Bolton Challenge

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AidoGooners

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Good evening everyone,

I've been playing football manager for many years and have recently been enjoying following some of the FM manager stories. I've just finished my 12th Season in my latest game, where firstly I won everything with Arsenal for a few seasons, followed by a 5 year run taking Barnsley to the champions league. After the success, I thought it was a good time to start a new game and new challenge and actually track my progress on this.

I generally prefer English saves and have had lots of various success with lower league teams and brining them to the top. I've had a soft spot for Bolton and was a little sad when they had all their recent troubles. As an Arsenal fan as well,signing Holding this week kinda makes me wanna start a game with Bolton and try to bring success back to the club!

It's gonna be difficult but should definitely be a good challenge.

I'll put up another post once I have started the game and reviewed the squad.

Aido
 
Season Expectations

As many of you are aware, Bolton have been given a transfer ban for the entire season, expiring on the 31st May 2016. As such there are limited options in choosing goals for the upcoming season. (none at all :)) 0 Transfer budget and 203k per week. Not great but will provide a good challenge to have a successful season with the players already in the squad.

The board have set the following expectations

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Personally, I am going to try to push for the playoffs. Good cup runs would be excellent but I am not too bothered about them and will probably play some of the younger players.

Initial Formation Thoughts

It is quite difficult, looking at the squad to select a formation straight away without some trial and error but I think I will start with 3 centre backs, 2 wing backs, 3 centre midfielders and 2 strikers and tweak from there. 5-3-2.

I am going to play my first couple of friendlies now and will revert back with a more detailed breakdown of formation and tactics after I have had a chance to assess the squad.
 
Formation and Tactics

I've decided to go with a 5-3-2 type of setup, basically as described previously but with a CDM.

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Bolton have 5-6 good level centre midfielders so decided I definitely wanted three in the middle. At the back i wanted a little bit of structure and given the lack of wingers of note, decided to try to make use of a wing back type system.

The roles I've picked partly due to the players I have available and partly due to past saves with these role types and the style of play I want to achieve. I like my wing backs to get forward as much as possible so have went for attacking complete wingbacks. In the middle, I have went with one box to box midfielder to hopefully get 10 goals this season and the other as a roaming playmaker.

As pre-season goes on I will probably need to tweak this but I think the formation and roles at the moment gives me a good starting point.

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In terms of tactics, I want to control possession, have a structured high defensive style. Keeping possession is something I like to do but the number one thing I want to try and achieve here is a solid defence. Control generally speaking with the right roles and players have helped me achieve this in the past (with lower teams). If I can keep clean sheets, I can start building/tweaking the attacking side of my tactics slowly as the season progresses.
 
Players
Not much I can do in terms of bringing players in given the transfer embargo so I am going to have to manage the current squad as best as I can - at least for the first season.

Goalkeepers - Not much to say here. Ben Amos is the clear number 1 keeper. Not 100% convinced with his ability but I think he's a decent choice in this division. Other options are short - Paul Rachubka who I've demoted to the 21's (past it) and Will Jaaskelainen (next GK legend at Bolton). To be fair Will has been good in saves (down the line). I will use Will for the cup games. Hope I do not get an injury to Amos.

Central Defenders - Going to have to rely on youth here as I am probably a little short to play 3 centre backs.
Wheater, Osede and Dervite will all start, pending fitness. Rotation with Holding and Quade Taylor who also looks like he has potential. Few other options in the u21's and u'18s that will be used in Emergencies.

Wing Backs - Definitely short here. I am going to use Dean Moxey on the left and Laurie Wilson on the right as the first choice players. Filipe Twardzik will act as cover on the left. Beyond that, I really have no options other than to retrain players positions. On the left I have started retraining Tom Walker and on the right, Jack Everest. Both are young wingers who look like they could become promising players. Definitely going to have a think about this as there may be other players I can retrain.

Central Midfielders - Probably my best area in terms of the squad. Decided that Josh Vela (Box to Box), Mark Davies (roaming playmaker) and Jay Spearing (Defensive midfielder) will be my first choice midfield. I have 3 good back ups as well (Liam Trotter - Box to Box), (Neil Danns - Roaming) and (Darren Partley - Defensive Mid). Got no real concerns around the middle of the park and the back up options. small worry about Partley as back up CDM but will see how the youth players develop as the season progresses.
Beyond these 6 there are a few talented kids it seems but unless I have an injury disaster, they will stay in the youth teams this season.

Strikers - Zach Clough is the stand out player here and also partly why I am using Trequarista up front. I've had him there before and he was an absolute beast. Longer term I will probably play to play him up front with Max Clayton but he's out for 3-4 months from the start of the save. Wellington Silva (on loan from Arsenal) has been retrained as a Trequarista for now. Will see how he gets on in Pre-Season. Aside from these guys, we've the legend that is Heskey who i do not see playing too much and Gary Madine. Quite good strength in depth and I hope they can get me enough goals. Stephen Dobbie will probably not get much chance as I will look to get Jamie Thomas and Alex Samizadeh some opportunities. Both are talented kids I think!!

As the season progresses, I will look at some of the other talented kids in the two youth teams. Always try my best to get them into the first team setup as quick as possible

​
 
Pre-Season

I try to play as many friendlies as possible to get the players used to the formation. I generally try to also have a couple of easy fixtures to boost morale but that's not been as easy as I expected with Bolton, so I had a few poor results. Generally speaking though, pretty pleased with how pre-season went and particularly pleased with how my experiment with wellington silva is going as a retrained trequartista - 11 games, 11 goals! Not a bad return, albeit with hat tricks against two underwhelming sides.

Haven't changed the main formation or tactical base much so far, just added some specific player instructions. Overall, keeping the ball well and seem to be controlling possession and creating enough CCC. One thing I will keep an eye on is the defensive line, my current centre backs are all very slow and have been caught out with long balls over the top quite a bit.

For now here's my results and player stats during pre-season.

By the way if anyone has any su ggestions or ideas on how to structure the updates, I'd be very appreciative. At the moment I am just trying to cover the items I think are important.


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Got a save going on with Bolton myself at the moment, good luck dude (Zach Clough is awesome)
 
Looking forward to seeing how you do with this being a huge BWFC fan. Madine has always done well for me in my games alongside Clough and Jamie Thomas always turns out to be a decent goalscorer. Vela also turns into a decent premier League CM!!

Good Luck
 
Sorry for the lack of updates. I was travelling but I managed to play 6-8 matches in the airport. Will write these up shortly.

I think I will put an update up for every game month I go through on the game.

Looking forward to seeing how vela and clough turn out. I do also like the look of Thomas. I think he can score some goals this season.
 
3119

August

After a pretty decent pre-season, the season is upon us. P.s I spend all of pre-season with more match training and picked Team Cohesion and Tactical as the two options. High as well.

The tactics going into game one are at 89/100.

Match 1 Bolton vs Derby (H)

So first up. Derby at home. Derby up there with the pre-season favourites for promotion so a challenging start.

I started off with what I believe to be the best available team to me at the moment.

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It was a pretty cagey affair, very close fought match. Not much between the teams. I just about edged possession but I created very very little. I Found myself 1-0 down at half time, following a set piece goal from a corner. Poor marking but still in it. Worryingly, I had one attempted shot at half time.

At half time I upped the tempo and went attacking but to be honest I never really created anything concrete enough and was very lucky to get a point through an absolute thunderbolt from 30 yards from my left wing back in the 90th minute!! Delighted in the end. Poor start. Forwards didn't create a thing. Ended the match with 4 attempted shots and one on target. Not great.


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Match 2 Bolton vs Port Vale (H) in the carling cup.

Less said about this the better. Home to a poor port vale said and crashed out with a 1-0 defeat. I picked a very rotated side but still had Clough and Vela in the team. Expected better but again whilst having shots didn't have too many clear cut chances. The turning point was an early penalty miss from Clough who I think missed two in preseason as well. Anyway onwards and upwards, probably happy given the squad depth not to go through.
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Match 3 Next up Bolton vs Boro (A)

Visiting one of the favourite's for the league away at the beginning of the season. I didn't hold out much hope, was hoping for a draw at best. Before the game I made slight tweaks to the player instructions. i.e. More direct passing from the two wingbacks for them to take more risks with hopefully the balls into the box from the wide positions and changed Zach clough to roam from his position.

Again I went back to my first choice eleven.

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I actually couldn't believe what was happening here. Completely dominated boro away from home and raced into a 2-0 lead in the first half. I actually hit the post three times as well. Second half they came back into it a bit but I scored the third and then closed the game out.

Good to have Clough and Silva off the mark as well. Probably not top this result for the rest of the season.


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August Part 2

Match 4 - Bolton vs MK Dons (A)

Picked the exact same team again as I wanted to keep up the momentum.

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Very close game up until vela played in the right wingback with an outstanding ball. Wilson then drove down the wing into the box and crossed for clough to tap in for his second in two games. Vela got yellow card shortly after and got a way with a couple after just before MK Dons had a man sent off for 2 yellows. Pretty sure this is what got me the win. I passed the ball about a bit more but couldn't find the second. Wellington Silva seems to be playing v poorly. Anyway another 1-0 win to make it 2 wins and 1 draw in the first three league games. Can't believe it to be honest. Tactics seem defensively sound, if lacking going forward.


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Match 5 - Bolton vs Forest (H)
Once again kept the same side -I don't plan to do this too much longer but at the moment it seems to be working.
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Pretty dominate performance but can't seem to create clear cut chances and not getting enough shots on target. Silva was brutal, 5.9 at half time. Hooked off but still couldn't score. Not sure I have the right player to play Trequarista at the moment. Will rethink this.. Anyway a 0-0, another clean sheet and completely stopped forest doing anything. Happy defensively but going forward not creating anything near enough. Can;t complain with the start though.

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Match 6 - Bolton vs Blackburn (A)
Kept the same team again with exception of Silva as I've had 3 clean sheets in a row but will look to mix it up next match I think. Madine came in for silva.

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Pretty even game, to be honest lucky to get a point. Another clean sheet but once again not a lot of chances. Madine didn't really make a difference. Wrong player role for a start. Going to change this I think and rotate players to see how they get on. To make matters worse, Clough had to go off injured but fortunately he is only out for 6-8 days.

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Not a bad start at all! Played 5 won 2 drew 3 and sitting in 4th. 4 clean sheets but only 5 goals. Work to be done but have to be happy with that start and particularly the defensive side of things given I was worried about the lack of pace at the end of pre-season.

In terms of player performances. The wingbacks are excelling, Midfield and Centre backs are doing good but need more creativity and goals.

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September Matches

Transfer deadline day came and went with v little drama given the transfer ban but there was a late bid from shef wed for spearing (£1.7m) which i rejected as I couldn't get a replacement in. This upset him for some reason and after trying to put my foot down, he decided he wanted to be dropped. Or at least I decided that for him given his talking back!!

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After a promising start to the season during August, pretty difficult month in terms of performances.

Match 1 - Bolton vs Wolves (H)

Started off with a 2-1 win, quite an even game in terms of chances but I did have lot more possession. Decided to rotate about with Clough moving to Trequarista and Madine coming in for wellington silva. Spearing found himself on the bench with Vela dropping back and I brought in Trotter to play B2B.

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Clough scored another tap in and then Holding came off the bench to put me 2-0 up from the corner! After that, it was all wolves in terms of chances and we held on a little at the end after an own goal brought them back into it. Have to say that I am not feeling too confident with the way the forward line is set up at the moment.

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Match 2 - Bolton vs Sheff Wed(H )


What is it they say about a winning team? Anyway I decided to keep same formation and team with the exception of giving Thomas a chance instead of Madine (really not liking him).

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Anyway disaster! As you can see from the stats, very poor game, 10 shots between the two teams. Unfortunately two of there's went in. Quick fire double. Good goals but v disappointing. Tried changing quite a bit at half time but again could not create anything substantial. Definitely think tactics need to be tweaked. Not getting the best out of Clough of Vela at all. It is still early though.

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Last edited:
I have to run here but there are two more games in September I've to write up about. I have finished the matches and unfortunately one of my key players got injured for 5-6 months. Complete disaster.

When I get back I will complete October matches and update for September and October together.

P.s I changed the player roles for the last match in September. I'll post it later and the reasoning behind it later today.
 
Apologies for the lack of updates. I've now completed Sept, oct and Nov games so will do the write ups now.

September cont.
Decided to change the format of the updates a little.

Match 7 - Bolton vs Huddersfield ( A) 1-1

Another highly frustrating game, lots of possession, stopped Huddersfield doing much. Wheater got injured mid way through the first half and then they took the lead from a corner just before half time. Moxey had another great game and scored the equaliser. Went attacking to try and get the winner but another 2 points dropped.

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Disaster struck as Wheater is ruled out for 5-6 months! Probably my best defender. A real blow. Holding will be promoted to play the right centre back role.

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Match 8 Bolton vs Brighton (H )

Decided before the game to make some changes to the player roles.

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Basically I wanted to try and get Vela more involved in the game and a lot more of the ball. I've never used the regista before as I always tend to go with a roaming playmaker but I kinda thought it would be could to get Vela deeper and the main playmaker so decided to give this a shot. I also wanted spearing to win the ball quickly as high uo the pitch as possible and then pass it into Davies or Vela so changed the b2b midfield to ball winning midfielder. For Davies, I thought it would be a bit contradictory having a roaming player maker and a regista, so have moved him to attacking PM on support so that he is still involved effectively in the hole behind the strikers.

Another draw! Created a lot more going forward though so was very happy with the formation changes. Davies got the MOTM in his new position and Vela bossed from deep. Wellington Silva is starting to look a little more dangerous now as well. Should really have won this game but so far pleased with the fact I've only lost one match! Solid game from Holding as well at the back!

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So I end September sitting in 9th, Very good defensive record but not creating enough chances at the moment. I know my tactics probably need tweaked but I am going to stick with this and hope the players improve.
 
October

5 games in October to get through.

Bolton vs QPR (A)


Another clean sheet and bore draw. Pretty poor game and possibly lucky to get a point, but the unbeaten run continues.

Twardzik made his debut on the left side but was pretty average. Wellington Silva poor again and subbed at half time. Still not convinced by the partnership up front. Lawrie Wilson got MOTM once again!

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Boton vs Burnley ( A)

Finally got something to click! A 4-0 victory away from home! Wellington Silva and Clough got a goal and an assist each. Twardzik got MOTM on the left which is pleasing! My Wingbacks are excelling in this system. Samiizadeh, the 16 year old iranian striker came off the bench to score his first for the club!

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Bolton vs Birmingham (H)

After that last result I kept pretty much the same team but disappointingly didn't get a win. A pretty boring game with not many chances. Wellington silva yet again proves his inconsistency.

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Bolton vs Leeds (H )

Clayton back from injury to replace wellington silva but didn't have much of an impact. Took the lead through another goal from Clough (maybe hitting a bit of form now) but couldn't get the second. Leeds equalised at the end for another draw! Bit disappointing but can't complain with the unbeaten record and the fact I've only lost one league game all season.

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Bolton vs Preston (A )

Disastrous week at training with 3 more key players ruled out. Dorvette for 10-11 months which is very poor. That's Wheater and Dorvette pretty much out for the season. Moxey for 3 weeks. So 3 of my first choice back 5 out injured.

Very short at centre back now. Heskey the legend and Taylor will have to deputise. Very poor.
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Anyway somehow managed to win 2-1 with a weakened back line. Took a 2 goal lead (Clough and Holding) but pretty much hung on from that point.

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So sitting in 6th at the end of October and on a long unbeaten run. Drawing too many games but the tactic is making me very hard to break down. I think Clough is on the verge of a run of goals! Not bad so far. Delighted actually given the injuries, transfer embargo and lack of squad depth. Loving the 3 centre backs and wing backs. Looking forward to seeing how it works when the players get better.
 
Oh, man.. 11 months are disaster. It will make your player stats declining so much :(
 
In the interest of time, I am going to cut down the updates and instead of going into each match I will just post match results, key items/Injuries/Updates and things like that.

So at the moment in the game I am up to January 3rd. The last few months have been very difficult but I did expect difficult times following the injury crisis that I had.

November

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Pretty good November. Played 4, won 2, drew 2. Clough and Wellington Silva both got 3 goals and 2 assists each in these 4 games! Overall pretty happy but drawing way too many games.

Ended November in 3rd, 2 points off the top. At that point I couldn't actually believe it given the squad and injuries!

December

Very poor month!! Played 7 (including 1st game in jan), lost 3, drew 3 and won one. Found it v hard to score. Defence very poor, Taylor, Heskey and Finney very poor in most games. The injuries to Wheater and Dorette have hit me hard.
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I am going to take a look at some of the match analysis now and see what tactical tweaks I should make. Although, I think a lot of the issues I am having now with the team is to do with the players available and not exactly the tactical side of it.

One thing I have noticed is that my home form is awful - Played 13 won 4, drew 7 lost 3. In contract my away form is third best in the league.

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So in currently in 9th. Have to be happy to be honest but given I was in 3rd 7 games again, little disappointed.

Player stats for the season are as follows. You will notice that I have had to use a lot more of the kids than I had hoped for but I have had a horrendous run of injuries!!

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Wilson has been immense on the right. Davies, Vela and Clough have also been excellent in the majority of games. Need to get a bit more now going forward especially at home. I'll post any changes to formation etc in the next update.


I didn't really have a goal at the start of the season - pretty much wanted to see how this season panned out and consolidate and go for promotion next season. I think now that I am in 9th and have had a pretty decent season, I'd be a little disappointed if I don't sneak into the play offs.
Onwards and Upwards!
 
Yeah the way you are posting now is really nice, you may wanna learn how to make a picture bigger for the esthetics.
 
January and February

Hi all,

It's now the 1st March in my save so I thought it was a good time to post another update. So after a difficult december and terrible home form, I decided to make my home tactics more attacking.

Home tactic

Took away one of the centre backs and added a support striker. Both Strikers are currently set as False 9's.

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Away Tactic

Same as previously. Getting a lot of draws when I use this tactic but will look to adjust and re-test in preseason.
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Results
Not a bad run there, at one point I was sitting in 2nd but end up in 4th at the end of February which to be honest I am over the moon about. The home form has picked up a bit and definitely scoring a few more goals.

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That being said, the last home game was infuriating. Look at the stats below, completely dominated and created 5 CCCs but got beat 2-0 with their only 2 shots on target out of 4 attempts. grrr. Definitely need better players and adjustments but very happy with my first season and hopefully can hang on to get a play off spot!

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Player stats

Clough is still banging them in but his performances could be slightly better. Still a bit inconsistent. Wilson as Right Wing back has been immense all season long. Mark Davies has been a pleasant surprise - he's been great in that Attacking Playmaker role and Vela is coming along nicely. Holding has been solid and Ostede is improving slowly. Really pleased with the season so far.
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League Table

Sitting 4th at the end of February which is pretty good given the injuries and squad depth. I've had to make use of average players and kids at times. Hopefully I can bring a few players in, in the summer. I guess that depends on the amount of money I can make. Promotion would be immense.

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