This Saint Gonna Be Easy: Ch. V - Endgame

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

11 hours ago, john1 said:

Epic start to the season  

Cheers! 

Hopefully we can keep it up.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

Lovely stuff. 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

October Update:

I don't care about the Carabao Cup but the loss to Arsenal was annoying. All good other than that though. Properly stomped on Basel and Bournemouth.

Juventus: G. Leon Bailey, Patrik Nyman  A. Leon Bailey, Patrik Nyman

We followed up on our bright start to the Champions League with a narrow win over Juventus. Leon Bailey continued his exceptional form this season by ashing home the first after 14 minutes. We handed them their equaliser on 33' after giving away a needless penalty which Taras Stepanenko converted. Our winner came shortly after that when Bailey slipped Nyman in on goal and he buried it on 38'. Very good start to a tough group.

Huddersfield: G. Maicon (2), Alejandro Pozo  A. Fabio Martins (2), Patrik Nyman

We controlled this one from the off and deserved the win thoroughly. It came at a cost though, Claud Adjapong got injured for a few weeks. Maicon gave us the lead on 37' after a lovely pass from Nyman. It took us a while to break them down after that and we didn't get our second until 73' when Maicon latched onto Martins' cross to double our advantage. The third came through Pozo when he tapped in Martins' low ball into the box. Lewis Baker got them a 91st minute consolation goal to ruin our clean sheet but it was a good performance.

Arsenal: 

Poor. They controlled the whole game and we were lethargic going forward and defending as it seemed the fixture list was catching up on our players. Reiss Nelson got their goal which was a long time coming on 52' after we failed to deal with their swift attack. Luke Shaw made the possibility of a win sink much lower when he got sent off on 57'. The rest of the game was dull and neither side threatened the other. 

Basel: G. Leon Bailey (4), Cristian Salerno  A. Harry Winks (2), Patrik Nyman, Alejandro Pozo, Leon Bailey

We sure bounced back in style though! We absolutely crushed Basel with Leon Bailey leading the rout and earning a 10.0 rating. He got his first on 12' after a short pass from Winks, doing most of the work and smashing it past the keeper. His second came just five minutes afterwards when he got on the end of Pozo's cross to double his and our tally. He got his hat trick on 40' when Winks found him just inside the box after a corner was cleared. He got his fourth and final goal on 75' after getting on the end of an incisive pass from Nyman. He set up Salerno for the fifth on 78' and he gladly buried it for 5-0. Brilliant performance.

Bournemouth: G. Harry Winks, Alejandro Pozo, Cristian Salerno, Axel Tuanzebe  A. Leon Bailey, Alejandro Pozo, Fabio Martins

Believe it or not, despite the scoreline, we didn't score at all in the first half! We were actually fairly poor for the opening 45 minutes and couldn't create anything meaningful at all, let alone score. Our first came on 49' when Winks smashed it into the bottom corner from 25 yards after his initial shot was blocked. Once the first went in we were rampant. We scored the second on 53' when Pozo knocked in Bailey's cross. We notched the third when Salerno got what I think is his first West Ham league goal on 77' after a brilliant counter attack saw Pozo play him in on goal. The cherry on top (pun slightly intended) happened on 81' when Tuanzebe nodded in Martins'corner. Great display.

Liverpool: G. Alexey Miranchuk  A. Jean-Claude Jacquin

Meh, it's the Carabao Cup. Jonker takes the blame for this one btw. I threw out the second string for this one while Liverpool went with a full-strenth XI. Fabricio Bustos was smart enough to score an own goal on 44' to send us into half time a goal down. We leveled just after half time when Miranchuk blasted home after Jacquin's short pass. As it looked like the game would go to extra time, their wonderkid striker Josh Phillips (basically the English Maicon) snatched the winner on 87'. Not gonna lie, seeing that we conceded such a late goal still hurt, despite the competition.

 

Key Points:

• Last season was Maicon's season. I think this could be Bailey's season.

• We're as solid as ever on the continent and also quite consistent in the league this season. That loss to Arsenal hurt though, especially given we beat them away last season.

• Salerno has impressed me a lot with the small few games I've given him. I'll probably look to start him more, particularly in the Champions League.

• We need to get a little more consistent at the back. We're good most of the time but we're prone to conceding needless goals and it costs us points sometimes.

League Table:

We've let our lead at the top slip but I'm not concerned. It's only one point and we're also only nine games in. Liverpool are emerging as genuine relegation candidates while City are also falling behind, though not nearly as badly. United have bounced back from last season's disappointment while Chelsea and Tottenham are our main title contenders early on. Southampton are just boringly mid-table.

All good here. 3 from 3 and we're looking good to qualify.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

To: The staff of HMP Wakefield

From: Warden Gentles

Subject: LOL

That prison gang that Griffiths and co have started? They've taken to calling themselves “The Iron Fist”. What a s*** name. It's also not particularly fitting given their success - or lack thereof - in running the prison. Their power struggle lasted just under two weeks. I don't know whether it was the fault of Savage, Wilde etc not being tough enough or whether Pemberton and Griffiths failed to plan properly. Either way, they got squashed by the main prison gang. You know the one. Lads with the tattoos of the four interlocking triangles. They were all injured, Francis particularly so. Safe to say there won't be too much further activity from them.

Cheers,

Warden Gentles

[john1]

Good start in Champions League  

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

15 hours ago, john1 said:

Good start in Champions League  

Cheers! 

Board's expectations are to reach the quarter finals so if we can top the group and get an easy RO16 draw, we'll be fine.

Edited April 11, 2018 by Fer Fuchs Ake
And → an

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

I'm going to be gone for the next few days and won't be able to play FM/update my thread. So when you see this thread going quiet (probably until Monday) it doesn't mean I've abandoned it or lost interest, I'm just gone temporarily.

In the meantime, enjoy a brief GIF compilation of Gabbiadini's time at Southampton under King's tenure.

[john1]

Enjoy your few days away  

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

On 11/04/2018 at 22:10, john1 said:

Enjoy your few days away  

Thanks a lot mate, I certainly did. I'm back now though and normal service will resume tomorrow. I come back bearing some good results...

[dazp1919]

Finally caught up with this. Cracking read and love the story undertones         included. KUTGW 

 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

5 hours ago, dazp1919 said:

Finally caught up with this. Cracking read and love the story undertones         included. KUTGW 

 

Cheers mate! 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

November Update:

Perfect month. Salerno is really beginning to integrate and rotate well with Maicon whilst Pozo, Nyman and Bailey are continuing their solid form. 

Leicester: G. Leon Bailey, Maicon  A. Maicon, Leon Bailey

We kicked off the month with a convincing win over Leicester. We controlled the game early on and we're eventually rewarded for our pressure. Maicon slipped Bailey in on goal and he smashed it in at the near post on 35' to give us the lead. We took our foot off the gas after that and didn't threaten them that much until late in the second half. Our second came on 72' when Maicon volleyed Bailey's cross into the back of the net. Good performance and a deserved win.

Basel: G. Cristian Salerno (3), Tin Jedvaj, Harry Winks, Maicon   A. Luke Shaw, Leon Bailey, José Tavares (2), Alejandro Pozo

We absolutely destroyed Basel in what was a brilliant match that confirmed our qualification from the group. Basel were very Fawlty at the back and we got our first on 36' when Salerno got on the end of Tavares' through ball and slotted home. The rest of the goals came in a quick second half onslaught. Tin Jedvaj nodded in Pozo's corner on 58' before Salerno notched his second a minute later from Leon Bailey's cross. Salerno rounded off his hat trick on 61' after a beautiful pass from Tavares. Harry Winks got the fifth on 64' after belting in a long range effort on the rebound. Lastly, Maicon buried Luke Shaw's cross to make it six on 78'. An absolutely tremendous performance. 

Wolves: G. Patrik Nyman (2), Leon Bailey  A. Alejandro Pozo (2), Maicon

We followed our demolition of Basel with a slightly unconvincing win, though an inspired comeback over Wolves. Dominic Solanke gave them the lead after just 11 minutes after a swift counter attack. A poorly cleared cross saw Theo Bongonda get their second on 35'. Our lads got the hairdryer treatment at half time and scored immediately after that when Nyman buried Pozo's cross to pull one back. Bailey got our second on 49' after he tapped in Pozo's cross at the back post. We completed the comeback on 58' when Patrik Nyman added another after a nice ball from Maicon. We held out for the rest of the game and got our three points. I'm happy with the comeback but concerned that we were two down in the first place.

Everton: G. Maicon (3)  A. Harry Winks, Axel Tuanzebe, Claud Adjapong

We continued our good run into the game against Everton with two late goals securing the win. The first half was dismally boring and nothing of note happened. Maicon gave us the lead on 48' after Tuanzebe nodded down a corner got him to knock in. Sandro pulled them level on 53' after a long ball over the top caught us out. We looked set to slump to a draw until the 83rd minute when Winks played a short pass to Maicon who dribbled the rest of the way before smashing home a lovely finish. We put the cherry on top on 90+3' when Maicon tapped in Adjapong's cross for 3-1. A good win to keep the momentum going.

Dortmund: G. Leon Bailey, Patrik Nyman, Cristian Salerno  A. Cristian Salerno, Alejandro Pozo, Leon Bailey

We consolidated top spot in our group with a pleasing win at the Signal Iduna Park. We started very well and got the lead after just 8 minutes when Bailey got on the end of Salerno's through ball. We doubled our tally on 31' when Patrik Nyman slotted home after Bailey pulled it back for him in the box. Josip Brekalo gave Dortmund a glimmer of hope on 75' when he pounced on an incisive pass into the box. We killed the game off though on 90+3' when Salerno converted Bailey's cross and made it three on the night. Very good display.

 

Key Points: 

• Salerno is really proving himself as a Champions League player. He's been decent in the league too though it's mainly Maicon who plays there. 

• We're conceding some sloppy goals. When you're able to score a good few it doesn't matter as much but we won't make comebacks like the one against Wolves every game. We need to address this.

• With the way he's playing, I'd genuinely day Bailey is as important to us this season as Maicon.

• Adilson has been a solid deputy from off the bench and when rotating with Tuanzebe/Jedvaj if they're tired. It's great to see such a young player seem so comfortable.

League Table:

We've restored our position at the top though the margin is slender. Southampton are dead centre and are hopelessly mediocre. Stoke continue their oddly good run of form, aided largely by Berahino and my former main man, Luciano Vietto. Liverpool continue to flounder in the bottom half.

Brilliant stuff here. First place is confirmed which will hopefully lead to easier RO16 draw like last year. Juve and Dortmund are neck and neck for that second place spit with the latter expected to go through as they face Basel on the final day. Basel, obviously, have struggled massively with a -19 goal difference (we contributed -11 to that GD).

Annnnnd...

Lovely stuff. Well deserved too. 

 

 

 

 

 

[john1]

Cracking month  

[oriole01]

Brilliant season so far, you'll have to be favorites to repeat the league and CL.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

18 hours ago, john1 said:

Cracking month  

Cheers! Couldn't have asked for more. Hopefully we carry this form into December.

18 hours ago, oriole01 said:

Brilliant season so far, you'll have to be favorites to repeat the league and CL.

Thanks mate. I'd say we're favourites for the league alright, though Chelsea and Spurs will be hot on our tails. I'm not so sure about the CL, we're definitely up there but the likes of Barca, Real, PSG and Monaco are just as likely to win.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

The games against Dortmund were amongst the strangest Michael King had played. Particularly the away one. Why? Because everyone, from the fans to the players to the manager, was bald. Michael had asked Andries about it as he'd managed in Germany before. He'd no idea either. “Maybe it's just the fashion in Dortmund”, he'd suggested. Michael had been mystified. You'd think at least one fan or player would've had hair but no. Maybe it's just how Germany does things. Though he couldn't remember Bayern doing it last season.

Aside from that bewilderment, it had had been a great month but Michael was beginning to feel the pressure. They were no longer the plucky underdogs. People had expectations now, the fans had expectations. They were defending champions of the Premier League and Champions League. The board's standards had increased and they were being much more heavily scrutinized by the media. The fans were thirsty for more. And Michael wanted to deliver it. But he'd enjoyed it far more when, only a season ago, winning the league or Champions League was considered highly improbable. He wasn't so sure he liked working under pressure. But he'd have to get used to it. Because West Ham were a big club now.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

My chairman is notoriously stingy and that's something that's been mentioned before in this thread. He rarely increases my budgets, he always has to be persuaded to improve facilities and are usually reluctant to get affiliates. So you can imagine my surprise when they requested a meeting to discuss the possibility of them increasing the transfer budget (previously £21M following my summer spending). 

I expected an increase of about £20M at most so you can imagine my surprise when...

That's only £4M less than what's in our entire balance! I don't even know if I'll spend any in January. We have a striker already coming in on the cheap who I'll show in January who I bought before this injection of money. The squad depth is good everywhere. There's only two places in slightly concerned about.

CM/CAM: Our squad depth here is great but I want Patrik Nyman on a permanent deal. However, to sign him I'll have to unsettle him and I don't want to **** with his morale while he's at our club. I'll have to save that for the summer.

Wings: We'll be selling Antonio in January so we'll have four wingers this season. Now that would be fine but one of them (Jacquin) is only on loan. I'll need a permanent winger but there's probably no point in signing one while we've Jacquin here. 

The rest of our squad is fine for depth. We may need a new BWM over the summer depending on how Obiang progresses (he's 31 now so if he declines, we may need to replace him. Probably not though). So for that reason, I may not spend anything in January and just save it all for summer where there'll be some big money signings made.

Edited April 18, 2018 by Fer Fuchs Ake

[john1]

Massive budget  Any decent regens in U's18 you could promote?

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

17 hours ago, john1 said:

Massive budget  Any decent regens in U's18 you could promote?

Well there's Cristobal who I got in my intake last season. He's a massive prospect but I don't think he's ready for first team football. He will be in a year or two I'd say. There's two young prospects (both 18) coming in January who'll be instantly promoted to the first team. There's one or two others who I could promote but they'd only be bit part players. 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

December Update (First Half):

So for the past while I've been trying to do all of my updates in one go instead of doing it in two parts. However, for December I need to do it in two parts because we've so many matches and we've the Club World Cup final which is going to be separate. Key points and the table will come for the second half update.

Stoke: G. Alejandro Pozo, Patrik Nyman (2), Harry Winks, Tin Jedvaj  A. Alejandro Pozo (2), Pedro Obiang, Axel Tuanzebe

We kicked off the month with a brilliant win against a Stoke side who've been defying all expectations this season and are battling for a spot in Europe. For that reason, I thought this game would be much tougher than it was. Pozo started off the scoring spree with a thunderbolt rebound following an initally blocked shot on 13'. Patrik Nyman got the next on 30' as Pozo turned from goalscorer to provider to set him up for our second of the afternoon. He doubled his tally on 41' when Obiang found him just inside the box and he rifled home his effort past Butland. Winks got the fourth on the stroke of half time (45+2') when he latched onto Tuanzebe's flick on from a free kick to tap it past the keeper. The fifth and final goal came on 52' when Alejandro Pozo's corner was met by Jedvaj's head and he buried it. They got a consolation goal on 54' when Konrad Laimer finished off a counter attack with a deft finish from close range. Excellent performance.

Juventus: G. Moussa Dembele, Fabio Martins  A. Cristian Salerno (2)

This was a dead rubber as we had already cemented our status as group winners following the win over Dortmund. I'm very impressed that our second string was able to get a win and a clean sheet away to Juve though. We took the lead very early on as Dembele smashed in a first time volley after a lobbed pass from Salerno on 17'. To make things even better, Martins notched a second on 33' from Salerno's cross. They never really threatened though they did get a 92nd minute penalty. Origi stepped up and Horvath stood firm and palmed it away. What a hero. Great result. Just goes to show the squad depth we have.

Man City: G. Patrik Nyman  A. Claud Adjapong

This was Winks' 100th West Ham game and it wasn't a landmark to remember. He missed a penalty on 28' by smashing it wide. This penalty would've won us the game as both goals were scored early. Gutting. Nyman got on the end of Adjapong's cross on 16' to put us ahead and I thought we were cruising. Unfortunately, we'd give up that lead just 3 minutes later when City's big money signing Argentinian striker from Marseille, Mauro Munoz drew them level on 19'. We were disappointing for the rest of the match and we couldn't break them down. Not a terrible result but we probably should've won it at home.

Guangzhou: G. Yuri (2), Alexey Miranchuk (2), Jean-Claude Jacquin  A. Jean-Claude Jacquin (2), Alexey Miranchuk

We played our second XI against Guangzhou so as to keep the first XI fit for the final (which I somewhat cockily assumed we'd qualify for). Yuri put us ahead after heading in Jacquin's cross from close range on 20'. He got his next one just four minutes later when he converted from the spot. Miranchuk got the third on 29' after belting in a rebound from the edge of the box. Jacquin buried the fourth on 52' after a lovely ball into the box from Miranchuk. We wrapped up the win on 57' after Miranchuk tapped in Jacquin's cross from a few yards out. Brilliant performance and we'll play Corinthians in the final. 

The CWC final will be brought to you tomorrow (hopefully) by Gary Lineker and José Mourinho.

 

[kidthekid]

I love Mourinho as a commentator, his commentary is great for the punditry industry

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

14 hours ago, kidthekid said:

I love Mourinho as a commentator, his commentary is great for the punditry industry

Yup, it's a great result for punditry. Unless you're Gary Lineker.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

Inside a brightly lit studio, José Mourinho and Gary Lineker sit opposite each other, both waiting for their cue to begin speaking. Gary was beginning to lose his mind having to commentate week in, week out alongside José. He was willing to work with anyone else at this stage. Hell, even Robbie Savage would be an upgrade. Anyone just as long as they weren't so... José Mourinho. They both get the nod from off camera. Gary breathes deeply and reigns himself to at least 90 minutes of utter boredom.

“Hello and welcome to BT Sport's coverage of the Club World Cup final between West Ham United and Corinthians. I'm Gary Lineker and with me is José Mourinho, my co-commentator. Any thoughts on how this will go, José?” Gary already knew what they answer would be.

“I do not know. They are both good sides. Good teams. I cannot predict. The internet people would not like that so I will say nussing about this.”

Gary was tempted to just say “**** it” and go straight to the game. He resigned in this urge.

“Well for me, obviously, West Ham would have to be the favourites. They've much more about them. Corinthians do have a very good goalkeeper in Antonio Carlos who King has been an admirer of in the past, though he opted for Horvath and Jedvaj in the end. I can see why King likes him, he's a top quality keeper and he's been in fine form. What do you think, José?”

“He is good. A good keeper. I can see why he has fans. I admire the player.”

“Any particular reasons why?”

“He saves the ball well.”

An awkward silence falls over the studio. Gary knows José well enough to know there'll be no elaboration but he waits a few seconds anyway. Maybe just once, José would surprise him. 

‘In fact, you know what? **** him.’, Gary thought to himself. ‘He can carry the commentary for once. He can ask me questions.’

The silence in the studio is deafening. The cameramen are gesticulating furiously. After about 30 seconds, José speaks. Gary waits, eagerly. 

“Ok, I sink we've covered everything. We need to speak about the match now when it starts. There will be the break for advertisement and then we begin.”

Gary looks furious. The tool had ended ten minutes early. That meant ten minutes of ads on top of what they already were about to play. How the actual **** were they meant to justify that to the viewers?! And as the more experienced commentator, it would be on his head. 

The producers decided not to include such a long ad break. In the end, they just pretended there were ten minutes worth of... 

[oriole01]

9 minutes ago, Fer Fuchs Ake said:

“Any particular reasons why?”

“He saves the ball well.”

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

“Hello and welcome back to BT Sport's coverage of the Club World Cup final between West Ham United and Corinthians. We're back.”, Gary says half-heartedly before adding “Finally.” through gritted teeth.

1'- JM: “Corinthians kick us off today. Hopefully we will have the uh... good game.”

20'- GL: “West Ham coming forward threateningly. The ball is pinged over to Bailey. He crosses but it's swallowed up by Carlos. He throws it short to Veríssimo as Corinthians look to build from the back. Veríssimo to Leo Santos. His first touch as poor AND MAICON'S ROBBED IT OFF HIM. MAICON'S IN ON GOAL AND IT'S MAICOOOOOONNN!!! ONE-NIL! Santos made a huge mistake and we was made to pay for it. Good instincts from Maicon and the hammers are a goal to the good.”

37'- JM: “De Arrascaeta with a delightful long ball to Alexandre. The tackle from Obiang is good and West Ham possess the ball. Hammers move the ball forward. Nyman to Pozo. That's a lovely ball into Bailey and it's BAILEY! OH, HE'S MISSED! Poor.”

45+1'- GL: “West Ham now with a free kick in a dangerous position. Pozo launches it in. Good nod down from Obiang. Corinthians try to clear and the ball ping-pongs around the box! It falls to WINKS! OVER BY A WHISKER! So close from the Englishman.”

45+3'- JM: “The half has ended. West Ham have been uhhh... the team in control.”

49'- GL: “Adjapong with the throw in, deep within the opposition's half. He find Winks. Winks crosses to Pozo. Orejuela comes in AND THAT MUST BE A PENALTY! HIS FOOT WAS SKY-HIGH! IT IS! HARRY WINKS TO TAKE ANNNNND IT'S IN!!! HARD AND FAST DOWN THE MIDDLE! Two-nil to West Ham here and they look comfortable.”

59'- JM: “West Ham have the free kick. Bailey will be taker. 30 yards out. Bailey now and it's just over! Close from the winger.” 

63'- GL: “Corinthians have the ball and they're playing out from the back. Santos hoofs a long ball to De Arrascaeta. Ugh. He find Luis who knocks it to Paqueta. Paqueta with a lovely ball to Alexandre! Adjapong with a brilliant tackle to take it off him but it's gone straight to the feet of YURRRRRIIIIII!!! THE UNDERDOGS HAVE PULLED ONE BACK! IT'S ANYONE'S GAME NOW! Confident finish from the striker.”

83'- JM: “Maycon finds uh... Paqueta. That's a delicious hoofed ball down to Alexandre. I'm warming to this Brazilian side. Lovely dribbling from Alexandre. He bursts into the box! Oh but he's missed! Miserable finish.”

88'- GM: “West Ham have a free kick in a great position. It'll be Caseres to take. He's 25 yards out, what can he do? It's CASEEEEERESSS!!! WHAT A STRIKE! A BEAUTIFUL CURLER INTO THR TOP CORNER TO MAKE IT THREE-ONE AND SURELY PUTS THE GAME BEYOND DOUBT!!!”

93'- JM: “And the match is at full time. West Ham are the winners. I sink they deserved it.”

“Little bit unenthusiastic, José.”, Gary pointed out irritably.

“I will not respond. I will not dignify. West Ham win and I say West Ham win. I do not know what more people could want.”

Gary looked like he could strangle him.

 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

Benfica.

Hmmm, it's not an easy draw but it's certainly favourable. They've a fairly good squad with one or two good regens but we're better overall I think. We don't really have an excuse not to get through.

The Barca vs PSG and City vs Madrid draw both work in our favour as one big contender is immediately getting eliminated in both. The same could possibly be said for Spurs vs Dortmund as both sides are quite good. 

I'm going to guess that the teams that'll get through are:

Chelsea

Madrid

Arsenal

Tottenham

Us

PSG

Bayern

Monaco

[noikeee]

West Ham, champions of the World. 

Benfica is a tricky draw on the round of 16. Or maybe that's just what I say to justify myself, for when I lost to them at that exact stage with Derby.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

40 minutes ago, noikeee said:

West Ham, champions of the World. 

That has quite a ring to it. 

41 minutes ago, noikeee said:

Benfica is a tricky draw on the round of 16. Or maybe that's just what I say to justify myself, for when I lost to them at that exact stage with Derby.

They're no pushovers but it's definitely better than some of the alternatives. Board's expectations are to get to the quarter finals so if we get through, we're grand.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

December Update (Second Half):

Annoying bottlejob at Chelsea but all good other than that.

Swansea: G. Maicon (2), Axel Tuanzebe  A. Luke Shaw, Leon Bailey, Maicon

A convincing win against Swansea followed our CWC win. We put pressure on them from the beginning and made it count on 14' when Maicon buried Bailey's cross at the back post. The rest of the first half was uneventful. Our second came when Maicon flicked on a free kick for Tuanzebe to tap in on 57' before Maximilian Phillip pulled one back for the hosts on 59'. Maicon confirmed our victory on 66' when he got on the end of a perfect cross from Shaw. Pleasing win.

Watford: G. Cristian Salerno, Alexey Miranchuk, Patrik Nyman  A. Jean-Claude Jacquin, Pedro Obiang, Fabio Martins

We added to our fine form with a comprehensive victory over Watford. Like the Swansea match, we grabbed an early goal with this one coming on 11' after Salerno half-volleyed Jacquin's cross home. Our second came on 30' when Miranchuk smashed the ball in after a short pass from Martins. They held us fairly well after that and we struggled to create more after that. The final goal came in the last minute of added time on 90+4' when Nyman blasted home the ball from a tight angle when he got on the end of Obiang's pass. Lovely goal and a great display.

Tottenham: G. Leon Bailey  A. Cristian Salerno

A tough away game to Spurs followed and we just about came away with all three points. Both sides cancelled each other out for the first half and most of the second. They looked more threatening for the first half hour while we looked better after that. Eventually, when a draw seemed all but a forgone conclusion we broke away on the counter after clearing their corner. The ball found its way to Salerno who slipped Bailey in on goal and he buried it on 88' to give us a late win.

Chelsea: G. Patrik Nyman, Pedro Obiang  A. Alejandro Pozo, Maicon

We had a chance to make a real statement about our title run this season and we threw it away in bizarre style. For the third game in this half of the month, we took a very early lead. Nyman was the scorer as he latched onto Pozo's cross to give us the lead on 13'. Pedro Obiang doubled our advantage on 30' when Maicon played a nice ball to him inside the box. He drove it home for 2-0.  Kasper Dolberg pulled one back for them on 37' to make things interesting going into the second half. We looked set to take home a narrow win but Tin Jedvaj made a huge mistake on the 91st minute as his backpass went straight into Rashford's path and he blazed it past Horvath and in. Terrible error from a normally solid defender.

 

Key Points:

• We really need to get Nyman in next season. He's been incredible. 

• Maicon and Bailey weren't quite as prolific this month, though both still did very well. 

• We've not been too convincing at the back. Sloppy goals are being shipped.

• The decision to go on Control against smaller teams and then dropping back to Standard when we score our first is working very well. We're dropping far fewer needless points.

League Table:

We've got a narrow lead at the top but we've a game in hand over our nearest chasers, Arsenal. United and Arsenal are also keeping pace and will both be in contention. Stoke have fallen off the wagon a little while Liverpool have recovered significantly and are pushing for Europe. Southampton are as boring as ever while, to my amusement, City are struggling and barely in the top half.

 

 

 

[john1]

Decent month   Congrats on winning Club World Championship  

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

17 hours ago, john1 said:

Decent month   Congrats on winning Club World Championship  

Cheers 

Always good to add some silverware, especially if I haven't won it before.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

Sorry that it's not taken on Gyazo but I thought this was quite interesting and I just noticed it recently. 

Harry Winks has got the same average rating for the past three seasons. Mr. Consistency. 

[john1]

Impressive!  

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

1 hour ago, john1 said:

Impressive!  

Very! I knew he was consistent but I never knew his average ratings had been that good. I'd assumed it would be around the 7.05-7.10 range.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

To: The staff of HMP Wakefield

From: Warden Gentles

Subject: Fight and Flight

So after their disastrous attempt to “run the prison”, the Iron WhateverTheF*** have turned their attentions elsewhere. To escaping. Seems Warden Buck was right all along. This time, I've overhead it for myself. Griffiths and Savage were talking about it in hushed tones as they were leaving the showers. They tried to disguise it by using a code. They referred to their escape plan as the “epacse”. It's ‘escape’ backwards and it took me all of five seconds to figure it out. So yeah, a really masterful codeword from them. But I digress. They're planning to break out of this prison and we don't know how they intend to do so yet. However, one of those 6 (Griffiths, Savage, Pemberton, Wilde, Francis and Vine) will surely be dumb enough to speak about this within earshot of one of us. Stay diligent and listen out for anything suspect.

Cheers,

Warden Gentles 

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

January Update (First Half):

Again, I'll have to do this in too halves though I'd prefer not to. It's just due to the sheer amount of games we have this month. Good first half, though that result against Newcastle was dreadful.

West Brom: G. Leon Bailey, Cristian Salerno  A. Patrik Nyman, Leon Bailey

We started the month with a run-of-the-mill victory over West Brom. A short pass from Nyman led to a spectacular, winding run from Bailey who burst into the box and smashed it in. We were unconvincing after that and I was worried we'd concede some BS equaliser and drop points but we didn't. Salerno got the second in the 92nd minute when he tapped in Bailey's back post cross. Good but not great performance. Enough for the three points though.

Liverpool: G. Fabio Martins, Leon Bailey  A. Patrik Nyman, Leon Bailey

We got a very good win over Liverpool, a side who we can sometimes struggle against. The first half was very quiet and we both cancelled each other out. We finally took the lead on 46' after a lovely passing move saw Bailey cross for Martins who slotted it in. We got the game's final goal on 62' after Nyman found bailey on the edge of the box and he blasted in a beauty from distance. Winnks came off injured which was a minor blip on a fine result. Great display here. 

Sunderland: G. Leon Bailey  A. None

We played very poorly here but managed to get the win. We played the second string and they were extremely wasteful, taking multiple pot shots from distance. This resulted in a largely boring game with little happening for large periods. Yassin Ayoub got sent off on 56' to put Sunderland at a bit disadvantage, however, we still couldn't take advantage until the 88th minute. Substitute Leon Bailey got the ball on the edge of the box, had a shot blocked and rifled home the rebound to give us the win. Unconvincing and unfortunately a sign of things to come in the next game.

Newcastle:

This was a great display of playmaking from us. However, the finishing was only alright. Mainly though, their keeper, Diogo Costa had a brilliant game. He got a 7.5 and made multiple brilliant saves to keep a clean sheet. We bombarded their goal and they kept out everything due to Costa's performance. Alexander Isak got their winner on 49' and we had no response. No excuses for that.

 

Key points and the table will be in the Second Half update. Morale is poor at the moment due to Jedvaj causing havoc just after the Newcastle match about me not letting him join PSG. Hopefully it doesn't affect us too much.

 

 

[john1]

Decent month apart from lost to Newcastle. Are you tempted to cash in Jedvaj?

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

16 hours ago, john1 said:

Decent month apart from lost to Newcastle. Are you tempted to cash in Jedvaj?

Nah, they lowballed us completely. Even if they did bid over his market value, I wouldn't. He's just too important a player.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

He wanted to go so we listed him. He wasn't getting games since his injury. Thanks for everything, Michail.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

January Transfer Window:

Despite our massive budget, only two players came in. Both were signed before I got the £104M. I'll save that money for summer.

Outs:

Just two. You know about Antonio, he's been sold as he was frustrated at his lack of first team football. He really has declined since that I jury last season. We've also sold Moussa Dembele to Swansea for £11M. So yeah, we've made a slight loss (bought for £18M) but he just wasn't getting near the first team and it made sense to get rid while we can still get double figures for him.

Ins:

David Hill:

He was signed about two years ago when he was 16 (you might remember I mentioned him a few pages back) and he now joins us at age 18. 

This was him back then. 

And this is him now.

He looks very, very good. He's been loaned to Stoke where he'll hopefully get some first team experience. Just needs to sort his marking and crossing and he'll be sorted. Very good prospect. Might get him tutored to up that determination but 13 isn't too bad. I'm really excited for him here.

Michal Franc:

Coming in for just over £1M, Franc looks like a right bargain. He's got it all; finishing, pace, off the ball and dribbling as well as some solid mentals. The future is very bright for him and he'll give Maicon and Salerno some extra competition up front.

 

 

[john1]

David Hill looks very good  Hopefully he will get alot of game time at Stoke.

Edited April 27, 2018 by john1

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

3 hours ago, john1 said:

David Hill looks very good  Hopefully he will get alot of game time at Stoke.

Hopefully. They gave him Rotation status so he should see a few games.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

January Update (Second Half):

Lost a crucial game against United but we're grand other than that. Yet another win against Southampton is good news.

Southampton: G. Michal Franc (2), Jack Stephens OG  A. José Tavares, Leon Bailey

Franc was the start of the show in what was his second West Ham start and third appearance since signing. A clinical counter attack saw Jeff De Baets put Southampton a goal up after 13 minutes. We equalised just five minutes later when Tavares played a ball over the top to Franc who made a quick run and smashed it into the top corner from the edge of the box. Brilliant strike from him. He got his second on 21' after making a dazzling run through their defence and slotting it in. Not much happened up until 76' when Winks' shot was diverted by Lemina into his own goal. Callum Slattery earned them a consolation goal on 86' but they couldn't get the equaliser. Always nice to beat them.

Manchester United:

We weren't able to take any of that momentum or fighting spirit into the next game as we slumped to a 2-0 loss to United. It honestly should've been 5 or 6-0 had it not been for an exceptional goalkeeping display from Horvath. We were lifeless and the brushed us aside with ease. We barely had a shot on goal. Icardi gave them the lead on 20' from close range. John English would then follow that up with a header on 32' to double their advantage and we couldn't get through them at all. Dismal performance.

Brighton: G. Michal Franc (2), Alejandro Pozo  A. Alejandro Pozo, Patrik Nyman

We were at least able to bounce back and claim a convincing victory over the Seagulls. After a poor substitute cameo against United, grand returned to the starting XI. He justified that by getting a brace. The first came on 12' when he got on the end of Nyman's through ball to put us ahead. Alejandro Pozo got the next, a beautiful curling free kick which lobbed their keeper on 21'. He then set up Franc with a delicious cross on 47' and he made no mistake, rifling the ball home for 3-0. Unfortunately, the clean sheet didn't last as Myron Boadu blasted home a late consolation goal on 82' to give them a slender lifeline. They couldn't capitalise on it though and we rode out the victors.

Middlesbrough: G. Jean-Claude Jacquin  A. Alejandro Pozo

This was a pretty dull game and bit a game we particularly deserved to win. We were very shaky coming forward and most of our shots were from distance. We started the game like this and didn't score until the 43rd minute. This was when Jacquin tapped in Pozo's cross at the back post. Other than that, neither side threatened each other and it was likely shown last on Match of the Day. Always good to get the win but I'm not happy with the manner of it.

Key Points:

• You might've noticed one name missing from both half updates. Maicon. He's been bang out of form and hasn't scored in about 8 hours of football. I don't know what's wrong with him but he needs to get it together.

• Our defence has been a lot shakier than normal. We need to fix that. 

• Franc has started his Hammers career very brightly. Hopefully he can build on that because he's a massive prospect.

• Pozo is doing even better than last season. He's an amazing player and he's been incredible on the left wing as an IF (Support).

League Table:

Well we're still top but by a much thinner margin. Only the two points separate us and United. Hopefully we can increase that gap a bit though our fixtures are harder than theirs (they've played a lot of the big teams early on in the second half of the season). Liverpool and Man City are doing very poorly which is obviously great news for me as a United fan. Southampton are just meh. As always.

 

 

 

 

[noikeee]

1M for that Czech kid is an absolute steal. He looks immense.

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

3 hours ago, noikeee said:

1M for that Czech kid is an absolute steal. He looks immense.

Cheers! 

He certainly ingratiated himself with that brace against Southampton. Could give Maicon some competition up front.

[john1]

Superb win over Southampton  Hopefully you can fend off Man Utd! 

[oriole01]

Just a few months to go. I sense more big things on the horizon. 
Los! Los! Los!

[Fer Fuchs Ake]

16 hours ago, john1 said:

Superb win over Southampton  Hopefully you can fend off Man Utd! 

Cheers John! I hope we can too but they're in great form at the moment so who knows? As long as we remain consistent we should be fine.

15 hours ago, oriole01 said:

Just a few months to go. I sense more big things on the horizon. 
Los! Los! Los!

A few more months but a good few games. As I was saying, as long as we stay consistent we'll be fine. I hope your senses are right!