Athletic de Bilbao / Basque Identity

[Timmzeh]

View attachment 179036

Athletic de Bilbao

There is no club in the world like Athletic Bilbao. They have built their identity based on their geographical roots, rather than economical power. Bilbao's self-imposed rule of only fielding players from the Basque region is both applauded by some but critiscised by others. However in spite of this, they have been one of Spain's most successful clubs, winning La Liga 8 times and Copa del Rey 23 times, most recently in 1984. They also accompany only Real Madrid and Barcelona as the only clubs to have never been relegated from Spain's top flight. Despite their unique approach, it is clear that Bilbao's approach has worked throughtout history. However, having not finished in the top 3 of La Liga for over 15 years, is it becoming less effective? Will Bilbao's approach cost them, or will their Basque identity lead them back to the top of Spanish and European football?

The Basque Country

View attachment 179035

Map showing the Basque Country, the region in which Bilbao is allowed to recruit.

Recent History

View attachment 179034

Bilbao's form in La Liga over the past 20 seasons has been sporadic compared to their rich history.

Stadium

View attachment 179033

The San Mames Stadium was built in 2013, and has a capacity of just under 54,000.

I haven't done a story since my The Pozzo Machine story on FM15 so I am really looking forward to getting into this!
​

 

[razielioux]

Will follow mate!

Clone Muniain and Laporte and you'll be just fine.

 

[Timmzeh]

View attachment 177851

Pre-Season 2015 Update

Key Players

View attachment 177850 View attachment 177849 View attachment 177848 View attachment 177847 View attachment 177846

These 5 players are what I believe will be the spine of the team going forward. Aymeric Laporte is in my opinion easily our best player right now, solid defender who can play the ball around very well, he is still only 21. It will be important to keep him at the club. He will be partnered by Mikel San Jose at CB. Since resigning for the club from Liverpool in 2010 he was been one of the first names on the teamsheet. Raul Garcia and Ander Iterraspe will be playing in the centre of midfield for us this season. Experienced ST Artiz Aduriz will be the spearhead of our attack this season and we will be looking to him for goals.

Hot Prospects

View attachment 177827 View attachment 177826

To go along with Laporte, we have plenty of young talent in the squad. Kepa Arrizabalaga is currently on loan at Real Vallodolid, and although he wont be with our squad this year, I think he has the potential to be our keeper for years to come. Inaki Williams however is with our squad this season, and will definitely be in and around the first team. We also have some nice young talents in the B team.

Tactics

View attachment 177843 View attachment 177842

Two main tactics will be used this year. The first more attacking as we look to control possession and pick teams apart. The second is a much more counter-attacking based formation, will be used mainly in big away games.

Pre-Season Odds

View attachment 177841

The pre-season odds suggest that we will come 6th, with the same odds to win the league as Villerreal and Real Sociedad in 7th and 8th. I dont think there is a chance we can beat Barca, Real Madrid or Atletico this season, however my personal goal is 4th place and Champions League football next year.


The next update will be at the end of the Summer transfer window. I am not looking to make any major moves, we will see what happens!

​

 

[Timmzeh]

View attachment 176746


Summer Transfer Window and Pre-Season Update

Transfer News

So I went into the Summer intending to make very few moves, and that is exactly how it turned out. In fact, we did absolutely no business at all, no ins and no outs. Instead, I hope to spend money on investing in youth and facilities, the board have so far turned down my reqeusts, hopefully they will change their mind soon.

Results

View attachment 176745

So we had a busy pre-season schedule. We qualified for the Europa League fairly comfortably with 4-1 and 3-0 wins over SCR Altach and Debrecen. As expected. We also competed in the Spanish Super Cup against Barcelona. I went in hoping for the best but knowing we really didnt have a chance. We didnt embaress ourselves, but we lost the tie 4-1 over 2 legs. We have also started our La Liga campaign, and have 3 points from 2 games. We had to play Barca again and were beaten comfortably 3-0 at home. We then went to the gritty small town of Eibar and got a good 3 points.

La Liga Table

View attachment 176744

Not much to tell from this yet, but we are sitting in 9th. Barca start well and Real Madrid already drop points.

Europa League

View attachment 176743

Our Europa League group has been drawn, and whilst it is tough I expect us to make it at least to the Knockout Rounds.

Squad Overview

View attachment 176742

Squad by order of apps. Susueta and Raul Garcia stand out to me as key performers so far.
​

 

[Timmzeh]

View attachment 176134

September - October Update / Getting Started

Before we get into the results, there are a few general updates to get through.Firstly, we started off September with some bad news, too fairly long-term injuries to two key players. Firstly, our no.1 goalkeeper Gorka Iraizoz injured his hip and will be out for 2-3 months. The same daty, Ander Iturraspe was diagnosed with Hernia and will miss 4-5 weeks.

View attachment 176127

View attachment 176128

We did have some good news however, with the board agreeing to increase the junior coaching budget. It will now reach an excellent standard.

View attachment 176126


Results

View attachment 176125

We started September off in really poor domestic form. We lost at home to Getafe in a really dissapointing performace and then went to Villarreal and were embaressed. In between those games however, we did manage to beat Augsburg at home to start our Europa League well. We then started to turn our performances around. We manage a spirited draw to Real Madrid at home before beating our arch rivals Real Sociedad away from home. Liverpool smashed us at Anfield, and we get a decent draw to Valencia. We then went on to win the final 3 games of October with some good performances. A good end to the month.

Player of the Update

View attachment 176123

Markel has been brilliant for us over the last two months. He was a shining light when we were playing poorly and has continued his good performances throughout the entire 2 months. Undoubtedly our MVP so far. I have rewarded him with a contract as his current deal ended in 2017.

La Liga Table

View attachment 176122

We sit in a respectable 7th place with a game in hand over most at the end of October. We were in the relegation zone not so long ago so I am happy to see we have finally got our act together. If we are to finish in 4th, we need to continue our good run and make it permanent form. Barca already running away with the league it seems. Granada and Celta looking like dangerous teams this season.

Europa League

View attachment 176121

We are sitting nicely in 4th, but need to make sure we dont slip up if we are to qualify for the knockout rounds. Augsburg are right behind us.

Spanish Cup Draw

View attachment 176118

Should be a comfortable tie for us.

Squad Overview

View attachment 176124

Some good performances for Suseta mentioned earlier, as well as Oscar de Marcos and Aymeric Laporte. Some more good news as Iker Munian has just come back from injury and scored on his return to action. Hopefully he will settle straight back into the team.The next update will be at the beggining of January. We start our run in the Spanish Cup, as well as look to advance through the groups in the Europa and sustain our European challenge in the league.

​

 

[Safc-mad-scotty]

Nice start mate. Bilbao stories are always interesting so look forward to seeing what you can achieve with them.

I've got a save on the go in Spain and have noticed a young striker from Bilbao who has been playing very well who you might want to keep your eye on, Asier Villalibre.

 

[Timmzeh]

Nice start mate. Bilbao stories are always interesting so look forward to seeing what you can achieve with them.

I've got a save on the go in Spain and have noticed a young striker from Bilbao who has been playing very well who you might want to keep your eye on, Asier Villalibre.

Cheers mate, he's currently in the B team, looking like he has good potential, will keep an eye!

 

[wxmafc]

It's a big quest getting Bilbao to become a force to beat. Interesting to see where you can get them.

Sent from my SM-G928F using Tapatalk

 

[Timmzeh]

View attachment 175046

November - December Update 2015

With some good form at the end of October, we went into November looking to continue our good form with our injury-free squad.

La Liga

View attachment 175044

We started off by loosing to the fast starting Real Betis, poor performance. Other notable games include the 1-1 draw away at a very good Granada side who are challenging for CHampions League, a late 1-0 loss to Atletico despite us playing very well, and a brilliant 2-0 win away at Celta. Our record over the period is W5, D1, L2, which is not bad at all.

View attachment 175036

We sit in a more than respectable 5th place, tied on points with 3rd and 4th. Granada and Real Betis look like they were undestimated at the beggining of the season, the media predicted that they would finish 14th and 11th respectively. I highlighted Real Madrid, Barca and Atletico as teams I thought we would be unable to beat in the league this year, although Atleticos poor start means we are ahead of them. I also highlighted Valenica, Sevilla and Villarreal as teams I thought we could beat to 4th spot and a Champions League place. We are currently ahead of all those 3 teams too. Maybe Granada and Betis will drop off, or we will have to adjust who we think our main rivals are this season.

Spanish Cup

View attachment 175042

I played the youngsters in both games and they got the job done. We have been drawn against a giant and will do very well to progress from here.

View attachment 175041

Europa League

View attachment 175039

We went into the second half of our Europa League matches in a solid position where nothing but progressing to the knockout rounds would be acceptable. However we fall to Augsburg away and get smashed by Liverpool at the San Mames to fall out of the competition. Time to concentrate on domestic football I guess.

View attachment 175037

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Player of the Update

View attachment 175033

Oscar de Marcos is the POTU. He has been brilliant playing as a Wing Back, bombing up and down that right side and providing some brilliant assists. His play has really impressed me as well as other teams, with the media reporting that Benfica and Liverpool are both interested in his services.

Squad Overview

View attachment 175031

Laporte and San Jose have been solid as our CB pairing. Mikel Rico and Benat have stepped up in the absence of the injury prone Iturraspe. Aduriz has been unfit and when he has been off the doctors table he has been poor, Inaki Williams has played in his place up front and played really well. Munian's return to fitness has been a big boost, he has put in some decent performances from the left wing.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Injury News

View attachment 175030

Markel Suseta will miss most of the season with an achilles injury. A big blow as he has been a staple in our first team. I will likely look to Ibai Gomez to come in and replace him, or move de Marcos up to the right wing with Ramalho slotting in at RB.

January Plans

Again, like the Summer, I place on making little changes in the transfer market. I hope to instead invest further into our youth system and facilities. However there is big interest in our best players from some top European sides, so I think we will do well to keep hold of everyone.


View attachment 175028 View attachment 175027
​

 

[Timmzeh]

View attachment 174630

January Transfer Update 2016

We went into January with a fairly tough run of fixtures, as well as having to think about the transfer market.
There was much speculation from the media linking very big european clubs such as PSG, Chelsea, Arsenal and Bayern Munich to a range of our players. SL Benfica tried to sign young talent Aiser Villabre and a few teams tried to sign our high flying wing back Oscar de Marcos, but we were having none of it. There was also some speculation from a few huge clubs for out back-up RB/CB Jonas Ramalho. He has played very well this season when he has had the chance, but will always be a back-up. He wanted to move, so I decided to cash in on him and sell him to Premier League leaders, Arsenal. We managed to negotiate a deal worth 8 million, but it could rise to 12 million.

View attachment 174629

That was the only business we did in January, with no one really available to me I wasn't interested in signing anyone, I was more happy that we held on to the core of our squad.

European Transfers

View attachment 174628

I was going to show the La Liga transfers, however there were hardly any signings for Spanish teams. The most a La Liga team spent on a single player was £2.2 million, Villarreal signing Kouyate. There were however a few big transfers away from Spain, Alcacer and Mussachio both going to Man Utd. (For very good deals too).


Facilities Upgraded

View attachment 174627 View attachment 174626

I managed to persude the board to updgrade both the training and youth facilities at the end of the season! The best business we did this transfer window!
​

 

[Luke4]

Will be good to see how far you can take them! I sense developing your own academy players will play a big part in this story

 

[Timmzeh]

View attachment 174619

January Update 2016


Injury

View attachment 174618

A blow right at the beggining of January, our young star Inaki Williams picks up an injury which will keep him out for a while. He has been our no.1 striker this year.


Results

View attachment 174617

Not too happy with our results this month. The draw at home to Eibar and the loss away at struggling Sevilla were dissappointing to me. We did however have some good wins, especially the win at home to Atletico putting us through to the Copa del Rey Quarter finals. We would beat Getafe comfortably in that tie meaning we will be in the semi-finals of this years competition!

Copa del Rey Semi-Finals

View attachment 174625

We will play Barcelona again in the semi-finals, unbelievably the 5th and 6th time I will play against them already as manager of Athletic!

La Liga Table

View attachment 174623

We lie in 7th place, but despite a poor month we are still only 3 points off 3rd place Granada. We are 7 points above Sevilla in 8th though. Granada and Betis both proving they are real contenders for European football next year.

Player of the Month

View attachment 174624

Our talented youngster Unai Lopez is POTM. He has done well when given the chance, he has been key in both wins over Getafe this month.

Squad Overview

View attachment 174621

De Marcos and Laporte have been our best two players so far this season.

Fixtures

View attachment 174620

A tough month ahead as we play Barca twice, Real Madrid and Valencia. March looks a lot easier, however we play Betis and Granada who are both playing very well at the moment.
​

 

[Timmzeh]

View attachment 174250

February - March 2016 Update

Results

View attachment 174249

We faced a near impossible task of Barcelona in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey, we can take some pride in losing 4-2 on aggregate. Proud of the boys for getting that far. Following the 3-0 loss at the Bernabau, we kept 5 consecutive clean sheets! Huge wins included a 5-0 thrashing of our biggest rivals Real Sociedad and a great win away at Gary Neville's Valencia. We also beat European qualification rivals Real Betis with a 91st minute header from super-sub Ibai Gomez. April ended with a poor result away at struggling Espanyol, but overall we have been brilliant over this period.

La Liga Table

View attachment 174246

This is how the table looks at the beggining of April. We sit in 4th, 4 points behind Granada, and 3 points ahead of Atletico, but they have a game in hand. Granada have been brilliant this season, you have to think they will qualify for the Champions League now. Betis are still right there too. I think Valencia have too much to do to finish in the top 4 though. At the top of the table Barca have struggled recently and Real Madrid, who are still unbeaten, sit in the driving seat. Its close at the bottom of the table too.

Player of the Update

View attachment 174244

Iago Herrerin is without doubt POTU. He has made some fantastic saves over the 2 months. In the league, he kept 6 clean sheets in 8 games! His average rating doesnt show how good he has been this year, but he has made some world-class saves.

Squad Overview

View attachment 174242

Not much to add here, Laporte and de Marcos continue to be our best players. Aduriz has been very inconsistent this year which has been dissapointing. Another thing to note is that not one of our players has 10 goals this year. It shows that we aren't relying on one player, but are lacking someone we can rely on to bang in the goals.


Youth Intake

View attachment 174240

Not a bad youth intake, I would've preffered a few more attacking players.

Ruben Larrazabal

View attachment 174239

Ruben doesn't look too bad at all. My assistant seems to really like him, we will see how he develops.

Fixtures

View attachment 174230

A huge 2 months ahead for us, starting with MASSIVE game against Granada at the San Mames. If we dont win that, I dont think we will be able to catch them. We also play Atletico at home, another massive game for us. We beat them 3-1 at home earlier in the season in the cup, hopefully we can have a repeat performance! Rayo, Malaga and Levante are all must wins. If things are close at the end of the season we will face Sevilla, a tough game.
​

 

[kolas79]

Good luck in the game with Granada man ! Boy they look strong !

 

[Timmzeh]

Good luck in the game with Granada man ! Boy they look strong !

Cheers mate, doing the update now. They have been solid all year which has surprised me because they are bottom IRL! I had a look at their squad and they are all getting good ratings, Cuenca on loan from Barca has been their best player.

 

[Timmzeh]

View attachment 173828

April - May 2016 Update

We went into the final stages of the season with a top 4 finish in the balance. Granada were still flying in 3rd due to being very consistent over the whole season, is it too late to catch them? Atletico were have not reached their potential so far are right behind us, awaiting any slip ups. We had to finish strong.

Results

View attachment 173824

We started April with a huge game at home to Granada. We went 1-0 up through a Oscar de Marcos screamer, however they quickly pegged us back. They then showed why they are in the position they are, and held strong defensiively and took a well earned point. We were still 4 points behind them, it would be tough to beat them from there. A good home win to Rayo before a loss away at the rising Malaga put a real thorn in our European ambitions. We then had arguably an even bigger game than the Granada game, home to Atletico. The game again ended 1-1, with Griezmann and de Marcos getting on the scoresheet. At this point, a top 4 finish was out of our hands, to have any chance we would have to finish the season strongly and hope for slip ups elsewhere. As you can see, we finished the season with 4 straight wins, all by a margin of 1 goal. 17 points from our last 8 games.

A top 4 place would depend on how Granada and Atletico finished the season.

GRANADA

View attachment 173811

Granada did well, until the collapsed towards the end of the season with 3 losses out of their last 4 games. Given they were playing tough games. 11 points from 8 games.

ATLETICO

View attachment 173813

Atletico's problem is clear, they could not stop drawing. they were solid defensively, but just couldn't score when it mattered most. They picked up 17 points from their last 9 games.


La Liga Table

View attachment 173810

We did it! We finish in 3rd place, despite being behind Granada by 4 points with 2 games left. What an achievment for our squad at this stage! The money brought in from the Champions League will help us massively in developing our facilities and young players as much as possible, and builiding a dyansty in the Basque country! Barca cruised to win the league after beating Real Madrid 3-0 in el Classico, Levante, Rayo and Deportivo go down. Our rivals Sociedad finish 12th, whilst Sevilla and Valencia will be dissappointed with 10th and 7th respectively.

View attachment 173803


Player of the Update

View attachment 173808

Oscar de Marcos has been unbelievable in the final 2 months of the season. He scored 2 goals in both our big games against Granada and Atletico, from Right Back. He actually averaged 8.26 through our last 8 games, unbelievable form. Our MVP this year.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So that draws the season to a close. I will do one final update reviewing the season and checking other leagues. A brilliant season for us, finishing above expectations in 3rd. We dont need to go through and Champions League play-offs, so can look forward to the Champions League group stages next year! I will leave you with a screenshot showing our rise throughout the season.

View attachment 173802

​

 

[kolas79]

A great achievement well done ! Some thoughts about new transfers maybe ?

 

[Timmzeh]

A great achievement well done ! Some thoughts about new transfers maybe ?

Haha cheers mate! Im not going to bring any big names in, I'm going to get some youth players though.

 

[Timmzeh]

View attachment 173444

End of Season Review / 2015-2016

Player of the Season

View attachment 173426

View attachment 173424

Oscar de Marcos is without doubt my POTS. He has been fantastic for us, putting on brilliant performance after brilliant performance, and his average rating proves it. The 4th best player in average rating in the entire Liga BBVA over the season. Hopefully we can retain his services, I know it will be tough. 2nd would be Laporte and 3rd would be Mikel Rico.

Young Player of the Year

View attachment 173425

View attachment 173423

Keeping hold of this guy will not only change our next season but our clubs entire future. Potential to be one of the world's best defenders, we need to keep hold of him. He currently has a release clause of £35.5 million, I need to try and extend his contract this summer otherwise I fear it will be met, huge interest in him as well. 2nd Inaki Williams and 3rd Unai Lopez.

Bilbao TOTY

View attachment 173422

I dont know who chose these teams but it is wrong! San Jose should be in instead of Ramalho, Iturraspe in for Lopez and Raul Garcia in for Benat at CAM.


La Liga Awards

Player of the Season

View attachment 173419

Suarez had a brilliant season, Messi, Neymar and Ronaldo all underperformde slightly I think.Goalkeeper of the Year

View attachment 173421

Brilliant season for Navas and R. Madrid defensively as Navas only conceded 0.5 goals a game. Niether of ours had a chance as they didnt play enough games, Herrerin took over from Iraizoz half way through the year as our no.1 keeper.

Manager of the Year

View attachment 173420

I agree with the top two places, but think I deserved to beat Zidane to 3rd.

Team of the Season

View attachment 173414

De Marcos makes La Liga team of the year and Laporte makes the bench. Dont know how Dani Alves wasn't included in the starters. Also dont know how some players like Negredo or Isco got in over others. Messi and Ronaldo on the bench only..?


La Liga Stats

Player Stats

View attachment 173406View attachment 173405

Messi and Suarez leading in goals and assists.

View attachment 173404 View attachment 173403 View attachment 173402

Laporte leads both key tackles and interceptions!

Player of the Match's

View attachment 173401

Oscar de Marcos leads this category with 11 POTMs.

Team Goals and Conceded

View attachment 173409 View attachment 173408

Very happy with these screens. I built this team to be hard to beat rather than to outscore teams, so I am very happy with us only conceding 33 in 38 games. I would like to score more though. Granada and Atletico had a much better goal difference than us, but we scored when it mattered.

Salary per Annum

View attachment 173407

Really happy with this too. We are paying much less money than the big 5 teams. Although this screen does show how good Granada have done!

Transfer Window

View attachment 173412

As you can see I have a reasonable budget. I dont expect to do much business in the first team. I hope we can hold on to our big players, if not I will be forced to dive into the market and see who is available to us. There is much interest in our big players, as you would expect after the season we have had. I do hope to bring in some youth players though and start a converyer belt of Basquonians coming through the ranks!
​

 

[PatrickLFC]

Great first season mate, congrats!