Adam Chabukiani: Defying All Odds

---

---

It's been another busy winter transfer window in West Yorkshire, with Bradford Park Avenue manager Adam Chabukiani parting ways with eight more players.

Following the part-exchange between Bradford's Stephen Arthurworrey and Wolves' Tyias Browning, as well as the £600,000 fee received from Watford for left-back Anthony Breslin, Adam Chabukiani has made way for eight more of his colleagues.

Daryl Murphy was the first to leave the club. His time at the club was a period of his career that the veteran would love to forget, especially considering his huge success at Ipswich. He leaves on a free transfer to fellow League One club Reading.

Shortly following him to Reading is central-midfielder Billy Knott. Bradford signed him shortly after his contract at fierce rivals Bradford City had expired. The Bantams fans will be laughing at the midfielder for leaving them due to his lack of appearances this season. He was kept out of the team by Ben Blackmore and Matty James, and now leaves for £80,000 to chase the Play-Off places with Reading.

In another one of the biggest fees paid for a player at Bradford Park Avenue, Fraizer Campbell has left the club for Championship outfit Millwall. Scott Young is lacking firepower in his attack at The New Den, and is nearing relegation with every game that comes. Campbell will hope to turn their season around after signing for them for £300,000.

Another one of Chabukiani's veterans has left the club in the form of goalkeeper Myles Wright. The keeper moved to Yorkshire in January 2016, when Bradford were chasing their first promotion under the legendary manager. He rarely played as Nick Liversedge left Wright with only two appearances that season.
However the two corresponding seasons he was the number one as Liversedge left for America's MLS. With Ben Foster coming in this season, the former England international relegated Wright to second-choice keeper, leading to a £90,000 transfer to Blackburn Rovers.

Bobby Reid is the next player to leave the club as he links up with Championship strugglers Swindon Town for a fee of £110,000. Reid rarely got a look-in this season with Chabukiani, with the midfielder from Bristol City only making four appearances all season - two coming in cup competitions.

Jordi Osei-Tutu has also left the club for fellow League One side Bury for a big fee of £350,000 with monthly installments to be paid. Osei-Tutu regularly battled out the right-back spot with academy graduate Caner Dumlupinar. His departure has enhanced the rumours that Mason Holgate is on his way to Horsfall Stadium.

Summer signings Ola Aina and Reice Charles-Cook were deemed surplus to requirements at the club, as they were released earlier in the month. Bury and Notts County have both expressed interest in Ola Aina since he was released. Meanwhile Tranmere Rovers were taking a look at Charles-Cook, who failed to make a first-team appearance all season.

Hoping that with that kind of clearout happening, theres gonna be a fair few players coming in

---

---

You don't see many players from outside the British Isles over at Horsfall Stadium, but today Chabukiani has snapped up three of the highest rated youngsters about.

A Korean, a Japanese, and a Swede. All three have joined the club on a free transfer in West Yorkshire.

As the build-up gets even more agonising for fans for Bradford PA to announce the signing of Mason Holgate from Everton, Chabukiani has given them a little treat for their patience.

That treat is Kim Myung-Hoon, Shigeru Gondo and Magnus Mattiasson. With only five non-European players at the club, the signings of Gondo and Myung-Hoon are a real surprise for the fans.

Michael Lieblein was the signing of the summer for Bradford, as he has already netted twenty goals in all competitions so far this season, fully compensating for Matthew Fletcher's international-based absence from League One football at the moment.

The Asian duo have already made full international appearances for their countries despite their young age, similar to Lieblein.

Shigeru Gondo was the first to join the club out of the three players. Chased by the likes of Frankfurt and A.C. Milan, the capture of the 19-year-old left-winger was a real coup for Bradford Park Avenue. After a contract refusal with former club Giurare Yokohama, Gondo became a free transfer in December 2018 after a five-year stay at the club.

Standing at 5'3" tall, the winger is disadvantaged in height, but certainly not in talent. The winger possesses blistering acceleration, far beyond the general standard of League One full-backs. He will absolutely boss the wings in this league.

However, at the other end of the height spectrum is new South Korean striker Kim Myung-Hoon, who stands at 6'5" tall. The giant striker will be the perfect target man for Bradford Park Avenue, and will battle that spot out with Michael Lieblein, who stands at 6'2".

Myung-Hoon's strength and power on the ball and in the air makes him a real force to be reckoned with at this level. Myung-Hoon delighted fans over in the top-flight of South Korean football, with 31 goals in 58 games for Ulsan Hyundai in the K-League. Despite only 19 years of age, the bullying forward has already made four international appearances for the South Korean national team.

Finally, it is Swedish right-winger Magnus Mattiasson who will battle Jordan Graham for the starting spot. Similarly like Gondo in many aspects like acceleration and agility, he stands at 6'1", which makes him a titan compared to the size of some League One full-backs.

After three years at IFK Goteborg in Sweden - Sweden's title winner for four season's in a row, he made 34 appearances for the Swedish giants, which is exceptional for a youngster like himself. After a fallout with the Goteborg manager, Mattiasson was released by the club in November 2018. This sparked interest all over Europe from top sides, but ultimately, it was Chabukiani's charm that brought the youngster to West Yorkshire.

Bradford Park Avenue manager Adam Chabukiani claims that he is working hard to complete the Mason Holgate deal, but also a 'huge' signing could be on their way to Horsfall Stadium. A name that the gaffer was not prepared to disclose.

Good looking signings mate that could bring a little bit of global charm to your team

2016-05-14 18:17#231552 mgriffin2012 : Good looking signings mate that could bring a little bit of global charm to your team

Ah yes, the thick tan of the Europeans and Americans, and then you get Aidan White who's as pale as a piece of paper

---

---

After a month-long drag of precedings, Bradford Park Avenue have finally completed the switch of Mason Holgate from Everton.

It's the club's highest ever transfer fee paid, and it's right-back Mason Holgate who is the subject of the move. He takes the record from Bradford PA's transfer of Leon Leuty in 1949, when he signed for £24,000 from Derby County.

Adam Chabukiani has only paid a fee once before in his time of managing the club, when he brought in Ben Chorley for £10,000 in the National League campaign.

Chabukiani splashed out £50,000 on Mason Holgate, and he is praying that it is money well spent. With the expensive departure of Jordi Osei-Tutu, Caner Dumlupinar was the only right-back at the club until this transfer was finalised today.

Holgate began his career at Barnsley, playing his first season in League One, which is where Bradford Park Avenue currently play in. He moved to Everton for a fee of £1.6million at the start of the 2015/16 season.

In his debut season at Goodison Park, Holgate played seven matches surprisingly, but that good start went downhill almost instantly. After his first season, he played no part in first team affairs for two consecutive years before his two appearances this season.

Holgate will now link up with former Everton teammate Tyias Browning, who is currently Bradford's starting centre-back alongside Adrian Mariappa. Browning was complimentary about linking up with Holgate once again.

'It's great to see him playing with me again. We both played in the Everton team together and we've been best mates ever since. And I haven't even mentioned his talent, Mason is a top, top player and for the time it has taken him to have this deal finalised, it will all be worth it in many years to come when hopefully we're winning titles together!' Browning said about his reunited defensive partner.

The time it took to complete the deal left Bradford PA fans on edge about if Holgate was actually joining. Holgate's agent Jon McDonald was said to be a tough negotiator according to sources within the club, but it was all fine in the end.

Adam Chabukiani spoke about his new man to the press today: 'I'm delighted that Mason [Holgate] has joined us here at the Horsfall. He is without a doubt one of the best players I have managed to get hold of in my time here.'

Mason Holgate has agreed a contract which will expire in 2020 and is said to be 'delighted' to be joining up with Adam Chabukiani and his old teammate Tyias Browning at Horsfall Stadium.

Good move bringing Holgate mate, could be a star of your team for a long time to come!

2016-05-14 19:24#231556 mgriffin2012 : Good move bringing Holgate mate, could be a star of your team for a long time to come!

Yeah, I hope it was all worth it since it took ages to complete!

---

---

Mason Bennett has almost reached Bradford Park Avenue's all-time record transfer fee received by joining Wigan today.

Bennett, 22, joined Bradford Park Avenue in the summer of 2018 on a free transfer shortly after his contract at Derby County expired.

The pacy forward spent the first part of his stay at Horsfall Stadium in the development teams and at the time of his departure, he had scored 37 goals in 22 games for the development teams. But in the games that mattered, he only scored two goals in seven games in the league.

However, with his reputation as one of England's brightest youngsters, Bradford PA have managed a £900,000 sale out of Wigan Athletic in the Championship.

At £900k, Bennett falls short of Bradford's biggest sale in their history, with Alex Fletcher's £950,000 move to Swansea last season narrowly eclipsing Bennett's fee.

Some fans are arguing that although Chabukiani picked up a great fee for the forward, it would have been more interesting to send Bennett out on loan. Chabukiani responded to this argument by claiming that Wigan's offer was far too good to turn down for Bennett, who will ply his trade in the Championship for the foreseeable future.

With Fraizer Campbell another striker leaving Horsfall Stadium this transfer window, it seems like Chabukiani is happy with his strikeforce led by Michael Lieblein, Matthew Fletcher and Kim Myung-Hoon, who joined this window. That is not to mention the rapid development of Cambridge City striker Alexander Kamanzi who joined in November and has set Horsfall Stadium alight in Fletcher's absence.

With the transfer window coming to a close, it will be very interesting to keep an eye on Horsfall Stadium, especially with recent comments sourcing from Adam Chabukiani regarding a 'huge' signing on his way.

NIce little bit of cash in the clubs back pocket mate!

---

---

It's huge news coming from Horsfall Stadium today, as world-class midfielder Fredy Guarín puts pen to paper for Bradford Park Avenue.

It's come completely out of the blue, but what a day it is for Bradford Park Avenue fans today! After seeing so many players depart, including club heroes such as Anthony Breslin and Myles Wright, the arrival of Fredy Guarín is absolutely worth everything.

Not only is it an incredible acquisition, but it is an indication of just how far this club has come under the reign of Adam Chabukiani. In 2014, Bradford PA had John Deacey in charge and Paul Marshall and Luke Dean in midfield. Now, five years later, they have Adam Chabukiani in charge and Ben Blackmore and Fredy Guarín in midfield, sitting at the top of League One.

Fredy Guarín is known all the way across the world, most notably for his time at FC Porto and Internazionale. He joined Internazionale just a season after José Mourinho left for Real Madrid, meaning he missed out on a Champions League medal by a few months.

However in the recent years where Internazionale have lost their Italian crown to the likes of Juventus and AS Roma, Guarín has been a shining light in the darkness for many years since his £9.5million arrival at Giuseppe Meazza in 2011 from Porto.

To say to a Bradford Park Avenue five years ago that in a few years they would be signing world stars in League One, they'd tell you to go to a mental hospital! But that is the dream that Adam Chabukiani has made a reality here in West Yorkshire. They have surpassed the likes of Bradford City, York City, Barnsley and Rotherham in the chase for the best team in Yorkshire and with exceptional speed as well.

Guarín has been out of football for the last six months following the expiration of his contract at Internazionale, but with Chabukiani speaking to his agent, the dream of signing the 80-time Colombian international has become reality on 31st January 2019.

---

---

It's possibly been one of the most up-and-down months in my career at Bradford Park Avenue in the turn of the New Year. Starting off with an impressive 3-1 FA Cup win against Ipswich Town and a 4-1 battering of Rotherham United, we then took the biggest loss in my time as Bradford PA manager as we lost 5-0 to Oldham Athletic. This was then flipped over as a draw with Barnsley led onto two more important wins for the month.

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

---

After losing out top spot last month, we have not managed to retain it at any point during this month, and with 16 games left of this season, we really need to start winning consistently, otherwise we could even fall into the Play-Offs, with Peterborough level on points with us.
However at the other end of the table, there seems to be no hope for Leyton Orient - who we beat 3-0 this month as they dangle a whole eleven points from safety. It would take a miracle to keep them afloat this season.

---

---

A winger bagging two hat-tricks and tallying up nine goals in a month? Seriously, who else could I give it to. Kenny McEvoy has been an absolute class act this month like he has all season and has earned his left-wing spot back from Jack Hallahan with some incredible performances this month.

---

Great to see this back mate, some topsy turvy form last month but you're still in a fantastic position!

---

---

Adam Chabukiani has had to say goodbye to some of his most loyal friends in football as he revamps the backroom staff employed by the club.

The likes of Dhami Emanuel-Williamson, Kenny Lindoe, Levi Andrew and Paul Wiltshire have all faced the axe of Adam Chabukiani after serving him behind the scenes ever since the Georgian manager signed on as Head Coach of the club.

'Some of the men who have left recently are some of my best friends in football, and will continue to be. If they are ever struggling, they know they can always come back to me,' Chabukiani said in a club statement in reference to the four members of staff named above.

But those staff aren't the only ones to be sacked by Chabukiani. The Georgian has scrapped the Director of Football module by firing the club's DoF Brian Howard after a year and a half at the club. Chief Scout Kenny Lindoe has left, despite joining the same day Chabukiani did, on the manager's orders.

Scouts that have left the club are: Levi Andrew, Matthew Ashton, Elliot Harrop, Marcus Tudgay and former Bradford Park Avenue player Sébastien Carole.

Dhami Emanuel-Williamson was relieved of his duties as the club's Goalkeeping Coach. Emanuel-Williamson worked alongside many of the recent goalkeepers since joining on the day Chabukiani arrived as manager. He worked with Nick Liversedge, Myles Wright, Bailey Peacock-Farrell, Ross Turnbull and most recently, Ben Foster.

Perhaps the most high-profile departure, though, is the sacking of Adam Chabukiani's partner-in-crime Paul Wiltshire. Wiltshire worked as Chabukiani's number two ever since his first Assistant Manager Micky Engwell left to become manager of Bedlington Terriers. Engwell has gone on to have four more managerial jobs following his departure from Bradford PA.
But Wiltshire was the man who won all those promotions alongside Chabukiani ever since joining the club in December 2015. He went onto pick up his National B Coaching License whilst working for the club, and is saddened to see that he is now unemployed.

However, the sadness didn't last long for Bradford fans after Wiltshire's departure as Chabukiani hired Avenue legend Wayne Benn as his new Assistant Manager. Benn spent ten years as a player at Horsfall Stadium and earned legend status after 400+ appearances for the club.
Benn was Reserve Team Manager at Bradford PA in 2010 before moving onto become manager at Goole, Hemsworth, Stourport and Brocton.

'I'm delighted that Mr Chabukiani has given me a way back into the club, especially with where they are now. For me, it's like a dream come true as I've been a fan of this team ever since I played here. As Assistant Manager I will work my hardest to help us get further up the leagues.' Benn said upon taking up the role as number two at Horsfall Stadium.

With John Dean opening up worldwide scouting for the club, Chabukiani has brought in scouts from all over the world to cover every corner of the Earth, looking out for talent.

To begin with, Chabukiani has brought in French legend Sylvain Wiltord as the club's Chief Scout, taking over from Kenny Lindoe who didn't exactly have the international acclaim which Wiltord possesses.

Working under Wiltord is a whole host of former professionals, looking for talent. Brazilian and former Manchester City midfielder Elano has been snapped up by Chabukiani. Along with Elano comes Congolese star Lomana LuaLua, famous for his iconic backflip celebrations in his time at Newcastle.

Internazionale and Lazio legend Dejan Stankovic has also joined the club's scouting team this season as he will scour Eastern Europe, looking for talent with a great youth setup in Serbia with teams like Partizan and Red Star Belgrade boasting some of the best youth recruitment in the world.

Other scouts include: Jermaine Easter, Olivier Occéan, Garry Guyan, Mbala Mbuta and Kingston Nkhatha.

In terms of coaches, Bradford have hired former Tottenham star Jermaine Jenas and Republic of Ireland legend Shay Given as a Goalkeeping Coach. Former Welsh international Paul Parry has joined the club as a Physio.

I just did the same with my backroom staff, certainly happy with the changes I made and I hope you are also!