[FM22] From Peru to USA and now Chile, it's turning into an American Adventure!

[Earnie is God!]

Introduction

Christmas was over, we were into the New Year,
The excitement was done, just boredom to fear,
The usual festivities were a complete bust,
When along came an angel to sprinkle some dust...

"Annie. Annie! Have you seen my glasses?"
   "They are on your head, where they normally are when you can't find them", Annie said, rolling her eyes.
"Oh yes. Ahem, so they are. Now then, missus, how do you fancy something we've not had in a while?"
   "I've told you before, Dean, not with my back the way it is!"
"No, I mean a holiday. Far, far away from here."

Annie stood there, wondering what Dean had done wrong that he was trying to make up for with this holiday.

As if sensing her scepticism, he quickly added "Look, we could do with getting away and nobody deserves it more than you."
A crack started to open in Annie's frosty glare; he knew it was now or never, he had to make this good.

"A hot country with plenty to do and see, more natural beauty than either of us have ever experienced before. A volcano called 'el Misti', Colca Canyon, the Basilica Cathedral.
Sod Santa Claus. How about Santa Catalina Monastery?"
   "Santa Catalina? Sounds Spanish. Are we off to Spain?"
"Erm, not quite. We, my dear, will be living the high life at La Casa de Melgar in Arequipa."
   "Are-who now?"
"Peru, we're going to Peru!"

Edited October 23, 2022 by Earnie is God!

[Earnie is God!]

"Peru? Have you completely lost your mind?! How the heck are we going to afford a holiday in Peru?"

Dean knew this would be Annie's reaction and hadn't figured out exactly how to tell her. He couldn't tell her the truth, at least not yet, she'd never agree to it. So he tried the only thing he knew might work - lying. 
"I've been saving the pennies like you always said I should. I just wanted to surprise you with a nice gift, that's all. And you have always said you wanted to visit Machu Picchu. Well, now you can. I mean we can, now we can."
He managed a smile but it wasn't coming out right. The sweat started to ease its way down the side of his bald head and he thought the game was up. He was going to be rumbled and the whole trip would be off.

"Oh, sweetheart, how thoughtful! And there was me thinking that all you were getting me for Christmas were those socks. Hey, you know what? My back's feeling a little better right now. Why don't we..."

[Earnie is God!]

That Saturday, January 9th 2021, they flew the 15hr 6,000 mile journey from Heathrow to Lima via Madrid.
Then they had a quick stop-off before getting their connecting flight to Arequipa, another 90min.

They were picked up at the airport by, according to Annie, a "shifty man with small feet. Never trust a man with smaller feet than you!" and driven to their place of stay.
For the next week, they had the time of their lives exploring this wonderful country on the west coast of South America. Annie wasn't even bothered that their 'hotel', La Casa de Melgar, turned out to be a hostel.
She was more interested in the fact that it was the house of Manuel Segundo Ballon, bishop of Arequipa at the end of the 19th century. "Did you know", Annie said. "Did you know that the bishop organised the most important expedition to "el Misti" volcano, to erect the cross on the highest point of the summit? And that he transported the rails on mules, which were prepared by the railroad workers. The expedition received the new century by celebrating mass on the small alter next to the cross on January 1st, 1900?"
I did not. Ask me again tomorrow and I still won't know it. Now where are my glasses?

Edited September 21, 2022 by Earnie is God!

[Earnie is God!]

On occasions when Annie would be off doing something on her own, Dean would either call or meet up with "shifty small feet guy" [we'll just call him Shifty for now] and have rather lengthy conversations with him about something or other.
On the Saturday, a week into their two week holiday, Annie was feeling the effects of the sun and decided to cut her trip short. Upon returning to La Casa de Melgar, Annie saw Dean drinking coffee with Shifty.
"Oh, hello Shif... erm, what is your name?" Annie asked.
   "Roberto Caldado Edmundo Satori el Bassa do Mucho Scorio Chavez" replied Shifty, "but please, call me Edmundo."
"Edmundo, nice to see you again. What are you doing here?". Dean started to sweat again. Before he could interrupt, Shifty was already replying.
   "I was discussing with your husband the plans for Monday. You know, meeting the team and seeing the facilities, that kind of thing."
"Team? Facilities? I don't understand."

"Oh, just a little something, my dear", Dean interjected. "Edmundo, great to see you. I'll call you tomorrow, OK?"
With a perplexed look on his face, Edmundo got up, shook hands and left the husband to explain it all to his inquisitive wife.
"Well, the team he is referring to is the expedition team for your Machu Picchu trip. And... and the facilities are more for the equipment you will need for the climb. You know, that kind of thing."
   "My trip? So you're not coming after all then?"
"You know me, always moaning if I have to walk too far, and that trek is four days up the Inca Trail. Ideal for you as you've wanted to do it for so long, but really not for me. You know what I'm like; if I was hiking for four days, I'd end up ruining it for you and I'd hate that."

Dean could see Annie mulling this over before she finally conceded that he was right.
"Well, that is true, you would ruin it for me. Fine, but what are you going to do next week?"
   "Shifty is taking me to see the local football team here in Melgar and it turns out they are quite a decent one. Now you can stop with the eye rolling. It's perfect; you do what you've always wanted to and go climb some mountain and I'll do what I love and watch some football. Then on Thursday I'll catch the Machu Picchu Pueblo, the train from Cusco to Aguas Calientes, and hike the last 90min to Machu Picchu and see you up there."
"OK, that sounds great and at least we'll also have a couple of days together afterwards before we have to return to the UK next Saturday."

Dean was not quite sure how to explain it to her just yet. He had four days to think of something and it had better be good. But all he could think about that weekend was meeting the team that he'd just signed a one-year contract to manage. They would not be going back home next Saturday. Or at least he wouldn't be. Time will tell if Annie stays by his side or not.

Edited September 21, 2022 by Earnie is God!

[Earnie is God!]

How did I come to choose Melgar, you may wonder. Simple really, I just used FM Scout's random generator and it came up with these three.

I've done enough LLM saves in England so Guiseley were out and I have an idea for a save in Asia I want to do another time so that just left Melgar.
And, having never managed in Peru before, it seemed perfect. I'm sure I'll be able to nab some quality South American talent over the course of my time with the club too.
I only have the three leagues loaded: Peru top division and the top two divisions in Brazil and Argentina.

 

But, as you see from the 94,000 player count, there's more to it than that. I ticked the boxes for additional players, those at top division clubs in every continent, and all those in the top six divisions in England.
That way, I'll still get all the top flight club and continental reputation players on the database but without the slow processing times I'd get if I had the top leagues loaded and not just the players.
It's not quite as I had hoped as it doesn't rank any division outside of the three leagues/countries I added but it's quicker this way and that has to be better.

[Earnie is God!]

Our league is ranked 9th in South America and I'd like to get up to 3rd if at all possible, only behind Brazil and Argentina. It's a tough ask but am hopeful. Well, maybe not that tough seeing as we are only half a star off 3rd but we'll see.

I guess I've sort of screwed up because the major leagues in Europe aren't in the list. Hmm, I may have to add them as playable at some point.

[Earnie is God!]

This is our ground, very nice

And you can see 'el Misti' volcano in the background.

Club history shows not too many trophies but one of the oldest clubs in Peru, founded in 1915

[Earnie is God!]

Monday came around and Dean saw Annie off on her hike before heading back to the hotel to put on his Sunday best. He wanted to make a good impression on his first day!
With Edmundo by his side, who turns out to be the club's negotiator, translator and horse racing organiser (?), Dean enters the stadium.

"What's going on here, then?" Dean asks.
   "During the off season, we use the track for horse racing. It brings in some extra cash which helps keep the club going. Here, come and meet General Manager Jose Alejandro Suarez. He's over there."
"Next to that big filly?"
   "No, his wife isn't here today."

Suarez is a rather suave looking silver fox with the cunning smile to go with it.

[Earnie is God!]

After the niceties are over with, it's down to business. A one-year contract is signed and Dean is now earning £2,200 a week managing Melgar!

 

Edited September 21, 2022 by Earnie is God!

[Earnie is God!]

Mr Suarez explains the philosophies of the club and the emphasis that is put on signing young players for the first team.
A top 4 place is expected of me this season, with the club having lofty ambitions of challenging for the title the season after and winning it the following year.

With that, the deal is done. All that is left is to meet the backroom staff and the squad. Oh yes, and for Dean to tell his wife.

[Earnie is God!]

As he is shown around the club, Dean begins to realise that this isn't some Mickey Mouse club that he's somehow conned his way into here.
OK, so he embellished a little about his own playing career. Yes, he did once play in a cup final but it was for the casino he was working at and in a Wednesday afternoon local league (true and I also scored an own goal in that game, the opener in a 4-1 defeat).
Sure, he did also play alongside some famous faces but what he didn't explain was that one of them was Fick Mick, given the name because, after robbing a bank, he stopped outside to take a selfie of him holding all the cash he'd just stolen and posted it online, thus becoming famous. The other (and this is a true story too btw) was Darren Campbell who, back then in the mid-90s, was a top level sprinter who just so happened to love football and lived next door to Geoff, the player/manager of Dean's local Sunday League football team. Geoff managed to convince Darren to come and play the following Sunday, even though Darren had already been warned by his Athletics coaching team not to risk injury by playing football, as he had done before, because the 1996 Atlanta Olympics were later on that year and Darren was starting to become an established member of the squad.
Darren, being his own man, ignored this advice and came and played. The game kicked off, the ball was hoofed forward and Darren, like a whippet, raced through but narrowly failed to get there before the GK could pick it up.
The opposition, a team at the top of the table with significantly more points on the board than Dean's team, were astounded by the pace of this mysterious man that they didn't recognise.
Darren, however, was lying on the floor completely out of breath, not used to this kind of running.

By the end of the match, Darren had squandered at least a dozen chances but still managed to bag a hat-trick in a fine 6-2 win over the league leaders.
Sadly, he never played again. His coaching team found out he'd played and quickly put a stop to it. Shortly afterwards, he went out to America for a training camp in preparation for the Olympics. He was involved in the 4x100 relay at the games but dropped the baton as it was being passed to him and Team GB failed to win a medal. He did become a success in the following years but enough about that.

So yes, Dean had lied his way into the job. He'd lied to Annie about why they were there and now he'd lied about his credentials.
Surely this would catch up to him at some point.

Edited September 21, 2022 by Earnie is God!

[Earnie is God!]

Being in Paddington Bear country, Dean wasn't expecting much of the facilities or the staffing levels but was pleasantly surprised by both.
Not only did Melgar have a fantastic stadium, horse races et al, the facilities were good too.
And when he entered the dining area, Dean didn't think he would be met by more than a dozen expectant faces, all turning to look at him as he entered the room.

Edmundo, the ever-reliant company, said "This is your staff." and then he proceeded to introduce everyone, from the two (yes, two) AssMen for the 1st team to the physio, doctor, coaches and everyone in between.

Dean did not expect this many staff and Edmundo could sense the unease.

"Ah, don't worry about the number of people here. We sacked loads of them when the last manager left. You can hire another 19! "
   "Another 19?!"
"Si, si. A few coaches left and the whole recruitment staff was fired after 'the incident' last season."

Dean looked at him quizzically.
Edmundo went on but in more of a whisper. "I'll tell you about it later but it's something to do with a filly."
   "Oh, those horses in the stadium?"
"No, Suarez's wife."

Edited September 22, 2022 by Earnie is God!

[Earnie is God!]

With Edmundo's help, Dean had a good chat with the staff and they were soon at ease.
It was going to be a tough task to find and hire the right personnel to fill in the gaps before the season started but Dean knew these things couldn't be rushed; quality over quantity.
The problem was that he wasn't exactly sure what level of ability stood for quality in these parts. If John Llerena, one of two physios at the club, was anything to go by then it wasn't looking good.
Llerena proudly dug out his physio test as his only form of qualification, and he only scored 8 out of 20 on that.
Fernando Alloco, No.1 AssMan, had also scored only 8s across the board but that was better than AssMan No.2 Adrian Diaz managed, although he apparently focuses on the fitness side of things.
Otamendi fared little better with 9 out of 20 in his GK test (the reserves have a better one with 10s). At least dedicated fitness coach Leandro Jorge passed the 50% mark with a score of 12.

[Earnie is God!]

Job adverts were hastily arranged and now it's just a waiting game to see who will join. Dean knew that he probably should be more proactive in the search but had to spend time with the squad and see what he had at his disposal.

The league itself isn't the simplest. You can have no more than 5 foreign players registered and there are 5 already, all Argentinian.
The opening stage of the league is broken up into two groups of 9 teams and you play each team in your group just once.
U20 players must be involved, to the tune of a total of at least 810 minutes in those 8 games. Failure to play the youngsters will result in a points deduction at a rate of 3pts for every 90min below the 810min threshold.
At the end of the opening stage, the top team will play in the end of season Championship Playoff.

After an 8wk break at the end of the opening stage, the closing stage begins, and it is just one division of all 18 teams.
This time, U20 players must play a total of at least 1080 minutes in the 17 games available or face point deductions like before.

With me so far? Good.

The winner of the closing stage then goes through to the Championship Playoff unless they also won the opening stage, in which case they are already through. Well, almost.
If a team wins one but not both stages then they have to finish at least 9th in the overall table (combined opening and closing) to qualify for the Championship Playoff.
The top two teams in the overall table at the end of the season qualify for the Championship Playoff but only if one team hasn't won both stages.
If the same team does win both stages then 3rd and 4th place in the overall table then come into the playoffs. It doesn't explain how e.g. is it 3rd v 4th followed by 2nd v 3rd/4th and the winner plays 1st in the final? Who knows.

 

[Earnie is God!]

Dean realised that the issue in finding new players, and he desperately needed a LB, is this:
You can have no more than 5 foreign players registered and there are 5 already, all Argentinian.

And all 5 of them are more than good enough to play so it's a search for Peruvian players only that has to be done. Not sure how difficult that's going to make things.

A quick search showed 874 players who are Peruvian, aged from 16 to 40. Forget the elder statesmen and whittle it down to a max age of 32; that leaves 837.
Ticking the LB position brings it down to 64.

Transfer budget is £395k but wage budget is £0 which is going to be a problem. A quick chat with the board is going to be needed, plus a search for a scout as he couldn't wait until someone applied for the role, Dean needed one now.
"Edmundo? Edmundo, leave those fillies alone, I need your help."

[Earnie is God!]

After about twelvety-six rejections from potential new staff members - apparently Peru doesn't seem that appealing to many, especially for the £400 a week my board will allow - a handful of misfits agreed to join the club in various roles and soon the scouts will be out and about in search of new talent. The new season was still 7 weeks away but the sooner players could be brought in the better.
The players don't seem too enamoured about this random man that is apparently their new boss.

They are also a bit miffed about having to come in earlier than usual for pre-season but hopefully that will turn around quickly enough once the season starts.

[Earnie is God!]

There is a reserve squad but with no discernible talent, and the U18 squad is non-existent. Well, that's not quite true as it's full of greyed out 15yos.
The kids do have a full set of opening stage fixtures, running from May to August, but Dean decides to worry about that closer to the time. He needs the senior players on board first.
But before any of that, there's the traditional friendly between the 1st team and the reserves to oversee tomorrow.

He's hoping to start sorting the wheat from the chaff  as he'll probably need to sell a few players to release some sort of wage budget.
Dean looks down at his phone and wonders if he should call Annie then thinks better of it.
He has to face her at some point but he'd told her he didn't want to spoil her hike so no point mentioning anything just yet.

[Earnie is God!]

 

[Earnie is God!]

This is the squad. It's not a bad one but lacking in certain areas.

 

[Earnie is God!]

Doesn't help that they lose 1-0 to the reserve team in the opening friendly 

[Earnie is God!]

Fast forward two months and where is our hero and how is he doing?

There is good news and there is bad news so let's get the bad news out of the way first.
Annie has left him. When Dean broke the news about the job, she threw a fit and said it was the last straw. Apparently she'd been contemplating their marriage for some time and this selfish act of his made her mind up.
His wife flew home as scheduled that Saturday and refused his help with packing and company to the airport. Edmundo agreed to drive her.
Curiously, he also had his passport and a small suitcase with him and he's not been seen since.

Onto the good news and, after the shocking loss to the reserves, the rest of the pre-season campaign has gone very well.

Only a brace by Gonzalo Higuain denied Melgar a clean sweep of the friendlies.

Recruitment has been a different story though. Little money to spend and only trying to sign Peruvians for the first team [as mentioned, due to the full quota of 5 foreign players in squad already] has been tough, very tough.
Just the one player has come in and that's a backup LB due to being short in that position.

The other players listed signed before Dean arrived. Due to a lack of quality in the centre of the park, the new boss has decided to ditch his favoured 4-3-3 DM Wide formation and go with a 4-2-3-1 instead.
Some youngsters have also signed but can't officially join until they are 18 so are here on trial until then. They are all foreign - 4 Brazilians and 1 Argie - so will see how they turn out and then maybe have to make room in the squad if they prove worth it.

Season is about to start and Dean has put his failed marriage to one side.

His true love is calling.

She is a beast in the shape of FBC Melgar.

And she will not be denied.

[Earnie is God!]

March

Melgar kicked off in the Friday night match with a 2-0 win at Sport Boys, courtesy of a goal apiece in the second half from striker Cristian Bordacahar and winger Luis Iberico
 First game in the Copa Sudamericana followed, a 2-1 home victory in the preliminary match against Mannucci.
     Totally dominated with XG of 3.93 and should have won by more; CF Bernardo Cuesta and Super Sub winger Emilio Saba with the goals in front of an opening home match crowd of 13,376
 17,299 watched Melgar's 3-1 win in the Clasico del sur Derby v arch rivals (who knew?) Cienciano. Striker and local hero Joel Sanchez scored in the 1st minute, inside forward Jhonny Vidales in the last with winger Kevin Quevido in between

An excellent first month, the only slight downside was conceding goals when 2-0 up. But with just 3 CBs at the club and the transfer window about to shut, it's not going to be easy to bring in reinforcements when they have to be Peruvian and probably free agents due to very little cash. Very pleasing to see 7 different goalscorers for the 7 goals though.

[Earnie is God!]

Fun fact, for all you Sheldon Cooper fans out there who love this kind of thing...
Did you know that Ysrael Zúñiga, of Coventry City fame back in 2000, was signed from Melgar? No, of course not, who knows that kind of crap hmmm?
Anyway, two extra bits of info: he actually signed for them a total of 4 times in his career and... and his older brother Christian also played for the club.

[Earnie is God!]

April (part one)

Transfer window came and went, just managed to loan in a young CB as cover.
Results:
Captain fantastic Cuesta scored a hat-trick in a 5-2 demolition of Cesar Vallejo, Iberico and Quevedo notching the others
 A 4-2 2nd leg win in the preliminaries sees us through to the Copa Sudamericana group stage, 6-3 on aggregate. A Bordacahar hat-trick and another goal from Quevedo settles the tie
Group stage was drawn shortly afterwards and here it is!

Now I think this competition is the equivalent of the Europa League, with the Copa Libertadores the Champions League.
It looks like there are some decent sides here though e.g. Corinthians, Lanus, Independiente to name just 3 but the likes of River Plate, Boca, Santos and Sao Paulo are in the CL.
In our comp, 8 groups of 4 and only the top team goes through to the 2nd round. The teams who finish 3rd in the CL drop down into our comp for the 2nd round.

I think Melgar can get through this group and then it's pot luck in round 2. Don't really want to play Santos or Racing Club but both of those are currently 3rd after 4 games in their respective CL groups so it's possible.

[Earnie is God!]

April (part two)

 Another game dominated, outshooting opponents Alianza Atletico 28 to 4, but just the one goal that won it, another from Quevedo
 Melgar's 6-game winning streak is a new club record
 CM Alexis Arias twisted his ankle and will be out for up to 6 weeks
 Winger Joel Sanchez is set to return after a month out with a hamstring strain
 1st game in the Copa Sudamericana ends in a 2-1 home defeat to Metropolitanos of Venezuela. A 1st goal for Martin Guedes, one of 26 shots Melgar mustered (becoming a familiar story), was too little too late.
      To make matters worse, winger Iberico was forced off in the 15th minute after an awkward fall and will miss up to 2 months with strained knee ligament damage
 Melgar bounce back in the next game, thrashing 2nd place Sporting Cristal 4-1 away, Bordacahar with a brace while Quevedo and Orzan notched the other two
Even better, they followed it up with a 5-1 demolition of Bahia in their own backyard. Vidales set them on the way with a 10th minute penalty but the star of the show was Cuesta who bagged four

At the end of a busy April, Melgar sit proudly at the top of the table with just 3 games of the opening stage to go

 

[Earnie is God!]

May 2021 (part 1)

 The month started with defeat, 2-1 at home to Universitario de Deportes. Deep Lying Playmaker Jean Pierre Archimbaud Arriaran (DLP1 for short) put Melgar ahead with his first of the season but Deportes scored twice to snatch the points
 Another 2-1 defeat followed in the Copa Sudamericana (CS), away to Bolivia's Guabira. DLP1 seems to have found his shooting boots as he notched again but the defeat puts Melgar 3rd in the group with the need to win it to qualify
 An absolute drubbing at Alianza Lima sees Melgar drop to 2nd with just one game remaining of the opening stage. Winger Emilio Saba with the consolation goal in an embarrassing 4-1 loss
 Melgar bounce back with a vengeance, putting four past Guabria in the CS. With two games to go, it's anyone's...

 

Edited September 30, 2022 by Earnie is God!

[Earnie is God!]

May 2021 (part 2)

 A 2-1 win over Bahia, thanks to a 96th minute winner from Joel Sanchez and a goal from Orzan, means Melgar need just a draw at Metropolitanos in the final match to win the group
 Final match of the opening stage and yet another injury time winner to seal a 2-1 win. Goals from Alec Hugo Deneumostier Ortmann (or CB3 for short), his 1st for the club since arriving 3yrs ago, and a goal on his debut for young striker Marcelo Jose Salas Salas (CF4 to his friends) meant that if Universitario de Deportes (UD) failed to win at Sporting Cristal, the title would go to Melgar, so did UD drop points?

They did not :-(
 Melgar picked themselves up for their final CS match and ran away with a superb 5-1 win at Metro to seal a place in the knockout stages! Bernardo Cuesta scored twice, with one apiece from LB Silva, CF Bordacahar and winger Quevedo
 2nd round draw... 

It'll be tough but Dean's boys are up for it and any more than the group stage was always going to be a bonus

 

[Earnie is God!]

June 2021

June saw the start of the Bicentenial Cup. The board weren't fussed about it so I guess it's like the Carabao Cup.
Still, it's a trophy and there to be won and with no other fixtures in June, no reason not to go for it.

 A 2-0 win in the 1st round at Santos (2nd Div Peruvian side) got Melgar on their way. Goals from Bordacahar and Sanchez
Wasn't sure it was going to happen when Melgar hit the woodwork four times in the first half though.

 Another tie at a lower league side, this time in the guise of Carlos Stein ended 3-0 to Melgar; Bordacahar and Sanchez scoring again, along with RB Ramos
 A home tie in the QF v top division side Ayacucho but they were no match for Melgar who ran out 4-1 winners, a brace apiece from 18yo striker Paredes and winger Guedes

[Earnie is God!]

Youth Prospects

This looks very promising...

and then I scrolled down and saw the rest of it...

Still, I'd take a 'mediocre' group of players every time if it meant at least 2 or 3 were excellent and the rest were gash. Looking forward to it and need a GK as 1st choice Caceda is way out of form and currently 36yo Farro is playing.

[Earnie is God!]

July 2021

 Cuesta scored twice in the semi final of the cup but the game ended 2-2 and Cuesta went from hero to villain as he missed the crucial penalty and Universitario de Deportes were through to the final
 A daunting trip to Brazilian club Fluminense next in the CS but Melgar blew their hosts away in a 5-0 drubbing. CM Walter Silva with his 1st two goals for the club; Ortmann, Quevedo and Reyna with the others
 Melgar started the Closing Stage of the league with a revenge 5-2 win over Universitario de Deportes. A Cuesta hat-trick being the highlight, with Quevedo and an own goal rounding it off
 The return leg v Fluminense and the reserves got a run-out. Deservedly so too as Melgar won 2-0 with goals from on-loan CB Montoya and 3rd choice striker Paredes
 Back to the league and Melgar make it 4 wins on the bounce with a 2-1 victory over Alianza. Should have been more with 36 shots and an XG of 3.8 but goals from Cuesta and Quevedo were enough for the 3pts
 After No. 1 GK Cacada was dropped for letting in stupid goals, he's now moaned about it and is unhappy. He didn't take kindly to being told that his performances have been poor
 Melgar have just about tied up a deal for young GK Gobetti. £65k for the 20yo is the first bit of money Melgar have spent. The dilemma is that he's Brazilian and so which of the current 5 foreign players in the squad is to be dropped to make room?
Melgar round of July with a 6-0 drubbing of Binacional. Cuesta and Orzan with two each plus one apiece for Joel Sanchez and DLP Arias

[Earnie is God!]

Transfer Deadline Day

With little money to spend and not many players found in our price range, I was going to forgo TDD but, with the board not happy I'd not signed any U23 players for the 1st team, I thought I'd take another look.

In the end, after jiggling around our wage/transfer budgets, I managed to snaffle up a couple of decent Peruvian youngsters, to go with Gobetti, the GK I mentioned in my previous post.

Gobetti's not registered though.
Bordacahar came to me 90min before the transfer deadline and told me he didn't think he was good enough to perform at this level. Weird as he's my 2nd best striker and has 9 goals and 6 assists in 14 games this season.
But he's not brilliant and I'm sure I can find better for next season. But the main reason for letting him go was to free up that 'foreigner' spot.
Anyway, I hastily tried to find a buyer for him but, bearing in mind he's valued at around £250k, had to turn down the one offer received before the deadline as that was for only £32k! 
So he's still in and that means that Gobetti will just have to wait until next season.

[Earnie is God!]

August 2021

Nothing stops us registering Gobetti for the CS though and he makes his debut in the competition during a very busy August and that keeps him happy

 Quevedo, Orzan and Cuesta secure a 3-1 away win at Alianza and move Melgar to within 4pts of the top of the table with three games in hand
 Bordacahar scores twice and Iberico adds a third in a lovely 3-0 win at Cantolao
 QF in the CS and Melgar go down 2-1 at home to mid-table Brazilian side Ceara. Paredes scores a late goal for the home team to give them a glimmer of hope in the away leg
 Domestically, no such problems and Melgar make it 6 out of 6 in the league, Quevedo with the only goal of the game at Universidad Cesar Vallejo
😥 A decent debut from Gobetti but Melgar are powerless to resist Ceara's attack and lose 1-0 on the night, 3-1 on aggregate and are out of the CS
😊 Back to winning ways in the league though with a hard fought 1-0 win at Huancayo; Joel Sanchez popping up in the 71st to secure the 3pts
😀 A tricky tie at 3rd placed Sporting Cristal was heading for a draw when Vidales broke clear in the 89th minute to steal the win and put Melgar top of the table
 Playing twice a week finally caught up with the players as they only managed a 1-1 draw at home to lowly Universidad Tecnica de Cjamarca (UTC). Quevedo with his 9th goal of the league campaign

Top of the league though with 2+ games in hand, it's looking good for Melgar. And with the team no longer in other competitions, plenty of rest should be able to be had between league games to keep everyone fit

 

[Earnie is God!]

September 2021

 Another game without converting chances, just 6 goals in 7 games now for Melgar, sees them drop points in a 1-1 draw at Ayacucho. But at least Cuesta is back in the goals after a 6-match drought
 A change in formation does the trick as Bordacahar, Quevedo and RB Ibanez score in a 3-1 away win at Alianza Universidad
This is followed by a 5-1 thrashing of Cusco. Bordacahar bags a hat-trick and Cuesta scores a brace. 1pt clear with a game in hand, just 5 games to go now
😥 Not everything is going to plan though as Guedes damages his ACL and will be out for up to 10 months
 2-0 win over 3rd placed Municipal sees the unbeaten run continue, goals coming from Cuesta and Lora
 Melgar follow that up with a convincing 3-0 home win over San Martin. Vidales struck twice and Bordacahar scored the other in a match that saw Melgar qualify as one of the top two for the Champions Playoff Final

[Earnie is God!]

On 03/10/2022 at 18:45, Earnie is God! said:

Youth Prospects

This looks very promising...

Looking forward to it and need a GK as 1st choice Caceda is way out of form and currently 36yo Farro is playing.

So much for the 'A' GK. He's now down with the 'merely decent' bunch...

Still, we have a few that look like they might make it. This guy might be the best of the lot.

13 finishing already but it's the 18 determination I like the best.

[Earnie is God!]

And this is the GK...

All that eccentricity, probably turn out like Barthez the clown 🤡 but without any of the skill 🤦‍♂️

[Earnie is God!]

October 2021

 Melgar start October with a 3-0 win at already relegated Sport Boys. How sporting of them. Iberico and Cuesta (2) with the goals
 Final home game of the regular season and Melgar rewarded the 18,402 crowd with a 7-1 demolition of Cienciano. Quevedo, having resolved his contract dispute, was back amongst the goals, opening the scoring after 10min. Cuesta bagged two and Joel Sanchez made it 4 before the break. Further goals from Arriaran (2) and Ramos rounded off the scoring. But he main question was could Melgar finish the Clausura unbeaten?
 Yes, yes they could. 3-0 winners at Mannucci with goals from wingers Quevedo, Ibanez and Iberico

Meanwhile, the reserves have gone one better, winning every game!

 

[Earnie is God!]

Needed to ask the board to improve facilities but thought I'd wait until the end of the season.
We do have £3m+ in the bank thanks to decent runs in the cups, especially the Copa Sudamericana, and thankfully they've given it the green light

I also asked for better youth facilities and an increase in the junior coaching budget but we'll see what they say to that

[Earnie is God!]

 Two out of three ain't bad

 

[Earnie is God!]

Starting to push my luck...

 

[Earnie is God!]

November 2021

Just the two-legged playoff this month to decide the Champions between ourselves and Universitario de Deportes.
They beat us to the Apertura title as well as knocking us out of the domestic cup and have been our closest rivals all year.

1st leg away and we got off to a great start after Vidales put us ahead in just the 3rd minute. Cuesta then scored his 28th goal of the season to put us 2-0 up.
A rather harsh penalty gave UD a way back into the game and Novick tucked it away.
But Cuesta wasn't quite finished and notched his 29th goal of the campaign on the stroke of half time.
The second half was goalless so we took a 2-goal lead into the home leg.

Spoiler

We emphasised how important it was not to get complacent but this seemed to fall on deaf ears as UD took an early lead after 12min.
But just before HT, Joel Sanchez equalised with a lovely dink over the onrushing 'keeper and I could breathe a little easier again.
That man Cuesta killed off the tie with his 30th of the season just after the hour mark. Coincidentally, this was also his 150th goal for Melgar, having had two previous stints with the club. A legend in the making? Possibly.
Proving that he richly deserves the new contract he's just signed which will see his rather paltry £300 a week wage quadruple to £1,200 and the 32yo will probably see out his final days at the club after the extension to 2024.

Spoiler

Captain Cuesta collects the trophy

The team celebrate the win

 

[Earnie is God!]

December 2021

Weirdly, when the 2-leg playoff was announced and was in my fixtures, there was a second 2nd leg in December too.
I didn't know if this was a glitch or another playoff against UD because they won the Apertura and we won the Clausura, or maybe because they won the cup and we won the league?
A bit weird to call it a 2nd leg though.

It didn't matter really because we beat them in that one too  We romped to a 4-0 win at their place with goals from winger Vidales, fullback Lora, CB Luan and striker Joel Sanchez

We then celebrated all over again and took another trophy 

 

 

Edited October 5, 2022 by Earnie is God!

[Earnie is God!]

Definitely something up though as it states here we overturned a 1st leg deficit to win 3-0 on aggregate.
Well, where to start? First, how can you win to nil on aggregate if you lost the 1st leg? You lost but you didn't concede a goal? 
And second, we won 4-0 in that one match but 3-0 on agg?!

Then there's this...

Erm, losing?! Yeah got to be a glitch.

[Earnie is God!]

And with that title, I go into the HoF for Welsh managers. Well, it's not difficult. Apart from Toshack, there is just, erm, tosh.

I'll be 2nd in no time but will take a lot more to catch Toshack I suppose

[ucdark]

Peruvian league is kind of bugged, sames as Mexican ... Good job on Melgar

[Earnie is God!]

2021 End of Season Award Ceremony

Get the tux out, Cossie, our son's on the telly!

The board not happy with the signing of Lora above but then he's also the signing of the season below 

The board not happy that we finished in the top one in the table

Good revenue came in this season with our successes

Ceara, who knocked us out of the CS, went on to win it so we sort of finished 2nd. That's how it works right? 
Best XI with main formation although have now ditched that for a more attacking one

 

[Earnie is God!]

9 minutes ago, ucdark said:

Peruvian league is kind of bugged, sames as Mexican ... Good job on Melgar

Thanks. Yeah, it seems that way and I'm not sure I can really stick around in a league that doesn't work properly. More than just the one glitch too so perhaps better off taking my talent elsewhere.
I'll see if I get offered a job in another country and thanks for the heads up on Mexico too, I won't bother adding that league as playable.
I had Brazil & Argentina leagues already in but have now also added Chile, Colombia, Uruguay and USA.
Never managed in any of them and always wanted to try USA with their draft and wage caps, etc.
But as I say, will see if any club comes in for me.

[Earnie is God!]

Affiliations have come through and the board gave me a choice of Pierola, Sport Loreto or Academia Esther Grande de Bentin (EGB). Pierola are an amateur side, Loreto are professional and EGB semi-pro.
I ended up going for EGB because they have great facilities and good coaching whereas the other two were 'poor' and 'below average'.
Hopefully will find a few gems at EGB in the coming years

 

[Earnie is God!]

This isn't really going to get us very far

Considering we are now in the Copa Libertadores and just had an excellent season, how am I supposed to do any business with that paltry amount?!
We are already spending £38k on wages so no real movement there either. Will have to offload half a dozen players for a miserly total of £400k if I'm lucky just to bring in one or two proper upgrades.
Hmm, soon time to see what other jobs are available as the other leagues get added next month.

[Earnie is God!]

£400k? Who am I kidding! Nobody wants them

 

[ucdark]

hace 3 horas, Earnie is God! dijo:

Thanks. Yeah, it seems that way and I'm not sure I can really stick around in a league that doesn't work properly. More than just the one glitch too so perhaps better off taking my talent elsewhere.
I'll see if I get offered a job in another country and thanks for the heads up on Mexico too, I won't bother adding that league as playable.
I had Brazil & Argentina leagues already in but have now also added Chile, Colombia, Uruguay and USA.
Never managed in any of them and always wanted to try USA with their draft and wage caps, etc.
But as I say, will see if any club comes in for me.

I'm managing Chivas waiting for FM23, the format is 17 matches, then playoffs, but the schedule is shown as  vacations after the 17th game, and unlocked if you qualifiy every stage, so... there was a Mexico - Haiti game in the possible semifinals, they were called up and i wasn't asked to postpone one of the legs because i was 6 players on national team and 3 on u20, i had to put an u18 gk. Another thing of mexico (not bc the game), but there are no relegations or promotions for 6 years IRL, so I cant tell you if the 7th season there will be because Im in the middle of the 2nd season hahaha

Cheers