FM 2009: Official AC Milan Thread - Rebuilding Needed?

[Andyh60]

Yup, not having 2 superstars in every position helps

Having too many good players tends to really unsettle players in my experience. In your Attacking midfield positions you have: Kaka, Ronadinho, Young and Arshavin and maybe Gourcouff. Striker wise, you have Pato, Villa, Forlan, Boriello and maybe Shevchenko. I cannot imagine trying to keep all those players happy. If you have a player with continental or world class reputations on a rotation policy they tend to whine a lot. I had problems with this when I had Nasri/Ben Arfa/Gourcouff/Wilshire/Walcott/Doumeng/Lansbury all fighting for 3 AM roles. I could only keep them happy if I went all the way in the Cups. In Italy, with the fewer games you play, I would not have been able to hold on to all of them and keep everyones morale up. Mind you. Winning trophies usually makes everything ok at the end.

Thankfully Benzema and Vela were so injury prone that I rarely needed to rotate them, Just play who was fit, and substitute them with Saivet to rest them.

Season 2

I have just finished the summer period at the beginning of season 2. The board gave me a new 99k a week contract and asked me what my aims for the new season were going to be. I said that i would chllange for the league as if i said i wanted to win the league it would add unnecessary pressure on my team for only £4m. They gave m £109m t spend on new players.

Transfers In/Out

So i told the board i would challange for the title but i really hope o win it this season. so armed with the £109m war chest i set to wor scouting for new players to strenghten my already fairly strong squad. Here is all my transfers in and out.

http://img244.imageshack.us/my.php?image=12312008152838tk3.png

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Also Yohan Gourcuff has returned to me.

Seire A

As i said above i told the board i would challange for this but i fully expect us to win this compitition as i feel we have a very very strong squad.

We got o to a blistering start at home to Leece despite falling a goal behind we should how strong we are by coming back to batter them.

http://img296.imageshack.us/my.php?image=12312008153443jb1.png

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Champions League

Yes i am so happy to be back in the main european comptition although seeded as a top seed we still managed to draw the toughest group out of them all. this is a compitition i really hope to will nd i will go all out to win this along with seire A.

My Group

Ac Milan

Fc Bayren Munich

Valancia

Sparta Prague.

Coppa Italia

I dont mind if i dont retain this trophy as i am going to once again blood my youngsters and ply my fringe players the draw for this cup has not taken place yet.

Italian Super Cup

We drew inter in this so i new it would be a struggle ut i didnt expect to et battered the way we did we made a wholey show of our selves.

http://img243.imageshack.us/my.php?image=12312008154136ah4.png

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European Super Cup

We drew united in this and it was a very interesting game but unfortunately we ended up on the loosing side for the second time.

http://img378.imageshack.us/my.php?image=12312008154400gk0.png

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The only good thing to come out of this game was Gomes bagging a brace to show me he is well up fr the challange.

My Squad

The squa is very strong in my opinion but i dont really know how they are going to gel only time will tell i suppose. I am trying to get rid of the older players and bring in some young hungry players.

http://img237.imageshack.us/my.php?image=12312008154806dt5.png

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So advice and opinions needed

Hi. Yes it was a nice suprise to have over 100 mil to spend in 2nd season. Unlike you I only made UEFA cup for 2nd year but as said above I did win both serie A and italian cup in 2nd season. Where did you finish in 1st season?

Again see above for players I brought, I used mainly the "Big H" 442 standard formation and a couple of games used shut out and gained 0-0 away to Juventus. I won 28 drew 6 lost 4 in 2nd year. I hope this is of help. I'm just about to start 4th season now and I'm actually back to where you are cos I only got 6th in 3rd year and lost in qrt final of CL. more reports to follow.

[Andyh60]

Hi. Yes it was a nice suprise to have over 100 mil to spend in 2nd season. Unlike you I only made UEFA cup for 2nd year but as said above I did win both serie A and italian cup in 2nd season. Where did you finish in 1st season?

Again see above for players I brought, I used mainly the "Big H" 442 standard formation and a couple of games used shut out and gained 0-0 away to Juventus. I won 28 drew 6 lost 4 in 2nd year. I hope this is of help. I'm just about to start 4th season now and I'm actually back to where you are cos I only got 6th in 3rd year and lost in qrt final of CL. more reports to follow.

Suprised of no other reply since my last post, I'm now into 5th season (12/13) having finished 4th in 2012 and reclaim italian cup. Again I was knocked out of qrt final of UEFA cup but I think if I cant make top 3 of league or semi of CL I may have to think about what to do next. It's a great team to play is Milan cos you have great squad, lots of cash but trying to win the top prizes is tough.

hear from anyone soon.

[Deano554]

I'll be providing a half-season update soon, after the January window closes. Currently in November.

[Menz]

And so it begins.

[megaman]

i started my save in december 2007 so i could bring in some new players and get rid of some older ones and hopefully have the squad start to gel slightly by the time the season starts in august 2008 by having a friendly with a major european club every sunday until the beginning of the season (this also makes me a TON of money which i have found makes the board give me a lot of transfer funds, example being by january 2008 i already had 30 million pounds to spend on transfers) the only problem i have run in to is when i tried to sign srna i was at my limit of 2 non eu players so i will have to send willians santana out of loan most likely. i have just started my save but i was wondering if bringing in hugo lloris is worth his rediculous wage demands of 105k per week and whether or not he would be suitable to be my starter even though he is still young.

[Andyh60]

Hi. Yes it was a nice suprise to have over 100 mil to spend in 2nd season. Unlike you I only made UEFA cup for 2nd year but as said above I did win both serie A and italian cup in 2nd season. Where did you finish in 1st season?

Again see above for players I brought, I used mainly the "Big H" 442 standard formation and a couple of games used shut out and gained 0-0 away to Juventus. I won 28 drew 6 lost 4 in 2nd year. I hope this is of help. I'm just about to start 4th season now and I'm actually back to where you are cos I only got 6th in 3rd year and lost in qrt final of CL. more reports to follow.

Suprised of no other reply since my last post, I'm now into 5th season (12/13) having finished 4th in 2012 and reclaim italian cup. Again I was knocked out of qrt final of UEFA cup but I think if I cant make top 3 of league or semi of CL I may have to think about what to do next. It's a great team to play is Milan cos you have great squad, lots of cash but trying to win the top prizes is tough.

hear from anyone soon.

Well I have drawn game to a close, after only getting 5th in 2013, italian cup semi and CL quarters. I was KO by Inter in CL who just annoy me badly. Record was pld 17, won 4 drew 2, lost 11 against them.

[Coop624]

SEASON 1

Been playing a 3 - 4 - 3

In the back is regularly:

Kaladze - Nesta - Bonera / Senderos

Mids:

Ronaldinho (LM) - Kaka - Flamini - Gattusso

Forwards:

Pato - Cooper (regen) - Borriello / Shevchenko

Ins:

Toni Kroos $AU34m

Henri Saivet $AU15.5m

Ever Banega $AU22m

Mamadou Sakho $24.5m

Keirrison $5.25m

Diego Lugano free

James Nyarko (regen) $1.1m

Outs:

Andrea Pirlo $AU62m

Future

Nearing the end of the season - I will be looking to offload some old talent, but not the likes of Maldini or Inzaghi. Maybe sell Gattusso, Antonini, Jankulovski, Zambrotta, Dida, Kalac, Emerson, Ambrosini, and Seedorf. Probably not most of them, but those are the guys on the list. Looking to get some more young solid DC's - possibly a permanent signing of Senderos, bring Per Mertsacker.

[ladislao_kubala]

I use a narrow christmas tree or diamond formation and I find that while it works you do sometimes have to change things around against certain opponents.

I found that Sampdoria and Genoa in particular can give you real problems even when playing at the San Siro because they play a high line with two wide players so your full back is outnumbered. Often the full back will peform the suicidal move of leaving the winger unmarked to close down the midfielder/wing back. One way to avoid this is to ask the full back to tight mark the winger. You may also need to set your width scale to be wider and play a slightly more direct game. This was the CMs can push across to mark the wide midfielder/full back.

If a team is playing a high line, Milan really have the tools to punish them. Set up Pirlo so he is dropping pin point passes behind their defensive line. If they are playing with a deep defensive line, ask your AMCs to take long shots or put Borriello up front as a target man.

On a different subject entirely, does anyone think that Pirlo's 'Free Kick Taking' value is too low compared to Beckham's? I say this because supposedly Beckham will be in the Milan squad when the next update comes out and given that he has a FKT of 20 he will be favoured over Pirlo for set pieces. Now, Beckham is highly adept from set piece situations but he is not as consistent as Pirlo who is the absolute master IMO. Does this bother anyone else given that in real life Pirlo will probably continue to take responsibility for most of Milan's set pieces?

Thanks for highlighting Genoa and Sampdoria. I took note of it for my new game.

I have a different take on playing with Genoa (3-4-3) and Sampdoria (3-5-2). I find that Genoa's and Sampdoria's formations are limited at the wings - one person only in the wide areas. Therefore, I have chosen instead to push Kaka and Ronaldinho to be wingers and it has worked well because the duo find loads of space there to exploit. I also drop my defensive line down a couple of notches below normal to prevent counter attacks (their pitch tends to be long). In essence, the combination of pressure from Kaka and Ronaldinho on the wings for their wide men to track back and the lower defensive line gives a balance of attack with lots of space and solid defense.

The thoughts behind the move comes from watching how opposing teams counter Zaccheroni's 3-4-3 for Milan in the past. Press the midfield wide men and Milan's attack quickly becomes rather limited.

On your topic of Gattuso's and Amrosini/Flamini's performance:

I do have the same issue as you have with regards to the midfield where Gattuso and Ambro/Flamini regularly rate at 5.5 to 6 in the first half and end the game at ratings of around 7 only after Milan is leading. Otherwise, it can be 6.5-ish.

I started with a rigid 4-1-2-2-1 formation which was good for defense (3-4 goals in 10 matches) but I found that only 3 players would participate in attack which was not enough and caused me to scrape for several nervy 1-0 victories. I decided to release Pirlo into attack since he is quite useless in defense - so the formation is still 4-1-2-2-1 but with Pirlo, Kaka and Ronaldinho set to free roles.

Surprisingly, it's been working quite well. I have been winning by 2-3 goal margins more frequently.

I had my reservations about 3 people in free roles but the trio have enough intelligence about them to make themselves available for passes and actually make the passing movement much better. The formation now has a rather rigid structure of the back 4 and Gattuso/Ambro and the free flow movement of Kaka, Dinho and Pirlo. Kinda like a glass (rigid defense) holding water (free flow movement).

I occasionally use Gattuso to man-mark their wingers just to get him positioned closer to the flanks and use the OI frequently to close down the opposition's wingers. However, no consistent performance yet.

The problem seems to be that being a narrow and rigid formation, Gattuso and Ambro have much less chance for putting in tackles because they would have to rush to the wide areas. Plus their passing is average at best. With a mentality set at a few notches below normal the passing tends to be sideways also which can be sometimes frustratingly slow. Too direct and too fast ... and they may give up the possession. The balance is not so easy.

However, I am further looking to tilt the balance by placing more emphasis to attack. Some future thoughts to be tried:

1) Perhaps a strong box-to-box midfielder in combination with a pure defensive midfielder (Gattuso) in the MC positions. This means I may have to dip into the transfer market or figure a way to get Flamini to perform better

2) Faster fullbacks (ala Pancaro/Cafu) to support the attack. I have Zambelli and Antonini playing most of the time (Zambro/Janku is injured) and they might not hold up against the best of the CL next season.

[ladislao_kubala]

SEASON 1 REPORT

PRE SEASON

It’s a little hard to get a good pre season because of all the missing players. Kaka injured 2 months, pato gone for olympics, nesta out for 10months, all the “new” players still need to adapt, Pirlo wants a new challenge, and much more problems. That’s why I can’t find a very balanced tactic, and pretty much rely on individual skill for about half a season.

TRANSFERS

The main squad seems strong enough to fight for the small treble (serie a, uefa cup, and coppa italia), but still need to have some backup in fullbacks and midfield area. But because of a very tight transfer and wage budget, can’t sign any star players (which is very realistic considering Milan already brought so many stars IRL this season). Darijo Srna caught my attention in the demo game, but unable to bring him in Milan (unsufficient budget). I didn’t throw sheva and senderos back cos they still useful in my tactics. I do cut so many u20’s contract to free up some wage budget. The board do add some money in the winter budget, but the main squad is already balanced, and I don’t want to add more adaptation problem.

Also because of that very tight budget, I’m focusing my attention on future players. These players are very much cheaper, but will have their value increased in the long run (hopefully). But, if the board more generous in transfer budget for season 2, this young/future players policy of mine will gone. I’ll go back to what Milan transfer policy IRL, buy only a “ready to play” players (don’t care if they are teens or 20’s).

IN:

Marcelo (real madrid – loan in) – backup for jankulovski. Inconsistency is his problem, but maybe because lack of first team opportunity.

Beletti (chelsea – loan in) – planned to back zambro or gattuso, but broke his leg and out for 6months in november. Have to terminate his loan contract

Marko Vejinovic (AZ – 1m) – for the future/u20’s

John Goosens (ajax – 1.1m) – also for the future/u20’s

Thiago Silva (fluminense – 2.5m) – strong DC

Nigel de Jong (psv – p/x with Emerson + 10m – winter transfer) – hardworker midfielder to back flamini

Marco Zambelli (brescia – 2m – winter transfer) – replacement for belleti. Very versatile.

OUT:

Kalac (st etienne – 750k)

Favalli (mantova – loan)

Cardacio (empoli – loan)

FUTURE:

Fernando Forestieri (Genoa - 1.9m) – in 1/7/2009

Damien Le Tallec (Rennes - free) – in 1/7/2009

Mamadou Sakho (PSG - 7m) – in 1/7/2009

Thiago (Barcelona – 1.6m) – in 1/7/2009

Clarence Seedorf (Lyon – 6m) – out 1/7/2009

TACTICS

I am using 41221 (christmas tree) as basic formation, but will use 41212 if one of kaka or dinho is unavailable. My aim in building this tactics is to make it as similar as possible to Milan tactics IRL. In this 2 formation, pirlo’s role as a dmc is very vital. If he plays bad, the whole scheme will affected.

This two tactics basically are the same, only that in 41212 one of the amc moved to fc pos, with added closing down and reduced creative freedom (usually pato or sheva type of player).

I put amc’s mentality instruction on “team” in order to make it easier to tweak tactics when leading or in need of goals.

When leading with 1 or 2 goals, fullbacks’ forward runs decreased to mixed or even never (in very last minutes).

When behind or still 0-0 against lower team, moved the amc to fc, and the dmc to mc or amc pos. So the formation changed to 433 or 4213, with added mentality, direct passing, quick tempo, push up def line, focus passing down both flanks, and rarely time wasting.

The third tactic is to holding up and make a fast counter attack when defending a lead. I only use it when I don’t have amc left in the sub.

You can get all three tactics from here:

http://rapidshare.com/files/172299602/tactics.rar

ACHIEVEMENTS

Won the “small treble” not easily, especially serie a. it’s still a 4 horse race ((Milan, Inter, Roma, and Juve) until week 36th..!! Inter were very strong defensively, Roma very strong in the attack, while Juve were very balanced but a little lack of experience.

PLAYER REPORTS

NEXT SEASON

Replacements will be made mainly in defensive sector. In the GK pos, Dida will be very likely to go. Will try to sign a worldclass GK, maybe Sebastian Frey. Abbiati is good, but he’s not special. And IMO we need a special GK to compete in Champions League.

In the DC pos, Mexes will be a good target. Also Srna will remain a target in fullbacks area.

No change in midfield sector. All five midfielders are already world class for season 2. Cardacio wil go out for another loan, this time with can be recalled option.

Attacking sector will need a third target man. Sheva will leave (very downward performance after winter (no goal for half a season..!!)). For emotional reason, i will buy him if Chelsea let him go for around 5-7m euro. Maybe Paloschi will come back, or Viudez will be promoted to first team. Also Gourcuff will come back to replace Seedorf role as backup for Kaka and Dinho.

Comments, feedbacks, questions, or everything are welcome guys. FORZA MILAN..!!

I noted that you managed to get 23 goals out of Boriello which is a wonderful return.

- What settings to you have him on? Sorry to ask, but your tactics are no longer downloadable.

- Are these against mainly smaller teams in the Italian cup and EURO cup?

-

[carlo sheva]

I noted that you managed to get 23 goals out of Boriello which is a wonderful return.

- What settings to you have him on? Sorry to ask, but your tactics are no longer downloadable.

- Are these against mainly smaller teams in the Italian cup and EURO cup?

-

thanks for the response..

here is my target striker instructions:

boriello scored 17goals in serie a in my 1st season, but not performing well in 2nd season (no goals after 11 match). loan him out in winter to liverpool. pato scored 18 goals under this instructions in season 2.

[Harryseaess]

Right, now that I have the 9.2.0 patch installed which means the Serie C bug has now gone I can carry on with my AC Milan save which I had so much enjoyement with in the first season.

It is now 01/09/09 so I thought it would be a good time to do my update for the start of my second season in charge .

My season two transfers are as follows:

Transfers In

Ever Banega - £6.5m

Federico Fazio - £16.5m

Fred - Free

Fabio Cannavaro - Free

Rafael Van der Vaart - £3m

Ivan Rakitic - £10m

Sergio Asenjo - £7.25m

Armand Traore - £15m

Cristian Zaccardo - £7.5m

Transfers Out

Gennaro Gattuso - £10m

Clarence Seedorf - £5m

Ronaldinho - £40m

Luca Antonini - £1m

Giorgio Gianola - £1k

Marco Borriello - £5m

Massimo Oddo - £1m

Massimo Ambrosini - £10m

Beto - Loan fee £30k - Option to buy £130k

Gianluca Zambrotta - £7.5m

Overall I think it's safe to say that I made a few decent purchases of young players and also brought in some experience. I sold Ronaldinho due to the money offered and due to his age.

I felt that I needed to bring in a winger due to Milan not really having any quality on the wings in the first season, this is why Rakitic was bought and also Gourcuff has returned from loan so he can play on the wing also.

Starting Line-up

-----------------Abbiati----------------

--Zaccardo--Cannavaro--Fazio--Traore-

-----------------Pirlo------------------

-----------Flamini----Kaka-------------

--Rakitic----------------------Sanchez-

-----------------Pato------------------

Remaing First Team Players

Asenjo

Sakho

Luiz

Jankulovski

Banega

Gourcuff

Saivet

Van der Vaart

Keirrison

Fred

My aims for the following season are to win the Serie A, win the Italian Cup and get to atleast the Quater-finals of the Champions League. I will make an update once the January transfer window ends to keep people up-to-date with my progress with AC .

[celtic035]

Played one game in the league, disappointing 0-0 draw away to Chievo

after the match I get asked "what are the chances of giving Pirlo first team football" which i though was weird becuase he played the whole game and the season is only one game in

[killface]

Pirlo has been a huge whiner for me in my first season and I'm selling him now that January is here. He started complaining after I only played him in 7 of my first 10 league matches. I like a more defensive player in that spot anyway, so no huge loss.

[celtic035]

I would rather keep him to try get him to play his best stuff and get Ambrosini, Guttuso or Flamini for protection

[killface]

I would rather keep him to try get him to play his best stuff and get Ambrosini, Guttuso or Flamini for protection

Yeah, he is great, but I don't like whiners. Milan is loaded with DM's, so I sold him for 21m and bought Camacho.

[megaman]

alright i scrapped my save and started over from december 2007. right now im up to february 2008 and i play a weekly friendly fixture against inter for the team to keep match fit until the actual season starts in august 2008. each friendly with inter nets me £2.5m gate receipts and for some reason they play a team full of reserves/regens who always have their condition at 67 so it makes for an embarassingly easy win. here are my transfers thus far:

Out:

Favalli to Stoke for £3.5m

Seedorf to Tottenham for £16m

Emerson on loan to Sunderland (£350k fee, £4m option to buy)

Jankulovski on loan to Sunderland (£250k fee, £3m option to buy)

In:

Kyriakos Papadopoulos from Olympiakos for £5k

Mamadou Sakho from PSG for £4.5m

Axel Witsel from Standard Liege for £3.5m

Darijo Srna from Shakhtar for £10m

Karim Benzema from Lyon for £6.75m

On the last day of the transfer window Lyon offered Benzema to me for £6.75m citing his unhappiness at the club so even though i hadn't pursued him i snapped him up since i figure he could make a good partnership with Pato someday. I also just secured a deal for £220k to sign Mascio from Cisco Roma when the transfer window opens up again in July 2008.

[killface]

Wow those are some nice prices you got there. I'm nearing the end of my first season and the injury bug has hit. Ronaldinho, Witsel, Pato, Keirrison, Kaka, and Kaladze are down. However, I do have a 5 point lead on Inter with a game in hand. Paloschi has really started to shine though, so the forwards going down might not be too bad. Feghouli's looking like my starting AM now though haha. So we'll see how the next few weeks go.

Well I'm 8 up on Roma and 10 up on Inter with both matches coming up, Roma at home and Inter away. Then the toughest match I have is Genoa, so it looks like the title will most likely be mine.

[hjfh]

Is it programmed in that Beckham joins on loan in January?

Also what transfer budjet do you get on 9.2?

[Harryseaess]

Just been offered Giuseppe Rossi for £15.75m, I am currently in October in the second season.

The other strikers I have are Pato, Keirrison and Fred.

So should I sign him?

Thanks

[killface]

Well I won the league and went a little crazy. I sold Flamini and Ronaldinho for £30m each then got a bunch of good young players. Here's the list:

Bojan-Free

Fleck-Free

Akinfeev-15.25m

Fazio-16.75m

Geromel-10m

Apam-6m

Drenthe-10m

Zarate-3.1m

Now I have a good solid team that will great for 7-10 years. Oh and for whatever reason, the board gave me more money to spend so I still have £73m

[Rephlex]

I won 7 consecutive Champion's Leagues with Milan on '08, but I don't think that's gonna be quite as easy as it was last year. Half the squad on '09 are always late for training as they're busy picking up their pension and, some of the best players in the team *cough*Pato*cough* are underachievers. I can never decide on what formation I'd like to play. I really liked the old diamond attack they used to play on '08, but that doesn't seem to work for me on this game. Has anyone else had that problem?

[Andyh60]

I won 7 consecutive Champion's Leagues with Milan on '08, but I don't think that's gonna be quite as easy as it was last year. Half the squad on '09 are always late for training as they're busy picking up their pension and, some of the best players in the team *cough*Pato*cough* are underachievers. I can never decide on what formation I'd like to play. I really liked the old diamond attack they used to play on '08, but that doesn't seem to work for me on this game. Has anyone else had that problem?

I saw the first line and thought U WOT but then it said 08, pheew. I finished my game with Milan a few weeks ago and I won domestic double in 2nd year so at least that can be done (if I can do it then anyone can). Combination of Big H and Razor tactics and if you like the diamond formation then Razor has this kind of setup. Pirlo was one I got rid of since he never seemed happy and yeah if you want immediate success then Pato aint ready. However and this is not just Milan how the f do you win the CL. I'm currently playing with Barca, win 3 league titles in a row but never even made a CL semi!!!! Likewise I never made a smei with Milan either.

[ladislao_kubala]

alright i scrapped my save and started over from december 2007. right now im up to february 2008 and i play a weekly friendly fixture against inter for the team to keep match fit until the actual season starts in august 2008.

Favalli to Stoke for £3.5m

.

Wow ... how did you get rid of Favalli for £3.5m?

Did you play him often during the friendlies to boost his average ratings?

[ladislao_kubala]

I won 7 consecutive Champion's Leagues with Milan on '08, but I don't think that's gonna be quite as easy as it was last year. Half the squad on '09 are always late for training as they're busy picking up their pension and, some of the best players in the team *cough*Pato*cough* are underachievers. I can never decide on what formation I'd like to play. I really liked the old diamond attack they used to play on '08, but that doesn't seem to work for me on this game. Has anyone else had that problem?

I think the lack of side-arrows limits Milan somewhat due to the fact that Milan does not have any real wingers or left/right midfielders of note. I find myself rather forced towards a Christmas tree formation in order to maximize the best players in the squad.

The difficulty is that Milan in 2009 is by default already experiencing gelling issues from the start with the introduction of Ronaldinho, Flamini, Zambrotta and Pato (6 months only in Milan + young) - all presumably first team players. Add in the injuries from the start and a few new transfers and half of your first team will be made of newbies trying to fit in.

I found myself trying to fit almost 7-8 new players in the first team. Give it some time. They will gel by mid-season

[clonabanjo]

Started a AC Milan game.

It should be a good challenge due to the ageing squad.

INS

Guardado £15m

Paloschi £1.6m

Fazio £15m

Feghouli £3.5m

Sakho £7.5m

OUTS

Gattuso £15m

Bonera £8m

Emerson £900k

Seedorf £10m

Kaladze £10m

1st XI

GK Abbiati

LB Sakho

CB Fazio

CB Maldini

RB Zambrotta

CM Pirlo

CM Flamini

LAM Guardado

CAM Kaka

RAM Ronaldinho

ST Pato

[killface]

Well I'm mid way through the second season and dominating the league this time around at 21-3-0. No one really stands a chance against me except Juve, Roma, and Inter. Keirrison has stepped it up this year and has 27 goals in 29 matches and is now worth £19m. Pato and Bojan have had a lot of injuries so it's hard to keep a consistent partnership. Pato with Keirrison is still probably the best. Pato makes a pretty good target man and hooks Keirrison and Kaka up a lot. I adjusted my tactic a bit and Kaka has turned into the beast he should be. He rarely gets under a 7 now and causes a lot of problems for teams. Inter is still posing a problem for me, but I'm 7 points up on them right now, so I'm looking pretty good. However, I bought Adriano as a back up striker, and that has not gone over very well though. My squad harmony is now at very poor....so hopefully that will pick up soon.

[killface]

I think the lack of side-arrows limits Milan somewhat due to the fact that Milan does not have any real wingers or left/right midfielders of note. I find myself rather forced towards a Christmas tree formation in order to maximize the best players in the squad.

The difficulty is that Milan in 2009 is by default already experiencing gelling issues from the start with the introduction of Ronaldinho, Flamini, Zambrotta and Pato (6 months only in Milan + young) - all presumably first team players. Add in the injuries from the start and a few new transfers and half of your first team will be made of newbies trying to fit in.

I found myself trying to fit almost 7-8 new players in the first team. Give it some time. They will gel by mid-season

Due to the abundance of DM's and no RW's, I bought a couple right wings and one back up left and didn't have much problem. I did do awful at the beginning of my first season, but by November things we're fine. Now, I have Buonanotte and Drenthe on the left and Witsel and Zarate on the right. They do a great job for me.

[Noni.]

What tatics do you guys use?

[Chelsea4Lyf]

I hate how Pirlo basically forces you into selling him...

[Harryseaess]

Second Season - End of January Transfer Window

January Transfers In[

Giuseppe Rossi - £14.75m

Thierry Henry - £3.2m

January Transfers Out

Fred - Loan fee £250k - Option to buy £3.8m

Dida - Free Transfer

Emerson - Free Transfer

I enquired about Henry wondering how much Barca would want for him and they came back with £3.2m so I couldn't resist, he should chip in with a few goals.

Currently it is 01/02/10, I am first in Serie A with 55 after 21 games played. Inter are the closest team to me on 49 points. I have progressed to the knock-out stages of the Champions League, where I will face Chelsea and am in the Italian Cup Semi-final, where I will meet Inter.

My star performer so far this season has been Keirrison with 14 goals in 22 games, but he has slipped off the pace a bit in recent matches. Although, Abbiati has also been a star performer, keeping 20 clean sheets and only conceding 13 goals in 30 games. Rossi has also been amazing since he signed, he has scored 5 goals in 6 games.

Overall, I am on course to reach my aims for the current season.

I will post again at the end of the season .

[megaman]

Wow ... how did you get rid of Favalli for £3.5m?

Did you play him often during the friendlies to boost his average ratings?

no i actually just immediately offered him up to all teams and stoke took him, i did the same thing with seedorf (offered him for £20m) and tottenham came back with the £16m offer

[Harryseaess]

Start of Third Season

Last season was decent, winning the Serie A comfortably and winning the Super Cup 1-0 against Inter. I got knocked out in the Semi-final by Inter, who eventually won it and was knocked out of the Champions League by Chelsea in the first knockout round.

Star players last season were Keirrison, Christian Abbiati and Ivan Rakitic. Keirrison played in most of the games least season due to Pato being injured for 5 months with a torn calf muscle and he impressed by scoring 23 goals in 34(2) games. Abbiati was sensational all season, keeping 28 clean sheets in 50 games. Rakitic had a great first season, scoring 10 goals, with 9 assists in 38(2) games.

Transfers In

Nicklas Bendtner - £7.25m

Stevan Jovetic - £11.75m

David James – Free

Alberto Paloschi - £1.9m

Osman Yavas (regen) – £1.1m

Franco Giacobazzi (regen) - £1.8m

Giovanni Baldari (regen) - £1.6m

Mel Ryan (regen) - £2.8m

Davide Rutolo (regen) - £2.7m

Andy Preece (regen) - £2.9m

Tiziano Rea (regen) - £3.2m

Stephen Ecclestone (regen) - £2.5m

Michael Fazal (regen) - £4.5m

Transfers Out

Andrea Pirlo - £15m

Rafael Van der Vaart - £5m

Fred - £5m

Ferdinando Coppola - £1.3m

Tabare Viudez - £1.6m

Mathias Cardacio - £1m

Ever Banega - £5.5m

Matteo Darmian - £450k

Decided to get rid of Pirlo due to him being 31 now and he has been wanting to leave for two seasons now. Had to let Van der Vaart go due to him not really performing, I signed him for £3m so atleast I have made a small profit on him. Fred spent the season on loan due to him having a few chances in the first team an failing to impress, I got him on a free and managed to sell for a good profit so I am pretty happy.

Bendtner and Jovetic were offered to me and I couldn’t resist either of them for the price. They are both young and should be in the team for years to come.

All the regens look like hot prospects IMO. Many of them have been sent on loan for the season. Here are my best 3:

Tell me what you think.

Starting Line-up

GK – Abbiati

DR – Zaccardo

DC – David Luiz

DC – Fazio

DL – Traore

DM – Flamini

MC – Kaka

AMR – Rakitic

AML – Jovetic

ST – Kierrison

ST – Rossi

Remaing First Team Players

Asenjo

Cannavaro

Preece

Sakho

Jankulovski

Banega

Gourcuff

Saivet

Sanchez

Henry

Fazal

Pato

Bendtner

Paloschi

Next update will be at the end of the January Transfer Window.

[Lisandro Lopez]

Harryseaess

Looks as if you have a great side in the making, congratulations on your season. The newgen Fazal looks promising.

[Stephen-H-]

Just started a milan game

IN- Alexis Sanchez £4.5m

Thiago Silva £2.6m

A.P Gignac £4.9m

A Arshavin £12m

M Sakho £6.25m

A Paloschi £190k

M Veloso £10.6m TOTAL = £41m

OUT- A Pirlo £30m (Man City)

G Gattuso £15.5m (Tottenham) TOTAL = £45.5m

STARTING LINE UP-GK C Abbiati

RB G Zambrotta

LB M Sakho

CB A Nesta

CB T Silva

RM A Sanchez

LM Ronaldinho

CM M Veloso

CM Kaka

FC Pato

FC A Paloschi

[Harryseaess]

Harryseaess

Looks as if you have a great side in the making, congratulations on your season. The newgen Fazal looks promising.

Thanks mate . Yeah, I think Fazal looks like he could become a good player, but if he doesn't i'm sure I will be able to sell him on for a profit in a few years.

Stephen-H-

Looks like you have made some good signings there mate.

I question the selling of Pirlo though, IMO he is the soul of Milan and therefore shouldn't be sold for a few seasons (I sold him beginning of my thrid season due to him being 31). Also, he is plenty good enough for a couple more seasons. But it is you game and you can decide how to play it, so good luck .

Be sure to keep us informed.

[megaman]

im in october 2008 and Gourcuff just demanded a better contract...but do i really have to bother listening? its not like he can just up and leave or anything...what do you guys think i should do?

[Carl_272]

im in october 2008 and Gourcuff just demanded a better contract...but do i really have to bother listening? its not like he can just up and leave or anything...what do you guys think i should do?

I don't intend to sound mean or anything here - But the whole point of the game is YOU are the manager, YOU deal with the decisions and also the consequences!

[Harryseaess]

im in october 2008 and Gourcuff just demanded a better contract...but do i really have to bother listening? its not like he can just up and leave or anything...what do you guys think i should do?

He may become upset or disappointed if you don't offer him a contract. But as Carl_727 said, you are the manager and therefore you should be making these kind of decisions.

[Harryseaess]

Is it just me or does Pato miss a lot of one on one chances? I am asking this because he seems to score only about 10% of his one on one chances, whereas all my other strikers (Keirrison, Bendtner and Rossi) seem to score a high percentage of their one on one chances.

Thanks.

[Carl_272]

I think Pato does miss alot of chances, but I put this down to his age - it can't be easy playing for Milan aged just 17.

[Fe98]

He does get better though. How far have you guys reached in the game? I'm close to 2020 I think, Kaka is about 37 and still playing. Actually I'm only playing him as he only needs a couple more goals to be the Milan alltime goalscorer (the record is 210 I think). I guess if Pato does well (in the game), he'll overtake him at some point.

[Harryseaess]

I think Pato does miss alot of chances, but I put this down to his age - it can't be easy playing for Milan aged just 17.

I think he is now 21(?) on my game and he is still not banging in that many. Will give him another season or two to prove his worth becaus he has got some stiff competition from other strikers.

He does get better though. How far have you guys reached in the game? I'm close to 2020 I think, Kaka is about 37 and still playing. Actually I'm only playing him as he only needs a couple more goals to be the Milan alltime goalscorer (the record is 210 I think). I guess if Pato does well (in the game), he'll overtake him at some point.

I hope he does.

I am in year 2010 at the moment. Would have been a lot further but the Serie C bug cost me about a month of playtime IRL.

[Fe98]

Hah, I so got caught up trying to get Kaka to break the record that I didn't realise that Pato already did so!

[arsenal_2111]

im in october 2008 and Gourcuff just demanded a better contract...but do i really have to bother listening? its not like he can just up and leave or anything...what do you guys think i should do?

I don't intend to sound mean or anything here - But the whole point of the game is YOU are the manager, YOU deal with the decisions and also the consequences!

Fgs, he asked for advice in a public forum which you are meant to ask for advice on. Nothing wrong with it, if he needs help he should be able to ask.

[ladislao_kubala]

MY BELOVED MILANO

I have supported Milan for a good part of 20 years and played CM/FM since the days of CM2. Strangely, it never occurred to me to manage Milan in CM/FM throughout these overlapping years. Perhaps it was due my search for challenging game.

The current Milan team IRL is in transition with majority of their key players over 30 years of age and the team in need of rejuvenation with more youthful players. Thanks to the forum members for suggesting that the "spirit" of the side be maintained. This added the needed spice with interesting self-imposed constraints and took the game to the next level.

I thought it was a refreshing idea.

I interpret the spirit of Milan as the following:

1) Strong Italian flavor and presence in the side, preferably in defense (think Tassotti-Baresi-Costacurta-Maldini)

2) Sprinkling of Brazilian flair, but not overpowering the numbers of the Italians

3) The heart of Milan - Pirlo (the peerless), Gattuso (the fighting spirit of the team), Kaka (the new symbol) will never be allowed to leave!

4) Entertaining style of play

5) Ancelotti-styled pragmatic tactics

By now, it is abundantly clear IRL that Milan would never ever let Kaka go (phew!). I must admit that I still stepped away from some of the sentimentality of Milan by letting go of Kaladze and Sheva which I believe would unlikely happen IRL. Plus Beckham never came on loan although I was using the 9.2 patch.

Carlo_sheva's posting was a particularly useful reference for the squad and transfers.

SQUAD AND TACTICS

Looking through the Milan team, it was clear that Milan had quite a solid team which could last 1 or 2 seasons. Given that the team was challenging for the UEFA and the Scuddetto there was not the immediate need to have a very large squad or Galactico squad. Therefore, I was in favor of a smaller squad with the view to improve this during the winter or next season. I also noted that there was a tendency to have older players like Pippo and Emerson as solid backup players.

Initially, I experimented with a 4-1-2-2-1 and a 4-3-2-1 with Pirlo as the focal point of play making and to maximize presence of Kaka and Ronaldinho. I believed that Kaka and Ronaldinho would be the key to the whole season but at same time, limited the formation to a Christmas tree formation. The 4-3-2-1 pushed Gattuso and Ambrosini out a little to cover the flanks a bit better but Pirlo was clearly not at his best in the MC role. Eventually I stuck with the 4-1-2-2-1, tweaking it little by little as I moved into the season.

TRANSFERS

I made an experiment to draw out what I would like my squad to look like for the next few seasons and it was a rather interesting thought experiment.

1) What a surprise (sarcasm)! It was clear that the defense was in serious need of rejuvenation with all members of the first team around 32 years of age.

2) The backline was also slow in the general which made it further necessary to find faster defenders. I was sure that I needed this against some of the teams.

3) From the blue-print of next season's first eleven, I expected to keep Zambrotta and Nesta in the first team both because they are Italian and suspect that they would be able to play at the top level till they are 35.

As noted, there was also the complication of injuries and the Olympic games which made player assessments during the pre-season difficult.

I started with a transfer budget of £10m which I further boosted by selling Bonera , Kalac and Kaladze and loaning out Emerson. It was difficult to find good Italian talents with that kind of budget so I focused on youth, bringing in Zambelli and Frorillo as well as grabbing Criscito and Forestieri for the folllowing season. To further add an element reality, I also signed Thiago Silva. I had my eye on Italians like Bolzoni, Palombo and Santacroce but my budget was limited.

And then, the board members surprised me with another £20m transfer dollars upon my request.

The new influx of cash put a few things off balance and forced me to re-look into my transfer policy. Finally, I decided on a new target of finding the next Nesta. After agonizing over Santacroce and Fazio, I finally chose Fazio for his immense ratings and young age.

I also added the talents of Alexis Sanchez and Axel Witsel which I felt are the most talented and affordable players. Alexis also gave me the option of playing with wings when needed with Ronaldinho on the left. Axel Witsel's flexibility provided much needed cover for Kaka and Ronaldinho as well as the MC positions. I would have prefer Brazilian or Italian players but I could not settle for any within my budget. Lastly, I bought in Zuculini (half Italian!) as future cover for Gattuso, Flamini and Ambrosini. Emerson was no longer young and departed on loan.

In December, the board again put in another £20m which allowed me to pick up Guilherme (my new Cafu) and Miguel Veloso. By then, I felt that a box-to-box midfielder was crucial for the further enhancement of the team play and the fullbacks could do more to help out on the attack.

Last note: Letting go of Kaladze was particularly difficult decision to make due to "sentiments" but I had the comfort of having Thiago Silva (which Milan has bought IRL) and Fazio which was half Italian (heh!). Keeping my emotions in check too.

SEASON HIGHLIGHTS

I started the season in tentative fashion, with almost 7-8 new players in the first team. My backline was almost completely new and I even looked to Maldini to bring some familiarity to the team. My team were winning the first few games but I was uncomfortable in the manner in which I won - despite a solid win against Juve. It was clear my team was totally reliant on the speed of Alexis Sanchez and the occasional Ronaldinho moment to win.

Then came the three games which reflected my discomfort.

1) I grabbed a totally undeserved 1-0 victory against Palermo at home

2) I deservedly lost to Sampdoria away 1-0 in which my team looked out of ideas

3) I lost to Lecce 2-0 away in which my team failed to find a way through Lecce and got hit with 2 sucker punches.

9 Serie A games in, and my record was 7 wins and 2 losses. Not too bad, but my objective was the Scudetto. What was comforting was that I was not conceding a lot of goals despite the new backline but it was at the expense of creative play. I found that only Ronaldinho, Kaka (or Alexis) and Pato were doing almost all the attacking. Pirlo, Gattuso and Ambrosini were also uninspiring.

I lost the top spot to Inter after the loss to Lecce which prompted serious re-look into the tactics.

As a result, I decided change the style of play. Comforted by the steady defense, I decided to build upon that and unleash Pirlo, Kaka and Ronaldinho to free-roles. It proved to be an inspired move as my team went on a 22 match unbeaten run overlapped with a 10 match winning streak. Pirlo, Kaka and Ronaldinho were smart enough to find empty places and put themselves in good positions for passing.

By April, my team was leading Inter (2-horse race) by 7 points which made the crucial match-up against Inter in the end of April elementary because I could afford to lose. I finally wrapped up the Scudetto with 2 games to go, eventually beating Inter by 8 points.

It was satisfying to put the ghost of Calciopoli behind. Below are the screenshots.

Note: If I could, I would choose to retire the number 3 shirt until Christian Maldini decides to take it up

LOOKING INTO 2009:

1) I received a massive £98m transfer kitty for my troubles and then by luck, discovered that Messi has a £45m transfer release clause. Messi is now part of the Galacticos of Milan!

2) I am still not satisfied that my team is ready for the Champions League due to 2 standout games:

- My 0-0 draw with Inter opened my eyes to the qualities lacking in my fullbacks (not enough support upfront) and midfielder (to defend well but where is the attack?). My answer in mid-season were Guilherme and Miguel Veloso.

- I did not win the UEFA cup and lost rather tamely to Lyon. The scoreline was not huge 2-1 in aggregate but the lack of chances against a tier-2 contender of the Champions League concerns me.

That's all for now, folks!

[ladislao_kubala]

He may become upset or disappointed if you don't offer him a contract. But as Carl_727 said, you are the manager and therefore you should be making these kind of decisions.

Perhaps a follow-up question would be whether Gourcuff is worth paying £50k a week?

He does look like he has great creativity and passing but how is Gorky performing for you guys?

Check out the youtube in the link below

http://www.goal.com/en/news/1722/french-ligue-1/2009/01/12/1057033/french-debate-zidanesque-gourcuff-reaching-the-heights

Zidanesque?

[andre_costa]

On a previous Milan game, Kaka got injured for several months and Gourcuff was the perfect replacement for him. "Luckily", Barcelona came knocking with an insane offer for .... Ronaldinho :o and then i was able to field Gourcuff and Kaka in the first team ever since

I started a new Milan game now in my usual way of not allowing transfers during the beginning of the first season. January will be an interesting month

[Crayons]

Really nice post there ladislao, do you mind if I copy that format for my half season review?

[BoomAM]

Anyone come up with some good tactics for it yet? lol.

Im waiting for the patch that im asuming is coming at the end of the transfer window before diving in again. .

[Harryseaess]

Perhaps a follow-up question would be whether Gourcuff is worth paying £50k a week?

He does look like he has great creativity and passing but how is Gorky performing for you guys?

Check out the youtube in the link below

http://www.goal.com/en/news/1722/french-ligue-1/2009/01/12/1057033/french-debate-zidanesque-gourcuff-reaching-the-heights

Zidanesque?

I think he is worth that, he is a great player and is very good.

ladislao_kubala

Great season review . Glad you had a good season and you have made some good signings.