DaneBramage Posted July 8 Author Share Posted July 8 (edited) November 2028 Primera Division I have a theory that if you change formations to something that doesn't work for a couple of games, when you switch back to the favoured tactic it gives you a little boost. And thus we beat Boca Juniors. Turned crap again afterwards though. You know that point in the save where you just hate your team and every single one of your players, and would sell all of them if you could? I'm there right now. Other than Jonathan Herrera obviously. He deserves better than slumming it here. -------------------------------------------- Finances -------------------------------------------- Edited July 8 by DaneBramage Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 8 Author Share Posted July 8 (edited) December 2028 Primera Division Goalkeeper 26d Raul Gomez came in for the final two games of the season and kept a pair of clean sheets, more than the previous incumbents had in total over the last 32 matches. Right-winger 26b Jose Ramos Mendoza made his debut on the final day and scored the only goal of the match, and it was probably the most important goal of the campaign too. We had dropped out of the top 12, but that final result saw us overtake Chacarita Jrs. and steal the final Copa Sudamerica place. I'm not terribly impressed with our performance, 43 goals scored is considerably down on the 55 and 59 from the last two years. River Plate also won the Copa Argentina to make it a double. -------------------------------------------- Edited July 8 by DaneBramage Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 10 Author Share Posted July 10 (edited) December 2028 Squad Stats Our defensive record was poor this season, just three clean sheets all year. After managing 66% of this total in the final two games of the season 26d Raul Gomez has put in a good shout for stepping-up to be first-choice next season. None of our defenders impressed, and the more defensively minded midfielders weren't great either. Lautaro Montani did well in the more attacking midfield position with 15 goal contributions, and Franco Almanza continued to be consistent on the right-wing. Jonathan Herrera was again the main man up front, and 21 goals is his best tally since reaching the top tier. His strike partners 25b Amadeo Martinez and 25e Valentin Maldonado blew hot and cold. -------------------------------------------- Academy Player Records Eight academy players made their debuts this year, and now 40 of them have represented the club. 22 Fernando Pardal reached the milestone of 150 games and will likely become the player with most appearances next season. -------------------------------------------- History Obviously I'm pleased to qualify for the Copa Sudamerica for a third time in a row, but I'm still annoyed that we nearly missed out and only scraped in on the final day. Jonathan Herrera was top scorer for the sixth time, Lautaro Montani was top creator and had the highest average rating for the third times, as well as winning player of the season for the first time. -------------------------------------------- Facilities + Finances We regularly sell out our 10,500 capacity, so this is a sensible decision. I don't think taking out a £1.6 million loan to pay for it is smart though. We had enough money in the bank to cover it, but (if my maths is correct) we'll be repaying nearly double that amount to the bank (10 years x £26k monthly = £3.12 million). The improvements that were completed this year have set us up nicely for the future, hopefully it won't take long until we see the results of this through the youth intakes. And maybe if we keep qualifying for continental competition we won't see so many youngsters poached. Annoyingly one of our sponsorship deals wasn't renewed, so we only received £796k this month instead of the £1.2 million we got last year. -------------------------------------------- Edited July 10 by DaneBramage 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 11 Author Share Posted July 11 (edited) March 2029 Departures Another of the original players left. We're now down to just seven real players remaining. Tobias Luna had his moments of being useful over the years, but just 2 goals and no assists last year meant there was no way he was getting a new contract, and especially not with a pay increase as he wanted. Spoiler -------------------------------------------- Copa Argentina We scored very early on against third tier opposition (through Jonathan Herrera, obviously) but despite dominating the game couldn't increase our lead. They never looked like scoring or getting back into the game, but we should have scored more regardless of whether it mattered or not. -------------------------------------------- Facilities + Finances The off-season is so long in Argentina that I got bored and asked for a couple of upgrades. I also decided it was time to ask for a feeder club to loan players to. The other requests were rejected, but the board did decide to improve the youth recruitment. We have a player sale agreed for when the window opens in July, but it's not a particularly big one. -------------------------------------------- Edited July 11 by DaneBramage 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 11 Author Share Posted July 11 April 2029 Youth Intake This was rated as a 5.0 star Excellent intake (4 Elite talents, 6 Top talents, 5 Good talents, and 1 Decent talents). That's the most elite players in an intake and the fewest decent players, so that's got to be a good sign. Everyone is Argentine yet again. We still haven't received anyone with a different first nationality. There's four with Italian as a second nationality this time though (we've now had 13 in total. Next is Spanish with seven. No other nation has more than one.). As a whole the determination attributes are really good. But unfortunately the only two that are drastically bad have been assigned to players with high PA, effectively ruling them out of developing to their potential best level. Everyone has been signed, but with most players going straight onto a full contract rather than a youth contract it's getting expensive to do so. The top-rated player being a left-back is useful, and another with good PA is a bonus. But the centre-backs not being rated too highly is a blow. -------------------------------------------- 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 11 Author Share Posted July 11 (edited) April 2029 Copa Sudamerica Not a fun start to the campaign. We're immediately on the backfoot and with only one team getting through the group stage, Vasco da Gama are the early favourites. -------------------------------------------- Finances There was a shred of good news from the Vasco da Gama game - with the capacity increase completed we set new attendance and gate receipt records. -------------------------------------------- Edited July 11 by DaneBramage Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 11 Author Share Posted July 11 May 2029 Copa Sudamerica We got back on track with a pair of wins, the charge of course being lead by Jonathan Herrera. But just as swiftly it was cut off by the return fixture against Vasco da Gama. We beat Colo-Colo to try and keep the chase going, but Vasco da Gama had already won the group at this stage. With the result not mattering I tried something different in midfield against Independiente del Valle. Didn't work. Vasco da Gama ran away with the group, it was clearly pretty early that we were aiming for second place and we managed that. No prize for second though. -------------------------------------------- Copa Argentina We departed not just one, but two cups this month. A rotated side were picked and put up a decent fight, but it wasn't enough. -------------------------------------------- Finances Season ticket money has come through this month to reduce the losses. Looks like another sale is being completed which will take place in June. -------------------------------------------- Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 12 Author Share Posted July 12 (edited) July 2029 Interview Invites Santos are bottom of Serie A (Brazil), yet to win a game after 12 matches. River Plate are the reigning champions in Argentina, and their manager has just left to take over the Uruguayan national team. -------------------------------------------- Poached Player Number 14. Banfield have the 20th highest reputation in the country, we're a few spots behind in 23rd. But they're listed as continental while we're still national. -------------------------------------------- Departures A couple of players who were regular starters last year were shipped out. Both have a ton of PA, but I got annoyed by their constant poor performances. 25c Dario Romero scored just twice in 26 games last year, and only added 3 assists. This does leave us a little short on the left-wing, but may as well go with a younger player rather than this overpaid waste of space. It took a lot of offering him out to get any clubs interested, in the end only Bristol City made an offer. We couldn't get them to budge, so it's a straight-up £625k fee with no additional payments. 26e Hector Anselmi is a centre-back less than six foot tall. Always a tough task to trust that they be a commanding figure in your defence, and a 6.71 average rating last year suggests that he couldn't. River Plate clearly see something more in his future as they've paid £210k + £2k per game for 30 league appearances + 20% of next sale. Spoiler Spoiler -------------------------------------------- Expectations The same as normal really. The bookies think we'll finish 27th, the media think we'll finish 24th, the board want us to avoid coming last. I want to get into the Copa Sudamerica again. -------------------------------------------- Primera Division A poor start as we didn't deserve anything against Talleres, we were really poor. We should have got a point against Argentinos Juniors, Jonathan Herrera did his part as normal but was let down by the other attacking players. Jonathan Herrera didn't leave anything to chance against San Lorenzo and grabbed four goals. We're a one-man team really. Here's our goalscoring chart after 11 games (three league, two cup, six continental). -------------------------------------------- Finances The second guaranteed instalment of £1.33 million from the sale of 22 Roberto Heredia in 2027 has come through this month. The third and final instalment will be in 2030. -------------------------------------------- Edited July 19 by DaneBramage 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 20 Author Share Posted July 20 August 2029 Poached Player Yet another. Number 15. -------------------------------------------- Primera Division I loaded up the save today for the first time in a week after being busy with work, but to be honest this stinking run of form is just as much a reason for the break. Nine games in 29 days is obviously stupid scheduling, but every other team has a hectic period too so I can't blame that, we've just been terrible and can't score goals. This is by far our worst form since making it to the top tier. Nothing is going our way. -------------------------------------------- Finances -------------------------------------------- 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 20 Author Share Posted July 20 September 2029 Primera Division After getting hammered by River Plate there was a two week break. A team meeting was called to tell the players they needed to buck up their ideas sharpish, and we also hosted a couple of easy friendlies to get the winning vibe back. And it worked, as we looked like world-beaters while absolutely smashing Racing Club. But it very quickly wore off, and we were back to being awful and only gained one point from the next four matches. Now seems like a good time for a reminder that even though we're plummeting down the table with no apparent change in fortunes looking likely, we're not in the relegation conversation because of the dopey average points rule. Spoiler -------------------------------------------- Finances -------------------------------------------- Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 20 Author Share Posted July 20 October 2029 Primera Division Games against the sides 26th, 27th, and 28th should have been what we needed to at least try and finish the campaign strong. Instead, we barely put up a fight against Instituto ACC and lost to the only goal of the game. We beat Lanus comfortably and should have done the same versus Banfield, but Lautaro Montani missed a penalty to cost us the win. -------------------------------------------- Finances -------------------------------------------- Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 21 Author Share Posted July 21 November 2029 Interview Invite This is the second time in six months I've been approached by River Plate. When they were managerless at the start of the season it made sense, but now? Have they not noticed how poorly we're doing? -------------------------------------------- Primera Division The same pattern as last month - a loss followed by a win, then a draw. The game against Velez could have gone either way, both teams very equal but ultimately they managed to take one more chance than we did. We should have beaten Almagro, the left side of the attack combined for the goal while the right side were terrible, more hindering the team than helping. Three games left but it doesn't really matter, this has been an awful campaign whether we stay in 23rd, finish as high as 15th, or fall as far as 27th. -------------------------------------------- Finances -------------------------------------------- 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 23 Author Share Posted July 23 (edited) December 2029 Primera Division We eventually put together consecutive wins for the first time all season in the final two matches. The goals coming against Godoy Cruz from a pair of youngsters getting a shot up front was pleasing. Some bright lights for the future. -------------------------------------------- Edited July 23 by DaneBramage Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 23 Author Share Posted July 23 December 2029 Squad Stats 22 Fernando Pardal played well in defence but he was surrounded by a bunch of clowns. Lautaro Montani was decent in midfield, when fit at least. He spent a lot of time out injured and then broke his leg towards the end of the season. 24a Constantino Puig and 26f Carlos Alessandria were spectacularly unproductive, not providing anything useful whether in midfield or on the right-wing. Jonathan Herrera was again top-scorer, but didn't get anywhere near enough support from his striker partner 25e Valentino Maldonado. -------------------------------------------- Academy Player Records 49 academy graduates have now played for us, with nine more debuts this year. 22 Fernando Pardal is now the player with most appearances for the club, while 23c Diego Fernandez is the fifth player to reach a century. 25e Valentin Maldonado has jumped to 2nd in the top-scorers list, but is a long way off top spot. -------------------------------------------- History This was a really disappointing season. We were terrible throughout August and September, and due to the compressed nature of the Argentina season, that meant we were terrible for more than half the campaign. Just two wins in 15 games during that time killed us. At least the fans kept coming, we sold out the stadium on a number of occasions and with the increased capacity that meant we set a number of attendance records. The board are now looking at plans to build a new stadium, though nothing is finalised yet. I think that would be rushing things. Not having continental football next year is annoying. We're missing out on roughly £800k prize money, so we'll have to sell a player or two in the next window. But more than that it means we'll go from January to July with basically nothing to do (other than the Copa Argentina). It's going to be a long pre-season. Jonathan Herrera was top-scorer for a seventh time and fan's player of the season for a sixth. Lautaro Montani had the highest average rating for a fourth time. Franco Almanza shared the top assister award with 24g Federico Giaccone, though only the former gets added to the spreadsheet because he did it in fewer minutes and I don't want to change the formatting. -------------------------------------------- Facilities + Finances Our youth recruitment was improved this year and is now at the highest level possible. -------------------------------------------- Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 23 Author Share Posted July 23 January 2030 Departures Three players from the original squad left when their contracts expired, having made more than 500 appearances for the club between them. German Aguirre and Nicolas Sanchez were both part or our first-team squad last year, both making more than 20 appearances. But last season stank and a change is needed, so sacrificing the players over 30 on high wages was the obvious route to go. Indeed, Nicolas Sanchez retired (at 32) rather than find a new club so he clearly didn't have anything left to give. -------------------------------------------- Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 23 Author Share Posted July 23 March 2030 Copa Argentina Dispatching second tier Chaco For Ever was more difficult than it should have been. We dominated them, limiting them to just two proper chances, but our defence didn't do much to try and stop said chances. So what should have been a comfortable victory actually turned into a nervy finish where we got the win, but the defenders got the hairdryer treatment. In terms of goals 25e Valentin Maldonado obviously impressed with a brace, and with a pair of assists after coming off the bench 26f Carlos Alessandria has already doubled his tally from last season. -------------------------------------------- Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 24 Author Share Posted July 24 (edited) April 2030 Youth Intake 5.0, Excellent. 2 elite talents, 6 top talents, 8 good talents, zero decent talents. A lot of attacking players at the top end of this group. I wish some would come though who only play in one position though. AMR, ST and AML, ST players annoy me. I'd rather they're just a winger or a striker so I don't have to guess where they should be playing. Still boring nationality wise. I didn't bother signing five of the lower rated players without any determination. -------------------------------------------- Edited July 24 by DaneBramage 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 24 Author Share Posted July 24 (edited) May 2030 Copa Argentina We hit the post twice in the opening ten minutes, but despite bossing the game we couldn't find a goal during the first-half. We made the breakthrough shortly after the interval, stealing the ball from their left-back and quickly releasing the ball into the middle for 27a Victor Pagano. A second followed and we were cruising, before conceding in stoppage-time against the run of play to set up a tighter finish than I'd have liked. -------------------------------------------- Edited July 24 by DaneBramage 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 25 Author Share Posted July 25 (edited) July 2030 Departure Franco Almanza had been a regular on the right-wing for the last eight years, first-choice for a couple of seasons before settling more into a rotation role. He always contributed to a decent level, though never put together huge numbers. Time catches up with everyone though, and at 29 and with only six months left on his contract it was time to capitalize on interest from abroad. Real Valladolid have paid £1.1 million up front with another £1 million guaranteed in three annual instalments + £100,000 after 10 league appearances + a friendly. Spoiler -------------------------------------------- Poached Players Numbers 16 and 17. Both are to clubs in the same division as us, but with 3.0 Continental reputations rather than our 3.0 National. -------------------------------------------- Edited July 25 by DaneBramage 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 25 Author Share Posted July 25 July 2030 Expectations The media think we'll finish 26th, the bookies think we'll finish 28th, the board want us to avoid relegation. I just want to do better than last year. That was an abomination, it can't be repeated. -------------------------------------------- Copa Argentina Tougher opposition than the last two rounds, but we made it through again. We required the experience of Lautaro Montani to do so, coming off the bench and striking home a 30 yard free-kick. -------------------------------------------- Primera Division I think I've worked out what went wrong last year. Or it could just be a coincidence, but I'm mentioning it anyway. When I had the e-mail about pitch dimensions at the start of the year, I saw that it was set at the shortest and widest dimensions possible. I don't know what had possessed me to do that, but I put the pitch back to the standard size this season. And we've demolished everyone in our path so far. And I've just realised the above might be nonsense, because we've only had one home game, so that obviously would have no effect on the other two. Maybe the FM Gods are just in a good mood. -------------------------------------------- Finances The sale of Franco Almanza gave a handy boost to our bank balance, and we also received the final instalment of £1.33 million from Corinthians for 22 Roberto Heredia. -------------------------------------------- Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted July 25 Share Posted July 25 My 1st question is whether or not the club generates Armenian newgens via the Youth Intake. From a story point of view it would obviously be great, but from a save point of view it would be pretty rubbish. (Yeah I know. Nothing but Argies! Maybe 1 Armenian each intake would be better? I think relaxing the Youth Only rules slightly is a good idea if it gets you into a save and into enjoying Younth Mainly. At the end of the day it's got to be fun right? I've had quite a few ARG players in my Rangers save recently, but don't know what their forenames were because obviously I nicknamed them after scouting. [Goes in search of the Tomas'] I've had a Martin, Lucio, Roberto, Facundo, Carlos, Mariano & Nestor, but no Tomas. Conceding after 52 seconds is just what you need at the start of a new save. You know exactly how it's going to go from here on. Love that you screwed Ivan Lopez out of his transfer fee by letting him go on a free but with a 50% and a friendly clause. Genius! I've grown to quite like weird and wacky leagues and the Primera Nacional with 37 teams who play eachother just once is certainly that. Don't know how big Argentina is but surely this is crying out for a North and South, or an East and West split? Not sure what your own rules are on players who are poached from your Academy, but "my rules" allow me to sign them. (Glad that you've decided to do that in your save). OMG no! I take it that Almagro is Argentinian/Spanish for "Go away you dirty thieving dog!" See, it's better to go up via the Playoffs anyway! Love me a relegation on average points over 3 years league, (said nobody ever!) I do like a good poaching, but you are getting pillaged! OMG! Another one!c Would you consider stopping including % profit clauses in your deals and replacing them with sell-on %? Brilliant read so far. Congrats on getting to the top tier and on your 1st couple of seasons there. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 26 Author Share Posted July 26 @Jimbokav1971 Not a single Armenian so far. I'd guess it's just a historic link rather than anything still in effect today. I did a little bit of Googling to see if there had been any Armenians there IRL, and found just the one on Transfermarkt. A player called Jose Andres Bilibio who had a couple of spells there from 1997-2002 and 2010-11. Earned 10 Armenia caps and also had spells in Armenia, Spain, Colombia, Bolivia, and Peru. At this point though I'd be happy with literally any foreign players coming through. All 144 academy graduates so far have been Argentine, with a very limited selection of second nationalities (14x Italian, 8x Spanish, 1x Mexican, 1x Paraguayan, 1x Uruguayan). Glad that the naming bug has been fixed in FM24 then. I've temporarily removed all nicknames and seen that of the 76 players currently at the club who came through the youth intakes, 45 of them were originally called Tomas. I was annoyed with the second tier at the time, 37 teams is ridiculous. But I dislike the Primera Division more. I can cope with the silly average points rule, but it's nine games fewer, just 27 league games isn't enough. And there's still crazy congestion as more than half of that is squeezed into August and September. I'd definitely prefer clauses based on next sale rather than profit, but beggars can't be choosers. I've tried changing them at times but it's generally just been one club interested rather than a bidding war, so I've had to take what I can get. Appreciate it, thanks. Enjoying this one, the meteoric rise was fun but I've paid for that with the tough season last year. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 26 Author Share Posted July 26 (edited) August 2030 Interview Invite 17th in Serie A (Brazil). -------------------------------------------- Poached Player Yet another! Number 18. -------------------------------------------- Solidarity Payment While we're on the subject, the first player to be poached away has made a move. 27x Braian Romero has gone from Instituto ACC to Bologna (Italy, Serie A) for £500k, possibly rising to £835k. We've received a 6% solidarity fee for this of £30k. Not much, but it's free money with the potential of a little more to come. And a move to Italy as a teenager must be a good sign, hopefully he'll make a bigger move in a few years -------------------------------------------- Primera Division 19 hours ago, DaneBramage said: Maybe the FM Gods are just in a good mood. Why did I do this? We all knew exactly what would happen next. The win over Independiente meant our club-record run of consecutive wins reached double figures (two at the end of the last season, three cup games, and five at the start of this season), and then I posted the above. Immediately, we fell apart. We were leading 1-0 at Rosario Central then suffered a red card just before half-time. They came out in the second-half and turned the game around, and it's been miserable ever since. The good start means we're still high in the table, but we need to snap this losing streak quickly. -------------------------------------------- Finances -------------------------------------------- Edited July 26 by DaneBramage Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimbokav1971 Posted July 26 Share Posted July 26 1 hour ago, DaneBramage said: @Jimbokav1971 Not a single Armenian so far. I'd guess it's just a historic link rather than anything still in effect today. I did a little bit of Googling to see if there had been any Armenians there IRL, and found just the one on Transfermarkt. A player called Jose Andres Bilibio who had a couple of spells there from 1997-2002 and 2010-11. Earned 10 Armenia caps and also had spells in Armenia, Spain, Colombia, Bolivia, and Peru. At this point though I'd be happy with literally any foreign players coming through. All 144 academy graduates so far have been Argentine, with a very limited selection of second nationalities (14x Italian, 8x Spanish, 1x Mexican, 1x Paraguayan, 1x Uruguayan). Glad that the naming bug has been fixed in FM24 then. I've temporarily removed all nicknames and seen that of the 76 players currently at the club who came through the youth intakes, 45 of them were originally called Tomas. I was annoyed with the second tier at the time, 37 teams is ridiculous. But I dislike the Primera Division more. I can cope with the silly average points rule, but it's nine games fewer, just 27 league games isn't enough. And there's still crazy congestion as more than half of that is squeezed into August and September. I'd definitely prefer clauses based on next sale rather than profit, but beggars can't be choosers. I've tried changing them at times but it's generally just been one club interested rather than a bidding war, so I've had to take what I can get. Appreciate it, thanks. Enjoying this one, the meteoric rise was fun but I've paid for that with the tough season last year. Ahhhh. Didn't realise until now that you were still on FM23. Up the Tomas's's's's. When I've looked at the low number of games there before I wondered if it was because of so many clubs playing in Continental competition? It's about half the league I think. Are there lots of games in the Continental competitoons? I must admit that although I know there is a 4 team group early on, I don't know what the other stages actually look like or how many games are involved. It's been a while since I played in South America for any length of time.. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 26 Author Share Posted July 26 27 minutes ago, Jimbokav1971 said: Ahhhh. Didn't realise until now that you were still on FM23. Up the Tomas's's's's. When I've looked at the low number of games there before I wondered if it was because of so many clubs playing in Continental competition? It's about half the league I think. Are there lots of games in the Continental competitoons? I must admit that although I know there is a 4 team group early on, I don't know what the other stages actually look like or how many games are involved. It's been a while since I played in South America for any length of time.. 12 teams out of 27 make it into continental competition, it's pretty generous. Top six into the Copa Libertadores, then 7th-12th into the Copa Sudamerica (which we're reached three times, but never made it past the group stage). Copa Libertadores has six group games in March/April/May, two second round games in July, two quarter-finals in August, two semi-finals in September/October, final in November. Copa Sudamerica has six group games in April/May, two second round games in July, two quarter-finals in August, two semi-finals in September/October, final in November. (There's also prelim rounds for both competitions, but Argentine sides skip this and go straight in). So there's a guaranteed six games, and up to 13 if all goes well. But miss out, and it's basically a six month break. One Copa Argentina game in March, hopefully another in May, and a never-ending list of friendlies. Not the most fun period to get through. 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 26 Author Share Posted July 26 (edited) September 2030 Primera Division This is much better. There was a two week gap between league fixtures but the players weren't allowed a rest, instead they were punished with a pair of friendlies against jobber teams to re-discover the scoring and winning touch. The first-choice weekend team won all three of their games, while the rotation midweek team won one and got hammered in the other. Five players lost half a week's wages for that poor display, another lost one day's. My favourite result was the 2-0 win over Alsosivi, 25e Valentin Maldonado scored a late brace with a combined distance of about three yards. We briefly went top after beating Aldosivi, but 3rd is still a great place to be as we move into the second half of the season. -------------------------------------------- Finances -------------------------------------------- Edited July 26 by DaneBramage 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 26 Author Share Posted July 26 October 2030 Copa Argentina We had 16 shots but only three on target. Luckily it was enough, 27a Victor Pagano scoring the only goal of the game early on. We really should have scored more, but it didn't matter as we didn't give Defensores de Belgrano (struggling the Primera Nacional) any openings to equalise. -------------------------------------------- Primera Division Another good month, eight points from a possible 12. The dropped points against Arsenal de Sarandi were my fault, but I'm fine with that. I chose to play the first-choice team just three days after they last played, and although we led 4-1 after 48 minutes, we tired and conceded three late on. But that meant the second-string played the next game (and won) and then left the first-team fresh for the cup game mentioned above. I don't know what went on at Newell's Old Boys. You don't get many 6-6 draws, you can't explain them. You just accept they happen, fine your goalkeeper, and move on. Though I should have been able to re-allocate the goalie's wage to 27a Victor Pagano, he deserved it for his four goal haul. Still flying high, lovely stuff. We've scored 48 goals so far, a long way ahead of everyone else (Velez are next on 31). But only five teams have conceded more than the 31 we've let in. -------------------------------------------- Finances -------------------------------------------- Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 26 Author Share Posted July 26 November 2030 Copa Argentina They had one good chance, and they scored. We had one good chance, and a bunch of smaller chances, but couldn't take any of them. Annoying. Bloody Almagro. -------------------------------------------- Primera Division The first-team won all three of their games (against Union de Santa Fe, River Plate, and Godoy Cruz). The second-string won one game (against San Lorenzo), and although it wasn't quite an FMing, our goalie 26d Raul Gomez was MotM and our goal came from a penalty. But they lost twice. I wasn't too bothered by the loss to Boca Juniors, but after Almagro knocked us out of the cup I wanted revenge on them instead of another defeat, let alone a bit of a whooping. Bloody Almagro. 19 hours ago, Jimbokav1971 said: OMG no! I take it that Almagro is Argentinian/Spanish for "Go away you dirty thieving dog!" Indeed, and that's the PG version. Madly, we're still in with a shot of winning the title. An extremely slim chance though. We've played more games than everyone else and Velez and River Plate both have two games in hand on us. And there's also Boca Juniors with four games in hand. I think we're guaranteed top six though, which means Copa Libertadores football next season. -------------------------------------------- Finances -------------------------------------------- 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted July 26 Author Share Posted July 26 (edited) December 2030 Primera Division We were two down at half-time, but a goal each from our wingers earned us a point. Although we played our final game on the 8th, matches were still being played until the 15th. So it was another week until we knew our final position as everyone else caught up. Cool system Argentina, well planned. And everyone who could overtake us did. So we fell from 2nd to 5th. But I'm still super chuffed with that. It's a mega turnaround from how bad we were last year and our best campaign yet. The only slight bummer is that San Lorenzo in 7th place won the Copa Argentina, so they took a Copa Libertadores spot. Meaning that only the top five qualified instead of the top six. We're still included, but it means we'll be going in at the second qualifying round rather than straight into the groups. The silver lining is that San Lorenzo beat Almagro in the final. Sucks to be Olimpo, caught out by the average points rule. Racing Club just got away with it, they'll be in big trouble next year, Tigre are at risk too. -------------------------------------------- Edited July 26 by DaneBramage 2 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 3 Author Share Posted August 3 (edited) December 2030 Squad Stats I got fed up with both of my goalkeepers at various points during the season, but 26d Raul Gomez definitely had the better record and should be the one I stick with going forward. There are issues in defence. Despite his apparently high rating, I fell out with Ian Perez and he didn't play at all after the first few months. He'll be gone when his contract is up in December. 26c Juan Pablo Lugo was meant to be his replacement at left-back, but he's rubbish there. He's been much better at centre-back but he's another one I've fallen out with and now he's considering his options. There's another year to go though so hopefully I can salvage this. I want to move on from relying on Lautaro Montani in midfield, and other players were tied out there throughout the year, but I have offered him a new contract. 27a Victor Pagano has burst into the first-team and made himself first-choice striker. As a result of this Jonathan Herrera had a weaker season, far below his usual standards. -------------------------------------------- Academy Player Records Only two academy players made their debuts this year, bringing us to a total of 51 so far. 22 Fernando Pardal reached 200 appearances to extend his record, while 25e Valentin Maldonado and 24a Constantino Puig both reached a century. 27a Victor Pagano made a big jump up the scoring charts. -------------------------------------------- History Spectacular season, a great comeback after the disappointment of 2029. I put it down to three things - a change of pitch dimensions (from short and wide to standard), a change of passing length (from standard to shorter) and the emergence of 27a Victor Pagano. And dumb luck obviously. And the aforementioned 27a Victor Pagano cleaned up at awards night. -------------------------------------------- Facilities + Finances No upgrades this year, but our reputation has jumped to the next level. Work has started on a new stadium, the board have kicked in some money towards this but the majority of the cost is coming from a £4.4 million loan. Spoiler -------------------------------------------- Edited August 3 by DaneBramage Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 3 Author Share Posted August 3 (edited) January 2031 Signing A previously poached player was released by Chacarita Jrs, so I snapped him up. -------------------------------------------- Departure Ian Perez left at the end of his contract. Nine months ago this would have seemed mad, he'd been my first-choice right-back for eight years making over 250 appearances. But when he was dropped we coped incredibly well and managed our best season yet. Couple that with him being the wrong side of 30 and wanting a pay increase, and it was only ever going to go one way. -------------------------------------------- Finances 22 Angel Cabrera moved from Remo to America de Cali for £3.3 million, and we received a chunk of this as a solidarity payment. Franco Almanza reached 10 appearances for Real Valladolid. Despite this we're still losing plenty of cash each month. -------------------------------------------- Edited August 3 by DaneBramage Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 3 Author Share Posted August 3 February 2031 Copa Libertadores We entered this competition for the first time, coming in for the second qualifying round. We made it through these four games with ease, scoring plenty of goals and killing off both ties in the first leg. The major scare was a mistake of mine. I'm going to blame it on the fact that I've not played at all in the last week while watching the Olympics instead. So when it came to register squads for these games I used the Auto Select button, but then approved it without seeing who was actually selected. And the AssMan made some bizarre decisions, leaving out a bunch of players from the senior squad. Luckily we had enough to still pick a strong starting team, but we couldn't fill the bench and our options for subs were a bit weak. -------------------------------------------- Finances Nearly £1 million for four games' work, excellent. And we'll have a really nice boost to our coffers soon when we receive the group stage prize money. -------------------------------------------- 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 4 Author Share Posted August 4 March 2031 Copa Libertadores A good win in Paraguay. Jorge Wilstermann offered nothing and 25e Valentin Maldonado took the starring role. The game against Atletico Mineiro was a duffer, not one for the neutral, but I'll happily take a point from a Brazilian side. The trip to Peru to face Universitario de Deportes saw us a earn a decent away point. Their goalkeeper was MotM but we only had one shot on target. Not a high quality game. At the halfway stage we're in a good position. Top two make it through to the second round, while third place drops into the Copa Sudamerica. -------------------------------------------- Finances Prize money for the win against Jorge Wilstermann, then we claimed the friendly we were owed as part of the Franco Almanza deal. -------------------------------------------- 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 4 Author Share Posted August 4 (edited) April 2031 Copa Libertadores The win over Universitario de Deportes was the important one, as that kept us in 2nd place. 27a Victor Pagano made his first start of the season (a torn abdominal muscle ruled him out for a couple of months) and came in with a goal and an assist on his return. We lost in Brazil but that didn't matter, the job was already done. Lovely stuff. We've made it through to the next round with a game to spare. I thought it would be tighter going into the final game, but the whipping boys of the group Jorge Wilstermann did us a favour by defeating Universitario de Deportes. -------------------------------------------- Copa Argentina Well this is embarrassing. The second-string were selected, but they shouldn't be getting battered by a side 34th in the division below us. -------------------------------------------- Finances Prize money for the win in Peru. -------------------------------------------- Edited August 4 by DaneBramage Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 4 Author Share Posted August 4 April 2031 Youth Intake 5.0 Excellent, 2 Elite Talents, 6 Top Talents, 6 Good Talents, 2 Decent Talents Everyone is Argentine again, but I'm happy to have a new second nationality in the mix with a first German joining us. -------------------------------------------- Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 6 Author Share Posted August 6 May 2031 Copa Libertadores We battered Jorge Wilstermann to complete the double over them. We comfortably made it through the group in 2nd place, losing just once. -------------------------------------------- Finances Prize money for the win in Paraguay. The rules page states that we should be getting £2.6 million for playing in the group stage, but that hasn't happened. Maybe it comes later? If not, that's pretty annoying. -------------------------------------------- 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 7 Author Share Posted August 7 July 2031 Interview Invites Two offers came in with a chance of moving to Brazil. Atletico Mineiro are 13th in Serie A, while Athletico Paranaense sit in the relegation area. -------------------------------------------- Poached Players Numbers 20 and 21. I thought this might stop after our jump to continental reputation, but nope. it's still happening. At least it's to a higher calibre of club though. This lad joining Boca Juniors could be a real talent. Spoiler -------------------------------------------- Departure I didn't recognise the name of this player when the offer came in, and that along with only 3.0 star PA indicated they weren't in my plans, especially on the right-wing where we have loads of options. As well as the £175k up front there's also the potential for another £23k after 10 league appearances + £23k after 20 league goals + 20% of profit. -------------------------------------------- Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 7 Author Share Posted August 7 July 2031 Copa Libertadores If halves ended bang on 45 and 90 minutes, we'd be grand. But they don't, so we're not. The home leg was a close game, but we conceded in first-half stoppage-time. We were up against it in the second leg when Sao Paulo scored after 12 minutes, but we then turned the game around and were leading 2-1 on the night (and drawing 2-2 on aggregate) with 10 minutes remaining. But the home support rallied, and Sao Paulo scored to go ahead again on 81 minutes, then killed the game off on in the 92 minute. -------------------------------------------- Expectations After last season's success the media and bookies now expect better of us, predicting solid midtable finishes. The board don't have the same confidence, just wanting us to continue avoiding relegation. -------------------------------------------- Primera Division A classic first day of the season draw. 25 shots, 11 on target, 2.54 xG, but we just couldn't get the ball in the net. The next game was much better though. This is the seventh time we've played Velez in a competitive fixture, and the first time we've beaten them. We did it in style too. 29x Emanuel Maidana has fitted in nicely since coming back to the club, and he scored his first goal for us in this fixture. -------------------------------------------- Finances As part of the 25a Maximiliano D'Alessandro deal we were due £35k from Manchester City for each of his first 40 league appearances (totalling £1.4 million). But four years after signing he's yet to make a single league appearance, his playing time limited to just two cup appearances. So when this clause was available to sell it was a no-brainer to accept it. He's played more for Argentina in this time (three caps) and also has 47 Championship appearances from loan spells at Norwich and Crystal Palace. I didn't mean to sell the second clause yet (for 15% of profit), it was a finger slip, a brain fart, when trying to access his profile to look up the details for the above comment. But nevermind, it's done now. And it does take our total earnings from sales of academy products to over £20 million. Spoiler Prize money from the second round of the Copa Libertadores. We still haven't received anything from the group stage though. -------------------------------------------- 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 13 Author Share Posted August 13 (edited) August 2031 Departure Is it smart to sell my first-choice goalkeeper? Possibly not, but I've done it anyway. 26d Raul Gomez decided he wanted to consider his options when his contract was up in 18 months, so I offered him out. There was only minor interest from a few Argentine clubs so I wasn't expecting much, but then Liverpool came in with a lowball offer. I countered and we met in the middle, £575k + 25% of next sale + a friendly. -------------------------------------------- Primera Division The only consistency this month was that there was no consistency. With nine games in 29 days we had to rotate, but both the first-choice and second-string sides dropped points. By the end of the month I stopped trusting my picks and asked the AssMan to select the side. We managed four wins throughout the month, but lost five. Not terribly impressive. Shoutout to 15 year old 31b Tomas Musso who scored a brace on his debut. 27a Victor Pagano scored a couple at the start of the month but has now been ruled out by injury again. We're outside of the continental qualification spots at the moment, but there's still plenty of time for us to get up where we need to be. -------------------------------------------- Facilities Nice. -------------------------------------------- Finances I think the second of the 25a Maximililano D'Alessandro clauses I mentioned last month was actually triggered this month. There was also another solidarity payment I missed screenshotting. 22a Francisco Lopez moved for £1.8 million from Burgos to Espanyol, and we received 4.5% of this (£81,390). -------------------------------------------- Edited August 13 by DaneBramage 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 13 Author Share Posted August 13 September 2031 Primera Division Very happy with this month, a big improvement on August. 10 points from a possible 15, and we were unlucky not to get anything from River Plate. We managed a xG of 2.26 but their goalie was MotM. I don't know if we can get into the Copa Libertadores again this season, but we should definitely be aiming to make at least the Copa Sudamerica every year. -------------------------------------------- Finances Booked in the friendly that we were owed on the 26d Raul Gomez deal. -------------------------------------------- Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 October 2031 Primera Division Poor. The fining stick was out and got a lot of use this month. We started out getting stomped by Newell's Old Boys. It was abysmal and six players lost half a weeks' wages. We then should have beaten Patronato, but our attack had a complete off day. We managed one win against Aldosivi, but it was hard to feel particularly positive about it when it was sandwiched by four bad results. We should have at least ended the month with a point, but scored a 94th minute own goal to get booed off the pitch instead. Six games left and we're back outside of the qualification places. We're making hard work of this. -------------------------------------------- Finances The wage creep has really caught up with us now. When we don't have prize money or transfer fees coming through we lose a lot of money on a monthly basis. -------------------------------------------- 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 November 2031 Primera Division Two steps forward, one big step back. 25e Valentin Maldonado impressed in the pair of wins that started the month, but a two week break broke up our rhythm. We had 69% possession at San Lorenzo, but could only form one shot on target and had to scrape a draw. And then we were truly terrible against Talleres, possibly the worst performance this season. The fining stick was back out and turned up a notch, six players lost a week's wages. With two games left we're just about where we need to be, but we're cutting it fine. It could still very easily go wrong. -------------------------------------------- Finances -------------------------------------------- Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 14 Author Share Posted August 14 (edited) December 2031 Primera Division Ferro Carril Oeste managed 13 shots, 3 on target. We managed 14 shots, 4 on target. A small difference but a key one, as that extra shot was enough for 27a Victor Pagano to score the only goal of the game. And it was also enough to guarantee that we finished in the top 12. We gave away a two goal lead on the final day but it didn't matter, our objective for the season had already been achieved. I don't think this was an entirely satisfying league campaign. The good run in the Copa Libertadores gave me hopes we could push on this season, but it didn't happen. We just never found a good, reliable vein of form. So we're not a team that can qualify for the Copa Libertadores every year yet. But the Copa Sudamerica is a more realistic target and we met that goal, even if we did leave it closer than I'd have liked. -------------------------------------------- Edited August 14 by DaneBramage Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 17 Author Share Posted August 17 (edited) December 2031 Squad Stats I'm still not settled on a goalkeeper. Three different fellas held the number one jersey this year, one left for Liverpool and the two remaining didn't impress. There's a chap out on loan who may take over next season. My first-choice centre-back pairing had decent average ratings (7.01 and 6.99) but the second-choice were poor (6.74 and 6.50). And one of these back-ups is leaving when his contract expires. We'll be short in this position going forward, there's a couple of 16 year olds with potential and at least one of them will have to be promoted to the senior squad for 2032. 29x Emanuel Maidana did well on his return to the club. In attack most players contributed solid, if unspectacular amounts. 27a Victor Pagano missing so much time through injury hurt, he had by far the best minutes-to-goals ratio. On the other hand, 24g Federico Giaccone didn't manage a single goal or assist and will be on his way out if I can find any takers. -------------------------------------------- Academy Player Records A total of 55 graduates have now played for the club, with 4 debutants this season. 25e Valentin Maldonado reached 150 appearances, and also made it to a half-century of goals. 25b Amadeo Martinez and 25d Pedro Coniglio are the newest players to reach 100 games. -------------------------------------------- History We had our best foray into continental competition this season, making it to the second round of the Copa Libertadores after having never made it past the group stage of the Copa Sudamerica previously. But results didn't carry over into the league. We finished 12th for the third time in five years, making it into the Copa Sudamerica again. That was the goal so I'm happy we made it, but we did leave it late. It wasn't a comfortable qualification, we could easily have missed out. 25e Valentin Maldonado swept the board on awards night. -------------------------------------------- Facilities + Finances Our new stadium has been completed and we'll be moving into it next season. The imaginatively titled Dep. Armenio Stadium will hold a capacity of 19,406 fans. Junior coaching was upgraded this year. Our bank balance is the highest it's ever been at the end of the year, but it's not as high as it should be. We never received the £2,6 million we were due for taking part in the Copa Libertadores group stage. -------------------------------------------- Edited August 17 by DaneBramage Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 17 Author Share Posted August 17 (edited) January 2032 Departure Ages ago, maybe 18 months back, 26c Juan Pablo Lugo decided that he was considering his options when his contract ran out. I wanted to resign him but was never able to change his mind, and he was off to join Cardiff in the Championship. In a normal save I wouldn't be bothered - he was difficult and didn't often play well. But in a youth-only save options are obviously limited, and this leaves up with a gap in the first-team squad. He was also handy to have on the bench as he could play anywhere along the backline. Spoiler -------------------------------------------- Ex-Player Considering they spent £8 million for him (plus another £330k in clauses), Corinthians didn't get much use out of 22 Roberto Heredia. He spent lots of time there out on loan, in Portugal, Mexico, and Switzerland. He was released when his contract expired in December and I made an advance to bring him back, but he wanted £14k per week which was too much. He ended up moving to Blackburn in the Championship instead, where annoyingly he signed for only £8.5k per week. Spoiler -------------------------------------------- Edited August 17 by DaneBramage Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 17 Author Share Posted August 17 (edited) March 2032 Copa Argentina I always dislike playing a team from the same division as us as soon as we enter the cup, it's normally the recipe for an early elimination. We took the early lead before Chacarita Jrs struck back, going 2-1 ahead by the 15 minute mark. But that was their last meaningful attack of the game. We kept going and grabbed an equaliser just before the interval, and maintained the same pressure in the second-half. We couldn't get the ball in the net though, and it looked the game was going into extra-time. But in the 91st minute their goalie spilled a cross, and Jonathan Herrera was perfectly placed to tap home into an empty net. -------------------------------------------- Edited August 17 by DaneBramage Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 18 Author Share Posted August 18 (edited) April 2032 Youth Intake 5.0, Excellent. 2 elite talents, 6 top talents, 6 good talents, 2 decent talent. Everyone is Argentine. I don't think this is a very good batch. The top two players stand a good chance of making it to the senior squad, but most of the rest will fail despite their potential because of their terrible personalities. -------------------------------------------- Edited August 18 by DaneBramage Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 18 Author Share Posted August 18 (edited) April 2032 Copa Sudamerica I never expect a result from Brazilian opposition, so the loss to America Mineiro wasn't a surprise. But the defeat at Sportivo Luqueno was a real kick in the nuts. We got FMed. 70%-30% possession, 27 (8 on target)-4 (2) shots, 2.76-0.18 xG, we missed a penalty and they had a super goalie MotM. Our Copa Sudamerica campaign is a write-off already. Only one team makes it through the group, it won't be us. -------------------------------------------- Facilities The board wouldn't agree to find us a feeder club, but they did approve an upgrade to the youth training facilities. -------------------------------------------- Finances We've received our prize money this month, but our balance has fallen drastically due to the new stadium costs and the facilities upgrades. We'll probably need to sell a player or two soon. -------------------------------------------- Edited August 18 by DaneBramage Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 18 Author Share Posted August 18 May 2032 Copa Sudamerica The bore draw against Real Santander made it three games in a row where we'd failed to score in this competition, but it did earn us our first point. 27a Victor Pagano picked up a knock in this match, and 27b Ruben Anderloni was brought in to replace him. He hadn't really scored many for us before and had spent the last couple of seasons out on loan (also not scoring many for these teams), but he burst back into our reckoning with a bang. He put a brace past Real Santander's keeper to earn us all three points, then opened the scoring against Sportivo Luqueno and kick-started the fightback at America Mineiro. Four games unbeaten was a relief after the two losses at the start of this stage, but it was too little too late. At least we ended up with a positive goal balance, which is more than can be said of the team that finished above us. America Mineiro were always going to win this group but it's weak that we didn't finish 2nd. -------------------------------------------- Copa Argentina Fenix are bottom of the Primera Nacional so this should have been a comfortable victory, but it took 25e Valentin Maldonado coming off the bench and providing a pair of assists to secure progression to the next round. -------------------------------------------- Finances Monthly Loss: £21,065 Just a small loss this month as we received a large chunk of cash from season ticket sales. -------------------------------------------- Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaneBramage Posted August 18 Author Share Posted August 18 June 2032 Departure There were three goalkeepers in the senior squad, and that's obviously too many. Third-choice 23h Hector Leon was offered out, and he's off to Wolves in the Premier League (for a ridiculous wage). This also includes 50% of the next sale. It looks like he actually had a decent record last season, 16 conceded in 14 games with 6 clean sheets, but he must have done something to annoy me even if I can't remember what. Spoiler -------------------------------------------- Finances Monthly Loss: £226,278 Even with a sale and more season ticket money coming through we're still bleeding cash. We do have a big sale lined up for next month though. -------------------------------------------- Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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