[FM20] An American Abroad - Perhaps...?

[ranks39]

Copa del Rey Final

 

[ranks39]

April 2030 + 1 Matchday

We are well and truly struggling, thankfully the rest of the teams below us have struggled, too and we are almost ensured a place in Champion's League for next season.  Almost every match, we are the better side and the statistics show it.... We are just having trouble consistently scoring.

[ranks39]

May 2030

 

The top-of-the-table looks about as expected and Levante, Valladolid, and Almeria go down.  Segunda Division has yet to conclude but with Barcelona B and Atletico Madrid B at the top of the table, it's really wide open for teams to directly qualify(top two non-B teams automatically gain promotion and the next four best enter a playoff, where one more will be promoted).

 

Spanish League Young Player of the Year

 

World Cup Call-Ups

Toure has received his first-ever senior call-up and Olaizola has been called up numerous times but is still yet to receive his first senior cap.  They'll be a part of the Spanish World Cup side.  Vencl is no surprise, he is one the best Czech players.  

I will do a full-season recap and a World Cup preview/recap throughout the off-season as well.

[ranks39]

Season Recap

All-in-all, a great season sees us finish fourth and in the final Champion's League spot.  We also won the Copa del Rey for Rank's first silverware at Vigo.

The Squad - here's how we finished up.

We played a pretty short bench, even with the number of fixtures that we had over the course of the year.  The squad coped pretty well and stuck it out, even when things turned sour.

Sergio Olaizola was the man between the sticks all year and he certainly didn't let us down, finishing third in goalkeeper of the year voting.  He has developed into a staple call-up for the national team.

 

My center back rotation was four-deep with Turkish International, Ibrahim Kol, Aboubacar Toure, and Dario Zenga as the first-choice center backs and Urko Alonso providing relief(along with a few other minor bit players).

 

 

 

 

At wing back, we saw Jiri Vencl on the left and Kjetil Liland  on the right as our main stalwarts and the main providers on the team.  Splitting time on the left, we had Diego Pampin and on the right we saw Sergio Carreira and Gorka Bernal, both of whom spent quite a few games on the shelf due to injury.

 

 

In our midfield, we utilized a rotation between Ivan Korz, Aleksa Vukajlovic, Fran Beltran, and Martin Bayiha for the two spots.

 

 

 

 

In our attacking midfield, we eventually pretty much settled on the Spanish pairing of Manu Mendez, the 19-year old from our academy, and Eneko Sarabia.  We also mixed in Alex Bermejo, Vukajlovic, and Fran Beltran.

 

 

 

Finally, at striker - it seems as though we have found our regular goalscorer in Mathys Durand.  We also sprinkled in Jordy Van Damme, Fran Lopez, and Ricardo Rodrigues.

 

[ranks39]

End-of-Season Recap, Academy/Loanee Edition

First off, Anthony Roux, who came to us on a fee transfer two season ago.  We loaned  Roux to La Liga side, Girona and throughout the course of the season, he appeared in 31 matches for his club, scoring 2 goals and providing 7 helpers.  He also switched his allegiance to Senegal and earned two caps and a goal on his debut!

 

Lionel Manga spent the season at La Liga side, Levante, amassing 34 starts  and anchoring the backline.  Unfortunately, I believe that I will end up selling Manga as he just is too small to play on the backline in my style of defense but it should be a good piece of business given that he came to us on a free.

 

Cristian Ricardo spent the season on-loan at Ligue 2 side(and our affiliate), VAFC.  Ricardo had a nice season, starting 28 games and scoring 4 goals.

 

Luis Carlos Luna spent his season on loan at our affiliate, 1860 Munich, in the Bundesliga 2.  He had a good season, starting 30 matches, scoring 8 goals, and providing 6 assists.   He still desperately needs to work on his finishing before he can become a factor in the first team.

 

Luis Martinez spent his season on loan at Belgian Pro League A side, KAS Eupen, becoming the key cog in their lineup.  Martinez played in 31 matches, scoring 10 goals and assisting twice.

 

Henry Miranda, our Spanish-Colombian wing back, enjoyed a revelation of a season at Numancia in the Segunda Division B1, starring and scoring 9 goals while providing 15 assists!  I'll be looking to loan him in the Segunda or La Liga this coming season.

 

Giovani Luiz(striker) spent the season away at Olhanense in the Portuguese Premier League, locking down the starting role and scoring 10 goals.

 

Aldan Callon, our goalkeeper from a couple of youth intakes ago, went out on loan to Lugo of the Segunda Division.  He started the season bouncing between the U19 and B squads before impressing and locking down the starting role for the senior squad.  He showed massive improvement and I'm going to be loaning him out to my new affiliate, NK Domzale(Slovenian top division) who will be playing European football next season.

 

Luis Angel Cainzos spent the year away at Segunda Division side, Lugo, gaining valuable experience at that level and improving greatly in the process.

 

 

[ranks39]

 

[ranks39]

World Cup 2030

Not a lot of surprise in the group stage.

Top half of the bracket

Again, not too many surprises.  England disposed of everyone quite clinically.

Bottom of the bracket.

Again, not really many surprises here.

FINAL

 

[ranks39]

Pre-Season 2030-2031

A perfect pre-season(albeit against sides with much less quality).  We were truly dominant and had most of the ball and nearly all of the shots, holding Carpi and Cesena to a combined 1 shot.  We look sharp heading into our season-opener against Atletico Pamplona.

Incomings

We've only brought in 3 players, two on a free and one paid transfer.  First off, John Adeleye, a Spanish youth international striker, comes to us on a free from Atletico Madrid.  We are always short on strikers and John can develop into a contributor.

 

Secondly, we brought in Alfonso Tello for $1.2M(potentially $2.3 based on performance).  This is a definite look towards the future as he has very high upside.  Already an outstanding tackler, we need to work on his strength and marking but he certainly has all the makings of a future first-team staple.

 

Finally, our biggest signing of the year comes to us on a free from Real Madrid and will immediately add to our attacking midfield - a position in which we need depth badly.  Alioune Coly has played in every big 5 league and has proven to be goalscoring option from his natural attacking midfield position.  He has a winning pedigree, having been a part of a number of cup-winning clubs and has seen games at a high-level.  We are very excited for this addition.

 

Outgoings

We really only have seen loanees go out this season.  First, Fran Lopez, who had seen his minutes dip, came to me and asked to move on loan as he felt he had accomplished all he could with us.  We obliged and he went on loan to Aston Villa of the English Championship.

 

We also attempted to sell Lionel Manga for his minimum release of $9M.  After seeing a flurry of offers around $6M, we loaned him out to KV Kortrijk, of the Belgian Pro League A.  They are paying his full wages plus a monthly fee and there is a buy clause at the end of the loan.  He has been a stable player for a couple of bottom-table La Liga sides since joining us on a free, he simply doesn't suit our preferred style as we need height and jumping ability/heading.

 

La Liga Preview

 

Here's how we'll line up.

We have very few striker options, so I'm looking for a loan to complete the side.

 

[ranks39]

International Call-Ups

Could be his first cap!

Cameron Harding is on trial with us.

 

Edited May 12, 2020 by ranks39

[ranks39]

Champion's League Group Stage Draw

It seems to be a manageable group!

[ranks39]

 

[ranks39]

September 2030

A mixed start to the season, drawing Atletico Pamplona at home and losing to Real Hispalis away.  We were then massacred by both Roma and Real Madrid.

This leaves us 8th in the table.

We've signed a dept piece on a free at Striker.  Cameron Harding comes in after having his contract not picked up at Aston Villa - he was a free agent for a few months.  He is not anything special at all but somehow his value shot up to $25.5M, so he will be sold.

 

[ranks39]

October 2030

Not a bad month, we really should have taken the three points from Girona, though.

Here's how the league table looks:

 

And here's how our Champions League group looks.

 

[ranks39]

International Call-Ups

 

 

[ranks39]

November 2030(+1 in December)

A really poor month, losing to Granada and drawing Huesca.  We played well against Roma but lost a very close match.  The big one is the 2-1 victory over Barcelona to break our league winless streak!

We sit 10th but the gap between us and continental qualification is growing.

And here's how our Champions League group sits

So, we need a victory away to RB Leipzig to qualify for the knockout rounds.  A positive is that no matter what, we are assured of the Europa League knockout rounds at minimum! 

[ranks39]

Youth Intake Preview

 

[ranks39]

December 2030

Our form has improved in league play and we're moving up the table!

And with our form, we've found ourselves 7th!

 

[ranks39]

Spanish Super Cup

The qualifying teams are the winner and runner-up from La Liga and the winner and runner-up from the Copa del Rey.

Semi-Final - we have drawn Barcelona.

 

A penalty shootout win!

 

Final - Real Madrid beat Atletico Madrid to advance to the final with us.

 

A late, late, late, late, late winner sees us win the Supercopa!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  We actually looked the better side for much of the match.

 

 

[ranks39]

 

[ranks39]

January 2031

A decent month but really disappointing results against Espanyol and Alaves, which we dominated.  We've advanced to the Fifth Round of the Copa del Rey, as well.

We sit 9th, just outside of the continental spots.

New Signing - we signed Zeljko Pranjic, an Austrian goalkeeper for about $5M.  I think I probably overspent, but it was an opportunity to capture a really potentially high-level player.

 

[ranks39]

 

[ranks39]

February 2031(+ 2 days in March)

We couldn't stop drawing!  Again, very disappointed to draw with Atletico Pamplona, but we got back on track against Vallecano.

Our European qualification hopes are fading, we do travel to face Barca in the second leg of the Copa del Rey in march(3-3 after our home leg).

 

[ranks39]

International Call-Ups & Player Profiles

 

 

Daniel is a young striker on my U19 Squad(on loan at VAFC in Ligue 2).  He has been a regular for VAFC, starting 20 matches and scoring 3 goals while providing 5 assists in league play.  His finishing is very poor for a striker and he is likely to move to the wing if he breaks through with the senior squad.  He is seeking his first cap at any level.

 

Jose Ignacio came through our academy in 2028 and is a Norwegian-Spanish player, born in Orland, Norway.  He has spent the three years since entering our club on loan in the Segunda Division B, as a regular starter.  This season with Ferrol, he has started 28 matches, scored 4 goals and assisted on 4 in league play.  He is developing very nicely.

 

Joining Jose Ignacio in the Norway U-21 setup is Kjetil Liland, who is currently with the first team.  He has previously been capped at the senior level for Norway.

 

Michal Banaszak is a central defender that we brought from Legia and has been on loan since his arrival in Spain.  He has been a regular in the Slovenian top-flight with our affiliate club, Domzale this season, allowing him to earn some EURO Cup II minutes.  He is progressing nicely but is still a little way off of the first team.

 

Aldan Callon is a player that I'm very excited about.  He has been on loan this season at Mlada Boleslav and  has starting 18 league matches, conceding just 11 goals.  He got a taste of Champion's League(losing in the Second Qualifying Round to Maccabi Haifa), then dropping to the Europa League Third Qualifying Round, where they defeated Maribor, keeping a clean sheet away and then defeating Partizani to qualify for the Group Stage.  In the Group Stage, Mlada Boleslav drew Wolves, Basel and Bordeaux - they earned three points in the group(one draw against each club), with Callon between the sticks for every match and keeping a clean sheet against Bordeaux.

 

Juanjo Aznar is another highly-talented young Spainard, currently on loan at La Liga side, Atletico Pamplona.  He spent the first half of the season at Mlada Boleslav.

 

Ibrahim Kol is a first team regular and consistent selection for Turkey as well.  He came in as a highly-touted player and is still very talented.

 

Jiri Vencl is another player that is very familiar to the first team, as one of the best players in the side and one of the best Czech players.  He is a regular call-up, for good reason and is being tracked by much of the Premier League, namely Manchester United, from whom we batted away a $52M transfer offer.

 

Oshri Gigi is obviously the Israeli attacker that we acquired from Hapoel Haifa in 2029.  He has played sparingly for us, mostly in rotation and cup matches.  He is a staple for the Israeli youth national sides.

 

Aleksa Vukajlovic is a player  that gets quite a few minutes in the center of our midfield.  He is very well-rounded and highly-regarded by the staff around Vigo.

 

Finally, the lone Spanish Senior call-up, Sergio Olaizola.  Olaizola has been a fixture at goalkeeper for us since joining from Real Madrid.  He has been called into the National Team setup so often, but has yet to see his first cap.

 

Others to keep an eye on

Ivan Korz - Argentina.  Korz is a regular in the center of the park for us and is a world-class passer of the ball with world  class vision.  He has been capped 5 times for Argentina.

 

Mathys Durand - France.  Durand is on the fringe of the French National team picture, having been watched a number of times by the manager of the Senior National Team.  

 

Manu Mendez - Spain.  Perhaps this one is a bit more wishful thinking as Mendez was born in Vigo and came through the Vigo academy and has appeared for the Spanish U-21 side.  Mendez has actually cemented a starting role as the center attacking midfielder for us and has performed very well this season, scoring 6 league goals and assisting on a pair.

 

Dario Zenga - Italy.  Zenga is a world-class defender with world-class mental abilities.  It is truly a snub that he hasn't yet been called in for the Italian setup.  Italian giants, Juventus, have been sniffing around for some time now.

 

[ranks39]

Youth Intake

Not very good, but very interesting with an Argentine, two Slovenians, a Mexican, an American, a Togoles, a Canadian, and a Romanian.

 

 

[ranks39]

March 2031

Not a good month at all.  The board have already met with me regarding our form....

We sit 11th, not much more to say.

[ranks39]

 

[ranks39]

SACKED!

After a home loss, 1-0, to Bilbao the board called me into a meeting.  I told them to stick to the plan, they wanted assurances - I wasn't going to beg - I told them to show faith in me..... they said goodbye.

 

 

[ranks39]

New Opportunity

So, we're heading East to take on a new challenge after relaxing on the beach for a few months!

.............................

Dynamo Kyiv it is!

The club vision was the biggest reason that Dynamo Kyiv was the choice.  They are committed to becoming the best developers of talent in the country!

 

I will write up an overview in the morning.

Edited May 30, 2020 by ranks39

[ranks39]

Dynam Kyiv

Obviously, a club with a massive history - but, no longer the most-title-winning club in Ukraine.  Shakhtar have won 23 titles to Dynamo's 16(by virtue of having won  14 of the last 15 Ukrainian Premier League titles).

 

So, obviously paired with our highest objective of becoming a world-class producer of talent and selling players for a profit, we need to topple to powerhouse, Shakhtar Donetsk.

A quick browse of the two clubs and there is some disparity.

The comparative value of the two clubs is the first indicator of the gap that we are to overcome.

Now, let's see what the facilities look like.

A quick look shows two clubs that are very similar - again, we're a cut below in terms of Youth and Training Facilities - but our stadium holds almost 20,000 more people!

Alright, enough with the Shakhtar envy, here's where Dynamo Kyiv stand. 

Finances are fantastic, our books aren't upside-down and we have a great stash of money with no loans or debt.

 

The staff is a little bit thin, I'll definitely fill up the coaching positions and sign a General Manager(Director of Football)  and a Technical Director.

 

The squad is a little bit thin on the ground at the moment.  I've recently transitioned to a 4-2-3-1 wide, moving away from the 5-2-2-1/5-1-3-1(both with no wide attackers, the Wing Backs providing my attacking width) as wing backs are a bit harder to find and I generally have to re-train players to fit the style.

 

Ruslan Nescheret is the presumptive starter in goal, having been capped for Ukraine on 1 occasion back in 2027.

 

In the center of my defense, I'll likely start with the young Kosovan, Nikolin Pashaj and Nazar Pavlenko.

Pashaj is incredibly physically and mentally-advanced for his age and has seen 8 caps with the Senior National team.

 

Pavlenko is a solid, if unspectacular option but he definitely needs to work on his heading attribute.

 

On the right side of my defense, we don't really have anybody that can provide the attacking impetus that I'm looking for so we'll be pigeon-holing Bulgarian International Dimitar Ivanov as a stop-gap.

 

On the left side of defense, we don't have anybody that provides any sort of attacking quality either.  I will likely insert Walter and hope for the best.

 

I will be playing with a central midfield pair of a defensive midfield and a central midfielder as well.  

At defensive midfielder, we'll insert Danila Plotnikov, who is our heart and soul and team captain.  He has the makings of a club legend, having come through the youth academy and so far having made 175 appearances for the club, as well as 2 caps for Ukraine.

 

In the center of midfield, we'll play academy graduate Sergey Yermakov, who spent the year on loan at Dinamo Brest.

 

Eugene Getsko will be retrained to occupy my Central Attacking Midfield position.  His long shots, finishing, and dribbling jump out the most as improvable but he will be solid to begin with.

 

On the right side of my attacking midfield, Englishman Donaire Gooden will slot in.  He possesses great attacking attributes(finish and long shots aside).

 

On the left side of my attacking midfield, I've tentatively penciled in Jeremy Sarmiento, a nifty attacker that has seen his best days pass him by.  This is a position that I will definitely be looking to bring somebody in at.

 

At striker, Yuriy Sydorenko is the exact type of player that I'm looking for, a young, complete forward that possesses great aerial attributes, good strength to hold the ball up, and good decisions, passing, and technique to be able to play our inside forwards in.

 

I'll overview a couple of players who are on youth squads but I believe can make it onto the first team in the years to come.

Roman Man'ko looks like a solid player on the left wing, with good dribbling, finishing, long shots, and pace.

 

Yaroslav Kovalchuk looks a real prize at the center midfield position.  His non-existent leadership and low work rate and concentration do concern me a bit but outside of that, he looks like he can make it.

 

Stanislav Sholkh looks like he also has the makings of a solid striker but he's a little ways off of the first team for now.

 

 

[ranks39]

Transfer Dealings

Nothing concrete yet but we are working on bringing in a few familiar faces on loan.

Jose Ignacio, our old friend from Vigo's U19 side, he will at the very least provide some depth but I can envision him getting serious minutes at the right back position.

 

My old friend from Legia(who then transferred to Sampdoria, making 79 appearances), left back and American, Ben Howard.  He is out of contract and I've put in a bid.

 

[ranks39]

New Signing!

Welcome to Dynamo, Kyiv - Ben Howard!  He is a solid defender but still lacks the attacking attributes that I'm looking for.

 

[ranks39]

Pre-Season 

A perfect pre-season with some pretty impressive victories.  We even defeated Rank's old team, Shenkolli!  We've also progressed to the Champions League Best Placed Third Qualifying Round against PSV.

Player Sale - Donaire Gooden - Gooden moves onto Everton for an initial fee of $15.75M, with potential to rise to $19.5M, a great return on investment for the club as he was purchased for $2.6M from Burnley.

 

New Signing - Amilton Dos Reis - Dos Reis comes in as a direct replacement for Donaire Gooden from Portuguese Premier League club, Rio Ave, where he made 200 appearances.  We shelled out $6.5M, with potential to rise to $7.75M - a fee that I certainly feel we can triple at some point.

 

[ranks39]

International Call-Ups

 

 

Nikolin Pashaj has played very well this season, so far, with a Ukranian Premier League rating of 7.57 and a Champions League rating of 7.23.

 

Ben Howard is seeking his 6th USA cap.

 

 

[ranks39]

Europa League Group Stage Draw

 Not the worst draw... we're definitely in with a shout!

[ranks39]

August 2031

A perfect start in league play.

We sit second but have a game in hand to make up the difference.  We have yet to allow a goal in league play, too!

[ranks39]

September 2031

A great month!  The win over Shakhtar, the draw with Hertha and then our continued great league form!

 

We now sit top of the table with a game in hand.

Roman Man'ko has come into our squad and made the AML position his own.

 

[ranks39]

International Call-Ups

 

Getsko, Baranets, and Pavlenko all get their attempt at their first senior caps!

 

 

 

[ranks39]

International Debut and Goal

 

 

[ranks39]

Our talismanic striker, Yuriy Sydorenko continues his wondrous strike rate in international play.  He now has 18 goals in 26 appearances for the Ukraine U21 National Team and has 9 goals in 9 matches for Dynamo Kyiv in league play.

 

[ranks39]

Two more debuts, another first international goal!

Nazar Pavlenko and Andriy Baranets made their senior debuts for Ukraine in a 4-1 friendly win over Ghana.

 

Kosovan wonderkid, Nikolin Pashaj opened his scoring account for the senior National Team as well.... although he likely won't score a ton more as he is a center back!

 

[ranks39]

Investments

 

 

 

[ranks39]

October 2031

We just keep on winning in league play!

We still sit four points clear at the top with a game in hand!

[ranks39]

Planned Facilities Upgrades!

From Excellent to Superb!

Also from excellent to superb!

 

[ranks39]

International Call-Ups

 

Our club star, Yuriy Sydorenko, is looking for his first senior cap.  

 

[ranks39]

New Affiliate!

This is the type of affiliation that I've dreamt of!  An Uruguayan club with a great youth setup

 

Excellent youth coaching, exceptional youth recruitment, great youth facilities!!!  Win, win, win.

[ranks39]

First Senior Cap!

Congrats to Yuriy Sydorenko!

 

[ranks39]

November 2031

All things considered, a pretty good month - it was always going to be difficult with Galatasaray and Hertha Berlin away but we've managed to steal a point from Hertha!  Even more amazingly, we stole a point in our previous meeting with them, giving us two points over the group stage thus far, against arguably the strongest team.  We've also begun to see our legs tire a bit and a lot more rotation, so we're seeing much closer matches in League play.

A comfortable lead atop the table, given our form in league play.

Just one more matchday that will see us host Olympiakos and Galatasaray host Hertha Berlin.  The top 3 spots in the group are all to play for.

 

[ranks39]

December 2031

A couple of draws away  and a loss to Olympiakos see us hit a bad patch of form.

Still top of the table but our first two league draws see us move to just 3 points clear of Shakhtar.  We now enter the winter break, we will resume play in February.

Transfer Rumblings

First off, Roman Man'ko, one of our talismanic academy products is being courted heavily by Malaga of the Segunda Division.

 

Portuguese Walter is the subject of a $10.5M(could rise to $14.25M) bid from Wolfsburg.... he is most likely gone.

 

Bulgarian International Dimitar Ivanov is the subject of an $11.75M(rising to $15.75M) bid from CSL side, Chongqing.  Not a bad return on a $3.2M sale.

 

We've also been beating back offers for our star striker, Yuriy Sydorenko.  CSL sides are his biggest suitors and our most recent rejected offer was $16.5M.  A player that joined us via the academy WAY back in 2023, his eventual sale will finance many youth projects to come.

 

[ranks39]

Transfer Finalized!

Dimitar Ivanov will, indeed, join CSL side Chongqing in a $15.75M move, sealing $12M in profits for the club.

 

Eugene Getsko also has left the club, being sold for $19.75.  It's a very bittersweet moment as he saw his first senior caps for the national team with us and made great strides in his development.  We also will have to give about $7.75M to Girnyk Kryvyi Rih due to the sell-on clause that he was purchased with.

 

Edited June 26, 2020 by ranks39

[ranks39]

Bad Kompany

So, a familiar name has been hired to lead our fiercest rivals, Shakhtar Donetsk.

He just can't stay away from Anderlecht, apparently.