Europa Challenge

[samillyroy]

hmm yeah well maybe if I get into the latter stages of the champions league I can ask for your astute opinions
umm yeahh well one thing I have noticed is that a lot of the players are very, very fast.
I have struggled a lot with my formations because most of them consist of playing aggressive fluent football and although it's given me some success it has left me flat-footed on the counter-attack and that is where I've suffered a lot of my losses. it's something we've improved on slightly this season as I've dropped my back line a bit and put javi garcia as a holding midfielder but I can't settle on a solid formation.

I'm currently torn between my 4-4-2 diamond that i used in that second leg against Inter Milan and my 4-3-2-1 which served me so well in my first season, and also encorporates two attacking midfielders which when you have the likes of Gourcuff, Sertic and Diaby at your disposal comes in quite handy..
but yeah bare that in mind hopefully you'll be able to help me in the future and likewise me to you if you need help in the french division

ha and oh yeah casey, was gonna say to you actually. I absolutely love Yannick Djalo (sometimes), he's quite inconsistent at this level but some of the goals he scored for me since I signed him have been insane and iin my first season him and Chamakh was a truly deadly partnership. I may be selling him this season with Vagner Love coming in but we'll hvae to see.
As for Lacina, I've been truly underwhelmed since buying him. I may stick with giving him some opportunities but I am much more excited with the prospect of Cheick Diabate who has scored 10 goals in 5 appearances since joining FC Twente on loan and was also clincial for me at times last season.

---------- Post added at 12:01 AM ---------- Previous post was yesterday at 11:46 PM ----------

2011/2012 Season

I'm really ****** off because I've written all of this out until September and it took ******* ages and I've got to do it again so sorry if it's taken so long.

Sunday 7th August 2011
FC Sochaux-Montbe 2:3 Girondins Bordeaux
Ligue 1, Matchday 1

Defour's first goal for Bordeaux proved critical.
The season started in most certainly interesting fashion and Bordeaux will be delighted with the three points after they played 70 minutes with 10 men.
Gourcuff got the season underway brilliantly for Bordeaux, slamming in a shot on the turn after Pavlyuchenko played him in.
But just 2 minutes later, Sochaux's biggest threat Thomas Necid managed to squirm his way into the box and coolly finish past Carrasso.
Things then took a turn for what seemed the worst when Marouane Chamakh received an early second yellow and gave Bordeaux's chances of victory a knock.
But incredibly they took the lead just 5 minutes later when Gregory Sertic hit a low curling free-kick in past the near post to put Bordeaux in the lead.
A tactical change on the half hour then paid dividends for Bordeaux as substitute Defour hit his first goal for them with a heavily deflected shot in first-half stoppage time.
The second half was more nervy, with Bordeaux willing to hold on for the 3:1 and Sochaux pushing forward for whatever they could get and they did get a goal after 67 minutes when Ryad Boudebouz hit a wonderful free-kick past Carrasso.
But it proved in vain as Bordeaux showed the fighting skills they will need to succeed this season.
Goalscorers: Gourcuff (6), Sertic (26), Defour (45+3)

Saturday 13th August 2011
Girondins Bordeaux 2:0 Toulouse FC
Ligue 1, Matchday 2

New signings Gudjohnsen and Pavlyuchenko linked up beautifully to score the second goal.
Gourcuff managed to defeat Toulouse today in a closely fought contest, with the biggest turning point being a Gourcuff penalty on half time.
Bordeaux had had the better of the first half but Toulouse did look deadly with full back Ebondo looking increasingly dangerous as the half wore on.
But when Sertic broke into the Toulouse box and was brought down the complexity of the game changed.
Yoann Gourcuff stepped up and scored his 2nd of the season and things got worse for Toulouse in the second half when they had Carlos Sanchez sent off for an awful tackle from behind on Sertic.
The game was set when Gourcuff played in substitute Gudjohnsen who flicked the ball delightfully behind the back four for Pavlyuchenko to steal in and slam home his first of the season.
A great result for les Girondins and the season ahead looks bright.
Goalscorers: Gourcuff (45+2), Pavlyuchenko (75)

Gourcuff shocks fans by announcing his intention to leave stade Chaban Delmas.
Gourcuff today declared his intentions of leaving Bordeaux, stating his ambition to succeed in Europe as a main reason for his change in heart.
This will come as a blow to the fans, so drawn to his brilliant technical abilities. Time will tell whether the manager will allow this move to go ahead, with Gourcuff still having 3 years left on his contract.

Wednesday 17th August 2011
Girondins Bordeaux 3:1 Dundee Utd
UEFA Champions League Best Placed Playoff, Leg 1

Camoranesi's header sealed a first leg victory for Bordeaux.
Bordeaux faced Scottish side Dundee today and will be dissapointed to have conceded despite on the balance of play dominating.
Michael Ciani started as a hero, but ended as a villain, scoring in the 14th minute with a powerful header, before being sent off at the end of the second half.
Bordeaux doubled their lead just before half time when Riise took advantage of a mistake in the defence, and Pavlyuchenko hit a powerful finish past the keeper following a rebound.
Camoranesi sealed the game with a header after Riise found space on the left.
But Dundee made things interesting when Cristea cut inside onto his favoured right foot before hitting a delicious shot into the roof of the net.
Ciani's red card was a sour note for an otherwise faultless performance and Bordeaux will want to carry this confidence into the second leg.
Goalscorers: Ciani (14), Pavluychenko (42), Camoranesi (49)

Saturday 20th August 2011
AJ Auxerre 2:1 Girondins Bordeaux
Ligue 1, Matchday 3

Zaki's last minute header resigned Bordeaux to defeat at the Stade l'Abbee Deschamps.
Bordeaux suffered an undeserved first loss of the season at the hands of Auxerre, against whom they suffered a similar defeat last season.
Bordeaux had the better of the game from the off, and deservedly took the lead after 71 minutes when Marouane Chamakh headed home brilliantly from a superb Pavluychenko cross.
But Auxerre fought back and Ireneusz Jelen pulled the game level after 81 minutes, breaking behind the defence before slotting home.
And predictably with a minute to go, a flicked on throw on was nodded over the line at the far post by Amr Zaki to consign Bordeaux to an unlikely defeat.
It is a defeat which highlights some defensive problems in the Bordeaux back four which could worry their manager, and it will need work on in the next week.
Goalscorers: Chamakh (71)

Tuesday 23rd August 2011
Dundee Utd 0:1 Girondins Bordeaux
UEFA Champions League Best Placed Playoff, 2nd Leg

Gourcuff's magnificent free kick sent Bordeaux into the Group Stages.
Bordeaux forgot about their weekend miseries tonight to qualify for the Champions League Group Stages after a seasons absence.
There was just the one goal to seperate them in this leg, although they did win 4:1 on aggregate, but my was it a good goal.
From 30 yards out, Gourcuff hit the sweetest free-kick you're likely to see right into the roof of Pernis' net to all but seal the game.
Bordeaux had further chances but none were neccessary as Gourcuff's goal and a clean sheet saw them into the Group Stages.
Goalscorers: Gourcuff (28)

Saturday 27th August 2011
Girondins Bordeaux 3:1 USBCO
Ligue 1, Matchday 4

Javi Garcia's superb first goal for the club was enough to lead Bordeaux to victory.
Bordeaux cruised past USBCO, scoring some excellent goals to boot, t oround off a decent first month of the season.
Yoann Gourcuff kicked us off with another free-kick, absolutely roofing it past the Bolougne goalkeeper before Javi Garcia bagged his first goal for the club too, blasting in from 30 yards on the half volley.
It was a cracking goal, but Bordeaux then sat on that 2:0 position and were punished after 78 minutes when Gregory Thil broke free and hit the ball low underneath Carrasso.
But normal play was resumed 5 minutes later when Sergiy Kryvtsov headed home his first goal for the club to secure 3 more points.
Goalscorers: Gourcuff (7), Javi Garcia (12), Kryvtsov (84)

That was the end of August, and as we move on to September, the only news is that we've been drawn with Arsenal, Zenit and AEK Athens in the Group Stages of the Champions League which begins next month. I can't do a league update as I've no idea what it was at that point :S

September 2011

Saturday 10th September 2011
Girondins Bordeaux 2:0 AS Monaco FC
Ligue 1, Matchday 5

Gourcuff scored his 5th goal of the season.
Bordeaux won again at the Stade Chaban Delmas today with centre-back Kryvtsov again on target.
he gave Bordeaux the lead after half an hour and it was a lead that Bordeaux deserved after a powerful and determined first half display.
Monaco offered little going forward with little winger Park Chu-Young providing the only really tenacity and motivation going forward for them.
And they were punished moments after the first goal for their cautious approach when Gourcuff put away a penalty for his 5th of the season, and sent Bordeaux top.
The result was the perfect cushion for their midweek home tie against Zenit.

Wednesday 14th September 2011
Bordeaux 3:0 Zenit
UEFA Champions League Group E, Matchday 1

Gourcuff put in a tremendous performance, and truly merited his 2 goals.
A breathtaking display from Yoann Gourcuff led Bordeaux to victory in a game which was billed as a close encounter.
On the contrary, it took just a minute for Bordeaux to take the lead, Gourcuff latching onto a superb pass forward from Marouane Chamakh to slot past Malafeev.
Kryvtsov got his 3rd in three games to double Bordeauxs advantage from another corner before Wendel's superb pass forward found Gourcuff again in lots of space to slot home and hand Bordeaux a superb first win in the Group Stages.
It was a great start to the Champions League campaign and they will hope to build on it in Athens in a fortnights time.
Goalscorers: Gourcuff (1, 57), Kryvtsov (34)

Sunday 18th September 2011
Paris Saint-Germain 1:2 Girondins Bordeaux
Ligue 1, Matchday 6

Yannick Djalo gave the bragging rights to the Bordeaux fans with a superb cameo performance.
Easily the game of the season so far. It was a truly tough game, but we edged it in the end thanks to a piece of brilliance from the inconsistent Yannick Djalo.
This rivalry has always brought up a fantastic game and it did not dissapoint today.
Kryvtsov got his 4th in 4 games, amazingly, to give Bordeaux the lead after just 3 minutes and Bordeaux then took hold of the game, dominating possession with the impressive Javi Garcia dictating the tempo of the game.
But in the second half PSG had Bordeaux on the back foot and found a goal through the brilliant Mevlut Erdinc, who found space before firing into the roof of the net, leaving the flailing Kompany in his wake.
But with 5 minutes to go, substitute Yannick Djalo took the ball from his own half before dribbling past 5 PSG defenders and passing underneath substitute Penneteau.
It was an incredible end to a thrilling encounter and it will be savoured for years to come.
Goalscorers: Kryvtsov (3), Yannick Djalo (84)

Saturday 24th September 2011
Girondins Bordeaux 2:3 Olympique Lyonnais
Ligue 1, Matchday 7

Lisandro Lopez buried a last minute goal to the delight of the away fans.
After beating PSG the previous weekend, confidence was high in the Stade Chaban Delmas but they were punished in the final minutes in this thrilling match.
Bordeaux made the perfect start, Kryvtsov again rising high to head home, his 5th of an incredible start to the season, and Bordeaux played well to stay ahead.
But in the second half, Lyon came out a different team, and got a goal with Lacazette taking the credit for a superb long range finish. The 20 year old is looking a brilliant prospect for the French national side.
And a veteran, Sidney Govou gave Lyon the advantage just 10 minutes later, side footing home after being played in well by Lisandro Lopez.
But there were more twists to come and substitute Riise blasted home from close range to make it 2-2 with 20 minutes to go and really turn the temperature up.
And things got to boiling point when, in the 3rd minute of stoppage time, Lisandro Lopez found space in the box to smash into the roof of the net.
It was a gutting end to an exciting match but Bordeaux will walk away thinking what might have been.
Goalscorers: Kryvtsov (38), Riise (72)

Tuesday 27th September 2011
AEK 1:2 Girondins Bourdeaux
UEFA Champions League Group E, Matchday 2

Yannick Djalo's superb ball control left AEK defenders trailing in his wake.
Bordeaux sneaked away from Athens with a decent win, in a hardfought game at the OAKA stadium.
They gave themselves a two goal advantage going into half time, Pavlyuchenko bagging his 3rd of the season with a cool finish before Yannick Djalo scored another superb goal, taking on 5 players inside the box and then sidefooting home.
The second half saw Bordeaux step off the gas though as they tend to do, and Delibasic brought AEK back into the game after 10 minutes.
But they held on professionally to put them in good stead prior to the Emirates game.
Goalscorers: Pavlyuchenko (19), Yannick Djalo (45)

 

[phil06]

You´ve got yourself a good squad, although personally i think you´ve got a few players too many. But then again that´s just me not liking squads with more than around 23 players
Good buy with Henry, he´s still class and also a great buy with Vagner Love, he was great for my arsenal squad as either amc or as striker.
Shame that you gonna have to repost a chunk of your progress. With my Fulham story i used to save the text on word before throwing it on here, to be sure not to lose anything and having to rewrite it then.

 

[shootie]

hmm yeah well maybe if I get into the latter stages of the champions league I can ask for your astute opinions
umm yeahh well one thing I have noticed is that a lot of the players are very, very fast.
I have struggled a lot with my formations because most of them consist of playing aggressive fluent football and although it's given me some success it has left me flat-footed on the counter-attack and that is where I've suffered a lot of my losses. it's something we've improved on slightly this season as I've dropped my back line a bit and put javi garcia as a holding midfielder but I can't settle on a solid formation.

I'm currently torn between my 4-4-2 diamond that i used in that second leg against Inter Milan and my 4-3-2-1 which served me so well in my first season, and also encorporates two attacking midfielders which when you have the likes of Gourcuff, Sertic and Diaby at your disposal comes in quite handy..
but yeah bare that in mind hopefully you'll be able to help me in the future and likewise me to you if you need help in the french division

We should do a joint story sometime, would be pretty immense XD.

I used to struggle alot with counter attacks too, still do a bit (Or most of the goals ive conceded as of late have been a long ball hoofed to a striker). My managerial style is to play successful football, and if it looks good...well thats a bonus.

You should pay attention to a scout report of the team your about to face. Should tell you the size of the pitch (Most underestimated factor in FM) and if the opposition have fast strikers and wherever to play a holding midfielder. Use this to select a tactic (I usually rotate with two, 1 for Narrow pitches and other for wide. Although I do have some for special circumstances).

Play pretty deep line against Fast strikers or if your feeling brave (And your defenders high concentration) play a offside trap. Just remember playing Fluent football looks nice, but in the end its the results that matter and try and keep your defence+Holding midfielders rigid and make sure your other midfielders are not **** bent on attack.


And also, nice start to the season. Unlucky against Lyon . By my reading Gourcuff seems central to your success, hope your able to keep onto him.

 

[casey32]

Love hasnt been putting away his chances for me he has 2 in 10 league games and 1 assist his ratings are good though

 

[samillyroy]

thanks again for the comments i hope I get this report put up soon because it's annoyed me so much that I've lost it all, I did it really well too haa.

phil - yeah I agree with you, generally like to have a smaller squad but the thing is I've struggled on some games with injuries and it's always made me cautious to have backup players. thing is I'm only paying gudjohnsen 4k a week, I'm only paying henry 15k and camoranesi is still good enough at this level as he's proving already. may trim the side up in january but I'm not sure which ones I could part with *-|

shootie - fantastic idea mate, we really should. think we'd make an awesome fm partnership. and yeah tbf that's where the goals I do concede come from, long balls up and players latching on and scoring so I'll have to work on that.
I will pay more attention to those scout reports too from now on then, I'll build some new tactics round it, cheers for that.
and as for gourcuff I'm not so sure. He was brilliant for first few games of the season and then he was like oh I wanna go and play for chelsea or real madrid and so I've started playing diaby or sertic and they're really showing what they're made of so that position is up for grabs.

casey - well I'll have to pay attention to that ha. I think he's similar to Yannick Djalo and on a free and 25k a week I don't think he's a gamble. think with his pace and finishing he shoudl settle easily in the french league, maybe the prem is a bigger step up.

next month update coming soon as.

 

[shootie]

shootie - fantastic idea mate, we really should. think we'd make an awesome fm partnership. and yeah tbf that's where the goals I do concede come from, long balls up and players latching on and scoring so I'll have to work on that.
I will pay more attention to those scout reports too from now on then, I'll build some new tactics round it, cheers for that.
and as for gourcuff I'm not so sure. He was brilliant for first few games of the season and then he was like oh I wanna go and play for chelsea or real madrid and so I've started playing diaby or sertic and they're really showing what they're made of so that position is up for grabs.

next month update coming soon as.

Maybe we should do it sometime soon, when we need a break as we both seem to be doing pretty long-term stories at the moment.

Looking forward to the update

 

[samillyroy]

:| this is bullshit.
where have all the updates gone

 

[phil06]

something odd must be going on, seems like some stuff gets reset to how things were a few days ago. Weird is as far as i can tell only the "update" posts seem to disappear, while the posts in-between them are still shown :S.

Maybe pm a mod to see if they know what´s up.

 

[samillyroy]

Okay well I did all of these updates yesterday annoyingly but never mind that'll teach me for not backing up my work.

I'm going to just right down the month by month results and do a month overview until we get to the month I'm in now when I'll go back to detail mostly because I can't be arsed to waste my time doing it again, ha.

Here goes:

October 2011

Lille 1:2 Bordeaux - Kompany, Tremoulinas
Le Mans 0:1 Bordeaux - Henry
Arsenal 3:2 Bordeaux - Diaby, Saivet
Bordeaux 1:0 Montpellier - Kompany
OM 2:0 Bordeaux
Bordeaux 3:0 Stade Rennais - Sertic, Riise, Ciani

A good month really. We played valiantly at the Emirates and were unlucky not to come away with anything and also got key results agains Lille and Stade Rennais. Obviously the OM result was dissapointing but that's football and we reacted well enough for me to be pleased.

November 2011

Bordeaux 1:2 Arsenal - Pavlyuchenko
Bordeaux 2:0 OGC Nice - Saivet (2)
Bordeaux 3:0 Metz - Gourcuff (2), Chamakh
Zenit 1:3 Bordeaux - Gourcuff, Henry, Garcia
Grenoble 1:3 Bordeaux - Gourcuff (2), Kryvtsov
FC Nantes 2:2 Bordeaux - Traore, Chamakh

December 2011

Bordeaux 3:2 AS Saint-Ettiene - Garcia, Gourcuff, Gudjohnsen
Bordeaux 0:1 AEK
RC Lens 1:1 Bordeaux - Saivet
Bordeaux 3:0 Nancy-Lorraine - Gourcuff, Javi Garcia, Kryvtsov

So 2011 turned out to be a good year and I'm just into January at the moment, 2012 looks like it's going to be brilliant!
Sorry again for lack of detail but hopefully these results keep you up to date and we can kick off again next year

Til 2012.

 

[shootie]

****, that would annoy me to bits losing all the update. Lucky I read it before it got Deleted XD. And yeah It deleted my comment aswell, I remember posting something in this thread well after what it says now was my last post. Something going on, try PMing Sean or someone.

Going well at the moment, are you planning to stay at Bordeaux for much longer?

 

[casey32]

ye i lost all my updates for some reason this site hates my story so i not sure if i carrying on cause i had a new format and everything and it took me forever

 

[samillyroy]

shootie - yeahh I went on a page earlier that saideveryones had been deleted from a day ago and I was like ahh thats bullshit and I got like ripped for it. apparently you're not allowed to be annoyed with it lol. but I'd already written it out once so ****** me off :| but wow January is a cracker. I'll make sure it's all looking good again and I'll make backups this time so I can just put it straight back up again if I lose it.
I've not decided yet either.. I really, really want to win Ligue 1 but if I don't win it this season I will have to consider that.. maybe it's as far as I can take them but this season is going well at the moment. I'll see how I feel at the end of this season and then take it from there.
casey - noooooooooooooo don't finish your story! I was loving it! just make sure next time you write the updates up on word ifrst, then copy and paste it on to here and save the copy in case this happens, I've learned that the hard way myself :| but do carry on because it was my favourite story at the moment, with ease.

 

[casey32]

was just with the new icons it takes forever but ill stick with it

 

[cGo7]

you should focus more on making everything going through gourcuff because he is the best player in ligue 1 by miles.

 

[samillyroy]

2012 – The Year we win Ligue 1?

December 2012

So far the Ligue 1 title has evaded me, despite my very best efforts. We came 5th in my first season, quite a disappointment considering I had taken over Laurent Blanc who had won it himself. Last year we missed out despite leading it for most of the season.
By the end of 2011 we were 2nd in the league but only 2 points off Lyon and that put us in good stead for the month and the year ahead.

January has been a brilliant month for les Girondins and you will soon see why. But first, a couple of transfers have been brought in:

First of all welcome to the club Vagner Love from CSKA Moscow. The Brazilian forward joined on a free as his contract in Russia ran out but he is sidelined until mid-February, disappointing as we also lose the influential Chamakh to the African Cup of Nations who, despite suffering quite a goal drought this season, has been brilliant at leading the line.

Secondly, Simon Vukcevic joins on a loan until the end of the season after failing to break into the Chelsea first team, to boost our squad and give us more depth for the amount of games coming up.

This month we had an incredible 8 games so there was a lot of fatigue but we remained undefeated the whole time with which I am delighted.


Saturday 7th January 2012
SO Cassis-Carnoux 0-2 Girondins Bordeaux
Coupe de France, 9th Round

Steven Defour bagged a brace to send us through to the next round of the Coupe de France.
The Cup competitions come into play in January in France and we started it off in good fashion, seeing off non-leaguers Cassis-Carnoux professionally, although many had predicted a much greater scoreline.
And in fact, despite completely dominating, it took over an hour for us to get our first goal, Steven Defour heading in a lovely Gouffran cross to give the vistitors the lead.
And he then doubled that advantage to send Bordeaux into the second leg, as he latched on to a Tremoulinas pass from the backline to curl into the far corner. It was a brilliant goal and he’ll want to carry that into the league as he has failed to live up to his goalscoring reputation for les Girondins so far.
Despite the lack of goals it was a good result and we go into the 10th Round with confidence.

Tuesday 10th January 2012
Girondins Bordeaux vs. Olympique Lyonnais
Coupe de la Ligue, 4th Round

v

Lyon versus Bordeaux has become the crunch fixture in the French league in the past couple of seasons and, much like the Bordeaux PSG game, always throws up a cracker.
With both teams going for it in the league as well this game was likely to be a big one as both teams looked to get a psychological advantage over the other.

(Just for those who don't know, that means "end of a reign?", i.e. the end of Lyon's reign over French football)
Contraversially, manager Sam Illyroy left out key man Yoann Gourcuff for this game, starting instead Eidur Gudjohnsen raising doubts over the relationship between the manager and his best player.

That was brought further into question when Lyon took the lead after just 3 minutes, with Luisao heading home a brilliant Cissokho cross to put the Bordeaux heads down.

And Lyon continued in similar fashion, as Lopez missed a superb chance to double the score against a team that he certinaly enjoys playing.

Bordeaux took a while to get into the game, with Javi Garcia’s long range shot the first chance they had managed after 10 minutes.
Coming into the second half, Bordeaux replaced Gudjohnsen with Gourcuff and the match changed.
But Lyon did have the best early chances in the second half, with the influential Michel Bastos dominating the occasion.
But after 82 minutes, Chamakh tackled back on Kim Källström before dropping a brilliant back heel into the on-running Gourcuff who chased it down into the box before sliding coolly past the keeper and running into the crowd to celebrate an important goal.

The game went into penalties after an enthralling injury time in which Faubert missed a glorious opportunity to send Bordeaux through after Defour played him in, and Carrasso also came to their rescue twice with some perfect reaction saves.
You could see in the faces of both sets of players the nerves surrounding the derby occasion and that was bolstered when Toulalan saw his penalty saved brilliantly by the superb Carrasso.

But Riise saw his poor spot kick then saved by Hugo Lloris to level things out. On the 5th penalty, Javi Garcia saw his penalty saved brilliantly and it was down to Mathieu Bodmer to send Lyon through…

But he struck the upright and the game went further into penalties, to the delight of the neutral. After 8 penalties each it came down to goalkeeper Hugo Lloris to score for Bordeaux but he hit the post and that was enough for Bordeaux to go through to the next round of the Coupe de la Ligue!

Having got one over Lyon in the cup, it remains to be seen if they can take that advantage into the league.

Bordeaux beat Lyon 8-7 on penalties.


Saturday 14th January 2012
Toulouse FC 1:3 Girondins Bordeaux
Ligue 1, Matchday 20

Chamakh celebrates with Tremoulinas after the little left back scored a superb second goal this evening.
Toulouse were comprehensively beaten by title hopefulys Bordeaux today at the Stadium Municipal.
For most of the game it was one way traffic and Bordeaux were easily 2-0 up after just 10 minutes.
The first goal came frmo a superb counter attack, Tremoulinas lobbing it forward for Chamakh to race on to and bury past the unwitting goalkeeper.
And Tremoulinas scored a superb second, racing on to a clearance from a corner to smash beautifully into the top corner.
But just before half-time, Al Qahtani brought it level for Toulouse, thanks to a superb Roman through ball.
But Chamakh settled it and got himself in good goalscoring vein after taking a Planus pass and then rounding the keeper to settle the game.
Lyon dropped points today against Lille in a 0-0 draw to see Bordeaux go top of the league on goal difference for the first time this season.
Goalscorers: Chamakh (4, 57), Tremoulinas (9)


Wednesday 18th January 2012
Girondins Bordeaux 2:0 AJ Auxerre
Ligue 1, Matchday 21

Simon Vukcevic proved his worth on his debut following his loan move from Chelsea.
Gouffran's early goal set Bordeaux on their way to a comprehensive victory.
Bordeaux go into the next round of the cup tournaments 2 points clear at the top of Ligue 1 thanks to an important victory against Auxerre.
It was a debut for Simon Vukcevic, on loan from Chelsea, and he got his first goal for the club after just 4 minutes, scrambling home a Gouffran cross after a mistake from Narry.
And Narry got himself sent off for a cynical foul after 68 minutes to consign them to defeat.
And the scoring was rounded up when Chamakh knocked the ball down for Defour to slam home.
It was a great result for Bordeaux to take into the Cup games and with Lyon drawing again they now sit comfortably on top of Ligue 1, with the future looking bright.
Goalscorers: Vukcevic (2), Defour (84)


Saturday 21st January 2012
Girondins Bordeaux 1:1 RC Lens (Bordeaux win on penalties)
Coupe de France, 10th Round

Valera scores the penalty to send Bordeaux through.
Bordeaux qualified for the next round of the Coupe de France, but it took another penalty shootout against a defiant Lens side.
Of course to win trophies you do need a bit of luck, and in their defence they didn't miss a single penalty on the way to victory.
Thierry Henry gave Bordeaux the lead after just 4 minutes as they showed no sign of fatigue having played Auxerre just 3 days prior. He latched on to a wonderful Javi Garcia pass to slam home.
But Boukari scored 20 minutes later, heading home a Mirallas cross to, eventually, take the game to penalties.
Bordeaux scored every penalty and it was down to Valera to score the winning penalty after William Remy missed the penalty for Lens.
They're through, but just.
Goalscorers: Henry (4)



Tuesday 24th January 2012
Girondins Bordeaux 1:0 Havre AC
Coupe de la Ligue Quarter-Finals

Abdou Traore scored the winner in a tough game against Le Havre AC.
It took a late extra-time goal from Abdou Traore, his first goal of the season, to send Bordeaux into the semis of the Coupe de la Ligue, just a step away from silverware.
It was a tough and unentertaining game but Diaby's superb cross needed the simplest of touches from the Malinaen substitute to send them into the semi-finals where they will meet Ligue 2 side Malherbe Caen. Most of the major sides in the competition have been eliminated because they have rested players but that was not the case for Bordeaux as they played a virtually full strength side, although David Bellion did make his first start of the season.
He was virtually ineffective though and it took Abdou Traore to send them through, hopefully to glory.
Goalscorers: Traore (111)

Saturday 24th January 2012
USBCO 0:2 Girondins Bordeaux
Ligue 1, Matchday 22

Gourcuff scores the winning goal for Bordeaux.
The French League does not allow any time for stragglers and Bordeaux had to pick themselves up from their victory against Le Havre to see off relegation threatened Bolougne.
The scoreline was helped by a last minute goal from Wendel but in all fairness Bordeaux dominated from start to finish.
Without Chamakh (African Cup of Nations), Gourcuff (injured) and Vagner Love (injured), Bordeaux showed their strength in depth with a few of the lesser picked players taking their chances.
Gouffran scored a wonderful finish despite having picked up a thigh strain, picking up a pass before breaking through and slamming home.
And Wendels penalty in the last minute, won by the impressive Vukcevic, was just reward for the tough work of the Bordeaux players and it saw them remain on top of the league.
Goalscorers: Gouffran (23), Wendel (pen 90)

Tuesday 31st January 2012
Girondins Bordeaux vs. Stade Malherbe Caen
Coupe de la Ligue Semi-Final

Caen were a former Ligue 1 side just a couple of seasons back and having made it this far in the competition were no lightweights either.

Having had a lot of fixture congestion, Bordeaux were forced to rest a few of the more regular names on the team sheet but they were still there to do a professional job.

And it took just 17 minutes for Bordeaux to get the first goal with Henri Saivet latching on to Gudjohnsen's superb through ball before slamming home.

And Simon Vukcevic's penalty 5 minutes before half-time settled the matter effectively to see Bordeaux into the final of the Coupe de la Ligue for the 3rd time in 4 seasons.

They'll naturally look back on that penalty win against Lyon as the most decisive victory in the tournament and they await their opponents for the final of the tournament and the superb Stade de France...

The prize that awaits the victors in 2 months time.

Bordeaux win 2-0.
​

Phew.

Well that was January and this year has started brilliantly, 8 games in such a short space of time, a cup final and we beat those tossers, Lyon!!! It was a superb penalty shootout and I was going absolutely mental when we beat them.
I do envisage us winning the coupe de la Ligue now as we will face either Grenoble Foot 38 (20th in Ligue 1) or AS Nancy-Lorraine (12th in Ligue 1). OF course football's a strange game but we shall see.
Also, we are now 2 points clear at the top of the league as you're about to see, and this month we should see the re-introduction of Chamakh after his ACON adventures, and also the debut of Vagner Love. But February sees us face tough fixtures such as PSG, Lyon, Lille and also the much awaited fixture against Real Madrid so there is a long way to go yet.
But we did brilliantly this month to achieve what we have and it gives me hope for the year ahead.

1. Girondins Bordeaux 53
2. Olympique Lyonnais 51
3. OM 44
4. LOSC Lille Metropole 44
5. AS Saint-Ettiene 37
6. FC Nantes 36
​

Bon neaveau Anne, and until February, au revoir.

Vive les Girondins!

​

 

[casey32]

Good luck in the league hope u hold onto your lead

 

[phil06]

looks like you had a successful month. Very good chances of securing the league cup atleast, and i hope you can hold on to the advantage over lyon in the league.

 

[casey32]

looks like we both on form with are stories

---------- Post added at 04:31 AM ---------- Previous post was at 03:35 AM ----------

next update?

 

[samillyroy]

February 2012

I predicted this month to be the toughest of the season so far and I did not dissapoint as we met some real challenges, and provided some poor performances.

Saturday 4th February 2012
Girondins Bordeaux 0:0 FC Nantes
Ligue 1, Matchday 23

Nantes celebrate a brilliant performance, whilst Bordeaux must rethink their tactics.
After a brilliant month last month we expected to go from strength to strength in February, starting with overachievers FC Nantes, but they provided stern opposition.
Despite dominating once again, Bordeaux were not clinical enough in front of goal and that proved their downfall today.
2 points dropped without a doubt and with Lyon picking up points in almost every game it's key that we turn these games into wins.

Wednesday 8th February 2012
Stade Lavallois 0:1 Girondins Bordeaux
Coupe de France, 11th Round

Javi Garcia scores a superb late goal to see off their Ligue 2 opposition.
Stade Lavallois gave a great account of themselves agianst the Ligue 1 leaders today, performing admirably and beyond their position in the league.
Things kicked off well for them as they began to make chances and worry the back four of Bordeaux, but despite making a couple of chances in the first half they were unable to build on them.
Bordeaux started to show their class as the half drew on but they could not find the goal to send them through.
In the second half, the enthusiastic Levrat saw red after a second bookable offence and that just about ended the resistance of the Ligue 2 side.
Bordeaux created chance after chance and it was simply a matter of time until they scored a winner and it came courtesy of the brilliant Javi Garcia, hitting a wonderful shot from outside the area to send them into the Quarter-Finals of the prestigious tournament.
The Coupe de France is a brilliant prize for any footballing side in France and Bordeaux will be simply delighted to have made the last 8.
Goalscorers: Javi Garcia (84)

Saturday 11th February 2012
AS Monaco FC 3:4 Girondins Bordeaux
Ligue 1, Matchday 24

Chamakh was simply brilliant as Bordeaux saw off Monaco.
Bordeaux will be dissapointed to have conceded 3 goals after dominating the game, and it sees them go 2nd on goal difference behind Lyon.
But the goals conceded take nothing away from the absolutely superb Marouane Chamakh who bagged himself a well-earned hat-trick.
He got things going after just 15 minutes turning his man before sliding comfortably into the far corner.
But on-loan striker Bamogo seized on a poorly cleared ball to smash into the top corner to make it one a piece.
Bordeaux dominated and took their chances when Chamakh drove home a parried Defour shot to make it 2-1 again.
Kryvtsov looked to have settled things at half time, scoring from a corner for 3-1.
But Bamogo scored in the 77th minute to make things interesting once more, and Bordeaux were put under the cosh.
But against the run of play a superb Henry ball found Chamakh and he slotted home to all-but seal the game.
Despite that, Maazou managed to grab an 86th minute goal that Monaco tried to build on but were unable to salvage anything from the game.
An enthralling match, but one which sees Bordeaux drop to 2nd in the league on goal difference.
Goalscorers: Chamakh (15, 27, 84), Kryvtsov (45)

Sunday 19th February 2012
Girondins Bordeaux 1:1 Paris Saint-Germain
Ligue 1, Matchday 25

Defour's late own goal sees Bordeaux drop a crucial 2 points.
After an 8 day break, Bordeaux came back refreshed for this rival tie and they really should have got more out of it.
They created the most of the chances in the second half, the influential Chamakh once again dominating affairs, but he was let down by the poor finishing of the men behind him.
So he went on it himself, dribbling from the half way line round several players before rounding the keeper and slamming home, an extraordinary goal.
But with 10 minutes to go, PSG sealed an unlikely draw when Armand's free kick took a wiked deflection off the unfortunate Steven Defour to go past Carrasso and into the back of the net.
Bordeaux go top with this point, but Lyon have a game in hand going into the Champions League 1st Knockout Round.
Goalscorers: Chamakh (62)

Wednesday 22nd February 2012
Girondins Bordeaux 0:2 Real Madrid
UEFA Champions League, 1st Knockout Round, 1st Leg

Benzema's 35th minute goal forced Bordeaux to rethink their European aspirations.
Sam Illyroy's men were unable to conjure up any magic after they were comprehensively beaten by the Champions of Spain.
The 60m pound man Kaka gave the Galacticos the lead after 25 minutes, heading in a Marcelo goal despite it being against the run of play.
But from then on, Real Madrid dominated, and Benzema scored a brilliant second 10 minutes later, finding space in the box after a corner before sliding coolly into the far corner for 2-0.
It sealed a good victory for Real Madrid with 2 goals which should provide more than enough of a cushion for the 2nd leg at the Bernabeau.
It is also the first defeat of 2012.

Sunday 26th February
Olympique Lyonnais 0:1 Girondins Bordeaux
Ligue 1, Matchday 26

Tremoulinas scores a brilliant winner to put Bordeaux top of Ligue 1 again.
Following that defeat to Real Madrid in the Champions League, Bordeaux had the chance to make up for it with a second meeting with the French Champions in under a month.
This time there was arguably more at stake, with either team claiming an all-important psychological advantage going into the business end of the season.
In all honesty there was little in the game, with both teams still recovering from a mid-week Champions League game where Lyon had more success than Bordeaux, holding German champions Bayern Munich to a 2-2 draw at the AllianzArena.
But they were punished late on by a superb move from Bordeaux.
Gourcuff instinctively broke away to receive a lovely Chamakh pass before dropping it behind the Lyon defence to the onrushing Tremoulinas to smash coolly home on the half volley off the post and in.
With just 5 minutes to go there was uproar in the away end of the Stade Gerland as Bordeaux claimed an absolutely vital victory in the Ligue 1 title race and also a first league victory for Sam Illyroy over Patrick Collot.
Goalscorers: Tremoulinas (82)


YESSSSSSSSSSSS!!! COME ON!
I was absolutely delighted with that month bar the dissapointing defeat to Madrid.
But really I wasn't expecting anything against them and although I'll put out a strong side in the 2nd leg, I am more bothered about gaining the domestic titles.
Next month promises excitement with the League Cup final coming up and that will be a live text commentary match so make sure you're here to follow!!!

Meanwhile, it's time for the league table:

1. Girondins Bordeaux 62
2. Olympique Lyonnais 58
3. LOSC Lille Metropole 57
4. OM 51
5. Saint-Ettiene 46
6. FC Nantes 41

So not really a change in the top 6 in Ligue 1, and I'm delighted to see underdogs FC Nantes remain in there, that's what this league is all about.

I'm off until March but make sure you're there for the Coupe de la Ligue final next month as I will be updating it minute by minute!

​

​

 

[casey32]

Might be best if you get knocked out of Champions League so u can concentrate on winning league