And the success just keeps coming! We dominated the game from kick-off and the half-time stats says it all, 11-2 in shots and ~65-35% in possesion, BUT we were yet to score. The dominans continued in the second half but the goals just wouldn't come and with time running out I started to become a bit worried. But an own-goal in the 95th (!) minute of regular time sealed the deal and the win was as fact.
The recent success has allowed me to make a name for myself as well!
Surprisingly enough the FA-cup final turned out to be the thoughest out of the three games. West Ham shoked us righ from the start and before I knew it they were up 2-0. I refused to stop beliving in what we were doing so I decided to just make some minor changes in our mentality without leaving our main course. This was a bit diffrent from other games where our original game-plan hadn't work out as we were already forced to pull not one, but two goals back in a limited amount of time. The result was this:
The goals speaks for themselves, but they also show the key-diffrence between this season and previous ones: the ability to get easy goals when we need them. Sure there were a couple of games midway through the season when we had more CCCs then our opponents had possesion-precentage without us being able to claim the three points we had rightfully earned. Still we caught the breaks when we needed them the most and in the end that's really what seperated us from the other top-teams, without taking anything away from the lads tremendous effort. The fact of the matter is I'd say we would have had many season like this before if this same luck hadn't worked in our opponents favour!
I must say this is one of the most amazing season I've ever been privilaged to be a part of. After winning the Leauge Cup, Premier Leauge, Europa Leauge and FA Cup in the same season a World Cup awaited in Mexico where I was looking for revenge after my disasters with England and Sweden.
It looked as if the story was going to repeat itself though as we went down 1-0 against USA in the first knock-out round (the round I was knocked out in with England four years earlier by Denmark (!)), quickly followed by a retarded red card taken by my fullback. But then the man I consider to be the best in the world atm steped forward and showed us the magic with two equalizers. We went into over time and there an own goal once again became decisive, and once again in our favour!
In the next round Russia awaited and the game was thougher then I thought it would be, but we clinched a 1-0 win in regualtion.
The sime-finals were set to be an incredible match-up as we were set to tango with the french! They had a tremendous squad and was considered heavy favourites. But as it turned out this was the easiest game of the knock-out stage and we strolled to a comfortable 4-2 victory with the best player in the world bagging a deuce!
The final was set to take place in the legendary Estadio Azteca with no less then 105'000 spectators! The opposition was Holland, who I snubbed a few months back thinking I would have a better chanse of winning the World Cup with Argentina, so it was really a moment of truth for me.
The game took of in horrid fashion though as Holland took the lead after 6 minutes. We didn't show much signs of coming back as we didn't even manage to get a shot of for another 30 minutes! To make matters even worse, my baby, my superstar, the best player in the world, was injured just before the half-time witsle.
Going in to the lookerrooom I knew this would either be remembered as an epic half-time speech leading to one of the biggest comebacks in WC history or another manager just walking into the shame trying to find an excuse... then it hit me! How was I expecting to ever beat the dutch with a 4-3-3, so I switched things up and went back to an acient wepon known as 4-4-2!
It seemed to work perfectly as we imidetly took over, created chanses and dedicated the pace of the game, all was looking well and I started to hope this would become that epic pice of history. Then, out of the blue, the replacment of the best player in the world snapped and delivered what looked like a drop-kick and was sent of, and just like that we were back at point zero. I looked over what was left and made a couple of changes in personell but didn't do much with the tactics. The game was now even and we were exchanging chanses. Then, a strim of hope as my CB Arce powered in a corner with his head and it was all level! I knew there wasn't much to do but hope for yet another miracle. Holland piled up the pressure and hit the woodwork twice, but this wasn't their year, it was mine! After one minute of injury-time, the last sub I threw in sneeaked up on the far post, got the ball delivered on his feet and powered that damn thing right into the back of the net! The epic comeback was complete!
Oh and by the way, here's the best player in the world!
Well summing up the season I feel it's important to really single out the diffrences between this season and my previous, less successful ones in order to continue in the right direction.
- First of all I've left more responsibility to my players. I haven't played ridgid what so ever in the past, but still I've played them in the more advanced roles istead of just letting them take on a position and do their own thing from there.
- Secondly I've stayed with the same players for some time now. The last player to be brought in to the organizaton out of my regular starters was Toninho and he's been with us for two season now, so we're working towards consistansy and I plan to stay on that track.
- Thirdly, something I've brought up earlier, is the plain and simple luck that we've almost never expreienced before. Not to say it's all about the luck, but we just aren't dominant enough to afford our opposition having the bonces going their way all the time.
- Lastly I'd like to take up a single man, our maby a position, the striker! Prete domintated most of the season scoring 24 goals and totaling 11 assists in 27 games. And during the weeks when he wasn't on his game Kouamé steped up bagging at least a goal per game. The consistansy up front is probably the biggest contributer, and this is largely thanks to these to guys.
Hitting the transfer-market I'll keep a thight hold of my wallet once again. We're not looking to improve any of our starting postitions as none of our regulars have peaked, in fact almost all of them are improving rapidly! I've been holding an eye out for a replacement to my left-fullback Moreno for the last couple of summers as he's hit the 30-mark. But a couple of seasons back I secured a young promising left-back who's now blossoming in to the replacment I've been looking for, so I'm all set there as well. Another reason I'm not looking to spend much is that the financial development has staggered, this is much due to the monthly installments I've used when shopping in the past. I've been cutting down the last two seasons, so another two should do the trick as I've been spreading the payments over 48 months. On an other positive note we still haven't quite filled our new stadium so we've got some potential income to grow there.
The only real loss we've suffered this season is the departure of Opoku-Ware. The touch combined with power and pace of the kid is just amazing, I have never and will probably never see the same again. But nothing to do but moving on, Toninho has already filled up the empty space left behind in magnificant fashion!
To finish up the post I dropped a bomb on the internation press as I resigned the day after our WC-triumph! This to take on the challange of my native Sweden once again. Weäll see how it goes
And so, for the first time ever, we bring home the Community Shield to Droylsden, it feels good just because we failed with the task last time around, and it gives the whole season a positive start!
I know I said I won everything I could win last season, but I realized some time back that it's not true as we lost the Euro Super Cup against Real Socidad. The reason behind it was, you guessed it: The best player in the world! He bagged a hat-trick and spoiled the party.
This year we had a shot at redemption as we won the EURO-cup last year. We faced Barcelona and as alaways, being the EURO-cup representatives, we were the underdogs. However we didn't feel inferior at all and it showed. We didn't dominate, but we never backed down and the victory was definetly deserved!
I guess this victory means we've really established ourselves as one of Europes supreme forces as we've won every trophy possible as an english team over the last 3 seasons.
I've been expecting this for some time now and it has finay happened. With the team's great success clubs are trying to put their filthy claws in my baby-squad. I've had to fend them of with every last ounce of fight I've got in me. This makes it all the harder when some of my players get blinded by the big check-books some of these teams posses. So they demand that I give them that same kind of money that they would make selling their souls to some oilcompany, something that just will not happen! I just smack them up Sir Alex-style and leave them wishing that they would have never even asked me. I'm yet to hand out a single contract worth more then €90k/w and the total wagecost is yet to exceed €900k/w.
The little Italian prick Michele Prete has been worst of them all when it comes to whining about his pay-check. I've gotten offers around €40mil for him from Real, United and many other of the worlds heviest players. I honestly feel like selling him some times, but both Kouamé and Arikan are still developing and just aren't ready to take full responsibilty yet, and even if the transfer-market offers a couple of names whom can preform on the same level, they are older and would still cost me more then Prete.
The conflict escalated the other day when Prete himself, Wolf, Dimas, Salaun and Barbeitos all came knocking on my door concerning Prete's and only Prete's contract. Their number wasn't goning to face me though and when I was done with them all but Salaun ran away with their tail between their legs.
Even though I had won this battle it got me thinking: if this little prick can get another 5 players behind him to my office to discuss HIS contract, how much distubans isn't he causing in the changingroom?! So I decided to sit down with him and his snakesuit (who by the way hates my guts along with all the other snake-suits who want improved deals for their clients every other day just because they think they need a new watch) to discuss an extension and modification of his contract. We ended up agreeing on a 4-year deal worth €105k/w plus a couple of million for him and his snakesuits to shear right now. What the smug little prick never realized was that I'm only buying time for my talented and loyal kids to grow into men so that I can send him as far away as possible for much more money then he'll ever have on his bank-account!
#l3nnart :
I've been expecting this for some time now and it has finay happened. With the team's great success clubs are trying to put their filthy claws in my baby-squad. I've had to fend them of with every last ounce of fight I've got in me. This makes it all the harder when some of my players get blinded by the big check-books some of these teams posses. So they demand that I give them that same kind of money that they would make selling their souls to some oilcompany, something that just will not happen! I just smack them up Sir Alex-style and leave them wishing that they would have never even asked me. I'm yet to hand out a single contract worth more then €90k/w and the total wagecost is yet to exceed €900k/w.
The little Italian prick Michele Prete has been worst of them all when it comes to whining about his pay-check. I've gotten offers around €40mil for him from Real, United and many other of the worlds heviest players. I honestly feel like selling him some times, but both Kouamé and Arikan are still developing and just aren't ready to take full responsibilty yet, and even if the transfer-market offers a couple of names whom can preform on the same level, they are older and would still cost me more then Prete.
The conflict escalated the other day when Prete himself, Wolf, Dimas, Salaun and Barbeitos all came knocking on my door concerning Prete's and only Prete's contract. Their number wasn't goning to face me though and when I was done with them all but Salaun ran away with their tail between their legs.
Even though I had won this battle it got me thinking: if this little prick can get another 5 players behind him to my office to discuss HIS contract, how much distubans isn't he causing in the changingroom?! So I decided to sit down with him and his snakesuit (who by the way hates my guts along with all the other snake-suits who want improved deals for their clients every other day just because they think they need a new watch) to discuss an extension and modification of his contract. We ended up agreeing on a 4-year deal worth €105k/w plus a couple of million for him and his snakesuits to shear right now. What the smug little prick never realized was that I'm only buying time for my talented and loyal kids to grow into men so that I can send him as far away as possible for much more money then he'll ever have on his bank-account!
That last sentence makes me laugh,
Ive never seen a player come to someone about someone elses contract thats new to me.
When do you think you will be letting prete go?
Or how long do you think it will take for your youngsters to take full responsibility and take over?
Loved you last post it really cracked me up. Maybe you should of gotten rid of him and taken a chance with your younger players, they might have improved quicker and surprised you with some great performances.
Snakesuit, I've never heard that one before but I like it.
thanks for the support guys, I just felt enough was enough this time and having players whining all the time disrupts the squadharmony more then most people realize.
Here's the little Itialian prick, I think you see why I'm having second thoughts about selling him...
And here are the perculating kids:
Kouame isn't that far off Prete as far as goalscoringability goes, but he's not much to hang in the christmastree outside of the box. Arikan is the biggest talent out of the three and is already lethal in the box as well, but he needs more pace and some smarts in order to take that next step. I know both of them would be decent starters, but I've alaways said the star-striker is the key to success and I intend to be a serouis contender from here on, so until one of these guys take the next step Prete will stay, providing things don't get worse, which they shouldn't now that he's got himself a new deal... but I fancy one of them being ready in two years, this will be great timing as I would have two years to go on Prete's deal as well, which will be economicly rewarding.
For the first time ever we've managed to defend a title! It's of course the competition where we've been the most successfull, the Leauge Cup.
The final offered some nostalgi as we faced Aston Villa, the very same team we faced in the 2022 LC-final. Last time around was very diffrent compared to today, the final was our first major final, though we were raining champs of the Perimer Leauge. Except for the build-up there wasn't alot to remember as we lost 2-0 without puting up much of a fight. Given the history it was a day for revenge and the boys were hungry for it!
The joy however didn't last for long as we lost against Arsenal in what can be seen as a leauge-final. They were up 5 points before the game and with this win I think they sealed the deal as only 8 games remain... But the season isn't over as we're still in the Champions Leauge and FA-cup. There's also a 9-point gap down to 4th place, and even though qualifying for the CL has never posed a problem, I prefer skipping it.
Loved you last post it really cracked me up. Maybe you should of gotten rid of him and taken a chance with your younger players, they might have improved quicker and surprised you with some great performances.