Pavi Posted December 13, 2020 Share Posted December 13, 2020 (edited) Welcome to this year German football thread where you can share and discuss about your saves in Germany! Edited December 13, 2020 by Pavi Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pavi Posted December 13, 2020 Author Share Posted December 13, 2020 (edited) BUNDESLIGA Could it be that after such an incredible domination over the past years and a treble achieved during the summer someone finally dethrones Bayern? Will Dortmund or Leipzig deliver? Can Leverkusen of 'Gladbach find consistency? Will it be the year when historic clubs such as Schalke or Werder finally go down? Will nouveaux riches Hertha qualify for the UCL? With so many historic and interesting teams it is actually difficult to pinpoint to just a couple of clubs, but here are my two cents on teams that are worth trying this year. Overthrowing the King Both sides can boast an impressive pletora of young talent and with the right guidance you could transform them into real European powerhouses. Eternal second-best club in the country for the past years, BVB boast an impressive young and talented squad with the likes of Sancho, Halland, and Reyna, with the good amount of experience in Reus, Witsel or Can. Consistency is what they always missed. Can you deliver? The squad in FM is pretty good from the get-go, but I would suggest looking for alternatives between the posts and a second strikers not to tire your Norwegian wonderkid too much. On the other hand, Leipzig (AKA the most hated club in Germany) are another strong candidate for the "best of the rest". With their link to Salzburg and other RB clubs around the world, their focus on analytical scouting they managed to discover some gems through the years such as Upamecano, Nkunku or Dani Olmo. Alongside with more experienced players like Sabitzer, Gulacsi, or Kampl you wouldn't need to dwelve into the transfer market in the first window. That said, the departure of Werner left a whole in their attack, could you build a tactic the doesn't show? Resurgent Middle-Class To define 'Gladbach as "middle-class" might enrage some of their fans, having been a truly powerhouse in the 1970s. But this year under the guide of Marco Rose they're showing their model of organic growth is paying off. The strange year we are leaving assured that coveted players like Plea, Thuram, Zakaria or Neuhaus are all still at the club. Could you be able to bring the happy days back at Borussia Park? A very different story is the one of the Aspirins AKA Neverkusen for their famous season when in space of a few days they bottled their lead in the League, lost the Pokal and lost the UCL final. IRL, the departure of Kai Havertz seems not to have had an impact on the team. The objective with Leverkusen will surely be to win a treble and erase the label of eternal bottlers. Falling Giants Two historic clubs undergoing tough times. Schalke is the perfect example of how important it is to have a well-managed club and how this actually reflects onto the pitch. The club from Gelsenkirchen have been inconsistent for many years but this season they are facing catastrophe. If you take them over, you will have to deal with over 200M EUR in debt and most likely sell players to recover financially. But in FM terms the team is certainly good, with some interesting young players such as Kabak, Kutucu or Serdar around which you can rebuild the fortunes of this amazing club. Provincial Glory Focusing on Youth Freiburg and Stuttgart are two teams that are renown for the focus on producing young talent. While the Black Forest team is now an established Bundesliga side, the Swabian are a newly promoted team after spending only one season in the second tier (unlike Hamburg). The goal of such saves will be of course to continue the focus on talent development while climbing the ladder so as not to be poached every year. Edited December 13, 2020 by Pavi 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pavi Posted December 13, 2020 Author Share Posted December 13, 2020 (edited) 2. Bundesliga The second tier in German football is a very competitive league with some quite interesting club to manage. My two personal suggestions both stem from the second largest city in Germany, Hamburg Finally Get It Right Hamburg SV are now for the third year battling in the 2. Bundesliga aiming to get back to the top league. Until their relegation in 2018, they were the only still existing team to always have played in the top flight. They still have some important players and interesting youngster such as Vagnoman, van Drongelen, and Amaechi. Will you finally be able to bring them to the top and restore this European football giant? Punk Your Way to the Top Originating in the red-light district in Hamburg, during the 1980s St. Pauli emerged as a favourite club of left-wingers and undergroung culture of the city who did not want to associate themselves with the giant that HSV was at the time. Nowadays St. Pauli are a stable second division club that nurtures its status of alternative club by heavily engaging in social causes. Having last been in the top tier for the 2010/11 season, your aim would be to build a team that can aim for promotion. Would you be able to turn the club into an international powerhouse, while maintaining it true to its popular culture? Edited December 13, 2020 by Pavi 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pavi Posted December 13, 2020 Author Share Posted December 13, 2020 (edited) 3. Liga This is for me a very interesting league that has the potential of many long-term saves. Be it with fallen giants like 1860 Munich and Kaiserslautern or with former East Germany clubs such as Dresden, Rostock, or Magdeburg, you have plenty of options to create a funny and engaging narrative within FM21. Iconic West-German Fallen Giant Having won the German top division as recently as 1998, a slow but constant decent into hell started at the turn of the century. Having been relegated to the third tier in 2018, similarly to Hamburg, they failed to bounce straight back and are now in serious financial trouble. It would a be a terrible thing if the club the produced the backbone of World Cup winning West Germany team would fall into the non-professional leagues. In my opinion, at least in FM terms you have a capable squad of winning promotion. With a stadium with a capacity of around 50K you will have the infrastructure to finance your progress. East-German European Pedigree My last suggestion is Magdeburg. True, there are others great options to bring forth former East-Germany clubs such as Dresden or Rostock, but with Magdeburg you can aim at reviving 1974, the year that brought them European glory. They are infact the only DDR club to have won an international club competition. Facilities are OK and the team needs only a valid manager to make them rise again. Edited December 13, 2020 by Pavi 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo Beckham Posted December 13, 2020 Share Posted December 13, 2020 Awesome idea for a thread. I love the German leagues. Looking forward to seeing how this thread goes. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
tyro Posted December 13, 2020 Share Posted December 13, 2020 Funny, i was just thinking why there isn't a German league thread. Looking forward to this. I have already started a Frankfurt and Leverkusen save in beta and then a Stuttgart and Wolfsburg save after release. 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pavi Posted December 13, 2020 Author Share Posted December 13, 2020 (edited) I am actually having a save in Spain right now but will surely make one in Germany soon. I also suggest checking these threads: @Cheez3y battling his way up with his local East German club: @TheRobert is instead trying his fortunes in the city of Carnival: @SimpleFM who brought Schalke to UCL glory in just 4 seasons! Edited December 13, 2020 by Pavi 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cheez3y Posted December 13, 2020 Share Posted December 13, 2020 @PaviThanks for the mention. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
SimpleFM Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 10 hours ago, Pavi said: I am actually having a save in Spain right now but will surely make one in Germany soon. I also suggest checking these threads: @Cheez3y battling his way up with his local East German club: @TheRobert is instead trying his fortunes in the city of Carnival: @SimpleFM who brought Schalke to UCL glory in just 4 seasons! Thanks for the mention! Schalke is a good and fun team to start with. Also plenty of funds available in the Bundesliga. I am unsure if I will continue with Schalke now after achieving all I wanted but ill have a think about it! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
apsychoshow Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 (edited) Wamangituka is such a beast Spoiler Edited December 14, 2020 by apsychoshow 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pavi Posted December 14, 2020 Author Share Posted December 14, 2020 11 hours ago, SimpleFM said: Thanks for the mention! Schalke is a good and fun team to start with. Also plenty of funds available in the Bundesliga. I am unsure if I will continue with Schalke now after achieving all I wanted but ill have a think about it! Yes the Bundesliga is quite rich and a really fun league to manage. I understand your doubts about the save, it is difficult to achieve more than what you did. I hope you will return to Germany soon though! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo Beckham Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 (edited) I am joining in with the fun and decided to start a Wolfsburg save. I like to be an ex player at the specific club I am managing so the new Wolfsburg manager is..... GRAFITE This is the tactic I will be using. Edited December 14, 2020 by Ronaldo Beckham 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
oze07 Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 im very excited for a bundesliga save. im torn between rbl or bmg? rbl will be easier, im sure, and i dont have tons of hours spare to play the game. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hafþór Posted December 15, 2020 Share Posted December 15, 2020 9 hours ago, Ronaldo Beckham said: I am joining in with the fun and decided to start a Wolfsburg save. I like to be an ex player at the specific club I am managing so the new Wolfsburg manager is..... GRAFITE This is the tactic I will be using. How did you take over the team as a former player? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo Beckham Posted December 15, 2020 Share Posted December 15, 2020 5 hours ago, Hafþór said: How did you take over the team as a former player? When you set up your manager you just call yourself whomever the former player is. I found Grafite's wiki and used his real name and then set his nickname to Grafite. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Malicious Penguin Posted December 15, 2020 Share Posted December 15, 2020 I started a FMT game, simmed to June 1st 2021, image searched the available Clubs' cities, and have chosen 1860. The goal? Overtake Bayern. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hafþór Posted December 16, 2020 Share Posted December 16, 2020 15 hours ago, Ronaldo Beckham said: When you set up your manager you just call yourself whomever the former player is. I found Grafite's wiki and used his real name and then set his nickname to Grafite. And the picture of him? It looks really nice, much nicer than the 3D scan and all that 😅 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bilbaoboy Posted December 16, 2020 Share Posted December 16, 2020 (edited) I started a Dynamo Dresden save recently- they have a bit of a story behind them and are looked down upon i think from the West German's and were a little hard done by with the advent of the Bundesliga when all their players got poached They have fanatical support and get about 30000 in the third division Edited December 16, 2020 by Bilbaoboy Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo Beckham Posted December 16, 2020 Share Posted December 16, 2020 8 hours ago, Hafþór said: And the picture of him? It looks really nice, much nicer than the 3D scan and all that 😅 I actually did do a 3d scan from his photo. I will post a screenshot tonight or tomorrow. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo Beckham Posted December 16, 2020 Share Posted December 16, 2020 16 hours ago, Hafþór said: And the picture of him? It looks really nice, much nicer than the 3D scan and all that 😅 Here you go buddy just for you lol. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo Beckham Posted December 16, 2020 Share Posted December 16, 2020 Wolfsburg Season 1 Review A very disappointing season for Wolfsburg. I ended up 10th in the league. I should of done better but it took me ages to find a decent formation that worked and get some consistency. My best signing was Peter Olayinka who I bought in for £4.5m from Slavia Praha. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bestbrother Posted December 17, 2020 Share Posted December 17, 2020 Have Hertha got a bit of money now then? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo Beckham Posted December 17, 2020 Share Posted December 17, 2020 2 hours ago, bestbrother said: Have Hertha got a bit of money now then? In my Wolfsburg save Hertha have spent nothing in the first season and just £25 million in the 2nd season. In real life they have rich owners don't they? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
PT-KK Posted December 17, 2020 Share Posted December 17, 2020 They do. I've done the worst first season I can remember in an FM version, and I was still able reclaim the title since Dortmund and Bayern were so poor. With this I had 80M to spend on season 2 and at least 40 for season 3. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bestbrother Posted December 17, 2020 Share Posted December 17, 2020 33 minutes ago, Ronaldo Beckham said: In my Wolfsburg save Hertha have spent nothing in the first season and just £25 million in the 2nd season. In real life they have rich owners don't they? Loaded a game up to see, they do have spare cash but must have a real crap reputation as no one half decent wants to join them. So got fed up straight away Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo Beckham Posted December 17, 2020 Share Posted December 17, 2020 Just now, bestbrother said: Loaded a game up to see, they do have spare cash but must have a real crap reputation as no one half decent wants to join them. So got fed up straight away I bet you would find some financial ways of convincing them to join you lol. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bestbrother Posted December 17, 2020 Share Posted December 17, 2020 2 minutes ago, Ronaldo Beckham said: I bet you would find some financial ways of convincing them to join you lol. No one talks anymore, the game ive found is set in its ways more than before. There dosent seem to be a grey area sadly. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronaldo Beckham Posted December 17, 2020 Share Posted December 17, 2020 Just now, bestbrother said: No one talks anymore, the game ive found is set in its ways more than before. There dosent seem to be a grey area sadly. Aww that is a shame. I miss your stories of your saves on here where you spend all that money lol. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
bestbrother Posted December 17, 2020 Share Posted December 17, 2020 1 hour ago, Ronaldo Beckham said: Aww that is a shame. I miss your stories of your saves on here where you spend all that money lol. lol ill still give it a go somewhere... HSBC are a bit funky, they have cash but the board step in on everything. So ive taken my talents to 3. Liga and the behemoth 'Kaiserslautern. How the hell they are languishing down there ill never know, but ill give them a go at reviving their fortunes by hook or crook 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
oze07 Posted December 19, 2020 Share Posted December 19, 2020 anyone got an rbl or bmg save going on? just wondered on how people are doing? i like rbl but they have so many variations they could play, its confusing! bmg may be a bit more straightforward. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
XuluBak Posted December 19, 2020 Share Posted December 19, 2020 (edited) Finished my fourth season in my HSV save a few days ago... 2020-21: Won 2.Bundesliga comfortably (+15) to go up; Leverkusen knocked us out in the 2nd round of the DFB-Pokal Spoiler 2021-22: Finished 7th, sneaking into EC2, with a strong defense and clinical finishing; Gladbach knocked us out in the QF Spoiler 2022-23: Fluked our way to the Bundesliga title with 72 points; completed the double with smash and grab at RBL in the semis before a counterattacking masterclass against Dortmund; out to Lille (3-2 agg) in the semis of EC2 Spoiler 2023-24: Ran away with it, looked like we might challenge Bayern's 91 early, but finished on 85; ridiculously easy draw saw us defend the Pokal against Koln; that combo allowed us to focus on UCL, and we made the most of it, but were outmatched by PSG in the final (Maignan kept it undeservedly "close"). Spoiler Bayern have been a bit of a mess so far in my save, but hoping they turn it around to make the domestic side of things a bit more competitive. Tactics/Setup Mostly employ an expansive 433, with a moderately aggressive split block press from our front three and occasionally our Mez(a). We've yet to manage 50% possession (49, 42, 47, 47). I absolutely love Mezzalas. We always employ one (Moriba), sometimes two (Onana; alternatively used as a DM-DLP). with Tonali as an RPM/DLP. Have also used B2B/BWM/CAR in that second CM position. Macias (from Chivas) was primarily used as an RMD in his first season, then moved forward as an AF this past season, with some combination of Winger(s)/IWs flanking him. I've tried just about everything, but remain horribly underwhelmed with FB performance. Edited December 19, 2020 by XuluBak Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
gooseta Posted December 31, 2020 Share Posted December 31, 2020 (edited) I saw that Hertha are now a front-end sugar daddy club, does anyone know roughly what sort of transfer budget you'd be working with in year 2-5? I'm thinking about starting with Hertha, Leipzig or Hoffenheim Edited December 31, 2020 by gooseta Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveMUFC Posted January 1, 2021 Share Posted January 1, 2021 On 19/12/2020 at 14:36, oze07 said: anyone got an rbl or bmg save going on? just wondered on how people are doing? i like rbl but they have so many variations they could play, its confusing! bmg may be a bit more straightforward. Just finished a season at Gladbach. Bought in a load of Danish and Austrian youngsters, as they seem to do in real life. Sommer is an absolute beast in goal, won CL best keeper. Managed to get through to the CL semi finals, although was disappointing in the league and finish 7th, qualifying for the new Europa League Conference. I had far too many draws, and a lot of games where the strikers couldn't put away chances. Because I didn't perform well, I decided to stop playing, although I did get a £60m budget + £200k wage budget for the second season! 17 hours ago, gooseta said: I saw that Hertha are now a front-end sugar daddy club, does anyone know roughly what sort of transfer budget you'd be working with in year 2-5? I'm thinking about starting with Hertha, Leipzig or Hoffenheim I had a long term save with them last year, but think the same applies this year. You'll probably get ~£60-£80m each season, and that's even without qualifying for Europe! Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gungner Posted January 1, 2021 Share Posted January 1, 2021 I'm definately having an Uerdingen save this year. Sugardaddy club in 3.Bundesliga, however, he is looking for the club to be self-sustainable. Plus they have awesome kits 😁 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
oze07 Posted January 1, 2021 Share Posted January 1, 2021 6 hours ago, DaveMUFC said: Just finished a season at Gladbach. Bought in a load of Danish and Austrian youngsters, as they seem to do in real life. Sommer is an absolute beast in goal, won CL best keeper. Managed to get through to the CL semi finals, although was disappointing in the league and finish 7th, qualifying for the new Europa League Conference. I had far too many draws, and a lot of games where the strikers couldn't put away chances. Because I didn't perform well, I decided to stop playing, although I did get a £60m budget + £200k wage budget for the second season! I had a long term save with them last year, but think the same applies this year. You'll probably get ~£60-£80m each season, and that's even without qualifying for Europe! oh right. may i ask what formation you used please? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveMUFC Posted January 2, 2021 Share Posted January 2, 2021 14 hours ago, oze07 said: oh right. may i ask what formation you used please? For Gladbach? I played mainly a 4-3-3, switching between a gegenpress and controlling possession depending how the opponents played. Plea was my striker, Thuram had the LW spot, and I rotated Embolo and Hermann (who hit great form second half of the season). For some reason I couldn't get good performances all season out of Bensabani and Ginter. Whenever they played, they were averaging 6.4-6.5. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
klose1988 Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 I have a save for Greuther Furth. While 7 matches have been played, I am confidently going in the middle of the standings. Spoiler Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stu_UBJ Posted January 16, 2021 Share Posted January 16, 2021 (edited) Been playing a save with Lokomotiv Leipzig. Am currently into the 6th season, having started in Regionalliga. 3 straight promotions meant we reached the Bundesliga very quickly, but our rep didn't keep up! We won Regionalliga comfortably, as well as the 3. Liga. We finished 2nd in 2. BuLi, missing out on a 3rd straight promotion as champions by a single point. Our first Bundesliga season saw us finish a very respectable 11th, despite being clear favourites for a swift return to 2BL. Our second Bundesliga season started terribly, however we got going, and managed by some miracle to finish 6th, putting us into Europe for the first time! <spoiler> 1st season transfershttps://gyazo.com/ac9c14f6fd04f566aa5b71d002bd10c2 2nd season transfershttps://gyazo.com/d515f85a797e37c6784cdfe59a320059 3rd season transfershttps://gyazo.com/9a7a412f50cbe3bf35f6486ac1f02c00 4th season transfershttps://gyazo.com/ef1a8ba83dfa61576443ad1df2b45208 5th season transfershttps://gyazo.com/8c8520be812f0b72ce43e93be7ad31e5 </spoiler> Standout signings through the save so far would be;Thierry Graca, who stayed with us from Regionalliga right up to this current summer. Yannis N'Gakoutou who also travelled from Regionalliga to Bundesliga.Nelson Azevedo who joined in 3.Liga, and scored 29 goals in 101 apps from the wing.Erkan Eyibil was with us on loan for 4 seasons, before the move was made permanent on a free transfer. Outstanding midfielder despite his below average Physicals.Hussayn Touati continuing to improve since joining on a free from PSG, however is a peripheral player now.Anis Kassem was a stab in the dark, but has improved massively since his £7k move from Syrian giants Tishreen. We've also been scouting hard in the lower level divisions for players who we can improve ourselves to either be future first teamers, or sell for profit. Here are the standouts so far;Cedric Obenauer was picked up on a free, and has continued to improve, ready for a loan deal elsewhere soon.Rachid Aarab joined from lower league Belgium, and has sporadically played first team football, along with a fruitful loan with 1860 Munich.Jacob Megic was one of two picked up from Canberra United's academy. Has improved massively and has 59 apps and counting, along with being a full Australian international.Cagatay Caliskan signed on a free, with hopes of being our future number 1. has improved but not as much as we hoped.Richard Murdoch is the other CU Academy signing, and another full international. Dean Tinnion is progressing nicely, and will be backup to the first team this season.Carlos Nieves is already a top class forward, and was 2nd top scorer in European Football last season. He has it all, just needs a bit more pace!Werner Hingerl signed from Bayern on a free, and looks like he could be a class DL in the future.Antonio Papa signed on a free from Nacional, and is already our best DR, and will continue to improve.Carlos Montiel cost £850k, however I am sure he will be a star in the future, as a combative midfielder. Our squad continues to improve - I am signing a handful for the first team each season, so not to disrupt our side too much. One of our main targets are those relegated from the Bundesliga (Schalke last season, Mainz and Frankfurt this season) to sign players.Surasak Khunnaen - Nico Kofler - Stephan Ambrosius - Bojan Tomic - Hauke Adams Khunnaen looks a star in the making, so it was a no brainer to sign him. Nico Kofler adds depth to DL. Stephan Ambrosius improves DC. Bojan Tomic is another star in the making. Hauke Adams adds some quality to AMR at such a low price for someone so good. Relegation Release clasuses are a godsend!! This is our strongest XI on paper, and the one that will start the season Edited January 16, 2021 by Stu_UBJ 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
smplfc123 Posted January 17, 2021 Share Posted January 17, 2021 Got drawn in by this thread to start a Schalke save. Haven't had chance to really get a save going yet on FM21, but really liking the look of this challenge. They've got a few decent players in their starting 11, Kabak and Serdar in particular, but very little depth. I've started with transfers off as I like to keep it as realistic as possible. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Conquistadore Posted January 17, 2021 Share Posted January 17, 2021 Am I the only one seeing two Juan Cabrera's in Schalke 04's U19 team? Juan Cabrera (full name Juan Ignacio Cabrera) and Juan Ignacio Cabrera, born on the same day in Montevideo, same height, same position. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveMUFC Posted January 19, 2021 Share Posted January 19, 2021 Anyone given St Pauli a go on this edition? I'm trying to give it a go as they could actually get relegated this season, but I'm finding it so hard. Lost the first cup game to Dresden in the 3. Liga, then got absolutely battered by Bochum in the first league game. Even with Burgstaller, the team seems to create nothing, and their play seems so sluggish and slow.. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
smplfc123 Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 "The club from Gelsenkirchen have been inconsistent for many years but this season they are facing catastrophe. If you take them over, you will have to deal with over 200M EUR in debt and most likely sell players to recover financially." This from @Pavi inspired me to take the reigns at Schalke. I decided to make the save harder for myself by turning transfers off and only giving myself the experience of a Local Level Pro Footballer to go with my Pro Licence coaching badge. Surprising me more than anyone, this is how the season finished: Unbelievably, we managed to finish in 2nd place. A very strong start to the season saw us win 15 of our first 23 matches and at one point, were actually in touching distance of Bayern. However, our lack of squad depth meant that an indifferent finish to the season resulted in just holding on to 2nd place, something I can hardly complain about. My aim at the start of the season was to exceed the boards aim for a top half finish by sneaking in to a Europa League Spot, so as you can probably imagine, I'm thrilled with how it panned out. For the first 2/3rds of the season, I was fortunate with injuries, with my first 11 only picking up the odd knock here and there. However, as soon as the likes of Raman and Serdar were out for 4-5 weeks in the final third of the season, we really struggled. The likes of Kabak, Serdar, Raman, Matondo, Harit and Uth were excellent. My main concern now is getting these players to overachieve again next season and retaining our place in the top 4, with the added stress of CL games. On top of that, we lost Harit, our star man, to a broken leg on the final day of the season, meaning he's out until January 2022. We have £47m in the transfer budget, however we have a few squad and loan players leaving us this summer, the likes of Pacienca, Schopf, Bentaleb, Ronow and Skrzybski, with Mendyl wanting to move to a bigger club, Ozpicka looking past it and Sane unhappy that he's been unable to force his way in ahead of Kabak and Nastasic. I fear that our over-achievers may come crashing down a bit next season, with the likes of Dortmund, Leipzig, Bayer and Gladbach likely to improve on poor seasons, but I'm looking forward to the challenge. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pavi Posted January 21, 2021 Author Share Posted January 21, 2021 35 minutes ago, smplfc123 said: "The club from Gelsenkirchen have been inconsistent for many years but this season they are facing catastrophe. If you take them over, you will have to deal with over 200M EUR in debt and most likely sell players to recover financially." This from @Pavi inspired me to take the reigns at Schalke. I decided to make the save harder for myself by turning transfers off and only giving myself the experience of a Local Level Pro Footballer to go with my Pro Licence coaching badge. Surprising me more than anyone, this is how the season finished: Unbelievably, we managed to finish in 2nd place. A very strong start to the season saw us win 15 of our first 23 matches and at one point, were actually in touching distance of Bayern. However, our lack of squad depth meant that an indifferent finish to the season resulted in just holding on to 2nd place, something I can hardly complain about. My aim at the start of the season was to exceed the boards aim for a top half finish by sneaking in to a Europa League Spot, so as you can probably imagine, I'm thrilled with how it panned out. For the first 2/3rds of the season, I was fortunate with injuries, with my first 11 only picking up the odd knock here and there. However, as soon as the likes of Raman and Serdar were out for 4-5 weeks in the final third of the season, we really struggled. The likes of Kabak, Serdar, Raman, Matondo, Harit and Uth were excellent. My main concern now is getting these players to overachieve again next season and retaining our place in the top 4, with the added stress of CL games. On top of that, we lost Harit, our star man, to a broken leg on the final day of the season, meaning he's out until January 2022. We have £47m in the transfer budget, however we have a few squad and loan players leaving us this summer, the likes of Pacienca, Schopf, Bentaleb, Ronow and Skrzybski, with Mendyl wanting to move to a bigger club, Ozpicka looking past it and Sane unhappy that he's been unable to force his way in ahead of Kabak and Nastasic. I fear that our over-achievers may come crashing down a bit next season, with the likes of Dortmund, Leipzig, Bayer and Gladbach likely to improve on poor seasons, but I'm looking forward to the challenge. That's an amazing first season! Probably it's too late for you to apply directly, but I've noticed that a lot of good young players in big teams have contracts until June 2021 and you can poached them relatevely easy. Man City has Eric Garcia and form Barcelona you can have Oriol Busquets, Collado, Miranda and a couple more all for free. What system did you use this season? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haiku Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 I have a save with BMG. Won the league and reached the semi-finals of CL in my first season. Managed to bring too much quality in my team, and I fear it will become boring soon. https://prnt.sc/xdsdjk Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
oze07 Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 4 hours ago, Haiku said: I have a save with BMG. Won the league and reached the semi-finals of CL in my first season. Managed to bring too much quality in my team, and I fear it will become boring soon. https://prnt.sc/xdsdjk that is an insane team! how did you get them all? im thinking of a bmg save myself after i finish my arsenal one. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
smplfc123 Posted January 21, 2021 Share Posted January 21, 2021 7 hours ago, Pavi said: That's an amazing first season! Probably it's too late for you to apply directly, but I've noticed that a lot of good young players in big teams have contracts until June 2021 and you can poached them relatevely easy. Man City has Eric Garcia and form Barcelona you can have Oriol Busquets, Collado, Miranda and a couple more all for free. What system did you use this season? Thanks mate. I did try to poach a few youngsters on a free, however it's an older returning hero that's our only free signing at the moment.... I used a 4-4-1-1 (Sometimes switching in game to a 4-4-2). Raman as a IW(A) at LM was the standout player. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pavi Posted January 22, 2021 Author Share Posted January 22, 2021 57 minutes ago, smplfc123 said: Thanks mate. I did try to poach a few youngsters on a free, however it's an older returning hero that's our only free signing at the moment.... I used a 4-4-1-1 (Sometimes switching in game to a 4-4-2). Raman as a IW(A) at LM was the standout player. Is he Huntelaar as IRL? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
smplfc123 Posted January 22, 2021 Share Posted January 22, 2021 9 hours ago, Pavi said: Is he Huntelaar as IRL? Nope, although I am looking for another option upfront, so thanks for reminding me, I'll get him scouted haha! With Harit out for 4-6 months, I had a decision to make. Spend a lot of money on someone as good as him, but then have the problem of having 2 players too good not to be starting with just 1 AM spot up for grabs, or bring someone in as a cheap stop gap, but inevitably won't be on Harit's level, which we could do without now that we have Champions League football. What I'm hoping i've done, is mix the two options, by bringing back a former favourite on a free and fairly low wages. Welcome Back: I really went over this deal in my mind for a while, as my team are a bunch of hard-workers, something Mesut isn't exactly known for, but I felt his quality on the ball will be so good for us and if he can keep the goal contributions coming whilst Harit's recovering, then it could be a great piece of business. It's a 1 year contract with an option to extend, so if it's a flop, it's not cost us too much finnacially. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Haiku Posted January 23, 2021 Share Posted January 23, 2021 On 21/01/2021 at 23:12, oze07 said: that is an insane team! how did you get them all? im thinking of a bmg save myself after i finish my arsenal one. https://prnt.sc/xif6sx https://prnt.sc/xif82i It wasn't that difficult. First transfer window is crusial as one can pull of some great deals. BMG are generating enough money so I didn't fear to get in debt. For the second season I managed to complete the deals early in June, before the window has opened. That way it's like having a first pick on most players because AI clubs seem less active. Having set my system I knew exactly who I want. Didn't miss anyone, but the striker Darwin Nunes who went for City. Anyway, Patson Daka seems like a good alternative. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Funk Posted January 23, 2021 Share Posted January 23, 2021 3 hours ago, Haiku said: https://prnt.sc/xif6sx https://prnt.sc/xif82i It wasn't that difficult. First transfer window is crusial as one can pull of some great deals. BMG are generating enough money so I didn't fear to get in debt. For the second season I managed to complete the deals early in June, before the window has opened. That way it's like having a first pick on most players because AI clubs seem less active. Having set my system I knew exactly who I want. Didn't miss anyone, but the striker Darwin Nunes who went for City. Anyway, Patson Daka seems like a good alternative. Great team, mate! How did your transfer budgets look for each season? I reckon some of the buys were on instalments? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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