Great story dude! Have me thinking of managing a team outside the well known ones! Keep it up
Thanks man, it's a good challenge mate thats for sure. Not too many wonderkid lists & such for the indian league i can assure you!
Very rewarding!
Get It India!
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Thanks man, it's a good challenge mate thats for sure. Not too many wonderkid lists & such for the indian league i can assure you!
Very rewarding!
AlphaUlrich
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Nice story! Good to see you continue for so long. I once tried doing the Indian leagues in FM14, but the weird format (having cups at a stretch, stupidly long pre-seasons) just put me off. I was also ****** at the limit of foreign recruits. There is simply not enough freedom to sign the best players.
Keep it going! Looking forward to the next update.
Keep it going! Looking forward to the next update.
Thanks mate, the scheduling is quite strange i must admit but i think it is down to the asian competitions.
As far as the player limits are concerned i am trying to grow the game here so i think it actually helps me to focus on finding & developing local talent. I am here for the long haul after all
Cheers mate, sorry missed your post at first but definitely appeciate your support.
More often than not it is your support that keeps me going.
Thank you all!!!
AlphaUlrich
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Thanks mate, the scheduling is quite strange i must admit but i think it is down to the asian competitions.
As far as the player limits are concerned i am trying to grow the game here so i think it actually helps me to focus on finding & developing local talent. I am here for the long haul after all
Yeah, hope you succeed in developing the game there! Btw, is this save having any impact on the Indian National team in your save? Like, are they being competitive in the World Cup qualifiers, etc? And does the national team pick the bulk of your first team players?
Atm, unfortunately i cant say the national side has progressed too much.
When i was at Dempo i think i had 6 of the starting 11 in my squad. As of right now i only have 2 indian internationals who would regularly start.
I would very much like to take control of the national side as i feel results are not what they could be but the current manager seems to have full support so i will bide my time. :S
When i was at Dempo i think i had 6 of the starting 11 in my squad. As of right now i only have 2 indian internationals who would regularly start.
I would very much like to take control of the national side as i feel results are not what they could be but the current manager seems to have full support so i will bide my time. :S
Look forward to reading it mate, let me know when you start so i don't miss it.
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View attachment 315268
East Bengal vs Nejmeh
Our final match of the ACC group stage is a dead rubber against Nejmeh. As far as the group is concerned I don't need to win but, with the knock-out phase just around the corner, it is time to start building some momentum again. A game at home against the bottom placed side in the group would seem to be a great place to bag some goals & build confidence. That is what I hope in any case.
Line-ups
View attachment 315260
Have selected a fairly strong line-up with momentum in mind. Have finally dropped D'Cunha in favour of Manesh Sarkar as my target man. Despite being underwhelming in the league Iban Salvador is amongst the leading scorers in this comp so have picked him ahead of Enize as my advanced forward. The rest of the starting 11 is pretty much first choice all round.
Result
View attachment 315231
After dominating the early stages we seemed to fall asleep. Nejmeh constantly had us pinned on our line, we couldn't retain any sort of possession & were fouling almost constantly (a problem I have noticed all to often recently despite not having any sort of aggressive pi's or ti's assigned). In the 27th minute the inevitable happened as we fell behind to a soft goal to Al-Jummah. Afterwards we came back into the match but still went to the half 1-0 down, with 15 fouls to 1!!!!! not to mention a game ending injury to Lalkamal Bhowmick.
We controlled the second half well but it took 77 minutes to find the equalizer. Bhowmick replacement Shayne D'Cunha finally rediscovering his scoring boots before Opiyo gave us the lead just a few minutes later. This started a goal spree as they first equalized inside a minute before, 30 seconds later we went straight back into the lead through Mustafa Nadhim. 3 goals in less then 2 minutes, unbelievable!!! Peter Opiyo then added his second of the game in stoppage time to seal the win 4-2. A very exiting last 15 minutes for the fans.
Final Table
View attachment 315230
So, as expected, we finish second behind Persepolis who made light work of Mohammedan on the final day. I now await the second round draw to see who our next opponents will be.
Some Random Group Stage Stats
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View attachment 315227
View attachment 315226
East Bengal vs Nejmeh
Our final match of the ACC group stage is a dead rubber against Nejmeh. As far as the group is concerned I don't need to win but, with the knock-out phase just around the corner, it is time to start building some momentum again. A game at home against the bottom placed side in the group would seem to be a great place to bag some goals & build confidence. That is what I hope in any case.
Line-ups
View attachment 315260
Have selected a fairly strong line-up with momentum in mind. Have finally dropped D'Cunha in favour of Manesh Sarkar as my target man. Despite being underwhelming in the league Iban Salvador is amongst the leading scorers in this comp so have picked him ahead of Enize as my advanced forward. The rest of the starting 11 is pretty much first choice all round.
Result
View attachment 315231
After dominating the early stages we seemed to fall asleep. Nejmeh constantly had us pinned on our line, we couldn't retain any sort of possession & were fouling almost constantly (a problem I have noticed all to often recently despite not having any sort of aggressive pi's or ti's assigned). In the 27th minute the inevitable happened as we fell behind to a soft goal to Al-Jummah. Afterwards we came back into the match but still went to the half 1-0 down, with 15 fouls to 1!!!!! not to mention a game ending injury to Lalkamal Bhowmick.
We controlled the second half well but it took 77 minutes to find the equalizer. Bhowmick replacement Shayne D'Cunha finally rediscovering his scoring boots before Opiyo gave us the lead just a few minutes later. This started a goal spree as they first equalized inside a minute before, 30 seconds later we went straight back into the lead through Mustafa Nadhim. 3 goals in less then 2 minutes, unbelievable!!! Peter Opiyo then added his second of the game in stoppage time to seal the win 4-2. A very exiting last 15 minutes for the fans.
Final Table
View attachment 315230
So, as expected, we finish second behind Persepolis who made light work of Mohammedan on the final day. I now await the second round draw to see who our next opponents will be.
Some Random Group Stage Stats
View attachment 315228
View attachment 315227
View attachment 315226
View attachment 315119
Second Round Draw
View attachment 315118
So we have drawn Jordanian side Al-Faisaly in the second round.
Interestingly enough they finished on top of Pune FC's group so will obviously be no pushovers. From what I can see it will be a one legged tie played in Jordan on the 29th of May. Tough! :S
View attachment 315110
Here's their club overview. Now you guys know as much about them as I do. lol
Second Round Draw
View attachment 315118
So we have drawn Jordanian side Al-Faisaly in the second round.
Interestingly enough they finished on top of Pune FC's group so will obviously be no pushovers. From what I can see it will be a one legged tie played in Jordan on the 29th of May. Tough! :S
View attachment 315110
Here's their club overview. Now you guys know as much about them as I do. lol
JamesScott2908
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Been a silent reader and look forward to your updates, Great story! Hopefully Al-Faisaly dont prove to much of a challenge!
View attachment 314918
View attachment 314917 View attachment 314916
So Pune wrap up back to back titles before our match has even kicked off. According to my inbox messages they are the biggest producers of young Indian talent in the country & Mr Bencherifa obviously knows how to get the most out of them.
Will definitely be attempting to raid their youth in the off-season If given a chance.
Lajong vs East Bengal
View attachment 314891
Started this game on fire! Where looking unstoppable & Quickly went 2-0 up.
Of course it all went downhill from there though. Despite my warnings the team went to sleep & with their first shot on goal Lajong where back in it.
Gave the side a rocket at the half in an attempt to snap them out of if but it made no difference & on 70 minutes Lajong drew level with a long distance screamer.
From there we went back to complete domination but never looked like being able to hit the target. So wasteful, so infuriating!
Another missed opportunity.
View attachment 314917 View attachment 314916
So Pune wrap up back to back titles before our match has even kicked off. According to my inbox messages they are the biggest producers of young Indian talent in the country & Mr Bencherifa obviously knows how to get the most out of them.
Will definitely be attempting to raid their youth in the off-season If given a chance.
Lajong vs East Bengal
View attachment 314891
Started this game on fire! Where looking unstoppable & Quickly went 2-0 up.
Of course it all went downhill from there though. Despite my warnings the team went to sleep & with their first shot on goal Lajong where back in it.
Gave the side a rocket at the half in an attempt to snap them out of if but it made no difference & on 70 minutes Lajong drew level with a long distance screamer.
From there we went back to complete domination but never looked like being able to hit the target. So wasteful, so infuriating!
Another missed opportunity.
Thanks mate, appreciate that.
Wont know much about Al-Faisaly until the game starts I'm afraid. They had 2 very tight games against Pune so lets hope we can go 1 better & knock them off.
JamesScott2908
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I have no doubts you will! In Regards to Pune and bringing through the best youth players, What are your facilities like?
View attachment 314878
Here are our facilities. Top corporate facilities but the rest need improving.
View attachment 314877
Here is why I haven't been able to do much about it. Need a strong ACC finish & that 2nd place prize money to get the ball rolling.
View attachment 314858
Al-Faisaly vs East Bengal
Pre-match Reports
View attachment 314857
View attachment 314856
Not a lot to go on but it will have to do I guess. Look to be fairly solid defensively having only conceded the 5 goals. The 1 assist they have given up seems to have been from a long ball over the top (unless I've misread the report) so am expecting to be facing a high defensive line???
Line-ups
Once again I forget to take a screenie. :S
Rest assure I have selected my strongest 11. Playing 1 striker, 1 shadow striker version of the same tactic I have pretty much used all year. The plan is to sit back & hit them on the counter.
Result
View attachment 314850
Early on my plan was working perfectly. They were playing very high trying to dominate possession but the extra man in mid-field was making us very hard to break down & we were getting chances on the counter.
On 19 minutes Iban Salvador took 1 of our chances & fired us into the lead.
From that point on we were under almost constant pressure. I kept encouraging the boys & they responded well holding them out until the break.
At half time I told the boys they were doing well & gave specific praise to our defence who had held out impressively.
The second half was more of the same. They were pushing hard & we were no longer able to create anything on the counter. After just 10 minutes they broke us down & slotted the equaliser from close range.
At this point I expected the flood gates to open but we continued to hold them out. I was experimenting with different things to try & make us more competitive but nothing seemed to work. In any case we held them out until full time.
To extra time we go!
Extra time was actually pretty uneventful. Neither side created much & the dreaded penalty shoot out always felt inevitable.
Thought we had missed our chance when Enize missed his shot after 1 of their guys missed to hand us the chance to win it. Fortunately Singh-Sandu stepped up next shot made the save & won us the match. Very, Very Lucky to get away with this!!!!!
Al-Faisaly vs East Bengal
Pre-match Reports
View attachment 314857
View attachment 314856
Not a lot to go on but it will have to do I guess. Look to be fairly solid defensively having only conceded the 5 goals. The 1 assist they have given up seems to have been from a long ball over the top (unless I've misread the report) so am expecting to be facing a high defensive line???
Line-ups
Once again I forget to take a screenie. :S
Rest assure I have selected my strongest 11. Playing 1 striker, 1 shadow striker version of the same tactic I have pretty much used all year. The plan is to sit back & hit them on the counter.
Result
View attachment 314850
Early on my plan was working perfectly. They were playing very high trying to dominate possession but the extra man in mid-field was making us very hard to break down & we were getting chances on the counter.
On 19 minutes Iban Salvador took 1 of our chances & fired us into the lead.
From that point on we were under almost constant pressure. I kept encouraging the boys & they responded well holding them out until the break.
At half time I told the boys they were doing well & gave specific praise to our defence who had held out impressively.
The second half was more of the same. They were pushing hard & we were no longer able to create anything on the counter. After just 10 minutes they broke us down & slotted the equaliser from close range.
At this point I expected the flood gates to open but we continued to hold them out. I was experimenting with different things to try & make us more competitive but nothing seemed to work. In any case we held them out until full time.
To extra time we go!
Extra time was actually pretty uneventful. Neither side created much & the dreaded penalty shoot out always felt inevitable.
Thought we had missed our chance when Enize missed his shot after 1 of their guys missed to hand us the chance to win it. Fortunately Singh-Sandu stepped up next shot made the save & won us the match. Very, Very Lucky to get away with this!!!!!
View attachment 314685
Team News
View attachment 314684
Finally got the board to agree to a request, despite being told no to begin with!!!
To me it seems like a no brainer that if we are to compete in Asian competitions we should be allowed to scout Asia!? At least now I can get an idea of who I'm up against & hopefully be better prepared for my opponents. YAY!
Let's hope it will also allow me to find some better additions in the off-season as well.
Team News
View attachment 314684
Finally got the board to agree to a request, despite being told no to begin with!!!
To me it seems like a no brainer that if we are to compete in Asian competitions we should be allowed to scout Asia!? At least now I can get an idea of who I'm up against & hopefully be better prepared for my opponents. YAY!
Let's hope it will also allow me to find some better additions in the off-season as well.
View attachment 314683
I-League Table
View attachment 314682
So this is it. A grudge match against my former employers will decide where we finish the year. Only 1 point separates 2nd & 4th with ourselves & Dempo locked on 31 points.
A win & we will finish a respectable 2nd, a draw will change nothing while a loss will see us drop to 4th, well below expectations.
Pre-match Controversy
View attachment 314681
This is mere hours before kick off!!!
He hasn't even waited to see if they can finish 2nd. Colaco obviously has very high standards. Hopefully this will work in our favour.
Line-ups
View attachment 314680
Despite having just 2 days between this & our trip to Jordan I name almost an unchanged line-up. Kumar comes in for Cardozo as the only change.
Dempo also field a very strong 11 however I notice Aryn Williams is starting in the centre of defence. That's not his best position & quite frankly at 173cm he lacks the height to play there, although he is a giant compared to his partner at the back 167cm DeSouza. Is this something I can exploit?
Result
View attachment 314679
Short answer, No!
For 75 minutes we were absolutely dreadful. How we were still in the match i'll never know. Then from out of nowhere D'Cunha latches onto a through ball & keeps his cool to slot the equalizer home.
Just as we are starting to look confident, like we might go on & win it, our goalie goes off injured! Of course I have already made all my changes!!! Young central defender Subhashish Bhattacharya is forced to fill in!
Thankfully despite having a man less we somehow manage to leave him with next to nothing to do & hang on. What a disasterous finish to a largely disappointing campaign :'(
Final Table
View attachment 314677
So we finish the year in 3rd. A bit disappointing but after the number of changes made at the beginning of the year I can't be too upset. Our shining light were the performances of veteran midfielder Lalkamal Bhowmick. Let's hope next year he gets some help & we can kick on give the title a real shake.
View attachment 314676
Not a lot but it all helps.
There is now 2 months before the next round of the ACC is drawn. Why the long break? I have no idea.
In the meantime I will be exploring opportunities to improve the squad & working on some new tactics & formations.
Once again I would like to thank you all for following & contributing to the story. I hope next year I will be more successful. :S
I-League Table
View attachment 314682
So this is it. A grudge match against my former employers will decide where we finish the year. Only 1 point separates 2nd & 4th with ourselves & Dempo locked on 31 points.
A win & we will finish a respectable 2nd, a draw will change nothing while a loss will see us drop to 4th, well below expectations.
Pre-match Controversy
View attachment 314681
This is mere hours before kick off!!!
He hasn't even waited to see if they can finish 2nd. Colaco obviously has very high standards. Hopefully this will work in our favour.
Line-ups
View attachment 314680
Despite having just 2 days between this & our trip to Jordan I name almost an unchanged line-up. Kumar comes in for Cardozo as the only change.
Dempo also field a very strong 11 however I notice Aryn Williams is starting in the centre of defence. That's not his best position & quite frankly at 173cm he lacks the height to play there, although he is a giant compared to his partner at the back 167cm DeSouza. Is this something I can exploit?
Result
View attachment 314679
Short answer, No!
For 75 minutes we were absolutely dreadful. How we were still in the match i'll never know. Then from out of nowhere D'Cunha latches onto a through ball & keeps his cool to slot the equalizer home.
Just as we are starting to look confident, like we might go on & win it, our goalie goes off injured! Of course I have already made all my changes!!! Young central defender Subhashish Bhattacharya is forced to fill in!
Thankfully despite having a man less we somehow manage to leave him with next to nothing to do & hang on. What a disasterous finish to a largely disappointing campaign :'(
Final Table
View attachment 314677
So we finish the year in 3rd. A bit disappointing but after the number of changes made at the beginning of the year I can't be too upset. Our shining light were the performances of veteran midfielder Lalkamal Bhowmick. Let's hope next year he gets some help & we can kick on give the title a real shake.
View attachment 314676
Not a lot but it all helps.
There is now 2 months before the next round of the ACC is drawn. Why the long break? I have no idea.
In the meantime I will be exploring opportunities to improve the squad & working on some new tactics & formations.
Once again I would like to thank you all for following & contributing to the story. I hope next year I will be more successful. :S
View attachment 314661
East Bengal Sign Diogo Salomao!
View attachment 314660
East Bengal have announced one of the biggest signings in the history of the I-League today as manager C.J. Lippo unveiled former Deportivo la Coruna & Sporting Lisbon star Diogo Salomao as the Kolkata club's most recent addition.
Salomao, 29 (pictured) who has spent time in the top flights in Portugal, Spain & most recently Belgium arrived at Salt Lake Stadium today amid chaotic scenes as Bengal fans flocked to see there latest recruit.
"Without a doubt Diogo is one of the most talented players to ever play here & it is evidence of the tremendous progress we are making as a club." Lippo continued.
"We are delighted that he has agreed to join us & I personally look forward to working with him."
East Bengal Sign Diogo Salomao!
View attachment 314660
East Bengal have announced one of the biggest signings in the history of the I-League today as manager C.J. Lippo unveiled former Deportivo la Coruna & Sporting Lisbon star Diogo Salomao as the Kolkata club's most recent addition.
Salomao, 29 (pictured) who has spent time in the top flights in Portugal, Spain & most recently Belgium arrived at Salt Lake Stadium today amid chaotic scenes as Bengal fans flocked to see there latest recruit.
"Without a doubt Diogo is one of the most talented players to ever play here & it is evidence of the tremendous progress we are making as a club." Lippo continued.
"We are delighted that he has agreed to join us & I personally look forward to working with him."