(FM18) De Superfriezen - Reigniting Lenstra's Legacy

[Sheriff7]

Very close to big '' boys''  mate good work.. 

[SixPointer]

14 hours ago, Sheriff7 said:

Very close to big '' boys''  mate good work.. 

Thanks mate. Hanging on to there tails. I would be very happy if the league finished this way specially first season. 

[SixPointer]

Sports editor Simon Vestdijk reports from Heerenveen today.

Today I have been informed that the young manager Thijs De Vries has signed a new deal at SC Heerenveen the deal will take him to 2019 with the club. De Vries has made a exciting start to life at his first senior job playing some great football and producing some inspiring results. 

We have been told De Vries requested some upgrades along with his new deal its understood a increase in the junior coaching budget and a improvement in the youth recruitment along with a request to buy the stadium. 

De Vries had this to say today

" I'm delighted to have signed a new contract extension at the club it was a easy decision in the end. I have a great relationship with the board and we are all pulling together on this quest the fact they have backed me with more youth improvements shows you how dedicated they also are. I am looking forward to the future with the club but the aim now has to be as finish as strong as possible in the league so we can build for next season"

Today on Heerenveen TV we are looking into the academy with head of youth development Iddo Roscher

 

Good morning Iddo what will you be talking us threw today? " we will be discussing the players leaving the academy to join up with the under 19 side"

"Here we have a list of the players I have put to the manager and senior staff at the club for assessment. A player I have really tipped to make a impression is Raily Smeekes but more on that later"

"I more in depth look at the boys we have coming through here we have gathered stats throughout the year I have been in the academy and built this table to give the manager an idea of the type of player"

Thijs De Vries

"From the table Iddo has produced we can see we have a good level of determined players coming through at the club which is a must if players are to reach there true potential they need to have that attitude and desire I am very happy with the standard our first intake and Iddo's first one at the club it looks like a promising combination for years to come" 

"Players myself and De Vries has signed up after the first trial game are the Smeekes brothers who have been offered deals both brothers have great potential having been with the club since the age of 8"

Raily Smeekes

A very exciting number 6 capable of becoming like club Captain Schaars

Davereaux Smeekes

The older brother of Raily is a exceptional finisher but needs more work on his all-round game

"Also we have already added two wide players we believe can reach the top. Olaf and Yassin have most of the ingredients to become great wide players"

Olaf Van Leeuwen

Still has lots of work to do but we have seen glimpses of something special already

Yassin Jamai

Technically he needs work but he has the mentality to make it in the game and some of his tricks are unreal

"The final signing at this early stage will be goalkeeper Ferdi Schmidt who will already push the De Boer and Doornbusch for under 19 starting spot"

 

Ferdi Schmidt

Mentally he is miles ahead of the there two keepers but technically he needs to improve

"All other players are still at the club for further assessment from the manager the staff and myself we have a desire to produce the best players at the club and this is the first time we have worked together and used these table forms to track player progress myself and the manager have developed the system together he brought a lot of it from his Ajax days and I added stuff from the success of the NEC academy if the facilities continue to improve there is no reason why we cant match Ajax in the future" 

[Ewan0404]

The good times keep on rolling in the North of the Netherlands

[deltablue]

Nice of you to join me

[SixPointer]

33 minutes ago, Ewan0404 said:

The good times keep on rolling in the North of the Netherlands

Board have backed me big time! Have to produce now! Should have the league done tonight!

[SixPointer]

26 minutes ago, deltablue said:

Nice of you to join me

I feel like your slightly ahead of me in terms of seasons done! Loving it here in the north though!

[SixPointer]

A silly mistake cost us dearly in the Johan Cruijff arena after we took the lead through a fantastic goal. Going to Ajax and controlling the game with higher possession is no easy task. Was almost a fair tale return for Thijs De Vries.

Set up with a 4-1-2-3 against there 3-5-2 with both our wide players making it 3 v 3 at the bank when attacking them our midfield 3 also matched up well with there midfield 3.

Dominated Ajax in every department bar shots at goal look at the amount of passes 506 to there 334 along with 57% possession its great stats at the Dutch giants.

SCREAMER!!!!

The clip may be rather big. 21 passes and then a clever finish shows everything we are trying to create here possibly my favourite goal of the season thus far.

[SixPointer]

We follow the Ajax game with a solid win at home against FC Utrecht who are chasing a European play off spot with us great 3 points. A draw away at another European playoff chaser in Hercules ended up being a good point as the home side really deserved 3 points.

The Noorden derby didn't disappoint what a spectacle both teams needing the points for different reasons. As we chase the top three FC Groningen needed them to get out the drop zone. A sending off then two late goals game had everything.

Passing shape is perfect Schaars having at total of 109 pass combinations really is playing the way Pep Guardiola did for Johan at Barcelona.

Three massive wins after the Noorden derby. 2-0 at basement side VVV got the ball rolling before possibly the performance of the season at home to ADO Den Haag ill do I report on this game below. In the penultimate league game we beat NAC 3-1 away to leave us in a very interesting position.

Quite simply brilliant Thijs De Vries "The first 4 goals are some off the best football goals you will see they show a true reflection of how we want to play and what we are capable off" The clips don't do them justice as they jump if there two big.

Some outstanding performances! a hatrick from Rodrigo big Keita dominating the middle of the park but for me Martin Odegaard ran the show!

111 completed passes 5 key passes 3 chances created 2 assists and a goal phenomenal stats.

 1st Goal there was another 10 passes before the ball reached this point. Total football ball moving up the park short and sharp players moving everywhere the a great ball and we are in behind.

2nd Goal is very similar goal great passing and movement then a absolute wonder strike from Odegaard.

More exceptional passing and moving working the ball from side to side before getting in behind the full back again

For the 4th goal again the passing and moving is sublime but this time we get in behind the opposite full back the ball from Keita in behind the full back is world class.

I hope the clips do the goals justice as they were 4 of the best goals we have scored in terms of team goals and the style I'm trying to create.

The league table makes for interesting reading with a game left. We face Feyenoord and PSV face our fierce rivals Groningen. I'm really hoping we can snatch 3rd place with a result in the last game as in Dutch football there is a massive European playoff from 4th place to 7th id like to avoid that considering we are miles ahead of 5th place I feel it would be harsh to miss out.

[Sheriff7]

Excellent passing game mate!You deserve an European ticket this year...

[SixPointer]

2 hours ago, Sheriff7 said:

Excellent passing game mate!You deserve an European ticket this year...

I think with the gap between us at at 5th we deserve a automatic place. Don’t like this play off system. Someone could finish 7th miles off the pace and land themselves in Europe. 

[SixPointer]

The Final Day

Very tight at the top in the race for the last European places any of the 3 sides could finish second or 4th Feyenoord have the best goal difference followed by PSV meaning a point for us isn't good enough. We take on last seasons Eredivisie winners Feyenoord at the Abe Lenstra Stadion while PSV welcome our fierce rivals FC Groningen to the Philips Stadion. The buzz is unreal!

A last minute winner for FC Groningen opens the door for us!

We line up with our 4-3-2-1 against the 4-2-3-1 We lose young Adney at right back so veteran Mulder comes in for a debut at right back could be a worry with him up against Larsson.  

BOOM! We come from behind to do the business and swoop into second in dramatic fashion! That's what the last day is all about.

What a game we went one down after a silly penalty from Hoegh which resulted in him being subbed before half time. He fouled his man just as Kik Pierie is about to clear after Larsson over ran it.

We then equalised after a frightening counter attack Odegaard running from inside his half then blasting home!

Keita finished well after the ball dropped to him on the edge before ex Heerenveen academy graduated scored his first Feyenoord goal couldn't write it. 2-2 seemed a fair result at the break both sides evenly matched. The second half was much the same until the 60th minute when Feyenoord got a man sent off for a second booking. We then took the game to last season Eredivisie winners!

Rodrigao finishes from close range after a nice cutback from Arber Zeneli to put us into the lead!! Before Mathew put the game beyond doubt latching on to a short pass back from substitute Harps.

Arber Zeneli put in a masterclass the want away inside forward who may have played his last game for the club has left in style if it is to be his last game. 5 key passes 2 assists outstanding stuff he was a pain in there defence all game with his direct running. Hope we can convince him to stay after performances like that!

The Final League Table

Ajax win the title which was much expected with the squad they have what wasn't expected was us finishing second Feyenoord clinched the last automatic European spot and PSV won the European play off Sparta Rotterdam Qualify from there Beker Cup triumph. Excelsior and Heracles are the overachievers in the league FC Twente had a season to forget with a shock relegation.

Thijs De Vries "I'm delighted with my first season in charge we have really defied all expectations and finished runner up and have the chance of champions league football"

"The main thing is we have done it playing football the way we believe it should be played we haven't perfected it yet and there is still work to be done"

"Our form in the last ten games was outstanding and its catapulted us into second place”

“We have brought a fair amount of youth players this season which is all part of the philosophy”

League Stats

55.24% Average possession 2nd overall in the league backed up with 83% Pass completion ratio 3rd Overall in the league with 19027 completed passes 2nd in the league. These stats show that our passing game is if not the best certainly top 3 in the league which is what we are looking for.

We created 149 chances 4th in the league and scored 68 goals which is joint second in the league which shows we aren't just passing for the sake of passing that although we are patient with the ball we also have that creative killer edge to it.

We also only concede 41 goals which is 5 the best in the league so even with our attacking style we are doing a pretty good job keeping the back door closed as well.

5th for average attendances and 4th for average attendances by capacity percentage with 91% great stuff I feel like we have given the fans value for money with our vibrant and entertaining football.

Sparta Rotterdam provide a shock and win there 4th Beker cup with a 1-0 victory in the final against Ajax.

 

[Sheriff7]

Amazing finish   mate! Sparta's board must be very proud too! 

[kidthekid]

congratulations on a great first season

[SixPointer]

10 hours ago, Sheriff7 said:

Amazing finish   mate! Sparta's board must be very proud too! 

Thanks mate. I think the champions league is abit to soon for the squad tho we would really struggle 3rd might have been more ideal but I’ll take it! Sparta only just survived relegation but won the cup. Hercules manager got manager of the year so they must be delighted!

[SixPointer]

10 hours ago, kidthekid said:

congratulations on a great first season

Thanks mate!! Never ever planned on a 2nd place finish and as I was saying to @Sheriff7 champions league would be a big ask if we qualify!!

[wynter]

Great finish to the Year. 

You might think CL to be a step too far, but on the flipside that money will definitely be useful for you if you can sneak into the Groups 

[SixPointer]

22 minutes ago, wynter said:

Great finish to the Year. 

You might think CL to be a step too far, but on the flipside that money will definitely be useful for you if you can sneak into the Groups 

Thanks mate!! That’s very true I never thought of it that way. Need a few additions this summer and if we keep a hold of everyone we could just sneak into the groups.

 

then i defo would be around my living room 

 

 

[deltablue]

Well done qualifying for the CL. 

[SixPointer]

18 hours ago, deltablue said:

Well done qualifying for the CL. 

Thanks mate it’s come well before I expected it last 10 games unbeaten got us right in there!! Am not sure what round of qualifying I’ll go into but would be a massive boost money wise if we could get to the groups 

[SixPointer]

Season Summary

"Very successful first season in terms of the Eredivisie but myself and the team let the fans down in the cup losing to rivals FC Groningen"

"Attendances are up and 91% full is great for the boys to know they have the fans backing them hopefully this continues into next season"

"The under 19's winning the cup is a fantastic achievement specially considering many of the 19's featured heavily in the first team"  

Healthy profit of 9.5 million puts us in good stead the TV deal is on the up as well along with Match day commercial, sponsorship, corporate and hospitality and prize money.

14 Million in the balance and 6.7 million in the transfer budget however we have bough the stadium and took on some debt for the next ten years but it was costing around 5 million a year in rent.

Awards

Odegaard sweeps the awards except for singing of the season as young Joey Koster takes that. As for the team of the year cant have any complaints.

Hansen was a solid keeper for 3 quarters of the season. The back 4 am delighted with as it features three 17 year olds Adney stepped up when Dumfries left in January Duit overtook Woudenberg after filling In when he was suspended and Pierie has easily been our best centre back Naess and Hoegh have battled it out to be his partner.

Midfield 3 is that solid trio Schaars the deep lying playmaker starting everything off and recycling the ball ahead of him the ball winner in Keita I draw similarities in him to Patrick Viera ball winner but technically good to his right is Mathew who for me is the signing of the season bar a slight drop in form he has been outstanding in either the mezzala or advanced playmaker role. Marius Lundemo may feel hard done by as he done his fair share also covering Schaars and Mathew at times.

The front 3 cant complain with Odegaard and Zeneli both have been outstanding creating havoc for our opponents. Rodrigao tops the centre forward role I agree with this most of our strikers were in and out the side but Rodrigao did finish top scorer. Carneiro and Veerman done there bit as well though and young Wrzesniak burst on to the scene as well.

Fans player and young player of the season Martin Odegaard stat pack. Average rating of 7.45 two player of the match 1721 completed passes at 82% completion ratio which isn't bad considering he made 52 key passes 32 clear cut chances and 15 assists. 81 total dribbles and he scored 5 goals. He has excelled in that advanced playmaker role on the right wing playing defence splitting passes but has also been just as effective in the inside forward role with his direct running and sublime finishing.

"I'm delighted that Martin has signed on for a extra season with us to me he is starting to reach the level expected of him after his big move to real Madrid. He has been outstanding this term for us and he is still only 19 the fact he won all the club awards and finished 3rd in the Talent van het jaar award and runner up in the Voetball van het jaar award shows he is really pushing on and being recognised in doing so"

Mathew the maestro wins the Voetballer of the year!

"Ifeanyi has been superb since I brought him to the club he has contributed massively to the clubs highest placed finish in 18 years scoring some fantastic goals and setting up many more he is a footballer that is very easy on the eye and am over the moon he has been recognised for it"

Mathew hits highs in his first season with a average rating of 7.43 along with 3 man of the match performances 2173 completed passes at a ratio of 85% 51 key passes 23 clear cut chances created and 12 assists. he has dribbled 35 times and scored 7 goals. The 3rd man running from the mezzala role has been unreal from Mathew often latching on to great through balls he has played a lot of frightening through balls from that advanced playmaker role in the centre also a spectacular season all round.

Player Performance Stats

Goalkeepers

Warner Hahn leads the way with 16 appearances 5 clean sheets 16 conceded great to see he has 80% pass completion as well. Injured for half the season he has looked solid since he came into the side. De Boer made a single appearance which is something to be said at 17 while Drommel a January arrival wasn't called upon.

Defenders

Kik Pierie leads the way overall what am particularly happy about is his high amount of passes completed as he is key for us in building from the back. He has also be dominant in the air and at 17 is only going to improve physically which will help this also.

Pass completion ratio is around 80% for all defenders which am happy with it specially for a first season.

Another big stat in here is Julius Duit his tackling 100 won 11 being key at 16 year old against some top class wingers this is a frightening statistic.

Midfielders

All of the midfielders bar Thorsby who was injured for a lot of the season finish above 7.00 average rating and over 85% pass completion.

Keita showed his tackling dominance with 90 tackles won but also showed his composed side by completing 2166 passes with 32 being key. I liken him to a Patrick Viera type.

Schaars pass completion 91% less key passes but in that role he is linking everything nicely 60 interceptions as well showing his reading of the game is ideal for the role.

Lundemo who played between the deep lying playmaker role and the mezzala role stats are a great spread very versatile showing he can work in both roles.

Mathew just a outstanding season all-round most distance covered is good to see as well he isn't just creative but very hard working.

Valente showing a lot of promise potentially a loan move could allow him make more appearances.

Attacking Midfielders

Odegaard and Zeneli are miles ahead in terms of the wide men but good to see two younger guys getting a shout in Koster and Frederiksen.

15 and 10 assists is brilliant from our two main wide men 5 and 7 goals also is a decent level to chip in with.

Mihajlovic will probably feel hard done by 6 goals from 6 starts but only 1 assist maybe he is more suited to the attacking role definitely a player there though.

Pass completion is also above 80% which considering the level of attacking key passes this is brilliant again.

Strikers

Rodrigao tops the goal scoring charts he did have the most appearances but most of the goal scoring burden was well shared out.

Carneiro leads the key passes as he is more suited to that false 9 role

Veerman when called upon done the business gives us that target man option if need be.

Wrzesniak burst onto the scene before a injury halted his first team chances but one for the future who we will look to bring through more next season.  

[Sheriff7]

Excellent way you keep your finances so good by selling players too. That's something Heerenveen would do in real life too and that's the most important in every save for me, realism.... 

[SixPointer]

1 hour ago, Sheriff7 said:

Excellent way you keep your finances so good by selling players too. That's something Heerenveen would do in real life too and that's the most important in every save for me, realism.... 

Yes definitely agree there. But i will do my best to hold on to my crown jules I don’t like them going for nothing. Specially in today’s market. 

[SixPointer]

After a long hard summer the transfer business is concluded I feel we covered every position we needed to strengthen. We paid out just under 5 million but brought in just over 2 million so spending out lay is 2.5 million which isn't huge in the grand scheme of things.

 

Rojas, Hoegh, Amersfoort and Schmidt all move on. Hoegh is the most high profile as he did play a part last season but I felt right centre half was a area we needed to improve so moved him on to release more funds. The other 3 were out on loan and simply don't fit the DNA we are looking for.

A lot of players out on loan most notably Jakub Wrzesniak the young striker burst onto the scene last season he joins newly promoted N.E.C as a key player hopefully he bangs them in. Thorsby is another interesting one season was marred with injuries a year at ADO Den Haag will hopefully do him the world of good.

Hidde ter Avest arrives from relegated FC Twente a absolute bargain at 2.5 million considering original target Troupee we were quoted 12 million. Needs to work on the attacking side of the game in particular his crossing and dribbling but at 21 he is a great addition. He matches all the DNA but does need to improve.

Erling Haland and Hakon Evjen are both young recruits from Norway after our scouting mission there.

Haland is a striker with fantastic mental's and good physical stats technically he needs work. I had him in my side in Norway before I started writing about my games and he broke all the domestic records so when he popped up I new he was worth the gamble even though he doesn't have much of the DNA technically wise.

Hakon Evjen is a winger who I will look to turn into a inside forward on the left he has all the DNA bar strength he has been loaned out to Norway to get some first team experience in.

Nuno Santos is a bargain and a very technically gifted player strength again his only marker outside the DNA not sure where I see him in the side. He may be the long term solution to either Odegaard or Zeneli depending on which side he is suited more to.

Xadas is another Portuguese gem at a million pound this guy could be god like in a few years he excels in all of our DNA already at 20. Naturally a advanced playmaker he is more likely to be the man to replace Odegaard when he returns to Real Madrid.

Thilo Kehrer comes in on load in the right centre back slot. We couldn't convince Sven Van Beek to leave Feyenoord and Perr Schuurs has signed for Ajax so we may have to wait for a Dutch ball playing centre half to become long term partner to Pierie. I have found a Mexican who could be unreal but his agent fee and wage demands were insane.

  

A small interview today with manager Thijs De Vries we will cover some recent developments at the club first a foremost how do you fell Thijs about signing a new 3 year deal with the club? 

 

"I'm delighted to be signing on the dotted line after the season we just had I cant wait to carry on what we have started here"

The fans are happy to hear that Stijn Schaars has signed on for one more year with the club what was your thinking about him signing a new deal even at 34?

"Stijn is the clubs captain and he is a outstanding pro the young players can learn loads from him and at 34 he still has a lot to offer on the park but we will have to manage him at times but he is a roles Royce of a player for us so when he said he would stay for another year it was a real boost for me as he a massive part of the way we play"

The club has announced a massive increase in season tickets that must be a huge boost to you and the players do you have a message for the fans?

"I would like to thank the fans of behalf of myself my backroom staff and the players the support they have showed since I arrived has been nothing short of spectacular. I hope the brand of football am trying to bring to the club is entertaining as well as producing results"

Nice boost in the coefficients table sees a jump in the Champions League. Champions will go straight into a playoff. The Europa League will see 3rd place go straight into the groups and with one team in the third qualifier and one in the second. We need to keep on improving this as it is key if we are to start qualifying regularly for Europe.

Tough opening day at the De Kuip followed by a Noorden derby the Ajax very big start needed hopefully we will be sharp due to at least two competitive champions league games. Fierce Frisian Rivals SC Cambuur join us this season which I'm delighted at I make no secret of my love for derby games so bring on the Friese derby.

The draw for the best placed second qualifying phase.

A very tricky tie against Swiss giants FC Basel wont be a easy we will have to be at our best!

[Sheriff7]

What beast!Hes physical stats are amazing!!Good luck against Basel,it will be a very strong and interest battle...

[SixPointer]

On 28/05/2018 at 22:34, Sheriff7 said:

What beast!Hes physical stats are amazing!!Good luck against Basel,it will be a very strong and interest battle...

Yeah he’s got every chance of being a star. If I can get him technically up to scratch! Will have a update out later in the week will include the Basel game!

[SixPointer]

Pre Season

A very successful pre season in particular beating 3 Europa league sides specially German side Hoffenheim.

We travel to Switzerland in fine form from pre season but I am under no allusion that this will be a tough task.

A nice early away goal got us off to a flying start and we controlled the game for large periods but failed to capitalise. Basel were lucky to score as we kept them at distance most of the game.

Again our passing is superior we also created a couple of clear cut chances. Only two shots on target for the hosts but they were clinical with one chance and in the end that's what matters.

Arber Zeneli and Carneiro were the stand out performers but special mention to young Julius Duit making his European debut at just 17 he exceled against a tough winger.

Key passes and chances created from Zeneli and Carneiro. Great to see Zeneli playing through balls from deep getting us in behind the counter tactic with pass into pace paying dividends. Great to see Carneiro linking play well bagged himself a goal as well.

The goal that got us on our way. Decent finish and a good move worked well between Zeneli and Carneiro. Vital away goal!

This is the counter tactic I referred to above just a slight tweak from our standard version off this. A counter structured set up with a deep line low block inviting teams onto us but leaving enough attacking players for a quick counter with the pass into space so far so good.

Another tactic that I have created in the close season mostly to be used when chasing a game. Attacking structured combination the structured shout should allow us to keep a solid back 3 with the 3 defend roles. Still very much a working progress. Other than these two the tactics are much the same as last season.

 

Clean sheet does the trick and we find ourselves in the next qualifying phase. We completely bombarded FC Basel our finishing really let us down could easily have been more comfortable as we did hit the woodwork twice job done in the end.

As bad as our finishing was it was a solid defensive performance. Sad to see Duit go of injured he was looking like he had made a good start to the season and had over took Woudenberg as first choice. Knudsen has filled in well for the injured Pierie as well.

Tough draw away to Ukrainian runners up Shakhtar Donetsk we did however avoid Benfica so it could have been worse. Were in this competition to play the best so cant complain to much.

[Sheriff7]

Excellent game. Keep clean sheet is the key always in qualifying games... 

[deltablue]

Good luck against Shakhtar

[SixPointer]

12 hours ago, Sheriff7 said:

Excellent game. Keep clean sheet is the key always in qualifying games... 

Done the trick! Though I was still rather nervous come the end of the second leg. 

[SixPointer]

18 minutes ago, deltablue said:

Good luck against Shakhtar

Thanks! I have the second leg tonight then I’ll do a update. 

[SixPointer]

Outstanding stuff from the boys! again another early goal sets us on our way in Europe. We are really in control of the tie now its ours to throw away.

We dominated the game with high possession but Shakhtar did counter well and missed two big chances which would have flipped the tie on its head. Warner Hahn saved both chances one being a world class save.

Fantastic team performance but again Odegaard a level above pulling the strings and setting a goal up before getting himself on the score sheet. Kehrer was a rock at the back as well he pace was so valuable when Shakhtar broke. Ferrerya just didn't have the pace to get buy him. 

 

Almost identical to Carneiro's early goal against Basel only this time down the right hand side with Odegaard and Mathew playing a nice give and go before Odegaard finds Carneiro in the box to head home.

Odegaard with a sublime free kick a thing of beauty!

Again another early goal from Carneiro left Shakhtar with to much to do! What a result over two legs played them perfect.

"I'm really Proud of the boys over the two legs we have beat a real contender in the race to the group stages"

Not a classic by any stretch of imagination but dominating the ball away from home in Europe is always going to be very pleasing.

A workman like performance from the boys getting the job done only 3 shots on target is brilliant considering Shakhtar were chasing goals. This counter set up is working magic so far.

Lovely threw ball from Odegaard and Zeneli crosses for Carneiro again a very similar type of goal and another early goal! long may it continue.

The best draw possible I fancy us to beat Slavia Prague. We avoided Benfica and Galatasaray. Glad its the away leg first with our recent exploits with the counter tactic.

 

[Sheriff7]

Great stuff mate you look in amazing form and what a beautiful and clever free kick from Odegaard! 

[SixPointer]

8 hours ago, Sheriff7 said:

Great stuff mate you look in amazing form and what a beautiful and clever free kick from Odegaard! 

Thanks mate. I’m still slightly worried my league form will suffer if I do qualify squad is maybe just shy of being able to compete on 2 fronts. But the money will allow big improvements. 

 

Odegaard is really becoming unstoppable shame he is off at the end of the season. Though xadas looks like a very ample replacement. 

[BoxToBox]

I guess the money is the most important thing, short term at least.

[SixPointer]

8 hours ago, BoxToBox said:

I guess the money is the most important thing, short term at least.

Definitely the money is the main thing just now. Specially with buying the stadium could also do with improving other stuff facilities etc plus champions league will hopefully attract i higher quality player. Just need to keep a focus on the league also!

[SixPointer]

Away leg up first we rested our first team in the Noorden derby to keep ourselves fresh for this one.

Today we caught up with Thijs De Vries to hear his thoughts on the first leg.

"What a football match today both team try to attack to score many goals we found ourselves behind early but Gonzalo scores very vital goals he could have scored more but for me the result is good its important to have more goals away than to have clean sheet" 

"Yes Carneiro steals the show and deserves the man of the match Carneiro with the 3 goals he has been excellent in Europe for us. For me Xadas was fantastic he plays some excellent passes for the team in a role new to him on the right side am very happy for this young man and I can see a bright future for him here"

"Again we dominate the possession of the football which is fantastic its a big part of the philosophy we are developing at the club we aim to control the tempo the flow of the game while playing a sharp passing game this is pleasing you can see how good the pass for the second goal"

"Today we miss many chances all saved by there goal keeper many one on one goals its exciting to be in this position with many chances shows we can create but we must take more the game could be over today if we can do this"

Much more comfortable performance at home Carneiro getting the usual goal inside 20 minutes got us going and we never looked back we limited Slavia Prague to 4 shots at goal and 0 on target again dominated possession its goes without saying now with our style of play.

Superb performance from he boys maybe bar Zeneli who missed a few chances hence the 6.2. Mathew with a inspired display scoring at setting one up a deserved man of the match. But again its Xadas who caught my eye ill do a little analysis underneath as to why.

Xadas Analysis

Here we have his profile now its says he is natural as a centre attacking midfielder but after looking at him closely I noticed the cut inside from the right wing along with high dibbling and crossing so decided to deploy him in the "Odegaard role" which has lead to these inspired performances and key passes.

Here we can see he has the highest amount of completed passes 80 to be precise but off them 6 key and of them 3 led to chances. The fact he has plays killer balls and is being deployed wide he is finding lost of space to cut on to the left and find balls in behind for the striker we have seen it now in both legs this type of pass leading to goals one in the first leg is a deep high ball over the top this one seen above its slid in behind the defender. Odegaard has company!!

Another thing to note from the shot above is we had a total of 18 key passes which 9 lead to chances that's a great stat it shows we aren't just having possession for the sake of possession.

Thijs what do you think of the draw? also can you tell us anything about the planned work on facilities?

"well it is a tough one not many teams are better than Manchester city and Juventus and we have already witnessed how tough the game can be in Prague when we played Sparta's rivals Slavia but yes we play nice football and we want to challenge ourselves so yes we will have ago"

"As for the facilities Luuc the chairman has invested money from the champions league qualification which will see us have a excellent training facility along with superb youth facilities its a big part of why am here Luuc shares my enthusiasm to grow the club and bring through high quality player this is a good thing for me"

[wynter]

Bit of a harsh draw but Sparta are definitely beatable, hope you can pull off some great results. 

[deltablue]

Hopefully you can at least get 3rd.

[BoxToBox]

Cracking work, harsh group though.

[SixPointer]

On 02/06/2018 at 11:28, wynter said:

Bit of a harsh draw but Sparta are definitely beatable, hope you can pull off some great results. 

Certainly not easy by any stretch of imagination. But does bring some glamour ties to the north of Holland.

On 02/06/2018 at 11:39, deltablue said:

Hopefully you can at least get 3rd.

I fancy us for 3rd need to make the most of the home games though! just worried that my league form may suffer we do have decent back ups so I might give them a game away at juve and city. See how things pan out!

On 02/06/2018 at 15:22, BoxToBox said:

Cracking work, harsh group though.

Cheers mate! We were fortunate with avoiding Benfica the whole way through qualifying. Yeah not the best draw but a good challenge! Will be highly rewarding if we get some results. 

[SixPointer]

Opening day of the season we travel to De Kuip to face Feyenoord a tough place to start considering it was in between the home and away leg against Shakhtar.

Great result in a very even match snatching a massive 3 points to start the league campaign off. 

Mathew started and finished the winner great switch of play never admired the pass and got on the end of the move!

Full squad rotation sees the youngsters and back ups demolish FC Groningen in the Noorden derby.

Few impressive performances Adney showing he is up to challenging new signing Hidde ter Avest at right back. Kocjancic has a solid debut. Xadas takes home the man of the hopefully I sign of what is to come from the young Portuguese starlet.

 

77 completed passes 2 chances created and a goal rounds of a good day at the office in his first Noorden derby.

Nice volley at the back post takes it really well. A mean its nothing compared to the one he hit for @BoxToBox

Defeat away to Ajax followed then a unbelievable 4-4 draw at FC Utrecht last minute goal saved us a point. Before young Erling Haland bagged a double on his debut at home to Excelsior he missed a penalty for his hatrick nonetheless a nice way to introduce himself.

All in all a very decent start specially when you add the champions league games in check the slide below.

The Ajax and FC Utrecht results come at the back of the games against Prague. The trip to Ajax it was the second team that played so cant be to disheartened especially when you read the headline.

Up next was our first competitive Friese Derby with This De Vries at the helm.

Complete and utter domination not a shot at goal from our neighbours in the north. First half we were electric Valente bagging himself a unlikely double and Carneiro rounding off a lovely team move. Second half we never made the most of our chances game was well and truly over by then anyway.

Passing combinations shows just how high we could play the ball only our two centre backs really in our half. Some great pass completion stats but 103 from Valente coupled with the two goals is one hell of a performance from the young lad. Second goal is a nice hit as well.

After a 1-1 draw in Zwolle against PEC and a 2-0 win against Go Ahead courtesy of another Erling Haland double. We hammer Sparta Rotterdam 3-0 at the Abe Lenstra Stadion in arguably our best league performance of the season this far.

Everyone bar Carneiro were on from he missed a couple glorious chances hence why the low rating. Odegaard, Xadas, Mathew, Schaars, Woudenberg and Kehrer all playing out there skins.

 

Domination is the word 61% possession 307 completed passes 24 shots 13 on target the Abe Lenstra faithful been treated to some eye watering stuff.

We lost very late on to NEC who have had a great start on there return to the Eredivisie Pepjin Lijnders has them playing some classy stuff a great admirer of him as manager.

The first ten fixtures on a whole not bad form considering we are in the champions league as well few silly draws and a late loss at NEC are the only bad results.

League table looks like this for us after ten games. AZ have made a flying start along with Vitesse they are the surprise packages so far Ajax, PSV and Feyenoord are expected to be there. We aren't to far of the pace we do need to cut out the sloppy draws. NEC have made a great return this far. Our Friesian neighbours are the basement boys on three points Id like them to stay up to keep the derbies.

 

 

Thanks for being patient with this update been a hectic week. If anyone wants any added analysis or questions or tactic shots just ask and ill provide them thanks for reading hopefully the next update will be Sunday/Monday. 

[BoxToBox]

Dang, Xadas has the knack for scoring crackers.

[SixPointer]

Champions League Group D

We have to be realistic and be aiming for 3rd place. If we can win in Prague we have every chance of that. We a strong at home so we will attack in all 3 games we have nothing to lose against Man City and Juventus.

A brilliant draw against city at home could easily have snatched it. We led in Prague before a sending off caused us to fall to pieces just before half time. Twice we were in front in Turin. One point after 3 games isn't great but its a point we didn't expect against city we were unfortunate in the two defeats for different reasons.

We did dominate Pep the master of possession along with limiting City to only two shots on target.

The opener from Carneiro is a outstanding solo goal driving from half way beating three men before blasting past Ederson.

Carneiro again hits an early goal we looked well in control before Zeneli got sent off for a ridiculous two footed tackle completely needless and cost us dearly.

The ball is going out of play no idea what he was thinking.

A fantastic performance in Turin came to nothing. Carneiro again gets a early goal its almost guaranteed he loves the Champions League.

Mathew bangs in a cracker on his left foot for us to take the lead for the second time needless to say I was jumping about my living room. WHAT A HIT!

0-0 at home with Juventus looks a good result but in truth if anyone deserved the win it was us. Positives the Italian giants didn't register a shot on target.

Man City we played the backups due to having a important league game they were battered but done well to keep it respectable.

Sparta Prague at home I have no idea how we didn't no win or at least score in this game. Carneiro choose his worst game to choke missing a couple of great chances.

Best chance though fell to Rodrigao after a lovely rabona cross from Odegaard Rodrigao heads onto the bar.

Failing to score in our final 3 games costs us a place in the Europa league. Overall a good first Champions League campaign qualifying for the group stages was achievement in itself. Good results and performances against Juventus twice and City once gives us hope. In the end the games against Sparta Prague were our downfall.

Carneiro joint top scorer as we exit the competition I reckon Auba will catch him though.

[kidthekid]

Tough one against Sparta.

[SixPointer]

25 minutes ago, kidthekid said:

Tough one against Sparta.

Just one of them games where you can’t hit the back of the net! Success was getting to the groups. Need to concentrate on the league as we have been terrible away from home all season. So be good to have a clean run at it 

[Deisler26]

A good first season in the UCL. Certainly something to build on.

[SixPointer]

3 hours ago, Deisler26 said:

A good first season in the UCL. Certainly something to build on.

Yeah Pitty about the last game we should really have pipped Sparta. But like you said defo a good base to build. Plus the financial benefits has been massive. 

[Sheriff7]

What a tackle mate! At least he sent of with style.. 

[SixPointer]

18 minutes ago, Sheriff7 said:

What a tackle mate! At least he sent of with style.. 

He never held back!! Cost us tho some am going to sell him. He’s no been the same since I knocked back a bid in the summer. Wish I had took the 8 million now. Was holding out for 12.