The Journey Of A Thousand Miles Begins With A Broken Fan Belt And A Flat Tyre.

[B.W.G]

Cheers fella

I'm afraid it's not,this Park Ji-Sung only played for Chungang Universuty before signing for Gangneung City.I did try to sign the former QPR and Man Utd Park Ji-Sung but he wanted £35k p.w which was never going to happen as I could only afford around £3.5k p.w back then

[Mattias333]

Well at least I know I have the fans backing,it's a start.

The backing of all 10 wigan fans then

[cerud]

Great changes since I've last checked up here Good move to Zenit. I find the Russian league frustrating for all the player restrictions, but you have a solid squad.

[JackJCFC]

Very good work at Zenit so far.

[B.W.G]

Mattias333 - I was one of the more successful managers Wigan has ever had so there may have been a few more

cerud - Cheers fella The restrictions are frustrating but buying home grown players is even worse.I bid £4 million for a Russian player worth £1 million but then his club came back wanting £18 million!I thought English players were overpriced but Russia takes it to another level!

JackJCFC - Thanks mate!

[Jason the Yank]

cerud - Cheers fella The restrictions are frustrating but buying home grown players is even worse.I bid £4 million for a Russian player worth £1 million but then his club came back wanting £18 million!I thought English players were overpriced but Russia takes it to another level!

It's because of all that oil money sloshing around.

[B.W.G]

Never actually thought of it like that

[B.W.G]

Zenit St.Petersburg - Premier Division - November/December - 2018

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

We improved massively in terms of defence which is quite strange as I didn't change my tactics but it's good to see a large amount of clean sheets.We've been absolutely brilliant at domestic level in the last couple of months and we have a 12 point lead with ten points to go so we are in a very strong position.The 3-0 victory over rivals CSKA Moscow was the highlight,the highlight of the league is not us but Anji struggling!In Europe,we qualified from the group in November after beating Espanyol and Porto,the victory over Porto actually cemented 1st place in the group.PSG were the first team to beat us but it was very controversial as they were rewarded a penalty even though my defender won the ball!For the Knockout Stages,we seem to have a kinder draw.Playing Valencia will certainly be easier then facing Real Madrid,Barcelona,Tottenham,Man Utd or Chelsea!

We have a break now for Winter so I will try and arrange some friendlies to keep the match fitness up.Our next game will be in February where we will be away to Valencia for the first leg of the 1st Knockout Round.For the transfer window,I will be trying to poach some Russian youngsters to boost the home grown numbers.

[AcidBurn]

Easy easy easy!

Brilliant stuff, a decent draw in Europe as well considering the other sides you could have faced. Good luck.

[B.W.G]

Cheers fella

I'm actually quite surprised how easy it has been,I was expecting Rubin,CSKA and Spartak Moscow as well as Anji to pose more of a threat.I think drawing Valencia could work out well,the later stages could see fixture pile ups for English and Spanish teams whereas our fixture list will be pretty empty by around the Quarter Finals.

[JackJCFC]

How come Anji are doing so badly? Do they not have money anymore?

[B.W.G]

They still have the money as they are listed as rich.I'm going with a combo of an incompetent manager who won't sign anyone and has a ageing squad at his disposal.There first team squad has four players under 27 while they have seven first XI players over 30!

In transfer related news,I finally got one of my long term targets I identified when I was Wigan manager!

He cost me €7.5 million and is already worth more then that!I wanted him when he was at Rostov,he had a relegation clause of €425k but he could never get a work permit.I'm glad I got him now as PSG and Man City were sniffing around and he counts towards the home grown rule!

[DazRTaylor]

Just read through the entire thread from start to finish.

Excellent effort in Korea. I find the discrepency between size of clubs in those nations huge, so you did terrific taking a tiny club so far.

As for Wigan, as someone born in North Shields, it pleased me no end to see Sunderland fail (yet again) at your expense in the playoff final. I know you have left, but you have left a squad capable of maintaining a top ten finish for years to come.

In Russia, you will win the league annually until you leave. The crunch will be the Champions League and how far you can take them. My guess will be semi final but Russian clubs just don't have the depth unfortunately.

Overall a fantastic read and an even better career! KUTGW!!!

[B.W.G]

Cheers mate

Considering your dislike for Sunderland,you'll be pleased to know that this season,they are 24th in the Championship after 30 games and are 20 points away from safety!

I also agree with your assessment on the lack of depth which for me is work in progress at the moment as I'm working on the home grown side of things first before working on the foreign side,we will have a lot of depth domestically next season but depth for Europe is a 2-3 season objective.

[DazRTaylor]

considering your dislike for sunderland,you'll be pleased to know that this season,they are 24th in the championship after 30 games and are 20 points away from safety!

:lol: :lol:

[AK22]

Absolutely strolling it! Doing excellently in Europe too

[B.W.G]

Cheers mate I feel I've been a bit harsh at times with expecting better but I don't think there's nothing wrong with wanting to be the best!

[cerud]

Sergey looks like a great pick up! And homegrown too

[deltablue]

Poor Sunderland

[SRL88]

Awwwwwww Sunderland

[B.W.G]

cerud - He's made a pretty good start as well,I threw him in the deep end as he made his debut against Valencia in the CL,his value has also shot up another €500k so he is worth €11.25 million!

deltablue and SRL88 - They are doomed to League 1 next season,38 games,18 points and 23 points away from safety,I think they are done for next game!

[noikeee]

The Russian league is as good as won already IMO, massive advantage and everyone else seems to enjoy losing points to each other.

Agreed with the guy who said the CL is the actual challenge for your team. Valencia are hardly easy but definitely a kind draw - I think you're going to the quarter-finals. Not sure anyone here has ever won a CL with a Russian club (the only I can remember from Eastern Europe is someone doing it with Steaua from Romania - might have been yourself even?), but I think you're up to that challenge, it's only a question of how many seasons to clinch it. No pressure.

[B.W.G]

I think your right with the assessment,we are 13 points ahead with 8 games left so it will take an enormous **** up from ourselves to lose the title.

We were lucky to draw 2-2 in the first leg with Valencia but we showed superior finishing as we won the second leg 4-1 to give us a 6-3 victory.I won the CL with CS Aerostar Bacău in FM11 so you were close

I'll be honest with the teams left in,we could even make the final as there are only two really big teams left in the competition,those are Barcelona and Man City who face each other in quarter finals!PSG are left in but I know we can beat them like we did in the group stages!

[B.W.G]

Zenit St.Petersburg - Premier Division - February/March - 2019

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

I'm not going to count the friendlies as they were there for regaining match fitness.Valencia was our only competitive game in February and a late equalizer gave us an undeserved draw and gave us away goal advantage,the scoreline for the 2nd leg suggest we demolished them but it was a lot close than it suggested but our superior finishing won us the game.The Quarter Finals sees us face P.S.G again and I know we can beat them but they are also the only team to beat us competitively this season.The potential Semi-Finals sees the easier of the ties as there are no Barcelona,Man City or Tottenham involved!The league is almost a certainty but we need to finish the job off in style as we collected 7 points from 9 which now gives us a 13 point lead going into April.The only other thing to note was getting an offer from Rangers who sacked their manager for being 2nd in the SPL!

End of the season is now here and we still have quite a few fixtures left to play.At the moment we have 11 games left to play at minimum,if we were to go all the way in the competitions then we will have 16 games to play so that will really test the depth of our squad.I'm also praying Shinnik get relegated as they have a Russian striker I want who has a relegation release clause.I think it's time to go out with a bang!

[JackJCFC]

Good work to still be unbeaten in the league. Looks like you've had a bit of luck in the CL draw, good luck!

[Mattias333]

Wigan Athletic - Premier League - October and November 2016

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

A tale of two months,October was an absolute disaster where we picked up one point in the game against Reading in which we blew a 3-1 lead.The less said about October,the better.November was a brilliant month which saw us go the month unbeaten with three wins and three draws which saw us pull away from the relegation zone.Was pretty annoyed with the game against Stoke as we were 3-0 up and they got it back to 3-3!The games against West Ham and Norwich were really pleasing,especially the game against Norwich as they have players such as Podolski playing for them.

December is a pretty mixed month,we have games against the likes of West Brom,Middlesbrough and Fulham which are all winnable,then we face the likes of Newcastle,Chelsea and Man Utd to face!January is another mixed month as we have difficult games against Man City,Liverpool and Everton but then we have games such as Aston Villa and Birmingham.We also have the transfer window and I am hoping to persuade for the board for more funds as I have spotted two hot prospects for defence and a pretty amazing goalkeeper who could be first team now!My main focus will be gathering the points to help with survival as I am not safe by any means.

Hang on a second!!! Did I just read that correctly??? Norwich City have Podolski??? How old is he now on your save and who else do they have? As a home and away season ticket holder of Norwich I was stunned reading this. Not our style at all signing an established international of a major nation lol!

[B.W.G]

JackJCFC - Cheers fella I think a bit of luck is quite an understatement but with the way this CL has gone who knows what will happen.Roma knocked out Chelsea and Celtic took out Juventus!

Mattias333 - Yes you read that correctly,Norwich signed Lukas Podolski in 2015/16 for £1.2 million!He's now 33 as I'm in 18/19 and not 16/17 but unfortunately Norwich are top of the Championship!Other notable signings have included Thomas Ince (Now an England international!),Ruben Rochina (later sold to Chelsea for £21 million!),Neal Eardley (Welsh international,now at Roma),Lucas Viatri,James Mclean and two Swiss internationals in Ricardo Rodiguez and Michel Morganella!

[B.W.G]

Zenit St.Petersburg - Premier Division - April/May - 2019

Fixtures

League Table

Manager's Thoughts

That was the perfect end to the perfect season,to walk out with a treble was phenomenal.We had a few close calls such as the 5-4 in the Russian semi-final and the final against Lokomotiv Moscow where we were 2-0 down!We also continued our run of not being able to win in France as P.S.G beat us again and we drew with Marseille but they couldn't do anything when we are at home.The two highlights were the 6-1 win over Mordovia as we had 80% possession and of course the 4-0 win in the final where we showed better finishing than Barcelona,I may have had some luck with the draw but I can't deny that we didn't deserve to win it with the way we finished.I also think I will never be welcomed in Moscow as we knocked out CSKA,Spartak and Lokomotiv Moscow successively on our way to winning the Russia Cup.

[EvilDave]

The treble in your first full season, CL winners from Russia (even if it is Gazprom-Zenit), an unbeaten league campaign - amazing season! Congratulations on a great campaign, are you intending to stick around in St Petersburg or are you eyeing up jobs elsewhere? Hard to imagine how you can improve on that really...

[noikeee]

Fantastic season, there's nothing else to say really. 4-0 over Barça in the final!!

[Cardiovascular]

Wow what a season!! Phenomenal victory over Barca especially! What are your plans now then?

[B.W.G]

EvilDave - Cheers fella I'm going to stay for another season but keep my options open to see what comes available during the season,I also want a more difficult draw as this season's CL was full of surprises!

noikeee - Thanks mate I was just as shocked as you are,they had more possession but we showed them how to finish.We converted 40% of our shots which is quite high and we restricted Barcelona to 4 shots!

Cardiomolester - Cheers fella It was a shock as I couldn't believe what was happening.I want another shot at the CL as I want to face the harder teams as we did luck out on the draw last season but I can only beat what is in front of us.Other then that I will be keeping my options open to see what comes available.

[deltablue]

Incredible season!

[B.W.G]

Cheers fella I put most of it down to a combination of Hulk,Djuric and Djordjevic for attacking wise as they were a pain for anyone.

[B.W.G]

Zenit St.Petersburg - Premier Division - End of Season - 2018/19

2018/19 Transfers

Wasn't really much action as three left the club permanently (Danny retired from football) and two left on loan to help get first team experience.Four players came in as I looked to strengthen the squad,all four have been bargains and I can sell each for a lot of profit.Cox will eventually replace Cristico while Djuric and Vinogradov have been on my radar since I was Wigan manager and I have finally got both!Djuric can play AMR and ST so could eventually replace Hulk and Vinogradov is a home grown player who is brilliant and is already worth nearly double what I paid for him!Expecting big things from the incomings.

Competitions

Premier Division

League Table

Well that was easier than expected,due to the other teams dropping points left,right and centre to other teams,we managed to steam roll our way to the title as we finished unbeaten and 18 points ahead of second place which is remarkable as there are only 30 games to play in the league!We are also unbeaten in 40 league games so I have never tasted defeat in the league which is something I want to keep going.The two shocking things this season were Krasnodar in second place and Anji only just finishing outside the relegation playoff places!I wanted Shinnik to get relegated to take two of their players cheaply but they got 14th on the last day of the season and won their playoff which is rather annoying for me!

Champions League

Winners

I cannot believe this actually happened.We topped our group containing Espanyol,Porto and PSG (now 7 time successive Ligue 1 winners!) in which we dropped 5 points in total.The 1st Knockout Round was kinder towards us as we drew Valencia,we barely escaped with a 2-2 draw in the 1st leg but they had no answer to our finishing as we won 4-1 in the 2nd leg to clinch a 6-3 agg victory.The Quarter Finals saw us against PSG again,we lost 1-0 in the first leg thanks to an offside goal but we overturned the score as we won the second leg 2-0 in which we were helped with Pastore getting sent off for PSG as we stole a 2-1 agg win.The semi-final saw us draw another French side in Marseille,again we failed to win in France as we drew 1-1 in the first leg but they had no answer to our set pieces in the second leg as we won 2-0 to give us a 3-1 agg victory and send us to the final.I was actually speechless for the final,we beat Barcelona 4-0 and 80% of the shots on target went in,I'm actually stunned by this.The performance was the best I had seen from us all season in Europe and well deserved as we were never really outclassed.

Russian Cup

Winners

If there is one thing I learnt from this competition,it's that I will not be welcome in Moscow for a very long time!This is another competition where we actually played badly and it was hard to motivate the players.We barley got through Petrotrest and Krylja Sovetov in the 5th and 6th rounds which was quite annoying as I know we can play better than we did.We faced CSKA Moscow in the quarter finals and again we played poorly and again we won as we won 2-1 in extra time.The semi-final was against Spartak Moscow an I think both of us forgot our defences as we won 5-4,the first half finished 5-3 so there was only one goal in the second half,definitely a game for the neutrals.The final against Lokomotiv Moscow was almost a disaster as we were 2-0 down at one point but we clawed it back and won on penalties to my relief.Was a competition that I wasn't happy with due to the performances of the players.

Super Cup

Winners

We won it but we made a meal out of it which was not acceptable as we should have easily had this won in normal time.A win playing badly can be considered a blessing but in this case I blew my top after the whistle went!

Player,Stats and Awards

Best XI 18/19 - Overall Best XI

A quick look at the Player's Statistics for the season.

Top Scorer - Luka Djordjevic - 26

This is rather unique as Djordjevic actually scored more goals than the number of games he started!He made 38 appearances and scored 26 appearances but 15 of those appearances are where he came on as a sub!The 26 goals he scored set a new club record which was previously held jointly by Hulk and Alexandr Kherzhakov (23 goals each!).He may not be one of the best in the world but he certainly knows where the net is which is the most important thing.Hopefully he can do the same next season.

Most Assists - Hulk - 28

He was most certainly incredible last season!He played 45 times,scored 15 and provided 28 assists (was a new club record!) and averaged at 7.53 for the season which is absolutely brilliant and all this came from the AML position.He probably would have scored more if he didn't miss a few penalties so even with that it shows how well he did.For his performances,he won Player of the Year,Manager's Select Winner and Fans Player of the Year.What a season!

My Player of the Season - Claudio Jose

He was brilliant at the back and was often one of the first picks for the team as he has become an essential part of the team who will be hard to replace.He played 44 times last season and even popped up with 3 vital goals,what stood out for me though was his consistency for brilliant performances as he averaged at 7.51 from his performances which is outstanding and I hope he can continue to do it.

Honourable Mention - Dusan Djuric

Deserves a mention as he performed brilliantly in his first season in Russia.He is probably one of the best bits of business I will perform in FM13 as I picked him up on a free transfer,he played 32 times and scored 18 goals while providing 8 assists which is a brilliant return considering he missed two months of action through injury.Hope for more of the same off him in the future.

Manager's Thoughts

I have to be honest,that season even surpassed my expectations,to go the domestic season unbeaten and beat Barcelona in the Champions League final even blew my mind.I was expecting to be challenging for the Champions League next season as we would have a better depth to the team with bringing in more home grown players so I could rest the foreign players for the CL games and other important games.I've actually impressed the board and fans and I'm now listed as a favoured personnel along with Alexandr Kerzhakov,Danny and Hulk!(I'm also still listed as favoured personnel at Gangneung City.).

I will still be here next season as I need to add the Euro Super Cup and the Club World Cup trophies to the collection.I also want another shot at the Champions League trophy as I feel we luck out with the draw and somehow avoided the big guns three times!Other than that,I will be looking to see what comes available throughout the season but I would like a challenge at some point whether it is winning the African CL,restoring a fallen giant or overthrowing a runaway team.With having a contract till June 2021,I won't be signing another contract and I will more than likely resign at the end of 19/20 season.

Season       Club          Division       Country      League       Cup       Continental    Avg.Att       Notes
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2012    Gangneung City    N-League       S.Korea       4th       3rd Rnd        N/A          1618     Playoff Defeat!
2013    Gangneung City    N-League       S.Korea       1st         Q.F          N/A          3540     Playoff Vitors!
2014    Gangneung City    K-League       S.Korea       4th       WINNERS        N/A          3707     FA Cup Winners!
2015    Gangneung City    K-League       S.Korea       3rd       WINNERS      WINNERS        4233     Left 18/11/15
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2015/16   Wigan Ath.     Championship     England       5th       6th Rnd        N/A         13218     Playoff Winners!
2016/17   Wigan Ath.      Premiership     England       8th      Runners Up      N/A         19551     Top half finish.
2017/18   Wigan Ath.      Premiership     England       5th*      3rd Rnd*       N/A         17379     Left in Dec 17
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2017/18    Zenit        Prem.Division     Russia        1st       5th Rnd     Group Stage    42445     League Winners!
2018/19    Zenit        Prem.Division     Russia        1st       WINNERS      WINNERS       50024      Won Treble!

[AK22]

Most excellent job all round. Well done!

[withnail316]

Great work, well done.

[JackJCFC]

Very impressive season. Let's hope it can continue in your last season at the club!

[B.W.G]

Cheers Guys Can't believe what we actually pulled off in my first full season.The bad news is that we could be losing Raul Gonzalez as the board accepted bids of £41 million from Man Utd and £39.5 million from Real Madrid!

[roganp]

Excellent stuff B.W.G, to do the treble in your first full season is a fantastic achievement . It's a shame the board are trying to sell Raul Gonzalez over your head, but if he does go it looks like you will be getting a pretty decent sum of cash for him.

[deltablue]

Good money at least. Still done amazingly well in Russia.

[DodgeeD]

Great success in Russia!! I guess it was the right move after all

Good luck with adding to the trophy haul next season. It will be interesting to see what opportunities arise now.

[AcidBurn]

Holy crap!!!!!!! You won the Champions League not only won it but won it in style!

It'll be very interesting to see what happens next in this save.

[B.W.G]

roganp - Cheers mate It was a shame but we got £39.5 million for him off Real Madrid as he accepted their offer,the good news was it was straight up cash.

deltablue - Cheers fella I don't mind as it has freed up some funds to get a couple of quality players in for midfield.

DodgeeD - Thanks mate!I suppose so,guess I was helped domestically by no one wanting to stay unbeaten.To be fair I will not be surprised if Bayern Munich offered me the job,they struggled to get top 4 last season as Dortmund won their 7th consecutive title so I'm guessing Bayern are no longer the biggest team in Germany!

Acidburn - Cheers fella I don't think I will have another win over Barcelona like that though!I would like to manage in France at some point just to see if I can put a stop to PSG winning the league every season as they also sit on 7 consecutive titles.It's also tempting to see if I can get Sunderland back in the Premier League.

[B.W.G]

Zenit St.Petersburg - Premier Division - Pre-Season - 2019/20

Club Information - Facilities - Boardroom Overview - Expectations - Finances

Pre-Season Transfers

Three players out on loan to get first team action,they should come back better than ever,especially Carter who will be playing at Inter Milan.Faizulin was an experienced head but he didn't want to stay so I let him go.As for Gonzalez,I didn't want to sell but the board did so I am grateful for £39.5 million.Not many incomings,Khoroltsev and Danilov are for back up reasons to help with homegrown rules.Yarkovoy is one for the future but because he was at a rival club,I had to pay more than I wanted to but it should be a bargain in the future if he fulfills his 4.5* PA.Still got quite a bit of budget left so should be able to get another couple of players in.

Pre-Season Fixtures

Only a few fixtures arraged but that was to get match fitness back into the side as well as keep morale high ready for the Supercup match against Krasnodar on 13th July.

The Team

Tactics - Team Report

Key Players

Domenico Criscito - DLC,WB/ML

Performed brilliantly for us last season and averaged at 7.22 from 44 appearances.I will need him to carry on for at least this season in which I am confident he can do so.He only needs to last this season then Mario Cox will be able to takeover from him.Always there when we needed him in the big games and his experience is invaluable to us,there's no signs of decline yet so that is encouraging.

Artem Gus'kov - DC.DM.MC

Due to Gonzalez's departure,Gus'Kov will have to step up but I am more than confident that he will be able to do so.His advantage from my point of view is his versatility as that means I can play in DC,DM and MC so it's useful as I can change to way we play during the game.I will more than likely start Gus'Kov in MC due to Vinogradov being our DM.He still has room to improve which is good news for us as I won't be selling him.

Hulk - AMRL,ST

After his performances last season,it was impossible not to have him featured on the key players list.He maybe another year older but if he plays like last season then I will have very little problems with him with exception to injuries and suspensions.His physicals may have started dropping but they are still ridiculous and his mentals are improving which will be useful with tutoring some youngsters.Hopefully he will help my spell as Zenit manager finish with a bang.

Luka Djordjevic - ST

Last seasons top scorer who had the impressive stat of scoring more goals than starting games which is the first time it has happened with me.He is a brilliant advanced forward but can also work as a lone striker with support off the wings.If he can get close to the tally he achieved last season than we should have some success this season.

One to Watch

Mario Cox - DLC

Still in my one to watch list but has improved massively in the last season with a lot of thanks going to Cristico for tutoring him.He actually made 23 appearances last season including the CL final against Barcelona in which he started.The scary thing for me though is that his CA is only rated at 2* and having a PA of 4* shows that he still has a lot of developing to do but I am confident first team action will help with that.

Manager's Thoughts

I wanted to get things done during pre-season but due to other teams interfering and bidding for players that I am in contract talks with as delayed things slightly but I am still confident I can get them done.I didn't want to lose Gonzalez but for £39.5 million,I can see why they accepted it straight away and I get some money to strengthen.I still feel we're not in a good financial position to ask for facility upgrades even if we do have over £50 million in the bank.I didn't really need to do much and I've put the club in a good position for the future.The only thing I have failed in is a goalkeeper as there are no real talented ones bar exception to Ogasawara at Wigan who I enquired about and got a price of £46 million in return!

Time to go out with a bang in my last season in charge of Zenit.

[B.W.G]

Gonzalez left for £39.5 million.I've got his replacement in the shape of Arnaldo who cost me £9.25 thanks to foreign release clause

He still has room to improve which is very scary!

[Jason the Yank]

How does a Brazilian have only 6 for flair?

[B.W.G]

I have no idea,he has one of the lowest flair ratings in the Brazilian national team,the only players with lower flair are the three goalkeepers and a regen who plays at centre back.Thank god I don't need him to do anything fancy

[JackJCFC]

Looks like a class replacement, lets hope you can defend your CL!

[B.W.G]

I think the opposition may become a little scared of him,he's played four games and injured two opposition players I hope so too,I'm only a few days away from finding out our group for the CL.