FM11 Big Euro Nation: Small Club to Big Club Challenge

Anti Spiral · August 21, 2011

Quick update

Season: 2020/21

Club: Angri

League: Italy - Serie A

Media Prediction: 20th

Actual Finish: 13th

Season Review:

The season was destroyed by a Goalkeeping injury and poor foresight (no sub keeper). We started well, finished fantastically. But due to the time where we had no goalkeeper, finished down in 13th. I think we would have finished in the top half if not for the injury, but it helped me I guess. Taught me a lesson on gambling on players fitness.

We finished with 63 goals, which was only bettered by the top 6 in the league. But conceded 79, the 2nd worst in the league. Pellizzaro shined again, but with his 6 million minimum fee release cause and a few clubs sniffing him out, I'm worried we'll lose him now. I tried offering him a new contract, but his demands were far beyond our current budgets. If he stays, I'll have to get into Europe in the next 3 years of his contract.

Final League Standings

League Positions

  Season            League            Position          Achievements                              
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 2011/12       Serie C2/C           16th            
 2012/13       Serie C2/C           10th           
 2013/14       Serie C2/C           3rd                Promotion  
 2014/15       Serie C1/B           8th                Serie C Cup winners!
 2015/16       Serie C1/B           2nd                Promotion and Serie C Cup winners!
 2016/17       Serie B              7th                   
 2017/18       Serie B              8th
 2018/19       Serie B              1st                 Champions! 
 2019/20       Serie A              17th
 2020/21       Serie A              13th

Waste of a season.

Anti Spiral · August 21, 2011

Everton just bid 8.5 million for him. :'( (even though the minimum fee release cause is 6 million lol)

edit: and he's gone :(

toonbalmy87 · August 21, 2011

Sorry here that Spiral yeah i gambled on my goalkeepers fitness then he got injured so i had to find one on the free agency which wasnt fun i had like 8 Goalies on trial at one point aha

minisav · August 21, 2011

Bad times AS. Still, a good season nonetheless. Good luck replacing him!

duccio · August 22, 2011

Casertana - Season 3 - 2014/15 - Serie B

Serie B - Media Prediction: 22^nd - Final Position: 6^th - Past Positions -

I was especially happy to be able sign a few decent midfielders (Frei, Michel, Mazzoni and also young Merlino) who really brought the squad to a new level. The season was very good and consistent performances were enough to earn Casertana a 6^th place. Got pretty much trounced by AlbinoLeffe in the Playoff Semi Finals though. No promotion, but much better season than I expected.

Italian Cup - Fixtures

Started the competition with a 2^nd Qual. Rnd. match against C1/B Giulianova and got kicked out.

Casertana Players - Squad - Transfers

ST Christian Tiboni - Great season by my most important striker.

AMC Míchel - New signing at Casertana and a valuable part of the team.

AMC Fabian Frei - Also an important new player at Casertana.

AMC Enrico Mazzoni - Young midfielder and a product of Napoli youth system - maybe almost like a local boy.

MLC Massimo "Mago" Merlino - Potentially 4^1/2 star youngster I signed on free transfer. He has not played for any other team so I consider him to be an authentic Casertana youth player. Very skillfull and determinate. Needs to improve physical side of his game. Looks a bit like he has a screw loose, but seems like future Serie A midfielder.

Progress

[font=Courier New]
Season        League          Position          Italian Cup          Serie C Cup          Achievements
[hr]
2014/15       Serie B         6[sUP]th[/sUP]               2[sUP]nd[/sUP] Qual. Rnd.        -                   -
2013/14       Serie C1/B      2[sUP]nd[/sUP]               2[sUP]nd[/sUP] Qual. Rnd.        Final (lost)        Promotion
2012/13       Serie C2/B      1[sUP]st[/sUP]               -                     3[sUP]rd[/sUP] Rnd. Grp.       C2/B & promotion, C2 Super Cup
[/font]

minisav · August 22, 2011

Great season, shame about the play-off loss though. What's your thoughts for this season? Same again?

duccio · August 22, 2011

For the first time I've actually used money to buy players. Two deals include monthly installments for the next four years. Both are young players and should have loads of potential. I still have just over £1M in the bank and monthly reports tell the profits/losses are about breaking even, so at the moment at least the club is financially viable. Can't buy another expensive player unless I want to start eating away my bank balance (or selling players).

duccio · August 22, 2011

Casertana - Season 4 - 2015/16 - Serie B

Serie B - Media Prediction: 20^th - Final Position: 4^th - Past Positions -

I was able to secure a few very interesting signings. Money was burned to sign young Argentinian/Italian DC Mauro Riciputi from Independiente and young ST Franco Boschi from Juventus. Particularly Riciputi was impressive - a brick wall in defence and always a threat in attacking set pieces due to his jumping ability and heading acumen.

Season began with Casertana in OK but not brilliant form, but results improved slightly towards midseason only to stutter and falter again in the last couple of months of the campaign. This caused postition to drop from 2^nd to 4^th. I managed to win Reggina in Playoff Semi Finals, but the nemesis from last season, AlbinoLeffe, again bested Casertana - only this time it was in the Finals. No promotion this time either, but final position is once again improvement on previous season, and the squad is beginning consist of some quality players. Things look good for the next season.

Italian Cup - Fixtures

This time Casertana reached the 3^rd Qual. Rnd., but again a lower division club, this time C1/A Varese, beat my team.

Casertana Players - Squad - Transfers

ST Christian Tiboni - Tiboni continued his good form and was again my most effective marksman.

ST Franco Boschi - Young striker signed for £2M from Juventus. He impressed when he was on loan at Spal (C1/A) during previous season, and I was surprised he was interested in joining Casertana on permanent deal. Nevertheless he was quite good and scored 11 goals. I will expect a lot from him in the future.

ST Bruno Bresciani - Another true youngster signed on free tranfer (on some version of old CM, his transfer history would have said he was signed from schoolboy ). Bruno can play as an MC or AMC, but his only natural position is ST. Very good key attributes, but I wonder if he is actually as promising as he looks or wether he just has a high pa for his age.

AMLC Rufino Cano - Young Spaniard released by Real Madrid and signed on free by moi. Highly rated by coaches who also reckon he is prone to injuries. So far so good.

DC Mauro Riciputi - Defender who, despite his youth, was a key player the moment he arrived from Independiente for £1.7M. Finished season with 10 goals and the highest Av Rat in the squad. Argentinian with Italian passport.

GK Angelo Minelli - Decent young keeper.

Progress

[font=Courier New]
Season        League          Position          Italian Cup          Serie C Cup          Achievements
[hr]
2015/16       Serie B         4[sUP]th[/sUP]               3[sUP]rd[/sUP] Qual. Rnd.        -                   -
2014/15       Serie B         6[sUP]th[/sUP]               2[sUP]nd[/sUP] Qual. Rnd.        -                   -
2013/14       Serie C1/B      2[sUP]nd[/sUP]               2[sUP]nd[/sUP] Qual. Rnd.        Final (lost)        Promotion
2012/13       Serie C2/B      1[sUP]st[/sUP]               -                     3[sUP]rd[/sUP] Rnd. Grp.       C2/B & promotion, C2 Super Cup
[/font]

minisav · August 22, 2011

Nice, another good season. 3rd time lucky?

Twellman24 · August 23, 2011

Algeciras 2016/17

Liga BBVA

Transfers

- Roma offered 22m for Holz, German striker who came in January and finished the season as top scorer of the team and top 10 in the league. We had paid half of that, so it was a good transaction--that being said, I did not like that I had nothing to say about it. The 22m paid were 19m in 24 months, and 3m more when the player scored 10 goals for the club. At the end of this season, he had not done that, it looks like we'l have to wait for next year to get those 3m. The Italian league has evidently slowed down the scoring numbers of this player, like make others in the past.

- Other players that had been there for several years, like Llopis, left the club as well. In January, our LM Romero went to Inter, after asking to leave several times during the winter transfer window. Inter paid 13.5m plus a 15% of a possible sale's profit (clause which we settled for another 3.6m later on), for a grand total of 17m. Even though this guy is the future of Spain at only age 22, a profit of 17m from our initial 300k to Barcelona is not too shabby for a player who wanted to leave and grow.

- Holz's sale determined our entire transfer budget. From River Plate arrived Maxi Gutierrez, a young Argentinean striker with very good numbers in his country, but who we expected to need a season to adapt to Spanish football. Mario Viola arrived from Italy for 2m, and left for Russia in December, after the club paid the fee. I should haveset a higher one, but he really did not want to have anything higher than 4m. So that came back to bite us, too.

- From Valencia's B team arrived a 35year old Pepe, who after a two season spell with Valencia from Real Madrid, played for us in a few games and even scored three goals before retiring.

The season

After losing two of the first three games, we went on three months without a loss, and settled in the top 8. Not like we expected it after selling Holz, but the team pulled through and got the points we need it to get us into the European fight once again.

The second third of the season was a bit of a dip, with a few losses here and there, mostly due to our late Spanish Cup spell, but 5 wins and 2 ties in the last 7 games kept us on the 6th position. The first seven play in Europe, which ensures that Algeciras, for the first time ever, will play in the Europa League!

In a year where we lost Holz without wanting it, and Romero left for more ambitious expectations, getting our first taste of Europe is awesome.

Table Graph

Copa del Rey

- We triumphed over Zaragoza and Levante in the first few rounds, and in the quarterfinals, Espanyol awaited, in a match where we were supposed to be the ones out. We won 0-4 in Barcelona, surprising everybody, and a 2-2 tie home secured our place in the semifinal.

- The last leg before the final was against Athletic Bilbao, historic team which had been relegated to the second division for the first time ever. However, these guys had an advantage--they were cruising through the league and were virtually promoted with 10 games left to go. We were 2-0 up in the first leg home, with 8 minutes to go, and they tied in two consecutive goals to end the leg 2-2.

- Still after that disappointment, we believed in our chances to beat them in Bilbao...but this happened. Kinda hard to get to the final with three injured players and finishing the game with nine on the field. Oh well.

- Real Madrid went on to beat the Bilbainos in the final, 3-1.

Stats 2

- Rensing once again did a superb job, but the 37 year old will have to let others play next season. Rocco and Maxi Gutierrez did well too, keeping the scoring record up.

Algeciras CF

2011/12 - Segunda Division B, IV Group - 1st 79 points - PROMOTED! - No Copa del Rey

2012/13 - Liga Adelante - 14st 55 points - Second round Copa del Rey

2013/14 - Liga Adelante - 9th 70 points - 1/16 Copa del Rey to Tenerife

2014/15 - Liga Adelante - 9th 65 points - 2nd Round Copa del Rey

2015/16 - Liga Adelante - 3rd 83 points - Lost in Promotion Playoff Final to Celta - 1/16 Copa del Rey to Deportivo

2016/17 - Liga Adelante - 2nd 84 points - PROMOTED! - 1/16 Copa del Rey to Hercules

2017/18 - Liga BBVA - 8th 54 points - 1/16 Copa del Rey to Espanyol - Manager of the year!

2018/19 - Liga BBVA - 6th 64 points - Copa del Rey semifinals to Athletic Bilbao - Manager of the year!

-Once again and for the second consecutive season, the best season ever for Algeciras. The club continues to grow, and it showed again. We qualify to the Third Round of the Europa League. Our economy is as sound as ever. I was given the Manager of the Year award for second consecutive year, and Rensing and Hubert made it into the best team of La Liga, as well as Algeciras being names the club with the most progression for the second year in a row.

Now, onto the really good news: We'll have a new stadium in a year's time! The construction of Algeciras' Stadium (how original) will cost around 50m, with only around 5m being offset by the old stadium. The board is taking a 45m loan fto build the stadium, which will pay well into the 2030s. The capacity of the team will be off over 25k, which is a nice number if you ask me. I was expecting 15-20k.

So bottom line, we will have to be careful with the money from now on, but I think we'll be OK. Something else that will be happening next year--we'll be having more Spaniards in it. Now that we're settles in the BBVA, I rather pull back a little and have more Spanish players than do better with a multination squad. I'm hoping to have at least 8-10 players from Spain next season.

Things are going well!

Derek

minisav · August 23, 2011

Great stuff Twellman. Good luck with getting more Spaniards and doing well again whilst keeping an eye on the finances

rlipscombe · August 23, 2011

Messina - Serie B - Season 2016/17

Season Review

League Finish: 2^nd Graph

The League

What a nailbiter! After a long season where we spent most of it in the top 6, we somehow managed to turn around a 7-point gap to 2^nd with 5 games to go to see us take 2^nd spot with one game to go. With steady nerves we managed to secure the win we needed and promotion was ours… Messina are heading to Serie A!!!

Coppa Italia

What can I say? After never having got past the 1^st round proper we managed to mastermind our via via victories away at Fiorentina and Juventues to make the semi finals of the Coppa Italia. Inevitably we came unstuck at the hands of Napoli who have been the class act in italy for the last three years. Nonetheless, it was nothing short of a memorable run and one I can look back on with pride and also optimism for the new season.

The Players

Transfers

Here’s a look at some of the key players for me in our promotion season:

Squad 1 Squad 2

Goalkeepers

1. Raffaele Di Gennaro - Raffaele went from strength to strength this season and is developing into a vital part of our squad. Eyeing a move to a bigger club but I am determined to keep him if I can.

13. Marek Luhovy - Marek spent the season as back up to the impressive Di Gennaro.

Full Backs

15. Alessio Grea - Alessio had a decent season when he played but I think he may be out of his depth for Serie A.

3. Marco Cairo - Marco had a good season as part of our promotion defence and can be proud of his performances.

24. Roman Stastny - Roman had a solid first season and did well when he played. Will hopefully handle the step up.

32. Martin Doblas - Czech youth international became first choice RB this season and did well. He is beginning to back up his potential with performances on the pitch.

59. Jimmy Bochu - the frenchman arrived in January and did ok. lots of potential

Centre Backs

45. Marco Baldan - Marco had another good season in defence and I have high hopes that he will be able to handle the step up.

16. Antonio Marino - Antonio had a good season but will most likely feel the pressure of the young guns in the coming season for a regular starting berth.

5. Tahirou Gnessoa - Tahirou got more game time this season and is beginning to challenge Marino for a starting berth. Weighed in with a few goals too.

26. Marti - Marti is still developing although maybe not quite as much as I had hoped.

6. Fabio Exposito - Fabio didn’t play much but has the potential to be a defensive rock for us.

25. Serdar Schaap - Serdar did ok early on when he played but he isn’t quite fulfilling his potential at present which has disappointed me a little as I felt he could be the next Spendlhofer. Still time I guess.

Midfielders

4. Andre Zwarthoed - Andre had a better season this time round and probably won out in the battle to be Pasas’ partner. Still developing.

8. Gabriele Paonessa - Gabriele disappointed me a little after I had spent a few seasons tracking him. May well leave this summer.

14. Mattia Esposito - Mattia pushed Tobiasen once more for the DM berth and had a good run in the second half of the season.

17. Jan Pavlik - Jan was a sub at best this season and will most likely leave this summer.

18. Simone Pasa - Simone had another good season. It was no coincidence our worst run during the season was when he was out injured.

21. Angel Martin - Angel had another stellar season. Managed to keep hold of him after the chairman accepted a bid for him and it was one of the keys points of the season. Looking forward to him having a crack at Serie A defences.

28. Lasse Tobiasen - the young Dane did a solid job in the DM role and shaded Esposito as 1^st choice Dm. not convinced he is ready for Serie A though just yet. Time will tell.

31. David - David got to challenge for the LW berth and did ok once he settled in. will push ahead of Tcheco over the summer.

74. Bill - the Brazilian spent the season bedding into the squad but I have high hopes for him in Serie A and I think he COULD be a revelation next year…..

Lorenzo Franzoni - Lorenzo was cover to Martin though he never disgraced himself when called upon. A solid back-up.

88. Tcheco - Brazilian LW was second best to Hushes while he was with us and then found himself edging out David for thr LW berth. Not good enough for Serie A though, I will be looking for a new winger.

22. Christian Kiefer - Signed in January to add a bit more competition in CM, he had a solid start to the club. Another to challenge for a spot next season.

Strikers

9. David Perez - David burst onto the scene in his second season and was a leading force in our promotion push. Hopefully I can keep him over the summer and then we will see what happens.

19. Giuseppe Santurro - Giuseppe struggled to break through this season again and may well depart the club this summer dependant on what incomings there are.

20. Arnaud Mattel - Arnaud got a bit more game time this season and did ok. Still a back up with good potential.

39. Kenneth Skogen - Kenneth seems to be dipping a little and he has a big summer and pre-season ahead to remain at the club.

10. Sandro Hensel - Joined in January with compatriot Kiefer, he did ok when coming off the bench. Probably 1^st choice back up to Perez right now.

Finances

A solid profit made again thanks to our league finish, transfer dealings and our cup run. Looking forward to the cash increase in Serie A, especially as my wage spend has almost doubled over the summer……….

The Future

Pre-Season Targets

Top 6 finish - ACHIEVED

Looking ahead to our debut in Serie A I have mixed emotions. I feel it is going to be really tough to stay up whilst at the same time my cup run has given me some optimism too. If I strengthen well we have a shot at survival which is my only target next season.

FORZA PELORITANI!!

Career History

Season   League        Pos.    Serie C Cup  Coppa Italia  Europe   Achievements
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
2011/12  Serie C2C     3rd       xxx          xxx        N/A     Promotion via playoffs
2012/13  Serie C1B     1st       Semis      2nd Qual    N/A     Champions, Serie C1 Super Cup
2013/14  Serie B       15th       N/A        4th Qual    N/A     none
2014/15  Serie B       5th        N/A        1st round   N/A     none        
2015/16  Serie B       8th        N/A        3rd Qual    N/A     none
2016/17  Serie B       2nd        N/A        Semis       N/A     Promotion

Anti Spiral · August 23, 2011

Congrats and good luck in Serie A :thup:

minisav · August 24, 2011

Great to see that. Lovely cup run too, must have boosted the finances?

toonbalmy87 · August 24, 2011

Too Much too soon

League i am currently in November and it looks like my team is out of its depth really need a striker Winde just isnt doing it in Liga BBVA i have Luis Fabiano i may bring him into the fold when he gets back from injury. at the moment my formation isnt really doing anything if anyone could give me any help it would be much appreciated.

here is my Squads

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/ASingapore/Vsanmarino/ADUniversidaddeOviedoUnivOviedo_B__Players.png

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/ASingapore/Vsanmarino/ADUniversidaddeOviedoUnivOviedo_B__Players-4.png

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/ASingapore/Vsanmarino/ADUniversidaddeOviedoUnivOviedo_B__Players-5.png

and my transfers making money finally

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/ASingapore/Vsanmarino/ADUniversidaddeOviedoTransfers_History-2.png

League table

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/ASingapore/Vsanmarino/LIGABBVAInformation_LeagueTable.png

Current fixtures played

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/ASingapore/Vsanmarino/ADUniversidaddeOviedoUnivOviedo_Fixtures-7.png

minisav · August 24, 2011

I can only suggest going defensive with counter attack ticked trying to play more direct football to try and get through the tough season where you are underdogs.

Lower Leagues Rule · August 24, 2011

Personally toonbalmy, I would say that you're not doing as badly as it looks, you have lost a couple of close ones, but if you take out the results against Sevilla & Malaga, then you have scored 7 and conceded 9, that looks much better for the position you are in. You will probably have to expect being spanked by Barca & Real as well. But the rest of the games I would start with attacking formation (Yes seems counter intuitive), but you should be able to battle against all but the top 6-7 sides and you need to score to be able to beat them. I always go out attacking, depending on the game depends when I pull back into my counter attack/standard tactic or push forward into Overload, but I always spend at least 10mins attempting to get the first goal.

If Top 6 (Barca, Sevilla, At.Madrid, Villareal, Real Madrid, Malaga) score inside 10 then its straight back to counter, if I score against them then its back into counter immediately, otherwise if it stays 0:0 I attack for 10 mins. I go back to attacking 5-10mins before halftime if tied or down by 1, back to counter after HT, then at about 80mins if tied or down by one I go attacking again.

Mid Table Teams (From 7th to 13th or so) - I start attacking, and stay that way for about 20 mins, if they score 1 I stay attacking, if they go up by two then it is counter, If I score against them once, stay attacking to try and get the cushion, if i score twice back into Counter. These games I won't attack just before halftime, but if after 75 mins it is still tied it goes to attacking, if down by one then into Overload.

Relegation Teams (14th to 20th generally) - Start attacking, only stop attacking if up by 2 goals, if down by 2 before halftime Overload comes out (A loss is worth nothing, and if you concede 5-6 more oh well ), In the second half I would be in Overload if down by 1, and attacking if up by less than 2.

You need to pick your battles of course, but doesn't mean you can't steal victories against the big teams by surprising them by coming out and attacking, sometimes they seem to set-up as if you are going to be defensive on them, I don't see the point in starting that way. It is unlikely that a defensive tactic is going to get you a 0:0, but an attacking one will either net you a 1:0 (or 6:5) or it can be a disaster and you end up 6:0 down, but really did you expect to win against Barca?

Just my thoughts on it...

toonbalmy87 · August 24, 2011

cheers min n llr yeah always do the overload to be honest jurado aint pullin his weight i think i stick wit attackin formation asman suggested 4 2 4 might go with it aha

Lower Leagues Rule · August 24, 2011

cheers min n llr yeah always do the overload to be honest jurado aint pullin his weight i think i stick wit attackin formation asman suggested 4 2 4 might go with it aha

I think 4-2-4 is a bit too attacking, I play with a 4-(DM)-2(MC)-3(ST) with Haro, and in my other games generally some similar formations, 4 at back, DM as cover (Sometimes Anchorman), two midfielders (Whether MR/ML or 2MC) and then 3 attacking players...In my career game that is a 4-1-2-2-1 DM-MR/ML-2AM through the middle...

rlipscombe · August 24, 2011

Great to see that. Lovely cup run too, must have boosted the finances?

it was an incredible cup run!! Yeah it did help the finances too. easily made £1m plus from it in prize money and increased attendances...

Anti Spiral · August 24, 2011

Not doing a review this season as we made minimal improvements. Still leaking goals like there's no tomorrow and can't seem to rectify it.

virtex · August 25, 2011

I have read this whole thread during the past few days and have decided I will be starting my own attempt very shortly. I'll be starting in Portugal. I had originally picked Machico but after the disgraceful way they treated LLR, I've put the swervers on them. I am still planning to manage a team from Maderia though.

Having decided on Portugal, I've particularly enjoyed reading the updates from Biscotti. It's been a fantastic story so far and I hope to see that first league title just round the corner.

I will eventually get to putting up my profile and whatnot over the next few days but I just wondered whether anyone could point me in the direction of the logos for the lower league teams in Portugal? Thanks and good luck to everyone who is still doing the challenge.

Lower Leagues Rule · August 25, 2011

I believe I have them from either the Metallic Super Pack (This can be found in Editors hideaway) or Button Super Pack. There should also be kits/logos available from Sort it out, I like to use the SS Kits, there are threads from 08, 09, 10 & 11.

Hope you enjoy Portugal virtex I had some great games there with Fafe & Lusitano de Evora in FM09 & FM10, been an excellent place for me, enjoying my current run in Spain though. Thanks for avoiding Machico, I think thats a good idea, Good luck wherever you end up and welcome to the thread.

Biscotti · August 25, 2011

Welcome, virtex, and thank you for the huge compliment my story is far from done yet, but it's definitely been one of my favourite FM saves of all time.

As for logos, I found the metallic logos pack that LLR mentioned is pretty complete - I've certainly not seen all that many missing from Portugal

minisav · August 25, 2011

Welcome Virtex, good luck with your career and I look forward to seeing your progress

Anti Spiral · August 26, 2011

Arghhhh I'm really struggling to make an impact in Serie A. Looking at our 4th straight bottom half finish. The top teams are just so much better.

minisav · August 26, 2011

Hang on in there AS, you'll pull through eventually. Seen some people in these challenges be stuck in the lower leagues for a good 20 seasons.

berty1978 · August 26, 2011

After failing in Cyprus in the 'other' leagues challenge I have decided to give this another crack. Got the Spanish leagues loaded up and ready to go, just the matter of deciding a team. The easier option is Marbella, however on one reload I got a relatively obscure team, this will probably go horribly wrong.

So Berty Bassett has surprisingly taken over Narón Balompé Piñeiros who are playing in the third tier of Spanish football for the first time in their history. Naron were founded in 1996 and progressed well through the regional divisions before promotion to the 4th tier in 2002/03, their best performance was 3rd in 2007/08 but promotion last season was a major success. The club play in the Estadio Municipal de Río Seco which has a massive capacity of 1,000.

The town itself has a population of 37,712 as of 2009, and is situated in the far north-west in the province of A Coruña. According to wikipedia the town has 'a big theatre, a 16 lane bowling alley and a 12 screen cinema within the Centro Commercial Odeón, one of the two big shopping centres of the town (a new shopping centre is coming up). The centre also has 3 nightlife areas: Carretera de Castilla, Carretera de Castro and A Gándara, the three of them full of pubs, discos and traditional bars and inns', think I'll be ok here.

Lower Leagues Rule · August 26, 2011

Welcome Berty So Shotput at half time?

berty1978 · August 26, 2011

Thanks LLR, just played my first friendly against the U19s, I left the U19s as they were to give them a run out but that meant I had 12 players to pick from, my only sub was a keeper. Stupidly I forgot I had aggressive tackling on and had a player sent off. Luckily I came through 5-0, but had a player go off injured so my sub keeper was playing in defence for the last 10 minutes.

Offering players contracts, they're wanting rediculously low minimum fee clauses, some as low as £2.3k and not negotiating. Due to the fact I am desperate for players I'm going to have to live with it.

Lower Leagues Rule · August 26, 2011

Offering players contracts, they're wanting rediculously low minimum fee clauses, some as low as £2.3k and not negotiating. Due to the fact I am desperate for players I'm going to have to live with it.

I would try and increase the sign on fee and drop the clause out completely...it works sometimes, but if not drop the sign-on fee back to 0, and then leave the minimum release fee in there.

rlipscombe · August 29, 2011

Messina - Serie A - Season 2017/18

Season Preview

So after last season’s promotion we have finally made it to Serie A. it has taken 3 promotions in 6 seasons to get here and I really hope that we don’t undo the work and slip out in the first season. Last time I did the challenge in Italy I was relegated in my first Serie A season and so I have no doubts it is going to be tough.

Pre-season has been about improving my squad, which I thinghas the foundations of being ok, and gelling as a unit so that we are ready for the new season.

To that end, here’s a look at my new signings:

Transfers

Centre Backs

55. Darko Grabar - The 19 year old Croatian international was someone I didn’t feel I could miss out on. Has massive potential and to that end I splashed out £3 million on him. I am relying on him to lead our defensive unit.

Midfielders

11. Ruben Castillo - Peruvian left winger was another I wanted to sign and I got him despite heavy interest. Hopefully Ruben can finally be the answer to our left wing berth following the departure of Hughes.

83. Panagiotis Papandreou - young Greek midfielder is another with 4.5* potential. I have high hopes for thim although it may be tough to break into the starting XI this season.

Roberto Muchetti - young Italian DM signed from Juventus. Has good potential and will push Tobiasen for the DM berth. Another with a big future.

Strikers

19. Samuele Grimaldi - Samuele joins on a £2 million deal from Torino. Samuele is a commanding striker and another I have high hopes for. Hopefully he will push Perez for the starting spot.

Pre-Season Targets

Survival. Plain and simple.

So our first Serie A season is upon us. I am hoping we can carry last seasons Coppa Italia form into the new season and compete at this level. I fear that we might not be up to it however. It will depend on how the newcomers settle in.

FORZA PELORITANI!!

toonbalmy87 · August 29, 2011

AD Universidad de Oviedo are going to Europe

Univ Oviedo

Spanish Liga BBVA

End of Season 2014/15

The Season in Brief

Predicted: 20th

Actual: 12th http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/LIGABBVAInformation_LeagueTable.png

Spanish Cup: Winners

Season Tickets: 4400

Finances: 5.6milllion

Transfers: 2014/15 Transfers IN :£10mil Transfers Out: £11.5mil

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/ADUniversidaddeOviedoTransfers_History-1.png

Squad

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/ADUniversidaddeOviedoUnivOviedo_Players.png

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/ADUniversidaddeOviedoUnivOviedo_Players-2-1.png

The League

Didnt really get off to a flying start but my team finished strongly winning there last 4 games i think the cup run helped bring back the confidence to my squad and we were even starting to push the big guns of the division hopefully we will improve on our position next season and make it into the top10

Best Results: at Getafe 4:1, vs 5:1 Betis

Worst Results: at Barca 6:0, vs Valencia 2:6

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/ADUniversidaddeOviedoUnivOviedo_Fixtures.png

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/ADUniversidaddeOviedoUnivOviedo_Fixtures-2.png

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/ADUniversidaddeOviedoUnivOviedo_Fixtures-3.png

Player Stats :http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/LIGABBVAStats_PlayerStats.png

Team Stats : http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/LIGABBVAStats_TeamStats.png

Spanish Cup

Well what can i possibly say truly immense this cup won all be it i had an easy run up until the semi final where i was playing Real Madrid 1st leg Bernabau 2-0 down half time then pull it back to 2-1 they go 3-1 then couple minutes from FT i score to make it 3-2 then on to the 2nd leg quite even game until the big man pop's up and heads it in on the 89th minute and i go through on away goal's similar scenario in the final go goal down early on then out comes come back starting from the 73rd min and i was going mental

Transfers happening in the summer picked up a couple of beauty's

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/ADUniversidaddeOviedoTransfers_TransferCentre.png

I Picked up the manager of the year award aswell

http://i1138.photobucket.com/albums/n524/toonbalmy87/ArronBalmerNews_Inbox.png

so i have 3 trophys in my cabinet Spanish 2nd division & Liga Adelante And now the Spanish Cup

Twellman24 · August 30, 2011

Algeciras 2019/20

Liga BBVA

Transfers

- As it has been usual in the past few years, a few important players left the club.

- Brazilian CM, who signed for 2.5m E, left for 10.5m; Carles Planas, LB who came from Barcelona on a free, left to Deportivo for 5.5m E. Brittish AM Paul Robinson went back home to Fulham, and at the end of the season, Belgium CB also left, this one to Russia. Almost all of our big sales were from players who wanted to play at better teams.

- We did bring in a few players to replace the ones who left, most of them Spaniards. Young Spanish CB Eduardo Dominguez came from Inter, and so did Isma, Miguelin, and Diego Lopez. The latter came from Villarreal at age 37 (simply because I am from Vila-real and wanted him ). He played two games and conceeded six in the BBVA, playing a little more in Europe...a very costly player for his performance! (cost: 1.4m E).

We also brought Diego Leon, the striker who left a few years back. With the money for it, I felt as the fans would appreciate the comeback of one of their favorites. Roberto Soldado and David Silva also came in as loaned players, but at their age, they were more bench players than anything else.

The signing of the season was, without a doubt, Tanque Alvarez. This Mexican with England as his second nation arrived fdrom Arsenal after seven years there, where he barely played, but still managed to get one international call-up from England. He arrived at age 23, and did wonderfully. You'll see.

The season

We started really well, not losing a game in two months, but the Euro group stages got us too tired (and injured) and we started to drop in form. We did pretty poorly even after the European run was over, but we still managed to get chances for European football repeat by beating Cordoba home...losing the game. WCordoba was fighting to survive in the league on that final match, and they beat us on two Pks. Sure.

- Our attacking football brings loads of goals, but it also hurts us on the defense, no matter how good our defenders are, or how poor the attacking opposition is. Oh well.

Table Graph

Copa del Rey

- We got to the quarterfinals, where Real Madrid kicked us out on a 4-2 agg.

Europa League

- We beat Teplice without much difficulties, qualifying to the group stage, where we were drawn with Liverpool, Le Havre, and Legia Varsovia. We finished second, with our best result in our career to my knowledge, beating Liverpool 3-0 at home and going through to the next stage.

- We beat Sporting Lisbon in the next stage, on an amazing 7-3 aggregate, but fell short to Man City, who killed us 7-2. Still finishing in the top 16 in our first European run was more than I was expecting.

Stats 2

- We definitely need a new GK, that's for sure. Moloto on the CB and Chumak as our LW did superbly, supporting the team's attacking play. Francesco Rocco did amazingly as usual, and Tanque Alvarez signed his best season ever, in his first year in Spain. Diego Leon was a bit disappointing if you ask me.