23 Sep 21
The next fixture is a home game against Sevilla, where we are underdogs. Injuries have once again forced us into changes. At this rate, I am thinking that all eligible squad members will have an opportunity to feature in a match. Wisker will move into the midfield, Tolido will have his first start in the centre defense, as will Salvadó. I am also keen to start towering striker John de Wit, who is 6’8’’.
GK: Gorman
DR: Vajda
DC: Salvadó
DC: Tolido
DL: Halberg
AMR: Faulds
MC: Ensal
MC: Wisker
AML: Ouattara
ST: Nicholson
ST: de Wit
Another sellout crowd and a score line that made it sound like we had the upper hand throughout the match.
The reality was somewhat different, the mid-field squandered possession, we kicked the ball forward, only to gift it to the opposition, and we were guilty of passing the ball to the opposition. Whilst the score line handed us a 6-0 win, there is plenty for us to take away and work on.
If it had not been for the close up shooting of Nicholson, or the previously unnoticed ability of Spurs reject Tolido to find the net from set piece play, the story may have been different.
Nicholson led the way with four goals in the first half, and Tolido took one from the set piece. While the defense held, the slick passing game which had been a hallmark and our careful retention of possession had deserted us, as we were made to look foolish on occasion. Gorman at the back earned his money, and Hagberg was his usual composed self.
Going to the sheds 5-0, we took the precaution of replacing Vadja, whose condition was deteriorating rather quickly, for Beck, and after inspiring them, sent them back on the field to do battle.
Soon after the second half began, we lost Salvadó, with what looked like a serious rib injury. Bayer came on and was fairly quiet. On 55 minutes, Ouattara floated another corner to Tolido, who worked the angle well to record a brace.
The last stanza of the match was spent with my head in my hands as we missed opportunity after opportunity and only managed to win 59% of our tackles, as opposed to 79% for Sevilla.
Honourable mentions must also go to the left flank players, Hagberg, Ouattara, and debut striker de Wit, who all played well without reward. I can’t complain about a 6-0 home win against our rivals, but maybe I can?
I believe the team missed Farver’s presence in the mid-field; he is a calming influence who is professional in his work ethic, and more importantly for us, hardly misses a tackle and disrupts the flow of the opposition.
He is still out for another two weeks, so Wisker may have a chance to prove himself in the position after all.
Nicholson scored his fiftieth goal during the match. He now has 52 goals in 105 appearances.
Salvadó is out for four weeks with broken ribs. He is off to see a specialist.
I have just had to have the dreaded private chat with most of my players. This may also explain the spate of injuries. During the off-season, I had most of the players on schedules with were “very heavy”, and now some of them are complaining. I have created new schedules and have moved key personnel who were complaining onto lesser workloads.
The players who I view as squad players, I’ve told to work harder to make the first team. If they are still complaining in a month or so, I may consider moving them to the “medium” level training.
Erwin Koeman, the former Dutch international midfielder, is the new Derby manager.
The next challenge is against Villarreal, I have three injured, three coming back from injuries and de Witt in no condition to start. I'm thinking that having him play the whole game against Sevilla may have been too much.
A bit of a shuffle, with Schmidt coming back from suspension, Beck replacing Vadja (who is still recovering) and Ramos makes his first appearance for the season, with de Wit rested.
GK: Gorman
DR: Beck
DC: Schmidt
DC: Tolido
DL: Hagberg
AMR: Faulds
MC: Ensal
MC: Wisker
AML: Ouattara
ST: Nicholson
ST: Ramos
It is without much fanfare I announce I am back and will be continuing with the Osasuna story I cruelly dropped nearly six weeks ago.
It's good to be back!
Hey mate, your story is the first FM Scout story I've read and I'm glad to see it's back - unfortunately I only read until the start of your Osasuna career and the end of your Derby career so it looks like I'll have some catching up to do
Thanks for your comment Glenn, I try and keep the thread interesting, and I have been away so long I'll need to remind myself how to load screenshots, as that seems to be one of biggest comments coming back to me. I enjoyed my tenure with Derby, I had assembled a great back room and was started to mold the team, so would have loved to have stayed, but alas, it wasn't to be. Important lesson about keeping the harmony of squad towards the fore of your thinking, and whatever you do, get a handle on your finances with the utmost urgency.
Ultimately, there were some key decisions that I would have made differently with the benefit of hindsight. And strange as it may be, those decisions were easier made at Osasuna. Whereas at Derby I was stuck with a valuation in my head for a player, which again with hindsight was obviously too high; the same type of older, middle of the road players sold like proverbial hot cakes, and has contributed enough to almost put the club back in the black. And I have also been
extremely fortunate in the transfer market with both clubs!
Thanks for your interest and I am glad you are enjoying the story!
#57581 Glenn T :
Hey mate, your story is the first FM Scout story I've read and I'm glad to see it's back - unfortunately I only read until the start of your Osasuna career and the end of your Derby career so it looks like I'll have some catching up to do
Kiwi, Great story!
As i said in my earlier post in the story, i'd love to play a game in 2020+
ISOJELLY
Atreidas do what he did, start unemployed, and go on holiday for two periods with both periods for five years.
Thanks Glenn T, that's what I did Atreidas, I'll admit the setup took a while to wind the clock forward but I have found the experience enjoyable.
Aside from having largely a new set of players at my disposal, it means that I can also discuss what has happened in the intervening time, and makes you more likely to take risks because if your defense is leaking, you have no prior knowledge (or should I say real world knowledge) which normally may have helped you sign a player.
I also take satisfaction out of writing where the story takes me - the good, the bad and the ugly. And if I lose a managerial post, there are plenty of others out there, and one of my favourite features of FM12 is the ability to load and remove leagues, which means potentially you could carry the story forward without limit.