The Gaffer Series: Just Like Fergie

Some extraordinary signings there with Rice and Daka. I particularly like the signing of Ait Bennasser on a free too. Great business.

After Thoughts

Deadline Day Transfers In:
Wuilker Fariñez GK, Age 23, 2.3 million, great instincts and reflexes
Emil Smith Rowe CAM, Age 21, Loan, back up for Almiron in case of injuries
Ricardo Marques CM, Age 16, joining in 2023 due to Brexit rules

Transfers Out:
Jamaal Lascelles to Wolves
Javier Manquillo to Stoke City
Jacob Murphy to Huddersfield
Isaac Hayden loan to Espanyol

August Player of the Month

Callum Wilson and Patson Daka
Honorable Mention: Joelinton

Comments: ScottT- Declan has been decent so far and Gaffer is yet to play Bennasser but will use him more in Europe and Cup competitions

After Thoughts

New Signing: Stephen Eustaquio, Age 24, CM, 6.7million from Cruz Azul. Will be arriving in Jan as the signing was completed after the summer window. Back up option in midfield.

September Player of the Month
Winner: Wylan Cyprien

October Player of the Month
Winner: Yan Valery and Sean Longstaff
Honrable Mentions: Mykola Matvienko and Anel Ahmedhodzic

After Thoughts

Winter Transfer Window: Darlow was sold to AZ for 3 million dollars and Eustaquio joined the squad.

The Gaffer will not be bringing anyone in unless a big offer comes in for one of his players. Zaha returned from injury and returned to his fine form in January.

Youth Intake is not looking good this year. Brexit has really affected how the Gaffer approaches signing players younger than 18.

November and December Player of Month
Winner: Callum Wilson

January Player of Month
Winner: Callum Wilson
Honorable Mention: Ryan Fraser

After Thoughts

The focus of the season was not to finish in a Europa League spot. The focus was to try and win the FA Cup which we failed. The next 3 seasons will be dedicated to building a quality side and win the FA Cup as soon as possible.

Callum Wilson and Patson Daka had an exemplary season. Wilson was awarded a new contract. Along with Wilson, both Longstaff brothers were offered contract extensions.

Transfers will be only done if players are sold. Gaffer likes his team as it is. Dubravka, Hayden, Yedlin, Almiron, and Joelinton might be leaving. Gaffer has got a list of players to replace these guys with. Potential transfers include Bakayoko on free and some players from teams that were relegated.



Update: I am having a lot of fun playing with this save so I sometimes forget to type the stories. The next story will be preseason till the end of the transfer window. Might take a while in the preseason to figure out the best formation and tactic for the team and my style of play.

Great work. A very impressive league finish alongside a piece of European silverware. Even if it is 'just' the Conference League, it's still a sought after capture.

After Thoughts

Good business was completed by the Gaffer in terms of transfers coming into the club. He looked for more English players in the Premier League and Bowen and McNeil were too good to pass up. Both have exceptional abilities. Could have got more money for some of the players that were sold.

Some of the young players went out on loan so they could get more game time at good clubs. 16-year-old Alex Humphrey is an absolute baller. The Gaffer promoted him and is excited about his development. Will be played in cup competitions until his physical attributes develop.

Transfers in:
Dwight McNeil Age 22 LW/RW- a quality player at a young age, will compliment Maximin on the other wing
Jarrod Bowen Age 24 RW/CAM- a quality player as well. can play along front 4
Tiemoue Bakayoko Age 27 CM/CDM- solid midfielder with a good background of playing at the high level
James Justin Age 24 RB/CB- brought in to compete with Yan Valery
Florian Muller Age 27 GK- back up keeper
Sandry Age 19 CM- A young player who could get some quality game time
Juan Foyth Age 24 CB- brought in to compete with current CB
Jayden Bogle Age 22 RB- back up option in case Valery and Justin get injured

After Thoughts

Season Goals
1. Make it far into the Europa League. Possible the second knockout round or the Round of 16. Definitely accomplishable with the players that were acquired in the transfer window.
2. Win the FA Cup. This is a must for the Gaffer or at least make it to the finals
3. Fight for a Top 4 finish in the Premier League. With the players at the Gaffer's disposal, there is definitely a chance for Champion League football. If not Top 4 then in the Europa League place
4. Try to win a trophy. Does not matter which trophy, any silverware gets the Gaffer closer to reaching Fergie's 38 trophies.

The Gaffer side was hit by the injury bug at the beginning of the season however, this allowed for other players to get some game time. So far top players of the season have been, Patson Daka, Declan Rice, Bakayoko, McNeil, and Zaha. Some players who need to step up and perform are Callum Wilson (lost his starting spot to Daka), Almiron, James Justin, and Bowen (should have more goals and assists for the money paid for him).

After Thought

Challenges Completed So Far:
1. Save Newcastle from Relegation
2. Win FA Cup within 4 years- Done in Season 2

Still To Complete
1. Win League Title within 7 seasons
2. Win Domestic Double within 8 seasons
3. Win Treble within 13 seasons

End of Season Stats



Update: I will be moving through this challenge quickly so, I will be doing stories every 6 months in-game until I complete the challenge. I would be starting a new story soon so I am trying to finish this save as quickly as possible. Still enjoying it. Winning Europa was the highlight. Hope to see how Newcastle performs in Champs League.

After Thought

Season goals:
Win any Silverware
Compete for Premeir League
Good Showing in Champions League

Major Transfers In:
Tysgankov Age 25, MR, Back up for Alan Maximin(currently injured)
Ryan Kent Age 26, ML, Back up for McNeil or starter in cup competitions
Valmir Matheus Age 24, ST, Wilson is getting old, needed another striker.
Yann Sommer Age 34, GK, needed a quality backup to complement current keeper, might be the first choice
HOYD and DOF made some transfers of youngsters for the youth team. The Gaffer doesn't mind them, he is not keen on using them. They are just there to make up numbers.

Major Transfers Out
Almiron to Sevilla
Matty Longstaff to Stuttgart
Estaquio to Marsielle
Vilca to Celtic
Muller to Olympic Lyon

17-year-old Joe Clarke has been promoted to the first team. A young fullback with some decent stats will be playing him cup competitions. An exciting prospect for the future.

Afterthoughts

Half of Season Goals:
Win Carabao Cup
Try to make it past RD16 in the Champions League
Finish in top 4 in PL

I wanted to make this series a little bit challenging for me, so I signed a DOF decided to let him handle transfers but I can still suggest players and have him handle negotiations. I also have to approve of any signings the DOF wants to make.

I like the three signings the new DOF made but I would have wanted a defender as my best center back was sold to Barcelona and another centerback was sold to a club in the Bundesliga. I go into the rest of the season with two out-and-out center-backs plus Declan Rice who can also play centerbacks.

Things seem to be going very well here with a massive congrats on the Europa League win! A great effort to take Newcastle on the journey you have so far and with continued backing from the board, despite the new restrictions, I can only see the club continuing to get better!

Episode 20: Faltering End to Season.

Newcastle United disappointingly missed out on a Champion League place finish. Despite being in the top 4 for nearly half the season, the Toon side finished in 5th place on 77 points and less goal difference than Arsenal who finished 4th.

Injuries and lack of depth in both the midfield and center back positions cost affected Newcastle dearly in the last two months of the season. The battle for the top 4 came down to the last two games against Arsenal and Leeds and Newcastle United came away with unpleasing draws in both matches.

The Gaffer feel lets down by his team as they were knocked out easily in the FA Cup and manage to not secure the top 4 in the last two months of the season. However, the Gaffer is more than proud of the lads for making it far into the Champions League semifinals. It came as a surprise to many people that Newcastle United in the CL for the first time in a long time was close to a CL final.

While missing out on returning to the CL, Newcastle did manage to secure a Europa League spot. This gives the Gaffer another chance of winning another European competition and utilizing some of his wonderkids. The Newcastle side lost to Man City in the Carabao Cup finals but, the Gaffer is not too fuzzed about it. The players did their best against a dominant side but came away with nothing.

Player performances were inconsistent throughout the season. Patson Daka bagged 46 goals in the last campaign but this season finished with a measly 23 goals. The Gaffer is unsure as to why his forwards were unable to produce the goods this season. The best players of the season went to defenders Myloka, Rice, and McNeil as they were the only solid and consistent performers.

The Gaffer expects better of his strikers and midfield as chances were squandered throughout the season. In some matches, the team was expected to win and came away with disappointing losses. Frankly, it was very frustrating to see a team that beats the likes of Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Man United comfortably, just to turn around, lose to Sheffield United and draw against Norwich and Leeds.

The Gaffer places all the blame on the board for not buying a new center-back before the winter transfer window closed. Newcastle did everything they were expected to do this season barring some issues with the board and player performances. Hopefully, in the next season, the team can acquire some silverware.

Second Half of Season Schedule


Season Stats

Competition Review

Final Premier League Table

A shame to miss out on GD but a great effort in the Champions League shows the potential the side has!

Episode 21: Bigger Transfer Budget!

The success during the previous Champions League campaign was pleasing to the Newcastle board. The board has given the Gaffer and his recruitment team a whopping $123 million to spend in the summer transfer window. Since the Gaffer has limited freedom with transfers, he is hoping that his recruitment team does the job and provides him with the players he needs.

The main concern for the Gaffer is at the center back and midfield positions. The second half of the last season was difficult for the defenders and midfield who were asked to play lots of games without rest. It ultimately showed in the results in the last couple of months.

From word around the Newcastle camp, the Gaffer side will be getting much-needed reinforcement. The first signing was Jean Clair Todibo from Benfica for $65 million. A young, quality center-back will be placed straight into the starting lineup. After Anel went to Barcelona in January, the money was used to bring in Todibo. Todibo is the perfect player for this team as he has lots of paces and has exceptional ability on the ball as a center-back. The second signing which the Gaffer had some questions about was Pedro Porro from Man City for $32 million. The Gaffer does not think he was worth the price paid but, he is expecting Pedro to prove him wrong.



Along with these signing, some players were giving new contracts (Daka, Allan Saint Maxim, McNeil, Foyth, and Rice). All of this together left Newcastle with $6million in the transfer budget and less than $10million per year in the payroll budget. The rest of the transfers were done without the approval of the Gaffer but, they were not big-money signing. An interesting player that the Director of Football signed for free was a 19yr old Argentinian left-back named Leonel Fretes. His stats do not scream wonderkid but, the Gaffer sees him as one for the future.

Victor Tsygankov was loaned out after handing in a transfer request after a failed promise made by the Gaffer. Tsygankov was loaned out for the season to Westham and will be sold at the end of the season. Callum Wilson and Wilfred Zaha were placed on the transfer list in hopes to get some money for them before they begin to decline their abilities.



The Gaffer promoted wonderkid Na Yong-Hyuk to the first team who have been loaned out for the past two seasons. The 19yrd old South Korean will be a crucial piece in the senior squad. The recruitment team loaned out some of the exceptional youth players to MLS so they could get more playtime. The summer transfer window has not closed yet so, the Gaffer is unsure if any new addition will be coming in or going out.