[FM20] The Fourth Glass: I May Be Going Nowhere, But What A Ride

[ManUtd1]

The Fourth Glass: I May Be Going Nowhere, But What A Ride

Georgia, a beautiful country lying at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, with a rich history. An unlikely setting for a footballing revolution.

Which is exactly what makes it so appealing. I'm also in need of a break from the Nearly Men (which will return in due course).

Instead of jumping from one place to another, I want to stay in one place. Build something from nothing.

And then stick around long enough to truly enjoy it.

I considered a wide variety of clubs, countries and challenges. In the end, I kept coming back to one idea that has been tickling at the back of my mind. I'm a sucker for obscure clubs in scenic, far-distant locations -- places so far off the beaten path, that I can hear my grandfather proclaim, with a slow, rueful shake of his head, "you just can't get there from here."

And this, my friends. This was it.

Duruji Kvareli, a Georgian club whose home pitch lies inside the walls of an 18th century fortress, the Kvarlis Tsentraluri Stadioni.

   

 

According to the Internet (which, if you haven't heard of it, is a series of tubes that is never wrong about anything), the two-tiered walls of Kvareli Fortress are more than 3 meters high, and were once surrounded by a water-filled moat. The fortress is said to have repelled the attacks of Nursal Bek of the Avar Khanate in 1755, although I may need to play several hundred hours of Europa Universalis IV to confirm.

So, we have ourselves a literal fortress. My mission in this save?

Nothing less than to turn this literal fortress into an metaphorical one.

To conquer Georgia, Europe and the world with Duruji Kvareli. And, to conquer Europe and the world with the Georgian national team.

Football is coming home, lads. It's coming home.

A bit of background. Duruji Kvareli hail from Kvareli, a town of less than 8,000 residents nestled in the foothills of the Greater Caucasus Mountains of eastern Georgia. The town is at the heart of the Kakheti wine region, and is known for Kindzmarauli, a semisweet red variety. (Remind me of this in 6 months, when I'm looking for excuses to take the missus on a pilgrimage to see Duruji Kvareli play...)

As far as I can tell, as recently as 2016 Duruji Kvareli was playing in the Georgian third tier. Not these days, though.

I downloaded Weiry's 5-tier Georgian pyramid, but alas they still weren't in the active leagues. So I opened up the editor and swapped them out with another side in the 5th tier. Now we're ready to roll.

Well, not quite. The color scheme in the database was making my eyes bleed. They were also off, according to the Internet, so I updated them to the "correct" claret and white, with a splash of blue.

The lads, getting ready to get stuck in.

Our manager, the man tasked with leading the charge? Giorgi Amirani, named for the mythical Georgian hero who defied the Gods.

Yeah, I thought it was a fitting name, too.

Amirani is a Kvareli native, a devotee of Telleusian (strikerless) tactical theory who burns with ambition.

   

That ambition may be necessary.

Amirani takes over his hometown club in January 2022, with 3 senior players (2 of whom are goalkeepers) on the roster and no first-team staff.

As far as the Board goes...well, let's just say that they aren't the most ambitious lot.

I'd like to think that we will finish higher than dead last, but...we can't even field a full XI right now. Let's not put the cart before the horse, yeah?!

No matter how bleak things may look, there is no exit ramp for Amirani. You might even say that there's no easy way out. [Cue motivational Rocky IV-esque music montage, with Giorgi driving around Kvareli at night in his mom's 2002 Honda Civic, looking vaguely determined.]

Again, like I said above, this is not a journeyman save. Rather, it's a club/country save where our goals are simple: take Dujuri Kvareli and (eventually) the Georgian national team to the pinnacle of world football.

A Georgian monument to the mythical Amirani, putting Zlatan's statue in Malmo to shame.

This save is titled "The Fourth Glass," a name which derives from Georgian legend surrounding the country's claim to be the birthplace of wine.

Specifically, Georgian legend tells of how God created wine to remind the world of Heaven. After creating wine, God invited His angels and the Devil to taste it, with all agreeing that it transcended the divine, such that it returned anyone who drank it to Heaven, if only for a short period of time. This, the Devil could not tolerate. He created his own alcoholic beverage from the remains of crushed wine grapes -- chacha, a potent, fiery drink. Returning the courtesy, the Devil invited God to sample chacha. God drank one glass of chacha. Then a second. A third. A fourth. Finally, God leaned over to the Devil, drew him close and declared that "those who will drink three glasses of chacha may be on my side. After that, they are yours."  

While I'm not planning a narrative at this point, I did some digging into Georgian mythology and legend, to find inspiration for different aspects of the save.  And I feel like this story speaks to how my saves tend to cross over into the...well, insane.

So, if we aren't planning to dive into a narrative, what are the goals...? What else do we need to know?

The first rule of the Fourth Glass is you don't mess with the Giorgi. The second rule? You don't mess with the Giorgi.

As per usual, there are no hard-and-fast rules beyond the general concept of the save. I will not adhere to any particular transfer policy, beyond my standard preference for developing youth. I have also loaded a reduced injuries file to cut down on injuries across the board, without giving any advantage over the AI.

I have also holidayed to January 2022, to allow for a unique playing environment. I have loaded the top leagues in England, France, Germany, Italy and Spain as active (with numerous view-only leagues), with a large database/pool of potential players, including all internationals worldwide and all players from clubs in European, African and South American continental competitions.

As with the Nearly Men, I plan on including all substantive updates both here on the forum and at From the Cheap Seats.

Taking the cue from the Lutterworth Fox and VivaLaVidaFM, I have also decided to add an Achievement Hunter element to the save, with both short and long-term targets:

This list may be amended, so feel free to throw out any suggestions you might have.

Up next: we take a quick look around the footballing world in January 2022, and the first ball is kicked in anger.

Edited March 29, 2020 by ManUtd1

[Mikaelinho]

I haven't had this much fun going nowhere for a long time! Let's go! Where? Nowhere!

[ManUtd1]

If the photos above weren't enough to whet your appetite, why not try this 4k drone video flying over Kvareli Fortress, the home of FC Duruji Kvareli. 

I would have included it above, but you can't align YouTube videos centrally... 

 

[ManUtd1]

Oops, I meant to tag @Weiry in addition to linking his database file in the intro post, but forgot to do so -- guess we'll do that now!  Better late than never.

[TheLutterworthFox]

Really looking forward to following along with this and nice to see I've had some influence on the challenge element!! Good luck! 

[oriole01]

Looks like an incredible save you've chosen here, those photos are breathtaking. We all need a break sometimes, and I can't think of a more interesting way to spend a break then with a project like this. Can't wait to see how you do!

[ManUtd1]

This is...not helpful, Beka.  But I appreciate the thought.

[ManUtd1]

European Review.

Before we go too far, let's quickly take a look around Europe.

No real surprises here, with business as usual for the most part in the active leagues:

    

The Champions League and Europa League have been their usual selves, as well, with the inaugural Europa Conference League kicking off for 2021/22.

[ManUtd1]

January 2022.

After promoting all 7 players from our youth setup, we have 10 players in the squad. We've got work to do.

I haven't fully decided, but we're setting out with three tactics: (1) my PM Haaientand; (2) @wynter's Changing Lanes; and (3) a strikerless setup inspired by @wynter's asymmetric tactics.

Our finances are as grim as one would expect. My goal is to promote as soon as humanly possible.

A quick word about league structure. The Georgian leagues run within a single calendar year. 10 teams are in each of the top 4 tiers, known as the Erovnuli Liga, Erovnuli Liga 2, Liga 3 and Liga 4.

The Georgian Regional Leagues (5th tier) are comprised of 49 teams, only 2 of which will promote to Liga 4. The 5th tier structured in two-phases. First, clubs contest an initial phase comprised of 5 groups, playing one-off matches against each opponent. The top 4 teams from each group advance to a promotion phase comprised of 2 groups of 10, who play each other home-and-away, with the top team in each group promoting to the 4th tier. The remaining teams fall into a "lower group stage" comprised of 3 separate groups, who play a home-and-away series to determine final placement. There is no relegation from the 5th tier.

[ManUtd1]

January 2022.

As we build the playing squad and backroom staff from essentially from scratch, I thought there'd be some interest in seeing the pieces of the puzzle.

Some cracking staff available...the response to our physio advert speaks volumes, as does the response for coach advert, and scout advert.

Bottom line, we need to promote. We're signing players and bringing a few in on loan from the 4th tier, but things are grim.

The only good news is that our opposition isn't any better off.

Edited March 29, 2020 by ManUtd1

[ManUtd1]

Meant to post this earlier -- a look at our current facilities:

[ManUtd1]

I tasked Vazha with managing the squad in our pre-season friendlies...and he led us to a massive 3-1 win over third-tier Shevardeni Tbilisi.  

Motivation 2.  Like a boss.

[ManUtd1]

It's only a friendly, but I'll take a 2-nil loss to an Erovnuli Liga team.

[ManUtd1]

A solid preseason is in the books. Our only loss was to Telavi, an Erovnuli Liga side that should stomp us. So we'll take that 2-nil loss. We'll also take the 3-1 win over Liga 3 side Shevardeni Tbilisi.

As we head into the season, our key players appear to be: Mamuka Lobzhanidze, our libero; Ivane Shilakadze, our shadow striker; Gela Labadze, our roaming playmaker; Giorgi Kvekveskiri, our keeper (a loanee); Sergey Andreev, our right wingback (another loanee); and, Mikheil Bregvadze, our regista.

Edited March 30, 2020 by ManUtd1

[ManUtd1]

30 season tickets.  30.  In your face, Pep.

[ManUtd1]

What a start to the league campaign.  A scoreless draw away to WIT-Georgia's 2nd team, who are favored to win the league, followed by a 5-nil home debut over Legioni.

Who needs champagne football, anyways?  We're playing chacha football.

#Not5thTierForever #PullYourselfTogether

Edited March 30, 2020 by ManUtd1

[Rikulec]

This is going to be great, I can feel it already.

[TottenhamFan101]

Loving this along with the quick Georgian mythology lesson! Will definitely be following eagerly

[ManUtd1]

March 2022.

The first few months of this save remind me of lower league Sweden -- once we have a moderately decent squad and/or a decent tactic, we can steamroll our opposition and move up the leagues. From looking at squads in the leagues above us, I genuinely think this team would be competitive in Liga 2 or 3.

Regardless, our near-perfect start to life in Georgia continues.

[ManUtd1]

6 hours ago, TheLutterworthFox said:

Really looking forward to following along with this and nice to see I've had some influence on the challenge element!! Good luck! 

Thanks, man!  I may revise as I go, but any suggestions you might have are welcome!

6 hours ago, oriole01 said:

Looks like an incredible save you've chosen here, those photos are breathtaking. We all need a break sometimes, and I can't think of a more interesting way to spend a break then with a project like this. Can't wait to see how you do!

1 hour ago, Rikulec said:

This is going to be great, I can feel it already.

I'm right there with you!

43 minutes ago, TottenhamFan101 said:

Loving this along with the quick Georgian mythology lesson! Will definitely be following eagerly

Thanks, man!  Really pleased with how quickly we're able to get the ball rolling.  Hopefully we can promote up the ladder quickly, and start preparing to assault Europe!

[ManUtd1]

April 2022.

That aura of invincibility? Shattered.

We were poor, away to Tskhinvali's reserves. We were then wasteful in front of goal against Dominati.

The silver lining? We're the only team to beat Legioni, who sit atop the table. And we've already smashed them twice.

[ManUtd1]

May 2022.

Back to our winning ways in May, 4 wins from 4 (including a friendly to ensure our 1st XI remains fresh). We lead the Eastern A regional group in goals scored (20), with fewest conceded (4). The question is whether we can carry this form forward into the promotion stage.

The other big news this month is that the club took out a $550k loan to bring us almost back to zero. Our finances are a mess, and have been long-prior to Giorgi Arimani's arrival.

[ManUtd1]

June 2022 - European Review.

Let's step back for one moment to consider results on the continent...

Jurgen Klopp's Liverpool claimed the Champions League title with a 3-2 win over Quique Setien's Barcelona.

Mikel Arteta's Arsenal claimed the Europa League with a 2-nil win over Senol Gunes' Chelsea.

In the Europa Conference League, Marcelino's AC Milan beat Marcelo Bielsa's Tottenham, 3-nil.

In the active leagues, Setien's Barcelona won La Liga. Carlo Ancelotti's Manchester City won the Premier League. Maurizio Sarri's Juventus won the Serie A. Lucien Favre's Dortmund won the Bundesliga. And, finally, Thomas Tuchel's PS-****ing-G won Ligue 1.

[ManUtd1]

June 2022.

Let's start with our youth intake preview, which is promising. There's no question that we could use an influx of players.

On the pitch, we finished the initial league phase strong, claiming 3rd place -- 2 points behind Tskhinvali's reserves, having scored a record 30 goals, with only 5 conceded. We also start the promotion phase on the right foot, a 1-nil win giving much credit to the visiting Meshakhte.

The biggest match of the month, however, was the Davit Kipiani Cup 4th Round tie away to Liga 2 Spaeri (Sergey Andreev's parent club). We lost 3-nil, a scoreline that was kind to our hosts. The bigger news, however, was losing sixteen year-old Zurab Takashvili -- our starting right mezzala, who leads the team with 10 assists -- for 6-7 weeks. Aleko Tkebuchava will step into the 1st XI, in his place.

[ManUtd1]

July 2022.

Alright, I have to admit, this cracked me up. Our ticket prices: $3 per match, with 30 season ticket holders at $9.01 per season ticket.

The good news is that, it appears we can expand our seating capacity. Since we're capped at 750 right now (a number we're nowhere near), we won't be doing that any time soon. But it is good to know.

A solid run of matches in July puts us at the top of the promotion table, after a 2-nil win at Kvareli Fortress over Tskhinvali's reserves. Much-needed revenge. Only one team goes up, lads.

[ManUtd1]

August 2022.

We're flying. Halfway through the promotion phase, we've secured 9 wins from 9 matches. 23 goals for, 3 against.

We sit 8 points clear. Our goal is in sight.

We've managed to extend the contracts of everyone important through the end of next year, including Giorgi Kvekveskiri's loan contract, with Grigol Pochkhua and Sergey Andreev joining on free transfers upon expiration of their contracts.

[Makoto Nakamura]

Am I the only one reading Giorgi Amirani as Giorgio Armani?

[TheLutterworthFox]

5 minutes ago, Makoto Nakamura said:

Am I the only one reading Giorgi Amirani as Giorgio Armani?

No you're not 😂😂

[bigmattb28]

17 minutes ago, Makoto Nakamura said:

Am I the only one reading Giorgi Amirani as Giorgio Armani?

No, definitely not

[Maw74]

3 hours ago, Makoto Nakamura said:

Am I the only one reading Giorgi Amirani as Giorgio Armani?

Nope, looks like most of us lol

[kidthekid]

15 minutes ago, Maw74 said:

Nope, looks like most of us lol

Probably all of us

[noikeee]

I love the nearly men careers, but I think this is a great idea, it's always nice to try something new and Georgia's a great footballing place, rarely explored here.

I regret to inform that I vaguely sympathise with Dinamo Tbilisi, which will be the first big boss you'll have to slay. 

[Mandy42]

How much do you pay your ball boys when they have to scale the wall to get the ball back? 

[ManUtd1]

7 hours ago, Makoto Nakamura said:

Am I the only one reading Giorgi Amirani as Giorgio Armani?

7 hours ago, TheLutterworthFox said:

No you're not 😂😂

7 hours ago, bigmattb28 said:

No, definitely not

4 hours ago, Maw74 said:

Nope, looks like most of us lol

4 hours ago, kidthekid said:

Probably all of us

I've been 3x checking that and a few other names, as we go 

3 hours ago, noikeee said:

I love the nearly men careers, but I think this is a great idea, it's always nice to try something new and Georgia's a great footballing place, rarely explored here.

I regret to inform that I vaguely sympathise with Dinamo Tbilisi, which will be the first big boss you'll have to slay. 

Thanks, man!  It is a very different approach to both the save and the write-up, for me, which I'm finding to be a breath of fresh air.  

Dinamo may not be able to hear the footsteps just yet, but we're coming for them...

1 hour ago, Mandy42 said:

How much do you pay your ball boys when they have to scale the wall to get the ball back? 

It's extortionate.  The little scamps are ruining our budget.  

I did manage to increase the wage budget last night, just before I shut down the laptop (a hair over 4k/week), but we're in the red.  We need to promote, and build up the fanbase ASAP.  There isn't much money in the Georgian 5th tier...we have a handful of players on $425/week, which is a luxury we can't afford if things don't change.

[Mandy42]

38 minutes ago, ManUtd1 said:

It's extortionate.  The little scamps are ruining our budget.  

I did manage to increase the wage budget last night, just before I shut down the laptop (a hair over 4k/week), but we're in the red.  We need to promote, and build up the fanbase ASAP.  There isn't much money in the Georgian 5th tier...we have a handful of players on $425/week, which is a luxury we can't afford if things don't change.

charge for tours of the castle! 

[ManUtd1]

31 minutes ago, Mandy42 said:

charge for tours of the castle! 

To save costs, I'm having the U21s re-dig the moat.  And until we can afford alligators, the U19s will have to take shifts swimming around in a menacing fashion.   

[ManUtd1]

September 2022.

A big month, as we march onward towards what is looking more and more like promotion to Liga 4. 5 matches to play, 11 points clear. We can clinch in October.

The locals are taking notice, as a record 243 people attend the September 10th match against Alazani Gurjaani. Time to jump on the bandwagon, folks.

[ManUtd1]

October 2022.

Our winning streak comes to an end with a scoreless draw against Didube. We then traveled to Tskinvali's reserves, who sit in 2nd, 12 points off the pace with 5 to play...a chance to secure promotion for us. A must win for our hosts. We smash them, 3-1. Promotion secured, with 4 matches to play.

The other big news of the month was the arrival of our youth intake.

Keeping in mind that the current/potential ability stars are lying liars who shameless lie to our faces, the best players (in my estimation) seem to be Gela Jishkariani (who will train as a shadow striker), Mirian Modebadze (a pure centerback), Rati Liluashvili (a pure finisher, at this level), Alexsandre Iakobishvili (a keeper), and Nikoloz Modebaze (another centerback).

I went from looking at these players to immediately ask the Board to improve our junior coaching. They laughed. They always laugh when I ask them for things. Perhaps its because we're still bleeding money, week after week.

I'd like to think that promotion will ease the financial worries...but I suspect that clubs in the Liga 4 are not drowning in cash.

[ManUtd1]

November 2022.

Before our final 2 matches, the Board lets us know that we will, in fact, be rolling in the cash next year, such that we'll have a $6.25k/week wage budget. (I'm relatively certain that's lower than urCristiano's weekly budget for essential oils and avocado toast, but Portuguese law enforcement have been nothing if not extremely clear -- his Oiliness' personal finances are none of my damn business.)

We finish strong, 2 wins from 2. Promotion in the bag. A big year ahead.

[ManUtd1]

2022 Season Review.

Frankly, this was a dream start to the save.

Once the first few competitive matches were under our belt, the only real question in my mind was how close things would be in the promotional phase.

We took care of business and, in the process, got a glimpse of life in the leagues above us. I see no reason why this squad cannot compete for promotion next year -- Liga 4 is comprised of 10 teams, with everyone playing each other 3 times. Of course, I told the squad that was my expectation, and now they're all mad at me.

I appreciate the vote of confidence, lads.

Goals for 2023:  Keep the Promotion Train chugging along, and push for a top-2 finish in Liga 4. Get our finances under control, to the extent possible.

Squad | Initial Phase| Promotion Phase| Transfers

Finances | Income | Expenditure

[ManUtd1]

Qatar 2022; World Cup Review.

The World Cup was rather...meh. Dieter Hecking and ze Germans beat Renato Gaucho's 10-man Brazil, 1-nil, in the final:

Roberto Martinez's Belgium and Jose Mourinho's Portugal reached the semifinals, but couldn't make it over the final hump. Beyond that, the exit of Herve Renard's France during the Group Stage was the only real shock.

Overview | Knockout Rounds | Groups A-D | Groups E-H

[TheLutterworthFox]

Brilliant start mate. Congrats on promotion!! 

[Mandy42]

up at the 1st attempt! 

[KrKAlex]

Nice save, I enjoyed reading so far!

[ManUtd1]

January 2023.

Some good news as we kick off the new season. 17.45k in TV revenue for Liga 4, plus 3 new sponsorship deals totaling $9k/year.

I asked for it to be delivered in singles. The Chairman thought I was kidding.

I didn't have the heart to tell him the truth. I just wanted to frolic around in it. For 20, maybe 30 minutes. I'd even consider keeping my pants on...

In all fairness, I assumed that the Chairman was kidding when he passed along the Board's demand that we win the Davit Kipiani Cup this year, even though we're in Liga 4.

Alas, the look on his face told me he was not kidding. I put my pants back on.

Frankly, this has to be a bug of some sort, somehow associated with the 5-tier extension file. I can't think of any other reason why the Board would be looking for a top half finish in Liga 4, but insist on winning the Cup.

The reality is that we aren't that far off the clubs in the tiers above us. I've been thinking we'll have a shot at it in 2024 or 2025, if we can keep progressing. But let's be honest.

We are not going to win the Cup this year. So, we'll just have to cross this bridge when we get there.

I don't mind getting sacked, even for arguably unjust reasons. In my narrative-heavy saves, a sacking can often be the "best" thing to happen. But this is just silly season.

I have not decided how I want to handle it. I'm not particularly interested in moving to another club, such that this save becomes a "revenge" mission. Assuming that we're otherwise meeting/exceeding the Board's expectations, I'm considering 2 options: (1) retiring upon being sacked, and adding Giorgi Amirani 2.0 to take over the club; or (2) temporarily ticking the "unsackable" option in the editor. I'm leaning heavily towards (2) right now, if only for the sake of continuity/statistics over the course of the save.

All that being said, the media are predicting a second-place finish, behind SK Rustavi's reserves.

Let's get stuck in, lads.

[ManUtd1]

11 hours ago, TheLutterworthFox said:

Brilliant start mate. Congrats on promotion!! 

10 hours ago, Mandy42 said:

up at the 1st attempt! 

10 hours ago, KrKAlex said:

Nice save, I enjoyed reading so far!

Thanks, fellas -- it has been a blast thus far!  Just need to keep the momentum going...

[Joe.]

How did you discover this team? and did you have others on your shortlist?

[ManUtd1]

1 minute ago, Joe. said:

How did you discover this team? and did you have others on your shortlist?

There was some buzz around their stadium in February (ish), including on the Football Away Days Twitter account.  

I have one other on my shortlist, that I've thought about doing for a long time up in Norway.  But this felt more obscure, with a much bigger uphill fight with the national team than it would have been with the Norwegians.  

[ManUtd1]

January 2023.

I've decided to stick with the side from last year, which was too good for the 5th tier, generally held their own with teams in the leagues above us, and are predicted to finish 2nd.

We did make 2 signings, though, both on free transfers: (1) Giorgi Tskhadadze, who will start in goal after being released from Liga 3 side Guria; and (2) Giorgi Tebidze, who made 21 appearances for Telavi in the Erovnuli Liga last year, and will start as our right-sided centerback.

One thing I've noticed is that almost every club is operating in the red. I'm not surprised. There's little if any income. If we can continue to pick up scraps and extend our own contracts whenever possible, we'll keep this train rolling. The quality of players isn't particularly high. We just need to make sure we spend what funds we have wisely.

Case in point -- Mamuka Lobzhanidze is our starting libero, and most expensive player on $475/week. We signed him on a free last year, after he was released from fellow Regional Leagues side Iberia-2010. After our promotion campaign, the Board auto-accepted an $18k transfer bid from Erovnuli Liga side Samtredia for Lobzhanidze...but he rejected their contract offer. Samtredia's average wage is only $272/week, so I can only conclude that they offered him less than what he's currently on.

When I signed Lobzhanidze last year, I knew I was probably paying him too much for the 5th tier. But we didn't have any players. He was also willing to sign a contract and looked better than the other players available on a free. I did not realize I was arguably overpaying him, when scaled against Erovnuli Liga wages.

[ManUtd1]

After a consultation with @kidthekid, I've decided to swap two players. Newly-arrived Giorgi Tebidze will be our starting libero, with Mamuka Lobzhanidze as our right-sided centerback.

Awkward conversations in the Georgian 4th tier.