Forks in the Road (BAPx3)

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Michael Larsson, PSG (France)
Value: 73m
World Rep: 8539
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Larsson had a career year in 24/25, challenging LaFleur as the best play in France, Larssons club, PSG also battled AS Monaco for the title and reclaimed it with an outstanding second half. The meteoric rise in form signals that Larsson could be on his way to being the best player in the world!

​

  • 12 times Ligue 1 Team of the Week
  • Ligue 1 Champions (PSG)
  • Shortlisted for 2024 World Golden Ball
  • 2025 World Team of the Year
  • Ligue 1 Stars Team of the League
  • 2nd most assist in Ligue 1

"I learned all about life
with a ball at my feet"
-Ronaldinho



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Manu, Arsenal (England), Charlton (England)
Value: 27m
World Rep: 7156
View attachment 170663
Once again, I did nothing this year except battle my moron coaches to play me. I was used as a substitute on 3 occasions. That is all. At the end of the season, thankfully, Charlton came in for me at 13.75m Euros. That's slightly less than what Arsenal paid for me the previous season. So, once again I will be starting fresh with a new team. Chalrton has been a yoyo team the past few years and are newly promoted to the Premier League, so let's see what the future holds.

​
 
2025/26 : World Cup Year
View attachment 170502
With the World Cup on the horizon, it was a big opportunity for me to make a splash and work my way back into the Portugal fold. I had a fresh start in the English Premier League with Charlton, they looked like they were going to give me regular football for the first time in a couple seasons, everything looked promising. I actually wound up having an okay season, I played regularly but picked up an injury and missed about 4 weeks. Charlton got off to a horrible start without me and were 9pts from safety with 13 games to go. We made a strong push, but in the end we were relegated on goal difference. That doesn’t look good on me, getting relegated, but even worse I didn’t make the Portugal squad for the World Cup.

Mike and Lou had no worries about making the World Cup, they were only worried about Ligue 1 supremacy and in the end it was Michael Larsson and PSG who won out, setting a new record for pts in a season with 98. Both players made the World Cup squads as they both had great seasons.




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Manu, Charlton Athletic (England)
Value: 18.5m
World Rep: 7351
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As mentioned, I had a comeback year, of sorts. I was the best player on a really bad team but that garnered almost no attention internationally. I was really hoping to avoid relegation as Charlton are unlikely to keep me on at 85k/week in the Championship and I don’t want to start over with a new club.
​

  • 5 times Premier League Team of the Week
  • 2025/26 Charlton Athletic Supporters Player of the Year
  • Relegated




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Michael Larsson, PSG (France)
Value: 74m
World Rep: 8531
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Anither outstanding season from Larsson, who has really found a home in Paris. It looked like he was on the same path as I was until he made the move to PSG, now he is truly one of the best players in the World and arguably better than LaFleur
​


  • 10 times Ligue 1 Team of the Week
  • Shortlisted for 2025 World Golden Ball
  • 3rd​ Place in World Golden Ball
  • 2026 World Team of the Year
  • Ligue 1 Champions (PSG)
  • Ligue 1 Star of the Season runner-up
  • Ligue 1 Stars Team of the Season
  • 2025/26 PSG Supporters Player of the Season




View attachment 170503
Louis LaFleur, AS Monaco (France)
Value: 81m
World Rep: 9050
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LaFleur had another incredible season, scoring the most goals of his career, although Monaco fell short in the league, once again. Monaco’s point total was higher than any other team in Ligue 1 going back 10 years, but they still finished second! This is a big summer for LaFleur as it could be his best opportunity to win a World Cup.​


  • 9 times Ligue 1 Team of the Week
  • Shortlisted for World Golden Ball
  • 2026 World Team of the Year
  • French Player of the Year (5th​ time in a row)
  • 2026 Ligue 1 Stars Team of the Season
  • French Cup Winners (AS Monaco)
  • 3rd​ place in Best Player in Europe
 
View attachment 170259
World Cup 2026: Mexico

France, Denmark and Portugal all qualified for the finals in 2026. Louis LaFleur and Michael Larsson were representing their countries, I was not. We were all 27 years old and there I was sitting at home, with 8 caps to my name, watching my country play in the World Cup. I was supposed to be right there with them, I was supposed to be the best player in the world by this age. My brothers have taken to calling me Robinho, which is a bit harsh.

For Larsson and LaFleur, this would most likely be their last chance to lead their nation to a World Cup win. We might all get a chance in 2030, but that would probably be in a supporting role. Well, maybe not for Larsson in Denmark but definitely for LaFleur and I, if I ever make it to a major tournament.
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Group Stage
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France won all three games in comfortable fashion, including getting revenge on Denmark for eliminating them in Euro 2024. LaFleur is in spectacular form. Larsson is on a plane back to Denmark and he'll most likely be home before the postcards that he mailed.
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Portugal actually beat Germany for once, and they needed that win because had they failed to beat Germany in the final group game they would have been eliminated and Marco Silva would have been fired for sure! Too bad.

Knockout Rounds
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France eeked out aseries of 1 goal wins on the way to the final, with LaFleur making a big contribution, while England somehow made it to the final using a combination of luck, a good draw, penalties, and more luck. In the end, LaFleur missed his opportunity for a World Cup as England took home the trophy exactly 60 years after winning it for the first time.
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Manu Update
​

With Charlton going down, there was no way I wasn't going to kick up a fuss. Soon teams started sniffing around, like Europa League bound FC Arouca of Portugal, and Manchester City. As odd as it may sound, I quite liked the prospect of Arouca, I'd definitely play there. I did not want to go to City, but as I had used up all my transfers it was out of my hands, I just had to sit back and watch it play out.
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Arouca:rejected! Come on guys, 9.5m for a world class player like myself, I'm a little insulted here.


​
 
2026/27

In the end, I stayed at Charlton and played the season in the Championship, though it was under heavy protest! I missed training multiple times but the fines didn't deter me. I lead Charlton right back into the Premier League with ease. It didn't help my confidence that both Larsson and LaFleur put up better numbers in Ligue 1 than I could muster in the Championship, but at least I was playing regular football again.


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"Don't watch me this season, I'm in the Championship"
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Manu, Charlton (England)
Value: 24.5m

​

  • Championship Team of the Week 8 times
  • Championship Player of the Month (October)
  • Named in Portugal Season Best 11 (Somehow??? 1 cap for the year)
  • Winners of Sky Bet Championship (Charlton)
  • 2027 Championship Players Select (Not sure what this is)

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Michael Larsson, PSG (France)
Value: 79m
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Larsson had another great year, some would say it was a better season than Louis LaFleur. Had Larsson been at LaFleurs level the whole time, there might be an argument for him having the better career, but he'll have to be much better in order to make up the gap. His team, however, did win the league again, but as you'll see below, LaFleurs team won the Champions League
​



  • 9 times Ligue 1 Team of the Week
  • Ligue 1 Player of the Month (August)
  • Ligue 1 winners (PSG)
  • Ligue 1 Star of the Season runner-up
  • 2027 Stars Team of the Season
  • French Cup winners (PSG)



View attachment 170238
Louis LaFleur, AS Monaco (France)
Value: 84m
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LaFleur continued his storied career with another brilliant season. Along with all the individual accolades he has won, he can now add a second European Cup to his trophy case as he beat his old club, Manchester City in the final. Losing the World Cup final was rough on him, but he was able to soldier on and have a terrific year!
​

  • 9 times Ligue 1 Team of the Week
  • Shortlisted for 2026 World Golden Ball
  • World Golden Ball 3rd Place
  • 2027 World Team of the Year
  • 2027 Ligue 1 Stars Team of the Season
  • Ligue 1 Best Player
  • Winners of the Champions League and French Champions Trophy (AS Monaco)
  • Champions League Dream Team
 
2027/28: Monaco Do It Again!
View attachment 169959

A banner year for Louis LaFleur as his Monaco side win the Champions League for the second year
in a row, the first team to do so since AC Milan of the late 80's. Also, just like last season, they failed to
win their domestic title as Michael Larsson and PSG captured the Ligue 1 crown.
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In England, my Charlton side finally consolidated their position in the Premier League with a very respectable 12th place finish. I had another decent season and, although I'll never be considered with the likes of Larsson and LaFleur, I've still had some success.

Larsson and LaFleur had very succesful seasons in France and it was
impossible to decide who was better. Strikingly similar, those two.

France
View attachment 169958
PSG had the title wrapped up with a week to play but the battle between them and Monaco has been exciting!

Michael Larsson, PSG
Value: 78m
View attachment 169957
​

  • 10 times Ligue 1 Team of the Week
  • Shortlisted for 2027 Ballon d'Or
  • 2028 World Team of the Year
  • Broke the Coupe Da Ligue record with 5 assists in a season
  • Coupe da Ligue winners (PSG)
  • Ligue 1 winners (PSG)
  • Ligue 1 Star of the Season runner-up
  • 2028 Ligue 1 Stars Team of the Season



Louis LaFleur, AS Monaco
Value: 84m
View attachment 169956
​

  • 2027 French Champions Trophy winners (Monaco)
  • 2027 European Super Cup Winners (Monaco)
  • 14 times Ligue 1 Team of the Week
  • Ligue 1 Player of the Month for September 2027 and May 2028
  • Shortlisted for 2027 Ballon d'Or
  • Club World Championship Winners (Monaco)
  • Club World Championship Best Player runner-up
  • 2027 French Player of the Year runner-up
  • 2028 Ligue 1 Star of the Season 3rd place
  • 2028 Ligue 1 Stars Team of the Season
  • French Cup winners (Monaco)
  • UEFA Champions League winners (Monaco)
  • Named vice captain of France

England
View attachment 169951
No relegation this year for me!


Manu, Charlton AthleticValue:32m
View attachment 169950

​

  • 4 times English Premier League Team of the Week
Sadly, that is it for my achievements this year. How am I still worth 32m?
​
 

The clock is starting to wind down on our players, who will turn 30 this December, and no major international tournaments have been won. That did not change at Euro 2028 as France went out quietly in the first knockout round to Spain, while Denmark impressed but fell short as they lost to Germany in the semifinals, their best showing in 30 years. I didn't make the Portugal squad, as if you had to be told that at this point, but just for your own edification, Portugal went out to Germany in the knockout round.

Michael Larsson played well enough to be named to the European Championships Dream Team, if that's any consolation.
 
The players turn 30 this year and will start to slow down and their skills will deteriorate. I think it's safe to say that their best days are behind them, but some questions still remain. Will any of them win the World Cup? Will I ever play for Portugal again? These questions will all be answered soon. We actually finished this challenge, but I've had little time to post updates. We simmed the full seasons after Euro 2028 because Lou was the only one with transfers left and he felt pretty confident that if he wanted to move teams he'd do it in the summer.

So, I'll post screenshots of the players after each season, with a quick recap of the season, and we'll see how this played out!
 
2028/29

Manu
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Just a terrible season here, I was injured pretty often but I had a low average rating, my value dropped considerably and Charlton just barely avoided another relegation.

Michael Larsson
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Probably the best season of his career, coupled with a very poor season from LaFleur meant that, perhaps, Larsson was back in the race here! PSG won the title from Monaco for the 4th year in a row, and made it to the semi finals of the Champions League.
View attachment 169684


Louis LaFleur
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LaFleur suffered a broken leg a few days after Christmas and that was the end of his season. Without him, Monaco still managed 92pts in Ligue 1 and came within a whisker of the title. They went out in the quarters of the Champions League, failing in their quest to win 3 consecutive European Cups.


​
 
Goes to show what an impact a couple of huge injuries early on can have on a player's development, which is a real shame for you. :( Lafleur is still comfortably ahead of Larsson in my estimation.
 
PatrickLFC said:
Goes to show what an impact a couple of huge injuries early on can have on a player's development, which is a real shame for you. :( Lafleur is still comfortably ahead of Larsson in my estimation.
Click to expand...

It really does! I just can't believe the difference in talent between these players considering they are all essentially the same player.
 
2029/30

Manu
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Somewhat of a bounce back season, but it hardly matters at this point, my career has been an absolute disaster. If I had any transfers left I'd move myself back to my boyhood club, Boavista, and try to help them win something.

Michael Larsson/Louis LaFleur

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I accidentally took two screenshots of Louis LaFleur and none of Larsson, but they had similar seasons again, Monaco reclaimed the Ligue 1 title but PSg went further in Europe. Larsson won Ligue 1 Best Player while LaFleur won Ligue 1 Star of the Season. Don't ask me the difference.

Champions League Semi Finals
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Monacoblew a chance to meet PSG in the final here, that would have been nice. On a side note, why do they always say that the first leg triumph helped them win the tie, even if the second leg win is by a bigger margin? Just wondering.

Final
View attachment 169380
Schalke wins the Champions League for the first time ever. Larsson fails in his first big chance for the European Cup.
​
 
View attachment 169154
World Cup 2030: Australia


View attachment 169152
(the screen says 2034, but the bracket is from 2030)In what turned out to be a swan song for Larsson and LaFleur, neither one was able to achieve the ultimate goal of winning the World Cup. Neither played a big role in this tournament so I won't go into detail. Oh, I wasn't named to the Portugal squad.
​
 
2030 to 2035: Wrap Up

1st to retire: Michael Larsson
​

Larsson never really experienced a huge decline in his skills, but he was never going to get a new contract anywhere near the 425k per week he was earning. He became accustomed to that salary and did not want to take a pay cut so he decided that, at the ripe old age of 34, he had played enough football. Unfortunately, he did not go into coaching after his career so his profile page was wiped from the game before I could take screenshots or list his accomplishments. Through the yearly screenshots of his seasons it was pretty clear that, although he had an impressive career, he was not in the same league as Louis LaFleur. He goes out with a solid second place finish despite being the first to bow out.

2030/31
(screenshot lost)

2031/32
View attachment 169028

2032/33: His final season
View attachment 169027
Used mostly as a sub, but still took home 425k every week!

PSG were classy and looked to retain his services but at a reduced rate.
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As quickly as he burst onto the French scene so long ago, his flame was extinguished. With a few weeks notice, he quietly announced his retirement from football, having earned so many individual and team honours, certainly too many to list (I would have, but I no longer had access)
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Here is a short summary of his accomplishments
View attachment 169024
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He bows out of the game as 7 time French Champions as well as 9 other team honours. With 3 3rd place finishes for Ballon'Or and World Player of the Year, he was, without question, one of the World's best players in his prime.

View attachment 169022
Goodbye, Michael Larsson
2nd Place.
​
 
Next to Retire, June 2034
Manu


​
Well, after 2030, my contract with Charlton had run out and I was unceremoniously shown the door. Certainly no way to treat a player who had given so much to the club. Sure, I was constantly missing training, having problems with my coaches and crying for playing time, but when given the opportunity I led the team to 17th or higer, thus avoiding relegation....twice!

Luckily, I was in high demand as several club (Yes, I know that is singular) came knocking at my door. Of all the club that wanted me, I chose Pacos da Ferreira in Portugal. I was given a meagre salary, but money was never my motivation, obviously.

I played well, and Pacos comfortably avoided relegation with several minutes to spare. It was becoming a specialty of mine, avoiding relegation. Well, save for that one time I was relegated. I actually save Pacos from relegation for two seasons, quite an accomplishment for a team that has had constant relegation battles (please, don't fact check that)
After my contract ran out I was, again released, without much fanfare. I wandered for a month or so, with no interest from any clubs. A small Danish side had some minor interest but never put forth an offer. Finally, Leeds United came in and scooped me up on the cheap. I played 0 games for them over two seasons before deciding to hang up my boots. I had accomplished enough in football and there wasn't really anything else I could do, literally.
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My career in a nutshell
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I'll always have those few weeks as a teenager when I won the U21 Championship with Portugal. I had so much promise, the World was at my feet. I really could have been a contender, had things gone slightly the other way. I think that it was a combination of injury (I had two serious injuries before I turned 18) and bad transfers. My biggest regret was leaving Boavista too soon, I wonder how things would have gone had I stayed for more than just the 1 season. I did get to play 8 times for my country and I even scored a goal. Most importantly, Arsenal lost a heck of a lot of money on me!

View attachment 169015
Manu: The Best That Could Have Been.
A very distant 3rd place.
​
 
Last edited:
The Undisputed Champion: Louis LaFleur

​
The last man standing, Louis LaFleur, could probably have kept going another decade. He never had a poor season in his entire career, but in June 2033 he saw the writing on the wall at Monaco when newer, younger players were brought in at his position. He sought out a new challenge with newly promoted Bordeaux, using the 2nd of his 3 transfers. After two solid seasons at Bordeaux, his contract was up and his retirement was announced for June 30, 2035. In an effort to squeeze another season out of his career, Lou used his last transfer to move to the MLS with Montreal. That only lasted a few days as Montreal waived LaFleur and he retired a few days later, spelling the end of a truly remarkable career.

It's amazing what a differnce a few breaks can make to a players career in this game, it was eye opening to see the difference in development here. LaFleur flirted with being the best player of his generation, while Manu was in and out of the gutter.

2031/32
View attachment 169007

2032/33
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The move to Bordeaux meant more playing time.
View attachment 169005

LaFleur announced his retirement but Bordeaux immediately tried to get him to reconsider.
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When Bordeaux was relegated at the end of the season, things changed.
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The final season of the great Louis LaFleur. I was so far from this level, I can't even begin to argue.
View attachment 169000
He was better in his final season, at 35, than I was at any point in my career.
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The last ditch effort to prolong his career didn't work
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Louis LaFleur
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View attachment 168995
An incredible 28 competition wins for his career, 7 times French Player of the Year, 1 time English Premier League Player of the Year. FIVE time Champions League winner. He won the European Championship Best Player, was runner-up multiple times for the Ballon d'Or and World Player of the Year. In all he won 18 individual awards and finished top three 32 other times.
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The Winner:
Louis LaFleur
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Good job.




​
 
Thanks for everyone who followed along. It's been a fun way to play Football Manager despite having zero time to actually play the game.

My brothers and I have started a new save, where we will actually play the game, we've selected a league where there are only 18 games in the season and we will play one season over the next few months, it's pretty interesting.

We're playing in the Cuban league, where no players can come in from any other country so you're kind of stuck with what you have. What we've done is we've held a draft where we each selected 4 players to bring into our squad, these could be any players in the world without restriction, and then a 5th player that is uncapped.

So, Ronaldo, Messi, Neymar...pack your bags, you're all Cuban now!
 
I really enjoyed this and will definitely follow your next story :)
 
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