HAMOUDI FAYAD’S COSMOS CONQUER AFRICA WITH CHAMPIONS LEAGUE WIN

‘Jomo Cosmos have won the 2016 Edition of the African Champions League in astonishing fashion, only 3 years after being promoted from the National First Division with Fan Favourite Hamoudi Fayad - the Lebanese unknown who led Jomo Cosmos to an extraordinary 6 different trophies in the space of 3 years, a miraculous feat for a foreigner.’

‘Along with the South African FA Cup, Premier League, NFD, African Super Cup and the African Confederation Cup, Fayad has won the Champions League as heavy underdogs, defeating Morocco’s Wydad Casablanca in the Final. Let us see how they did in the Semi-Finals and Finals, as they progressed from a tough group along with semi-finalists ES Tunis.’

Petro De Luanda vs. Jomo Cosmos - Estadio 11 de Novembro, Luanda - 2/10/2016

‘Jomo Cosmos went to Luanda hoping for a few goals, although they came back home empty-handed. Two good goals by Day Day and Mateus helped Petro to a historical win over the in-form South Africans, putting them in the driving seat to reach the Final.’

Jomo Cosmos vs. Petro De Luanda - Makhulong Stadium, Tembisa - 16/10/2016

‘A fantastic comeback led by Captain Jacob Modise who lit up the Makhulong Stadium with a super hat-trick. 2 errors by the PDL defence led to two penalties, in which Jacob Modise easily converted to take Jomo Cosmos to the Final for the first time in their history.’

Jomo Cosmos vs. Wydad Casablanca - Makhulong Stadium, Tembisa - 29/10/2016

‘A 3-1 win at home, again inspired by Jacob Modise. A brace from him along with a stellar performance from Ary put them in the driving seat for the away game.’

Wydad Casablanca vs. Jomo Cosmos - Stade Mohamed V, Casablanca - 12/11/2016

‘JOMO COSMOS DID IT. They tied with WAC to win 4-2 on aggregate for a historic Champions League win! Hamoudi Fayad had kept his word when he said he will make Jomo Cosmos Champions of Africa...’
‘This qualifies Jomo Cosmos for the African Super Cup and the Club World Cup which starts in just over a month! They will be placed in the Quarter Final, who will they come up against, and how far can they go?’



‘Jomo Sono had some very kind words for Hamoudi, who also is at the top of the table with Jomo Cosmos right now: ”This man is fantastic. He has changed this club in 3 years. He won us trophies in 3 years that we never won in our history. He took us from the National First Division to the Top of Africa, and I will never forget this man. We are trying to enter talks with him into renewing his contract, but sadly, we are still taking time. Hopefully, he will stay with us and make us even better!”

‘Hamoudi Fayad has not spoken about his future yet, but with his team the current Champions of Africa, and them being top of the table… will he continue with the Cosmos?’

1

Club World Cup

‘We had the Club World Cup this month, and as soon as it finishes I will play the KO Cup Final and leave the club, aiming to leave on a high. Could I win these two trophies, or fail in both?’

Jomo Cosmos vs. Antlers - CWC Quarter Final

‘A smashing 6-0 win which cemented our place in the semi-final, we absolutely battered them and gave them no chance. We dominated in every single aspect of the game and i’m very happy. We face Corinthians and even if we lose, it isn’t a big deal as we have exceeded expectations.’

Jomo Cosmos vs. Corinthians - CWC Semi Final

‘Mauro Icardi gave us no chance and made Neblu look like an amateur goalkeeper. He was absolutely fantastic, and we just couldn’t get past their bloody goalkeeper.’

Jomo Cosmos vs. Chivas USA - CWC Third Place Playoff

‘We went out with our heads high, losing to a team we were expected to to get battered by. Lots of prize money coming in, and facilities to be upgraded. I want to leave this club in good hands.’

SA Knockout Cup Final vs. Kaizer Chiefs

‘We went 1-0 up in the first half in courtesy of Ary but our defence messed up big time this game and many of our players just came back from injury. It’s sad we couldn’t win this cup before I left, and I leave with a loss. My last game with Jomo Cosmos.’

HAMOUDI FAYAD LEAVES JOMO COSMOS WITH QUESTIONS UNANSWERED

(Because I couldn’t photoshop my face on a manager, I decided to use a young-ish manager, who’s Australian (I’m Lebanese-Australian in the story) therefore I chose Australia U-20 Manager Paul Okon, as I get older I will choose different managers.)

‘Jomo Cosmos Icon Hamoudi Fayad - who led them to winning the African Champions League - has left the club by mutual consent. He claimed that he was going to another continent, to win another Champions League too. Jomo Cosmos fans have been left bewildered, although Fayad had a message for them:’

“This is a very sad moment for me. I know I have only been here for 3 years but these were the best 3 years of my life, although I left Jomo Cosmos in good hands to Turkish Manager Muhsin Ertugral. I am staying with El Salvador and I will try my best to get as far as we can in the Centro Americano Cup, and then of course, who knows where else I will go. I have been in contact with a club already, although I cannot reveal it now. Everything will be revealed in a week’s time, and hopefully I can win another Champions League. Jomo Cosmos are always in my heart, and I still have their application on my phone, and the photos I took with the lads. I will continue to follow this club, and maybe - just maybe, I come back one day.”

‘Hamoudi Fayad is now focusing on the Copa Centro Americano, a Cup for Central American teams. It is good to get El Salvador started as they’ve had a bit of a rocky start under Hamoudi Fayad. 2 wins, one draw and a loss against - Montserrat, Dominican Republic, Lebanon and Guatemala - respectively, made it look like a good start on paper, but it seems like the Salvadoreans’ need time to adapt to Fayad’s ‘tiki-taka.’

‘All will be revealed soon enough… so stay tuned on CAF TV… will Fayad be a man of his word and go to another continent, or is he making that up as an excuse to leave for one of the top teams in Africa?’

SHOCKING TURN SEES FAYAD JOIN LA GALAXY

‘In a shocking turn of events, LA Galaxy have opted to go for Lebanese Manager Hamoudi Fayad, who recently resigned from Jomo Cosmos. The club announced the deal on their website, with many different reactions coming through.’

‘LAGalaxyFanClub: Hamoudi Fayad has been appointed as our new manager. Good Appointment or? #LA

‘CarlosValderrama: Hamoudi Fayad… ha ha ha. LA Galaxy… lo que es una cita estúpida. Stupid Appointment!!! #LA #FCDallas

‘KobeBryant: Hmm… you homies think Hamoudi can do good for Los Angeles? Better be… we’re fully behind you homie!

‘Carlos Valderrama who was recently announced as FC Dallas Manager has seemed to start some tension between both managers, while Kobe Bryant has said he is supportive of Hamoudi Fayad and hopes he does well. LA Galaxy have already qualified for the NACL next season, could he win it in the first time of asking, like he did with the Cosmos?’

‘There are rumours already that Fayad is trying to strengthen his squad by bringing in some of his old players, especially Mlamuli Kaplan. Transfer news coming soon, so stay tuned.’

1

Pre-Season

‘We had a good pre-season in my opinion, looking at the squad and some fantastic players to bring in! Until, the MLS rules screwed me over… You will see the players I missed out out on, and the players I “accidentally” bought. To think I had the MLS rules under control, then to find out there is something called “Discovery” players. Bullshit! And, we got Scott Sinlcair on trial, but then we couldn’t get him… and then he retired. The same thing that happened with Derick Origi, who is this 21-year old Belgian star striker! Screwed over!’

Friendlies

‘Not bad to be honest, the Zenit game was unlucky as Hulk was too good for us. Nevertheless we played very well.’

Transfers

‘This is where everything went wrong. We signed Mlamuli Kaplan from my old club, and we got Mlungisi Motaung, a fantastic youngster from the Sundowns. Acheampong and Novikovas are two sublime wingers, with Zacharie Boucher a fantastic goalkeeping addition from Reunion. Dariusz Dudka has experience and can play almost anywhere from central midfield to centre back. We brought in Michael Chopra from the draft, who was still alright for this level, but the former Ipswich man had to end up leaving on a free. MLS rules!’


‘These aren’t bad signings at all. These were unneeded. Aponza, is fantastic but we could’ve got that Belgian player instead… although, we couldn’t. To make things worse, Austin Aponza leaves on a free! I honestly was dumbfounded! And Luis Perea, he was very unneeded and he’s staying with us! Also another chance to get another striker but no, I accidentally accepted and there we go, he’s signed. I am praying to God he won’t flop.’



‘Look at his stats. Look at him. We were on the verge of getting him! So close! We barely have depth in defence and he could’ve helped us big time although we failed to get him. He’s American, yet he’s a “Discovery” player because he’s out of contract. Stupid, stupid rules!’



‘The striker we could have got instead of Perea… and we lost the chance to get him. My start to the MLS is looking to be rocky, and I hope, I hope my players react well. Gutted to miss out on these players.’

Squad

‘It isn’t looking really good to be honest. The first team players are probably the best in the league, but we barely even have any subs! Look at our injuries! ‘DL6’ means the player is injured for 6 games - minimum!’

‘I honestly have no idea what to do, our players haven’t even adapted to my tactic yet. Champions League is next year as we were eliminated before I came in, so my quest now is to at least build confidence for next season and do my best not to get sacked. Wish my luck guys, wish me luck. I have been officially screwed over by the MLS.’

1

BAD START FOR HAMOUDI’S LA GALAXY

‘4 games into the Major League Soccer 2017 Season, defending Champions LA Galaxy have won none of their games in March, drawing only one - a 3-3 draw against New England which saw LA lose their lead in the last 20 minutes of the game, before Luis Perea scored a last-gasp equalizer from a rebound.’



‘Los Angeles are now 9th in their conference, and 17th in the whole league (out of 19 teams). There has already been talk of the dreaded sack - 4 games into the season! Numerous reports are claiming that LA Galaxy Chairman Chris Klein is losing his temper on Fayad’s new style of play, the “tiki-taka”. He feels that it is taking too long for the players to adapt, and Klein has no time for the “rebuilding of LA Galaxy”, as they were supposedly already at the top of the US.’


‘Carlos Valderrama has hit out again on Fayad, with another manager also laughing at Fayad’s style of play. Caleb Porter, the manager of Portland Timbers claimed that he was looking forward to his encounter with LA Galaxy, and he was sure of taking away 3 points.’

‘Hamoudi Fayad also had a word in this: “We have not had the best of starts but I promise you we will improve. We just need to adapt to the tactics, although our squad isn’t too deep… but we can do this. I was in the same situation with Jomo Cosmos numerous times and look how we defied the odds! Carlos Valderrama and Caleb Porter are simply jealous of me, I won the African Champions League yet they never won a trophy between them! Talk to me at the end of the season, we still have 30 games to play. We will be back.”

‘Wise words from Hamoudi Fayad, and as we know he is a man of his word. Will he keep his word this time round?’

Next Time…
-Los Angeles Galaxy seek their first win of the season against Real Salt Lake
-Toronto FC look to stabilize first place for the coming weeks
-FC Dallas set to continue good form under Valderrama
-Tomas Pekhart tops the goalscoring chart, can he continue his goal streak?

1