise, and it seems now that Tommy Henry and Jordan Hughes are going to be the stars of it. He has to share playing time with Marcelo, but he did appear in 27 Games. The problem is, his 6.41 AR was dismal, and despite the fact that he showed immense improvement in training, I cannot justify giving him playing time if his form doesn’t improve, especially since him and Marcelo are pretty much the same age and we’re fighting for survival in the Premier League. Rating: 4/10 Scott Ward (2036), 18 Years Old, Left Defender/Left Winger : His versatility is always going to be a plus, as he can play anywhere down the left flank, but like Hughes, his form is going to need drastic improvement in order to justify giving him playing time. He played in 24 Games despite losing his starting place to Keskin, and actually improved to 6.41 AR from 6.38 AR. His 2.36 TpG and 1.02 DpG were encouraging, and he has shown commitment to improve his abilities, but he now needs to show he can contribute on the pitch and not be a liability. Rating: 4/10 Nuri Keskin (2038), 17 Years Old, Left Defender: The crown jewel of the ’38 Youth Class, he immediately became our starter at left-back as I had no one nearly as talented as he was on the squad. His first season was as expected – completely overwhelmed on the pitch, but immense improvement in training as his abilities flourished. If he keeps this up, he is going to be one of our most talented players in a couple of years, bar none, but for now, I would like to see some heavy improvement in form next season. Rating: 4/10 Jaheim Kavanagh (2038), 17 Years Old, Central Defender : The Jamaican already has already earned 2 Caps for his nation, and his 6.53 AR was actually the best out of all the young defenders we are trying to develop. He did show some progress in his abilities, but considering he played in 31 Games as a starter, I would have expected perhaps more improvement. His 3.60 TpG was encouraging, and my coaching staff have him already at 2.5/5 CA and 5/5 PA, so he looks to have a bright future ahead of him. I just hope I have done the right thing by playing all these youngsters early in their career to speed-track their development. Rating: 4.5/10 YOUTH INTAKE Ricardo Scott - Richard Holmes – Josias McDonald The investment in everything Youth is definitely paying off, and you can tell by the quality of talent we are getting over the past two classes. We got a striker who looks like the real deal, and an amazing central defender prospect this is an immediately starter. Also, we got our GK insurance if Spence decides to bail on us in a couple of years, which is starting to look very likely. Overall, this was an impressive Youth Class, and although it does not seem to be as deep as last year’s, it does seem to have more impressive top of the line prospects. Rating: 8.5/10 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoxToBox Posted August 8, 2018 Share Posted August 8, 2018 Feels like you're turning a corner now, with the recent intakes and some of the youths growing like wildfire. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted August 9, 2018 Author Share Posted August 9, 2018 13 hours ago, BoxToBox said: Feels like you're turning a corner now, with the recent intakes and some of the youths growing like wildfire. Considering we went from financial struggles to rolling in the cash literally in one summer thanks to moving up to the Premier League, my board has been playing the part and investing heavily in everything Youth. It has definitely shown in the last couple of Intakes! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobby_Zamora Posted August 15, 2018 Share Posted August 15, 2018 I love it how every youth intake is a golden generation Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted August 16, 2018 Author Share Posted August 16, 2018 On 14/08/2018 at 17:21, Bobby_Zamora said: I love it how every youth intake is a golden generation When your team is as crap as mine, every Intake is a golden generation. The problem is, out of this golden generation, we haven't developed a single player that is of Premier League standard yet - we have a couple with the "potential" for it, but that's about it. Now that we invested heavily in our youth, the past two intakes have really seen a big difference. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted August 22, 2018 Author Share Posted August 22, 2018 NOTE: Due to just having a couple more months before the FM19 is out, I will shorten the updates in order to speed track the career and see how far we can get! SEASON REVIEW 2039/2040 Definitely another tough year, although I can appreciate we did enough not to get relegated. Throughout my Kafra careers, I will admit to having done the odd rage-quit and re-load save, but I can be thankful I never reached a point where I had to do with relegation. This season tested me, though, and for a while in the middle of a very bad mid-season spell, it looked like we were going to suffer that fate for the first time. Thankfully, the team pulled through, led by some very young players (especially strikers), and we were not even the worst defensive team in the league! The toughest decision I made was benching Knill for the younger Holmes – Knill had lost almost all of his speed and I figured this was a good time as enough to give my youngsters some much needed match experience at the highest level. Tommy Henry thrived, but the jury is still out on Holmes, although my gut feeling is telling me he will be fine. We had a bunch of rookies playing across the board, so logically, with one year of experience under their belt, we can prepare for a better season ahead. KEY PLAYERS Lloyd Hartley (2032), 24 Years Old, Central Midfielder: The now two-time Kafra Player of the Year was again perhaps our most important player in an otherwise difficult season. In 37 Appearances, he registered 2 Goals, 4 Assists, 1.66 TpG, and team-highs of 81% Pass Ratio, 2.393 Passes Completed, and 6.85 AR. As been the usual with him, he spent all season requesting a move to a bigger club, but of course those requests went immediately into my ignore list. I don’t think there is any chance of me selling him at any point in the near future, although with two straight 6.85 AR seasons in the Premier League now, I am beginning to fear he might have hit his peak. Rating: 6.5/10 Joshua Spence (2032), 23 Years Old, Goalkeeper: The good news here is that I finally have a prospect that can potentially be just as good as Spence, so his requests to leave the club no longer bother me. In fact, an injury that ruled him out for a good portion the season saw him only play in 29 Games, registering 2.03 Con/90 and a 6.73 AR that was his highest since entering the Premier League. The coaching staff, while previously having considered him to have the potential to be a Premier League GK, are not set on him being of the level of a good Championship player. Nevertheless, he has been as reliable as can be expected for such a weak squad, and there are no doubts about him retaining his starting position going into next season. Rating: 6/10 Michael Thomas (2025), 30 Years Old, Left Winger: As Thomas, our most decorated international player of call time (100 Caps/7 Goals for Trinidad and Tobago) enters his thirties, I would not quite consider a legend of the club but definitely an icon. His athleticism, on which he is very reliant on, seems to have become its regression, although he did appear in all 38 Games, registering 7 Goals, 8 Assists, 2 PoMs, and 6.72 AR, up from 6.65 AR last year. In 606 Total League Appearances, he has joined the 100+ Goals and Assists club (106 Goals, 164 Assists) for his career, and while he has not been spectacular in the Premier League, he has been serviceable. The 16 year old veteran might start seeing his time come to an end soon, but I believe he still have a year or two of solid contribution left. Rating: 6/10 Tommy Henry (2036), 19 Years Old, Striker: Tommy Henry has now turned into the focal point of our offense, replacing Pearce Knill – who showed so much regression this year he was practically unplayable. Henry, meanwhile, played in 30 Games, registering 9 Goals, 5 Assists, and 6.82 AR in his second real start of the season. He has come on leaps and bounds, and now is probably one of the best players in the area in the entire Premier League. Like Hartley and Spence, he has begun making noise about wanting to joins a bigger club. He is currently our highest rated player at £5.25M, and although he doesn’t seem to have the potential to be a leading Premier League striker, he at least looks like he will be more than capable of holding his own going forward. Rating: 6.5/10 Pat Clayton (2036), 23 Years Old, Central Midfield : His importance to the club has been born out of our necessity as opposed to his talent, but to his credit, he did give us his finest season to date. In 35 Appearances, he registered 3 Assists, 2 PoMs, 1.50 TpG, 80% Pass Ratio, and a career-high 6.83 AR with more than 10 games played in a season. It is painfully obvious he is not good enough for the Premier League, but he did overachieve this season, and worked his way into our of our more crucial roles. Rating: 6.5/10 HOT PROSPECTS Jordan Hughes (2036), 20 Years Old, Right Winger: Although he did split a little bit of time with Marcelo at right wing this year, Hughes has solidified his position as our starting winger going forward. He was not terribly impressive, and no where near the heights that we came to expect from Danny Barry, but he did do decent – 37 Appearances, 5 Goals, 8 Assists, 1.72 DpG, and 6.71 AR. His main issue, as with most youngsters, is his lack of consistency. Encouragingly, he has been dedicated in training and my coaching staff still rank him at 5/5 for CA.Rating: 6/10 Nuri Keskin (2038), 18 Years Old, Left Defender: Our current starting left-back and our left-back of the future, the 18 year old showed good improvement over his rookie season, which isn’t saying much as his AR went up from 6.40 AR to 6.56 AR. However, it is improvement nonetheless, and he continued to show good improvement in his abilities as well. The coaching staff love him, and believe he has not hit anywhere near his potential, which is good news for us. He played a full 38 Games, registering 1 Goal, an impressive 4.05 TpG, and a less than impressive 6.56 AR, which I would expect to creep into the mid-to-high 6.60s if this trend keeps up. He is definitely super-talented, and as he grows older, the hope is he will start living up to his potential. Rating: 5/10 Jaheim Kavanagh (2038), 18 Years Old, Central Defender : For lack of significantly better talent, Kavanagh started the season as our starter and never looked back, despite the immense growing pains he went through as a rookie. By all means, this was not a good debut season – 34 Appearances, 1 Goal, 1 PoM, 2.87 TpG, and 6.58 AR. What was important, however, was that he showed decent improvement in his ability, and although I don’t agree with my coaching staff giving him a 5/5 PA, I will give them the benefit of the doubt. Rating: 5/10 Josias McDonald (2039), 17 Years Old, Goalkeeper: Joshua Spence succumbed to an injury midway through the season that gave the rookie a chance to show his skills, and although he did not play well, he gave me much reason for optimism, especially considering how fast his improvement in abilities was. Hopefully, when he gets some playing time in the next couple of seasons going forward, he will use the experience to give us better form. Rating: 4.5/10 Richard Holmes (2039), 16 Years Old, Striker : Replacing the once undroppable Pearce Knill in the starting lineup, Holmed did not do such a terrible job in his rookie season, scoring 8 Goals and registering 8 Assists and 6.73 AR in 34 Appearances. He will turn 17 during the summer, so he still has a whole lot of time to continue his improvement, but from what I have seen so far, he could be in line for 10+ Goals next year. Rating: 5.5/10 Ricardo Scott (2039), 16 Years Old, Central Defender : The ’39 Youth Class has turned out to be jewel in the making so far, but if I must admit, I am most excited about Ricardo Scott. The CD starting all 38 Games this year, registering 3.92 TpG, and a deceptive 6.60 AR, as the last half of his rookie season was a lot better than the first. If he can keep up the momentum both on the pitch and on the training ground, he might have a chance at having a real start on our hands. Rating: 5/10 RETIRING Danny Barry (2020), Right Winger – Career: Outside of our two legendary strikers (Pearce Knill and Michael Thomas), no one has had quite a profound effect as our captain, a title which he was named in 2027 and has yet to relinquish. The 2024 and 2026 Kafra Player of the Year, he nearly left the club for Birmingham in 2022, but after not impressing enough in his trial, he returned to Kafra and the rest was history. A total of 775 League Appearances, 131 Goals, 229 Assists, and a 6.97 AR in a career that has spanned four divisions and 20 years, there is no doubt about just how incredible this he has been for us. Although some might suggest his peak was too early in his career, they fail to mention that prior to his final season, there were only two years of a total of eighteen in which he failed to appear in 40 Games, despite taking some heavy injuries on the way. His strength was his speed, but the dedication he showed in improving his technical abilities is was truly turned him into a legend of the club. Always a leader, he was an instrumental member of the team that got promoted from the League Two to League One, and once again turned back time two years later, contributing 15 Assists as the team got promoted to the Premier League. I would consider him our third greatest player after Knill and Thomas, and definitely our greatest ever non-forward player. YOUTH INTAKE Aiden Weston - Luke Fitzpatrick – Okyere Donkor Another “golden generation” that really wont end up being one, we did get two intriguing striker prospects in a position we are sorely lacking in depth, especially as Knill hits the twilight of his career. Both the players look great, so it will all be about how the develop now. Donkor is the only other prospect worth noting, although I don’t see him becoming much of a competitor for a place in the squad. In terms of comparing this Intake to last year’s, I don’t think it is as talented, but if the two strikers work out, it will be worth it indeed. Rating: 8.5/10 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
noikeee Posted August 30, 2018 Share Posted August 30, 2018 Hey 16th-17th-16th at least is pretty damn consistent! Doing well to hang on to the Premier League, one of these days the "golden generations" will give you the push to the dizzying heights of 15th or 14th! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marbah Posted September 5, 2018 Share Posted September 5, 2018 glad your still doing this years fm hope to see a couple more updates until November GO KAFRA Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted September 6, 2018 Author Share Posted September 6, 2018 NOTE: Due to just having a couple more months before the FM19 is out, I will shorten the updates in order to speed track the career and see how far we can get! SEASON REVIEW 2040/2041 I wouldn’t say this year was as tough as last year, as we ensured survival with a few games left in the season, but it definitely was not a cake-walk either. As it stands, our goal remains not to get relegated, as it has been for the past four years, but the mildly frustrating thing is I haven’t seen much progress as a team. There seems to be no sign of the imminent improvement, although you never know when the players might surprise you. That said, the talent level is simply too low to expect much – I am hoping the new crop of players we have received in the past few years start to pan out soon. We again invested in Youth and Training this year, so we should reap from benefit from that, as well. At least we weren’t the worst defense in the league (18th), but our offense is showing signs of struggle. I expect more of the same next year, to be honest – if we can ensure safety and not really be threatened with relegation, I will be a happy camper. KEY PLAYERS Lloyd Hartley (2032), 25 Years Old, Central Midfielder: Our Kafra Player of the Year for the third year in a row, he is now valued at £10M after having what was his best season so far in our four years in the Premier League. In 36 Appearances, he registered 3 Goals, 5 Assists, 1.36 TpG, 81% Pass Ratio, and 6.99 AR – his previous high in the Premier League was 6.85 AR. As far as PL talent goes, Hartley is definitely not one of the best, but he has been as solid as a rock for us in the center of the pitch, and has easily become one of our most influential players. Despite all his complaining, he actually ended up signing a new contract worth £26K per week this season, so I can rest assured that he is not going anywhere for the next few years! Rating: 7/10 Tommy Henry (2036), 20 Years Old, Striker: Our highest valued player at £14M, and also our biggest locker room negative influence, Henry continues to make noise about wanting to move to a bigger club. The issue is, he has become very vital for us, especially after he gave us his finest season yet. He played in all 38 Games, registering 20 Goals (up from 9), 4 Assists, 4 PoMs, and a career-high (and team-high) 7.11 AR. He is one of the biggest threats in the air in the entire league, and although he doesn’t have the pace to run by quicker defenders, his strength helps him, especially getting the high ball. We have an abundance of potential prospects that have come through the ranks the last couple of years at the striker position, but Henry remains the best of the lot and probably the most valuable member of our team at this point. Rating: 7.5/10 Joshua Spence (2032), 24 Years Old, Goalkeeper: Despite having the just-as-talented Josias McDonald in the same position, I rewarded our long time starter at GK with the richest contract in Kafra history, to the tune of £43.5K per week. My coaching staff believe he is fully capable of being a good PL GK, and I will trust their judgement. My thinking is to stay with the sure thing, since we have escaped the drop four years in a row with him between the sticks, let us not fix something that isn’t broken. He wasn’t impressive in terms of form, but until my defense starts actually playing up to standard, I cannot put the blame on him. That being said, he has progressively gotten better in each of our PL seasons – albeit very minor – and his 6.74 AR was his highest in these four seasons. Rating: 6/10 Michael Thomas (2025), 31 Years Old, Left Winger: Given how his biggest strength was his speed, I could see it coming that he was going to take a sharp downward spiral in terms of form as his age increased. It wasn’t so bad this year (30 Appearances, 2 Goals, 9 Assists, 6.77 AR), and his AR was actually the highest he has recorded in the PL so far, but I think next year might be the last season he makes a meaningful contribution to the squad. While I would not put him in the same legendary status as Michael Thomas V1.0, Pearce Knill, and Danny Barry, he most definitely is a huge icon for the club, and his 16 years – not counting his Intake year – of service to the club have been highly appreciated. Rating: 6/10 Pat Clayton (2036), 24 Years Old, Central Midfield : As was the trend, Clayton gave us his finest season to date this year. In 36 Appearances, he registered 4 Assists, 1.53 TpG, 78% Pass Ratio, and 6.88 AR, which was a career-high. Is he the ideal CM for the PL? The obvious answer there is no, but currently, he is the best we have. A couple of my potential prospects have not panned out the way I hope, but at least I can be assured that Clayton will consistently give me decent performances and not be a liability to the squad. Rating: 6.5/10 HOT PROSPECTS Jordan Hughes (2036), 21 Years Old, Right Winger: He has effectively replaced Marcelo as our starting right winger, but he has yet to impress. He played in all 38 Games, registering 4 Goals, 9 Assists, 1.68 DpG, and 6.69 AR, which was actually down from last season. Next season will be the first year I will judge him 100%, as he should now be mature and old enough to give us peak form. He has the right skillset for the position, and he is Marcelo’s superior in nearly every way, so I want to see some heavy improvement next season from him. Rating: 5.5/10 Nuri Keskin (2038), 19 Years Old, Left Defender: Despite a very disappointing season, he was actually called up for and capped by the England U20 team, which I guess is an encouraging sign. There is absolutely nothing wrong with his talent or his workrate in training, as he has shown constant and solid improvement since coming up the ranks. It is his form that needs work, and a lot of it at that. He made 35 Appearances, registering 2 Goals, 4.60 TpG, and a hugely disappointing 6.56 AR – he simply could not seem to find the right form. He underperformed nearly every match he played, and although I understand that our defense as a whole needs a lot of work, he is easily the most talented of the bunch and thus should be performing the best. That being said, he is very young, and there is a lot of room and time for improvement. There is absolutely no worry about him losing his starting spot, but I really hope he picks up a couple of notches next season. Rating: 4.5/10 Josias McDonald (2039), 18 Years Old, Goalkeeper: He might have played in any games this season, but the progress he has shown in training has been remarkable. My staff think he is definitely going to be a PL quality player, and I agree with that assessment totally. Playing time will be difficult for him in the next couple of years with Joshua Spence in the lineup, but I will not deny him if he keeps improving at this rate. Rating: N/A Richard Holmes (2039), 17 Years Old, Striker : This was a tough sophomore year for Holmes – I was hoping he would score 10+ Goals this year, but instead he regressed in form and ended up having a worse season than his rookie year. In 35 Appearances, he registered 7 Goals, 10 Assists, 6.66 AR, which was down from 6.73 AR in his rookie year. Still, he made good improvements in his abilities, and he has the look and skillset of what could be a good goalscorer in the PL in a few years time. He is still our default starter next to Henry, but I will experiment a bit more next season as my other striker prospects develop. Rating: 5.5/10 Ricardo Scott (2039), 18 Years Old, Central Defender : Very exciting improvement across the board from Scott in his sophomore year, both in his abilities and form. He was a full-time starter for us, playing 35 Games and registering 3.49 TpG, 26 Key Tackles, 182 Interceptions, and 6.71 AR, up from 6.60 AR last year. He wants a new contract, but his agent is insisting on a Minimum Release Clause, something which I am not going to agree to. Otherwise, he might be our most exciting prospect, honestly – I cant wait to see his potential improvement next year because our defense is desperate for it. Rating: 6/10 RETIRING Pearce Knill (2022), Striker – Career: Although he did not have quite the longevity that Michael Thomas did, at his best, there can be no doubt that Knill was Kafra’s greatest of all-time. From 2026/27 until 2037/38, Knill won the Kafra Player of the Year award ten times, which is the record for most times won by a single player. The catalyst for our promotion from three different leagues (League 2, League 1, and Championship), he proved his class by scoring 19 Goals in the club’s first season in the Premier League to help keep us up. Three times having scored over 30 League Goals per season, twice were seasons we won our promotion in. There simply was no more important player for us in the 2020s and 2030s than Knill, and although his 599 League Appearances fall well short of Danny Barry’s 747, 353 Goals, 165 Assists, 77 PoMs, and a 7.18 AR for his career are more than enough numbers to show just how amazing he was for us. Up until the early 2040s, he is Kafra’s GOAT! YOUTH INTAKE George Miles - Dermot Duggan – Alan Walker - Shaun Wright - Giovanni Ryman Wow – what an Intake. Another “golden generation”, but this one has a real chance to actually be one. George Miles jumped in as an immediate starter at right-back for us, and Ryman finished the season as our starting left winger after Thomas got hurt. We have had an influx of talent at the striker position, and both Alan Walker and Shaun Wright look like they could develop into real gems if they show dedication. I’m not sold on Duggan as much despite his rating, but my coaching staff are very high on him. Overall, you cannot ask for much more from an Intake – this looks like a real gem of one. Rating: 9.5/10 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted September 6, 2018 Author Share Posted September 6, 2018 On 29/08/2018 at 18:23, noikeee said: Hey 16th-17th-16th at least is pretty damn consistent! Doing well to hang on to the Premier League, one of these days the "golden generations" will give you the push to the dizzying heights of 15th or 14th! Lol - 16th again! I don't see the situation changing anytime soon - the PL is so stacked with talent its ridiculous at this point in the save. On 04/09/2018 at 23:33, Marbah said: glad your still doing this years fm hope to see a couple more updates until November GO KAFRA Thanks for the comment! I'll keep it going until the new FM comes out - lets see how far we can get! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Highbury Posted September 7, 2018 Share Posted September 7, 2018 Really enjoy this thread, so please keep up the good work I couldn't help noticing on your season summary screenshot how dominant Man City have been - they've won the league for the last 8 seasons! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted September 8, 2018 Author Share Posted September 8, 2018 13 hours ago, Mr Highbury said: Really enjoy this thread, so please keep up the good work I couldn't help noticing on your season summary screenshot how dominant Man City have been - they've won the league for the last 8 seasons! They've been really dominant the past few years - you can see the screenshots below. They've also been very strong in the Champions League - in fact, from the late 2010s to the late 2030s, Premier League teams were the absolute dominant force in Europe. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobby_Zamora Posted September 13, 2018 Share Posted September 13, 2018 Manchester nation The UCL history gives me headaches... That is so unrealistic that I'd have dropped my save Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted September 13, 2018 Author Share Posted September 13, 2018 1 hour ago, Bobby_Zamora said: Manchester nation The UCL history gives me headaches... That is so unrealistic that I'd have dropped my save LOL - luckily, I was busy battling the giants of League 2 and League 1, so I was not paying attention much on what was going on in the CL, but it is crazy how dominant PL teams were. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
l4nd3r Posted September 15, 2018 Share Posted September 15, 2018 On 13/09/2018 at 11:44, abulezz said: LOL - luckily, I was busy battling the giants of League 2 and League 1, so I was not paying attention much on what was going on in the CL, but it is crazy how dominant PL teams were. Do you play with only English leagues active? That's probably the reason. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted September 15, 2018 Author Share Posted September 15, 2018 3 hours ago, l4nd3r said: Do you play with only English leagues active? That's probably the reason. Actually, quite the opposite - I play almost all the leagues in the world on playable, except for the smaller ones. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
noikeee Posted September 17, 2018 Share Posted September 17, 2018 On 15/09/2018 at 16:24, abulezz said: Actually, quite the opposite - I play almost all the leagues in the world on playable, except for the smaller ones. Bloody hell, got a NASA supercomputer? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted September 20, 2018 Author Share Posted September 20, 2018 NOTE: Due to just having a couple more months before the FM19 is out, I will shorten the updates in order to speed track the career and see how far we can get! SEASON REVIEW 2041/2042 Another tough year – we started off well, but towards the end of the middle of the season, our form took a drastic turn for worse, and we even fell into the relegation zone for a week or so before stopping our fall. Its tough – five years into the Premier League, and there have been no signs of progress. We have some exciting prospects starting to develop, but it is not enough to really make an impact at the Premier League. If one or two of our strikers work out and develop as we hope, they will go a long way in helping our faltering offense, which was ranked 14th in the league. Our defense remains terrible (19th in the league), but we do have some prospects at our full-back positions that are encouraging if they can just get some decent form going. Overall, I expected to have this kind of year, and while I am hopeful next season will be a bit better, it will be similar to this one. KEY PLAYERS Lloyd Hartley (2032), 26 Years Old, Central Midfielder: Hartley won the Kafra Player of the Year for the 4th year in a row, equaling a record set by Pearce Knill – who did it twice - before him. This was his best season till now in his career, and he was our most influential player, as well. He played in all 38 Games, registering 2 Goals, 4 Assists, 3 PoMs, 2.09 TpG, 81% Pass Ratio, and 7.01 AR. He was the central figure in almost every meaningful attack the club made through the middle, and rarely was caught off-guard or made a mistake. His game continues to show a maturity and calmness that is unfortunately rare to find in other players on the team, and the whole team plays with a different vibe when he is on his game. Rating: 7/10 Tommy Henry (2036), 21 Years Old, Striker: Injuries cut short what was a promising season from our tall striker – had to deal with 4 different injuries this season that kept him out of action for more than 2 months combined. He ended up playing in 31 Games, registering 15 Goals, 2 Assists, and 6.97 AR, the second highest of his career after last season. This was his 4th year as our starting striker and focal point of our attack, and so far he has not let us down. Granted, he doesn’t have anywhere near the same impact on the team and the game that Pearce Knill or Michael Thomas had at the same position, but he definitely is our best forward at the moment. We will continue to rely on him going into next season, where he can hopefully have a full, injury-free season and register around 20 Goals like last year. Rating: 710 Joshua Spence (2032), 25 Years Old, Goalkeeper: Five years in the Premier League, and five years of continuous improvement. In 2037/38, Spence and the team’s first year in the Premier League, he registered a 6.62 AR – this year, in 38 Games, he was up to 6.77 AR. Obviously, that is still nothing to brag about, but he has proven he can be a decent GK at this level the past couple of years. If the defense can show some improvement, the pressure on Spence will ease, and I am sure his AR will go up significantly. He’s not England’s next No.1, but this is a player who has been our starting GK for the past 10 years and is still only 25! Rating: 6.5/10 Michael Thomas (2025), 32 Years Old, Left Winger: His time as a starter ended towards the end of the season, as the regression in his pace became too much of a liability to cover considering his speed was his primary strength. The Trinidad and Tobago legend (103 Caps/7 Goals) joins rare company in the club’s history books as one of the very few players to score over 100 Goals (110 so far) and 150 Assists (179 and counting), doing so over 669 League Appearances. This year, he had 33 Appearances, registering 2 Goals, 6 Assists, and 6.73 AR – we might have a capable replacement yet, but I don’t think I can continue to start Thomas, especially as his form really took a hit towards the end of the season. Rating: 6/10 Pat Clayton (2036), 25 Years Old, Central Midfield : He used to be a starter out of necessity rather than me being convinced of his ability, but his improvement in form since becoming a Premier League player in these five years has truly been impressive. Like Spence, he has improved every year, starting with 6.62 AR in his first PL season and registering 6.98 AR this season, to go along with 2 Goals, 6 Assists, 1.98 AR, and 78% Pass Ratio while appearing in all 38 Games. He was an important cog in the middle of the pitch alongside Hartley, and like his partner, he rarely made a mistake and was totally reliable. He might not win any outstanding awards, but he continues to prove that he can be relied on to do a decent job. Rating: 7/10 Jordan Hughes (2036), 22 Years Old, Right Winger: Not good – this was the first year in which he had to prove himself capable of being our starting right winger, and he went on to lose the job after failing to impress. In 34 Appearances (12 Substitute Apps), he registered 2 Goals, 4 Assists, and 6.65 AR, which was actually down from the 6.69 AR he registered last year. It is not over for Hughes, but he does need to prove he is capable if he wants to earn the same chance again. Hopefully, he will turn it around next year. Rating: 5.5/10 Marcelo (2035), 22 Years Old, Right Winger: After the disappointing start to the season Hughes had, I threw Marcelo back in the starting lineup and he responded positively. The Brazilian, although not as naturally talented as Hughes, played much better – in 27 Appearances, he registered 6 Goals, 3 Assists, 3 PoMs, 1.82 DpG, and a career-high 6.83 AR. Unfortunately, he broke his leg just before the end of the season, and will probably be ruled out of action until December. Rating: 6/10 HOT PROSPECTS Nuri Keskin (2038), 20 Years Old, Left Defender: One of the most naturally talented players on the team, he has also been one of the most underperforming players the past couple of the years. He is now at an age where we should be seeing progress in his form, and although his abilities have been consistently improving over the course of the last few years, his form has been very stagnant. He played in all 38 Games, registering an impressive 4.56 TpG and 131 Interceptions (2nd on the team), but his 6.55 AR points to his inability to perform at an acceptable level most matches. His career 6.50 AR suggests perhaps I through him into the starting lineup too soon, but I thought I would see better of him this season. Regardless, he remains our undisputed starter at the left-back position. Rating: 4/10 Josias McDonald (2039), 19 Years Old, Goalkeeper: If he keeps improving at this rate, I might have to start giving him a few meaningful matches this upcoming season. He didn’t play in any matches for the second year in a row, but his improvement in training has been remarkable. I will definitely see if I can find some time for him next season. Rating: N/A Richard Holmes (2039), 18 Years Old, Striker: This was a nice bounce-back season for the youngster after having a tough time at it in his sophomore year – in 33 Appearances, he registered 13 Goals, 5 Assists, 3 PoMs, 78% Pass Ratio, 50% Shot Target, and 6.83 AR, the highest of his career so far. Encouragingly, his development continues to be on track, and my coaching staff remain very high on his potential. He definitely has the ability to surpass Tommy Henry’s talent, and in a couple of years, at this rate, he could well be the focal point of our attack. I am, so far, very impressed by Holmes. Rating: 7/10 Ricardo Scott (2039), 19 Years Old, Central Defender: For the third year in a row, Scott showed significant improvement in both form and ability – I would even go as far as to say he is one of our best players in terms of current ability. His potential – if he keeps improving at this rate – could very well be that of an England international, but that is all contingent on his progress. This season, he played in 37 Games, registering 3.87 TpG and 6.79 AR, which was a career-high. The good news is he keeps complaining about wanting a new contract – the bad news is, his agent keeps insisting on a Minimum Release Clause which I don’t want to include. Hopefully it can work itself out in the new couple of years. Rating: 6.5/10 Sam Samuels (2039), 19 Years Old, Central Defender: A prospect that showed very good development in the U18s since graduating from the Youth Academy, Samuels is part of the ’39 Youth Class that has been one of the best in the history of the club – it includes Ricardo Scott, Richard Holmes, and Josias McDonald. Based on the recommendation of my coaching staff, I gave him some playing time in the first team, and he did decent for his debut season. In 10 Appearances, he registered 2.72 TpG and 6.65 AR, and I actually think I will give him a chance to start alongside Scott at the beginning of next season and see how he does. Rating: 6/10 Augustine Ibrahim (2040), 18 Years Old, Right Winger: Like Samuels, Ibrahim was not expected to amount to much coming out of the Academy, but he could actually end up being the best player of what has been a disappointing ’40 Youth Class. He has needed work – he was a natural CM that I converted into a right-winger – but he got playing time this season at the position and did generally OK. He had 17 Appearances (16 Substitute), registering 1 Goal, 1 Assist, 1.16 TpG, 1.16 DpG, and 6.65 AR – the most encouraging thing about him, however, has been his commitment to improving his ability. My coaching staff aren’t too high on his potential (4/5 PA), but he looks to be a decent player if he keeps up his improvement. Rating: 6/10 Luke Fitzpatrick (2040), 17 Years Old, Striker: He spent the year on loan playing with Salford in the Vanarama National league, but it was a good experience for him and he did very well, scoring 20 Goals and registering 11 Assists and 7.25 AR. He will only turn 18 in the summer, so there is a lot of time for him to show improvement – he has been a bit stagnant in that department. Still, my coaching staff still have him rated at 5/5 PA, so they must see something in him that he will hopefully show me soon. Rating: N/A George Miles (2041), 17 Years Old, Right-Back: It was a very rough rookie season for the right-back (33 Appearances, 3.50 TpG, 6.43 AR), but he’s too young to judge. He did great in training, and his abilities improved a lot throughout the course of the season – hopefully, that will translate into better and more consistent form in his sophomore year. A highly touted prospect by my coaching staff, I think he has the potential to be very good player for us. Rating: 4/10 Alan Walker (2041), 7 Years Old, Striker: Part of an encouraging (so far) ’41 Youth Class along with George Miles, Giovanni Ryman, and Shaun Wright, he went on loan with Worcester in the Vanarama North and did rather well, scoring 18 Goals in 27 Appearances and registering 7.09 AR. He looks good, and despite his complete inability to do anything positive in the air, I like his skill-set – he has good attacking instinct and speed. One to watch. Rating: N/A Giovanni Ryman (2041), 17 Years Old, Left Winger: In an extremely shallow position, Ryman is currently our default starter (!) because Michael Thomas showed heavy regression this year and does not look the part going into next season. That left Ryman to start in his rookie year, playing in 17 Games and registering 2 Goals, 1 Assist, and 6.64 AR. I really hope his development does not show any stagnation, because right now, we have no other options at the position! I am not crazy about his skill-set, but he does have good pace. Let’s see how he does this coming year, as we will rely on him heavily – my coaching staff have him rated at 5/5 PA, so they obviously think he’s going to be good for us. Rating: 6/10 Shaun Wright (2041), 17 Years Old, Striker: I actually gave him substantial playing time this season, as the rookie replaced Henry when he was injured. He ended up playing in 11 Games, but did not manage to score, and his 6.47 AR suggests he definitely was not ready. His finishing needs a lot of work, but he does have a number of good abilities to work with – hopefully, he can show continued improvement and score his first goal this coming season. Rating: 4/10 YOUTH INTAKE Adebayo Hassan - Josh Thompson – James Barnett - Matthew O’Sullivan The obvious gem in this group is Josh Thompson, and although we have had an influx of striker prospects in the last few seasons, Thompson looks like he could be better than them all. Other than Thompson, there isn’t much to be excited about – Hassan is highly rated by my coaching staff, and he looks like he could potentially develop into a good player, but he also looks like one of those players that never really gets it going, as well – he could go both ways. Barnett looks like a decent prospect at GK, but I doubt he will be better than McDonald. Rating: 7/10 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted September 22, 2018 Author Share Posted September 22, 2018 On 17/09/2018 at 03:25, noikeee said: Bloody hell, got a NASA supercomputer? LOL - I actually have a 2 x Sager custom built laptops, one at work and one at home Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted September 28, 2018 Author Share Posted September 28, 2018 NOTE: Due to just having a couple more months before the FM19 is out, I will shorten the updates in order to speed track the career and see how far we can get! SEASON REVIEW 2042/2043 Another 16th Place finish with no signs of improvement! I guess I should be appreciative that we didn’t have much of a challenge staying up, but it is also frustrating seeing the team go through a slump from the middle of the season all the way until the end. The immaturity on the team continues to show – they lose a couple of games and the whole team starts crying, and it is next to impossible to have them perform at a high level after that. Our defense continues to be our biggest problem – we are not the worst in the league (18th), but we definitely are not at an acceptable level, either. Our offense was ranked 11th in the PL this season thanks to one man – Thomas Henry, who scored a phenomenal 27 Goals and was second only to Man City’s legend Thierry N’Dri in the league. Overall, I think we have gotten to a stage where we don’t worry about relegation, but as of yet, are not even good enough to be a mid-table team. KEY PLAYERS Tommy Henry (2036), 22 Years Old, Striker: For the first time in his career, Henry was crowned the Kafra Player of the Year, and deservedly so – playing in all 38 Games, he registered 27 Goals (making him the second highest scorer in the Premier League), 7 PoMs (4th in PL), and a career-high 7.24 AR. Those stats don’t tell the full story, however – he was the PL leader with 410 Headers Won and an incredible 60% Shot Target, showing just how proficient he was both in the air and on the ground. I think he has proven that he is, without a shadow of a doubt, a true PL talent striker, and if he can stay injury-free for us, he is in line to become perhaps our most vital player for the next few years. Rating: 8/10 Lloyd Hartley (2032), 27 Years Old, Central Midfielder: This was the first year in five that our leading CM did not win the club’s Player of the Year award, and it was also his first season since his ten that he played in less than 35 Games. He was still just as reliable as always, however, which is the beauty about Hartley – you know exactly what you are getting. In those 33 Appearances, he registered 1 Goal, 5 Assists, 1 PoM, 2.70 TpG, 81% Pass Ratio, team-leading 2,205 Passes Completed, and 6.97 AR, down slight from 7.01 AR last year. The injuries played a bit of a part in his slight regression in form, but I would expect our captain to bounce back next year and give us one of his best years to date as he is now entering his prime. Rating: 7/10 Joshua Spence (2032), 26 Years Old, Goalkeeper: A fractured lower arm put a huge dent in our highest paid player’s season, and he only featured in 19 Appearances all year long. It would be unfair to judge him, but his second-in-line Josias McDonald made huge strides once he got playing time – so much so that I am now in a bind of whether to continue starting McDonald next year or return to the status quo and give Spence the start. The problem is, McDonald is looking spectacular, and his abilities are easily going to be much better than Spence’s – I don’t want to do anything to stunt that growth. This is through no fault of Spence’s, but that is how it is in football sometimes. Rating: 6/10 Pat Clayton (2036), 26 Years Old, Central Midfield : Like Hartley, Clayton has been as predictable and reliable as they come – since entering the PL, Clayton has not played less than 35 Games in a season. This year, he had 37 Appearances, registering 1 Goal, 7 Assists (career-high), 1.62 TpG, 77% Pass Ratio, and 6.86 AR – basically, he is Hartley except the latter is just a little bit better. The problem is, this year’s Intake gave us what looks like a fantastic talent in Kerry Kelly, and I am tempted to give Kelly the start next year. Like Spence, this is through no fault of his own, simply better talent coming in through the system. Rating: 6.5/10 Jordan Hughes (2036), 23 Years Old, Right Winger: It was not a great year from Hughes, but he definitely took a step in the right direction after last season – he improved his AR from 6.65 AR to 6.74 AR, playing in 36 Games and also registering 3 Goals, 8 Assists, and 2.20 DpG. Impressively, he led the PL with 329.33 Miles in Distance Covered, covering 9.53 MpG, also leading the PL in that. He is still inconsistent, and is prone to having some really bad games, but I am glad to see him improvement, and I hope to see him do better next year, as well. Rating: 6/10 HOT PROSPECTS Nuri Keskin (2038), 21 Years Old, Left Defender: For the first couple of months, it finally looked like the year Keskin would start living up to his potential, but a dreadful second half of the season brought his AR down, leaving me frustrated and a little bit out of options as to how to get him to improve. In 36 Appearances, he registered 4.23 TpG and, laughably, a career-high 6.59 AR. He has all the right skills to be a good full-back in the PL, but it doesn’t look like he is even close to figuring it out yet. Rating: 4.5/10 Josias McDonald (2039), 20 Years Old, Goalkeeper: With Spence’s injury came McDonald’s opportunity, and he did not disappoint. He played as well as could be expected considering the defensive line in front of him, finishing the season with 20 Appearances, 1.84 Con/90, and 6.74 AR. Throughout the season, he continued to show amazing improvements in his abilities, and he is now at a point where he is superior to Spence in almost every way. Now I have a decision to make – do I continue starting our highest paid player, or do I give the more talented youngster his chance? Rating: 6/10 Ricardo Scott (2039), 20 Years Old, Central Defender: A disappointing season in all aspects from Scott – his growth stagnated, and his form regressed. In 32 Appearances, he registered 3 Goals, 3.24 TpG, and 6.69 AR, down from 6.79 AR last season. He is our most talented CD, and I am hoping this is a one-off thing – hopefully, he will bounce back next year and prove he can be a PL-level CD and perform well. Rating: 5.5/10 Sam Samuels (2039), 19 Years Old, Central Defender: I had quiet optimism that Samuels would be one of those players that punches above his weight, but our defense in general let me down this season and Samuels was no exception. He played in all 38 Games, registering 2.33 TpG and 6.67 AR – not numbers to be proud of. He does not have Scott’s talent, so to me he is a replaceable member of the first team. If we get a prospect that shows promise, I will end up giving him a shot at Samuels expense. Rating: 5/10 Richard Holmes (2039), 19 Years Old, Striker: Another decent season from Henry’s partner up front, Holmes delivered 12 Goals, 7 Assists, 2 PoMs, 75% Pass Ratio, and 6.88 AR (career-high) in 35 Games. Despite not seeing much progress in his abilities this season, my coaching staff still have him rated 5/5 PA, so that is encouraging, although I would like to see his Technical skills get a bit better. Still, after Henry finished 2nd in the PL in Goals, I can see Holmes hitting 20 Goals a season at some point in the near future. He has good strength and speed, and he has yet to turn 20. Rating: 7/10 Luke Fitzpatrick (2040), 18 Years Old, Striker: After a successful year out on loan, I kept Fitzpatrick with the first team this year, and he ended up making 26 Appearances (25 as Substitute). He scored 2 Goals and registered 6.68 AR, but I am not too concerned with that at this point – what surprises me is that my coaching staff have him rated 3/5 CA (just as much as Holmes), and consider him at 5/5 PA with the potential to be much better than Henry. I haven’t seen it yet, but I will continue to give him playing time in hopes of facilitating this expected potential. Rating: 6/10 George Miles (2041), 18 Years Old, Right-Back: Well, at least he improved! In 34 Appearances, he registered 3.60 TpG and 6.47 AR, which was up from 6.43 AR in his rookie season. Obviously, that is nowhere near acceptable enough for the PL, but he is young – I just hope we aren’t reliving the Nurki Keskin experience. He definitely showed great improvement in his abilities, though, so that is a very encouraging sign. Rating: 4.5/10 Alan Walker (2041), 18 Years Old, Striker: For the second straight year, I sent Walker out on loan, this time to Gillingham in the Vanarama South. He did reasonably well, scoring 13 Goals in 32 Appearances, and he improved reasonably will in term of his abilities, as well. Even though he is dreadful in the air, I like him and his abilities, and he seems to be the kind of player that will be able to find the goal with relative ease. I believe I will be keeping him around next season to see what he can do for us. Rating: N/A Giovanni Ryman (2041), 18 Years Old, Left Winger: Unfortunately for Ryman, it looks like he has already lost his starting place! With the emergence of Craig Armstrong from this year’s Intake, Ryman will be relegated to the bench, but the truth is, his form alone would have been reason enough. Yes, he is young, but 3 Assists and 6.45 AR from 31 Games is nothing to be proud of. Additionally, he did not show the kind of work rate needed in training to improve, and thus his abilities only got minimally better this season. Rating: 4/10 Shaun Wright (2041), 18 Years Old, Striker: We have so many talented young strikers that it is going to be impossible to play them all, but Wright continues to look good despite limited appearances. He’s got very good speed, and has shown a willingness to work hard and improve – now we just need his Finishing to get to an acceptable standard. Rating: 5/10 Josh Thompson (2042), 17 Years Old, Striker: The youngest of our striker prospects, he also looks to be the one with the greatest potential, at least to me. If he can show me a willingness to get better and improve his abilities, I will no qualms about making him third choice striker behind Henry and Holmes as early as next season. Rating: 5/10 YOUTH INTAKE George Adjei - Craig Armstrong – Kerry Kelly - Charlie Davie Right off the bat, two of this year’s intake were put in the first team’s starting lineup – Armstrong at left wing and Kelly at central midfield. Adjei also looks like he could be a rotational player for us, and I am optimistic about the potential of Davie. Overall, I like this Intake a lot, and if all goes well, it could be comparable to the ’39 Youth Class in terms of talent. Rating: 9/10 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bobby_Zamora Posted September 29, 2018 Share Posted September 29, 2018 It is ManCity's land... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marbah Posted November 11, 2018 Share Posted November 11, 2018 Are you still playing this save? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted November 11, 2018 Author Share Posted November 11, 2018 2 hours ago, Marbah said: Are you still playing this save? Hi Marbah - I've actually started a new Kafra save in FM19, check it out! The save is called Kafra FC, as always. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
abulezz Posted February 19, 2019 Author Share Posted February 19, 2019 Updated in the wrong thread - oops! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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