Football Manager 2017 - General Chat

[Cure]

3 minutes ago, LaSambadeStGermain said:

Just take a guess at who our best player is before I properly introduce the team.

I'll give you a hint, he's a Peruvian who played for the National Team and Fiorentina for many years and considered one of the best Peruvian players of the century. He's a well known name in Europe. Take a guess.

Juan Manuel Vargas!

[Guest]

4 minutes ago, Cure said:

Juan Manuel Vargas!

Correct

 

Funnily enough I wrote a piece back in November predicting that Juan Manuel would return to the club. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw that he had signed and I was spot on 

[Guest]

Comes with the skin I believe mate.

 

FMScout has loads of good ones.

[Takyon]

1 minute ago, Cannabis said:

Quick question; How do you change the format of the team-screen so that it shows the football kits as opposed to those ugly blocks like R-D has? I've got the ugly blocks and I'd much rather go back to the old school way of having the shirts. I think @LaSambadeStGermain and obviously @Takyon have done it.

I use the Vitrex Skin I think it looks a lot more aesthetically pleasing than the original one but the layout does change a fair bit.

[Guest]

Time for a squad introduction. I'll let you do the judging for youselves

 

 

Raul Fernandez

 

 

 

Juan Manuel Vargas

 

 

Alberto Rodriguez

 

Luis Tejada

 

 

Diego Guastavino

[Dan+]

I always knew Storts was ambitious.

 

[Dan+]

52 minutes ago, Aaroncpfc said:

Have you never read one of my diaries?! The loan system is a great way to build relationships with players you cannot afford who you can eventually sign.

 

This happens on every save I have. Really infuriating. It put me off starting with a team at league one or lower as it used to fuck me over so many times at Oldham Athletic.

 

@R-D You'll enjoy Portugal I reckon. It seems like one of the only countries where you can build a new elite European pwoerhouse with domestic based players.

I have done it in the past as well. I just think on this version you can get a better quality of loanee more freely. Maybe it's just being in the Championship. The likes of Cook, Borthwick-Jackson, Sims and Armstrong are all very good players at this level.

Armstrong really is brilliant. Newcastle should never have loaned him out last year. He outscored Gayle.

[Guest]

7 minutes ago, Dan said:

I always knew Storts was ambitious.

 

I'm pretty sure he tweeted once that he got himself a regen in the game for working as a researcher for some time.

 

Don't follow him anymore.

[Dave]

Busy Summer for us. Firstly backup players Connor Wickham, Richard Stearman, Wayne Haennessey, Fabio and Raul Rucescu left the club following promotion. Luke Chambers retired and has now become an academy coach.

I waited to see if Middlesbrough would win the playoffs before signing Jordan Rhodes and Ruben Loftus-Cheek. Two key players in there push for promotion that I feel would 'get' Ipswich Town. Jordan Rhodes is an academy players and Ruben Loftus-Cheek has played in the same academy as some of my first team players.

Ademola Lookman had a very hard time at Bournemouth making only 12 appearances despite being signed for twenty million. Tariq Fosu needs competition so i've bought him back to see if I could rejuvinate his career. Reminiscent of Wilfried Zaha at Crystal Palace.

Alex Smithies has been bought in because I like the Stoke City idea of a young Goalkeeper (Hayes), an experienced Goalkeeper (Bilalkowski) and a Goalkeeper in his prime (Smithies).

Chalobah and Hause have been signed because I needed more squad depth in defence after losing Stearman, Chambers and Fabio. We have an Academy Player in Matt Swift who broke in to the first team and killed the careers of Stearman and Chambers in process.

Ishak Belfodil was signed after Tammy Abraham was ruled out for the season. RIP.

 

As for the start we've made. We lost to Liverpool in the last minute, Tammy Abraham defeated Newcastle before bowing out for the season, Joshua Emanuel ripped off Leicester with a stoppage time goal, our reserves were pathetic in the EFL Cup and Academy Players Teddy Bishop and Matt Swift got us a deserved win against Brighton. We sit in fifth after the first month. We don't seem intimidated by playing against better opposition and the early signs are promising.

 

[Stan]

26 minutes ago, Dan said:

I always knew Storts was ambitious.

 

good to know the game is realistic. won't make it out of Wealdstone with those stats.

[Dan+]

Sure enough Aaron's gone and bought the keeper I plan to get if I go up.

[Takyon]

3 hours ago, Dan said:

Armstrong really is brilliant. Newcastle should never have loaned him out last year. He outscored Gayle.

He did great on loan at Barnsley in my save as well, 21 goals in 34 games as they finished 19th was a very good haul. Considering recalling him as we're having some goalscoring woes in the Premier League 

[Dan+]

That bloody Universitario song is catchy.

[Dave]

16 hours ago, Dan said:

Sure enough Aaron's gone and bought the keeper I plan to get if I go up.

Joe Wildsmith of Sheffield Wednesday may be cheaper, younger, and technically a better 'keeper. Bloody rivals Norwich have signed him and Lewis Baker on my save so I have no chance of getting them now.

[Cure]

18 hours ago, Dan said:

I always knew Storts was ambitious.

 

 

[Pig on the Wing]

Just won the fucking FA Cup with Sheffield United, thanks to a tactical masterclass which saw Man City stifled completely, Joe Hart score an own goal through flapping at a corner, and City having 1 shot on goal for 80 minutes (plus a 10 minutes onslaught where I almost became more bald than Deadlinesman through tearing out chunks of hair.)

I used this tactic to overcome Arsenal and Spurs in the cup run, and getting a few excellent results against the likes of Man United and Liverpool in the league. Soaks up everything the game's best can throw at me - gegenpress to fuck, have three titanic centre-halves and two monstrous centre-mids destroying everything, pog it forward when possible and scare the shite out of the big guns. I may actually be a FM genius.

Thank you Joe Hart, you wonderful man.

I can't quite believe it - this tops off a wonderful season in the league where I finished 11th, well above the weaker pack of 8 behind me. Onwards to next season!

[Stan]

22 hours ago, Cannabis said:

 

every year  

[Dan+]

As predicted it's our inability to win the easiest games that's going to fuck us over.

[Takyon]

Mings wants a transfer because I said I'd offer him a new contract at the end of the season but offered him one around March which he signed and now the season's over he's kicking off because I haven't offered him a contract. I hate this game sometimes. 

[Stan]

2 minutes ago, Takyon said:

Mings wants a transfer because I said I'd offer him a new contract at the end of the season but offered him one around March which he signed and now the season's over he's kicking off because I haven't offered him a contract. I hate this game sometimes. 

technically you didn't stick to your promise   

[Takyon]

Senegal won the 2018 World Cup somehow and Henri Saviet's value just shot up from £2m to £27m because he scored the winning goal in the final. Trying to cash in on him now 

[Takyon]

Newcastle United 2017/18 Season Review:

 

Premier League - 8th

P38 - W14 D12 L12 - Pts 54

 

Our league performance was a bit of a funny one, despite finishing well above expectations we were really poor for long periods of the season. We were certainly helped by the best part of a dozen other sides contriving to have absolutely awful seasons themselves.  We started the season with 3 straight draws, having taken the lead in each of them, which showcased our inability to hold onto a lead which was something which would plague our entire season. Despite performances on the pitch not being too convincing we got some good results in the first half of the season including taking the scalps of Man City and Arsenal. However our attack had become a bit toothless as last season's heroes Ayoze Perez and Aleksander Mitrovic who despite showing some early promise ultimately struggled with the step up in quality and new signing Lukasz Teodorczyk couldn't hit a barn door. As a result we were relying on Wilfried Zaha as our main source of goals. However Zaha went on a three month barren spell at the beginning of January which coincided with a 5 game winless streak. I was forced to recall Adam Armstrong from his loan at Brentford which finally gave us an edge up front as he scored five games running was the catalyst for our improvement in the league. Despite our improvements going forward our once imperious defence regressed, a lot, best demonstrated when they let in four goals against Burnley. This led to the majority of our defeats coming in the second half of the season and forced me to switch to a more defensive style of play which blunted our attack even further. Ultimately we ended the season on a high with a 5-1 victory away to Huddersfield. How we managed to finish 8th given our level of play I'll never know, they say that being able to play poorly and still win is the hallmark of a good team but I'm more inclined to think of us as extremely lucky, I have no idea how many times we were saved by long range belters and free kicks when we showed no signs of threatening the opposition. Despite my complaints I should count the season as a success and I now know where I need to strengthen for the next season where I'm looking to finish in a similar position in a more convincing manner.  

League Cup - Knocked Out in the 4th Round

With a less hectic schedule than last season I made a good cup run a target. Things started well with a 2-0 victory Barnsley in the second round and another 2-0 victory against Bournemouth. However we were stopped in our tracks with a tricky away draw to Man City, despite taking them to extra time we ultimately fell short, courtesy of a Karl Darlow own goal seconds before the game was due to go to penalties. Clearly didn't fancy himself.

FA Cup - Won

I wanted a good cup run and got even more than I asked for when we went all the way. We benefited from a very kind run to the final avoiding all of the big teams in the early rounds. First up were Sheffield United who were easily brushed aside in a 2-0 win. The pick of the games came in the next round as we drawn away to Championship side Sunderland for the first Tyne-Wear derby in nearly 2 years. We managed to break Newcastle's recent hoodoo as we came away from the Stadium of Life with a 4-2 victory. Another kind draw in the 5th round brought League 1 Rotherham to St James' Park who were lucky to leave with just a 3-1 loss. The 6th round saw us come up against our first true test at home to Leicester which was a test we passed with ease, romping to a 4-0 victory and booking our place at Wembley to face Man City. Two early goals from Billing and Zaha were enough to squeak by City with a 2-1 win and a very rare solid defensive performance. The final saw us come up against Liverpool. The final was very end to end but thanks to some abysmal finishing the game went all the way to penalties and we ultimately prevailed as Emiliano Martinez covered himself in glory saving twice in the shootout. 

MLS All Stars - Won

Saving the most important competition till last. In a hard fought battle we came out on top with a 1-0 victory and became the first team since Roma in 2013 to beat the MLS All Stars!

Transfers:

Summer:

Lukasz Teoddorcyzk - £13m from Dynamo Kiev - I (rightly) wasn't convinced of Mitrovic's credentials as a Premier League striker and stumbled upon what seemed like the perfect improvement and would fit our system beautifully. His attributes were really good, he already had a good understanding of English and the price seemed pretty solid. Despite a strong start to the season where he laid on 5 assists to his teammates the Pole couldn't hit a barn door and soon he stopped contributing assists as well, 1 goal in 16 games saw him shipped off to Porto on loan where typically he hit the ground running. 

Wilfried Zaha - £9.5m from Crystal Palace - After one of last year's stars Christian Atsu couldn't get a work permit I was forced to look for an alternative and Zaha was the perfect replacement. With 12 goals and 11 assists in all competitions he proved to be a bargain, I still don't know how I got Palace to sell him for so little. 

Phillip Billing - £6.5m + Matz Sels from Huddersfield - I was eyeing up Billing as a long term replacement for Bryson who was entering the twilight of his career at 30 however after a couple of impressive cup and sub appearances Billing forced his way into my first XI. At 6"5 he's an incredible physical presence in the middle but he has some great technical and mental attributes as well. Despite being let down by his 9 finishing he still managed to score 11 goals from midfield, most of which came from outside of the box. At just 22 years old I'm hoping for him to get even better.

Kieran Trippier - £4.1m from Spurs - With Vurnon Anita deciding to leave on a free to Wolfsburg I sorely needed a new right back and Trippier seemed a solid replacement at a good price. He was pretty underwhelming for the majority of the season and was the biggest hole in a leaky defence at times but really kicked on in the last third of the season, hopefully he'll pick up from there.

Moses Odubajo - £5m from Hull - Arguably overpaid quite a bit for this one but his versatility anywhere down the right hand side came in handy when injuries bit. 

Emiliano Martinez - £600k from Arsenal - With Sels being used as a makeweight in the Billing deal we needed a new backup 'keeper and I went with the cheap option seeing as he'd hardly play. He actually displaced Darlow towards the end of the season and was the hero in the FA Cup final as he saved two penalties in the shootout. That game alone justified his fee 10 times over.

Charlie Taylor - £900k from Leeds - Decent young player and a snip at £900k. Unfortunately got injured so no one would take him on loan which was my plan. 

Ibrahima Sissoko - £800k from Stade Bertois 29 - Promising defensive midfielder who I shipped off to Port Vale on loan where he lit up the league. 

Jason Denayer - Loaned from Man City - Brought in to replace the outgoing Hanley as the fourth choice center back. Ultimately made 0 appearances and had his loan terminated.

Massadio Haidara - Loaned to SC Bastia - Didn't feature in my first team plans and had a solid season in France.

Paul Dummett - £7m to Middlesborough  - Given that he was the weak link in an otherwise solid defense until the arrival of Mings I was very happy to get £7m from Boro. 

Florian Thauvin - £11m to OM - Organised before I even took charge. 

Grant Hanely - £2m to Burnley - Was never going to get any game time with us and was on a big contract so despite the small fee I was happy with this.

Dwight Gayle - £3.8m+ to FC Sochaux - He really didn't fit our style of play and was on a stupidly big contract so had to go. 

Siem De Jong - £6.5m to Hull - Actually felt bad about offloading a pretty useless player to my own club but it was the best offer I was going to get.

January:

Robert Mak - £4.2 from Zenit - We were lacking in depth on the wings and Mak seemed a good option given his ability to play on both and some decent attributes. Didn't set the world alight but fulfilled his purpose well.

Loic Remy - Loaned from Chelsea - With everyone but Armstrong misfiring up front some extra firepower seemed necessary. In the end he was limited to sub appearances but did score an important goal along the way.

 

Players:

Stats:

Newcastle Best XI:

 

Although I wasn't overly impressed by our performances in the Premier League the FA Cup success obviously made me very happy and I'm looking forward to playing in Europe next season. I'm hoping to achieve the same league finish in a more convincing manner and have a good run in the Europa League next season. In the transfer market I need a new first team goalkeeper along with a left back, a defensive midfielder and a new striker. Beyond that some extra depth would go a long way seeing as we'll be playing more fixtures with the Europa League. 

[Dan+]

On 3/31/2017 at 2:46 AM, Dan said:

 

Results (August & September)

CH 1 - Brighton (a) - We did the double over these last year, impressively as they finished in the play-offs (and blew it as usual). It was yet another win over them, we won 2-3 and if anything it flattered Brighton. A fantastic start. Perfect.
LC 1 - Hartlepool (h) - Changed nearly the entire XI and felt my side was still decent, which is a good sign. We won 3-0.
CH 2 - Brentford (h) - Always seems to be a very open game with Brentford and this was no different. A game which saw an unbelievable 46 shots registered, but just one goal - it went our way. Two wins out of two.
CH 3 - Derby (a) - Even game which Derby stole fairly late on with a Bryson screamer. I can handle losing to quality.
CH 4 - Swansea (h) - A real test, passed with style. A Swansea side containing the likes of Sigurdsson, Fer, Baston and Narsingh were stuffed 3-0. Ex-Barnsley youngster Alfie Mawson was notably awful too.
LC 2 - MK Dons (h) - Similar to Hartlepool, yet we went one better and won 4-0. We really do look impressive.
CH 5 - Fulham (a) - Not an easy place to go to, and FUlham took the lead early on through an own goal. We slowly got back into it though and ended up turning the game on its head with two late goals, all three subs involved in both goals, as well as a shape change made during the second half. That really was a high point for me, my favourite type of win. We topped the table. Remarkable.
CH 6 - Charlton (h) - Back down to earth with a bump. The league's bottom side came here and it would be harsh on them to say they stole a point, because they had the better chances. 1-1. Shite.

CH 7 - Aston Villa (h) - We raced to a 2-0 lead early on but Villa equalised in injury time. Gutting but it happens. 2-2.
CH 8 - Norwich (a) - Very tricky game, sadly fruitless. Not embarrassed but we lost 2-1. It's gone a little wrong since Fulham.
CH 9 - Leeds (a) - We took a very early lead away at fellow high flyers Leeds but lost the game 2-1. This was the game I refer to earlier in the thread, where Borthwick-Jackson decided he'd start chasing after Ben Woodburn and I couldn't find how to get him to stop. Leeds carved us open and truth be told I felt a bit robbed even if they did batter us. I felt there was nothing I could do.
LC 3 - Chelsea (a) - A youthful Chelsea beat us through a very early Piazon free-kick. Fine margins. No disgrace losing here.
CH 10 - Reading (h) - We needed a reaction, and my god did we get one. Everything we touched turned to gold. We raced to a 5-1 lead at half time and Armstrong added a sixth in the second half. We gave them the pasting they ought to have given us twice last year. What a reaction, going into a very winnable game.
CH 11 - Oxford (a) - We raced into an early 0-2 lead against struggling newcomers Oxford and I felt it was a case of how many. I warned against complacency, they reacted well, apparently - 46 minutes on the clock and ex-Barnsley forward Kane Hemmings has belted one in. You fear the worst from here, and it came. Hemmings equalises with 10 minutes left and Maguire steals them the win in injury time. I don't think a result has annoyed me on this FM more.

CH 12 - Burton (a) - A game that started frantically with us taking the lead twice, but not a lot else. A much needed victory after four straight away losses.

OCT 2017
CH 13 - Middlesbrough (h) - The end of our unbeaten home run. Joke of a game too. Middlesbrough, like Swansea, had massively struggled upon relegation, but they got a 0-2 win here courtesy of two absolutely outrageous long range efforts. Just not our night.
CH 14 - QPR (h) - Fell behind early on but two rapid goals had the game turned around by half time, we were second best in the second half though and QPR got a deserved point. 2-2.
CH 15 - Sunderland (h) - Took the lead early on but were simply outclassed in the end as Sunderland went top with a 1-3 win.
CH 16 - Nottm Forest (a) - A carbon copy of last years game, minus the late Forest rallying cry. 0-1 at half time against the run of play, Barnsley running riot on the counter in the second half. We picked up a fantastic 1-5 victory.
CH 17 - Millwall (h) - Dominated from start to finish, went behind in the second half, equalised two minutes later, went behind in the 88th minute, equalised five minutes later. Happy with how we got the point, unhappy that we didn't get three.

NOV 2017
CH 18 - Sheff Weds (a) - We seem set up for games like this, and once again we delivered. A nicely managed game ended with a 0-1 victory courtesy of goal machine Armstrong. He's on fire.
CH 19 - Ipswich (h) - A test at home to a mediocre side. Failed. We were beaten 1-2, meaning it's four home games without victory. Dreadful, and my faith in our promotion bid really taking a hit.
CH 20 - Blackburn (a) - But then we go away from home and it's all OK again. Yet another battering. 1-5 once again. Blackburn turned in probably the worst defensive display I've seen while at Barnsley. We could've had 8 or 9. Total battering.

DEC 2017
CH 21 - Birmingham (h) - Home to bottom of the league and winning 1-0 at half time, and we incredibly manage to take nothing from the game. Absolute disgrace of a result, totally sums up what we've been about for a lot of this season, inconsistent beyond belief. We're blowing far too many of these games.
CH 22 - Bristol City (a) - Inconsistency confirmed again. High flying Bristol City took the lead early on, but we turned it on its head and picked up a fantastic 1-2 victory. Our fourth straight away win.
CH 23 - Rotherham (h) - Don't fuck up, don't fuck up, don't fuck up. Didn't fuck up. Miracle. Two wins on the bounce. Miracle. 2-0 it ended, incredibly up to 6th.
CH 24 - Brentford (a) - Always a frantic game with these and this was no different. We drew it 2-2 but we really ought to have won it on the balance of play.
CH 25 - Brighton (h) - I've had the beating of these so far, but it came to an abrupt end. We did take the lead early on, but we completely fell to pieces in the second half and Tomer Hemed bagged four times as Brighton ran away 1-4 winners. Captain Marc Roberts with a nightmare performance.
CH 26 - Derby (h) - Yet another defeat at home. Brighton outclassed us, but this was just plain irritating. Dominant throughout most of the game yet couldn't take any chances, they get one and it's in. The minute they went ahead I knew we'd lose.
CH 27 - Swansea (a) - These have unsurprisingly picked up since we last played them, and it's on paper probably our hardest game. We did to them exactly what Derby did to us, we got an early goal and just soaked up the pressure, holding on for a superb 0-1 victory. This was Swansea's first home defeat of the season, so it's a superb result.

 

 

The above two images kind of tell the whole story. Hard to believe it was our away form letting us down earlier in the season. 

 

8th overall going into the new year (although just 19 games to go, odd schedule). Leeds look destined to finally go back up. The battle for the play-offs is intriguing but we seem to be floating around this position without breaking into there frequently. I get the feeling that will go on for most of the season.

8th would still represent a good effort I feel, but when you're that close, you do want to go all the way.

It's annoying that QPR and Bristol City are up there. They were both predicted to finish around where we did so we don't stand out

[Danny]

Is anyone else as shit as me?

I started as Derby, kept most of the team together and bought Jermaine Anderson and some Gustasov geezer from Feyenoord. Still had David Nugent, Vyrda and some Scottish fella who had 14 in nearly everything.

Started alright, kept around 6th place in the play-offs then out of nowhere get smashed and sacked by December. Same old story, no idea how to stop it either, you look at some of the shit the players do and think whhhhy? Why would you instead of clearing it to a player on the wing, dink the ball into the middle of the pitch where I don't have a player? Seems like my goals are the product of well worked play, yet the computer can score from anywhere, one player constantly take apart my defence. I could play 2015 well, but 16 and now 17 I'm utter gash.

[Stan]

36 minutes ago, Danny said:

Is anyone else as shit as me?

I started as Derby, kept most of the team together and bought Jermaine Anderson and some Gustasov geezer from Feyenoord. Still had David Nugent, Vyrda and some Scottish fella who had 14 in nearly everything.

Started alright, kept around 6th place in the play-offs then out of nowhere get smashed and sacked by December. Same old story, no idea how to stop it either, you look at some of the shit the players do and think whhhhy? Why would you instead of clearing it to a player on the wing, dink the ball into the middle of the pitch where I don't have a player? Seems like my goals are the product of well worked play, yet the computer can score from anywhere, one player constantly take apart my defence. I could play 2015 well, but 16 and now 17 I'm utter gash.

do you motivate your players? Criticise or praise in equal measure?

It could depend on what kind of games you lost in the lead up to your sacking - i.e. do your players have the determination to do it against the top sides and not get complacent against the lesser clubs. How far did you drop from 6th by the time you got sacked?