[FM20] It was Cambrogi in Wales, but now it's all about aggression in Wales, in England. Bellicosity, pugnacity and belligerence are all excellent words. But Welsh belligerence, in England now.

[Jimbokav1971]

9 minutes ago, yCymro said:

Like this in real life for many Welsh clubs!  When a top side comes calling, clubs lose out.

That deal on Hall is what I love and hate about managing in Wales.  Infuriating, especially when a side like TNS bulldozers in.

This is exactly the way I'm looking at it. If you can't enjoy the battle with TNS and all their money then what's the point. There is a long way to go in this save, but obliterating TNS is foremost on my list. It's going to take a while, but boy is it going to be satisfying. 

[Jimbokav1971]

TNS Manager. Oct 2034. 

Oh wow. 

The TNS Manager has just won the Manager of the Month award and I have just noticed who is managing them. 

He's actually doing quite well, but quite well doesn't really cut it as manager of TNS. 

Wales. He finished with a higher win ratio than either of the 2 Managers since him. 

Swansea. He may not have been brilliant at Swansea, but the problem is the board rather than him. Since they sacked him in 2025, they are on their 8th Manager, (if we don't count care-takers), and 15th if we include caretakers. 

Crewe. I actually don't think he did a bad job. 

This is where Crewe finished with Giggs as Manager. The team that he built was promoted in 2032/33.

This is how TNS have developed during the save. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Sept 2034.

Domestic games.

European games. 

 

[rodesire]

Conference league knockouts if you can complete double over Bodo?

[yCymro]

Games against Basel will determine your destination in Europe.  Fingers crossed for you.

[Jimbokav1971]

Oct 2034.

Domestic games. We've been in great form this month. 7, 7, 5 & 4 goals scored, and a draw obtained against TNS. We've just been really consistent going forward, no matter who was playing, and that was borne out by the pressure we put on TNS to cause them to concede not 1 but 2 own goals. We really bullied them, (which is what I have really set the team up to do), but TNS have this Japanese striker, Takuya Yasunaga (JPN), (pictured below). (who came through the Academy at Blackpool), and he  was just too good for us. His physical attributes linked with his PPM's make him a dangerous customer and I hope he fills his boots this season and someone buys him. 

European games. We were much less fluid in Europe and I think this is down to us not being able to bully the opposition in the same way we bully our domestic opposition. I didn't try to get a result against Spurs, instead choosing to rest players so that they were fresh for the busy league schedule. I thought we were going to get battered, (and we did really), but also grabbed a goal ourselves and almost nicked an undeserved draw at the death. I targeted the Basel game on the other hand and really thought I could get something out of it. We did enough to win in my opinion, but they nicked a goal and we could only hit the woodwork. 

[Jimbokav1971]

1 hour ago, rodesire said:

Conference league knockouts if you can complete double over Bodo?

 

1 hour ago, yCymro said:

Games against Basel will determine your destination in Europe.  Fingers crossed for you.

Before I saw the Group draw I was thinking to myself that we would have a go at qualifying for the Conference Knockout stages. When I saw the Group I thought we might have a chance of getting out of the Group. We bottled it a little against Basel away, but there are still more games to play and it's still in our hands. 

Fingers crossed indeed. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Nov 2034.

Domestic games. We march on. As we missed chance after chance against Bangor, I was sure they were going to nick a late goal and steal some points but we managed to hang on and I will be honest and admit that I particularly love a game won by a GK goal. 

European games. We are obviously short of numbers in the European squad, quite simply because I'm having to pick from 18 players rather than 25 players. Being 7 players short is a big thing and that was the difference against Basel, where we had 5 of our 7 subs being Academy products who were not good enough to play for our Senior Team in any competition never mind about the Euro Cup Group Stage. This is a failure of preparation on my part and I'm determined to do something about it between now and next season. We're 3rd in the Group, (on head to head against Basel), and where as we play Spurs in our last game, they play Bodo/Glimt. I think we are going to be finishing 3rd. 

Although Ejeheri (NGA) scored his 9th goal of the season with a nice free-kicks against Newtown in the Cup, he also scored penalties against Bangor, Cardiff Met Uni and Afan Lido meaning that he scored in all 4 domestic games this month bringing his tally to 12 goals for the season and 21 career goals. 

 

[Jimbokav1971]

Youth Intake preview. Dec 2034.

Could this be the worst intake ever? 

[Moonshine]

8 hours ago, Jimbokav1971 said:

European games. We are obviously short of numbers in the European squad, quite simply because I'm having to pick from 18 players rather than 25 players. Being 7 players short is a big thing and that was the difference against Basel, where we had 5 of our 7 subs being Academy products who were not good enough to play for our Senior Team in any competition never mind about the Euro Cup Group Stage. This is a failure of preparation on my part and I'm determined to do something about it between now and next season. We're 3rd in the Group, (on head to head against Basel), and where as we play Spurs in our last game, they play Bodo/Glimt. I think we are going to be finishing 3rd. 

 

 

Third isn't a bad thing in any way shape or form, as you get through to the Europa Conference league as a result...

[Jimbokav1971]

1 hour ago, Moonshine said:

Third isn't a bad thing in any way shape or form, as you get through to the Europa Conference league as a result...

Yeah, but if we are not good enough to win it, (and we aren't), then it's all about the greatest earning potential. I don't know what the difference between 1st Knockout Round of Euro Cup and Conference Cup, but I think it's probably significant. 

[rodesire]

I'd say the money in Europa League knockouts is not a lot anyway, so you might as well collect all the coefficient for next year's European assault from the conference league.

[Jimbokav1971]

1 hour ago, rodesire said:

I'd say the money in Europa League knockouts is not a lot anyway, so you might as well collect all the coefficient for next year's European assault from the conference league.

Yeah, but it all counts at this level. I'm just trying to eke out as much as possible. At just under £0.5M for a win in the Group Stage, I'm hoping the Knockout prize money is decent. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Jan 2035.

We've never won this trophy before and the only time we have ever been in the Finals was back in 1994/95 when we were beaten by...... yes, of course TNS. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Feb 2035.

Domestic games. We're still in fine form where as the pressure seems to be taking it's toll on TNS. Even if we ignore the fact that we have an injury time winner ruled out against them in the last game, they are in absolute turmoil, (well turmoil as far as league results are concerned anyway). They have now drawn their last 3 league games and while they didn't lose any points to us by drawing against us, and as a result we are Top of the table either by virtue of goal difference or goals scored. (it's actually goal difference and the goals scored). 

European games. Our good domestic form continued into Europe and it was only when the red mist descended that we came unstuck. We were 2-0 up and cruising to the biggest win of the save and then we had not 1 but 2 players sent off. As if conceding a 91st minute equaliser wasn't bad enough, seeing them score a 96th minute winner and a 3rd away goal was pretty hard to take. 

[yCymro]

Great league form and cracking win in the old domestic cup.  Hopefully you can turn the first leg around in Europe.  Not out of it yet.

[Jimbokav1971]

39 minutes ago, yCymro said:

Great league form and cracking win in the old domestic cup.  Hopefully you can turn the first leg around in Europe.  Not out of it yet.

Thanks, I'm having a "brief" sojourn in Sunderland where I am playing just 1 season, (promise), but will be back as soon as that season is finished. Really enjoying this Welsh save at the moment. The battle with TNS is brilliant. 

[Jimbokav1971]

On 17/04/2020 at 01:17, Jimbokav1971 said:

Youth Intake preview. Dec 2034.

Could this be the worst intake ever? 

Youth Intake day. Mar 2035. 

Well despite knowing it was coming, it doesn't make it any more palatable when a load of non-Dutch cloggers show up. 

Squad by PPA.

Squad by PA. 

Squad by CA.

[Jimbokav1971]

Mar 2035.

Domestic games. We're still performing well in the domestic competition and although TNS have sneaked ahead of us by 1 point, they have also played 1 game more. We only have 4 league games left and of course 1 of them is against TNS. Under normal circumstances I would say we will find it tough to win the league from this point, but actually, as TNS are STILL IN EUROPE , they have been struggling just a little in domestic games and have drawn 4 of their last 7 league games over the last couple of months, (although are unbeaten). As we have just crashed out of Europe, I would suggest that we might actually be favourites to retain the league title.

European games. The damage was on done in the 1st leg where we led 2-0 but had 2 players sent off before conceding 2 goals in injury time.  I can't complain though. Knockout football is a significant success for us at this stage of the save. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Apr 2035.

Much to my surprise, (and delight), we have retained the JD Cymru Premier League at the 1st time of asking. We may have lost twice, but considering we TNS 4 times this season, (1 win, 2 draws and 2 losses in the league), that's better than I might have hoped for. TNS were unbeaten until the last month of the season and they basically just ran out of gas, (but there is a reason for that and I will explain in a separate post). TNS lost their last 2 games, (1 of them against us), and only won 3 of their last 9 league games. We on the other hand stuttered a little with draws against both Barry and Bala, but bounced back to beat TNS in our penultimate league game. We lost 2 of our opening 3 league games, and then didn't lose again in domestic competition, (the Welsh Cup Final is still to come). 

Legend. 

Wales Hall of Fame. 

Biggest transfer fee received. I didn't want to sell him because I haven;t got a replacement lined up, but he wasn't happy, (Saudi League has a better reputation than Wales), and in a team that is really performing well, he has been distinctly average. 

[Jimbokav1971]

May 2035.

It's a Treble not a Double.

We've now made 4 of the last 5 Welsh Cup Finals, and considering I'm not prioritising this tournament, that's quite pleasing. 

What a way to bring up 20 goals in a season for a GK in the save for the 1st time. A free-kick, in a Cup Final, against TNS. 

While Ejeheri (NGA) scored 20 goals in 49 games this season, he also missed 9 games through injury and Ricketts (ENG) came in and scored 2 goals in 9 games. As Ejeheri (NGA) missed 4 penalties, he could theoretically have scored 27 goals this season even without scoring any more free-kicks. That's a significant number of goals considering the point we are at in the save and how much potential for development there still is. Unfortunately he won't be here to add to his tally next season though, as he is moving back home to Nigeria and has already agreed terms with a club there. 

The 2nd win against TNS in close succession means that we have started to out-perform them on a versus basis, with just 1 loss against them over the last 7 games. 

There is a long way to go however before we can claim dominance over them. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Welsh clubs in Europe, (and the reason why TNS capitulated in the league). May 2035. 

What a phenomenal season in Europe for our big rivals TNS.

Whisper it very quietly, but even though we all love to hate TNS, I'm actually delighted that they are doing so well just for the save. 

Not a good campaign at all for Barry Town. 

A really poor campaign for Carmarthen too. 

Other than ourselves and TNS, I would say that Afan Lido and Barry Town are the next strongest clubs. We really need them to start qualifying and progressing more regularly. 

[rodesire]

That semi final run is phenomenal from TNS

[Jimbokav1971]

Season Summary. May 2035. 

Overall Best XI.

Squad by appearances. 

You all know about my penchant for goals scored by GK's, but at the moment I am really developing a system that creates chances for my centre-backs. 

The strikers have shared out the goals pretty well.

Finances. 

New records. 

Awards.

Budgets for next season. We are currently spending £44,417 per week. 

Welsh Youth Cup. I know that we are struggling to get decent players through our Academy in terms of progression to the Senior Team, but they are doing ok at that level. 

 

[Jimbokav1971]

29 minutes ago, rodesire said:

That semi final run is phenomenal from TNS

It really was. 

When I looked to see why they were dropping points in the league, I was astonished to see they were still in Europe, just after we had been knocked out in the 1st Knockout Round. I thought that we did quite well but they obliterated us.

[Jimbokav1971]

Champions League record!  Jun 2035.

[Bedese]

Wow, TNS!

[Jimbokav1971]

Managers in Wales. Jun 2035. 

I've mentioned already that Ryan Giggs is the Manager of TNS, but he's not the only high profile Manager in Wales. 

Aitor Karanka was manager of TNS between 2024 and 2028 and won 4 leagues and 3 cup competitions. He is now the manager of Wales.

Ryan Giggs is the current manager of TNS.

Pablo Fornals was the manager of Bala Town for most of 2034. He is now unemployed. 

Adrian Mutu was manager of Afan Lido between May & Nov 2029.

Ainsley Maitland-Niles was manager of Afan Lido between Nov 2031 and Jun 2033.

Harry Kane is the current manager of Afan Lido. 

James Tavernier was the manager of Cefn Druids between Jan 2028 and Jun 2029. He is now the manager of AFC Wimbledon in League 2.

Fabian Delph was the manager of Cefn Druids between Apr 2030 and Mar 2031.

Sean Longstoff is the current manager of Cefn Druids. 

Harry Kane was the manager of Llanelli between Jul 2033 and Nov 2034. He is now the manager of Afan Lido.

[Jimbokav1971]

Facilities. Jun 2035. 

I had to really remonstrate with the board for 2 of these 3 upgrades. I'm not sure it's going to be easy to get the next upgrades. 

The last intake was awful. I'm really hoping that things start to improve now. 3 different upgrades should make an impact. 

Finances. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Another player poached. Jun 2035.

[Jimbokav1971]

Players being poached. Jun 2035. 

With young Brian Williams being poached, it made me wonder how many we have lost now during the course of the save. I have posted all of the poaching info in here as it has happened, (with 1 exception which I caught later when he was released), but I have found it difficult to track them all so thought I would ask my friend Excel for some help.

What I have noticed, is that despite the fact that we are told "somewhere", (but I can't remember where), that if a player is poached he will come through the next intake at the poaching club. Sounds pretty reasonable I think you would agree, except that it is just not true. 

I had a player called Ashley Mitchell poached from me by Oxford in 2032. (I have gone back and checked and actually I can even tell you that it was in the Month of June, (towards the bottom of page 7 if you are interested). So young Ashley would have missed the Oxford intake in March 2032, but he should have come through the intake in March 2033. Agreed? 

Except that he didn't. 

Well ok. Maybe it was delayed for some reason, Did he come through at Oxford in March 2034? 

No he didn't. 

After 2 years of the player not coming through the Intake at the poaching club I generally stop looking, (and that is what has been causing me problems), because let's have a look at the Oxford intake for Mar 2035, (just gone). 

Because here he is. 

This has been confusing the hell out of me. I couldn't understand why players were not coming through, and then when I went back and checked much later, they were coming through and I couldn't work out how I had missed them. 

So they don't come through the next intake, (at least not if they are 15 when poached). They come through the 3rd intake, (or possibly the 2nd intake depending on what time of year they were poached. Apologies if you know this or just don't care, but this has been confusing the hell out of me. 

So here is a little Excel sheet that I thought might make things easier to track. 

Part of the reason that I went back and checked things so thoroughly is because we currently have 6 different players who have been poached and who haven't come through an intake, and as we are in June, there are another 10 months before the next English/Welsh intake. 

There are a few talking points. 

• Nathan Rowlands was capped 9 time by Wales U21. That's pretty astonishing when you consider how poor our facilities were back then, and maybe says more about Man City than us. He's actually with us now after he kept scoring against us, (he scored a hat-trick including 2 penalties and I just thought enough is enough), and he has become our "rotation" right sided central midfielder, (and has done ok). 

• Graham Smith was brought back to the club after leaving Wolves, (you know I'm a sucker for an Academy product), and was then nicked by TNS. After hardly featuring he then moved on to Swansea Uni and I forgot to keep an eye on him. I'm thinking of bringing him back though, (his passing and vision were about 15 iirc). 

• Alex Hall is going to be a beast I think. He is the only player who has been poached who had his PA rating in gold rather than silver. If he was going to a little club I might have thought that it was based on the poor quality of their Senior squad, but he is actually going to come through at Spurs. I'm expecting this bloke to blow my mind! Could he be the 1st product of our Academy to receive full International honours? 
• Alun McCarthy is going to be coming through at Stoke and while I don't expect him to be a World-beater, he might be decent.
• I'm tempted to install a "Holiday Manager" at one of the clubs, (I'm thinking Maidenhead who are in League 2), so that I can see exactly what it looks like when a player comes through your intake, who has been poached from another club. In fact, that's exactly what I'm going to do right now...... Actually, no, I'm not going to do it now. I'm going to wait until after Christmas and then do it so it has the smallest impact possible. 

Who's interested in having a little guess at the PA of Alex Hall? I'm going to go for....... 131. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Rankings. Jun 2035. 

I am guessing that despite both ourselves and TNS being rated at 2.0 rep now, and was 2.0 rep before, the difference in reputation is significant. I have the Editor activated so let's have a look. 

TNS rep. 4,332 
Ton Pentre rep. 4.133. (Wow, that's much closer than I was expecting based on their performances in Europe last season). 
Barry rep. 3,566. 

Edited April 19, 2020 by Jimbokav1971

[Jimbokav1971]

On 15/04/2020 at 17:37, Jimbokav1971 said:

TV Rights. Jun 2034.

I know that £120,000 per year doesn't go very far, but for it to progress like this is decent. 

2032. £83,020
2033. £100,000
2034. £120,000

TV Rights. Jun 2035.

2032. £83,020
2033. £100,000
2034. £120,000
2035. £143,000

[Fudal]

50 minutes ago, Jimbokav1971 said:

Who's interested in having a little guess at the PA of Alex Hall? I'm going to go for....... 131. 

126, also I am quietly hoping you can pick him up after his youth contract expires.

[Jimbokav1971]

1 minute ago, Fudal said:

126, also I am quietly hoping you can pick him up after his youth contract expires.

That's the plan, although I would be quite happy if he came out a 150+ and was way too good for us too. 

[Jimbokav1971]

New record. Jun 2035. 

It's probably jumped so much because we played 8 European games at the Bridgend Arena last season.

6,003 watched us lose to Celtic.
11,276 watched us beat Spurs, (did that really happen!)
5,773 watched us lose to Rangers. (I can't believe

[Jimbokav1971]

Record Sale. Jul 2035.

[Jimbokav1971]

International call-ups on the way? Jul 2035.

I might have to change their nicknames if they get called up. 

Edited April 19, 2020 by Jimbokav1971

[Jimbokav1971]

What an absolute shambles. Jul & Aug 2035.

It's been a hell of a month, so let me just blurt everything out so that we can move on and forget about it. 

• Remember last season I was frustrated that I had to pick my European sides from a squad of just 19 players? Well I managed to sign 1 player to bring us up to 20 players. He came through a Welsh club, (Cambrian & Clydach), at the age of 16 and although he moved on to Carmarthen and then TNS, he played only at Welsh clubs until he was 21 years old. That should be plenty good enough to class him as Homegrown at Nation. Unfortunately not for some reason. #NotHappy. 
• So we have just a squad of 19 players for European games and against Cork in the 1st leg I had 6 players injured and 2 more suspended so that left me with 11 players, (2 of whom were GK's). The 2nd leg had 2 more players injured, (so up to 8), and we got 2 suspensions back, but 2 different players suspended. We had centre-backs playing in midfield and strikers playing on both flanks. 
• I signed too many players during pre-season. (9 players), and that just confused things. To make matters worse we had a pre-season tour fot the 1st time and players were unhappy when they weren't selected for the tour. As if I wasn't upsetting everyone enough by now, I then had to upset all but 19 of the squad by leaving them out of Champions league registration.
• When we then start losing games it just snowballs. 
• Against Cefn Druids in our 1st domestic win of the season, we were 3-0 up after an hour, but were also down to 9 men after having 2 players sent off. We played better after the sending offs with only 9 men as we spanked home 4 goals in the final 30 minutes. 

Domestic games. 

European games. 

And just for good measure...... you know what we haven't had for a while.....?

We've now had 7 players poached that haven't come through an intake yet and we still have another 6 months to go. 

It's not all bad news though. Harley (IRL) scored a penalty on his friendly debut, and then a penalty on him competitive debut in Europe and then also got off the mark with this nice lovely free-kick. He has missed a penalty too though. 

 

[CrazyKent83]

Enjoyable read this, having now read it all. I will try and keep up to date. 

[rodesire]

Another Europa League appearance! Smashing it, JImbo

[Jimbokav1971]

4 hours ago, CrazyKent83 said:

Enjoyable read this, having now read it all. I will try and keep up to date. 

 

2 hours ago, rodesire said:

Another Europa League appearance! Smashing it, JImbo

Thanks very much. 

Must admit that I was less than pleased with our start to the season last night. 

• We should be in the Champions League rather than the Euro League. Qualification for the Champions League would basically allow me to forget completely about money.
• I can't believe that this bloke somehow isn't registered as Homegrown in Nation. 

• We've already lost a league game, (we also lost 2 out of the 1st 3 last season so maybe I need to look at pre-season). 
• We're already out of the Nat MG Cup, (so no treble this season).
• The injuries we're suffering are horrendous. 
• Morale is on the floor. Half the squad hate me at the moment, because they either weren't part of the pre-season tour because I needed them to play in the early European rounds, or they aren't in the Champions League squad, because we are restricted to 19, although it should be 20 with the bloke above. 

On the plus side....... 

• We now have a young GK who is 1st choice for the 1st time in a long time in this save, (and he has scored 2 goals already including a free-kick so the omens are decent). 
• We've got £5.5M in the bank and I know that's tiny in comparison to TNS, but that's a LOT of money here. 
• The facilities are getting better and sooner or later, (I refuse to be denied), we are going to start producing our own decent youngsters. (I must compare our facilities to those of TNS by the way). 
• We are in the Group Stages of European competition again. 
• TNS have also qualified for the Group Stages of the Euro Championship. They are really performing in Europe at the moment. 5

I think I need to play more games during pre-season to make sure that everyone is fit for the early games. I don't think we did it well last season and I think we were awful at it this season, (despite the fact that we are now a Pro club). I don't think we can come back any earlier, (I'm not seeing the message that asks me how long I want off-season to be, so I need them to do more when they do return. I think all the injuries in the Champions League squad are as a result of them being under-cooked at the very start of the season. It's all well and good us smashing teams 21-0 on aggregate and setting new records, but in hindsight perhaps I should have managed squad selection a little better. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Youth Player poached. Sep 2035.

We've had a 2nd player poached who's PA rating is showing as gold stars, (so judged against the Senior Squad rather than Youth Squad), and he has gone to Liverpool. We now have 8 players waiting to come through the Intakes at other clubs. 

[Jimbokav1971]

On 08/04/2020 at 20:56, AceAvenger said:

I'm always amazed at how many goals your goalkeepers score, my best free kick takers can't hit a barn door if their life depended on it. Do you concede any goals from your goalkeeper being so far up the pitch? Because if not, I might try the big fat goalkeeper goalscoring challenge.

I keep looking out for goals that we concede due to attacking GK instructions, but it still hasn't happened. Here was a close one though. 

The problem here is that the GK doesn't commit himself fully to getting to the ball and clearing, but also doesn't head back to goal immediately. It's as if he is caught in two minds. I know this is probably really hard for SI to replicate, (because who in their right mind asks their GK to take free-kicks right?) but at the same time it's annoying. I'm guessing that there are conflicting instructions in-game that confuse the GK AI decision making. 

Anyway, I'm considering letting my GK also take free-kicks from wider positions, (because the extra player in an attacking position causes the defending AI problems and as a result they tend to just stick 1 or 2 players in the wall meaning that there is a better than normal chance of scoring. 

[Jimbokav1971]

Sep 2035.

Domestic games. We were really unlucky against TNS. It was a good performance, (a really good performance), and we even had a perfectly good injury time equaliser ruled out for God only knows what. 

European games. Sorry, I forgot to post the update before moving on to the Fenerbahce game. 

[Jimbokav1971]

The AI and GK's. Oct 2035.

I get that when a penalty is saved, the priority is for the GK to get back in his penalty area, and this might stop the GK following up when a save is made. I especially understand that when a free kick hits the wall or something, there are conflicting instructions as to whether the GK should put pressure on the ball to clear, or head back to his penalty area again. 

This example is a little different though, and not one I see very often at all. It hits the post and bounces back and if he was already on his way back to his penalty area I would understand, but he's not. He just stands there and watches it as Big Ben (ENG) 6'7" comes from way behind him to try and convert the rebound, (which is saved). If he had just followed up then he could have slotted into an empty net while the opposition GK was still lying on the floor. 

 

[Jimbokav1971]

Oct 2035. 

Domestic games. Sorry, I forgot to do the update and played the November TNS game before updating. 

TNS went 1-0 up through a penalty, but the truth is that we have got the sign over them at the moment and we were too good. That being said, I'm obviously prioritising these games and I think they are prioritising their European games where they are doing well again. We got away with one against Barry Town, where I thought we had scored a 95th min winner, only to see them score a 97th min equaliser, but thankfully it was harshly ruled out and we took the 3 points. 

We gave both TNS and Barry Town a bit of a head-start with our poor form at the start of the season, but beating them both in the same month has certainly helped close the gap.

European games. 

Transfers. 

I'm still trying to bring in players who are classed as Homegrown at Nation for next seasons Champions league. Although we're still 6 players short, I don't expect to sign all 6 players at once, but I'd really love to sign 1 defender, 1 midfielder and 1 attacking player who fits the criteria. 

The only problem is that when I put Homegrown status - Trained in Nation - Wales, it only provides me with Homegrown status - Trained in Nation - England players for some reason. The player search criteria seems broken for some reason. 

[Moonshine]

2 hours ago, Jimbokav1971 said:

The AI and GK's. Oct 2035.

I get that when a penalty is saved, the priority is for the GK to get back in his penalty area, and this might stop the GK following up when a save is made. I especially understand that when a free kick hits the wall or something, there are conflicting instructions as to whether the GK should put pressure on the ball to clear, or head back to his penalty area again. 

This example is a little different though, and not one I see very often at all. It hits the post and bounces back and if he was already on his way back to his penalty area I would understand, but he's not. He just stands there and watches it as Big Ben (ENG) 6'7" comes from way behind him to try and convert the rebound, (which is saved). If he had just followed up then he could have slotted into an empty net while the opposition GK was still lying on the floor. 

 

No no no, that's entirely the right thing to do. If the ball hits the post and rebounds to you as an attacker, you cannot touch it, or it is an indirect freekick. The ball has to hit another player in order for it to be 'in play' for the penalty taker.

 

Here, have an example IRL from France:

 

 

[Jimbokav1971]

4 minutes ago, Moonshine said:

No no no, that's entirely the right thing to do. If the ball hits the post and rebounds to you as an attacker, you cannot touch it, or it is an indirect freekick. The ball has to hit another player in order for it to be 'in play' for the penalty taker.

Here, have an example IRL from France:

 

The video doesn't work in the uk but actually it's fine. You make a really good point and something I had completely forgotten about. 

Of course he can't touch the ball! 

[Nobby_McDonald]

Fancy not knowing the rules Jimbo.