FM19: The English Football League thread

[smp20]

17 minutes ago, warlock said:

Looks like you've found your feet after a tough start. Serious Fraud Office wants a word about that Jevani Brown transfer business .



Cheers, I weirdly enjoyed having the tough start! Yeah that was not good business sense from Birmingham at all. We also had 50% of the sell on so the buy back was really only £50k....£300k for 4 games in 4 months...

[smp20]

I really want to focus on building a top class academy, something that I've often struggled to do with Cambridge Utd over the many saves I've done over the years. Not too much come out of the academy so far except a high potential 6'7 striker, but were up to adequate JC /average YR so we should have a few more emerge as football league players at least. If I can get up to the Championship and be financially sustainable there I reckon I can build the academy and give the youngsters chances without looking to just bulldoze the league with foreign imports. 

[smplfc123]

Thanks guys @Jogo Bonito and @DefinitelyTaylor

@warlock What is it about 4-2-3-1 that you struggle with? I try to be as open-minded as possible tactically, but even now my results have picked up with Forest using a 4-2-3-1, I just don't feel comfortable with it. In fact, I don't really feel comfortable using a formation without a holding midfielder.  

[smp20]

Bonne Fires 

[smplfc123]

 

Despite clearing out a lot of high-earners in January, giving me a very healthy wage and transfer budget to play with, the finances aren't looking great, with our status currently insecure and the board not even willing to fund a coaching course for me.

[warlock]

3 hours ago, smplfc123 said:

What is it about 4-2-3-1 that you struggle with?

Well, if I knew that, I could probably fix it . It's not the lack of a holding midfielder - I'm happy to play 442/4411 and variants thereof. I think I've never really understood the balancing act between attack and defence, and setting up the midfield pair correctly. I had some success last year with the 4231dm system that Cleon outlined in his long thread, but I haven't been able to get it working this year, largely because I've never had a squad with more than one decent DM. There are also issues around the AMC, and how he works with the CF and the wide players - never managed to figure that out and so often the AMC feels like a luxury we can't afford; moving that player back to DM usually produces instant improvement. Even a flat midfield 3 is usually better for me.

Your finances at Forest look remarkably similar to how Colchester looked during my Championship season; you should get a solidarity payment at the end of the season, I think around £5m. 

[Sean3h]

Just received an absolutely mad bid for Sandro Tonali in my Norwich save. I'm in my third season now and am just about top of the Premiership. Manchester City have decided that they REALLY want Tonali from me, and have agreed with my negotiation of £93M for a man I signed for just £4.7m. I'll be sad to see him go, as he's been a mainstay in the side that got me promoted and then finished 2nd, but I'd be crazy to reject that kind of money!

[Jogo Bonito]

5 hours ago, smp20 said:

Bonne Fires 

Great progress with Cambridge - matching that fine FM headline. Good to see quite a few of the originals (and Brown) still involved. Keep up the good work.

@smplfc123 I think I'm going to be put through similar financial stresses, hopefully you'll beat FFP and it will soon improve. I like the Josh Earl signing, had good results out of him at Preston in the past. With his attributes and height, he could even be converted in to a centre back (most suited to being the left of three if you ever use that formation). I'm not sure how many brown envelopes you passed under the table to the current Preston manager for that one...

@warlock Good luck at the second attempt. Interesting that you struggle so much with that tactic (possibly more psychologically than actual) as your FM management record Is excellent. I look forward to hearing how you get on.

Edited April 15, 2019 by Jogo Bonito

[DefinitelyTaylor]

8 hours ago, smp20 said:

I'm currently stuck into a Cambridge save and really enjoying it.

Glad to hear you're enjoying the save. That's always the main thing and the soul purpose of a save - you should always be enjoying it. After your initial struggle, it's pleasing to hear you've improved and have guided the U's to League One, which is a great achievement given they haven't got the best of squads. There has been a lot of work clearly to improve it. Things are looking great at the moment for you and hopefully Bonne can continue to find the net. Fingers crossed you can get some youth through the ranks in years to come, also. Keep up the good work!  

3 hours ago, smplfc123 said:

Despite clearing out a lot of high-earners in January, giving me a very healthy wage and transfer budget to play with, the finances aren't looking great, with our status currently insecure and the board not even willing to fund a coaching course for me.

Your situation doesn't sound ideal, to put it lightly. It sounds like the owners haven't got the necessary cash to inject into the club, or if they have, they're not investing it. Hopefully things can improve in the coming months - whether that be under the current ownership or under a new board at Forest.

[smplfc123]

@warlock Yes that's a fair point  I know what you mean about the AM though. 

 

@Jogo Bonito I'm interested to see your first post mate. I agree Earl has been a great buy. So much so that Robinson is already asking for a move away. I don't know how it was so easy to prize him away from Preston, especially as they haven't brought anyone in and are playing Ben Davies there, presumably as a defensive FB. But it must be working as they are right up the top end of the table.

 

@DefinitelyTaylor Hopefully they will mate. There's still a few high earners I can look to offload in the summer that will help and players like Worrall, Grant and Walker who can fill positions without me having to spend, so hopefully that will balance a few things out.

[Jogo Bonito]

Welcome to my new adventure, and let me introduce Jack Army as the new manager of Swansea City AFC

It's been a while since I managed a Championship club, and in truth Swansea are in a bit of a mess

Following relegation from the top flight last season, the wage bill is way too high and the squad strength is average at best

The board seem to be expecting a little too much in asking for a play-off challenge

 

Especially when this news filtered through during pre-season

The board insisted on a philosophy of using players from the youth system, which I like

Added to that, I've told them I will be trying to sign young players for the first team too

But this approach should be tempered with the reality that I'll need to trim the squad, cut the wage bill, and push for a top-six spot

I'm going to try and build this club in to a mainly Welsh outfit, attempting to reinvent the success of the late 1970's and early 1980's

On the staff side, ex-Swans and known Welsh names will be preferred when possible

So, it looks like being quite the challenge, but one that I'm really looking forward to

Next up I'll do a review of pre-season, summarise my transfer activity, and talk through the squad I'll be relying on

[DefinitelyTaylor]

Now it makes sense @Jogo Bonito! Daniel James, Connor Roberts and Joe Rodon all spring to mind. All could very easily feature regularly. Good luck with the Jacks.

[warlock]

4 minutes ago, Jogo Bonito said:

I'm going to try and build this club in to a mainly Welsh outfit

A worthy goal, but a sizeable one given the number of foreigners in the squad. Will be following your progress with interest!

[Ronaldo Beckham]

I knew it was Swansea when you mentioned the word Culteral Jogo, I was tempted to do a Swansea save before I chose Reading.

Good luck with Swansea I look forward to see how you do and hope you stick to the save for a few seasons to see what you can do.

 

[Jogo Bonito]

Thanks for the encouragement guys. I've actually done pre-season but still trying to ship a few players out before the transfer deadline passes. Unsurprisingly, there  are very few takers as the wage-to-ability factor isn't very positive.

[Jamesbfc1887]

 

@Jogo Bonito Good luck with your new save. Some great young players there and I'll be particularly interested in the fortunes of Oli McBurnie, thanks to his short but sweet loan spell at Barnsley. He's a great player and a massive fan favourite.

I think I might be joining you in the Championship soon, after my interest in the Accrington save has wavered.

A lower Championship side is on the agenda for me, not quite decided who though.

[Jogo Bonito]

21 minutes ago, Jamesbfc1887 said:

 

@Jogo Bonito Good luck with your new save. Some great young players there and I'll be particularly interested in the fortunes of Oli McBurnie, thanks to his short but sweet loan spell at Barnsley. He's a great player and a massive fan favourite.

I think I might be joining you in the Championship soon, after my interest in the Accrington save has wavered.

A lower Championship side is on the agenda for me, not quite decided who though.

Cheers. As has been said, the likes of Roberts, Rodon, James, McBurnie and even Grimes are reasons to be enthusiastic about this spell in South Wales. I've been waiting for them to stop the toll bridge entrance charges for years, it now seems like the right move to make! I've actually signed a Barnsley player already, so you'll be paying even more attention now.

Make sure your next pick doesn't have any Japanese-friendly nightspots nearby.

[Jamesbfc1887]

10 minutes ago, Jogo Bonito said:

I've actually signed a Barnsley player already, so you'll be paying even more attention now.

Make sure your next pick doesn't have any Japanese-friendly nightspots nearby.

Interesting stuff, knowing Barnsley you probably got him for 3 cans of pop and a packet of crisps .

I'll make sure to have a look on trip advisor before I make my final decision.

[smplfc123]

Good luck at The Liberty @Jogo Bonito 

As a proud Welshman I'll be following your rebuild with more interest than usual. We have some good young players coming through at the moment, with a couple of them already at the Swans as @DefinitelyTaylor mentioned!

[Jogo Bonito]

4 minutes ago, Jamesbfc1887 said:

Interesting stuff, knowing Barnsley you probably got him for 3 cans of pop and a packet of crisps .

You're not wrong there. Actually more like two cans of pop...

3 minutes ago, smplfc123 said:

Good luck at The Liberty @Jogo Bonito 

As a proud Welshman I'll be following your rebuild with more interest than usual. We have some good young players coming through at the moment, with a couple of them already at the Swans as @DefinitelyTaylor mentioned!

Glad to have your blessing and interest! Yeah, a good crop of youngsters there already, and plenty of other talent elsewhere to keep an eye on. Unfortunately my top Welsh transfer target was just out of my reach in the first transfer window. I agreed to pay £6.5 million for him (more than my entire budget) but apparently my wage offer of four times his current deal wasn't good enough. The failure to complete that deal has left the squad looking a bit weak in one key area, but at least the second and third targets have been brought in to improve other weak parts of the squad.

Staff recruitment has gone well, although I couldn't afford to mutually terminate my Assistant Manager Billy Reid so far due to the £525k compensation due. And I've not been able to convince John Toshack to come back yet (ideally as DOF). Hopefully I can do that before he retires. Colin Pascoe, Simon Davies, John Hartson, Ian Evans, Sean McCarthy and Esther Wills have all joined the project already (plus Eva Carneiro as usual).

[warlock]

5 minutes ago, Jogo Bonito said:

a good crop of youngsters there already

Having loaned a few of them in recent saves, I'd go along with that! Connor Roberts, Matt Grimes, Tyler Reid and Matt Blake all did well for me (although usually in 2019 onwards). Based on my limited experience, I'd also recommend you get shot of Joel Asoro ASAP 

[smplfc123]

FOREST UPDATE

So here's how the table looked at the end of the season:

Just as the board asked, I managed to deliver a mid-table finish. Draws cost us from making the top half, but considering the poor position and form I found them in just before January, I'd say we've done ok there.  7 Wins, 12 Draws and 6 Defeats, with 30 goals for and 30 goals against in my 25 games pretty much confirms the inconsistency. 

With the finances not looking good at all and us scraping through the FFP check, here are my budgets for next season:

I have a feeling this is going to be a long summer!

[Jogo Bonito]

1 minute ago, warlock said:

Having loaned a few of them in recent saves, I'd go along with that! Connor Roberts, Matt Grimes, Tyler Reid and Matt Blake all did well for me (although usually in 2019 onwards). Based on my limited experience, I'd also recommend you get shot of Joel Asoro ASAP 

Blake did really well in pre-season as Olsson was on holiday after the World Cup and didn't feature at all. I've got high hopes for the youngster and actually tried to sell Olsson (but he kept refusing the contracts elsewhere). I've sent John back to Scotland on loan (could not sell him) too, but have probably landed the best left-back in the division now - with no wages or fee payable during his loan. Unless I manage him badly, he should be a real star of my team, allowing Blake to be developed a bit more. Reid was in the pre-season squad but didn't get much chance as third choice behind Roberts and Naughton. I've not been able to get rid of a lot of players I don't fancy, and Asoro is one of them (he's now in the U23 group).

@smplfc123 Good job there, solid. That budget isn't going to help you much though. Wage trimming, loans and free transfers only for you!

[warlock]

5 minutes ago, smplfc123 said:

So here's how the table looked at the end of the season

In the circumstances, I'd say that's a job well done!

If it were me, I'd move all (!?!) of that transfer budget into wages, and look to reinforce through loan signings. If the board wants mid-table or top-half in the coming season, a manager of your calibre ought to be able to manage that . I have every confidence!

[smplfc123]

I thought free transfers and loan deals were going to be the way forward too @Jogo Bonito @warlock , however with the finances that bad, i've had no choice but to accept bids for players that I didn't want to sell. This means I do have about £2m to play with now.

I'm reinforcing the squad with the return of loan players. The likes of Worrall, Grant and Walker are all in the first team squad for pre-season and I intend on giving them plenty of game time, alongside the likes of Osborn, Cash and Yates.

[smp20]

18 hours ago, Jogo Bonito said:

Great progress with Cambridge - matching that fine FM headline. Good to see quite a few of the originals (and Brown) still involved. Keep up the good work.

 

17 hours ago, DefinitelyTaylor said:

Glad to hear you're enjoying the save. That's always the main thing and the soul purpose of a save - you should always be enjoying it. After your initial struggle, it's pleasing to hear you've improved and have guided the U's to League One, which is a great achievement given they haven't got the best of squads. There has been a lot of work clearly to improve it. Things are looking great at the moment for you and hopefully Bonne can continue to find the net. Fingers crossed you can get some youth through the ranks in years to come, also. Keep up the good work!  

Cheers guys  - yeah it's fun to see how far you can take some of the original players. Of course some will pass to the wayside, but while they're still performing there's no reason to outright replace them. I've made a point of bringing back some of my old favourites as well; Luke Berry back from Luton, Will Norris on loan in Jan and signed for £180k in the summer prior to season 4, Michael Morrison another January signing and most recently Scott Wharton (former loanee) on a free transfer.

We managed to finish 2nd behind Barnsley in League One so season 4 we are in the Championship! On top of Norris and Wharton I only anticipate one more signing, we're in desperate need of an upgrade to right winger David Amoo who's struggled a bit in League One. Macaulay Bonne grabbed 26 League One goals, just two shy of his tally in League Two. I'm interested to see how prolific, or not, he will be in the Championship

[Jogo Bonito]

11 hours ago, smplfc123 said:

I thought free transfers and loan deals were going to be the way forward too @Jogo Bonito @warlock , however with the finances that bad, i've had no choice but to accept bids for players that I didn't want to sell. This means I do have about £2m to play with now.

I'm reinforcing the squad with the return of loan players. The likes of Worrall, Grant and Walker are all in the first team squad for pre-season and I intend on giving them plenty of game time, alongside the likes of Osborn, Cash and Yates.

I hope you didn't lose anyone too critical. You have a nice core of promising HG players to use now anyway. Maybe you could try to get Brereton back on loan, and take a look at young Appiah too? I'm interested to see how you get on. 

@smp20 I really like the ex-players you brought back, something I often try to do at my clubs too.

[DefinitelyTaylor]

I was just reading this article today and thought I would share. It details the cost of each team, according to Transfermarkt, in League Two. It could very much spark some interest, like it did in me.  

https://www.somersetlive.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/league-two-value-swindon-yeovil-2770585

Here's one for League One, too! 

https://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/efl-sunderland-coventry-blackpool-portsmouth-2762365

Edited April 17, 2019 by DefinitelyTaylor

[warlock]

1 hour ago, DefinitelyTaylor said:

It could very much spark some interest

Certainly suggests that @Jogo Bonito and I massively overachieved with Colchester 

[Jogo Bonito]

Swansea City - Season 1

OK, so I've announced already that I'm the new manager of Championship side Swansea City

The board want a play-off spot in my first season, which I think is optimistic

I inherited a squad that has obvious weaknesses, but I also have some talented young players to call upon

The strategy was to bring in Welsh players, young players, and ultimately add some more quality

I wanted to bring in some new blood, but also aimed to trim the squad to a manageable size (23 or 24 players)

And the wage bill needed to be cut. That means sales, loans, and sales of guys already out on loan would be encouraged

But I wanted to retain the core (where economically sensible) despite relegation the previous season

I also wanted to ensure that the HG products would not leave, so contract extensions would be considered for them

On the staffing side, I wanted to bring some ex-Swansea people and other Welsh 'names' of yesteryear 

Here's how I approached the transfer market in the first window

Incoming Transfers

I initially had only three transfer targets upon taking over

During pre-season I had just three central midfielders, including long-term injured Leroy Fer

Another of those (Matt Grimes) soon got injured, so I was left with just the mediocre Jay Fulton before promoting an U23 lad

This forced me in to playing an undesired 5-2-3 formation in the friendlies, and I needed to sign a strong player to play as my DM

Before taking the job, I had already decided I wanted to sign Semi Ajayi of Rotherham, but now it was a necessity due to numbers

As a centre back recently converted in to a goal scoring defensive midfielder, he could perform in two positions 

If I had to continue with three central defenders I needed more cover, but ideally I wanted him protecting my defensive line

Getting his club to accept my £1.2m bid was simple, but it took well over a month to finally get a wage & contract offer accepted (phew!)

I had two decent senior goalkeepers on the books already, but both were 29 and on a hefty wage

One of them (Kristoffer Nordfeldt), was already injured, and I felt confident I could move one of the pair on

In view of this and the fact that Erwin Mulder also picked up a knock in early pre-season, an extra 'keeper was the first man in to the club

Picked up for a bargain £400,000 fee from League 1 side Barnsley, Welshman Adam Davies was a perfect fit for my team

And upon his arrival, I immediately installed him as my main man between the sticks 

The third and final target was Welsh forward Jarrod Bowen, of Hull City - but this turned in to a tragedy

My intention was to use him on the right flank cutting in on his favoured left foot, mirroring Daniel James on the left

However, I was also convinced I could use him as a second striker or back-up to Oliver McBurnie if it was ever needed

I chased his signature all summer, and at some stage his club agreed to a £6.5 million offer plus 20% of future profit

However, just like with Ajayi, I kept getting my contract offers rejected and then had to wait until him and his agent would talk again

This repeated over and over, but sadly the deadline passed without being able to get him in to the club

Since then I've made all sorts of loan offers, including some with future fee clauses - but I couldn't get it done

Being young, talented and Welsh, this transfer is an absolute necessity going forward

I will do everything to get it done before January as I put all my eggs in one basket for this player

Ultimately that strategy has cost me dearly as the window ended with just one main striker at the club

As the deal for Bowen wasn't going to plan, I did take the plunge with the purchase of Jamal Lowe from Portsmouth 

A right winger who has impressed with goals and assists in League 1, I felt his best years would be ahead of him

The next deal was, I am hoping, an absolute master stroke - even if this wasn't something I originally planned for

I'd always intended to use Martin Olsson as my first choice at left-back, but other factors changed that notion

Unfortunately he was absent for the whole of pre-season whilst resting after the World Cup

In that time I'd been using U23 prospect Matt Blake (to good effect), with understudy Declan John also injured

However Olsson was now 30, on a big wage, and had a contract expiring at the end of the season

I put some feelers out, and several clubs were willing to pay the full £2.5m fee. It looked like his time would be up early

With this in mind, and not being too keen on John, I looked around for an alternative who could claim the starting spot

Surprisingly, this search was over in an instant, when I made a cheeky bid to loan Real Madrid's Sergio Reguilon

With no wage contribution and no monthly fee required, a deal was agreed immediately - but I expected the player to reject the move

Luckily for me, that didn't happen, and the highly-rated Spaniard (with first team experience this season) flew in to Wales

Ironically, Olsson then decided to reject every contract offer made by other clubs and he has remained in the squad for now

After the Spaniard (and the arrival of Ajayi), I was just left scrambling around for another striker

Pinning all my hopes on Bowen came back to haunt me though, and the window closed without this problem being solved

I did throw some serious offers in at the death on the likes of Che Adams and Jonathan Kodjia (and a few others), but to no avail 

As a result, I was forced to pick up a loan striker with the extended temporary signing deadline helping me out a little

It came down to picking one of three loan options in the end - Lucas Joao, Conor Washington or Michael Obafemi

Whilst the first two were 'proven' to a degree, I decided that the more raw Southampton youngster was the best bet

Highly-rated by his club, I felt that Michael was more exciting, and therefore he was the final man in

By the way, you can ignore the £3m signing of Bersant Celina, as that deal had been done under the previous regime

Outgoing Transfers 

With a whole host of big earners already out on loan, I did several other deals to bring some more cash in to the club

Long-serving winger Wayne Routledge was 33 and had an expiring contract, so £1.6m from Blackburn was too good to turn down

McKay, Nordfeldt, John and Byers were also made available on loan - with the proviso that all of their wages would be paid

I found takers for them on these terms, and in McKay's case, I even convinced Millwall to pay an extra £100k per month on top

Young defender Brandon Cooper also departed on loan, as I felt obliged to help Wrexham in their promotion challenge

I'd also tried to offload Narsingh, King and Asoro, but nobody would take them permanently or otherwise

So by now, I was able to make some formation choices

But in pre-season I had pretty much no option except 5-2-3 with wing backs and two wide forwards supporting a (the) lone striker

Pre-season went pretty well though, despite the lack of choices

The opposition was carefully picked to help boost confidence following the relegation last year

With only one loss (and that a narrow one in Portugal at the home of SL Benfica), I could feel mildly confident ahead of the new season

And here is the final squad of 23 that I have assembled ready for the campaign ahead

Mike van der Hoorn slapped in several transfer requests (all rejected) but now the window has closed, I hope he will knuckle down

Asoro is now in the U23 group, whilst Narsingh, Cullen and Baker-Richardson won't be making many appearances unless it's forced upon me

Mulder and Harries (shouldn't it be Scully?) will generally be the other two of the five to miss out from the match day 18

The biggest pressure will undoubtedly fall on McBurnie, with no real challenger to his place in the starting line up

Quite frankly, if he doesn't score, I'm not too sure where those goals are going to come from

With Fer and Grimes now fit, I expect a 433 may become the go-to formation with Ajayi anchoring the midfield  

Hopefully this system will get the best out of James and McBurnie, although it may mean Cameron Carter-Vickers has to drop to the bench

The match day 18 doesn't look as though it will be too bad at all - on paper (or screen) at least

The likes of Naughton, Olsson, Carter-Vickers, Fulton, Celina, Lowe & Obafemi on the bench looks comforting

And that should leave a starting X1 something like this

Joining the back room staff are Colin Pascoe, Simon Davies, Ian Evans, Esther Wills, Sean McCarthy and John Hartson (all Welsh)

Emma Gimpel, Eva Carneiro, Carlos Cachada and Mark Armitage are the non-Welsh arrivals

Hopefully I will also convince John Toshack to join as DOF or Assistant Manager before he decides to retire for good

For the time being, the complete staff list is as follows

Edited April 17, 2019 by Jogo Bonito

[Jamesbfc1887]

@Jogo Bonito Good luck. £400k for Adam Davies is an absolute steal.

[Jogo Bonito]

5 minutes ago, Jamesbfc1887 said:

@Jogo Bonito Good luck. £400k for Adam Davies is an absolute steal.

Cheers James. Yes, I agree it was a very good deal to make, especially being young and Welsh.

[DefinitelyTaylor]

@Jogo Bonito A very eventful window to say the least! It perhaps could have gone a little better than it did, however hopefully you'll still perform well this season. I have the confidence in McBurnie to perform and for your sake, I hope I'm right. There's a lot of pressure on him. Looking forward to seeing how the likes of James, Rodon and Roberts perform. All are very good players, but I think Rodon is immensely underrated. He is my man to watch, personally.

[Jogo Bonito]

4 minutes ago, DefinitelyTaylor said:

@Jogo Bonito A very eventful window to say the least! It perhaps could have gone a little better than it did, however hopefully you'll still perform well this season. I have the confidence in McBurnie to perform and for your sake, I hope I'm right. There's a lot of pressure on him. Looking forward to seeing how the likes of James, Rodon and Roberts perform. All are very good players, but I think Rodon is immensely underrated. He is my man to watch, personally.

Thanks DT. I would have been delighted to land all three of my targets (without any other signings) but when I eventually get over the Bowen deal, I guess I should (I won't) be happy with two of the three coming in. Ironically it's now Sergio Reguilon who excites me most about the new guys. So he'll probably have a shocking season! Rodon is doing well as expected, as is the defence generally. The attacking threat isn't quite good enough yet.

[Ronaldo Beckham]

@Jogo Bonito Obafemi plays really well up front if McBurnie gets injured or doesn't hit form, I usually played Obafemi as an Advanced Forward up front when I am Ireland manager and he done well for me.

[warlock]

1 hour ago, Jogo Bonito said:

The strategy was to bring in Welsh players, young players

An excellent read, as always . I've come close to signing Obafemi several times in recent saves but couldn't quite bring myself to pull the trigger - be interested see how he does for you.

Good luck!

[Jogo Bonito]

Thanks @Ronaldo Beckham and @warlock

Obafemi seems to have captured your interest much more than Reguilon. Has nobody heard of Reguilon?

I expect Oba to be my modern day David Fairclough. I expect only one of you two to understand what I mean by that

[Ronaldo Beckham]

Yeah Reguilon is a great signing as well but I just had great fun with Ireland national team save cos of Obafemi.

I had no idea who David Fairclough is until I googled him but I am only 34 years old lol.

[warlock]

9 hours ago, Jogo Bonito said:

Has nobody heard of Reguilon?

Must admit I hadn't. Having done a bit of reading I can see why you're excited.

[Jogo Bonito]

1 hour ago, Ronaldo Beckham said:

Yeah Reguilon is a great signing as well but I just had great fun with Ireland national team save cos of Obafemi.

I had no idea who David Fairclough is until I googled him but I am only 34 years old lol.

I'm hoping he will do well for me too, good to know he can deliver if used properly. In the days of Fairclough it's worth pointing out there was only one substitute, so his role was often very significant.

57 minutes ago, warlock said:

Must admit I hadn't. Having done a bit of reading I can see why you're excited.

Cheers. I've no idea why he thought Swansea was the place to be, but I think Olsson is likely to find his chances limited. Hoping to get some games in today, and if so will update again later. How are you getting on at Preston?

[warlock]

1 hour ago, Jogo Bonito said:

How are you getting on at Preston?

Was afraid that question was coming . Just wasn't feeling it, couldn't get a tactic working, Rudd in goal has a nasty habit of parrying everything - usually straight to the feet of an opponent - and I reckon he cost me at least one goal every single game. Enjoyment level was close to zero so I binned it.

At the moment I'm enjoying my first save of the year with Man Utd so I'll run that for a bit. After that, I'm kinda sorta thinking I have unfinished business with Sheffield United... see if a back-three tactic might hold my interest for a while.

[Jogo Bonito]

1 minute ago, warlock said:

Was afraid that question was coming . Just wasn't feeling it, couldn't get a tactic working, Rudd in goal has a nasty habit of parrying everything - usually straight to the feet of an opponent - and I reckon he cost me at least one goal every single game. Enjoyment level was close to zero so I binned it.

At the moment I'm enjoying my first save of the year with Man Utd so I'll run that for a bit. After that, I'm kinda sorta thinking I have unfinished business with Sheffield United... see if a back-three tactic might hold my interest for a while.

Sorry to hear PNE wasn't fun for you. Good luck with your Red Devils (perhaps Crawley should be your next team?) and hopefully you'll be back soon. If Sheffield United doesn't work out, perhaps I should suggest Swansea so you can better me again  

[warlock]

1 minute ago, Jogo Bonito said:

hopefully you'll be back soon

Sure thing... tomorrow probably, given the rate at which I get through a season; I'm into season 2 with United and three seasons is about my limit.

[DefinitelyTaylor]

12 minutes ago, Jogo Bonito said:

(perhaps Crawley should be your next team?) 

I had a little run with Crawley prior to the winter update. I was enjoying it to be fair, I just wanted a short save to get me over until the winter update and it served its purpose well. I've considered another go with them, but the fact I've managed them already put me off a little. I may try again at some point, though. The fact they're one of the League Two sides that aren't usually used much is something that drawn me to them. The lack of mentioning of their name in the thread strengthens my point. With Cioffi under fire irl at the moment, it would be interesting to see someone take them on! 

Edited April 18, 2019 by DefinitelyTaylor

[Jogo Bonito]

9 minutes ago, DefinitelyTaylor said:

I had a little run with Crawley prior to the winter update. I was enjoying it to be fair, I just wanted a short save to get me over until the winter update and it served its purpose well. I've considered another go with them, but the fact I've managed them already put me off a little. I may try again at some point, though. The fact they're one of the League Two sides that aren't usually used much is something that drawn me to them. The lack of mentioning of their name in the thread strengthens my point. With Cioffi under fire irl at the moment, it would be interesting to see someone take them on! 

It would be interesting to read about YOU taking them on (again), that's for sure

[DefinitelyTaylor]

Just now, Jogo Bonito said:

It would be interesting to read about YOU taking them on (again), that's for sure

Maybe... I have a couple teams in mind at the moment, actually. I'm narrowing my options. Hoping to get a post out by Tuesday 

[Jogo Bonito]

Just now, DefinitelyTaylor said:

Maybe... I have a couple teams in mind at the moment, actually. I'm narrowing my options. Hoping to get a post out by Tuesday 

 This coming Tuesday?

Seriously though, despite all the good natured ribbing, I hope you find that elusive club and will keep an eye out in case you do

[DefinitelyTaylor]

1 minute ago, Jogo Bonito said:

 This coming Tuesday?

Seriously though, despite all the good natured ribbing, I hope you find that elusive club and will keep an eye out in case you do

 I'm hoping so! I'm away from tomorrow until Monday, but will get cracking Monday night after our game vs Hartlepool. Hopefully I'll have got into the save enough to provide a post! Fingers crossed. 

[Jogo Bonito]

Just now, DefinitelyTaylor said:

 I'm hoping so! I'm away from tomorrow until Monday, but will get cracking Monday night after our game vs Hartlepool. Hopefully I'll have got into the save enough to provide a post! Fingers crossed. 

Indeed, fingers crossed! I'm also going to be away overseas all of next week so playing time and updates may be somewhat slower until I get back. In the meantime, I'm getting some games in today. 

[Jamesbfc1887]

6 hours ago, DefinitelyTaylor said:

Maybe... I have a couple teams in mind at the moment, actually. I'm narrowing my options. Hoping to get a post out by Tuesday 

Exciting developments . I'm sure you'll do brilliantly with whoever you pick.

I've also been narrowing down my options for a next save. I've not managed in the Championship this year so I'm looking forward to getting started. Rotherham, QPR and Wigan are the 3 left in the running.

@warlock Shame about Preston. Sheff Utd would be a good choice, I've never found any success with 3 at the back and it would be an interesting project for sure, I just can't bring myself to manage them. Better luck next time I guess .