I started out with nothing and I still got most of it left

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January 2039

Another transfer window opens, so it’s time to look at what’s going on: ST Drake, GK Makengo and CB Rincon’s contracts all expire in the summer. Rincon is retiring, so isn’t so much of a problem. Makengo’s contract is £200k a week which is a lot. I’m considering allowing him to go and pick up a cheaper back-up option on a free - a number of good options are available.

Drake is the biggest headache. Having failed to agree terms with Man City in the summer for his move away, he’s now unhappy and refusing to a sign a new contract. He’s a world-class talent so I am very keen to keep him at the club. However, if he does leave, we have Juan Mas who could step into his shoes for next season but he needs gametime so going out on loan would be the best option for the remainder of this season before, essentially, replacing Drake next season.

Eibar
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Watching that was like wading through treacle.

Getafe (Spanish Cup, 5th​ Round, 1st​ Leg)
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A game of firsts as both Sanchez and Garrancho score their first goals for the club in a comfortable result that should guarantee progression.

Zaragoza
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A Benali-inspired thumping win takes us top of the league as Real fail to win at San Sebastien. Those goals take Benali’s season total to 20 goals, 16 in the league, to give him his best goalscoring season in a Barca shirt…and we’re still only in January. That makes it 13 wins in the last 14 games and just one goal conceded in the last 11.

Getafe (Spanish Cup, 5th​ Round, 2nd Leg)
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It’s a good job the first leg was comfortable, as that was a bit of an anti-climax. Real Madrid await in the quarter finals.

A Bilbao
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Two awful defensive errors give Bilbao the way back into the game and just as it looks like they’ve done enough to earn themselves a point, Benali tucks away a penalty in injury time.

Real Madrid (Spanish Cup, Qtr Final 1st​ leg)
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We finally manage a win over Real and it’s a fairly comprehensive one although it took a pretty drastic change just after half time to consolidate the win.

Espanyol
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Once again, Benali is the player that makes the difference although we didn’t play particularly well and were stretched in parts.

Real Madrid (Spanish Cup, Qtr Final 2nd​ leg)
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The formation stays the same, but some fairly substantial tactical changes are made to give us the best chance of progression and an utterly dominant display ensures that we do. We hunted in packs, smothered Real high up the pitch and kept the ball ourselves, all of which meant that it was going to be a low scoring affair.

Valencia await…

Malaga
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Gonzalez’s goalscoring has somewhat petered out recently so Drake starts and he gets his goal. It takes a while to actually seal the win, but it gets more comprehensive the longer the game went on.

What can I say - Benali is just quality. 20 league goals in just 21 games and on top of that he leads the assists charts. Gonzalez has slowed after a very good start and even Drake as a bit part player has been making a significant contribution although the vast majority of his goals have been in the cups.
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It’s pretty obvious that us and Real are head and shoulders above the rest of the league as we’ve already pulled 13 points clear of the chasing pack. We have a pretty poor record against Real, but a fantastic one against everyone else so it may just be a case of hoping Real slip up against the smaller teams which should be enough. The Champions League is the big one though.
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February 2039

Mas eventually moves to my old club Inter on loan for the remainder of the season. I’m hoping this a) gives him gametime and b) increases his value.

Valencia (Spanish Cup, Semi Final, 1st​ Leg)
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Started slowly…and didn’t really get any better after that.

Sevilla
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It’s fair to say I did not see that coming, but Sanchez’s card didn’t help the cause. The media calls it a ‘fade to defeat’ and…I’m inclined to agree with them!

Valencia (Spanish Cup, Semi Final, 2nd Leg)
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Rincon gets the only goal in normal time and the penalty win sees us through to the final, where we look forward to playing…Athletico Madrid. That was not comfortable as we were pushed right to the wire by Valencia.

Vallecano
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Oh…one shot, one goal. That was frustrating in a result that sees us lose ground on the leaders.

Athletico Madrid
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Gonzalez rediscovers his goalscoring touch as Athletico Madrid barely had a chance in a game in which we were simply brilliant. Benali’s 22nd​ goal of the season means he is well on his way to hunting down Drake’s (recent history) La Liga record of 27 in a season.

Monaco (Champions League, 1st​ knockout round)
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The cup strikers; Flores and Drake are restored to the starting line-up, but otherwise it’s a pretty usual team. Garrancho, on penalty duty, makes the most of his spot kick. Slightly frustrating to concede a ridiculous equaliser as a result of overplaying in the 18 yard box.

Celta Vigo
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I’m surprised we conceded two there, but we were playing against a team who sit in sixth place, so clearly not mugs.

All four strikers in double figures thanks to cup rotation and using all three substitutes in most games. There’s a spattering of goals elsewhere, most surprisingly with WBL Rodriguez there with 6…not bad considering he’d only scored 3 first team goals in his previous 11 seasons.
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March 2039

Hispalis
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Gonzalez dominated the Hispalis defence who were just unable to compete with his finishing ability and movement. I was slightly concerned that, having splashed out £44m on the player, he only managed 6 goals in 22 league games least season but he looks like he’s settled in now.

Valencia
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Valencia away, was always going to be a tough game so some slight alterations were made which didn’t go to plan…Luis doesn’t help the situation, but in truth the damage was well done by then.

Getafe
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A possession heavy but low quality affair was only lit up with Gonzalez’s fine first half injury time strike.

Monaco
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A draw in the first leg with an away goal gives us a reasonable chance of progression and Flores seals the victory with Gonzalez putting the icing on the cake.

View attachment 52232 - no easy games at this stage of the competition but that is a ***** of a draw.

Sporting Gijon
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Having scored twice in 5 minutes and then missed a penalty, I really thought we’d go on to absolutely spank Gijon but it wasn’t’ to be as we didn’t make the most of the early goals and Gijon changed their formation and tactics to mitigate the damage.

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It’s tight at the top.
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April 2039

Granada
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We needed a comfortable win ahead of having to face 3 games against Real Madrid in the next 5. Both Flores and Benali provide a goal and assist each as they continue their fine seasons.

Somewhat fittingly, I go into the league game against the big rivals with it being a milestone.
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Before the game, Champions League qualification is guaranteed for next season and a seomwhat miserly budget of £24m is provided. Makengo, at £200k a week is leaving and it looks as though Drake, on £275k a week can’t be persuaded to stay either, so that money should be put towards the transfer budget and frees up some additional cash in the summer.

Real Madrid
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This could be a valuable rehearsal for the upcoming Champions League games with Real and as we’re away, a conservative approach is taken. The wingbacks are reigned in, the 2 CM are given defending roles, the space is constricted and again, Real are smothered. They were always going to create chances, but the shots were mostly speculative. A tactical masterclass but Gonzalez’s month long injury is a blow.

Las Palmas
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Las Palmas are the first of the teams in the Real sandwich and wholesale changes are made and, although we had enough chances to win and we should have done, we couldn’t put anything away. Pure frustration, especially after the Real result. Pretty unforgivable not to get a result there after the red card.

Real Madrid (Champions League Qtr Final, 1st​ leg)
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The same tactics that served so well in the league game are adopted for this, which pays off in one respect as we don’t concede and absolutely pepper their goal, hitting the woodwork on four occasions…as the press asks after the game; “How did we not win that?”

Villareal
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We’ve been threatening a big win for some time and Villareal just came to town at the wrong time it would seem.

Real Madrid (Champions League Qtr Final, 2nd leg)
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The reigns are let off a little bit for the second leg, but we stil need to be careful to keep a clean sheet. That was a seriously edgy tense game and Drake only puts the game to bed after Real make some more offensive changes as they push on. We join Chelsea, Benfica and PSG in the Semi’s.

View attachment 52112 - I have a wretched record against Chelsea in European games with previous clubs, but hopefully this Barca team have the extra quality needed to get to the final.

Cordoba
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A win’s a win, but that was from our most convincing performance. Us and Real just keep playing leapfrog at the top of the table so we’ve got hope they slip or up or just keep matching their results as we have the better head-to-head this season.

Eibar
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It did look like its going to go horribly wrong after conceding the early goal, but that just seemed to spur them on as we ended up with a fairly convincing win in the end.

Benali leads the league goalscoring charts with 26 and the assists with 13. Gonzalez sits behind him with 22 goals.
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Two critical games left to decide the future of the season - we’ve got San Sebastian and Zaragoza both at home to play. Real Madrid also have 2 home games against Villareal and, coincidentally, San Sebastian…I can’t see Real dropping points, so it’s up to us to keep the pressure on.
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May 2039

Long term transfer target; CB Luca Franchini is finally signed from Juventus for a fee of £25m and is pretty much a straight swap for the retiring Rincon. GK Makengo and AMC El Allouchi also join in him in retiring at the end of the season.

Chelsea A (Champions League Semi Final, 1st Leg)
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The more defensive tactics that served me so well against Real Madrid are employed against the team who finished fourth in the Premiership last season. We seem to have cracked the latter stages of the Champions League as Drake proves a point and shows us what we’ll be missing if he leaves.

San Sebastien
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Baez continues his development with a fine performance and a debut goal as he drills in a fine low effort from 25 yards. Benali matches Drakes best league goalscoring season.

Chelsea H (Champions League Semi Final, 2nd Leg)
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We did a lot of good work in the first leg so it should be just a case of keeping it solid to get through to the final which was the case. Not the most compelling of games, but the clean sheet sees us through. The Bertrand injury is a shocker - he’s damaged his cruciate and misses the next 9 months, including the Champions League final.

Athletico Madrid (Spanish Cup Final)
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In all the excitement of getting to the Champions League final and fighting it out with Real at the top of the league, I’d completely forgotten about the Spanish Cup Final. Benali & Drake put Athletico to the sword as we win a surprisingly comfortable one-sided final.
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Zaragoza
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Real could only manage a draw in the last week of games, so we need just a point against Zaragoza to clinch the title. I’ve said it a few times already this season, but Benali and Gonzalez are simply too good for Zaragoza and put in the kind of performance that has got us into this position in the first place. That win seals a second consecutive title.
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View attachment 52033 - Benali also wins top goalscorer and Hernandez keeps the most clean sheets in the league.

Ahead of the Champions League final, both Benali and El Allouchi injure themselves in training sessions and will both miss out. Benali in particular will be a massive blow.

PSG (Champions League Final)
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For some reason, PSG start the game with 3 injured players on the pitch which was odd. We start the game playing the more defensive way that proved successful in the last couple of rounds, although the first half was a pretty dire affair. To force the issue, we changed back to the usual tactic which pretty promptly pays off as Barbosa scores early in the second halffrom distance, Flores adds a second and Drake seals it. This team really does step up for the big occasions but the real victory there was the way we nullified PSG who fail to even record a shot on target.
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Clearly, that was a rather successful season and we played some really good football to add to the mix. The Supercup, League, Spanish Cup and Champions League represents, comfortably my most successful season - and in some of those competitions, we virtually played a reserve team - but this is a quality team and they make it look easy.

In the end, we had some daylight ahead of Real but for much of the season we were either playing leapfrog or behind them. Sevilla seemed to be my bogey team this year as we lost to them on both occasions we faced them in the league.
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June 2039

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It’s pretty much there for everyone to see - the players have been outstanding and it’s not a surprise we picked up all 4 trophies this season. Benali and Gonzalez particularly have been simply brilliant at the top end of the pitch but there are plaudits all through the team. Erding, picked up on a free has pretty much forced his way into the first team and Rodriguez has picked up from where Perlingeiro left off last season.

=X=X=X=

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So that’s it and the managerial tale is completed - I’ve achieved the goal set out at the beginning of this story. I’ve managed in all the groups and now won the Champions League so it’s time to hang up the clipboard, notepad and pen, resign from the Nou Camp and go enjoy my retirement!

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10
Slovakia
Hungary
Iceland
(Grindavik - Icelandic 1st Div
June 16-July 18)
2016: Prom: 1st Div (2nd) > Prem
2017: Icelandic Premiership: (8th)
2018: Upper League Cup (winners)
9
Serbia
Bulgaria
(Tryavna - Bulgarian Div 2
July 18 - Dec 19)
Slovenia
2019 - Prom: 2nd Lge (3rd) > 1st Lge
8
Israel
Denmark
(FC Midtjylland - Danish Superliga
Dec 19 - July 22 )

Scotland
2020 - Superliga (9th)
2020 - European Cup (Group Stages)
2021 - Superliga (3rd)
2021 - European Cup (1st knockout round)
2022 - Superliga (1st)
2022 - Danish Cup (Winners)
7
Belarus
(Neman Grodno - Belarusian Highest League
July 22 - Nov 22)
Sweden
Norway
2022 - Highest League (13th)
6
Austria
(SV Grodig - Austrian First Division
Dec 23 - Nov 24 )

Croatia
Poland
2024- Austrian 1st Div (4th)
5
Czech Republic
(Slovan Liberec - Czech First Division
Nov 24 - Jan 28)

Greece
Romania
2025 - Czech 1st Div (8th)
2026 - Czech 1st Div (3rd)
2026 - European Cup (Euro Cup playoff)
2027 - Czech 1st Div (1st)
2027 - European Cup (1st knockout round)
4
Turkey
(Galatasaray - Turkish Superleague
Jan 28 - Jun 30)

Holland
Switzerland
2028 - Turkish Superleague (2nd)
2028 - European Cup (2nd round)
2029 - Turkish Superleague (1st)
2029 - Turkish SuperCup (Winners)
2029 - Champions League (1st round)
2030 - Turkish Superleague (1st)
2030 - Turkish Cup (Winners)
3
Russia
Ukraine
Belgium
(Anderlecht - Belgian Pro League
Jun 30 - Jun 32)

2030 - Belgian SuperCup (Winners)
2030 - Champions League (Gp Stage)
2031 - Belgian ProLeague (1st)
2031 - European Cup (Qtr Final)
2031 - Belgian Super cup (Winners)
2031 - Champions League (Group Stage)
2032 - Belgian ProLeague (2nd)
2
Italy
(Bologna - Serie B
Jun 32 - May 33
Serie A
May 33 - Nov 33
Lazio - Serie A
Nov 33 - Dec 35
Inter Milan - Serie A
Dec 35 - Jul 37)
Portugal
France
Bologna:
2033 - Prom: Serie B (2nd) > Serie A
Lazio:
2034 - Serie A (7th)
2035 - European Cup (1st round)
2035 - Serie A (3rd)
Inter Milan:
2036 - Italian Cup (winners)
2036 - Serie A (3rd)
2037 - European Cup (Runners up)
2037 - Serie A (winners)
1
Spain
(Barcelona - La Liga
Jul 37 - Jul 39)
Germany
England
2038 - Champions Cup (1st Round)
2038 - La Liga (1st)
2038 - Spanish Supercup (Winners)
2039 - Spanish Cup (Winners)
2039 - La Liga (1st)
2039 - Champions Cup (Winners)
 
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An amazing effort my friend. For some time I have stop playing the game because I was not so sure whether I wanted to continue my long term save with Leeds. Now the fact that you have reached 1000 games inspired me to continue!!
 
An amazing effort my friend. For some time I have stop playing the game because I was not so sure whether I wanted to continue my long term save with Leeds. Now the fact that you have reached 1000 games inspired me to continue!!

You'll get there - stick at it, but it helps when teams like Barca have 60-odd games a season though

I'm quite happy to see the back of this one, I've got a retro 95/96 database I've been dying to start a game with!!
 
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