[FM 15] A Manager's Journey

[Tom Ashley]

Hello, all.

I gave this a try or three a while ago, and I thought I would come back for more.  I've loaded several European countries, with a database that lets me play in the Dutch lower leagues.  My players aren't real, so I'll be able to turn them into any kinds of characters I see fit.  I'm also playing FM 15, because "fake" players have much more realistic looking faces in that edition.  

My character is starting his story unemployed.  We'll see where it takes him.

 

Prologue:  Spring 2014

A manager once told Ryan Bellamy he would have been a better footballer if he hadn't been interested in so many other things.  Perhaps he was right.  

A boy with fewer interests might have spent more hours kicking a ball around, rather than reading a book or poring over a map.  He might have had more than two seasons in the Eredivisie and another in the Danish Superliga if he hadn't insisted on going to university.  Latin, history, and calculus took time away from his workouts, time that might have made him good enough to play for Holland.  A man who cared only about football wouldn't have hung up his boots at 28.  Ryan had no regrets, because that was the life he chose.

He pursued his coaching badges, because earning them allowed him to exercise his mind within the context of the only job he'd ever had.  He was good at it, too.  

Now Ryan was thirty.  He had made enough money to be free from worrying about where his next paycheck was coming from.  He was single, and if there was ever a time when he could give a career in management a go, this would be it.  

Ryan's father was English, and his mother was Dutch.  Ryan had never known his dad.  Six months after Ryan was born, Paul Bellamy had returned to London for business.  A drunken driver plowed into the side of the rented car he was driving, killing him instantly.  Ryan's mum never remarried, and she remained close to Paul's family; Ryan had spent time in England, but he never played there, and he wasn't as well-versed in English football culture.  For that reason, he didn't see himself cutting his managerial teeth in England. 

He realized he would probably have to give up the comforts of a well-appointed apartment in Amsterdam and take a job somewhere in the lower leagues.  There might not be bookstores and restaurants and museums within walking distance.  But he knew he had to start somewhere, and the philosophical turn of his mind let him understand that the journey might be every bit as rewarding as the destination.

Now it was time for that journey to begin.  

[Tom Ashley]

30 October 2014

Several of the nations where Ryan had thought he might like to manage began their league campaigns in spring.  So, by the time the Dutch season began in August, clubs in Scandinavia were well into their seasons, and their boards might be considering managerial changes.  Ryan wasn't sure he would be willing to move too far for a job with a very small team, and so far, none of the larger clubs had seen fit to sack their manager.

The first job that intrigued him was with Bielefeld, in the German Third Division.  Ryan went as far as expressing interest in the position, but the board didn't interview him and, in September, they hired Andreas Buchwald, a veteran manager who'd played for Germany.  Ryan couldn't feel too bad about missing out on this opportunity.  On a whim, he mentioned he might not mind managing Limerick, but the Irish Premier outfit wasn't interested in him, either.

Ryan admittedly felt mixed emotions when his friend Nick Nok was elevated from caretaker status to earn a permanent gig at RKC Waalwijk.  Nick had been Ryan's teammate at FC Groningen.  He was only seven months older than Ryan, and his Continental B license was a level lower than Ryan's Continental A badge.  Ryan was happy for Nick, and texted him to tell him so...but at the same time, Nick's promotion made him think about the fact he'd been on the job market for several months now without even the slightest bit of interest from any team.  Meanwhile, Nick was coaching a team in the Jupiler League, probably earning €2,000 a week.  

Ryan was in a particularly gloomy mood on the afternoon of 22 October.  Not even a walk through the Vondelpark could chase his blues away.  He didn't even notice the news from Kerkrade, where Roda JC sent their manager, Louis Koster, packing.  The club was languishing second from the bottom in the Jupiler League, after the media had tapped them for second place in their season preview.  

That's why Ryan was somewhat caught off guard when an email from Roda chairman Toby van Steensel appeared in his inbox.  In fact, Ryan nearly deleted it before he opened it.  Had he done so, he would never have known that van Steensel wanted to interview him.  Instead, he quickly dashed off a reply to the chairman, who quickly responded with several times and dates on which the two men might meet.  Ryan chose the morning of 30 October.  

The media figured Almere City boss Daan Albertus was the front-runner for the job.  Albertus, who had been at Almere City since 2007, was apparently feeling restless, and he made no secret of his interest in the Roda JC job.  Ryan wondered if he stood a chance in a competition with the older, more experienced Albertus.

Still, there was nothing to be lost in trying, was there?

[Tom Ashley]

24 November 2014

Ryan figured his chances of landing the job at Roda JC slipped away when he told Toby van Steensel he was interested in bringing players from the club's youth system into the first team.  The Roda JC board had their misgivings about this policy, and for a moment Ryan thought about keeping his thoughts about his managerial philosophy to himself.  He ended up being honest with van Steensel, and the club decided to hire Daan Albertus instead.  That meant the Almere City job was now open, but Ryan didn't feel like throwing his hat into another ring quite so soon.

To make matters worse, he strained a muscle in his lower back working out, and spent the better part of a week in bed.  The weather turned cooler and rainier.  A former girlfriend, the first woman who broke his heart, announced her engagement to a guy they knew at university whom Ryan had never liked.  November wasn't starting out very well at all.

The second week of the month brought the end of the regular season in northern nations like Norway and Sweden.  Ryan was somewhat familiar with Scandinavian football; besides his season in Denmark, he had played two years in Norway's second division.  He'd taken advantage of the opportunity to learn Danish and Norwegian and picked up enough Swedish to get by.  So, when several Scandinavian clubs, disillusioned with their managers, sacked them, Ryan paid some attention.

He was a bit surprised by the news out of Molde FK.  Champions of the Norwegian Premier Division in 2011 and 2013, they fell to third in 2014.  Still. they finished only two points adrift of title winners Strømsgotset.  Perhaps the board were more disappointed with their quick exit from the Norwegian Cup, which they'd won the season before.  At any rate, Molde's board showed the door to Jørgen Johnsen the day after the season ended.

Ryan remained in his doldrums for several days and didn't do anything more than think about whether he'd like to manage in Norway.  

16 November was a Sunday.  That evening, Ryan was walking around his neighborhood when his friend Nick Nok called him.  Ryan congratulated him on his success--he had RKC Waalwijk up to sixth in the Jupiler League table--and Nick asked him if he'd had any promising job leads of his own.  Ryan told him about the opening at Molde FK.

"I suppose you've applied," Nick assumed.

Ryan paused for a long moment.  "No...not yet."

"What are you waiting for, Ryan?"

"They just sacked a manager who missed winning the league by two points.  I'm not sure I want to face that kind of pressure in my first job."

"That means they've got a strong team in place.  You won't have to rebuild the squad.  Make a decent run in the Cup and you'll buy yourself some time."

"I don't know, Nick..."

"You've never been one to back away from a challenge.  You told me yourself--you weren't getting anywhere playing here.  Then you took a chance, went up there, and played for a few years.  Next thing you knew, you were signing for Groningen.  That worked out pretty well for you, didn't it?"

"Okay, okay.  I'll put in an application."  Ryan shook his head and smiled on his end of the line.

"Good man."

The next day, Ryan submitted his application to the board at Molde FK.  

On Saturday morning, he stepped off a plane at the Molde airport, after nearly missing his flight from Oslo.  Three hours later, he was seated across a desk from Audun Finstad, the chairman of the Molde board.  

Finstad asked Ryan many of the same kinds of questions he'd heard from Toby van Steensel.  Ryan felt much better about the Molde chairman's response when he mentioned his belief in building through youth, and Finstad didn't seem terribly worried about Ryan's lack of managerial experience.  When the interview ended, the two men shook hands. 

"We will let you know something in the next day or so," Finstad told him.  

Ryan had already planned to wait until Monday evening to fly back home, because he felt like he might want to relax a bit after his interview.  Sunday was a cloudy, cool day, but he spent much of it strolling around the town, and he had a delicious meal at a cozy restaurant called På Hjørnet which was, as its name implied, located "on the corner."  

The next morning, his phone buzzed.  Audun Finstad was on the other end.  The chairman invited him back to the club's offices to discuss contract terms.  

"I'll be right there," Ryan replied.  

When Ryan boarded the plane for home, he was officially the manager of Molde FK.   His contract was for two years, at a weekly wage of €4,300.  In his bag were two blue-and-white Molde shirts--one for his mother, and one for Nick Nok.

[Tom Ashley]

16 February 2015

Ryan spent most of December at home in Amsterdam.  He made three trips up to Molde to sort out his living arrangements and connect with various members of the Molde FK staff. 

He liked Knut Teigen, the Director of Football.  Knut was a discerning judge of football talent, and he had fairly extensive connections in Norwegian football.  Arne Hammari agreed to stay on board as Ryan's assistant, which pleased the new boss greatly.  Arne would be an invaluable source of information about the squad, and he was a skilled hand on the training pitch as well.  At 52, Arne was considerably older than Ryan, and his presence would add a touch of gravitas to the back room team.

After relaxing with his family over the Christmas holidays, Ryan moved to Norway in early January and began to settle into his new job.  His first order of business was to sit down with the chairman and discuss the budgets under which he would be operating.  Audun Finstad seemed determined to do what it took to help Molde climb back to the top of the table; there would be over €4 million available for transfers, and the weekly wage budget was set at €105,000.  Ryan figured only Strømsgotset and, perhaps, Rosenborg could spend as freely.  

Ryan also had to deal with several players who envisioned their futures with bigger teams, in bigger leagues, and whose heads were being turned by various suitors.  Before January was out, Molde had sold three players to clubs outside Norway.  Promising right back Harald Skauge was the first to go.  The Norway U21 captain went to LOSC Lille, for a sale price of €550,000 that was considerably above his market value (at least as Molde figured it).  Various other clauses could make the haul from Skauge's sale rise as high as €1.2 million.  

Dagoberto Toro, a flashy Chilean midfielder, would have figured in Ryan's plans, but he, too, wanted to play in Ligue 1.  Girondins Bordeaux came calling, and were willing to pay €675,000 for his services.  Again, if "El Toro" featured prominently for his new club, Molde would receive almost double as much.  

Skauge and Toro were both talented teenagers, but losing them didn't force Ryan to rethink the composition of his first eleven.  The third wantaway, right back Kjell Pettersen, was another story.  Pettersen, 23, was a perfect fit for the system Ryan wanted to play.  He was mobile, technically adept, and a tireless worker.  He had recently received his first two Norway caps, and his future seemed bright indeed.  The talent spotters at Atalanta agreed, and the Italian club's pockets were deeper than Molde's.  The supporters weren't happy to see the popular Petterson go, but they had to agree that a cool €1 million was a fair return.  And, again, another €300,000 would come the club's way if Kjell reached a variety of appearance clauses.  Molde would also receive a percentage of any future sales of the three players.

Ryan had told Finstad he wanted to both develop and buy young talent, and he used some of the money he'd brought in to begin fulfilling his promise.  The first purchase was versatile Øyvind Hansen, a tall, lanky 19-year-old whom he acquired from Vålerenga for €70,000.  Hansen had played fairly regularly for Enga's first team in 2014, usually at left back, but he could fill in at a variety of positions.   At the very least, Øyvind would provide depth, and he had the promise to become much more valuable.

FC København had released Lasse Schultz in October, and he'd been without a club since then.  Perhaps it was his lack of raw athleticism that caused the Danish club to give up on him.  When Ryan looked at video footage of Schultz in action, he saw instead the way Schultz went about his business in the middle of the park with a calmness that few 19-year-olds possessed.  He was also a fearless tackler.  Schultz was a project, but he was also free.  

The third new man was expected to step into the first team.  Ryan liked playing 4-3-3, and when he looked at the team, he didn't see a player with the skills he wanted in a holding midfielder.  So Ryan turned to his Dutch roots and bought Sjors Klein from ADO Den Haag for €425,000.  Klein was a well-rounded footballer with a mature understanding of the game.  He put himself in good positions to make things happen, and he was a confident, creative passer.  Sjors was also 19, and everyone in Ryan's staff believed his upside was as promising as anyone in the team.  

When the players reported for pre-season training on 16 February, Ryan had an idea of what his preferred first eleven would be.

Lasse Holth would return to his regular spot in goal.  Tall and lanky, Lasse didn't look like much of an athlete, but he was quite agile, with quick hands, and he was very good in the air.  He also organized his defense skillfully.  Athletic Swede David Bengsston would be his understudy, with American U20 'keeper Phillip Foose also available.  Foose would also see regular duty for Molde 2.

Ball-playing central defender Peter Grydeland was perhaps the team's best player.  Peter was a Norway international who lacked pace, but his skill set was otherwise complete.  He was especially adept at passing from the back, a key to the style Ryan wanted his team to play.  Belgian Victor Janssens would be Grydeland's usual partner.  He was no faster than Grydeland, but he was big and strong, and he was a good set piece taker.  He'd earned 11 caps, and gave Ryan a center back pairing of full internationals.

Pacy Raymond Grong was the first choice at left back.  He was technically sound, and had the stamina to run up and down the wing all day.  Ryan figured Marius Kjetland would take Kjell Pettersen's place at right back.  Kjetland possessed several of Pettersen's signature qualities--among them, the ability to deliver well-placed crosses and an uncompromising work ethic--and Ryan hoped he would deliver a passable imitation of his predecessor.  

Klein would play in front of the back four.  Frederik Bjørkestrand was another option at this position; he offered a little less pace and a bit more passing range than his younger teammate.  Bjørkestrand was mobile and tenacious enough to serve as a ball-winner, and might earn playing time in that role, too

The other main contenders to feature in the midfield trio were the similarly named Henrik Nilssen and Alexander Nilsen.  Henrik was the club captain.  At 39, he had lost what pace he once had, but his technical skills remained sharp and his footballing IQ was superb.  Alexander brought more flair and creative vision, but cared less about marking and tackling.  The two could play together, or either could play with Bjørkestrand.  

Until 10 June, Ryan would also have the services of Emil Hillersøy, who would be leaving for Switzerland's BSC Young Boys.  Emil was a classy midfielder with a well-rounded game, and he had been ever-present last season.  

At age 20, Geir Ove Langerud had already earned his first senior cap for Norway.  Bigger clubs were beginning to court him, impressed with his crafty dribbling, his polished technique, and his flair.  Langerud could play on either wing.  Playing on the left, he could cut inside and fire away with his strong right foot.  Langerud banged in six goals the season before.  

Ingar Bremnes was probably the second best wide man in the squad, and if Ryan wanted to employ a left-footed winger instead, he could call on Pontus Gustavsson or Christian Gramsbo.  Another option was veteran Halvor Amundsen, who was the fastest man in the team.  The competition for these spots would be spirited indeed.

Striker Christopher Nielsen had been purchased by Ryan's predecessor a week before he was sacked.  The Dane had scored seven in 17 appearances for Esbjerg in 2014/15.  He was somewhat raw, but was blisteringly fast.  He'd have the first crack at leading the line.  Ibrahima N'Diaye, who netted eight times in 2014, had also become a want-away.  He hoped to receive an offer from SK Sturm Graz of the Austrian Premier Division.  While Ryan wouldn't have minded having the Senegalese hitman on board, if Ibrahima wasn't all in, the manager could do without him.  Speedy Simen Ruud would do just fine as Nielsen's understudy, and Samuel Diallo was available if Ryan wanted a center forward to serve as a creator rather than a poacher.  Ryan was on the lookout for a big lad whom he could stick in the front when he wanted to play more directly.

The Molde board did not mince words when they presented Ryan with their expectations.  They wanted him to win the league, and to take the team to the Final of the Norwegian Cup.  Time would tell if the new manager, and the team he was starting to shape, had what it took.

[Tom Ashley]

16 March 2015

Molde FK's preseason was exactly a month old, and Ryan and his staff and players were still getting to know each other.  

The club played its first friendly on 4 March, easily dispatching a small local club called Rival by a 7-1 score.  Lasse Haxhaj, a versatile player who came on in the 68th minute, scored a brace in ten minutes, heading home a corner and a free kick.  The captain, Henrik Nilssen, mocked Father Time with a quickfire brace of his own.  Over 5,000 fans came out to see the big boys play their neighbors.

Ryan and the team traveled to Denmark to face Skive on a windy, drizzly day.  The home team scored twice on corners and looped a long ball over the Molde defense for a third tally.  The manager was disappointed to lose 3-0, but he came away with two vital pieces of information.  His team needed to drill its set piece defense, and Peter Gryndeland and Martin Janssens could be burned badly by quick forwards if the team played too high a defensive line.  Haxhaj was a natural central defender, and he had plenty of pace.  So did Kristinn Sigurðsson, an Icelandic international who would soon be returning from an ankle injury.  Perhaps those players would feature when Molde faced a team with pacey attackers.

On the 12th, Head of Youth Development Magnus Ludvigsen presented Ryan with a fresh class of youth graduates.  Among them were some players with promise:  left winger Magnus Brandstadmoen, versatile forward Magne Pedersen, and center half Tommy Brataker.  The most interesting young player, however, was the son of a family friend back in Holland whose parents sent him to Norway to train with Molde when Ryan was hired.  Gerard Smit was a defender whom Ludvigsen rated very highly.  At 5'10", he lacked ideal size for a center back, but he was 15, and he might still have some growing to do.  He was fast, however, and his mental game was quite advanced for his age.  He was one of the few youngsters who looked comfortable when the Youth Candidates lost, 3-1, to the Under 19s, and on his debut for the U19s, he pounced quickly when a teammate hammered a shot off the post and swept it in.   Gerard was a bright lad, and he'd already picked up a basic understanding of Norwegian.  

Ryan was renting a home from the friend of one of the club's directors.  It was located on a quiet street called Sollivagen, and from its deck Ryan could look down over the town and its harbor.  He wasn't quite as close to the Aker Stadion as he might like, but since Molde wasn't a large city (population 25,000 or so) it wasn't hard for him to get around.  He was settling in nicely, but he had been jolted by a reminder of the fact that life as a football manager could be very precarious.

After a promising start, his friend Nick Nok had been struggling to keep RKC Waalwijk competitive in the Jupiler League.  On 27 February, the board had seen enough, and after the team lost 2-0 at home to Fortuna Sittard, they presented Nick with his termination notice.  

[Tom Ashley]

3 April 2015

A more intriguing plot could not have been concocted for Ryan Bellamy's first competitive fixture as a manager. 

His Molde team were picked as co-favorites to win the Norwegian Premier League, along with Strømgodset.   The league's fixture list had Molde traveling to Strømgodset on Matchday 1.

Strømgodset had spent freely during the winter transfer period, adding no fewer than 14 players to their squad, paying nearly €12 million for them.  Molde had done much less business.  Guided by Director of Football Knut Teigen, the club had sold two players.  Young midfielder Thomas Birkeland went to Norrköping for €165,000.  Birkeland wasn't part of the club's long-term plans, and they got a good deal for him.  Winger Halvor Amundsen was a bigger loss, but Hobro IK was willing to pay €550,000 for his services.  The Danish club were willing to double Amundsen's wage, so it was a good deal for him, too.

Ryan's only new arrival was an intriguing one.  All winter long, agents had been approaching the club to promote an array of South American players.  Many of them were very talented, but almost none of them were likely to receive work permits that would allow them to play in Norway.  On 15 March, Ryan received a message from a Brazilian agent called Mardônio Proença.  Among his clients was Rubenílson Miranda Santos, a veteran midfielder who would celebrate his 41st birthday in September.  Rubenílson, as he was widely known, was a free agent.  Ryan had his scouting staff check him out, and they came back with rave reviews.  Rubenílson was a classy player who could work wonders with a ball at his feet.  He was a clever passer, and he could put the ball in the net, too.  He was also a natural leader with a resolute personality.

Ryan quickly agreed contract terms with him, only to learn his arrival would be delayed while his work permit issues were sorted out.  The manager got good news six days later--Rubenílson had been granted a conditional work permit!  Fortunately, Molde could register one more foreign player for the season, and the Brazilian midfield conductor was added to the roster.  

He made his debut in the club's final friendly match, a 4-0 victory over Sykkylven at Aker Stadion.  Two days later, the transfer window closed; Molde didn't do any business that day, but Strømgodset signed two more players.  

"Looks like they didn't think their squad was good enough to compete with us," observed coach Ivar Willessen.  

Fitness coach Preben Wentzel interpreted Gødset's transfer activity differently.  "I think they wanted to make sure they were deep enough to make a long run in Europe."  They had failed to reach the group stages of the Champions League in 2014, and they'd finished last in their group when they dropped to the Europa League.  Either way, they would be a formidable league opponent.  

And Ryan was facing them, away, in his first-ever match as a manager.

A number of well-wishers sent him messages in the days leading up to the match:  former teammates, friends from his various clubs or ones he'd known since boyhood.  He hoped he would make them proud.  Ryan would have been lying if he'd tried to say he wasn't anxious, but he'd also be lying if he said he wasn't prepared.  

[Greyfriars Bobby]

Welcome back, Tom. It looks like you’re off to a fine start. I’m looking forward to seeing how your story turns out. Keep up the good work!  I’ll be following. 

[Tom Ashley]

6 hours ago, Greyfriars Bobby said:

Welcome back, Tom. It looks like you’re off to a fine start. I’m looking forward to seeing how your story turns out. Keep up the good work!  I’ll be following. 

Thanks, Bobby.  It's been fun so far.  I thought I'd be starting in Holland, but the opportunity with Molde was an intriguing one.  So, here I am.

Thanks for following!