Making Football Como's Main Tourist Attraction

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

Como 1907 (previously known as Calcio Como) were refounded in 2017, after the club went bankrupt for the second time in its history. The last time the club found itself in Serie A was the 2002/03 season, before suffering successive relegations and going bust. Interestingly the club is now owned by Akosua Puni Essien, wife of former Ghanaian football great Michael. Como gained promotion back to Serie C/A in 2018/19, and FM20 predicts them to finish 9th in 2019/20.

2019/20

Transfers

On top of the €180k spent before my arrival, I've added five new players.

• Stefano Tarolli is a sweeper keeper who has good reflexes and is good in one-on-ones and is a Professional individual, not rated as highly as Davide Facchin by my assistant but he will be my #1 as he suits how I want to play.
• Matteo Brumat is a right-back who will play an attacking wing-back role, with 16 crossing and 14 dribbling he's going to be a constant threat. His scout report says he doesn't enjoy big matches which is a worry, but we are short of players in his position, the only other being Dario Toninelli whose attributes are much more suited to playing centre-back.
• Danny Earls is a 30-year-old Irish left-back who has played most of his career in the USA after coming through Aston Villa's youth ranks. My assistant doesn't rate him much better than my other left-back Ciro Loreto, but Earls is much better mentally. He'll have to learn the language but he'll have a fellow Dub in me to bounce off in the meantime.
• Ibrahim Karamoko is a 17-year-old midfielder who can play both in front of the back four or in centre-midfield, and will slot straight into our team.
• Paolo Rozzio will be a first choice centre-back for us, he has plenty of experience at this level and will help us out both defending and attacking set-pieces with his height and heading ability.

Tactics

We're playing a high-line as our defenders are pacy, and we are not good in the air compared to the rest of the league. We lack strength in midfield so I've gone with 3 in there. Ganz's good off the ball movement should hopefully drag defenders out of position creating space for our inside forwards, who will in turn make room for overlapping wing-backs.

Mid-Season

At the halfway point of the season we find ourselves 1 point off the top of the table. We're unlucky not to be top, Juventus' U23s equalised in the 95th minute, while we missed an 86th minute penalty against Novara to win the game. We've scored the second most goals in the league, only favourites Monza have scored more. We dominate most of our games possession-wise, keeping it on average 59% of the time, and create a lot of chances with it (173 shots on target (2nd), 16 less than Monza and 47 more than 3rd place Alessandria). We've crossed the ball 40 more times than any other team in the league but have the best completion rate at 23%, showing part of our tactic is working as intended. We need to score more from open play though, I may need to change around roles up front and try to get the midfield more involved.

Player of the Season so far

Alessandro Bellemo

The heartbeat of the team, everything we do goes through him. He's also a massive set-piece threat. If he was to get injured we'd be in desperate trouble.

Squad

As you can see, I'm not getting much out of my attacking players. They are playing in unfamiliar roles but I feel it's imperative we continue this way, hopefully they'll get more adept as time goes on, or we can find players who are. However, I'm delighted with how we've been doing so far, I just hope that the goals don't dry up from elsewhere.

Edited April 26, 2020 by AdamFitz

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2019/20 End of Season

January Transfers

In
Ivaylo Naydenov (Loan from Levski Sofia) - Brought in to provide a slightly more attacking back-up at right-back, and cover at defensive midfield. Don't have to pay any wages as Levski as our parent club.
Andrea Adorante (Loan from Parma) - Well-rounded striker who can play proficiently in a number of roles. Way better than anything else we have up top.

Out
Ismail H'Maidat (€23.5k to Rende) - The one dissenting voice at my team meetings and not good enough for us, delighted to see him go.
Davide Facchin (€87k to Leicester City) - A decent goalkeeper but he wanted more first team football and I couldn't give it to him. His solution to this problem was to go to Leicester where he's guaranteed games.
 

Fixtures

The win against rivals Lecco sent us top, and we stayed there until the defeat to AlbinoLeffe in late February. Our form throughout the first two and a half months of 2020 was poor besides good performances against Pro Patria and Pro Vercelli. We were still scoring most goals from set pieces which only bailed us out some of the time.  The top of the table clash against Monza gave us a chance to go back top, but a red card for "experienced midfielder" Silvano Raggio Garibaldi after 12 minutes killed the chance of that. A good win against Arezzo, along with the return of midfielder Francesco Marano and a change to a more attacking tactic led to an uptick in form, winning our last seven games. In GW34 and 35, last minute winners from Monza in both games denied us returning to the top. We finally returned there in GW36, ending Siena's title hopes simultaneously. We secured the title and promotion to Serie B the week after with a game to spare as Monza dropped points again. They went on to win the absurd Serie C play-off to join us in the second tier next year.

Squad

GK Stefano Tarolli - Average rating of 6.76 in the league is harsh on him, he kept 21 clean sheets (4 more than anyone else) and didn't have any obvious blunders. A great free signing and only paying him €400p/w.

RB Matteo Brumat - Decent season for another free signing, 3 goals, 5 assists and a 7.07 average rating, he came off the bench to score the winner against Siena which put us back top with two games to go. Probably not good enough to start in Serie B but will be a part of the squad next year.

CB Paolo Rozzio - An absolute bargain at €65k. 8 goals in the league, which were probably all near post headers from Bellemo corners, easy for him at 190cm tall and with 14 heading and 13 jumping. 3rd best average rating in the league.

CB Luca Crescenzi - Solid season for him. His rival for the position Matteo Solini is better technically and probably more natural in his position as a left-footer, but Luca's performances were better.

LB Danny Earls - I didn't expect him to be so ever-present when I signed him first. He started all but one of our league games, 3 goals and 7 assists is an excellent return from him. He's rated as a leading Serie D player by my assistant but I would've felt guilty if I didn't keep him around next year.

DM Edoardo Bovolon - Well suited to the half-back role as someone who can play centre-back naturally. Can also play in central midfield. Great squad player to have who has the potential to get better.

CM Alessandro Bellemo - Started all 38 league games, scoring 10 times, assisting 19 with an absurd 7.79 average rating. The undisputed player of the year and the man who much of our hopes of staying up next year rely on.

CM Francesco Marano - He returned from injury for the Arezzo game in March, performing excellently and keeping loanee Ibrahim Karamoko (who was on France U19 duty for that game) out of the side for the rest of the season.

AMR Massimiliano Gatto - Decent return of 6 goals and 7 assists in 31 league starts, most notably the second goal in the title-winning game against Giana Erminio to calm the nerves.

AML Eric Lanini - 14 goals in the league somehow earned him the golden boot, 2 more than anyone else in the league. I've managed to bring him back in for next season for no wage.

ST Andrea Adorante - Really helped to turn our season around, replacing Simone Graz who managed 2 goals in 29 league games. I can't bring him back in for next year as Parma want him to play with better players, hopefully we can bring some quality in and go back in for him.

Tactics

After a lot of toying around with the tactic, for the Arezzo game I used the above system, a higher pressing, higher tempo style than before, as our Team Cohesion had finally reached Average so I felt comfortable to do so. Adorante as a Pressing Forward worked wonders, and we scored for fun in our last few games, barely conceding in the process. It will be difficult to play this style in Serie B though.

Edited April 28, 2020 by AdamFitz

[Unforced error]

Hi well done with winning the league, and good luck with serie B 😀. As for Ismael H'Maidat - I took over Modena in the 2020/21season and he was there. Not a good player but has a very high belief in himself. I have tried playing him but no use so he's on the transfer list!

[AdamFitz]

32 minutes ago, Unforced error said:

Hi well done with winning the league, and good luck with serie B 😀. As for Ismael H'Maidat - I took over Modena in the 2020/21season and he was there. Not a good player but has a very high belief in himself. I have tried playing him but no use so he's on the transfer list!

Thanks! When I introduced myself as manager he was even unhappy then, questioning who I was. Normally I would be delighted to have a player with Ambitious personality, but it doesn't suit him because as you say he's no use

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2020/21 Pre-Season

Transfers

At the risk of upsetting the atmosphere in the dressing room, I had to sign a lot of players to help keep us in the division or else we'd be going straight back down. Delighted not to have spent any transfer fees in the process.

In
Davide Mordini - Signed him last January as his wages were cheap, probably won't play much for us at all.
Eros Pellegrini - Not much better than Brumat, but decent well-rounded player with a dangerous long throw to give us another option.
João Silva - Comes in to partner Rozzio as a left-footer playing LCB. Played all 38 games in the league for Serie C Bisceglie last year.
Davide Vitturini - Another attempt at finding our right-back, there's no standout between the 3 we have now, but Vitturini has the most potential of the three.
Roberto Zammarini - On big wages at €6.5k a week but I really like the look of him. Played 35 games at this level for Pordenone last season. He will partner Bellemo in central midfield.
Andrea Adorante - Delighted to able to bring him back in on loan, well capable of playing at this level.
Vincenzo Millico - Felt a bit guilty bringing him in to play ahead of Lanini, but couldn't turn down the opportunity.
Anthony Partipilo - Comes in to challenge Gallo at AMR. More of an attacking threat than him.
Luca Ranieri - Left-back became our clear weakness, I didn't think we'd get someone as good as this guy to fill the gap.
Tommaso Pobega - I needed another midfielder in the squad, this guy comes in for only €400p/w as the best midfielder at the club. Will be competing with Bolovon for a starting spot.

Out
Enrico Celeghin - Barely featured for us last year, happy to get any money for him.
Dario Toninelli - Not a bad centre-back option but would've been 5th/6th choice.
Luca Miracoli - No better than our back-up striker, was out on loan all last season.
Alessio Iovine - A highly influential player who has no place in our squad, I managed to get Cosenza to pay his wages for the season.
Ciro Loreto - Decent potential but didn't like his low determination.
Simone Sbardella - Sat in the reserves last year, happy to get him off the books.
Matteo Solini - Good player but wanted to play first team football, 18 year old Ethiopian international Daniel Culotta who isn't much worse CA-wise will take his place in the squad.

Friendlies and Early Cup Games

A good start in the cup, including a brilliant result against Chievo, predicted to come 9th in Serie B compared to 18th for us. Gives us real hope for the new season.

Tactics

Not too much has changed from last year tactically, we've reduced our mentality to cautious (although I will change this a lot throughout games) and changed Tarolli from SK - At to SK - Su. I'll have to keep an eye on the types of goals we concede to decide whether we can continue with such a high defensive line.

Edited April 29, 2020 by AdamFitz

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2020/21 Mid-Season

Transfers

In
Nuno Reis - A decent ball-playing defender in on loan from our parent club Levski, for no wages. He's rated better than captain Paolo Rozzio and may well take his place in the team.
Ivaylo Ivanov - Back-up for Ranieri and could play left-wing if we were to use a winger. Paying none of his wages either.

Out
Got rid of 4 Reserve/U20 players to clear some of the wage bill.
Silvano Raggio Garibaldi - There's a risk we'll be left short in midfield selling him, but he hadn't played for us and we needed him off the books.
Luca Crescenzi - Couldn't keep his place in the team from last year and wanted to play more games. Comfortable letting him go after bringing in Nuno Reis.

Fixtures

We got off to a great start, going unbeaten in our first 6 games, including a stunning result against promotion chasing Empoli. We couldn't put a goal past 9 men Monza which set the alarm bells ringing, and our form plummeted in October. We have been much better since, we were unlucky against SPAL who came behind to win, and against Entella who were awful but won because of two absolute howlers from my goalkeeper Tarolli.

League Table

We find ourselves in 9th at the half-way point of the season, most importantly 16 points ahead of Pordenone in 18th and in a great position to stay up. I don't think we have the quality in the squad to make a promotion push so the 40 point mark is our main aim. Frosinone are running away with the league, interestingly their only defeat came against us.

Player of the Season so far

Getting him back in on loan was the most important piece of business we did in the summer, he's joint topscorer in the division and has won us a few games single-handedly. Keeping him fit is crucial for us to get towards 40 points.

Finances

We are leaking money. I was working within our wage budget but the board cut it by about €10,000 p/w. The €1m in TV money is hardly making a dent in our losses. If a big offer was to come in for one of our players I'd have to consider it, although our best player CA-wise (João Silva) is only valued at €575k, which I assume isn't helped by our low club reputation relative to clubs around us. It's hard to see where we're going to find money from as there doesn't seem to be prize money for clubs other than the ones who get promoted, and our sponsorship money is the lowest in the league at €1.2m. Surely Michael Essien's wife has enough quid lying around for a cash injection?

Edited May 1, 2020 by AdamFitz

[AdamFitz]

4 games to go

We've been in brilliant form, my prediction about us not being good enough to battle for promotion was completely wrong. All but one of the games we won were by one goal, although we were 4-0 up against Frosinone, who were top at the time. All of this means:

We arguably have the easiest run-in, although our easy games are away from home unlike Triestina. You would expect Empoli to do well in their remaining games.

[AdamFitz]

1 game to go

Beat Entella as expected, but managed to lose to already relegated Reggina. Thought it was all over then, but a win against a good Cittadella side leaves the table looking like this going into the last day:

Empoli are at home to 7th place Livorno, hard to see them not going up. Triestina are at home to 10th place Venezia, while we have already relegated Cremonese. We really should hold up our end of the bargain and hope Triestina slip up.

[AdamFitz]

Final Day

10-man Empoli scraped a 1-1 draw with Livorno, meaning wins for us and Triestina would put Empoli into the playoffs on head-to-head.

This was Triestina's first lost at home all season, to a team with nothing to play for. This result meant that all we needed was a point against Cremonese to gain promotion, a win and we do so as champions...

We certainly didn't make it easy for ourselves, but a 20th league goal of the season for Andrea Adorante was enough to send us up. I don't think we're gonna be able to bring him back next year which is an absolute killer for us, we would have been 15 points worse off if not for his goals.

Triestina's carried their disastrous last-day form into the playoffs, losing 5-1 on aggregate to Frosinone (who we did the double over) in the final. We've defied the odds again, we were predicted to finish 19th once all of our transfers were made, I would've been delighted to scrape our way to 40 points, but instead we only dropped 16 points in the second-half of the season, beating some good opposition along the way including Genoa, who pay Andrea Pinamonti nearly as much a week as we pay our whole squad. I said staying up in Serie B would be tough but staying up in Serie A may well be impossible. At least the TV money should stop the club from more financial difficulties.

Edited May 2, 2020 by AdamFitz

[Unforced error]

Cracking season! Good practice for Serie A........

[AdamFitz]

On 02/05/2020 at 23:02, Unforced error said:

Cracking season! Good practice for Serie A........

Thanks mate. I still haven't done the transfer business for next season because it'll be so difficult to get the squad up to that level!

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2020/21 End of Season

Fixtures

October to December was rough after a great start, we were really struggling to create goals. We didn't score particularly much in the second half of the season either, but defensively we were much improved (at one stage going 5 games without conceding) and the goals of Adorante were enough to take us over the line. 

Best XI

GK Stefano Tarolli - 19 clean sheets represents another decent season for him, however he lost us some games single-handedly this year. In the 2-1 loss to Entella in December, he flapped two shots that were straight at him into the net. His attributes are probably better than his scout report suggests, but we can find better than him for Serie A so I was happy enough for Udinese to take him on a free.

RB Davide Vitturini - He nailed down the starting spot at right-back over Pellegrini and Brumat and had a very solid season. His attributes don't suggest that he's anything special but he's a consistent player who enjoys big matches.

CB Nuno Reis - I don't think it's over-the-top for me to suggest that our big improvement defensively is largely down to him. Excellent technical and physical attributes for a centre-back and allowed us to play a ball-playing defender. He kept captain Paolo Rozzio out of the team for the remainder of the season.

CB João Silva - Proved to be a brilliant free signing, played all but one game for us and formed a great partnership with fellow countryman Reis. Is just about good enough for Serie A and still has some room to grow.

LB Luca Ranieri - 10 assists in 38 games is a good return from a left-back. Delighted that we've brought him back in on loan for next year.

DM Edoardo Bovolon - He's come on a good bit as a player, his vision lets him down but he's very solid as a defensive midfielder with decent passing ability.

CM Alessandro Bellemo - He found this level much more difficult than last year but still had a good season, keeping Zammarini out of the side for the most part. It would feel wrong to not keep him around for next season but hard to see him playing much.

CM Tommaso Pobega - Cheap loan signing from Milan who doesn't offer much going forward but is a very solid midfielder defensively. He's coming back in on loan again next year.

AMR Anthony Partipilo - Had a similar season to what Gatto had last year and kept him out of the team, scoring some important goals here and there. Not good enough for Serie A and definitely a priority position to upgrade. Great name though.

AML Vincenzo Millico - Not a bad year although I expected more from him. One 3 occasions he scored the only goal in 1-0 wins demonstrating that he's a big game player. Have brought him back in on loan for next season.

ST Andrea Adorante - Dragged us up to Serie A almost single-handedly. Parma said they wanted to give him a go in the first team next year, but have now accepted a 2-year loan offer for him. Fingers crossed that he accepts, because he's class and has potential to get much better.

Tactics

I ended the season playing like this, although I tweaked roles and instructions a lot throughout the season. I don't see us playing such a high line against Serie A's pacy strikers.

[Unforced error]

10 hours ago, AdamFitz said:

Thanks mate. I still haven't done the transfer business for next season because it'll be so difficult to get the squad up to that level!

Not me... Got Modena top of the league but still only in march so got to keep going. If I get them to Serie B I will have to shift out a lot of players to be able to get better ones. Life of a manager eh?

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2021/22 Pre-Season

Transfers

Same dilemma as last year, either put faith in the players I had or try and get players of better quality who will hopefully gel eventually and give us a better chance of staying up, again I went with the latter. It proved incredibly difficult to sign players who were considered Serie A quality.

In
Titas Krapikas - Brought in to replace Stefano Tarolli, his goalkeeping stats probably aren't as good as his. He's more of a physical keeper with good kicking which may help us setting off counter attacks. Number 1 goalkeeper for the Lithuanian national team.
Nuno Reis - Although he's not Serie A quality, he's a solid ball-playing defender who's a good squad player to have at no wage cost.
Andrea Adorante - €2.8k p/w for 2 years for our top goalscorer last year is a good bit of business. We managed to get the deal done just before Parma offered him a new €12.75k p/w contract.
Leonardo Capezzi - Creative midfielder who has past Serie A experience. May well displace Bellemo in the team.
Alessandro Rossi - Pressing Forward who comes in to give back-up to Adorante, and enable us to switch to 4-4-2 for certain games.
Alessandro Buongiorno - His first touch is a bit worrying, otherwise he's average overall. He's not guaranteed to start for us.
Kike Barja - He's not really my kind of player but we were desperately short of players on the wings, he's the best we could find for what we could afford.
Ivaylo Ivanov - Back in on loan from Levski to provide cover on the left side of the pitch.
Georgi Georgiev - Raiding Levski again for a back-up goalkeeper. I can imagine I'm probably not very welcome in those parts.
Lorenzo Fusco - Another back-up 'keeper who probably won't ever be our #1.
Yan Valery - He becomes our best right-back, although he's nothing spectacular.
Matheus Fernandes - Gives us extra cover in midfield, very well-rounded player who is instantly one of the best at the club.

Out
Stefano Tarolli - I may end up regretting letting him go. His weekly wage has gone up 600% so I'm sure he'll happily warm the bench at Udinese.
Anthony Partipilo - Wanted big money but he's just not good enough to give it to him. Happy to take €375k for a player we signed on a free last summer.

Friendlies and Early Cup Games

Some very shaky friendly results while we were toying around with new tactics. Beating Verona 3-0 with a counter attacking tactic was promising, we went back to our more attacking system for the cup game against Venezia and were very lucky to sneak through on penalties.

Tactics

I'll use this tactic in games I think we can win, or when we've gone behind. I haven't settled on a counter attacking tactic just yet, I've found it difficult to have success with defensive tactics in FM20, but I don't really have much of a choice but to play that way.

[AdamFitz]

17 hours ago, Unforced error said:

Not me... Got Modena top of the league but still only in march so got to keep going. If I get them to Serie B I will have to shift out a lot of players to be able to get better ones. Life of a manager eh?

Best of luck with the end of the season. Try and get Adorante on loan!

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2021/22 August - October

Fixtures

Sampdoria and Frosinone are amongst the poorest teams in the league so it was good to claim wins over them. Struggling Parma battered us, before a famous win against Roma with Gatto (in for the injured Barja) still scoring big goals for us, as he has done since the Serie C days. The result against Inter was sickening, we went down to 10 men in the first half, almost held on for a point before Inter got a winner in the 92nd minute.

League Table

Good to be averaging more than a point a game, we're unlucky not to have maybe 3 points more than we currently do. Hopefully there's 3 teams that are worse than us this year.

Finances

Absolutely swimming in money due to the TV rights. If we get relegated, this season should hopefully set us up long term, with the parachute payments on top of what we're already receiving.

Edited May 5, 2020 by AdamFitz

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2021/22 November - December

Fixtures

The Cagliari game was a sickener, they equalised in the 92nd minute after our 3rd choice left-back Mordini (Ranieri suspended, Ivanov injured) gave away a penalty. We've given away a lot of them this year, so much so I've had Ranieri playing with the Ease Off Tackles instruction for the start of games. We rebounded to win our next two games in the league, a great result away to Bologna (who only scored in the 94th minute), and a convincing win against Serie B champions Empoli. The win against Lazio (who were third at the time) gave us a home double against the two Rome giants, Gatto was the hero again playing in place of the suspended Kike Barja.

League Table

We're on course to stay up if we can keep up our form. To be 7 points clear of the drop at this stage is a great achievement given we're predicted to come bottom. Our next two games are Juve and AC Milan, I don't expect anything from both ties.

Player of the Season so far

He hasn't been first choice for us and is only rated as a leading Serie C player, but for his matchwinning goals against Lazio and Roma, along with the goal to earn us a draw against Torino, he stands out above a squad who have had average to poor performances overall.

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2021/22 January - February

Transfers

In
Jonathan Toro - Brought to provide cover on the left-wing, scored a 90th minute equaliser off the bench on his debut.
Rhian Brewster - Jumped at the chance to get him in. We've got him until the end of next season and he could develop into a great player in his time with us.

Fixtures

As expected, we took nothing from Juve and AC, but were 1-0 up against Juve at one stage which was nice. Sassuolo equalised against us in the last minute, we then did the same to Brescia in the next game. The Sampdoria win was massive, greatly helped by them going down to 10 men. The 3-0 win against Parma was one of our best performances of the season, despite Adorante seeing red at 2-0.

League Table

6 points away from the magic 40 point figure, and 14 points clear of the drop. We'd have to be desperately poor to slip up from here.

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2021/22 End of Season

Fixtures

Form was rough in March and early April, the 4-3-3 we'd been using since Serie C wasn't working well anymore and the more defensive 4-1-4-1 was getting broken down easily. Bringing in Brewster allowed us to play 4-4-2, we used that pretty consistently through the last 2 months of the season and although we missed the defensive solidity of a DM, Adorante and Brewster were banging in the goals. The win against Bologna put us to the 40 point mark, Fiorentina took til the 73rd minute to score then the floodgates opened, we then won 4 on the bounce, including late winners against Lazio away and a weakened, already champions Juve team, but still contained De Ligt, Bonucci, Rakitic, Bernardeschi, Odriozola and Witsel. Beating Milan on the final day would've had us finishing above them but it wasn't to be. All in all a really solid first season in Serie A, we were never really in a relegation battle and now have a chance to build a squad to establish ourselves in the division.

League Table

Best XI

GK Titas Krapikas - Consistent year but nothing special. I've got a replacement lined up for him so he may be free to leave.

RB Yan Valery - Distincly average year for him. I've brought him back in for next year but with an option to terminate in case we find someone better on a permanent deal.

CB Alessandro Buongiorno - He nailed down the starting spot over Nuno Reis who was really poor whenever he played. Has some growth left which hopefully can be chanelled into having a better first touch.

CB João Silva - 4th player in a row to have a ~6.9 average rating. Centre-back is definitely a position I'm looking to upgrade at.

LB Luca Ranieri - Luca had a really poor year. He seemed to give away a penalty every game he played in and was a yellow card machine. I'll reluctantly bring him back as left-back is a notoriously difficult position to find quality in.

RM Kike Barja - Had a strikingly similar year to his predecessors Partipilo and Gatto. Not bringing him back next year in the hope of finding someone better.

CM Matheus Fernandes - 6th player in and around a 6.9 average rating, bringing him back next year anyway.

CM Leonardo Capezzi - His Serie A experience showed, he was very good consistently for us and was a successful free signing.

LM Vincenzo Millico - 8 goals and 13 assists at this level is a brilliant return. Torino have let me take him for a third year.

ST Rhian Brewster - 11 goals and 6 assists in 17 appearances. He's by far our best player and I'm delighted we have him again next year, he could easily hit 20+ in the league.

ST Andrea Adorante - Happy with his return. He found it difficult playing up front alone but playing alongside Brewster really brought the best out of him.

Tactics

The change to 4-4-2 came about because we weren't scoring at all, so an extra man up front seemed the logical fix. Ranieri and Valery are now full-backs in the hope of offering a slight bit more defensive solidity without the extra man in midfield. 

Edited May 7, 2020 by AdamFitz

[Unforced error]

Wel done getting Como that high! I got Modena up to Serie B so I'll see about getting some of the players you show playing well to keep me up! 😀

[AdamFitz]

19 hours ago, Unforced error said:

Wel done getting Como that high! I got Modena up to Serie B so I'll see about getting some of the players you show playing well to keep me up! 😀

Thanks, congrats on promotion. I can definitely recommend Millico and Adorante on loan if they fit your side, and Joao Silva from Bisceglie if he is out of contract.

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2022/23 Pre-Season

Transfers

€35m in TV money last year and €45m this term means we were in a position to spend big money for the first time.

In
Federico Nunzella - Our youth intakes to date have been poor because of our below average facilities, so getting promising young players in is important. Nunzella's bravery lets him down but hopefully we can make a good player out of him.
Pierluigi Crippa - Same scenario as Nunzella, he also struggles with poor bravery. He has good potential and like Nunzella will bolster our U20s.
Misael Arrieta - We smashed our transfer record to upgrade our goalkeeper. He has bags of potential and some great attributes.
Nikola Pavlovic - We matched our transfer record only three days later bringing in this guy. He's our first wonderkid, and although his Fickle personality is a bit off-putting, I've put him in a mentoring group with a couple of team leaders with good personalities to hopefully get that out of him. Unfortunately has a release clause just under €20m so mightn't be with us long, I will offer him new contracts often in an attempt to up that release clause or remove it altogether.
Agustin Almendra - Comes in to be our starting right-winger, but provides quality cover in centre-midfield too.
Gianmarco Cicala - Another cheap, talented young Italian with poor bravery. He might get a loan move in January.
Pervis Estupiñán - Provides good cover at both left-midfield and left-back, and could challenge Millico for his starting spot.
Aymar Ngoy - Additional cover at left-back, young with a lot of potential.
Marco Tumminello - I had a deal lined up to bring in a striker for about €4m (Kikas from Belenenses) but he was no better than Adorante or Brewster. I'll wait until a better striker comes up to spend money on, Tumminello will suffice as cover for now.
Melvin Bard - I terminated Ranieri's loan spell when Bard arrived. He's not much better than Bard CA-wise but hopefully he won't be as big of a liability.
John Souttar - This deal popped up not so long before deadline day and it seemed a no-brainer. A very good ball-playing defender who could form a very good partnership with Pavlovic.
Ryan Gray - Pacy young striker with loads of potential, as good as our 4th choice striker already.

Out
Davide Mordini - After a year as back-up after his contract expired, Spezia came in and I was happy enough to let him go.
Roberto Zammarini - Things never really clicked for him with us, to get €250k and his €6.5k p/w wages of the bill is a good outcome.

Friendlies

We also played newly promoted Juve Stabia in a friendly towards the end of last year, the league starts a lot earlier this year due to the World Cup in Qatar.

Tactics

I change instructions most games depending on the opposition we play, but the 4-4-2 has become our constant formation after years of using the 4-3-3.

Squad

Serie A's lax loan rules have really helped us maintain in Serie A, while we slowly add quality permanent players. Our back-up in some positions like RB and RM is quite weak, I'd ideally improve them with young players with potential.

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2022/23 July - October

Fixtures

We've found away games to good teams tough, but our home form has been brilliant. The best win so far was definitely battering Milan 4-0. Brewster has only scored 2 in the league, mainly because he's been desperately unlucky with injuries. We've managed to do quite well without him.

League Table

Shouldn't be in a relegation battle again this year. Some European football next year would be brilliant but wouldn't be disappointed with another mid-table finish.

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2022/23 December - February

Transfers

In
Rab Harrison - Cheap youngster with potential who at the very we least we might make a profit on.
Ousmane Stephanus - Very difficult to find any good right-backs on a permanent basis, Stephanus might be getting a bit old to fulfill his potential but he didn't cost us too much.
Martin Alexandre - Spent big to bring in a right-winger on a permanent deal, he has bags of potential and is already pretty good at just 17. His mentals aren't great but his technical and physical attributes are already good. Focussing on getting his bravery up to a respectable level first.
Pedro Mendes - Tumminello was unhappy with his playing time so he went back to Atalanta, Mendes will take his spot warming the bench.

Out
Edoardo Bovolon - A great servant for us, but wasn't getting near the team anymore so happy to get some money for him.
Alessandro Rossi - A bit of a flop, but not too painful at €700k. Glad to get his wages off the books.

Fixtures

We don't yet have the quality to beat the teams above us, although we were desperately unlucky against Inter who equalised in the last minute. Udinese also scored in injury-time to beat us a few games later. We then won 3 on the bounce without conceding to get us to the 40 point mark after 23 games. Our two wingers have saved us while our strikers (particularly Brewster) have struggled, Alexandre has hit the ground running with 1 goal and 3 assists in his first 6 while Estupinan won February Player of the Month. Against Torino in January, Ryan Gray came off the bench for his debut to get us a late equaliser, he is now a part of our main squad.

League Table

Europe is a real possibility but I find it hard to see us supplanting any of the teams above us. I'd be happy to beat last year's points total.

Edited May 9, 2020 by AdamFitz

[quee]

Will be following! Loved an Italian read-through 

[AdamFitz]

4 hours ago, quee said:

Will be following! Loved an Italian read-through 

Thanks, I haven't done a save here since FM09 (I think), big fan of the 12 man benches.

[Unforced error]

On 08/05/2020 at 12:19, AdamFitz said:

Thanks, congrats on promotion. I can definitely recommend Millico and Adorante on loan if they fit your side, and Joao Silva from Bisceglie if he is out of contract.

Hi, I have sent my scouts to check out Millico and Adorante though they aren't up for loan. I have loaned a Manchester United young player called Hannibal Mejbri. Looks to be a great player, well worth checking out.

Edited May 9, 2020 by Unforced error

[AdamFitz]

On 09/05/2020 at 22:42, Unforced error said:

Hi, I have sent my scouts to check out Millico and Adorante though they aren't up for loan. I have loaned a Manchester United young player called Hannibal Mejbri. Looks to be a great player, well worth checking out.

Here's how we looks on mine, has the Wonderkid tag

[Unforced error]

Yes he is a great player, scores free kicks, runs fast and even does a bit of defending too. 

[quee]

4 hours ago, AdamFitz said:

Here's how we looks on mine, has the Wonderkid tag

He scored his first 4 goals of his career in ONE match for my Parma team in a Coppa Italia game against Torino 

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2022/23 End of Season

Fixtures

It looked like Brewster had won us the game against Lazio, but they equalised in the 94th minute. We concede a lot in late stages of games despite tweaks to be more defensive. It was even worse against Sampdoria, they made it 2-2 in the 90th, we made it 3-2 in the 93rd but they came back again in the 95th. Sassuolo, Roma and Brescia inflicted similar late heartbreak on us. We were in relegation form to the finish off the season, thankfully compensated by our great start.

League Table

We finish with 1 point more than last year, one position below. Another year in the division represnts better club reputation, improved facilities, loads of TV money and a chance to sign better players. Genoa managed to stay up with a very low 26 points, and 40 points was good enough for 13th place.

Best XI

GK Misael Arrieta - Kept 4 more clean sheets and conceded 19 less than Krapikas did last year, although he could've been helped by the improved defence in front of him. I don't think it's long before the big teams come looking.

RB Yan Valery - Another average season for him, he's available on a free but I'm going to try and find someone better.

CB John Souttar - Solid start to life in Italy for him, hopefully the experience and time to settle will make him even better next year.

CB Nikola Pavlovic - Not a bad season for the 19 year old. I managed to bump his release clause up to €29.5m and won't accept less than that, Roma are interested.

LB Melvin Bard - His consistency is showing as poor now, I've extended his loan in the hope of finding someone better.

RM Martin Alexandre - Made a promising start for us with 6 assists in 13 games. Some of his mental stats still worry me but hopefully that comes with age.

CM Leonardo Capezzi - I think Capezzi is a great example of why things like consistency and a player enjoying matches are so important. He's only rated a good Serie B player but was excellent all season, and probably our second best player.

CM Matheus Fernandes - While he is nothing special, like Bard I'll keep him until we find better.

LM Pervis Estupiñán - Played only slightly more than Millico who struggled to re-create last year's form. He's tempting to bring in again as a cover option.

ST Andrea Adorante - a goal every other game for him this year, now 57 goals in 131 games and has played in Serie C, B and A for us all on loan. Parma don't want him to come back, we could afford him but it'd eat up most of our transfer budget. Very difficult decision to make.

ST Rhian Brewster - I was expecting big things from him after his loan spell last year but he failed to deliver. Injuries didn't help but even when he got a consistent run in the side he struggled. With Adorante probably not coming back, I've extended his loan regardless of his form.

Tactics

I messed around frequently as results got worse, our best form late in the season came using this. I felt comfortable having a wing-back and a winger because Alexandre cuts inside a lot. I'm not sure how I want to play next year, a couple of the young Italian players we bought at the beginning of the season are on the fringe of the first team so that might bring a switch to a diamond or 4-2-3-1.

New Stadium

We're in a really odd situation with the stadium. The Giuseppe Sinigaglia is a 13,602 all-seater, but we were only allow have 5,500 at games last year, 6,681 this year, and 8,039 next year. I would be happy to use the current stadium in its full capacity for the next while but I have no control over this. I fear it might be too soon to build a new stadium as well, it might end being too small in the long run.

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2023/24 Pre-Season

Transfers

Not as much of an outlay as last year, we have to pay high wages to improve the squad at this stage. Some youngsters with first team potential (Brito, Belotti and Nunzella) left on loan.

In
Leandro Dias - Provides us with decent cover at left-back for free. A couple of clubs have offered to pay big money to take him on loan (including one covering all of his wages + €70k playing/€140k unused a month) but I'd prefer to have him in the squad.
Nuno Brito - Money I probably could've spent elsewhere, but he has potential to become a good centre-back. Hopefully a loan move to Chievo in Serie B helps him fulfill it.
Conor Gallagher - A good all-round midfielder very similar to Matheus Fernandes. Will battle with Capezzi for a starting spot.
Adrien Tameze - I wanted to go back to playing 4-3-3 with a DM and Tameze represented a good loan option to fill the spot. I chose him over a 4* CA Roma regen whose technical stats were poor, but also brought in another loanee in Sebastiani to compete with him.
Raoul Bellanova - We spent a record €7m for the third time to fill the gaping hole at right-back. While he is on big wages and some of his technical attributes let him down, his physicals are insane, knocking the ball past his opponent with 17 acceleration and 18 pace will make him a real threat going forward.
José Sanchez - Another wonderkid, this time on loan from Real Madrid. He spent last season on loan at Verona so he knows the league well. Sanchez was supposed to be Adorante's replacement, but more on that later.
Simone Rabbi - Fantastic cover option at left-wing, right-wing and striker. If he performs well for us, his contract is up next summer and I'd be very tempted to keep him around.
Massimiliano Sebastiani - Comes in with one of the greatest names in football to challenge for the DM spot. My scouts prefer Tameze but I think Sebastiani is better, and Tameze's 'Stays Back At All Times' trait worries me.
Fouad Issam - Cheap youngster with potential to be better, and may end up getting some game time over the likes of Bellemo this year.
Andrea Adorante - Parma transfer listed him on deadline day for €4.4m, which we probably could've afforded if we wanted. It didn't feel right to take him back for anything other than a loan though, especially with Sanchez now in. Good to have a player in the squad who the fans have an affinity with even if he won't start regularly, he's a proven goalscorer at this level now. I think this somewhat illustrates the disconnect between attributes and form on this game, that a player who scored a goal every two games last year isn't wanted by a team who finished below us.

Out
Davide Vitturini - No longer needed with Bellanova and Stephanus ahead of him.
Lorenzo Fusco - We get him off the books at a profit and he gets a hefty new contract at Napoli. No idea why big teams on this game love to sign average goalkeepers from you.

Friendlies

Tactics

We reverted to something very similar to what we were using at the start. I'm going to experiment with Brewster as an Inside Forward, he definitely has the ability to play there, and we struggled to find anyone natural there who is good enough.

Edited May 14, 2020 by AdamFitz

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2023/24 August - October

Fixtures

What a start. We've won 7 of our first 9 games in the league including tough games against Roma, Cagliari, Sassuolo, Fiorentina and Udinese. Our two losses came against Milan and Juve, Conor Gallagher got sent off in the first half against Milan at 1-1 killing any hopes, and we were 1-0 up against Juve until the 79th minute, when Brewster played a woeful backpass to Arrieta which was intercepted and put in the net, before Kanté got the winner for them a couple of minutes later. To have been so unlucky in our losses is a good sign.

There have been some fantastic individual performances so far, namely Brewster, whose switch out to the left has worked a charm. José Sanchez, who has replaced him up top, has got off to a flying start and is causing defences nightmares. On the right-side of the pitch, Bellanova and Alexandre are forming a brilliant partnership, with the former's pace and latter's dribbling ability causing teams real problems.

League Table

The season preview odds have us predicted to come 15th, so this is of course a great start. We are firmly in the European spots and have the second best goal difference in the league behind a rampant Inter side. Improving our results against the best sides in the league is the next hurdle for us to get over.

[Unforced error]

Good going, hope you can get into Europe, loads of money £££££££

[AdamFitz]

11 hours ago, Unforced error said:

Good going, hope you can get into Europe, loads of money £££££££

Thanks, although I fear the squad is too thin. I'd be happy to stay in the division for the time being!

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2023/24 November - December

Fixtures

Another brilliant win against Lazio away had me dreaming of Champions League football next year, but it's all fallen apart since then. We've had a lot of injuries and suspensions to key players which hasn't helped, but I think it's time to go back to the drawing board (again) tactically. 

League Table

Still right in with a chance of European qualification, but our recent form suggests we'll probably end up around where we have been for the last 2 years. The board only want me to avoid a relegation battle and that won't be a worry again.

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2023/24 January - February

Transfers

In
Mark Lee - A creative attacking midfielder/striker, provides a bit of extra cover up top and gives us the option to play 4-2-3-1 or the diamond. No brainer for €7k a week.
Dean Henderson - An injury to Arrieta forced this move, €47k a week is a lot of money but we can afford it. In hindsight I probably should've checked if I could recall Krapikas.

Out
Ryan Gray - Goes off to help Pisa's promotion push to Serie B and get some much needed game time. 

Fixtures

Absolutely horrid form, not helped by injuries to key players like Sanchez and Arrieta, but doesn't excuse how bad we've been. While it was a tough run of games, the loss against relegation-threatened Crotone stung. The game against Cagliari was our easiest home game in a while and a chance to turn things around, we were 2-0 up and cruising before 2 goals in the last 10 minutes for Cagliari pegged us back. Andrea Adorante, listed with me as the club's only 'favoured personnel', came off the bench to give us the winner. I was hoping to pick him up on a free but Parma, after transfer listing him last year, offered him a bumper €45.5k a week contract for the next 5 seasons.

League Table

If we can build some form off the back of the Cagliari win, we're still in with a chance of making Europe. We've got games against Sassuolo (A), Brescia (H), Fiorentina (A) and Udinese (H) in March, if we are any good at all we should be trying to win at least two of those. If you are wondering why Genoa's goal difference is particularly bad:

The 3 losses against Lazio, Inter and Torino came in 3 consecutive games, 21 goals conceded and 0 scored 

Edited May 17, 2020 by AdamFitz

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2023/24 End of Season

Fixtures

We closed out the season brilliantly, losing only once in our last 16 matches to champions Inter. I pointed out Genoa's woes in the last post, being battered 5-0 then failing to beat them felt like karma. Brewster has been incredible, it's a massive pity that he's going to Lille next year, it'll be very hard to replace his goals. Despite some frustrating draws late on, we went into the final day with a chance of finishing as high as 5th:

Atalanta beat Cagliari 2-1 to claim 5th as Roma couldn't beat Napoli away to get into the Champions League over them. That meant we needed to better Lazio's result to get into Europe. We couldn't break down Sampdoria and the game finished 0-0, meaning we needed Udinese to win at the Olimpico. They went 1-0 after 8 minutes, and hung on until the 88th minute when Renato Sanches equalised for Lazio, putting us back into 8th place. It wasn't over there though, Domingos Quina scored a winner for Udinese in the 95th minute to bring European football to Como for the first time.

League Table

Those draws in games we dominated late on sting a bit because we weren't very far off the Champions League in the end, but it's a great season overall. 14 points better off than last year and finishing above Lazio are great achievements. It will be difficult to stablise here with Brewster and Bard set to leave, but hopefully we can attract better players next year to replace them.

Best XI

GK Misael Arrieta - Kept a clean sheet 17 times in 34 games (5 more than last season). Not a position we need to worry about replacing unless someone big comes in for him.

RB Raoul Bellanova - €7m was a risk but it has paid off, he's had a good year. He has to play with the 'Shoot Less Often' instruction but he's still really dangerous in other aspects of the game.

CB John Souttar - Improved slightly over last year, averaging over a 7. Some Premier League clubs are sniffing around him but hopefully he'll want to stay, he wasn't interested in a bid of €19m from Palace in January.

CB Nikola Pavlovic - Hasn't come on as much as I would've liked him to, but he still performed well. There's still time for him to develop though.

LB Melvin Bard - Lyon want to give him a chance in the first team next year, hopefully they change their minds because decent left-backs are hard to come by.

DM Massimiliano Sebastiani - Another player we can't get back next year, understandably Lazio want to give him a chance.

CM Conor Gallagher - He started off very poorly, but became a bit more consistent towards the end of the season. Probably done just enough for me not to terminate his loan.

CM Matheus Fernandes - Regressed from last year, unsure whether to bring him back for a 4th year. May do as a precautionary measure

AMR Martin Alexandre - Another player who hasn't developed as much as I would've liked, but 6 goals and 11 assists is a great season for his age and given his CA. I have an pre-contract signing coming in who can play in this position, if one of the teams who's sniffing around him (Arsenal included) makes a good offer, I might be tempted to let him go.

AML Rhian Brewster - The move out to the left-wing worked wonders, 20 goals made him topscorer in his last season at the club. Bringing in attacking quality to replace his production is our number 1 priority next year.

ST Andrea Adorante - José Sanchez started the season very well before his form dropped, and then suffered a torn abdominal muscle which kept him out for two months. Adorante took his place, but couldn't repeat his goalscoring form of last year. He's most likely played his last game for the club.

Tactics

I started using a slightly tweaked Gegenpress tactic to try end our run of form and it worked pretty well. We didn't score as many goals as I would've liked but that could be down to the quality of players we have more than anything.

[AdamFitz]

[quee]

Rocchi of Lazio fame?

[AdamFitz]

10 minutes ago, quee said:

Rocchi of Lazio fame?

Yep, according to Wikipedia he went there from Juventus and stayed for two years. A very odd choice, I didn't expect them to name it after me but World Cup winner Gianluca Zambrotta came through the academy at Como, he seems the most logical choice.

[quee]

Maybe it's too long for the game? Gianluca Zambrotta Arena 

Definitely agreeing though, a feature they need to improve. They should also localised the names, using Stadio instead of Stadium and so on.

[AdamFitz]

28 minutes ago, quee said:

Maybe it's too long for the game? Gianluca Zambrotta Arena 

Definitely agreeing though, a feature they need to improve. They should also localised the names, using Stadio instead of Stadium and so on.

Yeah it definitely needs some work, in my Nuneaton save on FM10 they named the next stadium after Malcolm Christie (former Derby striker) who'd been there for a year

[quee]

In FM19, I was given the chance to name the new Parma Stadium. I just chose Nuovo Ennio Tardini (not really interested to have my name for a stadium, after just 7 seasons) 

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2024/25 Pre-Season

Transfers

The three biggest transfers came early, we then scrambled to sort of the rest of the squad out using loans. It was also finally the end for club legends Alessandro Bellemo and Massimiliano Gatto who have been with us at all three levels, Bellemo has ended up back down in Serie C with Palermo where he will dominate, Gatto is a free agent with three teams looking at him.

In
Adam Hlozek - If the €77k figure looks unusual, it's because it's the compensation I had to pay to get him on the end of his contract. He hasn't turned out as good as he can in the game because he hadn't left Sparta until now, but it seemed a no brainer to bring him in for practically no fee.
Niccoló Zanellato - Activated his relegation release clause, adds real quality in central midfield.
Jose Luis Cángele - Not the most natural of goalscorers, and may end up on the wing eventually, depending on who develops better out of him and Hlozek.
Dario Cardia - A talented youngster who might benefit from our training facilities (now great).
Gustavo Moreno - One of the two options I've brought in to replace Sebastiani. Neither are as good as him and I'm not sure yet who is the better of the two.
Matheus Fernandes - Brought in as cover again for his 4th year on loan.
Rui Rebelo - Good options on the left-wing were hard to come by, he will do as we continue the search for a permanent player out there.
Michael Lee - I'm edging towards him starting over Moreno, his mentals are impressive for his age.
Bruno Martella - We failed to bring in a couple of left-back targets, so Martella comes in to fill out the squad. Plenty of Serie A experience and as good as Dias if not better.
Reiss Stair - Provides better cover to Bellanova than shaky Stephanus does, although he's much more of a centre-back.

Out
Domenico Masiero - This one stung a bit. Our only 5* PA youth player refused to sign a contract with us due to the interest shown in him. He has a long way to go to becoming a good player but we'll watch him closely.
Nuno Brito - Expressed regret about bringing him in last year, somehow we've managed to make a solid profit without him getting much better.
Titas Krapikas - Only good enough to be our 3rd choice 'keeper now, good to get his wages off the books.
 

Friendlies

Tactics

No real changes from last year, I'm worried that eventually we will struggle to break smaller teams down, we may have to switch to a more considered style against them.

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2024/25 August - October (and some of November)

Fixtures

I was flying through games and forgot to stop to update . We took care of Lokomotiv in the Conference League play-off, and got Bilbao, Cracovia and Qarabag in the group, one we should easily qualify from on paper. 

We haven't been scoring much, but defensively we have been very solid, only conceding twice in the first 10 games. The result against Cagliari was especially frustrating as Hlozek missed a penalty. Our best performances came against Roma and champions Inter, before we were brought back down to earth by Juve and Napoli.

In Europe, we're already through after 4 games, level at the top with Bilbao with them still to play at home.

League Table

We went top after beating Inter, but 1 point from a possible 9 has us back around where we normally are. Hopefully as the new signings settle and gel we can kick on again.

UEFA Europa Conference League

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2024/25 (the rest of) November - December

Fixtures

Great period for us, the only defeat coming to Lazio, meaning our 3 losses have all come against top 4 sides. All of our wins were very well deserved, although players seemed to take turns at putting the team on their back, Rebelo against Sassuolo, Hlozek against Bologna, Cángele against Bilbao. Even loanee Dario Cardia who I really only brought in to try develop came off the bench to score 2 in the dominant win over Milan (including a rocket with his left foot from 20 yards), earning himself a start next game where he scored inside the first two minutes.

League Table

Beating Torino would've left us outside the top 4 on head-to-head, but we're very much in contention at Christmas. The title race this year could be very interesting, although it's definitely too soon for us. 

UEFA Europa Conference League

Our second team squeezed past Cracovia late on, although the result didn't matter too much as either way we'd have to beat Bilbao on the last day to go top. We did that and ensured a bye into the second knockout round, meeting the board's objectives.

[AdamFitz]

Como 1907

2024/25 January - February

Transfers

In
Rui Santos - Initially an end of contract deal, but only cost €7.5k to bring in immediately. Could have a bright future ahead of him.
Taylor Harwood-Bellis - Buongiorno wanted to go out on loan so Harwood-Bellis comes in to replace him.
Simone Rabbi - We desperately needed cover on the left-wing, I almost brought back Vincenzo Millico but Rabbi's ability to cover more positions made him the obvious choice.

Out
Federico Nunzella - He didn't ever break into the first team, good to get any money for him, hopefully he can kickstart his career with Serie C Foggia.
Alessandro Buongiorno - Wasn't happy about the first-team football he was getting, Verona we happy to pay all of his wages and give us €140k a month, a good deal for us.

Fixtures

Form was great up until the embarrassing defeat to Cittadella, who most likely won't be in the division next year. This ridiculous goal to put them in the lead still stings. 

The clear standout result is the 7-1 victory in the cup over Napoli, a team who hadn't lost in the league up until that point. They had a very strong side out, but it seemed every set piece we had was ending in a goal. Our second-string side beat them again in the second leg for good measure. We'll play Milan in the cup final who we have every chance of beating.

League Table

Two defeats on the bounce have left us in 7th and in danger of being cut adrift with tough games coming up, including champions Inter away next and both Napoli and Juve in the month of March. Hopefully the cup offers us a route into Europe if we falter in the league.

[AdamFitz]

 

Como 1907

2024/25 End of Season

Serie A

We slipped out of the title race and subsequently Champions League qualification contention due to poor form in March and April. We regained form towards the end of the year to finish in 7th again. The defeat to Empoli on the last day kept them up, but didn't matter to us as we couldn't finish any lower or higher.

Italian Cup Final

Como's first major silverware and qualification for the Europa League next season. A cool €5m for winning the tournament along with all the prize money involved in Europe next season, and the opportunity to qualify for the Champions League through it.

UEFA Europa Conference League

During a poor run of form, we managed to squeeze past Galatasaray into the semi-final. I thought Marseille would be tough opponents even though they're struggling in Ligue 1, but we absolutely dominated them.

Favourites to beat Rangers and win the cup, they have a great player in Fraser Sharpe (below) but are poor otherwise.

The team to start the final. This is the style we've been playing with for the last few matches of the season and it has served us relatively well.

A cross to the back post from Hlozek to the injured Rebelo gives us the lead, no more than we deserved.

A second piece of silverware for the season, very much making up for a disappointing league performance. Look at all of this money:

Squad review next

Edited May 24, 2020 by AdamFitz