1. FC Union Berlin - Capital Domination


VfB Stuttgart
Oktober - 2026

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Fixtures:

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October has to go down as a third straight successful month for the club, although we did suffer our first league loss of the season. We got the month under way with that incredible 8-1 win in Switzerland against Luzern (we were 7-1 up at half time!). We followed that result up with a 3-1 home won over Wolfsburg to take us into the international break, topped off by a Norbert Gentner brace. The first game back after the international break was the away trip to Munchen for the Sud Derby. We were missing a few players due to a lack of fitness and that showed in what was a lacklustre performance, going down 1-0 and losing our first league game this season. We bounced back with another impressive away win in the Europa League, this time beating Lille 2-0 with goals from Gentner and Bauer. That was followed by a 4-0 home win over Hannover 3 days later in the league with backup striker Dieng getting a brace and 2 days after that a rotated team put us through to the 3rd round of the German Cup with a 2-1 away win at Hamburg.

League Table/Europa League Group:

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If we beat Lille at home in our next EL game we'll be through with 2 games to go. In the league, we are 3rd behind Dortmund and Union Berlin, who also lost their first league game this month when Freiburg beat them 2-0.

Player of the Month - Norbert 'Norbit' Gentner

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The young German defensive midfielder played a bit further forward in centre midfield this month and rewarded us with a few goals and all round good performances.

Player Stats:

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Bauer had a slightly quieter month this month with just the 5 goals! Both first choice full backs in Lycek and Wittek are performing very well, justifying my decision to not replace them over the summer!

Other News:

1) We received £6,500,000 from Union Berlin after Joachen Wenzel made his 10th international appearance since leaving the club.

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Next up will be a November update, including my return to the Union Berlin stadium for my first game against my old club!​
 

VfB Stuttgart
November - 2026

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Fixtures:

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Our first perfect month in my reign as we won all 6 games, including 4 in the league and 2 in the Europa League. A 2-0 win at home to Lille in the Europa League secured our passage to the first knockout round and was played in between two 4-0 league victories over Hoffenheim and Ingolstadt. The next game was the big game of the month as it saw me return to the Union Berlin stadium for the first time and secure a fantastic 3-1 win to move us within a point of my old club at the top of the league. Union were the better side but we took our chances and they didn't! A backup team then beat Steaua 1-0 away in the Europa League and then they beat Koln in the league as I was a fit too quick hitting the space bar and went into the game without changing the team!

League Table/Europa League Group:

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We've secured top spot with a game to go in the Europa League and have moved up to 2nd in the league, just a point behind Union and more importantly 5 points ahead of Bayern who are 4th.

Player of the Month - Maximilian Wittek

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We kept 4 clean sheets in 6 this month and the left back even contributed with a great goal in the game against Union to break the deadlock.

Player Stats:

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Bassi is proving to be an excellent signing on the right wing with his average rating of 8.22 and his 12 assists and 5 goals in 13 starts. Young wonder kid Jovanovic continues to improve every time he plays and gives us great pace in the middle of the pitch to start counter attacks.

Other News:

1) Encouraged by his recent performances, I asked Real Madrid if I could extent Dieng's loan until the end of next season and they agreed. Fantastic value for the club as a backup striker considering we're only paying him 7k a week.

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2) The major bad news for this update is that first choice left winger Rodd broke his leg playing for the USA and will be out for 5-6 months, which rules him out of the majority of the season.

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3) Finally, after Wenzel met the international caps clause in his transfer last month, I decided to look if there were any more clauses in the deal and found that Union Berlin were willing to sell the 20% of profit on his next transfer clause to us for over £6,000,000. Now considering he cost them £19,000,000, that means he would have to be sold for over £50,000,000 for us to make more than the £6,000,000 they were offering and so I sold the clause without hesitation.

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Next update will be the December update, can we overtake Union Berlin and go into the winter break top of the league?​
 
Great job mate. No divided loyalties i hope on your return to berlin? Btw, given it's stuttgart and there's no sign of timo werner, could you share how his career panned out. He was amazing on a dortmund save i had

Sent from my D5833 using Tapatalk
 
karan10489 said:
Great job mate. No divided loyalties i hope on your return to berlin? Btw, given it's stuttgart and there's no sign of timo werner, could you share how his career panned out. He was amazing on a dortmund save i had

Sent from my D5833 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

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Had a couple of big money moves but outside of one season for Stuttgart he's had a pretty average career to be honest.

Was weird playing against Berlin because I never normally move clubs on saves, but nice to get the win, even if it was a little undeserved!
 

VfB Stuttgart
Dezember - 2026

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Fixtures:

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Another perfect month as we are now on a winning streak of 14 games. The month started with a great 3-1 win away at league rivals Dortmund, with backup left winger stepping up in Rodd's absence with a first half brace. A backup side then took care of Luzern 5-1 at home in the Europa League to finish the group with a 100% record, before an equally comfortable 4-0 win over Red Bull Leipzig 3 days later in the league. Bauer followed up an hatrick in that game with a brace in the 3-0 win away against Monchengladbach 3 days later. We finished the month with a 3-0 win at home to the side we knocked out of the German Cup a few weeks back, Hambug.

League Table/Europa League Group:

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Despite our outstanding form we do not top the league heading into the winter break, as my old team Union Berlin are one point ahead of us. We do have a better goal difference than them though!

Player of the Month - Alexander Bauer

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6 goals in 4 starts this month from the German, who has been rewarded by winning the European Golden Boy award!

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Player Stats:

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With 29 goals in the first half of the season, Bauer has a real chance of getting 50 if he stays injury free.

Other News:

1) Despite winning our group, we have been given a very tough route to the quarter finals. We'll play Valencia in the first knockout round, who are currently 2nd in La Liga and if we make it through we could meet Marseille in the second knockout round, who are top of Ligue 1.

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Next up will be a January update. Can we get a replacement for the injured Rodd, be that on a permanent or a short term basis.​
 
Forgot where I got up to last time when I first started reading this, so decided to read it all over again! Brilliant story and writing, have been a silent reader and good choice in moving clubs. KIU
 
Can’t get enough of this mate! Seems like you’ve taken the winning formula with you to Stuttgart as you’ve started fantastically. Bauer could easily be the next Schroder, you might have the big clubs sniffing around if he continues!

 
baileyboy said:
Forgot where I got up to last time when I first started reading this, so decided to read it all over again! Brilliant story and writing, have been a silent reader and good choice in moving clubs. KIU
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Cheers mate, glad you're enjoying it!

cps100 said:
Can’t get enough of this mate! Seems like you’ve taken the winning formula with you to Stuttgart as you’ve started fantastically. Bauer could easily be the next Schroder, you might have the big clubs sniffing around if he continues!
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Thanks pal, Bauer's finishing is only 15 but when I watch him in game it feels like it's 20! Just seems to power the ball in first time from anywhere haha
 

VfB Stuttgart
Janjuar - 2027

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Transfers:

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We got some decent business done in the transfer window as we look to build on an impressive first half of the season. In total we brought in £9,900,000 on three players and spent £26,500,000 on two players. Relatively unused squad players Oswald and Binder both left to Nurnberg for a combined £2,400,000 and first choice centre back Viczian left to Getafe for £7,500,000 in order to fund a new incoming centre back.

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First in through the door was a new club record signing to slot in on the left wing. After scouring thr market I couldn't find a natural left winger who was right footed who was good enough and available, so I decided to go after a striker who was comfortable in playing on the left and will hopefully become natural there with extra playing time. The man we got was Portuguese international striker Armando Cruz from Manchester City for a club record fee of £17,000,000, who has some fantastic attributes for an inside forward. I'm really hopeful he'll contribute heavily from the left for the rest of the season. The second signing was that of Brazilian centre back Pintado from Corinthians for £9,500,000. My coaches don't rate him as highly as they did Viczian, however I feel like Pintado is a better defender and this comparison probably backs it up...

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Fixtures:

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3 wins from 3 in January, with 10 goals scored and none conceded. We started with a 3-0 win in Freiburg with a Bauer brace and a goal from Cruz on his début. Cruz was then man of the match in the second game where we beat relegation threatened Dusseldorg 3-0 and he managed to get two assists. The month finished with a 4-0 win over FSV Mainz, who last year finished 3rd and qualified for the Champions League yet this year are 2nd from bottom and in the relegation zone!
Next update will be a February review, with both legs of the Europa League tie against Valencia as well as league ties against the likes of Schalke, Wolfsburg and Leverkusen...
​
 

VfB Stuttgart
Februar - 2027

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Fixtures:

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Our first poor month of the season as we drop unexpected points in the league against Hertha Berlin and put up little fight during a 3-0 away defeat to Schalke. We did however manage to secure league wins over Leverkusen and Wolfsburg, although the 4-2 win over Wolfsburg only came in after 2 late goals after we gave away 2 penalties to allow them back into the game. The great news this month was that we did advance past Valencia, who are currently 2nd in La Liga, in the Europa League after a hard fought 2-2 draw in the Mestalla was followed with a 3-1 home win to send us through 5-3 on aggregate. We have Marseille in the next round, who are currently 2nd in Ligue 1 behind PSG.

League Table:

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Our unlikely title challenge is certainly not over as we are only 5 points behind with 10 games to go. We are 13 points ahead of Hoffenheim in 4th so it's looking very likely we will qualify for the Champions League and I may start resting players in league games for the Europa League if we have already qualified for the CL and can't win the league.

Player of the Month - Armando Cruz

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Armando has settled into his role as our new left winger very well this month with 3 goals, 3 assists and 2 man of the match performances.

Player Stats:

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Bauer is up to 38 goals for the season, whilst it's actually backup right winger Aygodan who tops the assists chart with 18. 17 year old wonderkid Jovanovic is having a wonderful first season as a pro, with 9 assists and 3 goals in 19 starts and 12 sub appearances, with an average rating of 7.46. He's still got plenty of room for development and can only keep getting better.

Other News:

1) We got our first youth intake since I took over this month and I expected big things given the quality of a lot of the youth players at the club. Unfortunately it was poor and I don't see any of the players making it at the club.

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2) Bayern sacked their manager Guy Luzon with it looking like they won't qualify for the Champions League for the first time (as I can tell) since either 2007 or 1995 (depending on how many CL places the league had in 2007). Bayern look to be a club on the downward slide and will be hoping new manager Niki Zimling, who left Hoffenheim to take the role, can turn their fortunes around.

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Next update will be a March update, including a 3rd round German Cup tie away to Dortmund, a tough tie against Bayern in the league and our 2nd knockout round tie in the Europa League against Marseille.​
 

VfB Stuttgart
Marz - 2027

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Fixtures:

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After a shaky month in February, we bounced back to top form in March with 6 wins from 6 across 3 different competitions. The month started with a 2-1 comeback win against Dortmund in the cup 3rd round, with a last minute own goal from Dortmund giving us the win after Sredojevic had equalized the goal from the Bundesliga's top scorer, Carlos. We followed that up with a very good 3-1 win at home to Bayern Munchen, with the goals being shared by both our January signings in Pintado (x1) and Armando Cruz (x2). We then travelled to France and won the first leg of our Europa League tie 2-1 against Marseille courtesy of a Bauer brace. We won 3-1 away to Hannover before finishing the Europa League tie off with a 1-0 home win thanks to an Asahina goal, sending us through 3-1 on aggregate. The month finished with a 4-1 win at home to then 4th place Hoffenheim, with the goals coming from Dieng (x2), Bassi and Asahina.

League Table:

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We're still 5 points behind Berlin with 7 games to go in the season. If we get another 3 points this season, we will set a new club record for points amassed in a season, beating the points total in the club's 5 title winning seasons.

Player of the Month - Takahiro Asahina

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The Japanese midfielder has been a very solid, yet unspectacular, player for us this season but one who has represented fantastic value for money after costing just £1,400,000 and £13,000 in wages. He managed to bag a couple of goals this month and got above an 8 rating on 4 of the 5 games he started.

Player Stats:

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Bauer is up to 40 goals for the season now, with 2 months to go in the season it's looking like he should hit 50 goals. American winger Tim Rodd is nearing fitness after his injury and will hopefully have a role to play in the run in.

Other News:

1) We've been drawn against Austrian side SK Rapid Wien in the Europa League Quarter Final and if we progress past them we will play either Watford, who are currently 18th in the Premier League, or Benfica, who have won their league 8 times in a row.

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Next up will be a April review, can we book our place in the semi finals of both the Europa League and German Cup, as well as continuing our unexpected title challenge. It will also include our home game against Union Berlin in the league, can I do the double over my old team in my first season at a different club...​
 
Great story, really enjoying your Stuttgart adventure.

Would you mind posting a SS of Dortmund's Carlos? Hes a having a monster season. Cheers
 

VfB Stuttgart
April - 2027

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Fixtures:

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A fantastic month for us as we book our place in both the semi final of the Europa League and the German Cup, as well as closing the gap to Union Berlin at the top of the Bundesliga. The month started with a comfortable 5-1 win away to bottom of the league Ingolstadt with a hatrick from Cruz and a brace from Bauer and we followed that up with a 7-0 win away at Koln in the German Cup Quarter Final! The next game was the big league match against Union Berlin and a 10th minute goal from ex Union Berlin midfielder Norbit was enough to give us a 1-0 victory and ensure that we did the double over my old club in my first season elsewhere. Rapid Wien were able to slightly halt our momentum when they got a 1-0 win in Austria in the first leg against the run of play, however we easily turned that around with a 5-1 win back in Germany to send us through to the semis 5-2 on aggregate. In between the two Wien ties we won in Koln for the second time this month, this time in the Bundesliga and by 3 goals to nil.

League Table:

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4 games to go in the season and we sit just 2 points behind Union Berlin in the title race. I don't expect them to drop points, especially since they are out of all other competitions, but we'll be ready to pounce if they do!

Player of the Month - Armando Cruz

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The Portuguese man has been outstanding since joining and is proving well worth the outlay we spent on him. This month he managed 7 goals in 5 appearances from the right wing. If he can continue that form till the end of the season then I see us brining some silverware back to Stuttgart!

Player Stats:

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Similar to at Berlin, our front 3 is proving too much for many defences and we always feel like we can cut through teams. Brazilian defender Pintado had his best month since joining the club and it's nice to see our two January signings in the top 4 for average ratings, vindicating the decision to bring them into the club.

Other News:

1) We have the 8 time in a row Portuguese champions Benfica in the Europa League semi final after they knocked out Watford on the away goal ruling. The other semi is an all Italian affair as 5th place in Serie A Inter take on 13th place Torino.

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2) We got a pretty decent tie in the German Cup semi final as we have been drawn against 2nd tier Werder Bremen at home. We'll play Bayern in the final if we win after they knocked out Union Berlin in the quarters and Hertha Berlin in the semis.

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Next update will be a May review. I'll do separate updates for any cup finals we reach...​
 
Wow that Carlos is very good, Dortmund definitely got their money’s worth! How is Schroder doing now? Was surprised not to see him in the top scorers list as he usually averages 40-50 goals a season.

Also congrats on doing the double over Union in your first full season, that’s very impressive considering they were unstoppable with you in charge!

 
cps100 said:
Wow that Carlos is very good, Dortmund definitely got their money’s worth! How is Schroder doing now? Was surprised not to see him in the top scorers list as he usually averages 40-50 goals a season.

Also congrats on doing the double over Union in your first full season, that’s very impressive considering they were unstoppable with you in charge!
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He's doing well, but nowhere near as well as when I was there...

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In fact, he's being slightly overshadowed by his striker partner, this young Turk that Klopp signed...

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VfB Stuttgart
Europa League Semi Final - 2027

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1st Leg - Benfica 3 - 3 Stuttgart

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We travelled to Portugal for the first leg of our semi final and it didn't take long for them to take the lead, when Brazilian striker Talisca converted a 5th minute penalty. Luckily, we were able to bounce back quickly with goals from Norbit and Cruz in the space of 10 minutes. However, Benfica brought themselves level in the 35th minute when Javier Bottari scored from close range. We took the lead once again in the 56th minute through Italian winger Bassi and it looked as though we would be heading into the 2nd leg with a lead, but Brazilian midfielder Mantuan broke through our defence in the 87th minute to level the score at 3-3. A decent result considering we got 3 away goals, however we did lose Chilean defender Catalan to a broken leg and he will be out for 5-6 months.

2nd Leg - Stuttgart 1 - 2 Benfica

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The second leg couldn't have started much better when talisman Bauer gave us an 11th minute lead and an effective 2 goal cushion due to the away goal ruling. We took the lead into the break but the game was thrown right back into the balance when Mantuan got his second goal of the tie in the 46th minute and brought Benfica level on the night. They completed their comeback with a 70th minute goal from Talisca and as much as we pushed in the last 20 minutes we couldn't get the goal to send us to the final. It was incredibly frustrating as this is likely the only chance we'll get to win the Europa League and was also the chance to win the club it's first piece of European silverware. Benfica will play Inter Milan in the final in France later this month.

Next up will be the May update, can we overtake Union and win the league or will we have to settle for 2nd...
​
 
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