This is a story about my current FM career based on FM10. I'm playing with a large database and with leagues open all over the world. I progress rather slowly because I have little time to play and because I like to watch the matches at a relatively slow speed.
My name is Thomas Dreischhoff, I’m a 45 year-old German national, married, two kids (12 and 2), living in Troisdorf, Germany and working in an office job in Cologne.
My main interest is football, I’m a fan of my hometown team Werder Bremen and I follow football whenever I can.
In June 2009 I finally decided to give my life a new direction and to try finding a job as a Football Manager, hoping that I would find new motivation, enthusiasm and balance by doing for a living what I love doing anyway.
My wife of course was not too happy when I confronted her with my plans, but knowing how football-crazy I am she was eventually convinced that it might be good for the entire family if I could combine my professional career with my personal interests.
She of course thought, that I would anyway not find a decent job as a football manager, as I have no previous experience in this field. This was also my concern, but I decided to at least give it a try.
11.06.2009 (Thursday):After some research I had found 50 clubs all around the world without a current manager, so I sent my application to those clubs.
12.06.2009 (Friday):Most clubs reject my application due to my lack of experience in this field coupled with the fact that I have never even played professional football.
5 clubs however show some interest, so I decide to give them a call to pre-check the conditions.
The first call is to Yuriy Kunytskyi, chairman of Arsenal Bila Tserkva.
This is a club from the Ukrainian First Division, which contrary to its name is the second-tier league in Ukraine.
The conditions described in this first phonecall sound not ideal, but at least also not that bad, that I would decline them outright, especially as my wife is from Ukraine, we still have family there and I speak good Russian.
We agree that I would think it over and contact him again.
Next I call Jim McGrory, chairman of Lisburn Distillery from the Northern Irish Premier League.
The salary he is prepared to offer is however way below my current salary, so I can cross this club off my list.
Then it’s Slawomir Dolinski, chairman of Dolcan Zabki from the Polish 1st League (again 2nd tier league in the country).
Same story as with Lisburn, the salary is unacceptable.
The 4th call goes to Zhang Peng, chairman of Changsha Ginde from the Chinese Super League.
What he tells me sounds interesting, as he is prepared to offer a salary comparable to my current one and also promises a reasonable transfer budget.
I decide to read up on the Chinese Super League in general and Changsha in particular and to call him back in a few days.
The final call goes to Yuriy Kindzerskyi, chairman of FC Lviv, another club from the Ukrainian First Division.
Unfortunately the salary is again way below my current one, so I break off this negotiation.
I then speak things over with my wife. She is surprised that some clubs have shown interest, but is still very sceptical, whether I should take this any further.
I inform my boss, that I will take the following week off.
14.06.2009 (Sunday):All the other clubs I have addressed have meanwhile rejected my application, so it really comes down to either Arsenal Bila Tserkva, Changsha Ginde or continuing in my current boring job.
My wife agrees, that I should at least accept the offers of Yuriy Kunitskyi and Zhang Peng to meet them in person and discuss the details.
I call them again confirming my interest and making the respective appointments.
Both reassure me that travel costs will be reimbursed by the club, so I book my flights and accommodation.
15.06.2009 (Monday):I fly to Kiev as Bila Tserkva is located only a few kilometres south of Kiev.
A driver picks me up and brings me to my meeting with Yuriy Kunitskyi.
He offers me a 3-year contract with a monthly salary of 3.700 Euros, no transfer budget but a reasonable wage budget of 61K to work with.
I have a look at the club facilities and we then agree that I will think about the offer and inform him about my decision until the end of the week.
In the evening I meet my friend Wassiliy Pantov and his family.
16.06.2009 (Tuesday):I fly home and spend the rest of the day with my family.
17.06.2009 (Wednesday):In the afternoon I start the long flight to Changsha (16 hours including a stop-over in Beijing.
18.06.2009 (Thursday):I arrive in Changsha at 1:35 p.m. local time and the chauffeur of Zhang Peng picks me up at the airport and drives me to the hotel.
After taking a nap and a shower I meet Zhang Peng, who is the chairman of Changsha Ginde and also the CEO of Ginde Plastic Pipe Industry Group in Changsha, who own the club.
He explains that Changsha Ginde only exists under this name since 2007 and was previously known as Shenyang Ginde, a club existing only since 1986.
The main sponsors of the club are Kappa and Shenyang Brilliance Automobile Co., the latter coming in handy as I was to find out moments later.
Changsha Ginde have been in the Chinese Super League for some years but have never won anything nor have they ever finished close to the top.
Zhang Peng explains that this is why he and the Shangsha Ginde board had decided to bring in a European manager to initiate the changes that might eventually allow Changsha Ginde to become more competitive.
As the Chinese Super League in general and Changsha Ginde in particular represent however not the most reputable career moves they have now turned to me despite my obvious lack of experience.
He goes on to explain that the season in China is already well under way with 11 of 30 games played and that Changsha Ginde are currently in 8th place, having won 5 and lost 6 of those 11 games. I of course know this, as I had prepared myself and I also know that they are 7 points off the top and 8 points clear of the relegation places.
Zhang Peng offers me a monthly salary of 4.600 Euros which would represent around 3.000 Euros net. This is slightly below my current salary, but then living costs in a second-tier Chinese town like Changsha are very low.
Thanks to our sponsor being Shenyang Brilliance Automobile Co. and them being the importer of BMW cars into China, the offer includes a BMW 5-series sedan as a company car.
The wage budget is 58K per month and thus only marginally above the current wage expenses, which is a concern for me, but at least he offers a transfer budget of 225K and shows willingness to trade off part of that transfer budget against a higher wage budget.
I think that overall this is the better off the two offers I have and just about good enough to seriously consider giving up my current job and move to China.
We agree that I use the remainder of the evening to consider the offer and to discuss it with my wife and agree to meet the next morning.
In the evening I have a long phone conversation with my wife and she eventually agrees that I can accept the offer to become manager of Changsha Ginde.
Her condition however is, that she would stay with the kids in Troisdorf at least until summer 2010 before deciding whether the whole family would relocate to China. There is an international school in Changsha but it is so far only taking kids between 7 and 9 years old.
It will be hard to be separated so long, but I will be able to fully concentrate on my new job and we at least agree, that they will spend half of the upcoming summer school holiday with me in Changsha.
19.06.2009 (Friday):This morning I’m again picked up by the chauffeur of Zhang Peng and he then drives me to the Helong stadium.
It’s a stunning 55.000 seater and I immediately feel the dream arising to fill this stadium with an enthusiastic crowd, a big task, knowing that the current average attendance is below 10.000.
I again meet Zhang Peng, but this time he is accompanied by the other board members of Changsha Ginde.
I’m thus introduced to He Bing (Managing Director), Jin Hui (General Manager) and Shang Kuiming (Director).
After talking to them Zhang Peng invites me to a tour of the city.
Changsha is the capital of the province Hunan in Southern China.
It is located at the river Xiangjiang, a big offspring of the famous Yangtse river.
Near Changsha are many lakes, rivers and hills and also a big beautiful natural resort.
Changsha has around 6 million inhabitants, but 4 million of them occupy the suburbs of the Changsha municipal area.
I like what I see and when we are back in the office of Zhang Peng, I accept the offer to become the new manager of Changsha Ginde, signing a contract until the end of 2010.
Zhang Peng is delighted and tells me that I will have the full backing of the Changsha Ginde board.
There is not too much pressure on me in terms of expected results but at least I should ensure that we stay clear of the relegation zone for this season.
I then meet my assistant manager Hao Wei (32), who is a former Chinese international (5 caps)
He introduces me to the 3 coaches, **** Zhengfeng (42) coaching all aspects of the game, Zhao Tuqiang (46) the goalkeeper coach and Yu Ming (37, 1 cap) the fitness coach.
I also meet **** Zhong (46) and Yu Jiatian (48), the two physios.
Hao Wei and the coaches then give me an overview of the team, explaining that they feel that the squad has the quality and the depth to avoid relegation.
The squad looks as follows:
Goalkeepers:
Song Zhenyu (27), 12 caps Starter, Chinese international, but according to my research just about decent
**** Lue (24) Backup, don’t consider him good enough
Shi Xiaotian (19) Reserve team goalkeeper, not good enough
Defenders:
Zhang Chenglin (22) DC, ST talented DC, primary backup there
Ren Hang (20) DC is viewed as a big talent, but I’m not convinced
Shim Jae-Won (32) S.Korea, 20 caps, DR/DC starting DR
Zhao Ming (21) DC talented backup DC, currently injured
Billy Mwanza (30) Zambia 3 caps, DC starting DC
**** Qiang (24) good DC, second starter
Midfielders:
Xu Bo (24) DMC, MC decent ball winning midfielder, backup
Li Chunyu (22) MC, DMC, AMC starting playmaker, currently injured
Liu Jianye (22), CM, DR, DL would normally be starter as ball winning midfielder, but currently also the only left-back in the team
Zhao Ming (24) MR, AMR decent backup in right midfield
Dai Qinhua (23) MC, ST backup central midfielder, can also play striker
Lee Sang-Il (30) S.Korea, AML, ML one of two key players in team, starting left winger/midfielder
Li Wenbo (25) MR, AMR, DR starting right midfielder, first backup at right-back
Zhang Xiaobin (24) AMC, MC, AMR, AML has yet to show that he is worth his high salary, so far just versatile backup, currently injured
Lian Yanfeng (22) ML, AML backup left midfielder
Strikers:
Kim Eun-Joong (30) S.Korea, 15 caps, ST one of two key players in team, complete forward can play both DLF and AF
Jefferson Feijao (30), Brazil, att.allrounder good complete forward or target man, also decent as playmaker or winger
Yu Guijun (24) ST, MC, MR 3rd striker, Trequarista, Poacher or Advanced Forward
Wen Huyi (26) ST 4th striker, versatile, decent
Liu Xiaofeng (24) ST, AMR Advanced Forward or winger, probably not really good enough for this level
It is obvious that we have a glaring hole at left-back that will require my urgent attention.
Liu Jianye is the only player in the squad who has any skills at this position, but he is much better suited to be our ball winning central midfielder than to cover up at left-back.
For now though there is nobody else as even in the reserves there is no left-back.
Hao Wei provides me with information about two players who he thinks could fill our gap at left-back.
The first is the experienced Brazilian defender Emerson Aleixo (31)
He is a natural central defender but can also competently play left-back.
Looking at the information, he would probably be our strongest defender, should we manage to sign him, but the drawbacks are, that he’s not a natural left-back and that other clubs are already after him.
The other player is the experienced Congolesian left-back Delain Sasa (33).
He’s not as good as Aleixo and also already 33, but is at least a natural left-back.
Hao Wei also recommends to take a look at Rafael Costa, a Brazilian defensive midfielder on whom we have not sufficient information. I ask Hao Wei to scout him at the next opportunity.
All of these players are currently looking for a new club and have previously played in China.
Before addressing any of them however, I need to gain more manoeuvring room in the wage budget and I go to Zhao Peng to negotiate that.
He is quite flexible and we finally agree to increase the wage budget from 58K to 71K per month, but my transfer budget has now shrunk to 57K.
I also discuss the left-back issue with him and the other board members and they mention a few Chinese left-backs who are on the market and may be worth a look.
Those are:
Yang Gang (32) DL,DR
**** Fan (29) DL,DR
Li Koucheng (31) DL
Liang Shiming (25) DL
I’m planning to talk to those players in person to find two new left-backs ideally before our next league game starts on July 5th.
In my tactical scheme that I intend to deploy I will play a flat four at the back with all four players focussing on defence.
In midfield I want to play with attacking outfielders or wingers and with two central midfielders, one of which will assume a more defensive role trying to win balls and the other being a deep-lying playmaker type, supporting the attack with his passing and adding perhaps a few long-range shots.
Upfront I want one of my two strikers to come from a deeper position and to run at the defence and the other being an advanced forward whose main role will be to put the ball into the net.
Due to the injuries to two of my designated playmakers, I’d also like to sign one additional central midfield playmaker.
Further needs might be an additional deep-lying forward, as most of our forwards are better suited to play the advanced forward role
Finally I might also try to sign another decent goalkeeper as I’m concerned that I’m lacking quality in this area.
I also intend to sign more coaches, if the board let’s me do that.
I believe that it’s cheaper to make the existing players better than to buy new players, but in order to make them better, I think we need professional individualized training for all aspects of play.
I will therefore look for available coaches skilled to coach areas like attacking play, defensive play, set-pieces, shooting and tactics and perhaps also fitness and aerobics.
Finally I intend to install new training schemes and properly assign each player to a training scheme that is tailored to the role I like him to play in my team.
My name is Thomas Dreischhoff, I’m a 45 year-old German national, married, two kids (12 and 2), living in Troisdorf, Germany and working in an office job in Cologne.
My main interest is football, I’m a fan of my hometown team Werder Bremen and I follow football whenever I can.
In June 2009 I finally decided to give my life a new direction and to try finding a job as a Football Manager, hoping that I would find new motivation, enthusiasm and balance by doing for a living what I love doing anyway.
My wife of course was not too happy when I confronted her with my plans, but knowing how football-crazy I am she was eventually convinced that it might be good for the entire family if I could combine my professional career with my personal interests.
She of course thought, that I would anyway not find a decent job as a football manager, as I have no previous experience in this field. This was also my concern, but I decided to at least give it a try.
11.06.2009 (Thursday):After some research I had found 50 clubs all around the world without a current manager, so I sent my application to those clubs.
12.06.2009 (Friday):Most clubs reject my application due to my lack of experience in this field coupled with the fact that I have never even played professional football.
5 clubs however show some interest, so I decide to give them a call to pre-check the conditions.
The first call is to Yuriy Kunytskyi, chairman of Arsenal Bila Tserkva.
This is a club from the Ukrainian First Division, which contrary to its name is the second-tier league in Ukraine.
The conditions described in this first phonecall sound not ideal, but at least also not that bad, that I would decline them outright, especially as my wife is from Ukraine, we still have family there and I speak good Russian.
We agree that I would think it over and contact him again.
Next I call Jim McGrory, chairman of Lisburn Distillery from the Northern Irish Premier League.
The salary he is prepared to offer is however way below my current salary, so I can cross this club off my list.
Then it’s Slawomir Dolinski, chairman of Dolcan Zabki from the Polish 1st League (again 2nd tier league in the country).
Same story as with Lisburn, the salary is unacceptable.
The 4th call goes to Zhang Peng, chairman of Changsha Ginde from the Chinese Super League.
What he tells me sounds interesting, as he is prepared to offer a salary comparable to my current one and also promises a reasonable transfer budget.
I decide to read up on the Chinese Super League in general and Changsha in particular and to call him back in a few days.
The final call goes to Yuriy Kindzerskyi, chairman of FC Lviv, another club from the Ukrainian First Division.
Unfortunately the salary is again way below my current one, so I break off this negotiation.
I then speak things over with my wife. She is surprised that some clubs have shown interest, but is still very sceptical, whether I should take this any further.
I inform my boss, that I will take the following week off.
14.06.2009 (Sunday):All the other clubs I have addressed have meanwhile rejected my application, so it really comes down to either Arsenal Bila Tserkva, Changsha Ginde or continuing in my current boring job.
My wife agrees, that I should at least accept the offers of Yuriy Kunitskyi and Zhang Peng to meet them in person and discuss the details.
I call them again confirming my interest and making the respective appointments.
Both reassure me that travel costs will be reimbursed by the club, so I book my flights and accommodation.
15.06.2009 (Monday):I fly to Kiev as Bila Tserkva is located only a few kilometres south of Kiev.
A driver picks me up and brings me to my meeting with Yuriy Kunitskyi.
He offers me a 3-year contract with a monthly salary of 3.700 Euros, no transfer budget but a reasonable wage budget of 61K to work with.
I have a look at the club facilities and we then agree that I will think about the offer and inform him about my decision until the end of the week.
In the evening I meet my friend Wassiliy Pantov and his family.
16.06.2009 (Tuesday):I fly home and spend the rest of the day with my family.
17.06.2009 (Wednesday):In the afternoon I start the long flight to Changsha (16 hours including a stop-over in Beijing.
18.06.2009 (Thursday):I arrive in Changsha at 1:35 p.m. local time and the chauffeur of Zhang Peng picks me up at the airport and drives me to the hotel.
After taking a nap and a shower I meet Zhang Peng, who is the chairman of Changsha Ginde and also the CEO of Ginde Plastic Pipe Industry Group in Changsha, who own the club.
He explains that Changsha Ginde only exists under this name since 2007 and was previously known as Shenyang Ginde, a club existing only since 1986.
The main sponsors of the club are Kappa and Shenyang Brilliance Automobile Co., the latter coming in handy as I was to find out moments later.
Changsha Ginde have been in the Chinese Super League for some years but have never won anything nor have they ever finished close to the top.
Zhang Peng explains that this is why he and the Shangsha Ginde board had decided to bring in a European manager to initiate the changes that might eventually allow Changsha Ginde to become more competitive.
As the Chinese Super League in general and Changsha Ginde in particular represent however not the most reputable career moves they have now turned to me despite my obvious lack of experience.
He goes on to explain that the season in China is already well under way with 11 of 30 games played and that Changsha Ginde are currently in 8th place, having won 5 and lost 6 of those 11 games. I of course know this, as I had prepared myself and I also know that they are 7 points off the top and 8 points clear of the relegation places.
Zhang Peng offers me a monthly salary of 4.600 Euros which would represent around 3.000 Euros net. This is slightly below my current salary, but then living costs in a second-tier Chinese town like Changsha are very low.
Thanks to our sponsor being Shenyang Brilliance Automobile Co. and them being the importer of BMW cars into China, the offer includes a BMW 5-series sedan as a company car.
The wage budget is 58K per month and thus only marginally above the current wage expenses, which is a concern for me, but at least he offers a transfer budget of 225K and shows willingness to trade off part of that transfer budget against a higher wage budget.
I think that overall this is the better off the two offers I have and just about good enough to seriously consider giving up my current job and move to China.
We agree that I use the remainder of the evening to consider the offer and to discuss it with my wife and agree to meet the next morning.
In the evening I have a long phone conversation with my wife and she eventually agrees that I can accept the offer to become manager of Changsha Ginde.
Her condition however is, that she would stay with the kids in Troisdorf at least until summer 2010 before deciding whether the whole family would relocate to China. There is an international school in Changsha but it is so far only taking kids between 7 and 9 years old.
It will be hard to be separated so long, but I will be able to fully concentrate on my new job and we at least agree, that they will spend half of the upcoming summer school holiday with me in Changsha.
19.06.2009 (Friday):This morning I’m again picked up by the chauffeur of Zhang Peng and he then drives me to the Helong stadium.
It’s a stunning 55.000 seater and I immediately feel the dream arising to fill this stadium with an enthusiastic crowd, a big task, knowing that the current average attendance is below 10.000.
I again meet Zhang Peng, but this time he is accompanied by the other board members of Changsha Ginde.
I’m thus introduced to He Bing (Managing Director), Jin Hui (General Manager) and Shang Kuiming (Director).
After talking to them Zhang Peng invites me to a tour of the city.
Changsha is the capital of the province Hunan in Southern China.
It is located at the river Xiangjiang, a big offspring of the famous Yangtse river.
Near Changsha are many lakes, rivers and hills and also a big beautiful natural resort.
Changsha has around 6 million inhabitants, but 4 million of them occupy the suburbs of the Changsha municipal area.
I like what I see and when we are back in the office of Zhang Peng, I accept the offer to become the new manager of Changsha Ginde, signing a contract until the end of 2010.
Zhang Peng is delighted and tells me that I will have the full backing of the Changsha Ginde board.
There is not too much pressure on me in terms of expected results but at least I should ensure that we stay clear of the relegation zone for this season.
I then meet my assistant manager Hao Wei (32), who is a former Chinese international (5 caps)
He introduces me to the 3 coaches, **** Zhengfeng (42) coaching all aspects of the game, Zhao Tuqiang (46) the goalkeeper coach and Yu Ming (37, 1 cap) the fitness coach.
I also meet **** Zhong (46) and Yu Jiatian (48), the two physios.
Hao Wei and the coaches then give me an overview of the team, explaining that they feel that the squad has the quality and the depth to avoid relegation.
The squad looks as follows:
Goalkeepers:
Song Zhenyu (27), 12 caps Starter, Chinese international, but according to my research just about decent
**** Lue (24) Backup, don’t consider him good enough
Shi Xiaotian (19) Reserve team goalkeeper, not good enough
Defenders:
Zhang Chenglin (22) DC, ST talented DC, primary backup there
Ren Hang (20) DC is viewed as a big talent, but I’m not convinced
Shim Jae-Won (32) S.Korea, 20 caps, DR/DC starting DR
Zhao Ming (21) DC talented backup DC, currently injured
Billy Mwanza (30) Zambia 3 caps, DC starting DC
**** Qiang (24) good DC, second starter
Midfielders:
Xu Bo (24) DMC, MC decent ball winning midfielder, backup
Li Chunyu (22) MC, DMC, AMC starting playmaker, currently injured
Liu Jianye (22), CM, DR, DL would normally be starter as ball winning midfielder, but currently also the only left-back in the team
Zhao Ming (24) MR, AMR decent backup in right midfield
Dai Qinhua (23) MC, ST backup central midfielder, can also play striker
Lee Sang-Il (30) S.Korea, AML, ML one of two key players in team, starting left winger/midfielder
Li Wenbo (25) MR, AMR, DR starting right midfielder, first backup at right-back
Zhang Xiaobin (24) AMC, MC, AMR, AML has yet to show that he is worth his high salary, so far just versatile backup, currently injured
Lian Yanfeng (22) ML, AML backup left midfielder
Strikers:
Kim Eun-Joong (30) S.Korea, 15 caps, ST one of two key players in team, complete forward can play both DLF and AF
Jefferson Feijao (30), Brazil, att.allrounder good complete forward or target man, also decent as playmaker or winger
Yu Guijun (24) ST, MC, MR 3rd striker, Trequarista, Poacher or Advanced Forward
Wen Huyi (26) ST 4th striker, versatile, decent
Liu Xiaofeng (24) ST, AMR Advanced Forward or winger, probably not really good enough for this level
It is obvious that we have a glaring hole at left-back that will require my urgent attention.
Liu Jianye is the only player in the squad who has any skills at this position, but he is much better suited to be our ball winning central midfielder than to cover up at left-back.
For now though there is nobody else as even in the reserves there is no left-back.
Hao Wei provides me with information about two players who he thinks could fill our gap at left-back.
The first is the experienced Brazilian defender Emerson Aleixo (31)
He is a natural central defender but can also competently play left-back.
Looking at the information, he would probably be our strongest defender, should we manage to sign him, but the drawbacks are, that he’s not a natural left-back and that other clubs are already after him.
The other player is the experienced Congolesian left-back Delain Sasa (33).
He’s not as good as Aleixo and also already 33, but is at least a natural left-back.
Hao Wei also recommends to take a look at Rafael Costa, a Brazilian defensive midfielder on whom we have not sufficient information. I ask Hao Wei to scout him at the next opportunity.
All of these players are currently looking for a new club and have previously played in China.
Before addressing any of them however, I need to gain more manoeuvring room in the wage budget and I go to Zhao Peng to negotiate that.
He is quite flexible and we finally agree to increase the wage budget from 58K to 71K per month, but my transfer budget has now shrunk to 57K.
I also discuss the left-back issue with him and the other board members and they mention a few Chinese left-backs who are on the market and may be worth a look.
Those are:
Yang Gang (32) DL,DR
**** Fan (29) DL,DR
Li Koucheng (31) DL
Liang Shiming (25) DL
I’m planning to talk to those players in person to find two new left-backs ideally before our next league game starts on July 5th.
In my tactical scheme that I intend to deploy I will play a flat four at the back with all four players focussing on defence.
In midfield I want to play with attacking outfielders or wingers and with two central midfielders, one of which will assume a more defensive role trying to win balls and the other being a deep-lying playmaker type, supporting the attack with his passing and adding perhaps a few long-range shots.
Upfront I want one of my two strikers to come from a deeper position and to run at the defence and the other being an advanced forward whose main role will be to put the ball into the net.
Due to the injuries to two of my designated playmakers, I’d also like to sign one additional central midfield playmaker.
Further needs might be an additional deep-lying forward, as most of our forwards are better suited to play the advanced forward role
Finally I might also try to sign another decent goalkeeper as I’m concerned that I’m lacking quality in this area.
I also intend to sign more coaches, if the board let’s me do that.
I believe that it’s cheaper to make the existing players better than to buy new players, but in order to make them better, I think we need professional individualized training for all aspects of play.
I will therefore look for available coaches skilled to coach areas like attacking play, defensive play, set-pieces, shooting and tactics and perhaps also fitness and aerobics.
Finally I intend to install new training schemes and properly assign each player to a training scheme that is tailored to the role I like him to play in my team.
will follow