Life After Depor...

[Lippo255]

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Deportivo 1 - Elche 0

Goals - Bicho (74)

P.O.M. - Luis Hernandez (Deportivo)

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"A wins a win I suppose but this was a bit of a worry.

Elche went a man down after just 3 minutes when defender Jon Aurtenetxe was given a straight red for a challenge from behind on Omar Abdulrahman.

From that point on Elche were quite happy to keep everyone behind the ball & we really struggled to break them down. There was plenty of room on the flanks but its a bit hard to put the ball into the back of the net from there & Elche were very well organised in the middle.

After 45 minutes of frustration I chose to encourage the lads rather then be too harsh on them. Keep going boys, we can still win this!

In the second half Elche had more of the ball, much more in fact. They were regularly foraying into our half, which I didn't mind at all, but were almost exclusively resorting to taking long shots.

In the 74th minute we caught them getting a bit ambitious &, after our initial counter was stopped, the ball found its way back to Luis Hernandez on the right. Luis then swung in a beautiful cross that found Bicho on the far post. The youngster took a touch off his chest before volleying the ball into the back of the net. 1-0. Game over!"

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[Yeti01]

Look at Alcorcon go!

 

[Lippo255]

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Mallorca 0 - Deportivo 3

Goals - Bicho (14, 17), Renteria (70)

P.O.M. - Bicho (Deportivo)

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"This was more like it!

We started this game on fire. 70% possession in the first 20 minutes, 2 goals from young superstar Bicho & the game was all but over.

Abdulrahman pulled the strings setting up both goals. The first was a gorgeous back heel on the edge of the box that found Bicho's run behind the defence, the second after beating 2 defenders off the dribble & having his shot saved by the keeper. Bicho again the quickest to react.

Mallorca did come back into the game but by that stage I was more then happy for us to sit back & play on the break. once again our defence was rock solid & reduced Los Bermellones to taking shots from distance.

For the second time in 2 matches Omar Abdulrahman was forced off the field after constantly being hacked down by opposition defenders. Thankfully he is ok.

It made little difference as Bicho then turned provider for our 3rd, setting up new boy Andres Renteria for his first goal for the club & putting the game to bed. A good all round performance."

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[Lippo255]

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[Yeti01]

Nice away win there - I think Depor might ruffle a few feathers this season!

 

[Lippo255]

Unfortunately, Juan Carlos managed to one up me by claiming the signature of Jordan Ayew. I could have gone in much harder on the young man but I have been very careful with the clubs finances thus far & after talking it over with my good friend, Malmo manager Patrick Ibrahimovic, I decided I would not break the bank to secure his services.

We did however manage to get one late deal through on deadline day. The loan signing of Man City striker Kelechi Iheanacho.

Kelechi is off contract at the end of the year so I thought now would be a good time to see what he can do. If he manages to impress I may well attempt to make the move permanent.


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[Lippo255]

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Manuel's Musings - August.​

"Just the 2 games to report on in August. Both wins. We struggled to break down a 10 man Elche side before going on to demolish Mallorca. I wanted maximum points from these games & that's what I got so very happy.

Performance wise we have not had a bad player but Bicho has stood out as our best. The winger claimed the young player of the year award last time around & already looks to have gone to a new level this year! Fullback Luis Hernandez has also managed to stand out while new boys, Omar Abdulrahman, Vurnon Anita & Andres Renteria have all made good starts to life at Depor. All in all, a very promising start to the year."

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Preview - September.

"We begin the month by hosting Sevilla, our first real test of the new campaign, before flying out to Australia for international break to take on Sydney FC. That game will be a chance for some fringe players & young guys to impress & earn a call up for our competitive matches.

Sporting away, Villarreal at home & Rayo away then follow before we host Barca at the Raizor in our first run in with the big boys!

I am aiming for 8 points from these games to continue our impressive start to the new campaign."
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[Lippo255]

****! Just as the window slams shut!

I think one experience with "Lord Bendtner" is enough for any manager!


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[BlindSide]

Yeah, thought i'd try something different. Thanks for commenting was wondering what people thought. Think you may be looking at it wrong though. I am playing a 4-2-3-1, not a back 3 lol

Touche haha. That was a silly error lol. Second glance it makes much more sense. But I definitely like the added touch.

something I can speak of without error though is Kelechi. I picked him up on a free from Man City and he was marvellous. Flipped him for a good fee also as he reached his potential quicker than the team did.

 

[Lippo255]

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Deportivo 2 - Sevilla 1

Goals - Gamiero (13), Abdulrahman (32), Perez (78)

P.O.M. - Ruben Perez (Deportivo)

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"Sevilla were rampant to start his game & when Gameiro escaped his man & beat Fabricio at his near post in just the 13th minute I feared our good start was about to end in sensational fashion.

To their credit though the guys responded magnificently & in the 32nd minute we drew level when a well executed string of short passes ended with Omar Abdulrahman, who poked home from point blank range to equalise.

From there the game become an open, end to end, dig dong battle as neither side would take a step back in search of the winning goal. Both sides had chances but it was a long range bomb from Ruben Perez that would settle it.

The midfielder pounced on a headed clearance, took a touch & riffled the ball into the back of the net from god only knows how far. An early candidate for goal of the year!

From there we sat back & relied on our solid defence to see out the game. A great victory!"

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I know there are still a few games to be played but I just couldn't resist putting this one up! If only the league finished now!


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[Yeti01]

God that table looks sexy!

 

[Lippo255]

God that table looks sexy!

Hahaha, I'm beginning to worry about you!

 

[Lippo255]

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[AndySams10]

Great start to the league campaign mate. Good luck for the remainder of the season.

 

[Lippo255]

Well, we may have won some fans with our attacking flair, however our defence left a lot to be desired. I rested the vast majority of our first 11 so the squad was comprised mostly of B team players & fringe first teamers but still. A 4 all draw? Better then a 4-3 loss I suppose.


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[JamesScott2908]

Brilliant start to the season mate, Hope this continues and Europe could be in contention!

 

[Lippo255]

Brilliant start to the season mate, Hope this continues and Europe could be in contention!

Yeah, we have started very well. CL might be beyond us but a Euro Cup spot may be a possibility. Only early days though.

 

[Lippo255]

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Sporting 0 - Deportivo 1

Goals - Lucas (13)

P.O.M. - Javi Castellano (Sporting)

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"After our start to the year we'd be expected to beat newly promoted Sporting comfortably & we did. Kinda.

We started well on top &, when Ezequiel floated in a cross that found Lucas unmarked on the far post, we were ahead after just 13 minutes.

The only thing the goal seemed to change was our focus in front of goal as we continued to control the game & create chances but couldn't hit the target to save our lives. Striker Andres Renteria, particularly wasteful resulting in me hooking him just 4 minutes into the second half (Bicho put him 1 on 1 with the keeper & his shot went out for a throw!).

Sporting were getting their chances as well, which made the game nervy but in the end we held on to claim our 4th straight win to start the year."

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[Lippo255]

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Deportivo 1 - Villarreal 0

Goals - Ezequiel (63)

P.O.M. - Veli Kevlak (Villareal)

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"For much of this game it appeared that we were headed towards a bore 0-0 draw. In fact, if I am honest, Villarreal seemed the more likely to get the break through. They carved us open on a fairly regular basis & it was only some great last ditch defending & the odd Fabricio save that kept us in it.

Despite this I resisted the urge to pull back a bit. When you live by the sword occasionally you will also die by it I thought.

In the 63rd minute my stubbornness was rewarded when Ezequiel cut inside from the left, beat his man off the dribble & placed his shot perfectly low into the far corner of the net. 1-0.

From that point I decided that discretion would be the better part of valour & finally made the call to drop a little deeper. Still Villarreal had their chances but we held on. Perhaps luckily.

Oh well, they cant all be spectacular. A win is a win & that's 5 straight!"

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[CantGetEnoughOfJelavic]

Easyyyyyyyy