I've never, ever used an Italian team before, and I'm starting to lose interest in the other save I was playing, so hopefully this will be good, I've loaded the top 2 leagues from England, Italy, Russia and Spain, and the story picks up in Genoa, Italy, July 14, 2009............
Sampdoria have hired Argentinian-Italian manager Justin Smith to fill their vacant managerial position
There was a frenzy of activity outside the gates of the Stadio Luigi Ferraris as new Sampdoria manager Justin Smith held his first press conference. Having been set a minimum aim of a safe, mid-table finish by the Sampdoria board and the fans, Smith laughed, stating that his mother could keep this team away from the drop zone. After recovering from his fit of laughter, Smith stated that he would be disapointed if Sampdoria were not in the top half of the Serie A this season, and also confirmed that former captain Angelo Palombo would remain as the club captain, and that Antonio Cassano would be named the vice-captain. One member of the press was game enough to question this decision, saying that Cassano was "a total nutjob." Smith answered by throwing his mike at the reporter, and stating that Cassano was a totally level-headed person, same as him. The rest of the press laughed nervously, not wanting to be hurt, as the Sampdoria chairman called an early end to the press conference.
Transfers (out??)
Smith has already made some interesting moves in the transfer market, having been given 8.47 million pounds, after adjusting his uge wage budget accordingly. After numerous reports linking key Sampdoria players Cassano, Palombo and Pazzini with EPL sides Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City, Smith responded by signing Cassano to a new contract without a release clause, and sticking huge asking prices on Palombo and Pazzini after recieving formal offers. "They aren't going anywhere, even if we end up in Serie C2" Smith was quoted as saying.
Van Der Vaart a major target for Smith??
The dutchmen, pictured above alongside his smoking-hot wife, is reportedly one of Hojel's major targets as he attempts to make his mark on his newly-inherrited Sampdoria squad. V.D. Vaart is transfer listed at Real Madrid, and has said he expects to leave in the near future. Could he be the newest player to be strutting his stuff at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris, following in the footsteps of former Blanco Antonio Cassano, who is one of the Stars of Sampdoria, as Hojel has labeled his team. Real Madrid have supposedly accepted a 1.3 million pound offer from Hojel to take V.D. Vaart on loan for a season, but with fierce competition from some big EPL sides, as well as Lazio and Fiorentina, this one could be a hard battle for Hojel to face.
Enraged Hojel confirms V.D. Vaart to Lazio, but other signings for Smapdoria
After dutch superstar Rafael V.D. Vaart signed for Lazio early this morning, Hojel reportedly went crazy and snapped one of the goal-posts at the Sampdoria youth training facilities in half. After this, he headed straight to his office, where he abused Real Madrid manager Manuel Pellegrini verbally for a good 20 minutes. He is taking this time out of his 'busy' day to let the fans know some of the dealings that have been going on behind the closed doors of the Stadio Luigi Ferraris this week.
"I am delighted to announce these significant siginings. After missing out on Rafael, I decided to strengthen the squad in a broader sense, rather than go for a star player. As such, many of these signings were made to provide some quality depth in our problem areas. So, without further ado, I would like to introduce our new signings:
In:
Javier Chevanton (Sevilla) 975k- Some quality back-up to Pazzini, Javier was transfer listed, and a bargain for a dependable player to shadow our start striker
Marco Verratti (Pescara) 300k- 16 years old, will be starting in the U/20's for a while, but one to keep an eye on
Vicente (Valencia) 1mil- What a quality player, and priced for sale, I jumped at the opportunity to bring the ex-Spainish international to Stadio Luigi Ferraris, and he will add some flair down the left
Nicolas Otaamendi (Velez) 5.25mil- Yes, Velez drove a hard baargain on this one, but Nicolas was a player I really wanted, and what I want, I get
Tom De Mul (Sevilla) 825k- Another transfer bargain-bin-buy from Sevilla, should provide some depth out wide, and kinda looks like Dirk Kuyt, so hopefully he'll be as good
Out:
No-one, didn't need to raise extra funds, and I still keep having to fight off pesky co-ownership offers for my U/20 startlets Krsticic and Fiorillo.
Hope you like it guys, didn't see any other Sampdoria stories, and, like I said, never done an Italian team before in FM! Anyways, stay tuned for pre-season and more, updates soon
[COLOR=#00e0]---------- Post added at 02:19 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:57 AM ----------[/COLOR]
Pre-season:
Sampdoria 2-0 Reserves (Padalino, Bellucci)
Cottbus 2-2 Sampdoria (Radu, Mitreski, Pazzini, Chevanton)
Logrones C.F 0-1 Sampdoria (Bellucci)
WS Woluwe 0-3 Sampdoria (Tissone x2, De Mul)
Frosinone 1-3 Sampdoria (Tavares, Pazzini x3)
Union SG 0-6 Sampdoria (Cassano x3, Bellucci, Padalino, OG)
Overall, I'm pleased with the pre-season, the team seems to be gelling well, and adapting to my tactics (4-2-3-1, with wide AMR/L). Cassano seems to be relishing his Trequariesta role in AMC, and Pazzini is going well as a Poacher.
Italian Cup 3rd Qualifying Round:
Sampdoria 7-1 Grosetto (Semioli, Tissone, Pazzini x3, Cassano x2, OG)
Wow, first game at home and a nice result. Pazzini may have gotten 5-6 but I took him off at half-time, can't have him injured. Otamendi still hasn't featured, injuring himself during training, but will hopefully be back for the first or second Serie A gaame. All in all a good result.
Serie A:
Round 1: Juventus 3-2 Sampdoria (Diego, Amauri, OG, Pazzzini, Vicente [pen])
Actually fairly ****** about this. Written off before the game, we were 2-1 up just after haalf time, we get a red to one defender, Juves score, Juves score again, one man advantage. PAZZINI DECIDES TO GET SENT OFF ARGUING ABOUT OFFSIDE!! Then Cassano has a stoppage time equaliser disallowed. We could have taken 3 points, deserved 1 against a sstrong Juve side, but come away with nothing. Lazio next week, I hope V.D. Vaart gets a broken leg from a two-footed challenge to the knees, that's a red I wouldn't mind
More Serie A to come. How did you like my transfers? What should I be doing better? Comments welcome guys
Sampdoria have hired Argentinian-Italian manager Justin Smith to fill their vacant managerial position
There was a frenzy of activity outside the gates of the Stadio Luigi Ferraris as new Sampdoria manager Justin Smith held his first press conference. Having been set a minimum aim of a safe, mid-table finish by the Sampdoria board and the fans, Smith laughed, stating that his mother could keep this team away from the drop zone. After recovering from his fit of laughter, Smith stated that he would be disapointed if Sampdoria were not in the top half of the Serie A this season, and also confirmed that former captain Angelo Palombo would remain as the club captain, and that Antonio Cassano would be named the vice-captain. One member of the press was game enough to question this decision, saying that Cassano was "a total nutjob." Smith answered by throwing his mike at the reporter, and stating that Cassano was a totally level-headed person, same as him. The rest of the press laughed nervously, not wanting to be hurt, as the Sampdoria chairman called an early end to the press conference.
Transfers (out??)
Smith has already made some interesting moves in the transfer market, having been given 8.47 million pounds, after adjusting his uge wage budget accordingly. After numerous reports linking key Sampdoria players Cassano, Palombo and Pazzini with EPL sides Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City, Smith responded by signing Cassano to a new contract without a release clause, and sticking huge asking prices on Palombo and Pazzini after recieving formal offers. "They aren't going anywhere, even if we end up in Serie C2" Smith was quoted as saying.
Van Der Vaart a major target for Smith??
The dutchmen, pictured above alongside his smoking-hot wife, is reportedly one of Hojel's major targets as he attempts to make his mark on his newly-inherrited Sampdoria squad. V.D. Vaart is transfer listed at Real Madrid, and has said he expects to leave in the near future. Could he be the newest player to be strutting his stuff at the Stadio Luigi Ferraris, following in the footsteps of former Blanco Antonio Cassano, who is one of the Stars of Sampdoria, as Hojel has labeled his team. Real Madrid have supposedly accepted a 1.3 million pound offer from Hojel to take V.D. Vaart on loan for a season, but with fierce competition from some big EPL sides, as well as Lazio and Fiorentina, this one could be a hard battle for Hojel to face.
Enraged Hojel confirms V.D. Vaart to Lazio, but other signings for Smapdoria
After dutch superstar Rafael V.D. Vaart signed for Lazio early this morning, Hojel reportedly went crazy and snapped one of the goal-posts at the Sampdoria youth training facilities in half. After this, he headed straight to his office, where he abused Real Madrid manager Manuel Pellegrini verbally for a good 20 minutes. He is taking this time out of his 'busy' day to let the fans know some of the dealings that have been going on behind the closed doors of the Stadio Luigi Ferraris this week.
"I am delighted to announce these significant siginings. After missing out on Rafael, I decided to strengthen the squad in a broader sense, rather than go for a star player. As such, many of these signings were made to provide some quality depth in our problem areas. So, without further ado, I would like to introduce our new signings:
In:
Javier Chevanton (Sevilla) 975k- Some quality back-up to Pazzini, Javier was transfer listed, and a bargain for a dependable player to shadow our start striker
Marco Verratti (Pescara) 300k- 16 years old, will be starting in the U/20's for a while, but one to keep an eye on
Vicente (Valencia) 1mil- What a quality player, and priced for sale, I jumped at the opportunity to bring the ex-Spainish international to Stadio Luigi Ferraris, and he will add some flair down the left
Nicolas Otaamendi (Velez) 5.25mil- Yes, Velez drove a hard baargain on this one, but Nicolas was a player I really wanted, and what I want, I get
Tom De Mul (Sevilla) 825k- Another transfer bargain-bin-buy from Sevilla, should provide some depth out wide, and kinda looks like Dirk Kuyt, so hopefully he'll be as good
Out:
No-one, didn't need to raise extra funds, and I still keep having to fight off pesky co-ownership offers for my U/20 startlets Krsticic and Fiorillo.
Hope you like it guys, didn't see any other Sampdoria stories, and, like I said, never done an Italian team before in FM! Anyways, stay tuned for pre-season and more, updates soon
[COLOR=#00e0]---------- Post added at 02:19 AM ---------- Previous post was at 01:57 AM ----------[/COLOR]
Pre-season:
Sampdoria 2-0 Reserves (Padalino, Bellucci)
Cottbus 2-2 Sampdoria (Radu, Mitreski, Pazzini, Chevanton)
Logrones C.F 0-1 Sampdoria (Bellucci)
WS Woluwe 0-3 Sampdoria (Tissone x2, De Mul)
Frosinone 1-3 Sampdoria (Tavares, Pazzini x3)
Union SG 0-6 Sampdoria (Cassano x3, Bellucci, Padalino, OG)
Overall, I'm pleased with the pre-season, the team seems to be gelling well, and adapting to my tactics (4-2-3-1, with wide AMR/L). Cassano seems to be relishing his Trequariesta role in AMC, and Pazzini is going well as a Poacher.
Italian Cup 3rd Qualifying Round:
Sampdoria 7-1 Grosetto (Semioli, Tissone, Pazzini x3, Cassano x2, OG)
Wow, first game at home and a nice result. Pazzini may have gotten 5-6 but I took him off at half-time, can't have him injured. Otamendi still hasn't featured, injuring himself during training, but will hopefully be back for the first or second Serie A gaame. All in all a good result.
Serie A:
Round 1: Juventus 3-2 Sampdoria (Diego, Amauri, OG, Pazzzini, Vicente [pen])
Actually fairly ****** about this. Written off before the game, we were 2-1 up just after haalf time, we get a red to one defender, Juves score, Juves score again, one man advantage. PAZZINI DECIDES TO GET SENT OFF ARGUING ABOUT OFFSIDE!! Then Cassano has a stoppage time equaliser disallowed. We could have taken 3 points, deserved 1 against a sstrong Juve side, but come away with nothing. Lazio next week, I hope V.D. Vaart gets a broken leg from a two-footed challenge to the knees, that's a red I wouldn't mind
More Serie A to come. How did you like my transfers? What should I be doing better? Comments welcome guys
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