Birmingham's Journey to European Dreams: A Casey32 Story

[casey32]

The Beginning

Contents

Pages 1-2: Season 2009/2010
Pages 2-3: Season 2010/2011
Pages 3-4: Season 2011/2012
Pages 4-6: Season 2012/2013
Pages 6+: Season 2013/2014 (In Progress)​

As Alex McLeish left Birmingham due to family reason the reins were passed on to rookie Irish manager Simon Casey. Fans have greeted this appointment with concern as it will be the ex Sunday league football first professional job in football management. Casey released a statement saying,

" I will strive to bring European football to St.Andrews, along with an attacking style that will dazzle and mesmerize fans across the nation, the Continent and hopefully some day the World. I do know this will not happen over night but i will try my best to ensure it is sooner rather than later. I will work with passion and will not let the fans of Birmingham City down."

The introduction of Casey has lead to many changes to the Squad, Casey has been reportedly given £27 million in order to achieve a mid-table finish. Six players where shown the door with Fahey joining Hoffenheim for £3.3m along with Maik Taylor (£375k), O'Connor moving to Bolton in return of £1.9m. Fans favourite was sent packing back to former club West Brom (£200k) and a surprise loan move for Lee Bowyer saw him join Bayern for a fee of £275k with an option to purchase at £1.6m. Tainio was sent back to his parent club as Casey felt he was surplus to requirements.

Plenty of fresh faces came in 12 in total, Djalo was the first of the dozen signing for £800k from Sporting, the big names where Milevskiy (£5m), Anthony Annan (£3.3m) and Diego Buonanotte (£3.8m). This players helped the fans believe that Casey did indeed mean what he had said. The other new faces where Gary Kenneth (£875k), Aron Gunnarsson (£2.1m), Dmitriy Verkhovtsev (£1.1m), Ousmane N'Doye (£1.6m), Lacina Traore (£3.4m), Razvan Rat (£3.2m), Andrew Driver (£2.5m) and finally Rafael Toloi (£3.4m) . Casey is said to be happy with the squad but my look towards strengthen defence in January if needed.

Pre season went well for the blues with six wins out of seven, a 5-3 loss to Sheff Utd after mistakes from England keeper Joe Hart cost the Blues a loss of pride but confidence remains high at St.Andrews. Despite players such as Michel, Djalo , Kenneth and Hart being unimpressive praise was given to Jerome, Queudrue, Johnson and Mcfadden who look in good shape to keep there place in the starting 11.

Birmingham will kick-off their Premiership campaign with a home game vs. Chelsea followed by two away games to Wolves and Burnley. City where also drawn against Norwich in the League Cup Second Round.The Blues are set to have 5 players missing for the opening games due to injury Toloi, Scott Dann, Liam Ridgewell and livewire Christian Benitez. The media expects Birmingham to finish 17th so Casey and his men will have to fight to prove them wrong, only time will tell......

GAME INFO

-Original 10.3, patch no update or editing
-Use of my own made tactics, no use of wonder tactics
-No use of corner glitches and Honest results i report what happened i dont replay games till i win. ​

 

[bobatov]

looks good

im a bluse fan so will be following this

---------- Post added at 01:26 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:25 AM ----------

oh and joe hart making mistakes, something's not quite right there haha

 

[Paul LUFC Custus]

looks pritty good so far mate.

 

[zululoz]

looks good mate, good luck with the mighty blues

 

[bolase]

Looks good, lots of signings there

 

[casey32]

Thanks bit worried bout defence hopefully strikeforce will cancel it out, ye ive had hart on my QPR story and was a rock and always wanted him on my Coventry story . hopefully thats the last of the mistakes good it happened in friendlies and that i failed to sign Enyeama or his place would be under question.

 

[Beckham_7]

good to see you back ...good luck with new story ,will you use your famous tactic or a new one

 

[nelsonBcFc]

i will be following

 

[casey32]

good to see you back ...good luck with new story ,will you use your famous tactic or a new one

well i lost all my fm files so had to download my tactic of this site but i uploaded a weaker version so i am just changing it a bit and it looks better. wish i uploaded proper tactic rather than being selfish guess i paid the price

 

[casey32]

August and September Report

Results

(Home) Chelsea 0-3 : A thrashing from a top side lucky to only lose by 3


(Away) Wolves 3-4 : An exciting game a first half sending off to Annan saw The Blues crumble to a wolves onslaught, goals from Mcfadden, N'Doye and Jerome.

(Away) Burnley 2-1 : Casey was delighted to get his sides first win of the season despite a poor performance, goals from Verkhovtsev (pen) and Buonanotte.

(Away) Norwich 3-0 : Birmingham came out on top in this League Cup second round clash, goals from Milevskyi (2) and Verkhovtsev.

(Home) Bolton 2-0 : Another 3 points to add to their mid-table hopes, unlucky not to be 3-0 after a penalty was missed by Verkhovtsev , goals from Jerome and Milevskyi.

(Away) Arsenal 1-2 : A strong performance from The Blues, a late goal from Eduardo stole the 3 points, goal from Verkhovtsev.

(Home) Man Utd 1-3 : Birmingham took the lead but failed to hold onto it, remained level until two late goals from Rooney and Berbatov, goal from Benitez.

(Home) Ipswich 2-0 : Birmingham go through to the 4th round after beating Ipswich in the 3rd round of the League Cup, goals from Djalo (2).

(Away) Liverpool 5-0 : A shock result, after going in at half time at 1-0 after a goal against the run of play. Casey changed his approach and his side came out after the break on fire pinning Liverpool back to their own half, goals from Djalo, Verkhovtsev, Mcfadden, Jerome and N'Doye (pen).

Review

After a shaky start to their campaign with two defeats Birmingham have done well considering the calibure of opposition they have had to face. Tinkering to the tactics over the games has seen Birmingham look stronger game by game. Verkhovtsev a versatile player usually plays in defence but can slot in midfield quite easily has been a gem for the club, the powerful Belarus international has been a rock at the back along with scoring the odd goal. Birmingham's squad is still not at full strength with at one point 7 players being unavailable due to injury.

League Table

 

[casey32]

Casey Looks to Youth

Birmingham manager Simon Casey is rumored to be in the market for players under the age of 18 in order to help his aims to push The Blues into the European elite. Casey has been quoted saying, " Youth is the answer to ensuring a success will last".

 

[Tommo43]

nice start. thought u might sturggle at first with all the new faces and them needing time to gel

 

[nelsonBcFc]

Nice start, i wish i could be bothered to write a story.
When i was with blues i signed a quailty youngster Nelson Oliveria
good luck with the next month anyways

 

[casey32]

October Report

Results

(Home) Sunderland 3-0 : A great win for The Blues, a wonder goal from Milevskyi running from inside his own half beating 3 players before slotting it past the keeper. Soon after Milevskyi went off injured which will see him out for a month. Goals from Cattermole (o.g.), Milevskyi and Verkhovtsev (pen).

(Away) Fulham 2-4 : A cracking game but Birmingham failed to handle the Fulham strike force. Jerome was injured in the game seeing him out for 2months. Goals from Johnson and Jerome.

(Away) Hull 0-0 : A bore nil all draw

(Home) Liverpool 2-1 (aet) : Atfer going down 1-0 to a Gerrard free-kick The Blues showed great spirit to come back to win this League Cup 4th round clash. A penalty in extra time saw Birmingham through to fight another day, Traore was the man in the headlines with a superb performance. Goals from Benitez and Buonanotte (pen).

(Home) West Ham 0-0 : Another draw The Blues really should of won this one.

Review

The League Cup run goes on as Casey dreams of bringing silverware to St.Andrews. Lowlights have been yet again more injuries with has been testing the depth of the squad. Despite the 4-2 defeat to Fulham the defence has looked solid. The team looks to be gelling well and hopefully Birmingham will keep this form up. N'Doye has been instrumental in midfield with 6 assists in 7 games in the league but has been criticized for shooting from distance too often without any return. N'Doye and Djalo will be missing along Mcfadden for a few games along with the players named in the match reviews.

League Table

 

[casey32]

Birmingham Linked With Big Name

Reports from Flamengo sources has revealed Casey is chasing Brazil striker Adriano. The 27 year old has been said to be interested in a move to the Premiership, it is expected an £8 million price tag will be needed to prise the powerful striker to St.Andrews. Birmingham are rumored to have reduced their wage budget in order to secure their man, with £5 million still in the kitty reducing the wage budget would free up another £2.5 million and with Frank Queudrue joining Deportivo in January for £550,000 to money should be available. Only thing that is to be questions would Adriano join Birmingham and can they deal with his wage demands. Adriano has scored 9 goals in 13 games so far this season.

 

[casey32]

November Report

Results

(Home) Aston Villa 1-1 : A tough derby game that saw the return of Djalo and Milevskyi to the starting 11. Curtis Davis was sent off after receiving two yellows for bad challenges both on Djalo. Villa were unable to handle Djalo's pace and trickery and the Portuguese youngster gave his side the lead in the first half. N'Doye gave away a penalty in the second half which Collins coolly put away for Villa. Rat then took down Young in the box giving Villa a chance to take the lead, Rat was shown a second yellow card and given his marching orders. Collins stood up again but this time Hart was the hero saving the shot keeping The Blues in the game. A game filled with cards 7 yellows and 2 reds. Draw brought Birmingham to 4 games without a win in the league. Goals from Djalo.

(Away) Blackburn 4-1 : Closet to full strength team so far this season only Rat missing due to suspension and super sub Jerome still injured. Annan was lucky to stay on the pitch picking up a yellow early in the game and continued to fly into challenges after. 3-0 at half time. Hart unlucky to concede after a solid performance. Goals from Djalo (2) and Milevskyi (2).

(Home) Wigan 0-0 : Unsure how The Blues didn't win this one , despite Verkhovtsev given away a penalty which Hart saved (2nd saved from 3 faced this season). Birmingham had plenty of chances and should have gone in 3-0 at half time but Kirkland was on fire. 85th minute Birmingham given penalty surely The Blues would go on to steal the points, McFadden stood up only to see his effort saved by Kirkland. The superman like performance earned Kirkland the Man of the Match award which he completely deserved.

Review

A quiet month in terms of matches but full of action. The is finally not as injury struck, but 4 points out of 9 my seem poor but really they should have came away with 7 from 9. Birmingham where draw against Southampton in the FA Cup 3rd Round and Hull in the League Cup Quarter Final. In transfer news Frank Queudrue is set to join Deportivo in January for £550,000 and the Adriano deal was comfirmed and will join in January for £8 million adding to an already impressive strike force.

League Table

 

[casey32]

Any recommendations to improve i have kept it simpler then previous stories to speed up process but would love to hear suggestions

---------- Post added at 08:48 AM ---------- Previous post was at 07:01 AM ----------

Has any one had adriano just wondering how would u rate him? Never had him on fm 2010

---------- Post added at 09:40 AM ---------- Previous post was at 08:48 AM ----------

Been a fan of him since I saw him Play for florentina back in the day , tried signed him in every story and save but to no avail now I have I hope he doesn't turn out to be a flop. Him and mileskyi or djalo or chucho should be insane hopefully plus jerome and traore would give lots of cover with injury. Chucho has been dissappointing though :'(. Any body have any CMs with good height, as with Annan in DM I need someone to win headers in midfield. My look into one and sell Chucho

 

[casey32]

December Report

Results

(Home) Hull 2-0 (League Cup Quarter Final) : Ferguson was given his first start under Casey replacing the banned N'Doye. Bored game more like an example of head tennis rather than the beautiful game. Goals from McFadden and Djalo.

(Away) Tottenham 3-5 : 5 goals in the first half going in at the break 3-2 to Spurs. Two crackers from Croatian duo Modric and Kanjcar. Where completely outplayed and handed Tottenham the game after hanging with stupid defensive mistakes. Gunnarsson scored his first for the club , Djalo and Annan played with passion keeping the result respectable rest of squad where laughable. First defeat in 6 games in Premiership start of a slippy slope. Goals from Djalo, Milevskyi and Gunnarsson.

(Home) Man City 1-2 : Doyle stepped in for the ineligible Joe Hart. The game kicked off with a N'Doye thunderbolt crashing of the crossbar. A last minute hoof up the pitch by Given was met by the head of Adebayor outside the box, the header looped over Doyle to give Man City the points. Birmingham can blame both manager and players with a mix of poor substitutions and wasted chances costing them the game. Goal from Djalo.

(Home) Portsmouth 2-0 : Buonanotte picked up an injury in this game seeing him sidelined for 3 weeks. A 60 yard killer ball from Larsson unlocked the defence for Djalo to put The Blues ahead with 20 minutes of play left on the clock. McFadden converted a penalty to make it 2-0. first win in 4 league games. Goals from Djalo and Mcfadden (pen).

(Away) Everton 0-2 : Driver and Ferguson given a suprise start. A penalty given away by Johnson was dispatched to give Everton the lead. Everton deserved win as Birmingham continue to look poor. Annan picked up 5th yellow of the season.

(Away) Stoke 3-4 : Game off to a flyer Birmingham taking the leading after 2 minutes, 2 minutes later 1-1 and 2 minutes later again the Blues made it 2-1. Stoke won a controversial penalty that Higginbotham put away. Tuncay tore apart defence finishing with two goals. Djalo scores offside goal in injury time, it looked close. Goals from Mcfadden, Milevskyi and Johnson.

(Home) Chelsea 0-2 : Carr given his first game of the season. Chelsea's second goal was a carbon copy of the Ronaldinho and Seaman incident of 2002. Annan sent off.

(Home) Wolves 1-2 : An usual starting 11 as players rested duo too a tough Christmas period. Chucho scored to put himself back in his managers thought but picked up an injury just after. Keogh scored 5 minutes from the end, completely against the run of play. The wasteful Blues make it 4 straight defeats as they slip down the table. Goal from Benitez.


Review

6 points from a possible 24, the poorest form since Casey took charge saw Birmingham drop rapidly down the table. Players have been complaining, Annan over unfair fine over sending off and Traore unhappy about Adriano set to join saying there is to much competition. The Blues will face Man City in the League Cup Semi Final. Vignal has signed for Racing for £100k and also Michel has left leaving for Stuttgart for £1.2 million. Larsson and Benitez signed new contracts.Also for unknown reason Buonanotte will be unavailable till 30.6.210

League Table

 

[casey32]

Birmingham aim for Buonanotte replacement

With Buonanotte missing till 30.6.2010 due to medical reasons Casey has set his sights on loaning in Chile star Alexis Sanchez. The 21 year old Udinese man has been unsettled at the Itailian club and a move to St.Andrews for the remainder of the season could be exactly what he needs. Casey is a keen admirer of Sanchez saying in a recent press conference ," Sanchez is one of the brightest youngster in football, his explosive pace, immense trickery is ideal for the Premiership. I love to be able to have him in my squad."

 

[Jasonlfc96]

will be a great signing if you do sign sanchez not the best of seasons so far but good luck any way