Rollin93 Posted January 24, 2019 Share Posted January 24, 2019 Anyone know a good/cheap centre midfield and centre back that could do well championship or lower premier league? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DefinitelyTaylor Posted January 24, 2019 Share Posted January 24, 2019 5 hours ago, IndyManager said: Now if I manage to land such a job and then win promotion, (big IF, I know), do I then cease posting updates here? No, you are very much able to continue posting here. The only criteria is that the club begin in the Football League! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamesbfc1887 Posted January 24, 2019 Share Posted January 24, 2019 @DefinitelyTaylor Yep, Andy Holt still here Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamesbfc1887 Posted January 24, 2019 Share Posted January 24, 2019 This is a joke now. I've got no goalkeepers, 1 right backs, 1 left back and 3 centre mids. I'm alright elsewhere but I've still got -£1.3k a week in wage. My only right back is on £160 a week (the lowest I could actually offer him) which is a bit of a steal for a league 2 quality player. My team is a shambles, we're doomed and relegation surely looms. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
RageMaster Posted January 24, 2019 Share Posted January 24, 2019 4 hours ago, Rollin93 said: Anyone know a good/cheap centre midfield and centre back that could do well championship or lower premier league? Marko Leskovic at Dinamo can be bought for around 500k, he's a center back who I used in my Leeds save in both the championship and the Premier League. For Centre Mid you could look at Nasri or Gnoukouri on free transfers. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
robterrace Posted January 24, 2019 Share Posted January 24, 2019 So. Premier League Football. It was my intention to bring in players at the end of season 1, that would be of a standard better than the Championship, and would be good enough to survive that first season in the Premier League. As luck would have it, I’d got scouts out all over Europe, building the lists of players we’d target for the next season, with the intention of keeping a mainly homegrown core, with additions from across Europe. Before we got there though, we had to deal with player releases and retirements. Steele and Dawson both joined the coaching staff, Dawson in the U18s, and Steele as first team Goalkeeping coach replacing Manu Sotelo. Incomings Joel Pereira made his loan deal from Manchester United permanent, joining on a 3 year deal for £1.8m, I thought that we’d have to pay a lot more for him, but, he was keen to come as well. His backup for 2020/21 will be Joe Lumley. The 25 year old was on the transfer list at QPR, and comes in on a 3 year deal. He’ll get cup games, and the odd league game. Defensively, Ukrainian left back, Vasyl Kravets joins on a 2 year deal from Lugo in Spain. At the moment, he has no work permit, so will go back out to Spain in the hope of getting international appearances, although, he only needs another 300 days to gain Spanish nationality as well. We’re still looking for first choice centre halves, as Bustinza will be targetted, and Figueiredo, although being a very good centre half, may struggle if his colleagues are struggling. Good centre halves come at a premium, and Jake Clarke-Salter will step up a lot as well. Irish defender Timi Sobowale joins from Man City, and goes into the Under 23s, and has gone on loan to Exeter for the season to continue his development. Also coming in, is 18 year old Argentine/Italian centre half, Mario Diaz. He joins from Estudiantes in his home nation, and has gone to Wycombe for the season. In midfield, Ryan Gauld joins on a free from Sporting Lisbon, along with 17 year old Aarón Valdés, for £2.1m from Rayo Vallecano. 20 year old Callum Styles comes in from Barnsley for just over £1m, and heads down into the Midlands and Coventry for the season. Other domestic signings include Josh Martin and Jordan McEneff from Arsenal, D’Mani Bughail-Mellor and Dion McGhee from Manchester United, Rafael Camacho from Liverpool, Alfie Lewis and Toni Martinez from West Ham and Clinton Mola from Chelsea. Martinez has been highlighted as one who will play in the Premier League, and will go out on loan, probably to the Championship or a higher League One club. Spanish right winger Nacho Gil joins on a free transfer from Valencia, and Dennis Man joins for £4.1m from FCSB in his native Romania. He spent last season on loan at Stuttgart in the Bundesliga, and will be first choice. The last monetary signing so far, is 20 year old Portuguese winger, Mário Ferreira, who joins for £1m from Liga NOS side Vitória Guimarães. He’ll be backup to Cody Gakpo. The last improvements have been up front, with 2 strikers coming in, and another one returning. Mason Greenwood extended his loan deal for another season, and will test himself against Premier League defences. Also arriving is Italian striker Alessandro Rossi, coming on a free from Salernitana, and Spanish striker Carlos Fernandez, who arrives from Sevilla on a free transfer. There are more irons in the fire, but, they’ll come in the future. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyManager Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 (edited) 18 hours ago, DefinitelyTaylor said: No, you are very much able to continue posting here. The only criteria is that the club begin in the Football League! Thanks. I finally broke down and consented to an interview w Leicester City (15th in the EPL in season 3). It was quite a lengthy discussion but In the end they wouldnt agree to my expectations for youth development and scouting and broke it off. Then some puke from Leicester goes and leaks it to the press, but my board wasn't angry, they wanted to extend my contract. I told them I'd be staying this season so all is well. On the park, the Valiants are into round 3 of the FA Cup to face Championship strugglers Mansfield, have won the first knockout round of the Checkatrade Trophy, and are now 17th position in League One (but still just three points above relegation). My next match is Boxing Day Edit: forgot to mention in a 1-0 win over Bradford City, Tom Pope scored the winner. Playing in the match triggered a contract extension, but he announced a day later he would retire at season's end. This summer should be the right time to leave Edited January 25, 2019 by IndyManager Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellzo Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 Swindon Town FC - Season 2 – Mid Season Appraisal So was started the season very well, and despite the expected performers not doing as well as liked the team as a collective has stepped up and we are currently gunning for promotion. So taking from the table, us and Portsmouth have probably been the most consistent teams with Crewe leading the pack until collapsing week 13. I’m cautiously optimistic as our recent form has been good in all competitions, but this may lead to problems in the coming months. I imagine we will drop off in the table in a similar manner to last season, a promotion would be nice but the squad is probably a decent championship standard at best. Take away all my Utd youngsters on loan and its not even that. The FA Cup has drawn us against City for a second year running, at home again, so that’s another money making tie were we hope for a draw. Carabao Cup we were drawn against Bournemouth early and I played a weakened team. The Checkatrade trophy however is a good shot for us to win a trophy and I have played a strong squad in this from the start. Semi final against Yeovil, with whom our record is 1-1-1, is very winnable and we wil play either Burnley or Utd u23s in the final if we make it. The concern here is Utd win and the youngsters are ineligible to play so hoping for Burnley. Onto the squad. Kalantari, who is supposedly the next Ian wright, had a blazing start and scored 9 goals in little over a month. Sadly, since then he has struggled to kick on and the main source of goals has been the midfield, particularly Martin Smith. Whilst he was second choice MC to Doughty at the start of the season, 15 goals so far this campaign he has asserted himself as No.1. The only drawback is he takes all the penalties and freekicks which skew the goalscoring, but a goal is a goal and a win a win. Callum Roberts is my favourite on loan player, Gribbin and Gomes score a cracker each month but aren’t consistent enough, and we hope to sign him to a permanent deal at the end of the year. Gribbin and Gomes are great with Gomes being the first choice AMC and both getting a good amount of goals and assists. Farrugia on the wing has been just shy of excellent, often cutting inside and I think hes going to be a real star for me in the coming years. Kalantari hs now got some competition with another 16 y/o striker, Tal, signing from Boreham Wood on the final day of transfer window. Sylla has been useful for a few months but his contract was 6 months and I don’t foresee an extension. The stats show how close the competition for the MC slot between Smith and Doughty are, Costa ad Diagouraga compete for the second more defensive slot there. Defence wise, O’Hara plays in the cups and Vigouroux in the league where he is on track for the clean sheet record. Nelson and Conroy are first choice CBs with Knoyle on the right and Oglive on the left. We have the best defence in the league conceding only 19 goals in 30 games. Mainly outgoing in January. Barlow was a good player, but not as good as Gribbin and Gomes, so when Aston Villa offered 250k I tried to resist but they called me out with a 500k offer that was too good to turn down (particularly for a free signing 6 months ago). The rest of the outgoings are squad players so I may see some issues in the coming months but financial security is important, this even more so as we are spending 350k on new youth facilities soon. After all these deals the balance stands at 1.9m. This is my new 16 y/o, saw him when reading a match report of Kalantari on England duty and had to get him. Worst case scenario is we sell him for a small profit, best case is a future superstar. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
robterrace Posted January 25, 2019 Share Posted January 25, 2019 Ho hum... I'll make a bid in a bit. The next 'Batigol'... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
3runhomer Posted January 26, 2019 Share Posted January 26, 2019 My third season with Notts County, and our first in the Championship League. It took some time to adjust to this level but the team is playing well now and I’ve learned some lessons. We’re in 11th, 4 points out of the playoff spots The January transfer window just closed and I got this message about spending in our league. It’s official, I am the stingiest manager! Our payroll is only $4.91 million, which is far below anyone else. 4 clubs have payrolls over $50 million! (I play FM Touch 19 on my iPad, so the screenshots look different than what you’re used to.) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
smplfc123 Posted January 26, 2019 Share Posted January 26, 2019 ROYAL REVIVAL UPDATE January 2022, so time for a mid-season update. Here's how the table looks at the moment: Excellent start to the season, with the incoming signings making the impact I had hoped for, but it's the 2 young Italians that were brought in the previous summer and loaned back out to their originial clubs that have driven us forward. Fabio Castellano has racked up some impressive performances in centre midfield, averaging 7.12 so far this season and our £92k striker Kevin Cannavo has now bagged 15 goals in 19 starts, leading to bids from a number of clubs. The aim was to finish higher and with more points than last season. We are certainly on the way to that, it's just a question of now do I spend what I have to try and cement a top 7 finish or keep the squad the way it is and hope we can stay up there? The only negative is that assuming Leeds win their games in hand, the top 2 are going to be out of reach. I've turned down about 8 jobs so far this season, with teams looking to capitalise on me being out of contract at the end of the season, but i'm seeing the season out at least with the Royals. Wish me luck! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
robterrace Posted January 26, 2019 Share Posted January 26, 2019 At the end of the last post, I said that I'd continue shopping for players, and see what I could pick up. I think I did that. Now, a lot of signings I've made, haven't been made for this season. A fair few are for coming years, and hopefully, will mean I have to spend less in the future. Pape Cheikh joined as the 3rd option in midfield, being able to play both roles that Ryan Yates and Ivaylo Chochev can play in. He was transfer listed at OL, and came on fairly low wages. Joining the same day, was Brentfords Welsh centre half, Chris Mepham. He joins for £9m, of which £5m is spread over 3 years, and another £1m is due after 10 international appearances. The week after, Vasyl Kravets left on loan to Korea, and was replaced the following day by Stoke left back Josh Tymon. He signs for £10.5m, made up of £2.5m up front, and £8m in 2 installments over 2 years. After this, young defenders Anthony McNamara and Adrian Sellears joined for minimal fees from Boreham Wood, where they had caught the eyes of the scouting team. 32 year old Brazilian Itto joins, mainly to mentor the younger players due to his 'perfectionist' personality. The next signing was a long drawn out saga, with Leeds full back Lewie Coyle joining for a £5.75m fee. He had thrown in several transfer requests once our interest became known, and the only add on was £1m after 10 international appearances. 18 year old Croatian striker Stjepan Jukic came in for £4.5m, which, was his minimum fee clause, and went back to Dinamo on loan for the season. He is really highly rated by the scouts that watched him, and has a goal every other game in the Croatian U21s. Portuguese U19 Sandro Meira was purchased from under the noses of Arsenal, Manchester United, Real Madrid and Barcelona. At £4.4m, I may have overpaid, but, the scout reports highlighted the 17 year old as a potential wonderkid. That concluded the incomings for the transfer window, but with 35 players out on loan, there was still a lot of work to be done to ensure that players were getting match time, and at the correct levels. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
smplfc123 Posted January 26, 2019 Share Posted January 26, 2019 I decided that bringing in Harlee Dean for his leadership was going to be only January signing, freeing up Blackett to join Toronto. This however, is one of the reasons why I think holding on to a top 6 spot is going to be very tough! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jogo Bonito Posted January 27, 2019 Share Posted January 27, 2019 Good to see how everyone is doing, and pleased you're doing so well with Reading @smplfc123 I have so many EFL teams interesting me, but currently enjoying the sunshine of Lisbon and looking to see if I can put them back on track. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
smplfc123 Posted January 27, 2019 Share Posted January 27, 2019 Thanks @Jogo Bonito It's such a change to see me settled with a club isn't it? 4 seasons for me is unheard of Are you posting your Lisbon updates anywhere? Sporting I'm guessing? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PJ Bluenose 4 Ever Posted January 27, 2019 Share Posted January 27, 2019 Can anyone recommend any good strikers to sign for Birmingham City? Should have a lot to spend cause plan on selling several players. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
smplfc123 Posted January 27, 2019 Share Posted January 27, 2019 Just now, PJ Bluenose 4 Ever said: Can anyone recommend any good strikers to sign for Birmingham City? Should have a lot to spend cause plan on selling several players. What season are you in? Kevin Cannavo from Palermo has been incredible for me. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jogo Bonito Posted January 27, 2019 Share Posted January 27, 2019 32 minutes ago, smplfc123 said: Thanks @Jogo Bonito It's such a change to see me settled with a club isn't it? 4 seasons for me is unheard of Are you posting your Lisbon updates anywhere? Sporting I'm guessing? Indeed, and it's good to see you sticking with the best professional football club in Berkshire Yeah, first time managing Sporting Lisbon (I did FC Porto once briefly, quite a few years ago). Have only done pre-season and first two league games so far but don't think there's anywhere to post. I could do a career thread, but might only be there for a few seasons so probably not appropriate. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
smplfc123 Posted January 27, 2019 Share Posted January 27, 2019 Haha thank you my friend! I've even surprised myself in this save. Hope I haven't peaked too early on FM19 Ah right, fair one. Well good luck in the warmer climate! Hopefully you can restore them to former glories Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PJ Bluenose 4 Ever Posted January 27, 2019 Share Posted January 27, 2019 2 hours ago, smplfc123 said: What season are you in? Kevin Cannavo from Palermo has been incredible for me. Just about to start the game. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
3runhomer Posted January 27, 2019 Share Posted January 27, 2019 (edited) Oh my God. Notts County is going to the Premier League. The Magpies’ first season in the Championship started shaky, but the players and I eventually adjusted to the higher level of play. We added a new target man (Michael Smith who I nicknamed Thumper. 7 goals and 4 assists in 14 appearances for us) and a better keeper (the young Will Mannion, who my scouts loved and I’m seeing why). In our last 4 matches of the season we won 3 and drew 1 to displace poor Crystal Palace from the final playoff spot. Then we beat Aston Villa a cumulative 6-1 in our home-and-away playoffs. That earned us a place in the final at Wembley against Cardiff. We squeaked by them. My Magpies definitely aren’t ready for the Premier League. At the beginning of this season we weren’t even ready for the Championship. The board has set next year’s payroll budget at $27 million and the transfer budget at $36 million. I’m currently spending $5 million on payroll, so it’s a big boost, but I think we’ll probably still have the tiniest budgets in the PL. Anyway, it’s time for champagne, fireworks and a ticker tape parade in Nottingham. We’ll worry about next season later. 🍾 🥂 🎆 🎉 Edited January 27, 2019 by 3runhomer Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DefinitelyTaylor Posted January 27, 2019 Share Posted January 27, 2019 Great to come back to the thread after a weekend away in Sheffield to see a lot of activity and success! Well done all. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
smplfc123 Posted January 27, 2019 Share Posted January 27, 2019 I'm not sure I can handle this final round of fixtures Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
smplfc123 Posted January 28, 2019 Share Posted January 28, 2019 Coventry and Forest, I thank you so much! The revival is complete! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyManager Posted January 28, 2019 Share Posted January 28, 2019 (edited) The Valiants really put it all together in the final few months of Season 3. Taking 25 of 27 points in one, penultimate stretch, then closing with two draws when our position of 10th in the League One standings was basically locked in. The board was delighted with my work and I guess with the fact that I was still there. I spent those final weeks thinking it would be the end of my time with the club. I had turned down at least a half-dozen interviews since I failed to see eye-to-eye with the Leicester board on vision. I still expected to find a good Championship club to move to at season’s end, and indeed I saw the manager at Aston Villa was under duress in the run-in, finishing 17th in that division. Sure enough, he got the sack at season’s end and I applied for the job, and even stated my interest in it. Villa fans were buzzing about it and I thought the interview went quite well, but a few days after the interview they announced they hired some schmuck named Jack Ross who is managing at Turiff United in the Scottish Highland League. Seriously? They told me I wasn’t the right man for the job….Kind of makes me want to manage Birmingham City now. I had to pause for a few moments to work up the motivation to approach season 4, beginning this morning. I took a 12-day vacation, (or 10 minutes in the shower IRL!) and just began to address the many needs the team will have as the loan signing return to their parent clubs. I’m going to need 7 new players I think, with three current players now placed on the transfer list. Oyeluke and Worrall are just not up to the standard in League One, and James Ferry pitched a hissy fit at the end of last season because he says I promised him we’d get promoted. For every other signing, I promised reaching the playoffs by the end of the coming season, but James thinks it was automatic promotion this year. I may have been under the influence during the negotiations, I can’t remember. Anyway, the rest of the squad was sky high about how well we had done, and Ben Whitfield was playing better than him in central midfield anyway, so he can hit the road as far as I’m concerned. Lucas Green-Birch was the fans’ young player of the season, having scored 16 goals following a couple of barren spells. He’s not the only youth academy product contributing at the moment, as Nathan Smith is a fixture in the back line and seems happy to stay with us at age 22 despite interest from elsewhere. Back up front, Jamie Thomas, a free signing back in Season One, was our leading scorer with 18 goals. Ben Whitfield is the fans’ player of the year and rightfully so. Every team should have a midfield warrior like Ben, and he can play in any of the four midfield roles in a 4-4-2. Of the loan departures, the toughest to replace will be center back Charlie Fox, a mainstay in the starting XI, and left wing Jake Andrews who has been with us on loan three consecutive seasons, but has signed a contract now with a team in America. I may end up moving Whitfield out left as that is his natural position. The strikers I had on loan were not all that effective, although in fairness they were kept out of the side by Green-Birch and Thomas. Tom Pope, who played nine seasons for Port Vale, retired after an injury-plagued final year. Third-choice goalkeeper Scott Brown has also retired. So looking forward, I’ve signed one midfielder, Cassian Thomas, the same player I had to sell to Hearts two seasons ago because of a cash crunch. I think he can be a good squad player for us. I’m negotiating with two other midfielders at the moment, one of whom is Aidan Barlow of Man United (seems to be a popular name on here). But as I say, overall I need 1-2 goalkeepers, one versatile defender and one starting XI center back, two central midfielders and two wide midfielders (or one who can play both sides well), and two forwards. I imagine most of these will end up once again as loan signings, and that is part of where I intend to keep my eyes and ears much more attuned to other possibilities for my own career. I’m waiting for the board to tell me what kind of transfer budget I will have, and more important what flexibility there is in the payroll. Preseason training begins tomorrow and in a week some salary will be freed as loan players return to their club (btw, does terminating those loans now, which only makes sense, hurt you with the players or their managers?). I will be diligent in building a squad that can challenge for promotion, even though the players think we are only pushing for a top-half finish, but I will keep an ear to the ground re possible moves for myself. So manager community - got any good tips on a young player (or 10) to sign for a League One team after three seasons of FM 19? Edited January 28, 2019 by IndyManager Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamesbfc1887 Posted January 28, 2019 Share Posted January 28, 2019 5 hours ago, IndyManager said: So manager community - got any good tips on a young player (or 10) to sign for a League One team after three seasons of FM 19? After 3 seasons that's a pretty tough question, I could probably help at the start of a save or after a year or so. Soz Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellzo Posted January 28, 2019 Share Posted January 28, 2019 (edited) So we just won the Checkatrade Trophy, against the Utd 23's. Great result but awful game. However we just lost our game in hand in the league, to Pompey, which brings them into the title race with 5 games to go. We play Reading next with Bradford the only other remaining game against top 10 opposition on the final day. Might get promoted, probably get playoffs, its going to be a rocky ride last few weeks. Edited January 28, 2019 by ellzo Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamesbfc1887 Posted January 28, 2019 Share Posted January 28, 2019 A busy summer for Accrington. 14 in 8 out. As well as two loan extensions for Flynn Downes and Sam Hughes, giving us 7 loanees in total. And the eagle-eyed among you will have already realised you can only have 5 in a match day squad. This is a massive issue for us. Our squad is really thin, I raged about our wage budget early on and nothing has really changed, we've been able to spend more on each player as you can see, we're splashing out £3,400 on Teddy Bishop , but our basic wage budget (without bonuses) has stayed pretty much the same £25,000 a week since the start of the save. Our financial projection is horrific, we are somehow losing money despite sending sod all on wages or transfers. Our team is definitely of better quality, some really great additions but paper thin. Time will tell whether we have enough to survive. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyManager Posted January 28, 2019 Share Posted January 28, 2019 2 hours ago, Jamesbfc1887 said: After 3 seasons that's a pretty tough question, I could probably help at the start of a save or after a year or so. Soz No worries. BTW, just realized I was 22 of 27 points during those nine matches, not 25, so for full disclosure. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TottenhamBoi90 Posted January 29, 2019 Share Posted January 29, 2019 @DefinitelyTaylor I know what you mean but i think Pete Winkleman was quite forward thinking in putting a club in MK. I agree with you about the players, Season 2 proved to be a very fruitful campaign. MK Dons Season 2 SkyBet League 1: 3rd (Play-Off Winners) League Cup: 2nd Round FA Cup: 2nd Round Checkatrade: Group Stage Transfers IN: Marc Navarro (Loan), Jerome Sinclair (Loan), Rafa Mir (Loan), Josh Ginnelly (Free) Transfers OUT: Peter Pawlett (Free), Ryan Watson (Free), Wieger Sietsma (Loan), Liam Sole (Loan), Osman Sow (40k), Oussieyou Cisse (40k), (Also think i missed this section last season, only out was D'Ath on loan then released this season) Review: What a season it was, back to back promotions is a first for me on fm i usually work on a stay up, improve, challenge 3 year plan but credit to the players they were outstanding. The season began with an 11 unbeaten streak before losing 2 then another 17 unbeaten. I was 2nd most of the season but Forest pipped me on the final day but a 1-1 draw and 3-0 win v Charlton put me in the final against Luton which i won 4-1 and Aneke bagged the lot. The cups were a dissapointing after last year and i targeted the Checkatrade but stupidily rotated in the group stage and went out. 4-2-3-1 Control Possession again ... GK - Nicholls, 15 clean sheets in 40 conceded 32, +1 clean sheet on last year but he only got 34 games last time. Moore played 6 and did well DEF - Brittain, Jackson, Walsh, Moore-Taylor, I am so strong at the back, all over 7 average rating, chip in a few assists but not many goals. Navarro didnt make the impact i wanted, Williams and Lewington only had 6 games, Rowan was solid over 7 rating again as was Cargill, Galloway renewed loan and over 7 rating, Gribbin and Baningime also renewed. MID - Gilbey is an absolute god, 6 goals, reliable, Baningime trusty BWM with Houghton. I planned on loaning out Kuhl and El-Mhanni but both didnt attract interest so i kept them and gave them between 6-12 games and they did really well. ATT MID - Mir, Gribbin, Nesbitt were sensational. 16 goals for Mir, Gribbin 18 assists. Ginnelly come in in january didnt really have chance to make an impact. McGrandles and Agard are my trusty super subs. El-Mhanni i mentioned before. ST - Aneke 21 goals, Was really impressive he was slow starter in league 2. Sinclair was slow to get going, ended up with 9 goals. Youth - Nombe, Asonganyi, Tapp, Kasamu and Thomas-Asante all got some game time. Nombe 3 goals, Asonganyi 2 goals, Asante 1. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TottenhamBoi90 Posted January 29, 2019 Share Posted January 29, 2019 (edited) MK Dons (2020/21 Mid Season Update) Sky Bet Championship: 9th League Cup: 1st Round Transfers IN: Brendan Galloway (Free), George Byers (Free), Carlton Morris (Free), Martin Samuelson (Free) Transfers OUT: George Williams (40k), Thomas-Asante (Loan), Wieger Sietsma (Loan) Review: To summarise were doing okay but every time an opportunity comes around to move into the Play-Off positions, we hit a snag, usually injuries leading to bad results but steady top half is okay. Lewington has retired, Williams moved on so Gilbey is not captain and Walsh vice. Europe has opened up as a scouting options so ive bulked out the recruitment team. I tried to make some loans permanent as we had 6 from last year but only managed Galloway. I didnt make any more loans signings because were a Championship club now and i didnt really see what positions i could bring in and comply with the matchday rules of 5 so we our playing with 4231 control possession again ... GK - Nicholls, Moore DR - Navarro, Brittain BPD - Jackson, Rowan CD - Cargill, Walsh DL - Galloway, Moore-Taylor CMS - Gilbey, Kuhl BWM - Baningime, Houghton WS - Mir, Ginnelly APS - Gribbin, Byers, Samuelson IFS - Nesbitt, El-Mhanni DLF - Aneke, Sinclair Super Subs - McGrandles, Agard, Morris After a 5-0 defeat to Fulham i went 4-3-3 for a few games which saw John Freeman get some games. I was kinda forced into it with Gribbin and Byers out and Aneke so Nombe was upfront as well, It didnt go well which brought me to sign Samuelson who turns out is better as a winger but I am playing him cam now Gribbin is out again. Just as insurance so i can stay 4231 no matter what as its served me well so far. Once i have sorted out contract renewals the window should open and i think i will try and get in a loan or 2 or 3 as i do not have a recognised left back with my current 2 better at CB. I havent got a keeper in yet so might do business here. I missed out on Mason Holgate and Ben Sheaf in the summer, BPDs could be due some competition. I still have no money to spend so i think this is the only option but that will put me upto 7 or 8 loans as my 3 from last year all renewed albeit only just as United and Wolves wanted to keep Gribbin and Mir. With so many contracts expiring and loan heavy squad it could also be hard to even sell to buy but i have a few players wanted. It could be a key month in the season, Wish me luck! Edited January 29, 2019 by TottenhamBoi90 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
warlock Posted January 29, 2019 Author Share Posted January 29, 2019 I'm just back from a long weekend away, and there's far too many updates to comment on individually. But it's great to see so many, and even better to see so many of you doing well. In my Barnsley save, we were sitting comfortably in 15th place in the PL going in to March, so pretty safe from relegation but a distance off a mid-table finish. Improving the squad was proving to be extremely difficult so faced with the prospect of two or three seasons in mid-table (hopefully) I decided to call it a day. I'm still trying to figure out where I'm going next. KUTGW all Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyManager Posted January 29, 2019 Share Posted January 29, 2019 So the interim between Seasons 3 and 4 has been a tad frustrating for me as manager of Port Vale. The board are holding the line on a payroll budget with seemingly no allowance for the effort to offload three players earning about $400K collectively. The least costly of these, James The Whining Malcontent Ferry has been sold for $50K, mainly to offload his salary. I’m offering veterans Emmanel Oyeluke and David Worrall for $30K each (and I’ll go lower) just to get their wages off the budget. One National League side came in and offered to loan Manny at no cost to themselves, but his wages are the whole point of this for me (and the fact that he doesn’t cut it at this level). But because of the overage, when I had a bid accepted for a much-needed forward, I couldn’t come close to offering him a competitive wage. I requested an increase in payroll and even pushed it to the brink of resignation, but the board would not relent. We’ll see if money loosens up a bit when (IF) I final sell these other two players, but as it stands we are threadbare up top. One different thing this year is I only have three loan signings in, goalkeeper Daniel Grimshaw back from Man City for a 2nd year to back up Calum Burton, and defenders Conor Masterson from Liverpool and Ben Rowe of Swansea. I’m only in the week before the league opener so it may be that this is where I look for needed striking depth, but loan strikers haven’t done nearly as well for me as loan midfielders and defenders have. I’m told the players are all happy, we took lopsided wins in our preseason matches and it’s largely the same group that was unbeatable at the end of last season, but something feels very different as we begin the new season, and I don’t feel comfortable about it at all. Anyone else get “vibes” good or bad about FM teams? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
smplfc123 Posted January 29, 2019 Share Posted January 29, 2019 Don't know whether to stick with my Reading save now i've got to the prem or to go for a new challenge... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rollin93 Posted January 29, 2019 Share Posted January 29, 2019 Just been promoted first season with Brentford and they have gave me a transfer budget of 34 million a lot more than I expected going to look at a premier league level cm and possibly 2 new centre backs also have Andre gray coming back to the club for 5 million to hopefully challenge maupay Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DefinitelyTaylor Posted January 29, 2019 Share Posted January 29, 2019 (edited) @smplfc123: Congratulations on promotion to the Premier League. I would understand if you seek a new challenge after doing so well with Reading. Looking forward to seeing what decision you make. @IndyManager: Well done on a good finish with Vale. Unfortunate to not get the Villa job though. @ellzo: Immensely tight at the top. Glad to hear of your success in the CheckaTrade Trophy! Best of luck in securing the title and promotion. @Jamesbfc1887: I think you'll have enough to survive, personally. Some of the deals you've made are quite a risk given the financial situation (Farrugia especially), but if they pay off... . Surprised to see McConville go as he's very much a mainstay in the Stanley lineup irl, despite how poor he was at Barrow all those years ago! I rate the signing of Jimmy Ryan on a free and Herbie Kane on loan. @TottenhamBoi90: Amazing progress with the Dons. The quality in the side is immense, as seen through the likes of Gilbey, however you've really excelled with them. @Rollin93: Congratulations on promotion. Gray is an interesting arrival but I think he'll be a good option to have. The budget is strong, but you'd expect that given the money you'll gain from TV revenue, sponsorship etc. - spend it wisely! Edited January 29, 2019 by DefinitelyTaylor Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellzo Posted January 29, 2019 Share Posted January 29, 2019 (edited) @Jamesbfc1887 Hows Farrugia doing for you? Hes been amazing for me and looks like will only get better. @DefinitelyTaylor Thanks, going into last game of the season now, Sunderland are 4 points ahead on 84 but then Reading and Pompey sit on 81 and me on 80. Going to take a few results going my way to get automatic promotion but there is a chance. UPDATE: We got smashed by Bradford 4-1 in our final game, matching my worse loss as Swindon manager vs Cambridge last season. Probably my fault as threw everything forward after half time when was 1-1 as all the other results went the way we needed. The playoff lottery awaits. Edited January 29, 2019 by ellzo Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jamesbfc1887 Posted January 29, 2019 Share Posted January 29, 2019 @DefinitelyTaylor Sink or swim this season. A lot of pressure on us this season. The problem is that our squad is so thin, Farrugia, Bishop and Watson are all injured for the start of the season I've had to fill the subs with a 1 star youth product, just to get 18 players. @ellzo I've only just played the first game of the season and he's injured atm so I couldn't possibly say, he looks great though. My updates will probably be slow progress as I'm rarely getting half an hour a night of FM. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rollin93 Posted January 29, 2019 Share Posted January 29, 2019 3 hours ago, DefinitelyTaylor said: @smplfc123: Congratulations on promotion to the Premier League. I would understand if you seek a new challenge after doing so well with Reading. Looking forward to seeing what decision you make. @IndyManager: Well done on a good finish with Vale. Unfortunate to not get the Villa job though. @ellzo: Immensely tight at the top. Glad to hear of your success in the CheckaTrade Trophy! Best of luck in securing the title and promotion. @Jamesbfc1887: I think you'll have enough to survive, personally. Some of the deals you've made are quite a risk given the financial situation (Farrugia especially), but if they pay off... . Surprised to see McConville go as he's very much a mainstay in the Stanley lineup irl, despite how poor he was at Barrow all those years ago! I rate the signing of Jimmy Ryan on a free and Herbie Kane on loan. @TottenhamBoi90: Amazing progress with the Dons. The quality in the side is immense, as seen through the likes of Gilbey, however you've really excelled with them. @Rollin93: Congratulations on promotion. Gray is an interesting arrival but I think he'll be a good option to have. The budget is strong, but you'd expect that given the money you'll gain from TV revenue, sponsorship etc. - spend it wisely! I agree I was unsure if to bring him back to Brentford but with other areas I needed to strengthen I felt he would Do a job Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
warlock Posted January 30, 2019 Author Share Posted January 30, 2019 3 hours ago, ellzo said: We got smashed by Bradford 4-1 in our final game... Probably my fault as threw everything forward after half time when was 1-1 Sometimes you have to roll the dice... doesn't always work! Good luck in the playoffs. 51 minutes ago, Jamesbfc1887 said: I'm rarely getting half an hour a night of FM. Keep up with that revision! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyManager Posted January 30, 2019 Share Posted January 30, 2019 (edited) Well, maybe it wasn't so bad that I didn't get that gig with Villa. Perhaps FM knows best considering... Early days of course, but the squad is coming together nicely. I managed to make a few more loan signings so we are very deep. Let's see if we can keep this going. More details tomorrow. I should have been in bed 90 minutes ago with work in the morning, but FM has a way of doing that. Morning Update: So I shook off the disappointment of not getting the Villa job and set out to build a squad capable of at least contending for promotion. I had just over 100,000 to spend, but I quickly realized that wasn’t going to get me really anything of quality. I focused my recruitment on previously scouted players available on loan or free transfers. Before training camp began I was able to sign Matias Kait, released from Fulham, and Aidan Barlow, released from Man United, on frees. Then I loaned in defenders Ben Owen of Swansea and Conor Masterson of Liverpool I signed three trialists because my U23s were getting too thin for functionality, and in Season 4 I have to yet to see them invited to participate in a competition, so it’s friendlies every week for that group. On Premier League deadline day I loaned in Everton winger Josh Bowler and Brighton target striker Bojan Radulovic. Since then been able to add defender Tom Solanke from West Brom and holding midfielder Tayo Edun from Fulham, both on loan. Going out were Emmanuel Oyeluke, on loan with 70 percent of his wages paid, and David Worrall to Grimsby with 20 percent of his pay covered. James Ferry thankfully sold but I’m still about 300K over payroll budget, so it’s just as well I didn’t buy anybody. In the early matches of this season, the Valiants are on fire. Winning five of their first six League One matches, only a road loss to Rotherham and going out in the League Cup to blemish my record. Lucas Green-Birch is on fire with the goals,and even last season’s major disappointment Rekeil Pyke, has chipped in with a brace to help us win one match. Now I’ve got a very deep squad and a good positon 10 percent of the way through the league campaign, so let’s see what can happen. Edited January 30, 2019 by IndyManager Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevie Posted January 30, 2019 Share Posted January 30, 2019 Oldham Athletic - Season 2 - Part 2 - First Half of the Season - Potential Surprise Title Challenge? September / October The strong start continued into September with 3 league victories and also 1 in the cup. The highlight was definitely winning away to Sunderland! Disappointingly, the only defeat this month followed, however this was with a much rotated side after the tough match we'd just had. A friendly to build the match fitness of some fringe players was also arranged and won very easily. Although October wasn't quite as spectacular, if you would have offered me 50% win ratio in the league at the beginning of the season I would have been delighted. The good start in the EFL Trophy also continued. November / December Another early cup exit, surprise, surprise. Fortunately we didn't let it impact our league form at all and managed maintain unbeaten run until just after Christmas. League Table and Stats As you can see, my form so far this season has put me just one point off Ipswich at the top of the table. This is definitely beyond my wildest dreams of what I could have expected at this stage of the season. My pre-season media prediction was 21st so to be 19 places and 27 points clear already is very, very pleasing. My summer signing Novakovich has 11 goals already and is thankfully justifying his high wages! Surridge and Baxter have 7 each so luckily I'm not relying on one player too much. Hopefully my season continues on this trajectory. With back-to-back promotions now a realistic possibility I have to be careful to not get too carried away. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
warlock Posted January 30, 2019 Author Share Posted January 30, 2019 @IndyManager @Chevie Both going really well there. Impressive performances all round! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
robterrace Posted January 31, 2019 Share Posted January 31, 2019 Little sneak peek of my season, 11 games in... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DefinitelyTaylor Posted January 31, 2019 Share Posted January 31, 2019 12 hours ago, warlock said: @IndyManager @Chevie Both going really well there. Impressive performances all round! I second this. Fantastic going! @IndyManager @Chevie Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chevie Posted January 31, 2019 Share Posted January 31, 2019 @warlock @DefinitelyTaylor thanks for the support! It's been nice to get back into this save after a couple of months away. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
IndyManager Posted January 31, 2019 Share Posted January 31, 2019 6 hours ago, Chevie said: @warlock @DefinitelyTaylor thanks for the support! It's been nice to get back into this save after a couple of months away. Yes, thanks @warlock and @DefinitelyTaylor. Last night we dropoedna game at 20th position Walsall when I greedily kept attacking after they had equalized, even though we were on the road. Bounced back with a 2-1 win over Portsmouth to go back on top with goals from Pyke and Growler, who wants to prove wrong something i said in a presser about promotion being tough. Reminds me of playing CM '01 with QPR and Doudou being mad i questioned his ability. After that, every time he scored the comm woukd say "He's aiming to prove his manager wrong!" I think he scored 55 goals. :-) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
TottenhamBoi90 Posted February 1, 2019 Share Posted February 1, 2019 (edited) @DefinitelyTaylor Wow, Wow, Wow, Your my lucky charm mate, look what I gone and done ... MK Dons End of 2020/21 Season Review Sky Bet Championship: 5th (Play Off Winners) League Cup: 1st Round FA Cup: 3rd Round Review: Please see my previous post, I was 9th on January 1st. I was threatening to get into the play offs but then results fell away I wanted to make some January moves but all I did was sell El-Mhanni for 40k and I couldn't shift Carlton Morris as they both wanted to go. Loan options were limited so I didn't do anything. I played around with the side and found Josh Ginnelly brilliant as my inside forward on the left. He had scored 1 and was just back up for Mir but I played him left and by the end of the season he'd banged in 8 goals and catapulted me into 5th and opened the scoring in the Play-Off final against Ipswich before Gribbin put me in control with a free kick, a late goal from Ipswich made it nervy towards the end but its like it was meant to be. 3 seasons 3 promotions, 33m budget to spend next season and I haven't spent a penny yet. Id like to also talk about the run in. 1st game of March I beat Brentford 2-1 which was the first time I broke into the play-off spots, I then lost to 2 of bottom 3 (Birmingham and Preston) and was thinking here we go again but then I beat Forest who pipped me to automatic promotion last season and I was properly in the mix. I had had an unbeaten month in October which gave me confidence going into April because if we could just beat them again we'd be in the play-offs for sure and April form was sure enough, WDDW then came Palace and I feared them because of some crazy win they had in February 8-3. 3 games before our fixture they won 5-3, 6-0 and 3-1 and in play off mix themselves. I lost to Palace 3-0 needing a win on the final day. I have some games where I dominate 60% and loads of shots and some where I cant get the ball and struggle to even shoot. Barnsley last day was a bad day until Ginnelly put me 1-0 up out of nowhere and Agard off the bench made it 2 but hes been rubbish all season. Then came the play-offs, I avoided Palace over 2 legs but had a good record against Reading. I was smashed again but then their CB put a big lob on his backpass to the keeper and he missed it putting me 1-0 up before Sinclair doubled my advantage. 2nd leg away I played some good stuff and won 3-2, 5-2 on agg, The final then I expected Palace but Ipswich turned a 3-1 defeat round with a 4-1 win in the 2nd leg and set up the massive play-off final. To my utter surprise they named 6 newgens. The rest I mention before. I am so stunned and delighted. What a team this is. My top scorers 14 (Sinclair), 11 (Mir), 10 (Aneke), nobody managed 10+ assists. MK Dons into the promise land. Other notable achievements to mention, I had secured MK Dons highest ever finish in their history with 6 games to go, Previous best was 23rd in Championship. Biggest 1 though is the wages. Biggest spenders in the Championship Palace with 1.1m p/w, MK Dons 24th highest spenders aka the lowest with a tiny 100k p/w. As Evra would say, I LOVE THIS GAME!!! Edited February 1, 2019 by TottenhamBoi90 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
CapaJr Posted February 1, 2019 Share Posted February 1, 2019 Started with Blackburn, media prediction and the board expectation was not to be relegated.. loaned and brought some players, made several tactical tweaks and look what we have achieved 7 weeks before the end of season. one of my most successful first seasons EVER. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
warlock Posted February 1, 2019 Author Share Posted February 1, 2019 Well, we have some top managers in this thread! 11 hours ago, TottenhamBoi90 said: Sky Bet Championship: 5th (Play Off Winners) MK Dons in the Premiership? That's a hell of an achievement in such a short spell. Congratulations 9 hours ago, CapaJr said: one of my most successful first seasons EVER. And another brilliant performance. Best attack and meanest defence will always give you success but that looks like you absolutely stormed your way to the top Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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