Sacked in a month in Latvia, Last gasp drama in Wales,Cup magic in Denmark, an adventure in Greece, and glory in Spain - The ultimate Journeyman save [Finished]

[Ace40]

April 

THREE GAMES AWAY FROM A TREBLE !!!! 

We beat the big three in back to back matches in the league 

We knock out Bologna and demolish Rennes in the first leg of the Conference SF 

We need one more win to win the league 

One win to win the Cup 

One win to become the first Greek side to win a European trophy 

[Ace40]

EUROPEAN FINAL 

Rennes hand us our first defeat since September, but it is not enough to take our place in the final of the Conference League. 

We will face Wolfsburg in Spain next month for our chance at eternal glory. 

[Ace40]

CHAMPIONS, CHAMPIONS, CHAMPIONS 

  We not only win the Greek league, our B team has won the second division, and our youth team has won the U19 League. 

In one and half seasons Van Koopermiester has transformed PAOK from an underachieving midtable side, into the powerhouse of Greece. 

Some B team and U19 players will get a much deserved senior minutes after their fantastic seasons in the remaining couple of league games 

 

 

[Ace40]

AWARDS & STATS 

 

 

Top Goalscorer

Spoiler

 

Talent of the Year.

Spoiler

  

Second top goal scorer despite leaving in January, this season would have played out differently had Olympiacos managed to keep him. 

For reference, he has 6 in 16 for Arsenal since joining.  

Goalkeeper of the year

 

Spoiler

 

 

Spoiler

 

Spoiler

 

 

Spoiler

 

 

Spoiler

A deserved sweep in the second division award night 

 

 

 

Spoiler

 

Edited May 29, 2023 by Ace40

[Ace40]

DONE THE DOUBLE 

We get over last year's heartbreak with a 1-0 victory of our own 

.,.. One more win for the treble 

 

 

[Ace40]

Champions of EUROPE!!!

 PAOK become the first Greek club to win a European Trophy of any kind 

Denis Dragus, the first signing of the RVKP era, scores the winner in the first half.

 

Edited May 29, 2023 by Ace40

[Ace40]

May

A historic month that will go down in Greek football history.

 

[Ace40]

End of Season reflection 

An unbelievable season where the team lost only twice in over 70 games. 

The squad overhaul paid divided as not a single player disappointed, and we established a solid base for the future. 

I will attempt to move to a top 4 league in a club that fights for CL football, but it is very likely that I stay here to take PAOK into CL football next season 

and attempt to defend our domestic titles

 

Edited May 29, 2023 by Ace40

[Ace40]

International Debuts 

Two of our young fullbacks have earned NT call ups over the summer 

 

[Ace40]

Summer Transfer Window,  ( B team)

Since we signed nearly 30 players last season, most on free transfers. It was time to cash in on those that were not going to feature for us this season. 

This is where the real value of the B team comes in, being able to sign 2-star players who got released from big European clubs, start them every game, and sell them the next season for some good money, while at the same time serving as backups in case of emergency. 

For every player sold we replaced them with a new signing. Click on the spoilers to see who left and who was brought in. 

 

GK 

 

Spoiler

 

Alejandro Iturbe 

OUT -->

Last season's Second division Keeper of the year, Alejandro Iturbe joined us on a free and left for 10.75M a year later

I was actually planning on promoting him to the first team and having him compete for the number-one spot, but Valencia triggered his release clause 

IN 

<----

Alessandro Blazic 

 

Joins us on a free transfer from Koln. 

 

DM

Spoiler

OUT -->

David Duric

Signed for 0 € from Rapid Vienna in Austria 

Played 36 games for the B team, scoring 3 goals. Given a debut in the last game of the season. 

Sold for 500K € plus 30% of future profit to Sandhausen of the second Bundesliga 

  

IN 

<----

Leo Castledine 

 

The youngster joins us from Chelsea on a free transfer, having made 6 senior appearances. He's already  much better than Duric, and will be trained to play as a DM.

 

 

CM

 

Spoiler

OUT -->

Alparslan Baran 

Joined from RB Salzburg on a free. 

A standout player for the B team, played 37 matches scoring 3 goals and 15 assists. Played 3 matches for the senior team.

Sold for 1.6M and 20% of future fee to Eibar, who will play in La Liga 

Assan Ouedraaogo 

 

Joins on a free transfer from Schalke, having never made a senior appearance. 

ST 

 

Spoiler

Last season's top goal scorer Magno Was sent on loan to the Danish League

He was replaced by 18-year-old Tomislav Tadic who joins us on a free Austrian Ameature side DSV Leoben 

He played 57 matches and scored 17 goals in Austria

 

 

Bought in anticipation of promoting one of the strikers to the main team, but I decided against it, so I know have 4th striker to compete for the 3 spots in the B team 

He joins us from the Liverpool academy having never played for them. 

 

Edited May 29, 2023 by Ace40

[Ace40]

Summer Transfer Window (A team) 

Similar thing to the B team, one in, one out. 

The squad revolted in unison asking for new contracts, and I rejected all their pleas 

We received some crazy offers which we had to accept. 

We were not able to significantly strengthen the squad, as the wage demands of those that would improve us were way beyond what we could afford 

LB

Spoiler

OUT -->

Jose Fontan 

An outrageous piece of business, Jose Fontan joined us on a free from Celta Viga and left for Atleti Madrid a year later for 32 Million Euros. 

He was incredible for us during his season here, but worth nowhere near that much, especially at 27 year old 

IN 

<----

Jacob Slater 

Young Englishmen Slater joins us from Preston's academy, having never made a senior appearance. He will be our backup while we give Fernandez the starting spot

RB 

 

Spoiler

OUT -->

Malo Gusto returned to Chelsea after his loan expired 

Alex Pinto is his replacement, a cheap Portuguese that joins us from Slovak side Dun Stredam where he played over 140 games in 7 years. 

 

DM 

 

Spoiler

OUT -->

Liam Gibbs, one of our first signings, was sold to Galatasaray for 2.9Mil 

He had one year left on his contract, and we decided to cash in. 

Gibbs spent a season and a half here, playing 27 league games and scoring once. 

We make 1.5M euro profit on him

 

ST 

Spoiler

OUT -->

Stefano Tzimas has returned from loan to Juventus, hoping to break into the Italian giants' squad after his impressive loan spell at the club. 

Denis Dragus 

Last season's European hero is moving to Belgium to join Club Brugge. He spent a season and a half with us, scoring 14 in 32 league matches. 

We cashed in on him, as we sold him for 10 two years after buying him for 6.25M 

IN 

<----

To replace Tzimas as a rotational striker is German Paris Brunner. He has similar stats to Tzimas, but has never played professional football. 

He joins for relatively high wages, but I have high expectations for him 

Mert Kocak 

In typical FM Fashion, I replaced my 29 year old striker with one 10 years his junior. Mert Kocak joins us for 10.5M from Turkish side Antalyaspor, where he scored 18 in 56 games as a teen

 

 

Edited May 29, 2023 by Ace40

[Ace40]

September 

A rocky start to begin the year as morale is still low due to the contract situation. 

Some players have moved, while others are still unhappy about the situation. 

We managed to turn things around against easier opposition and started picking up wins. 

 

 

 

Robert Lewandowski's retirement means there is a spot open for a Polish NT Striker 

 

15 year old academy player Kamil Erkan make his debut for Azerbaijan 

The Jose Fontan money is being put to good use 

Following our humiliating return to the CL 

 

Edited May 29, 2023 by Ace40

[Ace40]

October 

We already have more defeats than last season after Olympiacos hand us a 2-1 defeat thanks in part to a late penalty. 

Good news elsewhere as we get a vital win against Porto in the CL. 

The fullbacks haven't stepped up as much as we wanted to, and we will be looking in January to bolster them, as well as a possible CB

 

 

Edited May 30, 2023 by Ace40

[Ace40]

November 

 We gave a good showing of ourselves against PSG and smashed their compatriots in the CL. We did our job in the super league, but Olympiacos have now won 11 in a row 

Still plenty of football to play but the league is starting to look difficult to retain.

Elsewhere, amateur Spaniard Santiago will join us on January to help out with the LB situation 

 

 

Edited May 30, 2023 by Ace40

[Ace40]

Bit harsh from the Yellow Stand 

[karanhsingh]

That's brilliant man, congratulations on the treble! 

What is your manager reputation up to now?

[Ace40]

Thank you  

 

Currently up to 3 and a half. I missed out on the Ajax job to the AEK manager, who has 4 stars. Hoping a good run in this CL helps us out

[Ace40]

December 

A perfect month with a huge victory over Atalanta in the CL, that pushes us into the R of 16 spots with two games to go. 

We are also through to the next round of the Greek Cup. 

Meanwhile, in the league, Olympiacos continue their absurd winning start to the season 

[Ace40]

Winter Transfers 

A mini overhaul was done as some unhappy and underperforming players were shipped out and reinforcements were brought in. 

CB 

Spoiler

Lucas Riberio has joined Mexican side Pumas for a 10M fee. The player was signed on a free 18 months ago and fell down the pecking order, I couldn't resist the offer

He played 35 league games for us, scoring 6 goals. 

Nenad Radojcic was signed to replace Ribeiro. The 20-year-old comes in for 6.5M from Red Star 

The Serbian international played 92 games for them before joining us. 

 

CM 

Spoiler

We signed another midfielder, Matias Salas joined us from Chilean side Colo Colo for a bargain of 3.2M

We have a lot of midfielders, but for such a cheap price I had to go for it, as he is now our best midfielder 

He played 91 games for Colo Colo. 

We didn't receive any good offers for the midfielders that we had 

ST 
 

Spoiler

Patryk Kilmala was sold to Cruz Azul for 5.25M after complaining about his contract all season 

He was signed on a free 18 months ago and scored 15 goals in 32 matches, although only 2 in 7 this season. 

This will be the 29-year-old's 10th club of his career

Evan Guessand left for 10M to another Mexican team, Pachuca. 

The player was constantly complaining about his contract, yet when offered one was asking for ridiculous demand

He was still in good form this season, but I decided to move him on. 

He scored 25 goals in 41 games for PAOK since joining on a free 18 months ago. 

IN 

To replace Kimala in a Loan from Arsenal, Eddie Nketiah, We are footing a lot of wages for him, and typically he got injured for two weeks in his first training session. 

He only played 5 games for Arsenal this season, he was listed for transfer but we managed to bring him on loan with an optional fee that will not be activaited 

Hugo Ekitike joined us from PSG for 2,4M, he has identical stats for Gusseand, and he only played 13 league games in 6 years for PSG which is why we got him for so cheap.

 

 

[Ace40]

January 

An up and down month for us to start 2028. We draw against AEK AGAIN before being demolished 5-1 by Panetolikos 

I rotated the squad heavily and misjudged how good the B team players are. 

We then chocked a 2-1 advantage vs Ajax to lose 5-2 and get knocked out of the R of 16 spots, into the playoff 

We beat Barca on the final matchday of the CL, don't let that fool you, Barca has been terrible this season and only squeezed by to the playoff 

Where will meet once again for a spot in the round of 16

We end the month by handing Olympiacos their first defeat of the season. However we are still 11 points a drift 

 

[Ace40]

A Historic Night in Athens 

A 91st-minute goal by Debutant Nketiah puts PAOK in the round of 16 of the CL by beating 9 man Barca 5-4 on agg

[Ace40]

February 

A very busy February where we had weeks playing once every two days, we come out relatively unscathed 

We lost to Panathinaikos away from home in the first leg of the Greek Cup SF. But we can still overcome the deficit 

Meanwhile, our perfect form in the league does not matter because Olympiacos is unstoppable 

We will face Liverpool in the round of 16 of the CL next month. 

[Ace40]

Headed to the Prem Next Season? 

We are interviewing for jobs once more, looking to move closer to our aim of winning the CL. 

I'm not sure if West ham is the right move, but I need to get closer to the big teams. 

Regardless of what happens I will finish the season with PAOK

[Ace40]

March 

We put a good showing against Liverpool but they were too much for us to handle. 

In the league, Olympiacos dropped points against Aris before we smacked them 3-0. 

Suddenly there is a title race, with 8 games to go, including one against Olympiacos. It is in our hands. 

Erik Ten Hag got the West Ham job

 

[Ace40]

Title Race 

Olympiacos lost to Atromitos and are now level on points with us. 

Their next two games are aginst AEK and us. 

Olympiacos shall bottle it

[Ace40]

April 

Getting into the business end of the season now. We smash Panathinaikos 5-0 in the Cup SF to set up a date with our favourite protagonist, Olympiacos,  in the Greek Cup final

AEK did us a massive favor by beating Olympiacos 3-0 but we failed to kill them off after losing in an 8-goal thriller to get them back on level points. 

We still have the advantage, but no room for error now. 

 

[Ace40]

Down to the wire 

Down to the last game of the season, we have to beat AEK, a team that we have struggled to beat since stepping foot in Greece, Olympiacos play Atromitos, a tricky side that beat them earlier in the season. 

We have to match their result, but we have to play to win., 

Our title will be decided in 90 minutes 

 

[Ace40]

CHAMPIONS AGAIN 

It was nervy, but we did what we needed to do to retain our title. 

Olympiacos will feel hard done by the fact that they lost the league on GD, despite scoring more goals!

 

 

Edited June 3, 2023 by Ace40

[Ace40]

Masters of Greece 

We reiterate our dominance over Greek football after winning both the Second division and U19 division for the second straight year 

 

[Ace40]

Award Winners 

Second Division 

Spoiler

 

First Division 

Spoiler

We also sweep the awards for the first division. Huge shout out to our keeper Julen Agirrezabala, whose 20 clean sheets made the difference in our GD title win 

 

Edited June 3, 2023 by Ace40

[Ace40]

Revenge in the Cup 

Olympiacos get their revenge from PAOK in the Greek Cup after defeating them 3-1 in extra time 

[Ace40]

Time's up in Greece? 

After retaining the league title with PAOK, and taking them to CL round of 16, proving last season's success was not a fluke, will there be a fourth season for Van Koopermiester with PAOK?

[karanhsingh]

Congratulations on another good season. That was quite the title race! Also please don't go manage Man City!

[Ace40]

19 hours ago, karanhsingh said:

Congratulations on another good season. That was quite the title race! Also please don't go manage Man City!

 

Thank you! 

 

I doubt I'll get the City job, but I have to start throwing my name in the mix of these big clubs 

[Ace40]

[karanhsingh]

11 hours ago, Ace40 said:

 

Thank you! 

 

I doubt I'll get the City job, but I have to start throwing my name in the mix of these big clubs 

Well tbh it is reading about your save which inspired me to go back to journeyman myself 

[Ace40]

11 hours ago, karanhsingh said:

Well tbh it is reading about your save which inspired me to go back to journeyman myself 

Glad you're enjoying it. 

 

I've wanted to share my saves for a while but always got too lazy to actually record it all. 

[Ace40]

Summer transfer window (A team) 

It looks like we are staying at PAOK, so another squad overhaul is underway. 

I didn't want to lose all these players, but the majority of them got their release clauses activated or were unhappy when rejecting the first offer so we accepted ones when the valuation was right. 

 

GK 

Spoiler

Julen Agirrezabala has joined Newcastle for 8M. He was in the last year of his contract, and refused to sign a new one so I decided to cash in on him. 

He played 71 league games for PAOK since signing on a free two seasons ago, and kept 37 clean sheets

20 year old Brazilian Goalkeeper Le is the new man between the sticks. 

He is getting an outragous 73K a week. but he was our best option and we faced a lot of competition to sign him 

He played 84 games for ATP before signing for us, and kept 27 clean sheets

 

LB 

Spoiler

 

Santiago Fernandez 's release clause was activaited by West Ham. 

The player joined 18 months ago for 5.5Mil and he never really impressed me in his 33 games for the club. 

Doubling our money on him was a good move, but wingbacks are in short supply so we might struggle to replace him

 

ST

Spoiler

Paris Brunner, Our standout player from last season, has joined Leverkusen after his release clause was met. 

He arrived on a free last season, and scored 14 goals with 13 assists in 29 appearances.

Maurice Krattenmacher Was our first Marquee signing, having joined from M'gladbach for 14.5M following a very successful loan spell. He scored 37 goals in 67 league appearances. 

Not a crazy profit was made, but he wanted to leave and it felt right to let him go to Wolfsburg 

IN 

Ivan Toney was brought in on a free to replace Nkteiah who returned from his loan to Arsenal 

Fabian Ahlgrim, Our biggest signing yet. Fabian joins for 41M from LA Galaxy, a slight overpay, but he is very good for this level. 

He scored 49 goals across 102 games so far in his career, and has 14 caps for Belgium

 

Edited June 6, 2023 by Ace40

[Ace40]

End of the Line 

 

After two and a half successful years in Greece, the time has come for Van Koopermiester's big move at last. 

The Real Madrid job has become available, and RVK was the man for the job. 

They have won every single title in Spain this save, and another CL. 

However, their last CL title was 4 seasons ago, which is an entirety for Los Blancos 

I really enjoyed my time at PAOK, but the time has come for a move

I will keep a close eye on them and hope the next guy does not **** up my hard work

[Ace40]

The Squad 

A star-studded squad that includes Bellingham, Osihmen, and Scalvini on top of the names you already know. 

I have two weeks left in the market where I will be looking for a new Left back, a backup left winger, and a back up Striker 

[Ace40]

The Transfers 

Three signings were made, with three players leaving. We went all out, in order to get a CL winning squad 

 

In 

Spoiler

Maxime Esteve Joins us from Brugge to be our new LB 

Ansu Fati was signed from Chelsea for a 118M with 70M in add-ons. We don't really need him, but Van Koopermiester needed to make a statement signing to start his reign in the Bernabeu 

Benjamin Sesko was signed to compete with Osihmen for the striker position 

 

 

 

Out 

Spoiler

Teun Koopmeiners went to Chelsea for 30M. He is useful depth option but we needed the money 

Andriy Lunin joined Sporting in exchange for 21M. He is the backup keeper for us and we needed the money 

Andrey Santos was sold for 11M. He was listed before I came in and I don't have a reason to keep him 

 

[Ace40]

August 

Two wins from two to kickoff our time in Madrid 

[Ace40]

September 

 4 More wins in a row before dropping points in the CL to Bayer 04

[Ace40]

October 

   Despite having two draws in 5 games in La Liga, we snatch first place from Barca and win a second consecutive manager of the month award

 

 

[Ace40]

I can't lie I have lost interest of the save since joining Madrid. It's pretty boring playing with them, I definitely wish I stayed at PAOK, however I will try to finish this series and win the CL since this is what we set out to do. If we fail to win it this season, I'm afraid I will abandon it, so I'm definitely going all out in the CL and not caring much about anything else. 

[karanhsingh]

I can imagine - you could always do the one season with Madrid and then switch to another club. 

[Ace40]

November 

Another straightforward month where we smashed Atleti and beat Barca in our first real tests of the domestic campaign. 

We did fall to Liverpool in the CL, however. 

A third successive Manager of the month award followed 

A

[Ace40]

On 28/06/2023 at 22:51, karanhsingh said:

I can imagine - you could always do the one season with Madrid and then switch to another club. 

It's possible, but I have a couple more save Ideas I'd like to do before I finish FM23. I figure if I'm starting over might as well do it in a new save. 

[Ace40]

December 

Worrying signs in the CL as we receive another heavy defeat. Our defense is leaking and we're an injury away from having to play a youth academy in CB. 

A loss in the league is inconsequential as we are still comfortably on top. 

 

[Ace40]

January 

A very busy month where we played 8 matches in  4 competitions saw us lift our first trophy with Madrid, as we win the Spanish Super Cup. 

I heavily overestimated the strength of our B team as they lost to Tarragona 3-0 to knock us out of the Spanish Cup. 

The only activity of the window is the sale of long-serving player Mendy to Monaco as he wanted to leave. he played exactly 200 league games for Madrid.