[FM22] West Afri-Can we bring newfound glory to the club? Yes, we can! [Complete]

[corinthiano]

2040/41 Season Review

Probably one of the most straightforward campaigns in Kojo's career, promotion and the title never looked in doubt.

Squad by Appearances

We had a pretty settled core of the team, with some first teamers coming in halfway through the season.

Top Performers

I did think he was going to be a good addition and was proved right, very glad I secured him for another season.

Great in the Mezzala role and deadly from free kicks, Djiby was great and contributed to a massive 24 goals this season.

Doesnt look like much but was deadly in front of goal and our top scorer.

Finances

Not great despite me using only a part of the wage budget - the board took a $85k loan during the season but that hasnt really helped.

Progress

Heading in the right direction in The Gambia, dont think we will need to move clubs to win the top tier title here.

Edited November 13, 2022 by corinthiano

[corinthiano]

2040/41 West African Review

CAF Champions League

6 teams made the Group Stage this year, but only WAFA SC and Diambars FC safely got out of their groups.

Both sides knocked out straight in the Quarter Final as we go another year without a West African winner. Egyptians Pyramids beat ES Tunis to win their first ever title.

CAF Confederations Cup

6 teams were lumped across two groups at this stage and luckily 4 of those made it through the Quarter Finals, with ASEC Mimosas and Enyimba Aba missing out.

The performance was a little better here but no West African finalists this year as Rivers Utd and Génération Foot miss out at the Semi Finals. Club African beat Zamalek to win their second ever Confederations Cup and first since 2027.

West African League Rankings

No movement between West African leagues this year and almost no movement in general with only highlights being the Nigerian league moving up a place to 8th and the Senegalese Ligue 1 moving a couple of places to 15th.

League Champions

Sierra Leone has a new champion as the Golden Dragons come out of nowhere to win their first SLPL. A couple of upsets in the top leagues as WAFA SC are champions in Ghana and Ashanti GB in Guinea.

Former Champions

 

MC Breweries: Repeat of last year - another great 3rd place finish and a run into the Semi Final of the LFA Cup.

Kamboi Eagles: Sat just outside the relegation places, finishing 7 points ahead of the relegated sides.

Nô Pintcha da Brava: Absolutely dreadful year as they finish 3rd in the Liga Brava. At leas they won the Brava Cup to make up for it.

AFC Nhacra: Another solid finish in third, but yet again not really challenging for the title. In the cup they suffered an early exit again this year.

Ayéma FC: Slight improvement from last season as they finish 5th in the Championship Group.

CNEPS Excellence: Ran Diambars FC close but missed out on retaining the title by 2 points. Disappointing in Africa as they didnt reach a Group Stage and in the domestic cups the best they did was finish runners-up in the League Cup.

[corinthiano]

2041/42 Season Preview

We are predicted to finish in the top half even though we were just promoted, but that is not surprising considering there are a few Semi-Professional sides in the division. The board also expects us to finish in the Top Half.

Transfers

In

Out

Not a lot of players coming in as I only wanted to sign players that could really add something to the team, and with us being restricted to unattached players until February that meant there werent a lot of options. We did clear out a bunch of players though and we are still OK on squad depth, especially considering we only have a 26 game league to worry about. All three additions will be first team players though.

This guy left Banjul Utd a couple of seasons ago to play in the Senegalese second tier and I am very glad to have him back, by far our best defender.

Decent young defender that actually played a fair few games for Ports Authority last season. Just a shame he will miss pretty much all season due to a nasty injury...

Another one coming back to the club after a couple of seasons, he didnt make it at Fortune but is a decent prospect. Finishing could be better but he has decent physicals for this level.

Best XI

Largely agree with this one, we have a well balanced squad that should do well in this league.

Initial Fixtures

We start with some tough fixtures at Fortune and Ports Authority, hope we can pick some points up in between those fixtures.

[corinthiano]

November/December 2041

I know I shouldnt be complaining as we are 2nd after 6 games as a promoted side, but we could have had a 100% record. We dominated Ron Mango and didnt score and let 2-0 leads slip against post Wallidan FC and Ports Authority. Does feel like we could fight for the title though if we start winning again.

Next Fixtures

A long break now until February, which is when we can sign players from other teams. Looking to make some significant signings, especially as we have 3 foreign slots open right now.

[corinthiano]

February 2042

We almost grinded through a perfect month but disappointingly couldnt get through last placed Immigration FC in the last month to leave us trailing Ports Authority.

Transfers

In

Out

We bring in a bunch of players to make the most of the 5 foreign spots we have. We do need to trim the squad a little now though. Here are the signings that will be in or around the first XI.

Nowhere near as good as our scouts made him out to be, but at least gives us options at RB where we are poor.

Good for this level and versatile, will slot in as our CB for now.

Our new and very young DLP, has some room for improvement.

Decent option to compete for the midfield positions.

Next Fixtures

Some tricky games this month, we'll do well to keep on the tails of Ports Authority.

[corinthiano]

March 2042

What a frustrating month. We are really struggling in front of goal, the only time we scored freely was when we had to come back from 4-1 behind against Steve Biko. Its a shame as the league is there for the taking as no one is playing consistently well.

Transfers

Out

Just trimming the squad a bit on the defensive side.

Next Fixtures

We could really take charge of the title battle here as we play the three sides above us. On current form very unlikely. I'll just be happy scoring goals again.

[corinthiano]

April 2042

We hit the bottom when we lost the first game of the season against Waterside FC and followed that up with a loss to Ports Authority after being 2-0 up early on. Since then we have been better, smashing Ron Mango and getting two good draws against title contenders. With 6 games remaining I believe we have to settle for a fight for the 5th spot against Fortune.

Next Fixtures

Two tougher games against Gambia Armed Forces and Real de Banjul are balanced out against two games against relegation battlers. Hoping we can string together a good run.

[corinthiano]

May 2042

Ugh, I just want the season to be over. We need to overhaul the attacking side of the team, the amount of chances being missed is driving me crazy.

Next Fixtures

Not expecting much, might slip to 7th place...

[corinthiano]

June 2042

Meh. At least we held on to 6th.

Transfers

In

Out

In The Gambia there is a short transfer window towards the end of the season. A bit weird but OK, the issue is that the only other time to sign players from other teams is in mid-February - halfway through the other season. Which means you have to plan for the next season as you are wrapping up the current one - after that you can only sign unattached players. I overhauled the squad a bit to see if that does something to change our fortunes. A few players should be challenging for a first team place:

Addresses the biggest issue we had this season - right back. Young and very high quality for this level.

With Dabo leaving I had to find a back-up at LB. He is nowhere near as good but much better than anything I could find.

He was struggling to get into the first team at Real de Banjul so I gladly took him as our DLP for next season.

Another option in midfield, thought he was going to be a bit better so may be a waste of a foreign slot.

Really hope this one pays off - we need Elijah firing plenty of goals next season.

[corinthiano]

2041/42 Season Review

A bright start and it looked like we would challenge for the title in our first season back in the top flight as we were leading at the halfway point. A second half of the season collapse saw us slide down to 6th though, still Top Half which is what the board wanted.

Squad by Appearances

We had a relatively settled core of the team, RB and CB we did rotate a lot though. You can tell we really struggled for goals as only two players scored more than 10 goals, and only just at 11 each.

Awards

A couple of mentions in the awards as Dabo breaks up the Wallidan FC / Ports Authority monopoly in the Team of the Season. A shame he is leaving the team.

Top Performers

Our joint top scorer and di play well, but boy did he miss a lot of chances. I am not sure if he will feature as much next season, if he does more as a support striker.

Dictated our play, but didnt create as much as I needed him to - 4 assists is not a great return.

Our best player, not surprised he wants to leave as he should be playing at a higher level. I just hope he leaves for a club abroad.

Finances

Bleeding money, but the board dont seem to bothered as they gave me the same wage budget, which I am way under.

Progress

6th at the start of the season would be deemed a good result, but it was so disappointing with the collapse we had. On a positive note the league seems pretty even so if we can maintain good form over a whole season we could challenge for the title.

[corinthiano]

2041/42 West African Review

CAF Champions League

6 teams at this stage for the 3rd year in a row, but this time West African were strong, with 5 out of them making it to the Quarter Finals. Ghanaians WAFA SC the only ones that did not make it out of the group, finishing behind Burkinabe surprise package CF Rahimo and the Tunisian superpower ES Tunis.

West African dominance continued in the Quarter Finals with two all West African match-ups seeing Kano Pillars and Hearts of Oak overcome CF Rahimo and Stade Malien respectively, before Kano Pillars dispatched Hearts of Oak in the Semi-Final. Diambars FC overcame Moroccan giants Wydad Casablance in the Quarters but lost out on penalties to ES Tunis in the Semi Final. Kano Pillars beat ES Tunis in the final to win their first ever Champions League and the first for NIgeria in this save. The last time a Nigerian had won the competition was in 2004!

CAF Confederation Cup

6 seems to be the number in the last few years as we have the same number in the Group Stage here again. Génération Foot finished ahead of Horoya AC to see them through along with Asante Kotoko, Kwara Uttd and Ashanti GB. Niary-Tially did extremely well to get to this stage but were outclassed in their group.

South Africa was the thorn in West African shoes this season as first Sundowns and Cape Town City knocked out Kware Utd and Ashanti GB in the Quarter Finals, before Sundowns beat surprise finalist Génération Foot in the final to win their second Confederations Cup trophy.

West African League Rankings

The good performances in Africa have seen the Senegalese league overtake Guinea. Other than that not much movement, Togo did drop 3 places and are now just ahead of Niger.

League Champions

No new champions this year, with a couple of close calls in Guinea and Sierra Leone. In Cape Verde Sporting da Praia pegged Mindelense back and now share the record number of title wins again.

Former Champions

 

MC Breweries: Back challenging at the top in the league, only lost the title on goal difference to LPRC Oilers. In the cup it was not as great as they exited in the Last 16.

Kamboi Eagles: What a turnaround, from relegation strugglers to 3rd in the SLPL this season!

Nô Pintcha da Brava: Bounced back in style as they won a Brava double and got all the way to the Final of the Cape Verdean Competition.

AFC Nhacra: Decent season as they finish 5th in the League and runners-up in the cup.

Ayéma FC: Slight improvement from last season again as they finish 4th in the Championship Group.

CNEPS Excellence: Great season as they won the Ligue 1 and League Cup double. In Africa they were disappointing as they exited the Champions League before the Group Stage and also missed out the chance to get to the Confederations Cup after dropping down to there.

Edited November 23, 2022 by corinthiano

[corinthiano]

2042/43 Season Preview

We are predicted 6th again with better odds this time. Ports Authority and Real de Banjul are heavy favorites again.

Transfers

In

Out

A lot of the squad were cleared out, most fringe players and youngsters that would never make it. Lowlight being Mouhamed Dabo going, we have a replacement in but will still miss him. On the incoming front we could only get unattached payers, I focused on ones that would be able to get a first team place, which I think 3 will.

Decent and young goalie, will be our man between the sticks.

Brought him back from Senegal and he is clearly very good for this league. Am paying a high salary but should hopefully be worth it.

Experienced player and somewhat of a journeyman between the top clubs in The Gambia. Great experience and fit at DLF for us.

Best XI

Primarily agree with my Assistant and am happy with the strength we have in the squad right now.

Initial Fixtures

Busy first 10 days in the league, with a tough start.

[corinthiano]

November 2042

A great start to the campaign with Elijah Effiong being everything I hoped him to be.

Next Fixtures

Two winnable games before we travel to the reigning champions.

[corinthiano]

December 2042

We carry over the good form and manage to get a draw at Wallidan FC. We played better and should have won but I will take a point at this stage.

Next Fixtures

We now go into the mid-season break and will come back to an action packed February.

[corinthiano]

January/February 2043

Overall a good month considering the goals have dried up, the loss against Steve Biko was disappointing but we made that up by beating Real de Banjul away in a very good performance. Ports Authority were clearly too good for us and whilst we are still top I struggle to see how we will end the season there.

Transfers

In

Out

Two signings to improve our midfield. Modou Jagne was a starter for Real de Banjul last season so a great steal for us, whilst Sunday can hopefully be that creative AP we have struggled to find so far. On the outgoing front I am moving some of the unhappy fringe players, I expect a couple more to leave in this window.

Next Fixtures

Tough fixtures this month, at least the game against Banjul Hawks will be the last midweek one of the season as the schedule eases up for us.

[corinthiano]

March 2043

I cant be unhappy with two win and two draws considering the opposition we faced. Real de Banjul are starting to pull away though.

Transfers

In

Out

An opportunistic reshuffle as we sell Diouf to free up a foreign slot for Touré to come in. Diouf was playing well but we have Njie who is as good and I brought in a very good back up for left back in Lamin Jagne. I did want to address DLP as that was our weakest area and bringing in Touré on loan made sense. The window is closed so no more business until late on in the season.

Next Fixtures

These are all winnable, and we will have to win them if we want to keep up with Real de Banjul.

[corinthiano]

April 2043

We have a perfect month and in an incredible turn of events Real de Banjul drop 5 points as we leapfrog them into 1st place with 5 games to go, with Ports Authority chasing pretty closely. It is shaping up to be an exciting end of the season at the top.

Transfers

Out

Sold a fringe midfielder and our back-up goalie to teams in Senegal

Next Fixtures

If we want to win the title we will have to do it the hard way. Waterside FC and Immigration FC should be winnable but then we host Real de Banjul before going to the two teams that beat us earlier in the season. The last game against Ports Authority could be a title decider.

[corinthiano]

May/June 2043

 

One of the most dramatic end of seasons I have been part of! We won the first two matches before the first key game against Real de Banjul. We started brilliantly going ahead after 9 mins, but they scored two in the first half to turn the game around. We then equalized with less than 20 minutes to go, but they went ahead again straight after kick off...luckily Ports Authority drew so we were still 3 points ahead of them, but now just one ahead of Real de Banjul.

After all three title contenders won their penultimate game we went into the last game with the very difficult task of beating Ports Authority at their place to win the title. A draw in theory would have been enough if Real de Banjul didnt win, but they had a straightforward game at home. To my surprise Tambedou, in for the injured Effiong, put us ahead inside the first 20 mins, So good so far, but then Njie gets himself sent off for a late tackle in the 34th minute...I take off a striker, but on a replacement defender and go defensive. We were holding on well until the last 10 mins, which was important as Real de Banjul were winning, when we concede a penalty. Basirou Joof took the opportunity to become a hero and saved it! From then on we held on to win our first Gambian title!

Edited November 23, 2022 by corinthiano

[corinthiano]

2042/43 Season Review

We were great from start to finish, at some points we struggled up front but just kept grinding out results. Amazingly we finish the season unbeaten away from home, all 3 defeats were at our own place.

Squad by Appearances

It was a more established team this season which helped. We focused on bringing in players in the positions we had deficiencies but kept a large part of the squad intact.

Awards

Pretty light on awards for a title winner, with the Player and Young Player of the Year going to Ports Authority. We do at least have 6 players in the Team of the Season, unsurprisingly most of them in defence where we were rock solid.

Top Performers

Came in halfway through the season as we were struggling for goals and was key in getting us back to free scoring form.

Having a natural goalscorer was a huge difference for us, he turned a few draws into wins on his own.

Another key addition up front - his experience certainly helped our young team.

Finances

Nose diving despite me only using half the wage budget. Will be someone else's problem next season

Progress

After such a long time in Senegal it was nice to get The Gambia done in 3 seasons. I got lucky that the Banjul Utd job became available, they were the ideal candidate - a club that had finished highly in the past that had fallen on hard times, and most importantly professional in a league full of semi-professional teams. We now move to the other side of West Africa to Niger!

[corinthiano]

Chapter 8 - Niger

Niger is one of three landlocked countries in West Africa, bordered Libya to the Northeast, Chad to the East, Nigeria to the South, Benin and Burkina Faso to the Southwest, Mali to the West and Algeria to the Northwest. The name of the country comes from the river Niger, which flows in the Southwest of the country. 80% of its area is in the Sahara Desert. French is the official language of the country, but it is often spoken as a second language by its population. Niger does have ten languages recognized as national languages, including Arabic, Hausa, Zarma and Songhay. Niger is has one of the fastest growing populations in the world, going from 3.4 million inhabitants in 1960 to over 25 million in 2021. The capital Niamey is the biggest city with around one million inhabitants, with Maradi, Zinder, Tahoua and Agadez with more than 100 thousand people. Despite having some bigger cities only 21% of the population lives in urban areas.

Historically the area of Niger has always been part of an empire or colonial rule. Pre-colonial times it was at points part of the Mali, Songhai, Kanem-Bornu, Empires, as well as the Sultanate of Air and Hausa Kingdom. In the late 18th century France gained control of the upper valley of the Niger River and Niger became part of French territory. Niamey was traditionally always the capital of the territory, although it moved to Zinder between 1912-1922. The French colonization period lasted until 1960, when Niger declared themselves independent. Post-colonization Niger were first ruled by a single party regime under Hamani Diori until 1974, after which a period of three military rules were followed, with Republican stint attempts sandwiched in between them. Since 2010 Niger has become a multi party republic.

The Niger economy relies on subsistence crops, livestock and some large uranium deposits. Due to overpopulation and lack of rain in the country it is extremely poor, being one of the least developed countries in the world. Niger also has a very limited tourism industry due to the lack of safety in the country with the insurgency of Boko Haram. The city of Agadez, which lies in the Sahara Desert has some traditional Tuareg-Berber buildings, with its town center being made a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Football in Niger

Football is popular in Niger, but the country has been largely unsuccessful on the African and global stage. Niger only qualified twice for the Africa Cup of Nations pre-game, followed by 3 qualification in-game. In all occasions they finished bottom of their group and never won a game in the tournament.

The national league, known as the Superligue has been running since 1966, with changes of format, abandonments and cancellations relatively usual in its history. It has been traditionally dominated by teams from Niamey, with only two titles being won by teams from outside the capital. Sahel SC were the most dominant team in NIger pre-game, but AS Douanes de Niamey are now the most successful club in the country. Only them, AS SONIDEP and AS-GNN have won the title in this save.

In terms of reputation this is a step up from The Gambia as all teams are 1 star or above and all teams are professional. The options are going to be a lot more limited as Niger only has the top division loaded, might be a while until we are able to get a job. From the list below only Akokana, ASN NIGELEC, Urana FC, Tagour PC and JS Ader would be eligible, will all managers listed as safe for now.

[corinthiano]

2042/43 West African Review

CAF Champions League

Slim pickings for West Africa this season as only 4 teams make this stage, but at least 3 out of them made it out of the group, with only Enyimba Aba disqualified from a tough group containing Sundonws and TP Mazembe. Surprisingly no Ghanaian teams in the Groups for the first time in a long time.

Reigning champions Kano Pillars were excellent in the knockouts as they saw out Horoya AC and then Diambars FC to face ES Tunis in the final, where a penalty shootout saw them retain the title, winning their second ever trophy.

CAF Confederations Cup

This is where all the West Africans ended up, with 9 teams at this stage, 3 of them from Ghana. Unfortunately only 3 of them made it past the Group Stage, including Kojo's former team CNEPS Excellence.

CNEPS Excellence continued their surprise run by beating Kaizer Chiefs in the Quarters, before Ghanaian giants Asante Kotoko knocked them out. They would then go on to dominate Raja Casablanca in the final to make it a West African double. It was their first Confederations Cup trophy to go along with the 6 Champions League.

West African League Rankings

Senegal's continued impressive performances in Africa see their league rise to third in the region, bypassing Mali. No other nation overtook one another, but we have had only rises in the region, with Togo achieving the biggest gains, going from 29th to 24th in the continent.

League Champions

Banjul Utd the only new champion this season, but more even more proudly for Kojo three of his former sides are national champions this season. In the big leagues most of the traditional sides continue to dominate. One exception is Nigeria where the current dominance of Kano Pillars threatens Enyimba Aba's throne.

Former Champions

 

MC Breweries: Werent able to compete for the title like last season, only finishing 5th. Did get to the Quarter Final of the LFA Cup.

Kamboi Eagles: Went even better than last season and won their third SLPL and first since 2037!

Nô Pintcha da Brava: Disappointing after the successes of last season. Coroa da Brava were their nemesis as they beat them to league title and knocked them out of the Semi Final of the cup.

AFC Nhacra: Astonishing as the club win their second league title and first since Kojo left 14 years ago!

Ayéma FC: Not much of a change from last season as they finish 6th in the Championship Group.

CNEPS Excellence: What a season, retained the league title and won the Coupe de Sénégal domestically and did fantastically to reach the Semi Final of the Confederations Cup.

Edited November 28, 2022 by corinthiano

[corinthiano]

Association Sportive Nationale de la Nigelec

Association Sportive Nationale de la Nigelec are a team from Niger's capital Niamey. The club was founded recently in 2005 and is owned by the Nigerian Electricity company, which are government owned. They were actually Nigerien champions in 2022, which obviously did not happen in this alternate reality, where they havent managed to better the runners-up finishes from 2014 and 2021. The club were also champions of the Coupe National du Niger once, in 2013. They were a consistent top half finisher at the beginning of the save, but have become a bit of a yo-yo club in the last decade, with a 9th out of 14 finish last year not good enough for the previous manager to have their contract renewed.

They play at the Stade Général Seyni Kountché, which is the stadium that the National Team plays, as well as the main clubs in Niamey, including AS Douanes de Niamey and Sahel SC.

Assistant XI

At first glance the First Team looks pretty balanced, not sure how the quality compares against the rest of the league.

Top Rated Players

Joint best rated player at the club, looks like a decent Mezzala.

Love a good attacking left back so good to have one of the best players in the club in that position.

Creative AP from Benin, looks decent if unspectacular.

Finances

A club with a positive bank balance, a transfer budget and plenty of wage budget left? Yes please.

Initial Fixtures

We have a just under 3 months to get a squad together, so expect a lot of business before the start of the season.

 

Edited November 23, 2022 by corinthiano

[corinthiano]

2043/44 Season Preview

I think I may have gotten lucky with the club here as with the signings made we are predicted fourth, so could be fighting at the top sooner rather than later.

Transfers

In

Out

What I quickly established is that finding good Nigerien players is difficult, so I tried making the most of the three foreign spots I had bringing in the spine of the team in a CB, MC and AF. Tambedou played with me in The Gambia and whilst at first he looked a lot better than what was in the market I did end up finding two Nigerien strikers who will probably start in front of him. A lot of additions to the First Team:

Comes in from JS Tahoua as one of the better Goalkeepers in the league.

This guy was a starter for AS Douanes de Niamey last season, so clearly a good player for this league.

One of the foreign spots used, solid defender.

Ismael's CB partner, young and Nigerien - had to sign him.

I was struggling to find a decent DLP until Abdoul popped up in our radar. Good already and with bags of potential.

Aliou was one of my other foreign acquisitions, young and already one of the best players at the club,

He is the one that is displacing Tambedou. Young and capped by NIger, I couldnt pass him up.

Another young signing with lots of potential.

Best XI

Agree 100% with my assistants assessment and really happy with the First XI assembled. We could do with better depth in some positions but we are in a great position for a first season.

Initial Fixtures

I think this is a tough-ish start, but lets see how we get on.

[corinthiano]

October/November 2043

We were slow off the blocks in the first game of the season as Akokana went up 2-0 early in the first half, but we managed to pull back still in the first half to draw the game. Other than that is has been pretty comfortable, even including a surprise thrashing of big boys AS Douanes de Niamey. AS SONIDEP do look like they are in a league of their own though.

Transfers

In

Out

We loaned out one of our foreign players in Christophe Maffon, so I took the opportunity to sing a very decent AP from Ghana.

Next Fixtures

It is a busy December which will include a trip to league leaders AS SONIDEP.

[corinthiano]

December 2043

We performed really well this month but AS SONIDEP are relentless. We almost took a point off them in an even game, but Eric Gyamfi missed a penalty to put it level on the 88th minute...still doing great and just about edging AS Douanes de Niamey for second.

Transfers

In

Out

Nothing major this month as we bring in a back-up defender and let a couple more fringe players go. The transfer window is now closed and we wont have another one this season.

Next Fixtures

A couple of games before the mid-season break, would like two wins to keep up the good form going into the break.

[corinthiano]

January 2044

The draw against AS-FAN was extremely disappointing, not only because we dominated the game but also because it happened in the same weekend that AS Douanes de Niamey beat AS SONIDEP and a win would have seen us right in between both sides.

Next Fixtures

A long mid season break before getting back to a very tough game. We will have to beat AS Douanes de Niamey if we want to cling on to any faint hopes of a title win.

[corinthiano]

February/March 2044

We took the lead against AS Douanes de Niamey but unfortunately couldnt hold on. The poor form carried on as we needed late goals to secure a draw and a win following the February game. Against Sahel SC we seemed to go back to our free scoring form.

Next Fixtures

Next month we kickstart our Coupe du Niger campaign with a tough tie at Akokana.

[corinthiano]

April 2044

Great in the league but disappointingly we fall on the first hurdle in the Coupe du Niger.

Next Fixtures

I would love to give AS SONIDEP a run for their money. I dont think we will catch them even if we win but it would reinforce that we are not too far from their level.

[corinthiano]

May 2044

A 100% month with an excellent win against AS SONIDEP and with them losing to AS Douanes de Niamey too we are just 2 points off the top. It is nice to still be in it so late in the season, even though I cannot see either of those teams dropping points in their last two games.

Next Fixtures

Big gaps in games for us, largely because the Coupe du Niger is going on at the beginning of June. Two tough games though with Akokana the only team we have not beaten this season.

[corinthiano]

June/July 2044

Erm...OK? Astonishingly AS Douanes de Niamey draw in the last game and with the top 3 teams tied on points we win it due to better combined results against the other two! Did not see that coming but will not complain  

Edited November 27, 2022 by corinthiano

[corinthiano]

2043/44 Season Review

Disappointing in the cup but won the one that matters. Astonishingly we were not in first place at any point in the season other than the last day!

Squad by Appearances

We had a very set first XI that only didnt play if there were injuries or suspensions considering we did not have great depth.

Awards

Dominated the Young Player of the Season Award with our three signings, but Eric Gyamfi somehow won it but didnt make Team of the Season...

Top Performers

What a player, the Young Player of the Season was a creative force for us, as well as scoring a bunch of goals from free kicks.

Another amazing young foreign signing, Aliou scored an impressive amount of goals for the position he plays.

The third great young signing. Was in such good form that he was called up to the Niger National Team.

Finances

Lost a bunch of money despite being under wage budget, but the club still has some buffer left.

Progress

Niger becomes the second nation after Sierra Leone that Kojo completes in a season. Again very lucky with the team that hired him as they had plenty of money to back him up with great young signings. There was also not a lot of quality Nigeriens around so having very good foreign players made the whole difference. The next destination is close to Kojo's home, Togo!

[corinthiano]

Chapter 9 - Togo

Togo is a country in West Africa bordered by Ghana to the West, Burkina Faso to the North and Benin to the East. It is a very narrow country with only 115km width at the south of the country between Ghana and Benin. The name of the country comes from the Ewe language, with Togo meaning behind the river. French is the official language of the country, but as many other African countries a lot of other languages are spoken, and in Togo particularly those of the Gbe family. The population of Togo is around 8 million, with 1.5 million of those living in the capital Lomé, with Sokodé and Kara the other two cities with around 100 thousand inhabitants.

The Germans were the first country claiming ownership of Togo in 1884, calling it Togoville and Togoland, which was bigger than todays Togo. During the First World War British and French troops invaded the land and Germany surrendered its ownership to both of them. The British and the French separated the territory, with the residents of British Togoland option to join the Gold Coast, which is Ghana today. Togo gained independence in 1960 and proclaimed the Togolese Republic. After a disputed first election Sylvanus Olympio became president and tried to distance himself from France. This coupled with other factor led to him being assassinated in 1963 in a military coup which handed power to an interim president until 1967 when Eyadéma Gnassingbé took over and instated a one political party policy until his death in 2005. His son, Faure Gnassingbé took over but amid protests left so that elections could be held, which he subsequently won. This was very polemic with the EU and other African leaders, creating a lot of controversy at the time. Despite that and strong anti-government protests in 2017, Faure still remains empower, being re-elected for a fourth time in 2020 with 72% of the votes.

Togo's economy relies on the exportation of agricultural products such as coffee, cocoa beans and peanuts, which make up 30% of all exports. It is in the group of least developed countries in the world, but support from the World Bank and IMF have been limited due to the constant political unrest in the country. That political unrest also means tourism is not big in the country. The most popular destination is probably Kpalimé, which lies on the border with Ghana and is known for its beautiful countryside with great hikes including the Kpalimé waterfalls.

Football in Togo

Football is the most popular sport in Togo and the national team has done well considering the size of the country. The country made one World Cup appearance in 2006 which was unfortunately marred by disputes between the players and the federation and ended with Togo losing all 3 games. They also make the Africa Cup of Nations on some occasions and in-game did that 3 times, reaching the last 16 once.

The Championnat National de Premiere Division was first played in 1961 and despite early dominance from Lomé sides is now also contested and won by teams from other cities. The compeition is currently divided in a Northern and Southern Zone, with 8 teams each. The top 3 make it to a final Championship Group to determine the Togolese champion. There is not one dominant side in the country and AC Sémassi were the most successful club pre-game with 10 titles. In-game however this has shifted as ASKO and ASC Kara have won most of the championships. Unfortunately due to the way the tournament is structured I dont have a Previous Winners page.

In terms of reputation it is those two that are at the top with a few other clubs following closely behind them. The issue I am going to have here is that there are not a lot of Professional clubs that have not won a title yet, with Unisport and Sara FC the only ones in this list meeting that criteria. I really dont think managing a semi-professional team will get me anywhere so may have to wait for one of these two spots to open up.

[corinthiano]

2043/44 West African Review

CAF Champions League

Another year with low participation from West African sides with only 4 making it to this stage. Katsina Utd not strong enough on their debut and Asante Kotoko miss out in a tough group, but reigning champions Kano Pillars and CNEPS Excellence make it through.

Kano Pillars disappointingly fail to get past the Quarters in their title defence, but CNEPS Excellence to extremely well to knock out a Moroccan duo to reach the Final, where they just fell short to powerhouse ES Tunis, who win their 7th title, first since 2031.

CAF Confederation Cup

This year again with few teams in the Champions League we had heavy participation in the Confederation Cup with 9 teams, including a first all West African group. This year however the performance were very strong with only Horoya AC not making it through outside the all-West Africa group, somewhat surprisingly missing out to Rwandan side Rayon Sports.

The non-West African sides were quickly knocked out in the Quarters before Ghanaian duo Hearts of Oak and WAFA SC ascertained themselves in the Semi Final. Hearts of Oak edged the Final to win their 5th Confederation Cup, equaling the record for most times won with CS Sfax from Tunisia.

West African League Rankings

Only on position change amongst West African leagues as Mali overtakes Guinea. The Nigerian Professional League edges closer to Ghanaian Premier League as they move up to 6th in Africa whilst the Togolese league takes the biggest fall and is now 27th in Africa from 24th last year.

League Champions

One additional new champion to Kojo's win in Niger as Binar FC lift the title for the first time in Guinea-Bissau. It was a year for the dominant sides in the big leagues again and in Nigeria Kano Pillars have equalled Enyimba Aba's record.

Former Champions

MC Breweries: Finished 5th in the league again and got to the Last 16 in the LFA Cup.

Kamboi Eagles: The good times keep on rolling as they retained their title to get win number 4!

Nô Pintcha da Brava: A bit of redemption after last year as they win the Liga Brava and get to the Semi Final of the Cape Verdean Compeition. They did however get knocked out in the Semi Final of the Taça Brava.

AFC Nhacra: The year started well with a Super Cup win, but the title defence was terrible as the finish 14th, one point outside the relegation zone.

Ayéma FC: Great year for Ayéma FC as they win the title by a point, winning it for the third time and first since 2037.

CNEPS Excellence: A year where their amazing run to the Champions League Final compromised the other competitions as they were knocked out in the Last 16 of both domestic cups and lost the title on the final day of the season after playing three times in the week to make up on games in hand.

Banjul Utd: Not a great title defence as they finish 4th, 12 points off first place.

Edited December 3, 2022 by corinthiano

[corinthiano]

Sara Football Club

Sara Football Club is a club from Bafilo, a small city with around 25 thousand inhabitants south of Kara, Togo's third largest city. The team does not have many achievements of note, the biggest one being runners-up in the Coupe du Togo in 2001, which qualified them to the following years Confederation Cup equivalent at the time, but which they refused to play in. Traditionally they are a yo-yo club but in the save managed to establish themselves as a top tier side since 2031. They are however bottom of the Togo First Division - South by 5 points having played a game more so are in a real delicate position, which was what got their manager sacked. It will be a very tough task to turn it around considering there are only 6 games left to play...

Sara FC play their games at the Stade Municipal de Bafilo, for which there are no pictures, Google thinks I am looking for the Buffalo Bills stadium . It is a clay surface which will be interesting.

Assistant XI

Doesnt look unbalanced but dont really know how we stand against other teams in the division.

Top Rated Players

Looks decent enough for this level.

Good young defender with a few U20 caps.

Another OK striker.

Finances

Not great, but at least not massively in debt. Budget is a lot more modest than what I have had in the last few clubs.

Initial Fixtures

I join just as the mid-season break has started which is timely as we will need to hit the ground running straight away to get out of relegation trouble.

 

 

[corinthiano]

January 2045

Couldnt have wished for a better start as we absolutely dominate both games and move out of the relegation spot due to a better head to head against Kakadl FC. Not sure how the team was in this position in the first place. We added a couple of players to the team but with what we had here already we should have lost 7 out of 8 games before I joined.

Transfers

In

Out

With the transfer window closing at the end of January I signed players as fast as my scouts could find them to address the major gaps in the the team. Moussa Gamey came in on loan to fill in at DLP but got injured for 8 months on his first game...so I brought Méssan Gado-Suraji in instead. Three other players will be starters for the team. On the outgoing front just youngsters going out on loan and Kodjovi Takougnadi who was good but a right midfielder which is no use to me.

Goalkeeper was the main weakness in the squad alongside RB and Ayi was the best my scouts could find.

Our best signing, the Cameroonian is an absolute find for this level.

Not really the most suited to a Wing-Back role but he is young and has a good personality.

An experienced head at DLP.

Next Fixtures

We wrap-up what will be a very short season this month as we wont be making the top 3. We have some tougher games so despite being out of the relegation zone we have to be careful not to slip back in it.

 

[corinthiano]

February 2045

I had a feeling that we would do well against AS Binah and Gbohloé-su and struggle against the bigger clubs and thats exactly what happened. In the end it was enough for us to just stay up, a point above last place. Now we have almost 9 months of off-season before we get going again...

[corinthiano]

2044/45 Season Review 

Came in 6 points off safety with 8 games played and 6 to get us out of the situation. An impressive 4 wins out of 6 just did the job and we should not be fighting against relegation next season with the quality of the squad we have.

Squad by Appearances

A lot of players used for the small amount of games we had as I brought in a few of my own.

Top Performers

Knew he was going to be a good signing and Clinton certainly delivered with a couple of crucial goals.

Really effective in the DLF position for us.

Very good creative midfielder although I think we will probably replace him for next season.

Finances

Not great and not going to get better with no games in 9 months.

Progress

Good progress as I got 1 out of 2 jobs that I wanted and managed to turn around certain relegation. I think we will be a lot more competitive next season.

 

[corinthiano]

2044/45 West African Review

CAF Champions League

Much better participation this year with 7 West Africans at this stage. 4 go through as CNEPS Excellence, Génération Foot and AS Kaloum are knocked out.

In two all West Africa Quarter Finals it is the Ghanaians who come out on top. Unfortunately they were not match for the North Africans in the Semi-Finals. ES Tunis beat Wydad Casablanca in the final to retain the trophy and win their 8th title overall.

CAF Confederation Cup

A good number here again as we have 8 West Africans, with half of them making it through to the Quarter Finals.

West African dominance as three of the 4 Semi Finalists are from the region. Diambars FC made sure it would be an all West Africa final when they comfortably beat Orlando Pirates in the Semi-Final before losing to Hearts of Oak, who retain the trophy and are now the outright most successful team in the history of the competition with 6 titles.

West African League Rankings

No movements between competitions but only upwards moves in the overall African Rankings with Ghana now the 4th best league in the continent and Senegal moving into the top 10.

League Champions

One new champion this year as Police win their first SLPL. Other highlights include Kano Pillars now being the most successful team in Nigeria and ASC Kara joining ASKO at the top in Togo.

 

Former Champions

MC Breweries: Another mediocre season as they finish 6th in the league and exit at the first round of the LFA Cup.

Kamboi Eagles: They were close this year but couldnt win the title again, finishing 3rd - 4 points off top place.

Nô Pintcha da Brava: A great season as they not only won the Brava double, but almost won the national double too, winning the Cape Verde Cup and finishing second in the Cape Verdean Competition.

AFC Nhacra: Bounced back up as they finish 3rd in the league and are runners-up in the cup.

Ayéma FC: Couldnt retain their title but finished a respectable 3rd in the league.

CNEPS Excellence: Another strong year as they win back the Ligue 1 title, whilst making it to the Champions League Group Stage. In the domestic cups they were knocked out early in the Coupe de Senegal but finished runners-up in the League Cup.

Banjul Utd: What a disaster this season as they finish last in the league and are relegated back to the second division after 5 years.

ASN NIGELEC: A very poor title defence as they were nowhere near it at 4th. In addition to that they were knocked out in the Quarter Final of the Coupe du Niger.

 

[corinthiano]

2045/46 Season Preview

We are predicted to finish 4th in the Southern Group, just outside a place in the Final Stage. I'd like to think we will challenge Dyto FC for 3rd place behind the two bigger teams.

Transfers

In

Out

Brought in a few players but for the first time in a while I was restricted by the wage budget. Offensively I am happy with our additions but we are still weak at the back, especially the full-backs. We released a lot of players but there is still a lot of cleaning up to do on the outgoing front. A few players were brought in to make up the first XI:

Cheick was initially brought in as a DLP but will play as BPD for us as I could not find any other decent defenders.

Not really better than the LB we have, but gives us more options as he can play on both sides.

Brings in some experience as DLP.

Our best signing, was a regular starter for AS Togo-Port last season.

Good AP with a lot of potential.

Another really good young midfielder, we have an abundance of talent on the midfield front.

Will hopefully provide a lot of goals.

A good striking partner for Lamine, I think Junior really suits the DLF role.

Best XI

This highlights we are a lot stronger up front then at the back.

Initial Fixtures

The first phase is pretty much all played within one busy month and we have a tough start with trips to AS OTR and AS Togo-Port within the first 3 games.

 

[corinthiano]

November/December 2045

Things were going well after the 5-1 opening day thrashing we suffered against AS OTR as we went on a 5 game winning run which include a great win at AS Togo-Port. However we then went on a 3 winless run including home defeats against two clubs challenging for a top 3 place against us, so it puts us going through in real jeopardy.

Milestones

Transfers

In

Out

We brought in a couple of loans with no wage contribution to increase our squad depth, whilst Malik was a signing that my scouts recommended for CB but he is not as good as they claimed he was. We are slightly over wage budget now so I am looking to clear players before the end of the transfer window at the end end of January.

Next Fixtures

We have three games before a month break and realistically we have to win all of them to stand a chance to finish in the top 3.

[corinthiano]

January 2046

This is turning into a terrible end of the season as we cant even beat the bottom team at home...

Transfers

In

Out

Incoming are two young players that arent much better than we have but do have potential to grow and have low wages. On the outgoing front not clearing out as much as I would have liked so the big clearance will be in the summer.

Lets see if he can add anything to RB.

The deal was finalized after the squad registration was done so he will stay with the U20s until next season, but he is an improvement already to what we have in goal.

Next Fixtures

Two away games to try and restore some pride before another long off-season.

 

[corinthiano]

February 2046

A great last month. especially trashing Dyto FC their place to close the gap to 3 points. Its a shame we had a slump at the end of December and January as we should have been good enough to finish in the top 3 and qualify for the final stage.

[Mr Jabay]

Hey, great read. I really enjoy the introductions in the various nations; very interesting! How do you like the database? Africa seems like an interesting place for a long term save:) Are there any rules for which league winners are qualified for the champions league? For example can the Togo winners qualify?

[corinthiano]

50 minutes ago, Mr Jabay said:

Hey, great read. I really enjoy the introductions in the various nations; very interesting! How do you like the database? Africa seems like an interesting place for a long term save:) Are there any rules for which league winners are qualified for the champions league? For example can the Togo winners qualify?

Glad you are enjoying it! The database is really good, a couple of countries have misaligned transfer windows but other than the rules in Benin being broken for the Championship Stage (but still playable) there has not been any major issues.

Africa has coefficients for CL qualification, although the rules in FM are not too clear. From what I have seen the top ranked nations get 2-3 places and most other nations get one, other than maybe the bottom 10 leagues which only get Confederation Cup places. It is dynamic too as Senegal only had one qualifier for CL when I first started in the nation and now they have two. Togo has one spot in the CL and one in the Confederation Cup.

[corinthiano]

2045/46 Season Review

After a great start our slump in form put us out of the top 3, which would have gotten us a place in the final championship group. Disappointing as I felt we were on par with Dyto FC, highlighted by the 4-0 drubbing we gave them on the last day.

Squad by Appearances

Not a lot of games but they were all packed within a couple of months which meant we had to rotate a bit. Definitely need to overhaul the squad in the off-season.

Awards

Great effort from Lamine as he wins Young Player of the Season (I think, some of the awards dont have names ).

Top Performers

The Young Player of the Season was pivotal for us. Our slump in form coincided with him being out injured.

Came in on loan halfway through the season and quickly established himself in the first team. His contract is expiring soon but he has no interest in joining. I am not giving up though and will keep checking back on him!

Great playmaker and chipped in with many goals too. Unfortunately will be moving to league champions ASC Kara as he thinks he is too good for us (rightly so).

Finances

Things not getting better on this front, but the board have given me roughly the same wage budget for next season and with the planned squad clearance it should be enough to make improvements.

Progress

Think Togo might be one we stay a while again, the gap to the big teams is still quite big.

[Mr Jabay]

Thanks for your response! I am tempted to start a new save in Africa but I only have FM21, and the custom leagues do not seem to be very good there. At least the CAF seems funky

[corinthiano]

On 08/12/2022 at 02:32, Mr Jabay said:

Thanks for your response! I am tempted to start a new save in Africa but I only have FM21, and the custom leagues do not seem to be very good there. At least the CAF seems funky

I dont know what the FM21 databases are like, the one I got was made by Dave the Editor and I would definitely recommend his work if he did something for FM21.

[corinthiano]

2045/46 West African Review

CAF Champions League

Not as great as a season from the West African teams with only 5 teams making it to the Group Stage, with Ghana and Senegal contributing with 4 teams.

Similar to last year we had two West Africans in the Semi Final and both lost, with ES Tunis storming to their third consecutive title and 9th overall.

CAF Confederation Cup

Numbers down in the Confederation Cup with 6 teams making it to this stage. At least most of them made it out of the group with only Berekum Chelsea and Katsina Utd failing at this stage.

In an almost repeat of last year Hearts of Oak beat a Senegalese side to claim the title, winning their 7th overall.

West African League Rankings

The Ghanaian Premier League does not move up the rankings but is now a 3-star rated league. The Senegalese League keeps climbing and Burkina Faso are up a couple of places too, whilst the lower leagues all drop, but there is no movement between them.

League Champions

Not only one, but two new champions in countries we are yet to visit. Special shout out to CI Kamsar who finished second no less than 12 times before winning the league in Guinea. Bizarrely The Gambia had no season scheduled, but as we turn over to next season it has scheduled some fixtures again. For the sake of the save lets assume there was a military coup and the season was cancelled

Former Champions

 

MC Breweries: An improvement from last season as they finish 4th in the league and get all the way to the Semi Final of the LFA Cup.

Kamboi Eagles: Improved on last year and won their 2nd title in 3 years, 5th in total!

Nô Pintcha da Brava: Terrible season as they only finish 3rd in the Liga Brava and are losing finalists in the Taça Brava. At least they won the supercup at the beginning of the season.

AFC Nhacra: Finish a very decent second, but a massive 12 points behind 1st.

Ayéma FC: Another 3rd place finish, only 3 points off the top spot.

CNEPS Excellence: The good times keep on rolling as they win another title and get all the way to the Champions League Semi Final as they lose to eventual winners ES Tunis. Not much success in the domestic cups as they lose in the Senegal League Cup Final and are knocked out early in the Coupe de Sénégal.

Banjul Utd: Due to the glitch they have another season in the second tier to contend with.

ASN NIGELEC: A much better season as they finish runners-up, 5 points off AS SONIDEP. In the cup the same misfortune as they are knocked out in the Last 16.

[corinthiano]

2046/47 Season Preview

Still predicted 4th, but the odds have been cut by more than half. I really want that top 3 so we can get into the Championship Group.

Transfers

In

Out

A huge clear out as I release most of the youngsters we have and a bunch of fringe players. The club does not have the finances for a huge youth team so I will only focus on those that have real potential. We also lost a few important players but I feel we replaced them adequately. We have practically a new first XI now and I am happy with the quality, but a bit concerned they still need to gel. Here are our new first teamers.

Not great but much better than what we had for right back before.

Stoked to have gotten him, so young and already so good!

Claude is our other good young centre back.

Marc completes our new, young and much improved back 4.

Made a big wage commitment to secure the Senegalese DLP, but I think he will be worth it.

Braima Silva asked to leave so I brought his younger compatriot in to fill his boots.

Macou completes the trio of Senegalese signings, he looks like a really good DLF. 

Best XI

Not 100% aligned to my assistant but it highlights we have some good depth.

Initial Fixtures

It is a less packed first month this season which is good, do play the top two teams in the beginning though.

[corinthiano]

December 2046

Could not have wished for a better start as we win 5 games, including two very comfortable win against big boys AS OTR and AS Togo-Port, only conceding a goal in the process.

Next Fixtures

Two winnable home games before the mid-season break where we will start with two tougher games.